"HE WHAT," Baralooda screamed. Her face contorted in rage. "HOW DID HE GET
OUT YOU BLUNDERING IDIOTS?"
"Well, you see your majesty, he got out somehow I don't know how," the
guard said timidly honestly hoping that he would not die in the next minute
or so. "I think you should just watch the vid he left for you." He pulled
up the vid screen and pushed the activation button. On the screen a man in
gray jumpsuit was smiling into the screen.
"I hoped to see you face to face, old girl, but this will have to do. Don't
be to hard on them guards. They can't help they are complete morons," he
said. His voice was clear and strong but held a deep sound of mirth.
Baralooda's eyes blazed by each passing word. He looked behind him and
jerked his thumb towards a small star ship close to the cargo bay doors. "I
think I will have to borrow that one over yonder. I hope you don't mind,
old girl." He turned to go then stopped and looked at the screen. His face
had lost all of its happiness. "I will return eventually to repay you for
the ship and other things. But until then you have my happiest thoughts and
I hope you can keep your thrown for now." He flourished a bow and smiled
broadly. "Until the stars say we are to meet again." He ran to the ship and
got into it. Then he fired the weapons and blasted open the bay doors. In a
flash of engines the ship was gone. Baralooda turned. Her eyes were aflame
while her mouth was open in a snarl.
"The impudence," she raved. She walked off the deck shouting into the air
about how she would get the coyote if she had to kill him herself. Looda
watched without making a sound.
Davin walked into the saloon at a swagger. He had his original colors of dark blue and yellow on. Everyone looked up when he entered. I must look odd, he thought. He had two archaic swords strapped to his back. They were metal unlike the more modern swords. He smiled and strode up to the bar. The bar tender looked at him. He was a lanky person whose arms and legs seemed longer than they were. He stood taller than most. Unlike most thieves, as he was, he did not use guns, but rather his own head and hands. Nothing could not be bypassed by his nimble fingers and his quick thoughts. He had learned as many fighting styles as he could in the few years he trained. He prided himself in being able to fight almost anyone with his fists. As he leaned on the bar, a kid walked over to him with a tray. He smiled at the kid. "What can I get for you," the kid asked. "Nothing kid. Here to talk with your boss," Davin said. The boy walked off toward another customer. Davin motioned for bartender to come closer. "Hey, do you know where Emmie has been keeping herself/" The bartender looked at him then jumped in place. "Is that you Davin?" Davin smiled and nodded. "I thought you had died in Baralooda's prison." "Not likely," Davin said, "She kindly allowed me to leave in much the same way I got into her ship." The bartender smiled and nodded. "As to Emeraldas, I don't really know where she is," the bartender said, "she helped us out of a sticky situation earlier this week." Davin nodded. "So her ship may still be in the area," he asked the bartender. The bartender nodded. "Good. I'll stop by on my way out of here." He turned to leave then stopped. "I'll be back in about a couple of days." He moved to the doors and left.
Emeraldas sat in her deck chair tapping her foot impatiently. As she turned the ship, a panel lit up and started beeping. She stood and looked at it. An intruder, she thought, on my ship. She walked to the door when she picked up her sword. I hope this is not some malfunction, she thought. She walked down the corridor and opened the door of the room the panel said there was an intruder in. She raised the sword. "I hope you can explain yourself stowaway," she said into the room. When she looked around, she saw no one in the room. She entered slowly. "Well, if it is not Emmie," a voice said behind her. She turned but lowered the sword. Davin stood leaning against the wall behind the door. "Davin," she asked almost not believing her eyes. "At your service," he smiled at her and stepped off the wall. He wore his normal dark blue pants and yellow shirt. His archaic swords rattled as he bowed mockingly. "I bid greetings to the captain of the good ship Queen Emeraldas." She almost raised the sword again but resisted and placed it back at her side. She smiled herself. He had that way with people, she thought. "So, Baralooda let you out," she said. "I had to persuade some guards to leave. I almost stayed." She looked at him in disbelief. "Most of her guards were women and very beautiful." He gave her