Talon the Raider
Page 10
“I used to own some of his work,” Talon said. “Well, re-creations anyway. Fakes. But they were still beautiful.”
Katara’s eyes seemed to dilate as she watched the fiery orange stream flow past the towering castle. “Valuable,” she said in a distant, breathy voice. “This piece is priceless. I brought it here with me when I was… when I took control of the colony. I could not bear to leave it with my husband.”
Talon glanced down at her, tearing his eyes away from the scenery. He took a step back, hoping some distance from the woman would clear his clouded mind.
“This is not a place I would expect to find a queen,” he said.
She turned and smiled, but he saw her expression ripple, like the details in the shimmering tapestry. A brief flicker of rage and jealousy, an obsidian fire burning in her dark eyes.
Then the smile returned. She sighed and paced over to a narrow table against the wall. Two steel goblets sat on the surface, next to a crystal bottle of red wine. She filled the two glasses.
“You are correct. The title is my destiny, but not my present station. Technically, I am a princess. My husband is Mutaro Toho. Crown Prince of the Toho Clan, and heir to the Jotoru throne. The Toho, like all the Clan houses, control majority shares in the most valuable industries of the Consortium. This mining colony is one of the family’s lesser holdings.”
“And what is a queen, or a princess for that matter, doing here?” Talon asked.
She walked towards him, carrying the two glasses. His eyes were drawn to hers.
"Why do most men send their wives away to distant lands?” She handed him a goblet. He blinked, forcing the haze of desire from his mind. Years in the Dominion's arenas had taught him that the words of nobility could be deadlier than the sharpest blade. Keeping his wits about him, he did not reach out for the wine.
“The Crown Prince has grown tired of me," Katara continued. “He has taken on a mistress. The bastard thinks I am a disposable plaything. But I will not allow him to replace me. He will not steal my destiny, not before I—”
She suddenly ceased her tirade, and stared at him for a moment. Laughter escaped her lips, as she watched him eye the liquid in the glass with a suspicious glare. "It's not poisoned, Talon. If I wanted you dead, we would not be standing here together."
She took a sip from both goblets, then held them out to him. “Choose, warrior. My lips have touched both.”
Talon narrowed his eyes, then took a glass. He sipped the wine, taking care not to drink too much. The velvety red liquid flowed across his tongue. The wine was a sweet vintage, with a hint of bitter fruit.
“It is good,” he said, eying the glass.
“It’s from the Dominion. Your home, is it not?”
“My home is long gone,” Talon replied. Gazing at her over the rim of the glass, he swallowed another gulp of the sweet liquid.
Katara let go of her glass. It remained hovering in the air as she slinked closer to Talon. “I have visited the Dominion many times. Their border war with the Consortium has wounded our Emperor’s pride. But when I am queen, I will be only a heartbeat away from the throne. And I see great profit in peace between our kingdoms.”
She reached out and touched his chest, tracing her nails over the emerald claw that stretched across his pectorals.
Talon felt his skin flush. Blood thundered in his temples.
He grabbed her hand, but did not pull it away from his skin. She inhaled at his touch, and leaned into him. He felt her body’s curves press against him. The warmth of her flesh was like a shock in the cool, sterile air. Her lips traveled up his neck. She whispered into his ear. “Can you not see the possibilities? The advantages of a union between us?”
“How will you assume the throne, when your husband has abandoned you in this frozen abyss?” he muttered as her hot breath caressed his skin.
She pulled away, gazing deep into his eyes. Her fingers curled around the stem of the floating glass, and she drank more of the crimson wine. Her eyes did not leave his.
She lowered her glass. “This colony was chartered to extract metal ores. Minerals, used to produce armor plating for military vessels and the like. But I instructed my men to dig deeper. And they found a great treasure below the ice.”
“What did they find?”
She reached out. He felt her sharp metal nails graze his cheek. Their cool caress traveled up the side of his face to his temple. She brushed a strand of brown hair away from his crimson eye.
“Your eye… our scans indicate it holds a trace amount of dark energy. And it reacts to the presence of such energy as well, does it not?
“I… I think so. I don’t know for sure.”
“What is it made of?”
He shook his head, as he gazed down into her dark, hungry stare. “I don’t know. The people who gave it to me, my people… they died out long ago.”
“The Consortium has developed a new technology… dark energy power cells. They use a rare mineral known as darika jakor… black jade.”
“Vaki told me. That’s how your ships can open star-paths without navigators.”
“These crystals were formed eons ago, when this galaxy was born. They hold the remnants of dark energy left by the fires of creation. Our scientists believe the supplies of black jade are limited… There are no new deposits being formed, anywhere in the universe. It is the most valuable substance in existence.”
Talon grabbed her hand and pulled it away. He held it just above his skin, as if an electrical charge pulled them together, no matter how hard he fought against it.
A bond…
Careful my warrior…
Again he heard her voice… And this was no dream.
Katara squinted, noticing the strange expression on his face. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine," he muttered, looking away from her probing gaze. "So you’re saying my eye is made of this black jade?”
