LW Browning - Krystile Warriors 01 - Warlord's Honor (22 page)

"Whores," Ache said. Another woman fell to her knees and began to cry.

"Women," Claire broke in, "Women afraid for their lives, just doing what they must in order to survive. They had no idea they were bringing harm to anyone by providing services and refreshments to what they thought was just another group of traders. Very big scary-looking traders," Claire added.

"If they did not know the food and wine had been drugged, how do you know?" Ache turned the full power of his suspicious gaze to Destiny and Claire.

Destiny lifted her chin, "I know because the old woman who provided my disguise and let me out of the cage told me."

Claire looked at Ache. "I know, because Destiny knows."

Ache frowned, put his hands on his hips and took a step closer to them. "And how do you know what Destiny knows?" He directed to Claire.

Claire bit her lip. "I touched her. We shared thoughts."

"No, pita, try again," Koda said. "You warned us of the poisoned food and drink before you touched Destiny."

Claire was surprised. Koda was right. "I read it from her thoughts before we touched. We shared."

"So you do not have to speak or even to touch in order to exchange information with another MX?" Koda kept his voice soft.

"That is accurate, Warlord Leader," Claire said, glancing at Ache.

Koda smiled and Claire picked up a thought from him. He thought she was pouting. Why did he find that amusing?

"And how long have you known about this ability, pita?" The intensity in Koda's eyes belied his relaxed pose and countenance. He was not pleased.

Claire bit her lip. She felt like a child who had been caught doing something she knew to be wrong. "We were not allowed close physical proximity to each other while we were at the MX facility. We have always spoken to each other in our minds."

"And you did not think I might need to know that, pita?" Koda said softly.

Claire said nothing.

Koda spoke to Dare, who leaned against the wall. "Disable the coms and put the – ladies in one of the small rooms," Koda said.

Dare went into a private room on the end and working on the comlink. "The room is ready, ladies, if you will." He made a sweeping gesture towards the small room. The women hurried in. Dare shut the door after them, then tweaked the access panel to that door.
He returned to the rest of the group.

"What are things coming to when you can no longer trust whores?" Foord muttered.

"It is a sad day," Revi agreed.

Koda turned his attention to Claire and Destiny before he spoke, "Lodi, take these two females to the craft and use one of the shuttles to get them out of here." Koda was all authority now. "We will give you time to leave this place and then we will negotiate with the Trade Council until they agree to our terms. We proceed with our plan."

Leave? Leave! Koda was sending her away? He needed her. Reality swirled around her. The room began to go dark. Claire put out a hand to steady herself. Destiny reached to help her.

Lodi looked at Claire and Destiny with expectation.

No one defied Koda. Claire thought. It was not done. The warlords expected them to jump to follow his orders.

"Ladies." Lodi motioned them toward the door.

Revi thrust a cloak at each woman. "Cover yourselves with these." 

Claire turned her shocked gaze to Koda.

"Warlord Leader..." Claire began.

"I would have your obedience, pita." Koda's voice cut off whatever she was going to say.

C
laire moved woodenly behind Lodi into the hall. Destiny held her hand. The hoods on the cloaks hid their faces and hair. There was no way to hide the hole in Claire's heart. Her eyes burned with tears that she refused to shed. Each breath was more painful than the last as Lodi led them away from Koda. She had been dismissed with no more than a thought. And he cut her off, did not even listen to what she had to say. Koda, like Calks, now had no further use for her.

No one challenged a heavily armed warlord escorting two small females to the garage that held the transport craft. Within sight of the craft, a group of soldiers surrounded Lodi and Destiny. Claire was shoved back into the arms of a soldier and her hood was jerked back. She felt a pin prick on the side of her neck. These were not Koda's people. They were dark-skinned with black hair. Her body, like her mind, slowed. She heard the crack of a whip, then a cacophony of sounds that faded farther and farther away as darkness enveloped her.

***

C
laire roused slowly. Her head was thick, her mouth dry and tasting of nasty chemicals. Wherever she was, it smelled musty, dirty. Her mind took its own time coming awake. She found herself blinking in an effort to clear her vision. Do not panic. She was restrained. Focus. Her stomach fell. Fear swelled up until she thought she would suffocate. Not a good time for a panic attack. Breathe. Breathe.

