Beast Master's Circus

Chapter Nine

Again the coyotes were the first to hear the copter returning. It couldn't be Kelson. He'd said they couldn't get to her until dawn. It had to be the enemy coming back. Tani stared up at the sky. From the sounds heard by Minou and Ferarre the machine was coming in barely off the ground. That was the action of a peacekeeper machine about to stun-spray. These people must have one of those harmless pacifiers.

But why, what did they want? She was standing in the entrance of the Thunder-talker's tent with the older woman. They'd been replacing the tumbled clothing. Tani stood motionless, her mind suddenly racing. The enemy had been here. They'd searched among clothing and taken—what? Her hands flashed into life.

"Elder sister! Those who came, they took what?"

"My bracelets."

"Those of the Thunder-talker's power?"

"Not so. Friends gifted me these. But Thunder-talker gems. I mourn their loss."

Tani put two and two together in one intuitive leap. "I think two of our enemies have banded together. Some come to steal the cat's-eyes. The others come to take my spirit-friends." She reached for the coyotes and Mandy the paraowl, urging the paraowl to be ready, the coyotes to go with the Thunder-talker. Then she turned back to the medicine woman. "My spirit-friends hear them coming back again. Take off your gems of power, hide them well outside somewhere. Quick, be quick!"

She called Mandy as the Thunder-talker swiftly stripped herself of the gemmed belt, the necklace, and items of her calling. The paraowl arrived just as the Nitra medicine woman vanished into the dark to hide her sacred jewelry. Mandy landed lightly and waddled forward as Tani dropped to one knee to stroke the large bird.

"Take this message to Brad," she told her friend, impressing it with both voice and mind. "Brad, I'm with Djimbut clan. We have been attacked and they are returning. Thieves after cat's-eyes and possibly my team. Tell Kelson to close the port." By now she could hear the copter almost at the camp fringe. "Mandy, fly fast. Copter enemy. Fly!"

Mandy was into the air as the last word left Tani's lips. She lined out and fled for the home ranch like an arrow. But quick as the paraowl was, the copter had been quicker. The stun-spray was wide-set and the edge of it clipped the fleeing bird. Only lightly but enough that she went into a temporarily blacked-out tumble. Her wings extended, she planed to a soggy landing in brush several miles from the clan camp. She struck lightly enough but one wing hit a branch within the scrub.

Feathers bent, then broke. It was a painless but exasperating injury. It would unbalance her flight. Mandy crouched, dazed, in the bushes, panting. Her head drooped as the light stun took effect. She slept, safe at least from those who would have stolen her, but her message undelivered.

In the clan camp all was quiet. Nothing moved but the breeze twitching the clothing of those who lay about within its confines. The copter landed. Three humans emerged to begin raking through the camp. Cregar caught hold of Ideena before she could get far.

"People first. Where's that man they took alive?"

Baris was checking limp bodies. "He's here, badly injured but he's still alive." He borrowed a knife from the nearest recumbent Nitra and slashed once. "Now he isn't."

"That wasn't necessary." Cregar didn't care about the man's death, but if he was ever deep-probed by some authority he wanted to be able to say he'd protested.

Ideena snorted. "Save it. We don't have to carry the weight back, and we don't have to pay him. The natives killed the other three, we just say they got him too. Maybe this one will even believe it." She took the knife from Baris, wiped the handle, and pressed it several times at a number of angles into the Nitra's hand. Then she allowed the knife to drop as if fallen when his body relaxed, stunned.

"Let them find that. Now, stop worrying and start looking for my cat's-eyes." They found cat's-eyes enough, but of the commoner type. Red, gold, and the occasional black. But of the many times more valuable green or white used only for ceremony or gifts to a Thunder-talker, they found nothing. Ideena cursed steadily as she hunted.

Baris called from where he too searched. "I think this is their witch woman. But she isn't wearing any gems."

Ideena came running. "Check her."

"I have. Nothing."

"Look around her. She may have taken them off and hidden them when she heard us coming back. She'd have only heard that a minute before. Barely enough time to get them off, alone hide them away."

Baris grunted. "I still can't find anything." He nudged the stunned woman with his foot. "Pity we can't take the cow with us. I'd see she talked."

Cregar intervened. "We don't have time to waste. Pick up anything you want and help me with this pair." He'd discovered the coyotes where they lay in small heaps near Tani. The girl too had wisely stripped her cat's-eye jewelry, gifts of the tribe, and hidden it in a hastily scooped hole just by the tent rim. In the black and white of dark-lenses the minor earth disturbance should pass unnoticed. It had. But Minou and Ferarre had leaped back to be with their friend as the stuns struck. Now they lay where Cregar could find them.

