Excerpt from Chandra's Quest Book 2: Chapter 1 Escape

Chapter 5 Escape

( A Va'lurin pilot named, Mison, betrays Xenos and Dukar. His objective is to take Chandra and collect the bounty)

“The consequences can be devastating for you once they recover, that's if they recover. The Javarins will track you down and kill you my friend,” the stranger added. He gave Mison a worried look and shook his head.

  “Why do this at all? Who or what is on board that is worth the trouble? A diplomat perhaps?” The stranger raised an eyebrow as he glanced toward the ship. Mison smirked.

  “After I am done here, can you find someone to fly the ship to the moon Dyna?” Mison asked.

 “Yes, of course.” The stranger replied.
  “It doesn’t matter what happens, the Javarins will be out cold and I would be on my way to collect my reward.” Mison said. The mysterious man gave him a nod, and shrugged.

  “By the way, where will they be discarded?” Mison asked.

  “The High-End motel. Most travelers and tourist stay there when visiting the town of Xyra, on Dyna.” The stranger said.

  “Good.” Mison responded. Zyna walks toward Mison and spots the shady character as he walks away from him. Mison tucks the sleeper bomb into his pocket along with a gas mask. It is not large and can be hidden in a coat pocket.

 “Why are you conversing with him? His kind cannot be trusted.” Zyna warned. Mison crossed his arms, and grimaced.

 “I have two Javarins that I would like to get rid of but without stirring up trouble. I need to dump them on the moon Dyna. They are demanding I take them to Lyvia,” he said. “Can I count on you for silence?” Mison added.

  “Sure, of course.” Zyna responds. “But it will cost you a little more.” Mison gave him a nod.

   “Fine.” Mison gave Zyna twenty gold credit sticks.

“Be mindful.” Zyna cautioned. Mison nodded. Zyna walked away and disappeared around the bend.

 Mison walks up the ramp and takes out the mask from his pocket before boarding. He held the bomb in his hand, anxious to use it. Inside the ship Xenos and Dukar are engrossed in a conversation. They did not notice when Mison entered.

   Chandra awaits anxiously, wondering what is going to happen next. Mison walks to the back of the ship and kneels beside her. “I know who you are lovely, and in a few seconds, you and I will leave this place head for the city Doesha and there I will sell you to the Ny’Karins.” He chuckled softly.

  “I saw you on the Ny’Karin’s Most Wanted list, you and one of those Javarins are red tagged. I do not care which one of the Javarins it is, they all look alike to me but, Soran will pay a hefty price to get you back. I have family my dear and if I turn you in we will be financially set for life,” he whispered in her ear.

Chandra’s heart raced, she opened her eyes and glared at him. He stood up and looked down at her with a haughty grin on his face. She frowns.

 “Oh come now don’t be like that,” he said.

She looked at his hand, and gasped. “There is a bomb in it and he is ready to dispatch it!” 

His cat like eyes danced, as he gazed upon her face. She knows something is about to happen and it'sgoing to change the path she's on. He gave her a nod and winked. She held the dagger in her hand, tightly.

“I knew you were fooling them but you cannot fool me. I am a Valurin, we can sense when someone is faking.” He grinned and turned on his heels and walked toward the front of the ship. His trench coat dusted the floor as he walked casually toward where Xenos and Dukar are talking. Chandra sat up quickly, walked to the basket and grabbed her backpack. She looked for a handkerchief or something to cover her face.

************

 Mison slipped on the mask as the door slid shut behind him. He dispersed the bomb swiftly, Xenos and Dukar turned around, seconds before the compartment filled with gas. Mison stood a few feet from them. They screeched and hissed. It didn’t take long for Xenos to realize that Mison concocted a vicious plan to take Chandra and collect the bounty for himself.

“If you take her from us, I will hunt you down and kill you!” Xenos shouted as he choked on the smoke. His eyes began to blur, he lost all control of his muscles and collapsed on the floor. The gas engulfed the compartment.

Chandra covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief. She heard the Javarins scream, then there was silence.  She expected the gas to travel back but since Mison closed the door, it only filled the space where the bomb was dispersed.

The gas disappeared quickly but not after it did its damage. Mison opened the door, stepped out and closed it behind him. He took off his mask.

“The gas should be gone by the time the other pilot comes to take this cargo ship to Lyvia,” he said to himself. Mison made his way to the back of the ship, he saw Chandra lying on the cot. She popped her head up and stared.