She pulled against the restraints, she screamed around the gag. The sound went nowhere. Panic set in and she screamed until she almost passed out again. Every muscle in her body went into overdrive in her struggle to free herself. Her heart was pounding. Who had her and what were they going to do to her?

Claire struggled back to calm after the panic attack passed. She forced herself to take deep, even breaths. Her hands and elbows were bound behind her. There was a long chain that secured her hands to something. 

Her feet were tied together with rope that cut into her ankles. The gag in her mouth was made of leather. She moved her head against the wall, but the gag was not coming off. A memory of Lodi and Destiny boarding a transport craft helped her to think. Had they escaped? What of Koda? No, that thought was too painful.

Claire had believed Anna when she told her to remember the queen's job. Evidently, Anna had been certain Koda would need her. Claire had come here with Koda expecting to be useful. Now she was being sent away. Was he done with her? It had happened so fast. Koda never told her what he was planning. He had known, she was sure of it, but he did not share his plans or his thoughts with her. Either he did not trust her or she meant nothing to him. She had to wonder if she had deceived herself. Had she misplaced her trust in Koda?

She wasted another few minutes being angry, first with Koda and then with herself. Why did she not see this coming? Recriminations were not helpful. She was in a survival situation now. The sooner she faced the facts and assessed her situation, the better chance she would have to survive.

She had been free and now she was in chains. In the many hours of old public broadcasting vids she had watched, she remembered a program that told of experienced mountaineers, campers and hikers, who did very foolish things and perished. The program explained that one bad decision put a person in a precarious position. The ensuing panic and self-doubt often resulted in a continuation of bad decisions which ultimately led to a survival situation. Sometimes the person was so confused and upset that they did not survive.

Claire had very few options left to her, but worrying over how she had gotten into this mess would not help her situation. Her breath hitched and she almost broke down and cried anyway. Finally she struggled enough to sit up with her back against the wall. She grounded herself, took control of her thoughts, and began to meditate.

***

K
oda pounded the desk with his fist. Dare ended the com call with Lodi.

"Why does that female do the opposite of what she is told?" he gritted out to no one in particular. "When I catch her, I am going to blister that fine alabaster bottom." She had a beautiful heart shaped bottom. Koda determined to find her as soon as possible.

"Sire, we do not know why she escaped," Ache said.

The door chimed and Var answered it. The Trade Ushers were ready to escort Koda and the warlords back to the Trade Chamber. The ushers studied them from the doorway. Koda smirked at their obvious disappointment in finding the warlords still alert and healthy. Destiny had said that Benson sent them the poisoned wine and food. Koda was already in a foul mood. Benson was going to regret his actions. 

When they entered the Trade Chamber, the warlords spread out on either side of Koda.

The Leader of the Trade Council spoke. "We have arrived at a decision, Warlord Leader. Another party has contacted us indicating that there may be alternate methods of obtaining the Krystiles. In light of this new information, and the fact that you refuse to honor our laws concerning the MX and trade with those who are not members of the Conglomerate, we are hesitant to broker trade agreements between you and those who seek the Krystiles."

"No Krystile trades will be done through anyone except me and those I designate," Koda said. "Anyone who tries to make a deal through another source will be punished. The punishment is death. I no longer recognize the Trade Center. The Trade Council will receive no commissions on our trades and everyone who is a member of the Trade Council will be banned from using the Krystiles."

The room was quiet except for a nervous cough. Koda let his words settle in.

"That leaves us with just one thing to discuss. Where is my MX?" Koda said.

The Council Leader was shaken. "Warlord Koda, we do not involve ourselves in such matters."

"Find her." Koda's voice was low, but his authority rang through the chamber. 

"But – Warlord Leader Koda, we have no means... our sole purpose is to negotiate trades..."

"This is your facility. She disappeared – here. Someone sent us poisoned refreshments – here. I hold you responsible for what happens – here. I want what is mine, Trader. I will have her. The question is – how much of this place will I have to tear apart to get her."

The Lead Trader paled, his hands began to shake. "I must ask you to leave, Warlord Koda."

The rest of the council and the traders on the floor were trying to get out of the chamber. The situation deteriorated even further with Koda's next words.

"Dare, take control of their surveillance."

