“Hold!” Braden called in his best Free Trader voice, raising his empty hand, palm outward.
“It talk like the Professor, it do. Should we eat it?” one creature, as big as a horse, but with swollen hands for feet and a human face atop the long and thick neck, asked while twisting its head back and forth.
“We don’t eat the Professor, but we eat the beasties!” another creature said, looking like a man, but with arms like octopus tentacles. It thrashed its arms, hitting another one of its group with the club it clutched.
“Watch, Bongo, knucklehead!” the other wailed, dropping his spear. He sat on the ground and started to cry. Bronwyn tried to run to him, but Micah held her back.
The man with the octopus arms started stroking the other’s head.
“Take us to the Professor, please. We wish to speak with him. And put those ridiculous weapons down before somebody else gets hurt,” Braden told them.
“No, you!” another said angrily, thrusting his spear awkwardly. “NO!”
The creature next to the spear wielding man looked like a boar with a man’s head, tusks making his spoken words unintelligible, but he made his point by taking the spear away from the other and throwing it on the ground. He nodded to Braden emphatically.
Braden looked at Micah and slowly shook his head, rolling his eyes. Micah shrugged. She walked toward the group, holding Bronwyn’s hand. Her other held her blaster. Braden raised his weapon casually, not wanting to alarm the misfit band.
Bronwyn walked first to those crying and touched them on the head. “There’s no need to be sad. We’re your friends,” she said, gently and warmly. The Rabbits stood close by and seemed to be readily accepted by the other creatures, not even earning a second look. The humans took all their attention.
“You hold!” the man-horse creature said. “We hurt it, eat it,” he threatened. Brandt snorted and pawed the sand. They ignored him, too, even though he towered over them.
The girl looked at the man-horse with raised eyebrows. Micah followed closely as Bronwyn approached the creature. He raised his head and loudly snapped his jaws shut.
“Now, now,” Bronwyn started, “those look like they hurt you a great deal. Let me help.” She pointed to his feet. He let her touch his shoulder, then sighed as the pain seemed to fade from his body. He sat, looking like a great dog, and then he rolled to his side. Bronwyn took a knee and scratched his belly. Micah gave her a handful of numbweed for his feet. She applied it and wished him well, then she walked from one to the next of the misshapen creatures.
“How have you come to be here?” Braden asked. They didn’t know–they shrugged or shook their heads, each looking adoringly at the girl.
Micah kneeled next to the man-horse creature. “Can you take us to the Professor? We’d like to meet her or him,” she said in a low voice, calmly, while stroking his neck.
He looked to Bronwyn for guidance. “Yes, please. Take us to the Professor,” the girl said, nodding to Micah. The man-horse stood, testing his pain-free feet, and waved to the others.
The creatures gathered into a group surrounding Micah and Bronwyn, their weapons forgotten on the ground as they pointed the way into the woods and started limping, stumbling, and shuffling away. Braden and the others followed, still spread out, suspecting a trap, but certain that if there was one, it would not have been set by the group they followed.
The Wolfoids stayed to the sides, while the Hawkoids took turns flying ahead, then finding places in the branches where they could watch the odd procession.
Braden, G-War, Aadi, and Pik stayed close to the group, confused. Braden opened his neural implant. ‘Any ideas, Holly?’ he asked after explaining what the greeting party looked and acted like.
‘I don’t know, but suspect human interference. Natural evolution does not make such changes to a body. I think you’ll find the Professor is a scientist, and not a very good one, judging by what I’m seeing,’ Holly replied.
Braden didn’t have a follow-up question, so he closed the link with the AI. ‘Anything, G?’ he asked the ‘cat.
‘This bunch is more dangerous to themselves than us. I sense some tasty creatures not far,’ the ‘cat suggested hopefully.
‘Not yet, my friend, but soon. We’ll make a quick stop to see this Professor, then we’ll return to the ship, come back in the morning and talk more after we’ve had time to think about it all.’
