Jackal’s Gambit

by C A Ardron

  To her immediate right was a large kitchen, but further down the hallway was a door. Her curiosity got the best of her and she decided to eavesdrop, putting her head to the closed door.

  ‘She's a what?’ a female voice was asking incredulously.

  ‘Walking dead,’ Hawk's voice replied. ‘Sarpiens escapees. If they find her, they'll kill her.’

  ‘So she doesn't want to take over the world anymore?’ the female asked.

  Karen thought there was definite sarcasm there.

  ‘You know very well that Sarpiens are under a sclithe's control, Tiger,’ Lion's voice spoke. ‘She doesn't think or act like a Sarpien. Her mind is free.’

  ‘That doesn't erase all she's done!’ a deeper-voiced female exclaimed. ‘If she was a Sarpien then she's a murderer!’

  Karen blew out a quiet breath in the following silence.

  ‘It wasn't her, Leopard,’ Wolf's deep rumble said. ‘Surely you can see that? It was the sclithe manipulating her mind and body. Karen herself didn't commit any atrocities.’

  ‘Please!’ Leopard spat. ‘Don't give me that bullshit! If she was a Sarpien, then she deserves to die. It's that simple.’

  Karen backed away from the door; she'd heard all she needed. As she had always suspected, the five Orders were of no help to the likes of her. She turned away and walked through the glass doors, across the reception and out the front door of the Predgarian Centre.

  Once out of the building, she jogged down the street, not slowing until she'd put a bit of distance between her and the Predgarians. Several options on what to do ran through her head. She thought of Jay. The Predgarians would inform the Dakkonin of the boy's capture. A rescue attempt may or may not be made. It made her sad, thinking that by midnight he would probably be a Sarpien. She shook her head; there was nothing she could do about it.

  She had no medallion, and even if she had owned one, going down into the Sarpien tunnels would be suicide. The best thing she could do was get out of Steiron while she had the chance.

  She scowled, hating the idea of leaving Jay to his fate. She slowed and came to a stop as she saw a payphone across the street.

  ‘You haven't won yet, Jackal,’ she murmured. She went over to the phone and put in a couple of coins before punching in some numbers.

  There was no answer on the other end. She swore and tried again. On the third try, the answering machine came on. That hadn't been there before. He obviously knew the phone was ringing, he just wasn't bothering to pick it up.

  ‘Red, pick up the Light-burned phone.’

  She waited, and sure enough, a few moments later he picked up.

  ‘Kaz,’ Red's light drawl came. ‘S’up?’

  ‘I need to see you.’

  ‘Knew you'd come round 'ventually. All the girls wanna see me.’

  Karen paused, wishing he was in front of her so she could punch him. ‘I need some info, and maybe to buy a contact off you, but I don't want to talk about it over the phone.’

  ‘You sound serious, girl, you in trouble?’

  Karen stopped herself from grinding her teeth. She hated it when he called her that.

  ‘We'll talk later. Meet me at the trade place, soon as you can.’

  ‘Sure thing, girl. Catch ya then.’

  Karen hung up and walked away, hoping she wasn't making a huge mistake.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  ‘Please!’ Leopard spat. ‘Don't give me that bullshit! If she was a Sarpien, then she deserves to die. It's that simple.’

  Lion looked down at the slender woman disapprovingly. ‘That's enough, Leopard. Whatever your opinion on the matter, it's accepted amongst the Orders that Sarpiens are under the mind control of the sclithe. If you want to punish Sarpiens for their crimes then I suggest you transfer to the Dakkonin.’

  'You've made your decision, then?' Tiger asked.

  Lion paused and turned his attention to the second Feline. Now that her medallion was no longer active, her hair had turned its usual thin blonde, her skin pale and freckled.

  Lion was thankful the woman was taking the news so well. Tiger was known for her mercurial moods as well as her skill with the fire element.

  He leaned on the desk behind him. ‘There are no procedures concerning someone like Karen, and I'm not going to take this to Martial Eagle.’

  Wolf snorted. ‘How can you? He'd make a decision based on his dislike of you and nothing else.’

