Read Online The Witches of Karres by James H. Schmitz - Free Book Online
Authors: James H. Schmitz
Tags: Science-Fiction, Space Opera
Ads: Link
with you, so they didn't tell me."
"Can't spill what you don't know, eh?"
"Uh-huh."
Interstellar politics involving Karres and the Empire? He pondered it a few seconds, then gave up. H e couldn't imagine what it might be and there was n o sense worrying about it.
"Well," he sighed, "seeing we've turned out to be distant relatives, I suppose it is all right if I adopt youmeanwhi l e."
"Sure," said Goth. She studied his face. "You still want to pay the money you owe back to thos e people?"
He nodded. "A debt's a debt."
"Well," Goth informed him, "I've got som e ideas."
"None of those witch tricks now!" the captain said warningly. "We'll earn our money the fail way."
Goth blinked not-so-innocent brown eyes at him. "This'll be fair! But we'll get rich." She shook her head, yawned slowly. "Tired," she announced, standing up. "Better hit the bunk a while now."
"Good idea," the captain agreed. "We can talk again later." At the passage door Goth paused, looking back at him.
"About all I could tell you about us right now," she said, "you can read in those Regulations, like the one man said. The one you kicked off the ship. There's a lot about Karres in there. Lots of lies, too, though!"
"And when did you find out about the intercom between here and the captain's cabin?" the captain inquired.
Goth grinned. "A while back. The others never noticed."
"All right," the captain said. "Good night, witch—if you get a stomach-ache, yell and I'll bring the medicine."
"Good night," Goth yawned. "I might, I think."
"And wash behind your ears!" the captain added, trying to remember the bedtime instructions he'd overheard Maleen giving the junior witches.
"All right," said Goth sleepily. The passage door closed behind her—but half a minute later it was briskly opened again. The captain looked up startled from the voluminous stack of General Instructions and Space Regulations of the Republic of Nikkeldepain he'd just discovered in the back of one of the drawers of the control desk.
Goth stood in the doorway, scowling and wide-awake. "And you wash behind yours!" she said.
"Huh?" said the captain. He reflected a moment , "All right," he said. "We both will, then."
"Right," said Goth, sat i sfied. The door closed once more.
The captain began to run his finger down the lengthy index of K's —or could it be under W?
THREE
THE KEY WORD WAS PROHIBITED... Under that heading the Space Regulations had in fact devoted a full page of rather fine print to the Prohibited Planet of Karres. Most of it, however, was conjecture. Nikkeldepain seemed unable to make up its mind whether the witches had developed an alarmingly high level of secret technology or whether there was something downright supernatural about them. But it made it very clear it did not want ordinary citizens to have anything to do with Karres. There was grave danger of spiritual contamination. Hence such contacts could not be regarded as being in the best interests of the Republic and were strictly forbidden.
Various authorities in the Empire held similar opinions. The Regulations included a number of quotes from such sources:
"... their women gifted with an evil allure ... Hiding under the cloak of the so-called klatha magic--"
Klatha? The word seemed familiar. Frowning, the captain dug up a number of memory scraps. Klatha was a metaphysical concept, a cosmic energy, something not quite of this universe. Some people supposedly could tune in on it, use it for various purposes.
He grunted. Possibly that gave a name to what the witches were doing. But it didn't explain anything.
No mention was made of the Sheewash Drive. It might be a recent development, at least for individual spaceships. In fact, the behaviour of Councilor Onswud and the others suggested that reports they'd received of the Venture's unorthodox behaviour under hot pursuit was the first they had heard of a superdrive possessed by Karres.
Naturally they'd been itching to get their hands on it.
And
"Can't spill what you don't know, eh?"
"Uh-huh."
Interstellar politics involving Karres and the Empire? He pondered it a few seconds, then gave up. H e couldn't imagine what it might be and there was n o sense worrying about it.
"Well," he sighed, "seeing we've turned out to be distant relatives, I suppose it is all right if I adopt youmeanwhi l e."
"Sure," said Goth. She studied his face. "You still want to pay the money you owe back to thos e people?"
He nodded. "A debt's a debt."
"Well," Goth informed him, "I've got som e ideas."
"None of those witch tricks now!" the captain said warningly. "We'll earn our money the fail way."
Goth blinked not-so-innocent brown eyes at him. "This'll be fair! But we'll get rich." She shook her head, yawned slowly. "Tired," she announced, standing up. "Better hit the bunk a while now."
"Good idea," the captain agreed. "We can talk again later." At the passage door Goth paused, looking back at him.
"About all I could tell you about us right now," she said, "you can read in those Regulations, like the one man said. The one you kicked off the ship. There's a lot about Karres in there. Lots of lies, too, though!"
"And when did you find out about the intercom between here and the captain's cabin?" the captain inquired.
Goth grinned. "A while back. The others never noticed."
"All right," the captain said. "Good night, witch—if you get a stomach-ache, yell and I'll bring the medicine."
"Good night," Goth yawned. "I might, I think."
"And wash behind your ears!" the captain added, trying to remember the bedtime instructions he'd overheard Maleen giving the junior witches.
"All right," said Goth sleepily. The passage door closed behind her—but half a minute later it was briskly opened again. The captain looked up startled from the voluminous stack of General Instructions and Space Regulations of the Republic of Nikkeldepain he'd just discovered in the back of one of the drawers of the control desk.
Goth stood in the doorway, scowling and wide-awake. "And you wash behind yours!" she said.
"Huh?" said the captain. He reflected a moment , "All right," he said. "We both will, then."
"Right," said Goth, sat i sfied. The door closed once more.
The captain began to run his finger down the lengthy index of K's —or could it be under W?
THREE
THE KEY WORD WAS PROHIBITED... Under that heading the Space Regulations had in fact devoted a full page of rather fine print to the Prohibited Planet of Karres. Most of it, however, was conjecture. Nikkeldepain seemed unable to make up its mind whether the witches had developed an alarmingly high level of secret technology or whether there was something downright supernatural about them. But it made it very clear it did not want ordinary citizens to have anything to do with Karres. There was grave danger of spiritual contamination. Hence such contacts could not be regarded as being in the best interests of the Republic and were strictly forbidden.
Various authorities in the Empire held similar opinions. The Regulations included a number of quotes from such sources:
"... their women gifted with an evil allure ... Hiding under the cloak of the so-called klatha magic--"
Klatha? The word seemed familiar. Frowning, the captain dug up a number of memory scraps. Klatha was a metaphysical concept, a cosmic energy, something not quite of this universe. Some people supposedly could tune in on it, use it for various purposes.
He grunted. Possibly that gave a name to what the witches were doing. But it didn't explain anything.
No mention was made of the Sheewash Drive. It might be a recent development, at least for individual spaceships. In fact, the behaviour of Councilor Onswud and the others suggested that reports they'd received of the Venture's unorthodox behaviour under hot pursuit was the first they had heard of a superdrive possessed by Karres.
Naturally they'd been itching to get their hands on it.
And
Similar Books
