The Mercenary (The War Chronicles Book 1) Read online

  Zoran could feel the presence of watching eyes, hidden behind the rocky and barren craggy landscape as Saakshi and he made their way up the final ridge to the rendezvous point. It didn’t alarm him, for he had known that the resistance leader would not agree to meet with them without precautions. For his part, he allowed Saakshi to take the lead under the protective eyes of her well-wishers and concentrated on looking as harmless as he possibly could as he followed in her wake. The light from the three moons guided them up a well-trodden but narrow and winding path. Saakshi clambered through the narrow rock openings and dry bushes with agility and confidence. This was her world and she knew it well. Forty minutes of steady climbing brought them to the top of the ridge where two Budheya males holding old-fashioned long guns stood guard at the entrance to another cave. Zoran had already observed how this part of Budheyasta provided easy hideouts for the rebels – tough, barren, rocky terrain with plenty of hidden nooks and mazes built into the hills and mountains. The guards directed curious glances at Zoran while they greeted Saakshi with warmth.

  “He's waiting inside for you and your friend” one of the males said to Saakshi, pointing his gun towards the interior of the cave. “It is good to see you, Saakshi.”

  Zoran's implanted translator allowed him to understand the rapidly spoken Budhi.

  “And you, Ruliak” Saakshi responded with a smile before clasping Zoran’s hand to lead him into the cave.

  As his eyes adjusted to the dim lighting inside the cave, Zoran noticed a tall and well-built Budheya male slowly make his way out of the shadows towards them. They waited just inside the cave opening, through which trailed in some of the moonlight from the night sky. Zoran had a quick impression of toughness, quiet strength and self-confidence as the male glanced at him before moving on to greet Saakshi with a singularly attractive grin. Zoran watched as Tilabok held out his arms to Saakshi who ran into them, to be engulfed by his arms and given a warm and affectionate hug.

  “How have you been, Saakshi meya?” Tilabok greeted her with affection. “I am so relieved to see you back on Budheyasta.”

  “I’m fine, Tilabok” Saakshi responded with a smile, stepping back to meet his gaze. “And very happy to see you too.”

  “But how?” he asked gently. “Did they release you early? I thought you had a few more months on the contract they sold.”

  “I did. I got into serious trouble and my friend here helped me get out of a bad situation” she indicated Zoran, standing silent and watchful beside them.

  “He has something to tell you that I think you should hear, Tilabok” she added softly. “But privately would be better, hmm?”

  Zoran had cautioned her to be careful what she said in front of the other rebels, not because he distrusted them but primarily because the less anyone knew of this matter, the greater the chances of their overture to the rebels not being revealed. This way, even if the Ketaari picked up any of the rebels for questioning on an unrelated matter, they would hear nothing of any Hadari’Kor presence on Budheyasta. The rebels might inadvertently let out the news about Saakshi, an escaped prisoner, being inexplicably back on Budheyasta, but Zoran hoped to have her whisked out safely away from Empire territory before that happened.

  Tilabok directed another long, searching look at the huge and silent Budheya male accompanying Saakshi. He strode out towards the Budheya guards at the cave entrance for a low-voiced conversation before returning with a crudely fashioned torch – a bunch of dried bushes tied together with a sluggish flame on one end.

  “Follow me” he directed at them before walking into the interior of the cave, away from the entrance.

  They followed Tilabok into a narrow low corridor that caused Zoran some discomfort before widening out to a much smaller cavern. Tilabok placed his makeshift torch strategically into a crevice in the wall before turning to face the two people who had followed him into the inner cavern.

  Zoran reflected silently on Tilabok's body language. The resistance leader stood still, his entire demeanor one of infinite patience while he waited to hear out Saakshi. Tilabok had impressed Zoran so far on such short acquaintance. If the other rebels were anything like this male, then Zoran was confident that his pledge to embroil the Empire in its own little rebellion on Budheyasta would come to fruition sooner rather than later.

