Chapter 15—Planning
(Rhyan)
After taking one last drag of the okhar, I let the roll fall from my fingers to the pavement before rubbing it out with my boot. Smoke filled my lungs, warming my body as the drug soothed my tense muscles. Shifting my shoulders under my leather trench, I held the smoke in a little longer to take a harder hit. After the last few days, I needed it more than usual.
Three years—I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen him in three years and he came back with another lover. Granted his circumstances had been extravagant, but it didn’t change the slimy ball of jealousy consuming my soul. He was mine, and had been since the day I saw him in juvie. A smirk broke my tight grimace as I remembered a young righteous Senana, his young eyes bright with a fierce intensity that held no fear. In all these years, he hadn’t changed at all. He was still the same impulsive hero trying to protect everyone with his bare fists. It was this same white knight attitude that got him imprisoned on Indiku for three years.
Blowing out the last of the okhar smoke, I moved out from the alley I’d stopped in thirty minutes ago and back onto the main street. In Old City, after the sun went down, it wasn’t very common to see people walking alone. The majority of the population stayed inside. Without any kind of police force or reign of justice, many were left to their own devices. Even if it meant getting stabbed in the shadows of a run-down building, there was probably no one to come save you. Living in Old City was a test of survival, a place for the people rejected from New City. The only structured entity the entire city came together for was the market, and that was still only for selfish necessity.
Walking over the cracked pavement, I crossed the empty street to the old brownstone townhomes on the other side. They were historical homes that were in better condition than would have been expected of something in Old City. Red stacked stone made up a large portion of the facia while some areas were just conventional cinderblocks with stucco. This particular home that I was here for had been well maintained and cared for in recent years, all the usual signs of age covered or repaired in every instance. Lights lit up the porch leading to the doorway, bright like neon in this abysmal city. Walking up the few steps to the door, I made sure to stand a few feet back from the threshold before knocking loudly on the reinforced metal door.
After talking to Sena, I’d done some digging through a few contacts. Every one of them led me to the same source in Old City. Of course, the rumors had to originate through here, to the one person that made my life a living hell without fail. The door swung open, skimming past my face by mere centimeters before crashing violently into the red brick exterior. In the doorway, a fully charged pistol was aimed straight at my face, the sparks heating my cheeks even with the few feet separating us.
“Titania. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen the beast mistress in the flesh,” I said to the dark-skinned woman holding the pistol.
“Why are you here, Rhyan?” Her red eyes narrowed, sharp in contrast to her wild scarlet hair and chocolate brown skin.
“Well, thing is, I’ve heard you have some information regarding some new seeds planted in the market garden. I’d be willing to trade.” I moved closer to the doorway, looking past the barrel of the gun and into the wild woman’s eyes. “I’ll make it worth your time.” I offered my voice low enough to be a purr. I stared straight into her deep red eyes, watching her pupils dilate, like prey looking into a predator’s gaze.
Titania shook her head, averting her eyes quickly. “Fucking bastard. I know you can do that shit, everyone does. Don’t try it with me or I’ll have them rip you apart.” The growls of her beasts grew restless behind her.
Snorting, I leaned on the open door frame. “Most humans can’t help but stare. Just tell me what I want to know Titania and I’ll leave you and your puppy pile in peace.”
Her lips pursed as she pondered her next move, the pistol unwavering between us. Looking out onto the empty streets around the house, she finally nodded and holstered her weapon. “Fine, but you pull that hypnosis shit again, and I’ll put you in the meat grinder out back.” Turning, she walked into the house, leaving me to follow through the throng of massive dedayians.
Pulling the heavy metal door shut behind me, I kept pace with the petite human woman as she lead the way into a large living area filled with hundreds of pillows and blankets. Her aliens moved around us, low growls echoed throughout the small room. I moved farther into the space, their eerie yellow eyes tracking me as I went. Although the creatures were incapable of speaking the human language, they were unequivocally loyal to their masters. I’d first seen them in the market with Titania—the beast mistress—as she spoke about the great security and comfort owning such an alien could bring. It had been comical watching the short woman as each creature towered over her pitiful five-foot frame. Thick metal mag-collars gleamed against the black-skinned throats as they stood obediently in the pouring rain of the market square. Customers would come by and fondle each creature like livestock. Each one would run their fingers over their large spines that protruded from wrist to elbow of each foreleg and along the top of their heads and down to the base of their spine. Hands would pull back their lips on their protruding muzzles to bear two rows of sharp black teeth against long pink tongues. I’d seen one woman go as far as pulling their sheathed cocks out in the middle of the market. How anyone could see them as potential pets was crazy to me. Nothing so deadly could ever be considered a pet in my opinion.
