Gareth bit his tongue. There was so much here that he didn’t know, but he had no time. “Yes.”
“Very good sir. What is your name?”
“Gareth Köhler.”
“Thank you. Your ticket will be…” The kiosk stopped in mid-sentence, and Gareth frowned. “According to Ell, Mister Köhler, your name is already in our system as a universal ticket holder. You and your companions may travel anywhere we provide service, for the rest of your lives. If you will each hold up your forearms, I will issue the tickets?” Everyone except Gareth held up their right arms. Since Gareth already had a jeweled dragon embedded there, he held up his left. There was a small tingling, and when he looked Gareth saw that there was now a small barcode embedded in his arm. “That is your ticket and will automatically be scanned as you enter the transport. Departure will occur as soon as you have boarded. Follow the Green Line, please.” The lights in the kiosk winked out, while at the same time green lights embedded in the floor came on, strobing away into the distance.
Gareth shrugged. “You heard the lady. We should go.”
The transport was a fifty meter long eight meter wide stainless steel bullet, pointed on both ends with no doors or windows that Gareth could see. As they approached, a metal ramp slid soundlessly out of the loading platform, connecting with the now open doorway in the transport. Inside Gareth could see bright lights. Despite his misgivings, he smiled to his friends as he entered. He stopped inside the transport, his breath catching in his throat. The cool fresh air smelled faintly of pine trees while the walls, ceiling and floor of the vehicle were as clear as glass. Only the wide comfortable looking seats had any visible form. Behind him he heard a series of gasps as the others joined him.
Lyndra took one of his arms, as Chiu grabbed the other. “What is this?” One of them asked.
“This is their transport vehicle.” As he finished those words, the cabin door slid silently shut, and the vehicle began to move. To the riders it felt as if they were in a completely still room, and Gareth marveled at the feat of engineering. In a flash of sunlight, they were suddenly outdoors. Gareth felt his jaw drop. In their long trek across the Shattered Plain he had seen similar elevated rings, wondering at their function and purpose. Now he knew. Similar to a railgun projectile, the vehicle was projected magnetically through the rings at many multiples of the speed of sound. Towers, dozens of meters tall with a magnetic accelerator ring on the top stretched out ahead, and as Gareth watched the vehicle shot through one, threading the needle, as it were. The next was rapidly approaching. To the right, left and beneath them was only ice and blowing snow.
“Arrival in Shsa-Tirion will be in two hours and fifteen minutes.” A cool female voice said out of the air. “Bathing facilities are at the back of this compartment. A light lunch will be served at your convenience; just ask.”
“Thank you.” Gareth replied in a bemused voice.
“You are welcome, Mister Köhler.”
Gareth looked at the confused faces around him. “Are you familiar with the language my companions are speaking?”
“Yes Mister Köhler.”
“Could you please use that language in all further communication? And drop the Mister Köhler. A simple Gareth would do just fine.”
“As you wish, Gareth.” The voice responded. Chiu’s and Lyndra’s eyes widened.
“The transport will be arriving at Shsa-Tirion in fifteen minutes, Gareth.” The computer voice said, waking him gently from a comfortable sleep. All five of the travelers had bathed, changed into clean clothes and had a light meal, before falling asleep in the comfortable reclining seats. With the walls of the vehicle around him, it was the first time Gareth had felt safe since leaving the Sai-Bo mansion.
“Let me ask you a question.” He said very softly, so as not to wake the others. “Is this vehicle scheduled for another trip?”
“No Gareth. It will be serviced automatically and prepared for the return trip to The Yeugate.”
“Good. We can see out, but can others see in?”
“No Gareth. The synthsteel hull has photoreceptors embedded in it. It only gives the illusion of transparency.”
Gareth smiled. “After we arrive in Shsa-Tirion, could we stay in this vehicle for a few hours to sleep and rest? It will not be more than eight.”
“That is an unusual request…” The voice hesitated. “but since you are the only passengers on the planet, it can be allowed. I can provide whatever meals you would like.”
Gareth smiled. “Thank you. Dim lights fifty percent please.” The lights dimmed, and he shut his eyes.
