Racing Hearts (Shadow Quest 4.5) (7 page)

“That is all that was
requested of us. It is enough,” the woman's voice proclaimed. “The
contents of this box are without price. Irreplaceable. This is a
very important task you undertake. Ethanule's reasoning for
choosing
you
above
all others is…beyond me. Know this…if this box does not reach its
intended destination, you will face the wrath of my entire race, as
well as Ethanule's.”

Analia's curiosity was
piqued.

“I assure you, Lady Hieskita, we are
excellent at what we do. There is no doubt….”

“You understand your journey will take
you through the warring territories. Have you no reservations about
that?” the woman interrupted.

“There are ways around those zones. It
would only make the trip a little longer to avoid them. And, if we
must, we have maneuvered those territories many times before.” The
captain's reply sounded as though he was smiling at the
challenge.

“You fully understand the wards then?
What will happen if they're breached?”

“Yes.” He tried to conceal the
exasperation in his tone. “If anyone leaves or enters the ship
before the package is delivered, the contract is annulled…and we
are still required to deliver the package, without pay,” he said
robotically, emphasizing the last words. “Or risk war from both you
and Ethanule."

Lady Hieskita humphed and said nothing
more.

Analia laid back, alarmed by
their conversation.
Wards? Long journey?
No one on or off the ship!
She had to make
her move now. But how?

Her mind felt dull, but she could tell
there were many people out there. Too many for a clean escape,
especially with her slow reflexes and weary body. More than that,
she had no idea where they were. How far had they come? She
realized now that she had no experience with new places, new
cultures. She'd have no idea how to act, who to trust, how not to
get herself killed.

Maybe she could wait it out. How
lengthy could this trip be?

Thanks to Darius' favorite punishment,
she found herself able to go without food for longer and longer
periods of time. But how much more could she endure? Furthermore,
how much time had already past? She was so hungry. She didn't think
she could hold out much longer.

By the sound of soft approaching
voices, the decision to stay and wait it out was made for her. The
captain took one last moment to reassure the Lady
Hieskita.

“I pray for your safe journey,” she
replied. Then the room went silent until she began chanting.
Ancient sounding words that dripped with power and energy filled
the empty space around her. Energy slithered and writhed around
her, it clung to her—tiny tendrils clamoring, seeking a way
inside.

At first Analia resisted, using her own
energy to push against it, but it pushed harder. The power didn't
feel malicious, just strong. She relaxed a little, allowing the
strange current to do as it wished. It softened, and then flittered
through her like a warm embrace before dissipating.

When the woman's chanting died out, she
said simply, “The wards are in place.”

The captain said his goodbyes and
thanked the woman. After a short while, a great sound
rumbled.

The ship was on the move once
again.

Analia's body felt colder and weaker
than before. Her initial resistance to the odd energy had cost her.
Breath coming in short spurts, she curled into a ball in an attempt
to warm her shuddering body. When that didn't work, she allowed the
weariness to overcome and she welcomed the cradling arms of
unconsciousness.

Sebastian was damn curious about that
box. Never had a job been racked with such complications. His crew
was used to docking at a space city every so often for supplies,
equipment, and entertainment. They'd never gone more than a few
weeks without stopping for some reason or another.

They were stocked to the
brim for this trip, but it would be a trial for the crew, being on
board for so long. After receiving their intended destination from
Lady Hieskita, he figured the journey could take a little more than
seven months, maybe ten. Once the job was completed, he would make
sure they all had some much needed time away from
Marada
. Maybe find a cozy
planet, brimming with fresh women.

The wards spooked him, knowing they
were there yet unseen, like a parasite attached to his beloved
ship. In the past, he had refused many jobs due to such
restrictions in the contract. This one, however, promised to pay
the equivalent of more than ten commissions combined, nearly double
what he'd first thought it would be. He couldn't refuse.

To his utter shock, Ethanule
had personally requested
Marada
for this mission. Why?

Ethanule was the leader of a small
faction of pirates. They'd done one job for him in the past; a
small commission at that. There had been nothing challenging about
it, nothing that should prove any real worth as a merchant or a
cargo ship. Furthermore, Sebastian hadn't hid his distaste for
pirates. His family openly disliked them, since their father had
been brutally murdered by their kind.

But sometimes, a job is just a
job.

His thoughts drifted back to the
parcel. Why would Ethanule ask for him? And what could be so
important that came in such a small package? That which could
invoke the wrath of an entire race? This commission could either be
a great achievement or his utter destruction.

Calic eyed him warily, possibly
thinking the same thing. “Our course has been downloaded into the
ships navigation system, Captain.”

“Good. Let's get going then. Cale, take
command.”

Calic nodded and assumed control of the
bridge.

Sebastian left, taking the stairway
outside that lead to his quarters, just above the control room. A
domed window, covering half the room, ceiling to floor, revealed a
vast spacescape. Unlike the one in the control room, this one did
not double as an oversized communication screen, just provided a
great view.

Marada
itself was complete with luxuries, unusually so for a typical
merchant ship. The previous owner—an extravagant and apparently
rich individual—had adorned the ship with every comfort one could
think of. There was a spa room with an oversized pool, and a
built-in pub separate from the galley and salon. There was even a
large room dressed with soil, live plants, and an artificial stream
of recirculating water. The place reminded many on board of their
home planets.

