Untold Stories of a Galaxy - Kysaek: The Beginning

“Do you realise that you’re a dead man?“, Arolac yelped loudly and wildly. He was tied to a pillar, the old-fashioned way, with chains and ropes, and they were enough to keep little Davoc’s portly body inside the fence. “What’s the point of this anyway! Why do you steal the drugs if you’re going to leave them behind?! These are millions worth of goods!”

“What can I say?” retorted Kysaek unconcernedly. “We are quite wasteful.” She hadn’t got to the actual topic yet and she had only heard hostility so far because her guest had only recently regained consciousness and she had to find this place where she could talk to him undisturbed beforehand.

It was a former and looted material store belonging to an insignificant railway station along the track on which the train had travelled. However, its users had not parked the transport there, but had let it travel a little further by automatic setting before they had chosen their interrogation room in the confusion of the mined tunnels.

Being discovered here, however, was the least of Kysaek’s worries, despite the loud organ of her prisoner. The camp was well insulated and she wanted to make another attempt at questioning. “Will you hold the edge for once?!”

“Untie me and I’ll think it over!” grumbled Arolac wearily. It was becoming apparent that he was not going to keep up this babbling charade for much longer.

“And then you’ll roll me flat? I don’t think so.”

“You can think?! I hardly think so, you filthy Iknis!”

Thais sat on an old table top. “Very diplomatic, Nora,” she said. Her instructions and the plan called for Arolac to be threatened and at worst beaten, but excessive force or torture was not on the cards and the Talin didn’t like that. “Although I imagine it would be real torture for him if we let him run free for a bit.”

“Or I’ll grab you with my hands and squeeze every bit of life out of you,” Arolac replied as his physical resistance came to a halt. He was corpulent and not the fittest, but it was quite conceivable that he could put his threat into action. “What did you hope to gain here from! Foreign currency?! Information about our business?! Or were you recruited to assassinate me?!”

“Assassination,” Kysaek snorted. “Someone thinks he is that important and if we had been, you’d be dead by now, wouldn’t you? You’re not so wrong about the info, though, even if it’s not the kind of knowledge you must suspect.”

“I’m not telling you anything because then I’ll be dead and next it’ll be you! Your best chance is to release me and get the hell away from Themis right now and hole up in some dirty hole somewhere!”

None of the women had shown their faces yet. “We’ve been through the hole thing. We’re even underground now,” Kysaek mentioned, looking up at the ceiling. “But speaking of chances - your best bet is to tell us what we want to know. So spare us this nonsense! You’ll run into walls with us with that.”

“I’m smart! I’m not so sure about you or do you have the slightest idea who I work for!”

“This is going to take a while Nora,” Thais sighed, picking up a rusty iron bar and slamming it into her hand again and again.

“Nora?! Nora who?!” inquired Arolac, though his eyes were more on the Talin and her iron bar.

“For being so smart, you don’t understand the rules,” Kysaek admonished, supporting her partner’s game. “But maybe you need a push: what do you know about the slaves Roskor Reed is organising for PGI!”

“Slaves?! What slaves?! On Themis, slaves are nothing, a business on the side! And even that is none of your business!”

“Tell us, what’s it all about?!”

“Furless piece of meat! I’m not in any slave business! I have other duties!”

Suddenly Thais struck the Arolacs porter with the bar and he startled in panic, but he was unhurt.

Kysaek also faintly jerked up, but she was sure she had more of his attention now. “I heard a rumour, something about a big deal. The question is, where is Roskor Reed shipping all the slaves for PGI?”

“Well, ask the boss yourself!” said Arolac, defiant anew, but the mere raising of Thais hand was enough for him to lower his tone. “You want to do business?! Good, good, let’s talk business! How much do you want?! Ten thousand?! A hundred thousand?! I’m sure we’ll come to an agreement and then you’ll let me go!”

“He still doesn’t understand the rules,” Thais observed, annoyed. But instead of swinging the bar again, she clenched her fist and let concentrated, prismatic energy flow through it, like a fire just waiting to spread. “Maybe it’s our language and we should try another.”

Kysaek played the inclined and drew her knife. “That would definitely get us somewhere. I’m just wavering between sharp and fuzzy right now.”

Arolac’s exasperation rose. “A million?!” he gulped, taking the hint. Either he would be cut with the sharp knife or beaten with the rod. “Or I’ll get you a good job in our organisation! How does that sound!”

