Kodon

by Chris Mills

  Herald stood outside with his handheld to his ears. His face had become a bright red. His voice grew and softened. Stephen tried to enjoy the fries he got. The large basket’s helping rose high for each of them to have plenty. A hint of vinegar seemed to be infused in them. Wow. He kept focusing on the taste, unlike Kim, who stared blankly.

  “That could be a different hotel,” Gabe said. “It could be. There has to be hundreds of them.”

  “No,” Kim said. “This is the area.” She shook her head. “What do you think the chances are this isn’t related?”

  “There’s always a chance,” Andy said.

  “Unlikely.”

  How had they managed to know where they were staying? Stephen bit into another fry. Andy had talked about getting back and seeing what outfits he had. Now that he could see, he could choose whatever he wanted to wear. He may need Kim’s help for what worked. A pat came to the object in Stephen’s front short’s pocket. Damn thing.

  “They are going to send a driver,” Herald’s voice rose. “They said it will be soon. We need to get going.”

  “Are we staying back at the embassy?” Kim questioned.

  “Yes, and they will be informing Councilman Wallace. This should not have happened.”

  “You’ve said that a lot since we’ve met,” Gabe said.

  “Shut up, Gabriel,” Kim snapped. “Not now.”

  The ever-darkening sky had been nice on the way back. Lights had come on all over the walkways. Traffic continued to keep moving. Their running lights had some beauty. Stephen pressed his hands deeper into his pockets. Silence grew between them. He kept looking to Herald - hopeful. His handheld was what he kept to now, guiding their way forward.

  Stephen found a bench with the others. The area warned about strict pick-up rules. No taxi driver could wait here for business in order to ensure its openness. Their rides so far had been catching one waiting. Stephen tapped his knees, eyeing the sky. Stars had come out, but their beauty didn’t help, nor did they seem the same.

  “We’re going to be stuck there, aren’t we?” Gabe whispered to Stephen.

  “Who knows,” Stephen said. “They may put us on a ride out tonight.”

  “Doubtful. They didn’t before and a whole ship was destroyed.”

  “Watch your words,” Kim warned. Herald paced not far, tapping a message away it appeared. “They’re sending someone.” A horn blared briefly. The car was sleek and black. The door opened pretty quick, revealing circular seating within.

  “Herald Zumerkrin,” a placid voice spoke. “You have been verified. Please, enter with your party.”

  “Come on,” Herald said. “We’ll get this sorted out.”

  The inside of the taxi had some room to it. A small, self-service bar was empty - sadly. By the end of the night, they may all need something. Stephen closed the door with some force and took a place near the front. He rested his head back and sighed. The darkened tinted windows were nice but offered little view of the nightlife.

  “This is nice,” Kim said. “It reminds me of prom.”

  “Really?” Gabe said. “You’re talking about prom now?”

  “Gabriel,” Kim sighed.

  Stephen had been in a limo before for prom. His senior year had four people in it, including Kim and Gabe. It hadn’t been the greatest night. His date had been a friend, but she thought there was more going on. He ended up losing her that night and getting a ride from his grandmother who had kept the car at the house. It was easier with her then. The issues she was having were light at most. She could sure chat up a storm. That night ended well with some homemade cookies and hot chocolate of her own recipe.

  “I’m going to push for a transport tomorrow,” Herald said. “There has to be something we can take.”

  “How did they know where we were staying?” Kim asked.

  “How indeed,” a distorted dark voice came through. A chill ran down Stephen’s spine. “Did you really think you could escape me?”

  “Hanash?” Herald questioned.

  “Clever for you not to keep it in your room. You will give me Kodon, and I may let you survive once more.”

  “I’m pretty sure I shot you,” Stephen said. “You didn’t let us go.”

  “Stephen,” Herald whispered harshly.

  “He killed Darren,” Stephen whispered back. Herald glared and brought a single finger up to his lip.

  “In the front, you’ll find a dropbox,” Hanash said. “Press the button, place Kodon inside, and I will let you go. Fail and die. I will take it from your corpse.”

