Bandits (16 page)

His father explained the pakeet could be used to create worlds or destroy them. The journal went on to explain that it was his and Nickel’s destiny to get the treasure before anyone else could steal it.

When Daniel read further, his father revealed that he was compelled to protect the treasure because it was such a danger to Merwin and the entire galaxy.
What the hell?  No wonder you were killed for this. No wonder we’re being hunted. Hell, why did you even bring it here to Merwin?
He worked hard to stay calm, but he really just wanted to punch something, he instead growled out his anger at his father.

“What does this map lead to?” Faulk asked. He watched Nickel open the vault.

Daniel didn’t want to tell the others of the true power of the pakeet. He didn’t want to endanger them with the know
l
edge of the treasure, knowing their ignorance could be the one weapon that could save their lives. Realizing that the journal contents were extremely important he started to place key elements into me
m
ory.

“It’s going to lead us to a device that has a great power, a treasure my father claimed and decided he didn’t want to share with anyone. It’s a reasonable explanation for his inevitable death, and since he’s been slipping for years it’s not a surprise things ended the way they have,” Daniel said, reading further in the journal.

His father taught them that a photographic memory is what set him apart from all other Zukar. From the time they were babies their father taught them this skill. “Remember the memory game?”  

“Yeah, go. I’m ready,” Nickel answered.

Daniel did several signed hand gestures that Nickel r
e
peated several times. “Code clc, A-Alpha, 458, 9201.”

“Got it.” Nickel turned to go into the vault.

“What are those?” Faulk asked as he leaned on one of the boxes.

Daniel turned a page in the journal, reading intently. “
My father’s code words for coordinates. He
says
in this second journal that there is ship at the same location of where this treasure is held -a dead island where not
h
ing can live.”

Lifting an eyebrow, Faulk watched Nickel rummage around in the safe. “Place sounds great.” Faulk rolled his eyes. “Just like the rest of this deadly planet. So what’s the plan once we get this thing?”  

Daniel scowled out of anger directed at his dead father. “We’re going to take it back to where it came from. I’ll be damned if I want to be responsible for something so powerful on a planet full of Zukar and ruled by a King that wants to control or destroy us. My father signed his death wish when he decided to bring the thing here, and I’m not about to sign ours by keeping it here where it doesn’t belong.”

Faulk shrugged. “If he brought it back here, he must’ve had a good reason. Not to mention, he left clues for you and Nickel to use to find it. Anything in the journal tell you why you must know where it is?”

Daniel closed the journal, tired of reading it and placed it into his back pocket. His father’s begging demands of him to find this treasure and protect it, vibrated through his mind. He leaned back on the wall, bent his leg against it for balance then answered, “Nothing. All he talks about is regrets, going on and on about how he wants to change for his kids and how he wants us to change because of him. How finding this thing is our destiny.”  Daniel picked up a small box that sat beside him and tossed it into the pile on the floor. “Change from what? I can’t figure that out. He changed, but not for the better. His pathetic refusal to do his assignments on missions forced me to take care of his jobs and mine. I’ve been working hard for the past three years to cover both of our asses, and honestly I was starting to hate him because of it.” Daniel punched downward on the wall he leaned against.

Faulk looked at him a moment, sympathetic. “I hear you. My dad had his plan for my life. He sent me away to school and got sucked in with work. He’d come get me, take me on a trip, and talk about my responsibilities. He wasn’t like that before he found Uncle Rayne. He was angry with himself for not being able to save his brother who ran away from home. It was like he was afraid I’d make the mistakes your father did. I love him, but at the same time we don’t agree on most things.”

Nickel kicked a box. “I can’t find the key Dad’s talked about in this note.”

Daniel’s eyebrow went up, and he pulled the smaller journal out of his pocket again for a qu
ick inspection. Closing it shut, he mumbled his irritation
, and placed it back in his pocket. “He doesn’t say an
y
thing about a key in here, and he doesn’t say what the thing looks like. Does the note tell where the key is?”

