Daybreak

by Cheree Alsop

  Liora wandered the twisted paths and jagged walkways of the pieced-together Gaulded. Parts of ships and even the side of what looked like a building from Earth made up a crazy collaboration so random it would be easy to get lost.

  Liora was about to turn around and head back to the Gaulded when a sign caught her eye. The poster had been plastered over an assortment of others. The familiarity of the script and the pictures below made Liora’s stomach tighten. She tore it from the wall and glanced at the date. Her heart began to race.

  “What is that?”

  Before she could react, Tariq took the poster from her hands. He smoothed it out and studied it. As soon as he realized what it was, he shook his head.

  “No. There’s no way.”

  “I’m going, Tariq. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

  The human motioned toward several Kratos’ crew members who stood at a nearby merchant’s spicy grub shop challenging each other to try the wares. It seemed by Jarston’s watering eyes that he was unable to pass up a good dare. The merchant was thrilled at the chance to make a few coppers and held out the next item to be sampled.

  “And what about them? You just promised them you’d stick around. They don’t take that lightly. You can’t just up and leave whenever the whim catches you.”

  “This isn’t a whim,” Liora shot back. She snatched the poster out of his grasp. “This is a chance. Don’t you see?”

  Tariq folded his arms across his chest. “It’s irrational.”

  Liora glared at him. “Don’t you get it? This is the next place Malivian’s circus is going to be, and it’s in two days. It’s only a galaxy from here.”

  “So you want to ditch your crew and go confront Malivian. I get it. I just don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  Liora fought back the urge to punch him. “Chief Obruo just destroyed the Gaulded Zero Twenty-one, the last place I was at. Now we know where he’s going to go next.”

  Tariq’s eyes narrowed. “He’s going after Malivian.”

  Liora nodded. “Eliminate everything I know. Make your prey run. Eventually, when they have nowhere else to go, they’ll make mistakes. It’s the Damaclan way.”

  Tariq’s gaze was dark when he asked, “Don’t you guys ever stop?”

  Liora shook her head. “Never. He won’t stop until everyone I care about is dead. I’ve finally found somewhere I want to be, and I’m not going to let that happen to them, too.”

  Tariq’s expression softened a bit. He looked at the poster again. “Are you sure about this?”

  “Sure enough to steal a ship.” A plan formed in her mind as she spoke. She made her way toward the loading dock. “I’ll meet you at the Albatross.”

  “Do you know how to get there?” he asked quizzically.

  Liora nodded. “I memorized the coordinates when Hyrin wasn’t looking.” She lifted a shoulder and tried not to sound guilty when she said, “I thought I might need them sometime.”

  Liora paced along the ships looking for what she needed.

  “You’re just going to steal one?” Tariq asked. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

  She found exactly what she wanted. “Yes. I’m taking that one.”

  Tariq looked from the ship to the hulking figure loading the last of his supplies into the holding bay. The Calypsan that had tried to cause a fight with the Kratos crew hit the button to close the door and huffed away muttering about needing a drink.

  “That’s the first thing you’ve said that makes sense.” Tariq headed for the ship.

  “Where are you going?” Liora asked in surprise.

  Tariq glanced at her over his shoulder. “You really think I’d let you go after Obruo alone? I owe him payback as much as you do. Besides,” he said, pausing near the door. “I’m not sure letting you face off with your two worst enemies alone is a good idea.”

  “Who says they’re my worst enemies?” Liora shot back.

  Tariq opened his mouth to argue, then shut it again and hit the button for the door. It slid open.

  “It wasn’t even locked?” Liora asked in surprise as she followed him inside.

  “I guess nobody’s stupid enough to steal from a Calypsan.”

  “Except us,” she reminded him.

  A slight smile touched his lips when he slid into the pilot’s chair. “Except us.”

  “Isn’t Devren going to worry about you?”

  Tariq glanced at her out of the corner of his eye as he flipped switches and checked the gauges. “He’d worry even more if I let you take off alone. Sit down and tell me what the fuel levels say.”

  Liora put her hands on her hips. “Who says you’re flying?”

