Chameleon by Otto Gramm (new reading .TXT) 📕

– Hell me...! – He exhaled, looking to the side. – Sorry, Cap.

– That’s okay. – Askord finally removed his hands off and took off the appliance. Then he looked at the devastation. – You’re right.

– About what?

He slowly walked around the chair and stood with his back to the guest, beholding what was left of his room.

– I provoked you.

Alex, barely restraining his anger, tried to speak calmly.

– How exactly?

– I want to offer you a small deal. – Kyle turned to the guest. His eyes, dark as space, burned with indigo flame.

Alex involuntarily shrank. His fear, hitherto hidden in the far corners of his soul, the same fear that Kyle’s hawkish gaze had detected, the fear that had long been cultivated and fueled in the sterile walls of the laboratory and that Alex absolutely ignored until now, began to seep into the surface... When he first saw the glare of Askord.

A few minutes later Alex left the captain’s room. He slowly walked along the corridor, staggering and mentally amazing at its length. His head was buzzing, mist was swimming in front of his eyes, and the passage did not end.

Bam!

– Ay! – Alex bumped his forehead against the corner wall. The entrance to the loft was behind. When he returned, he saw that the hole in the wall was ajar. Al in his mind thanked Mitch otherwise he would have had to work hard to find it. The staircase to his surprise it was already clean.

“Weird that I noticed it.”

– And who’s here so fast? – He asked aloud.

Suddenly there came a muffled hum from below. Lowering his head, Alex saw that the mist, which floated before his eyes, now covered the floor. As soon as the droning ceased, the haze also disappeared.

– Hey presto! – Scotsman’s voice woke him up. For some reason, Alex was glad to hear him. As he descended, he saw a familiar silhouette, which, leaning against the doorjamb, held his hand on the wall panel.

– Impressed? – MacNeil asked, smiling.

– Damn I am! I don’t remember Diego teaching me that.

– Ah! M. Lazybones recalls the cleaning even here once a year, after Kyle and all the crew kick hell out him. – He said, slowly rising. – I’m just for a second.

– Sure! Come in! – Alex tried to be hospitable. As he came up first, he faced a locked door. Strange, for he had left it open when leaving. He remembered his and Mitch’s recent struggling and looked uncertainly at Scotsman. The big man stood a little behind and, thrusting his hands in pockets, didn’t even pay attention to the newcomer. “Fine”, Alex brushed away. “I can do this without you.” He leaned against the door with all his weight and pushed it as hard as he could, but it easily slid aside and the hearty host flew into his room yelling his head off, till he tripped over the first box.

– You’re fucking bastard! You could’ve told me you’d greased it! – Shaking off his hair and clothes from the dust, he barked toward the door, from where came Will’s loud guffaw.

– Sorry, I’ve forgotten! – Finally, Scot himself appeared in the doorway, holding onto the wall and clasping his stomach. – Phew! – Panting, he straightened up.

– Mitch was right: you really miss fun here. – Alex grumbled.

– That’s his own tale. Old bum. Though he’s nimble and sharp. You should’ve seen the room he made for himself. However, when you need him you can’t smoke him outa there. And here is work for everyone. So if you’re mope – drop in, I’m always welcome for an extra pair of hands.

– Thanks for inviting, but here I have my own heaps of mess. – Alex said, pacing around the room.

– I agree. But that’s for future. By the way, that’s for you! – Will took out from his wide pocket a metal cylinder with a spray gun and threw it to the newcomer.

– Paint? – He asked, as he caught it.

– No, that’s my invention: the same mix you saw on the stairs. It’ll help you on your cleaning.

– Thanks. – Alex was sincerely grateful.

– Just, know it’s a concentrate. Don’t overdo it.

– Mitch mentioned once that you were a military. You don’t look it.

– Why not? – Holding his hands in his pockets, Will leaned on one of the supports.

– Too domestic. You’d be more suited to the role of family man... or storeman.

– Really? Nevertheless, I fought, and fought a lot...

– So, where do you come from? – Alex interrupted him. – And how did you get here?

– Well... I was born in the spring of 1371 in a small border village on the west coast of Scotland...

– Get out! – Alex, wide-eyed, slowly sat down on the box. – So you’re telling me that you’re more than six hundred years old!

– Um... yes. – Will calmly replied. – I thought you knew that.

– Uh? – The newcomer frowned, remembering. – Aw! Well, yes.

– You look a little absent. Tired, I suppose?

– My head’s buzzing.

– Then you need a good rest. Especially after the serum.

– I need to distract myself. – Alex cringed, as if he felt freeze. – Tell me how you were invited by Ky... captain.

– He prevented me from one very rash act...

– Which one?

– You interrupt me one more time and I’ll leave.

– Sorry.