a wink and moved to a chair. He sat down with a sigh. "So how has the stars faired you this long time I have been detained?" She moved to a chair opposite him. "Fairly well they have," she said as she sat down. He pulled off the metal things he calls swords and placed them next to the chair. "Why do you bother with those ancient toys?" He looked at her then at the swords. "Trust them more than I do technology," he said looking out the porthole. "I like to be able to hold what I use. Anyways, I am here to tell you I am going to have an open season on Baralooda and her little empire." He smiled coldly as he said Baralooda's name. She looked at him. "Oh, so you are telling me why," she asked confused. "I am telling you this so you don't shoot me instead of some of her majesty's little flunkies." He smiled and put his hands behind his head. "So can you not shoot at me?" She smiled and nodded. "I will try my best not to you grinning idiot," she said almost laughing. He had the way about him that could make a stone laugh. His smile grew. "I am glad. What do you think I should steal first," he asked apparently serious. "Maybe her thrown," she suggested. He groaned. "What do you think I was trying to steal when the old girl caught me," he asked. She did chuckle at the thought of him carrying out her thrown on his back and her walking in and catching him. "I wish I could have seen her face when she found out you were gone," she thought out loud. "Oh, I think I left her in a fair rage. I left her a little message that as much as said I would get her back for my time lost in the ocean of stars." He sighed. "It is good to be free again though. She may be a queen and all but she treated me like a prisoner. The worst food you could imagine." She laughed again. "And you weren't a prisoner," she asked mockingly. "I like to think of it as special guest accommodations," he said chuckling. She smiled and shook her head. He stood. "I really must be going though. I think I will try for her thrown again. Any ways she won't catch me again. That I guarantee for sure." He walked toward the door. Then stopped. "You might want to think about a new security system. This one is so outdated." He opened the door and left. She shook her head. Ten years in a prison cell and he had not changed a bit. His brown eyes still twinkled in any light and his face always seemed to smile. I hope I see him again, she thought. As she stood, she realized she trusted him. More than other people anyway.
Baralooda was walking through the corridors of her floating palace when a guard stepped in front of her. "Majesty," he asked inquiringly. She nodded. She looked at him and something about him tickled at the back of her mind. "The ship that was stolen by the thief has been found." She looked at him surprised. That had been a fast find, she thought. "Where," she asked. His helmet reflected the light as he nodded. "In the cargo bay," he said. She looked at him. Surely, she thought. Then it struck her. "Find him. He is here," she said and started walking again. "Search every corner of this ship if you have to but he must not escape again." She turned a corner and entered her private quarters. As she moved to the blinking vid screen a thought occurred to her. Why was that guard here in my personal part of the ship, she thought as she pushed the button to play the vid. Davin's face appeared on the screen. He wore the same suit as her guards. Under his arm was a helmet the shined in the light. Behind him she could make out the very room she was in. "Well there old girl, I was hoping to meet you face to face for the thrill of it," he said smiling. "Anyways, I am just here to tell you that your security system needs updating. If I can get in you have no idea what other kind of ruffians can get in." He winked and stepped back and put on the helmet. "Oh," he said, "I left you a surprise for you to find in your quarters." He gave a small wave and shut off the vid recorder. She turned and walked to her bed. One of his metal swords lay on the bed. She picked it up and found that it was surprisingly heavy. The vid screen popped back on. "I almost forgot Loo Loo. I have your precious thrown. I put it in one of your empty cruisers and the damn thing just took off towards the nearest star system." He shrugged. "Don't worry though. I put in a boomerang program on the auto pilot. You will have your thrown back in a day or so." He waved and cut off the vid recorder again. She growled and used all her strength to fling the sword across the room. It hit the wall with a loud clatter. She stalked out of her room heading for the bridge of the ship.
