Dale Mettam

by The Pub at the Center of the Universe (retail) (epub)

  There were plenty of other assassins out there. It probably made sense not to stick too closely with any one assassin from now on.

  What disturbed the Prime Minister more was that Lu Pillah and the Pangaean were still alive. He informed his lesser spies on Sevres Prime to report when they arrived. As yet there was no news.

  They had slipped by him like this before, and given that he has a pretty good idea they were heading to Prio plans needed to be made.

  After hearing that a Hyper-Luminal jump was made ,he immediately put a watch on all the active arrival chambers. He also sent out Shock Troops to monitor the old, inactive ones, purely as a secondary precaution. Not all the remote locations had been reached so far, but he was sure his men would be in place before anyone arrived.

  They had already caught two intruders at the arrival chamber in the capital city. While the larger of the two simply wept in the corner when confronted by armed guards, the smaller one, who appeared to be a native of Kenturk, exploded in anger and required eight Shock Troops to subdue him. Even after being restrained he continued to rant about having his revenge and no one would stop him. He now had the situation well in hand, however it didn’t hurt to make contingency plans.

  The comm system crackled to life and a sultry voice spoke.

  “You wished to speak to me?”

  Even though the transmission was audio only, the Prime Minister adjusted his robes self-consciously.

  “Lawando, so nice of you to take the time to reply to my request.” he smiled.

  “I may not be stupid enough to want to get between the Securitat and Restive Pro, but in light of our long relationship, it would have been discourteous of me to do otherwise.”

  “Yes, quite,” replied the Prime Minister.

  “Do you have another assignment for me?”

  “Rather the contrary, my dear. I am thinking of taking an extended vacation and wished to reward those around me who have served well. That is a short list comprised of you, and you alone.”

  “You flatter me,” Lawendo cooed.

  The Prime Minister’s smile broadened. “There as a distinct chance that I will be heading away from Prio for a short while. I would very much like to arrange a liaison with you.”

  “How yummy,” purred Lawando.

  Kirk couldn’t exactly say he disliked Hyper- Luminal travel. To be honest, from his perspective, he was standing in one corroded, scorched, and pockmarked metal chamber, there was a brief flash, and he was standing in another equally corroded, scorched, and pockmarked room. He was aware that he had traveled between the two points at such an incredible speed that in reality it took only a little longer than a blink to happen. But he also knew that he was being blown up in order to do it.

  The idea of being the explosive material that initiated the journey was something he knew he would never get used to. At the back of his mind logic was screaming that being disintegrated on a regular basis as your main mode of transportation could not be a healthy thing.

  The first thing that hit Kirk when they arrived on Prio was the heat. It felt like he had just walked into the wall of an oven and he gasped to catch his breath.

  Lu looked over at him. “Maybe I should have warned you. The average daily temperature on Prio is around 105 degrees.”

  Rubik opened the arrival chamber door and Kirk was hit by an even more intense heat.

  “And the average humidity is in the 90 percent range. Makes the heat index well over 110.” Lu added.

  Kirk fell out of the chamber and lay in the Arrival Lounge beyond. As he looked around he could see the building had been unused for some time. Wild green vines snaked up the walls and the floor was covered in a lush spongy moss. The walls and ceiling showed gaps where various plants had forced their way through.

  Lu and Rubik stepped out of the chamber and looked around. Rubik looked less than impressed, though in fairness, Kirk was having some trouble reading the facial expressions of his two companions, as they now resembled two very large lizards walking upright.

  Lu took a deep breath. “Ahhh, good to be home.”

  “I take it this is a safe location to arrive at?” Rubik asked suspiciously.

  “It should be. I would expect them to check out all the arrival chambers on the planet, but this is a very old one and deep in the swamp, so I expect them to take a little while to get here,” Lu said. “Even Prion Shock Troops will take the easy places first.”

  Kirk pulled himself to his feet. Having rested for a moment, he no longer felt like he was suffocating. But it would be tiring to do anything physical in these conditions.

  “I hope you have some transport,” he said. “I don’t know how much of a march I can do in this weather.”

  “Don’t worry,” said Lu, walking over to the large doors, half-buried in vines and large flat leaves. “I stashed a vehicle here when I left. I didn’t know if I’d ever be back. But if I was, I guessed it would be under less than inviting circumstances. I wanted to set myself up with everything I might need. On the other side of that door are transportation and supplies.”

  She tugged at the door.

  The leaves rustled and the vines shook slightly, but the door didn’t move.

  “I’m guessing we’ll need to cut our way through to those supplies.” Kirk said.

  Lu gave him a hard stare, then turned to Rubik.

  “Give me a hand.”

  Rubik walked across and grabbed the other handle and they both pulled. This time two leaves shook off and floated gently to the floor. The vines and the door held fast.

  “Let me try,” Kirk said from behind them. They turned as he was drawing his P.R.P. and aiming at the center of the door. He pulled the trigger just as Lu shouted.

  “STOP!”