  “My prison contract was sold to a Keeyori trader called Pik. He took me to a space station in neutral territory. My job was to be server girl at his alehouse. He was a decent employer. I thought I'd make it through the year until I could come home” Saakshi explained. Saakshi’s goal was to explain to Tilabok how Zoran had helped her and why she trusted him so implicitly before Zoran put forth his offer of assistance.

  Zoran, a silent spectator to the conversation, watched as Tilabok's expression changed subtly. Saakshi must have interpreted his expression accurately, for she launched into an explanation.

  “It wasn't that bad, Tilabok” she assured him. “I had a warm place to sleep at night, never went hungry, and he made sure that none of the customers ever harassed us. It could have been much worse.”

  “But something went wrong?” Tilabok queried.

  “Yes” Saakshi sighed. “You remember Golar Ghesh?”

  “Ghesh! The one that loved inflicting pain. I could never forget that one. He was evil, even for a Ketaari.”

  “He’s been promoted to Unta-Golar” she said evenly. “It was sheer bad luck that he found his way to the station and the alehouse a few months ago. The Unta-Golar recognized me immediately and demanded that I be nice to him or he would have my contract revoked.”

  Tilabok swore long and hard and with surprising fluency for a male of few words. Although Zoran's translator could not keep up with the colloquial insults except for a few words that loosely translated to crude curses, he got the gist of it.

  “My boss Pik suggested that I ask Zoran for assistance” she indicated the silent male by her side. “I'd seen him around Pik's before, though I'd never spoken to him. Zoran assured me that he would make sure that the Unta-Golar stayed away from me, and he kept his word.”

  Saakshi made sure to keep her gaze on Tilabok while she glossed over her first meeting with Zoran. In the privacy of her cubicle on the starship, she had practiced what to say to Tilabok, skirting the personal details of her interactions with Zoran. And now, she made a conscious effort to keep her eyes away from Zoran's intent gaze, making haste to explain how his assistance to her had come about before either of the males could interrupt her. She gave Tilabok a gist of how Zoran had kept her safe from the Unta-Golar's orbit by threatening him, punishing him when the Unta-Golar had ambushed her, providing her with an escort at all times on the station, and eventually coming to her aid on the Ketaari Transport ordered to bring her back to Budheyasta.

  Tilabok, growing more incredulous and angry with each evidence of the Unta-Golar's determined pursuit of Saakshi, turned to the big male as Saakshi’s account drew to a close.

  “I thank you, brother Zoran. I've known Saakshi since she was ye high” he said, indicating knee height to the other male. “We are the only family she has ever known and we owe you a depth of gratitude for coming to her aid in her time of need.”

  “It was my pleasure. The Unta-Golar was in sore need of a lesson.” Zoran spoke up for the first time that evening and he spoke in Alliance Standard. “My only regret is that I was late in coming to Saakshi's aid.”

  Tilabok stared at Zoran in astonishment. He had wondered how a Budheya male with his own starship and what sounded like his own personal army had ended up on a Keeyori space station, and Zoran’s words in Alliance Standard had only deepened the mystery for him.

  “This is my friend, Zoran Hadari-Begur-Kor” explained Saakshi, interpreting Tilabok's surprise correctly. She knew the Budheya way would not allow Tilabok to ask questions of a personal nature to someone present in the guise of an honored guest, so she made sure to give him an opening; in fact, almost subtle permission to quiz Zoran.
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br />   “Hadari-Begur-Kor” exclaimed a clearly perplexed Tilabok. “You mean, he is …”

  “Hadari’Kor” Saakshi finished for him.

  “I am not Budheya” Zoran chimed in. “My appearance was altered to reduce the risk of coming to your world to meet with you.”

  Tilabok shook off his surprise to greet Zoran.

  “We are honored by your presence on our world, Zoran Hadari-Begur-Kor. Your people are spoken of with respect amongst my people as honorable and noble warriors.” Tilabok greeted him in fluent, albeit slightly rusty, Alliance Standard.

  “I thank you for your welcome, Tilabok of Budheyasta. Your people are spoken of with great respect amongst my people for your knowledge and willingness to share and help others.”

  Tilabok responded with a small courteous nod to acknowledge Zoran's words.

