The Halo: Chapter Three
#4 of Dark Star
Chapter Three:
The Citadel
At the top of the central spire of the Halo, in a room decorated with lavish furniture and décor, a black eyed panther smiled from his chair behind a dark wood desk among the handful of scantily dressed women sitting nearby on the floor. All of them wore a collar of some kind and avoided looking directly into the eyes of the panther. Of the women there, only one of them wore a spiked collar. The collar belonging to the wolf next to him bore chrome, spiked studs with rounded tips, a collar earned by pleasing the Master himself. She took note of the smile on the panther and bowed her head in a gesture asking for permission to speak. The panther looked at her with a stern face before speaking impersonally.
"Speak."
"I wish to know what has my master so amused."
He looked at the others and waved them away. Without so much as a word, they took a bow and left the room silently without protest. The panther took a breath before turning his gaze to the wolf.
"Tell me, woman, do you know of the arctic fox called Vera?"
The wolf girl thought for a moment before looking at the floor. She knew better than to meet her master's gaze.
"The one who couldn't find a master for four years?"
"The very same." He started to scratch the wolf's ears before continuing. "She's found a master."
The wolf responded quickly with a sneer.
"Took the bitch long enough."
Without so much as a warning, the panther grabbed the hair of the wolf tightly and stood. He forced her to stand before him and took hold of her muzzle with his other hand. Her eyes were wide with fright and a quiet whimpering could be heard as she started to shake. The panther forced her to look into his eyes. The black orbs drilled into her with a glare that could pierce metal and break the most hardened spirits. She was now completely paralyzed by fear. In one fluid motion, he released her completely before slamming the back of his hand against her face. Her head tossed to the side, but she did not fall. Her eyes watered from the pain.
"You will do well to remember your place, slave." He pointed at the ground with one hand as he drew a whip from his coat with another. "On your knees and turn around."
She took a moment to look at the whip in fear before turning around and kneeling. She heard the whip uncoil before it cracked right by her ear. It was only to break her resolve, but it worked. He struck her twice along her bare back then coiled the whip and put it away.
"Be grateful I gave you two instead of ten."
She lowered herself to the ground and turned around to lick the top of the panther's bare foot. Tears stained the fur around her eyes from the pain of the whip.
"Master is most kind."
He bent to grab her hair again and forced her to her knees with a yelp. He glared into her fearful green eyes and smiled.
"Don't you forget that. Now go get cleaned up before I give you the other eight."
She took no time excusing herself to bathe. He waited until she nearly vanished through a door on the side to change his mind.
"Terra." The panther smiled when the wolf froze in place to look back at him. Her eyes met his, but only for a second before she forced her head down quickly. Her eyelids screwed shut hoping the large feline would let her error slip.
"Y... yes, Master?"
"Stop by the control center and tell them to air drop a Cougar stocked with survival gear and a waypoint for the Citadel loaded into the navigation computer outside Vera's cave. Tell them to make sure it's the one with the Lightning engine."
The wolf knelt respectfully before standing to show she had heard his order. Terra stepped back into the room, closing the door to the Master's bathroom behind her. She walked slowly toward the door in the front of the room on the other side of the desk where the panther sat quietly. She hardened her expression with a deep breath before wiping her eyes and walking out the door. The other girls that had been sent out had gone to their respective rooms on the level. Once you were dismissed from the Master's side, you weren't allowed back in unless he called for you. She was one of only three that could enter of her own free will. She knew there was a risk involved every time she entered, but she, like the others, accepted this and was prepared to deal with the consequences of entering while he was in a foul mood.
She walked quickly, boldly through the halls of the building. The other slaves that were there, though few, quickly looked toward the floor as she passed. She entered an elevator at the end of a short hall and pressed a button for the uppermost floor. She shared the elevator with a younger male hawk in a thick red collar. He held his head low as the elevator moved up to the top of the tower. She had her back to both the door and the hawk, watching the flat panel monitor built into the back of the elevator. It displayed the live feed from one of many security drones circling the facility. This one was flying over the dense jungle landscape of the third spoke in the Halo. The droid weaved silently and effortlessly through the thick foliage, keeping pace with a slender male tiger as he pursued his next meal or one of the guests. She couldn't tell which until he pounced a lost looking leopard girl to the ground with bared fangs. The girl was terrified to the point she couldn't scream. Terra grinned at the monitor with satisfaction. Who ever he was, his acting skill was impressive. He looked ready to tear the girl apart and eat her on the spot. The elevator came to a stop and the hawk moved to leave quickly before the wolf could find a reason to scold him, but tripped on the threshold between the elevator and the shaft. He spun quickly and instinctively grabbed the first thing his hand found in an attempt to keep from falling. Terra's eyes widened in shock as she fell after him, the hawk's feathered hand grasped firmly around her tail.
