Free Trader Box Set - Books 4-6: Battle for the Amazon, Free the North!, Free Trader on the High Seas

by Craig Martelle

  He was weak, but they didn’t believe that he’d get stronger lying in bed. Eating and moving would bring him strength. They could travel at his pace until he could keep up with theirs.

  ‘Thank you, for the help. I do not trust the Androids. I feel that they should be my enemy, but they have treated my wounds and brought me back to health.’

  “They’re not your enemy, but they bear close watching. We are of the same mind, Pik. We don’t trust the Androids either. I think we’re all safer not trusting them,” Micah said, looking back and seeing that the Android escort followed. “No. You will stay here until we call for you. Don’t answer, just stay,” Micah commanded. They took two more steps with Pik’s arms draped over their shoulders for support.

  The Android continued to follow. Micah nodded to Braden, who leaned Pik toward him so that he could hold all the Lizard Man’s weight. Micah pulled her blaster out, quickly aimed, and pulled the trigger. The Android’s death was unspectacular. It sparked twice and fell over.

  Braden’s minimized neural implant immediately started flashing. “It seems Holly has something to say about the recent and unfortunate demise of our escort. Hold on a heartbeat while I set him straight,” Braden told Micah.

  He expanded the window floating before his eye. ‘Holly! You wouldn’t believe it. Our escort refused to follow the President’s orders and then it died right in front of us. It was the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen.’

  ‘I guess that passes for humor. I must ask that you not eliminate any more Androids. The number I need to run the ship is dangerously limited,’ Holly pleaded with Braden.

  ‘You know, Holly, I was going to tear into you about these crapping Androids. If you need them to run the ship, that’s fine, but this one wasn’t doing that. It followed us despite the President telling it not to. So obviously there was a problem with its programming and we couldn’t allow it to interfere with your ability to run the ship. I think we did you a favor!’ Braden ended on a high note.

  ‘It was returning to its work station, which happens to be in the direction you were going.’ Holly’s voice was calm as he tried to make his point with Braden.

  ‘Holly, the President told him to stay. When she gives an order, they have no choice but to follow it. They follow orders from you until they are superseded by orders from us. That’s how it was supposed to be, Holly. Make sure the Android programming reflects that, otherwise there will be a trail of dead Androids between here and the matter transfer chamber.’ Braden minimized his window without waiting for an answer.

  “Maybe we should knock off a few more to show him we’re serious?” Braden said.

  “I think he knows,” Micah said as she pointed. Two Androids were moving away from the direct route to the door. Others stood perfectly still in more distant areas of the large room.

  They supported Pik between them as they made a beeline for the door. The Wolfoids and G-War ran ahead and stood outside the doorway, watching the corridor. Aadi swam behind them, watching Pik carefully for any sign that he was overexerting himself.

  After entering the corridor, they closed the door to the cloning facility, watching as if something else was supposed to happen. Micah shuddered with the memory of what she’d seen in there. She resisted the nearly all-consuming desire to use her blaster and flame the entire laboratory. “Some things should not be messed with,” she said. She understood that without the cloning facility, they wouldn’t have been able to get their friend back. She wrestled with herself over the cost versus the benefits.

  Was she succumbing to the attraction of the Old Tech and the power it held?

  Yes, It Will Hurt

  They reached the doorway to the ramp without any interference. Pik’s legs strengthened as he walked until the humans were barely supporting him. During their stroll, he talked with them about how he grew up and who his other friends were, what his role as Pik was. They’d heard most of it before, but listened quietly as Pik became reacquainted with himself.

  They stood in the small room together as Pik asked if they would let him walk without help. He took a few tentative steps, but needed an arm to lean on. “We’ll get you a walking stick on the next level. We’re going there to try and recruit a few of your fellows to come with us to Vii, where some bad Lizard Men started a war. We need your help to end it, and I’m sorry that we didn’t ask you. Will you help us end the war between the Lizard Men on Planet Vii?” Braden asked, pleading for Pik to commit.

