“You destroyed the city of Ortees?” Sedom asked.
“Not entirely. And they were going to destroy it anyways. Why not take a few of them down in the process?” he admitted.
Sedom pointed at Rosanheer with a delighted smirk on her lips. “I like him already. He’s just crazy enough to make me happy,” she complimented.
“And,” Zion broke in, motioning to Qilo, “Qilo.”
Sedom shook his hand. “The man Zion swears is worth the money,” she mentioned.
Qilo grinned. “Speaking of that--”
Zion held up the two stones Sedom had given him and handed him one. “I’ll give you the second stone after the jobs finished.”
Qilo swiped the stone from Zion's hand. “We have a deal. When do we leave?”
“In the morning. Zion will find a place for you to sleep tonight,” Sedom offered.
“Um, Sortec,” Zion said as he pointed to the orbs.
“Oh,” she waved one of the orbs down. “Grant Qilo and…” she paused, turning back to Rosanheer.
“Rosanheer,” he returned.
“Rosanheer level two access,” she ordered to the orb. She searched the ship bay, noticing a small fighter ship docked near the falls. “Your ship is fine there, for now,” she offered, waving to the massive ship bay. “In the future, we’ll find a space for it.”
The two men agreed and then followed Zion. Rosanheer paused for a moment to size Garric up. The two men’s eyes locked on each other, ending with Rosanheer’s chuckles. He said something to Garric that Sedom, for the first time, did not understand. He finished the conversation by spitting at Garric’s feet and continued after Zion.
Sedom returned to Garric, her eyes shining with questions.
Garric took a deep breath, shaking away the man's comment. “Better a traitor than a pet,” he translated. “If there were ever a day to kill myself--” he shuddered.
Sedom wrapped her arm around Garric's shoulders, leading him out of the ship-bay. “I told you it would be hard.”
“I know it's getting to me today. I'll survive.” He grinned back. “I'll have your place cleaned and organized by the time you return. I'd wish you good luck, but I'm not sure that's appropriate,” he mentioned. “That and I already know you don't need it.”
“Thanks. This time, I might need all the luck I can get.”
An unfamiliar voice cleared his throat, forcing Sedom to spin around. A man, only slightly taller than her, stood behind them. He was dressed in common clothing, the fabric of his yellow sleeves bunched as he raised his hands to show his peaceful intentions. His hair and beard were white with flakes of black scattered about. His chin-length hair seemed to connect flawlessly to his tidy beard. Thick eyelids served as frames, outlining his piercing blue eyes.
“Sorry to interrupt, but Noral said I need to check in with you. Something about making sure not to upset the orbs,” the man stated. He pointed to the orbs that circled him twenty feet above.
Sedom blinked several times, her mind cramping from thinking so hard. She had been privy to so many conversations the past two days she simply couldn’t recall his name.
“Hasapoi Peramkil,” Garric mentioned low, having noticed her frustration.
“Ah,” she said loudly, not meaning to. The sudden relief of her mind-cramp forced her embarrassing outburst. “Oh yes, the mind doc,” Sedom recalled offering the man her hand. “I have a lot going on at the moment. I meant to speak with you earlier. It’s good to have you here.”
The man shook Sedom's hand, grinning enough to see beneath his beard. His eyes glazed and his lips began to quiver. “Good... good to be invited.” He took a deep, shuddering breath to center himself. “It’s a wonderful city you have here. I feel honored,” he complimented.
Sedom’s skin flushed as her breath quickened. Suddenly, the image of her last protector, Iya Nercon, entered her thoughts. It was if she could see the woman directly in front of her again, kneeling in the street just before a Marisheio shot her in the back of the head.
She gasped, her eyes widening with her panic. As he released her hand, the image of Nercon faded, allowing her to breathe again.
“Sortec?” Garric asked with concern as he grabbed her shoulder to hold her upright.
“Um… it will be once we've cleared the dust off.” Sedom paused, shaking off the thought. A frown crept across her lips when she noticed Hasapoi examining Garric. “It's not what you think.”
He turned back to Sedom, his heated, piercing eyes drilling into her. “That you keep a Clove as a slave? What should I think? I didn't agree…” he spoke in protest.
“Sir,” Garric spoke up. “Sir, I chose this. It was either this or to be executed…” he began, his words causing Hasapoi’s eyes to widen with rage. “By my own people, Sir. Sortec offered me my freedom, but I know I’d have to hide for the rest of my life. I saw a unique opportunity here in Gathow and I took it. I'm quite satisfied with the price,” he said, pointing to his collar.
Hasapoi's eyes shimmered as he attempted to read Garric's thoughts. “Very well,” he said slowly. “It was… good to finally meet you, Chadon. If you ever need my assistance--”
Sedom patted the man's shoulder moving him onward down the street. “Take care of my people and I'll make sure you're adequately compensated. Just…” she paused forcing the man to turn to her. “Don't scan me again, understand? It wouldn’t be good for either of us,” she spoke low and with a hint of her authority.
“Understood. Again…” he paused to glance at Garric, “thank you, Chadon.”
Garric continued to follow Sedom down the street, taking a moment to look back at Hasapoi as he walked towards the infirmary. “You can tell he scanned you?” he asked low to Sedom.
Her head bobbed slowly on her shoulders. All she
