Morning Stars Fade chirped. “I have already begun inquiries, Teacher,” he said with the satisfied tones of someone who successfully anticipated a task. “I have found two candidates,” he reported. A thoughtful look appeared on the young Rynn’s face. “Teacher, from what I understand, the Alsoo are very protective of children.”
Jeremy smiled at his protégé. “An interesting thought,” he said in approval. “Follow that thought and see where it leads.” Jeremy stood. “As always, a pleasure speaking to you, Mr. President.”
“The Rynn consider you most competent,” Morning Stars Fade added. He briefly covered his eyes. “Until the next time.”
Morning Stars Fade followed Jeremy at a respectful distance, his eyes constantly scanning the surroundings; buildings, cars, and people. Jeremy Blunt had what he called “an allergy to excessive protection” and resisted all efforts to provide him with full-time bodyguards. He, however, had no objection to Morning Stars Fade accompanying him on those rare occasions he left his cabin in the woods.
Morning Stars Fade also would have preferred that Teacher Jeremy had more protection, but he considered Jeremy’s rejection of that protection consistent with who and what Jeremy was. “The Spirits will protect Teacher Jeremy or they won’t,” he had once told a friend. “But he will not and cannot hide behind others and still be himself.”
Morning Stars Fade continued to scan the surroundings as they headed back to the car park where they had left their transport. Teacher Jeremy had acceded to one demand at least: he no longer drove himself. His driver, a veteran of the California National Guard, had remained with the SUV.
“Teacher,” Morning Stars Fade said in low tones.
“I see them, Disciple,” Jeremy replied mildly. “How many have you spotted?”
“Three, Teacher,” Morning Stars Fade replied. “One across the street: the light-skinned man with the blue garment with the head covering hiding his face.”
“It’s called a hoodie, Disciple,” Jeremy corrected in amused tones. “Agreed. And the others?”
“The two light-skinned men in front of us, the ones wearing the orange … caps?” Morning Stars Fade replied. “I have not been able to find anyone following us from behind,” he said. “But there should be at least one.”
“At least,” agreed Jeremy. “They are much better than the three you spotted, but there are two more.” He smiled. “Let’s do a little window-shopping,” he said and stopped in front of a store. Jeremy chuckled. “Look at that—Rynn plush toys.”
Morning Stars Fade nodded and looked at the display, or at least pretended to. After a minute, his crest fell slightly. “They are much better,” he said. “The two very pale men with matching green jackets,” Morning Stars Fade frowned. “That paleness does not seem natural.”
“‘Prison pallor,’ it’s called,” Jeremy replied. “Both men have probably spent at least the past five years in a high-security prison with limited access to the outdoors.”
“If they were in prison, that would indicate they are not anyone we could trust,” Morning Stars Fade mused. “Kidnapping or assassination?”
“Now, now, Morning Stars Fade,” Jeremy chided. “They could just be waiting to beat the crap out of us.”
“Oh, of course, Teacher,” Morning Stars Fade chittered. “I had overlooked that option.” He frowned. “They must know you wear a force shield.” His crest lowered some more. “Teacher, is it possible they just wish to cause damage?”
Jeremy smiled. “Let’s find out,” he said. “I feel like getting a cup of coffee.”
“Coffee, Teacher?’ Morning Stars Fade questioned. “You don’t drink coffee.”
“Tea then,” Jeremy said cheerfully. “Ah, this looks like a promising establishment.” He walked into the store. Morning Stars Fade followed.
It was a typical coffeehouse: slightly dim, with wooden tables and stools in the center and lining the periphery. Customers, mostly young men and women, sat singly or in small groups around the shop. Most were too engrossed in their laptops to immediately notice Jeremy and Morning Stars Fade.
The teacher and his disciple approached the service counter. The woman behind the counter barely looked up. She was young, at most twenty, with reddish hair and a dusting of freckles across her cheeks. “What can I get you?” she said. There was a chirping. “A pot of Jasmine Green for two, please.”
The woman turned toward the chirping and saw Morning Stars Fade. Her mouth dropped open. “You … you’re …” she stammered.
“A pot of Jasmine Green for two,” Morning Stars Fade repeated.
