Keeper Hunter

I continued on following the blood trail and finding more bodies as I went. None of this was making a lick of sense. I should have questioned Hessie closer. Finally I reached the stairs. My holo map told me this was the route to the control centre the blood trail ended here. I still had to reach it yet. I crept up the stairs slowly my senses on full alert. At the top of the stair was a platform which gave a good view of the brewery floor although most of the machines obscured most of it. Behind the platform was another door. It slid open at my touch to reveal a corridor. A green line led from door and down the corridor. I slipped inside and followed the corridor past doors and wide picture windows so you could see into the rooms. There where plaques beneath the windows I ignored these and ploughed on. The corridor ended in a T-junction going left and right. The green line veered to the left I took the right. Activating a device Inkassi had pressed into my hands at the start of the mission I carried on. According to him it would render me invisible to the sensors but it had a limited use and could be easily hacked. The corridor split again and this time around one corner I could heard voices.

“What are going to do with this lot?” a first voice said. It sounded male and Human.

“We can’t just kill them?” a second voice protested.

I felt my blood freeze.

“Do as you are told!” a third voice said angrily. “The C.E.O. says we’ve got to make it seem like a terrorist attack. It will give us a golden oppitunity to blame this on the Terrans.”

“But these are own people?” the second voice said.

“What better way to promote the ‘cause’ than a few deaths,” the third voice said.

I felt sickened hearing that. Since they were in my way confrontation was going to be inevitable. I took a deep breath and stepped out into the corridor. Three Human males stood in front of a door. They were of varying heights and weights and all were in green Security uniforms holstered pistols on their hips. From the looks of the holsters standard issue nine millimetre cased ammunition pistols. My Seven Double ‘M’ was a lower calibre weapon but it used caseless ammunition which gave it greater stopping power.

One of the men spotted me. “Hey!” he said surprised sounding like the first voice.

“Surrender and drop your weapons!” I ordered them. I didn’t believe they would I deeply regretted what came next.

“Terran scum!” That was voice three.

It was obvious he was reacting to my accent. I saw him reach for his pistol. I was quicker three shots later they were down. I wished there had been another way but it was too late for that. Cautiously I approached my weapon at the ready they might not be dead. Although I was certain about my accuracy I remembered the Orsini I took by surprise. He hadn’t expected me to be alive. He had learned that lesson the fatal way. Only one of them had actually drawn his weapon. I kicked that away and checked the bodies. They were dead that was a certainty I lamented having done this but as the logical part of my mind exclaimed it, it was they or I.

The door the men had stood in front of had one of those old fashioned number keypad. Currently it was showing a red light, which meant the door was locked. If I wanted the door opened I’d have to do this the hard way. I holstered my gun and took out a knife. Pricking my finger and letting a bubble of blood well from the wound. With a grimace at the pain I wiped my blood onto the keypad. The blood absorbed into the keypad as the wound in my finger healed. My nanobots were active a fact I was glad of, the red light turned green. I readied myself and opened the door. Pressed against the back wall behind a barricade of turned over tables and chairs where a number of Humans and T’Arni, dressed in the same blue plastic overalls. Slowly I stepped through the door to show I wasn’t armed. Before I could react an arm reached from the side and rammed me hard against the wall by the door. I felt my breath whoosh out as I face palmed the wall.

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” A female voice demanded. She had firm grip of my wrist her hand over my bracelet.

Roughly I was whirled around to find myself facing a Palkkasir in a green Security uniform. She was almost too thin to a Valkyrie but she had the colouring and the tattoo on her cheek. Her blonde hair was cropped short.

“Is this one of the terrorists?” one of the T’Arni asked.

“I’m not,” I replied. “I’m counting on you to get these people out of here and to safety.

The Palkkasir’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t give me orders Human!”

“If you remove your hand from my wrist you will see I have the authority.”

“Nice try Human,” she countered.

“I’m no Human, I’m vaihdokas.”