“Ette!” Titania growled at the hoard of twenty dedayians.
The pack moved immediately, swarming over to mounds of pillows, their long rabbit-like ears lying flat as they sat in their respective bedding. “Impressive. You really do have them trained. I thought they only took to one master.”
“They do; this is my personal harem. I house the others elsewhere. That’s beside the point. What information did you come here for?” She walked toward a small couch set off to the side of the room, sitting down with a flourish of colorful skirts and well-endowed breasts.
“Harem—I don’t want to know. A few contacts told me you were the source of the new rumor floating over the market.” I watched her closely, gauging her reaction.
“I’m the source of a lot of rumors.” She grinned wickedly, her bright white teeth shining against her chocolate skin. “People love a good rumor.”
“So you don’t know anything about the zanzi bodies being put up for bid?”
Her red eyes rounded, large breasts moving up and down as her breathing became more shallow. Licking her lips, she took a deep inhale before speaking. “I don’t want any part in that fucked-up mess.”
Frowning, I took a step toward her only to find a large dedayian blocking my path. Its yellow eyes glared down at me as its spines rose along its crest. “Titania, this is ridiculous.”
“Ette, Zah!” she shouted, a dangerous note edging the words. The beast growled, its black teeth bared as it slowly moved back toward the pillows, sinking down onto the nearest one. Titania watched the dedayian sit down before giving me her attention again.
Her reactions thus far weren’t what I’d come to expect from the human. She wasn’t someone to scare easily; hell, if anything, she was the first one to start shit among the vendors and we all knew that was asking for trouble in Old City. She had seemed truly unsettled by the zanzis, enough to keep her guard dogs on edge. I maneuvered around the assortment of fabric on the ground, making sure my boots didn’t damage the fine cloths as I got closer to her. Opening my coat pocket, I pulled out a roll. Pulling out a lighter, I lit up, taking the first drag before passing it to the beast mistress. The thick smoke of the okhar smothered every other scent in the room. She eyed the drug warily, eyes passing over the offering and back to the smoke pouring from my nostrils before pinching the offered roll between her fingers. Titania took a deep drag, holding the smoke in for a solid minute before expelling it in a long exhale.
“Tell me what you know about the zanzi sellers.”
She took another drag, more than likely to buy herself more time. Exhaling again, Titania stared at the roll she was currently holding. “What’s in it for me? I’m not inclined to get into shit that has no benefit for me.” Putting the roll back to her lips, she took another drag.
“You tell me what I need to know and I’ll push the importance of a dedayian companionship to my contacts.” Leaning forward so that our faces were only inches apart, I plucked the roll from her fingers, taking my own drag of the okhar. Blowing the smoke out near her face, I caught her crimson eyes for the second time that night. “It will be worth your while.”
Her eyes dilated further, the drugs allowing her body to relax into the couch as she stared into my eyes. “What do you need to know?” Her words came out slightly slurred.
“Which vendor is selling the bodies?” I ask first, keeping our gazes locked, the smoke still swirling between us.
Titania blinked slowly, breathing in more of the sweet vapor. “VSM in the Old City harbor.”
Holding back my grimace, I tried not to express my distaste. VSM was not someone Boone would want to make an enemy of, and I was, after all, a direct affiliate of the tower. “Where are they getting the large imports?” I asked after blowing another puff of smoke between us, never losing her eye contact.
“VSM is getting a direct import from the main port. Somehow, they aren’t importing through illegal fairways.” Her words were slow and even more slurred than the last response.
How was it even possible for them to be getting imports through New City space ports? There was no way the zanzis were coming through unnoticed through such a huge hub.
“Do they have a specialist on staff for the product?”
Titania paused, licking her lips before nodding. “Yes. Dr. Mark Rawlins.”
Titania’s chin started to tilt as the drugs started to pull her under. Grabbing her chin gently, I lifted her head. “Keep with me. Where do they intend to sell the product and when is their next shipment?”
