Henning gave an audible gasp as the flatbread rose up, slid over the butter, caught two pieces of smoked fish that had started floating as well, and curled around them in a neat roll before touching down gently on Henning’s open palm. Aino blinked and Henning squeezed his fingers around the bread roll, staring at it in disbelief.
Adessa and the serving ladies stood still, without expressing any emotion. Tredd wondered if they even paid attention. Aino’s skill was developed further than he had thought. She could control many objects at once and with remarkable precision. Perhaps her skills were still developing, and a familiar setting made it easier for her. At this rate she would soon be able to control multiple objects around her, while she herself was engaged in something completely different. Crashing stars was one thing, an extreme manifestation of her skill, but all these things she could manifest on a smaller, human scale, were such that Tredd started to understand why everyone wanted a piece of her.
‘Aino, did you really do this?’ Henning asked, holding his daughter by her upper arms.
‘Uh-huh,’ she said, her round, pink, puppy eyes looking up at him.
‘I’ve always known you are special, but this… I agree, it’s better not to flaunt your gift, and you should rest.’ Henning let go, and eyed Tredd and Evie, perhaps wondering how much they knew. He turned back to his daughter. ‘The man who taught you, did he do it – move things with his mind – too?’
Aino shook her head. ‘No, he couldn’t.’
Henning stroked the grey stubble on his chin. ‘I’m just wondering… You’ve never done it before, have you?’
Aino shook her head again.
Looking at Tredd, Henning said, ‘Why Aino then? Why did he pick her?’
‘We lost him before we had a chance to find out,’ Tredd said, leaning back and popping a sweet honey-dipped murberry in his mouth.
‘That’s OK. We’ll have time to find out. That my little girl can move things, even stars, with nothing but her thoughts, that is truly awe-inspiring,’ Henning said, and laid his arm around her. ‘I always knew you would be special, but this is more than I could ever have imagined.’
Aino looked up at him. ‘I’m just happy to be home.’
Looking at them talk, Tredd saw how Aino had transformed from a shy girl into an animated, but sharp little lady. Henning struck him as a solid fellow, however weird the religion and his community seemed. They seemed happy together, and he could see she belonged here. It was not Tredd’s place to judge how people lived their lives.
Seeing Aino and her father so happy together made Tredd reflect on his own situation. Aino is safe, mission accomplished. Where next? Back to Spit City? Unlikely. He couldn’t shake the idea of Jill. It felt naive, and he wanted to push it aside, because it was a childish daydream. Whatever it was, it kept popping up in his mind. Especially after their last encounter, even if Jill said it was impossible, the idea of them together haunted him when he was awake or in sleep, in space or on the ground. He could not shake their last embrace from his mind. And he didn’t want to.
‘How did you happen to be there?’ Henning asked, bringing Tredd back to the present moment. ‘I mean; she was in a ship with this man…’
Tredd leaned forward and picked up a piece of flatbread. ‘To be honest, Mr Dal, I was looking for a doomsday device on behalf of my client. I’m a bounty hunter, it’s what I do – but the device turned out to be your girl.’
Henning touched his chin and eyed Tredd with an inquisitive expression. ‘You did not give her to your client. Why?’
‘How could I?’ he said, and tore the bread in two. ‘My client sent me to pick up a device for them – whether they wanted to study, disarm, or use it, I didn’t know – but I do know I could not take your little girl to them.’
‘I am eternally grateful that you didn’t. May I ask, who was it that wanted Aino?’
‘A small organisation on the fringe, FIST in Spit City, but we got more trouble from the navy.’ Tredd popped a piece of bread in his mouth.
Henning’s face became serious. ‘The Dawn Alliance Navy is involved?’
Tredd savoured the rich taste of real bread and nodded. ‘We did a few manoeuvres in the Dawn Network to conceal Aino’s identity, but there might still be people after her. The navy has her captor, Mr Huckey, and might be able to get something out of him.’
