Read Online Dragonback 03 Dragon and Slave by Timothy Zahn - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Timothy Zahn
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him like an especially
unfriendly rain cloud. "And if you're in trouble with the Brummgas,
you're in trouble with me. Got it?"
Jack grimaced. Staying on Fleck's good side might be harder than
he'd thought. "Got it."
"Then get to work."
Turning, he stalked away. "Don't worry about Fleck," Maerlynn
said, stepping over to Jack's side. "He talks grouchy, but mostly he's
all right. Go ahead and get started—I'll watch and see how you do."
She watched for ten minutes before she seemed convinced he did
indeed have the hang of it. "You're doing fine," she said. "I'll be
down the line over here. If you have any questions, just ask."
"I will," Jack said. "Thanks."
She headed away along the edge of the bushes, toward where Jack
could see Noy and Lisssa picking. "I still think you could build a
robot to do this," Jack muttered, turning back to his bush. "You could
at least make a scanner to help out."
"Perhaps it is a hammer problem," Draycos suggested from his
shoulder.
Jack turned one of the berries over. No purple spot. "What's a
hammer problem?" he asked, moving on to the next berry in line.
"It is from one of the sayings Uncle Virge has quoted to me," the
dragon said. " 'When the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem
looks like a nail.' "
"Yeah, he quotes that one to me, too," Jack said. This one had
both the purple spot and the bump pattern. Plucking it from its stem,
he put it in his bowl. "If you've got a whole bunch of slaves,
everything you're doing looks like it ought to be done by slave labor.
That's more or less what I said yesterday."
"I am merely confirming your reasoning," Draycos said. "I went out
and examined the wall last night."
"Great," Jack said. "I was going to suggest that, but I fell
asleep before I could talk to you. How's it look?"
"Every bit as dangerous as our examination from the Essenay indicated," the dragon said. "I do not believe we will be able to
escape that way."
Jack shrugged. "No problem," he said. "I was expecting we'd have
to go out through the gate anyway."
"True," Draycos said. "On the other hand, you also expected we
would be leaving by today at the latest."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Jack growled, glaring down
his freshly-washed shirt at the dragon's snout, draped across his
collarbone. "This is just a little setback."
"Of course," Draycos said.
"And sarcasm won't help, either."
"I was not being sarcastic," the dragon protested. "The good news
is that there do not seem to be any patrols in the slave area. That
means we will have freedom of movement."
"That could be handy," Jack agreed. "Anything else? Wait a
second," he interrupted himself softly. Out of the corner of his eye,
he had picked up movement.
"Hey, Jack," Noy's voice came from that direction. "How are you
doing?"
"Okay, I guess," Jack said, turning around. "It's not that hard."
"No," Noy said doubtfully, peering into Jack's bowl. "But you're
going to have to work faster than that if you want to eat tonight."
Jack frowned. "What?"
"You have to fill your bowl by dinnertime," Noy explained.
"Otherwise, no dinner. Didn't Fleck tell you?"
Jack looked off to the left. Fleck was off in the distance, pacing
back and forth behind a group of Jantris. "No, he didn't tell me," he
growled. "How full does it have to be?"
"Up to here," Noy said, pointing to a line about half an inch
below the rim of the container.
"Got it," Jack said, a sinking feeling swirling in the pit of his
stomach as he stared into the nearly empty bowl. "Then what?"
"You take your bowl over there," Noy said, pointing to a pair of
tables set up in the shade of a tall tree. "The Brummgas show up
between five thirty and six. You bring them a full bowl, and they give
you a meal ticket."
"A what?"
"A meal ticket," Noy repeated. "It's a little metal square you can
trade in for dinner in the meal hall."
"And no ticket, no dinner?"
"Right," Noy said. "So I'd better let you get back to work. I just
wanted to say hi."
"Thanks," Jack
unfriendly rain cloud. "And if you're in trouble with the Brummgas,
you're in trouble with me. Got it?"
Jack grimaced. Staying on Fleck's good side might be harder than
he'd thought. "Got it."
"Then get to work."
Turning, he stalked away. "Don't worry about Fleck," Maerlynn
said, stepping over to Jack's side. "He talks grouchy, but mostly he's
all right. Go ahead and get started—I'll watch and see how you do."
She watched for ten minutes before she seemed convinced he did
indeed have the hang of it. "You're doing fine," she said. "I'll be
down the line over here. If you have any questions, just ask."
"I will," Jack said. "Thanks."
She headed away along the edge of the bushes, toward where Jack
could see Noy and Lisssa picking. "I still think you could build a
robot to do this," Jack muttered, turning back to his bush. "You could
at least make a scanner to help out."
"Perhaps it is a hammer problem," Draycos suggested from his
shoulder.
Jack turned one of the berries over. No purple spot. "What's a
hammer problem?" he asked, moving on to the next berry in line.
"It is from one of the sayings Uncle Virge has quoted to me," the
dragon said. " 'When the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem
looks like a nail.' "
"Yeah, he quotes that one to me, too," Jack said. This one had
both the purple spot and the bump pattern. Plucking it from its stem,
he put it in his bowl. "If you've got a whole bunch of slaves,
everything you're doing looks like it ought to be done by slave labor.
That's more or less what I said yesterday."
"I am merely confirming your reasoning," Draycos said. "I went out
and examined the wall last night."
"Great," Jack said. "I was going to suggest that, but I fell
asleep before I could talk to you. How's it look?"
"Every bit as dangerous as our examination from the Essenay indicated," the dragon said. "I do not believe we will be able to
escape that way."
Jack shrugged. "No problem," he said. "I was expecting we'd have
to go out through the gate anyway."
"True," Draycos said. "On the other hand, you also expected we
would be leaving by today at the latest."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Jack growled, glaring down
his freshly-washed shirt at the dragon's snout, draped across his
collarbone. "This is just a little setback."
"Of course," Draycos said.
"And sarcasm won't help, either."
"I was not being sarcastic," the dragon protested. "The good news
is that there do not seem to be any patrols in the slave area. That
means we will have freedom of movement."
"That could be handy," Jack agreed. "Anything else? Wait a
second," he interrupted himself softly. Out of the corner of his eye,
he had picked up movement.
"Hey, Jack," Noy's voice came from that direction. "How are you
doing?"
"Okay, I guess," Jack said, turning around. "It's not that hard."
"No," Noy said doubtfully, peering into Jack's bowl. "But you're
going to have to work faster than that if you want to eat tonight."
Jack frowned. "What?"
"You have to fill your bowl by dinnertime," Noy explained.
"Otherwise, no dinner. Didn't Fleck tell you?"
Jack looked off to the left. Fleck was off in the distance, pacing
back and forth behind a group of Jantris. "No, he didn't tell me," he
growled. "How full does it have to be?"
"Up to here," Noy said, pointing to a line about half an inch
below the rim of the container.
"Got it," Jack said, a sinking feeling swirling in the pit of his
stomach as he stared into the nearly empty bowl. "Then what?"
"You take your bowl over there," Noy said, pointing to a pair of
tables set up in the shade of a tall tree. "The Brummgas show up
between five thirty and six. You bring them a full bowl, and they give
you a meal ticket."
"A what?"
"A meal ticket," Noy repeated. "It's a little metal square you can
trade in for dinner in the meal hall."
"And no ticket, no dinner?"
"Right," Noy said. "So I'd better let you get back to work. I just
wanted to say hi."
"Thanks," Jack
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