Kragen's Bounty

The smell of burning plasma filled Kragen's nostrils as the touring ship gently came to rest on the landing dock. The Calpernian logged into the Neural Net through the implant in his eye, rechecking the photo that had been n-mailed to him. The Balurian female was supposedly named Psallene. She was attractive, if you could look past the grey reptilian skin. Glancing at a nearby column wrapped in silver, he chuckled at his own reflection, his dark blue coloring even darker in the harsh lighting, and thought, Not like I have room to talk.

The fore and aft planks lowered. Within moments the first clumps of tourists began disembarking. Each group had at least ten people or more, so the lone trio to exit the ship was easy to spot. Psallene was accompanied by a tall Janisian, whose obsidian skin was marred by a nasty bright white scar that ran from the bridge of his nose to the left side of his neck, and a stumpy Plakian, whose combined wolfen appearance and diminutive stature made him look more like his companion's pet than his partner.

As Scar and Stumpy led her toward one of the exits, Kragen noticed Psallene was wearing walking cuffs, a special version of electro-cuffs that were connected to a waistband rather than to each other. This way the wearer could move in a more natural fashion, belying their captive status. They were a device only another bounty hunter, such as Kragen, would notice. He blended into the crowd and followed the trio out into the streets.

After several twists and turns, they eventually led Kragen to the Traveler District, the section containing hotels for every taste and economic standing. The farther into the district they went, the smattering of people thickened into a full on throng. Kragen had to pick up the pace in order to avoid losing his targets. Eventually, the three of them ducked down an alley that led toward the district's seedier section. The casual observer would never have noticed the subtle way Scar and Stumpy manhandled Psallene to get her to turn. Kragen was impressed. These guys were professionals.

The bounty hunter sped up to get to the alley's entrance. He glanced around the corner for a quick survey, took a deep breath, drew his two stun rays and ran. Not being the kind to shoot someone in the back, he called out, "Hey!" the instant he rounded the corner. Using his forward momentum, he leapt up high onto the right side wall, grabbing onto it with the claws of his feet so that he ended up parallel to the ground.

Scar and Stumpy did exactly what he hoped. At the sound of his cry, they both swung about, quick drawing their weapons, and fired at the empty space Kragen had just vacated. He fired both stun rays at once, hitting the duo simultaneously. Psallene screamed as her captors folded to the ground like discarded marionettes.

Kragen dropped from the wall, landing directly in front of the scared female. She screamed again before he held up a finger in a shushing fashion. "Psallene," he said, hoping familiarity would help calm her. "Psallene. It's alright. Everything's alright." Her scream quickly stopped, but her mouth took forever to close. Her head even gained a slight tilt as she calmly began processing the being speaking to her. He used a device of his own design to disable the walking cuffs and said, "Fr. Sungal sent me. My name is Kragen."

Hearing Kragen say the priest's name, Psallene smiled. "Hello."

"We need to go. Quickly." He nodded toward the fallen. "They're only stunned."

She offered her hand and they ran back out into the Traveler District hustle.

The bright lights and three dimensional moving signs of the Shopping and Dining District created a virtual daylight, rumored to be able to be seen from orbit even through the thickest overcast. Kragen had been too focused on the job's dossier to check on this during his flight. He thought about it now because he had to shade his eyes as they dove into the ocean of bodies that flowed through the district's streets.