Colton Cyness and the Gunslingers (Children of the Empire Book 1) Read online

  "Thou most foul of beasts!" shouted Rex, playing the part of the loyal avenging First Deputy. He raised his rifle. "We most loyal Deputies bring thee to justice!"

  The four deputies opened fire at Colt. He staggered back and fell. The audience of Merits stomped their feet and cheered. The walls of the dining cabin shook from the enthusiasm of the students. It took the audience a full minute to calm down enough for the play to continue.

  "Oh, our most loved Gunslinger," said Rex. "May the ancestors carry thee away to thy promised rest. Thou hast served justice these years faithfully. We, thy brothers, shall continue to bring justice in thy name until the end of our time when again we shall meet in the Land of the Ancestors."

  Four stagehands dressed in black tights from head to toe ran out on stage, lifted Duke up, and carried him off to the Ancestors. There was much laughter from the audience seeing Brock, Garret, Sam, and Houston in tights.

  Ella stood and faced the audience. "I bear my love a son," cried Ella.

  Cora, the Angel, pranced onto the stage wearing a flowing gown and carrying an infant doll, which she handed to Ella. Ella took the doll, held it in her arms, and waited for Cora to leave the stage. Cora took an extra two laps of prancing around the stage to make up for not getting a bigger part in the play and brought more laughter from the audience.

  "I shall raise thy son, my love, in the way of the Gunslinger," swore Ella. "He shall do thee great honor, my Gunslinger Hero."

  Another stagehand ran out with the gun belt Duke had worn and laid it on top of the infant doll. Ella lifted the doll and gun belt into the air.

  "Hero Gunslinger!" shouted Ella.

  The audience erupted with clapping and cheering.

  The Marshal leaned over to Fatal. "I remember when Wrath played the part of the Outlaw," said the Marshal, still clapping. The play, Hero Gunslinger, was performed every year by the students. "I thought the Merits would tear down the cabin when he shot the Hero," said Fatal.

  The students were taking their bows to the standing ovation of the audience. The bows didn't get much time. The cook was already directing the stagehands to move the stage and props off to the side of the cabin so he could set up for dinner.

  "Your son put on a great performance," said the Marshal.

  "Yes, he did," Fatal replied proudly.

  "Has he spoken to you yet?"

  "Not yet, but his and Colt's team are scheduled for the tunnel class in a few days. He will have to say something.

  "Give him time," said the Marshal.

  "He's stubborn." Fatal waved at his son, but Duke turned away without acknowledging his father. Fatal’s eyes blazed with anger for all the years Duke’s grandfather had kept the boy from being allowed to see him. Duke blamed his father for the separation.

  The students started lining up, waiting for the cook to get the food serving tables pushed back into place. The new team, Gunslinger Team Rebecca, had gotten out of the hospital earlier that day and was able to enjoy the play. The new girls got up to join the food line, and a moment later there was a commotion.

  "Hey, what are you doing?" complained the last Merit in line.

  Selina, Rebecca's First Merit, had shoved the boy against the wall and walked past him, pulling Rebecca behind her. Rebecca was trying to get Selina to stop. Selina pushed the next boy out of line and continued her advance through the chow line. The next boy in line faced Selina and stood his ground.

  "You can't cut in line like that," said Cole, his tail lowered to a defensive position.

  Selina crouched, bared her fangs, and roared at the Daemi. Cole jumped back against the wall.

  "What the heck?" cried Cole. "She has longer fangs than I have!"

  "I thought she was from Anden Colony," said Gideon, standing next to Cole.

  Selina roared again and continued moving forward in the line, pulling the embarrassed Rebecca with her. The Marshal started to get up, but Fatal made a motion for him to wait.

  "I've got this," said Fatal.

  "Don't hurt her," said the Marshal, raising a finger in warning.

  Fatal walked over and stood in front of Selina. The girl paused for a moment, unsure about this new creature, then bared her fangs again and roared. Fatal's tail whipped to the side, and he slammed one of his massive boots on the ground. His eyes burned red, and he bared his own fangs, and then roared back at the girl. Selina flinched and stepped back while the nearest students dived under the tables to get away from the roaring Daemi.

