Disclaimer: I own a NEW Ford Ranger pick-up (Goodbye, ornery Nissan! *heh heh*), a new Apex DVD player, oodles of import DVDs, the same old banged-up Ricoh camera (which is in the camera hospital), some Fuji film that was given to me for free, more denim, some Japanese textbooks, a pair of old Army jungle boots, but the last time I checked, I did not own Outlaw Star. I'm pretty sure that's the brainchild of Takehito Ito, God bless 'im!


Takana emerged from the room where Melfina was being held, which was adjacent to Craven's office. The bio-android was possibly the least threatening thing in all of the known universe, yet Takana was increasingly uncomfortable in her presence. She was at a loss for an explanation as to why. More disconcerting to Takana was that she couldn't really bring herself to detest her captive.

"What do you want?"

"My fee, of course...."

Craven glanced around the office before facetiously asking the Ctarl Ctarl. "Look around. Do you see Hilda anywhere in here?"

"No, but Hilda is sure to...."

"That's funny, neither do I. You'll get paid once I see Hilda- I don't think that's an unreasonable condition for collecting your wages."

Takana fumed quietly. Craven might as well have slapped her in the face after making such a remark, and Takana was unwilling to let it slide. As the dapper executive began walking out of his office, the Tracker-Killer spoke up.

"Was it something that Hilda took from you?"

Craven stopped dead in his tracks. "Excuse me- I don't think that's any of your....."

"Or was it something she wouldn't let you take from her? Is that it?" Takana interrupted. "None of my previous clients had been so insistent that I bring in my quarry alive. It's almost as though you have some sort of attachment......"

"It's not too late for me to terminate my contract with you." Craven snapped.

"It's not too late for me to terminate Hilda, and whatever secret she keeps so close to her heart that you're so interested in will die with her". the Ctarl Ctarl shot back. "I nearly forgot. Your people did such a wonderful job of tracking Hilda on their own that I suppose you simply hired me for the sake of pity. And I'm sure they can find Hilda long before I could kill her......" Throwing the computer terminal she used to contact Hilda off of the building was looking more and more like the right thing to do for Takana. The tracker-killer figured she had jumped through enough hoops for this arrogant Terran and that she was entitled to better treatment.

The two of them glared at each other. Craven was about to say something when Takana cut him off. "Who do you think you're talking to? Understand this, you condescending Terran. I AM NOT your servant! Don't think you can treat me like one. I've lived up to my end of the bargain and I'll overlook your bluster long enough to see to it that you live up to yours."


**

The video phone rang once again. Gene, Aisha, Hilda and Suzuka were still a few minutes away from getting ready to leave in the Ehefrau and thought it might be Melfina's captor calling to inform them of revised demands or a different meeting place. Thanks to Aisha, Jim was out like a light on the sofa. As he answered the pone, the red-haired outlaw was fully anticipating another call from Takana. Instead, he was very surprised to find the mechanic Swanzo on the other end of the viewscreen.

"You lied to me kid!" the little Corbonite said as soon as he saw Gene's likeness.

"What are you talking about?"

"Where's Hilda!? What did you do with her!? What happened to Horus!?" Swanzo began asking the red-haired Outlaw accusingly, not bothering wait for an answer.

Gene was spared answering the understandable and numerous questions Swanzo had for him when Hilda gently pushed him out of the way so that she was standing squarely in front of the phone's viewscreen.

"Swanzo? How did you get this number?" she started to ask.

The diminutive mechanic uttered a few startled words in his native tongue at first sight of Hilda before remembering that he should be speaking in a Terran language. "It really is you, isn't it?." the mechanic asked.

Before the Hilda-construct could explain the current situation to Swanzo, the diminutive mechanic continued speaking.

"Mikey's gone, Hilda......she killed him......"

"What are you talking about, Swanzo?!?"

"A Ctarl Ctarl woman showed up in the maintenance bay the other day and showed us a picture of you. We thought you were a goner and that it was some kind of sick joke. Then, when she started pushing me around, Mikey tried kicking her out. But.....she killed him. She just....slashed his throat right open." The little reptilian creature was clearly still shaken up by this.

The red-haired Outlaw was starting to put two and two together. If the Ctarl Ctarl bounty huntress didn't follow Hilda to Starwind and Hawking, then that meant somebody told her where they could find Hilda, or at least someone knew of her whereabouts.

"You're the one who told her where we live!?" Gene fumed.

"I just gave her a printout on the ship so she wouldn't kill me too. I figured the information would've been outdated by now. Besides- if you were really interested in laying low, how come I've seen your ship in the Space Race for two years in a row?"

"Mikey's.....dead?" the Hilda-facsimile asked in disbelief.

"Yes. She killed him and then broke my arm. I thought for sure you were a goner, too, Hilda. But ever since that animal came here and attacked us, I don't know what to think...."

"What did she look like?" Hilda suddenly demanded. She had a good idea of who Swanzo was talking about but wanted to be absolutely sure.

"Uh....about your height, brown hair, some kind of marking on her leg. She was wearing a black cloak and part of her ear was missing."

"And you say she killed Mikey?"