“Nope, but I think it would be in here. It’s too important for Dad to just leave lying around anywhere,” Nickel replied while moving trinkets and boxes out of the way to look for a key.

Daniel pulled out the half of the map he got from Jade’s trove. “Help him out Faulk. Give me the map Nickel. I’m going to memorize it and put the map back into the safe with this second journal. If someone gets their hands on these, it could mean the death of us all. They won’t expect us to have commi
t
ted the loc
a
tion to memory.” He took the map from Faulk, read it and co
m
mitted it to memory. Then he looked up at a irritated Faulk and a frowning Nickel.

“Here, Nickel. You memorize the map. I’ll find the key,” Daniel said.

He walked over and handed the map to Nickel. Faulk sat down on a nearby box next to Nickel to study the map as well. Daniel went into the vault and methodically looked through boxes, shelves, and various other hidden cavities. Annoyance caused sweat to build on his forehead. He had moved every box, checked every shelf and hidden nook in the enclosed metal space, but found nothing.

Fury filled him, anger at his father, his pursuers and himself. He started to throw boxes, trinkets, anything he could grab. Hitting the wall, he kicked it repeatedly in rage. Faulk held back Nickel to allow Daniel to work out his frustrations, and Daniel didn’t spare them a glance. He rested his forehead on the wall. Punching the wall with a growl, he closed his eyes. Several hits later a hidden drawer on the wall protruded out.

Faulk
pointed
. “Daniel! Look! There is a drawer sticking out of the wall.”  

Daniel snapped out of his grief. Looking up, he saw the secret drawer jutting out from the wall above him. He reached up and couldn’t get into the drawer. Then he grabbed a box and pushed it over to the wall. Climbing up on the box, he looked into the drawer. There, right in front of him, the key glowed. Golden, it was made from the rich treasure found on the island, and Daniel recognized it on sight.

Daniel fingered the key before tucking it in the hidden seam of his vest. “My father must’ve made it himself. It’s made from the gold on this island. There’s not a note attached. But I know this is the key.
We
gotta leave, and now. Let’s get our gear and get back to the water cruiser.”   

“What do we need to take with us besides what we have?” Faulk asked.

Daniel led the way to the elevator. “I have to go get some Racaden. It won’t only protect us from the heated water, but it can do a lot more. I’ll meet you both in the front room.” 

Daniel went to the Racaden cages. With a sigh of aggr
a
vation, he walked to the back of the trove. Absently, he slid a picture on the wall up and waited for the multi-colored wood wall to open. The doors screeched as they slid into the wall and an elev
a
tor opened. He walked in and leaned on the wall while the elev
a
tor moved at high speed several levels beneath the trove. He exited the elevator to walk down the lit hallway. Glass displays of his father’s prized possessions from all of his snatch jobs littered each side of the walls. Thick glass walls held rubies, diamonds, crystals, stuffed beast and creatures. The excited sounds from the Racaden echoed down the hall as Daniel came to a metal door at the end of the hall and turned the knob from right to left. With a click the door opened.

The knob pulled away from his hand and sank within the door before it slid within the wall. The miniature fur covered animals were brown with yellowed stripes on their backs. Their beady blue eyes and pointed, whiskered noses followed him. Excitedly, they jumped up in their cages as though they were happy to see him. He went to the feeding station that automat
i
cally dropped dirt from the island into their cages, and scooped out a handful of warm dirt.