His voice came harsher. "Pick up the Ghesh-damned beasts and get back in the copter. We're going on to that mountain ranch."

Ideena turned angrily. "What? That wasn't agreed."

"You want the credits I can release to your account, you'll do it. Get going."

She nodded slowly. "Baris, fire up the engines. It seems we have one more stop."

The limp coyotes were loaded. The engines sounded their muffled beat, and the machine lifted, swung to the north, and was gone. Below in the camp, nothing moved. Not for many hours. But in the air the copter was traveling at full speed and so was Ideena's tongue.

"What are we supposed to do? Where is this ranch? What are we after there, is there likely to be anything worth having?"

Cregar waved her to silence. "Baris, head north seventy degrees by west five. You'll see lights at a hundred and fifty miles. Stun-spray the whole ranch as we come in. We drop straight down, grab what I want, and lift again immediately. If you can find anything worth having in that time, do it. If not you'll have to leave it behind. First priority is the beasts I indicate. As soon as we're back in the air head for the port with all the speed you can get out of this thing."

"And land where?"

Cregar's smile was hard. "On the port perimeter to the east near the cargo area. I have it all arranged."

He saw Baris and Ideena exchange glances. That would hold them. They knew what kind of an ant's nest they could have kicked over here and they weren't keen to walk into peacekeepers. If he had a safe way into the ship they'd hold off. They could always take him once they were safe—or so they believed. He saw their bodies relax and hid an unpleasant look. They were effective, this pair. But incurably small-time and a little too independent. The guild would never suggest they joined it. He suppressed a bitter smile. He was just as independent. He'd simply hidden it better and the guild needed his skills. The abilities this pair had were a cred a score.

The copter droned on until Baris spoke. "Lights coming up below."

Cregar checked the instruments. "That has to be the Quade ranch. Swing low across it and stun-spray. Then go back and do the same at right angles. It should cover any of them out in the other buildings too."

Ideena nodded. "Once we land, Baris, you stay in the copter. Keep the engines ticking over and watch out for anyone coming in from elsewhere. Be ready to lift off as soon as I say."

The machine was swinging through the second line of stun as he nodded in turn. "All done. Get moving..."

The copter dropped like a stone, landed lightly, and the doors slid open. Cregar vaulted out. The door of the ranch opened to his thrust and he darted inside. When the copter swung down Logan had been in the basement. At the start of the Xik troubles his father had lined that with proplas—an application of plascrete and clearplas. Specially treated, it was impervious to stunner and blaster, and if the house collapsed on top, it would hold those within safely.

Logan heard the engines above and headed for the stairs, dropping the basement trapdoor shut behind him. He emerged into the corridor with Surra snarling beside him just as Cregar entered. Behind him Ideena produced a selective needier taken from one of the dead men, and shot in panic; the beast looked like death incarnate as it charged and Ideena had no plans to die here. Surra dropped, blood pouring from a gaping wound across the top of her skull. Logan shouted in anger and kept coming, his hand lashing across to reach his knife. Her adrenaline pumping now, Ideena shot again and Logan fell. Cregar bit back his fury at the possible loss of the dune-cat. It was done and there was no time to fight about it.

He stunned Surra to be safe then snapped at Baris who had followed them in when he heard the needier discharge. "Pick the cat up and get her into the back of the copter. Seal the wound off. If she bleeds to death I'll deduct half the cred. Move it!"

He saw the big cat safely stowed and returned to search quickly through the house. In the main family room he found a stunned meercat curled about a newborn litter. He grabbed the babies and mother and leaped for the copter again. He dumped the box of meercats carefully, then returned to look through the house. Somewhere there was an eagle. He wasn't sure if he wanted to find that or not. But for his own pride he had to know he'd looked. After that he found the safe. It was impossible to open in the time he had but there were a number of small items of value about the room. He returned to the copter with filled pockets.

"Where's Ideena?"

"Looting, of course," Baris drawled.

"Rev the engines."

"That'll bring her." He obeyed and the woman came running, her arms full of small plunder. Baris shifted a hand, the engines rose a note, and the copter lifted. Ideena took her seat and strapped in as the machine fled low and fast for the port.

