Chiana awoke with a massive headache. She tried to open her eyes but the light stabbed into them like hot needles so she kept them closed.
"What the frell was I drinking last night?" she groggily asked herself. The last thing she remembered was sitting in a tavern having a drink to celebrate her decision to ask Berret to bond. She'd met a funny little man named Kippso or Klepto who asked if she was traveling alone after seeing her bag. He seemed harmless and was interested in hearing her story so she remembered having several drinks with him. She remembered getting as far as her decision to leave Moya after the last round he'd bought and she started to feel funny. After that she couldn't remember anything at all. She finally worked up the nerve to pry open her eyes despite the pain. Looking around she found she definitely didn't recognize the place she was in. She was lying flat out on a pallet on the floor. Someone must have found her dren-faced and taken her somewhere to sober up she reasoned. She tried rolling over and then she heard a noise that froze her blood. When she had moved there was the rattle of a chain. Alert now, she shot upright... ignoring the pounding in her head. To her horror she discovered that someone had fastened a thick metal manacle around one of her ankles connected to a equally heavy chain. Pulling on the length of chain she found that the other end was connected to a metal ring that was part of the quickcrete floor.
"Oh my Goddess, oh my Goddess!" she murmured over and over again.
She was someone's prisoner.
The crewmates regrouped at the Transport Pod. After Aeryn and John filled D'argo and the others in on their lead. Zhaan, Malika, and Andar offered to go out and bring back some food for lunch from one of the area's refreshment houses. John called up to Moya to fill in the rest of the crew,
"Any luck, John?" asked Sean from aboard Moya.
"We have one lead, but we can't follow up on it till later tonight," he reported.
"How's tall, dark, and extra gloomy taking it?"
"Well, despite the fact he killed a bar and scared the dren out of the bartender; I'd say quite well for Mr. Subtle. How you and Sparky getting along?"
"His royal 'Pain in the ass' has been unusually quiet. If I didn't know better, I'd say he was actually too worried about Chiana to cause much trouble. He say's his 'Marrmocks', whatever they are, are telling him something's terribly wrong."
"He's probably just hungry and doesn't realize it yet. Okay, we'll keep you posted," John said in signing off.
"Okay, I'll inform Pilot. If you get into trouble, just howler and I'll jump into a Prowler and be there in a flash," said Sean, John could almost hear the smile in the younger Crichton's voice.
"And Aeryn or Malika would slowly beat you to death afterwards if you scratched one of their beloved ships... I'll talk to you later," John chuckled as he keyed off his comm.
Berret watched the hustle and bustle of the landing port and check his chron for the sixth time in the last quarter arn. Irritated with how slow the time was passing, he spun around back toward the Pod... and almost walked straight into Zhaan.
"You didn't eat much," observed the Priestess.
"I'm not hungry," said Berret in reply.
Zhaan tilted her head as she regarded him, "At least you're sure about something."
"What is that suppose to mean?"
"It means you are capable of knowing your mind when it pleases you."
Berret watched the Delvian, unsure where the conversation was leading. The Pa'u simply remained standing there with her slightly pleasant smile and saying nothing more. The Shrike knew the priestess could wield calmness and patience like a weapon, just as she was doing now.
"I'm not sure I understand where this discussion is going?" Berret said.
"I think you do. I believe it is time for you to come to terms with your feelings about Chiana."
"I don't know what you are referring too," said Berret coolly and then made to leave.
"That is enough!" snapped Zhaan as she seized him by one arm as he tried to push passed her. "I assure you, Jared. You may believe you are fooling everyone," she said harshly, "but the only one you are fooling is yourself. Even then, deep inside yourself, you cannot hold the deceit for long. You know you love her."
"I am not capable of loving... anyone," answered the Shrike, his voice turning hard and dispassionate.
Without warning, the Delvian hauled off and slapped Berret across the face.
"You lie! Next you will try telling me you have no feelings for me!" she said with a wounded look.
Berret was about to deny her assertion, when she cut him off, "Don't forget, I am the one other person you cannot tell untruths to. We have shared Unity; I know your heart and mind as well as you do. Deep inside you there beats a human heart that yearns to love and be loved, only you keep it chained and locked away with your shame." Zhaan gently took the sides his face with her hands and rested her forehead against his. "Set it free before it withers and dies," she pleaded with him in a low voice.
Zhaan blue eyes felt like they were boring their way through to his soul. The anguish in her voice cutting him to the bone, eroding away the very way he perceived himself... stripping him bare.
"I - I don't know how..." he finally said hesitantly, his defenses crumbling.
"Admit it... admit you care for her."
"I do... care for her," he said haltingly, almost as if he'd had to force the words out.
Zhaan smiled a little in encouragement and brushed his cheek, "You see, a small step... now tell me you love her." Berret started to pull away attempting to flee the feelings she was forcing him to confront head on, but the Delvian's grip held him firm. "Tell me you love her," she said more insistently.
