The Beast of Tsunam (Rev Smalley: Galactic P.I. Book 1)

by Combs, Scott A.

  Rev eyed the glass of wine and swirled it around, admiring the deep reds and purples. After he took a sip, he set the glass down and leaned forward. “We should recap what we know about the case to keep it fresh in our minds.”

  “My mind is incapable of forgetting the facts, but the facts don’t always make sense to me,” said Flint.

  “To me either, but this is how I see it,” said Rev. “Fact one,” he said, holding up his index finger. “We have a dead doctor who works in the field of eugenics.” Another finger went up. “Two, we have the same doctor who has access to a very sensitive department where there are potentially unlimited body parts to experiment on.” The third finger rose. “Three, the good doctor is killed by a creature that’s not native to the planet or anywhere else in the known galaxy.”

  Flint was getting excited as Rev enumerated and he added, “Four, a dead Deviant who obviously knew too much and had to be silenced by the same mysterious creature.”

  Rev added another finger. “Keep going.”

  “Five, Willa Thoust, who was obviously Dr. Sorse’s close friend and colleague, must go into hiding because of the same knowledge that got her friend killed.”

  “Good, now you’re thinking,” said Rev, adding his thumb from his other hand to the list.

  Flint glowed. “Six, we have two missing investigators who appear to have learned too much also.”

  “Yeah, most likely,” said Rev, adding another finger to the count.

  “Seven?” asked Flint.

  There was a long pause before Rev raised another finger. “Everything is connected is what seven means. That’s the scariest part of this case. On the surface, a few murders can be overlooked or construed as a conspiracy. But when you use a little logic, knowing that murders on Tsunam are nonexistent for the most part, then the murders must be a part of a bigger plan. A plan that only a geneticist can pull off. So we have to wonder if the creature is something that is a Tsunamian concoction or a transplant from somewhere else.”

  “You think Dr. Sorse created the creature?” asked Flint.

  “She had the knowledge and the means to do so.”

  “That would be plausible, but why?”

  Rev scratched his ear. “Damned if I know. We need more information before I can postulate a proper theory.”

  The waiter arrived with the synthetic steak, mushrooms and baked potato, which looked spectacularly real. The butter on the potato tasted genuine and spilled out on his plate, lapping up against the perfectly cooked steak. He like his meat grilled enough to take the raw flavor away but not so done as to dry the meat. This piece was cooked to a perfect medium-rare; he cut it easily with just his fork.

  Flint listened to uming and ahing as Rev took big bites, downing them with a sip of wine. Flint saw contentment on Rev’s face for the first time. He liked the look; Rev’s eyes twinkling with a strong, broad grin on his face. Flint thought how strange it was that a human would be his first true friend. It felt wonderful to be appreciated.

  * * *

  REV AND FLINT ARRIVED at Memorial Park at a quarter before midnight. Just like the causeways along the buildings, the park looked immaculately landscaped and obviously well-tended. Bronze statues of Tsunamian statesmen stood in nearly every nook and cranny inside the park. Numerous signs along the pathways told of their exploits; Rev began ignoring most of them. He could see small alcoves of arboreal canopied trees with stone benches encircling a lonely statue and thought this was an egotistical nightmare. He went past ten more just like it with different trees and statues, but they all looked so similar he wondered how or why anyone could find just the right one, and what was the point since they all were a mix of the same limited phenotypes anyway.

  “Do you know where we’re going?” asked Rev.

  “Absolutely,” said Flint, trying to speed the big human up. “We don’t have much time.”

  Rev quickened his pace and Flint fluttered off to the left down a hillock past two more statues. They crossed a small bridge with a brook that gurgled over smooth river rock. Rev was just starting to huff and puff when Flint stopped and indicated they had arrived. “We just need to go through those shrubs,” he said. Flint started in when Rev raised his hand in warning.

  “How much time do we have left?” asked Rev.

  “Four minutes.”

