Produced by Al Haines
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THAKUR-NA
A Terran Empire story
by Ann Wilson
Copyright (C) 1992 by Ann Wilson
Sandeman, 2624 CE
It was midafternoon before Dana's hunger overcame her excitement atbeing on Sandeman, hiking with her chosen lord--her thakur, in theSandeman term she preferred--and trying to track a balik. She hadn'tgotten within two hundred meters of the wolflike predator, and hadfinally realized she wasn't going to, so the two found a small clearingwith bare rocks which made decent seating. Jason dug hot-cans of trailfood out of his hiking pack, Dana did the same with cold-cans offortified milk, and they sat eating and drinking in silence. They wereputting the empty cans back in their packs when Dana began lookingaround, frowning.
"What is it?" Jason asked.
"I thought I heard something . . . brushing against branches, snowfalling . . . but no other predators would invade a balik's territory,and it's probably kilometers away by now."
"Other tourists, maybe. Clan Torrance is supposed to have a huntingparty in the area, but they aren't due till tomorrow noon."
Dana made a face. "I was hoping we wouldn't see anyone else till wegot to the pickup point."
"So was I--but not even I can have everything my own way all thetime."
"No," Dana agreed with a chuckle, "you just come close. Maybe if weleave now?"
"I think it's too late." Jason stood as half a dozen men entered theclearing. "Good afternoon, gentles."
"Not for you it isn't," the obvious leader said. "You don't goanywhere without a couple thousand credits petty cash, MisterJason--hand it over."
"In the mountains?" Jason laughed. "Not even I carry cash wherethere's nothing to buy and no bodyguards."
"Like hell," the leader said pleasantly. "Hand it over, Jason, or wetake it out of your hide."
"I told you, I don't have anything to hand over."
"Then we'll take what you don't have." The leader gave a hand signal,and his men surrounded Jason. He grunted and swore at them, his voiceholding a mixture of disgusted anger and pain.
"NO!" Dana shouted, jumping on the back of one man and wrapping herleft arm around his throat, her right hand against the back of hishead, her left reaching for her right elbow for a neck-breaking hold.
She was pulled off before she could complete it, held securely despiteher struggles while the attackers gave her thakur a fast frisking.
"Hell, he was telling the truth," the leader finally said in disgust."No trace of a wallet or anything that'd hold that kind of cash." Hebackhanded Jason, almost casually. "You've been one hell of a lot oftrouble, Jason, for no return. Want to try convincing us we shouldn'tkill you for it?"
"You can't kill him!" Dana exclaimed, horrified. "He's-- You justcan't!" She took a deep breath; these men would need more than heremotions to discourage them. "Jason Interstellar's Security peoplewouldn't quit till they found you, and they'd make sure you werepunished."
One of the two holding her fondled her roughly. "Maybe have some funwith the fem before we kill both of 'em, Ca--Boss?"
Dana was too angry to be frightened; she twisted to give him a scornfullook, then glared at the leader, who gave her a frightening smilebefore he pointed to two of his men. "You, you--knock him out, thentie him to a tree; he'll be found before he starves."
Dana took comfort in the knowledge that he would be; the Torrancehunting party should find him the next day, before he even got reallyhungry. Then the designated ones did as they were told; Jason slumpedunder an expertly-applied baton to the base of his skull, then wassecured to a small tree.
Dana had time to wonder at the use of a baton--criminals didn'tnormally use that sort of weapon--before the leader approached her,holding another one. He looked at her consideringly, then nodded."I've seen better, but you're not too bad. I like redheads, they tendto be spunky." He grabbed her jaw, forced her mouth up for a roughkiss.
She took advantage of that; as soon as he was within reach, she bithim.
He swore, backhanding her, then signaled the two holding her to let go."Spunk's one thing, lady, but you've just bought yourself more hurtthan you've ever had. Fight if you want to; that'll just make it morefun."
Dana moved back, licking blood from a split lip as she dropped into anawkward protective crouch. She really should have paid more attentionto the unarmed-combat lessons Chief Hanson had insisted she at leastwatch . . . but it was too late now, facing the leader's feral grin andtwirling baton. Fear was a coppery taste in her mouth, and sweattrickled down her back under the enviro-suit.
The leader could obviously tell he had an inexperienced opponent,because his grin became a laugh. Then he moved with smooth, deceptiveswiftness, and before Dana could back away or defend herself, his batonlashed out, seeming to do no more than tap her forearms--until shetried to move them.
She gasped with the pain, somehow managing not to cry out, trying tofocus on the use of batons by thieves. The pain did have an advantage,though; it helped her distract herself from what took place next. Shekept fighting, but it was by pure reflex, and she couldn't keep herselffrom being stripped, or ignore the sudden cold air against skin nolonger protected by an enviro-suit, or the other pain and humiliationas six men took turns using her body. Neither the pain nor the oddweapons were enough, though. She couldn't concentrate on themsingle-mindedly enough to block out everything the attackers were doingto her, and before they were done, she heard herself whimpering. By thetime they finished the rapes and began a general beating, she could nolonger control her reactions; she fought and screamed and wept, to noeffect, until she felt consciousness starting to depart, and welcomedit.
Shouts and weapon-fire interrupted her descent into peace, somethingshe resented even as she knew it meant safety for her thakur andperhaps for herself. Then someone knelt beside her, and even with painblurring her vision, she could tell it was a Sandeman; that dark skinand blond hair didn't belong to any of their attackers. "Warrior . . ."she managed to whisper.
"Yes, Garvey DarTorrance. And you?"
"Dana Manfredi, thakur-na to Richard Jason. He's all right?"
"Unconscious, but not hurt."
"Good." Dana sighed, relief letting her outraged body take over; shepassed out.
* * * * *
The time Dana spent unconscious was less peaceful than it should havebeen. She dreamed, bits and pieces of her relationship with RichardJason, from meeting him shortly after her college graduation, toswearing fealty, to the mountain hike that had ended so disastrously.
She woke slowly, realizing as she did that she had been reliving adream become nightmare, that she was actually in a hospital; the smellwas unmistakable. Her next awareness was that she was blissfully freeof pain, and she spent several minutes enjoying something she had takenfor granted before.
Then she heard the room's door open and stirred herself to look towardit. The one who came in was a Sandeman, a warriors'-woman from thegold-gemmed ring she wore; Dana inclined her head in the closest shecould come to a bow.
"Good afternoon, Dana," the w'woman said. "I am Mona, a warriors'-womanof Clan Lewies and your doctor. How do you feel?"
"Better than I would've thought possible when the warrior Garvey foundme," Dana said. "Than
ks for everything you've done for me."
"My pleasure," the w'woman said. "Fortunately you were found beforeyour attackers did anything life-threatening to you, though some ofyour injuries could be classified as moderately serious for a Terran.I do have you on rapid-heal, since there was no infection. Except foryour broken bones, you should be recovered in two weeks; those willtake three to four."
Dana nodded, the reference to her broken bones bringing the casts onher arms to her attention, and she wondered again about theirattackers. "How's my thakur? And what about the ones who attackedus?"
The doctor frowned.