"Yeah. He tried fighting her off , but........"

Even though Hilda wasn't completely taken by surprise by what Swanzo had to say, Gene and the others couldn't help but notice a look of shock and disbelief come over her face. The last thing anyone, particularly the Hilda-construct, needed tonight was more bad news.


**

At face value, most would consider an immunity to the dreaded Crimson Plague that decimated an entire planet a blessing. However, Takana Jaci-Jaci viewed her resitance to the disease a curse. The anguish, emptiness and smoldering rage she felt after killing her father could hardly be called "living" by any stretch of the imagination. After burying her father, Takana Jaci-Jaci had reluctantly packed up her meager posessions and set out on her own, leaving the only home she had ever known to the elements. She had come across her father's cache of iaru root as well as some raw ingredients to produce a more milder version. Takana knew she shouldn't, but she had helped herself to the remaining root in the cabin. Her hands were still bloodied and raw from digging a grave for Aryo, but what truly ate at her was an unfathomable despair that accompanied knowing that her only family was gone forever. She didn't want to feel anymore, and the root eased her pain in more ways than one.

The village where she and her father would conduct business was now eerily silent. It had taken her a few days to reach it, since she was moving at a leisurely pace, unsure of her destination now. If there were any survivors, they had either fled or were relocated. Aside from the occasional drop of water falling into a stagnant, algae filled pool, the small but ornately decorated marble fountain in the main square was still. Takana could also smell the remnants of a long-extinguished fire and singed flesh lingering in the air. A cold and empty feeling came over her when she saw a small pile of blackened bones and dark ash atop the scorched earth next to the ruined fountain. As much as she wanted to turn away from the sight in front of her, the young Ctarl Ctarl stood transfixed at the sight of a charred, skeletal hand poking out from the extinguished pyre. It was as though it were trying to escape even in death. She was finally able to turn away, but as she thought about the souls in the village who could never get to the Land of the Dead now, Takana was overcome with the sensation as though she was plummeting down some bottomless pit. The young woman collapsed onto her hands and knees and began to dry-heave.

Winter was fast setting in, and there was hardly any harvest to speak of. The plague had wiped out most of the farmers, leaving the reigon's modest agricultural yield to wither and die in the fields. Most of the prey would soon be hibernating or migrating. Food would have to be imported from off-world. That meant remaining here wouldn't be an option.

For days, she made her way down a dusty road leading from the village to one of the colony's secondary spaceports. Not unlike her ancestors, she would put her surroundings to good use. The wild berries and small reptiles she came across were her meals, the branches of the trees were her bed, the streams were her bath and the leaves and roots of various plants she came across would become her pharmacy and first-aid kit. The young lady's hands were still slowly healing after digging her father's grave. Each time she approached a village, the girl cautiously skirted it since she was able to pick up the arcid smell of charred flesh from a few kilometeres away. The more distance she kept, the better- Takana was fearful that if she got too close to some of the extinguished funeral pyres that she smelled in each village, the charred skeletal hands of the dead would somehow reach out and pull her into a suddenly replenished fire. To avoid that unlikely scenario, she avoided the dead villages altogether. The common trait every village had was that each was completely devoid of life. Not a hint of movement except for whatever was stirred by the wind. As twilight was fast approaching at the end of the second day of her journey, Takana noticed an increasingly bright etheral glow over a small mountain range to the west while she was skirting the fourth or fifth such dead village. It was dark and the stars were out as she ascended the mountain path. Anticipation filled her as she made her way up. The closer she got to the path's summit, the quicker she moved, breaking into sprint for the last few meters. It did indeed look so beautiful from a distance. Almost like finely crushed dragonite chips spread out against a dark, uneven silky surface. To the west of the city was the spaceport, the launching towers lined up like metallic trees in a huge concrete orchard. Some of the towers had a few commercial or military craft securely docked, but the remainder were vacant. Moreover, after spending days avoiding entire villages populated only by the dead, Takana could detect signs of life carried to her by the nighttime breeze. The young tracker-killer was certain she could hear an infant wailing and her nose detected meat grilling over an open flame. It was very faint and very distant, yet he sights and sounds were quite welcoming to her. She was also quite weary from her journey. As nice as a warm cot someplace in the city sounded, it was a nice and mild night for this late into the harvest season. The young woman quickly clambered up a tree adjacent to the path, taking in the glimmering lights and disjointed sounds of the city beneath her. It felt assuring for her to know that she wasn't the sole survivor of this plague. The girl stretched out on the tree limb, admiring the populated city from a distance as though it were a long-lost friend she didn't want to disturb just yet. It was the last thing the weary girl saw before she drifted off to sleep.

Yet, uncertainty filled the girl as she made her way through the city the following morning. If there wasn't any prey to capture, how would she eat? Where would she sleep? Bartering worked fine in the village, but she had a feeling the merchants here wouldn't be so accommodating. Something tugged at her arm before she could continue to the marketplace.

"Alms, ma'am?" a voice spoke up.

The girl looked down and saw a child of no more than the Terran equivalent of 9 years old with almost jet-black hair and dressed in filthy tattered rags looking up at her, his hand extended. She was immediately taken aback by the intensity in his eyes. They were the eyes of somebody who had witnessed entirely too much death and suffering at such a young age. Takana didn't know it, but she had the very same look in her own eyes.