  “You go to the right and reconnoiter. Don’t enter until I say so. I’ll go left. I want to see if anyone else is watching before we enter, so check in all the secluded places.”

  Flint nodded and flew off, whizzing back and forth like he was avoiding a heat seeking missile. Rev shook his head and whispered, “Subtle he’s not.”

  The ground on the left was soft and wet but Rev could see no foot prints, indicating nobody had been there for days. The grass was shiny from the cool dew that clung to the blades and a wispy fog was rising from the warmer water of the brook. Soon he traveled to the opposite point and waited for Flint to show up. Still zipping around between the cover of the trees and lamp posts, the little automaton made its way toward the human. Rev waved him over and Flint made a bee line until he hovered in front of Rev.

  “Nothing to report except a set of tracks going into the alcove over there.”

  “Male or female tracks?”

  “Female sized I think.”

  “Good, let’s go see Willa then,” said Rev.

  They reached the arbor entrance to the alcove of evergreen shrubs that towered over Rev’s head by four to six full meters. Rev pulled his 9800 las-pistol from its holster and flicked the safety off. The weapon hummed, charging for a second until a green light indicated it was ready.

  “Is that necessary?” whispered Flint.

  “I hope not,” replied Rev. “We can’t be absolutely sure if it is Willa.”

  They moved to the entrance and Rev spoke openly. “Willa. Are you there?” There was a scurrying of feet, then the sound of another las-pistol charging.

  “I’m armed,” she responded.

  “So are we,” said Rev.

  “Who are you?” she asked.

  “We got your message in the lamp. I’m a friend of Braz’s,” said Rev.

  “If you’re a friend of Braz’s, you’ll know what he hates most in life.”

  “That’s easy,” said Rev. “He hates being called by his full name, Brazwell Honeydew.”

  There was a sigh of relief, then the sound of the weapon being turned off. “Please enter quickly,” she said.

  The partners went through the entrance and found her standing behind the statue of a man trying to look very regal. The statue was posed, standing with one arm behind its back and the other across its waist with legs firmly planted apart. Rev nearly laughed when he saw the woman watching Rev through the statue’s legs, not a very proper position for a Tsunamian.

  “What’s your name and why do you have an automaton companion?”

  “My name is Rev Smalley and this is Flint, my partner while I’m on Tsunam.”

  “Can it be trusted?”

  “I trust him,” said Rev.

  “All right then, I’m Willa Thoust.”

  “Nice to meet you Willa,” said Rev.

  “Braz said they’d send someone once they figured out that Cassie was captured. But he thought a man by the name of Magnus would come. Braz never mentioned your name.”

  Rev moved over to one of the stone benches and indicated she should sit down next to him. “Where’s Braz?”

  “I don’t know for sure,” she said, choking up. “I was hoping he would be here, to meet me with Magnus and get me off-world where I could be protected.”

  “Why do you need protection Willa?”

  “Someone is going to overthrow the government I think,” she said. “Tee was in on it somehow. I think she was designing a new Tsunamian warrior model. I read some of her notes by accident. When Braz showed up at Sybil’s and showed me the picture of her all torn up he took me into custody. I was to stay in his apartment until he could safely get m
e to Earth.”

  “How did you get separated from Braz and Cassie?”

  “Cassie said they needed more evidence and tried to get into the twentieth sub-level of the Reclamation Center. Cassie was captured and Braz barely got away with a laser burn on the shoulder. He made it back to the apartment and told me to take his badge and leave the clues in the lamp base. He then told me he needed to go back and get Cassie.”

  “Something must’ve gone wrong or he’d be back by now,” said Rev.

  “Braz was sure Magnus would figure out the clues and how to follow them.”

  “I’m sure he would’ve, but he sent me instead,” said Rev. “Since Braz didn’t make it back here on time, did he have a back up plan?”

  “Yes, I was to go to Taki if the plan broke down,” she said.