  Stephen moved aside. Sure enough, a black button rested above some slits. Tap. It popped open. A small passageway led to the front. “Go on,” Kim said. “Give it to him.”

  “You’re a smart girl,” Hanash said. “I am a man of my word. Give me Kodon and you live. I’m positive no one back there wishes more death.”

  “Herald,” Gabe said sternly.

  “Fine,” Herald said. Smack. Stephen held out his hand. Herald shook his head and reached into his own pocket. He hunched forward.

  “What is the stall?” Hanash questioned.

  “Hold on,” Herald said. “I made certain no one could pickpocket me.”

  “Hurry up!”

  Stephen could only stare. Herald slid the item into the passage and pressed the button. The special lighter was for Ron on Galat II, who he wanted Stephen to meet when they got there. It was circular and lit things with a focused laser.

  The shuttle suddenly shook. Stephen braced himself against the wall. The car slowed down. He could hear faint screams from the front. Damn! Kim hit Stephen hard. He latched to her as the shuttle shook. It slid along. Red light lit the compartment.

  “Ouch,” Kim groaned.

  “Out now,” Herald said, holding his shoulder. The door only inched out with the command. Stephen brought himself around. Gabe nodded and did the same.

  “On, three,” Stephen said.

  Bam. Bam. The door flew up. Stephen pulled Kim out. She wobbled a bit. Blood spilt from a gash on her forehead. “Go,” Stephen ordered. Andy groaned as Stephen took his elbow. Blood kept seeping from a mark on his hand.

  “What the hell did you do to that?” Stephen questioned.

  “I gave him a jolt,” Herald said. “His suit must have reacted more than I thought. Come on. I don’t think it killed him.” Did Herald carry tools on him often?

  Stephen rubbed his knee. Damn. Creak. Pounding came from the front. Herald shouted. A gunshot erupted from within. Stephen moved as fast as he could. His knee burned. He had dealt with worse. Herald pulled Gabe into a small alley. A gun fired once more. Stephen quickly pressed his back to the nasty wall. A distorted voice rang out.

  “He’s pissed now,” Gabe said.

  “I didn’t know how much that could do when it overloaded,” Herald said. “I wanted the car to crash. I haven’t screwed around with those for a while.” His grin faded quick. “We need to find shelter.”

  “Where are we?” Kim asked.

  Stephen spied around. The front door of the shuttle shook hard. A nasty roar followed. Trash littered the place. The lights on the strip were broken or out. Something wreaked and it might not only be from this nasty alley. Herald smacked his handheld again. His eyes grew wide. The screen flickered. It faded leaving the mostly solid piece that did it all. The very corner came off with a push.

  “Fucking shit,” Herald cursed. He smacked his handheld upon his knee. It lit a little with each hit. Stephen took a deep breath.

  “Can you get it working?” Stephen asked.

  “If I can get the right tools, but they don’t make them easily fixable,” Herald said. That never changed. Herald brought it close. The lone light in the alley by a door gave little to see.

  “We need to move,” Stephen said. “Come on.”

  The end of the alley was dark and led to another dump. More lights were out here. One person sat on the steps of a building with a cigarette in hand. A cloud raced into th
e night from his nose.

  “Listen,” Stephen said. “I get the feeling we may not be able to ask for help. Herald, take Kim. Go far. Gabe and Andy, you will follow. Stay separate. We don’t want him grabbing us at once.”

  “We can’t split up,” Herald warned. “This is -”

  “We don’t have a choice,” Stephen snapped. “You’ll be ahead. See if there is a place we can get some help or shelter.”

  “Wait, what about you?”

  “I’m last,” Stephen said. He rubbed his knee. “I’ll be fine. Trust me. Go, Herald. Go now.” No words came. Kim hesitated. “Go, Kim.”

  “Let me go with them,” Gabe said.

  “Move,” Stephen said angrily. The three hurried off. The man on the steps lifted his head before he returned his cigarette to his lips.

  “Go, Andy,” Stephen said. Three targets to chase would have been better.

  “I’m with you,” Andy said.

