Firebird- Part Thirty-Seven



Firebird copyright (c) 2007 TA Chase

Part Thirty-Seven-

Two days later—

Rue concentrated on the delicate process of anchoring the transport to the asteroid. So far nothing had gone wrong their trip. They’d managed to escape the eagle eyes of the I.U.M. He’d gotten them to Mitcov even with all the distractions Vlatko had thrown at him.
He felt a gentle bump as contact was made. The anchoring lines attached themselves and he shut off the engines. Vlatko’s hands gripped his shoulders and rubbed.


“Good flying, love.”


He ducked his head to hide his smile. Rue thought it was cute and sweet that Vlatko called him by pet names.


“Thanks.” He stretched and stood. “I guess I should clean up before we try to contact them.”


He turned and his mouth dropped open. He’d never seen Vlatko in his ‘work’ clothes. The big man wore leather pants that molded to every inch of his lower body. Black military boots enclosed his feet. A sleeveless black tee-shirt covered that magnificent chest. The fabric flowed oddly and the light gleamed off it in a strange angle. He reached out to touch it. A cool metallic texture met his fingers. He frowned.


“What is this stuff?” He ignored the holster holding a 3/30 laser handgun.


“It’s fabric Kevlar. Strong enough to stop a bullet and a knife. Somehow, the scientists have figured out how to get it to recognize what’s attacking me because if it’s a laser, the atoms in the fabric will swell and bind to stop that as well.” Vlatko shrugged.


Rue tested the strength of the fabric by grasping the collar in both hands and trying to tear it. The fabric resisted and he grunted. “Shit. Are the pants made out of the same stuff?”


“It’s a combination of leather and Kevlar. I’m not crazy like some of the assassins. They trust the liquid body armor so much that they don’t wear any protection.” Vlatko shook his head and laughed. “I’m not that trusting.”


“Probably a good idea.” He stepped back to watch Vlatko slip a vest over the shirt. “What’s that?”


“A body vest. Just another form of protection. I have one for you when we go to meet with them face-to-face.” Vlatko held out a vest to him.


He shook his head. “I’m not going to wear that. I’m a thief, Vlatko. I don’t wear Kevlar or carry weapons.”


“You won’t have to carry any weapons. That’s what I’m here for. I’ll be the muscle.” Vlatko stopped his protest. “That’s what I’m good at, love, but I don’t want to take a chance that you might get hurt. The Mitcovians might not be very happy to see us.”


Rue thought about arguing, but there something in the expression on Vlatko’s face that told him the big man wasn’t going to listen to him. He took the vest and bit back a gasp of surprise when he realized how light weight the thing was. “Are you sure this is going to protect me?”


Vlatko sealed up his own vest and smiled at him. “It’ll stop anything short of a rocket blast. Go on. Get cleaned up and changed. Then we’ll see about contacting them.”


He frowned. “Now that we’re here, I’m not sure how to go about getting in touch with the right people.”


“Don’t worry. I’ll get us in. Just think about what you’re going to say to convince them to hand over one of their people for the stone.” Vlatko pushed him towards the living quarters, slapping his ass as he went by.

“Shit.” Rue realized Vlatko was right. He’d have to do some smooth talking to make the Mitcovians willing to trade with him. He started running reasons through his mind.

3 Responses “Firebird- Part Thirty-Seven”

  1. Paige Burns says:

    Sorry, did you post an excerpt, all I see if four yummy men…

  2. T.A.Chase says:

    Yvonne,

    There are some surprises coming, but I think they’ll be from Rue not Vlatko. 🙂

  3. Yvonne says:

    Hi T.A.Hope the snow doesn’t cramp your style too much. 🙂 What other toys does Vlatko have :0 That kevlar sounds so cool. What about weapons- any surprises coming?
    Yvonne

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