THE PRIZE: BOOK TWO - RETRIBUTION (15 page)

“Guard Commander Knurl, reporting with the prisoner, as ordered, Sir.”

“Thank you Commander. So this is the terrible human we’ve heard so much about.”

“We believe so, Sir.”

“Let’s have a look at the mad killer.” The hood was roughly jerked off his head. Penn looked up into the eyes of an ornately dressed, older Silurian. The moment he looked into Penn’s bright yellow eyes he jumped back.

“Prophet preserve us! What is it?” He croaked, eyes wide, unable to pull his eyes away from Penn’s. Just then, a heated argument broke out on the other side of a decorated archway. The sound broke the spell, and the older Silurian pulled his eyes away. With his enhanced hearing, it wasn’t difficult to hear what was being said.

“Commander! I’m ordering you to stand aside. I wish to see this monster with my own eyes.”

“But your Majesty. The danger… he could…” Whatever he was about to add was cut off as ‘her majesty’ pushed him aside and strode into the grand audience chamber.

Penn’s eyes flicked around the room, confirming his original assessment of where he was. The vaulted room was huge and richly decorated in gold and silver filigrees and inlayed etchings on the columns and walls. In many ways, it was similar to Emperor Cytec’s palace on Telluria Prime, right down to the armed guards encircling him. The one difference Penn could see was that the throne was almost at floor level, and only raised enough so all the people in the room could see who was sitting there. The people behind the ring of guards were dressed in everything from rough, home spun cloth and leather, to richly adorned suits of varying colors and styles. This had to be some grand audience chamber for the Queen to hold court in.

The Queen walked swiftly down the path between the people as they parted for her and came to a stop behind the ring of guards. To Richard’s eyes, she was in her mid thirties by human standards, beautiful some might say, tall, with a long, midnight black Mohawk running over her scalp and down her back. The ponytail caught in an elaborate gold filigree net. From where he stood, Penn guessed she was as tall as he was, and therefore taller than most of the Silurians in the room. Richard kept his eyes half closed, hooded, and refrained from looking directly at her. He knew the impact his eyes had, and he didn’t want to start out by scaring the living daylights out of her.

“Stand aside.” She commanded, and the two soldiers in front of her hesitated for a moment, weighing protecting her against her command to move. Reluctantly they moved aside to let her pass, and she strode inside the circle. She didn’t approach, but chose to keep her distance. Her preferred dress was light, colorful, and flowed through the air as she moved, rather than some heavy brocade or confining robes. Penn liked her. She appeared intelligent, sure of herself and her position, and didn’t seem to suffer fools lightly. Immediately as she broke the circle, one of the guards behind him, hit him behind the knee with the butt of his weapon.

“Kneel before our Queen, human!” Even as the blow took him by surprise, Richard recovered quickly and he looked over his shoulder at the guard. His look was sufficient for the Silurian to take a step back, but it wasn’t enough to stop him from stepping back and hitting him again. Being ready for it, his leg didn’t buckle this time.

“Stop!” The Queen ordered, and the guard stepped back, bowing his head. “So this is Director Markoff’s pet killer.” She announced, as if informing the audience at large. “Well assassin, whatever Markoff’s plan was, you failed.” As she spoke, she walked a little closer, as if daring him to do something.

“I now have to decide whether to just execute you, or send you back to that abomination of a Tellurian Surl in pieces.” By the expression on her face, she favored the latter over the former. Just then, Penn heard two sets of feet running towards the audience chamber. A moment later, two people burst in from a side passageway and pushed their way through the crowd.

“Your Majesty. Please wait!” The Queen turned toward the disturbance as the two pushed their way between the guards.

“What is the meaning of this?” The Queen demanded, as both rushed over and dropped to one knee before her.

“Majesty, please wait, that we may be heard.”

“To what purpose?”

“To beg for the life of this human.” The Queen took a step back. Her golden brown eyes flicked between Penn and the two kneeling figures.

“Stand up, both of you and explain to me Cohort Commander Tarl, why I should spare the life of Markoff’s pet assassin?” Penn smiled ever so slightly, seeing the back of Regina Tarl’s hand brush against the person by her side. Penn would lay even money it was Rem Timor. Both wore close fitting golden helmets, more like skull caps with back and side guards. Each wore the same uniform as the encircling guards, but with more decoration, medals, and epaulette insignias. Not being versed in Silurian military customs, Richard didn’t know what they signified.

