Southern Discontent (Free Trader Series Book 7) Read online

  Sky grumbled as he bowed his head in deference.

  “Stay here, protect the town. We will return before nightfall.” Bounder dropped to all fours as his huge back paws tore up the earth in his run out of Livestel. Strider’s lean form raced after him, their lightning spears slapping the ground in an uneven rhythm.

  The President’s Warriors

  Braden lounged by the small lake in New Sanctuary. The Golden Warrior was perched on the dock, his front legs dangling near the water. A small bug hung from a single claw. G-War danced it over the top of the water while watching the fish circle below. Klytus and Shauna wedged their bodies against their father’s so they could better see what he was doing.

  The twins, Axial and De’atesh, ran circles around the lake while the fountain in the middle sprayed a continuous fan of water. Micah closed her eyes and imagined a gentle rain falling.

  The sun was out in what promised to be a beautiful day.

  Fealona and Treetis watched from a shaded branch above the lounging humans. The Hawkoids, Skyrill and Zyena, had been there earlier, but heard that wild rabbits were intruding into the pepper garden. The Rabbits, Heloysius and Luciana, weren’t able to keep their smaller, domestic cousins away.

  The Hawkoids and Hillcats weren’t sure the Rabbits were trying too hard, so they kept the population down, but only when they wouldn’t be seen by their friends. Eating a wild domestic rabbit would be too traumatic for the kind and cultured refugees from the orbiting colony ship, the RV Traveler.

  Brandt, King of the Aurochs was stamping and wreaking havoc at the far end of the fields. A security bot was fending him off, not with lasers but with its impressive metal body.

  Braden used his neural implant to bring up a book he’d been reading in a series about a Marine and his werewolf wife exporting justice to the far reaches of the galaxy. If only they could have come here, their world would look so different now. He brought up the text and continued to read.

  Micah saw him unfocus his eyes. He loved to read. She loved nature. She rose to walk to the dock, curious as to whether G-War would catch a fish today or not. He pulled the bait away when a fish darted toward it.

  “Are you even trying?” Micah stopped the twins before they raced onto the dock and risked sending the ‘cats into the water. It had happened before and was never a pretty sight.

  ‘I am only fishing for one. He rests on the bottom, fat from eating all that gets past this mob of ingrates,’ G-War replied in his thought voice.

  Treetis jumped from the branch, landing in the hot sand. He strolled boldly to the edge of the water, slapped at it with one paw, and waded in.

  “It’s water!” Shauna and Klytus cried. “You’ll get WET!”

  Treetis lifted his nose in the air, revolted by the feeling of the water on his skin, but he was on full display. All eyes watched as he jumped into the air and twisted to dive into the water, going deep toward the bottom.

  I don’t hate this, he thought as he locked his eyes on his prey, the king of the fish in the lake. If G-War was hunting it, then it was a worthy adversary. The vicious scar along Treetis’s side glistened under the water as he kicked and swam, finding it to be a natural motion. He closed on the big beast. It loomed large as he approached.

  His claws extended as he prepared to dig into the exposed sides. With a swish of its tail, the brute was gone.

  And Treetis was out of air. He angled toward the surface and braced his back paws on the solar panels that made up the bottom of the lake. The ‘cat pushed off as hard as he was able. He kicked the water furiously with all four paws until he broke the surface to take a desperate breath. He looked around to see if anyone was watching.

  Everyone was watching. He started dog-paddling casually toward the beach. ‘None of you lightweights tried.’

  ‘I wonder why,’ G-War replied.

  ‘Now, now, boys,’ Fea cautioned, with a gentle mind-touch tsk-tsk.

  Treetis walked ashore, waiting until he was between Braden and Micah before shaking out his fur. Braden had missed the whole endeavor, having been deeply embroiled in his book. Micah threw her hand up in time to keep her face dry, but nothing could save the rest of her.

  “Treetis!” she wailed.

  “What the hell did I do to deserve that?” Braden was shocked back to the real world. He scowled as he wiped his face with the back of his arm, blinking the scene into focus. “What happened to you?”

  ‘I demonstrated my can-do attitude,’ Treetis replied over the mindlink. ‘Fearlessly, I may add.’