  Two things happened.

  First, the energy that usually arced out in front of the barrel seemed to dribble and hit the floor a few feet in front of Kirk. There it crackled and the usual sphere formed around a wad of the moss. It shuddered for a moment and then popped releasing a green slime that soon soaked into the surrounding moss.

  Kirk missed this because at the same time, his P.R.P. began vibrating in his hand and sparks flew out in vicious barrages.

  “DROP IT!” Lu and Rubik shouted in unison.

  Kirk didn’t need telling twice and opened his hand letting the gun fall. Halfway to the ground it gave a last violent shack, sent out a wide spray of sparks looking like fireworks, before sucking itself into a small sphere and dropping with a dull thud to the ground.

  Kirk stared down at the sphere and could see what appeared to be a miniature thunderstorm raging violently.

  “What just happened?” Kirk asked quietly, still shocked.

  “P.R.P.s won’t work here,” Lu answered.

  “I kinda got that part.,” Kirk said.

  “The atmosphere is too moist,” Lu explained.

  “Part of the P.R.P technology is that in addition to rearranging the particles of the target, it also removes the water particles from a specified area.”

  “The sphere,” Rubik clarified. Lu nodded. “Because there is so much moisture in the air here, there is always going to be some liquid in the safe zone. In addition to making the outer casing of the sphere unstable, the remaining water inside will do some nasty things to any particles in there with it.”

  “So why did it almost take my hand off?” Kirk stared angrily at the small storm in the bubble that sat at his feet.

  “Moisture feedback,” Lu said.

  “And the safety mechanism in the P.R.P itself,”

  Rubik continued. “The gun might be pretty small, and a weapon intended to be non-lethal, but is they go up, they go up in a big way. The manufacture built in a safety mechanism. If the gun goes critical, it will automatically create a sphere fo
r itself and contain any explosion to be dealt with somewhere safe.”

  “Though I’ve never seen one do that before,” Lu said, studying the storm now raging inside the bubble.

  “Must be the climate.”

  “So what now?” Rubik asked surveying the room.

  “Plan B,” Lu grinned.

  “Look,” said Kirk. “If you’re thinking of doing what I think you’re thinking of doing, I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. Looking at this place, if you take out that door, I don’t know if the rest of the building will hold.”

  Lu took a small run at the door, then leapt, spun her legs around in front of her, and hammered them into the door. The vines groaned and snapped, sending wild strands of green whipping around the room. Leaves burst from the doorway and the door itself exploded under the force of the blow.

  The dust quickly settled and Lu emerged from the remains of the destroyed door.

  “You were saying?” she asked as they entered.

  Before Kirk could reply they all looked around at the sound of a sickening groan and rumble they felt run up their legs. Before any of them could move, the ceiling caved in, closely followed by the walls and the ensnared greenery lacing the building.

  The six Shock Troops had just arrived at the heavily overgrown arrival lounge that sat in the middle of the swamp. As they made a quick perimeter of the small building, the captain was sure that if anyone did jump to the chamber inside, they would not be going anywhere after that very quickly.

  Suddenly the front door exploded outwards and the shards of the door and greenery showered the group of soldiers. They quickly regained their composure and aimed their weapons at the doorway. Slowly they began to inch forward, when a sickening groan and rumble sounded. They watched as the building collapsed in on itself.

  When the dust settled, the captain ordered his men in to find the bodies.

  It took several minutes, but eventually the troops had pulled clear two bodies that were still alive. They looked for several more minutes, but found little else that indicated there was anyone left.

  With as much speed as they could muster, the troops carried the unconscious bodies back to their vehicle. With one last look around they took off. The Captain immediately sent a message ahead reporting captured prisoners.

  Once the vehicle was out of earshot, the rubble began to shake. Several chunks of masonry and vines began to roll and shake toward a common point. With steady purpose the stone and foliage collected in the same spot until it seemed that a large amount of a wall had developed a life of its own.

  Gradually the collected masonry began to pull itself together. Then the vines wrapped around and sank into the forming mass. A split ran up from the floor, then an offshoot formed on either side. Lastly a small knot sprouted from the top. With one violent shake, the crude shape refined into North Rubik. A second shudder and he was disguised again.

  Rubik ran his hand over a large indentation in his left elbow then looked down a the rubble he stood in. It took him a moment to spot a chunk of masonry slowly edging away from him, now in a clear space away from the wrecked building.

  “Where are you going?” he asked.

  The escaping piece of debris froze.

  “It’s no use trying to blend in now, I’ve seen you,” he said approaching the rock.

  “Look, we’re sorry,” he said crouching by the rock. “If we could change anything we would. But now isn’t the time. You heard what’s happening. This is bigger than any of us. And now, possibly the only thing that can help Kirk and Lu is us.”

  The rock didn’t move.

  “What’s done is done. If you won’t help, we’ll just have to do the best we can without you.”

  He rose and turned around.

  For a moment he stared at the ruins of the building, then in the direction the vehicle’s tracks led.

