The Face of Earth

by Kirsty Winkler

  “There now, don’t you feel better?” He put his arm around her waist. “Come, my dear. We don’t want to be late.”

  As they left the room, Karina tried to resist, but it was as if her body wasn’t hers anymore. Inside she was screaming to run, to get away, while outside she docilely did everything Agnar said. She wanted to scream for help at the people they passed, but he told her to keep quiet and walk with him. Helplessly she followed his direction. As they passed through the lobby she saw Tresar talking to the man at the desk, and she willed him to look her way, but he didn’t. Within moments they were out the door and off into the night.

  Agnar took Karina to the docks and sat her down in a dark spot underneath a sleek ship. He grinned at her. “Now, you’ll wait for me here, won’t you, my dear?” Karina glared at him and didn’t answer. He pointed his finger at her and issued a command. “Stay.” Karina stayed.

  Agnar walked away, glancing back to make sure Karina followed his order. She remained beneath the ship. Satisfied, he entered the bar where he knew the princess would be looking for a new pilot. He found her inside talking to some men at a table. They shook their heads at her. Looking disappointed, she moved on to the next table. Agnar approached the men she had just left. Lowering his head and speaking in a quiet voice, he asked one of them what she wanted. They had already had a few drinks, and were happy to engage in some gossip.

  “She says she’s a princess in need of a pilot,” one of them confided. “As if any of us would work for a filthy Bitowan, no matter what her status.”

  Agnar smiled and bought the men a round before going to sit at an unoccupied table in a dark corner. He watched as the princess made her way around the room. Looking defeated, she finally approached his table. Holding her head high and in her most regal tone, she asked if she might join him. He nodded and gestured to a chair, pleased that she didn’t recognize him without his hair. She sat down and came right to the point.

  “I am in need of a pilot. Are you one, or do you know any who would be willing to take on a student?” Agnar grunted noncommittally and nodded, pointing to himself. He didn’t want to speak; he was afraid she would recognize his distinct voice.

  “Would you teach me to pilot?” Agnar grunted again and nodded. The princess looked relieved. “Good. The pay is excellent and we leave now.” She rose, preparing to go. Agnar grunted again and grabbed her wrist, stopping her. He gestured to the wait man to bring two drinks. The princess sat back down, understanding that he wanted to drink on it. When the drinks were set on the table, Agnar reached to take one and deliberately knocked the other over so that it spilled onto the princess’s dress. While she was occupied in brushing off the liquid, he slipped a pill capsule into the remaining drink. It fizzled and quickly disappeared. Agnar made apologetic noises and handed her the drink. The wait man replaced the spilt beverage and Agnar held it up for a moment before draining it. The princess hesitated, disliking the smell of the fermented beverage but bravely taking a sip. Agnar crossed his arms disgustedly at her, waiting. She grimaced and downed the noxious beverage as quickly as she could, pounding the empty glass on the table for emphasis. Agnar smiled and gestured to the door.

  The princess led the way out and to the docks, weaving in and out of the parked ships toward her own. She palmed the plate and the plank slid down. As she was walking into the ship, she lurched against the door frame, feeling dizzy. The man she had hired took her arm to steady her. As she looked up at him, he spoke for the first time since their meeting.

  “Is something wrong, Sharra?” Her heart skipped a beat in fear as she realized who he was. She reached to her belt for her weapon, but realized too late it had already been taken. Her vision swam and she lost consciousness. Agnar caught her as she fell, lifting her up into a cradled position. He peered down the boarding plank into the darkness. “Time to go, Karina. Follow me.”

  Karina came out from under the ship and followed Agnar, glaring balefully at him. He took the unconscious woman’s palm and pressed it to a glowing plate on the wall, closing the door. He then carried her to the bridge and set her down in the chair facing the security console. Karina watched as he took the strange woman’s hand and pressed it against a lit plate, and then tapped something into the console before pressing his own hand against the plate. He turned and grinned at Karina. “Now this ship is mine. It’s time you ladies retired for the evening. Move.” Karina moved, unable to disobey.