  Fatal growled at the girl and pointed at the end of the line. "This is my line," said Fatal. "I am strong and provide for all. You wait your turn like the others."

  Selina dropped her head and stepped forward to the angry Daemi, pressing her forehead against him, then turned around and went back to the end of the line, dragging Rebecca with her.

  "Austin, what was that all about?" asked Wes

  "I don't know, still working it out," said Austin. "Give me a moment."

  Garth was staring at Selina.

  "Hey Garth, what are you looking at?" asked Wes, nudging his friend.

  "She's so beautiful," whispered Garth.

  "You got to be kidding?” asked Wes, grinning.

  Austin shook his head at Garth. "I'll be right back. I can usually overhear the Marshal talking when I sit at Owen’s table."

  "Garth, she'll eat you up and spit you out," said Colt.

  "You just don't understand her," replied Garth.

  "And you do?" asked Wes. "You haven't even met her."

  "She's half your size, and has fangs," said Colt.

  "Beautiful fangs," replied Garth, dreamily.

  Wes was almost on the floor laughing. "This will be fun," said Wes, between gulps of breath.

  The boys were almost done with their meal when Austin returned from Owen's table.

  "So, what's up?" asked Wes.

  "She's from Anden, not Anden Colony," explained Austin.

  "Huh?" asked Colt, confused.

  "She's a native Andian, from the mountains," said Austin.

  "I thought they were a protected species," said Wes, "too primitive to interact with the other worlds."

  "Not anymore," explained Austin. "The Kesune anthropologists cleared them. I guess they learn fast, and the Anden Colonists were helping them."

  "What do you know about them?" asked Colt.

  "Their culture is similar to the Daemi," replied Austin. "Dominance through strength and all that. She was confused about her place here, and when Fatal showed he was the dominant leader, she understood she was equal to the other students, and she's okay now."

  "She looks dangerous to me," said Wes.

  "There's one other thing," added Austin. "She's the very first native Andian to go off-world."

  "So?” said Wes.

  "That means the Kesune aren't just going to forget about her. I bet they will want to check on her."

  "I get it," said Colt. "This is a setup. They released her so they could have an excuse to come in here and spy on us."

  "That's what the Marshal said too. She is being used to allow the Kesune a way into our camp, and she probably doesn't know she is being used. But that also means we need to be ready to hide Toran and that Carinian girl," explained Austin. "Carina is in a state of rebellion against the Imperial Throne. We don't know what they would do to him."

  "Where is Toran?" asked Colt. "I haven't seen him all evening."

  "I saw him leave with Ella after the play," said Garth.

  "Oh blast it, I'll bet Cora expected me to sneak out with her too, I better go," said Colt, getting up from the table.

  "That explains why Cora has been staring at you like she wants to shoot you," said Austin.

  The boys agreed to meet back at the cabin later and went their separate ways. Garth hung back and waited until the others were gone and sat back down to wait. Team Rebecca finished their meal and got up to leave.

  Garth got up and quietly followed behind them. The snow was falling lightly, and the m
oon was bright. It was a beautiful winter night in the mountains. Garth followed the girls but lost them shortly after they left the open area of the camp and entered the woods on a path to their cabin. He walked along the path, looking and searching, but couldn't see them anywhere.

  "Why are you following us?" asked a girl’s voice.

  Garth spun around. It was Gunslinger Rebecca, and she had her hand on her gun. Her eyes weren't the dead eyes Colt had when he got angry but instead sparkled with annoyed curiosity.

  "I... Uh..," Garth stuttered and managed to choke out the word, "Selina."

  Selina stepped from behind a tree and walked out to stand next to her Gunslinger, her eyes cold and dark, the same as Colt's would get before a fight. Garth didn't know what to say and stared at the ground for a moment. A brilliant idea occurred to him, at least until later when he was at his cabin and thought through just how dumb he must have looked.

