by J. Naomi Ay
“Want to have a good time?” He wiggled four of his arms.
“If I did, it wouldn’t be with you. Go to hell,” I muttered, turning away.
“How about with me?” The guy on my other side asked.
Quickly, I appraised him in the dim light. He looked to be a Rehnorian, or possibly, a human. I couldn’t really tell, but he seemed okay. Actually, he seemed better than okay. He was big, but not fat, with broad shoulders, well-muscled arms, and long dark hair like a Karupta. He wore dark glasses which completely hid his eyes, and he chain-smoked cigarettes, while drinking a clear liquid from a glass. Holding out a cig, he offered me a smoke.
I shrugged. “Why not?”
It flamed in his hand, as he put it to his lips. Drawing upon it first, he then, placed it between mine. I inhaled deeply, filling my lungs with smoke, while appraising my companion with hooded eyes.
He bought me another drink, perhaps two or three more. I laughed, and felt warmer than I had been in a long time. Gazing down at my home planet below, drinking and smoking, I dreamed about what would soon be. The son, who was still in my womb, would someday own it all, and I, his mother, would reign for him. I told the stranger this, my alcohol-sated lips becoming too loose, but I didn't care. For the first time, in a long time, I felt happy.
Somehow, later, I ended up in my hotel room with this man. Somehow, later, I ended up fucking him with abandon. It was wild, and it was wicked. It was as if I had never done it before. Neither Tuman, nor Marik Korelesk held a candle to this stranger. Never before had I flown to such heights. Never before had I been reduced to such need. I became putty, unformed clay in this stranger's hands.
“Take me!” I wept, and he did, over and over, and each time, I begged him for more.
Sometime later, I slowly opened my eyes. Was it morning? I had lost all track of time. My head pounded, and my stomach lurched as a waft of cigarette smoke invaded my nose. My stomach rebelled against the stench, threatening to purge everything and more, while I was still too weak and too dizzy to raise my head.
“Kari-fa,” I murmured, groaning as my back ached. My abdomen shuddered, and I felt a trickle of something wet between my legs. “Kari-fa!” I gasped again. “What in the hell is going on?”
“Good morning, Hannah,” my companion greeted me.
Turning in the direction of his voice, I saw him sitting in a chair by the window.
“You!” I cried, recognizing him, my temples thundering, my heart pounding. “Kari-fa! How could you? It’s an abomination!”
He laughed, displaying his brilliant, yet strange, white teeth. He took a long drag upon his cigarette, and exhaled a cloud of pungent smoke into the already foul air.
“You’re sick! You’re insane!”
“All things I could say of you,” he replied.
Trying to pull myself upright, I felt a warm gush between my legs.
“You are evil,” I hissed, falling back on the pillows, as the flow thickened, the air filling with the acrid stench of blood. It reeked of death. “You are Satan!”
“Indeed, that has been said of me. So tell me, what does that make you for reveling in my company?"
“Go fuck yourself,” I swore, desperately feeling my belly with my hand, hoping to find that which was no longer there. “My son! You have killed my son!”
“No, Hannah,” he replied, rising to his feet. “You have done that to him yourself. There was never any need for my interference.” He strode to the door, a whisper of wind stirring the putrid air of the room. “I shall leave you now, lest I decide there is more from you to collect.”
“You promised me you would give my baby great power!”
He paused, his hand on the lock. Then, he turned back around, and flashed his wicked smile at me.
“I did, did I not? I gave him the power to grant that which you desire most.”
“I wanted the kingdom!”
“No, Hannah. You wanted to be alone. This you have been given above all else.”
“Bastard!” I shrieked, again trying to push myself up in the bed. “What about your son? How do you think he’ll react when I tell him what you and I did last night?”
“My son? You do not know my son,” he responded, and then, his lips spread again into a wide smile. “Ach, I see now. You confuse me with my brother.”
Chapter 22
Jim
After our synthetic tenderloin dinner in space, Gwen and Todd went off to acquire hotel rooms for everyone. We'd had enough of sleeping on the plane, and a hot shower with a working aircon unit was worth the price.
