Flight of the Maita Supercollection 3: Solving Galactic Problems Collector's Edition

by Moulton, CD

  Quite a few wouldn't be in the dining salon. Some found that rough seas interfered with their ability to enjoy food, though Flar rather liked the sensations. It seemed to him mammals were most affected while reptiles such as himself were not affected. Some of the strange unclassifiables and most of the amphibians weren't affected at all negatively.

  Brace with the tail.

  Boom!

  There it was.

  Now the slight sluice to the right, now calm.

  What was that? Had someone failed to brace properly and been knocked to his knees? The sluice could bounce a person off of the walls quite painfully. Flar went quickly to the person leaning now against the side of the walkway. It was an Eacheron or one of those types. They were generally quite at home in these conditions.

  "All you all right?" Flar asked and the man turned to stare with wide glazing eyes at him for a short moment before pitching forward onto the deck. There was the hilt of a knife standing out from the base of his throat!

  "Muhh ... aiigh!" the man said.

  He tried to push up from the deck, then fell again and was still. Flar stared for a split second in horror, then raced to hit the emergency button. The automatic timer said 17:52.

  . . . .

  Tor stepped into the cabin and looked at his mate sitting against the wall on the bench reading some silly romance periodical. Mai was a very beautiful woman and, yes, he was jealous. People paid entirely too much attention to her. She was beautiful even on Khret, where all the women were exceptional. The other Khret male aboard the ship (That they had met) preferred far too many compliments to her and the Eacherons, who were the same race, paid far too much attention to her. Even the Kheths, who were a different race entirely, found her attractive.

  Tor wasn't sure he approved of these relations among different races, but he wouldn't pass moral judgement so long as it didn't involve Zia Tor – or Zia Mai, either. What involved her automatically involved him.

  That damned Bo character was case in point. He was an Eacheron at least, but he had really gone too far with his chasing after a promised woman. No one could blame her mate for saying or doing as he had done.

  "It's seventeen fifty five," he said. "Shouldn't we head for the dining salon?"

  Mai stood and stretched, then smiled at him. "We'll get a good table, I think," she said lightly. "This storm will keep a lot of people away. I hope the entertainment is better tonight though. I don't much like that fast music. It interferes with my natural body rhythms or something. It makes me nervous in some odd way."

  Tor handed her the dining cape and she draped it around her shoulders, then stepped to the door.

  "There's a tear in your cape!" Tor said.

  She pulled it up to look, then flung it to the bench and went to the closet. "I'll insist the tour line pays for that!" she snapped. "I only wore it once! They shouldn't leave snags about on these ships!"

  She draped another cloak over her shoulders and they went into the hall and around the corner. There were several people around someone on the deck.

  "Someone seems to be hurt!" Tor exclaimed as they came to stare at the body on the walkway.

  "Good Hovah! It's that Eacheron who was so nice to me!" Mai cried.

  . . . .

  Kap drummed her fingers on the table and tapped her foot. This was far too much! – or she wanted to leave that impression to others, at least. Let it be known that she was about out of patience with his always being late and with his always showing too much attention to any female but her! SHE was the one who had come on this trip with him! If he wanted to pick and choose among the other passengers he should have come as a single!

  The fact she wanted to do some picking and choosing herself could well be lost to onlookers in that kind of game. There was that Kheth, Kwold, who could probably show her a thing or two. She'd heard the Kheth were fabulous sex partners. Even Tor, the Khret colonist, was some kind of exceptional – to look at. He would have to be pried away from that insipid overly-pretty little thing he was lifemated to for an afternoon or something. Kap didn't want to break them up or to own anybody, just to borrow him for awhile.

  And what would the Sorvich be like? Nord Flar? From what she saw he was certainly not second-choice!

  She had made a big deal about letting people know exactly when she arrived so they'd see how long she waited for her supposed lover! "He was supposed to be here at a quarter til!" she had cried when she asked the waiter servo which table he had reserved – in front of several other passengers, of course.