  ‘Of course, it’s what friends do for each other,’ he said matter-of-factly. ‘The Golden Warrior has already asked this of me, while sharing some of his memories. It will be a great honor to help the Amazon rid itself of the scourge known as the Overlords. I am ashamed that they look like me. We weren’t born and raised for the evil they are doing. I will help you, and I will convince the others on the Rainforest Level.’ Pik leaned on Braden’s arm as he shuffled toward the door.

  Bounder waved his bracelet at the panel and the doorway appeared. They went through and headed upward, jogging to keep pace with the ship’s rotation as they circled higher and higher. When they reached the top of the ramp, Bounder was ready to go through, but Braden raised a hand to stop him.

  “They know we’re coming, don’t they, G?” Braden asked. The ‘cat lifted his head and nodded once. “It’s going to hurt, isn’t it?”

  ‘Yes,’ was all G-War said.

  Braden described the antics of the monkeys and the foulness of what they would throw. They were hard to kill and clearly, they held a grudge. They were hostile and couldn’t be reasoned with. They Lizard Men were at war with the monkeys, but couldn’t kill them as the Lizard Men only had spears.

  They prepared themselves by readying their weapons, counting on speed when bursting through the door to get into the cover provided by the rainforest. Braden asked the others to shoot near the monkeys, but try not to hurt them.

  Braden waved his bracelet. When the door opened, he pushed it outward and ran toward the rainforest, immediately getting pelted by something hard. The foul little creatures were throwing rocks. Braden covered his head with an arm and saw that the others were running toward the rainforest on different paths. Only Braden was getting pelted.

  He turned, hoping to increase speed, but the monkeys were faster. A barrage of rocks flooded the space in front of him, and he was pummeled when he ran into it. His body armor protected some of Braden, but his exposed hands and head took the worst of it. The explosion in his head from the projectile violently impacting temple was the last thing he remembered.

  Micah saw Braden go down and ran toward him. She fired her blaster, on the wide flame setting, raining destruction into the trees. She waved it back and forth toward anything that looked like a monkey. Most fled into the higher branches and disappeared. Those who died, did so horrifically as they tried to run while their short hair was on fire. They fell as their bodies gave up. The attack ended as quickly as it had begun.

  The Wolfoids joined Micah at Braden’s unconscious form. They faced outward with their lightning spears at the ready. G-War moved in close to check on his bonded human. The ‘cat pronounced him to be fine, although Micah couldn’t take her eyes from the growing knot on the side of his head.

  Braden started coming to. His head rolled on the ramp surface as he tried to gather his wits. Braden felt the ship spinning more than usual and needed help to sit up.

  Pik Ha’ar rummaged in the undergrowth until he found a heavy stick almost as tall as he was. He used it to walk slowly back to the companions.

  Braden held his head in both hands, gently running his fingertips over the growing welt where the rock had bashed him in the temple. He blinked rapidly as he tried to focus. His vision slowly returned to normal, but the dizziness did not go away.

  Micah’s implant blinked to the point of distraction. She wanted to shut it down, but wondered if Holly had information on Braden. She opened the window before her eye as she held her partner tightly.

  ‘Is
Braden with you? I’ve lost contact with his implant, and I am very concerned,’ Holly said quickly in a tone approaching panic.

  ‘He’s right here, Holly. The monkeys attacked us, and Braden was hit in the side of the head by a rock. He’s dazed, but appears to be okay. He has a huge knot on his right temple,’ Micah answered.

  ‘I am so relieved, Master President. Please send my best wishes for a speedy recovery to him. The implant has been damaged and will have to be replaced. I can have the Androids do that if you wish?’ Holly asked.

  ‘I don’t think we’ll have that done up here. I’m not sure we’ll replace it, to be honest. I’ll keep the window while we’re on the ship so you can talk with me if you need to.’ Micah reduced the window and put it to the side of her eye, outside her line of vision. She was briefly envious of Braden that he no long had Holly inside his head. Micah knew that he’d be envious of her since he loved the maps that Holly shared, always showing them exactly where they were.

  Braden was out of it, and that meant the decision to replace the implant was hers alone. She’d made it and was comfortable that Braden would have done the same thing in her place. She didn’t trust the Androids to mess around inside her partner’s brain.