  Two Hawkoids swooped in, flared with wings arced wide, and landed with a gentle touch on an upper branch of the tree. They gripped the branch restlessly. ‘What happened to him?’ Skirill asked.

  “He fell in,” Braden replied.

  ‘Did not!’ Treetis arched his orange back and fluffed his fur to make himself look bigger than normal.

  ‘Bounder and Gray Strider are approaching. They are running like the wind.’

  Braden stood and looked south, but the trees of New Sanctuary blocked his view. “Maybe they’re just stretching their legs.”

  ‘Bounder, are you there?’ Braden asked, holding a finger to his temple. G-War shook his head at his human’s antics.

  The great fish of the lake came head high out of the water and tore the bug off G-War’s paw, catching his claw on his lip as he headed back underwater. The ‘cat was pulled off the dock and into the water. With a shake of its head, the claw came free. The fish swallowed the bug as it lazily returned to its shaded spot on the bottom.

  Klytus and Shauna mewed as they looked for their father. When he broke the surface, he did it without grace, flailing mightily as he sought a toe-hold on the dock. Failing that, he dog-paddled for the shore. Braden headed for high ground. The twins pointed and laughed. G-War ran after them, tackling Ax and standing on him to shake out the water.

  “You are one skinny ‘cat,” Braden noted, angling into the brush to maintain his distance from G-War’s evil glare.

  Bounder and Strider crashed through the undergrowth in their headlong rush to the lake.

  ‘You must come at once to Livestel,’ Bounder said as he rested his front hand on Braden’s shoulder, panting heavily from his run. ‘Men have attacked us, injured our people, and taken our lightning spears.’

  Braden’s look of disbelief changed. His lip raised, Wolfoid-like, into a snarl. “What men?” he asked through clenched teeth.

  Bounder held up his hands. He didn’t know.

  “You stay here!” Micah yelled. “I’ll get the horses.”

  “Brandt?” Braden asked.

  “Yeah. I’ll get the wagon. Have Brandt meet us there,” Micah said as she looked at Skirill and Zyena. The Hawkoids nodded and took wing to engage the Aurochs, since he was locked in heated combat with the Security Bot.

  At least in the King’s mind, he was.

  ‘I’ll take care of it,’ G-War replied. ‘Brandt. Stop goofing around with that thing. We have an emergency and need your help. Livestel has been attacked.’

  ‘The Lizard Men are back?’ the King’s thought voice boomed.

  ‘Just men, Brandt. We need to get to the bottom of this and I know that we are better together, even when the only enemy is ourselves.’

  ‘You are not the enemy, my friends.’ They could feel the pounding of the King of the Aurochs’ hooves as much as they could hear them. ‘The harm is the individual’s responsibility. I believe in the good of all, even the Amazonians.’

  “Yours is the wisest mind of us all,” Braden said.

  ‘I concur,’ Aadi agreed as he swam through the air, entering the clearing to happy shouts from the twins.

  “When did you get back?” Braden asked the Tortoid.

  ‘Last night, Master Braden, but I was weary from the long trip. I brought Daksha with me. My boy is making me proud. He is so smart.’

  “Thanks, Aadi. But we need to go, and I am sure we could use your counsel. Will you join us?”


  ‘My life has been greatly enriched since I joined you. I shall not miss out on another chance to watch you make the world a better place.’ The Tortoid blinked slowly as he communicated with his thought voice, his mind clearly enunciating the words.

  Bounder explained everything he knew, which wasn’t much. When he finished, everyone agreed that the right thing to do was go after the men and recover the lightning spears before any more harm could be done.

  Micah ground her teeth as she winced at the thought of the attack, the damage, and worst, the evil that the men could do with so many lightning spears. As President of Vii, she had the responsibility to stop what could lead to war.

  She grabbed Braden as he rushed around giving orders to load one thing or another into the Old Tech wagon. “I will send the Security Bots after them if I have to. We cannot let such a group have lightning spears. No one will be safe. Eventually, they will show up here and try to take over.”

  “I know,” Braden said as he cupped Micah’s face in his hand. “We’ll get them, but we have to be careful. We can’t run headlong into an ambush. We’d be incinerated.”

