Chapter 3: History Lessons

A week later, Kursed walked out of the bounty office again. Shadow's information had been precisely on target, right down to the details of the quarry's personality and probable actions. While this information had proven invaluable, allowing her to apprehend another, much more valuable bounty than any she'd gotten before in her time here, the question of how he knew that much about someone, when only the vaguest records existed in the public archives, was a question that niggled like an itch in the back of her mind. She wondered if he would be willing to tell her: aside from the whole problem of where his information came from was the question of why. It might very well involve personal experiences that he would be unwilling to share with someone who was still a relative stranger.

She decided to pay him another visit. It was still early afternoon, this time, although the sky was heavy with the imminent promise of rain. She wondered if he would even be there at this time of day, but there was no harm in checking, was there? Even if he was unwilling to part with any information at this time, that tea she'd had was pretty good, and all by itself would make the visit worthwhile.

She set off at a jog towards the restaurant/pub. It was a bit on the outskirts of the main city, but she had always possessed a good sense of direction, and was able to make her way there in only a fraction of the time she had taken before, when she had just been wandering the streets at random. She was just a block away from the building when she heard a loud peal of thunder behind her. She looked over her shoulder just in time to see a wall of rain advancing down the street along the path she had just travelled. She broke into a sprint to reach the door before the weather reached her, and was mostly successful; she reached the door before the rain did, but in the time it took her to open it, the rain had caught up with her. She jumped inside as quickly as she could, and shook water from her hair before she looked around to find the bar.

The place was practically empty at the moment. She saw one or two people eating in the dining area, and no one at the bar. Shadow himself was there, leaning against the counter, half turned away from the door, throwing darts at a board on the other side of the room. She scoffed at the notion that he could hit it from that far away until she took a closer look and noticed the grouping already on the board: five darts, all in the bull's-eye region. As she watched, he lifted another dart, took careful aim, and launched it across the room to embed itself next to its companions. Moderately impressed, she approached the bar after she made sure he didn't have any more sharp objects in his hands. "Is the bartender bored?" she asked in a slightly too-sweet manner.

"Just a little," he replied. "Business is always slow in foul weather." He cocked an ear, listening to the weather. "Looks like you didn't quite beat the rain." The patter of rain on the rooftop, was abruptly joined by a plink-plink of something much harder. "But at least you made it in before the hail started falling. I hope you don't plan on being anywhere else for a while, because this storm is supposed to last all afternoon."

"Here is as good a place as any," she told him, "and probably better than most at this point."

"Ah, glad you can stay. Oh, I hear that congratulations are in order for a successful hunt?"

She was not particularly surprised that he knew about her capture of Fant; although she had only just turned him over to the authorities, Shadow seemed to be remarkably well informed about anything that related to the various members of the previous government, both those still at large and those who were already in custody. "Why thank you, it's very kind of you to say so."

He laced his fingers together and rested his elbows on the counter, with his chin on top of his hands. "So, what did you think of him?"

Kursed was a little taken aback by the tone in his voice. There was curiosity, to be certain, but there was also a hint of…smugness, like he was taking a personal satisfaction in Fant's downfall and capture. She let the contempt she felt for the human rise to the surface. "He was scum. The universe would be better off without him."

Shadow seemed to be expecting more, but the subject was closed as far as she was concerned. Eventually, he realized that she didn't want to talk any more about it, and moved on to other business. "So, what can I do for you today?"

"First I'd like a drink. Something hot, so I don't catch a chill; the stuff I had before was pretty nice"

He scribbled an entry on a notepad – she didn't notice that detail before – and tore the slip off the pad. "One hot green tea, coming right up," he announced.

While he busied himself preparing her drink, she took a quick look around the restaurant again. Of the two patrons who had been seated before, one had gotten up and left for somewhere in the time she'd taken coming to the bar. The other was still occupied with whatever he was doing, and did not appear to be interested in anything else.

"All ready," Shadow announced from behind her. He placed a still-steaming mug full of tea near her place at the bar. "And there's refills ready, in case you want more later."

"Why, thank you." She took an experimental sip, and made a silent note to herself to remember this place for the future; even if she got no more hints from Shadow, the food - and the drink, for that matter – was some of the best she'd tasted in a long time.

"So," Shadow asked, "since you're stuck here for a while, is there anything else you might need?"

She gave his question some thought, and decided that some background information on the planet and its recent history was necessary. She also had a couple of questions regarding events that had taken place the last time she was in the pub. "What can you tell me about this 

place? I mean, it seems the planet has gone through a civil war of some sort very recently, and most of the bounties on the lists are for members of the previous government. Normally I don't care what the circumstances are behind the bounty, but this seems to be a most unusual way to apprehend war criminals. Bottom line, I want to know if I'm being used to do the dirty work for this government while they present clean hands to the general public, or if I'm being set up."

