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Calin: Regaining the Edge.

Chapter Two

After two days of wandering the savannah Calin neared the larger of the Felin settlements on the FPM colony. As he approached the village he stopped to observe its layout. It was so close to his home village that he was token aback. From the watch towers, the bramble fence, and low half sunken homes the familiar scene brought a sudden ache from the past to his heart. He'd not been to the planet of his birth and the remains of his village since the night the slaver's came thirty two years ago. His type of bio adapts had possible life spans nearing thirty decas. However the primitive lifestyle most preferred often limited that potential by a third or more.

Humanity had remade parts of itself. Bio Adapted Humanity were a valuable commodity. Various animalistic characteristics and abilities had been incorporated into the homo genotype. Bred for various functions from arts to service, pleasure to war, bio adapts were still people with the innate desire to rule themselves.

The Humanity Government tried to straddle the fence with th regards to their rights versus the value they held. Slavery was illegal but "Indentured Servitude" was allowed. Fees and cost of living were the new leash and chains that bound most tame bio adapts. But some actually earned their freedom and some escaped,.so communities formed of like kinds. However their value lured some to reclaim them or steal them outright. Others tried to stop them. The Free People Movement was one of the most prominent of these groups going so far as to deed colonies and facilities over to the free bio adapts.

Calin stilled ached from his forced exile. He'd spent the last deca and a half fighting to redeem and reclaim the freedom of slaves and 'indentured servants'. But his recent behavior had caused his captain to decide he was losing the skill and focus he needed to be successful and alive to complete his jobs. So she had forced him to come here for at least a year to regain his razor's edge. The unfairness of it still hurt. But still what hurt more was the fact she was right.

Coming closer Calin began to notice that this settlement was not as primitive as it seemed.

As he walked toward the center gate he was pleasantly surprised to see hidden SAM sites and Las batteries. The quiet hum of an electrical power grid and hard line com units that were less vulnerable to jamming also began to color his initial assessment of the small village. This place would not fall easily to a slaver raid. It was designed to hold out till reenforcements could arrive.

As Calin reached the gate a small green pulsing triangle formed on his chest. Recognizing the aiming point of a mil grade laser Calin stopped and stood very quietly. A second triangle flickered to life over his left cheek as a quartet of Felins slowly walked toward him. Stopping about five paces away they spread out to present a wider front to him and expose more of his vulnerability.

"Greetings Fellow", said the shortest member of the quartet. "You aren't from around here, are you? I mean I can say with so certainty that I know most of the folks within three days of Den. I grew up around here so that isn't a really great feat, but you I don't know. So how about some introductions before you even think about making another fatal step."

Calin slowly laid his duffel on the ground and spread his hands. "My Name is Calin son of the Calico Prince. I have a surety from Captain Illena Breslau and Chief Medic Berea of the Promise Redeemed. They sent me here to .... prepare to go back to my job."

At the name Berea one of the four Felins facing him stepped forward slightly. In a raspy damaged voice the older man said. " Berea, describe her."

"She is a little over one and a half meters tall. Berea weighs close to 60 kilos. Her fur is a caramel for the most part a lighter shading above her heart and her tail darkens to almost black at the tip. She wears her black hair short. She has a partially regrown left hand that has three fingers that are white. She is married to Illena Breslau and Thomas Twohands both humans. Oh she has two differently colored eyes. The left is light blue and the right is grey-green."

Nodding to himself the Felin turned to his fellows and agreed" That is a pretty fair description of my sister. Look at the surety Robert, it should have a veri-mark in the left upper corner. The clans sigil should show when held in front a light source."

Walking forward calmly Robert stopped just far enough from Calin to not block either of the pulsing triangles. " May I please see the surety. Be real slow about getting it. I don't really want any accidents. It is my family's week to clean the common areas. And you know how bad a shooting can be." Smiling coldly Robert held out his hand.

"It is in the top outer flap of my duffle. Please feel free to get it. I don't want any misunderstandings myself." Calin calmly replied. Calin stood quietly while the short male reached into the open pocket of his duffle. He 'd been sent here by Berea and didn't want to ruin her aims of helping him recover quickly. A serious case of laser could definitely add some time to his recovery.

Calin could easily understand the need for precautions. Full bloods weren't the only type of slavers. Bio adapts bred every type of predator that full blood humanity did. Perverts, pirates, thieves, rapists, murderers and all the others occurred in their numbers. It was true that their percentages were lower, but they did exist. Calin had even participated on a recovery raid against a mixed band of full bloods and bio adapts that had raided a small series of colonies to procure breeding stock for a cash strapped company on the rim of government space. The sight of two colony ships vac-ed to destroy evidence still haunted his sleep.

Coming back to his surroundings Calin startled him self when he realized he'd been lost in his thoughts.. He had two mil grade lasers aimed at him and he was daydreaming. Berea was right. He was dull.

Carefully looking at his hosts he noticed that the two spokesmen were standing by one another examining his surety. Evidently they did not find any problem with his credentials because as they turned back toward him the shorter one made a small gesture and both triangles blinked off.

