Childhood Bodyguard Written by Lisa Van Sleeuwen. Dust blew up in billows as the trans-continental tourist coach touched down on the windblown landing pad. All at once the occupants of the coach moved towards the left portals, trying to glimpse through the dusty haze the small farming outpost of Verlinian Acres. Bags began to be pulled from overhead compartments and slowly the tourists began to file from the couch, taking in the sights with eager eyes. Glasson stared back from 200 metres away, safely behind the window of the local foodway. "Would ya look at that? Gaddamn tourists, whadda they think this is? A gaddamn tourist attraction?!" He exclaimed in disgust, waving his hand in the direction of the rapidly growing band outside the coach. Emery, owner of the foodway for the past several years paused by his regular, taking a peep himself. The group of perhaps thirty was no bigger than any other tour group that regularly dropped by, bringing with them a much-needed boost to the economy of the town. Emery was especially thankful for this. "Keep your trap shut Glasson, they don't stay more than a few nights. Once they've seen the wheat crops they'll be on their way." He muttered, moving away to continue his stock take. Glasson wasn't finished grumbling. "You'd think there would be a lot more interesting things to look at in the solar system than a gaddamn farm colony! Look at em! Gawking around like they've never seen a crap pile!" He got an appreciative chortle from Marley, pausing in his shelving to grin at Glasson. "Dumb ass tourists!" Outside, all of the tourists had exited the coach and were moving off in a guided group towards the centre of the farming colony, where their tour was to begin. All except one small boy, who stayed behind, hands thrust into his jean pockets, looking lost and alone. Glasson pointed. "What's he waiting for? A written invitation? Ha!" "Glasson, don't be so rude!" Scolded Gludrey Bennerson, having pushed her half laden trolley over to the window. Gludrey was a plump lady, nearing her sixties. She and her husband Dom had been living in Verlinian Acres ever since they retired. Its tourist appeal was one of the reasons why they had chosen this farming colony, they could count on dozens of friendly faces to talk to every month. Always there was families coming and going, with children to laugh at the old farming ways practiced on Earth up until the 21st century, as the tour guide said. But this time there was only one child. And he appeared to be all alone... "Dom! There's a boy out there, I think he's lost..." Gludrey said. "No hon, he's just waiting for his parents I reckon. He might not want to go on the tour." Dom called back from the check out, knowing his wife's soft spot for young boys. One only had to stray ten feet from his parents and Gludrey would think he was lost. But this time Gludrey was serious. "Look after this for me, Marley, I won't be a moment." Gludrey handed the shop hand her trolley and was out of the door before Dom could stop her. The boy looked over at the lady coming towards him, a small smile coming to his face. Gludrey bent over to smile back at him. "Hello dear! What are you doing all alone?" She asked as warmly as she could. The boy beamed. "Hi, I'm Kerbie! I came on the bus." He said, wriggling up and down in an excited way. Gludrey beamed herself. "That sounds fun! Where's your Mummy and Daddy? Did they go on the tour?" Kerbie shook his head. "No, they're not here any more." He replied, not loosing an inch of smile. Gludrey frowned a little. "Any more? Where did they go?" "They dieded." Gludrey's smile shrank, "So you're here by yourself?" Kerbie nodded. He looked at Dom as he came over, and waved. Dom gave the kid a wink, and patted his wife's arm. She looked at him earnestly. "Dom, this is Kerbie. He came on the bus by himself, and he is all alone." Gludrey emphasised to her husband, noticing a growing crowd outside of the foodway, the town Sheriff among them. Dom frowned, already knowing what was coming. He looked at the kid, who nodded sincerely, scuffing his feet, almost trying to look more pathetic. His face and clothes were grubby, and looked like neither of them had been washed for more than a week. He looked over at the foodway to see Sheriff Parnman strolling over, and breathed a silent sigh of relief. The Sheriff would know what to do. Kerbie looked up at the third adult, continuing to smile widely. "Wow are you a cop?!" He asked, noticing the shiny insignia on the breast of his uniform. Sheriff Parnman tipped his hat, gave the couple a smile, and knelt down to address the lad. "Sure am son. Names' Sheriff Parnman, the main honcho of these parts. I gotta ask you a few questions. Are your parents around anywhere?" He said gruffly, making the kid laugh. "No, sir Sheriff sir!" Kerbie chittered. "How old are you?" "Five, nearly six in 2 months!" "You came here all by yourself? Who paid for your ticket?" Parnman asked, keeping up the gruff voice to keep the boy smiling. "Yep, I paid with money my Uncle gave me. See?" Kerbie pulled out a few crumbled fifty cred-dollar notes, and the stub of the legally purchased ticket. Parnman took the stub. TRANS-STEL TOURS it read, DEPARTING LAROS KOL COLONY 12:30 PM ... The rest was gone. Laros Kol Colony, that was a Sol colony. Man, this kid was far from home! "Kerbie, I need to know, where are your parents?" "They're deaded." Kerbie said, not losing an inch of smile. Chief Parnman rose, troubled. He hid it well, giving the kid a cocked finger in the form of an imaginary pistol to blow away a bad guy, and Kerbie supplied the sound effect. Poor kid probably didn't understand what was going on. He had no choice. He lifted his radio from his belt and paged the station. "Look, I'm going to have to make a few calls, Child Services, Trans-Stel Tours management, and your home colony to name a few. And I'm going to have to take you with me to the Station, Kerbie." Suddenly alarm spread across Kerbie's face, killing his smile instantly. He stepped back a step towards the coach. "No! Don't take me away! Not away!!" He cried in fear, the intensity of his terror shocking Dom and Gludrey. Sheriff Parnman looked closely at Kerbie, it seemed the boy knew well the threat of being taken away. Perhaps someone had tried that back at the Laros Kol Colony when his parents died... "Sheriff, couldn't he stay with us?" Gludrey spoke up, moving to take the frightened boy into her arms, her maternal instinct aroused by his terror. Kerbie gratefully clung to her, she could