Read Online Dragonback 03 Dragon and Slave by Timothy Zahn - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Timothy Zahn
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back, arms, and legs.
And as he did so, there was a soft grunt from the next cot.
He froze in place, his eyes darting that direction. The Dolom
girl, Lisssa, was propped up on her elbow. Staring into the darkness in
Jack's direction.
Draycos felt his breath catch like ice in his lungs. Had she seen
him come in? Worse, had she seen him climb onto Jack's body?
He held still, silently cursing his carelessness. Yes, he was
tired and hungry; but that was no excuse. He had a duty to his people
to survive, and to keep his existence a secret.
For a long minute, Lisssa didn't move, either. Then, blinking
twice, she lowered herself back onto her cot. A minute later, her slow
breathing showed she was again asleep.
Carefully, Draycos finished positioning himself across Jack's
back. He still wasn't sure what, if anything, the Dolom had seen, but
it now seemed unlikely she had seen anything too obvious. Surely she
would have screamed the hut awake if she had.
Wouldn't she?
On the other paw, she was an alien, of a type he had never met or
studied. Perhaps screaming simply wasn't in her species' makeup.
He gave up the effort. Whatever came of this, if anything, it
would probably wait until morning. He and Jack would deal with it then.
Nestling himself against Jack's skin, feeling the renewing energy
flowing from his host, he fell asleep.
CHAPTER 8
"Listen up," Fleck said, glaring down at Jack. "I'm only going to
explain this once."
"Yes, sir," Jack said, using the meekest voice and manner in his
repertoire. Up close, Fleck was even uglier than he'd looked across the
sleeping hut. His tanned face had tiny pockmarks all across it like the
craters on an asteroid, his eyes were bulging and bloodshot, and his
beard seemed to be going bald in spots.
He was also bigger than he'd seemed. It would probably be smart to
stay on his good side.
"All right." Fleck waved along the line of bushes, which were
growing so close together that they were practically a hedge all by
themselves. "These are the rainbow berry bushes."
He reached to the nearest of the stubby branches and swung it up,
exposing the neat row of fingernail-sized berries clinging to its
underside. "And this," he said, pointing to one of them, "is a ripe
berry. You see the color pattern, the way the red at the stem blends
into yellow, and then into green and blue?"
"Yes," Jack said, trying hard not to be sarcastic. It was pretty
obvious, actually.
"Yeah, I know—it's obvious," Fleck growled. "But this part
isn't."
He turned the berry over in his thick fingers. "Look here in the
middle of the blue. See that little dot of purple? That's very important."
He turned the berry back around. "So is this ring of little bumps
right where it connects to the stem. You don't have both of those, you
don't have a ripe berry, and you leave it be. Got it?"
"Got it," Jack said, nodding. Okay; so it wasn't quite as simple
as it had first looked.
"I hope so," Fleck said warningly. "Because if you mess up, the
Brummgas will catch it. And then you'll be in trouble."
"Like I'm not already," Jack muttered under his breath.
"What was that?"
"I said I got it," Jack said aloud. "This isn't exactly brain
surgery, you know."
"And you're not exactly a brain surgeon, are you?" Fleck pointed
out. "Here's your bowl."
He handed Jack a container that looked like an extra-deep pie pan
with a long leather strap strung between two points on the rim. "You
want me to show you how to use it?"
"I think I can figure it out," Jack said. He looped the strap
around his neck, letting the container rest against his stomach. "Close
enough?"
"I guess maybe you are a brain surgeon," Fleck said
sarcastically. "Just one more thing."
He plucked the berry he'd identified as ripe and set it down
gently into Jack's bowl. "Don't just toss it into the bowl. You do
that, you're likely to crush the ones on the bottom. Damaged berries
get you in trouble with the Brummgas, too."
He took a step closer to Jack, looming over
And as he did so, there was a soft grunt from the next cot.
He froze in place, his eyes darting that direction. The Dolom
girl, Lisssa, was propped up on her elbow. Staring into the darkness in
Jack's direction.
Draycos felt his breath catch like ice in his lungs. Had she seen
him come in? Worse, had she seen him climb onto Jack's body?
He held still, silently cursing his carelessness. Yes, he was
tired and hungry; but that was no excuse. He had a duty to his people
to survive, and to keep his existence a secret.
For a long minute, Lisssa didn't move, either. Then, blinking
twice, she lowered herself back onto her cot. A minute later, her slow
breathing showed she was again asleep.
Carefully, Draycos finished positioning himself across Jack's
back. He still wasn't sure what, if anything, the Dolom had seen, but
it now seemed unlikely she had seen anything too obvious. Surely she
would have screamed the hut awake if she had.
Wouldn't she?
On the other paw, she was an alien, of a type he had never met or
studied. Perhaps screaming simply wasn't in her species' makeup.
He gave up the effort. Whatever came of this, if anything, it
would probably wait until morning. He and Jack would deal with it then.
Nestling himself against Jack's skin, feeling the renewing energy
flowing from his host, he fell asleep.
CHAPTER 8
"Listen up," Fleck said, glaring down at Jack. "I'm only going to
explain this once."
"Yes, sir," Jack said, using the meekest voice and manner in his
repertoire. Up close, Fleck was even uglier than he'd looked across the
sleeping hut. His tanned face had tiny pockmarks all across it like the
craters on an asteroid, his eyes were bulging and bloodshot, and his
beard seemed to be going bald in spots.
He was also bigger than he'd seemed. It would probably be smart to
stay on his good side.
"All right." Fleck waved along the line of bushes, which were
growing so close together that they were practically a hedge all by
themselves. "These are the rainbow berry bushes."
He reached to the nearest of the stubby branches and swung it up,
exposing the neat row of fingernail-sized berries clinging to its
underside. "And this," he said, pointing to one of them, "is a ripe
berry. You see the color pattern, the way the red at the stem blends
into yellow, and then into green and blue?"
"Yes," Jack said, trying hard not to be sarcastic. It was pretty
obvious, actually.
"Yeah, I know—it's obvious," Fleck growled. "But this part
isn't."
He turned the berry over in his thick fingers. "Look here in the
middle of the blue. See that little dot of purple? That's very important."
He turned the berry back around. "So is this ring of little bumps
right where it connects to the stem. You don't have both of those, you
don't have a ripe berry, and you leave it be. Got it?"
"Got it," Jack said, nodding. Okay; so it wasn't quite as simple
as it had first looked.
"I hope so," Fleck said warningly. "Because if you mess up, the
Brummgas will catch it. And then you'll be in trouble."
"Like I'm not already," Jack muttered under his breath.
"What was that?"
"I said I got it," Jack said aloud. "This isn't exactly brain
surgery, you know."
"And you're not exactly a brain surgeon, are you?" Fleck pointed
out. "Here's your bowl."
He handed Jack a container that looked like an extra-deep pie pan
with a long leather strap strung between two points on the rim. "You
want me to show you how to use it?"
"I think I can figure it out," Jack said. He looped the strap
around his neck, letting the container rest against his stomach. "Close
enough?"
"I guess maybe you are a brain surgeon," Fleck said
sarcastically. "Just one more thing."
He plucked the berry he'd identified as ripe and set it down
gently into Jack's bowl. "Don't just toss it into the bowl. You do
that, you're likely to crush the ones on the bottom. Damaged berries
get you in trouble with the Brummgas, too."
He took a step closer to Jack, looming over
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