  “Can you walk?” she asked tentatively.

  He started to nod, but stopped himself, grasping his head again. “I don’t know,” he finally answered. “If you could stop the world from spinning, I’d probably be fine,” he muttered.

  “Let’s find a place to camp. The monkeys are probably angrier than they were before. I’m afraid that if we run across them, we’ll have to fight them off and keep driving them away.” She stroked his head gently as the Wolfoids each offered a foreleg to support him as he stood. He wobbled once upright, so Micah threw one of his arms over her shoulders and held tightly to his waist.

  Pik Ha’ar slowly approached, shifted his walking stick to his other hand and put Braden’s arm over his green shoulders. Micah tried to stop him, but he waved off her concerns.

  ‘This is what we do, no? Or has something changed since I’ve been gone?’ he asked, looking at her. She had no answer for him, besides muscling Braden toward the opening where they passed through last time they entered the ship’s rainforest.

  After a short way, Pik suggested that he lead, as he knew a better way to a place where the Lizard Men did not patrol, where they’d be safe to rest.

  Micah didn’t hesitate as Pik guided them in a different direction to a spot where the trees grew densely, letting little sunlight filter through. The moisture was thick, but there was sparse undergrowth. At an opening between two of the largest trees on Deck 9, Pik called the group to a halt and gently put Braden down. Braden leaned against a root as Pik pointed to where they could find fresh water. Gray Strider took their flasks and went with Aadi to fill them. Bounder and G-War stayed close to Braden, watching the trees for any signs of the chameleon-like Lizard Men, even though Pik assured them that no one was around.

  The Lizard Men of the Rainforest Level

  After a long rest where Braden slept peacefully cradled in Micah’s lap, the companions ate of their supplies and prepared to begin the second half of why they came to the ship. They wanted to know if more Lizard Men could join them in the Amazonian War.

  Aadi and Pik Ha’ar would be critical during this time. Aadi floated near Pik and they talked extensively over the mindlink. Micah only partially listened as she faded in and out of sleep. G-War jumped into the conversation on occasion, to highlight one piece or another as they gave Pik the background on the Amazonian War. Micah expected that the ‘cat shared images of the good Amazonians like Zalastar and Akhmiyar and images of those they’d been attacked by as well as what they knew of the Overlords, from the information taken from the minds of their minions.

  Pik used a knife that Micah had given him to whittle his walking stick into something sized for his hand and height. She let him keep the knife until he found a more suitable weapon. Even though Braden left his bow in the New Command Center, he carried two blasters and his short sword. Micah carried her blasters and her full-sized sword. The Wolfoids carried their lightning spears. They had a great deal of firepower, especially since the ship was supposed to be completely under Holly’s control.

  Which wasn’t the case as she looked at the apple-sized bump on the side of Braden’s head. The first thing he did when he was able to stand on his own was go to the stream and dunk his head in the cool water. He held his head to the side and let the coolness ease the pain throbbing within the bump.

  “Monkeys,” Micah said, shaking her head as Braden squeezed the water from his long braid. His eyes looked clear. To be sure, he dialed his blaster to the tiniest beam and tried to fire a few shots. “I think your brain is still spinning inside there.” The pinpoints from his shots covered an area larger than a man. Micah was impressed that he hit the broad tree trunk and would have been amazed had the shots been anywhere closer together.

  “Don’t shoot unless it’s life or death,” she cautioned. “We don’t want you to hit one of us.” She smiled at him and they walked back to the clearing together where they found the others ready to go.

  “Pik, my friend, are you ready?” Braden asked.

  ‘I am. We will find a patrol and with Aadi’s and the Golden Warrior’s help, convince them to join us in freeing the intelligent creatures of Vii,’ Pik stated with conviction.

  Braden invited Pik to lead the group forward. Aadi swam close behind him while G-War bounded into the trees, keeping pace by jumping from branch to branch. The humans walked next and the Wolfoids brought up the rear. Braden walked without assistance, but stumbled often as his dizziness came and went. Micah tried to keep a hand on him just so he wouldn’t fall. The rainforest was wet, and they couldn’t be sure what was hidden beneath the slimy surfaces of the stagnant ponds.

