Adventures on RV Traveler (Free Trader Series Book 3) Read online

  Adventures on

  RV Traveler

  Free Trader Series

  Book 3

  By Craig Martelle

  Copyright © 2016 Craig Martelle

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN 10: 1530812011

  ISBN 13: 978-1530812011

  ASIN:

  Cover Illustration © Tom Edwards

  Tom EdwardsDesign.com

  Editing services provided by Mia Darien – miadarien.com

  Other Books by Craig Martelle

  It’s Not Enough to Just Exist (Jan 2016)

  Free Trader Series Book 1 – The Free Trader of Warren Deep (Feb 2016)

  Free Trader Series Book 2 – The Free Trader of Planet Vii (Mar 2016)

  Free Trader Series Book 3 – Adventures on RV Traveler (Apr 2016)

  Free Trader Series Book 4 – Battle of the Amazon (estimate Oct 2016)

  Rick Banik Thriller Series

  People Raged and the Sky Was on Fire (May 2016)

  For James M. Ward and the gamers out there who never got

  enough Metamorphosis Alpha©

  Thank you all for a lifetime of inspiration

  Table of Contents

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgments

  1 – Setting The Stage

  2 – Triumphant Return

  3 – Time to Celebrate

  4 – Planning to Leave

  5 – Stream of Pain

  6 – River Crook

  7 – Westerly and Back

  8 – Run!

  9 – Ready to Fly

  10 – Transfer to the Traveler

  11 – Controlled Chaos

  12 – The Corridor

  13 – Crew Quarters

  14 – Deck 10: Livestock Level

  15 – Between Decks 9 & 10

  16 – Deck 9: Rainforest Level

  17 – A Better Plan

  18 – Monkey Crap

  19 – The Ramp to Deck 8

  20 – Entering Deck 8

  21 – Deck 8: Aft Garden Level

  22 – The Rabbit People

  23 – Forward, Ever Forward

  24 – Deck 3: Fore Garden Level

  25 – Deck 2: The Aviary

  26 – Nothing Trying to Kill Us

  27 – The Command Deck

  28 – Androids

  29 – Storage

  30 – Between Decks

  31 – A Break, A Plan

  32 – The Bridge

  33 – Crew Quarters

  34 – Dinner and a Show

  35 – We’re Doing This

  36 – Battle for the Bridge

  37 – Controlling the Bridge

  38 – Taking Control of the Ship

  39 – Hunting an Android

  40 – A Break

  41 – Aligning the Ship

  42 – The Ramp Between Decks

  43 – Trapped

  44 – D2-3, Subdeck 7, Radial Passage 140, Frame 8553

  45 – Androids and Their Traps

  46 – D2-3, Subdeck 5, Radial Passage 140, Frame 8687

  47 – Devolved

  48 – Alone and Afraid

  49 – Maintenance Subdeck

  50 – The Android Nexus

  51 – Cleaning Up and Moving On

  52 – A Blocked Door

  53 – The Cryo Shell

  54 – A Place to Rest Forever

  55 – What Isn’t Trying to Kill Us?

  56 – Wolfoids

  57 – Betrayal

  58 – Peace

  59 – The Survivors from Cygnus VI

  60 – The Return

  61 – Planet Vii

  62 – Heading Home

  63 – Battle for the Amazon Road

  Free Trader Book 4 – Battle of the Amazon

  Postscript

  Acknowledgments

  This journey started a long time ago when my brother Guy introduced me to Dungeons and Dragons™. This was early in TSR’s existence, so we had to build our own dungeons, run our own campaigns. In the back of a magazine was an ad for Metamorphosis Alpha©. I bought it for five dollars. But then I attended a GenCon in 1979 where I met James Ward. I bought Gamma World©.

  Those worlds are my mecca. I could never get my head wrapped around The Force from the Star Wars ‘verse. I guess the Force is not with me.

  I like the civilizations that were. Post-Apocalyptic became my favorite genre. I like the connection that people have with animals. Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series was a great set of stories, based on a fantastic world populated by human colonists, modified by their best engineers to fight a threat they never knew existed.

