by Scott Baron
Of course, if they weren’t, they wouldn’t last long in that sort of trade.
“We seem to be receiving a skree message,” Demelza said. “But it is from a woman named Lalaynia claiming your children miss their father. Is there something we need to know, Uzabud?”
The pirate laughed as he picked up the skree. “Honey, I’ve missed you all so very much. It’s going to be great holding you in my arms again.”
“Soon, my dear,” a woman’s voice replied over the magical comms device. “The kids are looking forward to playing with you.”
“And I with them. Are you close by, my love?”
“Very.”
“Wonderful. I will see you soon,” Bud said, then closed their skree spell.
“You’ve got a working skree too?” Laskar asked. “What the hell, Bud?”
“Not a normal skree, my friend. It’s a hardened one used by a certain sort of people.”
“A certain sort of people?”
“Well, my sort. Pirates and the like get bombarded with skree-disrupting magic pretty regularly, so we had to have a way to communicate even when attacked like that. It’s kind of a trade secret, so don’t go spreading it around. But yeah, I’ve still got my old one for emergencies like this.”
“That is all well and good, Uzabud, but who is this Lalaynia, and did she say you have children?” Demelza asked.
“You’ll meet them all real soon,” he replied with a mischievous grin.
The much larger ship that had rendezvoused with Bud’s mothership made his fairly comfortable space home look somewhat cramped by comparison. His ship was still too big to settle into the pirate ship’s landing bay, though, so an umbilical spell bound the two together.
“Okay! Okay! Let go!” Bud said, catching his breath when the strapping, tall woman finally dropped him from her embrace.
“What is it, Bud? You said you couldn’t wait to be in my arms again,” she said, the swarthy band of men and women at her side sharing in her mirth.
“You didn’t have to take that all so seriously, Laynia. And damn, have you actually gotten stronger?”
The pirate captain flexed her arm, showing off her well-defined muscles. She wasn’t massive. Not like a body builder or gladiator. But she had a lot of years of hard work and harder fighting under her belt, and it had chiseled her into top physical condition.
“Wow. She’s big,” Henni said.
Bud laughed at the small woman’s awed look. “Guys, this is Captain Lalaynia Demarzik. The roughest, toughest, and finest pirate this side of the shoulder of the Oryahn Cascade.”
“You’re too kind,” she said with a grin. “But not wrong. A pleasure to meet you all. Any friends of Bud’s are welcome aboard my ship.”
“Thanks for coming so fast, Laynia. We’re in kind of a jam, here.”
“Hey, if there’s promise of some good pillage, you know we’re game. And besides, someone got a promotion and couldn’t wait to tell you about it.”
A wiry teenager strode to the front of the crew of pirates, a pair of raider’s bandoliers strapped across his slowly developing chest. What the kid lacked in age, he more than made up for in confidence, and judging by his new kit, his skills were finally catching up to his attitude.
“Saramin? Holy shit! You’re a boarding party leader now?” Bud said, pulling him in for a fierce hug. “Damn, kid, you were just a scrub last time I saw you! Well done!”
“Thanks, Bud. It’s been a wild time since the last time you were on a raid with us, and a few openings needed to be filled, so here I am.”
“Who’d we lose?”
“Terrik. Brayintz. And Gallfor took a few pretty big hits and is healing up on Dorall.”
“More like carousing with whores and drinking away his days while the rest of us are busy working,” one of the pirates said with a hearty laugh.
“Well, that’s a given. But he’s spending a lot of time with the healers, that’s for sure.”
“I’m sorry to hear about Terrik and Brayintz. Good men, those.”
“Yeah. But hey, it’s the life, right?”
“Right. Fight or die, as your kind-hearted captain always says.”
“So what’s this about a raid?” Saramin asked.
“Hold your Malooki, kid. That’s a conversation for me and the captain.”
She chuckled. “Thanks, Bud. I appreciate the consideration, but my question is pretty much the same. What’s this raid all about, anyway?”
Bud’s smile faded.
“You won’t like it.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do,” Bud replied. “Our target is a pirate ship.”
Murmurs of disbelief passed throughout the crew.
“You know we don’t do that, Bud,” Lalaynia said, her men quickly falling silent.
“Yeah, I know. But this is different. They took a boy under our protection. And there’s a lot at stake if we don’t get him back.”
“You’re transporting a boy? What are you into, Bud?”
“Never mind all of that. Just know that it wasn’t one of our friends who did this.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because they left a perfectly good shuttlecraft behind when they took him. Stripped it, of course, but left the ship. You know what that means.”
The captain’s eyes went a bit harder. “Outlanders. A bunch of godsdamned Outlanders.”
“Yep.”
“But if that’s the case, there’s nowhere anywhere near they could offload that cargo. Not for over a dozen systems.”
“Nope.”
“And they’re persona non-grata there and pretty much everywhere in between,” she said, realizing what this could mean.
Bud saw the thoughts forming in her head. “If that was the case, Lalaynia, and you were shit out of luck and with that kind of cargo to unload, where would you go?”