  Lion nodded. ‘I don't think Karen is a danger to the public or us. If we let her go she will most likely disappear into the background and try to forget this incident.’

  ‘So you're letting her go?’ Tiger asked.

  Surprisingly, she didn't sound angry. Lion was glad of that. He'd already known Leopard would be trouble, having Tiger be more level-headed for once was keeping Leopard in check – mostly. Still, he doubted she was going like what he'd decided.

  ‘No,’ Lion disagreed, ‘I don't think that's a good idea.’

  Tiger looked at him askance. ‘Hold on, you don't want to tell the commander about her,’ she ticked the points off on her fingers. ‘You don't want to kill her, you don't want to give her to the Dakkonin, just what exactly do you want to do with her?’

  Lion scratched at his head. ‘That's a good question, one I don't really have an answer to yet, but we can't let her go.’

  Hawk gave a quick nod. ‘If we do she'll get herself killed.’

  ‘Huh?’ Tiger asked. She was starting to look irritated.

  ‘The Sarpiens want to kill her,’ Lion explained. ‘If we release her to go about her business she might not live out the day.’

  ‘So?’ Leopard grunted. She was so angry she was speaking through gritted teeth. ‘That's not our problem.’

  The room stared at her and Lion noticed that even Tiger looked surprised at her partner's vehemence.

  Lion's eyes narrowed as he became angry. He'd thought better of her than this. He pushed himself off the desk. ‘Since when was it not our job to protect the citizens of Steiron?’

  He allowed an awkward silence to descend, holding Leopard's defiant gaze until she flushed with embarrassment and looked away.

  Lion worked hard to keep his emotions in check – it was a captain's job to be in control at all times. He'd put everything in his life towards being a Predgarian. Life was precious, it could be snuffed out like a candle all too easily, but Leopard knew that more than most. He understood why Leopard, of all his unit, would hate the idea of helping Karen, but she would have to make an exception. Karen was not a Sarpien - not anymore, and that changed the rules.

  ‘Someone almost died today, Leopard,’ he told her softly, hoping to appeal to her better nature. His words made the woman flinch and he knew he was on the right track. ‘The boy that Karen tried to save, Jay, might die if we don't do something quickly.’

  ‘I'll do anything I can to help the kid,’ Leopard grated. ‘You know I will. But that woman upstairs was a Sarpien! How can you expect me to ignore that?’

  ‘I don't,’ Lion replied. ‘I just need to know you understand she's not one anymore. Karen is not a bad person, and I'm placing her under Predgarian protection.’

  Leopard breathed heavily, and Lion calmly kept eye-contact as she glared furiously at him.

  ‘Fine,’ she muttered. ‘Just don't expect me to be in the same room with her.’

  Lion glanced at Wolf who'd raised his eyebrows at him, relieved Leopard had backed down. Hawk leaned against the wall by the door, releasing a small sigh. Tiger was the only one that didn't show any visible relief. Lion wasn't surprised, she was the one who worked with Leopard on a daily basis. It was best if she appeared to be on her side.

  ‘So why is no one on patrol?’ Tiger asked.

  Lion stopped the smile coming to his lips. Tiger had the right idea, trying to move the conversation on.

  ‘I'm going to need everyone if we're to rescue Jay,’ Lion replied.

  ‘What did Martial Eagle have to say?’

  Lion gri
maced. He'd been hoping no one would ask. ‘The Dakkonin will get round to it.’

  He smiled a little wearily when he saw the disbelieving looks directed his way.

  ‘This, from one of Steiron's best Predgarians,’ Tiger noted, her voice dripping sarcasm.

  ‘He's not so bad to the other units,’ Wolf mentioned.

  Lion threw him a dirty look. He had to go and say it. He turned quickly as the office door opened and Dove burst through, wearing her armour.

  ‘Lion! Karen's not in the building!’

  Lion tensed – he hadn't considered the possibility of Karen just up and leaving, though now he thought about it he should have.

  Hawk was off the wall and ready for action in an instant. ‘We have to find her! She'll get herself killed!’

  He was already reaching for the medallion about his neck. Dove placed a hand on his arm, stalling him and turned to Lion.