feel him shaking against her breast. "I mean," She continued, "It will take some time for any word to get back from Child Services. A police station is no place for a young boy! Please, he can stay with us until arrangements are made, we will look after him." Dom sighed, and nodded, "I have to agree, the lad's scared stiff! Not to mention dirty and probably half starved. We won't let him out of our sight." Sheriff Parnman holstered his radio. The Bennersons had a point. They were 15 light years from the Sol system, the shortest possible flight time would be a minimum of five days. The station was no place for a young boy, especially a scared one. He nodded to Gludrey. "Okay. Kerbie, its okay son. You can stay with these nice people if you like, they have a big house and even an old style barn! You like barns, eh?" Kerbie nodded, but still fear remained in his eyes. All trust of him was gone, Parnman realised. Something must have happened back at Laros Kol Colony, perhaps something bad. Gludrey smiled her thanks to the Sheriff and began walking away, telling Kerbie all about the fun stuff they had back at their house, trying to ease his fear. Sheriff Parnman patted Dom's shoulder. "I'll give you a call when I contact Child Services. Oh, and don't forget about your groceries!" Dom smiled, and made back for the foodway. Emery waved him from the doorway. "Don't worry Dom, I'll put it on your tab. The boy's will bring it to your truck." Emery called out, then ducked inside to round up his delivery boys. Dom nodded his thanks, he would have enough on his plate to deal with shopping as well today. He found Kerbie sitting in the back seat of their dusty old Daihotai truck, a smaller version of the commercial tractor, but with more cabin space. His smile had returned, and Dom found himself feeling relieved. He felt sorry for the boy. He opened the cargo housing as the local teenagers arrived with his groceries, three boys on the verge of adulthood, each sporting cheeky grins. The oldest of the three, Alphin, plonked his bundle carelessly inside, taking a good look at the young passenger as he did. "Ooh! Look what you found at the pound! I hope you got him neutered!" Alphin sneered loud enough to get the boy's attention. Kerbie stuck his tongue out at him and Dom offered him a scolding glare. "Just do your job and move along, Alphin. No need to upset the lad, he's just passing through." A few of the boys found this hilarious for some reason and cracked up, but Alphin continued to stare at Kerbie. "Oh he is is he?" Dom closed the cargo housing loudly, giving the boys a parting glare before climbing inside his truck. One of the teenager's gave the truck the index finger and sniggered. "I don't believe that kid made his payment!" Rymer sneered. Alphin grinned. "No, that he didn't. But he's going to." Alphin shoved his cronies back, "Come on, our beers are waiting!" Behind them, the sun set against the background of the coach, casting it in silhouette. The foodway locals finalised their purchases and began to leave the store, leaving Emery to potter around by himself. Since there were tourists in town he kept the foodway open, being the only store in Verlinian Acres, just in case. Emery moved into the office nook behind the counter, bringing out his laptop to process the day's takings while sipping a beer. "Here we are, Kerbie! Home sweet home." Gludrey smiled. Kerbie climbed into the cabin and stared, gaping in glee. Their house was a standard two story colony set up, but in Kerbie's eyes it was a mansion. Just down a windy path was an old wooden barn the same size as the house, big, red and inviting. "Wow! Is that a barn?! Cool!" Kerbie exclaimed. Gludrey laughed, "Yes, you could say that! Our barn is one of the attractions on the tours that come here regularly, I guess that real barns must be pretty rare this far from Earth. It's made of real wood as well!" Dom smiled at the boy's glee. It was pretty catchy. "We keep hay in there to make it more authentic, and for the cows to eat. Have you seen a cow before?" Kerbie shook his head, still staring as the truck rumbled to a stop. Gludrey and Dom shared a smile as they hopped out, Kerbie racing ahead of them up the steps, jumping three at a time. "Wow! Your house is wooden! It must be really expensive!" Kerbie noticed, knocking on the boards. Dom smiled, opening the door for them. "Well, yes and no. We got it cheaper than most. Come on Kerbie, we'll show you your room." Inside the house was more modern with sensor controlled lighting, atmospheric control, and vid monitors in almost every room. Kerbie was fascinated! Dom and Gludrey stood in the hall as he ran from room to room, looking at everything in them. They joined him in the lounge area, he had discovered the reclining lounge and was raising and lowering himself at the push of a button. He left himself in a head down position and slid to the floor. "That was fun!" He announced, getting to his feet before Gludrey could help him. He spotted some photo frames on a nearby shelf, and his eyes widened. He picked up the closest, in it was the nice lady holding a kid. The kid was laughing, the lady must have said something funny. "Who is this?" Kerbie asked. Gludrey's smile was suddenly gone, and her eyes were watering. Dom quickly knelt by the boy and took the photo frame. "Ah... this is... was our son, David. About the same age as you here... he's even got your colour hair..." Dom said, braving a smile. Kerbie's smile faded. "Where is he now?" "He's gone away. For a long time." Dom said. "That means deaded." Kerbie said, a strange hardness entering his voice, "Was he bad?" "No, no..." Dom said, trying to think of a way to change the subject, "Hey, I bet you're hungry! How about we have some dinner!" He stood up, putting an arm around his wife to give her a reassuring squeeze. "Yeah, you have pizza?!" Kerbie asked. "I'm sure we can make some if you like." Gludrey said, patting Kerbie's head, silently thanking Dom for his support. "Yea!!" Kerbie yelled, to which Gludrey laughed. It had been a long time since a child's laughter had rang in her house. Now it seemed it would once again be a part of their lives. At least, that's what Gludrey hoped. With some tips from Kerbie, their pizza dinner was prepared. Kerbie ate more than half of it, grinning all the while. He nattered to them afterwards, talking about the ride on the bus, how bumpy it was, general kid stuff. Dom sat and kept the conversation going while Gludrey prepared a bed for him upstairs. Kerbie pushed