Survivors: A Lost World Harem

by Jack Porter

  At this, I let out a chuckle.

  “Something funny?” Jayloo demanded.

  “Yes, actually. I don’t know if you’ve noticed. How long has it been since the transport crashed? Three hours, maybe four in total? In all that time, has the position of the sun changed at all?”

  The others stared at me, but Sydney spoke first.

  “No,” she said.

  I nodded. “And what does that mean?”

  “That this world doesn’t rotate,” Sydney said.

  I nodded again. “Perhaps those moons, the big one and the others, maybe they’ve slowed this world’s rotation to a standstill. Either way, where we are now, there’s no such thing as night time. That band of green I saw, I’m thinking that might be in perpetual twilight. Further beyond, it would always be dark.”

  The girls all looked to one another. It was apparent they hadn’t considered this reality. Granted, they’d had other things on their minds, notably their basic survival. But it was clear that they couldn’t stay here. Not under the baking sun.

  Where the transport had crashed was no place to set up a camp.

  The Commander looked around to the others. Most of them seemed to agree with what I’d said. But Jayloo did not.

  Perhaps she was naturally disagreeable. More likely, she was just scared, or didn’t like that it was me who had made the suggestion.

  “I want to stay with the ship,” she said.

  “Why?” Uma asked.

  The small woman glared at me and shrugged her shoulders. “If anyone does come looking for us, how will they find us if we don’t?”

  While her point was reasonably valid, we’d already discussed several reasons why that wasn’t a great option.

  It was Sydney who spoke to the smaller woman. She kept her voice low, and explained almost as if to a child.

  “There isn’t going to be anyone looking for us,” she said. “You heard what the Commander said. The communications array–it’s gone. Not just damaged. Gone. Which means we aren’t even broadcasting a distress beacon. And even if it wasn’t, the transport is sinking. If it continues to do so, in a couple of days, it will be gone as well.”

  The Commander herself added the final nail. “Even if somebody tries to find us, the chances are not very good they would succeed. This world—we’re not anywhere near where we should have been.”

  “Then where the hell are we?” the small woman demanded.

  Uma didn’t answer immediately. When she did, she spoke with a sigh in her voice. “A long, long way from home.”

  Even then, Jayloo wasn’t ready to give up. Not completely. “We don’t know what’s out there,” she said.

  It was Deeve’s turn to respond. “You are right,” she said. “But we do know what is here. And what is here isn’t enough. No food. No water. Nothing. Isn’t it better to leave if it offers us a chance to survive, rather than stay with no chance at all?”

  Jayloo didn’t have an answer to this. But she tried nevertheless.

  “At least the transport offers us shelter,” she said.

  It was Kia’s turn to add her voice to the discussion. “Shelter and protection are not the same thing,” she said. “Nor is it shelter if it sinks into the sand.”

  The small, combative woman looked away, saying nothing more.

  Uma Reynolds, Commander of the EVE transport, looked at each of us in turn. “So, it’s decided. We can’t stay here. We will leave, taking what we can with us, with the goal of finding somewhere less inhospitable. Somewhere where we have a better chance of survival.”

  The others all seemed to be in agreement. Jayloo didn’t look entirely happy, but she raised no further objections.

  As for me, I was happy enough with the outcome. At the very least, nobody, not even Jayloo, had suggested that I shouldn’t be going with them.

  Chapter 9

  The main issue was going to be water. We had a very limited supply, and there was no guarantee that we would find drinkable water no matter how long we looked.

  Yet I wasn’t truly worried. The wolf-creatures must have had to drink. If they could find water in this barren land, then it had to be out there. We could find it as well.

  But the sooner we started out, the more time we had to do so.

  Perhaps this thought was playing on Uma’s mind as well. Once the six of us had salvaged pretty much anything of use from the damaged transport, there wasn’t much reason to stay.

  The pile of supplies we’d gathered was formidable. To the water, food, tarpaulins, toolbox and med kit, we’d added a quantity of cabling, a number of narrow steel tubes we could use for a number of different purposes, and even a few shards of metal, torn from the transport, that I thought we might turn into weapons of some sort.

  Sydney eyeballed it all warily. “How do we carry all that?” she asked.

  “We don’t,” I replied.

  The environmental scientist gave me a puzzled expression.

  “Santa would understand,” I said. “Call me Rudolph.”

  When it seemed she still didn’t get it, I explained in more detail. “We load the supplies onto one of those outer panels that have come off from the transport. The metal is strong and lightweight, and about the right shape. We use the cables and harness ourselves up as huskies. Then we drag the whole lot behind us.”

  Now she understood. There was a note of concern in her expression, which I could fully understand. It wasn’t going to be easy, or fun. But eventually, she nodded.

  It was the only real option.

  It took maybe another half hour to get everything ready to go. I already knew that much of the work would be done by me, with Uma and Deeve doing their share. Sydney would be game, but neither Jayloo nor Kia were built for this kind of work, and Jayloo was injured to boot.

  Nevertheless, we made harnesses for them as well, with Jayloo eyeing it all dubiously, but everyone else just accepting it as necessary.

