Fresh Blood

by Jessica Hicks

  Daviron grinned, "Practice makes perfect. And Islae, what can you tell us about these new survivors?"

  Islae turned to the camera, "In this segment, we saw a human. That would be the more active one we saw doing most of the labor. Viewers are most certainly quite familiar with them. All the major tribes have at least a few of them.

  The other is a species we haven't seen before. It is quite large, so perhaps it will be well suited for the role of a raider or hunter. On the other hand, it did spend most of its time on planet so far incapacitated. That isn't promising. We'll have more details to follow, after implantation, of course."

  "But of course,” said Daviron, “And now, we return to the action heating up on the Western Forests. But first a quick word from our sponsor! Are you suffering from unsightly cranial hair? Try Rolosse today, and be silky smooth tomorrow.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Felix looked at the now solitary duffle bag. The water had long since stilled, and no bubbles disturbed the surface. In fact, if is weren't for the furrow in the mud that he was still lying in and the lack of the lizard, it would be easy to believe that thing had never been there at all.

  Felix wondered if he could still call the thing that had been chasing them "the lizard" any longer. The other had been reptilian as well. He would need to find a better name.

  While he mulled over possible labels, he continued to eye the bank suspiciously. He examined the bank for other mounds or sign of buried danger. He didn't see anything. It didn't make him feel any better. The first hadn't looked particularly ominous either.

  During the chaos, the bag of food had been jostled. It was still mostly on the bank, however. One corner of the duffle might be in the water. Felix was pretty sure he could see some of the bars remaining.

  He wasn't willing to leave it there; if nothing else, at least the container itself would be useful. Though, he didn't particularly want to go up to the water, either. In fact, all he really wanted was to get out of this area. Preferably somewhere he could hole up until this nightmare was over.

  He got up slowly, absently brushing the mud off his shipsuit. It smeared across the outfit. Felix glanced down at himself and sighed. It had been so neat and crisp when he had put it on back in The Raven. The least of his problems to be sure, but he still mentally groused as he continued to work.

  Felix found a fallen branch at the tree line. He carefully angled it through one of the duffle bag straps from as far back as he could manage. He was determinedly not noticing he was easily within the pounce range of that thing, should another happen to be hiding along the bank.

  Felix pulled the bag towards him. A bar fell out, and he left it there. He was not hungry or brave enough to go after it.

  The bag was a lot dirtier and a lot lighter than it had been before. Felix closed it up and slung it over his shoulders. He could check what was left later. Not much he could do about it now, regardless.

  He went over to the Lisnoir who was, indeed, asleep. Unlike earlier however, he woke up when Felix shook him. Between the impromptu nap and the time since the crash, the alien was more alert and mobile. With just a stick for support, he was able to walk well enough on his own. Felix kept his own stick to walk with.

  The light was starting to fade, and it wasn't particularly bright under the canopy even in the midday sun. Through the break in the canopy at the clearing, they had been able to see the foothills off in the distance. High ground and a clear line of sight sounded good to him, and so, they continued on.

  With nothing immediately threatening them, Felix’s stomach reminded him of precisely how long it had been since they ate. He promised himself they would break for food soon. He knew if he stopped now, he wouldn’t be able to get going again.

  The trek was slow, and with the light almost gone, the footing was treacherous. It was made worse by pure exhaustion. The day long retreat and the dregs of adrenaline leaving his system took their toll.

  The canopy had swallowed them once more, and Felix wasn't even sure they were headed in the right direction. He was ready to give up when they broke through the treeline to the foothills. There were still trees, but distinctly less. A little moonlight shone down. It was less terrible trying to walk.

  They followed the base of the foothills and soon got to a section that was nearly steep enough to be a cliff. The bottom cut in to make a shallow nook. It may as well have had a blinking sign, and a four poster bed. At this moment, it was positively homey.

  The thought that it may be something else’s home crossed his mind, but he was too tired to care. It was theirs for the night. Felix grabbed his companion’s arm and pointed to the nook. The Lisnoir nodded and they trudged in.

  Felix dropped the pack and rubbed his shoulders. It wasn't all that heavy, but this was still considerably more activity than he normally did in a day. He snorted, more than he normally did in a week, if he were honest.

  They sat, backs against the cliff wall and shared a ration bar and some water. It wasn’t good, but his stomach did cease some of its complaints.

  After they finished their meal, his companion sat facing out and motioned for Felix to lie down. Apparently, they were taking turns watching.

  It was probably a good idea, but Felix wasn't sure what one exhausted person with a stick was going to do should anything come up. Still, doing otherwise would be tempting fate, and he didn't have the language to argue. He laid down and slept.

  Felix's companion woke him a few short minutes after he passed out. At least, that's how it felt. Judging by how dark it was outside, however, he'd been out for a while. He sat up slowly, rubbing at his eyes.

  With a yawn, he grabbed his stick and moved up to where the Lisnoir was sitting. He nodded at his companion. "See anything?" he asked with an exaggerated gesture between the Lisnoir and the surrounding darkness. His companion hissed and indicated negative.

