Plait the Prison
Planet
Issue #9
by Tom Zjaba
Chapter Nine
Old Scores
Caelius watches as the Birdmen enjoy their new weapons. They are like kids at Christmas. As he watches them, he gets an idea. It may be a long shot, but he feels he must try. "Hey birdmen, would you be interested in more of these crossbows?" They stop playing with their new toys and turn to him. "What do you want from us?" He smiles as they come right to the point. "I have a man in Bugtown that I want eliminated." As he says this, their feathers ruffle and the ones on their head stand up. He can tell they are agitated by this. "We never go to Bugtown. Too dangerous." This was expected, but he is not done negotiating. He expected as much. That is one of the reasons he set up shop in Bugtown. Some of their rations are considered a delicacy on this planet, but most people will not venture there to get them. But he has found a very lucrative market for Bugtown rations. "I understand that the place is not safe, but what if I made it worth your while?" The birdmen all look at each other. Some of them shake their head no, while others do nothing. The leader then turns to Caelius and asks "What do you offer?" Knowing that they will not do this without some major bribery, he decides to play his trump card right away. "What if I could give you guns? Real guns. Would you do it then?" The birdman turns to the others and they look back and forth at each other. A few click their beaks. The birdmen have a whole language based on clicks of the beak that they use when they don't want others to know what they are saying. While it is not too complex as they only have a limited number of phrases they use, it changes from one tribe to another. This makes it very hard for anyone to learn as there is no uniformity. After a heated debate of clicks, the leader turns back to Caelius and says "Twenty guns with ammo, plus twenty crossbows with arrows. Half now and half upon completion." Caelius does not want to give them guns as he knows they will eventually use them on his caravans, but he wants to put a stop to Putnar before he gets any bolder. And he wants to reestablish the trade route with Bugtown. He also knows that the birdmen will most likely draw attention to themselves with the guns and the robots will kill them. He just has to hope they don't trace the guns back to him. One thing he knows is the robots do not make a habit of taking prisoners. They are more likely to just go out and kill whoever is causing the problem. He pauses for a minute and acts like he is in deep thought. He already knows his answer, but he wants to make them think he is in deep discussion. He finally breaks the silence and says "It's a deal, but I want his head as proof." The birdmen nod and say "We will be back tomorrow for the weapons."
The Grey Ranger decides to try and expand the range of his abilities. He concentrates harder and tries to look for an eye back near the fortress where he came from. He struggles as his mind wanders across the planet. The further he goes the more the strain. As he nears the fortress, his mind burns. It feels like it is on fire. Sweat pours down his forehead as he struggles to maintain it. He looks around for an eye but is having trouble finding one. He feels like he is going to black out from the strain and finally gives up. He opens his eyes and loses the connection. As he looks around the room, he notices that Tredd has entered. He looks at him and asks "What was that?" The Grey Ranger wipes the sweat from his brow and looks at Tredd. There is pain in his eyes, something that Tredd has never seen before. Tredd then asks another question "Are you alright?" The Grey Ranger takes a deep breath and responds "I am fine." Tredd looks at him odd and says "What caused this? Why are you in pain?" The Grey Ranger rises from his bed and looks around the room. He finds his legs a bit rubbery. "I was trying to control machines near the fortress we came from." Tredd gives him a strange look "That is hundreds of miles from here. Is that possible?" The Grey Ranger uses the wall to balance himself as he regains his bearings. "I want to find the extent of my powers. I am pushing to see how far I can go." he says as he slowly recovers. Tredd worries as the Grey Ranger is his ticket off this planet. And if word got back to Caelius that he betrayed him, his life will be over. There will be a bounty on his head and there are enough people that are willing to collect on it. He made it this long on this planet by keeping a low profile. He did not align himself with any gang and he mostly used others to do the dirty work. For lack of a better term, he is an exploiter. He would make friends with a new inmate, find out what their strengths are and exploit them. He made a comfortable living that way and kept himself alive, no small task on Plait. But now he has found himself in the middle of something that is way bigger than anything he ever wanted to be a part of. While he has a chance at freedom, something every person on this planet wants, he also knows that if this plan fails, it means almost certain death. If the robots don't kill them, there are the bugs who could be without a leader if anything happens to Putnar and attack them. And if they somehow survive both those fates, there is Caelius and his gang. As much as Tredd would like to just run away and find a new fortress town to start over in, he knows that he would not survive in the wilds by himself. There are numerous tribes like the Takken Warriors who roam out side the city limits, looking for easy prey. While the Takken Warriors are just bandits, there are stories of other groups that are known to kill and eat anyone they find. He does not know if any of this is real, but he also does not want to find out. He has seen enough strange stuff on this planet to believe anything is possible.