“You … you …” The woman stopped and swallowed. “Jasmine Green?”
Morning Stars Fade chirped. “If you would,” came the translation.
The woman swallowed again. “You guys drink tea?” She shook herself. “Stupid question, you ordered it.” A slow smile appeared on the woman’s face. “You guys really do look a bit like birds.” She waved a hand to indicate her face. “Especially around there.”
“Our ancestors had much in common with the ancestors of Earth birds,” agreed Morning Stars Fade. “The tea?”
“Oh, sorry,” the woman replied and bustled around behind the counter. It wasn’t long before she placed a medium-sized teapot in front of Morning Stars Fade. Morning Stars Fade produced a credit card. The woman looked at the card and giggled. “If you’d let me take a picture with you, it’d be on the house,” she giggled again. “Hell, even if you didn’t let me take the picture, it’d be on the house.”
“I think you can accommodate the young lady, Disciple.” Jeremy said. “How about … there?” He pointed to an empty table. Morning Stars Fade looked at the table and then at the front door of the coffeehouse. He smiled and nodded. Morning Stars Fade and the woman posed, and Jeremy took the picture.
“You seem quite comfortable with a Rynn,” Jeremy remarked.
“God, I’ve been wanting to meet an alien since I was five,” the young woman replied. “I never expected that an alien would be cute.”
“Neither did I,” agreed Morning Stars Fade. He chittered.
“But you’re the … oh yeah, right,” the woman stammered. She looked up as five men approached the counter. “Never fails,” she complained. “I have work to do.”
“Come back when you’re free,” Morning Stars Fade said. “If you want,” he added.
The woman smiled widely, nodded, and headed over to the counter. “Sorry. I was talking to our guests,” she said. “Isn’t it wonderful?”
“Disgusting, I think,” one man growled.
“How can you allow animals in a place where people eat?” said another. “Go home, Birdy, before I pluck you,” he sneered. “I bet you’ll taste just like chicken.”
“Teacher, it seems I was wrong about their target,” Morning Stars Fade said calmly.
“Listen, shitheads,” the woman said angrily. “We decide who comes in here, not you. If you don’t like it, you can leave. In fact—leave.”
“You need to know where your loyalty should be,” snapped one of the men. His arm swept the serving counter, and snacks, souvenirs, and samples went flying.
Morning Stars Fade stood. He walked over to the counter and handed the stunned woman his credit card. “Whatever the damages are, I will pay for them,” he said.
“Run away, idiot,” the woman exclaimed in desperate tones. “They’re crazy.” She added, “And they haven’t caused much damage.”
Morning Stars Fade smiled. “I wasn’t talking about their damage,” he said. He spun around, and his leg impacted against the apparent leader of the group. The man crashed to the floor. “If you have a problem with me, then you should be dealing with me, not this young lady.”
“Hands off our women, birdbrain,” snapped the man as he rose back to his feet. “And get the fuck off our planet.” His fist shot out, only to be def
lected by an almost negligent swipe of the Rynn’s hand.
“While I think the young lady is quite attractive, we are not, as yet, intimate,” Morning Stars Fade replied. His own hand lashed out in what is usually called a tiger fist. Because of the height difference, Morning Stars Fade’s punch hit the man’s gut. The man doubled over with a pained grunt. The follow-up kick to the chin sent the big man crashing to the ground.
Jeremy walked over to the counter. “Please do not call the police as of yet,” he said to the stunned woman. “My disciple needs the practice.”
“Huh? Disciple?” The woman focused on Jeremy for the first time. “Oh my god, you’re the one they call the Teacher.”
Jeremy nodded. “Morning Stars Fade is one of my better students,” he sighed. “But five humans may be slightly more than he can handle. Excuse me.” Jeremy turned around, grabbed one of the attackers by the shoulder, spun him around, and grabbed the man by the throat. The man’s eyes rolled up, and he crashed to the ground unconscious.
Jeremy turned back to the stunned woman. “Morning Stars Fade is usually a bit shy around women … well, Earth women,” he amended. “But he seemed quite comfortable with you.” He spun around again, and his foot impacted against another man’s crotch. That man also ended up on the ground. “Sorry,” he said to the woman.
