“Boss!” he shouted. His voice was urgent. “You need to see this. We got some trouble on the south end with the Thrynn.”

  Azazel groaned and rubbed his face with both hands. “What now? Can’t I go a single day without something happening? Are they trying to slide into our territory? We have men posted for that sort of thing.”

  Mark shook his head with an odd look on his face. “The opposite, I’m afraid, sir.”

  Azazel raised an eyebrow at him. “I’ve given no such orders, or permission, to anyone to do anything beyond our southern borders.”

  Mark placed the chip into a slot on Azazel’s computer. “Just watch this, and you’ll understand.” A new tab opened up on the computer screen and he hit the play button.

  A bright green Thrynn appeared on the screen with a man with long brown hair and a braided beard tied to a steel chair in the background. His lip was swollen and dried blood covered his chin. Both eyes were purple and nearly swollen shut and his nose appeared to be broken. There were cuts and slashes down his arms and legs visible through his torn clothing as well. The man had clearly taken a beating. The Thrynn grinned, exposing its many sharp teeth.

  “N’thr T’Lathll,” Azazel said with a sneer. He paused the video. “That’s Mr. Tackett, isn’t it?”

  Mark leaned in for a closer look. “Yes, sir. That’s Tackett alright. Idiot.”

  Azazel nodded and hit the play button. N’thr T’Lathll turned to look back at the bound Human then back to the recording device he’d used. “Azazel Black, I believe you are misssing one of your employeesss at the moment.” He slurred his s’s as he spoke. “Do not fret, Mr. Black. I found him for you.” His grin disappeared and his eyes narrowed. “He wasss dissscovered trying to sssell TRIP in my northern territory.”

  TRIP was a hallucinogenic drug. Azazel had hired several chemists to take the purest form of an old drug and figure out how to increase its effects on the taker as well as make it more addictive. Once perfected and introduced to the public, it became one of his most lucrative ventures.

  N’thr T’Lathll shook his oblong head and snorted through his nostrils. “I thought you trained your thugsss to be more professsional than thisss, Black. I guesss I wasss wrong. Asss you can sssee, your man hasss been punissshed for his crime. A crime, I might add, that I took asss a persssonal insssult from you. Ssso, I believe you owe me asss much as thisss man. I’ll make thisss sssimple, Black. You will come to my building at midnight tonight, alone, with twenty thousssand MU’sss, if you want your man back. You will alssso agree to relinquisssh two blocksss of your sssouthern territory to me to make up for thisss insssult. Fail to do ssso, and not only will I kill thisss man, but I will take the two blocksss by forccce. Ssse you then, Black.”

  The video cut off. Azazel leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin as he processed what he’d just watched. He was angry for several reasons. Firstly, he was angry at his own man for going outside the designated area of business. You just didn’t wander into another crime boss’s territory and try to take his customers like that. It was unprofessional and just plain rude. Azazel didn’t operate like that, nor did he allow his employees to do so.

  Second, he was angry at the pure audacity of N’thr T’Lathll to send him a video chip threatening to kill one of his men and demand that Azazel relinquish part of his territory to him as a reparation. He hadn’t even had the decency to call and speak in person like a man. Granted, N’thr T’Lathll wasn’t a man, he was Thrynn and more reptile than anything, but still. Azazel would have respected an actual call and civilized conversation. This was just cowardly and disrespectful.

  “Mark,” he said, his mind made up. “I want you to get in touch with Fran, Droke, and Kazmire. Fran may be hard to track down, as he could be anywhere, but the other two are on planet, last I heard. Set up separate meetings with them for as soon as possible. I’ll give you further instructions when I get back.”

  “You can’t really be considering going alone, can you?” Mark asked with wide eyes. “Much less pay him twenty grand and two blocks of territory. We need to hit him with everything we’ve got. Just on principle.”

  Azazel raised a hand. “I’ll be fine, Mark. You forget how capable I am. If you recall, I didn’t take control of this city with an army. It was just me for the longest time.” He chuckled. “I can handle N’thr T’Lathll fine on my own. I do want you to contact our men in the southern two block area and advise them that there may be tension tonight. Send additional forces to back them up, in case the Thrynn get any stupid ideas of trying to take it by force. Tell them they have my permission to use lethal force once they’ve been attacked first. They are not to start anything, but they can certainly finish it.”