  “I wish that we had more of our hospitality to offer you, but unfortunately we’re not free people on our own home world” he added matter-of-factly, without any hint of bitterness.

  “I believe we can change that and work to return Budheyasta to the Budheya.” Zoran was quick to grasp to the opening. “I am here with a proposition for you and any other Budheya rebels who would welcome our assistance in routing the Ketaari from your home world.”

  Tilabok stared at the big male in astonishment, a little mystified by his words.

  “The Hadari’Kor want to help us?” he queried in some surprise. The Budheya had, after all, become accustomed to the realization that they were on their own and outside assistance would not be forthcoming to get rid of the Ketaari occupation. A hundred years of occupation had a habit of doing that to a people. They did not question any more why none of their past friends had come to their assistance. Isolated and cut off from the rest of Quadrant Five by the Ketaari, they understood implicitly that only the Budheya could rid their world from the Empire’s stranglehold on it.

  “Yes. The Hadari’Kor are willing to offer their skills to coalesce the rebels into a more effective resistance against the Ketaari occupiers. We might even be able to bankroll some of your operations against the Ketaari.”

  This time, Tilabok fairly gaped at Zoran, bemusement and consternation overthrowing his former confusion.

  “I’m sure the Budheya are fully capable of fighting off the Ketaari on their own, but perhaps we can help with techniques and strategies based on our experiences fighting the Ketaari” Zoran said tactfully, misinterpreting Tilabok's silence for umbrage at the slight to his rebels’ fighting prowess.

  His words seemed to shake Tilabok from his stupor. Tilabok held up a hand as if in mock surrender as an attractive grin lit up his good-looking face.

  “I accept your offer of assistance gratefully, Zoran Hadari-Begur-Kor, and thank you. We Budheya are under no illusions about our fighting skills. It is not something that comes to us naturally. We take up arms because we have no other choice.”

  Zoran returned his grin with one of his own. Tilabok, it seemed, was well aware of his as well as the rebels’ limitations.

  “I’m convinced that with a little training, better strategy and more sophisticated weapons, the Budheya can make life very uncomfortable for the Ketaari on Budheyasta” Zoran remarked confidently.

  “That will give our people great pleasure and some hope” Tilabok acknowledged gravely.

  “Could you help us spread the word of this Hadari’Kor offer to the other resistance cells? And choose a small contingent of leaders influential enough to hammer out the details with us?” Zoran asked.

  Tilabok nodded confidently. “The Ketaari restrict our movement out of our villages, so I’ll need some time to communicate with the others. I know some resistance leaders who command much larger cells, and they’ll be able to spread the word even quicker.”

  “We have a starship in space waiting for us. It will be back here in twenty days. Can you have a contingent ready on the top ridge of the hillock Saakshi tells me is called Sainga Barame after night fall? We will transport your people off world so your leaders can negotiate an agreement that will be acceptable to the resistance.”

  “You can trust Zoran, Tilabok” Saakshi chimed in earnestly. “His word is gold.”

  Zoran cast a glance down at her, smiling at her earnestness in defending him, allowing Tilabok to catch a glimpse of the affection on the Hadari’Kor male’s face for the former Budheya rebel.

  “We will be ready, Zoran Hadari-Begur-Kor” Tilabok promised.

  “Once the details are sorted out, we plan to take groups of rebels to train off planet periodically to a facility outside the borders of Empire space. It is too great a risk to bring the Hadari’Kor to Budheyasta to train the rebels.”

  It was clear that Tilabok agreed with Zoran on this. Budheyasta was too risky to bring in Hadari’Kor to train the rebels.

  “You’ll have to keep this quiet for as long as you can” Zoran warned. “If the Ketaari suspect that we’re coming, they’ll place extra patrols in space around Budheyasta. If we can’t get through to you, then we can’t bring in weapons or take your rebels off planet for training.”

  “I understand” Tilabok assured him. “Rest assured, I will explain to the others what the stakes are.”

  “Saakshi” called a distant voice. “Tilabok, is she here? Can I see her?”

  A smile of sheer happiness lit up Saakshi’s face.

