by Saxon Andrew
The man stared at him and nodded slowly. After a moment he said, “Thirteen hundred.”
He shook his head, turned to leave and the man said, “That’s the best I can do and it includes a parking place in the back. You’ll have to pay several hundred for a parking pass to park on the street.”
He stared at the owner and then smiled, “May I see?”
The man nodded and took him up to the second floor. He didn’t count on the space having furniture, which was a bonus, although it wasn’t good furniture. He listened to the owner as he talked about how the heater and AC operated and at the end he said, “I will take. I must go to bank to get dollars.”
“I’ll give it to someone else if you don’t come back quickly.”
“I leave car. Me walk to bank. I want the…apartment.”
The Man nodded and he walked off the porch and took a left at the street. The pawnshop was about three miles away and he had to walk down the steep hill to the main street a mile away. He started walking and thought about how to negotiate with the pawnshop owner. He also noticed that the human who he spoke with about the apartment didn’t appear to be in good health. His color didn’t look right.
• • •
Halfway down the hill he saw three humans that were staring at him from the other side of the street. They had dark skin and their expressions didn’t appear friendly. He found it surprising that the dominant species on this planet had many different appearances. It was like there were species within species. Every Welken looked pretty much the same. Black skin, silver hair, four fingers, never smiling. This species was different. He focused his hearing on them and listened to them, he heard one of them say, “This one looks like an easy Pidgeon.”
The other two nodded and they started crossing the street toward him. He analyzed the words and discovered they were going to attack him. He immediately started running and the three would be thieves were shocked at how fast he disappeared down the hill. “That dude is fast as Bolt.”
The leader shook his head and they went back to the other side of the street and leaned against a waist high brick wall. They would find a mark soon enough.
• • •
He arrived at the pawnshop and spent a few minutes looking around. He didn’t see anything of interest and a young, blonde and black-haired female came over, “Is there something I can help you find?”
He smiled at her and sensed her body temperature rise. Ummmm, why did she do that? “I see sign.”
She raised her eyebrows, “What sign?” He turned and walked toward the front door. She followed him as he stepped outside and pointed at the ‘We buy Gold’ sign taped to the window. “Do you want to sell gold?”
He raised his eyebrows and she shook her head. He reached in his pocket and took out the gold bracelet. The girl saw it and her eyes went wide. She didn’t know much but she knew this weirdo had a valuable bracelet. She turned and said, “Come with me.” He raised his eyebrows and she shook her head and waved at him to follow. He fell in behind her and she took him to the owner who was discussing a sale. They waited as the owner argued with the customer and after a moment he said, “Can’t you see I’m busy!”
She turned to him and said, “Show the gold!”
He took the bracelet out of his pocket and the owner’s eyes went wide. He looked at the customer, “Eighty dollars or nothing.”
“But…”
“OK, it’s nothing; now get out of here.” The customer scowled and left the counter. The owner turned to him and said, “What have we here?”
The Girl said, “He doesn’t speak good English.”
The owner smiled at that. He held out his hand and said, “May I see it?”
He stared at the owner just long enough and then took the bracelet out of his pocket and handed it to him. The owner immediately knew that this was pure gold and had to weigh at least thirteen ounces. He walked over to the jewelry counter and placed the bracelet on a black velvet pad. He reached under the counter and took out a scale. He placed the bracelet on the scale and the display showed, 13.1 ounces. Holy Mother of Midas! He kept his expression neutral and said, “I can give you two thousand dollars.”
He stared at the owner and lifted the bracelet out of the scale and turned toward the front door. The owner rushed around the counter said, “Whoa, whoa!” He stopped and his expression showed his disgust. The owner lifted his hands and said, “It appears you know your gold. I’ll give you seven thousand dollars.”
He kept the bracelet in his pocket and said, “Twelve thousand.”
The owner laughed out loud, “That’s almost full price and I can’t survive without making a profit. Where did you get this?”
He looked at the owner and said, “Given from grandfather.”
The owner said, “Let me see it again.” He handed it to him and the owner was amazed at the workmanship in the links. The clasp was missing but the bracelet was flawless. He didn’t need to test it to know that it was pure 24 karat gold. He looked up and said, “Ten thousand.”
He took the bracelet out of the owner’s hand and said, “I’ll take it to another place.”
“Ten thousand five hundred, that’s my final offer.”
He stopped and stared at the owner. His bushy eyebrows were high on his fat forehead. He could tell that he wanted the bracelet a lot, but… “In money.” The owner nodded so hard his cheeks moved up and down. “OK.”
“Let me see your driver’s license.”
He handed the license to the young girl and she began filling out the forms. The owner kept staring at the bracelet in his hand as he moved to the back cabinets and took out a cash box. The girl said, “This is a New York address.”
The owner looked at him and said, “Is this your address?”
“I not understand.”
“Do you live at this address?” He raised his eyebrows and the owner said, “Use that address.”
