Read Online Hellflower (v1.1) by Eluki bes Shahar - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Eluki bes Shahar
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to play with the big kids in the never-never. You chaffer on about ransom like it meant something and people was going to play kiss-my-hand and wait around to collect it with glitterborn rules and all. Well, K’Jarn was going to kill you for what you was standing up in back on Wanderweb and probably sell you to a bodysnatcher before you got cold. That’s ransom in the never-never."
Tiggy’s face was unreadable as a plaster saint’s. "What will you do, if you will not return me to my people?"
"If I put you back on the heavy side here, Justiciary’s going to chop you. If I chase into Royal, I’ll get blown up. So I’m taking you to Kiffit. Got cargo for there, people’re waiting."
"No," said Paladin. I ignored him.
Tiggy pulled out his knife again, which was a argument but not a good one. "I do not wish to go to this Kiffit. The Pledge Of Honor is going to Royal, and—"
"Put that coke-gutter of yours away before I ram it down your glitterborn throat. Lesson Number One in the Real World: You can kill me but you can’t make me fly you anywhere."
"Butterfly, will you please—"
"I can fly," said Tiggy uneasily.
“Not this ship, che-bai. When I die, it blows up. I’m going to Kiffit, and so are you. Think Firecat’s maybe got enough air to get us both there, if we’re lucky. Better chance than you got otherways. I’ll take that risk.
"Butterfly, you saw the figures. There is only a seventy percent chance you will both survive to reach Kiffit. It is not worth the risk."
"I have thirty-four years," Tiggy said.
"Por-ke?" I said. He didn’t savvy patwa, but he answered.
"You asked me how old I was, ch-Captain. I have thirty-four years."
"Standard?" Hell, I have thirty-four years Standard; if Tiggy was my age I’d eat all five of Firecat’s goforths.
"No. Real years."
"What’s the conversion?" I said, and after a long time it was Paladin that answered me.
"Thirty-four years alMayne is equal to fourteen Imperial Standard Years. Butterfly, there is one chance in four that you will die."
I still ignored him. I already knew the numbers. I looked at Tiggy. He didn’t look fourteen, but different human races age differently. I was already halfway through my expectancy, assuming I lived long enough to die in bed.
Which didn’t look too likely just now. And it didn’t at this moment matter what the Hellflower Years of Discretion were, either.
"You’re fourteen. Terrific." Under the Codex Imperador Tiggy had to be twenty to be a grown-up, and he wasn’t. So the rap for him was child-kidnap; worse than before, if that was possible.
"I am adult. I have my arthame. I am a legal Person of House Starborn—" He stopped. "And honor demands that I die now with honor; for allowing me that you have the gratitude of my House." He looked around.
"And where t’hell you think you’re going, kinchin-bai?"
"I will go out your air lock, Captain-even a ship like this must have one. I cannot put you at risk in your journey. You have saved my life and served me well. I will not imperil you further."
I’d been fourteen once. Fortunately it hadn’t been permanent. "It is very nearly a reasonable solution," said Paladin, helpfully. Real reasonable; I wouldn’t even have to cold-cock the stupid brat and shove him out my lock; he’d do it himself.
Except it wasn’t his fault that his daddy’d kyted, or that nobody’d told Tiggy the galaxy had teeth big enough to chew hellflowers.
"Oh, give it a rest, willya? You and me is going to Kiffit and I’ll turn you in to the Azarine Guildhouse there. They send you home, I get shut of you, everything’s copacetic."
Tiggy looked around in panic. "But you cannot do that." He looked like he preferred microwave death to spending another hour on Firecat.
"Is my ship and I’ll freight what I want. Ain’t done rescuing you yet, so remember honor, Tiggy-bai."
"Honor is better than bread," agreed Tiggy darkly, which just showed how many meals he’d missed.
He slanted a
Tiggy’s face was unreadable as a plaster saint’s. "What will you do, if you will not return me to my people?"
"If I put you back on the heavy side here, Justiciary’s going to chop you. If I chase into Royal, I’ll get blown up. So I’m taking you to Kiffit. Got cargo for there, people’re waiting."
"No," said Paladin. I ignored him.
Tiggy pulled out his knife again, which was a argument but not a good one. "I do not wish to go to this Kiffit. The Pledge Of Honor is going to Royal, and—"
"Put that coke-gutter of yours away before I ram it down your glitterborn throat. Lesson Number One in the Real World: You can kill me but you can’t make me fly you anywhere."
"Butterfly, will you please—"
"I can fly," said Tiggy uneasily.
“Not this ship, che-bai. When I die, it blows up. I’m going to Kiffit, and so are you. Think Firecat’s maybe got enough air to get us both there, if we’re lucky. Better chance than you got otherways. I’ll take that risk.
"Butterfly, you saw the figures. There is only a seventy percent chance you will both survive to reach Kiffit. It is not worth the risk."
"I have thirty-four years," Tiggy said.
"Por-ke?" I said. He didn’t savvy patwa, but he answered.
"You asked me how old I was, ch-Captain. I have thirty-four years."
"Standard?" Hell, I have thirty-four years Standard; if Tiggy was my age I’d eat all five of Firecat’s goforths.
"No. Real years."
"What’s the conversion?" I said, and after a long time it was Paladin that answered me.
"Thirty-four years alMayne is equal to fourteen Imperial Standard Years. Butterfly, there is one chance in four that you will die."
I still ignored him. I already knew the numbers. I looked at Tiggy. He didn’t look fourteen, but different human races age differently. I was already halfway through my expectancy, assuming I lived long enough to die in bed.
Which didn’t look too likely just now. And it didn’t at this moment matter what the Hellflower Years of Discretion were, either.
"You’re fourteen. Terrific." Under the Codex Imperador Tiggy had to be twenty to be a grown-up, and he wasn’t. So the rap for him was child-kidnap; worse than before, if that was possible.
"I am adult. I have my arthame. I am a legal Person of House Starborn—" He stopped. "And honor demands that I die now with honor; for allowing me that you have the gratitude of my House." He looked around.
"And where t’hell you think you’re going, kinchin-bai?"
"I will go out your air lock, Captain-even a ship like this must have one. I cannot put you at risk in your journey. You have saved my life and served me well. I will not imperil you further."
I’d been fourteen once. Fortunately it hadn’t been permanent. "It is very nearly a reasonable solution," said Paladin, helpfully. Real reasonable; I wouldn’t even have to cold-cock the stupid brat and shove him out my lock; he’d do it himself.
Except it wasn’t his fault that his daddy’d kyted, or that nobody’d told Tiggy the galaxy had teeth big enough to chew hellflowers.
"Oh, give it a rest, willya? You and me is going to Kiffit and I’ll turn you in to the Azarine Guildhouse there. They send you home, I get shut of you, everything’s copacetic."
Tiggy looked around in panic. "But you cannot do that." He looked like he preferred microwave death to spending another hour on Firecat.
"Is my ship and I’ll freight what I want. Ain’t done rescuing you yet, so remember honor, Tiggy-bai."
"Honor is better than bread," agreed Tiggy darkly, which just showed how many meals he’d missed.
He slanted a
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