NAAN (The Rabanians Book 1) (31 page)

I didn't understand what he meant by twisted but I understood the question. “I didn't want them to know,” I said.

“Why? You have a very noble mission. You are looking for a cure. Why didn’t you want them to know?” he asked.

I didn't answer. He nodded and pursed his lips. I thought he was about to explode. But like before, his lips suddenly relaxed, as if a hidden hand had injected him with a calming drug.

He took a deep breath. “We are all the descendants of Avidos, the father of Mampas. Mampas was taken away from us by vileness that arrived here from the other side of the galaxy. Parasites who were looking for a new home. Parasites from Bool and Paraday and from other places. They manipulated the Mampas economy so they could rise to the top. And you know what floats.”

I didn't answer and his face started to get red as if he’d just learned something from my silence.

“Those parasite politicians brought their shitting culture and took over our home. They said they would bring progress and advancement,” he said mockingly and gave me a glaring look. “They said they would cure Mampas’ economy."

I realized where he was going. “A plague kills children on Naan,” I said. “I am just trying to help them.”

“Them? Are they like the animals to you? Or maybe you mean “them” as if they are subhuman. Have they asked for your help? And what will be your fee? How much will they be forced to pay for this cure? A city? Two? Maybe the whole planet?”

“We don't want anything?” I said, but I was unsure of my answer. I thought of my brother's fine house and their political positions.

“The first group that arrived from Bool included only six couples. Six couples. That was how it all started. A dozen followed. You think there is a difference between six couples and three stinking brothers?”

I thought there was. I’d never thought about marriage or about having kids. If I ever married it would probably be to a local Naanite woman. Also, Naan would never need to worry about an invasion of colonists. If anyone ever followed us to the planet it would only be to throw us into jail.

He nodded, watching at my wondering face.

“Anyhow, this doesn't matter,” he said. “I don't really care what happens on Naan. You have caused us a great deal of trouble and now you will pay heavily for it.” He leaned forward and added, “And you will pay with the only coin you have. Your skills.” He stood up then walked over and sat on the table in front of me. “We are going to take back Mampas and you are going to help us.”

Now I understood why I was still alive. This lunatic thought I could be of use to him.

“Why do you need me if you can make a shuttle disappear from the skies of Mampas.”

He smiled.

"Why take the risk? You could have kidnapped me while I was still on the ground. I was close to the desert so many times. All that you needed was a car and a thug to push me in.”

“HHHMMM,” he grunted, and chuckled. “You are wondering how we found you,” he said. His smile disappeared and he nodded to one of his men. The man walked to the other door and went outside.

A noise came from the open door and she walked in. A shiver prickled my neck and my heart fell when I saw her. Her long black hair was tucked under her hat. I stared at her as if trying to convince myself it wasn’t the same girl.

“Meet my daughter, Su-Thor,” said Oziri-Dos. “Until recently she was a devoted
messenger
agent,” he added with a smile and went back to his seat.

She walked over to the table hesitantly and gave me a quick look.

“Your message arrived,” she said and Oziri-Dos’s face hardened.

“This villain is responsible for the deaths of dozens of our people!” he said. “He is alive only because I think we can make some use of him!” he added.

My eyes were locked on her. I was mad at her, and at myself, but I couldn't look away. She gave me a sharp look and lifted her head as if she was renouncing what she’s just said. 

“I know, you are right,” she said.

Her father’s smile came back.

“But Naan is not Mampas. Naan is deserted and I don't believe that he is trying to take it over,” she finished.

“HHHMMM,” he grunted.

“What gave me away?” I asked.

Oziri-Dos rose from his chair. “Instead of asking questions you should be focusing on how to stay alive,” he said.

“What do you want me to do?” I asked trying to look away from her.

“I want you to break into the Occupier's security network and expose all of their agents.”

“Agents?” I asked and looked at him.

“There are spies among us,” he said. “We have eyes everywhere on Mampas and even inside the Occupier's government, but they too have spies.”

“But you were able to spot me,” I said wondering.

Oziri-Dos impatient grew.” This is not a negotiation. You will do it and that's that.”

“And then you will set me free?” I asked.

He grunted twice and then nodded.

I touched the wound on my head. The blood had started to coagulate and the hair around the gash was stuck to my head.

Oziri-Dos turned to one of his men. “Take him to the city tomorrow.  Make sure he has what he needs.” He looked at me. “Tomorrow evening you will return to Mampas City and the day after that I want my list.”

“One day?” I asked.

“One day!” he said.

“It will be dangerous. I need some time to prepare.”

“We'll take care of the preparations. No Mampasian will lay a hand on you. When you entered the agency you walked into our trap. Since then we have watched your every move like invisible Flyeyes. We are everywhere. As you will soon know, killing you would require zero effort.”

Su-thor looked quickly at her father, then looked at me with fear in her eyes. Two men grabbed me by the shoulders and hoisted me to my feet. They led me into a room with a thin mattress. One of them tossed the pamphlet that had been translated into Seragonian onto the bed. They walked out and shut the door.

I sat on the mattress staring at the pamphlet on the bed beside me. A few moments later a man with disinfectant and a killer’s eyes said that Su-thor had asked him to clean my wound. He was not gentle and I screamed with pain.

He left. I heard the door lock click, then laid my head on the mattress and closed my eyes. I thought the door clicked again, but I was so disoriented that I wasn’t sure. The reek of stale sweat jolted me awake. I opened my eyes. Someone was only inches from my face. 