  The length of his tail shorted slightly as he compensated and filled the missing area of his left elbow. Gathering himself, he started off after the vehicle.

  Suddenly he stopped and ran back to the rumble. Reaching in, Rubik pulled something free before jogging away into he swamp in the same direction Kirk and Lu had been taken.

  The Lord High Minister was down in the detention area watching the Y’lem when the news reached him. He quickly looked across at his prisoner and was sure he saw a smile somewhere in the gelatinous blob.

  “He has arrived?” the Y’lem asked, though his tome suggested that an answer was not required.

  “It will do you little good,” snarled the Prime Minister,. “He has already been captured. As has the traitorous Pillah.”

  “And you have killed them?”

  “The Lord High Grand Provost wanted to see the one you claim will bring him down. And I believe he has something special in mind for Pillah.”

  You are bringing them here?”

  “Ironic, no?” said the Prime Minister. “The ones who you believed would be your salvation will be your cell mates.”

  “Ironic, yes,” replied the Y’lem calmly. “That you invite the harbinger of your own doom into your most secure place.”

  The Prime Minister snorted contemptuously and with a sweep of his flowing robes stormed out of the room.

  In the corridor outside, the Prime Minister sagged against the wall. All he had worked for was slipping through his fingers. The Provost had overridden his order to have them killed as soon as they arrived and had done just as the Y’lem had said. He invited their potential downfall into the heart of their safest location. Even now, the Provost was surrounded by his minions as he confronted Pillah. Then he would dismiss his guards and prepare for a meeting with the one who had come to end his rule.

  There was nothing else the Prime Minister could do now. He had done all that could have reasonably been expected of him. Indeed, he reasoned, it was his duty to leave. If things went as the Y’lem predicted, the Prime Minister would need to rebuild.

  There would be no way to do that were he killed as a result of the Provost’s folly and arrogance. He has for some time set plans in place for a hasty departure. Now was the time to put those plans into action. After a brief term in self-imposed exile, enjoying the sensuous company of Lawando, he would return in triumph and lead the Prion Empire to a new era of greatness.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  When Kirk woke up, he felt as if a building had been dropped on his head. That one did, did nothing to improve his mood or reduce the aches he felt throughout his body. The cell was dark, damp, and warm. With care he reached down and checked for broken bones. In the process he found that Casio was still attached to his belt.

  “Casio? You still working?”

  “Well, considering I just had a building dropped on me, I have sustained very little drainage,” the F.R.B. replied.

  “I think you might have some damage there, buddy,” Kirk said. “Translations are not coming through 100 percent.”

  “It’s always complaints with you, isn’t it monkey buoy. Why don’t you just go flick yourself and leave me the heel alone!”

  “I can still make out the gist of what you’re saying though.”

  Kirk pulled himself up and sat on the hard bunk. The pain was worse when he moved.

  “Can you do anything for the pain?”

  “I’m an F.R.B. unit, Jim! Not a doctor!” Casio replied.

  “I see the humor circuits weren’t damaged then?”

  “That system is in folly walking Urdu,” Casio sounded proud.

  “Pity.” Kirk said to himself.

  “I will try and nullify some of the pain receptors close to my nanoprobes,” the F.R.B. said.

  After a few minutes the pain began to ease and Kirk could move with a great deal more ease. He walked over to the heavy door and noticed that it was more like som
ething from an Errol Flynn movie than what he would have expected to see in the fortress of a highly advanced menace to the free universe.

  “How long was I out?”

  “Approximately eight hours, leaving us two hours to locate and free the Y’lem.”

  “Hang on, we had much more time than that when we arrived. If I’ve only been unconscious for eight hours, how can there also only be two hours left to find the Y’lem?”

  “One more mint,” Casio replied. “It seems that my chronological functions have been drainaged as well. Frankly, I don’t have a clue wet time it is.”

  “Great.” Kirk sighed.

  “I’m sorry,” said Casio. “Do I know you?”

  “Oh, no. Don’t give out on me altogether,” Kirk sounded panicked. “I really need you now!”

  “Just kidding, monkey buoy,” the F.R.B. sounded distinctly smug.

  “So, any ideas how we get out of here?”

  “The door is always the preferred choice in my experience.”

  “It’s locked.”

  “Well, you’re probably well and truly flicked then.”

  Kirk gave the door a push. It didn’t budge. He turned and rested his back against the warm metal of the door and slid down the damp surface until he was sitting on the floor.

  It must have been only a few minutes, but it seemed like an age when he heard his name being called from the other side of the door.

  “Hello?” he called back.

  “Hello,” replied Casio. “You want to talk?”

  “Shut up! There’s someone on the other side of this door.”

  “There are lots of people on the other side of the door,” Casio interrupted. “That tends to be one of the standards when you’re a prisoner. You are on the inside, alone. Lots of people on the outside.”

  “Will you shut up?” Kirk snapped.

  “Did you notice I managed to correct the translation glitch?” Casio continued.