Alien Courage (Rise of the Empress) (43 page)

Cassy stood up.
“Gives me the
shivers.
I wonder if we’ll ever get Johe back.” She said looking sad.

“I don’t know but at least you can appreciate now that
anything can happen,” Torquay said trying to cheer her up. “Have you seen in there?”
Torquay said pointing to a door made from wooden logs.

Cassy shook her head as she looked at the door. “Come
on, have a quick look, it’s interesting,” Torquay said placing his hand on her
elbow and steering her to the door. “It took me a few moments to learn how to
open it earlier. It’s quite primitive,” he said lifting the wooden lever and
pushing the door outwards with a large squeak from its rusted hinges. They
walked through and Cassy was intently fascinated but the room was a lot colder.
There were two inactive androids dressed in skins with fur caps and big bushy
beards. They leaned on a long roughly hewn wooden counter. The floor was dirt
and there was a door leading to the outside. A small window had a skin curtain
which flapped occasionally giving a glimpse to the snow laden world outside.

Cassy went to the window and looked out. She saw a row
of snow covered trees at the bottom of a gentle slope. The other side of the
slope was steeper for a short distance then rose sharply and disappeared into
low cloud. The wind whipped snow flurries in swirls and spirals and Cassy
realised behind this room the base was dug into the base of a mountain. A
sudden gust of wind blew ice cold air into her face. “Oh, that’s cold!” She
said and looked at the rough cabin. On the walls were hanging pots and pans. An
old antique style gun and a big knife were hanging on the wall. She noticed the
two androids dressed in skins each had one of the antique long guns beside
them.

Torquay went behind the counter and there was a
smaller room, actually a large closet he realised behind the wooden counter. He
entered the tiny room and came back out, “Cassy look at this.”

Cassy walked behind the counter and entered the small
room with Torquay. One wall was covered in small drawers with numerical
numbering carved into the little doors. The rear wall was covered in a big cat
skin with its head attached. Cassy immediately stroked the fur. “It’s so soft.
It’s beautiful,” she said.

“Look at those fangs!” Torquay mentioned and ran his
finger along its entire length. The cat’s fangs were nearly the length of
Torquay’s arm and curved in a large arc backwards from the top jaw of the cat’s
head. “Must be uncomfortable for the poor animal,” he whispered.

 Cassy pulled one of the tiny drawers open and
she slammed it quickly closed. “It’s the eyes, they harvest here. Disgusting…”
she never got to complete her sentence. A shrill whistle blew and they heard
noises outside. Torquay put his finger to his lips indicating to Cassy to
remain quiet. He pulled the door almost closed and looked through the crack. He
saw figures dressed in skins with guns push their way in from the outside.
Torquay closed the door silently and again motioned to Cassy to remain silent.
They both stood motionless.

Four Beclin warriors strode through the door and
stamped their feet to get the snow off them. The androids at the counter came
alive when the first warrior tripped an invisible beam just outside the door.

“Greetings” the android on the left said. “Weather
bad
as usual.”

Another Beclin Warrior, the Chief came through the
door, another two remained outside. He looked at the androids and nodded.
“Cold.
We have eyes. You trade?”

“Of course,” show them and we trade.”

Suddenly the two Warriors near the door lifted their
guns and fired at the androids. The bullets at that range easily penetrated the
metal of the androids chests. Both androids were flung back against the wall.
Their vital circuit boards destroyed and with flapping arms collapsed on the
floor. Their jerking bodies taking some time to stop moving as the energy
drained out in short circuits. A strange electrical burning smell filled the
cabin and the Warriors looked at each other puzzled but quickly regained their
composure. Two more skin clad figures entered the room and the Chief of the
Beclin went around to the other side of the counter and picked up one of the
androids guns and checked it was loaded. Satisfied he aimed it at one of the
men who just entered the room. The Chief fired at a prisoner they had captured
on a recent raid, killing the man instantly.

“Now traders think Shihone tribe do this. They get
hunted down and killed for us.” The other Warriors let out a whoop and ran into
the store room and looted what they could carry. The other Warrior went behind
the counter and opened the door. He gasped as he saw an old white bearded man
in a white robe and a scantily dressed golden haired girl. He backed off and
raised his gun aiming it at Torquay.

“Torquay looked into the man’s eyes and whispered
directly to him, “it won’t fire.”

The Warrior’s head moved back away from his gun and he
just stared at it. The Chief moved behind him and with lighting speed lunged
over the shoulder of the confused Warrior with his gun. The butt struck with a
resounding ‘whack’ into Torquay’s forehead. He fell heavily backwards against
the cat skin and slid down to the floor unconscious, blood flowing from a deep
gash in his forehead. The Chief pulled his Warrior out of the way and grabbed
Cassy. He couldn’t believe his luck, a Trader’s woman he thought. Take her to
Shihone village and kill her there. Traders will destroy all Shihone villages.

Cassy screamed and flung her fingers at the Chief’s
eyes. He smiled as he easily defended himself. “Get skins, boots for this woman
quick.” The other Warrior quickly got the items.

“Cassy, you all right?”
Cassy?” they heard faintly from somewhere behind the
walls. The two Warriors ransacking the storeroom rushed into the cabin.
“There’s a man asleep in there, not wake up. Now voices from behind walls. Want
kill
sleeping man?”

“Leave him. We go now. Bring woman, quick hurry!” the
Chief demanded and in a moment he had Cassy roughly dressed in furs and skins
and by the arm pushed her out the door where she fell flat on her face. 
He forced her to her feet, pushing her through knee deep snow down the slope.
Cassy tried to scream and he slapped her across the face and pushed her down
the slope.  The other Warriors laden with guns and equipment laboured
behind them.        