“Let’s stick to your organisation,” Kysaek opined. She wielded the knife less threateningly, but kept it in her hand. “You mean to tell us that you know nothing at all about doing business with PGI?”

“We do a lot of business with Peeks, but I don’t know about all of them! I’m not that far up the ladder!”

“I even believe you and yet I’m sure you do hear things, even if it’s just a rumour and I bet a deal as big as the one with the slaves can’t remain a secret forever.”

Arolac’s nostrils flared permanently, a sign of great stress, and he pressed his lips tightly together. When Thais pressed her bar against the Davoc’s cheek, he narrowed all three eyes fearfully “W-what do you care about slave business anyway? If you tell me, it will definitely help me think!”

“Don’t reverse the roles,” Kysaek retorted. “We ask, you answer. Are the slaves for work? For experiments? I have seen with my own eyes the vile things PGI can do.”

“You see! I have no idea what PGI is doing or where!”

“We are not moving forward here,” Kysaek said, physically applying more pressure. She used the flat side of the knife and pushed the steel under the bacon-like wrinkles of Arolac’s face, but her tone remained hauntingly calm. “Or have we got it wrong? Are you useless to us?”

“Nrgh, I have no idea,” Arolac asserted shakily. “You should have kidnapped my boss instead! He’s guaranteed to know!”

“Too much trouble, for our few resources. However, you have good ideas. Keep trying.”

Arolac quoted a common Davoc saying “Oh third eye, give me clarity,” he said, which was tantamount to pleading with a greater power. “Let me contact my boss and talk to him about this!”

“And ten minutes later we’re dead? Next try, my big furry friend,” Kysaek opined. She pulled the knife away, not letting her prisoner notice, but feeling a tiny bit sorry for him. This was no fighter, but she was convinced he had already ordered enough atrocities and possessed a sly tongue - someone who probably didn’t deserve to be spared after all. “And if I don’t like what you’re saying, my partner will soon take the fuzzy approach.”

“I can’t say what I don’t know!” complained Arolac in exasperation, again testing the chains on his body, which held up. “I am an accountant! I’m good at arithmetic, getting and passing on mundane orders, but I’m not deep enough in the inner circle, for the most important business!”

“You really want to put us to the test,” Kysaek said appraisingly, nodding at Thais. “Give him a taste. Go all out on his belly, that’s where he’ll feel the least and still notice enough to see we’re not joking.”

“No! Wha-!“, Arolac was still half spitting when the Talin slammed the side of the bar into his stomach with full force and he gasped, coughing.

It was a blow even Kysaek felt as he watched. “Ouch. I hope for your sake we don’t have to do that again,” she said, allowing the Davoc a few minutes of recovery. “Let’s forget about the great slave trade. It’s really an enormous mass where you can lose track. Has there been any particular thing lately, say the LAST two months, that you’ve heard related to a PGI deal? ... I would also be inclined not to let that be a detriment to you.”

Each sentence from Arolac amounted to an airy hiccup, and it took him considerably longer to put the blow away. “Not my disadvantage? What do you mean?”

“You just said it yourself,” Kysaek noted sympathetically. She wondered if it would be better to rely on the Davoc’s business acumen rather than his fear, and she preferred that to the dirty methods anyway. “You’re an accountant and you’re good at maths and if we’re honest - this is the gathering place of all the criminals in the galaxy. So why shouldn’t you sell me the information and we’ll never see each other again?”

Thais eyes immediately met Kysaek’s and the Talin could not believe that her leader had made such an offer, but she remained silent as Arolac brightened. “I don’t know what you’re going to do with the information and if it harms Roskor Reed and he finds out I helped you ...”

“What we do with your knowledge is our business and risk is part of any deal or am I wrong?”

“If you’re smart, you minimise or eliminate the risk.”

“For us, the risk is much greater,” Thais interjected. She was playing the new game. “You could lie to us, and even if you tell us the truth, you could immediately betray us to Reed, tell him some lie to save yourself and ruin our plan.”

Kysaek tapped the tip of the knife against her helmet temple. “There is only one way for us and that is to go after the slaves,” she said harshly, but softened towards the Davoc. “We’ll find out from someone one way or another, and it’s your turn now. All you have to do is tell us how this ends: Are you going to keep quiet and die so that we find someone else? Will you be brutally beaten up by us, talk and then die? Or will you choose the least evil for yourself by talking, accepting our foreign currency and coming out of this hole unharmed?”