  "Well! It's exactly a quarter 'til! Where is he? – and this stinking ship! Look what I've done to my scarf! How did that happen! Isn't anything going to go right on this trip? What a stupid place to have a damned bush! Somebody's going to pay for that! It's ruined!

  "Where is that ... that...! Oh!"

  People would stare at her, sitting there getting madder and madder at his thoughtless tardiness. People would notice that SHE was in the dining salon since a quarter 'til! SHE was here when she said she'd be here! SHE wasn't keeping HIM waiting!

  It was very important to her that everyone know beyond any question that she was in the dining salon at a quarter 'til and that he was not.

  Kap felt very relieved to be rid of Bo and his use of her to his own ends. This would give her every right in their minds to tell him to take his socalled fascination elsewhere! There could be no blame focused on HER! SHE was right there in the dining salon exactly on time!

  . . . .

  Kwold heard the sound of an emergency call and sat up on the bunk. This storm was severe, even for here. Could the ship be in trouble?

  He looked at his lifemate, Flish, sleeping quietly next to him and was worried. He had been on Gliszon twice before and knew what to expect, but this was far more violent a trip than he would have wanted for his new mate, though she seemed very much to enjoy it.

  Well, it was different and it was beautiful. The trips he had taken before were different, but in another way. Had any beautiful woman, even that Eacheron one, made such obvious advances to him before he would have probably tried to find a few new and better uses for the rolling and pitching of the ship. He had in point of fact found diversion in the pleasures of the bedroom on former trips – and with women on this very voyage.

  Some people took these trips solely for the liaisons they could form without making any promises, though his own trips were more for the pleasures the unusual world itself offered. It was a kind of magnificence found few other places.

  This was much different. Now he was lifemated and would never consider such a liaison again. The Kheth were absolutely free in such matters until they were lifemated, then they became the most monogamous people in the galaxy.

  It was now 17:59 by the clock so they should get ready for the evening meal. He awakened Flish to tell her he was going to check on the emergency call, then they would go to meal. He went into the hallway and followed the sound of the call to find a small group of people around the body of that Bo character who had made such a fuss over everyone's woman but his own. He had been stabbed in the throat.

  Kwold wasn't surprised. There were a number of races on this voyage and some were known to be violent about some things.

  Captain Wahrd, the huge Feach captain of the ship, was coming along the companionway with her two Acnian first officers. Kwold knew her well so waited until they arrived. Most people moved quickly away from the strange Acnians with their large faceted eyes, but Kwold knew and liked them. They were Nurlo and Seela and had been on this ship for many years along with Wahrd. They were her permanent crew who would stay while the stewards and kitchen help and so forth would change every few trips. Wahrd recognized Kwold immediately and called him over after a moment to ask him to inform the Eacheron's traveling companion of events if he would be so kind. Kwold was a diplomat at large for the empire and would know how to handle these things. Wahrd said she wasn't very well versed in reporting violent crimes to the mates of the victims.<
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  Kwold took a deep breath and agreed, then went back to get Flish. He told her of what had happened as they took the long way to the salon so she wouldn't have to see the horror. He was thinking about another thing as they entered the dining salon.

  Murder was an extremely rare thing in the Maitan Empire. It didn't happen very often. Most members in the galactic society had grown past the stages where murder was common. There were two special detectives who worked with the emperor and upon whom he was directed to call in times of needs in his capacities as a diplomat. Kwold supposed there was little or no hope anyone aboard would be able to solve this and no one admitted to the crime so they probably wouldn't. The fact there were Acnians aboard and that the captain was the last word of law on this ship could lead to a very dangerous situation.

  Acnians are T-hypnotics. They can hypnotize anyone with hardly more than a glance. To use their talents was against all law in the empire unless the subject agreed to allow it, but the captain was the law in an emergency. Such tactics would definitely find their murderer, but would violate the rights of every other citizen on the boat at the same time. That must not be allowed to happen!