  “It’s my cousin, Utoran” she explained to Zoran.

  “Go talk to him, Saakshi meya. He’s been worried about you ever since you were sent to prison” Tilabok directed affectionately at her.

  Saakshi glanced at Zoran, who gave her a discreet nod, before hurrying out of the tiny cavern towards the larger cave.

  “What about Saakshi?” Tilabok asked Zoran, as he watched the Hadari’Kor merc glance at her receding figure. “Much as I would like to have her back with us, I don’t think she would be safe here anymore.”

  “No” Zoran agreed. “Unfortunately, Budheyasta is not an option for Saakshi any more. I wish it was in my power to change that for her, but it is not. She has Alliance id tags and a job with the Alliance waiting for her.”

  Zoran returned the Budheya resistance leader’s gaze steadily.

  “I’ll keep her safe. You have my word on it” he pledged to Tilabok.

  Tilabok nodded. He was fond of Saakshi. She had been one of their younger recruits and one of the few without any living family. He felt extra responsible for the orphans. The cell became their only family.

  “Let’s work to make sure that Saakshi can come home one day, Zoran Hadari-Begur-Kor” Tilabok said steadily.

  “Yes, let’s work together to get Budheyasta back for the Budheya” Zoran responded softly.

  “You should know that Ghesh might come here looking to exact revenge for Saakshi” Zoran warned.

  “Let him” Tilabok responded insouciantly. “We know how to make ourselves scarce. Thanks to your offer, we can afford to lie low for a bit now. There’s something I do not understand, though. I would understand better if the Alliance came to us with an offer for assistance. It would benefit both parties. But why are the Hadari’Kor willing to risk themselves for the Budheya?” Tilabok asked bluntly.

  “It is a long story, my friend, and I hope to tell you the details one day. A long time ago, my world was almost destroyed by a civil war. The Budheya brokered a peace that has lasted centuries. They did it without any self-interest and purely to prevent our civilization from extinction. The Hadari’Kor will forever hold a debt of gratitude to your people. I’m only surprised that your people have no memory of it. On my world, every child knows the story of how the wise Budheya re-united the Hadari’Kor.”

  “My people have forgotten a lot of their history in their quest for survival” Tilabok confessed simply. “But there should be accounts of this in our ancient books that have been hidden away from the Ketaari.”

  “We should have offered our assistance a long time ago” Zoran admitted. “I have no good excuse for why we didn’t
before. But I’m here now because we have not forgotten the good turn the Budheya did for us once. And, because we can. The Hadari’Kor possess skills that will make your resistance a real thorn in the side of the Ketaari.”

  “And because of Saakshi” Tilabok stated quietly.

  “And because of Saakshi” Zoran acknowledged, equally quietly.

  “Well, you’re here now, Zoran Hadari-Begur-Kor, and that is what matters. This news will bring a lot of hope to the resistance. The Budheya will gratefully accept any assistance you can provide.”

  A low and persistent hum filled the cave to interrupt their conversation.

  “Excuse me” Tilabok unclipped a large squarish object from his belt clip to flip a switch on it.

  “This is Tilabok” he said into it, holding up the object to speak into it.

  Zoran realized to his tremendous surprise that the rebels were using centuries-old communicator technology. Most space-faring civilizations today used small button-sized communicators with ear pieces for privacy. The communicators Saakshi and he were currently equipped with were not only tiny, but capable of long-range communication with a starship orbiting Budheyasta space.

  “There's a Ketaari patrol coming up the hill, Tilabok” an urgent voice warned from the communicator.

  “How many?” Tilabok asked calmly.

  “Half contingent.”

  “What about the back of the hill?”

  “The other half is heading up from behind. They have us surrounded.”

  “How much time?” Tilabok asked again as he met Zoran's arrested gaze.

  “Ten minutes, Tilabok. Maybe less.”

  Tilabok flipped another switch on the over-sized communicator.

  “This is Tilabok. Listen up! Start moving towards the tunnels now.”

  Tilabok glanced at Zoran as he clipped his communicator back to its old position on his belt.