“But…”
“Look, I know it’s the genuine article. Use that address.” The girl turned around and continued filling out a form. She finally completed it and she put it in front of him on the counter and said, “Sign here, here, and here. Initial in the box.”
He pressed the button on the wrist unit and heard, “Sign your name…oh forget it, give me control.” He relaxed and felt the pod take the instrument the girl had handed him and write something on the form. The owner pushed a stack of currency toward him and held out his hand. He put the bracelet in the owner’s hand and took the currency and stuffed it in his jacket’s pockets. The young girl looked at his driver’s license and said, “Come back and see us, Lucas.”
He looked at her and smiled, “I will.” He walked out of the store and thought his new name sounded good when she said it. “Lucas.”
• • •
He finally made it back to the foot of the hill at Calumet Street and saw a building with a sign on it that read, “Auto Parts.” He stopped and stared at it for a moment and saw a machine pull up in front of it that looked just like the Pod’s new look. A young human got out and entered the store. Lucas followed him inside and heard him say, “I need a good wax that will protect and shine my new baby.”
The young man behind the counter looked out front and said, “WOW, a new Vette!” Can I see it?” The young man nodded and they walked outside. Lucas followed them as the owner showed the interior and responded to questions, “Yep, 454 horsepower. It’s a beast.”
Lucas listened and almost lost interest until he heard the young man that worked in the store say, “Let me tell ya, I believe in using a wax with paraffin.”
Lucas’ mouth fell open and he followed the two back into the store. The two men went to the back of the store to a display that read CAR DETAILING. The worker took a can and handed it to the car owner. They walked to the front of the store and Lucas walked over and lifted one of the cans. He read the ingredients and pressed the button on his wrist unit, “Guess what I’m
holding?”
“What?”
“It’s something called car wax.”
“I know what that is. It’s used to make a car’s surface shiny. You don’t need it; I can make my surface shiny without it.”
“One of its major components is paraffin.”
“Say what?”
“Paraffin.”
“BUY ALL THEY HAVE AND BRING IT HERE NOW!!”
“Don’t get excited. There’s more than sixty cans of this stuff. I’ll buy four or five and bring them to you.”
“HURRY!”
Lucas purchased five cans along with a car cover just like the one the young human purchased in front of him. He exited the store and began running up the hill. He saw the three humans that planned to attack him later and they stood up from the wall as he sprinted by them. They watched him disappear up the hill and shook their head. That dude had run up the hill faster than they could downhill.
Lucas arrived at the parking lot and the rear hatch popped up as he arrived at the rear of the car. He tossed all five cans into the converter and the back hatch closed. He watched the car and after ten minutes the Pod said, “All of my scanners are blocked. I’ve installed a passive antenna in the rear bumper but from this moment on, the Stalkers, even the Sentinel, will not be able to see me.”
“I couldn’t believe they have paraffin.”
“You need to find some for your head.”
“Do you think they have it for humans to put on their bodies?”
“As much as these human males love their machines, I wouldn’t be surprised.”
“I’ll look tomorrow. First I need to finalize the rental and then we’ll discuss our next steps to survive.”
“Call me when you’re done.” Lucas nodded and walked toward the street.
Chapter Three
“You know you can’t hide in there forever?”
“I am going slowly insane watching all of these television broadcasts. These humans really are conflicted.”
“You’ve been watching too much Judge Judy.”
“I suppose.”
“I’ve checked the beauty products you ordered and I’ve managed to create a paraffin powder that you can massage into your scalp and forehead. I really think it will block most of your brain activity. It will also seep into your pores and will remain even if you wash your hair. Just don’t rub your scalp too hard.”
“Block all of my brain activity? That’s just as bad as not enough. If I’m scanned and no electrical activity is detected, the Stalker’s computers will single me out.”
“No, it blocks eighty five percent out. If I used a stronger mixture it would block everything but I think this will do the job.”
“I’ve grown attached to the Paraffin Lavender Cream from Glamor Image.”
“It blocks too much. I would recommend that you wash your hats in the powder as well. You need to get out and find a place to work.”
“I can continue to sell the gold you create.”
“Too much of that will draw attention from the locals.”
Lucas sighed, “I’ll come down and get the powder.”
“Why don’t you do just that?”
Lucas went to the Pod, which was now covered in a paraffin coated car cover and lifted the cover off the rear. The hatch popped open and he took out a can from the converter’s side door. The hatch closed and he pulled the cover back over it. He went back to his apartment and took a bath. He kept a hat washed in paraffin cleaner on until he washed his hair quickly at the end. He toweled it dry and sprinkled the powder on his scalp and massaged the paraffin Aloe Vera into his forehead.
He dressed and walked down stairs. He walked down the hill and just nodded to the three men who didn’t even stand up. They knew they wouldn’t catch hm. He walked to the public transportation center and boarded a train. It was late fall and the temperatures were starting to drop. The wind was blowing and he pulled his jacket’s hood over his head as he exited the train and walked up to street level. This new body didn’t tolerate temperature extremes like his old one did. He looked around at the hundreds of students moving around the square and knew that classes were ending for the day.