  “We leave in ten!” Micah called. She made a pistol with her fingers and mouthed the words, “I’ll be right back.”

  She turned and raced for the armory.

  The Hawkoids headed toward Livestel as they sought the raiders.

  ‘Holly, we need your help…’ Braden said using his neural implant.

  ***

  Brandt ran effortlessly in front of the Old Tech wagon, his hooves tearing up the ground on the well-worn wagon trail to Livestel. The wagon’s solar-powered drives assisted the King of the Aurochs to move the wagon.

  Five Hillcats, two Wolfoids, four humans, two Rabbits, and one Tortoid filled the group and the wagon.

  G-War and Treetis were comfortably riding on top of the King’s head, where they could best look down on their domain.

  The King made short work of the trip to Livestel. When he reached the outskirts of the town, he pulled up in a huge cloud of dust and trampled grass.

  Bounder and Strider were first out of the back, running as they hit the ground. The others followed, even the Rabbits, although they were always uncomfortable in the Wolfoids’ presence because the Wolfoids always smelled of meat.

  Braden and Micah hurried toward a commotion in the center of town. The ‘cats, Ax, and ‘Tesh ran alongside. A crowd of Wolfoids gathered around the alpha and his mate, all of them speaking at once. Braden and Micah couldn’t understand any of it.

  G-War appeared on a nearby roof as if by magic. Braden noticed him and tried to make eye contact. The ‘cat ignored him. Treetis bolted and took a running leap at the side of the building. He made it halfway up, a valiant effort, but the walls were made of concrete, a New Sanctuary building material.

  Treetis’s claws scraped against the unforgiving building. He twisted and scratched on his way back to the ground. His antics went unobserved as all eyes were on the injured Wolfoids and the blood.

  Micah slowed, and Braden reached for her hand. He could feel her tremble as the warrior rage rose within. Their friends had been injured. The Wolfoids had been safe on the Traveler. Braden and Micah had convinced them to come to the planet to live. Come to Vii.

  Live free as Wolfoids were meant to live.

  Strider worked her way close to the most severely injured, an oldster and an older pup, the first born on Vii. Braden thought White Mountain was dead. Strider looked relieved as she touched noses with the sleeping old Wolfoid. Numbweed had staunched the blood flow and begun the healing process.

  The young Wolfoid, Cygnus Standing, bared his fangs and growled as one of the hunters deftly sewed up the wound in his side. Bounder was in the middle of a cacophony of yips and barks.

  ‘Everyone shut up!’ G-War commanded. He didn’t have to say it loudly, but he projected it directly into everyone’s mind at a volume that wasn’t to be ignored. Braden waved to the ‘cat while watching Bounder.

  The Wolfoid switched to his thought voice, so everyone could hear and understand.

  ‘We will go after them. We will recover our property, and with the help of our friends—’ Bounder waved in Braden and Micah’s direction. ‘—we will make sure this doesn’t happen again.’

  The Wolfoids howled in a cry for vengeance.

  “Look!” a Wolfoid yelled, pointing. Braden took off at a sprint, while two of the hunters raced past him. In the fields, a Wolfoid was staggering toward them.

  “Running Stream,” a Wolfoid shouted in his native tongue. The two hunters reached her, catching her as she collapsed into their arms. They picked her up awkwardly between then. Braden soon caught up and cradled her head in his hands as they rushed back to the town. Dried blood surrounded an arrow embedded in her shoulder. The shaft had broken off, leaving only a nub, making it more difficult to remove.

  Braden’s blood started to boil. He had met Running Stream, one of the herd’s shepherds. She was a kind soul, who didn’t wish harm on anyone. Her demeanor was more like the Rabbits than the Wolfoids. Stream was an enemy to no one.

  And Braden cradled her head as she moaned in pain. From what he could tell, it had caught her shoulder blade, keeping it from going too deep.

  They deposited Running Stream next to White Mountain. The oldster who had assumed the role of healer tried to hold the end of the arrow to remove it, but couldn’t grasp it tightly enough. Not to be dissuaded, he gripped it in his teeth. Using his hands for leverage around the wound, he yanked the arrow with a mighty tug. The skin tore around the wound from the arrowhead’s barbs. Numbweed was quickly applied, helping Stream to drift off.