Dare brought his closed fist to his heart and pulled out one of his many gadgets.

The Lead Trader stuttered out, "Warlord Koda! We cannot allow this."

Koda turned on him with a grimace on his face. "No one. Takes. What is. Mine. From. Me," Koda gritted out. "This facility is now mine. Search the place, rip it apart," Koda said.

The warlords responded by bringing their closed fists to their hearts. The sound of all those huge fists hitting the hard leather-covered armor silenced the room. The warlords headed for the exit. Dare used his com Krystile to send out a radio message for the huge force of Koda's warriors to land and assist.

The Trade Leader lost control of his bladder.

"Trap!" Var's voice rang out after he opened the doorway to the chamber. Koda heard the familiar sounds of swords being unsheathed.

The battle began.

***

C
laire heard footsteps. Four soldiers appeared with Robare from the MX Handler Team. He had been on the team that handled her last assignment. This one, and this assignment had gone horribly wrong. They all wore the black boots and uniforms with red insignias of the STS. 

"Well, you're awake. It's good to see you in a cage where you belong. If you want to beg for your life, you may do so now." Robare flashed a wicked grin.

Claire was not afraid; she should be. She just did not find it in her at this moment. In fact, she was almost giggly that Robare would miss hearing her beg because her mouth was gagged. Was the man stupid? Her heart was broken. She was still reeling from being sent away by Koda. Robare was going to hurt her, probably kill her, but he was no match for the hurt Koda had dealt her. She knew she had to fight the hysteria welling up inside.

One of the soldiers entered the outer and then the inner cage. When he got to her, he cut the gag, nicking her cheek in the process. He slapped her hard across the face, knocking her to the floor.

Claire saw the blow coming, but was unable to avoid it. Her eyes watered with the sting of the slap. All her efforts to sit up and now she was on the floor again. Claire struggled to a sitting position. The soldier left her alone in the cage.

"Ahh. Now we can hear you beg," Robare continued, "the STS know how to handle your kind."

These were men from the Special Threat Squads. For the first time, that fact seeped into Claire's consciousness. Careful not to show her alarm, she looked at Robare.

"What? No begging? Not yet? That's good. That will make this more fun."

Claire flinched from the smile on Robare's face. She was looking at a man gone insane from his own hatred. There would be no reasoning with him.

"We want to know about the Krystiles. Where does Koda keep them? Who is able to access them? Tell me all that you learned while you were Koda's whore." Robare smiled at the guards close by. "Those barbarians sure know how to use a whore, don't they? Frankly, I'm surprised that you survived his – attempts at lovemaking or did he just rape you?"

Robare turned his attention back to Claire. "Koda sent you away as soon as he had no more need of you. He has other MX now to warm his bed. You might as well tell us what we want to know." He sighed when Claire continued to look at him with no expression on her face. "You are on a ship, heading away from Koda at high speed. And Koda has problems of his own."

The viewer mounted on the far wall outside the cage came to life. Claire watched as the STS thugs rushed Koda and his warlords in the Trade Council Chamber.

She allowed no emotion to show on her face. Denying Robare the reaction he wanted was going to cost her. She did not care.

The vid stopped. Koda and his warriors were outnumbered. If they had been slaughtered, the vid would not have stopped.

Claire kept her level gaze on Robare. He was not a bad looking man. His black hair was cropped short and close to his skull, Roman nose, white skin that never saw the sunlight, and thin lips set under flat cheekbones. It was the hate seething just underneath like a nest of poisonous snakes that made Clare wary of him.

"Koda thinks you betrayed him. We made sure he heard that you came with us of your own accord. He believes you are telling us everything we want to know about the Krystiles. You can't go back to Koda. He'll kill you himself. Your only chance is to tell us what we want to know."

"I cannot help you. Koda did not confide in me," Claire kept her voice soft and even.

"Tell us what we want to know, slut. Tell us, or die."

"A ridiculous threat, since you are going to kill me anyway. I do not have the information you want. I cannot tell what I do not know," Claire said.

She thought Koda might have planned it that way. Just in case she were captured or had in fact been sent to him to betray his secrets, he had made sure she had no secrets to tell. Koda was crafty that way.