"That wouldn't matter."
"It does matter. Tell me!"
"She could never feel the same way about me!"
"You don't know that. Say it!"
"With everything I have..." Berret began to say when Zhaan pulled him in closer and practically shouted in his face,
"And nothing! TELL ME!"
As if something snapped, a dam of emotion burst somewhere inside of the Shrike. Fear, grief, sadness, and hate rolled around in a whirlpool of despair threatening to drown him.
"I LOVE HER!" Berret suddenly found himself shouting back at the Priestess. Suddenly other feelings like joy, happiness, and maybe... love and the glimmer of hope, began to mix with the other emotions that ran through the ex-assassin. "I love her more than my life itself. I find myself aching for her touch, straining to hear her every sigh. To feel her breathe on my face, or the brush of her fingertips on my skin when our hands touch. I want nothing more then to be with her every waking moment and to feel her breath beside me while she sleeps. To hear her say my name... and see her smile."
Berret paused to catch his breath, slightly amazed and drained by the proclamation that had poured out of him. He had finally done it, voiced the furtive dream to another.
"Is that what you wanted to hear?" he asked quietly a few microts later.
Zhaan smiled and ran a hand affectionately along the side of his head, stroking his hair.
"No. It was what you needed to hear," was all she said, and then she turned away to rejoin the others.
"It matters little," he said at her departing back, some of the hardness trying to creep back into his voice. "Chiana could never love... never want to be with, someone like me."
Zhaan paused for a microt and looked back over one shoulder at the man.
"That is not for you to decide," she said before turning back and continuing on her way.
Jessom cackled as he ran his hands along Chiana's body; making the bound Nebari girl try to squirm away from his touch.
"She's a nice one. Just look at this frelling body. That glip Kippso's outdone himself finding her," he said to his overweight partner.
Melton grinned widely and nodded his head, making his fat cheeks jiggle with the motion. The pair had moved the girl from the storage basement to the backroom on the first floor of the storefront. The call had come from their employer a few microns earlier that he was sending someone to pick up the recently purchased Nebari slave. Jessom's hand moved back further and gave Chiana's behind a hard squeeze, the sudden pinch making her jump and cry out to his delight.
"It's a shame we never got a chance to try you out, I bet you're a real smooth ride," he told the gagged girl with a smile that showed his decaying teeth. "But don't worry, you little tralk. Whatever pleasure house Lucsen sells you too, you can be sure old Melton and me will visit you at it. Isn't that right, Meltie?"
Chiana's eyes grew wider as her worst fears were realized; she had become a slave and was being sold to a pleasure house. She knew that the life expectancy of pleasure slaves out here in the Uncharted Territories wasn't very long. Sometimes it was easier to kill a used up slave rather that try and sell them again. Jesson laughed at the growing horror in her eyes.
"We'll have plenty of long nights in the future to get to know you," he promised her. "I imagine we could become two of your best customers," he added with another pinch in a tender place.
With his hands and fingers fondling and probing her helpless body, Chiana closed her eyes tightly and tried to imagine herself someplace else far away.
The rest of the day was mental torture for Berret. The crew had spread out once again to cover the trading town in an attempt to find the wayward Nebari. They could locate no one new who could remember seeing the young woman. The huge force shield generators made it hard for the comms to work surface to surface so the shipmates arranged to meet back at the Pod before heading back to the saloon where Chiana was seen the night before. John extracted a promise from Berret to behave himself on this trip to the tavern and to Crichton's surprise the man had agreed with no debate. He'd noticed that the Shrike seemed very quiet and deep in thought at times after Zhaan had found him and they'd had a talk. Whatever the Delvian had said to the ex-assassin, he had appeared more subdued the rest of the afternoon. The group entered the nightspot and found the bartender who had worked the night before tending the bar. John and his new wife questioned the man for almost ten microns but even after showing the barkeeper Chiana's holophoto, the man said he couldn't remember for sure if he had seen her the night before. The bartender, whose name was Jeoff, gave them the addresses of several other trendy pubs and suggested that she might be found at one of them if she liked the nightlife. Berret had stood off to one side and remained silent as Aeryn and Crichton interviewed the man. John nodded to him as they gathered the rest of their friends around them, happy that the Shrike had kept his word about remaining under control this time around.
The friends decided that they would split up and go in singles or pairs to check out the other taverns that Jeoff had mentioned. Outside the Inn they all agreed to met back again at the Transport Pod after they had looked around at their assigned establishments. Berret went his own way, the others thinking that the man wanted to be alone with his disappointed about the lead turning into a dead-end. Berret headed off toward one of the clubs but only went a short way before turning back toward the original tavern. He ducked down between the buildings to the back of the place and waited silently by the back door in the shadows. He didn't have to wait long before the back door opened and Jeoff appeared hauling a trashcan over to a large disposal bin. The man emptied the can and didn't seem to be very surprised to find Berret standing behind him when he turned around.