  Pik set a slow pace. He was getting stronger, but still needed to take his time. It took a while before they entered the territory that was regularly patrolled. He asked the others to wait while he disappeared into the trunk of a massive, heavy-branched tree. They knew he was there, but couldn’t see him, no matter how hard they looked.

  G-War informed them that a patrol approached. They waited, trying to look calm and relaxed, but when the Lizard Men spotted them and spread out, approaching deliberately by using the nearby trees to conceal their presence, the companions circled and assumed defensive stances. The Wolfoids lowered their spears, ready to fire. Braden and Micah had their blasters ready.

  ‘Put down your weapons,’ Pik begged them. ‘If you don’t put them down, they will fight as soon as they arrive and we will not be able to speak with them.’

  The companions struggled with complying, but finally, the humans holstered their blasters. The Wolfoids raised their spears, but their muscles tensed as they prepared to fight.

  Pik Ha’ar revealed himself when the Lizard Men smoothly entered the area, surrounding the companions. He found the Pik, the leader, after pushing his way past one of the patrol members, a Tup.

  Pik raised his hand to the other leader, who grew agitated and kept pointing at the Wolfoids and the humans. Aadi swam close by, but two Tups put themselves between their leaders and the Tortoid. They pushed him away with their spears.

  Even with Braden’s addled mind, he realized that besides being a long shot, it was extremely dangerous. ‘I think we may have to fight our way out of this. I hope the monkeys don’t decide to show up,’ Braden told Micah in his thought voice. She didn’t answer as her attention was focused on the eight patrol members surrounding the group. Although their spears couldn’t shoot a lightning bolt like the Wolfoid’s, the Lizard Men were so close it didn’t matter. If a fight broke out, someone was going to get hurt.

  The Wolfoids shifted back and forth behind Braden and Micah as they anxiously awaited the call to attack. They’d each picked their targets and itched to fight. The humans hoped the negotiations were going well. To them it looked like an argument. Aa
di swam back and forth as he tried to maintain his view of the two Piks. The patrol members continued to block him with their bodies.

  And then the fight began. As Pik had done on their previous trip to the ship, he physically challenged the patrol leader by giving him one mighty shove. The other Lizard Man did not fall down because Pik Ha’ar was weaker than he was before. But he stepped back and taunted the other Lizard Man, who charged him. Pik Ha’ar stepped aside and pushed the other to the ground as he passed.

  Pik casually stepped back. Pik Ha’ar stood up straight and closed his eyes, waving the other Lizard Man to come at him. Braden looked into the trees and saw G-War, crouched, focused intently on the other Lizard Man.

  ‘G-War is helping him fight because he can’t overpower the other Lizard Man. He has to beat him in a match of intelligence and willpower,’ Braden said over the mindlink.

  The patrol leader looked at Pik Ha’ar oddly, then walked in a circle around him. Pik remained facing where the other Lizard Man had been. The other picked up his spear and pointed it at Pik’s back. The patrol leader’s face twisted into a snarl and his muscles tensed as he prepared his death thrust. He took a heavy step forward and then lunged.

  Pik twisted his body away and grabbed the spear as it passed, redirecting the point into a tangle of tree roots where it wedged tightly. The other Lizard Man was pulled forward. He stumbled and fell, splashing face first into a puddle. Pik jumped astride his back and held the other’s head under the water. He thrashed about, then with a mighty heave, he bounced Pik into the air. Not letting go, Pik forced the other’s head back under the surface while he was trying to gulp air. He thrashed, but his lungs, already filled with water, gave out and he stopped breathing. Pik braced himself and then twisted the other’s head until the neck snapped.

  Pik stood, tottering from his exertions. He pulled the spear from where it had wedged and used that to support himself. He breathed heavily as G-War jumped from the branch and hopped from dry spot to dry spot until he stood next to the Lizard Man. Aadi swam forward and turned around, taking a position on the other side of Pik Ha’ar.