  “Don’t forget your weapons,” I said. “We’ve already been attacked once. We don’t know what else is out there.” I still had my makeshift club in my hands.

  And then we were ready to go. But before we took our first steps into the unknown, Uma and the others all stood for a moment, looking back at the sinking hulk that had carried them through the stars.

  I knew what they were thinking.

  This was the difference between the known and the unknown, and to take those first steps was a big deal even if it was obviously the right thing to do.

  It had to be a little frightening for them. But if we wanted to survive, we had to find somewhere that better provided for our needs.

  All at once, the Commander turned away from the ruined transport.

  “Come on,” she said. “The sooner we get started, the sooner we find what we’re looking for.”

  And so we began. The six of us digging in, hauling the weight of our supplies behind us.

  Almost immediately, Jayloo set up a steady stream of curses. Nor could I really blame her. The supplies were heavy, and she was the lightest of all of us. She didn’t have the bulk that this task required.

  Yet despite this, and her injured army—not to mention that it was her who’d spoken out against leaving the transport anyway—she kept at it, placing one foot in front of the other as everyone else did, the group of us making our way into the wastelands.

  At first, there wasn’t much in the way of conversation. It was a grim sort of work, heavy and tiring, and the terrain didn’t much help. Our feet tended to sink into the sandy earth, making everything just a little bit harder than it needed to be.

  Or maybe the terrain did help after all. It was largely flat, with only a few low hills to contend with, and that same sandy soil enabled the makeshift sled to slide relatively unimpeded.

  We made, to my perception, relatively good time.

  In half an hour, the EVE transport had become no more than a dark shape in a distant crater. A little while later, after we crested a low saddle between two
small hills, and the transport disappeared from view completely.

  But it didn’t last.

  It was Jayloo who was first to pause. The small woman had been gamely leaning her weight into the job, but abruptly stood up.

  “Jesus fuck, can it get any hotter?” she demanded, panting slightly.

  Perhaps the rest of us could have kept going, but Sydney and Kia stumbled to a halt as well, and that seemed to be a signal for even Deeve and Uma to pause.

  I didn’t have a choice. I stood up as well, noting that the women were all breathing hard and sweating profusely, even as I was.

  At the same time, some of them were also largely overdressed for the conditions.

  Kia was fine. The flowing skirt and top she wore might not have been practical, but at least it would keep her cool.

  But Jayloo, Sydney, and Uma were all wearing layers.

  “Then take something off,” Deeve said.

  Sydney didn’t hesitate, stripping off a loose jacket that she shouldn’t have been wearing to begin with, revealing a lightweight blouse that seemed a much better choice for the conditions.

  But Jayloo hesitated.

  “What’s wrong?” the sandy-haired environmentalist asked.

  To my surprise, Jayloo shot a glance my way before she responded. When she did, she muttered under her breath.

  “What?” Sydney said.

  “What I’m wearing underneath. It’s see-through,” Jayloo snapped. This time, she deliberately didn’t look my way.

  But Sydney did. “Oh,” she said.

  I found myself shaking my head. “Your choice,” I said. “But do you really want to overheat just for the sake of modesty?”

  Jayloo didn’t seem to quite know what to say.

  Before she could figure it out, Uma shrugged out of her harness and stripped off her shirt. Beneath, she wore just a short halter top, exposing her midriff and arms.

  She was just as solid and muscular as she’d seemed, and stacked on top. I found myself gazing in appreciation, and it took a few seconds before I noticed that she had a detailed pattern of tattoos down one arm.

  “So what if he looks?” Uma said. “Take it as a compliment.”

  Jayloo didn’t look entirely pleased, but in the end, practicality won out. She turned her back, removed her harness and sling, then shrugged out of her top layer.

  What she wore underneath wasn’t exactly see-through. But it had holes cut strategically here and there.

  As the purple-haired woman climbed back into her harness, deliberately not looking my way, I noted that she was as slim as she’d seemed, but perhaps a bit bigger on top than she originally appeared.

  I didn’t stare. Not exactly. But I couldn’t help but see, through one of the holes cut to the side, that she wore a ring through her left nipple.

  Then my view was blocked by the purple-haired woman’s arm as she set her sling back in place.

  Deliberately, I brought my attention back to the empty sand in front of me, and when the women had stashed their excess clothing, we continued on our way.

  We settled back into a slow, methodical rhythm, and I spent the time watching our shadows.

  With the sun above and behind us, those shadows were about the same height as we were. In my mind, unless we were heading for some sort of oasis, the smudge of green I’d seen had to be at the juncture between day and night.

  There were too many unknowns for me to work out how far ahead of us it might be, including the circumference of this world we were on. But it was clear we had a fair walk ahead of us.

  If I’d been paying better attention to the length of my shadow when I’d climbed out of my pod, maybe I would have a better understanding. But I hadn’t. Which meant all I could do was pay attention to it now.

  As we walked, I also kept a close eye out for anything dangerous. I used my ocular sensors to their utmost, and watched both the sky and the land for anything dangerous.

