The King's Knights

Chapter Twenty-Six: Mind of Wheels

Kiyora followed along with what seemed like webs and saw a human.

He was holding a spanner in his hands and seemed to be trying to figure out how to use it. She was not there and could not speak, but she could see and hear. And as she saw and heard, she knew.

Within the Pleasure Cruiser Amon, Arcturus Fate was at work. But then, everyone was always at work at the place. Especially now that all the guests were long gone. Captain Roman had been keeping everyone working around the clock on alert. The crew had been drilling consistently, ready for evacuation, evasion, or combat. Regular scans of the planet below went down around the clock. Transmission systems stood by, communicating with Kadan and Falcov. Some transmissions were going as far away as Taurus, the regional capital.

Ever since Artulkan had been taken captive, the news channels of the Demoration had been in a panic, not in the least, because they weren't supposed to be here.

A month ago, Arcturus had been here on vacation, planning to go down to the surface with his friends and parents. They'd been meant to go to an important or several parties so Dad could set up a contract with Artulkan. His work as a neural expert had warranted Dad's presence, and everything had been in place.

The meeting might have even gotten Arcturus a job.

Then, Arcturus had gotten a sprained ankle when he slipped in the swimming pool. It had taken him out of commission for the day. And by the time he was well, everyone at the party had been arrested.

So much for that idea.

But you had to adapt and overcome; Fate had learned that when camping out. And there is only so long you can exist on vacation before you become incredibly bored. So he'd ended up conversing with a mechanic and transport pilot. His name was Renfield. Now, he was working for him unofficially.

"Spanner," said Renfield.

Arcturus handed the spanner into Renfield's scaly hand. The lizard man took it and began working on some screws to the cover over a wires panel on the machine. Virtually everything you needed in these transports was accessible on the walls. These machines were designed for efficiency, not beauty.

"So uh..." said Renfield. "You ever consider a career as a mechanic, Fate?"

"I don't think it would fit," admitted Fate, wondering how someone as huge as Renfield got this job. He looked like someone who would belong as a bouncer, being nearly seven feet tall with huge biceps. His tail alone could smash one of the panels they'd been screwing on. "My Dad would kill me if I worked in a machine shop. He wants me to be a scientist like him."

"High hopes, huh?" asked Renfield.

"Yeah," said Fate. "So, this is a military-grade transport?" He really shouldn't be assuming things about Renfield. Just because he looked like a terrifying monster didn't mean he was one. However, the razor-sharp teeth did not help.

"Oh yeah," said Renfield. "You don't want to skimp on orbit to surface transports. It's one of the most dangerous jobs a ship can do. You've got to get through the atmosphere without getting burned up.

"Then you've got to land.

"And depending on where you are, that can be trouble. Karsif Corp employs military grade as a standard issue. Artulkan insisted on it when he took up a position as CEO.

"A lot of people thought it was a needless expense.

"Joke was on them, though.

"Hates Corp and others like it skimped on it, and as a result, they constantly crash and malfunction. You can keep using the same ship for decades if you buy high-quality and maintain it. And since Karsif Corp is always expanding, obsolete crafts get transferred.