“Majesty, we have a life debt to repay this human.” Regina kept her head bowed, as did her companion.

“So, yes, I remember you telling me of a human who saved your lives inside the infernal building. And you think this is he?”

“Yes, your Majesty.” At that moment Rem Timor looked over his shoulder at Penn and their eyes met. That was all that was needed. “It is he.”

“What have you to say, Regina?”

“This is he. We doubt there is another human being with such eyes.”

“Eyes?” The Queen asked, slightly puzzled. She looked over at Penn, who opened his eyes wide and lifted his head to look directly at her. Even at this distance, she took a step back.

“May the great Prophet protect us all.” Her hand went to her throat, as if to protect it, or maybe it was just a reflex.

“With your permission, your Majesty. We would deem to speak to this human.” In answer the Queen just waved her hand, unable to look away from Penn’s Golden Eyes or speak for a moment. Rem Timor quickly walked over and placed his left hand on Richard’s right shoulder.

“Swear to me on the life of the one you love that you are not here to hurt my Queen.” Richard smiled and shook his head.

“I swear on the life of Ellis, the one I love more than life itself, I’m not here to hurt anyone, except maybe him,” Penn looked over his shoulder at the guard, “I’m here to ask your Queen for help?” Rem looked deeply into his eyes and nodded.

“We see this is true, friend Penn.” With that he dropped his arm and walked back to the Queen. Here he dropped to one knee again. “Your Majesty, may my life be forfeit due to any action of this human, should any of your subjects be injured in any way.” Before he’d even finished speaking the words, Regina Tarl also dropped to one knee beside him again.

“As is mine, your Majesty.” Tearing her eyes away from Penn, the Queen looked down at the kneeling pair. She placed her hands on her hips, tapping her foot.

“By the prophet! What is this. Stand up, both of you, and explain Regina?”

“This being could have taken the life of Rem Timor and myself with impunity, yet he chose not to. He rescued us, doctored our wounds, gave us his food and water, and set us free with our weapons to go on our way in peace. Not the actions of some unthinking killer.”

Hearing that, the Queen paced back and forth with her hands on her hips, angrily looked at the three of them in turn. Then she stopped, turned and swiftly walked over to stand before Richard. As she did, the guards strained forward but the Queen held out both of her hands, palms up to still them. She looked deep into Richard's eyes, which a lot of people couldn’t do, like she was trying to outstare a dangerous cat or something. Richard smiled and blinked. It was a gutsy move considering all the shit about humans, and especially if she believed Markoff had sent him.

“Good move, your Majesty.”

“You speak our language well, human.”

“Language chip implant.”

“Is it true what the Commander of my personal guard has said?”

“What? That I’m not here to kill you? Or Director Markoff sent me?”

“Yes.”

“Like we say on Earth, you don’t try to kill me and I won’t try to kill you, and no, Markoff didn’t send me here, or anywhere. I don’t work for that misbegotten bastard anymore.”

“Why did you work for that monster in the first place if you hate him so much? I would have rather died, or killed myself than lift a finger to do anything for that hell spawn of a Surl.” The Queen placed her hands on her hips again, almost glaring at him as she asked the question. It was a good one, and for a moment Richard was taken aback, but he could also feel a hot bitter anger rising.

“Easy words to say here in the safety of your palace your Majesty, surrounded by your elite guard. Would you be so quick to say them if you were beaten for weeks on end, chained like dog and have the threat of a rock being dropped on one of your cities to kill a million people, males, females and the children if you refused to do what you were told?”

“A bluff maybe…” She took a small step back as Penn’s eyes blazed with anger.” The chains around his body snapped tight, also straining to the breaking point.

“The first time I refused, I saw him destroy an Earth city with over 1.5 million people in it!” At last the Queen nodded slightly. Hearing a slight sound, her eyes flicked down to the chain, then back up to his eyes.

“Yes, we understand now. How do you say no to someone who holds that many lives of your kind in the palm of his hand.” She looked over Richard’s shoulder.

“Release him.”

