Runner

by KarlOConnor

The Humari, a once proud race, are nothing now but a divided race of nomads travelling through space in search of a new home. Herman, an elder youngling, is unlike any other Humari in existence. He does not belong to or fit in with any of the three Humari sects and now it is him against the universe as he goes in search of his loved ones.

The thought of finding a new home is one he does not yet have, if it will be one he will ever have at all. Finding loved ones is what comes first. Sure how could Herman ever settle down anywhere not knowing for sure if his loved ones are alive, not knowing for sure if they are alright or not, not knowing for sure if they are looking for him as he is looking for them. Finding peace may be too much of a long shot.

A cataclysmic event ended an already dying Humari home world. Being so far under-ground at the time of this event Herman was protected from the devastating blast while some of those he loved had been above ground. Refusing to believe that these loved ones did not find refuge Herman will search all four corners of the universe if he has to so to ensure he finds them.

In a way he feels as if he is the last of his kind and that is even if he ever felt like being a true Humari at all. Herman is different, very different; you could say he is one of a kind. Despite how he may look and the fact that he does not belong to any sect Herman is one hundred percent from the Humari home world or at least from what once was the Humari home world and for generations his family have been nothing other than Humari.

Herman is not alone in the universe; he is not alone on his journey. He has a travel companion who is in a way just as much lost and alone as Herman is though how alone can two beings really be when they have each other? Lonnie is that companion. She however is not Humari, she is Flaxian. She came to be on the Humari world long before its destruction and that world made her an orphan, more than this, she was born on the Humari home world.

Having come to each other's aid she saved him and he ensured she'd make it off the planet. Now they both find each other in a spot or two of bother. Having boarded what they thought was a supply ship it soon came clear that Herman and Lonnie had boarded a ship run by a smuggling outfit.

This ship arrived at a planet by the name of Nibaru where-by there are a few things that can be classed as note-worthy. Lonnie has been placed under lock and key, locked within the ships holding cell, a cell she is forced to share with three Humari males each of who belong to a different sect. Herman, while seated on the bridge discovers that his mother is indeed alive and not only that but she is being held prisoner on the planet's surface.

Planet Nibaru so happens to be where this particular ship is due to acquire its next shipment, it will receive supplies for the Humari home world lunar colony though such is only a cover, caffeine is an illegal substance and this particular vessel acquires mixed into healthy option bars from which the captain and crew make a healthy profit from moving them on.

The mix is ready apart from missing the illegal element. A runner is required to go fetch that illegal element and the ship's captain has volunteered Herman to be that runner, blackmailing Herman into doing the deed by threatening the lives of his mother and Lonnie.

What else can Herman do but take on what is being demanded of him. First things first, before he can even attempt to retrieve what he now needs to retrieve he has to get from a star ship in space down to the planet below and to a point close enough where can have a fighting chance of retrieving what it is he is being forced to retrieve.

Papers have been prepared for whom and what Herman is or more precisely for what Herman is expected to be. He has been given a false identity, a cover story for why he is to be on Nibaru. A criminal, a convicted thief brought as a slave to be sold or traded as a slave. The captain of the vessel Herman arrived on ensures that his contacts on the planet not only have custody of Herman but own his newly and falsified slave contract.

Transportation onto a prison ship is arranged and the prison ship takes him down to the planet. Three guards wait for his arrival though only one knows the true identity of who is being taken into custody and right away this guard would become sceptical for he was told that the incoming prisoner, the incoming 'runner' is Humari and indeed Herman is unlike any Humari that ever came before. So the true identity is not truly known, not completely anyway.

There are ten arriving prisoners arriving from the prison ship, of which Herman is the only Humari citizen. The Humari are generally large beings and Herman is not so large at all, size wise he is way below average and this is something he never thought of as being a disadvantage, if anything through his life Herman has made his own size an advantage. Sure he had always though himself to be the next step in Humari evolution and to think that way one would have to believe in oneself to at least some degree.

And Herman always has believed in himself, to pull off what is necessary he will need to keep this belief and keep it strong. The one guard in particular awaiting his arrival watched all ten chained prisoners exit the prison ship and initially had no idea who his intended runner is. Herman could be thought of as being Human if anyone in this or any surrounding galaxy could know what a Human is for the Human race is centuries away from existence and Earth is so far away that it may take many Humari generations for it to become a potential new home and many more generations for evolution to really begin.

One by one the prison guard in question moves right up to each prisoner facing them individually and intimidatingly. No words need to be said or translated. Each prisoner right away knows who not to cross if they fancy seeing their time through with their lives still fully intact. Some prisoners will be sold as slaves while others face lengthy incarceration.

Guard spends a little more time facing Herman than he does anyone else, quite likely having figured out on his own who the runner is to be. When the sun falls and raises again the guard will be looking after any and all slave trade. Guess who will be sold. Herman knew his own personal mission was never gonna be an easy one but this; this was and is something he could never have prepared for.