  "Better grab some sleep then," Felix said, throwing a thumb at the place where he had slept. The alien trundled wearily to the back of the nook, lay down and promptly fell asleep.

  Felix settled in for a long wait. He didn't feel particularly rested, despite the short nap. He felt even more worn than he had prior to sleeping. Everything was sore. How much of that was due to the unusual level of activity and how much was due to sleeping on the ground, he couldn't say, but both of them surely contributed to his poor, abused muscles.

  Felix tried to be alert, and watch for any oncoming threat, at least at first. Eventually the absurdity of him fighting off one of those snuffle lizards with a stick overwhelmed the solemn duty, and his mind and attention drifted.

  By moonlight, the trees loomed over their little hiding spot. It was nice to have their backs covered, and it was a good resting spot for the night, but he wanted to find somewhere better to rest tomorrow. Something a bit more permanent that they could stake out, at least until he felt prepared for the trek back to the pod.

  Worry that something else might claim the pod nagged at Felix, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. Either they would, or would not, but the alien and he were in no position to contest it. Not yet.

  Something glinted in the moonlight for a brief moment. Felix stilled, straining to see what it was. He readied the stick in front of him, eyes roving the grasses before him. He was about to chalk it up to nerves when he saw movement and another glint. It was small, whatever it was; he saw the briefest of glances as it moved through the grass blades.

  It burst out of the grasses and skittered toward the nook. It moved a whole lot faster than Felix had thought it would.

  Once it was on the rocky ground, he got a good look at it. It seemed to be some sort of insect, and looked like an overgrown centipede. It was about the same size as his finger, and had way too many legs. It was silver, with a green stripe down its length.

  Felix smashed his stick down. He missed the quick, little thing. He tried again and squished it. There, he had done his job, and defended the nook. He was unreasonably pleased with himself.


  It didn't last.

  The bug started moving again. It headed straight towards the sleeping Lisnoir. Felix took another swing. This time it was a low, sweeping blow and the bug flew away. Felix was sure that if it survived the first hit unharmed, that it wasn't dead. He settled back down, but kept a careful, roving watch on the grasses.

  It was small, and probably not actually a threat, but maybe it was venomous or spread diseases. At the very least, they didn't need bug bites added to everything else. When the sun finally came up, he still hadn't seen the thing again.

  Felix roused the alien, and set out to check their belongings in the light of day. It unfortunately didn't take long. They had the bag, his remaining magnetic boot clip, the atmosphere sensor, the alien's data pad and about two days of food and water, if they rationed well.

  Felix was pretty sure he must have damaged the sensor while they were running yesterday, as it still showed a low oxygen alarm. He thought about tossing it, but opted not to in the end. He didn't have much to carry anyway, and maybe he could find a use for it later.

  The two split one of the remaining ration bars and choked it down with a few swigs of water. As foul as they were, Felix found he did regret the ones he threw out the previous day during the chase. It had been necessary, but he would prefer more of a cushion before needing foreign food and water. Such is life.

  He stood up with a groan as his everything protested. He offered a hand to the Lisnoir, who accepted and rose to his own feet. With a few quick gestures, they decided to continue in the same direction they had the previous night. Neither wanted to brave the jungle proper yet, and while sunlight might reveal something they missed in the dark, totally uncharted territory struck them as a better bet.

  Not that Felix was sure exactly what they were looking for. He thought wistfully of a device a buddy of his in Colony Supports had shown him a few years ago. It was a box that, when sat on the ground, would map the surrounding topography. Felix missed his tools. More than that though, he was getting real tired of pining.

  As they trudged on, Felix pondered their predicament. They would need a source of food and water, of course, but they had enough for today and tomorrow, so it wasn't absolutely urgent yet. They did need a better place to sleep. Maybe somewhere they could build up and store things in. So, those would be his new objectives. Shelter, water and food, in that order. And it wouldn't hurt his feelings any if they made things a little more comfortable than the hard ground at night.

  Of the three, they at least knew where to find water. He’d rather find another source, but it would do. They would need to find a way to store it, however.

  The nook suited for the night, but they’d need something more for the long term. A place they could secure both so they could sleep at night and so they could store supplies without worry. He hadn’t seen anything that would fit that bill, as of yet.

  Food he was optimistic on; he had been too tired to look the day before, but it was a jungle. He was sure there was all sorts of fruit and small game. It was just a matter of finding what would agree with their systems and didn’t eat them first.

  And as for the last, Felix collected fallen leaves. They were broad and were green with bold red striping. Most importantly, they were light. He stuffed them in the bag. He could always dump them later if he needed to carry something else, and at the least, it'll be more comfortable that night.

  As they traveled, he grabbed a few more things he thought might be useful- more sticks, and a few of the white fruit to try later. He didn't want to try it now, just in case, but they did still have the medkit. If it was edible, it would stretch out their stockpile.

  The sun climbed in the sky, and with it the heat and the humidity Felix wiped the sweat off his face and slung it to the ground. It was downright miserable, but the alien perked up at the warmth. Felix began to seriously wonder if he were cold blooded. Felix really felt he should know. He regreted not paying better attention in xeno-biology for the first time since he took the final.

