Blood Calls

  Copyright © 2017 by Andrew Wichland.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

  Contents

  Chapter 1: The Ancient Way

  Chapter 2: Charting a Course

  Chapter 3: The Calling

  Chapter 4: Captured

  Chapter 5: Processing

  Chapter 6: Freya

  Chapter 7: Never Take My Soul

  Chapter 8: Arrival

  Chapter 9: The Auction

  Chapter 10: Marian

  Chapter 11: Friend or Foe

  Chapter 12: Gilded Cage

  Chapter 13: Prisoners

  Chapter 14: Prophecies

  Chapter 15: The Ambush

  Chapter 16: Dinner Guests

  Chapter 17: You Do What You Have To

  Chapter 18: The Mines of Morhoth

  Chapter 19: The Gods of Morhoth

  Chapter 20: Measure of a God

  Chapter 21: Escape

  Chapter 22: Knight versus Knight

  Chapter 23: The Black Dragon

  Chapter 24: Not Meant to Survive

  Chapter 25: Reunion

  Chapter 1

  The Ancient Way

  Nearing the end of his shift, Robin sat alone in the pilot seat of the transport as they sped through hyperspace. With his eyes locked on the band on his wrist, he willed the bracelet to expand into his Dragon Knight armor. If he couldn’t figure out how to get their armor to work as it did back on Amal, they will have little chance of succeeding against the Black Dragon and its forces.

  Sighing, he sank back into the pilot seat. Not that our chances are good in the first place, he thought. Maltanore was probably the weakest of the Black Dragon’s forces, and he toyed with me until practically the end. Let’s not forget we have to find the remaining Knights and the new Gold Dragon.

  “Come on, work! Damn it, work!” he barked in frustration. It remained as it was. The pulsing crystal almost seemed to mock him. “Come on! Activate! Turn on! Armor up!” he snapped, to no effect. “Look, I’m going to get shot!” Still nothing.

  Growling, he threw himself back into the seat. Well, it was worth a shot, he thought as he let loose a puff of air, his lips vibrating.

  He had no idea why the bracelet had stopped working when it retracted back on Amal. Now he had no way to access his armor.

  He glanced at the controls and then gazed into the almost-solid whiteness beyond the view screen.

  Beep… Beep…

  He eyed the flashing commlink. With a sigh, he reached over and pressed it.

  “Yeah?” he said. A holographic version of Little John’s head appeared.

  “Robin, you’d better get down here—we may have a problem,” LJ said.

  “Great, that’s all we need,” Robin moaned. He rubbed his hand over his face. “Get Much up here to take my place. I’ll be right down.”

  He pressed a button on the armrest. The seat slid back, and he climbed to his feet.

  He exited the cockpit through the door, which released a soft hiss at the rear, and started down the smooth-walled corridor. At each corner stood ridged frames to support the halls if the ship got attacked. Every now and then he passed a maintenance access port. A solid column of lights ran along the corners, more lights shining above at regular intervals.

  As he walked, the metal floor tinning under his booted feet, his thoughts drifted to what might be going on. As he passed his friend Much in the corridor, Much muttered, “Good luck.”

  Oh, that’s reassuring, Robin thought sarcastically. He arrived at the cargo hold door and pressed the release. At once he was bombarded by various angry voices shouting all at once.

  Spotting his mother, Little John, and Willa in the midst of the angry crowd, which was headed by his former rival, Dulgard, and Dulgard’s father, Shuji, he pushed his way forward and quickly stood at Willa’s side. “Willa, LJ, what’s going on here?” he demanded.

  “Well, we can tell you what’s not happening,” Dulgard’s father interrupted. “No one here—including myself—will take orders from you or your friends.”

  Robin’s mother, Chikako, stepped forward. “Then who would you suggest, Shuji?” she asked.

  “This is not the time for this petty dispute!” Robin shouted, annoyed that this had come up. “Right now, we need to decide our next course of action.”

  Dulgard said, “I say we head for the nearest pirate base or village we know about. There, we either join with the resistance or at least take shelter.”

  Some of the people around him nodded.

  “Tell me,” Robin challenged, “has anyone seen this ship’s schematics?”

  Everyone turned to Robin.

  “I have,” Tuck said, standing close to his sister, Willa.

  Willa nodded, as did LJ.

  “What does that matter?” Dulgard demanded.

  “It matters,” Robin said, “because if you had seen the schematics, you would know that this ship has a tracking beacon.” He crossed his arms.

  Releasing a puff of laughter, Dulgard looked from one to the other.

  “And you think that’s a problem? All we have to do is turn it off or destroy it,” he said smugly.

  With a thoughtful look, Robin nodded. “Yes, we could do that… But there’s one problem with that plan.”

  Before Dulgard could respond, Little John explained. “The beacon isn’t in the ship. It’s outside, attached to the hull.”

  Dulgard shrugged. “Then somebody will have to go out there and take care of it.”

  Unable to keep the smile off his face, Robin chuckled, shaking his head. “Do you have any idea what could happen if somebody tried to exit a ship moving at hyperspeed?”