"I....I.....I'm sorry. I have none...." Takana stammered.

He bowed his head politely. "May the Creators bless you anyway." he said before limping away.

That brief encounter stayed in her mind as she continued through the marketplace. She soon came across a vendor who's stall looked like it had a nice inventory of cloth and fabrics.

"What do you want in exchange for this?" she asked the vendor as she held up some fabric.

"Seven dagnis......"

The girl looked perplexed at this. In her home-village, she was used to bartering prey and medication in exchange for items her and her father needed. Transactions based on hard currency was a completely foreign concept to her. She was pondering what she had to offer the merchant when she felt somebody roughly yank the fabric from her hands.

"If you're not going to purchase this, then let me display it to somebody who will!" the vendor scolded her. The girl timidly backed away from the angry vendor. The man seemed to be in no mood to barter. She started wondering if she could sell some of the herbs and ointments she accumulated on her way to the city for cash. Yet she had absolutely no idea of what a fair price would be or if there was even a demand for such things.

As she pondered this, Takana observed a trio of men in green tunics- most likely officers from off-world. They were furiously stomping and kicking what appeared to be a pile of rags. Except she could hear the bundle of rags crying out.

"No.....don't hurt me........" she heard a familiar-sounding voice cry from beneath the flurry of kicks. It was the young beggar she saw a few minutes prior. "Please.....I'm sorry!"

"Your being sorry won't give us our rations back, vermin!"

"I promise......I won't do it again."

"We'll see to it that you won't do it again, you son of a whore!"

Several years later, the young lady would try and figure out why she felt compelled to intervene on the young beggar's behalf. Perhaps she saw an opportunity to make amends with the creators for using the Broken Wing to capture and kill prey. Or perhaps it was something in his eyes or voice that moved her. Whatever the reason, the young Ctarl Ctarl rose to her feet and headed towards the commotion against her better judgement.

"What are you doing!?" Takana snapped as she shoved one of the smaller officers aside.

The other two stopped what they were doing and glared at her.

"Leave us be, woman. This doesn't concern you."

She turned to face one of the officers , but before the young tracker-killer could say anything, she felt a small weight pulling on her leg.

"Please......" the tiny beggar pleaded, looking up at her with those haunting eyes that were now tear-stained and bloodshot. Next to him was not even half a loaf of bread, torn apart and throughly trampled and coated with a brownish slime from the gutter.

"Are you family?" one of the lower ranking officers asked.

"So what if I am?" Takana was paying them no mind as she got down on her haunches and began doing a cursory examination of the boy. Many Ctarl Ctarl readily knew of her clan's reputation of being exceptionally ruthless and devious- something that dated back to the days of tracking escaped slaves and prisoners from the Tuve-Tuve Dynasty. However, very few knew of or were willing to acknowledge clan Jaci-Jaci's prowess with traditional medicine.

She didn't see any signs of bleeding, but there was bound to be plenty of internal injuries judging from beating she saw him endure.

"We caught this little rodent stealing our dinner." The lead officer said curtly.

Takana was quietly taken aback. Intuition told her that the little boy in front of her seemed to be typical of many other survivors of the Crimson Plague- most likely orphaned or separated from his family and surviving the disease only to run the risk of succumbing to starvation, secondary infection or exposure. Yet all these officers seemed to care about was the few crumbs stolen from them. She glared up at the lead officer, a portly man with graying temples. "It looks as if you could miss a few meals. You probably can't even see your manhood over that belly of yours."

As she turned her attention back to the young beggar, gently running her hands up the boy's spine and trying to feel if any of the vertibrate were broken or out of alignment, the lead officer delivered a jarring kick to Takana's ribs. One second she was crouched over the child and the next thing she knew, she was a meter away facedown in the street, hands splayed out in front of her. Instinctively, she clutched at her pendant to make sure it was still there.

"Watch your tongue, whore!" he said as the tracker-killer gingerly got back to her feet. It hurt like hell, but Takana decided she wasn't going to give any of them the satisfaction of seeing her in pain. She walked back over to the young beggar, daring any of them to get in her way again. Takana caught a glimpse of the officer's badge on his tunic as she passed. It was written in the same High Ctarl dialect as the faded but still highly visible tattoo on her leg- her's had read "Outcast" with the sub-text "Born of Adulterous Union" since her infancy. However, her assailant's badge read "Victory and Honor". What a crock of shit that was. According to Aryo's dying decleration, it was the Imperial Officers who were responsible for her mother's suicide, her father's expulsion and herself being branded an outcast almost since birth. Now she was seeing the Ctarl Ctarl Deep Space Fleet's creed of Victory and Honor embodied by a trio of grown men beating a starving child over a few missing breadcrumbs.

Taking a cue from his superior, one of the junior officers spoke up. "How much would it cost for you to keep my bed warm tonight, girl? Half a loaf of Oiha bread from the Officer's mess?" he sneered.

"Why pay for something you can simply take for free?" the other officer chimed in. "I wager she wouldn't put up that much of a fight."