The look in her eye said she knew damn well where they would go. “Shit. You really think…?”
“Yeah,” Bud said. “I do.”
“But this could be bad, Bud. I mean, really bad. And I think a bit harder to pull off than you’re realizing.”
“I know,” the former pirate said, resting his hand on his Wampeh friend’s shoulder. “But we’ve got something they don’t.”
“And what’s that? A girl, a sidekick, and a pair of Wampeh?”
“Hey, I’m a woman!” Henni protested.
“And I’m not some sidekick,” Laskar added.
Lalaynia just raised a single brow in amusement.
Bud gave her a little wink. “Oh, they’re not just a pair of Wampeh,” he said.
On cue, Hozark smiled, his fangs sliding into place.
“Oh, shit!” Lalaynia said, almost taking a step back. And for a woman as confident as her to do so really spoke to the effect the assassin had on people. “You’re Wampeh Ghalian.”
“Indeed. Demelza and myself.”
“And he’s one of the Five,” Bud added, flaunting Hozark’s impressive status even among his kind.
“Well, damn. That changes everything,” the captain said. “But if they are what you say they are, then it’s almost a given where they went.”
“Yeah, I know,” Bud said. “And I’d bet anything they went to Drommus.”
Henni had followed the back-and-forth, but this was all a bit out of her depth. “Drommus? What’s a Drommus?”
Chapter Fifty-One
Drommus.
It was the crown jewel of dangerous, backwater worlds in this part of the galaxy. Most of the galaxy, actually. An angry, volcanic planet that always seemed just on the verge of eruption. And not just of the geologic type.
It was where the roughest of the rough went when they needed safe haven. A place where even Outlanders were not only allowed, but accepted with little grief, although no open arms. But then, it was far better than the reception the outcast pirates would otherwise receive.
The danger was very real, and non-pirates were si
mply not allowed. And unlike some allegedly pirate worlds, this one meant it. Even mercenaries shied away, though they were occasionally tolerated for the briefest of stopovers if they had something of true value to trade.
The Council of Twenty had learned long ago that, unlike some other strongholds they had been able to overrun with sheer force and numbers, the residents of Drommus had learned that lesson from the others’ example, and they would die before surrender.
And with the deadly and massive spells they had layered within the volcanoes, they meant it. The whole world could be triggered to blow, taking not only the pirate inhabitants, but any ships foolish enough to be within their system.
Once, a Council ship had tried to make a point, taking one of the orbiting pirate craft captive for some foolish and petty offense. A volcano had been triggered, and its geyser of magic-laced magma blasted into the low orbit, the still-hot shards of volcanic glass tearing through the Council ship and the captured vessel alike.
It was an excessive show of force, no doubt, but the point had been made.
Do not. Fuck. With Drommus.
The message was received loud and clear, and from that point forward, no one even dreamed of making waves there. The price was simply too high, and it just wasn’t worth it.
But Captain Lalaynia Demarzik not only had safe passage anytime she wanted it, she had something bordering on carte blanche while on the hostile world.
With her altercations, the overseers who were generally keeping things from erupting into full-fledged riots tended to look the other way. If Lalaynia was putting boot to ass, there was always a very damn good reason for it.
Fortunately, she was rarely involved in such things. People generally knew better than to rile up the thoroughly dangerous woman. But nevertheless, every once in a long while, some liquored-up idiot would think to try their mettle against the notorious woman.
And every time, they would find themselves on the losing end.
Uzabud had once been an integral part of her crew, and he was still allowed access to Drommus as both a legacy-type courtesy, as well as because of his current smuggler status. He was not, however, given the same free rein that the captain was, and any trouble he got himself into was on his own head.
This time would be different, though. He was flying with his ship being considered a temporary part of Lalaynia’s crew, more or less. A partner, if you were to be more specific about it. And that gave him a layer of protection he would not otherwise possess.
Likewise for Hozark and the others, though with Henni’s unpredictable nature, he didn’t really know what might happen if she pickpocketed the wrong person.
Hozark and Demelza would arrive with the pirate’s main ship, while Bud and the others circled to outer areas to touch down and survey for their quarry. One group on the ground, the other leapfrogging by air, hopefully finding the Outlander craft in the process.
Corann had outfitted them with a few new skrees, and with that added tool in their kit, the impromptu rescue party would be able to communicate just about anywhere on the planet. The skrees she had on hand, however, were not particularly powerful, and any messages beyond that range were simply not an option.
But for this mission, they would certainly suffice.
The large pirate ship settled down in the large docking area best suited to handle not only craft of that size, but also that possessed an area for VIPs, of which Lalaynia most certainly was. That didn’t afford her much more than a quicker access to the township from her ship, but at least it was something.
And in this instance, when she might need to get to her ship in a hurry, it could make the difference between success and failure. Possibly even life or death, depending how bad things went. And knowing how trouble tended to follow Uzabud, she was quite confident this would lean toward bad, if not outright catastrophic.
