Page 4 of Echoes of the Tide

Simply because Ace hadn’t seemed like a criminal, and he couldn’t get that out of his head. Answers. That’s all Maketes sought.

Agalma gave him another shake before releasing him. “Stay with the rest of us.”

Right. Stay with the rest of them. Narrowing his eyes, he looked for the first opportunity to head out and explore this city. He’d go to the meeting first, of course. He knew how important it was. But if he zipped around the back of that tall building and then darted into the murky waters that were kicked up from the filtration systems of the city, no one would be able to find him. The other People of Water wouldn’t stay looking for him for long. They didn’t like this haunted city that always seemed like a gravesite more than a home for the achromos.

Then he’d be all on his own here, and he could explore.

“Maketes!”

Right, he was falling behind.

Zipping along with the rest, he made his way to the building the achromo had noted. Ace had given them the directions, and he had to admit, it had been easy to find. What he didn’t understand was how Ace knew what the building looked like from the outside. Had the man gone out into the sea? Had he swum around the city even though the threat of Maketes’s people was always there?

It was curious for any achromo to do that. They weren’t a naturally intelligent or brave group of people, and he counted those who did go out into the sea as an altogether different kind of creature. The bravery it took to do that was far beyond the normal achromos he had seen.

Such were the reasons he respected Mira and Anya far more than the others. They didn’t stay hidden in their stone and metal homes. No, those two women had gone out into the wilds so that they could explore. That was the mark of a true warrior.

They approached the building Ace had indicated and dove beneath it. As promised, one of the floors had been peeled up in preparation for the People of Water’s arrival. Each one of those panels would eventually be replaced so his people couldn’t getback inside. But for now, they were open because the achromo were open to talking with them.

The others hesitated. They stared up at the light above them and the slight tang of fear tinged the water. How were they supposed to talk to these creatures? The People of Water mostly had translation chips, so they would understand every word the achromos said. But the achromo in this building could not understand them. Nor did they really wish to.

He was the first to emerge from the water, making sure his entire head was visible as Arges had explained made them more comfortable. Apparently, only predators stayed low with just their eyes showing. He’d replied that the achromos should know by now that the People of Water were their natural predators.

High arched walls surrounded him on all three sides, each one made of glass covered in algae. The last wall disappeared into darkness, which he could only assume led to the rest of the tower. Black bars held the glass up and cast shadows on the groups of people all huddled around cylindrical cans full of fire. The people here were grimy. They were covered in dirt and oils from their own skin. He’d seen achromos before. They were not usually like this.

One of the groups peeled off from the others. A man at the front, dirty and dusty like the rest of them, swaggered with the confidence of a leader. He was surprisingly strong. The others were lean, but this man was almost puffy with muscles. His shoulders bulged, his arms nearly split the shirt he wore. It was an impressive amount of strength. Coupled with the pale blonde hair on his head and strangely light blue eyes, he was an intimidating creature, to say the least.

Maketes was big. But this achromo? He was almost half the length that Maketes was.

The others were less impressive. Three males with bald heads, almost identical to each other. They were large as well,but not nearly as large as their leader. Strangely enough, there was a leaner male and a female with them. He didn’t let his eyes linger too long on what could very well be one of the male’s mate, and instead focused on the man who walked up to them like he had no fear of the People of Water.

“Welcome,” the male said, his arms spreading at his sides as if to show he had no weapons. “I have been informed you can understand us. Is this true?”

Maketes nodded, his gaze narrowing on the male. He watched the leader’s expression as more of his people appeared above the water beside him. There were quite a few warriors who had traveled with him. An impressive show of power.

But this male didn’t even flinch. He barely reacted to the others except to acknowledge their existence.

“Good, all of you are here, I presume? We called you here to make a deal. It’s come to my attention that the undine have been looking to get a little more… involved in the human world. You took down an entire city piece by piece, and we want some of those pieces. Beta has a few objects of my desire as well, but that will come later when you have more need of us.”

No, that wouldn’t be at all what they did. Maketes didn’t trust this achromo already.

“Why can’t you get these objects on your own?” he asked, knowing full well that no one here could understand him. “Is it because you are so much weaker than us? Or perhaps it is because your stick-like little legs can’t swim fast enough to get you there?”

A few of his people chuckled behind him. That was all it took for the male to guess that Maketes was making fun of him. The leader glared.

“I do not ask you to do this without offering my own form of payment. After all, this is a partnership I wish to continue.” He gestured behind him and the thin male strode forward.

He was greasy and smelled like something dying, but there was a weapon in his hands. Something that looked similar to Byte and Bitsy. But it couldn’t be a droid, because it didn’t have a screen for a face or eyes. He was surprised that the achromos would offer them a weapon, and even more surprised when the thin male set it right by the edge of the water.

“Go ahead,” the leader cajoled. “Take it. I want you to see what weapons we can offer you. This is a deal you won’t want to deny.”

Agalma moved first. She lifted the weapon quickly and darted back to the others, showing it to all the people. Maketes could already see how it worked. There was a slot in the front for something to be inserted, and then he’d seen Mira’s ability to fire things like that with other weapons. It could shoot. That much, he was certain.

He looked at the male again, trying to see through his thin skin to the soul beneath. Why would he offer them weapons? The People of Water had no need of achromo weapons.

The leader was watching him. He didn’t watch the other sea folk who were trying to figure out the contraption, no. He looked at Maketes as though he knew the real person he had to convince to take the deal.

“The bolts we have created are electric. They work underwater, in case you were wondering. One bolt, one weapon, and whatever you shoot will be electrified until you take the bolt out.”

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