“Mister Gareth, if you would wake up, there is something important you should know.” Gareth opened his gritty eyes.
“What?” He rasped.
“You have been asleep eight hours since we last spoke. I have just received communication from Ell, saying that she is suspending service, temporarily, to The Yeugate. She estimates service will resume in one to two weeks. She did mention something about pest control.”
Gareth nodded, rubbing his eyes. “I thought as much.” He glanced around the small compartment where the others were showing signs of rousing. “Can we get a large pot of coffee please, with five mugs, cream and sugar? We’ll let you know about food when we are awake.”
Gareth caught a faint laugh. “I can do that, Gareth.”
He stared for several moments through the transparent walls of the vehicle. “Is that artificial light I see in the boarding area, or sunlight?”
“Sunlight. The local time is zero seven twenty-one.”
Gareth poured and sipped the rich dark coffee. “Are any other lines operating out of Shsa-Tirion?”
“No Gareth. The transport rings have fallen into disrepair, and automated flight services are inoperative.”
He set his cup down very slowly. “Where are we located?”
“You are in the Hall of Transportation in Shsa-Tirion. In your time the general area is known as the Realm of the Shattered Plain, at the headwaters of the Phila River.”
Gareth shut his eyes, and seriously considered asking for Athena to send him home. “Would you happen to have a map of where the five great cities are located?”
“I don’t have a map, exactly, but I do have the directions and distances the tube transports traveled. The next stop on this route is thirty four hundred and twenty seven leagues, and the direction is one hundred and thirty seven point three degrees. From that location there are two more cities, one at ninety degrees on the green line for thirty two hundred leagues, and one on the red line at forty degrees for nine hundred and eighty two leagues. I’m sorry, but I don’t have the names of those cities, and only the directions.”
Gareth bit his lip, and could feel Chiu come up beside him. “I wish we had a map, of some sort.” He mused sadly.
“Well, why didna ye ask?” Kuan’s nose was twitching in laughter, enhancing his ferret-like look. “I’m a bloody guide. Of course I have maps.” He spread the maps out on the floor. “Now…” He scratched his head. “If I knew just where…”
“If you would just move back for a moment.” The computer voice said primly. When they all complied, the voice gave a little sniff. “Not very good maps, but I believe I can plot out the rough locations of all five cities. Thanks to the tectonic shifts the exact locations may be somewhat… skewed.”
Gareth felt his heart beating very fast. “Ahhh, could you print that out for us?”
“I can do better than that.” A small thirty centimeter tube floated out of a service panel and over to Gareth. Unrolling it gently, he discovered it to be made of metal, with the map and notations etched into the very finish. “Rain will not hurt this map,” the voice of the transport AI continued, “nor fire nor knifes. I’ve known of a few hardy individuals who have taken these maps and worn them as body armor.”
Kuan peered over Gareth’s shoulder at the map. “Ohhh, I know where that next city is. It’s on the island of Iystrichi, south of Luxoroth.” He shot a g
lance at Wokeg. “Ogres live there.” Glancing back at the map he grinned. “That only leaves one place after that; the southern Realm of Urruthra. The third location is out in the middle of the bloody ocean.”
Gareth sighed. “Well, Athena said it was difficult, but not impossible. We have two more cities to try, and that gives us a fifty-fifty chance that the next city will be our goal.”
Lyndra shot him a dark look. “All we have to do is to get there.”
Kuan stared at the map. “The river there should make things…” A sharp bong interrupted the small guide and everyone looked up as the Earth rumbled and swayed around them, sending chunks of rock bouncing off their transport. Out of the corner of his eye and through the rear-facing screen Gareth saw the base of one of the transportation rings crack and shatter. The hundred meter pedestal and ring slowly toppled to the side, disappearing in a cloud of dust.
“I’m afraid that return to The Yeugate is no longer possible for the foreseeable future.” The transport’s AI said in a hushed voice.