"You're with them, that's looking for that Nebari girl that was here last night, aren't you?" he said to the black-cloaked figure.
"Yes. You did see her here last night then," the Shrike said.
Jeoff nodded, "I'd hoped your friends would wise up and wait to talk someplace less public. Yeah, she was here... but she left with some rather unpleasant company."
"Do you have the name of this 'company'?" asked Berret, his eyes burning silver in the darkness.
The bartender didn't seemed too fazed by the strange eyes of the man as he acquiesce and continued,
"Your friend seemed like a nice girl and she said she was here celebrating something..."
"Celebrating what?" interrupted Berret.
"I don't know. She just said she had something to be happy about and that she was in the mood to celebrate a little."
"I see," said the Shrike looking crestfallen. "Could it be she was celebrating being free of him?" he asked himself. Was it possible that he was such an overburden to the girl that she'd rather leave the safety of Moya and the others than to stay and have to be near him?
"What I'm worried about is who she left here with yesterday night," said Jeoff continuing the story, "She started drinking with a guy named Kippso. He's a short little piece of dren, but he's involved with some very serious people... people you don't want to frell with."
"Why is that?" asked the Shrike as he became more worried for Chiana by the microt.
"Look... I can get hurt. Very, very, hurt... and I mean hurt as in dead if anyone found out I was talking to you about this."
"I understand and I thank you for taking the risk. I will speak of this to no one," assured the ex-assassin.
The man checked over his shoulder back toward the tavern's doorway to make sure no one was listening.
"These people are into an illegal business. One that's very profitable and where sometimes people get killed in. The only reason I'm sticking my neck out right now is because one of my friend's younger sisters got 'involved' and disappeared several cycles back... no one's ever seen her again."
"What kind of business?" queried the Shrike.
"Slavery."
"Where could I find this Kippso?" Berret asked urgently.
The Shrike ran back to the landing port and boarded the Pod. None of the others had yet returned. Berret tore open a storage locker and dug through an equipment bag. He shoved a few extra power clips for his pulse pistols into pockets and then just before he left the ship decided on taking the sword from Wraith that he had brought down with him. He closed the transport up and tried again as he had several times before to get his comm working. The town had been testing the field generators on and off throughout the night preparing for the next major storm that was due to hit in the next few days. With the turbines running, comm links sometimes didn't work as well as they should. He ran down to the Pod that Chiana had brought and climbed aboard it. Several microts later the ship lifted off and head for the opposite side of the town. The Shrike piloted the Pod faster then was safe this close to the ground but he was beyond caring, Chiana was in danger and it was his fault. If he found the Nebari he would get her out of the situation whatever way he could, she may not yet realize that she was in trouble or she might have already been chained and collared. Whatever had happened he would get her out and take her back to Moya. Afterwards he would take the Wraith and leave the Leviathan so that Chiana didn't feel she had too. It would be the fair thing, after all it was her home first and these people had done more for him than he had the right to expect.
He banked the Pod and a few microns later set it down at a nearby commerce port.
Kippso was lucky. He had a pocketful of credits from turning over that tralk from last night; he had a drink in his hand and two beautiful party girls hanging on his every word. So what did it matter if they'd be gone the microt his money was totally spent... at this moment, he was king of the world. He'd just slipped a five credit note into the cleavage of one of the bar girls when a tall man in a long black cloak came into the club. By the reaction of his two new female friends he could tell they found him quite attractive, though there was something about his eyes that said he was a very cold man. While some women are attracted to a hint of danger, the aura about the dark figure implied deadly. Not something his two companions were ready to tempt... at least not until his money ran out. Kippso watched the man scan the drinking hole until his dead eyes found his own. The slaver suppressed a shutter and was strangely relieved when the other man moved his gaze on elsewhere. He wandered over to the bar and leaned over to speak to the employee behind it for several microts. Kippso was stunned when the barkeep looked over the crowd, then seeing him at his table, pointed him out to the dark man. The cloaked figure thanked the bartender and headed over in his direction. Kippso found himself tensing as the man stopped before his table and said,
"You are Kippso." It was a statement, not a question.
Kippso nodded, "Do I know you?" the slave runner asked. Up close, the man's eyes were even more soulless then he first thought.
"No. I have heard that you are the man to talk to about acquiring certain...'unusual trade items'."
"I think you're mistaken, I really don't know what you're talking about," Kippso said trying his best to seem at ease between the two bar girls.
The man frowned. "I see. Perhaps I have the wrong Kippso. The one I am looking for deals in high priced collectables." The man started to turn away but Kippso stopped him after he'd used the paraphrasing that his employers used when referring to their business in public.