‘I see.’ Henning touched his chin, probably pondering what he had just heard. They all watched Aino running around the office trees, doing cartwheels on the grass floor. A gentle smile appeared on Henning’s face. ‘Thank you for bringing her home. I appreciate your integrity, Mr Bounty.’
Integrity. Bounty hunters were better known for their willingness to deliver to the highest payer, not for their integrity. Tredd had always thought he was different, so Henning’s words were welcome. Still, he could not take all the credit by himself. ‘I couldn’t have done it without Evie here, and the rest of my crew.’
Evie took a glass and poured herself some herb-infused water. ‘We were all concerned about Aino,’ she said, ‘and naturally wanted to help her find her way back home. I’m happy to see she has a home here.’ She took a sip from the glass and leaned back, holding it.
‘I’m thankful for all of you,’ Henning said, and leaned forward. ‘I could see how some folks might want to exploit her extraordinary ability, which is still beyond my understanding. And I would be lying if I said it didn’t worry me… Does anyone else know about what she can do?’
Tredd shrugged. ‘There are navy officers who know of her existence, but we have hidden her tracks in the Dawn Net. As for the others, I don’t know. If Tommy did not work alone, there might still be someone after her…’
Aino jumped onto the couch beside her father. Henning laid his hand on her thigh, unable to hide his concern.
Tredd said, ‘To me this looks like the perfect place for her, but you might want to up the security if she travels.’
Henning nodded. ‘Travelling will be out of question for a while, and when necessary, we will make the arrangements. I have already raised the security level within the perimeter – apologies for making you land outside – but other than that, I will not let this change the way we live our lives.’
Tredd noticed he was clenching his jaw. The security protocols of Avalon were indeed more sophisticated than what he had expected of a religious community. But what do I know? Aino looked happy and Henning seemed like an honest man.
‘How did you come to live here?’ Evie asked, leaning forward and setting her glass on the table. ‘It’s like in the middle of nowhere.’
Henning chuckled. ‘My grandfather Jilius Dal created Avalon to be heaven in life, a place for us to be human again, not as disconnected beings, but in a symbiotic co-existence with the land. It is how we were meant to live. Of course we do use technology for health and enhancing the basic human experience—’
‘Sir!’ one of the serving ladies shouted, stealing the attention of everyone around the lounge table. She had her left hand on her ear, and with the right one she beckoned Henning to her.
‘Please excuse me,’ Henning said, and sprang up. He paced up to the ladies. ‘Yes, what is it?’
Both ladies wore stern expressions. The one with her hand on her ear said, ‘There are a number of planetary assault crafts closing in on the vicinity.’
Henning turned and said, ‘On screen.’
It seemed so obvious, so normal and practised, that first Tredd didn’t even flinch, but seeing Evie’s surprised expression as the screens turned from behind the wood panelling, he also realised that there was more to this community than met the eye.
The main screen projected a sky full of assault crafts, and the side panels had zoomed in on a few of them. Tredd recognised a Dawn Alliance Navy G-class Assault Command Ship, some Lightning Destroyers and Thunder Cruisers and a swarm of TT-landers. He knew the reason for them being there.
‘I’ll be damned,’ he said, trying to estimate the number of ships o
n the screen. ‘They’re on to us with force.’
‘What do we do?’ asked Evie.
Henning looked intently at the screen. ‘We raise the shields. Then we talk with them. I’m not planning on letting them enter my perimeter.’
Tredd doubted the plan. He could see that the navy flew with dozens of ground assault ships. They were going to get in, blasting down anything that stood between them and Aino. Tredd thought about his options. Perhaps they could sneak her out of the premises. He thought of Berossus up in orbit – of course, they must have captured him. Their own landing ship outside the walls was out of question. He had to work with Henning on this.
Tredd moved to stand by Henning’s side. ‘We must get out of here. It will only be matter of time until they are here.’
‘Not if I can help it,’ Henning said.
You can’t, Tredd thought. A few dozen ground assault crafts will get in. ‘You will not have a chance against a Dawn Alliance Navy squad.’
