by Joanna Wylde
“Um, no,” Calla replied, nervously crossing her fingers. She was so tired of lying to Seth. If only she could be sure he’d understand, she would tell him the truth. If it was just her life at stake, she probably would have. She had Jess to worry about, however.
“I guess it’s kind of a strange group,” he said. “I don’t know too much about them, because we’ve never had them in the Federation before now. That’s partly why I decided to take this trip. I’m curious about them.”
“Oh,” she said, unsure of how to answer. She was surprised he hadn’t realized Jenner was a Pilgrim after staying at the hostel for so long, but after a bit of reflection she realized it wasn’t really that strange. Jenner hadn’t held any meetings while the Saurellians were in residence, and there hadn’t been any other guests. In fact, there was no reason to think he would know Jenner was a Pilgrim. The old bitch certainly hadn’t gone out of her way to advertise the fact to the Saurellians, which was strange in and of itself. Usually if they had a guest who wasn’t a Pilgrim, Jenner would corner them to try to discuss religion.
“So, I take it they aren’t very friendly?” she asked finally.
“That’s their reputation,” he replied. “We know they’re opposed to the government, and the Saurellian government in particular, but we don’t know why. I’m not going to tell them that I was provisional commander of the system until recently, and I want you to stick close to me the whole time. I just don’t feel entirely comfortable about this visit. Maybe it would be better if you stayed on the ship,” he added, looking over at her with concern.
That wouldn’t work, Calla thought in panic. She had to do something, or she’d never find Jess.
“That’s not fair,” she said in a pouty voice. She didn’t want to overdo it, but she had to convince him to let her leave the ship. If he didn’t want her leaving, she had no doubt that he’d find a way to keep her on board. “I’ve been trapped on this ship every bit as long as you have. I have every right to see some new people, even if they are some kind of strange Pilgrim.” She glanced at him under her eyelashes, trying to see his reaction to this new ploy. He looked somewhat startled.
“I didn’t realize you were feeling trapped,” he said after a brief pause.
“Well I am,” she said, tossing her hair a bit for effect. “I mean, I’m enjoying the trip, but I’ve been looking forward to each stop. I like meeting new people and going new places.”
“I’m just not comfortable with you leaving the ship here,” he said. “It may not be safe.”
“You know,” she said, adding a bit of pique to her tone. “I’ve traveled all over the Empire and managed to take care of myself. We have these ‘Pilgrims’ there, you know.”
“Would those be the travels with your former clients?” he asked tightly.
“Yes,” Calla said breezily. “And I’ve always managed to take care of myself. I want to go down on that asteroid. It’s ridiculous of you to tell me I shouldn’t.”
Seth stared at the asteroid looming ahead of them, a muscle in his jaw twitching. Calla suddenly realized she might have spread it on a little too thick.
“I mean—” she started to say, but he cut her off.
“I think you made your meaning clear,” he said tersely. “You’re tired of being trapped with me on this ship, and you’re perfectly capable of taking care of yourself. Quite clear.”
“That’s not what I meant at all,” she said. She could feel the intimacy they’d built between them slipping away. This wasn’t what she’d been trying to do. A panicky feeling came over her.
“Don’t worry, I won’t make you stay here on the ship,” he said, not bothering to look at her. “But I want you to keep close to me out there. Now why don’t you go down to the main room and strap yourself in. Like I said, this could be a bumpy landing, and I don’t want to have to worry about you getting injured.”
“I’d rather stay up here with you,” she replied in a small voice. She’d hurt him, and she didn’t know how to fix it.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he answered. “I need to focus on this landing, and it will be easier if you’re not around.”
“I see,” she said quietly. “Seth, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I know you’re just trying to protect me.”
Seth finally turned to look at her, the asteroid momentarily forgotten. His expression was one of incredulity.
“Hurt me?” he said. “Don’t be ridiculous. I think you’re forgetting what we have here. I’m a Saurellian warrior, and I’ve hired you—a pleasure worker—to give me physical release on this trip. Nothing more. A woman like you could never hurt me.”