  “Then run,” Stephen said.

  “What?”

  A voice rose outside the alley. Andy took off with that. Stephen started to run but groaned. His legs kept moving. The damn chair kept coming to his mind. He refused to slow more. The area, at the bottom of the upper city, was a mess. No sirens had yet to come from the crash or gunshots. Stephen wished for a handheld for help. He could still see Andy ahead. The three ahead hadn’t gotten that far. A man stuck his head out of a stand, giving view of his long neck. He pointed down the way.

  “I know you’re there,” Hanash called. Stephen froze. A set of tall stairs became his target. He darted around them. Hanash’s voice rose. The others had started to run again.

  Hanash wore a thin, dark armored suit. The demon red of his armor, gleamed in the street light. He brought his gun up and shouted once more. Stephen raced out. The helmet turned at the last second. The hardness surprised Stephen. His whole chest ached. Hanash’s gun slid across the ground. An elbow came back fast.

  Blood seeped from Stephen’s nose. “Fool,” Hanash said. Something sharp came around. Stephen rolled. The dagger tore into the ground again. Hanash struck hard and leapt fast. Stephen backed, trying to keep his guard up. “You’re fast.”

  “You’re slow,” Stephen said.

  A powerful blow would have easily taken Stephen out. Hanash brought the blade fast. Damn. This body felt weak compared to him. Stephen slammed all he could after catching the man’s arm. Hanash’s weight went over Stephen’s back. A loud crash echoed.

  Stephen ran. His back was killing. He scooped up the gun and spun around. Hanash had barely gotten off the ground. “Damn, kid,” he said. “Where did you learn that?”

  “I’ll shoot,” Stephen said.

  “You will,” Hanash agreed. “You could have killed me last time. Are you ready now?” Stephen kept the gun trained. Hanash took a step.

  “Don’t make me warn you again.”

  “Do you think that you can stop me? I do not fail.”

  “Who are you exactly?”

  “I am a hunter,” Hanash said. “I am a demon from the shadow, and I always finish the job. May I ask your name?”

  “Why does that matter?”

  “Indulge me.”

  “Stephen Jones.”

  “The weapon you have in your hands, Mr. Jones is blinking,” Hanash said. A red light had begun to flash near the trigger. “My weapons are very picky on who holds them. You best drop it. If you don’t or try to fire it, you’ll lose your hand and more.”

  “You’re bluffing.”

  “Is that so?” Hanash said. The red light started to flash much faster. “Drop it.” His hand went around his back. Stephen rushed. “What are you -” The gun hit the helmet hard with a crack. The light flash almost became a solid red. Hanash desperately reached for the gun. A final snatch took it. Stephen fell back. Hanash chuckled and soon started to smack the side of the gun. “Dammit!”

  Hanash’s body slammed into the rail. Back he went and over it, screaming. The blast radius was small and direct. Stephen neared the bashed rail. The end of a trilogy flashed in his mind, yet Hanash wasn’t screaming all the way down. Far below, other screams erupted.

  Many people were on top of the craft. Lights continued to change colors and soft music met Stephen’s ear. People swarmed the body that had crashed their party. Stephen took a deep breath. Someone suddenly was at his side. His eyes spotted the party ship too.

  “Tell me he didn’t land on that,” Herald said.

  “Yes,” Stephen said sadly. “We need to find a place now in case -”

  **

  Beggars can’t be choosers had been a saying Gabe’s mother repeated at the dinner table many times. She liked to shell out green vegetables every meal. Looking at the red neon-ish sign up the side of building made him second guess it. Fluge’s Cantina had been a place, that someone neither him nor Kim understood, besides that name. The purple fellow’s words brought them here, and Herald had been the one to understand.

  Gabe gulped. Two equally muscular lizard men stared at them as they neared the entrance. One pulled a cigar from his mouth and spat upon the ground. “Humanz,” he said. “Behave or elsez.” He muttered something to the other and they moved aside.