  “I do,” Tariq replied. “Now sit before you hurt yourself.”

  He revved the engine and backed the ship carefully from the dock. The last thing they saw was the Calypsan shaking a meaty fist before Tariq hit the thrusters.

  Chapter 21

  They took the Vermont transporter to planet Luptos in the Maffei One Galaxy. Liora’s heart sped up as they drew near. Ships from all over the Macrocosm waited in rows for access to the better docks near land. Shuttles ran back and forth across Luptos’ murky surface, carrying every member of mortalkind imaginable to the promise of entertainment.

  “Wow. Everyone shows up to these things,” Tariq said after they landed.

  “Have you been to the circus before?” Liora asked him, careful to keep her voice level so she wouldn’t give away how just being near a circus again set her on edge.

  “I haven’t,” Tariq admitted. “I’ve always wondered.” He glanced at her and said, “But I don’t suppose it’s worth the hype.”

  She shook her head. “A bunch of people and creatures staring at other people and creatures. I’ve never understood it.”

  “Yet you were a part of it.” Tariq held out his hand to help her onto the shuttle.

  “Unwillingly.”

  The gesture caught Liora off-guard. She wasn’t used to someone watching out for her. She felt self-conscious when she slipped her hand into Tariq’s and stepped onto the rocky shuttle.

  Tiny creatures ran along the top of the water with the wooden planks across their backs. A man with six spindly arms dangled pieces of fresh meat at the front of the shuttle to entice the creatures onward. As soon as they reached the shore, he moved the meat to the other side. The creatures turned and ran back out.

  Tariq and Liora stepped off the shuttle into a sea of chaos. It seemed every race of mortalkind wandered through cages, tents, and displays. Acrobatic acts performed by the eight-legged Arachnians competed with Calypsans executing feats of great strength. Gauls fought using only their horns while crowds lined up to view warriors throwing Zamarian stars and battle axes at each other. Members of the Weryn race disappeared and reappeared to music played on boula drums.

  The sticky-sweet, cloying scent of sugared confections competed against the tangy, sharp odor of boiled ganthum. Slices of fried banarang seasoned in multi-galactic spices drew the attention of the carnivores while flat-toothed herbivores browsed racks of dried gungum leaf from the planet Tanus. The scents were too familiar; they made Liora’s stomach clench.

  “Do you have a plan?” Tariq asked.

  Liora touched the knife at her thigh.

  “That’s not much of a plan,” Tariq noted. “It’s quite poor, in fact. I’d say you’re being a bit hasty.”

  “Let’s see if Malivian’s here. Once we know that, it’ll give me a better idea of how to proceed,” she answered.

  Malivian would never turn down a circus opportunity like the one she walked through. Thousands upon thousands would be drawn to the entertainment. Even if Malivian had lost his prized Damaclan mind pusher, his pride alone would never let him back away from a show when he had so many anxious to see it.

  The biggest tent caught Liora’s attention. It had been set up in the center of the madness where the black and yellow furls would catch the eye of every circus-goer. The colors were e
nough to make Liora’s stomach tighten even further. She hadn’t considered how it would feel to walk back inside the environment she had hated so badly. Now that she was close, doubt and fear pushed at the edges of her mind. She focused on placing one foot in front of the other so she wouldn’t be tempted to turn back to their stolen ship.

  “Are you alright?” Tariq asked.

  The concern in his tone made her look up at him. She realized how protectively he walked beside her, his shoulder turned to shield the majority of the raucous crowd from reaching her. If felt for a brief moment like he cared. She told herself it was easier to get through the aisles that way and he was just as anxious to be done with the planet as she was. She pushed down any emotions that argued otherwise and nodded.

  “I’m fine. That’s the tent.”

  Before he could say anything else, Liora strode ahead. She ducked beneath giants and spun around spindly Banthans who could definitely use more spatial awareness. She heard Tariq call her name, but didn’t slow down. She felt as though if another person bumped her shoulder or kicked the back of her boot, she was going to have a meltdown and go Damaclan on everyone within reach.

