The Face of Earth

by Kirsty Winkler

  Parron opened his mouth to reply, but Equaria interrupted. Hiding her irritation, she remarked, “It did take five hours, sir. You’ve been at dinner with the prisoner that long.” The crew snickered in such a way that Agnar knew what they thought he was doing with Karina. He blushed slightly before deciding it would better for his reputation to brazen it out and let them think what they wanted. He cleared his throat and stretched his arms out, as if previous exercise necessitated it. The crew laughed and elbowed each other as he made his way to his seat.

  He settled himself comfortably in the captain’s chair and motioned to Equaria.

  “Yes, sir?” Equaria answered, still smoldering.

  “Contact Premier Bartholos.”

  “Yes, sir.” Equaria executed a rapid dance of fingers on the console, connecting the comm to the forward viewscreen.

  A stern face replaced the view of the planet below. The face broke into a grin upon seeing Agnar.

  “Agnar! I take it you have my goods?”

  “Yes. Shall I land in the usual place?”

  “Yes,” the premier replied, “and please deliver them to the palace in person,” he added, as if it were an afterthought.

  “Why?” Agnar asked.

  “I want to change some of the items. Bring your appetite, and we’ll discuss the changes over lunch.”

  “Very well, Premier.” Agnar had little choice but to comply. Even with his advanced Bitowan ship, he was vulnerable this far into Kytor territory. Premier Bartholos smiled at Agnar and disconnected.

  Fifteen minutes later the ship landed at the palace spaceport. Agnar gave his crew permission to visit the spaceport facilities on the condition they avoid any intoxicants. Karina was still locked in her quarters, and Equaria volunteered to stay and watch the ship. Agnar assured her that it wasn’t necessary, since the ship’s entrance was coded only to him, but she insisted that ship security was part of her duty. Agnar didn’t notice her cunning half smile as he turned to leave. He was looking forward to doing business with Premier Bartholos. He needed someone to distract his thoughts from Karina for awhile.

  Equaria watched from the cargo bay as Agnar strode down the ramp and directed the unloading of the goods. The premier’s men quickly transferred the cartons from the ship to a long skiff. They secured them to the floor of the skiff and then climbed aboard. As Agnar prepared to board the back of the skiff, the man sitting next to the driver called him over.

  “Take my seat, sir. You’ll be more comfortable.” He held out his hand to Agnar to help him board the high skiff. Agnar took his hand and the man swung him aboard. The man then jumped down to the ground, giving Agnar room to sit next to the driver. The skiff took off, heading toward the palace grounds, leaving the man behind.

  The man watched as the skiff drove out of sight, then turned and walked up the ramp toward Equaria. He stopped in front of her.

  “Where’s the Earthling?” he asked.

  “Where’s my payment?” Equaria countered.

  The man pulled out a data tablet and showed it to Equaria. “When I have the Earthling, I’ll initiate the transfer of the quarinium into your account.”

  Equaria read the tablet and nodded, satisfied. She led the man through the ship to the living quarters. “So, what’s your name?” she asked conversationally.

  “Not that it matters, but it’s Caman.”

  She smiled over her shoulder at him. “I’m Equaria.”

  “Not that it matters,” he reiterated.

  Equaria felt irritated by Caman’s cold response. She led him down the corridor and stopped at Karina’s room. “The Earthling is in here, but I can’t unlock the door without Agnar. Are you sure you can open it?” Equaria looked at the man skeptically.

  Caman smiled and his features melted. When he solidified, Equaria found herself staring at an exact copy of Agnar. She gasped in shock. “How . . . what . . . are you?”

  Caman grimaced with Agnar’s mouth. “I wish I knew.” Caman palmed the plate and the door opened.

  Karina had been lying on the bed staring at the ceiling, but sat up quickly at the sound of the door opening. Agnar and Equaria entered the room. Agnar pulled something out of his pocket and held it out, walking toward her. She stepped back at his approach until she was up against the wall, prepared to fight rather than wear the halaband again. He opened his hand. Karina was surprised to see that he held nothing more than the currency used on Bellos. Agnar smiled at her.