"I found a few good things. Makes up for that jewelry we couldn't find on the native." She displayed her loot and Baris grunted approval. Cregar leaned forward and selected a ring from the pile. It was from old Earth, Cregar thought. Silver, with a flawed grass-green garnet as the stone. Some skilled gemstone-carver had etched that with the head of a cat in three-quarter profile. It seemed to look sideways at him.

"I'll take this. It isn't worth much and I know someone who'd like it." He saw their sneers. They thought him enamored of some woman. Nor did they recognize the work as Terran. They saw only the flawed stone. He smiled into the dark. Laris would be delighted by the cat's-head ring. He'd give it to her as recompense for his return and the loss of his stashed credits—and for her warning which had saved him a spear in the back. He'd have to tell her not to wear it if they ever returned to Arzor though. He dropped the ring into his pocket and sat back.

The copter raced the daylight as it hurtled across country. It beat the sun by a narrow margin. Dawn was showing dimly as it set down quietly behind the largest cargo shed. Cregar was first out. He peered about. A man approached and hissed softly.

"One is sent."

"One is found."

"Good. Dump whatever you have into these." Two men wheeled in large covered pallets and the raiders got busy. Surra went in, her bleeding stopped although Cregar didn't like the way she breathed. Dedran would be furious if another beast died. After that they loaded the uninjured but still stunned coyotes and meercats. That haul was good enough to temper rage. The meercat female would stay alive to care for her babies, and the babies wouldn't care where they were so long as they had their mother. What was more, the babies wouldn't be even loosely bonded to anyone as yet; he'd claim a pair for himself before any other person reached for them.

The man was nervously tossing them port coveralls. "Here, quick, put these on over your gear. Push the pallets up to your ship. Will it unlock as you get there?"

Baris nodded. "I can voice trigger it when we're close. It'll drop the ramp on command."

"Good. Take the pallets and coveralls with you. No time to leave them." He was checking the chrono on his wrist. "Go that way," he pointed. "Behind the shed and around from the other side. It puts you closest to your ship without being seen until you leave cover. Security will scan anytime now. You go the minute I say. You have one hundred fifty seconds to reach the ship before they see you moving. On my mark—" He held his hand across their path. Then, "Go!"

With Cregar in the lead pushing one pallet, Baris right behind him shoving the other, Ideena racing up to pass both men, they made for the ship. In his head Cregar was ticking off the time. Fifty seconds, a hundred. Baris called a hoarse order and the ramp began to lower. One hundred fifty seconds and from behind them a Klaxon howled. Ideena slowed to scoop up a stunner from the weeds. The ramp hit the dust and Ideena was first up, running for the bridge. Baris shouted an order as he and Cregar thrust the pallets up the ramp.

The ramp began to close behind them and the ship shivered into life as engines obeyed the final order. Beside him Cregar heard a clang as someone shot at the closing ramp. It snapped shut obliviously. He grabbed for ties. They'd have to up-ship right now. No time to sort out the beasts. Just hope they could lift before any heavier port security came into play. There certainly appeared to be a lot of activity in the main building. He could see lights coming on all over the place.

Someone was shouting at them with a loudspeaker. Someone else had fired up a laser cutter on a crawler heading toward the ship. He could see the ruby winking as it lit. Baris and Ideena weren't listening. They'd flung themselves into seats on the bridge, the engines were screaming, and even as Cregar threw himself flat the ship howled upward. Baris must be pulling five gravities, he thought dizzily. But at least he could think. They hadn't been shot down yet. He hoped the big cat would survive such a liftoff.

The ship cleaved sky, higher, higher. A vanishing silver splinter until it was gone. Below the port manager was resolving to make some very stringent inquiries. Her security shouldn't have been that slow. Whoever that bunch had been they'd had help from some at Arzor Port. She'd find whoever they were and make them sorry. The port was autonomous, but for an insult like that she'd work with the peacekeepers. Even the patrol. No one raped her port and walked away laughing.

On the High Peaks ranch Logan was drifting into consciousness. He hurt. He crawled bleeding from room to room unable to accept what had happened. Surra was gone, taken. So too were Hing and her babies. What was he going to tell Storm? He heard hoofbeats outside just as he slipped into darkness again.

In the Djimbut clan camp Tani stood shakily. She reeled toward the comcaller and gasped out a message. Then she sat limply waiting for her strength to return a little and her stun-headache to abate. The Thunder-talker joined her. They sat in silence, both outraged, both determined. This insult would be avenged. Neither as yet had realized that the coyotes had gone.

