Free Trader Complete Omnibus

by Craig Martelle

‘No.’ Braden looked around, finally spotting G-War on the top of the embankment.

  He lifted the branches and watched as Skirill hopped out. Braden went to the top of the embankment and resunk the poles that made up the roof. He tied a couple together that had been broken. From the bottom side, he used two support poles to lift the roofing part of the structure into place. He reseated those two poles. Although he worked quickly, the heat and sun had him hot and worn out when he finished. He corralled the two horses back into the shade, and pulled down on their harnesses until they laid back down on the ground. Braden helped G-War and Skirill drink sparingly from a flask, following with a deep drink for himself.

  They settled back down, but sleep did not easily return. Everyone was restless. Eventually the daylight passed. As the sun headed for the horizon, the group ate their fill, while Braden took apart the shelter and reloaded the cart.

  “Moment of truth, my friends. Do we continue on or do we head back and consider this a successful second trial run?”

  ‘Why would we waste that first night’s effort? Have we not already come further than when we traveled during our daylight practice run?’ Skirill said over the mindlink. Since he believed that meant the decision was made, the Hawkoid leapt into the air, circling their camp as he gained in height, then he raced toward the south. Braden knew that he was scouting the night’s route ahead. He would be back shortly.

  “What do you think, G?”

  ‘I think it needs to keep the stupid horses from knocking the shelter down.’

  Braden laughed heartily. He should have known where the ‘cat would focus. Life or death? No. Personal comfort? Yes.

  “I have some ideas. We need to find a better embankment tomorrow morning, my friend. Maybe Ess can give us some options around dawn. I don’t want to fix the shelter in the middle of the daylight like that again. That was brutal.”

  33 – Half Way

  The trip through the second night went better than the first. Braden was comfortable with how fast they could go, so he maintained a steady pace until after midnight, when he pushed harder.

  In the relative cool of the night, they made good time. In the morning, he asked Skirill if he could determine how far they were away from the oasis. He wanted to make it in seven turns instead of ten, because he wanted to have water remaining in the casks when they arrived. Desperation could lead to bad decisions. He did not want to be desperate.

  Skirill took to the lightening sky and swerved back and forth lazily on a general route southeast. G-War opened the mindlink and Braden saw the world spread out before him. Not far ahead, there was the remnant of a dry river bed. He knew where they needed to go and mentally thanked Ess for the view.

  Skirill stopped the lazy strokes and flapped heartily on a beeline toward where he thought the oasis might be. He gained altitude quickly and disappeared into the pre-morning haze.

  Max carried Braden to the embankment where they would make their camp, and he dismounted as Pack drew the cart to a slow halt. Braden looked over the area, quite pleased with this spot. He unhooked Pack from the cart and then used the cart to stand in as he worked the branches into the bank. He drove them at about a thirty-degree angle so they could hold the hides and blanket without needing a vertical support. This would ensure that G-War would not have his sleep interrupted.

  Using the shovel, he dug into the hard earth. It was dry and cracked. Water hadn’t run through this area in a long, long time. Braden couldn’t dig too deeply, but he was able to make some progress. The first thing he prepared were the casks. They had to be protected. They were two full turns travel from the nearest water supply. They couldn’t make it without a drink.

  He then moved the horses in and once again fought with them until they finally laid down. He realized that once he got Max to lay down, Pack quickly followed. Max was the key to shelter bliss. G-War curled up on the ground behind the casks in a small hole that he dug out for himself. It was probably significantly cooler than on the open ground. Braden was tired, but couldn’t sleep until Skirill came back. The heat of the morning had not yet arrived, but it would and soon.

  Skirill contacted him well before he made it back. He sent his thought voice to G-War, who passed it to Braden. ‘I have seen it and we are nearly halfway there!’ They could feel his excitement. Braden hadn’t realized how much they struggled when they tried to travel during the daylight. They were making twice the progress by traveling at night.

  ‘What’s that?’ Skirill suddenly asked. The sun was a couple finger-widths above the horizon by now. Braden clearly saw the branches of their shelter. Between the Hawkoid and the shelter, a light spot moved along the ground. Skirill swooped in low, flying by quickly.