  “We’re at the spaceport on Bellos. I’m letting you go. This money is to make up for the inconvenience I’ve caused you.” Karina looked at him incredulously, making no move to take the money. Agnar held his hand out farther. “Go on, take it. You’re free to leave.”

  Karina reached out and took the money, still wary. Agnar stepped out of the path to the door and motioned Equaria to do the same. Equaria moved as instructed, her disbelieving eyes still on this thing that had become Agnar, with hardly a thought for Karina.

  Karina moved slowly to the door, passing both Agnar and Equaria. Once through, she ran toward the entrance of the ship, her hand still tight around the money Agnar had given her. He was freeing her! Maybe he did have feelings for her. She felt a prick on her palm and opened her hand instinctively, dropping the coins. They fell to the floor, clinking on the metal deck. Red blood welled up and ran down her hand. She stared at it, confused. As she looked up, Agnar’s features blurred and reformed, and he became someone else. Someone she didn’t recognize.

  Karina looked back down at her hand, and then back to the strange man standing with Equaria. Equaria was grinning at her. Karina’s eyes closed and she fell to the floor, unconscious. Caman showed Equaria the tablet as he input the code to release the quarinium into her account.

  “Tell the premier that it was a pleasure doing business with him,” Equaria said, still grinning.

  “Certainly.” Caman shoved the tablet into his pocket and stooped to pick up Karina. He turned toward the main exit and strode to the door. When he reached it, he realized it was locked. He shifted Karina to his shoulder to free one of his hands and transformed it into Agnar’s hand. He palmed the plate and the door opened. He walked down the boarding plank. As he reached the bottom, a hovercar pulled up, and he set Karina on the seat inside before climbing in himself.

  “Be careful with that one,” Equaria warned, standing at the air lock door. “She may look like a Yalsan, but she doesn’t react to situations the way you’d expect. The premier may get more than he bargained for with her.”

  Caman looked down at the unconscious woman on the seat beside him. She didn’t look terribly dangerous, but then he didn’t either. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he replied.

  Equaria smiled wryly and left Agnar’s ship to meet her crew at the prearranged bar. She had enough money to be her own captain again. It was time to part ways with Agnar.

  As the hovercar drove to the palace, Caman lifted the Earthling’s hand and inspected her wound. Red blood. How delightfully odd. He couldn’t wait to talk with her to determine what other things about her were odd.

  * * *

  Agnar leaned idly against a wall, watching the premier’s servants unload the skiff. After a few minutes, a man approached him.

  “Sir, I’m to take you to the premier,” he said deferentially.

  “Lead on,” Agnar replied, and the fellow set off at a brisk pace. Caught by surprise, Agnar had to jog to catch up. The servant led him through the palace until they arrived at a large dining room with only one table on a raised dais. He seated Agnar at the table and poured him some wine. Then he left. Agnar sipped the wine while waiting for the premier.

  “Agnar! My good man!” Premier Bartholos seemed to be in high spirits as he entered the room. Agnar stood to greet him. The premier shook his hand enthusiastically.

  “Sit! My servants await to bring you food.” Agnar sat, confused by the joviality of the normally stern premier. Servants filled their plates with food. Bartholos ate with his hands, rins
ing them clean in a bowl of water between each course.

  “Do you have the revised list of goods for me?” Agnar asked.

  Premier Bartholos clapped his hands and scantily clad dancing girls rushed into the room, performing intricate steps in unison. “Later, my friend. Now is the time for enjoyment.” He gestured to the dancing girls. “My wives. Aren’t they lovely?”

  “Which ones?” Agnar asked.

  “Why, all of them, of course.” Premier Bartholos beamed at the women as they continued to dance.

  Agnar estimated that there were over fifty women in the hall. There were nineteen different species and up to four different races within each of those species. Bartholos was quite the collector. He shook his head at the number of women the premier had managed to marry. Marrying even one woman was incomprehensible to Agnar. He preferred to only be responsible for his own happiness. Bartholos must be crazy.