"Get a room for everyone," I told them. "Don't worry about the cost. I'll pay."
I suspected Gwen and Todd immediately tried out the comforts of the Supreme Sleeper mattress on her bed. This kind of bugged me because Todd was nowhere good enough for my baby sister. But, what could I do? She was an adult with grown children, and a divorce under her belt. I just hoped Todd's arrival wouldn't screw up our domestic arrangement.
In the meantime, Napu was supposedly taking the old folks to meet Master Rosso, although no one had any idea where he was, or if he was even there. I figured all the exercise walking around the base would tire them all out, so tonight, they'd go to bed early, and not fight.
For the first time, in a long time, Shelly and Tim were working on something together. In fact, as they walked away, Shelly was actually holding on to Tim's arm.
"I just know that this Rosso character is Senya," she cried giddily. "I knew he couldn't be dead. He'll get you fixed up in no time, so you'll have all of your brains back, and can think again."
"What about your brains?" Tim replied, and then, he laughed.
As for me, I needed to find the Imperial Court, which had apparently taken up residence in one of the hotels.
Trying first the Hilton Garden Inn, I went up to the front desk.
"I'm Duke Kalika-hahr," I announced. "I'm here to see the Imperial Princes?"
"Who?" The Cascadian guy blinked.
He was about nine feet tall, and had three rows of enormous shark-like teeth. He also had a pair of biceps that were each roughly the size of my entire chest.
"Uh...the Imperial Princes?" I repeated, trying not to piss him off. "You know, the two dudes who are running the Empire while the Emperor is gone?"
"Sorry, Duke. We don't have anyone registered here by that name. Why don't you try the Courtyard across the hall?"
That made a certain amount of sense, I thought. Where else would the Imperial Court be hanging out but in a Courtyard?
"Imperial Princes?" I asked the blue Andorian girl at the desk, even though she looked about twelve years old.
"Imperial Princes?" She repeated, blinking blankly back at me.
"Ok, how about Shika de Kudisha, or his brother, Revak?" I asked.
"Sorry." She shook her head. "Anybody else you want to try?"
"Is there anybody here named Steve or Rent Golden? Two tall dudes about my age, both with wavy blonde hair. One looks amazing like the Emperor, while the other resembles more his mother. You know, the Empress who used to be always on the vid?"
"What show?"
"Forget it," I told her, realizing how quickly people had forgotten. A little more than two years since they disappeared, and it was almost like they had never been. "Just look for someone named Golden. Are there any other hotels here on this base?"
"Oh wait, sir," the Andorian jubilantly cried. "I found S. and R. Golden registered to a room. Let me connect you with them." She held out the hotel phone.
"Steve?" I called.
"Yeah?"
"It's Jim, Jim Mattson. I'm here at the base. Can I come up, and talk to you?"
"Sure, dude," the Imperial Prince replied, and told me which room on the third floor.
By cheap hotel standards, this mini-suite wasn't bad, two double beds, a decent bath, a mini-fridge, and a writing desk. By Palace standards, I'd say these guys had really fallen. In fact, they were down so low, they were practi
cally underground.
"What are you guys doing here?" I gasped. "Where's the rest of the Imperial Court?"
"The meeting isn't until tomorrow," Steve replied. "And, I doubt anyone but you is going to bother showing up."
He was lying on one of the beds, smoking a cigarette. His feet were bare, and his hair a mess. In fact, he looked like he hadn't showered or shaved in about a week, as scraggly, gray-blonde stubble covered his face.
Rent was asleep on the other bed, his snores oddly in tune with the aircon system.
"He's tired." Steve shrugged, and pointed at his brother with an elbow. "He was up all night writing a proposal for a bank loan."
"You don't have any money of your own?" I asked, taking the chair at the desk, and sitting down.
"Nope. Unfortunately, we're all tapped out."
"Man, you guys are a disaster. If your parents saw you now, they'd have a fit. I can't even begin to imagine what your dad would do."