"What sort of collectables?" he asked when the man turned back to him.
"The kind that must be gathered... discreetly. My client is willing to pay top price," replied the man.
"I see. I am that Kippso you are looking for," he told him as he started to smell more credits and his greed took hold of him. He turned to his feminine companions saying,
"Ladies if you will excuse me for a few microts while I talk business with this gentleman."
Kippso slipped out from between the pair of females and gestured for Berret to follow him out a side doorway. Outside in the darkness he eagerly turned to the cloaked man and asked,
"So what exactly are you looking for?"
"Information," said Berret.
"On what?" Kippso asked in bewilderment, wondering what happened to his interest in slaves.
"Your employer. You have someone that belongs to me," Berret said.
Kippso realized he was in trouble. He racked his brain and tried to think which tralk he had lured away in his career had come back to haunt him. The man's eyes had started to turn an eerie silver as soon as they had exited the tavern into the dark side alley. He didn't know of any species with that ability or trait and he would have remembered a female whose eyes did something like that. The only slave he'd snared recently was that Nebari, it had to be her. The little bitch hadn't been alone after all, now someone has come looking for her. His employers definitely wouldn't like this complication... and it was up to him to take care of it, especially if he wanted to continue on living.
Kippso's hand creped under his coat and drew the dagger he kept hidden there. He was small, but he was quick as a Whipsnake. As soon as the blade cleared its sheath he thrust it at the tall man's chest with all his might. He was just silently congratulating himself for getting the drop on this trouble maker when to his horror the blade struck something hard and snapped off with the impact. The stranger swept back his cloak; to Kippso's amazement the man was wearing some sort of armor underneath. The slave runner watched stunned as the man casually inspected his breastplate and found no damage, however his finger found a hole in his cloak where the blade had passed through it. Glaring back up at Kippso, the man began to growl in annoyance. With an audible gulp, he spun on his heel and turned to run for his life.
With one hand Berret caught the fleeing man by the collar and flung him into a wall. Before the small man could get back to his feet and run again, Berret grabbed him by the front of his coat and lifted him clear of the ground so the smaller man was at eye level with him.
"What do you want?" cried Kippso in terror as he hung looking into the Shrike's silver-tinted eyes.
"Rumor has it that you know the whereabouts of a young Nebari girl," said Berret.
"I-I don't know anything about any Nebari girl... you have the wrong man," Kippso whined.
Without further word, Berret slammed the man hard enough into the wall he was pinned against to crack it's siding. He then flipped the man over to land flat on his back in the alleyway. The Shrike towered over Kippso menacingly and one heavy metal shod boot came down on his chest, pinning him in place on the ground.
"You lie," he said forebodingly, "You were seen in her company less then a solar day ago."
Berret swept back his cloak further to reveal the long handle of the sword struck through his belt.
"I'm getting tired of games. The next lie you tell me I will lop off an arm... and each time you lie after that it will cost you another limb until there are no more left. Now... where did you take her?"
"I can't tell you... they'll kill me if I do!" exclaimed Kippso in a panic.
Berret smiled a wicked smile, "Haven't you been paying attention? I'm going to kill you here and now if you don't."
Lucsen turned as Overseer Verser entered his study followed by two guards dragging the struggling chain-bound Nebari girl in. The Slaver noticed something odd about her face and went to his newly purchased property. He grabbed the girl under her chin and turned her head from one side to the other as he examined her.
"What is this?" he asked upon seeing a bluish bruise developing on one of the girl's gray cheeks.
"The little bitch got smart and kneed one of the guards, I had to teach her a lesson," replied Verser.
Without warning Lucsen spun and backhanded the other man across the face.
"How many frelling times do I have to tell you? Never in the face! Clients do NOT pay for damaged merchandise," he spat at the man.
"I'm sorry! She's a fighter... and in the heat of the moment, I forgot," apologized the Overseer.
"Any profit I lose on her will come out of your pay," said Lucsen. Seeing the smirk on Chiana's face the man whirled and drove a fist into her stomach. The force of the blow doubled the girl over onto the floor. "This is how you handle unruly slaves," he said as he produced a small box and touched the metal prongs at one end to the gasping Nebari girl. There was the crackle of electricity and Chiana's back arched in pain, her scream filling the room. The man used the device several more times on the girl before asking, "Now... are you going to behave yourself like a good tralk from here on?"
"Yes," Chiana gasped out from where she was still rolled up in a ball on the floor, "Please... no more. I'll do anything you want."
"That you will," the Slave master said as if it was a promise. The man turned back to Verser and handed him the small black box he'd just used on her. "You see? No more problems. Clean the tralk up and do your best to hide the bruise. There's a client coming this evening, and he's interested in purchasing a young Nebari female for his pleasure house. Get a collar ready for her and make sure she stays compliant, I'm sure he'll want to test her out himself."