  Braden thought it was a tortoise, a massive sandy-colored tortoise. ‘G, is he a mutie?’ Braden asked with his thought voice as he slung his Rico Bow and pulled out his knife.

  ‘Yes,’ the ‘cat answered.

  34 – The Tortoid

  Skirill back winged to a soft landing just outside their shelter. It was getting too hot for him to keep flying.

  “G! Let’s go see what our visitor wants.” Braden waited while G-War joined him. “Ess. Watch the fort, please. We’ll be home soon.” The human and the Hillcat walked purposefully away from the shelter.

  As they approached the strange creature, they noted the tortoise was floating slightly above the ground. He used his legs to propel himself through the air.

  “Ho there, friend!” Braden offered, holding up an empty hand. The other he kept at his side, holding the long knife. The tortoise stopped his swimming motion and hovered without moving further. Braden was surprised that he didn’t glide forward.

  “We are poor travelers, making our way across the Great Desert! Is there water anywhere near?” Braden asked in what he thought might be a typical conversation among desert dwellers. The tortoise remained where it was, eyes blinking slowly as it studied the two creatures before it.

  Reducing his voice to a whisper, he leaned toward the ‘cat. “Can he hear me?”

  ‘Yes. Wait. It should cover its ears. NOW!’

  “What?” Braden looked at G-War, taking a moment too long. As he was reaching for his ears, a thunderclap sounded beside him. He gasped in pain and dropped to his knees. The long knife fell to the ground, forgotten as Braden held his head. Blood ran freely from his nose and trickled out one ear. He used his fingers to pinch his nose shut, stemming the flow. He tipped his head back, and rolled to a sitting position.

  “What the holy crap was that?” Braden stammered. He finally opened his eyes to see that G-War had gone forward and seemed to be carrying on a conversation with the tortoise. Was there any creature the ‘cat couldn’t talk to?

  He was probably talking about how stupid his human was. He wouldn’t be wrong, and it pained him to realize it.

  ‘…we appreciate your kind words and consideration, Master Aadi,’ the ‘cat was saying in his thought voice. ‘We continue to the oasis that our Hawkoid friend has shown us only two turns of the sun from here.’

  ‘You are far too kind, fuzzy one with the kind soul. I haven’t been to the oasis in many cycles. It is a long journey for me as I don’t travel as quickly as I once did.’

  Fuzzy one with the kind soul? Braden would never have described G-War that way, and he had known him for ten cycles of the seasons. He had never been able to look past the words the ‘cat allowed him to see. Braden had been more deeply in contact with Skirill, one he had known for less than a single moon. Maybe the tortoise’s mindlink was deeper with G-War?

  ‘He’s waiting for its answer,’ G-War said to Braden.

  “You’re talking to me?” Braden asked, although he knew the answer. He continued, “What was the question?”

  ‘Master Aadi would like to join the caravan until we reach the oasis.’

  Braden stood up a little wobbly, but with an effort, he remained on his feet. He bowed, not deeply as he didn’t want to fall over. His head felt like it wei
ghed the same as the rest of his body. “Master Aadi is welcome to join us in our journey to the oasis.”

  The tortoise blinked a few times in quick succession, then resumed his swimming motion. He moved forward. Braden found it an easy pace to walk by his side.

  ‘Do you trust this Master Aadi?’ he asked the ‘cat using his thought voice.

  ‘Yes.’

  Since Braden trusted the ‘cat, and the ‘cat trusted the tortoise, Braden trusted the tortoise. Besides the thunderclap that almost shattered his brain, the tortoise seemed harmless enough.

  It took no time to make it back to the shelter. Braden crawled in so he wouldn’t spook the horses. The tortoise moved in under the shade, but stayed as far out as he could get. It was weird how he stopped moving the second he stopped the swimming motion with his legs. He then descended until he was on the ground. Skirill watched him closely.

  G-War opened the mindlink so everyone could talk as a group. ‘I am Skirill, a Hawkoid. My click is of the Bittner Mountains, far to the north.’ He bowed his head to finish his introduction.

