Fracture - Book One of the Glass Galaxy Trilogy

Chapter 6: Allies

10:03 PM

A soft red light hovered over the smoke-filled bar, the reek of concentrated alcohol and something much stronger assailing my nostrils as we entered through the doorway. On our right was the service counter, two dozen bar stools with various occupants of all different species lined up against it. There were a half-dozen barkeepers behind the counter, rushing to and fro as they frantically prepared food and drink for their many customers. I noticed something reflective on the necks of the barkeeps, and I realized that there was some kind of device embedded in their necks. I couldn't see it too well, but it didn't look like the kind of device someone would get willingly, and I looked at Aria to see her noticing the same thing.

Reaper glanced at us, following our gaze to the barkeeps. "They're slaves," she whispered to us, "The device in their necks is a shock implant. If they move too far away from the computer the implant is linked to, then it will shock them until they return. The farther away they get, the stronger the shock all the way until the voltage kills them, and the same happens if they try to forcefully remove the implant."

I glowered at Reaper, "That is fucked up."

She shrugged, "It's a punishment, and it's effective. They shouldn't have done something to earn it, but we aren't here to discuss slavery, we're here to get help. Come on." She continued forwards, deeper into the bowels of the hazy bar. We weaved around a table where a man, some kind of amphibious species if his gills were any indication, was devouring a plate of small, lightly seasoned raw fish. The fishy stench was nauseating as we passed by, and I couldn't help but wish I had a mask like Reaper's.

On the far side of the bar was a raised stage, and a band made up entirely of aliens began to play out a rather slow but upbeat song. It had a peculiar quality to it, a quality that seemed to put thoughts of hunger and thirst into my head, and while I was certainly no acoustic engineer, I had to imagine that the music had been carefully tailored to have that specific effect on those who heard it.

Reaper stopped, holding up one hand to get us to stop behind her. Past her, I saw a trio of scantily clad humans approaching us. One was female, her unnaturally red eyes matching her fiery crimson hair, while the other two were male, their features -notably ordinary in contrast to the woman- a perfect mirror of each other.

Reaper growled something under her breath that I couldn't quite hear over the music, my stomach growling for some food, and I noticed her tense up under her duster. She stood completely still, like a small herbivore in close proximity to a predator, and the hairs on the back of my neck rose.

The two men carefully draped themselves over Reaper and Aria as they reached them, running their large hands over the two's bodies in a rather creepy fashion. Aria tried to politely ask him to stop, but was ignored. The woman was approaching me, and something about the way she was moving triggered a strong defensive reaction in me, all my instinct telling me to grab my carbine. She stared at Reaper even as she pulled herself up close against me, running one hand down the length of my chest while pressing her weight into me, and I tried to lightly push her away. She was unnaturally heavy and didn't budge, glancing up at me with a sharp look of offense, but I could see that behind the look she was calmly and rapidly examining me.

I stood almost a full head above her, yet I felt my muscles mirroring Reaper's, and I held as still as I could manage while she moved over me like a snake coiling around its prey. Her voice rolled out slowly and smoothly, a soft sound against the harsh background noise of the bar, "Hello, Reaper." The greeting had a hint of a question to it, as if she was unsure as to Reaper's name.

Reaper held the woman's gaze the entire time, completely ignoring the man stroking her arm and back, "Hello, Matrona. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Matrona wrapped around behind me, squeezing one of my biceps in a shockingly powerful grip, "Your mentor asked me to guide you to him." She whistled very gently, "You mentioned that you were bringing someone new, but this is a mighty fine specimen you have brought in, my darling. Would it be okay if I sampled him for a bit?"