Logic's End

by Keith Robinson

  Sikaris turned to look at Breuun. "Lake Yul and Mount Kiabab on the Ryazan/Torlig border," it said, once more reverting to the alien tongue of the clan leader.

  Breuun appeared pensive and then suddenly pushed its torso up higher off of the stone slab with its right claw while pointing toward one of the other items from Rebecca's backpack with the left. "What is that? Bring it to me."

  Reaching down, Sikaris scooped up the remaining contents and returned them to her pack with the exception of the small metallic object that the clan leader had indicated. Walking backup to the slanted throne, it handed Rebecca's laser pistol to the canine alien.

  "What is this?" it said, turning the weapon over and over in its hand, examining it closely.

  "That's my laser pistol. My...weapon," she said.

  Breuun snarled. "I can tell it is a weapon, but what is a 'laser'?"

  "It is a focused beam of light that is very powerful."

  The clan leader, still staring at the weapon, suddenly barked out, "Prin!" A second later, a smaller shadow emerged on Breuun's left. From what Rebecca could see through the yellowish light, it was thin and wiry with an almost weasel-like appearance. Most noticeably, however, it had four arms protruding from its sides. When it spoke, its voice was high-pitched and airy. "Yes, High Crala."

  "Have you ever seen a weapon like this before?" Breuun asked impatiently.

  Prin examined Rebecca's pistol with profound interest. "No. It is not used by any clan that I know of."

  "Use it," Breuun commanded.

  Without hesitation, Prin pointed the weapon at the floor and pulled the trigger. The red beam that arced out combined with the sound of the laser's discharge caused all present in the chamber to start and cry out in surprise simultaneously. Breuun leapt to its feet in amazement. "Give it to me," it demanded excitedly. "Bring me a slave."

  The two guards behind Breuun immediately moved over to the alcove and grabbed the rodent creature that Rebecca had almost stumbled into and carried it to stand before the throne, just a few feet to the left of where she stood. When the guards released it, the poor creature simply stood there, not showing even the slightest awareness of its predicament. The being slowly turned its deformed head to look at her, the sickly light from above casting an eerie shadow over its face. A profound sadness filled her as she stared at this doomed creature, and yet the mismatched eyes that stared back at her almost looked relieved, as if a heavy burden were suddenly about to be lifted. The intense sadness became nearly constricting.

  A sudden red flash lit the room, accompanied by the same sound of discharged energy. Its eyes still staring into her own, the slave crumpled over onto the floor with a soft thud.

  "Bring me another and put some armor on it," came the gleeful command.

  Rebecca turned her head to avoid watching the second cruel murder, but although she was able to shut out the sight of the gruesome spectacle, the sickening sound of another slave dying near her made her stomach begin to churn. The haunted expression of the rodent alien still hung before her eyes, as if branded permanently in her retinas.

  After Breuun completed its second test of her weapon, it resumed its perch and returned its attention to her. "Why are you here with strong weapons that can go through armor?"

  Rebecca struggled against her rising revulsion of this creature. "As I said before, we are here to discover if there's life on this planet," she said, not even attempting to keep disgust from tainting her voice.

  "So you are spies sent to learn our hidden information."

  "No! That's not true."

  "Then why do you carry strong weapons? Only warriors carry weapons like this," Breuun stated, its eyes narrowing dangerously.

  Rebecca felt her hope beginning to evaporate once again, her voice suddenly losing some of its confidence. "We use them only for defense. We're scientists, not warriors."

  Breuun pushed itself up off the stone once again, its stare boring into her. "What did you say?"

  "I said 'we're scientists, not warriors,'" she repeated in confusion.

  "That would explain your clear weakness of body," it said, almost to itself. The clan leader turned to Sikaris, then to Prin, seeking confirmation. The three of them spoke together quietly, as if trying to reach some kind of consensus. Finally, after several minutes, Breuun addressed her again. "Do you have any other weapons like this?"

  Just as she was about to answer, a sudden idea struck her, the very implications of which caused her heart to start beating wildly again. "Yes!" she said a little too loudly, her voice echoing around the room. She paused, forcing calm into her quavering voice. "We have a much more powerful laser drill. And..." Here we go. "If you take me to my ship and return me to my...clan unharmed, we'll give it to you."

  Breuun looked at her cautiously, a muscle twitching in the side of its face. "We do not need you. We can take it ourselves. And how do we know this is not a trap?"