He sat down on a bench and stared at the storefronts along the street next to the small park as he pushed his hands into his jacket’s pockets. He took a deep breath and blew it out slowly; it was good to be outside. He never spent much time indoors on his home planet; the weather was good all year round. Even the cold didn’t take away from his pleasure of being out of the apartment. Of course serving on a Welken Battleship kept him confined inside for months at a time. He had to admit this was better.
He had only met one human, other than the building owner and pawnshop employees. A young woman lived next door to him and she took the trash out the same time each Wednesday. Her name was Kathy and she was a student at Harvard. He always said hello and she responded but that was all they ever said.
His English had improved tremendously. Watching TV familiarized him with most of the language idioms and he talked to the screen to improve his pronunciation. The golf channel announcers taught him how to speak in a British Accent and he liked the way it sounded. He used it most of the time now. The Comcast cable he purchased allowed him to rewind the shows and repeat the phrases over and over until he had them right. He looked across the street and saw a man step outside of a restaurant and put a sign on the glass. Bus Boy Needed. What is a bus boy? He focused and saw it was a person who cleaned off tables in restaurants or other food establishments. He stood up and walked over to the man who had finished taping the sign, “I’m interested in the job.”
The man looked at him, “Are you a student?”
“Not at the moment.”
“Can you work flexible hours?”
“If you’re asking if I can work anytime, yes.”
“How old are you?”
“Twenty one.”
“When can you start?”
“How about right now?”
The man smiled and put out his hand, “My name is Jack.”
Lukas thought for a moment and then took his hand and shook it, “My name is Lukas.”
“Come inside and I’ll have Tony teach you what you have to do. He’s picking up some night classes and won’t be able to work four nights a week. If you demonstrate you can keep up with the work load, I’ll give you the job.”
Lukas went inside and started working with Tony. In less than three hours, Lukas was doing the work without being supervised by Tony. Tony told Jack he could take down the sign as Lukas was his man.
Jack took Lukas in the back office and had him fill out his employment papers. The Social Security Number was an issue but the Pod assured him the account was good and would not be noticed. He listed his home address on Calumet Street and his education level as high school, whatever that was. He saw Jack was satisfied with the information and gave him a schedule to start working the next day.
“Do you mind if I help Tony until closing? There’s a big crowd and I think he can use the help.”
“I won’t be able to pay you for today.”
“That’s ok. I need the time to learn everything.” Jack nodded and knew he had found a good worker. Lukas went out and began bussing tables. At the end of the night, Tony offered to share his tips from the waitresses. Lukas shook his head, “No, keep it. I needed your help to learn everything. It is I that should be paying you.”
Tony laughed, “We’re a good team, Luke. Welcome to our staff.” Lukas nodded and went back to work.
• • •
Lukas left the restaurant and rode the train to his stop. He pulled the hood over his head and started walking up the hill. The wind was blowing twenty miles an hour and it made the air feel like twenty-five degrees. He decided to go out and buy a heavier jacket the next day. He was halfway up the hill when he heard someone crying. He looked to the right and saw the three aggressive men had someone pinn
ed to the ground. The largest of the three was on top of a female and the other two were cheering him on, “Do it, Moe. Teach her what she needs to know!” Lukas focused on the three and saw that it was his neighbor Kathy that was crying.
“You should stay out of this.”
Lukas shook his head, “I can’t just ignore this.” The Pod remained silent and Lukas walked over to the three attackers, “Why don’t you leave her alone?”
The three all jumped at his voice; they didn’t see him walk up on them in the dark. The big man looked at the other two, “Well look who’s here, Likidy Split. Teach him to not bother us when we’re busy.”
The two men walked away from Moe and separated as they approached Lukas from two sides. Both of them pulled long bladed knives out of their pockets. Lukas felt his metabolism speed up and he focused intently on their movements, “I really don’t want any trouble; why don’t you just let her go and walk away.”
The tallest of the three sneered, “You should have run!” as he rushed in and pushed his knife at Lukas’ stomach. The other attacker rushed in from behind Lukas as Lukas stepped inside the front attacker’s lunge, grabbed his arm, and swung him into the shorter attacker coming from behind. The shorter attacker had extended his knife as he rushed in and it entered the tall attacker’s chest and penetrated his heart. Lukas released the tall attacker and hit the other with a palm under his chin hard enough to lift him off the ground. There was a loud crack as the short attacker flew backward and stayed on the ground. Lukas turned toward the large man on top of Kathy and walked quickly toward him. Moe watched as his two associates were easily handled and he saw Lukas’ expression. He jumped up and ran away. Lukas reached down and helped Kathy to stand up and she collapsed into his arms. He picked her up and carried her up the hill.
She wailed, “They’re going to come back and kill us! “They’re going to kill us both!”
“Why would they do that? They’re the ones that attacked us.”
“They’re members of a gang. They’re going to come back and kill us. The one that escaped will go and bring the others! They will punish me and you.”