  Kwold squeezed Flish's arm and stepped to the message center to ask for a diplomatic fastcom line.

  "Name and code of respondent?" the servo asked.

  "Emperor Maita or T-K Detective Agency," Kwold replied. "I believe the code is TRD sixty Perfect Three."

  Even the machine hesitated when the emperor was mentioned, but that was just said so there would be no hesitation whatever in getting the message to the detectives. It also ensured them of absolute privacy.

  The emperor was always available on a special line, but there were thousands of worlds in the empire so all operators were asked to route calls to other stations whenever possible to avoid jamming of comlengths in case of emergency. Theoretically, anyone could call the emperor anytime and Kwold knew of one case where a Zeenan citizen had called him on a dare (One did NOT dare a Zeenan!) from a public com in a nightclub and the emperor had answered and had even asked the Zeenan a few probing questions about how people were reacting to a recent policy change. That Zeenan would never let go of that fastcom sheet with the emperor's personal seal on it!

  The fastcom printer spat out a bit of paper.

  ~TRD60 ready: Go ahead.~

  ~Murder aboard vacation ship 'Wavewalker' Gliszon S two thirteen plus two S two twenty six ten. Situation dangerous. Use of Acnians must be averted all costs. Please come.

  ~Kwold, ME Diplomatic Corps.~

  They waited less than a minute for the message to be relayed across the almost forty thousand plazsis (MGS lightyears) and back.

  ~Kwold RSPNS: In vicinity Gliszon. Will arrive within two hours. Record everything at scene. Take no other action. Seal victim's rooms and other property immediately. Do not enter.

  ~Tabori R. DeSixtee.~

  He had reached the famous head of the agency himself! Tabori R. DeSixtee himself was near Gliszon! This was a stroke of major good fortune against all odds. Kwold felt immensely relieved as he called Captain Wahrd to have the rooms sealed and to say he had called the detectives. Wahrd said she was pleased the empire people would handle it, which relieved Kwold. He didn't want to appear to be usurping Wahrd's position.

  He then took Flish on into the salon where he saw Kap, the very same one who was always throwing herself at him, sitting with the other Eacherons, Zezz and Klom. He told her as gently as he could that Bo was dead – murdered. She looked startled and shocked and Kwold could almost have sworn for an instant she looked almost gleeful. She was certainly not reacting like someone who had just lost a lover!

  That would be a thing to note for Tab. He must note any small reaction or word that was out of place here. The little oddities were what solved a case if he could believe the books he'd read that were supposedly written by Tab.

  * * *

  "Fastcom coming in," TR announced on the silent channel to Tab and Kit. T6, Kit's ship, would be receiving the message itself, but both of the robot detectives were aboard TRD-60. They "read" the message and sent a reply very quickly, having discussed the case thoroughly in a few milliseconds. It was all done on their internal computer circuits.

  "We'll be there in an hour and three quarters to two hours in TTH fourteen," TR suggested. "T Six will stay here to work on its ideas for the use of the atomic architect. I'll get you two on board the ship and wait in orbit or something. They're in the middle of a typhoon so I can't drift along fifty meters above the liner. Typhoons, believe it or not, are normal weather for the stupid world! That's the basis of the tourist industry, which is one hundred percent of the industry there. You can go aboard as yourselves. Everybody will know you're detectives called by the Kheth diplomat. I said we were in the area so it would seem normal for us to get there fast enough so the Acnians won't be used.

  "Do you think anyone would actually do that?"

  "Probably not – unless there's another killing," Kit answered. "Feach captain? Not very likely.

  "I'll fit in well with Kwold. We can eliminate the Kheth as a suspect, and the Acnians. Get a list of how many and who aboard the ship, TR."

  "It's here," TR answered. "We can worry about who might or might not have done it when we get the facts."

  Any of the detectives could access the machines on the various worlds through the fastcom so there was no delay in getting the records of that particular tour. TR and T6 were partners in the agency so were detectives, too, though they didn't advertise the fact.