Davin walked at attention as a proper guard should. He was near rolling on the floor laughing. He was barely able to control his excitement. He had not thought she would be around when he came out of her room. He was also relieved. If she had known who he was, she could have killed without hesitation. But that was what made it so fun. He walked casually and as he passed a door, the alarm went off. He rolled his eyes and smiled. They think they can catch me, he thought. As he passed another door it opened and as he passed he recognized Looda, Baralooda's right hand man, or woman as the case may be. He walked by slowly not wanting to catch her attention. He made it past her and as he started to sigh in relief, he heard a familiar hum of a laser pistol behind his head. He raised his hands. "Did you really expect to not been seen here today," Looda asked. "Well, Da, I really did not expect to be here today. I was hoping to be on my way to a sunny beach on some tourist planet," he said quietly. She did not move or make a sound. "Well, take me to your boss." He turned slowly and looked her in the eye. She was pretty in an odd way. If she had been human, he would have jumped at the chance to ask her to dance. Her eyes stared back at him without emotion. "Da, perhaps you could let this poor thieving spirit go free for another chance at catching me. You know I will be back later." She slowly lowered the pistol. "It is good that you are out there. It keeps her majesty on her toes as it were." Her voice said that she held the utmost respect for Baralooda. "Well, good," he said smiling. He turned and half ran down the hall and around the corner.
Davin walked into the saloon at a swagger. He had his original colors of dark blue and yellow on. Everyone looked up when he entered. I must look odd, he thought. He had two archaic swords strapped to his back. They were metal unlike the more modern swords. He smiled and strode up to the bar. The bar tender looked at him. He was a lanky person whose arms and legs seemed longer than they were. He stood taller than most. Unlike most thieves, as he was, he did not use guns, but rather his own head and hands. Nothing could not be bypassed by his nimble fingers and his quick thoughts. He had learned as many fighting styles as he could in the few years he trained. He prided himself in being able to fight almost anyone with his fists. As he leaned on the bar, a kid walked over to him with a tray. He smiled at the kid. "What can I get for you," the kid asked. "Nothing kid. Here to talk with your boss," Davin said. The boy walked off toward another customer. Davin motioned for bartender to come closer. "Hey, do you know where Emmie has been keeping herself/" The bartender looked at him then jumped in place. "Is that you Davin?" Davin smiled and nodded. "I thought you had died in Baralooda's prison." "Not likely," Davin said, "She kindly allowed me to leave in much the same way I got into her ship." The bartender smiled and nodded. "As to Emeraldas, I don't really know where she is," the bartender said, "she helped us out of a sticky situation earlier this week." Davin nodded. "So her ship may still be in the area," he asked the bartender. The bartender nodded. "Good. I'll stop by on my way out of here." He turned to leave then stopped. "I'll be back in about a couple of days." He moved to the doors and left.
Emeraldas sat in her deck chair tapping her foot impatiently. As she turned the ship, a panel lit up and started beeping. She stood and looked at it. An intruder, she thought, on my ship. She walked to the door when she picked up her sword. I hope this is not some malfunction, she thought. She walked down the corridor and opened the door of the room the panel said there was an intruder in. She raised the sword. "I hope you can explain yourself stowaway," she said into the room. When she looked around, she saw no one in the room. She entered slowly. "Well, if it is not Emmie," a voice said behind her. She turned but lowered the sword. Davin stood leaning against the wall behind the door. "Davin," she asked almost not believing her eyes. "At your service," he smiled at her and stepped off the wall. He wore his normal dark blue pants and yellow shirt. His archaic swords rattled as he bowed mockingly. "I bid greetings to the captain of the good ship Queen Emeraldas." She almost raised the sword again but resisted and placed it back at her side. She smiled herself. He had that way with people, she thought. "So, Baralooda let you out," she said. "I had to persuade some guards to leave. I almost stayed." She looked at him in disbelief. "Most of her guards were women and very beautiful." He gave her a wink and moved to a chair. He sat down with a sigh. "So how has the stars faired you this long time I have been detained?" She moved to a chair opposite him. "Fairly well they have," she said as she sat down. He pulled off the metal things he calls swords and placed them next to the chair. "Why do you bother with those ancient toys?" He looked at her then at the swords. "Trust them more than I do technology," he said looking out the porthole. "I like to be able to hold what I use. Anyways, I am here to tell you I am going to have an open season on Baralooda and her little empire." He smiled coldly as he said Baralooda's name. She looked at him. "Oh, so you are telling me why," she asked confused. "I am telling you this so you don't shoot me instead of some of her majesty's little flunkies." He smiled and put his hands behind his head. "So can you not shoot at me?" She smiled and nodded. "I will try my best not to you grinning idiot," she said almost laughing. He had the way about him that could make a stone laugh. His smile grew. "I am glad. What do you think I should steal first," he asked apparently serious. "Maybe her thrown," she suggested. He groaned. "What do you think I was trying to steal when the old girl caught me," he asked. She did chuckle at the thought of him carrying out her thrown on his back and her walking in and catching him. "I wish I could have seen her face when she found out you were gone," she thought out loud. "Oh, I think I left her in a fair rage. I left her a little message that as much as said I would get her back for my time lost in the ocean of stars." He sighed. "It is good to be free again though. She may be a queen and all but she treated me like a prisoner. The worst food you could imagine." She laughed again. "And you weren't a prisoner," she asked mockingly. "I like to think of it as special guest accommodations," he said chuckling. She smiled and shook her head. He stood. "I really must be going though. I think I will try for her thrown again. Any ways she won't catch me again. That I guarantee for sure." He walked toward the door. Then stopped. "You might want to think about a new security system. This one is so outdated." He opened the door and left. She shook her head. Ten years in a prison cell and he had not changed a bit. His brown eyes still twinkled in any light and his face always seemed to smile. I hope I see him again, she thought. As she stood, she realized she trusted him. More than other people anyway.