his empty plate forward. "Do you have any chocky?" He asked. Dom laughed. "No, I'm sorry we're all out of 'chocky'." "Could I go get some from the store?" Kerbie asked next. Dom smiled, but shook his head. "It's dark now, Kerbie. We can't let you go at night. Tomorrow we'll go down and you can have some then, how about that?" Kerbie's smile faded a little, "Could I go in the barn to play then?" Dom smiled, "Yes, that you can do." "Yea!" Kerbie cried, and raced from the table. He left the house at full speed, clearing the steps in a single leap, and went running down the path that led to the barn. In the foodway, Emery had finished his bookwork and was nosing through his customer file when the ceiling exploded. He instinctively dropped to the floor, it sounded as if a stick of dynamite had been thrown onto the roof. The sound of clanging metal struts echoed around the empty shop, followed by the crash of at least one aisle, the contents showering across the floor. Then silence. No shouts, no sound of a retreating vehicle. Emery slowly stood up, having no weapon to reach for. The damage was immense, there was a hole in the ceiling large enough for a man to climb through, the light fixture was dangling by a single cord and waving as if in the breeze. An aisle had fallen, but only one. There was no fire, no smoke as one would expect from an explosive. No smell. Just a huge hole. Emery ran to it and looked up, to find himself looking at the starry night sky! Emery looked down at the floor, all around him was candy bars of all kinds, the contents of the single shelf that had fallen. But only single bars, the three full boxes stacked at the rear of the shelf were gone. He knelt down, picking up a chocolate bar, to find it covered in a clear goo. "What the hell is going on...?" He whispered. * "Good morning, dear!" Greeted Gludrey as she entered the food area, smiling brighter than he'd seen her in a long time. Dom smiled back, rising to kiss her hello. "You're in good spirits! Slept well no doubt." He said. Gludrey smiled, they both knew the reason for her happiness. "Where's Kerbie?" Gludrey asked, pouring herself a cup of tea from the brewer. "In the barn. He barely ate any breakfast, half a slice of toast, then he was out! The kid loves the barn." Dom said, turning the paper over to read the scores of a football game in another colony. Gludrey shook her head. "I'll take him a sausage, a growing boy needs breakfast!" Gludrey said, wrapping her gown around herself. She took a couple on a plate and left the house, padding down to the barn on bare feet. The barn's double doors were open, out in the fenced paddock their five cows grazed on the long grass. "Kerbie! I brought you some sausages!" Gludrey announced as she entered the barn. Kerbie was sitting on some bales of hay, pretty high up, smiling wide. "Oh... thanks Mrs Bennerson..." He said, seeing the sausages, and jumped down onto a pile of hay to take the plate. Gludrey smiled, such a good boy, she thought, eating the rest of his breakfast! He put the plate as high as he could onto the hay and started to climb up again, "Can I play some longer?" "Yes, for a bit. We're going into town today to get some chocky, remember?" Gludrey reminded. Kerbie laughed. "Oh yeah! I member now." Gludrey left him to his climbing, shaking her head in silent laughter. He really did love the barn! As she left she didn't see the empty chocolate wrappers half concealed in the hay by the door. Half an hour later the Bennersons' truck rumbled into town, parking opposite the store. Dom frowned. "What's that yellow ribbon doing across the door?" Gludrey asked, getting out first. Kerbie stopped by them, holding Gludrey's hand. "It's a crime scene ribbon." Dom said, fingering it, the words CRIME SCENE DO NOT ENTER was printed on it in black lettering, "There's a mess inside! Some one broke in!" "Who would brake into Emery's shop for goodness' sake!" Gludrey exclaimed, "And where's Emery?" At that moment Emery was standing outside of the Bennersons' barn. He had fistful's of chocolate bars in his hands, having picked up one every few meters on the trail that led to the barn. A trail that went through several fields, including the cow field, from the back of his foodway. "Clever bastard, but not clever enough!!" He yelled loudly. He was fuming, beyond caring who heard him. After the explosion, he'd called the Sheriff's station, only to be put on the answering machine. That wasn't odd. In a small town of barely 50 people the Sheriff didn't need to be on call 24 hours a day. If he had gotten through he probably wouldn't have thought to check the outside of the foodway, and he probably wouldn't have found the first chocolate bar. Then he wouldn't have been able to follow them. Then he wouldn't have discovered that the culprit was at the Bennersons' property. Who would steal chocolate, he'd asked himself. A kid. Who was staying at the Bennersons'? A kid. He didn't know how the little bastard had done it, he was so mad he didn't care. "I know you're in here!" He called into the barn. He dropped the now mashed bars to the ground and strode in. He glanced around, and spied the empty bars in the straw, hidden very badly. Without much effort. Just how a kid would hide something. Emery gritted his teeth and ran to the lowest bale of hay, "Where are you, you little shit! I'm going to beat every last bar out of you!!" He paused, hearing a rustle in the taller bales above him. A long rustle. Emery grinned. "There you are!" He scrambled towards the next bale, hauling himself towards the rustling section of hay. Stupid kid! Giving himself away. He was probably soiling his pants. Well, he shouldn't have broken into his shop then! The rustling section fell silent just as he reached it. "Come out of there, don't make me drag you out!" Silence. "Okay then, have it your way!" Emery thrust his arm deep into the bale. His grin disappeared as something grabbed his arm... Only the cows outside heard his scream. Despite the initial disappointment, Kerbie and the Bennersons had a nice day in town, going through all the touristy shops. Dom and Gludrey enjoyed themselves immensely, huge grins lot leaving their faces the entire day. They made back for their Daihotai truck in the evening, giving the ribboned foodway door another glance. "Don't worry, Emery's probably at the station." Dom said, to them as they rumbled away from the shop. Gludrey nodded, hoping that was true. She'd never known Emery to have his foodway closed for so long. Alphin stared at the truck