  Thank you Guy for introducing me and James for giving this genre life.

  1 – Setting The Stage

  Micah cradled Ax as the rains continued relentlessly. Little ‘Tesh rode with Braden, inside an oiled deerskin he held tightly around her.

  Max continued plodding along the rainforest road. The Amazonians had repaired it where the horses didn’t have to think. One hoof in front of the other. Keep going in a straight line. Daylight. Night. Daylight.

  The constant rain kept them company, dulled their senses.

  The twins were six moons old before the Medical Laboratory deemed them fit enough to travel. Nearly a full cycle of the seasons passed since Braden and Micah had last been away from New Sanctuary.

  Bronwyn would be much bigger now. Skirill and Brandt? They missed them greatly. They expected the Hawkoid and the King of the Aurochs wouldn’t let Braden’s caravan travel without them ever again. As they continued through the rain, Braden’s mind drifted in and out.

  G-War dreamed of being dry. It was the same dream he had every time they traveled the rainforest. But it was never a dream. G-War huddled miserably in the cart, the cover providing almost no defense against the perpetual downpour.

  Master Aadi was indifferent to the rain. His thoughts were clear and being hydrated, he had the most energy of all the companions. He was surprised the Amazonians hadn’t made contact. He started to worry. The Lizard Men revered the Tortoid and should have stopped the companions to greet him. When they reached Bronwyn, she would know how the Amazonian War was going. It was a great burden for a girl only eleven cycles old, but it was the nature of her gift, being able to speak with all creatures, touch their minds.

  They had to get through the rain first. As things changed, others remained the same. When they traveled the Amazon and it wasn’t raining, then they’d worry that the apocalypse was upon them. Until then, one hoof in front of the other.

  2 – Triumphant Return

  Finally, they reached the trading area where Village McCullough had first met the Amazonians. A wagon had recently visited. Braden looked over his shoulder at Micah, on Speckles, little Ax bundled in front of her. He nodded, grinning. The wagon wheels told him all was well.

  And they weren’t far from Village McCullough.

  Braden urged Max into a brisk walk. Micah slapped the reins lightly, trying to catch up.

  They broke into the sunlight, the brightness washed over them, bringing warmth and joy. A familiar figure appeared in the distant sky, winging quickly toward them.

  ‘My friends! You have returned,’ Skirill, a Hawkoid, said over their mindlink. He swooped in close and flared to land on a low branch by the open road. He looked healthy. The humans breathed sighs of relief.

  He wanted to see the additions to his family.

  Braden rode close and lifted the deerskin from his daughter. ‘Uncle Ess. Pretty!’ came the baby’s thought voice.

  ‘Me, Me,’ cried Ax as Micah stopped the
cart next to Braden. Their little thought voices matched their size. Six moons old and they could talk over the mindlink, but they’d been talking for well over a cycle now. Their speech became more refined as they aged, which they seemed to be doing at an unnaturally fast pace. The Medical Laboratory assured them the children were growing normally.

  ‘Axial. De’atesh. I am happy to finally meet you both. I will watch over you, and no, your mother has informed me that you can’t ride me. Maybe Master Aadi is more your speed?’ Skirill spoke formally with the children. ‘You’ve already ridden Aadi, but he wouldn’t go high enough?’

  “What?” Micah looked sharply at Braden.

  “I’m sure we have no idea what you’re talking about, Skirill. Haha, very funny. Where is Brandt and Bronwyn?” Braden wouldn’t look at his partner. Aadi swam away from the group, taking a great interest in a tree out of Micah’s sight.

  ‘They wait for you in Greentree. We think you’ll like what you find there.’

  “That’s it? Are you going to let us in on the secret? C’mon, Ess, tell us,” Braden urged the Hawkoid.

  ‘No.’ He jumped from the branch, gliding over their heads before winging skyward. ‘To Greentree!’