  The reluctant expression on Mark’s face told Azazel he didn’t particularly like the orders he’d been given. “Yes, Boss,” he nodded. “I’ll be honest, though. I still don’t like the idea of you going alone, but I’ll follow your orders. I think I know what sector Fran is in right now, I’ll get up with him first, then the others.” He narrowed his eyes at Azazel. “Are you going to do what I think you’re going to?”

  A broad smile stretched over Azazel’s face and he shrugged. “Possibly. It’s long past time I took control of the southern territory. I’ve let the Thrynn run wild for too long, and they need to be put in their place.”

  “Fair enough,” Mark replied. “I’ll go get on it, Boss.” He turned and exited the office, shutting the door behind him.

  Azazel checked his watch. He still had over eight hours before he was supposed to be at N’thr T’Lathll’s building. “Guess I’ll go down and see what Chef Shane has on the menu and get in a nap before heading out.”

  The street in front of N’thr T’Lathll’s building was empty except for the two Thrynn guards at the entrance. Azazel stepped out of his vehicle and buttoned the top button of his suit’s jacket as he walked up the stairs. As soon as he reached the top, a third Thrynn emerged from within the building.

  “Mr. Black, I presume,” the Thrynn said. It was a dark green female about a meter tall with black markings streaking back from the corners of her eyes.

  “Yes,” Azazel smiled. “And you are?”

  “K’reaz R’Tarkth,” she answered with a bow. “Please, follow me. N’thr T’Lathll is expecting you.”

  “Of course,” Azazel said with a slight bow of his own.

  K’reaz R’Tarkth turned from him and entered the building. She caught the door with her tail and held it open for Azazel as he caught up to her.

  “Thank you, K’reaz R’Tarkth.” He mentally noted she was much more pleasant and courteous than he’d come to expect from a Thrynn.

  She led him through a series of guarded doors and down an elevator to the building’s sub-basement. When they reached a large set of steel double doors, she produced an access card and swiped it across a security panel on the right side of the entrance. There was a loud hissss and the doors slid apart. Beyond the threshold stood N’thr T’Lathll, surrounded by a dozen armed Thrynn guards. Tackett was still tied to the steel chair behind him. The only change was the rag stuffed in his mouth to silence him. The room appeared to be a type of command center with multiple security screens and computers around the room. Each station was operated by a Thrynn. Not that that was any sort of surprise. Arth was mainly inhabited by Elowan, Humans, Thrynn, and Velox. Thrynn absolutely despised the Elowan, a plant species of large, mobile trees and they weren’t particularly fond of Humans.

  “I half expected you not to show up, Black,” N’thr T’Lathll said without a formal greeting.

  Azazel turned and bowed to K’reaz R’Tarkth before responding. “Thank you so much for your hospitality, K’reaz R’Tarkth. You’ve been more than pleasant. I do hope you will escort me out when my business here is concluded.

  K’reaz R’Tarkth bowed back to him. “It would be my pleasure, Mr. Black. I’ll be just outside the doors.” She slipped back out the doors and they shut.

  Azazel reached up with one hand, unbuttoned his jacket, and slipped his hands into his pockets as he turned to regard N’thr T’Lathll. “And a good evening to you too, N’thr T’Lathll. Am I saying that correctly? I want to address you properly.” He took a few steps closer and peered over the Thrynn’s shoulder at Tackett.

  “Your pronunccciation of my name is quite sufficccient, Black,” N’thr T’Lathll replied. “But enough of the pleasssantries. Do you have my compensssation?” He lowered his head and narrowed his eyes in an attempt to look intimidating. The dozen armed guards did the same.

  The right side of Azazel’s mouth raised in a half smile. Their attempt to rattle him hadn’t had the slightest bit of effect on him. “I want my man untied and on his feet before I answer any questions, or give you anything. I need to speak with him before we can make any sort of trade.”

  “And why isss that?” demanded N’thr T’Lathll.

