Free Clan and Crown by Tracy St. John Page A

high and the
temperature soaring, most tourists and inhabitants had moved
indoors. Egilka found it easy to navigate the dusty streets that
sent him to the ‘dispensary’. The Imdiko was chagrined to discover
it was little more than a hole in the wall. The proprietor was a
grimacing Dantovonian hunched behind a counter.
    Looking like a cross between an insect
and an amphibian, the indigenous species of the planet was as
shrewd as it was ugly. Egilka eyed the creature with a segmented
face and long hind legs that enabled it to hop great distances. He
– Egilka thought this particular Dantovonian was a he – was a
quarter of the Kalquorian’s size. His grayish-green segmented
carapace made clicking sounds as the creature moved.
    Egilka couldn’t imagine a more
disreputable looking shop or keeper. It reminded him of one of the
favorite sayings on Dantovon: the poorer looking the fellow, the
more money he had. Given the lack of any niceties of this place,
this fellow commanded top dollar for his wares. He would also have
weapons close at hand if he suspected any trouble.
    There was another saying on Dantovon:
kill first and ask questions later.
    Had it not been Emperor Yuder who had
sent him to drug dealer, Egilka would have turned around and walked
away. His one defense was that Kalquorians were known to have money
ready to spend, and money was what made the residents of the planet
happy. This Dantovonian would give Egilka leeway if he caused
offense ... but only to a point.
    After taking his request, the
Dantovonian hop-wriggled its way through a darkened doorway behind
its counter. It returned with a needle injector, its vial filled
with amber-colored liquid. Egilka winced to see the delivery
system. Most medical injectors were painless. This one was going to
hurt like hell if he managed to jab Clajak with it.
    Egilka told himself that it was a small
bit of what the prince deserved for running off, both from Kalquor
and after last night. Maybe that was why Yuder had recommended this
particular vendor. The Nobek Emperor had no problem demonstrating
his impatience with his only child.
    Egilka paid for the drug and injector,
which would knock Clajak out cold for several hours ... long enough
to haul his rebellious ass to a transport and get underway for a
nonstop journey to Kalquor.
    Egilka stepped out of the marginally
cooler environs of the dispensary and squinted in the fierce
sunlight. At the edges of the city, steam rose from the jungle. The
Imdiko looked up and down the nearly empty street. The oppressive
heat was driving even the hardiest of celebrants indoors. If Clajak
was still somewhere in the city, no doubt he had holed up with some
luscious prostitute or two. Or a dozen. Hadn’t he said something
about a place with a nonstop orgy?
    There was no telling where the Dramok
had ended up. Egilka wiped at the sweat running in rivers down his
forehead. “If I was a self-centered prince looking for fun and
excitement, where would I go?” he wondered out loud.
    As if on cue, he heard the distant roar
of a crowd. The sound came from the center of the city, where a
huge entertainment stage filled an entire square. Thinking it might
be a sign, Egilka headed that way. It was as good a place to start
looking as any.
    It took a few sweltering minutes to
reach the hub of the city. When Egilka got to it, he gaped at the
churning mass of life before him. Despite the growing heaviness of
the air, the crowd surrounding the open air stage was large. Aliens
of every size and description in loose-knit packs craned their
necks to watch the program in progress.
    At over six and a half feet tall,
Egilka saw over most of the crowd. The stage held about a dozen
pairs or groups of aliens, all having sex under the glaring sun.
Smiling males and females of varying races pulled onlookers from
the crowd up on the stage, enticing them to join in on the fun. It
was a demonstration put on by one of the brothels to drum up
business.
    Egilka licked