"What the frell was I drinking last night?" she groggily asked herself. The last thing she remembered was sitting in a tavern having a drink to celebrate her decision to ask Berret to bond. She'd met a funny little man named Kippso or Klepto who asked if she was traveling alone after seeing her bag. He seemed harmless and was interested in hearing her story so she remembered having several drinks with him. She remembered getting as far as her decision to leave Moya after the last round he'd bought and she started to feel funny. After that she couldn't remember anything at all. She finally worked up the nerve to pry open her eyes despite the pain. Looking around she found she definitely didn't recognize the place she was in. She was lying flat out on a pallet on the floor. Someone must have found her dren-faced and taken her somewhere to sober up she reasoned. She tried rolling over and then she heard a noise that froze her blood. When she had moved there was the rattle of a chain. Alert now, she shot upright... ignoring the pounding in her head. To her horror she discovered that someone had fastened a thick metal manacle around one of her ankles connected to a equally heavy chain. Pulling on the length of chain she found that the other end was connected to a metal ring that was part of the quickcrete floor.
"Oh my Goddess, oh my Goddess!" she murmured over and over again.
She was someone's prisoner.
The crewmates regrouped at the Transport Pod. After Aeryn and John filled D'argo and the others in on their lead. Zhaan, Malika, and Andar offered to go out and bring back some food for lunch from one of the area's refreshment houses. John called up to Moya to fill in the rest of the crew,
"Any luck, John?" asked Sean from aboard Moya.
"We have one lead, but we can't follow up on it till later tonight," he reported.
"How's tall, dark, and extra gloomy taking it?"
"Well, despite the fact he killed a bar and scared the dren out of the bartender; I'd say quite well for Mr. Subtle. How you and Sparky getting along?"
"His royal 'Pain in the ass' has been unusually quiet. If I didn't know better, I'd say he was actually too worried about Chiana to cause much trouble. He say's his 'Marrmocks', whatever they are, are telling him something's terribly wrong."
"He's probably just hungry and doesn't realize it yet. Okay, we'll keep you posted," John said in signing off.
"Okay, I'll inform Pilot. If you get into trouble, just howler and I'll jump into a Prowler and be there in a flash," said Sean, John could almost hear the smile in the younger Crichton's voice.
"And Aeryn or Malika would slowly beat you to death afterwards if you scratched one of their beloved ships... I'll talk to you later," John chuckled as he keyed off his comm.
Berret watched the hustle and bustle of the landing port and check his chron for the sixth time in the last quarter arn. Irritated with how slow the time was passing, he spun around back toward the Pod... and almost walked straight into Zhaan.
"You didn't eat much," observed the Priestess.
"I'm not hungry," said Berret in reply.
Zhaan tilted her head as she regarded him, "At least you're sure about something."
"What is that suppose to mean?"
"It means you are capable of knowing your mind when it pleases you."
Berret watched the Delvian, unsure where the conversation was leading. The Pa'u simply remained standing there with her slightly pleasant smile and saying nothing more. The Shrike knew the priestess could wield calmness and patience like a weapon, just as she was doing now.
"I'm not sure I understand where this discussion is going?" Berret said.
"I think you do. I believe it is time for you to come to terms with your feelings about Chiana."
"I don't know what you are referring too," said Berret coolly and then made to leave.
"That is enough!" snapped Zhaan as she seized him by one arm as he tried to push passed her. "I assure you, Jared. You may believe you are fooling everyone," she said harshly, "but the only one you are fooling is yourself. Even then, deep inside yourself, you cannot hold the deceit for long. You know you love her."
"I am not capable of loving... anyone," answered the Shrike, his voice turning hard and dispassionate.
Without warning, the Delvian hauled off and slapped Berret across the face.
"You lie! Next you will try telling me you have no feelings for me!" she said with a wounded look.
Berret was about to deny her assertion, when she cut him off, "Don't forget, I am the one other person you cannot tell untruths to. We have shared Unity; I know your heart and mind as well as you do. Deep inside you there beats a human heart that yearns to love and be loved, only you keep it chained and locked away with your shame." Zhaan gently took the sides his face with her hands and rested her forehead against his. "Set it free before it withers and dies," she pleaded with him in a low voice.
Zhaan blue eyes felt like they were boring their way through to his soul. The anguish in her voice cutting him to the bone, eroding away the very way he perceived himself... stripping him bare.
"I - I don't know how..." he finally said hesitantly, his defenses crumbling.
"Admit it... admit you care for her."
"I do... care for her," he said haltingly, almost as if he'd had to force the words out.
Zhaan smiled a little in encouragement and brushed his cheek, "You see, a small step... now tell me you love her." Berret started to pull away attempting to flee the feelings she was forcing him to confront head on, but the Delvian's grip held him firm. "Tell me you love her," she said more insistently.
