by Dan Decker
It was too bad that Erro had been so hotheaded. If Adar had stumbled upon them and not had to fight off Erro, he would have been a lot more direct in his efforts to recruit them. It would have been nice to have help if he came across any other turncoats on the way to the Arches. He already had enough blasters to arm all three of them.
Erro continued to struggle, and the storm covered up most his growling. Adar looked on, thinking it would be a pity if he couldn’t bring them to his side. Erro was of no consequence and didn’t pose a threat to Adar. If Neare was even half as good as word around Neberan had said he was, he would be of some use. Given time, both would be able to handle a blaster.
Adar shook his head as Erro fought against his father. Not that I’ll be giving him one anytime soon. Adar wouldn’t take them on unless they were both willing to swear oaths never to harm him or Jorad. Even if they did, he’d still keep a close eye on Erro.
And Neare for that matter as well, he thought.
He walked back to where he dropped his blasters and picked them up, shaking off the mud. Maybe the reason they kept dying on him was because they weren’t made to be exposed to the elements. It had been raining the night that they’d first killed Hunwei and taken blasters off their vanquished foe. It had been raining all day today as well.
But then again, the Hunwei hadn’t taken any special care to keep them dry. No, that wasn’t it either. Confound it, he had to figure this out, or there would be little to gain long term for time spent scavenging the blasters from the dead.
He could feel Neare’s eyes on him as he moved. When he returned, Neare stared longingly after the blasters. Adar hid a smile. If Erro could be calmed down, Neare might come just so he could learn to use a blaster.
We usually butt heads, but I’m afraid that has more to do with ego than anything else, Adar thought. Neare has a good head on his shoulders and would make a useful ally.
Once Adar was sure Erro wouldn’t turn the weapon on him, Erro could be trained to use a blaster as well. His abysmal lack of training on the sword wouldn’t matter then.
Erro tried to twist free, but Neare grabbed him.
“It would never work,” Neare said, shaking his head while pulling Erro back. He was staring at the blaster again. If Neare looked among the dead Hunwei, he might find one of his own, but he wouldn’t know how to use it. “I just need to get him away from here. Good luck to you.”
Before Neare could go any further, two Hunwei turncoats turned the corner. Adar brought his blaster up. “Get down, get down now!” He stepped around the two men already firing. The turncoats had their blasters up as though they’d been expecting something, but Adar moved faster and was able to get off the first shot.
Bleeding Melyah, he thought, they heard me fighting with Erro. The kid has been shouting the whole time. Maybe the turncoats will kill him for me—
He pushed away the thought, uncomfortable that he’d been able to think such a thing. He’s a kid, not much younger than Jorad. Melyah only knows what kind of growing up my own son needs to do.
Adar ran, his shot going high, buzzing over the head of the closest turncoat. The turncoat ducked behind the home even though Adar’s blast hadn’t come anywhere close to the man.
The other turncoat returned fire as well, but the shot went through the spot where Adar had been standing moments before. The turncoat’s aim had been much better than Adar’s, it was his timing that had been off. Letting out a low-pitched growl, Adar fired another only to have it sail right past the turncoat. By that time, Neare had dragged Erro to safety behind the corner of the house.
Bleeding Melyah, Adar thought as he fired a third time, wishing that things had been different so that he could have armed the men. Three on two would have been much better. The turncoat charged while firing. Flinging himself to the ground, Adar kept his weapon up and fired again once he landed. He felt a blast go over his own head, rolled to the side, and fired again, the blasters on his back clanking together as he did.
His last blast tore through the turncoat’s leg, pitching the man forward and to the ground. Putting his sights on the fallen man, Adar pulled the trigger and watched with satisfaction as it burned a hole through him lengthwise. He brought his blaster up as he searched for the other, but everything had fallen still.
“Watch behind you!” Adar cried as he moved with enough speed to cause Erro to jump. “I’ve lost one.”