Yeah Herman is small or smaller than what he should be and is not of any Humari colour though his eyes are larger than any other prisoner and it can be easy to imagine that he has at least one or two traits associated with what he is.

Having come off that prison ship and standing in a line up and being silently confronted Herman felt ... guilty, he felt as if he had done wrong. He has never done a wrong thing in his life, well not to an extent where a punishment would be imposed upon him yet here he is, waiting his opportunity to do a wrong for a right reason.

Standing in that line up Herman's eyes wandered, his heart beat quickened and he felt the Nibaru heat all the more than he would if he were facing almost any other situation. And when that guard approached, a Nibaru native – a being not all so oversized though larger than any being, any prisoner brought before him on this occasion, Herman froze, his eyes focused and his heart beat picked up so much that it almost came to a complete halt.

Never mind any sort of language barrier, there are translators present if needed, but if that guard had asked anything of Herman or told him anything – Herman feared being given the horrible prison rules and restrictions – then Herman would surely cease to be, any thought of spending a night it the most awful of prisons if that is what this place he has come to be then he would fear even surviving one night.

When the next rotation comes round Herman will cease being a prisoner, he'll be sold as a slave though of course that is just a front for it will be time to go running. He cannot allow his mind to wander. Whatever comes Herman's way, he will just have to deal with it.

As Herman faces a prison guard Lonnie receives a visit of her own. From all the ship's crew that Lonnie had observed there was only one whose race she actually recognized. A Solarian and he has the captain's ear. It is clear this Solarian is a trusted member of that crew, if he says something it definitely seems to be listened to.

What Lonnie knows of the Solarians has her almost fearing them or more specifically more fearing this particular one so imagine her surprise when said Solarian pays her a pleasant, if pleasant can be a word used here, visit. Before that visit however Lonnie does spend some time with three Humari each of which represent one of the three sects.

This Solarian enters the holding cell Lorrie has been sharing with three Humari and right away all three Humari cower and take refuse in whatever corner of the Holding cell they can crawl into. A Humari in general can adapt to many a situation though what they find next to impossible to adapt to is light, bright light in particular, and Solarians are a race that feed off solar energy, not only that but they also generate light. In essence, they glow. Being in the presence of a Solarian is torture to any Humari, with Herman being an exception to this.

Lonnie does not physically cower over the arrival and presence of this Solarian, if anything what she feels is not something physical, just pure emotion for she feels a hatred, she detests this entity that has come before her. Lonnie has not had a direct reason to feel this way but she feels it all the same so she herself becomes very sceptical towards the words he is to speak to her.

'I have a proposition' he says, 'not only for you but for your three buddie here too.'

'Who says they are my buddies?' she asks. 'You have or rather your captain has taken me from the only one I consider to be any kind of buddy.'

'If you would like to see him again I suggest you listen to what it is I have to say.'

'Alright, just what is it you have to say?'

In the relatively short amount of time that Lonnie and Herman have known each other they have been through more than what some beings would go through in a lifetime so a bond has been created that would more or less ensure that one would do anything for the other, even if either could not of imagined this before ever boarding any kind of ship.

The holding cell as it is and was, is so large that the four beings who share it can be apart and stay as such without having to interact with one another though prior to the Solarian's entry there had been interaction. When the Solarian exits, the room darkens almost fully as it had been before his arrival and since he has gone and along with what he proposed Lonnie now sees reason for further interaction to occur.

'Alright guys' she says. 'You can all come out of your hiding places.'

It is difficult for Lonnie to think of these beings as being from the same world and race as Herman. Everything about Herman physically suggests the he is much weaker than any other who hail from where he does. Herman's personality favours strength whether that is a particular personal strength of his is another thing, he would rush head first into anything if he feels that is the right thing to do.

Cowering from the Solarian suggests a lack of strength as far as Lonnie is concerned especially with how big and strong her companions appear to be, but that cowering is not directly a response to the being itself, it of course the emanating light that causes cowering of any kind.

Surprisingly enough, the holding cell within the prison on Nibaru that is set aside for Herman is quite comfortable, maybe he had not quite so much to worry about as in his first overnight stay on this world but then again, a holding cell is a holding cell, Herman still has a job to do. Before that though and comfortable cell or not there still is alone time and Herman has his own thoughts to live with.

Thoughts of sinking or swimming come to him. Can he do what is asked of him? Can he save his mother? Can he prevent danger from coming Lonnie's way? What if what he is being tasked with does not earn him anything positive? And what if this is only the beginning of a string of tasks that he will be held at ransom to perform?

His cell is dark and remote, not close to any other prisoner let alone the prisoners he arrived with. And we know the darkness is not a requirement. Herman is so unlike any other member of his race that he does not fear or easily succumb to bright light. It, the cell, is roomy and indeed as comfortable as any cell can be. Surprisingly too, not so long after being left alone with his thoughts Herman is visited by that earlier confrontational guard and this guard brings his prisoner a hot meal.