The other possibility was that Koda just did not think enough of her to speak with her about anything important. At this point, Claire was not sure which was worse. It no longer mattered.

When Claire continued to sit and look at Robare, he ordered the STS into her cell. Three of them came in. Two of them held her while a third gave her a painful injection in her arm. They waited only minutes. It felt like minutes.

The STS thug slapped her and began to ask questions. She refused to tell even the things she knew, names of the warlords, layout of the castle, how Koda kept things hidden from orbiting satellites. Claire tasted her own blood in her mouth and closed her eyes as another stinging backhand slap met her cheek. She was going to die, but she was not going to do anything to aid her executioners. 

Koda leaned back to survey the situation. His warlords had won against the STS force. His reinforcement warriors had arrived to help contain the vast staff that helped run the Trade Center. Mack and Revi herded the council members inside the cages they reserved for the MX. They were not gentle. The room with the cages was large with the cages along one long wall and the remainder of the room left vacant except for rings set into the opposite long wall and ceiling. Around the perimeter of the room metal grids were in the floor to make cleanup of blood easier. There were three metal tables outfitted with rings and chains. Koda sat at one of the tables. "Regular little torture chamber they have here," Var said.

The Warlords lined the STS up along the wall and made use of the hooks. Foord got to use his knives. The frightened traders watched the interrogation from the cages. When Koda had the information he needed from the STS, he gave his warlords the order to slit their throats. The Trader who had contacted the STS and engineered the trap was also killed. The remaining traders were informed that they were being sold into slavery in the mines. Dare sent the vid of the entire process to a select few who were guaranteed to spread it like wildfire throughout the Conglomerate as well as the societies the Conglomerate shunned. It would be a long time before anyone else thought it was a good idea to betray Koda.

Dare tracked the transports that had left after Lodi to find which one Claire was on. When he was going through the camera vids, he found one of Claire talking to Calks. The vid showed Claire from the back, but they recognized her voice. It was her.

Dare brought the vid to Koda's attention. She recited very basic information about Koda and his people. Everything she said was common knowledge. The vid was short. She might have gone on to give Calks more information, but there was no way to know for sure.

"The MX betrayed us," Ache said.

Dare frowned and rubbed his chin with his thumb and forefinger. "I do not think so. She gives him basic information about us. This might be a vid of Calks briefing her for the assignment. I need more time to investigate."

Vix came in with news that Lodi and Destiny were on their way back to Trade Central.

Dare sent off a message to one of their black market merchants offering the Traders to anyone who needed slaves. Though they seldom dealt in slavery, they had connections with slavers and Dare had no problem selling the Traders.

Koda appropriated the Trade Chamber for his command center. Lodi came in with Destiny. She gasped when she saw Koda and the warlords. They had a lot of blood on them from the battle.

"It is good to see you in one piece," Koda turned to Lodi.

"We are fine. The STS fired on us. I managed to evade them long enough to get behind our incoming fleet," Lodi reported.

"How is our guest?" Koda indicated Destiny with a nod of his head.

"She is fine." Lodi held her upper arm.

"She is fine," Destiny said. "And she is here, a sentient being who understands your language, and can speak for herself." She tried unsuccessfully to jerk her arm out of Lodi's grasp. Finally after a stare from her, Lodi let go of her arm.

"What do you know of Claire?" Koda leaned back in his chair.

"She stopped as we were heading to the craft. We were separated by the soldiers who attacked us. She did not make it to the ship." Destiny's voice cracked on the last sentence. 

Koda leaned back in his chair.

"She and Destiny were holding hands. When the STS attacked, I still had Destiny. When I turned back, Claire was standing still. She did not make a sound, she just stopped. There was no time to go back and get her, else I would have lost Destiny too. I called out her name, but she did not look at me. She did not try to catch up to us," Lodi rubbed his neck. 

Koda nodded, focused on Destiny again. "If you know why she stayed behind, it would be best if you tell me now."

"Is she alright?" Destiny wrung her hands. "What happened to her?” Destiny's voice was stronger now, a little higher in pitch.

"Dare found a vid. Claire is giving information about us to the Calks," Var said.

"I don't believe it," Destiny said. "Never. No MX will help those whose goal is our end."

Koda was silent for a moment. "Mount up," he said to Lodi as he left the room, "We leave immediately."