‘I’m not sure what there is to think about. We’re stuck on an island with a pack of idiots.’ G-War closed their mindlink emphatically as he looked forlornly into the brush, hoping for a chance to hunt fresh game.
The Professor
‘I see a compound up ahead. It looks similar to that of the Overlords,’ Skirill told them. He shared what he saw with the others. Braden was instantly alert.
‘Not idiots, G, failed experiments,’ Braden said. Bronwyn started to slow down, grabbing Micah’s hand. The creatures seemed to grow more excited as they approached the compound nestled beneath the branches of great trees, concealing it from the overhead sensors that Holly counted on to see the world.
Bronwyn stopped completely. ‘I don’t want to go any further,’ she said over the mindlink. Micah pulled her blaster and kneeled. The creatures left them behind and entered the area near the buildings, cheering, grunting, and chanting Bronwyn’s name. Braden positioned himself behind a tree, bracing his blaster against the trunk as he aimed toward the buildings.
G-War was alert. ‘I don’t sense anything, but I know someone is there,’ the ‘cat offered. Treetis stood atop Brandt’s head, hackles up and back arched. Fea leaned against Bronwyn’s leg, keeping herself between the unknowns of the compound and the girl. The Wolfoids watched for an ambush, but they expected the real danger would come from one of the buildings.
Pik remembered the Overlords. His thoughts centered on that day, seemingly so long ago and that battle, how he’d killed them, mercilessly. He saw it all happening again, right before his very eyes. He turned away as vertigo seized him, putting his hand on a tree to keep from falling. Aadi came close, nudging him and talking to him in the unique Lizard Man language that the others couldn’t hear.
While Braden was distracted by Pik’s discord, an elderly man walked from behind one of the buildings, using a cane to help him as he went from one of the misshapen creatures to the next, greeting them kindly and touching each on the head. Micah crouched as the man looked into the trees, squinting to make out the newcomers in the shadows.
The man-horse creature tried to speak louder than the others, but the cacophony was unintelligible as each vied for the attention of the old man. He nodded knowingly as he slowly made his way toward Braden, Micah, and the companions.
Bronwyn tried to inch away. The Rabbits stood shoulder to shoulder in front of her, protecting her with their bodies as they held their laser pistols in their small hands.
‘What do you see, Bronwyn?’ Micah asked.
‘Darkness,’ she answered, not elaborating. She ducked behind the Rabbits, peering out from behind their big ears. She shivered, clutching their harnesses as she pulled herself closer to her guardians.
Fea had had enough. She raced forward, sliding to a stop before the man, arching and hissing with one paw raised and claws fully extended, threatening to rake the man’s flesh.
Braden was shocked from his reverie by the sound of a ‘cat ready to fight. He jumped from behind the tree, making plenty of noise to distract the old man.
“I’m Free Trader Braden, and we’re here on a mission of peace.” Braden spread his arms as he talked, forcing a smile against the hostile emotions that raged all around him.
“Peace, you say?” the man responded in a rich baritone. “With blasters and laser pistols? Lightning spears and engineered creatures with claws bared? I am but an old man and can’t understand why I would warrant such aggression on your part.”
‘He knows things he shouldn’t. Why is his mind closed to us?’ Micah asked Braden in her thought voice
. The old man waved as if he heard her and discounted what she was saying.
‘He’s one of the ancients,’ Braden replied, holstering his blaster. Micah kept hers trained on the old man. Braden walked at an angle, putting himself between the Professor and Micah.
“I am descended from the ancients, yes, just like you,” the old man said, confirming that he could hear the other humans’ thought voices.
“We’re looking for the people who were taken from White Beach, across the ocean, east of here. They were taken by an ancients’ vehicle and ancients’ Bots operating from the undersea research facility. We’d like our people back,” Braden said icily, dropping all pretense at civility. One of the creatures came at him, but Braden easily parried the punch, sending the attacker over his hip and face-first into the ground.
