Southern Discontent (Free Trader Series Book 7) Read online

  They may not have believed what their eyes told them, but the Tortoid had to rethink his strategy when first light arrived.

  The rains continued without pause and Aadi’s concerns never manifested. They couldn’t see the men any more than those on the ground could see to the top of the tree.

  ‘They are preparing to leave,’ G-War told Braden.

  The human had dozed off, as had the rest of their party. Brandt snorted and blew bubbles with each breath because of the water that ran from his head and off his nose. Braden forced his mind to clear.

  ‘We were in no shape to do anything about it anyway. I’m exhausted and we haven’t even started the day. Did you find the leader?’ Braden asked as he scratched his head and tried to wake up.

  ‘His mind is filled with plans of conquest. He must not be allowed to implement any of his plans. Many would die before the lightning spears ran out of power.’

  ‘Damn, G. I’m sorry you had to see that,’ Braden replied, yawning. ‘I think I’d be insane if I looked into other people’s minds. No one needs to know what we think, only see what we do. Our actions show who we are, not our thoughts.’

  ‘If only people could keep their thoughts from becoming actions, I might agree. In Zakston’s case, his thoughts are plans, detailed plans, to take over the south, including New Sanctuary.’

  ‘We can’t let that happen, G.’

  ‘We absolutely cannot,’ Aadi interjected.

  ‘Wait until they move and we’ll catch up to you.’ Braden arose, going from one to another, waking them. They’d all fallen asleep, and he couldn’t blame any of them.

  Braden watched each of his companions go through their morning routine. Bounder stretched as if preparing to go on a hunt. The pups huddled and looked miserable. The Hawkoids perched nearby. They had to be carried because of the rain, so they opted to ride on Brandt.

  ‘It’s clear, come on up,’ G-War told them.

  Without having to say a word, the group lined up. Bounder slapped Braden on the shoulder. “Why do you look like you just had the best night’s sleep ever?”

  ‘All sleep is good sleep, my friend. Smell the morning air! It summons our courage and beckons for the great day that will come!’

  “All I smell is wet Wolfoid and wet Aurochs. A great day would start with me being upwind.”

  ‘Too bad Pik Ha’ar isn’t with us. He would so enjoy this weather.’

  “He would.” Braden smiled at the thought. “Let’s see what the day brings.”

  Bounder headed up the narrow trail. Brandt didn’t complain as he brought up the rear. In between them, Braden and the pups worked their way forward. The route had been used enough that the trail was established. It wound its way forward, as far as they could see, which wasn’t more than a few strides ahead. Beyond that, everything disappeared into a single gray mist.

  And the rain continued.

  A Wolfoid cry. Braden crouched as he turned, assuming they were under attack. Cygnus cried again as he lay on the rocks, one hand-paw gripping Rainy Forest’s. The rest of the pup was beyond the edge of the precipice. Braden dove painfully across the rough terrain, hitting the ground as Forest slipped from Cygnus’s grasp.

  The Aurochs

  Young Tom rode up front with Zeller. Neeson slept in the back of the Old Tech wagon. They were preparing to leave River Crook on their way to New Sanctuary, where the Hillcat Neeson would be sent to the RV Traveler in order to have his injury repaired. Young Tom and two of the scientists would go as well, although the scientists had their own mission.

  Zeller wanted to go too, as did Bronwyn. Doctor Johns told them ‘no,’ and that it wasn’t up for debate.

  Bronwyn rode atop one of the younger Aurochs bulls. Zeeka, the Hawkoid, floated on the air currents overhead. The breeze coming from the Amazon carried humid air and the faint smell of a swamp.

  Bronwyn talked with the bull constantly as they traveled. Her lips moved, but she didn’t speak aloud. She was gifted with the mindlink, the ability to talk with any intelligent creature.

  The device secreted in a pocket buzzed and vibrated. She pulled it out and answered.

  “Holly?”

  “Yes, Bronwyn, it is so good to talk with you. Master President has a special request for you…”

  Holly explained as well as he could, then backed up his story to when Micah boarded the Warden, then backed up further to the raid on Livestel. Having restarted at the beginning, Bronwyn better understood what he was trying to get at.