She shrugged. “No. But according to our scans, its crystalline structure is similar. The point is, I believe it will react to the presence of the dark energy stored in black jade.”
He released her hand. She smiled and took another sip of wine. “Why are you telling me this?” he asked.
She looped her arms around his neck. “There is another colony on this planet. The bodies you and your friend found in the ice… they were workers from the Zigra Clan. The Zigra have raided my drilling outposts, attacked my ore-slicers. They killed many innocent workers. But worst of all, they disobeyed mining regulations, and ran their ore-slicers too close to the planet’s core. And in doing so, they unleashed the dorokuma from the deep ice.
Talon grunted. “I suppose you did nothing to earn their wrath?”
Katara nuzzled his neck. “There is an old Aoshun saying. ‘Business is the coldest battlefield.’ The Zigra clan seeks to challenge our dominance in transportation and bio-mancer technology. These are valuable industries. I had to protect my clan’s interests. The Zigras are our rivals, and always shall be.”
Talon breathed in the scent of her hair. He smelled jasmine, mixed with nightpetal… an intoxicating mix of flowers and exotic herbs. “And what does your rivalry have to do with me?” he asked.
“In their last raid, the Zigra Clan stole one of our cargo haulers. It contained all the black jade we could mine from the planet. It is only a few cylinders worth, but it is enough… enough to force the Emperor to end my husband’s affair. Enough for him to certify our marriage and seal my claim to the throne.”
“That is the fate you desire? A loveless marriage? A title bought and sold for a few chips?”
“I desire many things.” She looked into his eyes and tapped a glowing button on her wrist display. A hum filled the air. Talon felt his skin tingle. He looked down, surprised to see his feet floating above the floor. They were both suspended in the grip of a larger lift field.
Katara planted her lips on his as they floated in the air. There was no warmth in her kiss. Only pure, raw hunger and lust.
“You think this planet has made me cold,” she whispered in his ear. “But my desire burns white hot, like a newborn star. I will settle for nothing less than what I am owed. I shall be queen. And you will help me.”
“In return for a ship,” Talon murmured, his words thick and heavy, as if he had to force them from his lips. “A vessel that can get us off this world?”
“Of course. But first you must journey to Zigra territory. Do what you must. Slay who you must. Your eye will guide you… It will tell you when the black jade is near. Find my property and return it me. And I shall give you whatever your heart desires.”
Talon said nothing more. His violent kisses traveled over her neck, her chest, her mouth… He devoured her flesh, inch by flawless inch. Finally, gasping for breath, their lips parted. Katara laughed, as they spun in a dizzying circle
“I told you there would be a price, gladiator. Consider this your first payment.”
As Talon grasped her tighter, he felt his crimson eye pulse and glow.
Careful my warrior… This woman… she is not what she seems…
Talon ignored the voice, whatever it was. He could barely hear it over the thumping beat of his heart, and the roar of blood through his veins. All he could feel was hunger. Hunger for this woman, hunger for her smooth, soft skin and dark, smoldering stare.
As they spiraled through the air, he sated his hunger, over and over again.
Chapter Seventeen
Vaki paced back and forth across the small stateroom of her quarters. The environmental controls showed the temperature in the room to be normal, but she hugged her arms across her chest, as a shiver ran down her spine. It wasn’t the cold that bothered her…
It was the sensation. A nervous tingle, creeping across her skin. She was being watched. She was certain of it.
Her quarters were stark and utilitarian, like the rest of the complex. Metal walls surrounded her, rising up from a cold white floor. A series of wood carvings decorated the walls, softening the decor somewhat. The designs were carved from red toga wood, and depicted scenes from Aohsun mythology. They were warm and beautiful, and felt out of place in the austere room.
She brushed her purple braid behind her ear, and leaned closer to one of the carvings, examining it with her dark, curious eyes. She rapped on the artwork. It sounded hollow. She squinted and traced a finger through the intricate designs cut into the wood.
Her fingernail caught on a tiny gem. The sparkling stone sat in the carved eye of a retsuki hound. In Aoshun mythology, the sleek, six-legged canines were tricksters, divine creatures sent by the gods to test mankind’s intelligence.
The tiny stone wobbled beneath her finger. Gritting her teeth, she pulled and pried at it with her nail, until the glittering speck popped lose. A dark hole hid behind the setting of the tiny stone. She bent over and gazed into it, looking for the glint of a camera lens or fiber optic tube. But the tiny opening was to small for her to make out any detail.
Bending to her knees, she gathered up a silk robe that lay in a crumpled heap on the floor. She stood up, and flung the fabric though the air, draping it over the carving.
A soft electronic beep sounded in the room. Vaki spun towards the door… a green light flashed over the featureless slab of metal.
“Enter,” she called out.
The door slid open and Talon entered. Vaki rushed over and threw her arms around him.
“Talon! You’re okay! You worried me, I thought—”
She looked up at him, and her cheeks flushed. She pushed her palms against his chest and ducked under his arms as he moved to return the embrace. “I mean, that fight was a close call. I thought you were an expert gladiator or something? That big guy almost took your head off!”
