Blood for the Empress: Part One of the Empress Trilogy Read online

The hut that they were in had small gaps in the roof. Jonica looked up and saw both Deimos and Phobos in the sky moving closer. They would cross tonight in a few hours. Wonderful.

  Three

  It took Blue three hours Terran to get to where the large piece of space debris fell. Kesh sensed it had what he needed. Kesh flexed his hand without thinking, then stopped the motion by grabbing the bone knife. Holding onto something stopped him from fidgeting. He needed to find a more permanent solution, but in the meantime, the handle felt good in his hand, and the itching lessened.

  Kesh pulled the reins on Blue, causing the lizard to growl, though Blue slowed. Kesh plucked another piece of raw burrow rat from the saddlebag and tossed it to Blue. The lizard snapped it up, then dropped to a squatting crouch to tear at the snack. Kesh jumped off as Blue crouched. "Thanks buddy," he said to the munching lizard.

  His hand itched, and he grunted in frustration. He yanked the glove from his right hand and looked at it. The small mark on the base of his thumb throbbed for a moment. The Eridani sigil started to change color from the blue-green to a red. "Slag, thought I had more time."

  Kesh kept his right hand as still as he could. He reached to his belt with his left grabbing the small injector. The mark started to turn a dark purple and throbbed with pain when he slammed the injector into the center of the twisted rune-like mark. A hiss of air and the pain subsided, he saw the color of the mark approached a light green. Slaggin' Eridani filth. He pulled the injector away, catching the level of the serum. It was low, dangerously low. He had three days to get more. Three days to find more of the ingredients to stop the mark from flaring to life and allowing his masters to locate him.

  Not that he could find the ingredients in a market. It was something he had had to eak out from a few mineral deposits in the badlands. Those were starting to dry up. It was one reason he had recently turned to scavenging off space junk for the components.

  Sliding his eyes over the mark one last time to check on the color, now a light blue, he took a breath and relaxed. He still remembered getting the mark.

  It had been when he was seven. His mother and father and he had been traveling to Centauri Prime, part of the new wave of settlers going to use the Gate to Galstone's Purchase. Instead, the Eridani happened. Kesh's ship entered the Gate, but instead of seeing the binary star system of Alpha and Beta Centauri, they entered a system with one large red star. The Gate behind them shut off and there was no code that the ship's crew knew that could activate it again. They were stranded there in an alien system.

  The Gates were the remnants of what most thought were the Progenitors. Kesh knew them by a different name. Codes had been handed down from these "Progenitors" to the "lesser" races to activate the large five-mile wide structures to instantly transport from one part of the Orion Arm to another. Humanity thought those were the only codes. That day, Kesh found out there were others. Many others.

  Kesh, clinging to his mother and father's hands as the shipwide broadcast flared and crackled to life. "The Gate is closed to us. We have some idea where we are. The red star there is Epsilon Eridan. We have made a sweep and there are several planets we can—"

  There was a silence as something appeared off the starboard side of the old transport ship. An Eridani cruiser appeared, the "Progenitors." All strange angles and sweeping wings. It still caused Kesh nightmares. No one who tried to fight the handful of invaders from the ship survived. Kesh's father, Lydon, told his mother and him not to fight, "They are far too advanced. They are probably the ones who caused us to arrive here. We can't fight them."

  His family was taken off the ship as a unit, his father Lydon was made a valet. His mother a cook. His parents enjoyed their positions, they were alive. At least that was how Kesh remembered them. And, for some reason, Kesh was given to the ship's Dreamer—a position Kesh knew had to do with navigation and the morale of the crew—for special tutoring. 38-Jorrin, the Eridani and the numbering of their clones still bothered Kesh no end, took interest in teaching Kesh about all things Eridani.

  Of course, all were branded with 38-Jorrin's mark. A small sigil on their hand. No pain. Unless one left the region of the ship without permission, or in Kesh's case, while studying for 38-Jorrin. He thought back to what his mother had done, and he thought that it wasn't such a bad idea, taking a cleaver to her hand before they escaped. He wouldn't have to go running off trying to find the right mixture of stuff to inject into his hand every few days. Still, he preferred to keep both hands, and his father wouldn't have allowed it. His father had found part of the formula, and Kesh, through his studies, had figured out the other part. Lydon refused to come along when he smuggled them out.