Chapter 5
STORMS
On the banks of the wide blue Phila River, the town of Dherngrom was burning. Gareth had been watching the column of smoke grow as the small band grew steadily closer and now, from the crest of a low hill a dozen kilometers away, there couldn’t be any mistake. Touching Lyndra’s arm, he offered the blond woman silent support. As a young girl in a similar small city only a few hundred leagues away from where they now stood, she had been taken as a slave after her parents were slaughtered. In that case the town had also been burned. The woman at his side stood frozen.
“You know,” Gareth began, thinking quickly, “if there are raiders down there, they probably have a boat of some sort, and we need transportation downriver.”
Her green eyes suddenly became cold and hard as she discovered a target for all her hurt and anger. “We WILL need a boat, won’t we?” Gareth blinked at the malice he heard in the voice.
“We will.” Gareth agreed gently. “We’re very good at taking boats from raiders. Why don’t you slip down there and take a look around while we plod along? You should see us in a while, but be very careful. You are an important part of this…” He almost said company. “family.” Her emerald eyes went wide, and he knew that he’d said exactly what she needed to hear. That it was the truth was merely frosting on the cake.
She looked at Gareth for a long moment, and he knew that this crisis was past when she smiled up at him. “I’ll be careful.” She whispered, morphing into a wolf. She was gone in a flicker of shadow as she wove through the dry scrub and twisted trees. He was still staring at the place Lyndra had vanished when Chiu arrived.
“What was that all about?” Her contralto voice was cautious.
“Our friend needed something to take her mind off her past troubles, and work out a few aggressive feelings.” His laugh was grim. “I suspect that the raiders are about to have a very bad day. I just hope that she doesn’t scare away or sink that boat. It is a very long way from here, past Phila all the way to Strizruofast.”
“What??” Chiu practically shouted. “It’s suicide to sail to Strizruofast. That city is the home of all the raiders in the realm.”
Gareth smiled. “That’s the beauty of my plan. The raiders will be expecting a warboat to be coming downriver loaded with booty and slaves. I’m sure that one of the raiders we capture will be more than willing to tell us all the little ins and outs of approaching the raider city.”
Chui gave him a sarcastic look. “Oh, and I suppose you’ll just ask him nicely?”
“I won’t.” Gareth’s voice hardened. “Lyndra will.” He glanced up at the sun. “We should leave now. I’d like to get us into the city by nightfall. It will be a long night for us, but a longer night for the raiders, I think. Our guide will have to catch up with us as best as he can.” Glancing over her shoulder, Gareth made a casual gesture toward the town. “Let’s go. Lyndra, is scouting ahead, and Kuan will meet us there… eventually.”
“Is that what you call it?”
“It sounds better than terrorizing.” Gareth grinned as he flowed into the form of a sabertooth tiger.
The air smelled of smoke and burning flesh so strongly he could taste it on his tongue. From a distance, Gareth watched as a group of raiders kicked in the front door of a small well cared for inn, and crashed inside. He and Chiu began to run when terrified screams burst out from within. Two raiders backed out of the door, dragging a shrieking woman between them, and a moment later the second pair of raiders appeared, dragging a furiously kicking girl of what Gareth guessed to be fifteen years old. Both mother and daughter had flaming red hair.
To their misfortune, the raiders had their backs to them as the cats arrived, Chiu turning toward the young girl while Gareth went for the mother. The first raider had just ripped open the front of the woman’s dress while the other held her pinned, and was leering at her exposed attributes when her hazel eyes went large as she caught sight of the cat over the raider’s shoulder. The man never had the chance to scream as his hot blood splashed his intended victim’s face. The second raider had barely opened his mouth to shout a warning when Gareth’s massive jaws closed on his head, crushing his skull with a dry crunch, like a walnut in a vice. Gareth flowed into his human form as he turned to find Chiu. The woman on the ground behind him gave a small squeak of fear and he looked over his shoulder, wiping the blood of the raider from his face. “Get dressed. You’re safe now.” Turning back to Chiu, he found her standing over two feebly twitching raiders, their crotches bloody ruins. She was chewing idly as she watched them die. The young girl had her back to the house, knees under her blue dress pulled up tightly against her chest, her eyes huge and round. “Chiu!” Gareth said sharply. “Spit that out! You don’t know where it’s been.”