He walked over to the largest Racaden cage and opened the latch. “Hey Ruben! Here take this. It’s nice and warm.” Daniel smiled and kneeled down. Ruben was his favorite. Not to mention, Ruben usually gave up the most repellent. He hugged Ruben close and nuzzled his nose in his sweet hair. Ruben’s body vibrated in pleasure as Daniel gave Ruben one last rub before he dropped the remaining dirt down within the cage for him to eat. A large blue lump of Ruben’s waste sat on top of the bio-degrading grass, and Daniel grabbed the clump before it was consumed by the waste-eating floor of the cage. Daniel smiled with the knowledge that the Racaden did an excellent job of acting like an underwater breat
h
ing mechanism. It also served as a protective layer from the heated waters while blending its host into
their
surroundings while they remained in the water, not to mention it was able to do much more. Daniel was glad his father had discovered it.

Ruben waddled over to him and rubbed his leg, and D
a
niel bent down to pet him on last time. “Good boy. You always come through for me.” Daniel left the cages and squished the repellent in his hands careful not to rub it into his skin.

He walked off the elevator and went to meet the others, who’d been waiting patiently for him while they finished checking their packs for travel. Daniel broke off a piece of the firm blue claylike substance. “Okay. Here’s something that’ll help us get to the top. In the lower level, there is an entrance back to the sea. We need to have the Racaden on us before we leave. Take a piece of it and rub hard it into your hand. That will activate it. Then, it’ll only take a few minutes to spread and coat our bodies. When we get to the water cruiser it will aut
o
matically do what it thinks we need it to.”

Faulk and Nickel grabbed theirs and immediately stuck it on and rubbed it in. Daniel watched as the blue, sticky, clay su
b
stance turned clear, softened and spread over their bodies and clothing as if it was consuming them.

Faulk reached out to scratch his hand. “This stuff is amazing… but it itches. What is if made of?”

“Don’t scratch or you’ll stop the coating!” Daniel yelled before Faulk could start to scratch.

“Thanks for the warning. Can I close these packs without affecting it?” Faulk replied. “Again I ask, what is this made from?”

Nickel laughed. “It’s made from poop!”

Faulk yelled out with a shudder, “Yuck!” He stormed off, shaking and squirming.

Nickel giggled. “Stop being a wimp. It doesn’t smell like your poop!”

“After the Racaden settles in your skin, give it a minute more to set. Here, Jade.” Daniel reached out to grab Jade’s hand and felt an electrical shock when their skin touched.

Jade’s gaze jerked up at him and she snatched the Rac
a
den from his hand and pulled her hand from his grasp. “Thanks. I’ll put this on while I go talk to Faulk.” Jade looked at him nervously before she walked over to Faulk.

Daniel laughed out loud at Jade’s reaction to him. He knew his touch unsettled her. Noting her interaction with Faulk while he put the Racaden on his wrist, he realized Faulk didn’t affect her like he had. She seemed at total ease and in control with Faulk, but not with him
.

Daniel started to rub the Racaden on his pack. “Lead the way to the exit. Everyone travel with a weapon in hand. Cover your knives and guns with the Racaden. I have a feeling that if we don’t get on that water cruiser soon our luck may run out.” 

Everyone put the Racaden on their packs and weapons before they secured them on their backs and followed Nickel out of the room and down the hall. As they came to the end of the hall, Nickel pressed his hand on the numbered panel on his left. He pushed in a combination and the entire wall opened to reveal to a large elevator.

Daniel adjusted his pack. “Punch in four tube exits for all of us. Hey, listen… when your shoot opens, and you hit the water, swim like hell. I’ll take the lead. If someone’s waiting for us, hang back with Nickel.”  With that, he tucked his knife in his belt and adjusted his gun
.

“All set!” Nickel called out.

“Hold on.” Daniel warned.

The floor opened beneath him, and his tube expanded before it sucked him through with great speed. His body hit the water and the others were close behind. Without hesitation, he swam upwards toward where they had left the water cruiser. He glanced back and confirmed that everyone was directly behind him.

They swam for a distance before Daniel realized the cruiser wasn’t where it was supposed to be. He put up a hand for them to stop, and the others came up beside him. With a nod, he signaled for them to prepare for a fight. He decided to swim to the Fire Isle.