as it bounced onto the exit road, dropping his empty beer can onto the ground. He punched Rymer in the shoulder and was promptly handed a fresh can. "Hey Alphin, they're leaving man! Shouldn't we go after them?! That kid hasn't made his payment yet!" Rymer exclaimed, holding the six pack that was rapidly shrinking. Alphin emptied the can and dropped it. "There's no rush. That coach isn't leaving 'til tomorrow evening. Plenty of time." Rymer's brother Abbane folded his arms in frustration. "Well, when then?" Alphin just grinned. "A kid's got to go out and play doesn't he?" Was all he said. Rymer and Abbane exchanged a look, and got the idea. Grins spread across their faces. "Yeah, that's right! Ha! That jerkoff's gonna get the surprise of his life!!!" The three teenagers decided to celebrate with another beer, moving off across the courtyard, drawing annoyed stares from the tourists still in the area. They moved to the edge of town, where they could see the lights from the Bennersons property, and sat down to wait. Kerbie stood outside the Bennerson barn, smiling up into the night sky. He held his arms out, feeling the breeze brush against him. At last he was happy, it felt like home here! The lady and man were so nice, they were fun. Everyone was nice here. Here could be home for him. They even let him play longer tonight! He laughed, then ran out into the fields, running though the long grass. The cool fronds tickled his bare knees, making him laugh louder. He came out onto the road that led to town, and there he stopped. He could see the lights of town, some of the shops were still open. He looked back at the big house, knowing the lady and man would expect him inside soon. But still, he wouldn't be in town long. He'd just go down there for a little bit and then be right back. "They are nice, they won't be mad at me." He said aloud, and began running, laughing. Not far behind him, the long grass fronds were flattened as something surged behind him, following him. Kerbie stood at the edge of town, breathing fast from his run. Everything was quiet, everyone must be in bed he thought. He made a 'shh' sign over his mouth to no one in particular and began into town. "Hey! Kid! Where'd you think you're going?" Came a loud voice. Kerbie didn't jump. He turned to the buildings to see three older kids standing there, laughing to each other. One wasn't laughing though, one was grinning, but grinning nasty. They began towards him. Alphin stopped a metre from the kid, Rymer and Abbane stopped on either side of him, beginning to grin now as well. Alphin stared at Kerbie, and Kerbie stared right back. "You're new here. You don't know the rules yet, so I have to tell you. The rule is you have to pay to stay here. The price is quite high." Alphin snarled, bringing out his most prized possession, a 7 inch combat knife his father had given him on his 17th birthday. He'd christened it on the family dog an hour later. It was a very good knife. Kerbie didn't even blink. "How much money have you got?" Alphin grated. "A hundred bucks!" Kerbie snarled back. Rymer and Abbane cracked up at that. To prove the point the kid reached into his jeans and pulled out some crumpled notes, then stretched them out to show they were indeed fifty cred-dollar notes. Rymer and Abbane promptly stopped laughing. "Holy shit!" Rymer exclaimed, truly stunned. Alphin blinked. "That'll do nicely, kid. Give it." He snarled, trying not to look surprised himself. Kerbie gave him the middle finger, "Eat shit and die!" That did it for Alphin. He lunged with the knife, but Kerbie was expecting it and dodged past Rymer, racing for the buildings. "Get back here you little bastard! I'm gonna bleed you dry!" Alphin roared. Kagel Howarth, the town groundskeeper, looked up from his paper, hearing all manner of din coming from outside. He threw the paper down to charge out of the door, seeing Emery's delivery boys chase a young kid into the neighbouring buildings, shouting and carrying on. "Hey, keep it quiet or I'll ring the Sheriff! No good larrikins!" They passed out of his view, ducking down the side of a tourist shop. Kagel Howarth snorted, scratching his chest. He moved back inside, forgetting his threat to call the Sheriff, and returned to his paper. Alphin chased the little brat down the side of the Verlinian Acres gift shop, growing madder by the second. The little shit was actually laughing at him!! Ooh, he was going to PAY!!! Suddenly the kid began slowing down, reaching a dead end. A locked gate blocked his path, and two story buildings rose on either side. No escape! Alphin stopped, leaving the kid a space to panic and start crying in fear, like all the others. He could hear Rymer and Abbane snorting laughter behind him. 100 cred-dollars would buy a shit load of beer! "You're in the shit now, kid." Alphin snarled, beginning forward. Kerbie only grinned. "Aggy doesn't like you." He said. The fence behind him rattled, Alphin looked up and dropped his knife. Something big and black struck him in the chest, knocking Rymer and Abbane behind to the ground. Rymer sat up, feeling something thick and warm hit his chest. He put his hand to it and brought it up to his face, a slab of quivering muscle, twitching nerves still active. Alphin seemed to be convulsing, but there was something on his chest, dark as the night... "You're deaded!" Kerbie spat, and Abbane screamed. Inside his unit, Kagel Howarth rolled his eyes, throwing his paper down again. Stupid kids! What the hell were they playing at now?! He'd give them a piece of his mind if they didn't bloody shut up! He got to his feet, throwing open the door, but as he did the scream abruptly silenced. He stood there a moment, waiting with a hand on his hip, waiting for an excuse to go out and kick their asses. But no more sound came. "About bloody time." He grumbled, and closed the door. He wasn't interrupted again. * "Ug... uk..." Groaned Deputy Croman as he emptied his stomach into the dust. Sheriff Parnman stood over him, staring at the remains of Emery's delivery boys. He only knew that from recognising their Reebok shoes. "I bet you're glad you didn't have a big breakfast." Parnman said, then stepped past him, "Darles could you give the Deputy a hanky or something? And where the hell is forensics?" "Er, Casey is on his way. He saw the Arsan Vipers beat the crap outa the Cougars in yesterday's game, you know." Officer Selin said, kneeling by the remains of Alphin. "Yeah, you've mentioned that about eight times already. Is he taking the scenic