  “You want me to gather a herd and bring them how far?”

  “At maximum Aurochs speed, eight days,” Holly replied.

  “That’s a long way. We’ll show up with a skinny herd, assuming I can find any who want to go. The grass is growing well up here right now. It is prime eating season.”

  She asked Cragmore, the young bull, ‘Would you be so kind as to take me over to the wagon, please?’

  ‘Anything for you, my lady,’ the bull said with a slight bow.

  ‘My compliments to you, good sir!’ Bronwyn enjoyed the company of the Aurochs and had influenced their becoming an exceedingly polite society. The great creatures roamed the grasslands once called the Plains of Propiscius, but the locals simply called them the plains.

  “Would you be willing to go west with me? I need to talk with the growing herd outside Westerly. If I can convince some of them that their fortunes lie in the south, then I’ll be taking a long trip down the coast with them.”

  Zeller nodded quickly while Young Tom scratched his face in thought. “We’re on our way to New Sanctuary.” Tom pointed to the east.

  “You can get there going this way, too,” Bronwyn stated matter-of-factly. “There is an ancients’ road that goes to the coast. Brandt just traveled it with a wagon, so there shouldn’t be any problems. Would you please come with me?”

  Bronwyn was used to traveling alone, but Zeller was one of her few human friends. Bronwyn also liked the Aurochs that traveled with her. Having a ‘cat along was an added bonus. Neeson had been injured by a mutant croc when he got too close to the river. He had never healed properly, but Holly promised that on the ship, the star above Vii, that the ‘cat could be properly treated and returned to the way he was before the attack.

  Tomas was excited about that, but not the prospect of the ambiguous way that Braden had described the travel. Go to sleep in one room, wake up in another, puke, then head upstairs. It made no sense, but Tom would do anything for his ‘cat, just like he’d do anything for Zeller.

  “Sounds like we’re going west,” she replied. “You know the way, Arnie. Let’s see if we can make it before nightfall.”

  ‘Ha! Challenge accepted,’ the bull replied. He was bigger than Cragmore, but he was also pulling a wagon, but it was an Old Tech wagon, with a power system to help the wheels turn, greatly reducing the load the Aurochs had to pull.

  His hooves dug deep into the ground as he pulled the wagon toward the original tracks that Braden and Micah had forged cycles of the sun before. The wagon settled once Arnie reached the expanded and improved road. He sped up, running easily, saving his strength for the uphill parts of the rolling terrain between River Crook and Westerly.

  Cragmore jogged alongside. Zeeka flew ahead, then circled around, looking for threats.

  Always looking for threats. The Bat-Ravens hadn’t been seen in a long time, but they remained a terror to be feared. Braden and Micah said the Bat-Ravens had been scoured from Vii. No one believed that. Not even the President.

  So the Hawkoids watched for a reappearance of their nemesis.

  The morning air was light, the sunrise behind them. Neeson complained about the bumps during the ride, even though there were few.

  ‘Don’t be afraid,’ Bronwyn said in her most soothing thought voice. ‘You will be good as new, they say. I look forward to seeing you vault to the first branch of a tree and climb to the top so you may hunt birds, or run down a rabbit with grace and ease.’

  ‘Tha
t is something I want, yes. How can it be possible?’ Neeson asked again.

  ‘The magic of the ancients.’ Bronwyn shrugged. She unconsciously touched the Old Tech device in her pocket. She didn’t know how any of it worked, and it didn’t matter. It worked. Everything Braden and Micah had told her was true. They were living examples of the power of Old Tech. ‘I trust that it will help you.’

  ‘Then I will trust that, too,’ the tall ‘cat replied.

  Zeeka spotted something in the grasses and dove. She reached raptor speed on her way down, killing the rabbit on impact, hooking her claws around, and beating her wings to fly away. She made a wide turn, carrying her prize as if it were a trophy. Zeeka swooped close and dropped it with unerring precision through the opening between the rear gate and the roof of the wagon.

