1
Now
Planet Alzerack
The city of Elna in the northern continent was a crowded, busy place full of sounds and smells that most species found unsettling merged into one place. The crowded streets were full of the unwanted refuse from dozens of vendors who shouted over one another in their attempts to attract customers from the nearby space port. Spices and oily fumes mingled into a stew of exotic odors that assaulted travelers as they passed by. The only break in the incessant hawking was when the patrolling officers of the city police strolled through the market.
As the armed patrol approached the main street market, a pair of the resident children, dressed in dark gray robes that dragged the street as they loitered in a doorway, spotted them and began to run into the street market. As they ran, they cried out in alarm to warn the vendors who occupied the center of the street. As they moved quickly down the street, the vendors, most of who were not licensed to operate in the open air market, began to fold up their carts and scurry under the cover of hastily closed metal doors. Like a wave parting in front of the patrol, the street vendors disappeared into the walls and empty buildings nearby, leaving stranded travelers standing in the middle of the street.
As the patrol passed to the end of the street, the vendors began rolling their carts back into the streets and returning to their business and illicit activities. The police patrol seemed oblivious to the return of business behind them, but a careful observer would have spotted one of the two children who had sounded the alarm handing a bundle over to the patrol and waving as the police walked off.
Strolling against the flow of traffic along the right side of the street, a group of monks glided through the tourism traffic. The seemed impervious to the cries of the nearby vendors who yelled obscenities at the group to leave as they were ruining business. The monks were taller than most of the local population and towered over many of the travelers but despite their effect on the business, they seemed to draw almost no attention at all.
As the small group reached the end of the street, a single local detached himself from the street corner where he had been negotiating for a cup of roasted nuts that had been cooking on open coals. His face was a deep red that glistened in the warm spring sun. Set high on his head were a set of pearlescent black eyes that seemed to look at everything at one time. He was wearing the same gray robes as most of the residents, but of a very fine material and embroidered with symbols of the local language.
“Woolaf,” asked the man in galactic standard. “Am I speaking to the man they called Woolaf?”
The lead monk pulled back his cassock hood and looked back at the man. He was over two meters tall with long arms that folded across his abdomen. His skin was the color of an Earth sapphire and he was completely hairless. His eyes were so pale they were almost white and a thin bony ridge ran from each cheek around the face to meet in a short V-shape at the back of the head. He leaned in closer to the local man and hissed through long teeth.
“Would you stop yelling my name,” the monk said. “We are trying very hard not to be noticed.”
The monk stood back to his full height and turned to his companions. Each monk pulled back their own hood to reveal a variety of shapes and colors. The tallest among them was a blue-green amphibian with a broad head and crested ridge. Next to him was a shorter, white furred felinoid who seemed to quiver with nervousness. Almost unnoticed amongst the giant aliens was a short, squat creature with a large round nose and short tusks growing from the edges of his mouth. The final monk resembled the first one in coloring and size, but his eyes were a teal color that shined from the light of sun.
“Apologies, Woolaf,” the man said, only lowering his tone slightly. “I am not familiar with your species and do not know if you even have ears. Do you have ears? I once knew a man from a species who had no nose. Do you know how he smelled?”
The monks stared at the man. The monk called Woolaf groaned and looked to the sky. The only one who seemed interested was the small monk who waited anxiously for the answer.
“He smelled awful,” the man said, completing the joke and causing the small monk to erupt in peels of snorting laughter. “I find a little levity always makes these things easier. You all need to calm down and relax. You are strung too tight.”
“Listen,” said Woolaf. “We are not here for bad jokes. Are you Mursoon?”
“Yes,” the man said, bowing deeply before the monks. “I am Mursoon, purveyor of fine goods from across the galaxy. Is your friend alright?”
The short monk had continued to snort and laugh loudly as the men exchanged introductions. His thick bristled facial hair was becoming matted with the milky tears that streamed down from his eyes. The tallest alien leaned down and patted the smaller man on the shoulder.
“Brother Wellick,” he said in a deep cultured accent. “Please control yourself in front of the business people.”
The two blue monks both stared at the porcine creature as he calmed down and wiped his eyes on his gray sleeve. The white-furred feline had an expression of fear and had begun to twitch the thick sensory whiskers on his cheeks. As the small monk calmed down, he waved to Woolaf that it was okay to continue.
“I’m sorry, Mursoon,” said the tall monk. “He doesn’t get out of the monastery much. Now, we have business to conduct and I would like to get out of the street before our friend brother Wellick has another fit.”
“Of course, brother Woolaf,” said the red man. Please follow me and we can get our business started.”
The monks pulled their hoods back over their heads and followed the red business man. They wound their way through the dense maze of streets that made up the city center of Elna. There were more shops selling all manner of items, only a few of which appeared to be legal. The monks kept their eyes on Mursoon and tried to keep up with the man. As they walked down the seemingly endless streets, the sun was obscured by advancing clouds.
“We are almost there,” said Mursoon, turning to face the monks. “I think we will need to get out of the street before it rains. The weather here can be rather brutal and unpredictable. Don’t worry; Mursoon has never lost a customer yet…Well, not a good one anyway.”