She stood from the ground almost as fast as she fell and yanked the bird to his feet. His expression was one of terror. He knew his punishment was coming, he just didn't know what it would be. He found out soon after her ears fell back and a low growl left the wolf's mouth. She drew back and hit him firmly in the stomach forcing him to double over, then crouched slightly before driving her knee into his beak. The force threw the hawk into the air a good three feet before he fell on the back of his head unconscious. She glared at anyone that mingled in the area too long as the doors of the elevator closed once again. This is why they feared her. It wasn't because of her place as one of Master's chosen. It wasn't because she wore a collar made by the Master's hands just for her. It was because she would mercilessly beat anyone that mistreated her that wasn't the Master himself. He was the only one she feared in the facility. The elevator came to a stop at the top floor letting her out and a pair of mercenaries in. Neither one payed her any attention as they pressed a button and waited for the doors to close. A ferret in the uniform of an engineer looked at her and smirked.
"Terra, nice of you to drop by. What can we help you with, dear?"
"Master wants the Cougar with the Lightning engine loaded up with winter survival gear and delivered to Vera's cave in the fifth spoke. He also wants the navigation system set up to show the Citadel as the destination." She spoke with a firm, but non threatening tone.
The man nodded and looked at a wolf wearing a headset.
"Did you get that, Jack?"
The wolf gave a thumbs up as he went to work making sure everything got where it needed to be. The ferret turned back to Terra and motioned for her to have a seat. She sat near a water dispenser and filled a paper cup with the filtered water before looking back at the ferret. He had a seat at his console and returned the slim silver headset to his left ear. He left the microphone pointing into the air so it wouldn't pick up his voice.
"I hear you knocked another slave out on your way here. Did he do something to deserve that, or did you just need a punching bag?" The grin on his face made the wolf smile for a second before fading back to the blank look from before.
"He tried to use my tail as a hold to keep from falling when he tripped leaving the elevator. He's lucky I knocked him out so quickly." She took a sip of the water from the cup as the man laughed.
"Just try not to kill another one, alright? I don't think the commander would go as easy on you a second time."
Terra remembered that well. She had been tortured for a few days as punishment for killing a white manx that insulted her one time too many. This act also earned her a place among his favored slaves in an odd twist of luck. Since then, the other slaves and even a few of the mercenaries running the facility give her fearful respect. The ferret in front of her wasn't one of them, however. Martin had always been one of the people she could go to when she needed the company. Had the Master not picked her for his own, this witty yet intelligent man would have been her pick for master.
"Yeah, I know." Terra took a drink of water from the cup and gave the man a mischievous grin. "You know she deserved it."
He looked over at her with an understanding nod.
"After reading that report, I can't say I blame you. I'm surprised you didn't do something about it sooner." He flipped the microphone down and turned to look at his console. This was why he was her second choice. He saw things from her perspective and understood things differently than the Master. The panther wasn't unjust, but there were times when he came across as a little harsh. It wasn't up to her, however.
"This is control, go ahead." He hit a few keys on the console before speaking again. "Lets see... parking for a mid light shuttle craft... pad seventy nine on G deck is open for the next three days. Will that work?" He frowned and went to work on the console again. "Let me clarify, one week right?" He waited a brief moment for whoever was on the other end to answer. Terra took another sip of water as the ferret sat back.
"I've got a few pads available, but they're on K deck..." He hit a few keys on the pad with a nod. "That'll work? Alright. The closest pad is on the east end. It'll be pad ninety next to the cruiser Shadow's Lament. Don't worry about anything happening to your shuttle, sir. Nothing's going to want to go near that cruiser. Your fee will be taken by the young lady at the reception desk. Enjoy your stay!"
The wolf from earlier turned around to face Terra. He was another one of the people that didn't really feel threatened by her. It showed in the blank expression he wore.
"That Cougar should be there in about ten minutes."
Terra stood, finished the last of the water, and crumpled the cup before dropping it into a recycling bin.
"I'll go tell Master. Don't drive everyone crazy, Marty."
The ferret gave her a lazy salute as she entered the elevator.
"Can't promise anything, you know that."
She smiled until the door closed. From that point, her face took on the hardened, threatening persona the other slaves feared. Though she would show her kinder side to anyone that earned it, few ever have... and that is exactly how she liked it.