  “I guess we’re going to Greentree.” Braden turned Max around and waited while Micah guided Pack, as he dragged the cart around in a circle. The wagon tracks were clear, showing what a trader’s road could look like. They followed the trail toward Greentree that they had blazed long ago.

  For half the daylight they pushed while Skirill stayed ahead of them. He kept flying back to look at the children. They’d giggle as he zipped past, dangerously close, the adults thought. Uncle Ess.

  They heard the rumble first, then felt it as the King of the Aurochs burst into view. He ran full speed toward them until they feared he wouldn’t be able to stop. A little girl lay spread-eagled across his head, hanging on for dear life. Max stopped and stamped nervously.

  In a great cloud of dust, Brandt slid to a stop in front of the caravan. Bronwyn lost her grip and slid down the Aurochs’ great head until he lifted his nose, keeping her from falling to the ground. She turned and sat as he lowered her. She stepped off gracefully, then ran to Micah.

  “I love them!” she cried aloud. Everything else she said in her thought voice privately with the babies. ‘Tesh squirmed in Braden’s arms until he almost dropped her. He carefully handed her down to Bronwyn, who took the baby in her delicate hands.

  ‘Bronwyn! Bronwyn!’ the babies cheered in their small thought voices. Braden shrugged at Micah. When they looked up, G-War sat atop the King’s head, casually licking a paw and cleaning his face. Aadi bobbed in front, greeting his fellow strategist.

  They had much to discuss. Holly had finally figured a way to talk with Aadi. It involved a small helmet that a Bot put on Aadi’s Tortoid head. They spent a great deal of time talking, but Braden and Micah couldn’t hear them. Aadi assured the humans that with further refinements, not only could they stop the current conflict, they could prevent future wars. Aadi based his ideas on the purity of heart.

  Braden told him he didn’t like the word purity. Everyone was a mutant in some way. Aadi laughed at that. He explained that Holly had technology that could assess the pure heart. Braden, Micah, and the companions fit a new mold, servants to all creatures. The pure heart test would be used to determine who served on the Council of Leaders. This council would be responsible for identifying and resolving differences.

  Braden and Micah rolled their eyes at each other. Aadi talked endlessly about the council and what it could accomplish. The young parents found it mind numbing. Brandt appeared to take great interest in claiming Planet Vii for all intelligent creatures. Brandt started walking back toward Greentree, Aadi close by his side. They were deep in conversation.

  Bronwyn watched her ride leave without her. She shrugged and, with ‘Tesh held tightly, climbed into the cart. It jerked as Speckles started walking to catch up to Brandt. In the past cycle, they’d forgotten that when Bronwyn was around, the horses didn’t need their reins. She told them what to do and they did it.

  The babies giggled as Bronwyn ‘talked’ with them. The family was complete once again. That meant Braden and Micah hanging on to the raft as it washed down the river’s whitewater, watching as the world went by.

  3 – Time to Celebrate

  When the caravan arrived in Greentree, every villager stood in the square. There were new people and new babies, and the same aura of joy that the companions had embraced when they decided to live here. The people cheered and waved. Flowers decorated the entrance to their home.

  Ditarod stood in front, smiling and waving. Behind the crowd, Braden saw the wagon, with Candela and Tanner sitting on the buckboard. The entire Earthshaker Herd pranced to their right, kicking up clouds of dust.

  ‘And you thought no one loved you. Shame on you, partner mine.’ Micah’s thought voice caressed Braden, comforting him. He felt warm all over. He wondered why the noise hadn’t upset the children.

  Bronwyn. She had talked with them nonstop since they met her. Now she was holding ‘Tesh’s little hand up in the air, helping her wave at the crowd. Micah was doing the same with Ax. Braden looked around to find Skirill watching them from the branch of a tall tree.

  ‘Come down, my friend. I’ve missed you.’ Skirill executed a shallow dive, back winged to a hover and landed gently between Braden’s face and Max’s neck. He helped the Hawkoid steady himself, tail feathers draped down Max’s shoulder. Braden had one arm around the Hawkoid while he scratched the bird’s wing-root feathers with the other. One cycle of the seasons was a long time.

