Rystani Warrior 02 - The Dare (17 page)

“Return to us,” Zical ordered.

Lacking the discipline of the crew, the scientist kept running. Others paused to watch, their faces excited and filled with hope.

When the man touched the door, a laser beam sliced across the terminal, lopping off his head. At the sickening sight of the headless body crumbling, spattered blood, and the head rolling across the floor, Dora swallowed hard. One of the woman scientists screamed, her hand covering her mouth at the grisly sight, and another man led her away, his arm over her shoulders.

“I regret the loss of life. But please remember I did warn you.” Avanti kept walking through the building, her pace steady, but Dora saw her bottom lip quiver, another telltale sign that she didn’t necessarily agree with how her people treated strangers. They had no choice but to move on and leave the fallen scientist behind.

Dora could see by the fury in Zical’s eyes that he wanted to protest, but he swallowed down angry words, again setting an example for them to follow. No wonder Avanti didn’t fear them. With lasers hidden in the walls, at the first sign of escape or of violence, the Kwadii would slice off the offender’s head.

If not for Zical’s orders, they could all be dead. He’d been wise not to fight, astute not to try to escape without first assessing their circumstances. His decision had saved everyone who’d obeyed his orders, including Kirek. Stars. If Kirek had tried to escape, he would be dead. Dora couldn’t bear to think of his little body … dead, left behind with no one to perform a ritualistic offering over him, and her stomach churned.

Again Kirek tugged Dora’s hand. Again she leaned down. “The lasers are computer generated. I can hide from them.”

She wanted to beg him not to try. After what they’d just observed, she suspected these people wouldn’t hesitate to shoot a child. But staying with the rest of them didn’t sound promising either. So she asked, “You’re sure?”

Kirek nodded and kept his voice low. “I can feel the machines as easily as you feel my hand.”

“Okay.” Despite her fear, she would stay with Zical’s plan, even if the danger seemed to keep escalating. However, they had no way of knowing if their voices were being picked up by recording devices, if the aliens were listening right now and coldly plotting Kirek’s demise in some other fashion.

They exited the terminal and trudged toward a large hovercraft with no windows. Once again armored vehicles with guns pointed at them prevented escape, only smaller motorized carts, carrying tools, spare parts, cargo, and luggage rolled by. Kirek squeezed her hand tight, his way of saying goodbye, then he worked his way to the edge of their group.

Dora held her breath and forced her head straight ahead. She would not give him away, but tears misted her eyes.

When a parts cart rolled away from the space pad behind them, she glimpsed the boy as he leaped onto the cart. Dora let our her breath, watching out of her peripheral vision and damning her eyes that only saw in the forward direction. Tense, expecting Kirek’s body to be struck down at any moment, she kept walking forward. When he ducked behind some crates and nothing dire happened, Dora slowly resumed her normal breathing and wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand.

Zical and Avanti had taken their seats on the hovercraft when she climbed inside. Already missing Kirek, Dora prayed for his continued safety, that somehow the child would survive by himself on a world full of strangers. Before Dora took the seat behind Zical, their gazes met, and she nodded slightly.

Her silent message conveyed that Kirek was on his own. She didn’t know whether to be elated that he’d deceived the Kwadii, sad that he was no longer among his own people, or grateful that he wouldn’t have to undergo a trial.

“Where are we going?” Zical asked Avanti.

“To a holding facility where we will prepare your defense. Your people will be given food, clothing, and medicine. I will see to it that you are well treated during your confinement.”

“How long until the trial?”

“Two days. I cannot delay. That is the time allotted by custom and given by the Kwadii Council to prepare. However, you should know that I have spent years studying our laws.” Avanti raised her chin and spoke with pride, but there was a glimmer of anger in her gaze that Dora didn’t understand. “I am very good at what I do.”

“This trial, is it public?” Zical asked.

“Yes. If we lose, so will be your execution.”

“Execution?”

“The penalty for treason against the Kwadii is death.”

Everyone heard the woman’s words. One of the female scientists fainted. Several men swore. Zical’s crew remained steady as Dora coped with battling fear and anger. Anger won.

“If you fear our hyperspace trail leading to your enemy, why don’t the Kwadii simply keep us on your world?” Zical asked.

“I made that very argument myself during another trial and won a reprieve. The Kwadii graciously allowed strangers to settle among us, but when they tried to escape, killing many of us during the attempt, our ruling council decided that being merciful was too risky.”

“How often do you win the release of your clients?” Zical asked, clearly trying to assess their chances.

Avanti’s lips tightened. “I have never won. The laws are against us. But I am determined that the outcome of your trial will be different.”

“We appreciate your help,” Zical hesitated, “but is our position any different from others you have defended?”

“I’m afraid not,” Avanti admitted. “But that won’t prevent me from trying to save you and your people.”

Avanti’s determination was evident, but it sounded as if her best would not be good enough to save them. Dora caught Zical’s gaze and was reassured by his barely perceptible nod and an answering tenacity in his eyes. He had not given up. Neither would she.