  “Where’s Taki?” asked Rev.

  “It’s not a place, it’s a person,” she said. “Taki is the leader of the Deviant Resistance Movement.”

  “Do you know where to find him then?” asked Flint, talking for the first time. He felt sorry for her as she brushed tears away from her eyes.

  “Sybil knows where to find him,” she said.

  “I don’t think she’s going to be able to help you anymore,” said Flint sadly.

  Rev reached over and touched her shoulder. “She’s dead I’m afraid.”

  “No, this is a nightmare,” she sobbed. “Why would anyone want to murder Sybil?”

  “We believe she was coerced to help protect you, steering us towards the truth for some reason. Then killed when she was no longer of any use,” said Rev. “At any rate, is there anyone else who could get you to Taki?”

  “There might be,” she said. “I can go to a safe house where persecuted Deviants hide out and see if someone there can get me to Taki.”

  “Good, you need to get there fast. No side trips,” said Rev. “Write down the location for me, we will follow you in a little while.”

  Willa scribbled the address on a scrap of paper and handed it to Rev. “And don’t take any chances,” he warned.

  “Why can’t you take me?” she begged.

  “Flint and I would just get you in worse trouble, sticking out like we do. I don’t look very much like a Tsunamian you know.” Then he thought some more, running through various scenarios. “Being in custody wouldn’t be any safer,” he said. “As soon as our backs were turned you’d go missing or worse. You’re safer on your own for now. Braz had a plan and I bet I can find out what it was if I follow his trail. We have to have faith that Braz is as good as I think he is.”

  She looked up into Rev’s eyes with tears starting to form. “Do you think he’s still alive?”

  “You can bank on it, Willa. Braz is one tough sonuvabitch,” he assured her.

  She wiped the tears away again.

  “You love him?” asked Rev.

  She looked surprised, but then realized she wasn’t talking with a Tsunamian and relaxed. “I guess you already know I’m a Deviant.” Rev nodded. “There’s no denying it then. Braz got to me the first time I saw him. Something clicked between us and now I can’t bear to be away from him. You have to find him for me. Swear it,” she pleaded.

  “I swear.”

  Chapter 11

  WILLA WAS STILL FRIGHTENED, BUT did as Rev asked and left them in the alcove still talking to each other. Mist had rolled through the trees as the night became cooler. She shuddered; spooked by the shadows the statues cast from the sparse lighting. Each looked as if it would become animated like a zombie and give chase. She tried to suppress those thoughts and focus on finding a transmat elevator. There should be one just outside the entrance to the park. All I have to do is follow the pathway and find the exit.

  She couldn’t quite shake the feeling that the statues were watching as she quickened her pace. Then she heard some bushes rattle and the crunching of dried leaves. Her heart leapt to her throat. Sweat formed on her forehead and she felt perspiration form under her arms from exertion and terror. She hadn’t exercised this hard in all of her five young years and swore if she survived this she would make it a point to always stay in shape.

  Someone was following her for sure. She could hear the footsteps on the turf. They were heavy, making a soft pounding sound like an animal on all four legs galloping.

  Her heart pounded hard as she ran at full speed. She ran for nearly a hundred meters when she had to slow to catch her breath. She didn’t stop completely, but walked at a fast pace, gulping in cool night air. She thought she couldn’t hear the footsteps anymore. Maybe it was just her imagination, or a gardener on one of the little carts they used to move their equipment around.

  She could just barely see the familiar doors of a transmat elevator at the corner of a building outside the park. She walked into the last clearing before the gate. A dark shape crouched off to her left, she first mistook it to be a statue. It had an odd shape, not unlike the shape of a man but bulkier. Its arms were the right proportion yet its legs seemed bowed and stocky, shorter than normal. Then the head turned and the light struck the eyes in just the right way to glow a sickly red color.

