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Episode 2
The dark green hovercraft
swung out over the Lesli Spaceport toward the private section.
The sunlight glistened on the recently painted hood, making the
Danez logo glow, radiating a demonic amber.
Its floatation gears whined
fitfully as it set down on the repair grid, then wheezed with relief
as it completely settled in to place. The limousine's hatch
snapped smartly up and out of the way, letting bronze furred Nilef
emerge. Devi took in the
surrounding the area. The main collection of buildings which
comprised the hub of the spaceport set over a hundred meters away.
Before the car sat a run-down interstellar freighter.
He wrinkled his whiskers in disgust at having
to take his mistress to one of the more poorly kept sections of the
'port. Then he turned and helped the Mistress out of the
limousine. Janez Danez
felt dwarfed in the shadow of the Nilef. She stared at the
tumble-down ship in the repair dock. It, like so many things,
needed fixing, she thought soberly.
Fiery pain shot down her side as she turned
toward the craft. She winced. She had only been in the
medic tanks for three days and her healing required another week.
And she didn't have another week. Events were moving to
quickly. She had already been out of the game for two weeks.
She hesitated only a moment before crossing
the grid toward the craft. Devi trailed, scanning the area for
possible threats. He had been detailed to accompany her since
the incident. The Danez weren't content with the notion that
she had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time.
More repairs that were needed.
She'd visited her old friend Sloan, to hire her for this project.
It was the same time, Sloan's bill collectors had turned up and Janet'd
been caught in the cross fire.
Sloan'd been exceedingly apologetic.
She'd summoned the Danez and saw that Janet'd received the proper
medical treatment before raising ship and leaving Atur.
Now she this project was behind schedule, much
to the irritation of her grandmother, the Madam Diane Danez.
Her woes were a low priority for Sloan. She and Slade were
focused on getting Nero's men off their backs. With any luck
Sloan'd still be able to meet Teri on Pani and fly her to Bolapolvo.
So many pieces that still
needed to come together. And the Madam was loosing patience.
Not the best show one could put on after just being designated her
heir apparent. She shook
off the thought and ducked under the rim of the craft, and strode up
the ramp, into the freighter. The single corridor which
served as the crew's quarters, was dimly lit by a string of lights
lining the walls. She paused wondering where her cousin was
when a crew hand entered from a passage to her left. She
caught his arm as he passed. "Where's Teriesa Reed?"
The big man studied the woman and her guard.
Then his gaze fell to the Danez tattoo on her neck which seemed to
help with his indecision. He pointed to a thin ladder leading
down.
Devi looked down below deck
and turned his head away, hissing in disgust. The Mistress had
noticed the mildew odor too. Apparently it was worse down
below in the engines. The man pulled free of her grasp and
lumbered off like a huge machine.
She bit her lip, staring into the gloom of the
ladder shaft. Her hand caught the cold metal and she descended
with the Nilef moving swiftly after her.
Her cousin wasn't supposed to be there.
Teriesa'd been told to quit the freighter a week ago after she'd reported
to her father that the ship's captain had become dangerously unstable.
After stopping at a parts factory, and a circuitry center, two jobs
she was to be working instead, the Mistress came to the conclusion
that she still had to be aboard the Nablao.
"Ah'll tear yar bloody 'head off!"
The Mistress snapped around at the foot of the
ladder, panic caught in her throat. The motion set off a new
wave of pain in her side and she stifled a cry. She squinted
into the gloom for the source of the scream.
Devi leaped off the ladder and
landed in a defensive crouch before her. She drew in a long
breath, placing her hand over her heart. He'd probably
frighten her to death before any other menace had a chance to kill
her. The alien slowly rose to his full height and moved
cautiously forward. Even with his presence, the Mistress found
herself wishing that she had a side arm and that Teriesa would
secure better employment.
Then through a maze of cables shot their
quarry. Her exit cut off, Teriesa Reed dove under a nearby
console, relying on her quick reflexes to escape her pursuer.
To her cousin's surprise, it was the ship's captain.
Alexi blazed after the youth, a hung scanner
in hand. He slammed it into the console, missing the woman by
centimeters. Teri rolled out of his way, wiping the blood away
from her lip. The
captain's thick face was swollen and red with fury. He lunged
at her again and again but his prey managed to remain just out of
reach. He hollered in a foreign language, bringing the spanner
around with forceful tireless moves.
Teri'd run out of options and
she knew it. If she held still for a moment, he'd kill her.
Her skull throbbed from where he had grazed her. She ducked
and rolled into a crouch a few meters away from the Mistress.
And why wasn't her cousin playing the rescuer?
She jumped up with a hard side kick which
connected solidly with Alexi's chin. The captain reeled back,
loosing his grip on the scanner. It smashed into another
console, sending up a shower of sparks.
Unfortunately, she didn't plan for her
landing. Her foot shot out of under her and she crashed to the
floor, the impact forcing the wind from her.