The cruel words hit Calla in the pit of her stomach. Abruptly, reality sank in. She was a slave on the run. She’d allowed herself to develop feelings for this man, but slaves couldn’t afford to have feelings. It was a weakness and it had to be covered up before someone took advantage of it.
Pasting a bright smile on her face, Calla replied smoothly, “Oh, don’t worry Seth. I know exactly what we have here.” Then she turned away from him and walked carefully to the ladder. She’d be damned if she’d let him know how much his words had hurt her.
* * * * *
The landing on the asteroid was every bit as rough as Seth predicted. Usually he was able to program the computer to adjust the gravity stabilizers, but he simply didn’t have enough information on this place. No one had answered his com hails, but at least they hadn’t attacked him. That was something.
He put the ship down on a flat area about a quarter mile from the habitation dome. Another ship was already parked to one side of the field, a decrepit-looking junker that should have been scrapped decades ago.
He and Devora donned their pressure suits without speaking. He was still angry, although he wasn’t quite sure why. Pushing his feelings down, he tried to focus instead on the task at hand.
As they finished, the computer chirped a warning. Someone was approaching the ship.
Seth and Devora stepped into the airlock, closing the door tightly behind them. With a whooshing sound, the ship started pumping air out of the small chamber. As Seth waited for the cycle to complete, he watched the figure coming toward them. By his size, Seth figured he was male. He was carrying a gun, although it wasn’t held in a threatening position. Not the most promising of situations, but at he least hadn’t come out shooting.
The light above the door flashed, and the outer portal slid open. Bouncing slightly from the low gravity, Seth made his way down the landing ladder. Normally he would turn to assist Devora, but this time he stayed focused on the man, keeping a hand on his blaster. He had a bad feeling about this stop; he should have made Devora stay on the ship despite her protestations and pouting.
They walked toward the man, Seth trying to raise him on the com. As they got closer, the man tapped the side of his helmet with one hand, indicating his radio wasn’t working. He gestured to them to follow, and started walking back toward the habitation bubble.
The bubble itself looked every bit as old and unsteady as the decrepit ship on the landing field. Even after the airlock was fully cycled and the light turned green, Seth took care to check the instruments on his own suit before removing his helmet. He didn’t want to take any chances. A stench, like rotting cheese, hit him as he pulled off the helmet. The inhabitants of the bubble didn’t clean themselves very often, he realized. Devora must have come to the same conclusion, because she gasped as the odor hit her.
“It’s a might close in here,” the miner said in profound understatement. He had pulled off his helmet before either of them, but had kept busy fiddling with the airlock controls while they removed their own helmets. Now he turned to face them, and Seth fought to control his reaction.
The man was filthy. Black mining dust covered his face, hands and neck. He had the look of someone who’d been dirty for so long that the dirt was under the skin. His hair was lank and greasy, hanging from his balding head in stringy locks. Dev
ora gasped in shock beside him.
“I’m Calvin,” the man said, exposing rotten teeth. “This is my rock. I’ll expect you’ll be wantin’ to trade before you leave.”
That hadn’t been Seth’s plan, but Calvin didn’t strike him as the kind of man who would make time for casual visitors.
“We might have something to trade,” he said lightly. “We’ll have to see.”
Calvin grunted, then opened the airlock portal into the main bubble. The mechanism scraped from its coating of grime. Calvin strode into the room ahead of them, and Seth saw a woman and two children waiting for them silently. They were thin, pale and dirty, like Calvin.
“This is my wife, Sarai,” he said. “And this is my son, Able.” He didn’t bother to introduce the girl.
They were the most pathetic people he’d ever seen. Sarai stood silently, not meeting his eyes. She looked to be in her mid-twenties, but it was hard to tell under all the dirt. He was gradually getting used to the smell, although every once in a while he had to fight off the urge to gag. Looking the woman up and down, he realized that she had made some attempt to straighten herself. Her oily hair had been freshly combed, as had that of the little girl. The little boy was the spitting image of his father, right down to his rotten teeth. All three seemed to be standing as far from Calvin as they possibly could.