– I was lucky to live part of my life in peace. I even got married. But soon English started to raid our villages, rob, kill. We gave them rebuff. In one battle at the Yeavering in 1415, we were beat all to pieces by English long archers. I survived, but was wounded. When I got home, I found out that my village was ruined. My wife and two little daughters were killed. These English dogs just broke into my house, and... – He swallowed convulsively and looked away. Alex saw muscles tensed on his neck and jaw. – I still can’t get what kind of person could do such a thing to children.

– I’m really sorry. – Alex murmured softly.

– Kyle appeared right after I buried them. – Will tossed his head, driving away his old grief. – By that time I found out who was guilty and, of course, sent Kyle with his offer to hell. My revenge plan almost succeeded. I removed a few guards at night and penetrated into the castle of that nobleman. But in one corridor I came across one soldier, short and frail. What a duel we had! In two minutes, I was lying on the floor, defeated and disarmed and his claybeg was at my throat. When this warrior took off his helmet, I saw the sweetest face in the world.

– Our pilot? – Alex raised his eyebrows in surprise.

– Yeah, that’s how I met Vivy. – Will smiled. – Then just out of nowhere, Kyle and Shad appeared. Cap said something, I don’t even remember what exactly, then he leaned forward and put his hand on my forehead. I saw a whole story in my mind... about what would happen if I went to the end. After killing that lord, I would be captured and executed and his possessions would have passed on his son, who was an exceptional sadist and adored bloody entertainment. It would create more civil wars and fratricides. But letting the fate do the rule, I would see the justice of the retribution. After a couple of months, this nobleman should fall during a hunt, and in his death, they would’ve accused his son. After that, the possession would pass to his nephew, the abbot, he would give the land to the church and the war would leave that region for some time.

– And you left everything as was?

– Then I realized that our minds are limited. We can’t see the whole picture and therefore we don’t know when we are doing good things and when we are damaging.

– So do you just observe? Or does Kyle somehow know when to intervene and when not?

– We have different tasks... Kyle can do many things, but not foresee the future. Only someone with great intuition and foresight can do it. That’s what we have Shad for.

– Jackanapes of goody Achaemenid times. – Alex remembered aloud. – Where’s he from?

– Once Deani were a powerful race. They made part of the Great Alliance, which was created even before the first human poos. – Will was definitely a great storyteller.

– Kyle mentioned it in Fetv’khanna. What kind of Alliance?

– We have enough of materials, so you can study it yourself. But briefly, imagine that two people opened the way to each other, being at different parts of the Universe. Although there were no portals at that time, some races already began to plough the space, tried to overpass the light speed, searched for new worlds, explored the unknown. But neither the Orlons nor the Tiberians could boast of such technologies. Still somehow, they found each other.

– Did they create a wormhole?

– That’s a long story and I’m not in mood to stick here for hours. So be content with my short essay. Their alliance was flimsy and it wouldn’t have turn into anything bigger if Deani hadn’t join them. Unique people. They could foresee the future and even change it. In the Alliance, they were called the Punishing Hand for they were the ones who imposed the cruelest penalty for the disobedient – they broke all the plans and dreams of the defaulter for several years ahead. That was really a terrible punishment. There were also other guardians of order – Veneds – cold-blooded warriors. They became especially in demand when the Alliance grew bigger. Their visit was always a warning before the strike of the Punishing Hand.

– So Shad’s a dangerous guy!

– He’s not so omnipotent on his own. If we had at least a dozen such light-haired foxes... – Will scratched his nose and continued. – Veneds joined the fifth and before them were Sumy – space nomads. The best spacecraft builders. They were spreading the good news throughout the space expanses about the small Alliance at that time. There were many who wanted to join, but they were millions of light miles away. So then, the portals began to be built.

– And how many are they? – Alex saw the question in the arched brow of Scotsman and added. – Portals.

– Oh! Up the wazoo, mo charaid! All of them are still not found and not included in the database.

– And you are looking for them?

– We try from time to time. Sometimes we find, sometimes we lose...

– Enough already! – Alex snapped angrily. – It’s not my fault that we almost fried our ass.

Will laughed softly, bearing a smooth row of white teeth.

– That was an excellent race. I’m sure Diego is still cleaning up his co-pilot seat.

– My chair was as clean as a fresh bridal bed sheet! – The loud voice of Spaniard broke the atmosphere of their quiet conversation. – Pero tuve que lavar el charco cerca de las sillas de navegación. (But I had to wash off the puddle at the navigation chairs.)

– Bastardo! – Alex responded. – What the...?! Diablo, I’d pull your bloody head off for this!

– Don’t get steamed-up. – He said with a grin, taking a gallant step forward.

– Your jokes are getting annoying.

With a light gait, Spaniard walked into the room and, echoing MacNeil, leaned against the pole.

– That’s nothing! I remember Cap once gave Will a task to learn one ancient language for an important diplomatic assignment. When we arrived on the spot, he stepped forward and began to talk with representatives of the indigenous population; those stared at him in silence and then in our language asked “what do you want?” It turned out that Kyle was just curious to hear Sanskrit with