'Welcome to Den, My name is Leonard Songmaster.", said the older Felin in his rough voice. "I'm pleased to welcome you in my families name. Berea had sent word that you were coming but I didn't know she intended to set out on the plain three days walk from here. "

"It was only two days." replied Calin . "I had good directions and probably needed the walk to clear out some issues."

"Calin, they dropped you three days out I know. Our sensors plotted the Courier and its landing point. Also the pilot beamed a message to the town elders to expect you. We told the outlying farms to let you by without any hassles. But you were here a whole day before we thinking you'd show up. "

Moving forward Leonard reached down and grabbed up Calin's duffel. "Now follow me I am under orders from Berea to extend hospitality to you. So you'll be staying with my son and me." As Leonard told Calin he began to walk away with Calin's duffel in hand. "Our home is bound to be more comfortable than the hostel. And I have a young lady who cooks for me all the time. Only costs me music lessons."

As they walked through the gates into the town Calin was surprised to see how well the residents of Den had intermingled old and new. He'd already noticed the modern assault defenses as he approached the town. But as he passed the gate and the bramble fence he recognized shield emitters hidden in the fencing. The clean odors told of a modern waste reclamation facility. The presence of children's play toys and the absence of the hordes of screaming kits told him of a educational system. Passing by traditional homes half sunken into the ground for insulation and protection from the elements, calin saw pest screens fields covering all the doors and windows.

Noticing Calin's apparent interest in his home Leonard began to speak "Den was founded five deca ago by four families who hd earned their freedom, the Feathers, Clan Drui, the Fishers, and Clan Newoak . They received a grant of land from the FPM and decided to form a mostly Felin town. Most of our population is first or second generation arrivals. The quad have been very generous about allowing people to move to Den. All that is required is either a purchase of ownership of property or homestead or half a deca of public service as police, full time militia, or valuable profession. You know like medic, engineer, or spec tech. Kits under thirty are exempt. We settle any free born with any family that has room and want. So right now we are kind of kit heavy for a town our size. I'd say about forty percent give or take of our population are underage."

"You aren't the only person we have here to recover from traumas or stress. My first wife was a functional empathic and she badgered most of the council into opening the hostel up to care for people. She was killed by a striped cobra over three decas ago but her initiative and the hostel keeps going. My son runs it now so I know you won't be missing any assistance you need."

As Leonard paused to take a breath Calin spoke up to interrupt at the chance, "I didn't know Berea had any living family. She never mentioned you to me and she has been my friend since I came aboard the Promise. I thought it was just her, Lena, Thomas, and the kits."

"I'm her half brother on our father's side, and her cousin on her mother's. It was a corporate breeding to improve desired traits . They harvested the embryos and birthed us when there was a demand. I was trained to be an entertainer and she was supposed to be a vari-use domestic. She got out before she was indentured and took to the stars. I never even knew about her until I was bought out and attacked by the new owner of my contract. The old owner smuggled me out to a FPM contact and got me off world. Berea was the ship's medical officer and her bio scan let us in on the secret . Since then I've located two brothers and ten sisters. So yeah Berea and I have family, just a very loose one on several different worlds. How about you, do you have any family?"

Shaking his head, Calin quietly replied." Not anymore. My father, after his escape, went to an outback world and went feral. He wanted to hide from anyone who was hunting him. I was the only kit who lived from their first litter. My sisters from the next two litters were not a profitable age when the slavers hit our village so they were killed. My mothers were both killed in the battle. Dad.'s ship came after the us but the slavers used a mine layer and destroyed his courier before he could get close enough to fire on them. So unless there are some siblings from his rebellion days I don't have any family."

"Hold up a minute," Leonard said excitedly. "You mean you are the son of the Calico Prince. I 've heard people brag and tell stories, but you are his son?!" Shaking his mane excitedly Leonard continued "I used to sing all his ballads I could find. He was a Hero to norms and people all over the star map."

"Yeah to me he was Dad. The one who taught me to track and to fish. And then he was the cause that our family and village died. He was too valuable for his genetics and the bounty. It's a mixed curse being his son. Its either adoration, greed, or hatred that his legacy brings when people find out my history, so please let the others assume the name is just a brag on my part. Please?

Nodding his head Leonard remained silent. He gestured for Calin to follow as he led him through Den to his home. Shortly they came to series of four domes half buried in the ground. A smell of wood smoke and roasted meat arose from the open archway into the largest dome. Two pleasant voices were signing a playful duet in the home.

Pausing at the entrance Calin looked around the home's exterior. Neat and well kept it opened feelings he thought were gone for decas. A loneliness crept in and he had to close his eyes as it tore at his control. Opening the he gaze rested on the wood pile by the dome smaller dome he realized held the kitchen and pantry. An old fashioned steel axe rested by an ancient foot driven grindstone. Seeing the old tools somehow brought the peace back to Calin. He was in the right place.