"Well, I guess it's lucky for us he's dead." Steve blew a smoke ring into the air. "Along with their glorious Empire, and their Fortune 100 Company. Long live the Empire of Rehnor in the memories of those who knew her well because she's dead. Sorry, this bitch ain't breathing."
"Geez, Steve." I couldn't believe it. They had given up, and here, I was coming to ask them to help Shelly and Tim. "What if they're not dead? What if we find proof that your parents are alive? What then Steve? What are you going to do?"
"Run," he smirked. "Far, far away."
"Seriously, man. You guys need to get it together. Shelly is convinced that some dude, Rosso is actually your dad in disguise. She and Tim are supposedly meeting him on the spacebase here."
Suddenly, all the color drained from Steve's face.
"You're shitting me."
"No, dude. He may be here."
"Rent!" Steve shrieked. "Bro, you gotta get up. If the old man's here, you and me are toast. He's going to kill us, literally, figuratively, and in every other way."
"Wha?" Rent snorted awake. "Who's doing what?"
It was just at that moment when Steve's cell rang.
"Oh shit! It's Kinar at the Palace!"
"What palace?" Rent asked. "The palace burned down."
A holographic image of the smoldering ruins appeared in the air above our heads. Then, the picture cut to Kinar's office where the Emperor's secretary sat at his desk.
"Sirs," Kinar announced, excitedly. "We've just received an important message from your mother. She's alive. Thank the Saint, and everybody else."
"Kari-fa!" Steven cried.
"Uh oh," Rent gasped.
"She's been kidnapped, and is en route to the Black Eye Galaxy. I've spoken to the SpaceNavy and requested they send a starship to rescue her."
"Do we have any starships operational?" Steve muttered.
"The Lydia Kalila was in dry dock for repairs, but she can be activated within hours and ready to go. Do either of you gentlemen wish to go on board?"
"No, that's okay." Steve waved his hand, "I'll just stay here and get ready to greet her when she gets back."
"I'm good," Rent replied. "I'll hang with Steve, and finish up some important business. We've got that council meeting tomorrow anyway, right bro?"
"Right!"
Kinar looked annoyed. "As you wish, Your Imperial Highnesses," he said snippily, and was about to ring off.
"Oh, uh, Kinar," Steve called him back. "Did Mom happen to say where Dad might be?"
"She didn't know exactly where he was," Kinar announced coldly. "But, she is certain he shall return."
Chapter 23
Dave
"Come with me," Luka ordered, forcefully taking Katie's arm and guiding her away.
A bit anxiously, she looked back to me.
I shrugged, and patted the laser.
"Alright," Katie said cautiously, and then, brightening her voice, she smiled seductively. "Right now, darling? I'm starting to feel rather tired."
"Of course, you are," he snickered, opening the door to her room. "However, I have no intention of letting you sleep. Instead, I shall remind you how a real man can be. A man who is neither blind, nor crippled, nor unfortunately, also a bird."
"A raptor," Katie corrected, her voice now high and nervous. "He doesn't like to be referred to as a bird. He eats birds. His favorites are Goshawk and Peregrine falcon. It's that hunting thing. You know, giving chase. He likes…" The door slammed shut, cutting off her words, and any response Luka might have given.
I was left alone in the empty hallway, tasked with locating the escape pod. I needed to do this silently, so as not to alert Luka to our plans.
I also had no idea how much time I had. How long would it take the fellow to demonstrate his male prowess? Did he mean to flex his biceps, or strut around, or was there something else more sinister which he intended?
Perhaps, I ought to rescue her now, I considered. After all, she had given me a laser gun. Retrieving it from my pocket, I studied the weapon. It was a standard issue SdK 4295-P laser. That's what was printed on the side. There was no gold handle, or any sort of engraving. It could have been purchased at the gun store where I bought my duck hunting ammunition.
It was ordinary and simple enough to use. Long ago in Spaceforce, I had been taught to shoot one very similar to this. However, I had never tried to shoot a moving target before, and certainly, I had never shot a man.
What if I hit Katie instead? Or, what if Luka was some sort of supernatural being, and shooting him only made him angry? Already, my presence was redundant. Why give him another reason to throw me overboard? That would hardly help Katie, and certainly, it wouldn't benefit me.