  “Walk that way.” Agnar gestured to Karina with his head, his arms full of the princess’s tall frame. Karina walked ahead, following Agnar’s directions to the ship’s living quarters. They entered a room and Agnar set his unconscious burden down on the bed, tying her to its frame with some cloth he ripped from a dress in the wardrobe. He turned to Karina. “Your turn.” He gestured to an elegant chair. “Have a seat.” Karina sat and he tied her to the chair with more strips of the cloth. He grinned at her and left the room, chuckling to himself. Outside the room he palmed the entry plate, locking the door. “A Bitowan princess, her ship, and an Earthling. This must be my lucky day.” Agnar strolled to the bridge, humming to himself.

  Agnar took his time checking the instruments in preparation for takeoff. No one knew what he had done, so no one would be looking for him. He grinned as he imagined the looks on Tresar’s and Flavoi’s faces when they discovered Karina’s disappearance. He wondered how long it would take them to find out that he was responsible. He imagined it wouldn’t be long, considering the hotel’s security net. It had been an hour since he had taken her, so they may have already discovered his involvement. He leisurely continued his checks, secure in the knowledge that even if they were right outside the ship at this very moment, they still wouldn’t be able to enter and apprehend him.

  Once the ship was prepared to leave at a moment’s notice, Agnar spent a little time exploring its recesses. He poked his head into crawl spaces and rummaged through cupboards. He looked in every room and every panel. He felt it was important for a captain to know every inch of his ship.

  In one cupboard, he found a couple of garish black necklaces. He picked them up. They felt warm and hummed with energy. He grinned, realizing that these weren’t ordinary necklaces, but halabands. They were used to control criminals on Bitowa. He ran his fingers over them, feeling the smooth links of the technological wonders. He closed the cupboard and walked down the corridor to the living quarters. These ugly baubles were just the thing to make his guests more cooperative.

  * * *

  Karina’s head cleared as the drug Agnar had fed her wore off. She no longer felt the compulsion to obey, and she began to struggle against her bonds, trying to loosen them enough to slip her hands out. Her wrists were raw where her twisting had caused the fabric to bite into her skin. The woman on the bed was still unconscious. Karina had never seen anything like her before. She was taller than the average human, and her skin was a pale yellow. Her chin and nose were almost pointed, and each strand of her long black hair was as thick as a pencil. Karina kept twisting her wrists, trying to make them as thin as possible. Mid-twist the strained fabric ripped, and Karina’s hands were free. She quickly began untying herself from the chair. She looked up at the sound of a moan from the bed. The strange woman tried to sit up, discovered she was tied down, and said something in a language that Karina didn’t understand.

  “Hello.” Karina’s voice startled the woman and she looked up, her black eyes narrowing at the stranger. Karina continued untying herself as she spoke to the woman. “Do you speak Yalsan?”

  The woman’s accent was strange, but her words were clear. “I am the daughter of the Emperor of Bitowa. I speak every language in this galaxy.”

  Karina smiled at her, trying to make her feel at ease despite their circumstances. “My name is Karina. I’m from Earth.”

  “Earth?” The woman’s accent was thick on the unfamiliar word.

  Karina shrugged. “Different galaxy.” She worked at the last knot and finally freed her foot from its
attachment to the chair leg. She turned to the strange woman and gestured to her bonds. “May I?”

  “Please,” the woman said. Karina went to work on her hands first, so the woman could help free herself.

  As Karina loosened the knots, the woman spoke. “My name is Sharra.” She looked at Karina worriedly. “What of Agnar? He is the last thing I remember seeing.”

  Her hands freed, Sharra helped with her feet while Karina filled her in on all that had happened. When Karina told her about the security console and the palms on the lit plate, Sharra groaned. Free from the bed, she rose and ran to the plate next to the door, laying her hand against it. Nothing happened. She lifted her hand and tried again, pressing her palm flat against the plate. Nothing. She groaned again and sank to the floor.

  Karina went and knelt next to her. “What is it?”

  Sharra sighed. “He has my ship. We are at his mercy. And I am afraid his stay on Bitowa was less than pleasant. He might want revenge.”