“That’s enough of that,” the old man said, holding his hand up to prevent any more actions by members of the misfit band. “They call me the Professor. A small group lived here as part of the undersea research facility, as you’ve already surmised, when the war came. But the fighting never came here. The people on the island were no threat to anyone. When they were cut off from the rest of the world, I’m afraid my ancestors had to make the best of a bad situation.”
As the Professor talked, he wandered closer to the companions. He looked at Strider as if examining her. She didn’t let him get closer than the end of her spear as she kept it leveled at his chest. The Hillcat received the same treatment, then the Rabbits, who kept their laser pistols trained on the man. He looked at Pik and nodded.
“A Lizard Man, but one of the originals, not the later evolved versions.” He leaned close to Pik Ha’ar, who also used his trident spear to hold the man at bay. “And what do we have back here? Are you one of the Aurochs? My, they never used to be that big. And could this be a Tortoid? I am happy to meet you.”
“How do you know these things?” Braden asked.
“I’ve studied the records, the knowledge that we used to have. I’m glad it’s not lost on you. Are you connected with your AI?” the Professor asked suddenly.
“I think we’ll return to our ship now,” Braden parried, unwilling to engage an ancient without talking to Holly. “We have much to think about. If you would be so kind, meet us on the beach tomorrow morning. We’ll return then and have a nice sit-down conversation. Is there anything you miss, from the continent you called it? We could bring it ashore. We have a most excellent coffee,” Braden offered, resuming his Free Trader persona in order to disengage from the Professor. The old man gave Braden the creeps.
“I’m afraid not, but the company of new people is most welcome. I look forward to resuming our conversation. Until tomorrow,” the Professor said dismissively.
“If you’ll be so kind, Brandt, to lead the way back to the beach.” Braden pointed at Micah and Bronwyn to follow with the Rabbits and ‘cats joining them. Braden, the Wolfoids, Pik, and Aadi backed away from the old man.
“Which beach are you talking about?” the Professor inquired pleasantly.
“I would be surprised if you didn’t know the answer to that question.” Braden had no intention of playing the old man’s game of innocent ignorance. The misfit mob’s actions suggested that being armed was a completely new experience for them. They’d dropped their weapons, leaving them behind without concern. “Until tomorrow.”
The Professor held the creatures back while he intently watched the companions as they cautiously withdrew. The Hawkoids flew the path ahead, while Skirill stayed behind, watching for anyone following. Braden didn’t think they would, knowing that they didn’t have to. He suspected the old man had all the information about Braden and his companions that he wanted.
When they arrived on the beach, the ship was already there. Holly had driven the ship even closer, wedging the deck against the sand of the shallow water, before it dropped over the edge of a cliff. Brandt waded out and with a mighty leap, was able to get his front legs and chest onto the deck. He twisted back and forth until he managed to get a back hoof up, then he pulled himself upright and stood on the deck, majestically outlined by the setting sun.
Bronwyn waded through the gentle surf and with a helping horn from Brandt, she was pulled onto the deck. Aadi swam through the air near her, in case she needed a friendly shell to grab onto. The Wolfoids and Lizard Man were also there to help, then climbed on board after Bronwyn.
The Rabbits waited on the beach until Braden and Micah could carry them the few steps to the deck and wrestle them on board. Then the humans returned for the ‘cats. Treetis hadn’t tried to ride the Aurochs as the King clambered aboard. The young ‘cat still looked rough from his earlier dunking. The Hawkoids stood on the second deck’s railing, watching the woods for any sign of duplicity.
There was none.
Braden helped Micah aboard, and she pulled him up after her. They stood together on the deck as the ship slowly pulled away and backed out of the small cove.
“What the hell is he all about?” Braden asked, screwing up his face as if he’d just eaten something unpleasant.
“He’s almost as spooky as the Androids,” she replied.
That made Braden’s ears perk up. “Did you get a close look at him?”
“Yes, and he looked plenty human to me. Bronwyn, is he a clone?” Micah asked. The girl shivered as she recalled her mind seeing his.