Still, I couldn't just stand there. Although it was silly, I wished, just once, that I could be her knight in shining armor. I resolved to do the best thing I was capable of doing, which was to activate the pod, and then, rescue her.
Stealthily, I crept down the hall to approximately the point where we had discovered the pod was stored. I located the tiny latch, and then pressed inward to release a series of hydraulic pulleys and levers.
They made a terrible noise, lots of clanking and groaning, while in front of me, lights flashed, indicating that pod had arrived from storage. Gears ground together, causing even more ruckus as the power-up sequence began.
I glanced anxiously at Katie's closed cabin door, fearing they could hear all this from inside, and hoping that Luka wouldn’t decide to come investigate.
In meantime, in front of me, a hidden door swished open to reveal a tiny pod craft. It was large enough for two, and designed for a short trip. Perhaps, at most, we could survive in it for a week.
A week was good, I told myself. In a week, we could find someplace to land, or a SpaceNavy ship might come along.
Now, the pod's engines began to hum, which caused the little ship to vibrate, a noise which resonated through the entire spaceplane's walls. Unfortunately, this succeeded in alerting Luka.
"What's going on?" He yelled through the bedroom door.
"Oh, nothing!" I called back. “Don’t mind me.”
"Oh Luka, Luka," Katie moaned. "Don't pay any attention to that Dave. Pay attention to me. Come on, baby. Where were we?”
An alarm began to clang. The pod's power-up sequence was complete.
"What's he doing out there?" Luka yelled again.
"Oh!" Katie shouted. "Oh God! Oh Luka! Oh! Do that again!"
That was my cue, I decided, and valiantly, pulled out the laser gun. The pod was ready. It was time for our escape.
First, I tested the bedroom door, anticipating I'd have to shoot my way through it. However, to my surprise, it easily swung open.
"Go, Dave!" I urged myself. "Now is the time for you to be brave." Now was the moment to become a superhero, and rescue the damsel in distress. I had waited my entire life for this, and there was no turning back. I burst into the room shouting, “Let her go!”
I didn't expect to find them both busy in her bed. Apparently, Katie's c
ries were not the result of pain.
"Oh God!" Katie screamed. "It's Dave! Dave’s here!"
"Oh God," I echoed silently, while clasping my hands to my mouth. “Excuse me. Don’t mind me. I’ll just go now. Pardon my mistake.”
“You did make a mistake,” Luka growled, not appreciating my interruption.
With a wave of his hand, I found myself smashed against the wall. My throat was squeezed as if in a vise, the laser dropping uselessly from my hand, my superhero powers instantly diffused.
As I was choked to death by unseen forces, sliding down the wall to my demise, Luka rose up to finish me off. Actually, I should clarify that. Luka got out of bed. The parts of him, which had previously risen, were quickly deflating. However, executing me was clearly something he enjoyed, perhaps more so than what he had been doing with Katie.
He smiled broadly and those wicked teeth glinted in the pale starlight. "You were always unnecessary, human," he chortled, his hands reaching for my head, pulling me up by the few remaining wisps of once brown hair.
"Luka!" Katie shouted. "Let him go! Please stop this. Don't hurt him. He doesn't understand."
"Go Katie, go escape," I gasped, my voice barely as loud as a whisper.
I feared my scalp would be separated from my body, and I supposed there were worse ways to die, as well as some better. Having the top of your head ripped off probably ranked somewhere in the middle.
While I was anticipating that Heavenly light, perhaps, a reunion with my parents or favorite dog, a shot rang out, interrupting my imminent death. It was exceptionally loud in this tiny room, causing my ears to go temporarily deaf, as a spray of salty pink mist washed over my face. The hands holding my hair, and the unseen vise that was clamped around my throat immediately let loose, dropping me to the ground.
Two more shots sounded, although I couldn’t hear them well. However, more blood splashed upon my face, as Luka spun around. He collapsed right on top of me, gurgling something unintelligible, and bleeding all over my clothes.
“Sorry, I can’t hear you.” I shoved him off.