Neare nodded and pushed Erro forward until they came to the far side of the home. He hesitated at the corner before looking behind him, clearly expecting the turncoat but apparently seeing nothing.
Adar scanned their surroundings. Nothing moved. He checked the backdoor of the home, expecting something to happen there. Everything was still. He was turning in a full circle when he heard scuffling from overhead and looked up at the roof of the house to see the turncoat looking down at them. Adar’s chest froze as he brought up his blaster, but it was too late, the turncoat had the drop on him as he pulled the trigger of his weapon. He could see the bleeding man’s smile through his faceplate.
Then a remarkable thing happened. The turncoat lost his footing. His shot went wild as he slid down the roof and fell off.
Squealing came from behind. Adar was about to turn on instinct when he recognized it came from the pig. He ran forward instead, firing his blaster as he did.
Nothing happened, the confounded thing had stopped working. Adar didn’t have time to grab another from off his back as he tossed the malfunctioning weapon to the side just before slamming into the turncoat that was scrambling to get to his feet.
Adar landed on the turncoat’s arm, covering the top of the blaster as he did. His eyes met the turncoat’s as he pulled out his Ou Qui blade. Laughter danced in the turncoat’s eyes, but it ended a second later.
Slamming the blade into the turncoat's neck, Adar flipped back the face shield with his other hand and stabbed the black blade into the man’s eye, pushing it all the way in.
A silver covering had already formed on the neck by that time so for good measure he went through the other eye was well, this time pausing to turn the blade before bringing it out. He nodded his head when he saw that there wasn’t any silver cover forming on the remains of either eye.
Adar sheathed his Ou Qui blade, even though it was bloody and picked up the dead turncoat’s blaster and spun around the area to make sure that the danger had passed.
Neare had his sword out and was doing the same while Erro stared at the dead turncoat. After a few moments had passed without anything else happening, Neare took Erro by the arm and dragged him away. Before they disappeared, Neare looked back and gave Adar a slight nod of his head.
Chapter 9
Once Neare and Erro disappeared, Adar retrieved the blasters from the dead Hunwei turncoats and ducked into the home. He didn’t want to leave them lying around for Neare—or anyone else—to pick up. Neare had left before the stress of the situation had given him a chance to think about what he was leaving behind. Once he did, he would realize he’d missed an opportunity to pick up a blaster or two.
On the second floor, Adar found a bedroom and stuffed the extra blasters underneath the bed, careful to lift the blasters over the dust on the wooden planks, so it wasn’t obvious that something had been placed there. He looked around the room, wondering if there might be a less obvious place, but nothing jumped out at him. An old dresser would have fit the weapons and a dark corner beside a desk as well, but he figured that they were all natural places to look if somebody came in here hoping to find something.
I better hope they don’t come back right away, Adar thought when he looked back at the trail of water he’d left on the wooden floor, I should have stopped to kick the rain off my boots. The wood was untreated and would hopefully absorb his tracks quickly, but that would be cold comfort if the next time Adar saw Erro was down the wrong end of a blaster.
Adar had never thought he’d be glad that most of the burned Hunwei destroyed their own blasters. I
t hadn’t been too difficult to figure out how to get them to work, and Adar didn’t doubt that Neare or Erro would be able to figure it out given enough time.
He hesitated and stared at the bed, wondering if he should bring another blaster with him. He was down to one working blaster plus a spare and having extras kept coming in handy.
So does that ridiculous looking dagger, if I’d known what that Ou Qui was giving me, I’d have given him gold coins and tried to buy some more. The Ou Qui’s shorts swords hadn’t been covered with the black tar-like residue, but Adar didn’t see any reason why a sword that had been similarly treated wouldn’t work just as well. He wouldn’t do something like that to his Radim sword, but he wouldn’t hesitate to do that to a cheaper weapon.