In the basin, Brad Quade finished breakfast and answered a call. He blew out a mouthful of swankee as he heard, dropped the cup, and ran for the door. Moments later his crawler left a plume of dust along the road toward the port. He drove with a reckless disregard for the road or his own safety. Kelson's copter came in overhead and settled on the first suitable spot. Brad's vehicle raced up.

"Talk fast, Kelson. What's going on?"

"You've been raided. I'm on the way to the Djimbut camp. Tani called from there. She says some copter came in during the night, attacked the Nitra. Stunned everyone, stole her coyotes, as much cat's-eye jewelry as they could find, and left again." Brad opened his mouth and was waved to silence.

"That's not all. The clan got four of the raider's men. I want to go there first and see if we can ID any of the bodies. They went on to hit your place at High Peaks. Storm commed in. He got back after line-riding to find Logan hurt bad; Surra and some of the meercats are missing." Brad sat. Then he spoke quietly.

"There's more, isn't there?"

"Yup, we lost the damn raiders too. Somehow they got back into the port and managed to up-ship. Port manager's going crazy. She swears they didn't do that without someone helping them and she's going to bring in the peacekeepers." Kelson eyed the big rancher. "Keep it together, Brad. Logan will be okay. Tani isn't hurt. We'll find out who it was and get the animals back."

"This ties in with those other reports."

"Seems likely. I have one of my men alerting other planet ports. We may pick them up elsewhere. The city security knows too." He grinned wryly. "I gather they aren't any happier about this than the port manager. Their officer here has made an offer to the port manager to bring in a deep probe and operator. Last I heard she was thinking about it. That's how serious she's taking everything."

"Guada's First-ship family too," Brad said absently. "Our families have been friends since then. I'd do the same for her." He lapsed into brooding silence again as the copter hurtled on.

It all fit together somehow. The dead beast masters, the missing beasts. The way in which the raiders had been able to arrive unnoticed and lift off again despite a closed port. They'd had a copter, he remembered. And left four men dead in the clan camp. Those would be places to start. With his teeth in the beginnings of a solution he'd not let go. A small deadly smile quirked his mouth. Nor would his kin.

Storm was a trained fighter, a beast master who'd fought the Xiks across a dozen worlds. Tani, small, slender, untrained, was still in many ways Storm's equal. They'd stood shoulder to shoulder against the enemy before. And Logan, his wild-blooded son who loved the wilderness more than civilization. Logan who'd lost his half-brother's beasts and a fight against the raiders. They were three to take up a war trail indeed. And that they would do. He had only to find the trail head for them. That was his work.

He set his teeth and willed calm. He'd be of no use if he allowed his anger to rule. First let them land at the clan camp and see what they could do to help there. He leaned forward to touch Kelson on the arm.

"The Nitra, they know we're coming?"

"The Thunder-talker has spoken. We are welcome to land and collect the dead. Tani's coming back to High Peaks with us. Jumps High and a couple of his people will lead Tani's mount back to the basin."

"Any word of the paraowl?"

"Not when I left."

Brad fell silent again. If his young daughter-in-law had lost not only her beloved coyote friends but also Mandy she would be utterly devastated. When the copter sank to a landing the girl was the first there. She was leading Djimbut warriors who carried four bodies, one trampled and hoof-slashed almost beyond recognition as human. Brad grunted. That would be the work of Destiny, Tani's filly, three-quarter duo-corn and wholly ferocious to any she deemed a threat.

Tani was everywhere now: guiding the bodies into the copter cargo hold, finger-talking rapidly with Jumps High, then the Djimbut medicine woman. Finally she came to stand looking at Brad.

"Asizi." She used the ancient word of address. "We have none of our own dead. The Nitra will leave vengeance to us unless we ask. Of what lives were taken none were theirs, by the Thunder's will." The Thunder-talker moved up to stand by the girl. She spoke and her interpreter's hands flickered with quick fluency.

"The enemy would have taken the gems which mark my power. But for the quick thinking of my younger sister all would have been lost. Her spirit-friends twice heard the enemy and twice that aided us to be ready. The clan stands with their clan-friend. If there be anything in which we can aid in return, let it be known." Kelson gave the bow over linked spread hands which was the Nitra acknowledgment in all formality of the Thunder-talker's power. Then he lifted them to sign.

"Gratitude. The enemy evil ones were ours. To ours the law which judges. Our clan is greatly angered, we ride in war. Yet if there is need, be sure we shall ask."