"You flatter yourselves. No amount of money in the Empire would persuade me to let any of you near me. Try violating me, and the first one to touch me will curse their mothers as they bleed to death" the young Ctarl woman said quite convincingly as she slid off her bracelet-knife- another gift from her father whose primary purpouse was skinning their prey. Given how quickly she got onto her feet after getting kicked, each of them realized that she was tougher than they had first thought. She made eye contact with all three of them, daring each one to make the first move. Indeed, the three of them could have easily overpowered her but they were also aware that she could inflict a lot of pain on any one of them in the process..

"Don't even think about taking her back to the barracks, lieutenant. She may look nice, but I suspect she's crawling with lice and vermin like everybody else on this shit-hole. We would have to burn all the linens......" the lead officer spoke up once more. A small but increasing gaggle of spectators was beginning to form around the beggar, young lady and three officers. The Captain only said this as a means to get his men to stand down in front of all these witnesses without losing face.

Takana didn't care. She was at last satisfied that she felt no breaks and fractures along the boy's spine. "It looks as though you'll have to continue mounting each other tonight. I'm curious- which one of you pretends to be the woman, or do you take turns? Or maybe you like little boys. Perhaps you attacked the child because he spurned your advances....?"

"Shut up! You filthy, diseased slut......." the captain started to bellow.

"Ah....I understand now. Impotent. What a pity. I might have something for that in my satchel, but I wager that I'd be doing little boys everywhere a favor by not giving it to you." she grinned, fully anticipating another kick from behind. It was fine by her- if nothing else, then chances are her remarks would divert their attention from the unfortunate boy in front of her. The lead officer was happy to oblige. However, his subordinates were holding him back and a small crowd was starting to form, glowering disapprovingly at the trio of officers losing their temper.

"Captain! Sir! We've wasted enough time here." one of the lieutenants urged. "She's not worth it. The two of them belong together...." he sneered, looking down at Takana and the boy.

"Worthless whore...." one of the subordinates spat at the young woman as the three officers began walking away.

Without even thinking, Takana picked up a chunk of the soggy bread lying in the gutter water. It was about as appetizing as warmed-over fecal matter.

"You forgot you precious bread!" she yelled out, flinging the ruined food in the genral direction of the three officers walking away from her. It landed on the shoulder of one of the subordinates with a gratifying **splat** as it broke up, much of it scattering onto the lieutenant's face and ear. The trio paused for a moment- the smaller officer wiping the slimy residue from his face and tunic. This earned a collective chortle from the gaggle of onlokers. Takana's only regret was that none of the officer's turned around, denying her a glimpse of their facial expressions. The young tracker-killer and the small crowd of onlookers around her braced for a confrontation that never came.

"Thank you...." the child sobbed gratefully. "Thank you so much......I don't know what...." the rest of his words were unintelligible murmurs as he continued sobbing and buried his face in Takana's cloak. The tracker-killer found herself doing what came naturally as she protectively wrapped an arm around the beggar. As the child drew close to her, she could feel that he was shaking like a leaf. Takana was also aware that the unfortunate lad also reeked of urine- he had understandably pissed himself while being beaten by a group of men three times his size. He was softly whispering something over and over.

"I don't want to die....I don't want to die....I don't want to die......."

"Hush......" she said to the child in her most soothing voice possible as she gently stroked the back of his ear with her thumb. "Don't talk like that. You'll be all right. Everything's fine now". It was a lie, but it was a lie she felt the child in her arms needed to hear.

"Shed no more tears......." she cooed. Even though the show was over and the onlookers were beginning to scatter, she suddenly felt very awkward. She found it genuinely disturbing to hear somebody half her age talking like that. Gradually, the boy's wailing and the sniffling subsided. She sensed that he was doing his best to put on a brave face for his savior.

"You must be hungry......" Takana said absently as she rifled through her satchel. Her hands found a cluster of dried Nurmes Tree Lizard tails that from some that she had caught herself while en route to the city. None of them were very big- each one was about the size of her index finger and the chalky preservative they were carried in made them taste even more bitter- but she figured it was better than offering the boy nothing. She held one of the tails in her palm and the child quickly snatched it before greedily cramming it into his mouth. As far as the child was concerned, it was a fine six-course feast. Their eyes met and a look of shame clouded the child's face as he swallowed the morsel Takana gave him.

"Do you have a name?"

The boy furiously bobbed his head up and down, undeniably thrilled that his savior had wanted to know his name. "Yes! Sarris Taarn Taarn."

Takana held out another lizard tail in her palm, offering it to the boy. Sarris' face lit up with delight as he took it, this time bowing his head in gratitude to her before he devoured it. Even after finishing her offering, he didn't take his eyes off of her. It looked as though he was expecting something else from Takana, and it wasn't food.

"Your name......?" he timidly asked.

"Takana."

"That's a pretty name....." Sarris mused. "Takana." he said slowly and deliberately, enjoying the way it sounded coming from his mouth. "Were you sent by the Creators?"

She was caught off-guard by that question. "Not that I'm aware of." she absently chuckled. "Do you have a family?" Takana asked, even though she was already certain of the answer.