‘Well,’ Henning said, and glanced at Tredd from under his blonde hair, before returning his focus on the screen, ‘I beg to differ. There is something I haven’t told you yet… Prepare for battle!’
The two serving ladies marched forward to the front of the room, under the big screens, where a panel of controls had appeared. They put on earphones and started working on the screens in front of them. Through the door entered six young men and women, all in similar white outfits, who joined with the two ladies. Tredd could see from their screens that they had shields and weapons systems, just like a military space station did. But this is no military operation, but a peaceful community on my own home planet – or is it?
The taller of the ladies said, ‘Perimeter secured, shields activated, cannons on standby, robots on standby.’
Evie appeared at Tredd’s side, and looked up to him with a concerned expression. ‘What’s going on?’
‘Looks like there’s more to this community than growing organic crops,’ Tredd said. As far as he knew, peaceful religious communities did not usually have such defences.
Henning knelt down to talk with Aino by his side. She also looked at him with a face of surprise. ‘Don’t worry, dear, I will make sure you are safe. This is Daddy’s fort, and if I forbid someone to come here, they will not come.’ Henning rose up and assessed the situation on the main screen. ‘Leanna and Agneta, please escort Aino to the Sigma Grid Room.’
Evie stepped up. ‘I’ll go with her.’
‘No!’ Henning said, raising his palm. ‘You must stay here.’
‘Daddy, please, can she come?’ Aino hung from Henning’s left arm.
Henning gently removed her grasp and said, ‘It’s the safest place for you in Avalon, but I can’t take any visitors there.’
‘Then she stays here,’ Tredd said.
‘No,’ Henning said, shaking his head. ‘I will not allow visitors to the Grid Room.’
There was something going on. Tredd didn’t know what is was, but it changed the idea he had of Henning and of this place. Whether it was good or bad, he didn’t know, but he was determined not to let go of Aino before he could be sure she was safe. The lady, Leanna, took him by the arm and asked him to follow her.
Instead of following, Tredd entered a time-lapse.
He made the time slow down until everyone around him ground to a near halt. While everyone in the room stood still like statues, he sprang in front of Henning and lifted him against one of the tree-like pillars.
Tredd let go of the time-lapse.
Henning gasped in surprise. His face started turning red.
‘I have no idea what you do in this place,’ Tredd said with his bounty hunter voice, his face just a few centimetres from Henning’s reddening face, ‘but before this is over, I am not going to let her out of my sight.’
Henning grinned. ‘You truly are a son of Eura, I see.’
‘What does that even mean?’ Tredd asked, squeezing Henning’s shirt tighter in his fist, scowling as the nausea from the time-lapse washed over him like a wave of vomit.
Before Henning had a chance to respond, one of the ladies cut in. ‘The command ship is requesting video communication.’
‘Go ahead, take it,’ Tredd said, pushing Henning a notch higher, ‘but we are not going anywhere, and you have some explaining to do, buddy.’ He let his grip loosen.
Henning fell down to a squat against the tree, but regained his composure quickly. He whisked his hair aside, adjusted his outfit, and turned to face the screens.
‘Go ahead, open the channel,’ he said, and rubbed his neck.
‘Opening, sir.’
The rough face of a Dresnean navy officer appeared on the screen. Tredd had not seen Vorlar Block since the end of Red War, and that awful night when he was stripped of his rank and thrown into the gutter. Seeing him now made Tredd tense with bad memories.
Vorlar spoke. ‘I am Vice Admiral Block of the Dawn Alliance Navy, commander of the Special Forces Unit. Prepare to have your premises inspected.’
Tredd glanced at Henning, who stood straight, his arms clasped behind his body. ‘I am Henning Dal of Avalon. What is your business?’
‘We believe you accommodate the following persons: Tredd Bounty, Evie Yeoh, Eddie Parkes, and yes, the girl you claim to be your daughter, Aino Dal. They are wanted under the law of the Dawn Alliance, and we demand you turn them over.’ Vorlar’s talking head expressed no emotion whatsoever.
Evie nudged Tredd and whispered, ‘I hope he’s on our side.’
