Bounty Hunter

Chapter 17

"What?" I ask.

"You look basiumen," Kahari says.

"I look what?" I ask perplexed.

"Hot," Kahari explains.

"Oh, well then thank you,"

"It's an improvement from your last outfit. At least now you won't look like you're attending a golfing event," Kai comments.

"What's wrong with golfing?" I ask Kai without waiting for an answer. I stride past Kai and Kahari and push the barn doors open. Gizmo is already inside waiting for us. The boys follow behind me. "Where's the ship?" I question. In answer to my question the loud revving of an engine ensues. Gizmo flies around in a circle and something in the middle of the room begins to shimmer. An incredibly sleek looking space vehicle appears in front of me. In awe I approach the space craft. Its shiny silver surface is smooth enough that my reflection is visible.

"Carazzo," Kahari mutters. "You've done some work on this thing."

"Well, its been a while since you've last seen her," Kai says.

I roll my eyes. Why must people lend pronouns to inanimate objects. Gizmo flies over to the vehicle's door. Gizmo activates the ship and unlocks the door. It swings overhead in the same manner of a sports car door. Kai holds out a hand for Kahari and I in invitation. I climb into the ship and gaze around in wonderment. The ship is impressively spacious. The front of the ship has two seats. The seats are curved elegantly and inlaid with blue leather. A wide dashboard is set before the pilot's seat with a variety of buttons. The pilot's steering wheel is formed by two thin crescents. Behind the pilot and copilot is one long seat with the same blue leather. Judging with my naked eye I would estimate it could seat around three people. Gizmo whirls around and seats himself in the back. I follow him excitedly and shrug off my bag pack. Kai seats himself in the pilot chair and Kahari sits beside him. "Welcome aboard the Kai Majoris," says the female robotic voice.

"Thank you Lena," Kai replies in an animated voice. "Turn on the cloaking mechanism," he orders Lena. I peer outside and watch as the ship's exterior glimmers. "Seatbelts," Kai instructs. Above my shoulders two navy colored straps cross themselves over my chest. "Hold on tight," Kai warns. The engine roars loudly and the red barn doors burst open. The sensation mimics the grating takeoff of an airplane.

The tips of my fingers dig into the soft leather surrounding me. The plain's sudden upheaval causes my stomach to drop. Through the glass window I can see the blue sky zipping past us in one massive blur. In only a matter of seconds we're rocketing past the gaseous clouds and piercing the Earth's atmosphere. My eyes widen as the Earth's environment disappears. The ship has pulled us upward and into the strange universe I never thought I would see beyond a digital image. My pulse increases as the ship straightens horizontally and shoots ahead. Everything seems to be moving so fast yet somehow inside the ship it doesn't seem that way.

Pitch darkness envelops us until pinpricks of white lights begin to shoot past the glass. Billions of light pinpricks fly before my view before ripping away. I look at Kahari who to my surprise seems disinterested in his surroundings. He gazes out the window with his chin casually resting in his palm. His expression is nonchalant as if he were on a mundane flight back on Earth. "This doesn't excite you?" I ask him.

"When you're a bounty hunter you the galaxy is your highway. This to me is what the streets of Earth are to you," Kahari replies.

"Well for me, this is something I never thought I'd be doing," I say. "How come I can't feel the speed's effect?" I ask turning to Kai.

"Special tech. The ship is engineered so that while the ship is traveling at light speed the molecules inside are warped so that we can function regularly," Kai replies. His gloved hands curl around the silver wheel as he observes through the front window.

"Do you really think we can make it to Attero before Blue?" I ask.

"I'm positive. Blue can't travel nearly as fast as this baby. And that's because I stole this tech from the Alliance. And after I stole it I made sure to wipe out any traces of the technology. Yet another reason the Alliance hates me," he says with a proud smile.

I shake my head in amusement at his display of pride. At this point we seem to be in a steady motion. Kai's position is relaxed and he keeps one hand on the wheel. I reach ahead and tap Kai on the shoulder. "I need something to eat," I say. My stomach grumbles loudly to support my statement.

"Kahari denzo attari May arona de bulleta?" Kai tells Kahari. Kahari unbuckles himself and approaches my seat. I mimic his actions and release the seat restraint. Kahari bends over giving me a view of his back. Two gold hilts emerge from his shoulder blades.

"What are those gold things strapped to your back?" I ask.

"They're my aurea gladiis. I use them to fight. They can cut through almost anything," he says. He waves his hand over the floor unveiling a trap door. The door slides open and he grabs onto the edge of the opening before swinging downward. I follow is lead and swing down into the unknown blackness. "Since we're down here we might as well explore the ship," Kahari suggests. He flicks a switch and the room is illuminated by a greenish glow. The glow casts shadows across the angular planes of his face. The light highlights his ethereal appearance. He leads me forward past a white circular bed and ahead to where the food is stored. A rotating series of shelves stocked atop one another is stocked with different wrapped foods. Aside the food is a tiny microwave. Kahari spins the rack with his finger causing it to circle around.

"What's that red stick?" I ask.

"That's a dried fruit stick," he answers.

"I'll have the dried fruit stick and the nuts," I chirp. I reach ahead for both and then grab a bottle of water. Kahari sifts through the assortment of foods before deciding on some crackers with peanut butter. I drift away from Kahari and take a bite of the fruit stick. I examine a door whose handle seems to be absent. A small screen is present in place of the handle. I tap on the screen and a mechanical voice answers. "Unoocupied." The door slides open to reveal a small bathroom with a tiny sink. I leave the room and the door automatically slides closed behind me. I start to head up the stairs but Kahari grabs my shoulder to stop me.

"Kai will freak out if he sees us eating upstairs," Kahari warns me. I roll my eyes and sit myself on one of the tall stools. Kahari leans against the silver stone island. I curiously look over at him as I bite into my food.

"How did you learn to speak English?" I ask.

"The same way Kai did. Through watching television," he replies. His accent strikes me as falling someplace between a mixture of Italian and French.

"You have television on Aurea?"

"Yeah, we tune in to Earth's television series. Wehave our own version of satellites. They're just a lot more advanced. Compared toAurea Earth is still stuck in the ice age," Kahari says teasingly. I laughlightly and some of the worry and anxiety sticking to me oozes away. While weeat our food Kahari pushes a button which activates a projected T.V. screen. Heflips through the channels but none of them appear familiar to me. Some of thepeople on the screen appear like Kai, almost human. But others appear morecolorful with strange skin patterns and tattoos like Kahari. He finally stopsbrowsing and decides to watch the news. The news anchor is an alien womandressed in a sleek silver suit. Around the sleeves of her suit and the edges ofher pants are tiny black flowers intertwined with black netting. Her skin is adeep shade of pink and her hair is slicked back and adorned with a black web offlowers. After further examination I realize her black hair is streaked with adark red. Her big eyes are serious as she speaks into the camera. Kahari's eyesare fully focused on the reporter. His brow is furrowed as he intently listensto her. Unfortunately, I can't understand a word she's saying. However I dorecognize that she seems to be speaking the same language as Kahari.