Baralooda was walking through the corridors of her floating palace when a guard stepped in front of her. "Majesty," he asked inquiringly. She nodded. She looked at him and something about him tickled at the back of her mind. "The ship that was stolen by the thief has been found." She looked at him surprised. That had been a fast find, she thought. "Where," she asked. His helmet reflected the light as he nodded. "In the cargo bay," he said. She looked at him. Surely, she thought. Then it struck her. "Find him. He is here," she said and started walking again. "Search every corner of this ship if you have to but he must not escape again." She turned a corner and entered her private quarters. As she moved to the blinking vid screen a thought occurred to her. Why was that guard here in my personal part of the ship, she thought as she pushed the button to play the vid. Davin's face appeared on the screen. He wore the same suit as her guards. Under his arm was a helmet the shined in the light. Behind him she could make out the very room she was in. "Well there old girl, I was hoping to meet you face to face for the thrill of it," he said smiling. "Anyways, I am just here to tell you that your security system needs updating. If I can get in you have no idea what other kind of ruffians can get in." He winked and stepped back and put on the helmet. "Oh," he said, "I left you a surprise for you to find in your quarters." He gave a small wave and shut off the vid recorder. She turned and walked to her bed. One of his metal swords lay on the bed. She picked it up and found that it was surprisingly heavy. The vid screen popped back on. "I almost forgot Loo Loo. I have your precious thrown. I put it in one of your empty cruisers and the damn thing just took off towards the nearest star system." He shrugged. "Don't worry though. I put in a boomerang program on the auto pilot. You will have your thrown back in a day or so." He waved and cut off the vid recorder again. She growled and used all her strength to fling the sword across the room. It hit the wall with a loud clatter. She stalked out of her room heading for the bridge of the ship.
Davin walked at attention as a proper guard should. He was near rolling on the floor laughing. He was barely able to control his excitement. He had not thought she would be around when he came out of her room. He was also relieved. If she had known who he was, she could have killed without hesitation. But that was what made it so fun. He walked casually and as he passed a door, the alarm went off. He rolled his eyes and smiled. They think they can catch me, he thought. As he passed another door it opened and as he passed he recognized Looda, Baralooda's right hand man, or woman as the case may be. He walked by slowly not wanting to catch her attention. He made it past her and as he started to sigh in relief, he heard a familiar hum of a laser pistol behind his head. He raised his hands. "Did you really expect to not been seen here today," Looda asked. "Well, Da, I really did not expect to be here today. I was hoping to be on my way to a sunny beach on some tourist planet," he said quietly. She did not move or make a sound. "Well, take me to your boss." He turned slowly and looked her in the eye. She was pretty in an odd way. If she had been human, he would have jumped at the chance to ask her to dance. Her eyes stared back at him without emotion. "Da, perhaps you could let this poor thieving spirit go free for another chance at catching me. You know I will be back later." She slowly lowered the pistol. "It is good that you are out there. It keeps her majesty on her toes as it were." Her voice said that she held the utmost respect for Baralooda. "Well, good," he said smiling. He turned and half ran down the hall and around the corner.