"That wouldn't matter."
"It does matter. Tell me!"
"She could never feel the same way about me!"
"You don't know that. Say it!"
"With everything I have..." Berret began to say when Zhaan pulled him in closer and practically shouted in his face,
"And nothing! TELL ME!"
As if something snapped, a dam of emotion burst somewhere inside of the Shrike. Fear, grief, sadness, and hate rolled around in a whirlpool of despair threatening to drown him.
"I LOVE HER!" Berret suddenly found himself shouting back at the Priestess. Suddenly other feelings like joy, happiness, and maybe... love and the glimmer of hope, began to mix with the other emotions that ran through the ex-assassin. "I love her more than my life itself. I find myself aching for her touch, straining to hear her every sigh. To feel her breathe on my face, or the brush of her fingertips on my skin when our hands touch. I want nothing more then to be with her every waking moment and to feel her breath beside me while she sleeps. To hear her say my name... and see her smile."
Berret paused to catch his breath, slightly amazed and drained by the proclamation that had poured out of him. He had finally done it, voiced the furtive dream to another.
"Is that what you wanted to hear?" he asked quietly a few microts later.
Zhaan smiled and ran a hand affectionately along the side of his head, stroking his hair.
"No. It was what you needed to hear," was all she said, and then she turned away to rejoin the others.
"It matters little," he said at her departing back, some of the hardness trying to creep back into his voice. "Chiana could never love... never want to be with, someone like me."
Zhaan paused for a microt and looked back over one shoulder at the man.
"That is not for you to decide," she said before turning back and continuing on her way.
Jessom cackled as he ran his hands along Chiana's body; making the bound Nebari girl try to squirm away from his touch.
"She's a nice one. Just look at this frelling body. That glip Kippso's outdone himself finding her," he said to his overweight partner.
Melton grinned widely and nodded his head, making his fat cheeks jiggle with the motion. The pair had moved the girl from the storage basement to the backroom on the first floor of the storefront. The call had come from their employer a few microns earlier that he was sending someone to pick up the recently purchased Nebari slave. Jessom's hand moved back further and gave Chiana's behind a hard squeeze, the sudden pinch making her jump and cry out to his delight.
"It's a shame we never got a chance to try you out, I bet you're a real smooth ride," he told the gagged girl with a smile that showed his decaying teeth. "But don't worry, you little tralk. Whatever pleasure house Lucsen sells you too, you can be sure old Melton and me will visit you at it. Isn't that right, Meltie?"
Chiana's eyes grew wider as her worst fears were realized; she had become a slave and was being sold to a pleasure house. She knew that the life expectancy of pleasure slaves out here in the Uncharted Territories wasn't very long. Sometimes it was easier to kill a used up slave rather that try and sell them again. Jesson laughed at the growing horror in her eyes.
"We'll have plenty of long nights in the future to get to know you," he promised her. "I imagine we could become two of your best customers," he added with another pinch in a tender place.
With his hands and fingers fondling and probing her helpless body, Chiana closed her eyes tightly and tried to imagine herself someplace else far away.
The rest of the day was mental torture for Berret. The crew had spread out once again to cover the trading town in an attempt to find the wayward Nebari. They could locate no one new who could remember seeing the young woman. The huge force shield generators made it hard for the comms to work surface to surface so the shipmates arranged to meet back at the Pod before heading back to the saloon where Chiana was seen the night before. John extracted a promise from Berret to behave himself on this trip to the tavern and to Crichton's surprise the man had agreed with no debate. He'd noticed that the Shrike seemed very quiet and deep in thought at times after Zhaan had found him and they'd had a talk. Whatever the Delvian had said to the ex-assassin, he had appeared more subdued the rest of the afternoon. The group entered the nightspot and found the bartender who had worked the night before tending the bar. John and his new wife questioned the man for almost ten microns but even after showing the barkeeper Chiana's holophoto, the man said he couldn't remember for sure if he had seen her the night before. The bartender, whose name was Jeoff, gave them the addresses of several other trendy pubs and suggested that she might be found at one of them if she liked the nightlife. Berret had stood off to one side and remained silent as Aeryn and Crichton interviewed the man. John nodded to him as they gathered the rest of their friends around them, happy that the Shrike had kept his word about remaining under control this time around.
The friends decided that they would split up and go in singles or pairs to check out the other taverns that Jeoff had mentioned. Outside the Inn they all agreed to met back again at the Transport Pod after they had looked around at their assigned establishments. Berret went his own way, the others thinking that the man wanted to be alone with his disappointed about the lead turning into a dead-end. Berret headed off toward one of the clubs but only went a short way before turning back toward the original tavern. He ducked down between the buildings to the back of the place and waited silently by the back door in the shadows. He didn't have to wait long before the back door opened and Jeoff appeared hauling a trashcan over to a large disposal bin. The man emptied the can and didn't seem to be very surprised to find Berret standing behind him when he turned around.