She made the small cupped-hand gesture of acceptance and turned away. From where Tani stood, there came a loud cry and the girl was running. Both Brad and Kelson jumped from the machine to follow. They reached her as she halted, half laughing, half crying.

"Mandy. She's all right." From the brush along the camp edge stumped a weary, still almost flightless paraowl. She had flown where she could, walked where she must, and Mandy had not appreciated the walking part of the journey. Tani dropped linked arms to make a bridge and the tired bird clambered up to sit on a padded shoulder. There she rested, drawing her beak gently down Tani's cheek and crooning softly as she sent a series of pictures. Tani examined the indicated wing and sighed before turning to the men.

"I sent her to take you a message, Brad. The copter came in faster and spray-stunned farther out than I expected. The stunner fringe caught Mandy as she flew, and knocked her silly. She landed several miles away without breaking more than some of the flight feathers in one wing. So she couldn't fly more than a few yards at one time. She's been flying and walking back here ever since."

Mandy made a disgusted spitting sound and there was laughter. Kelson had been translating Tani's words into sign-talk as she went. Even Nitra faces broke up in amusement at Mandy's obvious disgust at having to walk.

"She has very good hearing though. The copter came back very low still past her and she heard a few words. Say them for us, Mandy." The ferocious beak opened and an incongruous voice sounded. It was female, the accent was inner-systems and over-cultured.

"...men. Oh, all right... go to this place. But there'd better be something there worth having besides those stupid animals. Your boss won't thank you for more of them dead either..." Mandy stopped and waited for the generous praise she promptly received.

Kelson looked at them. "That might be useful. We can't run a voice scan on an imitation but it's so good to a human ear I'd bet experts at the school can tell us which world the woman comes from. Maybe more. Right now, we'd better head for High Peaks." He waited for Tani to settle Mandy before leading the way back to the copter and ushering them inside. He leaned out to sign to Jumps High.

"What do you want of us?"

"The bow hands of the enemies who do this," was the swift reply. "If that cannot be done, then bring us sure word of their deaths. Bring us a death-trophy we can hang in the medicine tent." Kelson's hands moved in acknowledgment of that. Then he slid the door shut and started the engines. Tani glanced at the paraowl as they lifted. Mandy's feathers could be fixed as soon as they reached the basin ranch and had a night's rest. She hoped Logan would be well. Brad had mentioned only that he'd been hurt.

Logan had been more than merely hurt. Storm, when he came running into the house, had found his brother lying in a spreading pool of blood. His eyes opened as Storm knelt by him and he tried to rise.

"Lie quiet. I'll get this bleeding stopped. Think about what you want me to know." He worked for several minutes before sitting back. "That's well. Wait now." He turned to slide open the door in a cupboard. Behind that was a small chilled area with a palm-lock. From it he took medical items and used them quickly. "Now, talk fast, brother."

Logan looked up. "Raiders. Copter." He spoke between gasps, his strength fading again. "Took Surra, Hing, her babies. Surra bad hurt, still alive. One..." his voice slid into silence before he drew on the last of his strength. "Woman, Storm. Woman shot me." His eyes shut and his body went limp in his brother's arms. Storm checked the medkit frantically. No, all was well. Logan might be long in mending completely. But he'd survive.

He rose, lifting Logan to carry him to a bed. Then he permitted himself to consider the words briefly. It was possible. Arzor had rarely suffered pirate raids. It had little of portable value save for the cat's-eyes, and for those alone major raiding cost more than it could recoup. At a glance he'd seen at least two rooms had been looted of small valuables. They hadn't attempted to open the safe though, as real pirates would have done. And the raiders had also gone out of their way to take beast master animals. That argued they were tied in with the other deaths and abductions.

Yet if they wanted the animals why hadn't they seen by now that it was futile? The beasts died. Why would they continue? He shook his head. Maybe this time the raider boss had been lucky. Surra could die, that was quite likely if she was in their hands and away from Storm too long. The meercats would probably survive. He hated to think of small, affectionate Hing and her new babies in cruel or uncaring hands. She'd never known anything but affection.

There was no time to think any further of that. He reached for the com. Kelson at the other end was almost incoherent with haste. No time to talk. He'd be there with Brad and Tani in two or three hours. Storm should hold on and wait. He did so but it seemed far longer than the time promised before he heard the ranger copter slipping in from overhead. Tani was first out and straight into his arms.