“I would imagine your woman will want to help mine fix some food,” Calvin said after a minute, giving his wife a pointed glare. She glanced furtively at Devora, smiling shyly, and then gestured toward the other side of the bubble. There seemed to be just the one room, serving as living area, kitchen and bedroom.
Devora gave the woman a sweet smile in return, and the two made their way across the room with the little girl trailing after them. Seth noticed with some disgust that Devora had to pick her way carefully to avoid piles of debris littering the floor.
“Now that we’ve got rid of them, I think we should talk business,” Calvin said. He gestured Seth to a small, round table. “Have a seat. Able! Clear off a seat for the man.”
Able leapt into action, scuttling around his father to pull out a chair. Whipping a piece of torn fabric out of his pocket, the grubby child made an effort to wipe off some of the grime before Seth sat down.
“Damn woman don’t do jack shit around here,” Calvin grumbled as he pulled out his own chair. “I don’t know why the hell I don’t push her outta the airlock. Oh shut up, Able, I’m just funnin’,” he said as the boy snuffled in protest.
“Damn kid’s got no sense of humor,” Calvin said, spitting on the floor for emphasis. “Now go get us some bakrah. I don’t believe in beatin’ around the bush, so let’s have this out.”
Seth cocked an eyebrow at Calvin questioningly. He had no idea what the man was talking about.
“I’m assuming you’re here to trade, and that’s a good thing,” Calvin said bluntly. “I don’t hold with traders, we’re Pilgrims here and we usually take care of our own. But something’s gone wrong up at Bethesda base and I ain’t seen no one for a coupla months. Radio’s been out for two weeks now. I’m wonderin’ if you got news for me.”
“What kind of news are you looking for?” Seth asked cautiously.
“News ‘bout them damn Sarlins what took over the sector, o’ course,” Calvin said, spitting again. Able, who was approaching with two grimy cups on a tray, ducked to miss the wad of dirty phlegm. The boy slid between them to set the tray on the table. Calvin swatted at him, and he jumped back just as quickly. Apparently he’d had practice avoiding his father’s fists, Seth thought with distaste.
“Do you mean the Saurellians?” Seth asked, trying to lead Calvin on.
“That’s what I said,” Calvin replied, eyeing Seth suspiciously. “Them’s what been fightin’ the emperor. I’m thinkin’ they may’ve took out Bethesda.”
“I don’t know about Bethesda,” Seth said, choosing his words carefully. “I’m relatively new to this trade route. But I haven’t heard about the Saurellians coming out in this sector. Are you sure it’s them?”
“Course it’s them, who else would it be?” Calvin said. He grabbed one of the cups from the tray and handed it to Seth. “Have some bakrah. Make it myself.”
Seth took the cup and sniffed at the contents. The fumes alone were enough to singe the tiny hairs in his nose, but he took a sip to be polite. At least it drowned out some of Calvin’s smell, and the alcohol would probably be enough to kill whatever microorganisms were living in the cup. It was a comforting thought. The bakrah burned down his throat, and it took all he had in him not to cough. Calvin drank from his own cup deeply, then peered around the room myopically for Able.
“Bring the damn bottle, ya little shit!” he bellowed. “Now, back to business. I don’t usually trade with your kind, but to be honest we’re running a little short of supplies here. I usually gets all I need from Bethesda, but like I said, I ain’t seen ‘em for a while. Now, what’s the news?”
“Well, the Saurellians are occupying the main access station, and have entered peace talks with the Empire,” Seth said, unsure of where to begin.
“Bastards!” Calvin exclaimed with feeling, taking another deep swig. “I can’t believe we have them bastards in charge of us. It ain’t right.”
“Have you ever met a Saurellian?” Seth asked, too intrigued by the man’s attitude to resist. Calvin looked at him in horror.
“Hell, no,” he said. “I don’t take my family where we might run into those things. What kind of man would expose his children to that?”