The big head of the cat whipped around, spat out a gory wad, and then began to furiously wipe her muzzle with her paw. When she was finished cleaning she flowed back into the shape of the dark-haired woman he knew so well. “Sorry. It was just instinctive.” She spat once more, looking slightly sick.
Gareth glanced down at the girl, who was just beginning to get her shaking under control. “Are you all right?”
“You’re shapeshifters, aren’t you?” Her light voice was breathless.
“I guess you could say that.” Gareth grinned. “You should see to your mother.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Was there anyone else inside?”
“The raiders hit my father, knocking him down, and my little brother hid behind the sofa.”
“Thanks. We’ll see what we can do for them.”
About ready to run to her mother, the young redhead stopped and smoothed her dress. “Thank you.”
Gareth reached out and touched her hair. “You’re welcome, miss.”
The father was lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood, a deep gash on the side of his head. His breathing was rapid and shallow, and when he touched him Gareth barely found the man’s faint heartbeat. “You’ll have to handle this, Chiu. I’ll feed you as much strength as you need.”
Chiu looked dubious as she touched the injured man’s face. “I’d say that he doesn’t have a chance, but…” she took a deep breath, “hit me with everything you have.”
Gareth touched the bare skin of Chiu’s arm. “Here it comes.” He whispered, and opened the flood gates in his mind.
“Enough!” Chiu’s voice said sharply in his mind. “Enough!”
Gareth cut the outrageous flow, slumping to the floor. “Grrk, nuuuk flmmm.” He mumbled, mouth seemingly full of cotton. He blinked his eyes several times to get them to focus. “Scheiße! Blödes Arschloch.” He cursed.
Chiu raised an eyebrow. “Are you all right?”
“Das geht Dich einen Scheiß an.” He growled in reply. He blinked again. “Sorry. You didn’t deserve that. I feel like I was rode hard and put away wet, as the saying goes. What the hell happened?”
Chiu’s smile was wry. “You went a little overb
oard.”
“Did we heal our patient?”
Chiu laughed aloud as she helped him to his feet. “You could say that. We healed his terminal injury and turned back his biological clock by twenty years.”
The innkeeper’s family was standing huddled in the center of the great-room, looking at their visitors with frightened expressions. The man they had healed looked only slightly older than his daughter. It wasn’t until he glanced at the doorway and saw the ogre standing there that the light came on. “Wokeg, could you please… change?” The ogre flowed into the form of a young man, and the innkeeper’s family relaxed visibly. Gareth smiled to the group of innocents. “See, you have nothing to…” Lyndra in her wolf form almost knocked him over, and one of the women let out a little shriek. Gareth winced. “Scheiße.” He said slapping his forehead. “Lyndra, please change.”
At least the blond woman had the decency to look embarrassed. “Sorry, Gareth. I was excited. The raiders are moving back to their boat. If we want to do something, we have to do it now.”
He gave the family a crooked grin. “It’s always something. We’ll be back for dinner when we’ve finished with the raiders.” Four terrified faces regarded him. “Oh no!!” He waved his arms. “Just dinner, like you would serve your customers.” Finally, in disgust he turned for the door, just as a puffing Kuan entered.
“Did I miss something?” The little man asked, his nose twitching at the scent of recently spilled blood.
Gareth sighed. “Have a cold ale. We have to finish off the last of the raiders before they leave. We’ll meet you here.” Gareth bolted for the door, turning into the form of a sabertooth as he ran.
Fully half the wooden buildings of Dherngrom were engulfed in flames as they loped by, the heavy smoke blotting out the sun. Bodies lay scattered in grotesque positions in the dusty streets, and blood had splashed the ground, and in many cases the walls of the buildings. Circling wide of the group of twenty raiders dragging prisoners and booty, Gareth, Chiu and Lyndra arrived at the ship, a sleek forty five meter topsail schooner, before the rest of the crowd, easily jumping the three meter gap to the waiting deck. The four members of the shore watch took one look at the cats and the wolf, and jumped over the far railing, swimming for all they were worth to reach the distant shore. For the moment Gareth ignored the sobs of the people below decks, knowing that they would soon be released.
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