“But… but your Majesty, he’s… dangerous…” Before he could finish, Rim Timor stalked across and grabbed the keys out of the Captain’s hand. Without hesitation he knelt in front of Richard and undid the shackles around his ankles. Then stood and did the same with his wrist cuffs.

“My deepest apologies for your treatment, Sir Penn.” He bowed his head.

“You have nothing to apologize for my friend. I swore to you before, in the pyramid that you and yours had nothing to fear from me.” Richard answered as he ripped the collar from around his throat.

“This I remember well, as does my Commander and why we were willing to pledge our lives should it be otherwise.”

“Take him where he can bathe and clean himself, and provide him with some clothes suitable to his station, then bring him to my chambers. At that, the Queen spun on her heels and, head up in a regal fashion, strode away, her diaphanous robes flowing and billowing out behind her.

“Captain. Where is this person’s property?” Rim asked softly.

“We have no idea, Commander.” Not bothering to hide the anger in his voice. Rim reached past Richard’s shoulder and grabbed the poor Captain by the throat.

“Think yourself lucky that Sir Penn was in a good mood when he escaped from your custody the last time, otherwise you and all your dim witted guards would all now be dead.” Penn turned and looked at the guard Captain.

“I strongly suggest that you go and find my property, unless of course you’d like to see me in a bad mood?” The Captain frantically shook his head as Rim Timor released him.

“When you find everything, bring it here to me personally, do you understand Lieutenant?”

“But I’m a Captain…” The poor fellow swallowed hard before turning on his heels and running from the audience chamber before he found himself a private again.

“Please come, Sir Penn. We will take you to our quarters so you might clean yourself and take some light refreshment.” As he spoke, Regina Tarl dispersed the nervous guards back to their assigned duties before coming over and bowing slightly to Penn.

“Welcome, Sir Penn. We are pleased to see you survived that infernal building…” She stopped and looked at him a moment before drawing closer. For a second she seemed to draw in his scent, before nodding to herself. “You got to this prize, didn’t you?” Penn shrugged, as if it was of no account.

“Yes… we too can sense something different about you… it as if you have a…” It was his turn to shrug, as if he didn’t know how to phrase what he wanted to say, or just didn’t have the words in Silurian to say them. “You have an aura about you now.”

“Please come, Sir Penn, and prepare yourself for an audience with my Queen.” Rim motioned toward a far doorway.

“I wish you two would stop calling me Sir Penn. It’s just Richard, or Penn if you prefer. I don’t have a title or anything like that.”

“Maybe not on your world, but here on this world, to us you do.” Penn looked around as they walked him through the royal palace, delighted to see the place was open and airy, rather than closed in and fortress-like. As was Emperor Cytec’s.

It spoke of a monarchy more open to the people they ruled, unlike the Tellurians who went in for the heavy-handed approach. He didn’t doubt the Silurians had their equivalent of IMPSEC, as Earth would have to have eventually. It said something about their spy service and the depth to which they’d penetrated the Tellurian Empire if the Queen knew he had once been Markoff’s assassin. They passed through open, airy, flower bedecked courtyards with fountains or small brooks running through them, hearing the soft sound of running water. In many, people stood or sat by the fountains, talking and laughing or just sat and enjoyed the tranquil atmosphere. A shocked silence descended when they saw Penn, most immediately recognizing him as human. He wondered what sort of horror stories they’d heard, and for that matter how so many even knew what a human looked like.

“Commander. I have to ask…”

“Please, Sir Penn, you may call us Regina.”

“Okay. Regina. How come so many of your people recognize me as a human?” Regina and Tarl looked at each other for a moment, and Penn saw a slight nod pass between them. At a touch on his arm, Richard stopped in a secluded corner of one courtyard, seeing Regina look around.

“Because, Sir Penn. You are not the first human to come to our planet.” Regina bit her lower lip in a very human gesture. “We must admit that our troops took some humans prisoner in a battle with the Tellurians.” She replied in a soft voice, almost hesitantly, as if afraid to say it aloud.

“Oh? How long ago, and what happened to them?” Richard feared the worst.

“This happened three solar cycles ago, before Rem… the Commander and I were dispatched to that accursed planet along with a cohort of troops.” Richard could see they were trying to avoid answering his question. He looked them both in the eyes, and it was sufficient.