  ‘Thank you,’ the ‘cat said. Zeeka rocked her wings as she slowly climbed higher into the sky.

  “Don’t you think about eating that thing in my nice clean wagon.”

  Neeson looked at the bundles of flour that was River Crook’s single greatest export. He couldn’t see the floor of the wagon, but suspected it was covered in wheat dust. Neeson scowled.

  Tom laughed and crawled into the back so he could bring Neeson and the rabbit up front.

  “You’re not eating that thing up here either!” Zeller looked at the two of them as if they’d lost their minds.

  “Looks like you’re going to have wait until we take a break, buddy. I’m sorry.” Tom stroked the ‘cat’s head. Because he couldn’t hunt or run, Neeson was heavier than most Hillcats. Tom and Zeller were good providers. “It might not hurt if you skipped a meal or two.”

  Neeson looked from the rabbit to Young Tom to Zeller and back to the rabbit. He extended his claws and reached for his meal. Tom caught his forearm. “You heard the Free Trader.”

  The ‘cat kept his claws out as he contemplated his next move.

  ***

  People going about their business moved aside as Gailey led Micah and her group farther into the city. The Rabbits nodded and skipped, stopped and smelled flowers and grasses, then caught up again. Strider walked gracefully beside Micah. She held Ax’s hand while ‘Tesh held onto Micah. A flurry of ‘cats wove between legs and darted into the crowd, returning quickly after having gone for no apparent reason.

  “Where did you say you were from?” Gailey asked.

  “We’re from a place called Livestel, which is near New Sanctuary, the capital of Cygnus VII.”

  “I don’t know what a capital is, but it sounds different. Maybe I’ll get to visit someday. Can’t remember the last time I left Southport.”

  Micah had led a blessed life, although in her first eighteen years, she’d taken only one long trip from her home of Trent and that was the traditional pilgrimage to the ruins of Sanctuary. The view had made her respect Old Tech, not fear it as was intended. The blaster she’d taken to guarantee her freedom hung at her side, a permanent reminder of the awesome power the ancients wielded.

  The awesome power that she wielded. Use it for good, Braden had said. Always.

  But it wasn’t easy. Men had come and robbed the Wolfoids. Now they had the power, but didn’t have the friends to keep them from abusing it. Our friends. Micah saw Fea watching her.

  ‘Your thoughts are troubled because we are here, in the sunshine, are with peaceful people doing what they do, while our mates are out there, ready to fight a terrible enemy,’ Fea remarked.

  Micah nodded. There was no reply she could make. The ‘cat was right.

  ‘Would you two knuckleheads stay here?’ Fea thought-yelled. Micah didn’t have to look to see that she was talking to Klytus and Shauna.

  The small calico assumed a dignified air as she strutted, tail held high. Klytus, the half-sized orange ‘cat, acted like he hadn’t heard her. When he saw a domestic cat watching, he took off after it. The cat ran away. Klytus trotted back. Mission accomplished.

  As soon as he was within reach, Fea paw-slapped his head.

  “Stop it!” Micah shook a finger at Klytus.

  “This is quite a crew you have. Where are Doctor Johns and Doctor May?” Gailey asked.

  “They opted to remain on board as they are busy with their latest experiments.”

  “Just as well,” Gailey replied noncommittally.

  They continued until they reached a small building that looked to be from before the civil war, centuries earlier.

  Once through the door, they descended wide steps that took them deep below Southport.

  ‘Holly? Can you hear me?’ Micah asked.

  No answer.

  ‘I don’t like this,’ she shared with Fea.

  ‘I don’t feel any subterfuge from the old woman.’

  That made Micah feel better, but not about being out of contact with Holly. The AI had undoubtedly seen her vitals disappear and was pulling out all stops to recover his signal.

  “I am uncomfortable being underground,” Micah told her host. It wasn’t true in all cases, just this one. “Is it much farther?”

  “It’s right up here. This is where the town’s leaders have met for as long as there has been the town of Southport.” Gailey turned off at a landing and walked into a large area, reminiscent of the Command Center in New Sanctuary, without any of the technology.

