Page 72 of Condemned

“Tedious priests,” he muttered.

“Is it true they do sacrifices?” Avalon asked him. Judging by the stiffness of her face, she was nervous.

He was no monster. Takk took her small hand in his again and patted it once, stopping on the sidewalk so he could explain.

“Don’t worry yourself. Yes, they do, sort of. Their sacrifices are still alive afterward. It’s an expression from a long way back. They have a ceremony of love and they say their words, and do their ceremonial crazy stuff, dance too, for all I know. They believe it will help bring the satellites down. That the world will come to an end as we know it and then start again, all new, and all.” He widened his eyes, raised his free hand and jiggled it. “The usual woo-woo stuff of religions. Dance the way we say and we will fix your ills.”

“I see. And you were going to sell me to that?” Her mouth twisted.

“The fucking machine I’m sure you’d have liked.” He headed across the street to the temple entrance.

To either side of a pair of tall timber doors, bright balls spun at the top of golden poles. The balls were decorated with mirrored squares and as they spun the sunlight reflected and was sent whirling over the walls, the pavement, and the faces of visitors.

The steps leading up to the entrance were almost too small for his feet, which only made him grumpier. There’d better not be anything to fill in in triplicate. The welcoming hall inside was close to empty.

“Early,” he muttered, aiming for the desk in the middle. A woman in blue robes was seated there. “Guess people aren’t out of bed yet.”

Their boots echoed. High ceiling, mosaic floor with tiny tiles. Stationed around the outer walls were guards with cloaks, swords and automatic laz rifles, in uniforms modeled on the temple’s blue and gold. All seemed aimed to impress.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes?” She smiled up at him, her cute bob of dark hair swinging. “How may I help you?”

“I’m wondering who pays for all the prettiness, the guards...” he began. “Joking. It’s a business transaction I need to clear up. Let me explain. It’s to do with this one.” Takk drew the girl closer.

And so he did explain.

He explained to the woman, then to the high priest who arrived with a clerk and a copy of the contract. Apparently, to them, legally, once they’d sent the money, he had accepted all the terms and conditions as spelled out in the appendix, on pages eight to fourteen. Not that he’d ever seen that appendix. Plus they needed a new girl, urgently. So then he explained it again, because the ass of a priest did not understand the true picture. Which was how he ended up with four guards pointing their rifles at him while Avalon, the girl he was supposed to be protecting, was herded and hauled to the side by the priest and another two guards.

“This is not acceptable!” he began again, to hammer home the situation before he went full berserk like Timin used to do on the battlefield.

“Stop!” The girl frowned at him. “I’m going with them.”

Not even a Go tell the others, or anything that might be construed as a reason for giving in.

He was outnumbered, but, but...

Hurt, disconcerted, angry at himself and her, Takk found himself out on the street, with a line of guards before the temple doors staring down at him.

He should’ve brought more guns; well, a gun. He’d disarmed himself before coming because arriving at a religious place armed would be disrespectful.

“Fuck.” Then he gave them the finger, then all the fingers, several times. How was he going to explain this to Zo, Kon, and Timin? He’d failed them miserably. And her.

They were going to have to go to war on this temple. The priests would not know what hit them. He turned on his heel and strode away.

They’d need to organize fast before they had a chance to do anything bad to Ava. Unless the priests were all eunuchs, or her efsana state had waned, she was going to attract a lot of males once the perfume wore off. His soldiers had no heavy weaponry, but they did have experience at fighting on an uneven battlefield against enemies with more firepower and the higher ground.

Those temple walls might be best breached from the side. The local library would have the temple designs.

He had to get this done with zero casualties for his people.

Takk stopped on the spot, sighed. How easy was that going to be?

Not. At all. Yet he must make amends, if not for his men, for her. Wasn’t sure how or when he’d figured it, but he was certain she’d done that to get him out of a tight situation where he’d have ended up dead or worse.

She’d made him owe her. Takk wiped his face, thinking. He could leave the poor little thing there, forget her, if not for the fact the others would beat him to a pulp if he even suggested it.

Should’ve had Zo read that contract, or a lawyer. Though Zo was mostly away with the fairies. Kon was too stupid. Timin... now Timin was smarter than he looked.