  At first, I saw very little beyond a few flyers in the distance. But as we continued, I saw more and more signs of life.

  Small things, for the most part, fist-sized creatures living between rocks. Some of them scampered away as we came into view, but others stood up and looked at us with animalistic curiosity.

  I made a mental note of these creatures, thinking that they might be good to eat, but didn’t untangle myself from my harness to hunt them. There would be time enough for that later, I thought. And besides, we still had a couple of crates of rations. Which meant it was far more important to find usable sources of water.

  A couple of times, I thought I saw something moving beneath the surface of the sand, something of a decent size. Perhaps it was the same type of subterranean thing I’d seen before.

  Whether it would prove dangerous or not, I couldn’t yet tell, but I kept a close eye on Kia. I didn’t have any true understanding of how extensive her gifts might prove to be. But she’d warned us of the danger of the wolves, so I figured that if there was anything to worry about, she would probably sense it.

  So far, she’d just continued to walk, tethered with the others, making no complaint.

  We passed by two other signs of life that were worth mentioning.

  The first was a collection of plants, cactus-like things that grew in clumps here and there, often next to an outcropping of rock. At the first sight of these plants, I called a brief halt and approached one of them with my club.

  I used the spiky end to open the plant’s flesh near the base, hoping to see clean water gush forth.

  Instead, the plant produced a thick, milky exudate that my ocular sensor told me was toxic. At the same time, the plant-thing shuddered as if in response to my efforts, and somehow produced a high-pitched wailing noise.

  The girls and I both stared at it for a while, surprised and a little horrified as well. Then, the experiment a complete failure, I returned to my harness, and we continued on.

  The other sign of life in these wastes was, paradoxically, a graveyard of sorts.

  We’d reached a bit of a valley between a low series of hills, and scattered about in every direction, there were skeletons.

  What creatures they might have belonged to, I couldn’t tell. Not the wolf thing, that much was certain. These things, most of them anyway, were larger. About twice the size.

  And there were dozens of them.

  Without intending to do so, all of us stopped.

  “What are these things?” Deeve asked out loud.

  “Maybe some sort of herbivore,” Sydney responded. “Judging by their size and shape. But I think there’s more than one species here. Look. Some of the jaws show sharpened teeth. Others, not so much. And look, that one has two tails. This one looks to have stood up on its hind legs. And look at the ridge on the skull over there.”

  The cheerful-seeming woman appeared to be fascinated, and nor could I blame her. This was the most interesting thing I’d seen so far on this world.

  “What killed them all?” Uma asked.

  “Hard to say. But some of these bones… there are marks in them. Teeth marks? But then the question is whether that’s what killed them, or if they came later.”

  “It’s a good sign either way,” I commented. “For this world to be able to support creatures like this, surely it can support us as well.”

  “Well, I think they’re creepy,” Jayloo said. “That said, I’m tired. We’ve been walking for ages. Isn’t it time we had a break? And something to drink?”

  The others all looked to Uma to make the decision, but the Commander had already turned to Kia.

  “Is it safe here?”

  Kia looked around, her big eyes seeming to take in more than just what was there to see. Then she closed those eyes and took a deep breath. I couldn’t tell what she was doing, whether she was trying to consciously use her abilities, or if she was just taking a breather.

  But she opened her eyes again quickly enough. “I can sense no hidden dangers. We should be good for a while.”

>   Uma was already climbing out of her harness. “We’ll take a break. But just a short one. The sun is still hot, and we could have a long way to go.”

  It was good enough. With varying sighs of relief all around, the others climbed out of their harnesses as well.

  Chapter 10

  Despite Kia’s reassurance, it still seemed prudent to keep an eye out for potential danger. Apparently, Deeve thought the same. The tall, athletic woman and I kept an informal watch as the others shared a drink and a few of the rations, the latter of which looked to be the same sort of dried, processed crap I’d eaten so often before.

  Out of curiosity, I examined a few of the skeletons, as well as the more random bones that were scattered about.

  I picked up one that was about the same size and shape as a small human femur, and hefted it.

  “What are you thinking?” Deeve asked.

  “I’m wondering if these bones burn the same way that wood does, in a fire. And I’m wondering if something like this might be good to shape for a handle. For your makeshift blades, for example.”

  The tall woman raised her eyebrows at the thought. “Good thinking,” she said, and together, we dug through the supplies for the toolbox once more.

  I didn’t intend to spend the break immediately fashioning a handle for one of Deeve’s knives, but instead chose the power cutter that had proved so useful before. A quick glance at the power reading showed that it still had considerably more than half a charge.

  I knew that if things were going to proceed as I expected, we might have to ration that power as much as possible. Once it was gone, it was very unlikely we would be able to charge it again.

  But some things just had to be tested.

  I took the power cutter back to the nearest skeleton and stacked some of the bones up as if I was starting a fire. Then I turned the power cutter on, and played the flame over the bones.

  For a moment, it seemed like it would do the trick. The bones caught just as wood might have done.

  But when I turned the power cutter off once again, the flames quickly burned themselves out.