Talon watched her as she paced across the room. “I’m fine. Makor had my wounds treated before my audience with the queen.”
She grabbed his arm and dragged him towards the bathroom. “This place is filthy. And I don’t trust the medics here. Come, I’ll clean your wounds.”
“Vaki, I’m fine, the scars have almost healed,” he protested. Still, he allowed her to tug him across the room, towards a small door in the corner. The door hissed open, and she yanked him inside.
The bathroom was sterile and white. A soft glow sphere filled the tiny shower alcove with a pink glow. Vaki reached behind her and jabbed the controls with her elbow. Water droplets sprayed from above, pelting their clothes and skin like rain. A soft, pleasant trilling sound filled the air, as powerful sonic waves vibrated the water. The droplets beaded up and danced across their skin, soaking their clothes.
Vaki pressed up against him in the narrow shower. “Talon I—”
He grabbed her shoulders and gazed into her eyes. “Vaki, you are very beautiful. But I must admit, I’m a bit exhausted from my—”
Her brow furrowed, as an annoyed glare filled her eyes. The expression gave him pause. “Oh,” he muttered. “I thought—”
“Are you deranged?” she hissed. “Now is not the time! I brought you in here so they couldn’t hear us. I think this whole room is bugged. Not to mention—” She stopped talking and narrowed her eyes. “Wait a minute. Your fight was hours ago. What do you mean you’re exhausted?”
Talon brushed a strand of wet hair from his face, but said nothing.
“Did you and the queen…”
He sighed. “I did not mean to… That is, I thought—”
She slapped his chest, sending a spray of water droplets vibrating away from his skin. “What is wrong with you? She just tried to have one of her thugs decapitate you!”
Talon shrugged. “I know. It was foolish, but I… It was as if she could control my—” His voice trailed off.
Vaki rolled her eyes. “Bulaka! I know exactly what part of you she controlled. Talon, these people, this place… something’s not right here. And 'Queen' Katara, or whoever she is… she’s dangerous.”
“I’ve fought and bled for spoiled nobles my whole life,” Talon replied. “I’m not afraid of an exiled queen.”
“Well you should be. I was born on Aoshu, but I grew up off-world, in a clan colony. It was a slum. They depleted the planet’s resources, until the environment was poison. We lived under cheap domes, we had to work for fresh air, food, water… They took everything we had, until there was nothing left of value. The clans care about one thing, and one thing only… profit. They'll kill you in a heartbeat if it increases the value of their shares.”
Talon thought for a second as the droplets continued to pulse against his skin. The vibrating water helped clear the haze from his mind. Here, away from the queen, he could think clearly once again.
Talon met her gaze and nodded. "You're right."
“So that’s what she told you? Vaki continued. “Someone exiled her here?”
“I know little of Consortium politics, but she said the Crown Prince has taken a mistress. Katara is maneuvering to secure her claim to the thrown. She doesn’t want to kill me, at least not yet. She wants me to find something for her."
“Find what?” Vaki hissed.
“Her miners discovered something valuable here. A crystal she called 'black jade'.”
Vaki’s eyes opened wide, and her lips parted in a tiny gasp. “Black jade… well that’s worth killing for all right. Supplies have been dwindling since the war with the Dominion flared up.”
Talon nodded. “There’s more. Katara says there is a rival colony h
ere on Neros, the Zigra Clan. They stole her supply of this precious mineral. If I can retrieve it from their territory, she's offered to give me a ship that can get us off this planet.”
She looked up at him with a worried gaze as the water stopped falling. Heat lamps glowed to life along the sides of the tube, and a rush of warm air blasted them from above.
“The ship we found crashed in the ice was a Zigra vessel,” she said in a thoughtful voice. “And Katara claimed a pulsar disrupted communications here, a few months ago, right?”
He narrowed his eyes. “Yes, what of it?”
“By the gods! Are you really this stupid? That ship went missing a few months ago as well. Maybe it’s connected somehow?”
Talon frowned and thought for a moment. He looked down at her. “You said the coordinates in our transport were pre-programmed?”
Vaki nodded.
“That Consortium freighter was smuggling bodies. What if this was their intended destination all along?”
“But why? What would Katara want with—”
The beeping rang out again, muted by the rushing air of the dryer.
“Come, quickly!” she hissed.
She dragged him out of the shower and back into the main room of her quarters. Throwing open the carved wood doors of her wardrobe, she tossed an embroidered silk kimono over her damp clothes.
“Enter,” she said.
The doors slid open, and Makor entered the room. B’Turo shuffled behind him. The aquatic alien’s eyes flicked over Vaki’s dripping hair and robe, then turned to Talon. “There is little time. You must leave on the Queen’s mission now. B’Turo will take you to the edge of Zigra territory. Beyond that, you are on your own.”
Talon stepped in front of Vaki.
“And what of the girl?” he demanded.
“She will remain here. Collateral, to insure the safe return of our property. I assure you she will not be harmed.”
Vaki grabbed Talon’s arm and shoved him aside. “You mean you'll lock me in this room, like a prisoner,” she snapped.