“Don't move,” he said. He had a short, white beard and his face was burned from Dion’s rays. Someone else lay across my legs and stomach.

“Don't move if you want to live,” said the bearded man.

I heard something open, a small box. From the corner of my eye I saw a gun. I struggled to get free, but it was no use.

“If you move, it will only hurt more.”

I felt cold metal pushing against my left shoulder. There was a faint hammer click and a sharp pain shot through my arm. I wanted to writhe in pain but I couldn’t move. I heard the bearded man giggle.

“Relax it won't kill you. Not yet.”

I felt the cold metal again on my right arm. The pain that followed it made me almost lose consciousness. I screamed, but the effort had drained all of my remaining strength.

“Very good,” said the man on top of me. He felt my body relaxing as I lost all power to resist.

The gun pressed against my right thigh. This time when the pain hit me everything went black.

“Completely pointless,” I heard someone saying as I regained my consciousness. His voice didn't sound right. Twisted somehow. “Where could he escape to?”  I heard and then everything went black again. 

I was on the mattress when I woke up. My whole body ached so much that I couldn't even tell where the pain is coming from. An odd taste was in my mouth. I moved my lips and felt blood on them. I tried to reach a hand to my face but couldn't. I tasted the blood that ran from my nose.

The bearded man appeared in front of me.

“How do you feel?” he asked and smiled.

“I…” I mumbled.

“You are probably wondering what happened to you,” he said and nodded his head. “I didn't think you would survive.”

  “We’ve injected explosives into you. The charges are in your arms, your thighs, and one deep in your nose. Can you feel it?”

“I…”

“You are in pain. I know. That will fade.”

A needle appeared in front of my face. “This will help,” he said and stuck the needle into my arm.

“You must have really made him mad,” he said. “This is clearly overkill. The one in your nose will remove your head; the others will only take off a hand or a leg, but the bleeding would kill you in seconds.

He came closer to my face. "If you ask me he is planning to play with you. Each of the explosives is controlled from distance. One press and boom.”

He giggled, rose, and disappeared. The door slammed, my eyes closed, and I fainted.

I woke to the sound of hydraulic engines and knocking. For a moment I thought it was all a dream and that I was still in the jail on Seragon. The noise stopped. The engine noise came on again. I felt something in my nose and remembered - The Desertians had packed me with explosives.
One press and boom.
I moved my head and looked around me and everything that’s had happened since I left Naan went through my head right up to the point where the two men were leaning on me. I remembered everything clearly.

Maybe it was my punishment. The first time around my two brothers had gotten arrested as well, but this time justice was served. I thought about our escape. There was no chance I would be able to repeat it. This time I was in the middle of the desert, loaded with explosives that could smash me into pieces. No crazy idea would save me this time.

I slept again. When I woke up, there was a tray with food on the ground. I wanted to get up and eat, but my body was in too much pain. I wondered how many days I’d been there. From the magnitude of the pain, I thought a day, maybe two. I looked at the tray again, but I still didn't feel like I could get up. I turned my gaze to the ceiling and closed my eyes.

When I woke up again, there was someone in the room. He was sitting on a chair and poking my leg with a stick.

“Wake up. You need to eat,” he said.

I looked at him.

“Get up,” he ordered. “Lean against the wall.”

I pushed myself to a sitting position, and he placed the tray on the mattress next to me.

"Drink this," he said and handed me a glass of water.

I drank greedily.

“Eat. You need to get stronger. You have a job to do.”

He left the room and closed the door behind him.

I ate. I didn’t know what was in the bowl. I thought maybe it was something local. The bread was hard and the water had sand in it. I pushed away the tray after I finished and laid back down.

I slept most of the time but I knew that a few days had passed from the light that penetrated through a hole in the ceiling. Sometimes when I woke up it was dark and sometime it was bright. I left the room only to go to the toilet. Not once was I allowed outside.

The final time I awoke in the room there were two people in the room. They wore yellow capes and wide yellow hats.  One of them threw me a similar cape. “Put this on and come out of there,” he said.

I stood up slowly. My body was still aching. I took the cape and followed them.  We went outside. The bright light blinded me temporarily. A man behind me pushed me forward. I walked almost blindly forward, until I heard a horse snorting. I shaded my eyes with my hand and noticed there were three horses, as bright as the desert, standing next to a water trough. I walked over to them and patted one of them on the head. My thoughts wandered.

“You know horses?” asked one of the men.

I nodded.

“Great, because they are our transportation,” he said and walked over to one of them. He pointed to a bag on a saddle. “There is a loaf of bread in there. Use it wisely. It’s all you will have today.”

We went into the desert. After a long ride, we dismounted and led the horses through a maze of quicksand pits. When the ground became solid again, we rode until we reached an oasis. We fed and watered the horses and rested for a while before we were back in the saddle. Eventually I could see the city in the distance. A few Flyeyes buzzed past above us. My guides lowered their heads and covered their faces with their hats.

The city’s lights made the horizon glow as evening fell. After another long ride we turned onto a trail that led to the belt road. A car’s lights swung onto the road and turned towards the desert. It decelerated and the lights went off but I could see that the car was still moving towards us. It passed us then swung around and drove along slowly beside us. It was a taxi. The back door opened and a man skipped out and rushed over to me.

“Get off,” he ordered.

I dismounted and he took my cape and hat. He put them on, and then climbed into the saddle of my horse.

“Get into the car,” he said.