  “To verify your claims, of course,” Azazel replied. “You don’t expect me to simply take your word for it, do you? Mr. Tackett will answer me honestly, I have no doubt. If everything is in order, then we will do business.”

  A long silent moment passed before N’thr T’Lathll turned his head to the nearest guard. “Untie him.” The guard did as commanded, and soon, Tackett was standing feebly next to him. “Now, asssk your quessstionsss, Black. And make it quick.”

  “Hello, Mr. Tackett,” Azazel said with a thin smile. His eyes were cold and locked onto Tackett’s.

  “Hello, Mr. Black,” Tackett croaked. “I’m sorry to have messed up your night.”

  Azazel nodded. “I appreciate the apology, Mr. Tackett. Now, I need you to be perfectly honest with me. It’s been brought to my attention you were apprehended while trying to sell TRIP on the south side. More precisely, on the Thrynn controlled south side. Is this true?”

  The man looked down at his blood-spattered shoes with shame in his eyes. “Yes, Mr. Black. It’s true.” He lifted his head to face Azazel as he continued. “I thought if I could start accumulating customers on the south side that we could eventually…”

  He never got to finish his sentence. A two-inch hole had been burned straight through his head. Tackett’s body dropped to the floor in a motionless heap, smoke drifting up from the hole in his forehead. Everyone looked from the corpse to Azazel. His right arm was raised straight out, and his hand was bent straight down at an odd angle. The hand was rigidly straight and bent so far back that the palm was flush against his forearm. In the end of his wrist, where bones should have been, was a multitude of servos and circuits…and a two-inch barrel. There was an energy weapon concealed within his augmented arm. The hand snapped back up into place and Azazel flexed his fingers.

  N’thr T’Lathll looked back and forth from the body to him aghast. “You killed your own man?”

  “He broke my rule,” Azazel answered coldly. “The unauthorized sale of product outside my borders is strictly prohibited.” He motioned to Tackett’s body. “As you can see, the consequences of breaking such a rule are quite severe. I can overlook and be lenient on a great many things, but there are no second chances when my rules are broken.

  As for the twenty thousand you demanded,” he continued, “you will receive none of it. Nor will you be given two blocks of my southern territory. As a matter of fact,” he grinned savagely, “it is now you who owe me a debt.”

  N’thr T’Lathll shook his head in disbelief. “What? You must be mad, Black. What makesss you think I owe you anything? And jussst because you killed your own man doesssn’t mean you will not be giving me what I have demanded. You are vassstly outnumbered here. What isss to stop me from jussst killing you and taking all of your territory?”

  Azazel smiled and reached back under his coat. Each guard lifted their rifles and aimed them at him. From the hidden sheath on his lower back, Azazel removed two karambits. They were black with quarter meter long, curved blades with finger-sized holes forged through the pummel. He spun the blades on his fore fingers and looked N’thr T’Lathll in the eyes. His own electric green eyes seemed to glow brighter.

  “Well, you see, N’thr T’Lathll, I found your little video to be quite insulting and unprofessional. On top of that, when you decided to keep my man for ransom instead of beating him and sending him on his way, punishment served, you ended his life. Ultimately, you cost me one of my men.” He began to slowly pace back and forth. “So, with the loss of Mr. Tackett’s life in addition to the unprofessionalism and personal insult, you owe me…” he tapped on his lower lip with one of the blades as he thought, “ten lives.”

  N’thr T’Lathll laughed hysterically. “You are crazy, Black! You mussst be to think I would kill ten of my own!”

  Azazel narrowed his eyes and grinned sadistically. “No. I don’t intend for you to do anything. I will take their lives myself.”

  In a flash he was across the room. Azazel’s karambit split one of the guards from belly to chin, his intestines spilled in a pile on the floor in front of him. Another guard’s throat opened in a spray of blood as Azazel moved with unmatched speed and precision with his blades. Try as they might, they couldn’t touch him. One of the guards managed to line his rifle up with him and fired. Azazel dodged the shot with ease and leapt into the air. He landed on the Thrynn’s back and heard a multitude of bones shatter with the impact. He sheathed one of his blades and thrust his hand down as hard as he could into the guards back. He felt the flesh and scale split apart. The Thrynn’s spine felt thick and coarse as he gripped his hand around it. In one hard tug, he ripped it from the screaming guard’s body in one long piece. It had ripped out in its entirety, including the tail section.