  Liora reached the tent and ducked inside. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the sudden darkness. For some reason, Malivian’s tent was lacking the rows of caged and chained creatures that usually drew his crowds. Instead, the tent was completely empty, a huge, hulking waste of space except for someone who sat on a lone chair in the middle.

  “Hello, Liora.”

  Memories swarmed Liora at the sound of his voice. She reached for her knife. The reassuring touch of the blade handle centered her chaotic thoughts.

  “Did you miss me?” Malivian asked, his words slurred. He gave a laugh. “I’ll bet that’s why you came back. You missed me, didn’t you? Well, I missed you, my little pet.”

  Liora grimaced. “I was never your pet.”

  Malivian smiled. “Of course you were. You begged, sat, and spoke in their minds when I ordered it. You obeyed all my commands just like a good little creature should. You were so well trained.” He paused and his face twisted. “Until that little Coalition brat came along and screwed everything up.”

  Liora was almost to the circus master when her eyes focused completely in the darkness. He held a gun on his lap and it was aimed in her direction, only it wasn’t just any gun. He held the biggest shotgun she had ever seen. If she ran, she was dead.

  She pretended she didn’t notice it and paused casually.

  “What if I did come back?” she asked.

  Malivian watched her with an unusual smile on his lizard face. His yellow eyes reflected the faint light in the tent.

  “Did you come back to join me or kill me?” he asked.

  “Join you,” she said, grateful he wasn’t a Belanite. “I’ve missed the circus.”

  Malivian’s mouth twisted into a triumphant smile. “You liked being the center of the show.”

  Liora nodded. “Who wouldn’t?” She swallowed past the tightness in her throat. “The crowds, the cheering. I missed hearing my name called by so many.”

  Malivian rose unsteadily to his feet. “You ruined me. We’d have to start completely over.”

  “We can do that,” Liora said with an encouraging nod. “They would come just to see me. You know that.”

  “It’s your beauty,” Malivian replied. “It draws them all. My Damaclan beauty.” His eyes darkened. “But behind the beauty lies a traitor. You left me. I can’t ever forgive that.”

  “You can,” Liora coaxed.

  She pushed her thoughts at him. Together, we can rebuild.

  Malivian paused with his head tipped to one side. There was a hint of craziness she felt when she pushed at him that sent a tremor of fear through Liora. It tangled his thoughts and pulsed back at her with an energy she had never felt before. As much as she hoped he would believe her, she realized Malivian was beyond reason.

  “I loved you, Liora,” he said. He lifted his gun.

  A giant crack sounded and the entire tent leaned toward one side. A flap tore away. Liora saw Tariq on a massive moondu beast. He held one of the main cables that attached to the top of the tent’s mast. Tariq cracked a whip. The center beam snapped and the human disappeared from sight.

  “Not my tent!” Malivian yelled.

  “Liora, run,” Tariq called.

  Liora dodged the falling canvas intent on reaching Malivian instead of running away. The black and yellow cloth fell in waves, folding and flattening.

  Liora darted past the empty chair and into the collapsing sides. She could hear Malivian ahead, but couldn’t see him in the darkness. The canvas pressed down. She wasn’t able to go any further.

  Liora drew her knife and sliced through the side. Hazy light filtered past the dark clouds that created a permanent cover for the swampland. She scanned the staring crowds hoping to see Malivian’s too familiar checkered cloak. Liora’s heart raced. She had to find him. She took a step forward.

  Tariq grabbed her arm. “Liora, what are you doing? You walked right into a trap.”

  “I meant to,” she said. “The only way to find Obruo is through Malivian. I needed him to trust me.”

  “And by trust you, you mean shoot you?” Tariq demanded.

  “That may have been an oversight,” she admitted. “I expected the tent to be full of his collection. He wouldn’t have risked them. It would’ve given me leverage.”

  Tariq scanned the crowd with her. “Now what?”

  Liora took off running for the docks.

  “We have to find the ship,” she called over her shoulder.

  She heard Tariq’s footsteps behind her.

  “How are we going to find it?” he asked when they neared the shore.