But it was worth the chance. There was booty to be had, and a hefty payment from the Ghalian, no less. And doing something that amounted to a favor for the order of assassins was always a good idea. There was no telling when that check mark in the favor column might come in handy, especially in her line of work.
Bud started off by landing a little bit farther away, with all the rest of the rabble and their ships. As expected, it would delay his meeting up with the others, and it was for that reason, it had been decided that he, Henni, and Laskar would start their search from afar, working their way through the outer landing sites and gradually making their way in closer to the others. They didn’t know whom they were looking for, after all, and for all they knew, their target could be anyone.
Outlander ships were not overtly flagged as such, though some of them wore their status as almost an inverse badge of honor. But for the most part, you could not quickly discern one at a glance. This would take legwork. Legwork and a degree of subtlety.
“Are you ready, my friends?” Captain Demarzik asked. “Once we touch down, it’s a straight shot into the township proper. I’ll have my people fan out immediately and start making small talk with the locals. We should have an idea who’s landed in the last few days pretty quickly.”
“And what about the boy?” Demelza asked.
“We will have to be far more subtle about that part. If word gets out someone’s looking for this particular kid, they’ll get spooked and either run, which we can handle, or go to ground, which will make tracking them become several fold more difficult.”
“So, we will be subtle,” Hozark said as they stepped off Lalaynia’s ship and onto the hard, black rock of Drommus’s surface. “Let us get to it. Young Jinnik is in far more danger than he likely realizes, and time is of the essence.”
Chapter Fifty-Two
Lalaynia and her team were good to their word, and as soon as her ship had settled into its landing spot, they all quickly stepped clear and fanned out into the surrounding areas, quickly making friendly small talk and trying to suss out which of the many ships docked there might be the one containing their prize.
Hozark and Demelza did what they did best on any world. They blended in without anyone noticing a thing. To all who did happen to take notice, they were just a pair of Wampeh pirates on Drommus for a bit of shore leave.
Even his vespus blade, stuck to his back, went unnoticed. Unless he unsheathed it, it would just seem like another sword. So they walked the pathways between the ships. And while they were at it, they happened to drop that their boss was in the market for a few new slaves.
Most who had some for sale were quickly disqualified, either for having been on the planet too long to be their target, or for simply not having the right slaves in their possession.
One of the slave pens contained a few Ootaki, and at the sight of them, Hozark found himself reflecting on the poor captives he had come across in the weapons smelting factory hidden on Garvalis. The same world on which he had briefly found himself trapped by a rather clever pitfall.
Someone had been using them to power weapons, but that was a commonplace use for their magical locks. But on Actaris, where poor Aargun had been held and mutilated, there was something more. Dark work at play, and it had been tied into the goings-on at the Garvalis facility.
What was done at Actaris was something different, though. They had experimented on far more than just Ootaki in that location. Drooks had been mutilated as well in the attempt to take their very specific flavor of magic and force it to bend to their torturers’ will.
It seemed doubtful it had been even a moderate success, since their power was so tied to driving ships it had no other use that anyone had ever discovered. But the dead bodies of not just the Ootaki, but also the Drooks showed those making the attempts were more than willing to sacrifice the valuable magic users if it might further their goals.
And then there were the other corpses. A pair of Zomoki, the mighty creatures slain in an attempt to tap into their innate gifts, no doubt. But worst of all, at least for the Ghalian who had discovered the scene, was the young Wampeh they had fou
nd, the body discarded with the others like so much rubbish.
People were being killed. Tortured. Experimented on. And as Hozark re-shifted his focus, he was determined that no such thing would happen to young Happizano. Not if he could help it.
“Excuse me,” he said to a heavily muscled man standing before a pen containing control-collared Ootaki. “I was wondering, do you have any unshorn Ootaki in your stocks?”
“You think I’d be selling them here if I did?” the man replied.
“I guess not. But it was worth asking.”
“You might want to check with Ragnak,” the man suggested. “His stocks are newer. He might have something more to your liking.”
Hozark threw him a coin. “Thanks for the tip, friend.”
“My pleasure,” the man replied. “Hope you find something suitable.”
“Me too.”
Hozark and Demelza continued on their way, looking for this Ragnak person. As they asked around to determine where exactly he was parked, it was looking like he might actually be the man they were after. He was a mysterious sort. Not a confirmed Outlander, but definitely one of the pirates on thin ice in these parts. And for Drommus, that was saying something.
It also seemed that his ship had arrived very recently. With that additional bit of information, Hozark hoped that this might actually be the man they were seeking.
“This Ragnak’s ship?” he asked when they reached the craft they knew full well was his.
The guard stationed outside the fairly large craft looked the two Wampeh up and down. He was not impressed.
“Who wants to know?”
“We’re looking for a bit of trade, potentially,” Hozark replied. “If this is the right ship, we’d like an audience with Ragnak.”
“The captain don’t talk to––”
Hozark casually tossed the pouch of coin up and down in his palm. From the sound of it, there was a fair amount inside.