“Those things?” Seth asked quietly. “I’m afraid I don’t understand.”
“Damn, you don’t know much, do you,” Calvin said in disgust. “Them Sarelins ain’t no more human than a goat or a slave. They’re monsters, that’s what. That’s why we ain’t gonna tolerate them in our sector!”
“We?” Seth asked, but Calvin just glared at him suspiciously.
“I don’t see no reason to talk ‘bout this no more,” he said after a long pause. “You wanna trade or not? I ain’t got all day, I got things to do.”
As far as Seth could tell, it had been a very long time since Calvin had “done” anything. “What kinds of things do you need?” he asked.
“Well, we’re low on filters for the oxygen generator, and I ain’t got much in the way of food packs,” Calvin said, becoming suddenly fascinated with his bakrah. “We also need some parts for the radio. And some water.”
Seth listened as Calvin’s list continued, growing more horrified by the minute. The family had virtually nothing left—it sounded like their air would only hold out for a matter of weeks. He would have to evacuate them from the asteroid. Otherwise they would probably die.
“Well, I have a few of those things, but not all,” he said when Calvin finally stopped grunting out his requests. “I saw your ship out there—any chance you could make a supply run?”
Calvin turned to stare at the wall, not speaking for several minutes.
“My ship don’t work.”
“I see,” Seth said. With a sigh, he realized there was no way out of this one; even if he could justify leaving Calvin to die, he couldn’t leave Sarai and the children. “Well, here’s the thing. I can give you a few supplies, but not enough to last you for any length of time. From what I’ve heard, you scared off most of the traders a while back. That pretty much only leaves us with one option. I can take you and your family to a base nearby, where you’ll be safe.”
“We ain’t leavin’ our rock!” Calvin said indignantly. He glared at Seth with hostile, beady eyes. “You just want us to leave so you can jack our claim—I know your type, I know what you’re like.”
Impatience, tempered with disgust, welled up in Seth. It would be so easy to leave the man to die on his stupid rock. It might even be a service to the Federation, he mused. One less armed lunatic to deal with.
“Papa, dinner is ready,” a small, frail voice broke through his thoughts. It was the little girl. She was like a skinny
blond ghost, with pale, hollow cheeks and enormous eyes. Dressed in a dingy little dress that was clearly too small for her, she looked like she might collapse at any moment.
“Mali, you’re a stupid little bitch—never interrupt me when I’m talkin’ business!” Calvin snarled, rising as if to hit the girl. Seth reached out one hand and caught his arm, pinning it against the table.
“Don’t,” he said, his voice cold and hard. Calvin glared at him, then lowered himself back in his chair. The look he shot his daughter, however, promised retribution. Seth silently swore; even if he had enough supplies for the family he couldn’t leave them behind. Calvin would kill them.
“Calvin, I speak as a friend,” Seth said, choosing his words carefully. “You and your family will die here if you don’t come with me. You’ve shot at other traders. Your base station isn’t responding. For love of the Goddess, man, look at your children! They’re starving.”
“I don’t believe in no charity,” Calvin said harshly, glaring at him.
“You offered to trade,” Seth said soothingly. “It doesn’t have to be charity. Why don’t you make me an offer? I’m sure we can work out something fair.”
“Let’s eat while I think about this,” Calvin finally replied. “Sarai, bring the food over.”
His wife and daughter came forward at the command, carrying plates covered with a dark, gruel-like substance. Seth noticed how careful they were to stay out of Calvin’s reach. Devora hovered in the background, watching anxiously. Their eyes met briefly, and Seth could see the pain and compassion in her face. He knew she wouldn’t object to taking the family along with them.
“I know it ain’t great, but it’s food,” Calvin said. Then he started shoving spoonfuls of the dark, watery substance into his mouth. Trying not to grimace, Seth took a spoonful and ate it cautiously. It wasn’t as bad as it looked—it reminded him of the basic survival rations every Saurellian warrior carried during battle - nutritious, and thankfully tasteless, powder that could be eaten with or without water.