  Karina bit her lip. “You’re probably right. He would see me as partly responsible for his unplanned visit to Bitowa in the first place. If his stay on your planet was as awful as you say, he’s well on his way to having his revenge, kidnapping the two of us. We’re the representatives of his recent misery.”

  The door opened, and Sharra, who was leaning against it, fell back onto the floor. She found herself staring up the muzzle of a weapon to Agnar’s face. He looked at Sharra and leered, then looked into the room at Karina kneeling on the floor.

  “Well. I see you ladies have been getting acquainted.” He waved the weapon at them. “I brought this in case you weren’t where I left you. And lucky I did.” He gestured to Sharra to get back in the room, and she quickly complied. Karina had already stood up and backed away from Agnar. Sharra joined her.

  “I found these and thought they would be perfect for keeping you ladies out of trouble.” Agnar held up two thick, black, shiny necklaces. When Sharra saw them she gasped and her hand came up to block her throat. Karina looked at her oddly, seeing no threat in the gaudy baubles. Agnar pointed the weapon at Sharra. “Come here.” Sharra backed up a step. Agnar sighed. “No, I didn’t think you’d make it easy.” He put his weapon down outside the door and shut it, closing the three of them in the room together, with only one of them able to leave. Agnar flexed his arms and grinned. “Actually, this could be fun. It’s been awhile since I was physical with a woman. And here I have two.” He laughed a gravelly laugh and shoved one of the necklaces into his pocket, opening the clasp on the other one.

  As he started toward Sharra, she screamed and ran from him. Karina looked around the room for something to use as a weapon, but since they were on a spaceship, anything of substance was bolted to the floor. By the time she discovered she had nothing to hit him with, he had Sharra cornered. Sharra was crying hysterically and shaking like a leaf in a storm. Karina ran over and leapt onto Agnar’s back, swinging her arms around his neck, trying to choke him. Agnar ignored her, his thick neck impervious to her weak arms. He reached out and closed the necklace around Sharra’s throat. Sharra screamed and fainted, falling to a heap in the corner.

  With Sharra out of the picture, Karina began to feel like she had a tiger by the tail. If she let go, Agnar would get her, but she couldn’t hold on forever. She was already starting to tire. Agnar grabbed her arms and easily pulled them away from his neck. He yanked at one and pulled her around in front of him, pinning her against the wall with his body. Karina struggled ineffectually as he reached into his pocket for the other necklace. He undid the clasp and slipped it around her neck. As he redid the clasp, Karina felt the weight of the necklace settle against her skin. She gasped and tried to reach for the necklace to tear it off, but Agnar grabbed her wrists and stopped her. The necklace bonded to her neck, becoming part of her. She could feel it send tiny tentacles into her neck and attach to her spine. She went limp, unable to bear it. Agnar lifted her and lay her on the bed. He disappeared from her sight as her vision became fuzzy and dark. She could hear him as he moved Sharra to the chair. Then her mind went blank and she remembered no more.

  When Karina came to she found herself lying on the bed. Sharra was passed out on the chair, and Agnar was nowhere to be seen. She could feel the vibration of the ship’s engines and the slight upward tilt of the deck. She surmised that they were in the process of leaving the planet. She sat up and put a hand to her throat, but there was nothing there. She glanced over at Sharra and saw what looked like a tattoo of the necklace encircling her throat. Karina rose and ran to the mirror on the other side of the room. She let out a cry when she saw the same tattoo on her own neck. Sharra sat up at the noise and looked around wildly. Karina ran her fingers over her neck, feeling the slightly raised skin where the tattoo lay. Karina looked over at Sharra, who held her hand to her own throat, covering most of the tattoo. She had a resigned look on her face.

  “It is a halaband,” Sharra said. She absentmindedly ran her fingers over her neck as she explained. “It is a Bitowan device designed to keep prisoners under control without having to imprison them. Wearers can commit no violence while it is on, and they cannot take it off themselves. They also must completely obey the one who put it on them.” Sharra looked directly at Karina and whispered, “We are little more than slaves to Agnar now.”