  It was too perfect not to take advantage. Azazel sheathed his other karambit and began to swing the spine around like a whip amidst all the gunfire. The bone may as well have been steel with his augmented strength behind it. Several of the guards went down with huge gashes in their sides, necks, and faces before the bone-whip shattered. He dropped his hand again and fired his energy weapon as he moved through the remaining guards. With only two guards and N’thr T’Lathll left, Azazel ended his assault.

  The Thrynn leader was curled up in a ball behind one of the computer stations. “Come on out N’thr T’Lathll.” Azazel said as he sheathed his second karambit. “I’m not going to kill you.”

  N’thr T’Lathll raised his head over the table with caution, then stood and stepped out into the open. He took several timid steps toward Azazel. He looked around at the bodies on the floor, the broken spine that had been used as a whip, and finally the two remaining guards who were soaked in blood. “Why have you allowed me to live? It would ssseem much easssier to kill me and then take over my area.”

  Azazel looked at him and chuckled. “Because even a pack of wild dogs needs a leader, N’thr T’Lathll. I can’t have your Thrynn running all over the place without proper leadership. No, it’s much easier to let you live and keep the status quo on your side, as far as the Thrynn leadership goes.” He looked down as he buttoned his jacket and noticed there were two holes in the lower hem of his coat. A heavy sigh of irritation escaped him. He raised his arm and shot one of the remaining guards in the head.

  A low power warning flashed across his vision. Damn, he thought. Gotta figure out a way to get more than just a few shots out of this thing. I need to look into power-cell upgrades.

  “You sssaid only ten!” shouted N’thr T’Lathll. “That isss eleven!”

  The hand snapped back into place and Azazel strolled up to N’thr T’Lathll. “It was ten before one of them messed up my coat. I can get blood out in the wash, but I can’t patch holes. I’ll have to replace this whole suit now. It’s custom made, you know. Can’t just go out and buy another jacket for it.”

  Azazel straightened his collar and looked around the room with satisfaction. “I believe our business here is done,” he said with a smile. He pointed to the body of Tackett. “Please see that Mr. Tackett’s body is delivered to my tower tonight. He is to be handled with dignity. The fool may have broken my rules, but his wife at least deserves to get his body back for her own closure.”

  N’thr T’Lathll just stared at him with his mouth open and his eyes wide. Finally, he found his voice again and said, “Y-yesss, Mr. Black. I-I will make sssure it isss taken care of.”

  “Excellent,” Azazel said and clapped N’thr T’Lathll on the shoulder. “I’ll be on my way now.” He walked toward the double doors, and they opened as he got close. K’reaz R’Tarkth was there and waiting for him. Azazel smiled at her and offered her the crook of his arm. “Shall we?” he asked. She gave him a nod and smiled as she hooked her own short arm through his.

  The first light of dawn shined through the window behind Azazel’s desk as he ended his third video conference. He had yet to go to bed. Fortunately he’d spent the money to have a personal charging station installed beneath his desk. While he handled business, he was able to hook up and recharge his power cells. Mark had a hard time pinning down the three men he needed to speak with, but he’d managed to get it done. The meetings had all gone Azazel’s way...after some haggling. A significant amount of money had been transferred from his accounts, that hurt a bit, but it would all be worth it in the end.

  He picked up a slate and sent Mark a detailed list of tasks to be completed by noon that day. With everything that needed to be done, it would be close, but it was an obtainable goal. Mark assured him that he didn’t need to worry, and everything would be in order. Satisfied, Azazel entered a number into the communication system and waited for an answer. A moment later, N’thr T’Lathll’s shocked face appeared on the screen.

  “M-Mr. Black,” he stammered. “I did not expect to hear from you ssso sssoon.”

  “Good morning,” Azazel said with a smile. “I quite expect you didn’t. N’thr T’Lathll, I need you to meet with me in my office at one this afternoon. We need to discuss a few things. Please, be on time as I have a busy night ahead of me and much planning to do.” He leaned in closer to the screen. “And please don’t make me have to send men to come get you.”