  ‘Let me search for her. She can't be far, and I can locate her easily enough with an aura sweep. Do you have any plans for rescuing Jay?’

  Lion sighed. ‘Apart from trying to locate a Sarpien and tailing them until they reveal a way into the tunnels, no.’

  Dove's face briefly showed her perplexion before she schooled it to her usual serene pose. Lion readily admitted it wasn't the greatest plan, but he couldn't think of anythingt else.

  ‘Then I will try to find Karen as quickly as I can.’

  Her words puzzled him. He failed to see how finding Karen connected in any way to what he'd just said.

  Dove looked around at everyone. ‘With no idea how to find Jay, we may have to rely on the knowledge of someone who used to be a Sarpien.’

  Lion tried to hold back his grin when he saw the mischievous twinkle in Dove's eyes.

  ‘Of course.’ He felt foolish for not having thought of it himself. ‘Karen will know all sorts of things about Sarpiens.’

  ‘Including some likely spots for concealed cave entrances,’ Tiger forget her act and grinned.

  Lion saw Leopard glance at her partner before sighing heavily, but she thankfully kept her thoughts to herself.

  He turned his attention to Dove. ‘Bring her back, no matter what it takes.’

  Dove became hesitant. ‘She may not come willingly.’

  'I can knock her out for you if you want,' Leopard offered in a low mutter.

  Dove eyed the woman, revealing none of her thoughts, though she must've been able to feel the Feline's negative emotions. ‘I think I can manage.’

  The beautiful healer caught Lion's attention with just her eyes. Walk me out.

  Lion just managed to stop himself from jerking upright at the sudden voice in his head.

  I need to talk to you before I leave.

  Lion stopped himself from nodding. Dove didn't often speak to him using telepathy, but he didn't say anything. Dove obviously had something to say which she didn't want the others to hear.

  ‘Well, there's nothing we can do for now,’ he told the others. ‘Hawk and Wolf, you two head out, make sure everything's calm in town. I'll call you back in when we've found Karen.’

  Lion headed out of the office after Dove, wondering what was so important.

  ***

  There were several routes that Karen could've taken to where she needed to be, but she found herself back on Lister Road. She wasn't sure why she'd come this way, perhaps to really wrap her head around the fact that she was still breathing.

  She unconsciously rubbed the place on her arm where there had used to be a knife cut. As she looked down at the bloody patch on her jacket, realising for the first time that the pain was gone, she thought back to the Predgarian healer.

  The woman had been surprisingly nice to her. It had been odd, Karen couldn't understand how any medallion warrior of the five Orders could act that way towards her.

  You don't have to, we don't mind.

  The Predgarian's words were still vivid in her mind, for some reason Karen couldn't shake them, nor the strange feeling she felt inside. It wasn't like the feeling she'd had before, when she knew Jackal had been chasing her. That had been sharp, keeping her on edge at all times, making her sick to her stomach.

  This feeling was more subdued, but just as penetrating. It felt like she was missing something, like she'd made a mistake somewhere along the way. She felt the place where Mantis' blade had gone inside of her. She'd made a mistake all right, getting mixed up in all this in the first place.

  Walking along the pavement of Lister Road, she slowed as something on the other side of the street caught her eye. It gleamed in the light of the noonday suns. She crossed the road towards it, recognising it for what it was.

  ‘Jackal,’ she muttered under her breath, staring down at the long, serrated dagger that had been left in the gutter.

  He'd not been able to retrieve it before he'd fled. Karen bent down next to it and picked it up by the heavy hilt, the steel blade made a grating sound as it scraped along the tarmac. The jackal's head pommel was no longer red but now a dull silver, as was the rest of the blade.

  Even the leather-wrapped hilt, once displaying the Red Jackal's deep crimson, had now turned a dark grey.

  The Sarpien had deactivated his armour and the medallion had been too far away from the fallen weapon to retrieve it. When Jackal next activated, the medallion would give him a new one to replace it.

  Karen studied the blade. It felt heavy in her hands, Jackal liked his weapons to have impact. She stood, putting the blade away in one of the inside pockets of her jacket. It might come in handy in the future, who knows?