  “He or she would be lucky if death came just as fast,” Willa said.

  “Then drop out of hyperspeed to deal with it,” Dulgard answered defensively.

  Robin explained, “The second we drop out of hyperspeed, they can track us. And we have no idea how fast they can spring up on us. For all we know, we could drop right into a system hosting half the Black Dragon’s fleet. And we have no means of proving we’re friends. Even if we head for one of the familiar outposts, do you honestly believe they would welcome us, knowing we’re giving the Black Dragon a map to their location?”

  Dulgard’s face hardened as he realized the truth behind the words. “All right—fine!” he snapped. “But we can’t stay in hyperspace forever!”

  “You’re right, we can’t,” Tuck responded. “And that’s why every starship has a navigation computer on board. Human error runs about twenty-five percent. But if both we and the computer are off by just one percent, we could fly right into a super nova or into the maw of a black hole. We’d all be dead before we knew what happened.”

  “Yeah, you’re right about that,” Shuji said.

  “This isn’t about who’s right or wrong…or who wins or loses,” Chikako added.

  “This is about staying alive,” Robin said. “And right now, that is more important than picking who’s in charge.”

  Dulgard retorted, pointing at Robin and his friends. “It’s because of these ‘knights’ that our village and planet were destroyed!”

  “There’s no way to know that!” Willa shouted. “We all heard what Maltanore said when he and the Dark Elf arrived. They detected the village from orbit two days before they even showed up! That’s long before we were chosen to be knights!”

  “It’s doesn’t matter!” Shuji snapped. “Just because you and your friends were chosen as the next Dragon Knights does not make yo
u our leaders.”

  “Then let’s settle this the ancient way!” Robin said. Everyone looked at him. “Democracy. We’ll put it to a vote and settle this once and for all.”

  For a second, Shuji and Robin glared at each other. Then Robin turned on the spot to look at the crowd. “Does anyone have a nomination?” he asked.

  “I nominate myself and my son,” Shuji said, placing his hand on Dulgard’s shoulder.

  Not surprised, Robin turned to face them.

  “I nominate Robin,” Chikako asserted.

  Robin turned to his mother, blinking.

  “Robin?” Dulgard muttered, frowning. He and his father shared a look.

  Chikako gave Robin a brief, encouraging smile and nodded. Then she turned and faced the crowd. “All in favor of Shuji and Dulgard?”

  At once, both father and son raised their hand. For a second, there was nothing but silence as they looked around at the people around them. Only a few of Dulgard’s friends had also raised their hand.

  “Opposed?” One by one, everyone else raised their hand.

  Nodding slowly, Chikako looked at the people. “All in favor of Robin?” she asked.

  Scanning the group, Robin waited, holding his breath. A man sitting on the catwalk above, legs dangling, slowly raised one hand. As if that was a signal everyone else was waiting for, other people raised their hands. Turning on the spot, Robin watched as more and more people raised their hands. He faced his friends, who gave him small smiles and then raised their hands.

  “Well, I guess that’s one for democracy,” Chikako said, facing Dulgard and his father. “Now that that’s settled, shouldn’t we start planning our next move?”

  Chapter 2

  Charting a Course

  Back in the cockpit, Robin sat alone in the navigation station. His head rested lightly in his hand as he tapped his cheek in thought. For the last hour or so he had poured over the star charts, trying to find a safe point to exit hyperspace.

  He had reviewed and eliminated space ports, space stations, planets, and systems. Sighing, he sat back in his chair. “Where to go, where to go, where to go?” he muttered.

  At the sound of the door hissing open, he rotated his chair. His friends came into the cockpit.

  “So how’s the newly elected fearless leader?” Willa asked, sitting across from him.

  “About to request a recount,” Robin answered.

  “Hey, better you than Dulgard and Shuji,” Much said, leaning against Willa’s chair.

  “Well, I’m not so sure people will agree with that once they see the only destination available to us,” Robin responded.

  “What do you mean?” Tuck asked, frowning, from his place near the controls.

  In answer, Robin pressed a couple of buttons. At once a holographic image of a rotating planet appeared before him.

  It was a planet about the size of the one they had left behind. One of the moons orbiting around it hosted a magnificent set of rings, in contrast to the vast desert that covered the surface.

  “I think we all know this planet,” Robin said. He zoomed in on the moon planet.

  For a few seconds, silence rang through the cockpit.

  “The Bazaar system?” Willa asked. She looked shocked. “You want us to go to one of the biggest trade planets in the galaxy? Second only to the ones around Centurium?”

  As his friends looked at each other, Robin knew they were trying not to think about the reference to the markets on the moons orbiting the capital of the Black Dragon’s Empire, previously known as Illuminances. This had once been a place of light and justice, but now it was full of darkness and tyranny.

  Robin answered, “We may not have much of a choice.”

  “‘Not much of a choice?’” Little John repeated. “You’re suggesting that we fly right into the lion’s den.”

  He stepped forward to lean against the navigation console. “We’re talking about one of the largest trading ports in the Black Dragon’s Empire for almost ten sectors. At one point or another, half the goods and people are sold there.”

