The Face of Earth

by Kirsty Winkler

  Karina grunted. “I’m okay. Completely bruised, but okay.”

  Sharra’s voice came out of the darkness to Tresar’s right. “I am alive as well.”

  “And me,” Flavoi said quietly.

  “Good landing, Flavoi,” Tresar said. Flavoi grunted. “Any landing you can walk away from, eh, Flavoi?”

  Flavoi laughed bitterly. “Yeah, but this planet isn’t inhabited. So where do you suggest we walk?”

  Tresar blindly felt his way toward the exit. “How do you know it’s not inhabited?”

  “Because it’s Druzyx.”

  Tresar paused. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. I recognized the system as we were going down, and it’s the only planet in this system. So get the space suits, it’s going to be a hot day.” Flavoi followed action to word and felt his way to the air lock. The others followed.

  Once they suited up, Tresar opened the door. The blue sun glared in blindingly, and they adjusted their visors to compensate. Tresar helped them regulate the inner temperature of their suits to keep them cool. The dark ground absorbed and radiated the heat of the sun tenfold.

  Flavoi walked around the ship to assess the damage. The engines had been ripped from their pylons and were nowhere to be seen. The path of destruction made by the ship stretched to the horizon.

  Karina looked around the desolate landscape. “How the hell do we get off this rock?”

  Sharra was watching the sky. “I do not think that will be a problem. Agnar will be here to pick us up any minute now.”

  Tresar looked at Sharra suspiciously. “How is it you’re so sure he’s coming to our rescue? After what we did to him, I wouldn’t be surprised if he left us here to rot.”

  “Rescue? Did I say rescue?” Sharra said sarcastically. “No, he is not coming to rescue us. He is coming for her.” She pointed to Karina.

  They all turned and looked at Karina. Tresar crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at her, feeling suddenly and inexplicably jealous. “Why would he come here for you?”

  “Ah . . . well . . . I kind of put a couple of halabands on him,” Karina started. “But he put them on me and Sharra first!” she added defensively.

  From above them came the whine of engines. They looked up and saw the Bitowan ship slowly descending, coming to rest forty meters away. Tresar looked around wildly for an escape and found none. Flavoi casually leaned up against the side of their downed ship and struck a nonchalant pose. Karina and Sharra looked at each other and shrugged. They sat down on a piece of debris and waited.

  They all watched as Agnar and an unusual group of humanoids emerged from the Bitowan ship. Within minutes they were herded into the ship, and as soon as the air lock closed, their helmets were removed, effectively preventing their escape.

  Agnar removed his own helmet and glared at Tresar. “A ship for a ship, eh, Tresar?”

  Tresar eyed him. “What do you want, Agnar?”

  “I want those women to remove these halabands.” He pointed at Karina and Sharra, and then to his neck.

  Sharra shook her head. “It is not me you want, Agnar. The halabands were the work of Karina.”

  Agnar’s attention shifted to Karina. He almost smiled, impressed by her initiative. Most freed captives would bolt, not imprison their captor. He stifled a grin and looked stern. “You will take these off or my crew will kill you,” he bluffed.

  Karina looked unimpressed. She had learned a lot about halabands from Sharra over the past few days. She knew as long as he had them on, she was safe. “Go ahead, kill me,” she mocked, knowing that if he had her killed, he would never get them off.

  Agnar ground his teeth, feigning anger. “No, I won’t have you killed. But how safe do you think your friends are?” He motioned to his crew and they quickly converged on the others, two of them holding each of Karina’s friends. Equaria grabbed Karina by the arm and dragged her over to Agnar. He grinned maliciously down at her. “Who shall I have killed first?”

  Karina tore away from Equaria’s grasp and adopted an authoritative pose. “You will tell your crew to release me and my friends now.”

  Agnar grimaced. “Release them,” he ordered, unable to disobey.

  No one moved. Equaria grinned. “We know how the halabands work and we know what’s best for our captain. We won’t take the orders he gives that come from you. We will kill your friends if you don’t take the halabands off him.”