  Agnar looked more closely and noticed that none of the women were smiling. In fact, most of them looked quite dejected. He glanced over at Bartholos. The premier was completely oblivious to his wives’ unhappiness. Agnar endured the meal and the chatty premier, watching the women as they wove their way through several dances. They finished the final dance as a servant cleared the dessert course from in front of Agnar and the premier. The women filed out of the room, one limping slightly from an injured ankle. She must have danced through the pain, as Agnar hadn’t noticed it before.

  Bartholos motioned to a servant. The man brought over a tablet, handing it to the premier. Upon receiving it, Bartholos immediately handed it to Agnar. “Here’s the revised list. It contains the new items I wish to be included in the next shipment.”

  Agnar took the tablet and looked it over. He saw nothing out of the ordinary. This list could have been given to him at the ship, by a servant. He pocketed the tablet and said nothing.

  Bartholos pushed his chair back and stood up, stretching. “Well, you must be going. My servant will drive you back to your ship.” He snapped his fingers and the man who had led Agnar into the room came over, executing a slight bow. Agnar stood, ready to follow the fast servant the moment he moved. Bartholos waved dismissively. “Go,” he said. The servant took off, Agnar at his heels.

  The servant led him back to the loading dock where a hovercar waited. The servant opened the door, and as soon as Agnar climbed in, he slammed it shut, and the hovercar took off. When Agnar reached his ship, he was surprised to find it surrounded by the premier’s guards. He jumped out of the hovercar and approached the nearest one. “What’s wrong? Why are you guarding my ship?”

  The guard eyed Agnar and read the tablet in his hand. He refocused his attention on Agnar. “Agnar the Pirate?”

  Agnar felt the hairs rise on the back of his neck. “Just Agnar now,” he replied warily.

  The guard dismissed the difference with a wave of his hand. “You will leave now and never return, or you will be arrested, by order of the premier.”

  Agnar was shocked, unable to fathom why Bartholos had suddenly turned on him. “But I have an order for a shipment from the premier.” He pulled the tablet out of his pocket to show the list to the guard. The tablet was blank. Agnar scrolled though it, but all of its data was gone. “I don’t understand,” he said, looking back up at the guard.

  “There’s nothing to understand,” the guard said. “The premier wants you gone, and so you must go.”

  Agnar tried to stall to give himself time to figure out the premier’s angle. “My crew hasn’t returned to the ship. I’ll leave the minute they arrive.”

  The guard wasn’t sympathetic. “Your crew has left under the threat of becoming outlaws themselves. We’re providing them with alternative transportation to their preferred destination as a condition of abandoning you. You have just a few moments to decide if you want to be in space or in jail today.”

  Agnar wondered what the hell was going on, but he wondered while he was boarding his ship. He didn’t want to be a prisoner ever again. That reminded him of Karina. She should be all right since she was locked in a room only he could access. He’d check on her once he cleared the planet. It took a few minutes to get the ship off the ground and Agnar marveled again at the Bitowan technology that made that possible. Once free of the planet’s gravity, he set a course to take him away from it, indifferent to the direction. He stood up to go see how Karina was doing.

  Arriving at her room, he palmed the plate and stepped inside. He looked around in disbelief. Karina was nowhere to be seen. He checked the wardrobe and the shower room, but couldn’t find her. He ran out into the corridor, searching for some sign of her. He stopped when he noticed several coins on the floor. There was a drop of red on one and several on the floor next to it. His heart stopped for a moment as he recognized Earthling blood. Then he had a horrible thought. Premier Bartholos had him sent off the planet in a hurry. The premier had a bevy of beautiful and exotic wives. And he had distracted Agnar long enough to add a priceless prize to his collection; the last living Earthling.

  CHAPTER 18

  Karina gradually regained consciousness. Her head felt as though someone had taken an ax to it. Her throat was dry, and she put her hand to her neck as she tried to swallow some saliva. She gasped when she discovered her necklace was gone. Now she would be vulnerable to any scan, and people would know what she was. She heard a giggle as she groaned at the pain in her head. She sat up quickly and opened her eyes, regretting the action instantly. She put her hands on her head and looked around at the numerous unusual women surrounding her. They were of many different species and races. They were all extremely beautiful. She focused in on the nearest one. “Where am I?”