“Well dear, we are going to be taking a trip soon.” He walked out to talk to the new pilot. 
"Mison, where do you want me to take this ship?' The other pilot asked.
"Take it to Lyvia and from there someone else will take the Javarins to the moon Dyna." Mison scoffed. "They won't be missed."
"And my payment?" the pilot asked.
"It will be in your account by this evening." Mison assured him.
Chandra is worried about Xenos. She let out a sigh. “I hope he is not dead.” She said to herself.

“What does he want?” she thought, referring to Mison.  She held the dagger in her hand, tightly. “I’m going to have to use this dagger. I don’t want to kill him but I stand a better chance of escaping, so I better do it right!” She said to herself. He walked in and pulled her up by the arm. The handkerchief dropped, she maneuvered the dagger swiftly straight at his throat. He jerked back just in the nick of time.

“No, no, you little bitch! I’m not going to let you do me in that easy. Give me that dagger.” He scowled as he lunged in to take the dagger away.  As he  grabbed her arm the second time, she aimed for his stomach and struck him. It was a swift blow but it did not go deep enough. He fell to the floor, holding his abdomen. Blood gushed out of the wound. He tried getting up, she gave him a swift kick to the chin.

“Bitch!” He cried out. The kick opened a gash on his lip, and blood dripped from it. He panted and groaned. She grabbed her belongings and jumped over him as he tried to trip her.

“I don’t know what you did to the Javarins but I am not going with you!” She shouted over her shoulder as she ran out of the ship. She swiftly maneuvered her way behind other ships in the docking bay as she  headed  toward the exit.

She stopped when she heard Mison shout. “Stop the human! She stabbed me!” Mison stumbled out of the ship and landed on the hard floor, groaning. Maintenance workers and personnel circled him. The alarm sounded.

“Damn it!” Chandra said. She noticed that the last ship on the docking bay it is left unattended.

 “CARGO SHIP ,017 READY FOR DEPARTURE.” The voice on the intercom announced.

Chandra gasped. “That means that it has already been inspected! Good.”
 She ran toward the last ship at the dock, staying out of sight. The door is open, she enters. “There doesn’t seem to be anyone in here,” she thought. Chandra heard someone approaching outside.

********************

Are you the pilot of cargo ship 017?” A maintenance crew member asked a scruffy looking human.

“Yes I am,” the man answered. He is wearing a long old dirty leather mid-waist jacket, with black leather pants that are are tucked into his sturdy burgundy colored boots. His hair is loosely pulled back in a ponytail.

“He must be the pilot,” she scoffs. “He has the same hairstyle that Carlos does,” she thought.

“Yes, I am instructed to use this ship by my Keeper to pick up cargo and slaves.”

“Well, the ship is ready for departure, it passed inspection however be on the lookout for an escaped human. She is a female who wounded a Valurin,” the maintenance worker told him. The man sighed and gave him a nod. He threw a bag over his shoulder and walks up the ramp into the ship.  

“I certainly don’t care,” he thought.

 Chandra scurried around trying to find a room she can hide in.

 “This ship has two small rooms at the back and a large storage bunker.” She said to herself. She noticed the crates at the back. “I wonder what they’re full of,” she thought. Chandra walks into one of the rooms and it is empty. The only thing in there is a small closet storage compartment.

 “It seems too small for me to hide in.” She can hear footsteps coming so she sneaks into the next room. Her mouth dropped as she comes across three women, one is human and the other two are Comigaen. They stare at her, curiously.

      “Where can I put this,” she asked the women, showing them her backpack. No answer. Chandra let out an exasperated sigh. She looks around in the room and finds a storage compartment. She tossed her bag in it. The women stare at her and then they look at each other. One of the Comigaen women shrugged.

       “Who are you? Are you a new girl?” Chandra’s mind raced as she thinks up an excuse.

     “Uh…of course I am.” He picked me up just…today.” She lied. One of the Comigaen women walked up to her, circles around her as she inspects Chandra’s clothes. The redheaded woman is wearing a white mini toga dress, off the shoulder; with a gold colored trimming along the edge of the bottom of the dress. Knee high gladiator sandals adorn her feet. The other woman, also a red-head, is wearing a white ankle length dress, see through, and a gold rope wrapped around her small waist.  She looked at Chandra from head to toe. 

      “You don’t seem like one of Starsha’s new girls, nothing that I’d imagine she would pick up. I guess she isn’t very picking now-a-days.” She shrugged, setting her arms akimbo. 
“Perhaps she was bought at the auction and he hasn’t had time to dressed her up yet,” responded the other Comigaen woman in a cutesy voice. 