  Two oil lamps burned on a long table around which four others were already seated. Micah and Strider stopped to study the doors and their potential for locking behind them.

  “Wait here,” Micah told the two Rabbits, who looked far more uncomfortable than Micah felt in the concrete building. There were no plants, no growth, only the stale air of an old building.

  Micah and the others continued into the room while the Rabbits blocked the doorway. Their laser pistols remained close to their small hands. Micah felt the grip of her blaster. None of the people in the room were armed. They looked afraid.

  People did weird things when they were afraid. “If you’d like to introduce us, I would like to speak and hopefully put everyone’s minds at ease.”

  Gailey sat and signaled with her hand that Micah had the floor. Strider sat at the table. The twins worked their way into her lap, the three of them squeezed into one chair. The three ‘cats leapt onto the table and sat, each wrapping their tails around their feet as they studied the older humans.

  “My name is Micah, and I’m the President of Plant Vii, also called Cygnus VII. My partner has established free trade routes throughout both the north and south. As these routes continue to expand, we’d like to include Southport. You’ll be amazed at what others in this great world of ours have to offer. I’ll admit that is not the primary reason we’re here. A number of men have raided one of our villages and stolen some very powerful weapons. We need to find them and recover our property. If they are allowed to keep it, they can use it to destroy your town and kill all its people.

  “I don’t think that’s what they’d do. It’s more likely that they’ll use the power to make slaves of everyone here. We cannot have that on Vii. I refuse to let that happen. Our partners—” Micah pointed to Strider. “—are tracking the raiders through the mountains north of here. I don’t know where they will end up. Do you know of these men and where we may find them? Where are they going? If we can get there before them, then we may be able to encourage them to do the right thing and hand the weapons back.”

  No one spoke. Gailey looked at Micah passively, blinking regularly. The elders of Southport were doing the same thing. It was as if Micah had not said a word.

  “If you can’t help us, then we’ll be on our way, but know that we’ll try to help you regardless of what you do for us. Heloysius and Luciana—” Micah pointed to the Rabbits. “—would be happy to look over your fields and make recommendations so they will grow better. I’ve asked if a small herd of Aurochs would come here to provide fertilizer for your fields, while also helping to move trade goods.”

  “We know of Aurochs. I believe there are some to the east of here,” Gaile
y offered.

  “What are your names?” ‘Tesh asked in her small voice.

  The elders introduced themselves one by one. Wellsbrough,

  Cassia, Michelston, and Windsmede.

  “Thank you, De’atesh. I have forgotten my manners. It is very nice to make your acquaintance. These are my and Braden’s children. ‘Tesh, and Axial. My friend Strider. And sitting on the table is Fealona, Klytus, and Shauna. Human, Wolfoid, Hillcats, and Rabbits. All equally intelligent. All with a vested interest in the future of Vii.”

  “Intelligent?” Cassia wondered aloud.

  ‘Yes, intelligent,’ Fea replied.

  “Who said that?” Cassia asked, looking around for the location of the secret voice.

  Micah snickered, remembering her parents’ reaction to hearing the ‘cat speak for the first time.

  “That would have been Fea, talking through the mindlink, a gift that they share with us.” Micah stroked the ‘cat’s white fur.

  The uncomfortable silence grew. Micah determined to wait them out. She took the last empty seat at the table and leaned back.

  “I don’t think we can help you,” the woman called Windsmede finally said.

  “With what part?” Micah asked.

  “All of it. Any of it. We’re satisfied with what we have here and don’t need anything else.”

  Micah pursed her lips and shrugged. “I guess we’ll be on our way, then.”

  She stood and helped the twins from Strider’s chair. Micah waved and headed for the door. The ‘cats jumped after her.

  “Wait,” Gailey said. “Our crops grow less with each new season. Can you really help?”

  “We don’t need outsiders!” Windsmede whispered harshly.

  “You know the men of Dunk’s Hollow will come here first. It’ll be exactly as she said,” Gailey shot back. Gone was the façade that they’d presented Gone was the decorum. “They are here to help and I believe them!”