'That's not for me, is it?' Herman asks as the guard approaches.

He, Herman, is hungry and can smell the food long before it can reach this cell of his.

'That depends' speaks the guard. 'As long as you are a good boy then not only will you get this hot meal but other good things will come your way too.'

'Alright ... what do I need to know?'

***

A rotation ends and a new one begins though here on Nibaru one rotation lasts more than a little longer than what one rotation would on the Humari home world and of course that increased time gives Herman all the more time to be alone with those thoughts of his.

This particular prison has a rather large courtyard and within the confines of that courtyard a bidding war begins. Six prisoners are to be actioned off as slaves to the highest bidders. Herman is third on the list to be offered up. His bid is assured, prearranged for indeed those who acquire his papers are to set him off on his run and his escape back to the ship Lonnie is being held on is also apparently assured though with how the first two bidding wars go and the immediate treatment of those first two prisoners Herman has more than a lack of confidence in how things may or may not go.

The first prisoner to be auctioned of as a slave is a member of an ape-like race. Physically he is large and strong and one can easily see a lot of bidding coming his way especially if those who do acquire this prisoner want a slave for labour purposes. Many consortiums have gathered, they have come from far and wide ad they stand in assigned sections of the yard. All trade too has been converted into tokens so there will be not dispute to the worth of any bid.

The bid for that ape-like creature begins at one thousand tokens. Bids come in quick and fast rising in lots of five hundred tokens to begin with then slowing to increases of lots one hundred high. A final bid of ten thousand three hundred tokens is accepted and prisoner is released into the winning bids custody immediately and this is when the real worry begins for Herman.

The winning consortium is a race of out of water piranha like creatures with limbs that have them standing at a height of no more than a foot. There are many of them and the reason of interest for acquiring the 'ape-like being' soon becomes clear for once possession has accrued an attack ensues and it is deemed a legal attack at that too.

The ape-like creature is no more than food for the piranha creatures and their interest in it was for this purpose only. They, the piranha race, instantly begin an attempt to feed, jumping and attaching themselves to their newly acquired feast. The ape is huge and indeed strong so he does fight back though since the attack is deemed legal guards only intervene to subdue the ape and subdue him they do and the ape is devoured completely in a matter of clicks.

To say at this point that Herman has his own safety to worry about before he can worry about anything else is most certainly an understatement. The second prisoner goes for a price of nine thousand four hundred tokens and at the moment of his transfer he is beaten unconscious then immediately taken away.

'This is not good' Herman speaks quietly to himself.

His auction is up next. As he has been told his particular auction has been pre-arranged so technically there is nothing to worry about apart from the obvious and the possibility that his sale does not go to plan. The bidding starts low and slowly, two hundred and fifty tokens, so much lower than either of the previous two bidding wars; this is a good thing, right? So Herman believes anyway.

Things begin to pick up. Three hundred fifty ... four hundred ... four fifty ... five hundred ... six hundred ... one thousand ... one thousand two hundred and fifty ... there are two parties interested in acquiring Herman. This cannot be the plan, can it? Herman more than begins to panic. What is the wrong consortium acquire him? Can there even be a right consortium?

One of the two bidding groups are a group of five, their identities hidden by their clothing. They are quiet, still, with a look almost religious in nature. Are these the group meant to acquire Herman? If not then what could their possible motive be to purchase him?

The other bidding group looking to acquire Herman are that of a scantily clad female race who most certainly look more than a little attractive to Herman. If they are not the group who he is intended to go with than that may not be all such a bad thing, Herman can think of many activities he could do for these beings. The thoughts of Lonnie are what soon take Herman's head out of the skies.

One of these two groups are surely meant to get Herman. If the wrong group win out, what then? For now the bidding continues. It soon settles at eight thousand one hundred tokens. Quite likely this is a price way higher than what had been intended to be paid. The religious looking group are the ones who win out and they immediately collect their purchase. They also do not waste any time in attempting to leave, so maybe the intended group did win the bidding battle?

This religious like group do indeed begin to move off and do so with Herman in their custody. The exit attempt is soon thwarted. The scantily clad female consortium challenge the validity of the winning bid, they believe it to be a set up.

A lot of ho-ha gets thrown about and Herman has no idea what to make of it.

Which consortium is he intended to be with? His guard steps in, indicating that it should be with the ladies. So if the intent was for him to go be a runner via this female consortium then who are these religious people? And why are they so interested in him?

The religious group have five members all completely covered in hoods and robes. One of the hoods is lowered to reveal a Solarian, a recognizable Solarian at that. A second hood is lowered revealing a female Flaxian. This group are most definitely not religious. The Flaxian is of course Lonnie; on a rescue mission with the Solarian from the ship she had Herman had come to Nibaru in.

The other three hooded members are the trio of Humari who had previously been locked away with Lonnie. They continue to be fully robed due to their dislike for the day light.