route back or what? Call him and tell him to get his ass here!" Sheriff Parnman snapped. "Sorry Sheriff... it's not like he's in any big demand here or nothing, if it weren't for the regulations he probably wouldn't be here at all." Officer Selin pointed out. "Well, demand just skyrocketed as of sometime early this morning. Call him, damn it!" Officer Selin rose and commenced communications. Parnman shook his head. Never had he seen an attack such as this before. And he'd been in Earth's Sol police force. The only possible murder weapon at the scene was a combat knife with no evident blood on it. And that seemed to have been the possession of the teenage boys. The kids weren't just killed, they were dismembered... "Alright, clear the scene. We can't do anything until Casey gets here. Croman, get the tape up, can you handle that?" Parnman directed to his Deputy, who was standing now. "Yeah... just give me a little room." Thankfully, the tours had moved on from the gift shops and were touring the crops and processing centres so Parnman's little police force, if it could be called that, had no hysterical people to deal with. Yet. Rymer and Abbane's mother had yet to be contacted. She was visiting her sister in some other colony, so thankfully that too was delayed. "Sheriff," Officer Darles interrupted his thoughts, with groundskeeper Kagel Howarth standing beside him. "Apparently, Kagel saw the deceased on the night they... died. Just a few minutes before, actually." Sheriff Parnman stiffened. "Yes?" "And Sheriff? He saw the little kid staying at Dom Bennserson's with them." * Gludrey and Kerbie looked over at the loudly ringing vidphone, both of their hands white from baking flour. Kerbie pinched a bit of dough to eat as Gludrey answered the phone. "Yes, this is Gludrey Bennerson?" She answered nicely, smiling pleasantly. The smile soon dropped from her face. * Less than ten minutes later, both Dom and Gludrey were in the Verlinian Acres police station, being comforted by Officers Selin and Darles as Kerbie sat in the main office with Sheriff Parnman, Deputy Croman and 'director of forensics' Casey who had arrived just in time. The 'director' leant against a table, listening with an almost bored expression on his face. Not once in the 4 years he'd been there had they seen him look any different so looking bored was perfectly natural for Casey. Kerbie sat on the chair behind Parnman's desk, wearing his hat, looking very small and scared. Parnman remembered his initial fright, and could see the same distrust in his eyes. But he couldn't do anything about that now, he had some questions to ask. "Kerbie, this is very important. You have to think hard, and say the truth. No lies now, no pretend now. Okay?" Kerbie nodded, but he looked strangely vacant. He looked like he was going to excrete gold bricks. Parnman continued. "Last night, did you come into town?" "Yes, I went for a run." Kerbie said. "And when you came here, did you see anyone?" Parnman asked. Kerbie looked at him. His eyes were wide, "There were these big kids, and they wanted my money! They swore bad words." "Sounds like Alphin alright." Deputy Croman said. Parnman thumped his knee behind the table to quieten him. "Yes, you were running with them. Where?" "They chased me, but I was quick! I escapeded and ran home." Kerbie said. Those wide eyes. Parnman nodded. Casey moved from the desk to stand beside Parnman, folding his arms. "You escaped?" Casey asked, making Parnman and Croman glance at him. It was the first time he ever joined in an interrogation. Kerbie nodded. "Could I have a look at your clothes?" Casey asked next. He smiled at Kerbie and patted his leg like he was calling a dog. Croman snorted unprofessionally. Kerbie got up though, and let Casey look him over. He was particularly interested in his pants. "His jeans are pretty dusty... could have come from anywhere in town. I can't find any splotches of blood. Nothing to pin him at the scene." Casey said, standing up. "Kerbie... did you see anyone else in town with you that night? A strange man?" Casey asked. "No." Kerbie said. Casey chewed on his lip thoughtfully. "Do you know why you're here?" "Somefing happen?" "Yes." Casey nodded. "The boys were bad." Kerbie announced, "I ran home..." His lower lip began trembling, as tears spilled down his cheeks, "I don't like it in here! You're scaring me!" "Shit, you made the kid cry!" Croman exclaimed. Casey shrugged. Sheriff Parnman shook his head. Apart from Kagel, this kid was the last person to see the boys alive. Kagel saw them chase him past the shops. Beyond that, only the kid knew what went on. Casey nodded him over, then whispered into his ear. "The kid saw nothing. Think about it, no kid could see that and not panic. Cry, scream, whatever. This kid went home, ate desert and went to bed, for Christsakes! If we are enough to scare him, how do you think he'd be like witnessing a triple murder?" Parnman glanced back at Kerbie, looking fearfully at Croman who was trying to make him smile by pulling faces. "Damn it, the kid was there! He might still have been in town when it happened!" Parnman hissed, "Kagel stated that he heard the scream about a minute after the boys disappeared behind the shops. How far out of town can you get in a minute's time?" Casey unfolded his arms, "That's not enough to hold anyone, especially a 6 year old kid. We have nothing to pin him to the scene, no footprints in the vicinity of the attack, no blood splatter, nothing." '"Aggy!" cried Kerbie loudly. Sheriff Parnman waved his arm. "Let him out, go on." He said, then put his head in his hands. Quite a headache was developing in his skull. The door was opened and Kerbie gladly ran out into Gludrey's waiting arms. Deputy Croman frowned, "Who's Aggy?" "Probably his teddy." Casey suggested, lighting a much-needed cigarette. Parnman watched the Bennerson truck drive away from the station, a very strong coffee in his hand. Emery's shop had been vandalised, and Emery himself had gone walkabouts. He hadn't been able to reach Laros Kol colony for some reason, and Child Services had put him on hold each time he called. Each time they'd asked for his details to get back to him. And each time they hadn't gotten back. That was government departments for you. Trans-Stel tours hadn't been a wealth of information either. All they'd been able to give him was confirmation that Kerbie had paid in cash, and had boarded the coach. With each call he made he was reminded why he had chosen to be a Sheriff in a remote and insignificant