But what was most amazing
was
Marada
's water
recycling and regeneration system, unusual for such a large ship.
Where many ships used the more economical powder enzyme shower
systems,
Marada
used real water. The system allowed for an abundant use of
water—one of the scarcest commodities in deep space—over long
periods of time. Water could be used and recycled many times over
without contaminants entering the system. The only drawback was,
every few decades, fresh water needed to be added to the system,
siphoned from a planet that was overflowing with it.

Everything about the ship was made to
provide a sense of comfort.

Even though it was constructed like a
cruise ship, great attention had been paid to the internal workings
as well. It was state of the art in defense and weaponry, as well
as navigation. The ship came complete with an extensive database of
galaxies, solar systems, stars, planets, different races, and
extremely detailed information about places far out of
reach.

Yes, the day he, Cale, and Sonya had
stolen it, they found that they had acquired a good ship indeed. It
had been five hundred years ago, the day of the betrayal, and the
beginning of the war that ultimately destroyed their home planet.
It was a war between his people and the warmongers who called
themselves Kayadon.

The Kayadon had come in
fast, without warning. Only a select few had known what was coming,
and many of those who knew chose to betray their people and their
planet in favor of the infidels. People like their mother and
Calic's mate. He thought of them now with venom in his
heart.
Cowards
.

Shortly after the war had begun, he and
his brother had received word that the fighting was nearing their
village. After a quick meeting among the elders, all able men were
called together. The brothers hadn't hesitated to join the fray, to
protect their homes and families.

Sonya had spent hours begging to come
along. She wanted to fight as badly as they had. Sebastian, being
the eldest male in the family, had refused.

Not that she couldn't take care of
herself. She had always been a strong fighter, trained by Sebastian
himself. Her speed was incredible. She was faster than anyone in
the village, including Cale. But he wouldn't let her fight because
he couldn't stand the thought of losing her in battle. He had
always been fiercely protective of her. Both he and Calic still
were.

Readying their battle gear, Cale and
Sebastian were unaware of the danger in their own home. The two
women had approached as if to kiss them goodbye, but, instead,
injected them with a poison that would render them weak and,
therefore, useless in a fight. The poison had taken affect nearly
instantaneously. Both men—disoriented, muscles slack and
weak—howled in rage. Sonya too screamed her horror. “What have you
done!” he recalled her saying over and over again.

“The Kayadon have come to lead us,”
their mother had ranted in a radical tone he'd never before heard
her use. For the first time, he noticed the glossy glazed look in
her eyes as she fanatically spouted her support for the
invaders.

Seething with anger, and a newfound
hatred, they had left the two women behind as they made their
escape. The fighting was close, and they could not defend
themselves. Survival instincts had taken over.

They thought to hide out in a cave or
the woods till the poison passed through their systems, and they
once again regained their strength.

That's when they came
upon
Marada
,
belonging to a solitary Kayadon nobleman waiting to stake a claim
on their home planet. The interloper had landed his ship far enough
away from the war zone to not get involved, but close enough that
he could join in the victory when it was over. The bastard never
lived to see the end of the war.

After Sonya slit the man's throat,
Sebastian and Calic readied the ship for take off. There was a
short period of trial and error with the controls. Their kind had
always been swift learners.

The Kayadon had quickly won the war.
Their weapons had been far more advanced at the time, and they had
the element of surprise. Soon after their victory, they had
scorched the demon planet to the point of being uninhabitable. The
Kayadon had taken what they could and enslaved many of Sebastian’s
people.

Sebastian shook away the memories of
that terrible day. He hated that after twelve hundred years it
still haunted him. He could see the anger festering within his
brother too, and it had only grown over these long years. He feared
that one day his brother could be lost to the rage
forever.

He showered quickly and dressed before
setting out again.

At present, Sonya was in
charge of
Marada
's
pub. She seemed happy there. But, every once in awhile, he would
see in her eyes the same look that he sometimes caught in his own,
or in Cale's—a deep mourning for the loss of the home they would
never know again.

Sebastian entered the
pub—Sonya liked to call it
The Demon's
Punchbowl
—and took a seat. Sonya spotted
him and waved while attending Bertok, a trusted crew member who has
been with them for years. Bertok shifted in his seat to nod a
silent greeting at Sebastian, then turned back to his
drink.

“Hey!” Sonya smiled, sashaying toward
Sebastian. Her thin tail—a trait of female demons—swung side to
side as she walked, making her look more seductive.

Sebastian ground his teeth at that. He
suspected she did that intentionally.

Fortunately, the men on the ship were
smart enough to stay away from her. They understood that he or Cale
would kill anyone who dare hurt her. He also knew that Sonya
resented their over protectiveness.

Sebastian smiled as she approached.
“Hi, Sunny.” To his amusement, she scowled at the
nickname.

“What can I do for
you,
Bastard
?”

He smiled wider. “I'll take some of
that new stuff you got in.”

“Ah, the raging inferno. It's pretty
strong, even for us demons.”

“Good. The stronger, the
better.”

Sonya poured him a generous glass and
then prepared a shot for herself. She lifted the tiny glass
expectantly. It was a ritual that they'd brought with them from
their home planet. Whenever an unfamiliar drink was imbibed, it was
always done in the company of a friend or loved one. The practice
arose following a string of serial murders through the use of
poison mixed with foreign alcohols.