  ‘I am Aadi, First Master of the Tortoise Consortium. I have never met a Hawkoid before. Or a Hillcat. Or a human for that matter. This daylight is a banner turn! And what are these magnificent creatures? When the consortium gathers three cycles from now, I shall have to tell them all about you.’

  “I am Braden, Free Trader of Warren Deep. I intend to cross the Great Desert to find an Old Tech outpost from which I can obtain rare items of significant value.”

  ‘Pleased to make your acquaintance, Free Trader Braden. Thank you for taking me with you. I thought you might not after that minor episode with the focused thunderclap. Sorry about that, by the way. I don’t like surprises. I’m a Tortoid, after all. We are deliberate in everything we do.’

  “I am very pleased to meet you. And surprised. I didn’t know that anyone lived in the Great Desert.”

  ‘Oh yes, a great number of creatures call the Desert home.’

  “Are any dangerous?”

  ‘Not to a war party such as yours.’

  “We are a trade caravan, that’s all. Not a war party,” Braden corrected.

  ‘Call yourself what you want, but it does not change what you are. One’s fundamental nature cannot be changed. I see within you, young human. I see your soul at peace, and I see war at your fingertips. There is no greater friend than you, and no greater enemy. I seek to be called your friend.’

  “Then friend you are, Master Aadi.” They continued talking well into the heat of the morning, until Braden could no longer stay awake. The Tortoid suggested that they could all benefit from a good daylight’s sleep. He did a curious thing then, digging at the surface of the dirt with his clawed feet to make a hole while also covering himself with the sand and dirt. Aadi had many tricks that helped him survive more than two hundred cycles in the desert.

  ‘I wonder what he eats and drinks?’ were Braden’s last thoughts as he drifted to sleep under G-War’s watchful gaze.

  35 – A Rough Night

  They repeated their routine as evening approached. Braden broke down their camp and packed the cart.

  He stopped to wipe sweat from his forehead, the others watching him curiously.

  “The curse of having thumbs. Your humble servant apologizes for the short delay in this evening’s activities whilst he takes a wholly undeserved drink of water.” Braden bowed deeply to the assembled group. Skirill bobbed his head in amusement. Neither G-War nor Aadi showed any emotion. Braden drank less than he wanted, but as much as he needed.

  Once loaded, G-War assumed his position within the cart with Skirill behind him, tail feathers hanging out the back. Aadi was to the side of the cart, floating even with the top of it.

  “Skirill, you flew this yesterday. What’s the best path forward?” G-War opened the mindlink and the Hawkoid showed the path as a series of pictures. Braden gently prodded Max forward and Pack followed as he always did.

  Braden thought for a second, then realized that he was being disrespectful to his new friend. “Aadi, do you agree? No one knows this desert better than you. What do you suggest?”

  ‘Very nice. Thank you for the pictures, my feathered friend.’ Braden suspected the Hawkoid bowed in response. ‘I’ve never seen the desert from this angle. It is so very interesting and disorienting. As we go along, I will rectify what I know with what Master Skirill has shown me.’

  ‘Not a Master,’ Skirill quickly replied.

  ‘Don’t be ridiculous, Master Skirill. Who better represents the Hawkoids here in the Great Desert than you?’ Braden found it hard to refute that logic. The Great Desert was vast, but tiny.

  ‘Tell us about the oasis, Master Aadi,’ Braden said.

  ‘Yes! Yes, it is a bit of paradise. I haven’t been there in years. It is dangerous at the best of times. But with this war party, we will chase any evil ones away. You make me feel safe.’

  ‘Thanks. Not sure about that. There are only three of us, now four.’

  ‘Correction, young human. There are six of us. Your horses are magnificent creatures! They could be two of the largest in all the Great Desert! Anyone powerful enough to tame not one but two creatures of this size will intimidate many potential enemies. They make you strong.’

  ‘You can drop that thunder boomer of yours on them. That was pretty strong, if you ask me. My ear feels like I packed dirt in it.’

  ‘No, no, no. Everyone here has something like that. We all live alone. We travel alone. There is never enough food or water for two, so we don’t put ourselves in the position to decide who dies. We decide for ourselves. We are accountable to us. We survive or we don’t. There is no one or anything else to blame. It is our way.’ He hesitated. ‘My. You travel a bit more quickly than I do. This is a quandary.’