outer Sol colony. To escape the craziness of the Company and other corporations of Earth, of modern human society. But it seems he hadn't come far enough, and the craziness extended even out here. "Sheriff, I'd like to make a few polyfoam casts of the 'injuries' of the deceased. We might be lucky and get a neat cast of the murder weapon." Casey suggested. Parnman made a snort that Croman would have been proud to call his own. "Why don't you do that, I mean, as the forensics guy, that might be an idea? Hmm?" The sarcasm was wasted on Casey. He nodded, and pressed his head. It felt like his brain was throbbing. Croman looked up from his desk. "Reckon you need an aspirin!" He grinned, chewing a pencil. Parnman pulled his Sheriff's hat on and strode from the office. "I'm gonna check out the crime scene again, there's got to be something we've overlooked." Deputy Croman shrugged, and continued to chew his pencil. * Dom Bennerson sat with Kerbie at the kitchen table, watching him stare at his plate of cookies. Poor kid had been scared senseless by the interrogation Sheriff Parnman gave him. He had seen Kerbie when he got home last night, a bit puffed from his run, but that was it. If he had witnessed people being killed he wouldn't have been able to eat the quadruple sundae Gludrey had made for him! He didn't tell them about the boys chasing him, but young kids don't think to tell adults everything. He reached over to pat his hand. "It's okay, Kerbie. You're all right now. No ones mad at you." Dom comforted him. Kerbie looked up, and smiled. "Yeah?" "Yeah." Dom smiled back. Kerbie brightened, looking more like the happy kid he was used to. "Mr Bennerson? There's something I want to tell you now." Kerbie said, smiling still. Dom raised his eyebrows in inquiry. "I have a friend!" Kerbie said, sitting up excitedly, "He's been living in the barn!" Dom laughed heartily, clapping his hands. "You don't say! Is that why you like the barn so much, your little 'friend' lives there eh?" Kerbie nodded his head vigorously, "I had to wait to tell you, most people go funny when I tell them about Aggy." "Aggy is his name? Well, why don't you show me 'Aggy'!" Dom said, going along with the game. Kerbie leapt off of the chair, nearly screeching in glee. "Maybe he's hungry? I should bring him some 'food'." Dom pointed at the fridge, and walked to it. Kerbie nodded. "Yeah, Aggy likes meat!" Dom chuckled, and chose a nice steak from the freezer, "Alright then! Whoo, it's cold!" Dom followed Kerbie out of the house, juggling the nicely frozen piece of steak. He tried to be careful with it; it was tonight's dinner. He followed Kerbie to the barn doors and stood there, smiling at him, watching Kerbie climb up onto the mound of hay. Kerbie grinned so wide it looked like the top of his head was about to fall off at any moment. He looked at the taller stack of straw. "Aggy? You can come out! It's okay, Dom is a nice man. Nice. He's not bad like the others! See? He brought you some meat, its cold though." Dom kept smiling until the stack of hay bales began to move. Then his smile took a permanent vacation. Kerbie wriggled in excitement as a great dark cranium thrust it's way out of the hay, elongated and ridged, with a shiny forehead and glistening metallic teeth. It was over a metre long. Kerbie clapped his hands. "Aggy!" He cheered. The alien shook the rest of the hay from itself, toppling the bales above it to the floor, freeing its tail to wave almost delicately in the air. It looked at Kerbie, its mouth strangely free from drool. Kerbie squealed, and held his arms out. Aggy bounded down to land beside Kerbie, taking great care not to knock the child down as it did so. Kerbie then pressed himself firmly against the creature's mid section, as he had to Gludrey often enough. The alien not only allowed this, it actually seemed to embrace him back, crouching to hold its arms over his back. Dom felt the ground jump up and smack into his backside. Here was the creature, fabled to have wreaked havoc on Archeron a year ago, which the Company still tried to deny any knowledge of. Enough stories had gotten out to create a myth, and here, right in front of him, was the proof. Kerbie patted the alien's cranium, as you would a kitten, stroking the smooth forehead lovingly. "He was a present from my Mummy. Daddy said she was impregnenated, but he was wrong! He tried to take Aggy away when he was just born! Mummy hid him in her top so I could have him. I fed him and kept him warm, and he loved me. He was real little, but he grew real big! And Daddy was bad. He tried to hurt Aggy. So Aggy made him deaded. All bad people get deaded! But you're not bad, you're nice!" Kerbie explained, still fondling the xenomorph. Kerbie grinned, and the alien pressed its cranium against the boy's chest, nudging him ever so lightly. "He likes to be close to me! He always has, ever since he was little." Kerbie said, "Look, watch!" Kerbie leapt down to the barn floor, and grabbed a weathered ball from the hay. He showed the alien the ball. The alien immediately dropped into a crouch, mouth open wide. Kerbie threw the ball, a bad throw, it nearly went straight up, but the alien lunged forward to snatch the ball out of the air. Kerbie squealed in glee. "No, Aggy! Not with your mouth! Yucky dribbles!" The alien flicked its head, releasing the ball in a small arc towards the boy. Kerbie caught it, and wiped the dribble from it, "With your hands, Aggy! Hands!" The xenomorph brought it's claws forward, as if it had understood the word, and caught the next ball with both 'hands', like a cat grabbing at a flying bird. Kerbie yelled in glee, making a fuss of the correct catching method. The alien reacted, swinging its head back and forth, almost doing a little weaving dance. "He is happy when he does that!" Kerbie explained. The warmth spreading across his butt seemed to bring Dom out of his shock, he quickly stood, up straw sticking to his urine covered behind. He held out the meat, trying his best not to shake. "Here... Aggy... got something for you..." He said, tears of fright belying his calm appearance. The alien reacted to him as well. But with a deep hiss, and slowly baring teeth. Can it sense my fear, please God I hope it doesn't... Kerbie patted the monstrosity, "No Aggy, he's nice! He's got food for you!" Aggy swivelled his head towards Dom, then in one swift, fluid movement dropped to the floor, closed the distance between them, and reared up to stare Dom in the face. Barely ten centimetres separated man and