  "Well, Kit," Tab announced. "When you said you didn't think the detective business would be anything like our first couple of cases this is what you had in mind. Now you'll learn that direct murder investigations aren't much different."

  "What else can we do before we arrive?" TR asked.

  "Until we know more about it, nothing," Tab replied. "Have all times of reservations and any special requests noted in case it comes down to something that was planned before the trip started."

  "That isn't likely," TR argued. "The fact it was ON the ship would limit the suspects too much so it's likely it's something that happened there. I've got an Acnian named Seela on fastcom. She says the knife was a typical table knife anyone could have taken from the dining salon at any time. She'll check the servos to see which table it was from if that will help and which shift it turned up missing from the salon or elsewhere."

  "It'll probably be missing from the dining salon and from a table very near the exit on the latest setting," Tab guessed. "We're going to have trouble getting aboard that boat, aren't we?"

  "You'll go in on the big floater," TR said. "It's a matter of timing. No problem."

  "Let's hope there won't be anymore murders," Tab replied. "It would make this one easier to solve, but the price would be a bit high."

  They didn't have much trouble getting aboard the "Wavewalker." The floater timed the rise and fall of the ship nicely and they sat without a jolt. They got off the carrier and sent it back to TR.

  "We're on our own, now!" Tab said.

  They entered the safety hatch to meet Captain Wahrd, the two Acnians and Kwold.

  "Take us to the body, then to where it was found, then to his rooms," Tab suggested. "We'll probably need a room where we can talk with people. Don't tell us too much yet. Just answer questions. If we get too much information at once we lose the chronology and may miss something important.

  "Was there anyone around before he died? Someone he may have spoken to?"

  "There was a Sorvich citizen named Nord Flar," Wahrd said. "He turned in the alarm. He didn't mention that Bo had spoken at all. I didn't question him because I don't have any idea what to ask."

  They went to the spot in the hall where Bo died and checked the area carefully.

  "Everything was recorded," Nurlo informed them. "Seela has her reports ready whenever you wish to see them."

  Tab nodded, then they checked the room. It was typical. Bo had obviously been on this tour
before as there were mementoes of two previous voyages. That may or may not be important.

  The body told them little other than that he had died within no more than three minutes of receiving that wound. The knife was a steak knife from the dining salon.

  "Where and when was the knife taken?" Kit asked. "Have you determined that yet?"

  "It was taken after seventeen ten from the table second from the companionway entrance at salon door four B," Seela answered. "That's one of the doors that open onto that very companionway only a few meters from where the murder took place."

  Tab nodded. He had predicted that one.

  "Let's check out the restaurant and that table," Tab suggested. "Then we'll need a room to ask questions. Get us the recordings of the scene, please."

  They checked the dining salon and the table where the knife had turned up missing. It was just another table.

  Tab slowly turned and recorded everything in the salon from the bar to the entertainment stage, the plantings by the doors with the emergency lights above them, the servo positions, the doors, the food delivery slots and the serving utensil and eating utensil storage and deposit areas.

  Kit grinned as Tab shook his head and headed out of the room.

  "Get this Nord Flar person here first and show us where our operations will be based," he requested. They wanted to appear to be organics, so he also asked for a large pot of gincha.

  . . . .

  Nord Flar watched as the two detectives come into the dining salon and look things over and knew the Swaz hadn't missed one slight detail. His look hadn't missed a single square centimeter of the room and Nord would also bet the man had a photographic memory. If there was a utensil or plate out of place or a crooked tablecloth he would have noted it.

  He finished his meal and waited. He had no doubt he would be asked some questions and he didn't want to appear a fool.

  A servo came with a note asking him to go to room 2B12 so he stood and nodded to Flish and went out. The weather was a bit worse than earlier as the ship sluiced and slid about. Nord was lucky to have the tail or he might have ended up tossed all over the place. He was impressed with the ease with which the Swaz and the Kheth adjusted to the ship's movements. They were almost as good as the Feach captain and her Acnians who lived aboard this ship.