  The sound of a cat yowling broke Kesh from his memory. He looked around, and Blue was interested by the sound. The yowl came from a gap between two rocks near the foot of the hills. Kesh caught the shadow of something moving. At first, he thought it was a sand panther, but it was too small. Blue saw the shadow too. Blue moved a bit faster than Kesh, shoving his snout into a gap trying to snap at whatever was inside. He started to use his shriek to scare whatever it was into running. The only thing that Kesh heard was the yowling and hissing of a cat over Blue's shriek. The scream still caused the base of Kesh's lizard brain to hit the fight-or-flight instinct. He bit his lip to stop the urge to run.

  "Blue, damn it, stop." He yanked hard on the reins, dragging the beast away. When Blue wheeled to snap at Kesh, Kesh brought up his right gauntlet and let the scytheclaw snap his jaws on the gauntlet's thick polycarbon material. With his free hand, Kesh grabbed his dagger and smacked Blue on the junction of his snout and head with the pommel. The scytheclaw yowled much like the cat in the crevasse before stalking off. Kesh tried another piece of burrow rat, but it sat by Blue, ignored.

  Kesh didn't have time to ponder what was going on with Blue. He leaned down towards the hole and found the cat there. It was a fluffy black-and-white feline, or it was. Some of the fur had been singed off, the rest was matted with blood and something wet. It looked half-drowned, yet was still alive and pissed. Its golden green eyes reflected the light of the setting sun in an eldritch way.

  It hissed at Kesh. He reached out to grab it, and the cat's claws caught on his glove. It didn't hurt, but Kesh pulled his hand back. It growled, hunkering down lower. The fur raised along the cat's back, making the tail bristle.

  "Would you come out of there? What are you doing here anyway?" He popped up and looked around and saw his real target was nearby. "Fine, stay there, damned cat. Not like I am trying to eat you, like Blue."

  Blue let out a click and shook his head like something was bothering him and settled it back down. Kesh saw Blue's eyes narrow while looking at the small crag. Great, just what I need.

  Ignoring his scytheclaw, Kesh continued up the small hill and found what he had been looking for, the piece of the ship. A large crater had been created from the impact. He gleefully jumped down the lip of the crater, skidding down in a barely-controlled slide. When he neared the bottom, he leapt forward and caught himself with a hop. One good thing about Mars, less gravity meant better jumping.

  The section of ship looked like a cargo bay. Pods and crates of various sizes ranging from green to red to gunmetal gray, most of which looked burned and broken up, were scattered around the wreck. A half-dozen looked like they had survived the impact. He started to poke through the bits of the cargo pods when he caught the whiff of ordium. He smirked, yanked out his dagger, and hunted for the strongest scent of the astringent smell. Kesh found a pod, no larger than Blue, reeking of the strong stink of ordium. It had been cracked open, and the blue-green liquid dribbled out onto the sand with a wet drip drip drip.

  "Makes my job easier," he said with a bright smile. Ordium wasn't what he truly wanted, he wanted it bonded with the iron oxide in the sand and soil that permeated Mars. He pulled out a small scanner, and tested the purity of the stuff. It was almost ninety-percent pure. Kesh let out a low whistle.

  "With thi
s, I'll be good for six months, and still have some to sell at the next market day."

  Get down human.

  Kesh didn't question it. He flattened himself to the ground. A shadow passed over him. He heard the growling of a sand panther as the shadow passed overhead. Kesh scrambled backwards. "Blue! Get your scaly butt over here."

  The answering shriek made him smile. The sand panther landed on the pod with the ordium, crushing it and sinking more of the stuff into the soil. The ordium and iron oxide mixture needed to be regulated. More ordium would ruin it. "Damn it, stupid cat." The cat shook its head and growled, swiping at Kesh. Kesh danced backwards as Blue came charging down the crater's side. Hurry up Blue.