  Karina knew she had been beaten, but she couldn’t give up so easily. She addressed Agnar, ignoring Equaria. “Yes, you could have my friends killed. But how motivated do you think I’d be to free you after that? If you spent any time at all on Earth, you know that female Earthlings tend to fight like cats when cornered, and they don’t forgive easily. Touch even a hair on their heads and you’ll wear those halabands until the end of time.” She paused to take a breath before continuing. “I’ll make a deal with you. If you take us off this planet and deliver us safely to the planet of our choice, I’ll remove the halabands.” She waited nervously for his answer, despite her brave front.

  Agnar didn’t mull over her proposition at all. “Done.” He turned to Equaria. “Strip their ship of anything salvageable. And throw them in the brig.” He turned and walked to the bridge, hiding a smile. He would have come for Karina even if she hadn’t put the halabands on him.

  His crew escorted the prisoners into the lower level of the ship. Equaria took Karina’s arm again and led her along behind the others. She and her friends were deposited in the brig and left alone. Tresar looked sick. Karina put her arm around his shoulders, trying to comfort him.“It’ll be all right, Tresar. Don’t worry.”

  “It’s not that,” he replied glumly. “Agnar will have all the inventions I brought with me. And he’ll have the technology from the upgrades I made to the ship. It’s like he’ll have a piece of my soul.” He pulled away from Karina resentfully. “And it’s your fault. He wouldn’t have come after us if you hadn’t put the halabands on him.”

  Tresar went to the farthest corner of the cell and sat on the floor with his back to the others. Karina watched him for a moment, sighed, and leaned back against the wall. Flavoi was looking everywhere but at Tresar and Karina, pretending he hadn’t heard a thing. Sharra watched avidly, finding this interaction between the sexes fascinating.

  Half the day passed before they heard the engines rumble and felt the deck vibrate beneath their feet, indicating that the ship was about to take off. Tresar was still huddled in his corner sulking when Rathor walked into the room.

  “Hello, Sharra.” Sharra ignored him. “Do you know who I am?” Silence. “I am your uncle. The half brother of your father.” Sharra looked up at this and searched his face. She was uncomfortably aware of his marked resemblance to her father. She let curiosity get the better of her, and moved to the confinement shield separating them.

  “I have heard stories about you.” Sharra’s look was piercing. “None of them good.”

  Rathor threw back his head and laughed, shocking Sharra. Bitowans rarely smiled, let alone laughed. “I am sure I have done every sordid thing from here to the Fourth Quadrant.” He cocked his head at her. “But at least I have not helped the most notorious enemy of the Bitowan Empire escape with my ship and abandoned my father on the eve of my marriage to his most celebrated general.”

  Sharra flushed at his words and glared angrily. “At least I do not call the most notorious enemy of the Bitowan Empire captain.”

  Rathor grinned. “At least I am not his prisoner.”

  Sharra pursed up her lips and turned away. Rathor chuckled. “You do not have to be his prisoner,” he said cajolingly. Sharra turned back slightly. Rathor continued. “His quarrel is not with you. It is with them.” Rathor gestured at the others in the cell. “He is in your debt for freeing him from your father. And for giving him a powerful new ship.” He paused, waiting for Sharra’s reaction. She turned to face him once again, openly interested now.

  “Go on.” She moved as close a
s the confinement shield would allow.

  Rathor reeled her in like a fish. “He is willing to let you go whenever and wherever you like. However, he is very impressed with you, and would like you to consider joining his crew.”

  There was an audible intake of breath from behind Sharra, and she turned to find Karina white-faced. “Don’t trust Agnar, Sharra. He’s a pirate! And he’s already taken you prisoner twice.”

  Rathor jumped in at this point. “That is true, Sharra, but look at the reasons why he took you prisoner. The first time he wanted your ship. He needed your hand code to get it. This time you were with the people who sent him to Bitowa and the person who put halabands on him. He has no personal grudge against you.” Sharra appeared to be considering his words. Rathor left it at that. “Think it over.” He turned and left the prisoners to themselves.

  Karina took Sharra by the arm. “You can’t seriously consider his offer! After all Agnar has done to you!”

  Sharra looked at Karina coolly. “He does have a point. And now that I am no longer princess and heir to the Bitowan throne, I have to find some sort of life. System bound as I was, traveling the universe has always been of interest to me.”