  * * *

  Tresar leaned against the lobby desk as he waited for the clerk to check Karina’s room. He could see the viewscreen of the hotel layout from where he stood and he watched as the clerk focused in on her room. There were no blips to indicate occupancy, and he sighed as the clerk turned to give him the news. He left the desk and sat down on one of the plush round seats that were interspersed throughout the room. He was twenty minutes late due to the inexplicable disappearance of his and Flavoi’s clothes, and when he finally arrived at the lobby, Karina was nowhere to be seen. He couldn’t imagine where else besides her room she would go. Maybe she was teaching him a lesson for not meeting her on time. He hoped that was all it was. He would hate to think she had given up on their date so quickly. He sighed again and settled in to wait. It was warm in the lobby, and he was relaxed from his hot bath. While he was observing the different species of flowers around the room to pass the time, he inadvertently fell asleep.

  When Flavoi entered the hotel forty minutes later, he found Tresar passed out on a bench. He rudely poked him, startling him awake. “Short date? Did she wear you out already?”

  Tresar stood and stretched, yawning. “I haven’t seen her. I was late and she wasn’t here or in her room. I think she ditched me.” He sighed melodramatically, feeling sorry for himself. “I’m not surprised. I don’t have much luck with women.”

  Flavoi chuckled. “I told you she liked me. I’ll check her room again.” He headed to the hotel desk. Tresar sat back down and glumly reflected on his bad luck. Flavoi returned a minute later, accompanied by the hotel clerk. He looked worried.

  “She’s not in her room. This man says she took a call in booth three. He’s willing to let us review the security file.” They followed the clerk to a small room where he ran the file for them. They watched as Karina went into the communication booth and sat down at the screen. They continued to watch as a large bald man confronted her. He kissed her soundly before leading her out of the hotel.

  Tresar gasped as he recognized the man. “Flavoi! That’s Agnar! He’s clean-shaven, but it’s definitely him!”

  Flavoi looked closely at the man the clerk had stilled on the screen. “You’re right.” He turned to Tresar. “We have to find them. You know Agnar. He’s liable to sell her to the highest bidder.” They thanked the clerk and went back to the lobby, both of them thinking hard. As they exited the hotel, they heard the whine of a ship taking off. They looked at each other and grinned. “Of course!” Flavoi exclaimed. “He’s a pirate! He needs a ship. I’ll bet he’s at the docks!”

  Tresar shook his head. “That’s a bet I won’t take. Let’s go check.”

  Tres
ar and Flavoi headed to the spaceport. Tresar was searching the groups of people standing around when Flavoi, who was walking ahead of him, suddenly stopped. Tresar slammed into him. “Ow! What . . .”

  Flavoi grabbed his arm hard, stopping him before he had a chance to vent his anger. He pointed up at a sleek silver ship that was just taking off. “Look!”

  Tresar looked. “So, it’s a nice ship,” he conceded, irritated. “Flavoi, we don’t have time for sight-seeing.” Tresar had become short-tempered. He blamed himself for Karina’s abduction and it was making him angry. It upset him that he was taking it out on Flavoi, but he couldn’t seem to help it.

  Flavoi started to run toward their ship, dragging Tresar with him. Tresar fought him, managing to wrest his arm from Flavoi’s grip. “Are you insane? Where are you going?”

  Flavoi turned, looking at Tresar in surprise. “Tresar, that’s a Bitowan ship. Do you really think a Bitowan would come to Bellos for vacation? If they even take vacations?” It took a second to sink in, and then Tresar was off and running to the ship.

  Flavoi shook his head and followed. In record time they were aboard and Flavoi was making his final checks. They received permission to take off and were in space in a matter of minutes, but they were too late to see where the Bitowan ship had gone.

  Flavoi turned to Tresar with a questioning look. “Where to now?”

  Tresar pulled on his lip, thinking. “If you were a pirate, where would you go to lick your wounds and resupply if your ship and crew had been destroyed?”

  Flavoi shrugged. “I don’t know what a pirate would do, but I’d go home.”

  Tresar looked at Flavoi, astounded. “Yes! That’s it! He’s going home!” He paused. “But where would that be?”

  Flavoi smiled. “Oh, come on. He’s Yalsan. So he’s going back to Yalsa. As for finding him on the planet, Karina is with him. How hard could it be to scan for the only Earthling on Yalsa?”