I saw the shock in her eyes. The fact I’d called myself vaihdokas had taken the fight out of her. Not many of those with the blood would acknowledge the fact, a lot of Valkyrie regarded it as a derogatory term.

“You can’t be?” she removed her hand and stared at my bangle incredulously.

“You…” she sputtered.

“May look Human and talk like an Imperial but I am of the blood.”

She released her hold and steeped back. “Not possible?”

“Take it up with the Elders if you want?”

“Well is she a terrorist?” a Human asked this time.

“Are you?” the Palkkasir questioned me.

“If you mean that I’m investigating the source of poisoned beer then no. I’m with a team of Confederacy investigators. We are here to arrest those involved.”

I looked at the assembled Humans and T’Arni still behind their barricade. “Leave now the way is clear. But avoid any Human Security Guards otherwise they will kill you.” I jerked my thumb towards the door. “The three out there were planing to do so.”

The Humans and T’Arni looked scared at my statement. I felt sorry for them.

“Why would they do that?” One of the male Humans asked.

I wondered why I kept referring to them as Humans after all I was once one of them. It seemed I was growing distant from my Human heritage. Something I was unconsciously doing it had to stop. “To start a war,” I said bluntly.

“That’s insane,” another commented. “No one wants that.”

“The ATL do.” I refrained from calling them Black Stripes that would just confuse the issue. I was certain that the Black Stripes were here. I should have searched the bodies. I hadn’t the time or the inclination to do that now.

“It can‘t be I’m a member!” a man said eliciting disgusted looks from his companions. “Why would they kill me?”

From the faces of the others they’d do it themselves if pushed.

“You’d be a martyr to the cause. They’ve no care for who you are, just the results. They’d kill millions of innocents to achieve that.”

“Fuck that!” he said. “I’m out of here.” He leapt over the barricade and ran out the door.

“Is that true?” the Palkkasir said.

“I’m sorry to say it is, they tried on Alfheimir and Saros both times they were stopped.”

I could see her consider my words. “That explains a lot.” She placed her hand over her heart. “I am yours to command Silver. The Palkkasir have not exactly been friendly with the Silver Guard.” She grimaced. “Mother Sophronia was trying to change that.”

“I know I spoke to her before she died.”

“You know about that?”

“I was there when she was killed.” I told her about the Prophet. “I owe her my life she diverted him long enough for me to shoot him. Unfortunately he managed to get away. He left enough blood behind to expose him for what he is.”

“I see and did you encounter Thrira on you way here I was expecting her back.”

“She’s dead, I have her token I need to return it to Alfheimir. Hessie lives.”

“No hope for the others then?” she said sounding practical.

“Sorry, although I did ask Hessie to gather their names so they can go home.”

“You have my thanks Silver. Humans wouldn’t have cared.” She shrugged. “And more than a few of our own wouldn’t have either.”

“I’m counting on you to get these people out of here.”

“That I will.”

“Take the weapons from the dead in the corridor they won’t be needing them.”

“I’ve got mine here.” She patted on the pistol butt in her holster.

“You’ll find it won’t work. Thrira found that out the hard way.”

“Mato!” the Palkkasir cursed.

“Take these people and get out of here. Anyone in the same colours as I, are on your side just identify yourself. I’m Gwen Hunter.”

She turned and gestured to the mix of Humans and T’Arni. “We’re getting out of here. Gwen of Clan Hunter has cleared the way.”

I didn’t want to correct her there was no Clan Hunter the closest I was to a Clan was Landottir. “Go with the Mother.”

She nodded and began herding them out of the room. An elderly woman with a lined face and her grey hair in a tight bun stopped beside me.

“You haven’t seen my son Franklin on the way here?”

“Sorry I don’t know if I did?”

“Franklin and few of his friends decided to leave before got looked in here?”

I had to be honest with this woman. “I’m sorry he might be dead. The ATL was stopping anyone getting out.”

“Thank you for what it’s worth. I had expected something had happened to him. He never came back for his mum.”

I watched her go I had a mission to complete. Time to grieve later lives depended on getting those defences down,