  “Exactly,” Robin said. “With all the transports, merchants, and low-life buyers who go there, who’s going to notice one more transport carrying slaves? All we need to do is have some of the people on board act like slaves. We can mingle and get lost in the crowds there. We can also get or steal a ship—one that doesn’t have a tracking beacon on it.”

  Robin looked from one face to another. He added, “We already have everything we need on board to pull it off—including five sentinel substitutes to act as guards. I don’t like this plan any more than you do, but I’ve spent the last few hours going over these star charts, and I can’t think of anything else. If you have a better idea, I’m more than willing to listen.” He waved his hand at the hologram, which went dim.

  At first, the group was silent. Then, Willa asked, “Any idea where we’d go afterward? If we’re still alive, that is.”

  Blowing out a puff of air, Robin sat back. “Probably the safest place we can go, and perhaps find our way to the resistance…”

  He looked at her. “Tortuga.”

  Much chuckled. “How fitting that we, a band of outcasts on the run, would find refuge within the hidden capital of pirates and thieves. And lucky for us, the Black Dragon should have no idea where it is.”

  Nodding, Little John turned to look out the portal.

  “But we still have one problem,” Willa said. When they turned to look at her, she raised her wrist to display her bracelet. “This whole plan centers around whether or not we can turn these things back on.”

  Silence again fell in the cockpit. She was right.

  Determined, Robin climbed to his feet. He raised his hand to stare at the palm side of his wrist and the back end of the bracelet. As each second passed, he stared at the unmoving band, and his frown deepened. Unwilling to let the bracelet beat him, he focused increasingly harder.

  Just as he bared his teeth in frustration, it finally happened. With a sliding metallic sound, the metal extended from the band, covering his hand and moving up his arm.

  The friends watched in amazement as the metal covered Robin’s chest, moved down his waist to cover his legs, and crossed to cover his other arm. Finally, sliding over his ears, the plates passed up and over his head. Then they expanded to form a dragon head and face.

  After the horns and face had finished expanding, Robin looked from one friend to another.

  “Well, I guess that solves one problem,” he said in an altered voice. “The final question that remains is: who gets to tell the people on board about this plan?”

  The helmet retracted from his face.

  “I guess we’ll have to decide like civilized, responsible people,” Little John said.

  For a couple of seconds, silence rang in the room.

  “Odds or evens?” Much asked.

  Chapter 3

  The Calling

  Later, after several rounds of the game, Tuck raised his arms in defeat. “I should have gone with evens,” he moaned. Then he took a deep breath, like someone about to dive into a tiger pit, and left to break the news to the others on board.

  For a couple seconds, Robin heard only silence. Then he heard cries of outrage from the other side of the thick metal doors. When the door finally hissed and started to open, Tuck quickly slid through, trying to shield his head from the objects that the people in the angry crowd were throwing at him.

  Robin grabbed Tuck and dove for cover as more things were thrown after him. Then he pressed the release, and the half-open door closed with a hiss. Breathing hard, he looked at Tuck, who finally lowered his arms.

  After a few moments, Robin opened the door again and went out to the crowd. He raised his hands and gestured for silence. When the people finally calmed down enough to listen, Robin began to explain the plan in more detail.

  Initially, both Shuji and Dulgard wore smug looks on their faces. However, their expressions turned sour when people started nodding
at Robin, agreeing that this was the best plan of action. Then Robin returned to his friends.

  For a few hours, the five knights practiced expanding and retracting their armor. When they were confident they had a reasonable level of control again, they set the course.

  While the main group waited in the cargo hold for the vessel to exit hyperspace, Robin and the other knights sat in the cockpit, covered by their armor. With each passing second, Robin’s nerves became more on edge, and whenever he glanced at his friends, he could see that they felt the same way.

  “We’re approaching the exit point,” Little John said, his armored dragon head turning to face Robin.

  Breathing deeply, Robin gathered his courage before he pressed the commlink to speak to those waiting in the hold.

  “Everyone, get ready. We’re about to exit hyperspace,” he said. “And remember, you’re supposed to be slaves. When you leave the ship, look subdued and beaten.”

  “We’re ready,” came his mother’s voice.

  Killing the link, he set his gaze straight ahead.

  “Reaching exit point in three… two… one,” Much said from his post.

  “Kill hyperdrive engine!” Robin ordered.

  At once the ship responded with a great shudder and jerk as they exited hyperspace. Before them was the desert planet Bazaar.

  Robin’s eyes swiveled to the ships going to and from the planet, as well as the various orbiting stations and defense platforms. Trying to keep calm, he took the controls and throttled forward.

  As they drew closer to the planet, the commlink on the controls started to flash.

  With a light gulp, Robin looked at it. “Here we go,” he muttered, and he pressed the flashing light.

  At once, a hologram of a sentinel’s head appeared above the console. “Shuttle approaching planet, identify.”

  “Shuttle 5587 requesting permission to land,” Robin said, trying to make his voice sound robotic.

  “Status of Maltanore and Velissa?”

  “Deceased.”

  The sentinel was silent for a long moment. “Purpose for landing?” it finally asked.