  The return of Braden and his clan to Greentree resulted in a celebration that included people from all the villages. How they managed it, Braden and Micah could only guess.

  “Let’s do this twice each cycle. We gather in a village to celebrate. A festival. Each village hosts one, then rotate to the next. The elders can talk and we keep the peace. People need to travel more, see the world, appreciate other people!” Braden threw the idea out and let it go, but the right people heard. When they were alone, the village leaders committed to making it happen.

  Bronwyn was completely taken with the babies. She was eleven cycles old, but mature as an adult when it came to handling them. She told Braden and Micah emphatically that wherever her little sister and brother went, she would go, too. Micah looked at her parents, who threw up their hands in surrender. Bronwyn determinedly claimed two sets of parents and extra siblings.

  Even Brandt shouldered his way into the celebration, where Ax and ‘Tesh got to meet him fully. Most people were intimidated when they saw the King of the Aurochs for the first time. Not the babies. They couldn’t walk yet, but they could stand. When Bronwyn introduced them to Brandt, he had to put his nose on the ground, where they each grabbed a horn to pull themselves up. His eyes were as big as their heads. The moment he talked with them, they both put their hands over their ears and started crying. Bronwyn had a sharp word for the great beast, who hung his head even lower.

  When he tried again, they were recovered. They climbed his horns as if they were toys. He lifted them off the ground a hand-span or two then dropped them back down. Braden hugged Micah to him as they watched. She leaned into his shoulder, feeling both proud and happy.

  ‘You know they will be in the best of hands,’ Braden started. Micah’s eyes glistened as she thought of their future.

  ‘I can’t imagine a day without my babies, but I know we have to do this. It will take me some time, that’s all.’ Micah finished with a sigh. Braden looked at the device in the palm of his hand that Holly had given them. Anyone could use it to communicate with Braden or Micah as long as they had their neural implants active. This put their minds at ease.

  Old Tech used for the right purpose. If each village had one, they could all talk. It could bring the villages even closer together, but Braden believed they weren’t ready yet. The traders, plying the routes, would be effect
ive enough. Plus, Braden and Micah didn’t want the others to know about New Sanctuary.

  Everything they brought back--the wheel hubs, the saw blades, the books--were supposedly found by the Amazonians deep in the rainforest at a secret location. This would keep treasure hunters away.

  Whoever they gave the communication device to would have to keep it secret.

  “Where were you for the past cycle? Did you go back to the north?” Someone finally asked the question they’d prepared themselves for.

  “No. We went south, but we got trapped because of bad weather. When we reached the southern edge of the rainforest, we went east, found a lake. Fish, game, and wild vegetables. The babies seemed close for a long time, then when they were born, they needed more time. But Max and Speckles took good care of us along with Aadi and the Golden Warrior.” If anyone tried following those directions, it would lead them away from New Sanctuary. Without Skirill’s keen eyes and a horse to ride, searching for New Sanctuary would be fruitless.

  Then again, the cart tracks through the dry grasses would lead someone straight to it. Braden opened his neural implant and asked Holly to send a Development Unit to erase their trail and then make a false one heading east. He closed the link.

  “How did you decide on their names?” a young woman asked Micah.

  “Well now, that’s a story in and of itself. Let’s just say that our companions suggested the names and the babies liked them.”

  “How funny! You can tell the babies like their names?”

  “Yes. Like Bronwyn, we can talk with our companions and they can talk with the babies. The way it worked, we had little choice in their names. As long as they’re happy, what else could a parent hope for?”

  ‘Ass,’ Braden whispered to G-War over the mindlink. He heard the ‘cat laughing. Micah choked her laugh into a cough.

  They continued meeting and greeting well into the darkness, until they were exhausted. They found Bronwyn with the children asleep in the bed of their home. Someone else had been living there, but that was okay with them. They hadn’t needed it. Both instantly thought back to the comfort and luxury they enjoyed at New Sanctuary. If they hadn’t set up a routine of exercise and training with their weapons, they would have grown fat and lazy.