He pulled a small stool up behind the counter and sat down. "Well, I can't attest to the moral virtue of every member of the Provisional Senate, but by and large, they are a fair and honest group of people – of all races. They wouldn't set someone up for a fall, and the common citizens already know about most of the bounties out there. The regular military is tied up with keeping the various groups of raiders, pirates, and such at bay, so they are posting all these bounties so that other people, who may or may not be the "joining" types, have an incentive to bring in those individuals who deserve justice but have so far escaped it."

That statement helped allay some of her anxieties, but it left more questions in her mind. She decided to start with one regarding her previous visit. "When you were telling me about that guy you gave me the leads for, you said he was part of a group you called the 'Purists'. What exactly were you referring to by that term?"

A look of what might have been distaste crossed Shadow's face. "The Purists were a group of humans who believed that their race was superior to every other race that lived here. As a result, they proclaimed that every race other than them was subservient to theirs, and that we were not entitled to the same rights and privileges that citizens of this world were granted. When they had achieved a significant power base, they began doing things like kidnapping people from their homes, subjugating them to slavery under atrocious conditions, and even mass slaughter that bordered on genocide."

"How'd a group like that ever come to power?" She was completely mystified. "If it was so virulently hateful, how did its members assume positions of authority?"

He sighed and sat up again. "I suppose some background is in order, about how humans came to this world."

"Came here? You mean they're not native to this planet?"

"No, their homeworld was a place called Earth, or Terra; I've heard it refer to by both terms. Apparently it's no longer inhabitable. The humans' first contact with other sentient species took the form of a massive alien invasion, by an arthropod race known as the Vorhess. Not only did they attack without provocation, but apparently they used humans as incubators for their young. The larval Vorhess ate their host from the inside out." She grimaced in disgust at the thought of being eaten alive, and he concluded, "Eventually, to escape this threat, the humans set fire to their own homeworld and abandoned it, scattering across the galaxy. Because of the nature of their first contact, some humans have a deep-seated fear and loathing of other races. Most of them are decent individuals; it's just the few rotten ones that ruin it for everyone else."

"So that explains how they got here in the first place," she said, somewhat testily, "but you didn't answer my question: how did they come to power?"

"Through overtly legitimate means at first; by acquiring seats in the Senate. What most people didn't notice, however, was that they used bribery and extortion to wrangle positions onto many of the ballots, and to persuade otherwise upright individuals not to run. They were aided in this endeavor by those humans who shared their views, and by those they were able to intimidate into keeping silent or assisting them. When they had enough of a presence that they could control how votes went, they began enacting their agenda."

Kursed was at once amazed at the lengths the Purists went to for the advancement of their agenda, and appalled at what that agenda entailed. "To do all those things…how could people just stand by and let it happen?"

"People didn't just "let it happen." From the first rumors that atrocities were being instituted by the authority of the government, there were groups who strove to uncover the truth, and who later and who later instigated armed resistance once it became clear that the Purists were going to pursue their agenda regardless of what people said. Practically every non-human had a vested interest in seeing the Purists removed from power, but there were also many humans who protested the way their friends were being treated. This led to a grave mistake on the part of the Purists; they tried to silence those of their own race who didn't agree with their point of view. When it became clear that the Purists' main goal was a totalitarian regime, and that they would silence anyone who tried to object, the vast majority of the planet's population began to support the rebels, whether in an active or a passive manner. Those in power cannot maintain their positions without support, or at least apathy, from those that they govern. Once the entire planet began to rebel, they eventually had no choice but to go into hiding. However, they are still a threat, and they could still make things miserable for everyone else, hence all the bounties out there for the core members of that group."

It sounded to Kursed as though the Purists had attempted a complete takeover of the planet, but that they had failed due to their xenophobic campaign and by making enemies of practically everyone in the system. But some of the story still didn't make clear sense to her. "Just like that? These people, these…Purists...make a couple of mistakes and suddenly the whole planet is up in arms against them? I think there's more to this than you're telling me."

"They made more than just a couple of mistakes, they made many. All of these things combined to tip the sympathies of those who were uncertain towards the various groups of freedom fighters who were struggling to overthrow a pathologically violent regime. Even with all of these things in our favor, the struggle to overthrow them was still a long and bloody war." Shadow paused for a moment to collect his thoughts, but she caught a glimpse of sorrow in his eyes. That, plus a strong emotional impression that she read from him, despite his efforts to control it, told her something unexpected: he had been deeply involved in the struggle to overthrow the despotic regime that the Purists had set up, and the price to him had been enormous. Probably the reason he had glossed over certain aspects of the history of Kew's most recent change in government was because they touched on memories that were too painful for him to share.

He had fallen silent, and didn't seem inclined to elaborate any further, so she decided to change the subject. "You said that these people have gone into hiding. Do you have any ideas where they might be hiding, in general?"