Alexi was on his feet in a thrice to renew his
attack. The Mistress motioned to the Nilef. Her
bodyguard stepped forward caught the captain's shirt and lifted him
off the ground. "No can
do!" the captain bellowed, spitting blood and teeth fragments with
each word. He thrashed about to no avail. Teri watched
him dangle there and wanted to smile but she hurt too damned much.
"She's my crew! I do as I please!"
Technically a correct statement but the Danez
were not ones to hold with local customs if it interfered with the
welfare of their family. Janet informed the captain of such,
adding, "You've been warned before." A second
gesture and the Nilef herded him to the next level up. She
crouched down in front of her cousin. "Anything broken?"
"No." Teriesa massaged her throbbing
temple, and felt Janet help her to her feet.
"Steben won't be pleased," the
Mistress remarked, bringing up her old bodyguard/ instructor to
lighten her mood. She was greeted only with a growl. Steben Sküb
had given her little defense training. He'd regarded the job
as a well paid vacation and Teri adored him. "Doesn't look
like you'll need a suture."
"Dammit, I'm all right."
"You were told to quit this job."
"I did. That's what
started it." She tittered a bit. The Mistress caught her
elbow to steady her.
"Come to the car. There's a med-kit there."
They passed Alexi in the crew area, cradling
his arm. The owner of the ship fussed over him until she saw
the Mistress. Without preamble, she dropped the cloth she had
been cleaning him up with and ran over to the Danez leader.
Janet waved Teri past as the
woman bowed and apologized for the incident. She spoke Nali'i
so rapidly the Mistress could barely keep up with her.
Teri rubbed her sore jaw, edging her way to
the exit. The captain glared at her. She found herself
backing away from him until she bumped into Devi.
The alien placed a firm grip on her shoulder
and steered her out of the freighter. They waited by the
hovercraft for Janet to emerge. She found Devi watching the
area and Teri perched on the rear of the car. "I don't mean to
sound ungrateful, but why're you here?"
"The Madam asked me to give you an
assignment."
"She did? I thought Dad
said no."
"The Madam Diane Danez is not
accustomed to asking your father for permission before acting."
"Where've I been assigned?"
"My department."
"I don't want a desk job."
The ring of the statement and the young woman's posture reminded
Janet of the Madam. And then she saw Teriesa was everything
their Grandmother worked for. She was a better candidate for
heir apparent than Janet could ever hope to be. The Mistress
found herself jealous at the thought and fought down the rage that
welled up.
It was those very traits that
would get Teriesa through this project. Not to mention
impressing the Madam with Janet's skill at selecting people to
accomplish jobs.
"You'll do what Grandmother
says."
The young woman shifted
uncomfortable before dropping her gaze. She rubbed at her
temple looking back at the ship. At the moment, she didn't
have better prospects.
She
entered the limousine at her cousin's gesture. Devi closed the
hatch after them and ducked into the car's lead compartment.
"I've some clothes you can
change into at the office," the Mistress soothed. She opened a
small panel in the ceiling and extracted a med-kit.
The hovercraft shook briefly,
groaned, and then rose confidently off the repair dock plating.
Teri shut her eyes, feeling a wave of nausea hit her as they zipped
away. The 'kit pressed into her hands and drew in a long
breath to steady her stomach.
"Why didn't you tell me about
Alexi? I could've taken care of him like that." She
snapped her fingers for emphasis.
"It's my problem."
"It's a clan problem."
The Mistress picked up the phone. Insane or not, Alexi had
just performed his last act of violence on this world or any other.
"Don't!" Her hand was
stayed by her cousin's. Janet glared over at the young woman
and the offending hand retreated. "It's not what
Grandmother would've done," the woman said quietly.
"What?" The Mistress
gaped in disbelief. Slowly the other woman raised her eyes to
her.
"I was trying to do what she
would have done." The younger woman sat deathly still, cheeks
flushed with embarrassment.
"You shouldn't do what the
Madam does," the Mistress spoke after a long pause. She'd
forgot about Teri's adoration of the Madam. May be calling her
in was a mistake. The last thing she needed was Teri to charge
off with a half-baked scheme because it was what Grandmother would do.
"Why not?"
Janet marveled at the
innocence in those grey eyes. She wished she too still thought
of the Madam that way. "The Madam is too big for any one to
imitate."
They rode on in silence and
after several minutes, Janet desperately tried again, "I'm sorry,
Teri. It's that Grandmother--"
"What's the job?" she cut her
off, staring out the car window. She heard her cousin falter
then adjust to the topic change.
"I suppose courier is the best
way to describe it," the Mistress decided. "There's a boy I
want you to escort to Pani."
"Why? Is it his
birthday? If this is another gag where you got me to take
Cousin Luke to the marine park, forget it. I'm not biting
twice."
"No. It's nothing like
that," the Mistress assured her. "As you know, the Clan needs
something delivered. They've come across
something special indeed."
"Boys aren't that special,
Janet. They're all over."
"You'll have to trust me that
this one is very special."
Episode 3
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