"Mother and Father died from the Plague. So did Itami and Oshiia, my sisters. I've been on my own since then."

"I see..." Takana said. Things in this city weren't much better than in the villages she passed through earlier. "Where are you staying now?"

"There's an abandoned mill on the road leading to the hills- it's where I sleep and I seem to be the only one who knows about it.."

Takana remembered passing a structure like that on her way into the city.

"Show me the way and I'll take you there." she offered, helping the injured boy to his feet. "Climb on". Regardless of how near or far away he was living, having him walk any distance in his condition just wasn't a good idea. The boy hesitantly climbed onto Takana's back while she was on her haunches, his small hands firmly gripping each shoulder.

"It's that way.." he said, pointing towards the road Takana entered the city on.

The young woman leaned down to scoop up her satchel before walking in the direction Sarris indicated. After a few moments of awkward silence and walking uphill, the boy spoke up once again.

"Takana....the Deity of North Mountains had an arch-seraphim named Takana. She was a skilled huntress and sorceress who served as his protector and confidant..."

"How do you know this?" she asked him.

"My father had an extensive collection of the Ancient Texts of Ctarl in his library. There were also some translated Silgry and Terran works".

"So you like books then? You're full of surprises." the bemused Tracker Killer told Sarris.

"Takana was beautiful, compassionate to all creatures that dwelled in the North mountains and fiercely loyal to her Diety." Sarris continued. "That's why I wanted to know if you were sent by the Creators."

"Are you saying that I remind you of my namesake?"

The boy paused for a moment. "Yes....I guess I am."

Takana laughed out loud for the first time since she left her home. Sarris was momentarily confused until the Tracker Killer spoke up. At first, she was somewhat amazed that the boy was still concious, let alone speaking. But after so many days of wandering through the dead countryside on her own for days on end, Sarris turned out to be surprisingly good company.

"What a charming young lad you are, Sarris. You certainly know the right things to say to a lady."

"I.....I....I'm only speaking the truth." the flustered young Ctarl Ctarl stammered. Through the flimsy rags he was wearing, Takana cold sense the boy's body temperature rising. The nature of the conversation led her to believe it wasn't fever- more like blushing.

"I understand that- it's part of the charm." she said. "Someday, you will make some lovely young maiden very happy when you select her to be your mate, and believe me, there will be plenty of them asking for the privilege....". she paused for a moment, her statement reminding Takana of those times when her father would tease her about all the handsome young warriors from the village who would undoubtedly be lining up to request the privilage of being her mate once she reached the Age of Consent.

"I would only want a mate like you, but you're very unique."

The young lady bit her tongue, certain that she was now blushing

"Yet you hardly know me....." Takana said.

"Do I have to know you to appreciate what you've done?"

"You don't know why I've done it, though." she paused. She was at a loss for an explanation herself- at least one that could be summed up into a simple one sentence answer. Takana figured she should steer the conversation away from that before the boy questioned her. "For all you know, I could be taking you away to make a stew with you as the main ingredient." the orphaned cat-girl said slyly.

The boy paused for a moment. "If that's true, then perhaps you should fatten me up first. As you can see, I'm all skin and bones."

Takana couldn't help herself as she cocked her head slightly, reaching behind her and affectionately flicking Sarris' ear with her thumb and forefinger. "You're never at a loss for words, are you?" she laughed. In the back of her mind, she was aware that she was actually smiling. The first time in weeks she could remember laughing or smiling.

"You're not the first one to notice that." the boy said before indicating they had arrived. She looked up to see an abandoned windmill.

"What is this place?"

"Home....." the younger Ctarl Ctarl said.


The tracker-killer once again opened her eyes. Beneath her and past her reflection, the faint glimmering lights of another city were spread out before her. All around her, she saw order that was created by Craven. Simply out of spite, she wanted to turn all of that order into chaos. Her forehead was resting against the glass wall of the elevator in Craven's office building. The way the Terran executive talked down to her and expected the Tracker-Killer to be at his beck and call infuriated Takana. She was starting to feel like a gutter whore.

Melfina noticed that her captor seemed to be lost in thought. Takana caught Melfina's reflection in the glass looking at her.

"Why do you look at me like that, Machine Girl?" she sighed impatiently.

"You don't look well...." the bio-android observed.

"Is that so?" Takana wearily scoffed. She wondered if her captive had overheard the argument with Craven earlier and was perhaps considering using that to formulate some sort of escape plan. However, when she turned around to try and gauge Melfina's thoughts, the bio-android appeared concerned. Her fear had subsided- the Ctarl Ctarl could no longer smell the scent like blossoms- and Melfina seemed to have resigned herself to the current situation with a certain degree of quiet poise. Takana understood that the bio-android was likely wondering if and when she would next see her mate as well as the baby in her artificial womb. If the situation were reversed.......Takana mused. She should be so fortunate to have the same worries as the Machine Girl- even under these circumstances. Takana turned back around, her forehead once again resting against the glass of the elevator. As frail as Melfina appeared, she still felt uneasy around her. Payday could not come soon enough for the tracker-killer.