"You're with them, that's looking for that Nebari girl that was here last night, aren't you?" he said to the black-cloaked figure.
"Yes. You did see her here last night then," the Shrike said.
Jeoff nodded, "I'd hoped your friends would wise up and wait to talk someplace less public. Yeah, she was here... but she left with some rather unpleasant company."
"Do you have the name of this 'company'?" asked Berret, his eyes burning silver in the darkness.
The bartender didn't seemed too fazed by the strange eyes of the man as he acquiesce and continued,
"Your friend seemed like a nice girl and she said she was here celebrating something..."
"Celebrating what?" interrupted Berret.
"I don't know. She just said she had something to be happy about and that she was in the mood to celebrate a little."
"I see," said the Shrike looking crestfallen. "Could it be she was celebrating being free of him?" he asked himself. Was it possible that he was such an overburden to the girl that she'd rather leave the safety of Moya and the others than to stay and have to be near him?
"What I'm worried about is who she left here with yesterday night," said Jeoff continuing the story, "She started drinking with a guy named Kippso. He's a short little piece of dren, but he's involved with some very serious people... people you don't want to frell with."
"Why is that?" asked the Shrike as he became more worried for Chiana by the microt.
"Look... I can get hurt. Very, very, hurt... and I mean hurt as in dead if anyone found out I was talking to you about this."
"I understand and I thank you for taking the risk. I will speak of this to no one," assured the ex-assassin.
The man checked over his shoulder back toward the tavern's doorway to make sure no one was listening.
"These people are into an illegal business. One that's very profitable and where sometimes people get killed in. The only reason I'm sticking my neck out right now is because one of my friend's younger sisters got 'involved' and disappeared several cycles back... no one's ever seen her again."
"What kind of business?" queried the Shrike.
"Slavery."
"Where could I find this Kippso?" Berret asked urgently.
The Shrike ran back to the landing port and boarded the Pod. None of the others had yet returned. Berret tore open a storage locker and dug through an equipment bag. He shoved a few extra power clips for his pulse pistols into pockets and then just before he left the ship decided on taking the sword from Wraith that he had brought down with him. He closed the transport up and tried again as he had several times before to get his comm working. The town had been testing the field generators on and off throughout the night preparing for the next major storm that was due to hit in the next few days. With the turbines running, comm links sometimes didn't work as well as they should. He ran down to the Pod that Chiana had brought and climbed aboard it. Several microts later the ship lifted off and head for the opposite side of the town. The Shrike piloted the Pod faster then was safe this close to the ground but he was beyond caring, Chiana was in danger and it was his fault. If he found the Nebari he would get her out of the situation whatever way he could, she may not yet realize that she was in trouble or she might have already been chained and collared. Whatever had happened he would get her out and take her back to Moya. Afterwards he would take the Wraith and leave the Leviathan so that Chiana didn't feel she had too. It would be the fair thing, after all it was her home first and these people had done more for him than he had the right to expect.
He banked the Pod and a few microns later set it down at a nearby commerce port.
Kippso was lucky. He had a pocketful of credits from turning over that tralk from last night; he had a drink in his hand and two beautiful party girls hanging on his every word. So what did it matter if they'd be gone the microt his money was totally spent... at this moment, he was king of the world. He'd just slipped a five credit note into the cleavage of one of the bar girls when a tall man in a long black cloak came into the club. By the reaction of his two new female friends he could tell they found him quite attractive, though there was something about his eyes that said he was a very cold man. While some women are attracted to a hint of danger, the aura about the dark figure implied deadly. Not something his two companions were ready to tempt... at least not until his money ran out. Kippso watched the man scan the drinking hole until his dead eyes found his own. The slaver suppressed a shutter and was strangely relieved when the other man moved his gaze on elsewhere. He wandered over to the bar and leaned over to speak to the employee behind it for several microts. Kippso was stunned when the barkeep looked over the crowd, then seeing him at his table, pointed him out to the dark man. The cloaked figure thanked the bartender and headed over in his direction. Kippso found himself tensing as the man stopped before his table and said,
"You are Kippso." It was a statement, not a question.
Kippso nodded, "Do I know you?" the slave runner asked. Up close, the man's eyes were even more soulless then he first thought.
"No. I have heard that you are the man to talk to about acquiring certain...'unusual trade items'."
"I think you're mistaken, I really don't know what you're talking about," Kippso said trying his best to seem at ease between the two bar girls.
The man frowned. "I see. Perhaps I have the wrong Kippso. The one I am looking for deals in high priced collectables." The man started to turn away but Kippso stopped him after he'd used the paraphrasing that his employers used when referring to their business in public.