They continued to keep up with the man; Wellick occasionally turned and looked behind them, looking for anyone following their path. He seemed satisfied that no one was on their tail and hurried to catch up with the other monks. The tall amphibian was waving him on as they headed towards a large stone building.
Most of the buildings in Elna were flat roofed stone with rounded eaves that allowed the frequent unpredictable rains to roll off and wash the streets. The building that they entered was a three story stone rectangle with a cupola above the top story. The walls were a pale tan like the land in the nearby hills and the roof was an earthen red. The main entrance was a large open room that looked like a museum entrance to the monks.
“This is as good a place as any to conduct our business, gentlemen,” Mursoon said. “It is an academy for the locals, but they are not very bright and almost never come here during the day. Besides, it is close to my inventory.”
Woolaf pulled his hood back down and looked around. The room was nearly deserted with only a bored looking native in a uniform seated at a circular desk in the center. Doorways led off in three directions to what Woolaf supposed were classrooms. He was intrigued at the other man’s mention of his inventory and anxious to get their business underway.
“This will do, Mursoon,” said Woolaf. “Now, let’s talk about your inventory.”
“Not so fast, Brother Woolaf,” replied the red alien. “First we must discuss your request. Now I was told by my contact that your monastery was in need of a very…special… set of items. I have heard of religious orders requiring slaves before but I have to ask about your request. Why do you need humans, in particular?”
Woolaf looked to his fellow monks and then back to Mursoon. He had hoped that by using less reputable methods, he might avoid th
is particular question. He adjusted his robes and looked at the floor in a gesture of contrition.
“Humans are especially important to our order, Mister Mursoon,” said Woolaf. “We are an order that worships lost causes since the Ch’Tauk invaded their home planet, humans have indeed become the galaxy’s lost children. They remind us of our need to minister to those in need.”
“Well, who am I to criticize other people worshipping,” Mursoon said. “I worship currency, Brother Woolaf. Speaking of which…”
Woolaf nodded to the man and turned to the white feline, he had stopped twitching but still looked as if he wanted to be anywhere but that academy. He reached inside his robe and withdrew a data pad. He tapped the screen with his index claw and handed the pad over to the red man. Mursoon looked at the display. A smile crept over his face as he looked over the figures displayed on the tablet.
“Well,” said the businessman. “It seems that the religion business is doing well in this economy. Maybe I had better look into it myself.”
Mursoon smiled a wide, toothy smile and handed the pad back to the furred monk. It disappeared back into his cassock as if it had never existed. Woolaf stepped forward, using his height in an attempt to intimidate the shorter man. The business man kept an amused expression on his face as he listened to the monk.
“Mursoon,” said Woolaf. “Before we buy, we need to inspect the merchandise personally. You understand that we need to be sure that the humans are in good health and won’t require too much in the way of care.”
“Absolutely not,” replied the red man, a pained look crossing his features. “The merchandise is as-is and I do not give refunds. Not even to priests.”
“Mister Mursoon,” said the large amphibian. “We are willing to purchase your entire stock today. We have transportation off-world and currency ready to transfer. We will only pay if you let us see the merchandise in person, now.”
Mursoon looked from the tall green man to the blue monk. His skin seemed to grow thick with an oily sheen. Woolaf could see the tally of money register in the other man’s black eyes. As a business man, he was motivated by greed and the chance to acquire that much wealth in a single transaction must be overwhelming his common sense.
“You say you have the currency ready to transfer today?” Mursoon asked. “And you can really transport my entire stock? I must admit that I am tempted and these humans are such work to maintain.”
“Do we have a deal, Mursoon?” Woolaf asked, still keeping his hands folded in the folds of his robe.
“Here is the thing, Brother Woolaf,” said Mursoon. “I know I told your agent that I had close to one hundred of the dreadful creatures in stock, but I was a little low. A good businessman always tries to keep some items in reserve for emergencies, you know.”
“How many?” Woolaf said, looking to his companions with a grim expression.
“Well,” said the red man. “If you agree to pay the full price for all of them, I will take you to see. I can accept a handshake as a retainer. After all, you are men of some Lord or another, right?”
The white-furred monk stepped forward and extended his clawed hand to Mursoon. The smaller man looked to Woolaf, but shook hands with the feline anyway.
“He has taken vows not to touch another soul,” said the short monk, Wellick. “It’s very difficult when we need to do healings and stuff. I have to take up his slack all the time.”
Mursoon stared at the small monk for a moment before turning back to Woolaf. The man practically beamed with expectation of his profit. The monks turned to each other and conferred. Mursoon heard the feline argue about leaving, but he was overruled by the lead monk, Woolaf. They finally agreed and turned back to Mursoon.
“Lead on, Mister Mursoon,” said Woolaf. “We are anxious to begin our ministrations to the humans.”
Mursoon turned to the right hallway and started walking. The monks followed him at a short distance. The man seemed without suspicion and Woolaf was happy that the transaction was underway. They stopped just inside the long corridor and Mursoon turned to a blank wall. He reached into the fold of his own robes and withdrew a small gold plaque. He placed it against the bare wall and raised it several centimeters up, then right. The wall seemed to crack and a doorway appeared in front of the red alien.