He had tried to keep count of the number of shots he got from a blaster, but he’d been unable to be exact. From what he could tell, they all appeared to stop working at random times. One blaster, he’d been able to use for a greater number of shots, the next had been far fewer. Perhaps they all had the same capacity, and it depended on how many shots the previous owner had used. That was something to think about.
He went back downstairs. He still had two blasters and carrying the additional one while also lugging around his sword was already a bit much, not to mention adding a couple of more. He would just have to return for these when he could.
Because Neare and Erro might be watching the front of the home, Adar returned out the back door and moved from there out towards the street. He didn’t want them to think to look in the home for the blasters.
Who am I trying to fool? He wondered. Chances are good they will stumble across a couple of dead Hunwei with working blasters anyway. How many did it take for me? Five? Ten? He didn’t like the idea of having to keep an eye out for Neare and Erro as well as Hunwei, turncoats, and Tere, but a man did what he had to do. Adar wouldn’t put it past Neare to ambush him, despite Neare’s conciliatory words to the contrary.
Adar paused before coming out into the open of the street to check either direction. He had thought that Erro and Neare would have already disappeared, but they were several blocks away, walking in the middle of the street. Erro had stopped struggling, and they were moving quickly.
Erro looked back over his shoulder. When he saw Adar, he scowled and dug in his heels. Neare noticed what Erro was doing and pulled him along all the faster.
Neare probably expects I’ll change my mind about letting Erro go, Adar thought, shaking his head. At another day and time, Adar wouldn’t have hesitated to kill anybody that was attacking him with a sword, regardless of who they were.
Now, he found the thought of killing another person he didn’t need to a little discomforting. Why do the Hunwei’s work for them? Every man that lives through this and every woman and child that isn’t taken captive is another victory.
After Neare and Erro had disappeared into a home, Adar hesitated before pushing out into the street himself. He expected to see Tere step out of the shadows while pointing a blaster his way. Or Erro charging again like a man insane.
The wind had picked up, and it pelted rain against Adar’s skin, making his teeth want to chatter. He clenched his jaw to keep that from happening. Being drenched didn't help matters, but it did mean Tere would plan his ambush somewhere he had protection against the storm.
As Adar passed a couple of Hunwei corpses, he checked to make sure that the blasters were destroyed before moving on. He was happy to see that the barrel of one was melted and the other had broken in half and melted to the corpse of the Hunwei beside it.
He wasn't sure if it was just him getting used to the smell of the dead Hunwei or if it was getting better; either way, it wasn't bothering him as much as it had been before.
He turned when he saw movement in the window of a home. A head disappeared. There hadn’t been much for him to see but by the length of the hair, he assumed it had been a woman. If he hadn't seen the hair, he would have gone to investigate to make sure that he wasn’t about to pass by Tere.
It was probably a local woman who hid because she saw his blaster. He continued on.
A block or so down, he came to an alley that went in the direction he was headed, so he ducked in, preferring to scrape through tight places than wondering who was watching him pass.
He hadn’t made it very far before he heard voices and approaching footsteps coming from a connecting alley. He hesitated, thinking of Erro and Neare, and even though they’d gone the other direction, he decided to duck behind some water barrels to be safe.
Well, safe enough, he amended after closer inspection of his hiding spot. Anybody that looked over the area would probably spot him, but he didn’t have enough time to run back the other way.
Moss grew along the sides of the barrels. They might have started life with a varnished exterior, but they had been laid bare through the ravages of time, sun, and weather. The water level in the first was almost empty, and the other was just over half full. The smell from the water wasn’t enticing, but it did feel good to smell something other than the scorched flesh of the Hunwei.
Lightning flashed across the sky as Adar positioned himself. When he blinked, he could still see the image of it behind his eyelids. It was close enough he didn’t get past the count of two before a peal of thunder crashed overhead.
At least there’s no doubt that came from the storm and not a Hunwei ship.