As Tredd is talking with the Grey Ranger, he sees something out of the corner of his eye. He cannot make out what it is, but it was only there for a brief moment. He turns to look for it, but does not see anything. "I saw something, but then it disappeared." he says to the Grey Ranger, who looks to be back to normal. He shakes his head and rubs his eyes. "Maybe I just imagined it." he says as he tries to convince himself it was nothing. "You saw a Regael. It has been watching us since we came here." the Grey Ranger says. Tredd walks over to the door and looks around. He does not see anything. "Are you sure?" Tredd asks as he does not see anything. "He left the room as soon as you discovered him, but he will be back. They can blend into their surroundings." the Grey Ranger replies as he move away from the wall. Tredd gets a shiver down his spine as he thinks about the Regael that escorted him into the building. Knowing that one of those is watching him is quite unsettling. "Why is it watching us?" he asks the Grey Ranger. "Because we are too valuable to his plans. And because we know too much." Tredd looks over again, trying to see if it has returned. "We really have no choice but to help him, do we?" The Grey Ranger looks at him with his emotionless eyes and says "Our choices now are to either help him or fight all his bugs." Tredd gulps nervously as he says "That doesn't sound like any choice to me."
The Takken Warriors return the next day for their guns. This time, the whole tribe enters the bar. "We have come for our guns." the leader says as they approach Caelius. There is a tension that runs through the bar as twenty plus birdmen fill the bar. There are more of them today than yesterday. They are fearful that they are walking into a trap and wanted to have some extra support. All the birds are armed to the teeth. Every single one has their bow and arrow as well as a dagger. Knowing there is tension in the bar as the men are fearful of having so many birdmen in the bar, Caelius immediately stands up from his table and smiles. "Remember our deal, you go and kill this man for me and I will give you more guns and crossbows." The birdman looks at him and says "We want our half up front." Caelius reaches under the table and pulls out a primitive looking rifle. He hands it to the birdman and says "Does it meet your approval?" The birdman looks over it and marvels at it. While much more primitive than what they used on their planet, he is pleased with it. "It will do fine." Caelius then claps his hand and some men bring in the rest of the guns and crossbows. As the birdmen all line up to get their own weapon, Caelius speaks out. "Don't shoot these in the city. Wait until you get into the badlands." The birdman looks at him and says "We too are familiar with the robots. We do not want to face them." Caelius then says "The man I want dead goes by the name of Putnar. He is a giant of a man, very easy to find. He lives in a big fortress in the middle of town. The birdmen all look at each other and start clicking. After a few seconds, the leader turns to him and says "As long as your guns are of quality, we will bring you his head." With that, the birdmen leave the bar and disappear into the streets. As they head out of town, one of the eyes flies by and watches them. They do not see it, but it is following them as they head into the wastelands.
The warden of Plait is looking over the list of the newest inmates. Everyday, Plait gets a few thousand new inmates. They are scattered across the planet to the various fortresses. But with half the inmates being killed in the first week, the numbers do not swell that much. Even with the immense amount of new prisoners, the warden tries to at least look at the names and faces of each prisoner. When you run the prison where the worst of the worst come, you want to keep an eye for any exceptional prisoners. If you make it a year on the planet, you are doing well. As he looks over the list or new inmates, he is interrupted. "Sir, I have something you should see." He hands some photos to him. The warden looks over the photos. They show the group of Takken Warriors as they leave the town with their rifles. "Is that guns they are carrying?" he asks as he looks at the pictures. "Yes sir, it appears to be primitive firearms. No harm to our robots, but still it is a violation of the rules." He hands the pictures back to him and says "Have the eyes keep a watch on them." The man puts the photos back into an envelope and says "That may be a problem. These humanoids do not live in any of the towns. They live out in what is called the Badlands. Our eyes don't go out there." The warden glares at him and says "Well, make them. They have the capability to travel anywhere on that damn planet." The man gulps as he says "You are correct sir, but the problem is that out there, they are nothing more than targets. The inmates know the robots don't travel to the badlands, so they will destroy any eyes they see out there." The warden grits his teeth "Tell me again why the robots do not go into the badlands." The man realizes that he is upsetting the warden. "Sir, as you know the robots are not made for quick mobility. They are made to destroy pretty much anything on the planet. These inmates know this and they can see the robots coming from a mile away. So they just disappear into the badlands way before the robots come." The warden puts his head into his hands and says "I told them bastards that I needed a satellite with a laser circling the planet. Then I could shoot them from outer space."
Once they are a safe distance outside the city limits, the Takken Warriors decide to try their new weapons. They see some rat hounds in the distance that are scavenging on a dead rooter. The large rooter lays on the ground, partially eaten, with a half dozen rat hounds chewing on various parts of the carcass. The hounds are deep into their scavenging and do not see or hear the birdmen. The leader signals for the group to stop. He wants to test out the gun before they scare away the rat hounds. He takes his gun and aims it at one of the hounds. Like other raptors, the Takken Warriors have excellent vision and can see for great distances. This makes them very hard to sneak up on as they can see far distances with great clarity. He concentrates on the rat hound and aims the gun. He then pulls the trigger, which lets out a very loud bang as the gunpowder ignites and sends the crude bullet flying at the rat hound. The noise startles the hounds, who look up and take off running. All of them run off, save the one who falls to the ground as the bullet hits it square in the head, instantly killing it. The party all cheer as they see how potent the weapons are. There is much rejoicing as they rush to the kill to examine the dead body of the rat hound. The leader picks up the rat hound's head and shows the bullet hole, which is an inch behind the eye. He smiles to the group and says "Not bad, I was aiming at the eye." They all break out laughing as he drops the dead body to the ground. The group then gets to work taking any worthwhile meat off the rooter. While they like to hunt their own food, they are also scavengers and have no problem eating from a carcass. Between cooking the meat and their strong stomachs, they will not be affected by any diseases the rooter may have.
