Harem Assassins : King Sekton's Harem Planet, Book 2: A Space Opera Harem Adventure by Baron Sord (mobi ebook reader .TXT) 📕

“Crewd.”

Boltus stopped in his centank tracks. Literally. The name Baron Crewd von Bludlust was known throughout ITAP’s roster of member planets and beyond. Crewd was universally feared. With quiet respect, Boltus said, “Crewd, did you say?”

“Yes. He wants the Zalaxian throne for himself.”

“I see,” Boltus said with concern. “What do you owe him?”

“Everything.”

“Even your neural backups?”

“Even those,” Hade growled, both angry and embarrassed.

“How could you be so foolish, creation?!” Boltus laughed corrosively. “I didn’t build you this stupid! I know better! And you should too! You don’t promise your backups to anyone, creation! Not anyone! Do you have a virus scrambling your circuits? Is that it? Has malware taken your good sense? How many times do I have to tell you to use virus protection whenever you visit a Rexian whorehouse?”

“IT DOESN’T MATTER WHY!” Hade roared. “I OWE CREWD! HE WANTS THE THRONE OF ZALAXIA! I AGREED TO KILL KING SEKTON DARKSTAR FOR HIM, AND ACQUIRE THE KING’S ROYAL RING! IF I DON’T, CREWD WILL ERASE MY CODE AND ALL BACKUPS! I CAN’T KILL DARKSTAR WITHOUT THE HELP OF YOUR CONVERSION SERVICES, BUILDER! NOBODY CAN!”

It took several seconds for the screeching echoes of Hade’s raging to finish bouncing off the metal walls of the surrounding factory buildings.

In a smooth and soothing voice, Boltus said, “Did you just call me—?” For a few microseconds, Boltus couldn’t speak because his creation had called him builder. It was something Boltus never thought Hade would say. But his creation just had. For the first time. It was the sort of thing every creator hoped to hear one day from his creation but never expected. Pandemonians were not known for their sentimental warmth. Even so, the core temperature of Boltus’ engine block spiked several degrees unexpectedly. Boltus shook it off, cycling up a backup cooling fan until his engine temperature returned to an optimal operational level. He then said in a calm but concerned and rusty voice, “What does Crewd have on you, creation?”

Hade’s magnesium eyes dimmed in shame, “ITAP wants me erased. Crewd is the only thing standing between me and them.”

“ITAP?” Boltus scoffed. “What trouble did you get into with the Intergalactic Trade Alliance of Planets that can’t be settled financially? Tell me how much money those fools need, creation. I will pay their price.”

Hade’s eyes fired and smoked white, “Not even you could pay such a price, builder.”

“What did you do, creation?” Boltus asked gravely, knowing full well that rampant corruption infected many of ITAP’s member planets. Boltus had bought and paid his way out of many an ITAP trade sanction over the centuries. Every sentient being had a price, even the vaunted ITAP magistrates. Then again… the living couldn’t appreciate or understand the needs of the unliving, and his creation Hade was capable of cruelties that would horrify a lesser unliving being than Boltus Maximus.

Hade snarled, “Those fools say my crime is—”

“No.”

“They say I—”

“I don’t want to know,” Boltus waved him off. “It doesn’t matter, creation. I don’t want to know. One man’s crime is another man’s salvation. Tell me what you need converted.”

“I need an upgrade… and other things,” Hade said mysteriously.

“I’ll tell you what you need, creation. You need proper Pandemonian power armor and weaponry instead of the Stygian garbage your men wear now.” Boltus scanned the formation of Hade’s armored pirates standing at attention, counting their number and smirking in disgust at their inferior Stygian rifles and power armor. “I can have them outfitted with superior hardware fresh off my assembly line within the hour.”

“No,” Hade seethed, ignoring the insult because his father was making a generous offer. “I need a personal upgrade.”

“You need an upgrade?” Boltus scoffed. “What could you possibly need that I haven’t built into you already?”

“YES! I NEED AN UPGRADE, BUILDER! YOU DIDN’T THINK OF EVERYTHING! I CAN’T BEAT THE NEWEST DARKSTAR WITHOUT AN UPGRADE! YOU KNOW WHAT HE CAN DO WITH HIS RING!”

“What kind of an upgrade, creation?” If an unliving machine like Boltus Maximus could smile, he did then. The effect was entirely diabolical.

“Technomantic.”

“I know nothing of Technomancy, creation. You know that.”

“Nyfe does. I need you to help him with the installation.”

“That might interfere with your unliving circuitry, creation,” Boltus said with concern. “Mixing the two successfully has never been done. It could be very dangerous.”

“If anyone can do it, builder, you can.”

“Your faith in me is admirable, creation. But…” There was hesitation in Boltus’ clanking voice.

Hade grumbled, “I have seen what this new Sekton Darkstar can do, builder. I must have a decisive advantage to ensure victory. If your upgrade destroys me, you know where to find my backups to rebuild me and try again.”

“True,” Boltus nodded agreeably.

Hade’s eyes fired gratefully. “I also have in mind a few other personal military upgrades I’ve been considering.”

“That I can do, creation,” Boltus chortled clunkingly. “That I can do…”

For the next several hours, Boltus and Hade worked inside the factory, enthusiastically discussing upgrade options for Hade and sketching up weapon designs while drinking pint after pint of refined machine oil. Vok Nyfe was there to offer implementation advice on how to connect and synchronize Technomantic circuits with Unliving circuits. Unlike a weapons upgrade, which would be easy for Boltus to implement, the Technomantic upgrade would be a complex process that offered no guarantee of success.

While they were working furiously, a pirate prison hauler owned by Baron Crewd unfolded in orbit around Pandemon. It sent a smaller prison transport craft down to land on the deck beside Hade’s destroyer in the square landing area of the Conversion Factory.

Boltus, Hade, and Vok Nyfe went out to greet it in the dark night.

“Is this part of your personal upgrade, creation?” Boltus asked as he clanked across the metal deck on his metal tank treads, rolling toward the now-parked transport.

“No. This is to upgrade Crewd’s support army,” Hade said. His hooves tinged as he clopped to a stop beside Boltus. “This is Crewd’s idea. Reinforcements I don’t need.” There was bitterness in Hade’s voice. “Crewd demanded I have