Arolac’s eyes sparkled. He’d only tasted a fraction of the violence so far and was clearly unwilling to endure more of it, though it was doubtful his fear of the current situation could be that much stronger than Reed’s and he wouldn’t try a ruse. “I don’t want to die yet,” the Davoc opined. He was probably seriously considering the offer and did some soul-searching.

“It’s only normal,” Kysaek agreed. “And I can’t shake the feeling that you’ve thought of something after all.”

“Quite possibly.”

“Then you’ll just have to tell us. Mind you, I hope for your sake that this isn’t a hoax.”

“As you said - your risk is greater,” Arolac ventured. It was more a comment than a testing of his interrogators’ patience, however. “But what you have managed to do here can happen to me again. I never push my luck.”

Thais became indignant. “Get to the point!”

The little shock was finally enough for Arolac. “Okay, okay!” he replied defeatedly. “I’m sticking to it! I have little insight into the PGI slave trade, but a couple of my enforcers told me about a bit of trouble about two months ago that mentioned PGI and it involved a bot.”

“A bot?” echoed Kysaek. “Trouble?”

“Yes, a bot,” Arolac replied seriously. “And what exactly was going on, I don’t know. But it seemed that some kind of special bot carried out an attack on PGI or Reed. At the very least, it involved PGI’s slaves in some way.”

“How does that help us if you don’t know any details about the trade or what happened?“”Because I know where the bot is.”

The machine isn’t destroyed? That’s weird. The thought came to Kysaek immediately and she saw the same doubt in Thai’s body language before she asked. “The bot was captured and not disposed of?”

“Yes, and there was a fight over where to keep the thing,” Arolac nodded. “Must be a dangerous fighting machine, because I can’t explain the fuss any other way.”

“I can’t make sense of it either. Isn’t there any research being done on the special bot? And what does a bot have to do with slaves? Are you testing its combat capabilities on people? Is he just standing in a storage closet?”

“That’s what I’ve heard, and to the best of my knowledge, he’s located in Warehouse Three, in the Deep Down Cargo Port.”

Kysaek did not take her prisoner’s accuracy for granted. “You know that for a fact? Why Warehouse Three of all places?”

“It is the least important warehouse at this transshipment point,” Arolac explained. That he, as an accountant, knew about the importance of such places was more understandable. “It was a matter of stowing the bot in the farthest corner and locking it up, inconspicuously. Others wanted to lock it away far more securely, which led to infighting among the underbosses.”

"Warehouse Three is not well guarded?” asked Thais, lurking in the back of the pillar. “Do I understand that correctly?”

Arolac by now had a composed demeanour, despite the danger behind him. “It`s definitely not a fortress. That would cause too much of a stir.”

“Mh, come here?” murmured Kysaek thoughtfully to her companion. She wanted to consult with the Talin and use her for shielding before her prisoners eyes at the same time. “What do you think?”

Thais gave good cover, against Arolac’s field of vision, and she was quiet. “A special machine to do with PGI har? That sounds plausible enough, but what would it have to do with slaves?”

“I guess we’d have to find out. I don’t think he made it up,” Kysaek said hopefully. “We should definitely check with our other companion. I’m sure he’ll know if there’s anything to Deep Down.” She deliberately avoided mentioning Tavis name, even though she spoke softly. Kysaek got the silent assentv on Thais and she sent a text message to the Palanian via her vortex cuff.

We have learned from Arolac that there is a special bot in the Deep Down Cargo Port that was involved in an attack on PGI and it is said to be housed in Warehouse Three. Do you know this hall?

Tavis did not answer for a good while, but that was not surprising. After all, he was busy in other realms and could not respond from one moment to the next. However, Tavis’ response did not take forever either.

I know Deep Down, at least. A lot of nasty villains have their fingers in the pie there and it’s an important port of call for their supplies and Reed is no exception - I know for a fact that he controls several halls and at least one large docking bay there.

So it’s worth following up the lead?

It’s better to have a lead than no lead at all. If you don’t find anything there, we’ll just have to come up with a new plan. I can try to get some information on Warehouse Three, but don’t count on it. If that’s really our target, it might look suspicious if I showed an interest.

