Page 20 of A Monster’s Future

The Earth-style buffet had not been ready for the sheer amount of food Kadrixan warriors could put away. Igor and Aak did their share too. My only complaint was that many of the dishes were too high in carbohydrates, though there were real meat dishes as well, which made it better than Nova Vita already.

I was certain the dishes were simply local interpretations of Earth food, since we were still far enough from the humans’ planet of origin to make bringing in the ingredients a logistical nightmare. They were acceptable, but I enjoyed the food we had back on Vokira more.

I leaned back in my chair, watching as the others finished their meals. Julie sat across from me, pointedly ignoring my existence. The mate bond hummed under my skin, a constant, irritating reminder of how much she was fighting this now and why it was my fault to begin with.

“Come with us to the shopping concourse,” I said to Trsak. “Julie and I are going with Annabel and Igor.”

Julie frowned, probably because she hadn’t realized I’d known of the plan, but Annabel perked up.

“We managed to dig up some memories from Igor’s past,” she said. “Tables and tables covered in old tech. I thought we might find something useful.”

Chris and Sergio had traded several handfuls of gems from our mountains as well as some nuggets of gold from our rivers, and the result had yielded plenty of credits to go around. We’d all received cards with the credits distributed.

I found it odd that humans used gold for adornment when it was so malleable and did not keep its shape unless combined with other metals anyway. Their obsession with diamonds, which were very common throughout the universe, also confused me. They did make great surgical tools, though, and it was what Kadrixans used them for.

We took the transport, dropping off a few members who wanted to check out the casino. We had establishments like those back on Kadri, and they were the devourers of souls and lives. Julie waved as Chris and Sergio drove away to check in the transport; they promised to find us in about one galactic hour.

The shopping concourse we decided to visit was a sprawling mess of old and new. Modern structures of sleek metal stood beside weathered stone buildings that looked like they’d been lifted from their planet-side home and plopped into a space station.

Holographic signs flickered overhead, flashing in multiple languages. There were vendors with small carts hawking their wares while crowds of humans wove between them. There were other aliens too, including a tall, silver-skinned species, but they were all with their human counterparts. This was a human space station after all.

Igor, who had been silent throughout the entire ride here, pointed to a massive tent looming at the far end, its fabric stretched taut over a frame of scavenged metal. “That one. The big tent. I remember it.”

I followed his gaze to the massive pavilion at the edge of the shopping concourse. Guards stood at the entrance, their eyes widening as our group approached. Their gaze didn’t stray far from Trsak and me. One of them swallowed hard, his hand twitching toward the sidearm at his belt.

They stopped us at the door.

“No weapons allowed inside the market,” one of them said, pointing to a sign at the side.

Despite speaking galactic English, he didn’t sound anything like the humans I was used to, having a distinctly different accent.

We already knew that, since we’d thoroughly reviewed the station’s rules while still onboard. I hadn’t brought my blaster. My claws and body were enough anyway. I didn’t need a separate weapon. I was the weapon.

I spread my hands. “I’m unarmed.” My device, which was strapped to my belt, translated to galactic English.

He didn’t look convinced, but his partner’s attention was on Igor.

“An Exotech super soldier? Who’s its handler?” He automatically turned to Annabel since she was standing just in front of Igor. “Super soldiers must have their control codes submitted before entry.”

To their surprise, it was Igor who responded. “I am not a super soldier. And I do not belong to Exotech.”

They looked surprised that Igor even spoke to them. Exotech super soldiers were not known to speak at all.

“We still need a code.”

“He doesn’t have one,” Annabel said, “because he isn’t an Exotech super soldier.”

“Then what the hell is he? And who owns him?”

“I am Annabel’s.” Igor’s voice was low and even. “I do not have a control code. The only one who controls me is Annabel.”

The guards exchanged a look. Then one of them smirked. “Oh. So it’s like that. I didn’t know they were selling them for personal use. I didn’t know the equipment still worked.”

“Maybe this one’s defective.” The guard leered at Annabel, and Igor bristled. “Whatever. Everyone’s got their kinks. Go on in. But we’ll be watching you. Don’t start any trouble.”

They thought Annabel had acquired Igor for sexual reasons. Annabel didn’t correct them.

They waved us in, and the moment the door closed and they were out of earshot, Julie spoke. “I can’t believe they are implying you use Igor for sex.”