  They took a break in the shade and ate a little more. Felix had a hard time relaxing and did his best to keep an eye on every direction at once. He thought he saw another one of those bugs from the previous night, but it didn't come close.

  Shortly after the afternoon break, they found it; there was a potential spot to set up camp for the long haul. They had still been following the cliff-like hill and stumbled upon a crevice leading underground.

  They peered in; the entrance was comfortably wide, though not quite wide enough for them to enter together. It widened opened inside, which was good for their purposes. They explored carefully, though the lack of light made it difficult to know if they were checking everything.

  The cave wasn't empty. Felix nearly stepped on the thing. It was dark and camouflaged neatly with the cave floor. It was large too, about the size of a wolf, but reptilian. A spined fin ran from the crown of its head to the end of its tail. Other than the fin, it looks like nothing so much as a dark, overgrown gecko.

  The most important thing of all, however, was that it was asleep.

  Felix backed away as quietly as he could and got the Lisnoir's attention. He stressed the need for silence, and led his companion to the sleeping gecko-wolf thing. If they wanted the cave, they would have to take care of the current occupant. He didn't think it would get any better if they waited.

  They both stood around the thing and readied their sticks. Felix swung. There was a meaty crack as the bludgeon impacted the creature's back. His stomach lurched even as the giant gecko yowled and jumped to its feet.

  The Lisnoir's weapon came down over its head. It lurched to the side. The gecko raised a leg to swipe and Felix swung again. His branch broke over the raised leg.

  The creature moaned and staggered. What were they doing? This thing didn’t do anything to them. He pushed the thoughts aside and discarded the broken end of his stick.

  The creature turned its head to him while he was distracted. It opened its mouth and a thin jet of an inky-black liquid spurt into Felix’s face. He reeled back with a yelp. The ink stung his eyes; he wiped at his face desperately with his sleeve.

  The giant gecko took advantage of the lessened buffeting to regain its feet. It had the Lisnoir back peddling away before Felix could see once more.

  Desperate to help his companion, Felix lunged and stabbed with the ragged end of his stick. The gecko’s hide was thin and offered the barest resistance before the wood pierced it. Felix impaled the creature again and again. His gorge rose in the back of his throat.

  Beside him, the Lisnoir knocked the thing off balance, and repeated blows whenever it got up again. Eventually, bleeding and broken, it stopped getting back up.

  The two were panting. Felix had never killed anything before, and his stomach churned. He ducked outside the cave and vomited.

  He stood stooped with his hands on his knees for some time. Once he had collected himself he went back inside. "I'm sorry," he said to the Lisnoir, despite knowing he couldn't understand. "I needed a moment." His companion nodded, seeming to understand the meaning, if not the words.

  His stomach churned again as he caught sight of the corpse. It was leaking blood, and more splattered the floor and walls nearby. His stick still protruded from its side.

  Felix tried to look at it rationally; he supposed that would take care of food for a while, at least. They also had a place to sleep. He knew where water was, however reluctant he was to return to that stream. It was a start. He ignored the queasy feeling inside.

  They would need to find something to butcher the corpse with. He didn't know how to butcher anything, but he supposed they would figure it out. They'd also need a fire to cook on. That shouldn't be a problem, there was plenty of wood outside.

  They didn’t have the means to preserve it, but they could make the most of what they had while they had it. Who knew when they’d have meat again?

  Felix set down the bag and pulled out the sticks he had collected ear
lier. It wouldn't be enough, but it was more than nothing. He took out the fruit and the leaves as well, to clear space in the bag. He'd arrange the leaves into a bed once they got a fire going. He didn't know how they were going to cut the carcass, but he was avoiding thinking about that for now.

  The Lisnoir stomped his foot with impatience near the entrance. It struck Felix as odd, but he hurried up, so they could move on. The alien started wiggling and clawing at himself. A half formed question died on Felix’s lips as the Lisnoir screamed and doubled over.

  Not again.

  Felix rushed over to his companion and searched frantically for the source of the problem. Couldn't he just stay healthy for a full day? Was that too much to ask?

  The alien writhed on the floor. As he twisted, Felix saw one of those silver and green bugs from the previous night. It was burrowing into the back of the alien's neck.

  Felix jumped as a cold prickling traveled up his leg. He threw himself back and swatted madly at it. He could see the little bump travel up his body under his shipsuit.

  He swatted at it, but it dug into his skin, leaving tiny bloody pinpricks in its wake. It emerged from his collar, and he tried to pull it off, but it clung to his skin. Desperate, he reached back with both hands. He threw his head forward as he wrenched his hands back.

  He screamed as half the bug was pried loose. Blood poured down the back of his neck where his tiny assailant had torn small chunk of skin away with it. In his shock and pain, the bug continued its march as if it had never been interrupted.

  Once it was over his spine, it sunk into his neck and he shrieked. It didn't just dig; it settled in. He fell to his knees as the legs lanced further into his flesh. He could feel it entrench itself in his spine. He screamed again.

  His whole body was burning, frozen, stabbing, nothing. It was everything; his body was racked with all the pain and all the pleasure. It went on forever, and a split second at the same time. And then it stopped.