  A large fallen log was lying on the side of the path with snow piled up on top of it. Garth slipped his paw-like hands under the log and lifted it up over his head, carried it across the path, and threw it several feet into the woods.

  Rebecca put her hands over her eyes and shook her head. "I'm sure girls are very impressed with that where you come from, but I assure you we are not."

  Selina stepped up to Garth, her eyes no longer cold. She smiled at Garth and took his hand.

  "Or maybe we are," muttered Rebecca.

  "You... walk... yes... protect... strong...," said Selina.

  "Selina, we don't need him to protect us," said Rebecca. "We can do just fine on our own."

  Selina looked back at her Gunslinger but kept her hand in Garth's hand. "Yes... leader... need... ally...," said Selina. "Metal men... come try hurt... yes... need then... I need... you need... they think Selina not know... Selina know... they use Selina... try hurt Selina new tribe..."

  "How do we know we can trust him?" asked Rebecca.

  "My people not like you... not go here... go there... try that one... not like... try another...," said Selina. "We know... first meet... this Selina man... yes." Selina turned to Garth and looked into the giant boy's eyes. Selina could see he would be a giant of a man with great strength. "Does Selina man know?" asked Selina.

  "Yes," muttered Garth.

  "Why you know?" asked Selina, smiling gently, her fangs gleaming in the moonlight.

  "I... Um...” Garth stuttered. "I just do, I... I... Just do. I don't know how, you are the most beautiful girl I have ever met, and the strongest."

  "Okay... shh... shh...," said Selina, patting Garth on the chest. "You hurt you man brain... shh... Selina believes you."

  Rebecca, followed by her other three Merits, walked past Garth and Selina and waved her hand.

  "Oh very well," said Rebecca. "Bring that giant of yours, it’s cold out here.

  Thirty minutes later, after walking the girls to their cabin, Garth nearly danced back to his own cabin. The others were already back and sitting in front of the fireplace. Garth stopped in front of the fire where Colt was warming his hands.

  "I think that I just made a promise in your name," said Garth.

  "Selina?" asked Colt.

  "Yes," said Garth.

  Colt nodded. "We need to make allies."

  Garth sat down on the hearth and pulled his boots off.

  "How serious are you and Selina?" asked Austin.

  "I think we just got married," said Garth.

  "Oh I just knew this was going to be fun," said Wes, flipping around, and laying on the floor with his feet up on the couch.

  "Nothing might happen, or everything might happen," said Austin. "We just need to make sure we have friends we can count on."

  Colt’s eyes felt heavy. It had been a long day getting ready for the play, and he was tired

  "We need to be cautious of anyone outside this room," said Toran.

  "Why?" asked Colt.

  "We can only trust each other," said Garth. "Toran is worried Colt, and I will put the girls first."

  "Would you?" asked Toran.

  "I'll pretend you didn't ask that, brother," said Garth.

  "Can we never love anyone?" asked Colt.

  "We can," said Garth, "but the five of us come first. If we ever forget, we will die. The play we saw tonight wasn't just a play, it was a warning. The Hero Gunslinger let a girl become more important than his team, and he died."

  "Well, this conversation turned dark quick," said Wes, unsure Garth understood the point of the play. "Should we take a blood oath or something?"

  "No," said Toran. "I just wanted to point out we need to be careful who we trust."

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  The Tunnel

  The boys clomped through the fresh snow that had fallen during the night. Wisps of snow twirled in the wind across the powdery white blanket that covered the ground, with only an occasional clump of dead grass breaking the surface. Colt looked up at the sky. It was dark and threatening to snow again.

  "What do you think tunnel training is?" asked Toran.

  "No idea," replied Colt.

  "How deep underground do you think the tunnels are?"

  Colt glanced at Toran. “I’m not sure.”

  “Do you think we’ll be down there for long?”

  "You're not scared of going underground, are you?" asked Wes.

  "Not really," said Toran. "It just seems a little unnatural."

  "Oh come on, admit it," taunted Wes. "Colt will admit what he's afraid of, won't you Colt?"