alien. Dom didn't have time to even think. "Nice." Kerbie repeated. Dom stared right at the glossy forehead, the metallic teeth below bared slowly, deliberately. A breath as thick as fog blew into his face, proving that this creature was living, despite its almost mechanical appearance. Dom had no more urine to wet his pants further, though his bladder was trying its best. Then the head lowered, the inner mouth lashing out to grab the offered cold steak with such force the palm of his hand stung. Then the alien was moving away, back to Kerbie, crunching the steak effortlessly. Crazily, he thought how Gludrey would be mad that he'd wasted their dinner. Kerbie smiled at Dom. Dom felt his bowels loosen further, threatening to fill the seat of his pants if he didn't get moving. "I... think I'd better get a bigger piece of meat..." Dom said, forcing a smile, then promptly left, trying not to run. Gludrey was currently finishing off Kerbie's uneaten cookies when Dom burst into the kitchen, tearing open the freezer lid and began rummaging through the frozen calf thighs they'd been storing. "Dom, lunch isn't til noon! Here, have a cookie if you're hungry." Gludrey said lightly. Dom offered her a forced smile, hoping she didn't notice his pee soaked pants. Or smell them. "Maybe in a little while, dear. How about you make me a cup of coffee, I won't be a sec." He grabbed the largest thigh and ducked out of the kitchen. Gludrey frowned, then made a start on the coffee, not realising she had just talked to her husband for the last time. Dom just about tore the gun rack off of the wall to get at a single shotgun and shove it through the cored centre of the leg. It was heavy, and he couldn't hold it up, but hopefully that wouldn't matter. He'd only need one shot. He left the house at full speed, staring out into the cow field to see the gutted corpses of all five cows, their blood soaking the ground red. Funny how he hadn't noticed them before... Kerbie looked at Dom standing in the barn doorway, the huge leg dangling from one hand. "Wow! Aggy, look at all that meat for you!" Kerbie exclaimed. Dom laughed crazily, obviously Kerbie hadn't noticed the cow smorgasbord Aggy had had that morning either! Aggy wasn't as impressed. He dropped into a full attack stance, the dorsal horns poking up from his back strikingly as he crouched, tail lashing hard enough to make a whip sound in the air. Dom could see the inner mouth from there. Aggy was no dope, it seemed. Kerbie scolded his alien pet, "No, Aggy!" The harshness of his words was not lost on the creature. Obediently it silenced, closing its mouth, stilling its tail. But it remained highly alerted. Dom walked forward. "Yeah, Aggy... I only want to give you a drumstick!" He grinned, the adrenalin coursing through his system giving him courage. Kerbie smiled. "Come get it, Aggy!" Dom called. Aggy did so. He approached as close as before. Dom dumped the meat and whipped out the shotgun, firing point blank range at the ribbed cranium. The alien screamed, thrashing his head downwards, with minor scrapes only. Dom's courage faded, no, he shouldn't have gone for the outside, he should have shot right down its open mouth... The alien rose, mouth agape, to send it's inner mouth slamming into Dom's forehead, penetrating nearly eight inches into the soft brain tissue. Shards of skull sprayed outwards from the impact. Dom's body dropped heavily, slapping on the ground limply, blood pulsing from the head. Kerbie stood in shock. "Dom was bad..." * Deputy Croman was jerked from his daydream by a polyfoam cast of an alien's inner mouth dropped onto his desk. Croman blinked, picking it up. It was surprisingly big; an inch tall, thick and deep, and over 9 inches long. "As you can tell, the teeth at the end came out very well." Casey said, as calmly as one would comment on a cloud in the shape of a cow. Croman sat up. "Bullshit..." "No, I'm afraid those ex Company guys weren't fibbing, the aliens exist, and we had one chowing down on our delivery boys last night." Casey said, picking up the phone, "Shall you or I call Parnman?" Deputy Croman leapt from his desk faster than he'd ever moved in his life, "Christshit! That kid is in trouble!!!" Casey shrugged, "I'll call him then." Kerbie looked up from watching his pet feed for the sixth time this morning to the sound of a vehicle racing up the dirt road to the house. He ran outside to see it screech to a halt, the driver's side door flying open. "Quick kid, get in!!!" Deputy Croman cried, grabbing the child and all but throwing him into the passenger side. Kerbie immediately began screaming, Croman throwing himself back inside as Aggy burst from the barn to land on the fence, alerted to the screams. "Screw me sideways!!!" Croman shrieked, and planted the accelerator, throwing the cruiser into u-turn. Metal screamed, but Croman didn't dare look in the rear view mirror. If he had he'd have seen the alien's talons rip right through the car's boot in an effort to grasp the vehicle. Once again facing the road, the cruiser accelerated, kicking up dust. Gludrey raced onto the porch in time to see an alien warrior charging after a police cruiser on all fours, hissing furiously. She began screaming. There was no one to hear her. * Sheriff Parnman burst into the station, having found conclusive evidence that Kerbie had been indeed at the scene of the crime. Four sets of footprints went in, but only one came out of the dead end. Small feet. Then not a minute after he learned that he received the call from Casey about the alien inner mouth casting. Now his Deputy had gone racing off to rescue the kid. Could the day get any better? "Where the hell is Croman now?" He demanded to know. Casey looked up, "He shouldn't be far now, its not far back from the Bennerson's, he's probably driving well over the speed limit..." Parnman shut the rest out, "And an alien killed Alphin and the others? So why didn't it kill Kerbie as well, he was at the scene!" "Well, it was probably full and therefore sleepy. I have no idea, why don't you ask it when it comes here to bite your head off?" Casey said in a very uncharacteristic way for him. Parnman's eyes hardened. "Break out the autoshots." Selin was half done with loading the automatic shotrifles when Croman's car screeched to a halt outside. The door flung open, and they could hear him carrying on from outside. "Sweet Mary and Jesus, the kid pissed on me!!" The wail of a child followed, which grew louder as Croman reached the door. Croman wasn't done complaining. "Man, he's