“Yes and no. I can’t explain it, but he’s not right. We should leave this place.” Bronwyn sat on a deck chair, hugging her knees to her chest and rocking. Fea climbed into the chair next to her, rubbing against her and purring. The deck chairs magically appeared and disappeared as the Bots managed the ship as if humans had never abandoned it.
“Did you see anything in his mind about my father, about Caleb?” Micah asked.
Bronwyn shook her head, then wiped her nose on her shirt.
“Impressions?” Braden said, waving all the companions into a circle around them. Perched on chairs, sitting on the deck, standing, or laying, everyone was focused on the matter at hand. “He knew things like Holly would know them. He asked if we had neural implants, although I think he already knew that we did. I wonder if he has one, and then who is he connected to?”
‘I sensed evil, but he has patience. He wasn’t ready for whatever he wanted to do. Once he felt my presence, he closed his mind to me as easily as you close a door,’ G-War added.
“Did he get into your mind, G?” Braden asked, unsure what else the old man learned from their minds as they tried to probe his.
‘Please,’ the ‘cat scoffed, closing his eyes and feigning sleep.
“Aadi, I think he knows something about those taken from White Beach. I’ll keep working on him, but it’ll be best if there are fewer of us out there to distract him. I think just G-War and I should go.
Micah pursed her lips, waiting for Aadi to talk Braden out of his ill-conceived plan.
‘I think you may be right, Master Braden. He looked at us as if we were science experiments. The creatures that he surrounded himself with? Those were his attempts to create different species. His efforts didn’t work. I think the less he interacts with us, the better off we’ll be.’ Aadi floated serenely in the middle of the group, turning slowly so he could look at each one’s face. ‘It will be best if we stay on the ship, away from the island. Maybe you can use the small boat that our scientists brought to take you ashore?’
Braden looked at his partner, but she didn’t want to argue with Aadi, that she should be the one to go and not Braden.
“Brandt?”
‘I have nothing, my friend. This task requires a delicate touch. If you need someone run over, I’m your Aurochs. Or if we were going to sit down and have a nice chat, I can do that, too. But this? No. I will stay here and keep watch over Bronwyn,’ the King of the Aurochs replied.
“Pik?” Braden asked, going through the companions one by one.
‘He is an Overlord and should be killed as soon as possible. Then we will search the is
land, find what we came for,’ Pik suggested.
“It may come to that, Pik, but let’s see if we can learn something first. Ess, Zee, Zeeka?”
Skirill looked at his mate and their daughter. They all shook their heads. ‘We saw no other creatures, nothing special,’ Zyena stated.
“Were you able to see the whole compound?” Braden asked her.
‘Yes and it reminded me of the Overlords’ compound in the Amazon. There’s a well-worn path heading away, opposite the way we came from. I recommend we explore that more. Skirill can do that tomorrow when you are meeting with the Professor. Zeeka and I will stay here and watch,’ Zyena said.
“I don’t think he noticed you Hawkoids, so let’s keep you out of sight as much as possible. Skirill, are you up to explore the rest of the island, well, at least where that path goes?”
‘Of course.’ Skirill bowed.
“Ferrer, Brigitte?”
Both Rabbits shook their heads, ears flapping in the gentle breeze as the ship moved away from the island and into the open ocean.
‘Last, but not least, are you there, Holly?’ Braden asked over the neural implant.
‘Yes, Master Braden. I am not at all comfortable with anyone meeting this ‘Professor.’ I think he is a holdover from the ancients, no better than those who started the civil war that nearly destroyed our world. We cannot trust him.’
‘Pretty strong words, Holly,’ Braden replied. ‘I already knew not to trust him, but what else? My plan is to not leave the beach with the Professor. I don’t want to be anywhere we can’t overwhelm him with force. He’s an old man. What could he do to us if we take him? That band of misfits is no match.’
‘Just be careful, Master Braden. If he’s an ancient, he may have tricks that you don’t suspect,’ Holly offered. Braden closed his neural implant.
Free Trader Box Set - Books 4-6: Battle for the Amazon, Free the North!, Free Trader on the High Seas Page 53