You’re right about that. Is everything else all right with you?

I’m doing my day’s work. Nothing exciting, but it serves our cause.

Good, then get on with it. I’ll get back to you later.

“What did he say?” asked Thais curiously.

“Reed has warehouses there,” Kysaek replied calmly. “Arolac wasn’t lying about that.” She walked up to Arolac and held out the prospect of his reward and release. “We believe your story and you leave here with a fuller bag. Wasn’t hard at all, was it?”

Relieved, Arolac regained his confidence. “About time,” he said erectly. “And I hope I never have to wi-” Suddenly the Davoc’s face was shredded by a shot Thais had fired behind her back and over her leader’s shoulder.

Stunned, Kysaek charged Talin. “What are you doing?!”

“We don’t need him anymore and he could talk,” Thais replied tersely, questioning the offer. “You weren’t really going to let him go and pay?”

“Yes I was, that was my approximate plan!”

“I don’t believe it!” gritted Thais grimly. She went at Kysaek verbally. “How can you be so stupid! I thought you were smarter than that!”

“And I thought you were true to your word and trusted me?! We agreed not to use unnecessary force.”

“Unnecessary?- that was short and sweet. He would have betrayed us immediately and we wouldn’t have got within a hundred yards of the warehouse.”

Actually, Kysaek felt that Arolac was more than anxious enough and would rather have pocketed the forex in silence. “How would you know?!” she questioned, upset. “We do not murder ruthlessly!”

“It was necessary,” Thais said coldly. “And we don’t murder? I think you have forgotten what you have already done. Cipi seems quickly forgotten? Or your test, for the disciples.”

Was it the stress? The continuing, threatening situation? Or was Kysaek pained by the possible truth? She didn’t know, but she didn’t care right now. Her indignation at Thais was real and before Kysaek knew it, she was punching her partner in the face. “That’s not how it works Thais! Now you listen to me!” she cursed and tugged at the Talin’s collar.

However, neither the blow nor the tugging were a problem for the strong woman and the Thais, who was a good head taller, reversed the game in an instant. “No, you listen to me well now,” she countered, bracing her leader before pressing her against the nearest wall. “Sometimes I think I made a mistake in leaving you in command and that I did it in a moment of weakness because you had my people on your conscience!”

Kysaek kicked, but it was impossible for her to extricate herself. “What was that about choices?!” she retorted strained. “It was your choice both to take me in and to supply terrorists with weapons so that the PGI could piss on my leg and yet now I am to blame for all of them?!”

“Complicit!” opined Thais, slapping her leader repeatedly against the wall. “And I’m not going to lose the last of my sisters too, just because you’re getting too reckless!”

“And I will not become what I detest, even if our lives are in the greatest danger!” retorted Kysaek, and she did the only thing she knew and could. She thrust her thumbs into the Talin’s highly sensitive neck slits with lightning speed.

Thais body immediately began to spasm and she could no longer maintain her grip. “Where from?!” she just panted.

“Military basic course, alien weak points,” Kysaek replied as she sank into a sitting pose, knowing that the small attack was extremely nasty for her companion, as if she had just caught a man in his most sensitive spot and even that was only a vague comparison to the Talin’s pain level.

But at least it brought calm to the situation and Thais sighed agonisingly. “A bull’s eye.”

“You hit it just as neatly.”

“Only gently, only gently.”

“I’m glad of that,” Kysaek agreed, growing calmer. Perhaps it was quite good that she had made her point and reached out her hand to her comrade-in-arms. “I trust you and I know you meant well, but I think when we get back to Central we need to talk and until we get back, you will do as I say and not decide over my head - understand?”

Thais took the offered hand directly and allowed herself to be helped to her feet. “I can’t promise anything,” the Talin admitted, holding no grudge against her partner. “But I trust you just as much and will try to respect your path.”

“The sooner we get it done, the less likely it is to happen again.”

“How overly optimistic of you,” Thais smirked bitterly, still stricken. “Do we better go or do we want to take it slow?”

“A little time in between won’t hurt. If this tin can is just gathering dust, I think you can handle a little more time.”

“I hope so,” Thais asked in a hint of amusement. “Otherwise we’ve hauled the fat one for nothing.”

“At least this will keep you in training.”