Barrington Bayley - The Zen Gun

The commandos opened fire too. The hovering rifles darted this way and that. Every beam and missile, despatched from a variety of weapons, aimed at Pout’s party was intercepted by the defensive umbrella the kosho projected.

Suddenly there was silence. Ikematsu had killed cheetahs; he had killed dogs; he had killed hyenas. He had not killed either of the two humans or the pig; these were high-ranking personages, and they gave the order now for the surviving commandos to withdraw. They were amazed; they had never before seen a rifle that could cancel out the energy beam from another rifle.

Gruwert had scuttled back into the drop pod. He peered round the edge of the door. “Who’s that?” he demanded angrily. “We’re fighting a single man?”

“It looks like a kosho ,” Brigadier Carson told him. He still stood on the ground, but had retreated to where it was only a step to safety. “An ancient mystical warrior order. They’re only found on Earth. I’d heard they were pretty remarkable, but this…”

“ What? Why didn’t anyone tell me? They might be the weapon!”

“I don’t think so. They are forbidden to take sides in power politics.”

Ruefully Carson surveyed the scene before the pod. He had lost about half his animals. The survivors, having withdrawn to the shadow of the pod, stood tense, noses pointed to the kosho . A word from him or Major Kastrillo, the only other human in the party, and they would bound into action again totally disregardful of their own lives.

He had no intention, however, of expending them needlessly. He was about to order them back into the pod with a view to bombing the Earthites from the air when the kosho came striding towards him. The commando animals growled; he could see them focusing their skullguns. Unperturbed, the kosho stopped a few yards away.

“My principal would request a cessation of hostilities,” he said calmly. “We have no interest in each other.”

“You killed my animals,” Carson retorted hotly.

“You attacked us.”

“You attacked first.”

“True.” the kosho replied equably. “My principal was perturbed at your behaviour, which he believed presaged an assault upon us. That, too, is my impression.”

“What is all this talk?” Gruwert squealed quietly to Carson. “Scan him to dust—No, wait!”

A new thought had struck the pig. Cautiously he descended to the ground. “How would you like to have such fighters in your commando, Brigadier?” he murmured. “These fellows could prove mighty useful.”

“But the cooperation of a kosho is almost impossible to acquire,” Carson reminded him.

“Oh really? But he isn’t a free agent as it is. You just heard him say he’s acting under orders.” Gruwert spoke up and addressed the warrior. “Who is this principal of yours? Point him out to me.”

“He is the manlike chimera who first fired on you.”

“Bring him here,” Gruwert said, peering in Pout’s direction. “We want to talk to him.”

“Under safe conduct?”

Major Carson nodded.

Ikematsu walked back to Pout. “Listen carefully,” he said. “I have defended your life and my obligation to you is over. But I will perform you one more service, for a price.

“These are fighters from Diadem, the centre of the Empire. You would like to leave Earth and go to Diadem, would you not? Yes. 1 know you would. Above our heads is a huge fleet with thousands of men and animals on board. Eventually it will go to Diadem. 1 will talk to the officers from the fleet. I will persuade them that they should take you with them.

“All I want in return is that gun you have.”

“This gun?” Hopefully Pout tendered the scangun he had taken from Hesper Positana.

“No, the other gun.”

Pout’s ears twitched and his eyes widened pitifully. The kosho had approached the strangers without a word to him, leaving him bewildered and frightened. He gazed down at the dead gun in his other hand, then clutched it to his chest.

“No!” he mewled. “My beautiful gun! 1 won’t give up my gun!”

“It does not even work any more.”

“It will work!” Pout spat desperately. “One day it will work!”

“Had I a mind I could kill you here, for the harm and the hatred in you, and take the gun.”

These words frightened Pout and he dodged aside from Ikematsu to run towards the armoured men and the animals standing by the big metal thing. He was less afraid of them, at this moment, than he was of his onetime protector.

Balefully the predators glared at him, but he ignored them and fell to his knees before the two humans. “I am a nice animal!” he gasped. “I love the Empire! Save me from those people!”

A cheery voice came suddenly from inside the pod. “Now now, what’s all this panic?”

The men moved apart. Pout found himself staring into a fat-jowled pig face with twinkling little eyes. “Things are getting confusing,” Gruwert remarked. “Tell me, is it not you who is supposed to be the, er, master of that kosho over there?”

“Yes, yes, I am,” babbled Pout.

“Now there’s an odd thing in itself. He looks pure human to me, and you… well, what are you exactly?”

A hint of pride came into Pout’s voice. “I am a chimera of every primate species, sir.” He spoke respectfully, realising he was in the presence of authority. Indeed, something about the pig’s manner reminded him of the role of Torth Nascimento in the museum…

Gruwert waddled from the pod once more. He raised his snout and sniffed the air with a loud sniffing sound. “Really? Now that is interesting. They say this is the planet we all came from. The old Earth herself, cradle of our biota. Just the place, one might think, to find something unusual, shall we say? Well, citizen—you are a citizen, aren’t you? Of course you are: a citizen of the second class, like myself. Now citizen, we didn’t mean you any harm. We spotted your group from up in space and decided to talk to you, that’s basically it. It seems we gave you a fright—our commandos are a bit rough, I admit! But you see, there has been much wickedness in this sector and it’s our business to deal with it. You wouldn’t believe it, but there are criminals in Escoria who are against the Empire and want to plunge us all back into barbarism. We are looking for one who landed in this region a few days ago. It’s very bare country hereabouts, so maybe you can help us?” Gruwert’s tone hardened. “Where is he?”

“It isn’t a he, it’s a girl!” Pout offered eagerly. “She wore a black and silver suit and came down in an egg! Look, she gave me this scangun.”

Gruwert watched while Major Kastrillo took the weapon from Pout’s grasp, glanced at it, then tossed it through the door of the drop pod. “Yes, that’s the one,” he said slowly. The rebels tracked to Mars had worn the same uniform. “Let’s have her, then.”

“Oh, she’s not here, she’s—”

Pout stopped. He wondered how much bargaining power his knowledge of the girls’ whereabouts gave him—and did he dare try to use it?

He glanced back. The kosho and his young nephew were walking slowly towards him!

His skin prickled. “I am glad to be of service to the Empire.” he said obsequiously. Then, in a voice of panic: “Take me with you and I’ll tell you where she is!”

“You are coming with us anyway,” Gruwert said commandingly. “Now quickly, end this deviousness.”

While Ikematsu and Sinbiane stood silently by, Pout said: “There are some moving cities that roam flat ground over that way.” He waved an arm. “She’s in the nearest of them It’s called Mo.”