  “But Sharra . . .” Karina trailed off, not knowing how to convince this strange Bitowan woman that a pirate’s way of life was a bad choice. She wasn’t sure she wouldn’t choose it herself if offered. It certainly sounded appealing. She let go of Sharra’s arm and looked around their small cell. Tresar was curled up in the corner and Flavoi was studiously cleaning his nails. They wouldn’t be any help. Karina turned back to Sharra, but Sharra had a faraway look in her eyes that told Karina she was thinking. Karina flopped down on one of the cots, deciding now was as good a time for a nap as any. Silence descended on the cell and Karina soon fell asleep.

  Karina woke with a start when a loud voice boomed, “Well, getting our beauty sleep, are we?” She rolled over to see Agnar grinning down at them. The others had been asleep as well; Sharra was blinking her eyes and yawning from the cot next to Karina, and Tresar was sitting on the floor looking bleary-eyed. Flavoi lay on the floor next to the cot he had been sleeping on, rubbing at a sore hip sustained in the fall caused by Agnar’s noisy greeting. Agnar laughed and leaned casually against a bulkhead. He addressed Karina. “So, have you and your friends decided where you would like to be dropped off?”

  Sharra cleared her throat. “I have decided to take you up on the offer to join your crew, Captain, if you will have me.”

  “Sharra, no!” Karina looked pleadingly at the Bitowan woman who had become her friend over the past week.

  Sharra took Karina’s hand and squeezed it gently. “You would have me do what is best for me, would you not?”

  Karina sighed and released Sharra’s hand. “Yes. Good luck to you.”

  Sharra moved to the confinement shield and looked Agnar straight in the eye. “Captain.”

  Agnar smiled genuinely and dropped the shield for the moment it took Sharra to cross it. “Welcome aboard, Sharra. Report to Equaria. She’ll see you settled.” Sharra nodded and left the room.

  Agnar turned back to Karina. “Well?”

  Tresar stood up and approached Agnar. “Take us to Yalsa, to specific coordinates that I’ll supply when we reach the planet.”

  Agnar was confused. “Aren’t you wanted on Yalsa?”

  Tresar glared at him. “Since you have destroyed my ship and taken my inventions, I need my other ship and what’s left of my inventions.” He paused and glowered at Agnar. “Unless you are willing to return what you have stolen.”

  Agnar laughed hysterically. Tresar, Flavoi, and Karina watched mutely, finding nothing funny about Tresar’s request. Agnar finally stopped laughing and wiped his eyes. “Yes, well, that would make me a good citizen, and the last time I checked, I was a notorious pirate.” His face became grim as he continued. “Besides, I consider it due payment for the suffering and loss I experienced on Bitowa. It was you who sent me there, was it not?” Tresar’s only answer was silence. “Be thankful I let you keep those little baubles that hide you from detection.” Agnar looked pointedly at the necklaces they all still wore. “I’ll inform you when we reach Yalsa,” he added, as he turned on his heel and walked out.

  CHAPTER 15

  The next morning Karina was jolted awake by the bump of a poor landing. Tresar wasn’t in the cell with them, and she and Flavoi looked at each other worriedly. Several minutes later Sharra and Equaria came in to escort them off the ship. Karina grimaced at Sharra, but Sharra just shrugged and dropped the confinement shield.

  Equaria gestured with her weapon for them to move. She escorted them through the ship and out into a clearing surrounded by tall trees. Agnar was standing in the center of it with his hands clasped behind his back. Tresar stood next to him, looking around at the familiar landscape that hid his cave.

  “We’re at the coordinates you specified. Are you satisfied?” Agnar asked. Tresar grudgingly agreed. Agnar gestured Karina over, pointing to his neck. “If you please?” Karina looked at Tresar. He gave her a slight nod. She sighed and went to Agnar. The instant she touched the tattoos, they changed back to necklaces, hanging around Agnar’s throat.