“There, you see,” said Mursoon. “Sometimes the best place to hide is right under everyone. As I said, the locals are not very bright and almost never go here so I find it to be an excellent site for my activities.”
The man pushed at the rectangular door and it slid back into the wall. The portal slid aside and Mursoon entered the dark doorway. Woolaf looked to his companions and motioned for Wellick to enter first. The little man nodded and followed Mursoon down a long stairway into darkness. The other monks followed with Woolaf entering second. At the bottom of the stairs, Mursoon placed the key against the wall again and the light from the top of the stairs disappeared. A new set of electric lights flickered on, illuminating a small, featureless room.
“Now,” said Mursoon. “I will have my payment.”
“Not until we see the humans,” said Woolaf, stepping closer to the red man. “We had a deal.”
“One that I am now changing, Brother Woolaf,” replied the businessman with confidence. “You see, you changed your needs and now I am changing mine.”
“But Mursoon, I think you may have miscounted,” said the big amphibian. “We are four and you are one. We are monks but that does not mean we can be taken advantage of, you know.”
“Yes,” Mursoon replied with a smirk. “You are four and I am one and these are twenty…”
The red alien pressed a thin button on the surface of the gold plaque in his hand. Small panels slid aside and rounded tubes extended from the walls. There was a hum as the barrels shifted their aim and pointed directly at the monks. Mursoon’s smirk blossomed into a smile as he looked at the plasma barrels aimed at his customers.
“Now, my friends,” said Mursoon. “I really must insist that you hand over your pad and allow me to input the numbers that it will take to get these guns to disappear back into the walls and this other door to open. Then we can all go on with our lives and…”
There was a small blast from near the ground and Mursoon’s face fell slack. The greasy sheen on his red skin had gone flat as spray of flesh, bone and brain matter exploded from the back of his head. The man’s body trembled for only a moment before falling back against the wall. The monks turned to see Brother Wellick holding a compact plasma pistol in his three fingered hand.
“Oh hell, Captain,” said the porcine soldier. “This guy was a jerk anyway.”
Wellick pulled at his robes and tossed them onto the body of the red business man. He walked to where the man’s arm protruded from under the cassock and grabbed the gold plaque, still firm in the man’s dead grasp. He held the little card up and pointed it to the wall while pressing the small button. The guns retracted and the wall resealed itself.
“Mister Wellick,” said Woolaf, pulling his own pistol from within the sleeves of his robe. “That was not exactly the procedure we discussed. Next time, let me kill the jerk, okay?”
Wellick grunted as he pointed the button at the wall opposite where they had entered. A new door formed and opened and lights flickered on beyond. It was another short hallway with a much lower ceiling. Tuxor, who was wiping the bluish tint from his skin with the sleeve of his robe, was forced to bend over to enter the hall. Woolaf took the gold card from Wellick as they approached the opposite door. After trying several combinations of movements on the blank wall, he was finally rewarded with the same crack as the upper floor. He pushed at the new door and it slid aside.
Inside was an enormous open space, Woolaf estimated that it took up the entire footprint of the academy above that was full of people. Woolaf stepped into the room and stared. At first glance, he estimated that there must have been five times as many humans inside the room as the deceased Mursoon had said. A man, bearded
and thin, stood and stared at the monks. He started to approach with a cautious step.
Woolaf looked to his companions in wonder and then realized why he had seen fear in the eyes of the humans. He quickly pulled off the robes that had hidden his smaller form from the natives. Underneath, the blue monk was much smaller. He pulled the extenders from his forearms and laid them down beside him. Next the monks’ attention turned to his legs, really a type of bladed stilt that gave him a loping gait when he wore them. Finally, he used the robes to wipe away some of the blue coloring from his face, revealing pale pink skin. For the final transformation, he pulled away at the prosthetic ridges that circled his face and removed the cap that hid his dark hair. When he stood again, he seemed fully transformed into a human and the people in the room seemed to surge forward behind their leader.
“My name is Lee Pearce,” said Lee. “We have come to rescue you.”
The mass of people seemed to erupt in cheers all at once, deafening Lee with its joyous excitement. He looked back at the other monks to see Henry Moore removing the last of his own makeup and rubbing at the blue color on his forehead. It stubbornly refused to come out and the man looked frustrated with the stuff. As he looked back at the humans in the enormous cell, the man who had begun to approach earlier had made his way to stand before the former monks.
“Mister Pearce,” said the man in a near whisper that Pearce could barely hear over the din of cheers. “You are really here to rescue us?”
“Yes,” replied Pearce, placing a hand on the man’s bony shoulder. “It’s over. We have a safe place that we can take you all as soon as we get off Alzerack.”
The man’s eyes glistened with tears as he looked back to the cheering crowd. He seemed almost unable to stand, but his will was keeping him up. When he returned his gaze to Lee, he had a look of hope that nearly made Lee weeps himself.
Resolute Omnibus (The War for Terra) Page 25