"What sort of collectables?" he asked when the man turned back to him.
"The kind that must be gathered... discreetly. My client is willing to pay top price," replied the man.
"I see. I am that Kippso you are looking for," he told him as he started to smell more credits and his greed took hold of him. He turned to his feminine companions saying,
"Ladies if you will excuse me for a few microts while I talk business with this gentleman."
Kippso slipped out from between the pair of females and gestured for Berret to follow him out a side doorway. Outside in the darkness he eagerly turned to the cloaked man and asked,
"So what exactly are you looking for?"
"Information," said Berret.
"On what?" Kippso asked in bewilderment, wondering what happened to his interest in slaves.
"Your employer. You have someone that belongs to me," Berret said.
Kippso realized he was in trouble. He racked his brain and tried to think which tralk he had lured away in his career had come back to haunt him. The man's eyes had started to turn an eerie silver as soon as they had exited the tavern into the dark side alley. He didn't know of any species with that ability or trait and he would have remembered a female whose eyes did something like that. The only slave he'd snared recently was that Nebari, it had to be her. The little bitch hadn't been alone after all, now someone has come looking for her. His employers definitely wouldn't like this complication... and it was up to him to take care of it, especially if he wanted to continue on living.
Kippso's hand creped under his coat and drew the dagger he kept hidden there. He was small, but he was quick as a Whipsnake. As soon as the blade cleared its sheath he thrust it at the tall man's chest with all his might. He was just silently congratulating himself for getting the drop on this trouble maker when to his horror the blade struck something hard and snapped off with the impact. The stranger swept back his cloak; to Kippso's amazement the man was wearing some sort of armor underneath. The slave runner watched stunned as the man casually inspected his breastplate and found no damage, however his finger found a hole in his cloak where the blade had passed through it. Glaring back up at Kippso, the man began to growl in annoyance. With an audible gulp, he spun on his heel and turned to run for his life.
With one hand Berret caught the fleeing man by the collar and flung him into a wall. Before the small man could get back to his feet and run again, Berret grabbed him by the front of his coat and lifted him clear of the ground so the smaller man was at eye level with him.
"What do you want?" cried Kippso in terror as he hung looking into the Shrike's silver-tinted eyes.
"Rumor has it that you know the whereabouts of a young Nebari girl," said Berret.
"I-I don't know anything about any Nebari girl... you have the wrong man," Kippso whined.
Without further word, Berret slammed the man hard enough into the wall he was pinned against to crack it's siding. He then flipped the man over to land flat on his back in the alleyway. The Shrike towered over Kippso menacingly and one heavy metal shod boot came down on his chest, pinning him in place on the ground.
"You lie," he said forebodingly, "You were seen in her company less then a solar day ago."
Berret swept back his cloak further to reveal the long handle of the sword struck through his belt.
"I'm getting tired of games. The next lie you tell me I will lop off an arm... and each time you lie after that it will cost you another limb until there are no more left. Now... where did you take her?"
"I can't tell you... they'll kill me if I do!" exclaimed Kippso in a panic.
Berret smiled a wicked smile, "Haven't you been paying attention? I'm going to kill you here and now if you don't."
Lucsen turned as Overseer Verser entered his study followed by two guards dragging the struggling chain-bound Nebari girl in. The Slaver noticed something odd about her face and went to his newly purchased property. He grabbed the girl under her chin and turned her head from one side to the other as he examined her.
"What is this?" he asked upon seeing a bluish bruise developing on one of the girl's gray cheeks.
"The little bitch got smart and kneed one of the guards, I had to teach her a lesson," replied Verser.
Without warning Lucsen spun and backhanded the other man across the face.
"How many frelling times do I have to tell you? Never in the face! Clients do NOT pay for damaged merchandise," he spat at the man.
"I'm sorry! She's a fighter... and in the heat of the moment, I forgot," apologized the Overseer.
"Any profit I lose on her will come out of your pay," said Lucsen. Seeing the smirk on Chiana's face the man whirled and drove a fist into her stomach. The force of the blow doubled the girl over onto the floor. "This is how you handle unruly slaves," he said as he produced a small box and touched the metal prongs at one end to the gasping Nebari girl. There was the crackle of electricity and Chiana's back arched in pain, her scream filling the room. The man used the device several more times on the girl before asking, "Now... are you going to behave yourself like a good tralk from here on?"
"Yes," Chiana gasped out from where she was still rolled up in a ball on the floor, "Please... no more. I'll do anything you want."
"That you will," the Slave master said as if it was a promise. The man turned back to Verser and handed him the small black box he'd just used on her. "You see? No more problems. Clean the tralk up and do your best to hide the bruise. There's a client coming this evening, and he's interested in purchasing a young Nebari female for his pleasure house. Get a collar ready for her and make sure she stays compliant, I'm sure he'll want to test her out himself."