KIREK RODE THE cart to a storage facility where robots reloaded vehicles. He hopped off and looked around, hoping to spot something to drink. The heat on this world already had him sweating, and his stomach didn’t feel too good since he’d left Dora and the others behind.

He spied lots of machine parts, plastic pipe, tools, and seeds, no doubt exports to send offworld, but nothing remotely edible. Since this facility appeared fully automated, he didn’t worry about anyone spotting him, but robots didn’t require drinking water or air-conditioning.

Hot and sweaty, he watched the robots load carts that returned to the spaceport. Eventually, supplies had to come in, and he planned to leave after the robots offloaded the exports. Searching for another option, he circled the building’s perimeter but a walk across the open tarmac toward the city in the hot sun would leave him too exposed to discovery.

He went back inside and found what appeared to be a communications terminal. He wondered if he could use it to send a message back to Mystique, but decided not to try. As much as he wanted to send one more message to his mother and father, he couldn’t risk detection. Besides, likely the technology wouldn’t match. Right now, his only chance to avoid capture was secrecy.

But as the hours passed and the lining of his throat grew more and more parched, he decided he might not make it through another stifling day without water. If a supply truck didn’t come during the night, he’d try to walk to the city. Not for the first time, Kirek longed for adult-sized legs. But wishing for a stronger body was as useless as wishing he were back at home with Miri. He napped in a corner and dreamed of his mom’s sweet biscuits, his dad’s powerful arms around him.

Kirek awakened in darkness. Around him he sensed more than heard the endless stocking of carts. He went outside to relieve his bladder and after he finished, he turned to go back inside and saw a huge skimmer approaching. Surprised to see how quickly the skimmer was advancing, he ducked back into the warehouse.

The vehicle tripped mechanical doors and floated into the building. The skimmer’s cargo bay door opened to reveal a full cargo. As other machines began to unload, Kirek estimated it would take a few hours. Although he suspected the entire process was automated, he didn’t want to stupidly risk walking right up to a Kwadii camera that could alert anyone to his presence.

So he waited, concerned about the cramping in his legs due to lack of water. He needed to hydrate his body. An adult would have been able to go longer without fluid intake, but he was already weakening. Hot and grungy, and wary, a desperate need for water drove him toward the giant skimmer. Robots busily unloaded cargo, and Kirek realized that if he intended to depart in the skimmer he had to find a way inside.

The skimmer’s cargo hold rested on an enormous rubberized balloon of air. With the balloon side too slick to climb, he needed to find a ladder. But of course there were none. The robots possessed extended crane-like arms of steel to reach into the interior and extract the exports. Kirek saw nothing going in that he could ride.

There was no other way. He’d have to climb the robot, scoot out on the arm, and pray that the drop to a landing wouldn’t be so high that he’d break bones. Kirek didn’t like heights. He really didn’t like physical exertion. But he liked the idea of his skin shriveling up and dying of thirst even less.

When a robot went by, he counted.

One. He tensed his cramping legs.

Two. He lunged two quick steps.

Three.

He jumped and caught a cross bar with one hand. His sweaty fingers slipped. His heart raced and he kicked, frantic to secure a toehold and prevent himself from sliding under the robot’s tracks.

You can do it
. He could hear his father Etru talking to him, telling him that the mind could overcome the weakness of the body.

Sharp metal dug into his fingers. Kirek ignored the pain and swiveled until he found a toehold. It seemed as though he’d dangled for minutes, but when he checked the robot’s position, he realized only seconds had passed.

Clinging to the robot’s body, he told himself not to look down. Instead, he tilted back his head, raised one arm, and grabbed the bar above his head. Next he found a toehold. Arm, leg, arm, leg. Hand over hand, he climbed higher.

Was he taking too long? He didn’t know. Didn’t want to glance down to see how much more of the supplies were left to unload. His breath came in huge gasps. He’d stopped sweating. A bad sign. Perspiration was the body’s way of cooling heat.

Shaking from his efforts, he feared if he stopped climbing to rest, he’d never start again. He could hear his father talking to him. He suspected he was hallucinating but still welcomed Etru’s comforting presence.

You can do it, son
.

It’s too hard
.

Doing hard things will make us proud of you
.

Okay, Dad. I’ll keep going. But if I fall—

You won’t
.

Tell mom that I miss her. A lot
.
I miss you, too
.

Kirek’s eyes should have been full of tears. But he had no moisture to spare. His throat felt so dry, as if it was going to crack and tear. His legs burned. His arms trembled.

But the robot limb was so close.

Just a little farther, son. You’re almost there
.

Finally, Kirek pulled himself up far enough to straddle the arm. He had to scoot out a little and just in time he reached a cross bar to hold himself steady.

Kirek’s head spun from dizziness. If he fell from this height, he wouldn’t have to worry about broken bones, he’d be dead. He wanted to close his eyes, but he didn’t dare.

Kirek crawled out on the arm until he was over the cargo. He needed to make a good landing.

Stars.