**

Over the video-phone, the little mechanic continued telling the Hilda-construct about the Ctarl Ctarl bounty huntress, how she killed Mikey and broke his arm, all while insisting Hilda was still alive- something he was doubtful about until a few minutes prior. Hilda wanted to interrupt him, to let him know he was mistaken. Gene was standing right behind her while Aisha and Suzuka were leaning against the side of the Ehefrau, looking somewhat impatient. They also understood that Hilda wasn't exactly in a hurry to get to her destination. Yet, like it or not, they had a deadline to meet.

"Hilda....How did you manage to survive...?" the diminutive mechanic began to ask, surely wanting to know how his favorite Terran survived her run-in with the Kei pirates and MacDougal bothers.

"I'm sorry, Swanzo. I'm not really who you think I am."

"But Hilda....."

"You're better off forgetting that you ever saw me, believe me."

With that, Hilda terminated the connection.

**


The Heiphong Narrows Bridge was a nearly-complete structure that spanned a 4.8 km gap over the bay adjacent to the city of Heiphong, linking the main city with the primary deep-sea ports and fishing villages to the south and west of the city. The suspension bridge was part of a massive undertaking by Roberval Metallurgy Holdings, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Craven Enterprises Limited. In exchange for a considerable percentage of the 300 Wong toll that would be levied for each vehicle crossing, Ewan Craven himself agreed to use resources at his company's disposal and finish the beleaguered project, taking over from a formidable bureaucracy of municipal authorities. Although it was still a few weeks away from completion, it was set to open ahead of schedule.

Ewan Craven had dispatched two sedans to the bridge. He rode out with the bulk of his "security detail" in one while Takana, Melfina and Craven's personal petite, dark-haired assistant, Ms. Nguyen, were driven out in another sedan. The Ctarl Ctarl didn't like sitting in the confined spaces of the vehicle with various strange and unpleasant odor of leather mixed in with the scent of every Terran who had been in and out of that vehicle filled the beast-girl's nostrils. She did little to conceal her displeasure. Although the ride to the bridge was fairly short, it passed in a tense silence between the three women.

As she stepped out of the rear of the sedan, Takana Jaci-Jaci took in a deep breath of fresh salt air. She couldn't help but marvel at the massive span in front of her. These Terrans could take something as utilitarian as a surface spanning over a body of water or a building designed to house several offices and make it appear like some sort of castle or fortress. Initially, she was unfamiliar with her present employer's role in financing the bridge. When she first saw it on the distant urban horizon, she didn't give it much thought. Now that she had seen it up close, Takana had to admit that she was impressed. Yet she had to wonder why Craven had selected this location to exchange Hilda for the Machine Girl. The location of the exchange was entirely at his disposal. Perhaps her present employer was trying to impress Hilda.

Without even thinking about it, her fingers began unscrewing the small gold capsule she wore around her neck. She didn't really need another hit of the root extract, she just wanted it so badly. Takana suddenly stopped as she felt a pair of eyes on her. It was Melfina.

"You look as though you have something you want to ask me......"

Melfina nodded.

"You want to know why I took you, don't you?" Takana asked Melfina, not even turning around.

The bio-android remained silent, uncertain of what to say.

"Hilda wouldn't hesitate to put herself at risk to guarantee your safety. I know that much about her at least. There are very few people she would put herself in such a position for. There's also your mate- I sensed that he would do anything to get you back." the tracker-killer could sense only fear and uncertainty coming from her captive.

"Um.......why......?" the bio-android began to ask.

"Hmm?" The bounty-huntress turned around.

"Why do you do what you're doing?"

Takana pondered that for a moment. "What do your instincts tell you, Machine Girl? Do you have instincts?" she asked. Takana didn't mean for that last question to sound as mocking as it did.

Melfina didn't say anything.

"I'm an outcast with no family." Takana continued with a tangible note of sorrow in her voice. "All the skills I learned as a child- to track my prey by it's scent, to subdue it- were something I discovered certain Terrans were willing to pay handsomely for. I don't enjoy working for Craven's kind, but it's a far more attractive choice than selling my body to strangers or starving to death".

"I'm sorry......" the bio-android started to say.

"I don't need your pity, Machine Girl. I've survived this long without it." Takana sneered.

But there was more to Melfina's sentiment than pity. The bio-android also felt some sort of haunting familiarity. Before her, she saw a creature who was essentially being used as a marionette. Hazanko and Gwen Khan both said that Melfina's sole purpose was as a puppet to guide the XGP and open up the Leiline. Perhaps the worst part for Melfina was that she knew that was at least partly true. Yet- wether it was genetic or some sort of artificial intelligence- Melfina knew that she was also capable of free will and drawing her own conclusions. The past year or so with Gene and the others left no doubt about that. Yet when she looked at Takana, she saw a creature capable of free will only allow herself to be used by others like a puppet. Part of her wanted to tell Takana about that, but she knew enough that it could only further agitate her captor. The tracker-killer looked up and their eyes locked. It was as thought the Tracker-Killer could sense Melfina's thoughts. Takana could've sworn she'd seen those eyes before.