  The sand panther crouched for another leap, his haunches bunched up and Kesh gulped, not sure if he would survive. "Blue!" He reached for the holster of his slugthrower pistol and felt it was empty. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw where the weapon had tumbled out. Damn clasp. He knew that if he reached for it, the sand panther would pounce and kill him. Staring at it was only slowing down the inevitable though.

  The sand panther stopped, turned, and darted away. Kesh cocked his head and looked around. The only thing he saw was Blue coming down the burnt edge of the crater, and then the small furry cat settled not too far away from Kesh. The cat looked up at Kesh, his golden green eyes narrowed.

  "How did you get here so fast?"

  The cat half closed its eyes, licked at a paw, and turned away from Kesh. Not even a thank you?

  Four

  "What now?"

  Mother Shellback looked at her with a smile. "Why, you escape of course, Skygirl."

  "How am I going to escape?"

  "You will do it, with my help." Mother Shellback smiled a gummy smile.

  “Why are you helping me? You have gost with them.”

  Mother Shellback shook her head. "They don't completely understand. I have gost. They are the dullards who thought I had it to them. I have it to you, Skygirl."

  "How? You don't even know who I am?"

  "You are a sky girl. The Shellback have gost to the Skypeople."

  "What are you—"

  "The Skypeople brought the shellback to Mars. Without the shellback, my tribe would have perished. It is only through the Skypeople that my tribe has survived and thrives as long as we have."

  Jonica paused for a moment. "Are you saying that the shellback aren't native to—" She stopped. It made sense. She knew of the shellbacks on Venus, though the fact that the shellback thrived in such a cold dry clime of Mars after Venus and its constant rain bothered her. She shook her head. It wasn't the time for exenstial questions of evolution. It was time to escape.

  "How do we escape?"

  Mother Shellback pulled out a small bone knife from her boot. ""Since I am mydel, they didn't take my weapon. They think I will be bound to their gost," she smiled. "The Sharptooth aren't the wisest of all tribes."

  "I have to ask one question," Jonica said, taking the knife that Mother Shellback offered. She eyed the edge, and it looked keen. Touching it to her thumb, she felt the honed edge and cut her herself. "That is sharp," she said, shocked at the small trickle of blood. She sucked at her thumb and Mother Shellback clicked her tongue and shook her head.

  "What is your question, Skygirl?"

  "Why were you with the Sharptooth then?"

  "I knew you were coming. I was sent to be taken by the Sharptooh."

  Jonica looked at the old woman, cocking an eyebrow high. "How did you know I was coming?"

  "The stars and the winds and the land told us that you were coming."

  Jonica shut her mouth with a click. She's crazy. Great, but better crazy than flayed and having my blood taken.

  Mother Shellback went to the door and started to leave.

  "Where are you—"

  "I am mydel, I am not a captive," Mother Shellback said.

  Jonica watched as she left the hut, the guards not even questioning her. They made sure Jonica stayed where she was. Jonica shook her head, and then noticed the staff. The staff that Mother Shellback had been carrying. Jonica's hand reached out for it, and the smooth wood felt good and cool in her hands. She wasn't sure why, but Jonica knew she had to take it with her when she escaped.

  Jonica waited for her chance as Mother Shellback walked unimpeded towards the gathering of the Sharptooth Circle. She looked out through the gap between the adobe wall and the slatted roof and saw Mother Shellback walking towards the the gathered tribesman. She had started to sing. It was a low chant that started to cause a strange hum in Jonica's blood. She felt her nerves starting to go on edge. Her hand around the knife and staff tightened, and her breath quickened.

  The leader of the Sharptooth shouted something at Mother Shellback, and the rest of the tribe started to converge the old woman. Even the guards at the door started to run towards Mother Shellback. Jonica risked one more look at Mother Shellback and instead of bolting, was struck by something she couldn't explain.

  The old bent woman was starting to glow an odd blue hue, while sand and small stones were starting to swirl around her. The Sharptooth warriors started to throw their spears at her, while others fired their makeshift slugthrowers. One or two ripped through the swirling sandstorm, and Mother Shellback buckled, but she continued her chant.

  Jonica's mouth hung agape. "What the—"

  Go Skygirl!

  "What?"