  ‘Anything?’ Braden asked the Hawkoids, wanting nothing more than to get the raiders into the sights of his blaster.

  ‘We see them. Looks like twenty-five men, each is carrying a lightning spear, and most have bows, too. They are heading west along the ancients’ road,’ Skirill reported.

  Braden signaled to Bounder.

  ‘We heard,’ Bounder replied. ‘Strider and I will go after them. We will return with our lightning spears or we won’t return at all. No matter what, those men will suffer.’

  “I must go, too!” Cygnus Standing said, grimacing as he stood and leaned into his new stitches.

  “You cannot. Stay here and heal,” Strider said, putting herself between the alpha and the pup.

  Cygnus hung his head. “I called the pups back, but they took off again when my back was turned. They are chasing the men right now. They’ll listen to me, as long as I’m in their snouts. And who else has seen them? You need a witness to be sure, in case they try to join more humans.”

  ‘Can you see a pack of pups running after the men?’ Bounder asked the Hawkoids.

  ‘There! Yes, we see them.’

  ‘Please let them know that we’ll be there shortly and they are to run no further.’

  ‘We’ll do our best,’ Skirill replied.

  The twins were wild-eyed when Braden and Micah swept them up on their way back to the wagon. Cygnus loped after them, being supported by Bounder and Strider, who reluctantly agreed to bring the pup, although they were specific that he was to remain in the wagon.

  Aadi had decided to remain in the wagon, then he decided to join the group in the town, and while on his way, they ran past him as they headed back to the wagon. He turned around, just in time for Bounder to give him a push in the right direction.

  Brandt stamped and snorted. G-War and Treetis were already lying on his head, looking forward as if the King was already running.

  They loaded up, shoving Aadi in last. They yelled for Brandt to take off as they jumped to grab the buckboard and pull themselves into the front seat.

  The Chase Begins

  Heloysius and Luciana held onto the twins as the wagon bumped across the field. A Rabbit bounced off a Wolfoid. Aadi’s shell smashed into Axial’s head, leaving an ugly red mark. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth in the back of the wagon.

 
; Shauna and Klytus tried to huddle behind Fea, but she was airborne more often than not from the uneven ground as the King of the Aurochs made a beeline for the remnants of the ancients’ road.

  The group breathed a collective sigh of relief when Brandt bumped onto the road and picked up speed when everything evened out.

  Braden thought he could see blood dripping from the King’s head where two Hillcats had dug twenty claws into his skin.

  Twenty claws each.

  ‘Let me see that,’ Luciana said in her dainty thought voice. She fussed with the wound on Cygnus’s side. With her small hands, she tightened one of the knots. Cygnus twitched and spasmed from the pain, but no sound escaped his lips. Bounder slapped him on the rump in recognition of the pup’s efforts.

  Ahead of the wagon, two Hawkoids were beating their wings furiously, hovering with their claws out as three Wolfoid pups dodged back and forth. Brandt slowed. One of the pups saw the bull and the wagon. He slapped his fellows and they stood up straight, trying to look innocent.

  No one moved within the wagon except for Bounder. He nodded to his mate, caressing the top of her head with one hand before climbing out the back. He strolled casually ahead, slapping the sides of the great King as he passed, stopping to stroke Brandt’s soft nose and share some kind words of thanks for his help in righting the wrong that had befallen Livestel and the Wolfoids.

  The King nodded, forcing Bounder to duck away from the massive horns. G-War yawned.

  Bounder turned toward the pups, who shifted uncomfortably and refused to make eye contact with their alpha. He stopped in front of them.

  “Rainy Forest, Wind Runner, and Low Crawler. I should have known you three would show no self-discipline.” Bounder walked back and forth before lunging and grabbing Forest’s ear. “What did you think you were going to do against twenty-five men with lightning spears?”

  The pups whimpered.

  “You’re coming with us, and you’ll get your chance to fight, but you’re going to train. Hunting comes naturally to us, but fighting against an enemy is something completely different. Those two humans in the front of that wagon are experts. You will listen to them and do as you’re told if you want any chance of surviving this. Do you understand, warrior recruits?”