  "It's our team's turn to send someone for kitchen duty," said Colt. "I haven't decided who goes yet."

  Wes squinted his eyes and made a face but kept quiet. He didn't feel like scrubbing pans. It was Austin's turn, but better to not tempt fate.

  “Is that Brock’s team?” asked Colt.

  Brock and his team emerged from the woods, walking somewhat erratically. They were haggard, and their clothes and faces were smudged with dirt.

  "What are you guys doing out here?" asked Colt.

  "We’re supposed to be out here, what are you doing?" asked Brock, his eyes not completely focused.

  "The tunnel training," said Colt.

  "What are you playing at now?" demanded Brock. "There's no teachers out here this week. We’re going home. It’s hot out here. Why are you following us?"

  "What am I playing at... what are you playing at?" Colt's eyes turned dark. Brock was getting on his nerves. "We're scheduled for the tunnel class this week."

  "You're scheduled for next week," said Brock. "You can't even read a schedule. Come on guys, we don't have time for these losers."

  Brock and his team stomped past in the snow and left Colt standing there wondering what was wrong with Brock.

  "What's their problem?" asked Wes.

  Toran expected Colt to be angry, but the darkness in his eyes had faded, and he was just staring at the path ahead.

  "Chief?" asked Toran.

  Colt turned around and looked at his team carefully.

  "Austin," said Colt. "What did you notice about Brock's team?"

  "Their clothes were dirty, and they acted like they didn't know what today's date was," said Austin.

  "Do you think they were lying?"

  "I've never heard Brock lie, he hates you, but he doesn't lie."

  Colt stepped up to Austin until he was only a foot away. Colt had a strange look in his eyes that made Austin uncomfortable.

  "I’ve had a weird feeling about this training since Deputy Fatal showed up. Do you have that notebook of yours?" whispered Colt.

  "Yes," said Austin.

  "Write down everything we do, and don't let the teacher see you writing in your notebook."

  "You got it, Chief," said Austin, checking the notebook he always carried in his pocket to record observations.

  Colt continued along the path, the chill wind blowing against his face. It was so hot. He unbuttoned his duster and pulled the hood back. The snow was deeper here, and he had to lift his feet t
o push through the warm desert sun. What was the Marshal thinking sending him out into the blazing heat like this? It would be better if he just went home.

  “Colt… Colt!” shouted Toran, pulling at Colt’s arm urgently. “What are you doing?”

  Colt shook his head. He was standing on the frozen river, another step and he would have walked out onto the thin ice in the center. He carefully stepped back toward the bank, the ice creaking under his weight.

  “I don’t know,” said Colt, once they were back on the bank of the river. “I must have been daydreaming. Where’s the others?”

  “Wes and Austin walked off into the woods, and Garth went after them,” said Toran.

  The boys met back up at the bridge. Wes and Austin looked confused and stood next to Garth.

  “What just happened?” asked Colt.

  “You three wandered off the path and headed in different directions,” replied Toran. “Garth and I shouted for you to come back, and then you started running. I caught you just as you got to the river.”

  “I stopped these two as they were trying to climb a tree,” said Garth.

  “Why would we do that, any suggestions?” asked Colt.

  “Chemical warfare?” asked Austin. “We don’t know what tunnel training is, maybe that’s what happened.”

  “Austin, do you have the directions to the tunnels written down?” asked Colt.

  Austin pulled his notebook out and flipped it open. “Go over the bridge, follow the path past the old Daemi cabin and into the forest. The tunnels will be on a hill to the left side of the path.”

  “Let’s try this again, stay alert,” said Colt.

  Colt led the team along the path, carefully watching the ground to make sure he was staying on the path. The forest was quiet, with only the sound of the wind in the trees to give lonely company. He shouldn’t be out here alone. It was dangerous to be alone. The forest blazed with flames that threatened to consume him…

  “Umph!… hey… what are you doing?” asked Colt, looking up at Toran.

  “Sorry, you took off running again,” said Toran, rolling off Colt. “I had to tackle you.”