"I'm not interested in harming you or your child- you'll have to consider this simply a means to an end." Takana continued. To Melfina, it almost sounded like the Ctarl Ctarl was trying to reassure her. "If I don't do this, there are others who will. Others with no concern for your life or the life of your future child."

"But isn't there......." Melfina started to ask.

"Leave me be!" Takana hissed. "I'll get my money and you'll get to go back with your mate- isn't that what you want?"

Mel simply looked at her as the Tracker-Killer began to walk off in disgust. However, before she could get too far, Ms. Nguyen caught up with her.

"All I can say is don't get too comfortable in a burning building." Craven's assistant discreetly whispered to the Ctarl Ctarl.

"Why do you say that?"

"Chances are she already knows too much." the petite woman gestured towards Melfina.

"Knows about what?" Takana asked.

Ms. Nguyen rolled her eyes. The beast in front of her wasn't simply playing dense. "I suspect she's aware that Mr. Craven sent you."

".....and what of it?"

"The less people who know about him hiring you, the better...."

"Does this include myself?"

"He trusts you to be discreet, but the hostage will have to be dealt with."

"Deal with her on your own time." Takana spat at Craven's assistant. "I was employed to bring in Hilda, and that's exactly what I'll do." The beast-girl's ears began twitching.

Ms. Nguyen was about to say something when Takana cut her off.

"Look sharp- our guests are arriving." she announced to Craven and his security detail.


**

The tollbooths were set up on a fairly narrow strip of land reclaimed from the harbor on the Western approach to the Heiphong Narrows bridge. Jim's Ehefrau was parked with it's lights and engine off adjacent to the row of new structures. Two of the vehicle's occupants were closely watching the span ahead of them. Both of them could discern some sort of activity taking place on the section of bridge that curved off into the distance.

"How many do you count, Suzu?" Aisha asked the assassin next to her.

Twilight Suzuka paid no attention to the Ctarl Ctarl's nickname that frequently irked her.

"At least eight, not including Melfina and our unwelcome visitor." Suzuka said as she lowered the night-vision binoculars. "There could be more inside the vehicles parked on the bridge."

Although Aisha's vision was excellent, it was almost impossible for her to pick up details from that distance- only vague outlines and shapes. Aside from borrowing the Ehefrau from Jim, the others had taken it upon themselves to bring some of his night-vision optics with them.

"Do you figure Gene and Hilda have enough of a head-start?" Aisha asked.

"Give them another minute". Suzuka figured that having all four of them show up at once would tip their hand entirely too early. Yet they would be of no use to Gene, Mel or Hilda remaining at this distance. Their adversaries were very shrewd in selecting the location of the exchange. Except.......

Except she had the feeling that Mel's captors had no intention of letting them just walk away. Despite the beast-woman's assurances, the whole setup was very dubious. Which was all the more reason for her and Aisha to accompany Gene and Hilda. The two Outlaw's had started walking down the bridge five minutes prior. The assassin could only imagine what was going through their minds at this moment. In all honesty, Suzuka was feeling a bit apprehensive herself.

Her train of thought was interrupted as Aisha gently tugged on the sleeve of her kimono. She appeared ready to go, but instead quietly pointed her to something on their side of the bridge.


**

To say that it was a long walk across the span was something of an understatement. For the time-being, it was just Hilda and Gene. The dark-haired outlaw felt a little like a bride on her way to some sort of black celebration. Gene would be the one giving her away to Craven and Takana in exchange for a dowry that consisted of a dark haired bio-android. One construct for another. The dark-haired outlaw felt compelled to bite her tongue as she considered that analogy. As they made their way across, Hilda was keeping an eye out for things she may be able to use for cover if and when all hell broke loose. On their left, she noticed two unattended trucks, one of them laden with construction equipment. Before the two of them could proceed much further, Hilda and Gene were momentarily blinded by headlights from Craven's sedans. As their eyes adjusted, they could make out several figures silhouetted against the lights. Most ominously, the one closest to them was that of a tall Ctarl Ctarl woman. Immediately behind Takana was Melfina, Ewan Craven, his personal assistant and about half a dozen of his bodyguards.

"So glad you decided to come." Takana said to the two Outlaws. As she stepped closer, Gene and Hilda could see that her face was considerably darker than before. The Ctarl Ctarl was wearing some sort of dark warpaint that was applied onto her face and body in horizontal stripes, almost like a tiger.

"Who the hell is that?" Craven asked Takana, pointing to Gene.

"Nobody of consequence." she smirked. "So glad to see you're still with us, Captain Gene."

"You didn't tell her to come alone?"

The tracker-killer scoffed as she slowly and deliberately circled Hilda before turning back to Craven. "Don't insult my intelligence. She was no more likely to show up alone than you were..."

The CEO did his best to ignore that slight from the Ctarl bounty huntress. "Miss Nguyen- search them."

The petite Asian woman briskly made her way over to where Hilda was standing.

"Any chance you're going to tell me where my collection went?" Craven asked Hilda.

"I dunno...is there any chance you'll take a flying leap off this bridge?" she replied.

"You're in no position to be so flippant........"