  “Unclasp them as well,” Agnar ordered. Karina undid the clasps and the weight of the halabands caused them to fall to the ground, where Agnar instantly put his foot on them. He rubbed his neck with a smile on his face. Karina began to move away, but Agnar grabbed her by the wrist and leered at her. “Never trust a pirate, my dear.” He looked around at the surrounding trees. “Now!” he yelled. Camouflaged Yalsan men emerged from the woods and surrounded Tresar and Flavoi, weapons aimed at the two men. An officer approached Agnar while a group of soldiers began unloading Tresar’s inventions off Agnar’s ship.

  “Our exchange is complete. We found the cave and its contents. We’ve sent the agreed amount to your account for the inventions, as well as the additional amount for the capture of the fugitives. You can keep the girl as you requested, but you promised to leave Yalsan territory, and we hold you to that, or you will be arrested as well.”

  Agnar grinned at the man, baring his teeth. “And so I go.” He turned to Tresar, scowling. “My betrayal of you and your remaining inventions to the Yalsan military doesn’t make up for the lives of my men at Bitowa, but it’s a start.”

  Flavoi was speechless, but Tresar was livid as he watched his life’s work disappear into the military vehicles. He was breathing heavily and almost snarling at Agnar. “Don’t be surprised to see me again, Agnar,” he spat. “Karina won’t be the only reason I hunt you down. And this time you won’t survive what I do to you.”

  Agnar nonchalantly turned his back on Tresar, throwing one last barb over his shoulder. “If the military lets you see light of day ever again, I will be surprised.” He gave a mock salute to the commander and motioned his crew to board the ship. Still grasping Karina’s wrist, he reached down and retrieved the halabands, pocketing them.

  He marched a resisting Karina up the boarding plank and into the ship, turning in time to see the soldiers lead the bothersome scientist and his friend away. Karina kicked him and struggled to get away before the door closed. Agnar growled in pain and threw her over his shoulder, heading for the brig. She squirmed and fought him, biting, kicking, and punching.

  In the corridor outside the living quarters she managed to swing down and twist her way free. She was running back toward the air lock when the ship lurched in its takeoff from the clearing. Karina fell against the wall and Agnar managed to get a grip on her. He wrestled her to the floor, pinning her with his body so she couldn’t move. She was yelling Earthling obscenities at him, struggling to free herself from his greater weight.

  “Bastard! Fucking son of a bitch! You have no right to hold me! Get off me, you big oaf!” Karina yelled, sprinkling her Yalsan speech with English.

  “My goodness. You do have quite a mouth on you,” Agnar replied, grinning.

  Karina’s struggles were gettin
g weaker and she was losing her breath. Agnar calmly waited for her to tire, holding her wrists firmly on the floor over her head. Her movement was causing a reaction in him that any decent man would find embarrassing. However, he was a pirate, and a notorious one at that, so he just grinned down at her, their faces so close that he could feel her breath on his lips.

  Karina became aware of his arousal, and instantly froze. She stared up at him like a frightened rabbit. She was breathing heavily from the exertion, and he was finding that quite attractive as well. His voice was huskier than usual when he finally spoke. “Well. Isn’t this interesting.”

  Karina’s voice was noticeably meeker. “Get off me.”

  Agnar didn’t move. “Don’t you want to try to get away?” Karina shook her head. Agnar feigned disappointment. “Too bad.” He paused, looking down into her eyes. “Are you going to come quietly?”

  Karina nodded. There was no point in resisting now that the ship was off the ground and escape was impossible. Agnar got to his feet, keeping hold of Karina’s wrists. He helped her up and led her to the quarters that Sharra had used when this was her ship.

  “Since Sharra is part of the crew now, she won’t need such fancy quarters.” He palmed the plate, opening the door, and gave Karina a gentle shove into the room. “Make yourself at home.”

  Karina whirled around as the door shut. She put her hand against the plate to open it. Nothing happened. She futilely banged on the door. Nothing. She leaned against the wall and slid down to the floor. She sat quietly for a minute, staring at nothing in particular. When she spoke her voice was devoid of emotion.

  “Fuck,” she quietly swore in English.

  Agnar stood outside the door, leaning against it with both hands. He hung his head, breathing heavily and trying to shake off the lust Karina had aroused in him during their struggle. It was becoming difficult to ignore how he felt when he touched her. He had to find a way to get her to see him as more than just a pirate. He didn’t think he could stand her dislike of him for much longer.