The woman looked to where the little alien man was battling the remaining three attackers. The alien seemed to almost blur as he blocked, evaded, and deflected blow after blow. “Stop fooling around, Fade, and kick their butts,” she shouted.
Morning Stars Fade chirped gleefully and then appeared to climb up one attacker. His fist impacted against the bridge of his opponent’s nose. He then used the man as a springboard and landed on the shoulders of another assailant. This time it was an elbow that did the damage.
Jeremy noticed that the fifth and final opponent was reaching into his jacket. “Excuse me,” he said to the young woman. Before the man had extracted his gun—and it was a gun, as Jeremy had suspected—Jeremy was in front of the man, and his hand had grabbed the assailant’s throat. The man fell to the floor unconscious. “Morning Stars Fade, end this,” he barked.
“Yes, Teacher,” Morning Stars Fade replied, and he suddenly unleashed a flurry of kicks, punches, and elbow strikes. The humans may have been bigger and more robust than Rynn, but Jeremy had taught his student well. The last two thugs hit the ground.
There was silence, and then the woman ran from behind the counter and over to Morning Stars Fade. She swept him into a hug. “Are you all right?” she asked in concern. “Did they hurt you?”
“I’m fine. Exhilarated, in fact,” Morning Stars Fade replied. “Are you all right, Miss …?”
“Emily. Emily Fields.” The young woman gave Morning Stars Fade an admiring look. “You were magnificent,” she gushed. “I never saw anything like that.” She shook her head. “Weren’t you afraid?”
“Of course I was,” Morning Stars Fade replied. “But Teacher Jeremy has trained me to be afraid … later.” Morning Stars Fade shivered. “Like now.” Emily tightened her hold on Morning Stars Fade as his shivers increased.
“If you would watch my disciple for a moment, Ms. Fields, I would appreciate it,” Jeremy said. “Don’t worry, he will be fine. He just needs to know that not everyone wants to hurt him.” Emily tightened her hold even more. “Thank you.” He turned away as Emily started cooing comfortingly to Morning Stars Fade.
Jeremy walked over to one of the downed men and knelt. “The five of you have been following us for some time,” he said. “I don’t know if you know my history,” he said in conversational tones, “but the last two men who bothered me did not live to bother me further.” He leaned closer and smiled. “I may be old, but I still know how to kill,” he said in a near whisper.
It was a little over an hour later when Jeremy and Morning Stars Fade entered the back seat of their SUV. “If you would take us straight home, Private,” he said to the driver. The woman nodded and started the car. Jeremy turned to Morning Stars Fade. “I do hope you got the young lady’s number,” he said. Morning Stars Fade nodded. “You did well, Disciple.” He tapped his Torque. “Mel? It’s Gramps,” he said. “Please alert the colony that someone has put a bounty on Rynn. All Rynn.”
40
3D3B AND BURL
Cool Evening Breeze awkwardly held the wriggling baby. “Are you sure this is okay?” she said in worried tones. “Babies … squirm.”
“You’re doing fine, Breeze,” Crystal said in amusement. “Honestly, you’re almost as bad as Hendriks.” She looked at the big marine standing near the bed. He had a similarly worried look on his face. “And that’s saying something,” she scolded. “Jesse is as much your son as Hendriks’s, and you both better get used to taking care of him.”
At that moment, the doorbell chimed. “Thank god,” muttered Hendriks and nearly ran to the door. “Yes?” he said when he opened it.
A Rynn male stood there. He looked up at Hendriks and chirped. “You’re even bigger up close,” he said. “Unlike most Rynn, my name doesn’t translate well to human,” he chittered. “Call me Burl.”
“Burl?” Hendriks blinked.
“As I said, my name does not translate well. Burl is the closest analog.” The Rynn’s crest waggled in amusement. “Strangely enough, most humans seem almost relieved when I introduce myself.”
A wry smile appeared on Hendriks’s face. “I bet,” he said. “What can I do for you, Burl?”
“The question should be: what can we do for you?” Burl replied.
“We?” asked Hendriks. His eyes widened when what he had first taken to be some kind of scarf or cloak raised itself up. “An Alsoo?”