“Are you two twins?” Chandra asked.  They gave Chandra a nod and smiled in unison. The door suddenly opened and the drunken pilot stepped into the room. Chandra threw her hood over her head, stared at him warily. 

 Well ladies we’ll be heading off soon so brac….” His voice trailed off when his eyes rested on Chandra.

 “I could have sworn that there are only three women,” he paused, as he mulls over the head count. He knows that he had too much to drink and can’t remember if the fourth woman was a gift or if he just picked her up from somewhere.  He scratches his head, perplexed.

  “Well, I guess I must have picked you up but don’t remember, huh.” He stared at Chandra and grimaced.

  “Hmm, oh well. I suppose you look healthy enough. I don’t care who you are but today is your lucky day my dear. I’m taking you to Starsha.” He stepped closer and swooned in for a kiss. The aroma of liquor filtered out of his mouth. Chandra turned away, with a scowl.

“Oh, I see. You think you’re better than me, well Starsha will set you straight.” He smiled. His thick accent combined with the alcohol he previously drank makes his voice sound slurred. Chandra stared at him evenly, not flinching. 

“If I have to, I’ll kill him, and take this ship myself,” thought Chandra. He touched her cheek, Chandra tensed.

   He let out an exasperated sigh. “Oh well, I guess we should go.” He said and walked out. Chandra felt the ship pull out of the docking bay and ascend to the sky. She breathed a sigh of relief. 

   “Sisters, we have a friend.” One of the twins playfully commented. She clapped. “Hooray!” The other twin giggled. Chandra gave them a wry smile. She turns and looks at the human female; notices that she seems reserved and not as welcoming. She sits quietly watching the twins.

She appears unapproachable but that’s not going to stop Chandra from striking up a conversation.

   “I don’t blame her for being wary and a bit uptight. Lucky for her she’s not heading to a brothel—I don’t think so anyways,” thought Chandra as she sat next to her.

  “What is your name?” She asked. 

  “I am Katrine, all three of us were brought from the planet Dryad. I was sold to a Keeper who decided to sell me at an auction and those two ninnies, were sold by their relatives.” She scoffed and shook her head as she watched them dancing around.
  “Why?” Chandra asked, looking at the twins as the music filters through the speakers of the ship. Chandra shakes her head and scoffs.

“Hell, how should I know? Everything works differently out here. I suspect that maybe they were sold because they disappointed their family in some way or another.” Katrine said. “Where are you from?” Katrine asked. Chandra gulped.

  “I’m here because I have to be.” Chandra responded. A perplexed look shadowed Katrine’s face. “It seems as though the pilot doesn’t remember taking you on this ride.” Katrine added, throwing Chandra a suspicious look.

 “He picked me up out there but since he’s too intoxicated, he doesn’t remember.” Chandra gulped and sifted her eyes away from Katrine.

  “I am a terrible liar,” she thought.

 “Well whatever your reasons, good luck. You may very well be going to a worse place then where you came.” Katrine said, pulling her blond hair back into ponytail. Chandra heard steps coming, her hand slowly moves to her back, where her dagger is tucked away in a sheath.

   “Hmm, he must have put the ship on autopilot, cause there’s no way he’d be flying this ship, not in his condition,” thought Chandra. The door slid open.

  “Well, ladies we are on our way.” He smiled and clumsily stumbles. The Comigaen women giggle. Chandra rolled her eyes.

 “You should be a jester.” One of the women said. He burps, and smiles stupidly as he walks out.  Chandra lets out a sigh of relief and placed her hand on her forehead, resting her elbow on her knee.

“I am glad he’s an idiot. I thought for a moment that I would have to kill him.” The two Comigaen women started combing each other’s hair as they sat down on one of the cots in the room. Katrine leaned back against the wall. She doesn’t trust Chandra and she wants no part of what Chandra might be planning. Chandra let out a sigh and shook her head.

  “I wonder where we’re heading.” Chandra said to herself. Katrine heard her.

  “We are heading to Aurora,” she responds.

   “Do you know where in Aurora?” Chandra asked.

  “All I know is that we’re going to some motel or something. I don’t know.” Katrine replied and closed her eyes as she rested her head against the wall.

  “Enjoy the ride.” Chandra decides to keep to herself the rest of the way. Katrine isn’t the chatty type and the other two are lost in their own little world. Chandra ponders. “How will I exit the ship when it docks without being forced to actually go wherever the pilot is taking us?” She is unable to think of a solution so, she concludes that she’ll have to tag along and see where fate takes her.

 

Book 1 is now available in paperback and Ebook
Chandra's Quest Book 1

Youtube Channel

Book 1 trailer video