  The woman smiled and shook her head. Karina realized she had spoken in English. She repeated the question in Yalsan. “Where am I?”

  The woman shook her head again. An older woman approached Karina, recognizing the Yalsan language. She spoke Yalsan with a strange accent that told Karina it wasn’t her native tongue. “You are in the palace of the premier. He has brought you here to be his new wife.”

  Karina was confused. “Won’t his old wife have a problem with that?”

  The woman laughed. “You have good humor. That is good. We get bored so easily here.” She gestured to herself and to all the other women in the room. “We are all the premier’s wives. We will not have a problem with you, I think.”

  “Well, I have a problem. I don’t want to marry the premier.”

  The woman smiled sadly at Karina. “Not one of us wished to marry him. He did not give us a choice. He is the ruler of this planet, and he takes whatever he wants. We are to prepare you for the ceremony.” She gestured to another woman who brought a gaudy white dress over.

  Karina hastily stood up and backed away. “No. I will not.”

  “If you do not let us prepare you, we will be punished.” The woman pulled the shoulder of her gown down to expose several yellow bruises. “He does not hit where it can be seen, as he wishes us to be beautiful for him, but he does not allow disobedience.”

  Karina’s memories of Fred’s abusiveness came flooding back. She clenched her fists in anger, but spoke calmly. “Very well,” she conceded.

  The woman led her into a bathing area with a steaming, shallow pool set into the ground. Others were already bathing; apparently everything the women did was communal. Karina wasn’t shy, and the heated water looked very inviting. She stripped and slipped in, accepting scented soap from one of the women. After her bath they dressed her and led her back to the common room.

  Karina felt extremely uncomfortable in the elaborate marriage outfit. Her face was garishly painted and they had attempted to do something with her short hair, curling what they could, adding pins with ribbon and sweeping it up in a rather painful hairdo, tsking at its lack of length the entire time.

  The woman who spoke Yalsan led Karina over to a table full of appetizing food. “Eat.” She gave Karina a sickly smile. “You will need your strength this night.” Karina
felt nauseous at the innuendo, but sat and ate, watching the women warily. When no one was looking, she slipped a dull knife with an ornate hilt up her sleeve.

  After she ate, the head wife led her out of the common room and down a long hallway into what appeared to be some kind of church. At least, it was a room with an altar in it. Karina squeezed the dull knife she had hidden in the folds of her sleeve and felt better. She wasn’t one to go down without a fight, and she would be damned if she let herself belong to this chauvinistic man.

  The head wife left her at the altar with a holy man. They stared at each other in silence. After a few minutes, the premier entered the room, dressed in a flattering, fitted suit. He was a handsome man, but Karina could only see the ugliness of his behavior toward his wives. After the short ceremony, the premier led her away.

  After escorting her into a large bedroom, the premier turned and locked the door. When he turned back to Karina, he became a different man. Gone was the serene regal expression he had worn throughout the marriage ceremony, and in its place was the gloating, greedy look of a boy who had just shoplifted his favorite candy.

  “So. I have been told you are an Earthling.” The premier roughly grabbed Karina’s hand and scratched at the scab that had formed over the wound caused by the fake coin. Her palm immediately started to bleed, red blood welling up. The premier laughed in glee and licked Karina’s palm, tasting her blood. Karina was sickened by this and snatched her hand back.

  The premier’s face turned ugly and he grabbed her wrist, twisting her arm behind her back and pulling her close. His breath was hot on her ear, his tone menacing. “You belong to me now. You will treat me with all the deference I am due.”

  Karina whimpered and bent her head submissively. “Please, you’re hurting me.” The premier gave her arm a vicious twist before letting her go. Karina dropped to the floor, sobbing.

  The premier stood over her, threatening. “Tell me that you are mine. That you belong to me and will do anything I say.” Karina sobbed some more. The premier kicked her. “Tell me!”