“Third-Daughter-Third-Born/me,” warbled the Alsoo. “Neuter/me.”
“Her telling you she’s neuter is supposed to be reassuring,” Burl said. “She is no longer breeding, so she is not taking up resources for children.”
“Neuter/me,” agreed the Alsoo. “3D3B/call/me easy/you,” the Alsoo warbled in amusement.
“Did she just say to call her 3D3B cause it’s easier?” Hendriks said in wonder. Burl and the Alsoo both nodded. “You gotta point,” he said to the Alsoo.
“So Hendriks,” Burl said. “I hear you’re uncomfortable around babies.”
“You got that right,” Hendriks said in exasperated tones. “I’d rather go against a Polig-Grug hive than change a diaper.”
“Stupid big split-tail/you be think 3D3B/me,” warbled the Alsoo. “Split-tail hatchling/is Eater/not.” The Alsoo peered around Hendriks. “Diaper change/now/we.” The Alsoo slithered down Burl’s body and around Hendriks to enter the apartment.
“Hey, wait, what?” Hendriks said in confusion.
“If 3D3B thinks the baby needs to have its diaper changed, it needs to have its diaper changed,” Burl said. He walked around Hendriks and followed in the Alsoo’s path.
“Hey, wait,” Hendriks tried again and hurried after. By the time he reached the bedroom, the Alsoo was holding the baby and crooning softly while Burl was nearly finished changing the diaper. He looked worriedly at Crystal.
The blonde reporter was looking at the Alsoo with an expression that seemed to keep shifting between bemusement, amusement, and relief. She looked at Hendriks.
“Her name is 3D3B, and his name, believe it or not, is Burl,” Hendriks supplied. He looked around and saw Breeze staring at the Alsoo with a set of shifting expressions that matched Crystal’s.
“Thank the spirits you two are here,” Crystal said in heartfelt tones. “Those two are hopeless.” Burl chittered and 3D3B warbled in response. “I hope you can stay for a while.”
“We will stay as long as you wish,” Burl assured Crystal. He bent down and lifted the baby into his arms. “I bet you want to take a nap,” he said. “3D3B, do you want to stay here or with the baby?”
“H
ere/place/stay 3D3B/me,” the Alsoo replied. “Mother/she big split-tail/she 3D3B/me know/not trust/not.” She side-winded up the bed. “Truth, 3D3B/me know.” She ended up near the pillow that Crystal leaned against. “Mother big split-tail/you learn/gain/you short time 3D3B trust/oath.” The Alsoo slapped her own chest. “Truth neuter/me truth/oath.”
Crystal’s eyes widened as the little Naga-form warbled. “You were a mother too, weren’t you?” she said.
“Truth,” replied the Alsoo. She ruffled her feathers for a moment.
Crystal looked at the little alien and then her eyes suddenly teared up. “They’re dead, aren’t they?’ she said in a tear-filled whisper.
“Truth,” replied the Alsoo in a soft warble, and she repeated the feather ruffle.
Crystal took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’m so sorry,” she said. The little alien slithered up the pillow and leaned against Crystal. Her tail wrapped loosely around Crystal’s wrist. Crystal gathered the little alien against her. “I’m so sorry,” she repeated softly. The little alien warbled.
“You know something, Feather Head?” Hendriks said.
“What’s that, Fuzzy Butt?” Cool Evening Breeze replied.
“I’ve killed a lot of people and figured I was destined to burn in hell,” Hendriks said. “I thought it was a fair trade.” He smiled. “I still think I’m gonna end up in hell,” he said, “but seeing that—” he indicated Crystal and 3D3B “—makes it all worthwhile.”
“Rynn don’t believe in hell, Fuzzy Butt,” Cool Evening Breeze replied. “But I think one would have been created just for me if I had left those first Alsoo behind.”
“All good marines go to hell, you know.” Hendriks smiled wider. “If Rynn don’t have a hell, you’d be more than welcome to share mine.”
“Why thanks, Hendriks,” Cool Evening Breeze replied. “I may take you up on that offer.”
“Do that, Breeze,” Hendriks said.
Redemption Song Page 30