  ‘We travel as fast as we can because we need a great deal of water. I don’t know how you manage, but we need those two casks and what is left in our flasks. If we take too long, we will die of thirst.’

  ‘Ahh. That’s what those are. They smelled like heaven to me. I didn’t know that water could be carried.’

  ‘When was the last time you had a drink, Master Aadi?’

  ‘Let me think. That would be never. I tried, at the oasis, but our mouths are not made for it. We absorb moisture through our feet and through our shell. It is enough for us Tortoids.’

  ‘We can’t slow down, but maybe we can tow you.’ Braden stopped the horses and waited for Aadi to catch up. He threw him a length of rope, but the Tortoid didn’t catch it. His motion to grab it in his mouth was far too slow.

  “Ooh! Sorry about that, Aadi.” Braden jumped down and picked up the rope, handing it to Aadi. He made to grasp it in his beak-like mouth. “Hang on. Here, have a drink from my flask.” Braden readily pulled out his flask, opened it, and made ready to squirt some warm water into the Tortoid’s mouth.

  ‘I don’t know about this, Master Braden. I’ve never done anything like it.’

  “Relax. You’ll like it.” Aadi reluctantly opened his mouth, and Braden squirted barely more than a mouthful to the back of his throat. Aadi blinked rapidly, choked and coughed, but kept the water down. He clamped his mouth shut.

  ‘That’s quite enough, Master Braden. Cactus and Fireweed! I feel funny.’

  “It’s water. I have no doubt you’ll feel better than ever before. Here.” Braden offered the rope, which Aadi took and clamped his beak-like mouth on it.

  They departed anew, picking up the pace a little.

  ‘Woohooo!’ Aadi howled through the mindlink. He floated above the cart, over Pack, then back. His feet were tucked in as he flew through the air, back and forth, up and down.

  ‘What’s wrong with him?’ Braden asked G-War.

  ‘Why did it give the Master water?’

  ‘It’s water. What’s the problem?’ Braden responded.

  ‘Water is different for the Master. Remember when it drank that flask of firewater?’

  ‘Oh. I see. T
hat was a bad night.’

  ‘And this will be a bad night for Master Aadi.’

  ‘Why didn’t you stop me, G? I didn’t know. It’s just water!’

  ‘The Master’s mind is well disciplined. He knows many things. He has lived a long time and is wise beyond that. We would do best to listen to him. It needs not think or speak. Just do as the Master asks.’ The mindlink slammed shut. G-War’s usual beratings were much shorter, as in, the human is stupid. This was a diatribe for the ‘cat, but the basic message was the same. They could have avoided it all with a simple, ‘don’t give Aadi water.’

  36 - No More Water For You

  Toward morning, Aadi’s wild gyrations stopped and he drooped lower and lower toward the ground. Braden pulled the rope closer to him until he could balance the hung-over Tortoid on one leg. Aadi was the largest tortoise he had ever seen. Beak to short tail, he was almost as tall as Skirill, half Braden’s height. He was half as wide as he was tall, but his shell arched high. He was shaped more like a box than the flat round tortoises Braden had seen before.

  It was awkward trying to balance him, but Braden felt horrible. He was responsible for this. He hoped to talk with his friends to make the time go more quickly and learn something. Instead, no one wanted to talk with the stupid human. It made the night drag on endlessly.

  Towing a drunk Tortoid through the dark of the desert’s night hadn't been what Braden had in mind when they started the evening before. He had to admit the oldster was agile. Well, just until his post water crash. Now, he could barely keep himself afloat.

  Finally the morning twilight revealed the world around them. Skirill took to the sky, flying slowly, looking for a place to make their camp. He kept going, further and further, finally circling a spot in the distance.

  ‘Nothing closer, but this is a good place,’ Skirill said to them all.

  ‘Wait there. We’re coming.’ Braden kicked Max into a trot and reluctantly, Pack started trotting too. This made the cart bounce, which elicited an unhappy snarl from G-War. Braden wanted to beat the morning heat. They would be able to cool down before the heat came, but if they got hot and it was hot outside, everyone would be miserable for the daylight.