  An explosion from the middle of the shipyard stopped them in their tracks. Flames and chunks of debris flew to other ships, catching them on fire as well. Shouts rang out and crews from the circus charged into the swampland.

  Tariq’s hand grabbed Liora’s shoulder. “Obruo’s here, and he probably knows you’re here as well. Come on.”

  They faded back into the crowd.

  “The circus isn’t safe. They’ll start checking tents and ships for bombs. Maybe we should join them.” He pointed toward a group of workers hurrying into of a tent marked ‘Staff’.

  Liora and Tariq waited for a surge in the crowd. She cut the side of the tent with her knife and they slipped inside. Rows of uniforms, rakes, garbage containers, staffs with hooks on the ends, and a vast array of clubs, rods, chains, and rings lined the shelves and tables. Several workers pulled on the yellow and red uniforms of bomb detectors.

  Tariq strode to the hangers and withdrew two uniforms as if he belonged there. He handed a uniform to Liora and pulled his on quickly. She did the same and drew the hood over her head to hide her tattoos.

  “Let’s go,” he said.

  They searched through the tents with the bomb detectors, but instead of looking for weapons, Liora and Tariq were busy eyeing circus owners and the assortment of creatures in case Malivian hid among them. Giant snuffling adaroks with sweeping tentacles were led through each tent. The time it took made Liora’s nerves tingle. She was afraid Malivian would escape, and had to keep reminding herself that his ship had gone up in flames.

  Liora had just stepped outside of another tent when a body slammed into hers. It knocked her into the canvas and her hood fell back. She shoved her fighting instincts down when she realized the man who had run into her not only wore a Coalition uniform, but was surrounded by an entire squad.

  “I’m sorry,” the man said. He held out a hand to help her, then squinted. “Hey, I know you! This is the girl from F One Zero Four. She’s part of the priority target!”

  Tariq grabbed Liora’s arm and pulled her back into the tent. They darted through men, women, and children of all races. Liora over-ended garbage cans and vendor carts in an attempt to slow the persistent Coalition. They twisted and turned through the ma
ze of tents and displays until the Coalition was left behind.

  Liora led the way down a side aisle and slowed to a walk to draw less attention. She glanced back to check their pursuit. A hand grabbed her arm. Another pressed a gun firmly to her head. If she struggled, she had no doubt what would happen.

  “Take it easy,” Tariq said, his hands raised. He followed Liora and her captors into a side tent. “We don’t want any trouble.” His eyes widened. “I know you,” he growled. “Obruo.”

  The name sent cold rushing through Liora’s body. She tensed, ready to fight.

  “Don’t move if you know what’s good for you,” Obruo said in her ear. “Remember, I know all your moves.”

  “Let her go,” Tariq demanded.

  Obruo lifted the gun away from Liora and fired. Tariq let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground clutching his leg.

  Liora tried to keep calm. Her heart thundered in her throat that was being restricted by Obruo’s tight hold. Malivian stood nearby with an angry glare on his reptilian face.

  “You ruined my life,” the Hennonite shouted, his yellow eyes bright with rage. “When you weren’t at the last show, the Caredite family withdrew their funding. I lost everything.” He turned his gaze to Obruo. “You owe me.”

  “You were supposed to control her,” Obruo replied in a voice of deadly calm Liora knew all too well.

  “She’s impossible to control,” Malivian argued. “She takes after her father.”

  Obruo turned the gun on Malivian.

  The circus master held up his hands. “I didn’t mean any disrespect, Chief. Honest. I just mean she’s been difficult to work with, and calling the Coalition officers in has made my life more than difficult.” His eyes remained on the gun. “I’ve been a faithful servant. You can’t argue that.”

  When the gun didn’t move, Malivian dropped to his knees. “Please. I’ll do anything. I’ve lost everything I have trying to keep Liora prisoner. She ruined me.”

  “Welcome to my life,” Obruo said. He shot Malivian in the forehead before his last word faded. The crack of the gunshot echoed in Liora’s head as the circus master fell lifelessly to the ground.