Tredd realised Henning could very easily hand them over, but knew he would never give up Aino. And without Aino, they didn’t matter to Vorlar. ‘I hope so too.’
A silence descended upon the room. Henning remained calm, staring at the screen with a blank expression. Aino took his arm and said, ‘Daddy?’
Henning stood firm, his eyes on Vorlar’s face on the screen. ‘I have no intention of releasing anyone.’
‘You are bound by the Dawn Alliance interior legislation, section FTF-102-1, to comply with the orders from a vice admiral of the navy. The consequences of misconduct will be substantial.’ There was a hint of impatience in his voice.
‘We are a completely self-sustained jurisdiction. You do not have any authority here.’
Well said, Tredd thought, and tipped a virtual hat to Henning. Vorlar’s face gained a few lines. He always got what he wanted, and was not going to negotiate with the barefoot leader of a religious community.
‘I speak to you from the assault command ship, accompanied by three destroyers, three cruisers and numerous support craft. I demand you grant us access to your facility, or offensive measures will be undertaken to complete our mission.’ It wasn’t impatience now in his voice, but anger.
‘What does he mean?’ Evie asked.
‘He says unless Henning releases us, he will storm this fort.’
‘Storm the fort?’
‘Attack.’
Evie gulped.
Henning remained calm in his complexion and speech. ‘You do not have the authority to perform offensive measures against our peaceful community.’
Vorlar snarled. ‘As this is a matter of intergalactic security, I will have the authority in a matter of minutes. Your guests might also be interested to know I have some of their friends on board.’
The camera panned to the right, showing a woman fastened in a robotic wheelchair. Then it zoomed in on her. Jill. Seeing her made Tredd’s heart jump. She was captured. Vorlar had found out she had helped them, and now she was being punished for what Tredd had done.
Beside her hung Berossus, his wrists clasped together above his head, muttering and growling like an animal. Dr Killock skirted around them in a perfect white lab coat.
The stiff expression on Jill’s face must have been of pain. She had been crying, and seeing her like this made Tredd feel furious. ‘What do you want from us?’
‘Ah, Mr Bounty,’ Vorlar said with a grin. ‘A failure in the navy, a failure in life. Your acti
ons have caused only pain and suffering to yourself and every wicked soul who has ever thought any good of you. You ask me what I want. I want you to deliver the girl.’
Tredd knew that even if he delivered Aino, Vorlar would find a way to break his promise and prosecute them. Besides, Tredd was a man of integrity now, and he had sworn to protect Aino. ‘Not gonna happen.’
Vorlar stared from the screen with the silent and sour face of someone who had just heard the exact opposite of what he wanted. ‘By holding on to the girl, your crew, and Commodore Conrad here, as an accomplice, will be considered renegades in the eyes of the Dawn Alliance. This time FIST can’t help you, especially because you hid her from them. You see, delivering the girl would change all that. You would be free to go.’
Tredd glanced at Aino. It would be easy to say yes and deliver her to the highest bidder. But that was the old Tredd. The new Tredd was sworn to protect her. And Jill sat helplessly with the enemy.
‘What have you done to her? You’re breaking the code.’ The navy had a strict policy for code of conduct, and blackmailing a community of Dawn Alliance citizens was a breach.
Vorlar snickered and turned. ‘Doctor?’
Dr Killock took a step forward, blocking Jill from the view. Her curly blonde hair was down and she wore striking red lipstick. Perfect white teeth shone as she smiled broadly.
‘It’s been a while, Captain. Your girlfriend has been paralysed – did you know? She was one of the participants in the Project Renascence, just like you.’ She paused and tilted her head.
‘So what?’ Tredd had no idea what the doctor was talking about.
‘So what, indeed,’ she said with an evil grin on her tilted face. She straightened up and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. ‘For her, nothing much, because she’s a normal woman now, except, of course, for the fact that she cannot move – but perhaps you prefer your ladies like that.’ She winked at Tredd.
‘You’re not giving me much. What is this Project Renascence?’
Starcrasher (Shades Space Opera Book 1) Page 32