Back at the tavern, Caelius is sitting at the table, eating his dinner. There is part of a roasted rooter in front of him with some cooked vegetables that are a combination of rations and ones gathered outside the city. He has two of his guards with him, who are watching and not enjoying the meal. He always eats first and they can then feast on what is left. Like a wolf, he needs to show his dominance and this is one of the ways that he shows he is the alpha male.
As he eats, one of his men walk up and asks for an audience. The guards immediately get up and wait for Caelius' word. He motions for them to sit back down. Caelius then looks up at the nervous man and says "What is on your mind?" The man who is small and weak, is Caelius' accountant of sorts. He keeps track of how much the various rations are worth and who owes Caelius what and what he owes others. When he heard about Caelius giving away the guns and crossbows, he got worried and wanted to find out why. "Excuse me sir, but I wondered if it was a smart move to give the birdmen half the guns up front? What is keeping them from taking off with them and never returning?" Caelius looks up at him and laughs "You are supposed to be the smart one, figure it out." The man tries to laugh, but he is worried and insulted. "Well, I am a genius. But I cannot figure out why you would do this." Caelius reaches into his pocket and pulls out a bullet. He tosses it to the man, who barely catches it and looks at it. "Do you know what that is?" he asks the nervous man. "Why, it's a bullet." the man says as he still is not getting it. Caelius then stands up and looks at the man. He is much bigger than the man and his size intimidates him. "You see those guns are only good if they have bullets. Once they run out, they will be back for more. That is why I know they will complete the mission or at least attempt it. They need bullets and only I have them." The man steps back as he is feeling threatened. "But sir, you gave them bullets." Caelius laughs as he says "I only gave them enough bullets to realize how much they need them."
The Grey Ranger walks out into the hall and looks around. He knows the Regael is out there somewhere. He carefully scans the drab hallway walls, looking for bumps that would give away its location. He does not see any as he looks very carefully. Once he is done scanning the walls, he looks up at the ceiling and notices an area that looks different. As he stares at it, he looks for any movement. Not seeing any, he decides to turn around and head back into his room. After he steps in, he quickly walks back out and looks back at the ceiling. This time, the ceiling looks the same. He cracks a rare smile as he has found the Regael. It is almost a game for him to try and find the creature that is shadowing him.
In the badlands, the Takken Warriors have a large fire burning. They are roasting the rooter carcass they took from the rat hounds earlier. Some of the men are dancing around the fire as they prepare themselves for upcoming raid. One of the men is dressed as a giant bug, while the others chase him with their bows and arrows. They are having a good time as they prepare for the big raid. While the others have fun, the leader sits off to the side. He is still marveling at his rifle. As he looks at the gun, one of the birdmen comes over to speak with him. "You like the guns?" The leader looks at him and says "Yes, you saw the accuracy when I shot the rat hound. They will give us strength." The other birdman looks at him and says "I agree, they make us stronger. But why go ahead with this raid at Bugtown? We have guns. We have crossbows. Let us take them and run." The leader turns back to his gun and says "We could run. But we will soon run out of bullets and bolts. Our guns and crossbows will become nothing but sticks. We need the bullets to become stronger." The birdman puts his hand on the leader's shoulder and says "Do you not realize that he is playing us. He only gave us the guns to make us dependent on them." The leader looks back at him and responds "I know this. But I also know that if we want to become a force on this planet, we need to play these games. We need more guns and more bullets and unless you can create them, we have to play his game." The birdman stands up and looks down at the leader. "We left the cities and went to the badlands to get away from this. We did not want to be used by others. We wanted our freedom. We wanted to control our own destinies. But now we are just becoming what he tried to escape." The leader stands up and aims his rifle at the birdman. "Freedom? What freedom is that. Destiny? Our destiny has made us nothing but scavengers. We raid caravans for scraps while our numbers deplete. We are no better than the rat hounds. But these guns are the great equalizer. They make us strong and give us the power to go from scavenger to conqueror." The birdman pushes the gun out of his face and responds in an angry voice "You are drunk with power. Do you not know that these are not his best guns. If he gave these to us, he has better ones for his men. When you try to be a conqueror, you will only end up a martyr." He then walks off and grabs his stuff. The others at the fire look at him as he puts down his rifle and picks up his bow and arrows. He grabs his bad of supplies and walks off into the darkness.
The leader watches as the birdman wanders off into the darkness. One of the other birdmen runs over and asks "Where is he headed?" The leader looks at him and says "He is leaving. He does not want to fight for others, only himself." The birdman looks at the leader and asks "But he left his gun." The leader looks at his gun and says "Then give it to one of the other men. We will need every rifle tomorrow."
Plait the Prison Planet 2007-2008 © Tom Zjaba