  She continued on her way, walking briskly into town. She kept a careful watch, she wasn't sure if Jackal was still looking for her, or was too busy with Jay. On the other side of the market, a large department store loomed. Her destination was not the building itself, but the long alleyway which led between it and a multi-storey car park.

  As she weaved her way through the busy crowd, she thought about the person she was going to meet. Their first encounter had been a chance meeting the very first day she had arrived in Steiron.

  Red was a unique character, that had to be said. She still wasn't sure what had made him stop and begin chatting with her. The man was a mine of information and if you knew the right questions to ask, even more than that.

  Karen entered the alleyway, noting there were a few youths loitering around. With people here, she knew Red would have altered the meeting location somewhat. She turned left to the winding stone stairwell leading up to a back entrance of the car park. She only went up one flight, then headed for the lift opposite. Waiting for the doors to open after pressing the button to go up, she thought about which floor he would be on.

  The doors opened and she stepped inside the empty compartment, staring at the five buttons. She pressed the number three and waited for the doors to close. The rumbling movement began and stopped after a few seconds. The expected ding sounded and the doors slid open.

  Karen wandered out, her eyes darting around. Her gaze fell on the thin, dark-skinned man stood across the lonely car park, his back up against a square pillar. His clothes were rumpled, looking in need of a wash. This was nothing new for Red, he always dressed that way. Karen had never been able to determine whether he was lazy or dressed that way on purpose, to make people assume about his character.

  Red grinned at her as she strode towards him. She noted his long, red-dyed dreadlocks hadn't changed. She assumed his hair was the reason he called himself 'Red', there was surely no other reason.

  ‘Lookin' good, girl.’

  Karen gave him the customary frown. He always flirted with her, he never got a reaction other than her glares, but he didn't seem to mind. She stood beside him, also leaning against the wide pillar, watchful of any people nearby.

  ‘I'm looking for someone,’ Karen got to the point right away. ‘I'm going to need your help to find him.’

  ‘Oh-oh, your date stand you up or sumthin?’

  Karen looked at him sharply. Couldn
't he be serious for five minutes?

  ‘It's a boy.’ Her voice was clearly strained with annoyance and more than a little stress, but she didn't care. ‘I'm not sure how old he is, but he looks about fifteen. He's been kidnapped by Sarpiens. Tell me what you can do.’

  Red stared at her, frozen surprise on his face. ‘This is heavy, Kaz,’ he eventually found his voice. ‘The kinda deal that's gonna get both our throats slit.’

  ‘What can you do?’

  Red sighed heavily. ‘There's more than one sclithe in Steiron.’

  ‘It's Trine. The Red Jackal took him.’

  Red groaned. ‘How did I know that was a-comin? Okay, if the kid's a slave I can work it, make a deal with some people, they can buy him for you, won't come cheap though.’

  Karen shook her head. ‘He's not a slave, I'm pretty sure of that. I think they want him as a potential.’

  ‘Potential,’ Red repeated hesitantly.

  ‘It's what Sarpiens call kids they want to train ready to join their ranks.’ Karen supplied, realising he might not know Sarpien terminology.

  He gave her a hard stare. ‘I know what a potential is, Kaz, How am I gonna work that? If the Sarps want him for killin', it's a done deal.’

  Karen shook her head, her jet hair bobbing. ‘No,’ She pushed herself off from the pillar and turned to face him. ‘I refuse, I won't let it be. You give me something I can use!’

  Red stared at her. She knew she was being unreasonable, there was probably nothing he could do, but she waited for his reply anyway. She needed Jay to be safe, to be alive. The feeling startled her, when had she started caring about the boy?

  Red moved away from the pillar as well, raising his hands peacefully, trying to calm her. ‘Okay. Okay, Kaz, we'll do this. This is gonna be tough, no lie. I've got a few contacts I can use. We might be able to play em, make Trine think there's a big buyer in town. Gonna be iffy though, if the Sarps see through it, anyone involved is gonna be dead meat.’

  Karen nodded and paused to regain her composure. What had gotten into her? She was just stressed by the fight and seeing both Jackal and Mantis again, that had to be it.