As the men approached, Adar ducked and wrapped his finger around the trigger of his blaster. While he was glad that he had stayed his hand with Erro, it had been a mistake to drop the blaster and go for the sword.
The next time I make a fool mistake like that, he thought, it’s likely to be me that dies. Does it really matter if I kill with the sword or a blaster?
Dead is dead.
The thought made him feel uncomfortable, and he wasn’t able to determine if that was caused by its cold logic or the fact that he didn’t want to accept the changes that would come if blasters became widespread.
Here I am, fighting for my life, and I’m more worried about the long-range consequences of a technology that I can’t even understand let alone replicate. He pushed away his concerns, resolving to use a blaster defensively against another human being if he needed to, regardless of his concerns.
Two men turned the corner at the intersection of the alleys. Adar could see their legs from in between the curves of the two barrels. The little he could see was enough for him to tell that he wasn’t looking at Tere or Karn. The clothing was wrong, and one of the men had a sword on his belt. Both Karn and Tere wore their swords on their backs, as did all members of the Radim armies. Adar was on the verge of relaxing until he was able to make out their conversation as they drew closer to where he hid.
“You didn’t recognize this man? You’re sure he was from out of town?” The voice of the speaker heaved as if he’d been running, but there was something more to it than that. The tone communicated repressed anger. There must have been a response that Adar hadn’t heard because the man continued. “What was she playing at?” The man growled. “How many times do I have to tell Tate to stay away from her?”
Tate. Adar thought. That was the man who had been forcing himself on Kura. His ears perked up, and he gripped his blaster as he waited for them to pass. Once they did, he looked out and recognized the back of one of the men belonged to Billy. So, the fat little man had managed to escape from the Hunwei turncoats. Adar was surprised, but given the luck he’d been having today, perhaps he shouldn’t have been.
Adar did a double take on the other, his instincts telling him that it was Tate, even though the man had just been talking about Tate.
Frowning, Adar realized this man was a little taller with thicker shoulders. His hair might have been a lighter color than Tate’s, but it was difficult to tell as it was matted against his head by the rain. Other than those subtle differences, the two could have been twins. Even their clothes were almost a match for each other.
Isak, Adar t
hought, remembering the conversation that he’d had with Billy. Tate’s brother. And they’re looking for me. He grunted. I shouldn’t have left Billy alive, but it had seemed too much like murder to just kill him. This wasn’t Rarbon where Adar was the general of an army and could enforce the law.
“Hurry up!” Isak called over his shoulder. Billy had fallen a few steps behind. The pudgy man struggled to breathe and almost tripped over a rock. He slowed to a stop and leaned against the brick wall of the home.
Without thinking about what he was doing, Adar brought up his blaster and pointed it at the passing men. He ducked further behind the barrels when Isak turned. Billy mumbled something Adar wasn’t able to make out, his wheezing combined with the rain to make comprehension impossible.
Adar’s finger hadn’t been near the trigger but hadn’t he been considering whether to shoot these men in the back?
Bleeding Melyah! He thought. I’ve only just decided that I’ll use a blaster if necessary, and here I am thinking of shooting men in the back. The bleeding weapon makes killing too easy.
“Melyah, man!” Isak returned to Billy and pulled him away from the wall. “My brother’s lying with a slit throat and you have the gall to talk to me about needing to catch your breath?”
Billy said something that was once again inaudible. The tone had an apologetic sound to it. When Adar lifted his head several heartbeats later, they had disappeared. He waited for a couple more seconds before coming out of his hiding place.
As he stared in the direction they had gone, he figured the men were about five blocks away from the tavern where he had killed Tate. Billy and Kura had both spoken of Isak as if he had men at his command. It probably wouldn’t be long before Isak brought other people to help him look.
Nine burning fires! Adar thought. If it’s not one thing, it’s another. The Arches would transport him out of the city in a blink of an eye. It’s taken me long enough that Tere could be halfway to Rarbon by now if he didn’t stop to lay in wait for me.