"Still the Devil's advocate, I see." Hilda said to Craven's dark haired assistant as she began patting the outlaw down. Ms. Nguyen was satisfied that Hilda was carrying no weapons and turned to address her.

"I wouldn't be the one questioning anybody else's career move......" She turned to Gene. "Go ahead and raise both hands..."

"As much as I'd like to have you running your hands all over me, lady, I'm spoken for." Gene said to Craven's assistant with a cocky grin as he opened his cloak and revealed the holstered caster, some #17 and #11 shells in his belt, two regular pistols, a dagger and several clips of ammunition. "Besides- it's not necessary. I have these."

Takana was watching this unfold with a somewhat bemused expression on her face.

"That wasn't very smart." one of the guards bean to say.

"I'm sure you're being paid to offer opinions, bright boy." Gene shot back. "Not very smart is showing up alone and unarmed, hoping that you people will give us back Melfina out of the goodness of your hearts. First and foremost, we came here for Melfina. And if you wanted just Hilda to show up by her lonesome, tough shit. Somebody has to make sure you hold up your end of the bargain. Besides, Catgirl there didn't specify that Hilda shows up alone or unarmed." He jerked his thumb in Takana's direction.

"That's because for all your bravado, you're still no threat to me, Captain Gene. You can't even protect your mate- how pathetic! I can't understand why she'd want to come back to you if you can't even prevent me from taking her away." she scoffed.

The dapper executive, however, turned his attention to Hilda. "Knowing you the way I do Hilda, I'm sure you have something cute in mind....." Craven said. "But if I find out that card's been tampered with in any way......" He paused and looked at Gene, then Melfina. "Well, let's just say that your friends can't hide from me forever."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Hilda said. "First thing's first. You let her go." she pointed to Melfina.

"You're in no position to dictate....." the executive started to say.

"Don't tell me what I'm in a position to do!" Hilda snapped back. She was walking towards the far railing of the bridge with nobody blocking her way. "How good are your men at deep-sea diving? Because that's the only way they'll be able to look for this if you don't let her go, and I mean RIGHT NOW."

"Better honor that request- she looks angry, and I'm sure you're aware that Hilda has a quick temper and can be quite irrational." Takana said, now blocking Hilda's path. "The Machine Girl and Captain Gene are of no importance. You were kind enough to show up, Hilda, which means I get my pay regardless."

"Love that piercing...." Hilda commented smugly, pointing to the piece of Takana's ear she shot off. "Where'd you get it done, and would you be interested in a matched set?"

"SHUT UP!" Takana snapped as she suddenly buried her fist into Hilda's abdomen. The Outlaw was very much caught off guard by this and nearly collapsed to her knees. The tracker-killer was standing over her with a look of supreme satisfaction on her face. Behind her, Gene had tensed up, but he was trying to avoid doing anything that would put Melfina in greater jeopardy.

"That's enough!" Craven spoke up.

"Of course...." Takana said as she grabbed Hilda by the shoulders while she was still doubled over. The Ctarl Ctarl gently stroked Hilda's cheek as she helped her stand up straight. "I promised that I would hand you over to the Terran first, but I'll be looking forward to our time together, Hilda. You tried burning me alive, and you *will* pay for that."

"You killed Mikey, you fucking whore!" Hilda spat back.

"Mikey?" Takana asked, a perplexed look on her face. "Ah yes! I remember him now. His blood tasted a little funny. Perhaps he had some sort of venereal disease. Did the little toad in the metal suit come crying to you?" Takana smirked.

"Burning you alive will be just the beginning for you..." Hilda seethed.

"What was that? Did you just threaten me?"

Hilda said nothing as she looked the tracker-killer over. There it was again- that defiant gleam in her eyes. It clearly told Takana that she wasn't scared in the least. The tracker-killer was frustrated at seeing this, but maintained her composure. This Terran clearly had something planned, but Takana couldn't figure out what. Just as she was about to help herself to another hit of root from the locket, a small breeze kicked up and Takana caught a scent. For a moment, just as she was able to smell Melfina's fear, Takana thought she could actually smell Hilda plotting against her and Craven. But it was something else. Her heart sank a little when she recognized the scent from when she was being kicked and pummeled in the alley the other night. Perhaps if she hadn't spent all that time in the car, it wouldn't have taken this long for her senses to readjust. The scent she was picking up had to be Aisha, and it wasn't a residual scent on Hilda or Gene's clothing. It was fairly distant, but fresh. There was another, less recognizable scent. She was sure that the ex-ambassador and Terran swordswoman were nearby.

"We have more guests arriving." she informed Craven.

"I'm not surprised.....Can you tell me where?" the CEO asked.

Almost as if on cue, a single gunshot rang out from one of the bridge's towers.


Author's Note: First of all, I'd like to apologize for the people who have been reading and enjoying this fic for being such a rotten, lazy bastard and taking so long to update. I do have many, MANY other activities in my life outside of writing fanfics, and I haven't been able to juggle my schedule accordingly until fairly recently. Guess I should take this opportunity to thank A. Amishi among others for nagging me about updating, as well as everybody who took the time to submit a review. It's finally updated, and I'll try to add the next chapter much sooner.