  An odd mix of smells hit Gabe’s nose. He sniffed once more. A long counter had many sitting before it. Smoke rose and vanished near the ceiling. A heavyset human moved fast for his size behind. That smell kept hitting Gabe’s nose. He spotted a plate of something fried on the counter and another on a tray a server had. Hmm.

  “What should we do?” Kim questioned.

  “It looks like there are tables back there,” Herald said. “Find some place to sit. I’m going to try and talk to someone who works here.”

  This didn’t feel like a typical bar - maybe it was the aliens. Gabe still found it shocking when he spotted a new one, especially the reptile type. How did creatures like that manage to grow that big and learn to speak? He backed suddenly as a hunched over alien with orange skin cut right in front of him. A tall, half emptied glass moved about wildly.

  Stephen gave Gabe a slight push suddenly. “Come on,” he said. Gabe nodded.

  Something soon caught their eyes. A room right near the entrance to the back had some interesting dance music. Gabe’s eyes widened. Some odd-looking girls danced up on a stage, clutching a pole. Only one looked nice to his eyes and she was the closest to being human.

  “Gabe,” Kim whispered harsh. She shoved him and Stephen both along. “This is why you aren’t going to a strip club.”

  It had been a poor joke back when Stephen had been trying to plan a bachelor party. Gabe feared after the accident that his bachelor party would be at a diner or not have Stephen at all. For a while now, he feared Stephen wouldn’t even be up there with him. Now it appeared that may be true.

  Whack. Gabe bumped right into Kim. Her hand covered her mouth. A massive lizard man backed with clenched fists. Sweat clung to his competitor’s shaven chest. The human raised his fist again with a cheesy grin. He swung hard. The lizard groaned. His body caved upon the floor. The human brought his hand back through his sleek brown hair, laughing loud.

  “Pay up,” the man said. He spat. Two girls came quick to his side with smiles. Gabe had never been one to showboat but thought it would be a little cool to have a girl come to his side after he did something cool.

  The man retreated to the corner booth where another girl handed him a towel. “Is no one going to do anything?” Kim asked.

  “Why?” An older fellow questioned. A blue towel hung over his shoulder. He hadn’t much hair left on his head. His gut was large, and he managed to tuck his white shirt with odd blue straps down the arm into his pants. “It was a fair fight. Damn, I wanted to see him finally knocked down.”

  “Does he win often?” Stephen asked.

  “More than he should,” the man said.

  They found a booth where an odd painting of a yellow sword hung on the wall. Gabe took a long breath and let it out. “Are you okay?” Kim asked. �
�We didn’t see what happened.”

  “I’m fine,” Stephen assured. “I don’t think Hanash will bug us.”

  “Is he dead?” Gabe asked.

  “I don’t know. He fell pretty far.”

  “All the way down?”

  “No,” Stephen said. “Let’s not try to talk about it now.”

  A bruise had started to form on Stephen’s face. Gabe wished he could have seen the fight. This felt like the Stephen he knew before. His friend had a habit of not backing down in some situations and gotten in trouble for it. A bully he knocked flat on his ass got Stephen a week’s worth of detention.

  Stephen lay his head on the table. “Do you need some ice?” Andy asked. He shook his head.

  “A drink?” Gabe joked.

  “Maybe,” Stephen said. “God, my back hurts.”

  “Perhaps, we can get some ice,” Kim suggested.

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  Gabe peered out from the booth. A drink seemed to be in everyone’s hand he could see. For once, he didn’t know what a shady person looked like. He had been in bars before and knew who not to approach. All these aliens made him want to stay in the booth. Herald needed to hurry and get them a real ride out of here. How had they been fooled by Hanash?

  Gabe tapped his fingers on the table a few times. They should be at the hotel now. Why couldn’t he have ripped Stephen off that shuttle? This might be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but Gabe wanted the city he knew. People grew up in certain times for a reason.

  “Move over,” Herald said. Gabe barely managed to scoot. Herald bumped him over. A slim card was in his hands. “I’ve been debating the situation in my head. I don’t want to call for another ride.”

  “Smart,” Stephen said.

  “Are you going to be alright?”

  “His suit was something else. Don’t worry about me.”