Her head rolled and her eyes began to close. “H-harbor…in t-two days…” she slurred before passing out. Laying her down gently on the couch, I stood up. The yellow eyes of her beasts watched me, ears up as they tried to judge the situation. Grabbing a blanket from the back of the couch, I cover Titania’s lower body. It would be hours before she woke up and figured out she’d been crossed, and she would be pissed.
Dabbing the roll out on my pants leg, I shoved it back into my coat pocket. Once I moved away, the dedayians swarmed around their mistress, licking her cheeks and chirping in her ear. A loud snore broke past Titania’s lips and she pulled the blanket closer to her chin. The motion seemed to calm the beasts as they grouped in close to her.
Walking toward the door, I felt a presence behind me. The scratching sound of talons on tile proved I was right. Turning, I saw the same dedayian that had stopped me from approaching Titania before. Normally, I couldn’t tell them apart, but this one was the only one that wore a mag-collar like the ones she sold at the market. There was an etching along the front of the collar.
“Zah. Interesting name.” I turned back toward the door. I needed to start making plans with the others if we were going to get the specialist when the new shipment came in. If their next shipment was in two days, then there was no doubt in my mind that the specialist would be there. Problem was, I didn’t want to make an enemy of VSM. The tower couldn’t afford to have a vendor that big as an enemy.
A chirping interrupted my thoughts. With my hand on the doorknob, I looked back over my shoulder at the dedayian still following me. “She comes looking for you, I’m ratting you out,” I said as I pulled the door open and walked into the vacant street. I could hear the sound of Zah’s talons on the pavement behind me as I headed away from the brownstone and back toward the tower where Sena was—with his alien lover. I would have to do this to keep him, and I would do anything to help Senana, even if it meant upending everything we’ve built in this dead city for his zanzi. I would do anything to keep him with me this time.
Zanzi or not, he was still mine.
(Edik)
-Idiku-
I watched the human tied to the chair. His face was bruised, one eye swollen shut. It had been a solid hour since they’d dragged the man into my cottage and restrained him. After getting the news from their employer about the destroyed shipment and Rays’ escape, I’d retrieved the only leverage we had. Our employer wasn’t happy about the situation. After explaining that the zanzi was able to change his form, they’d wanted to get their hands on it desperately, only for them to get away and destroy the latest shipment of leeri. I needed some answers, and a way to find Rays on Earth.
The man moaned and rolled his head against the back of the chair. His grey hair was drenched with sweat; he looked particularly close to death. Grabbing his face in my large hand, I made him focus his good eye on me, the brown orb defiant even as weak as he was. “Tell me where Senana Rays would go on Earth.”
“W-we’ve been over this,” the human man—Seth—coughed as he tried to speak. “I don’t know shit, but even if I did, there is a code in Old City: Die with your secrets, or live with nothing.” He spit a large wad of blood out at my boots. “So go fuck yourself, ugly fucking troll.”
I sneered at the man, his loyalty completely unfounded. What could he possibly gain from not telling me what I needed to know? “There is no loyalty among thieves and murders. What do you want in exchange?”
“I—” Another violent cough escaped him as he tried to suck in more air. “I told you—go fuck yourself.” His brown eye narrowed. “I know what you fuckers are up to. Wait ‘til Sena finds out.” Seth chuckled brokenly. “Healing flowers, my ass.”
I’d had enough. “Get rid of him. We’ll use him as bait for the next hunt,” I said to the Aky’an waiting at the door.
“Die with your secrets, or live with nothing!” Seth shouted before the native hit him over the head, his body slumping over unconscious.
Panic twisted my gut. How long before the zanzi figured out what was happening and told Rays? If that zanzi told them the truth, then everything they’d accomplished would be for nothing. Years of suffering and planning would be for absolutely nothing!
Closing my eyes, I took deep breaths to steady myself. I had to figure out a way to get rid of the beast before it ruined everything, but how? Opening my eyes, I stared down at the pile of papers that I’d scattered over the floor earlier that day. It was an old text about the species of Indiku, and one page in particular stood out among them. Reaching down with thick fingers, I picked up the image, a newfound hope blossoming in my gut. Something this size would definitely be enough to speed everything along. I dropped the paper, letting it float to the floor in a smooth arc, landing face up among the pile.
“We are going hunting. Get the others together.”
“Unh,” the Aky’an grunted before leaving.
Looking back down at the paper, I felt a thrill run through me. This was going to be the most enticing hunt since the war. With a smirk, I walked away from the image of the great white zanzi with red eyes.
The End