  Go stupid Skygirl, the voice of Mother Shellback screamed in her head.

  Jonica jumped through the skin door and ran along the edge of the tribe's fence. She watched as the warriors continued to assault the sandstorm that had risen around Mother Shellback.

  Rushing past the unguarded stores of the tribe, Jonica grabbed three skins of water and a spear that had been left unattended. Looking for a mount, her eyes caught sight of a long-necked, low-slung quadruped lizard she hadn't seen the first time around. She grabbed the thing by the reins. It looked at her oddly, but didn't put up a fuss when she mounted it She was about to turn around when she heard Mother Shellback shout again, Don't look back, Jonica of the Skypeople. Run.

  Jonica kicked the flanks of the lizard hard and the creature took off like a bullet. There was a cold blast of wind that pushed the creature forward. It let out a squeaking cough and ran faster. Jonica didn't turn around, afraid of what she would see.

  The long-necked lizard mount was faster than she thought. It must have some distant genetic connection to geckos since it twice clung to a hillside instead of trying to go through a gorge. She liked the beast. She wondered what Meph would do if she brought this guy aboard. If he's alive.

  She pushed the thought away, too morbid. If the psi-cat was around, she'd know. And if he was dead, she'd know. She shook off the thought and stared at the approaching towers and large settlement days away. It had to be Tharsis City. She knew there she'd be able to get a change of clothes and get a shuttle to her ship. "If the Fedrats haven't taken it by now," she mumbled to herself. She hated the Bloody Bitch, but the Federation wasn't much better. Kowtowing to the Bloody Cunt was about the same as pulling the trigger on the worlds where the Empress was waging a war of genocide. And her "temples" of young women were even worse, according to her contacts in the Empire. The women were feeding the Bloody Bitch's abhorrent addiction.

  She estimated she had about three days of travel before she hit the actual city. She might stumble onto an outlying farm or ranch nearby by tomorrow, if she was lucky. She checked her water rations. She had precious little of it. Jonica really wanted to do nothing more than to get the stink and sweat off her, and the dried blood of the Sharptooth clansmen. Mother Shellback’s dying words "Go Skygirl," as Jonica fled caused her to shiver. "Can't be helped. Keep pushing forward. Find the cat, find the box." That was what she needed to do. Get the box to Centauri Prime. After that, get paid and find another job.

  She was surprised when she stumbled into a small cluster of adobe buildings when she crested a small rise. Judging from the way the
wall was set up, the bleating, and the smell, Jonica guessed they raised shellbacks. She kicked her mount to go a bit faster. A bath. The thought made her smile. A bath and then a decent meal, she thought. It had been rough with the Sharptooth Tribe, but she was back to some kind of civilization.

  She stopped the mount at the front gate of the large complex. "Hail," she called out.

  "State your business," a voice asked, a mechanical one.

  A steamjack? Out here? "Lodging for the night, a bath, and food. I have money to pay."

  "Money ain't no good here," the voice said. "Trade only."

  "I don't have anything to trade. I was take prisoner by the Sharptooth Tribe. They have—"

  "Don't care, you are dangerous."

  "How?"

  "Won't let you in—"

  "Toby, stop being like that," another voice called out. The door swung open, and an older man in the dungarees and dark shirt of a rancher stepped out. "Please, come in. I'll take your mount for you."

  The steamjack sped up. "Sir, she might be—"

  "She's been wandering in the badlands. She needs water, food and," the older man took an exaggerated sniff, "a bath I'd wager."

  "Bless you," Jonica croaked while slipping from the lizard's back.

  "Don't like it, sir," the steamjack said.

  "Shut it, Toby."

  Inside the ranch house, Jonica found herself in a big copper tub. She had started to rub off the worst of the dirt and sand when the door slide open on a rusty track. The steamjack that had forbidden her entrance entered, carrying the last of the water. She let out a moan as the last bucket of water was poured. It twisted its round head to one side, like a dog. The eyes were shiny optics with a brass color. The body was a cobbled-together mass of silver, blue, and gold painted metal plates.

  "Are you alright, thief?"

  "I'm no thief." She turned away to grab at the brush again. "I told you I'm a—"