  It sniffed the air. Willa suppressed a scream. Her legs felt weak and she nearly fainted. Somehow she knew if she revealed herself by a scream or other sounds, the creature would attack. It was grotesque in form and when it lunged a pace forward like an animal, it used all four limbs. She could now see it had something in its mouth that waved to her as the Beast shook its head. It was the severed arm of a woman! Willa clamped her hands over her mouth. A squeak of a scream escaped involuntarily.

  That was all it took for the creature to get a fix on Willa; it snorted, dropped the arm and growled menacingly. Blood spewed from its mouth and its ears pricked up. Then like a cat, they folded back and its eyes focused on her. A bellow erupted from its jagged-tooth infested mouth.

  Willa never looked back. She turned and ran for her life. Intense fear welled up and her instincts for survival took over. She could hear the creature bounding after her, heaving and snorting with each step. Willa knew the creature was gaining on her two to one each stride they made. Tears ran down her face as she choked back the urge to be sick. She spat what tasted like blood from her mouth and poured the last of her energy into speed. She reached the exit and heard the creature breathing down her neck.

  Something rammed into her shoulder, she felt her clothing tear away. She was lifted high from the ground and tossed, rolling out onto the pavement, scraping her hands when she landed. Her shoulder ached, she felt sticky wet blood when she cradled the wound. She quickly ran a hand over her shoulder to see if there were any broken bones. She seemed intact and raised herself to her knees, only to stare into the face of the Beast. He was maybe five steps from her and paced in a small circuit, waiting for her to get to her feet. She looked into its eyes and saw not the dumb look of an animal, but the hatred of intelligence. It wanted her to know she was about to die. It was toying with her.

  The transmat elevator was very close, Willa wondered if she had time to make it inside before the Beast sprang. The Beast saw her edging towards the access panel and made a bellowing roar before charging. Willa scrambled with all her strength; found the access panel, brushed it with flaying fingers in one motion and fell into the open elevator. She watched as the Beast raged forward. Willa, putting her back against the far wall, used her foot, mashing down on the ‘close door’ button.

  The doors snapped shut and a large hairy arm was left trying to pull itself from the pneumatic door. It was pinned and the servo motors pushed the arm against the left wall where its claws scratched deep gouges into the floor. Willa slid her feet under her and punched in her destination. With her last ounce of strength, she slammed the override button.

  The sound of the servo motors increased their whining and then the arm of the creature was severed, leaving a bloody spray throughout the small elevator. The door closed completely and a deafening howl of pain from the Beast exploded behind the door. The creature pounded
its good arm on the frame of the transmat elevator, bellowing its agony. The force of the blows threw Willa sprawling against the ceiling and then she struck her head hard on the floor amid the bloody gore.

  The door opened, she was far away from the Beast; the arm twitched on the floor still trying to reach its prey. She jumped over the hideous appendage and looked back at the dented door. She was safe.

  Chapter 12

  THE NEXT MORNING REV WOKE to the sound of an angry woodpecker at his door. The persistent pounding would not go away despite ears covered by two pillows. He rolled over and stared up at the face of Flint. “What’s all the fuss?”

  “Tuloff’s guards want in,” said Flint nervously.

  “Then let them in.”

  The pounding stopped and the door burst in with a flash, Rev could smell the familiar ozone of a discharged las-pistol.

  “Too late,” squealed Flint, flying off to hide.

  Two heavily armed guards with full battle gear entered Rev’s bedroom, pointing their pistols at his chest. “We are to escort you to Regency Tuloff immediately,” said one of the guards.

  “Do I have time for my pants and a cup of coffee?” said Rev, getting out of bed and scratching his ass in defiance.

  “We’ll wait outside for you to get dressed, but no coffee,” said the same guard.

  “Rough morning,” said Rev after the guard retreated to the living room and took up post.

  Flint poked his head out of the closet as Rev splashed his face and washed his upper body with a wet wash cloth. “Do you think he knows about the conspiracy?” asked Flint.