He considered her new line of inquiry for a moment before he gave an answer. "Although Kew is the most populated planet in this sector of space, there are also numerous asteroid habitats in the system, plus a few outlying colony systems that have one or two settlements apiece on them. Some of the Purists have probably fled to these outlying areas, or they may have joined up with one of the various pirate gangs that sometimes plague this area. The majority of them should still be on this planet however."

"That should make finding them a bit easier…"

"A planet is an awfully big place and one that has as much infrastructure as Kew has literally millions of places for people who do not wish to be found to hide." Shadow smiled dryly. "Your track record, however, is quite impressive. I'm more than a little curious, though, as to why you've chosen this particular line of work. I'll grant that it's a pretty lucrative career, but it must be rather lonely, not to mention incredibly risky."

She did not quite know how to answer that question, since he had caught her off balance with it. "It keeps me occupied." She added, more quietly, "It keeps me focused on the present instead of in the past."

"And just what's in the past that you're trying so hard not to think about?"

She took a deep breath, and let it out, as though she were preparing for a difficult task. Perhaps she was. "Tell me … have you ever been in love?"

"I've been married," he replied evenly. "Does that count? Is that what this is about, a bad relationship?"

"That is none of your business," she snapped.

"My apologies then," he said, and it seemed sincere.

She looked away for a moment, chagrined by her reaction. Then another question came to mind, and she turned back to face him. "Your wife … what happened?"

He didn't reply for a long moment, and she sensed some of the same grief that she had felt from him earlier. "She … died … during the war."

She knew there was more to that than he was telling, but decided she had pressed a sore topic far enough for the time being.

She recalled another question she'd had in mind that had been sidelined by the conversation until now. "When you were telling me about Colonel Fant, you knew details about him that included personal information, things about personality and behavior and such, and it was all incredibly accurate. How did you know all this?"

His expression was suddenly much more guarded. "I've met him, somewhat." He changed the subject as his gaze shifted focus and his attention wandered to the outdoors. "Things seem to be clearing up outside. You could probably go outside without getting soaked and pummeled now."

She looked out in surprise; over the course of their conversation, several hours had gone by, and she had drunk at least four glasses of tea. In addition, the rain and hail had ceased, and the sun was emerging from behind the clouds for the remainder of the day. "Huh, how time flies," she remarked.

She paid her tab and got up to leave. As she was headed to the door Shadow called out, "Hey, you know, I never got your name."

She turned back towards him. "You mean with all you know about me you haven't heard it yet? It's Kursed."

"That isn't your name, that's an alias. I doubt any parent would be so cruel as to name their child that, and why would choose to claim something like that, anyway?"

"What's it matter to you? And don't tell me that 'Shadow' is your legal name."

"It's not," he replied evenly. "It's a nickname I've had since I was a kit, for my coloration and my quiet nature. And my question still stands; why did you choose to call yourself 'Kursed'?"

She thought for a little bit, trying to put into words a feeling that had lurked in the back of her mind for four long years now. "Because of some… events in my life, I feel as though I've been condemned to a life of loneliness. No matter how hard I try, I find it impossible to trust anyone again; people seem to just want to use me for some reason or another."

"That, unfortunately, is a fact of life in this region of space. But, if you never take a chance, you'll never find those whom you can put faith in." He looked down at the bar for a moment, and then looked back up at her again. "Is there something I could call you by that doesn't sound so… harsh?"

She didn't know whether to be irritated that he would pry, or touched that he would care. It was the first time in a long time that anyone had shown concern about her well-being that extended beyond just what she could do for them. She thought about what he said for a long time, and finally replied, "Call me Krys, then, if that's how you feel about it."

"Krys it is, then," he said, and he looked relieved at her decision. "May I give you a word of warning, before you go? Colonel Fant may have been a coward in the end, but he was one of 

the most highly placed leaders within the Purists' regime. With his capture, you may have made yourself some bitter enemies, people who will try to make sure that you don't bring any more bounties in… ever. Be sure to watch your back."

"I'll remember that," she said, "and thank you."

"Stay safe, until we meet again," he called as she walked out the door. She gave an off-handed wave as she stepped out onto the street, and headed back to the small apartment that was as close to a home as she had right now. As she walked, she reviewed the conversation in her mind again. She believed he was on the level, as far as her safety was concerned, although she was still unsure as to why, if he hated the Purists as much as he seemed to, and knew so much about them, he wasn't out there himself trying to hunt them down. She shrugged to herself; the fact that he worked as an information broker of sorts, instead of a rival hunter, was to her benefit. Perhaps there was some as-yet-unexplained reason for his decision. At the moment, her immediate concern was getting back to her apartment so she could get a good night's sleep. Her questions could keep for later.

Author's Notes: This chapter was actually almost finished before I even started working on the previous chapter. I apologize in advance if it seems a little choppy in places.