pissing everywhere! God, kid, can't you hold it?!" Croman entered and dumped the crying child onto the floor. He hadn't been joking, the kid was soaking in his own wee. "He must have been pissing the whole way here!" Croman exclaimed, looking disgusted. Parnman went to Kerbie, shaking his head. "We can't leave him like that, he'll catch a cold... or something. Come on, we gotta get him a change of pants." Selin couldn't believe it, "With what, Sheriff? There isn't no K-Mart next door!" "Emery has everything in the foodway, he'll have something." Parnman was already stripping the sopping pants from the child, who had gone quiet, and nearly white in fright. "Well, go and get some!" "Ah, lets not forget Mr Xenomorph out there, I'm sure he hasn't forgotten about us." Casey said, taking himself a shot rifle. Croman volunteered, "I'll go, he ain't the only one who needs to change!" He disappeared back outside of the door. * Kagel Howarth stood outside of his unit, staring slack jawed at the alien warrior in the middle of the courtyard, crouched to the ground and rubbing its head in the dirt. It slid its head back and forth in the dirt, as if it had an itch. Kagel closed his mouth manually with a loud click. The alien swivelled to look at him, cocking its cranium as if in curiosity. Then it resumed its dirt rubbing. Kagel slowly stepped back inside, closing the door as normally as possible. Suddenly, the alien stopped, perking up. It bared its teeth, hissing, then began forward. * Croman ran into Emery's store, dashing for the clothing aisle. Emery had, bless his heart, all the ages neatly labelled. He grabbed the average size for an age 6 and dashed out again. On bursting through the station door a second time, Croman nearly got his head blown off by four shot rifles pointed straight at him. Parnman dropped his gun, seeing it was only the Deputy. He snatched the pants from him and gave them to the half naked kid. "Here son, you can wear these." Kerbie, despite his apparent shock, began putting on the pants. Croman was about to take his place with his fellow officers when he realised he'd forgotten his own pair of replacement pants. "Damn, I'll be back in a sec." He grumbled, and was out of the door before anyone could stop him. Croman slapped his head for being so stupid, stomping back to the foodway. He threw the door open and stopped dead in his tracks. Crouched on the floor, was the alien warrior from the barn. It appeared to be sniffing the prominent urine soaked footprints that he had tracked in on his first visit. It was hissing violently. Croman's bladder added its contents to Kerbie's down his leg. The alien cocked its cranium at Croman, rising quickly. It launched itself at Croman, tearing through his upper body with slashing claws, spraying the major portions of his internal organs across the room. Its momentum was not slowed, in the second bound it was clear out of the door. Parnman had gathered the shaking boy behind them, having loaded his shot rifle. Selin and Darles had taken up positions on either side of the door, waiting for Croman to return so they could lock it. "Stupid idiot is probably picking between a zip or buttons!" Darles joked, then lowered the shot rifle as a shadow darkened the pane in the door panel. "Happy now Croman, all..." Darles never got further than that, when the door flew open an alien cranium sunk itself deep into his belly. A deep, guttural scream burst from his throat, followed by a geyser of blood. He was lifted from the ground and shaken bodily, his flailing legs striking Selin as he aimed his weapon. The rapid shots went wide, slicing Darles' arm off at the elbow. The alien jerked its head, as if swallowing, its clawing arms shearing into the fleshy prize it held. Darles stopped screaming and went limp. That's when Casey dropped his gun and made a Kamikaze leap through the station window, not about to be next. Parnman grabbed Kerbie under one arm and dashed for the hall, swearing loudly at Casey's cowardice. Selin charged after the Sheriff, backwards, firing his rifle at the alien as he went. The shots struck Darles' body, which the alien still held in its jaws. The alien dropped the body suddenly, pulling back its lips in a savage hiss, and leapt for the hallway. Selin fired continuously at the approaching nightmare, but the alien was leaping crazily, from wall to wall, floor to ceiling, onward at a pace amazing to behold. Shots splashed into its exoskeleton and acid flew. The alien screamed in what could almost be called fury. "Aggy!!!" Kerbie screamed, thrashing now. The alien responded. It leapt from the wall to Selin, landing on him at full speed, shattering his ribs, the inner mouth slamming repeatedly into his head and chest. Alien and dying human skidded with the momentum across the floor, banging into the wall. Parnman reached the emergency exit just as he realised why Kerbie had called for Aggy in his previous traumatic visit to the police station. Just as he realised who Aggy was. He dropped Kerbie. The alien warrior leapt anyway. Parnman felt ribs crack under the strength of the Alien's leap, but he was merely thrown, straight through the door to slide to a stop on the dusty ground outside. He lay there gasping, feeling shards of bone stab him with every breath. Kerbie stood in the doorway, his alien protector hovering just behind, long strands of drool dropping from it's waiting jaws. "You're a bad man." Kerbie said, sniffing. "That's... Aggy... why does he... guard you...? Aliens don't... don't..." Kerbie wiped his nose with his hand, "Mummy kept him in her top for me, he came out and I looked after him... so he looks after me." Parnman wheezed, "It's... monster..." Kerbie stepped aside, allowing the alien access to its prey. "Aggy doesn't like you." Dusk settled once again on the small farming outpost of Verlinian Acres. The group of tired but satisfied tourists filed back towards the waiting coach, glad to be going home. All had contented smiles on their faces and carried various souvenirs of their visit. All except the last one, a small boy who looked grubby, bloodstained and tired. He stopped by the rear of the coach, watching his alien warrior climb back on top of the coach, to settle in between the larger bags stored there. The boy smiled and boarded the coach. The driver closed the doors behind the kid, not taking his eyes off of the road ahead to look at him. "So, how did you like Verlinian Acres?" He asked. Kerbie gave the driver a cold stare. "I hate farming towns." THE END.