A bright flash burst again and again at the door under
the stairway from the lower level which had automatically closed when the
tribesman tripped the beam. “Protect
yourself
,” yelled
Toormis as he set two blasters to maximum and fired with total disregard for
his own safety. The blast ripped its way through the steel reinforced door and
blew it from its hinges. Small white hot shrapnel burnt its way into the
fireproof clothing Toormis was wearing but he ignored the pain. He threw a
small charge into the stairway and jumped back. The Administrator grabbed him
and spun him against the wall and began patting the small fires out on his
uniform then suddenly a sharp powerful blast shook the base. White smoke
billowed through the ragged door way. Toormis followed by the Administrator
rushed into the twisted mess of stairway. The top door was blow open and both
men quickly climbed through the wreckage into the storeroom. Peter was on his
side coughing and trying to get to his knees. The two men rushed past him into
the cabin. Toormis slipped on the blood from the dead tribesman and fell
heavily but dragged himself to his feet quickly. The Administrator rushed
behind the counter and stepped over the androids on the floor and looked in the
smaller room.

“Torquay is here and he’s wounded. I do not see
Cassy,” the Administrator said as Toormis rushed outside. The Administrator
rushed to join him.

The men frantically looked and saw two figures walking
towards a tree line. They were partly obscured by a small rise in the
foreground, soon they would be gone. Toormis couldn’t be sure but the smaller
of the figures looked very much like a female form. Toormis rushed forward and
over a small rise and saw four men nearing the cover of trees. He quickly set
his blaster to narrow beam, long range, kill setting. He took careful aim and
fired. His weapon sparked and fizzled and then got very hot. He threw it away
and it exploded.

The four Warriors stopped and looked back. They
dropped their equipment and sank to their knees taking aim.
Just
as they fired the Administrator tackled Toormis to the ground.
The
whistling sound of bullets flew over them.

“Was that Cassy?”
Came from behind
them in perfect Confederate language as Peter ran up carrying a flintlock gun,
powder horn and leather bullet bag.
He dropped to one knee snapping the
gun into his shoulder and with pure instinct picked his target as the Warrior
closest to cover. His gun fired and billowed white smoke from his barrel and
before his target was hit he began the reloading sequence. His bullet impacted
in the centre of the Warrior’s back and the impact was clearly heard over the
wind. The Warrior
fell
face down into the snow. His
comrades grabbed his arms and dragged him to cover.

The Administrator rolled over and stared at Peter.
Toormis tried to get up and run down the slope. “You, stay right where you
are!” Peter ordered in such a commanding voice Toormis stopped just as a billow
of smoke erupted from down the slope and a bullet whistled past his ear. He
dropped back into the snow, looking desperately down the slope. “They are
expecting you to come and they have the advantage of cover to aid their escape.
We have too much open ground in front of us. Let’s get out of this cold and get
geared up to catch those bastards.” Peter took careful aim and fired again to
keep their heads down, “Now,” he shouted and the three men ran back to the
cabin.

Toormis was clearly agitated and paced back and forth.
“Toormis,” the Administrator said urgently.
“Torquay!
Give me a hand… now!” The Administrator was dragging Torquay by the arms out of
the small door. The android bodies were blocking him. Toormis rushed around the
counter and quickly cleared them out of the way. They soon had Torquay safely
in the main hanger and Toormis rushed to the transport ship and returned with
the first aid kit. They had stopped the bleeding but Torquay was out cold and
breathing shallowly.

“He’s in a bad way.” Toormis said and prepared an
injection. He gave it to Torquay whose condition quickly stabilised. “I’m not
sure if he’ll make it,” Toormis said using the vital sign medical device. He
has a fractured skull and if there’s internal bleeding there is nothing we can
do.”

“Let’s put him in suspended animation. At least his
heart rate will drop considerably and it may assist him.” The Administrator
said and looked at Toormis who shrugged his shoulders, his attention obviously
on Cassy. “Come, give me a hand and then we’ll decide how we can get Cassy
back… Come on Toormis move!”

They carried him to the transport ship and quickly
cleaned up Torquay and got him in the canister. Toormis gave him the necessary
shots and the Administrator activated the control panel. They secured the lids
and rushed back into the cabin. “Where did the Earthman go? The Administrator
asked.

“I don’t know,” Toormis said moving into the
storeroom. “I found him Administrator, he’s here. Well... the body is.”

The Administrator quickly walked up to Toormis and looked
down at Peter. He was sitting against the wall cradling a gun but was staring
into space. The Administrator knelt beside and waved his hand in front of
Peter’s face. Peter very slowly moved his eyes to meet the Administrator. “What
the hell is going on here?” he said in fluent Confederate.

The Administrator turned to look up at Toormis and
then looked back at Peter. “You’ve been wounded and somehow you’ve ended up
with us.”

“Oh, wounded again. I really just want to go home.
Hey, who is Cassy?”

“What do you know of her,” Toormis hissed
threateningly.

Peter looked up at Toormis. I don’t know who you are
but you somehow look familiar to me but if you want to keep your ability to use
your mouth make sure nice things come out of it. You understand me?” Peter said
standing up, anger clearing his head.

Toormis was speechless but finally managed to get out,
“you know me?” He said pointing to his own chest, “or him,” pointing to the
Administrator.

Peter looked closely at both men and although he
thought they looked a bit peculiar with the longish noses, savage haircuts and
the weird uniforms with insignia of little space ships on them. He did see
something familiar about them.