  Rebecca felt confidence take root within her and begin to blossom, giving her new strength. "But you do need me. You don't know how to use the machine, and my people wouldn't give it to you freely. They all carry weapons like this one. And you know this isn't a trap because you freed me from the...the other...clan," she finished.

  The clan leader lay back down on the throne, the nails on its left claw clicking on the bare stone, betraying its obvious agitation. "Prin," it said at length. "Take this creature to the dungeon until called for."

  Prin nodded. As it was about to descend the steps toward Rebecca, Breuun gestured for it to come closer. The two exchanged brief words, and the clan leader handed something to the alien. Prin then stepped down from the dais and stopped in front of her, two of its hands inserting a translation patch into its translator. "Come with me," it said, its voice sounding even higher from this close range. It gestured for her to walk toward a door in the wall of the opposite alcove from which she had entered.

  Rebecca began moving, causing the pain in her knee to throb once again. She barely noticed the pain, however, for her mind was consumed with the hope that she may yet make it out of this alive.

  5

  Ka'esch

  THE ALIEN known as Prin guided Rebecca out of the chamber and through a maze of tunnels, each of which looked exactly the same as the previous one. The only difference she could detect was that each successive corridor sloped farther and farther downward. Finally, after several long minutes of winding passages, they came to a darkened broken staircase. Sitting at the bottom of the stairs were two muscular aliens.

  Although the light here was significantly dimmer, it was sufficient enough for Rebecca to determine that this pair was of the same "kind" or species as that of the spiked guard she had seen earlier outside the entrance to the throne room. These creatures, however, had features that were twisted and mutated in completely different ways. Where the previous guard had an ear missing, one of these had three ears, and the other had only one, and even that one didn't appear fully formed. Their eyes, noses, and mouths were all in different places, as were the placement of their arms and legs in proportion to the rest of their bodies. It almost seemed to Rebecca that these beings were put together like some sort of bizarre "Mr. Potato Head" toy.

  As Rebecca and her alien escort descended the stairs, the two jumped up and eyed them suspiciously, their weapons at the ready. However, as recognition of the ferret alien standing beside her registered in their dull minds, their manner relaxed somewhat.

  "Prin, thonkla kip sram altri?" the one on the left said in a deep bass. A moment later, her translator responded. "Prin, why are you here?"

  Rebecca heard the thin, high voice from behind her reply, and as she listened to the monotonous tone of the translation, she noticed that both of the alien guards wore translator units identical to her own. "The High Crala wants this creature put here for now."

  The guards looked curiously at Rebecca with their misaligned coal-black eyes, then stepped aside. The three-eared alien pointed to the left. "Cell sixteen." With a
nudge in the back from Prin, Rebecca was led down yet another uneven corridor.

  After just a few steps, her olfactory senses were ambushed by the most repugnant stenches imaginable. Rebecca began gagging and quickly covered her nose and mouth with her hand. To add to the intensity of the foul smells, the air was dense and stagnant, with not even a hint of movement or ventilation.

  The corridor they traversed was lined with cells on both sides, the occupants of which could not be seen, as the lighting in this portion of the underground complex was kept to a minimum. Only dark shadows and wisps of movement could be detected lurking on the fringes of the light.

  "Stop," Prin said suddenly from behind her, causing her to jump reflexively. "In there," it said, pointing to the dark foreboding cell on her left—its door open wide as if inviting her to some horrid fate. She was not sure if it was real or if it was simply the product of her overloaded imagination, but Rebecca was rooted to the uneven ground by what seemed to be movement from within the darkened cell.

  Noticing her trepidation, Prin reached over and pressed a switch on the nearby wall, causing the same hazy light that illuminated the corridor to spring to life in the interior of the cell. Her fear subsided at the sight of the empty chamber, and she allowed herself to be guided inside.

  In reality, the room itself was more like a hole than a cell. It had no corners but was rounded, bringing to her mind the uncomfortable feeling of being inside an immense egg. Although she was initially surprised by its large size, she quickly realized it was likely due to the fact that many of the aliens she had seen thus far were nearly twice her size. It was sparsely furnished with nothing more than a rectangular slab of granite that stood about two feet off the ground, measuring four feet wide and twice that in length. Walking over to her "bed," she sank down onto it, her sore leg grateful for the sudden respite. The loud clang of the metal gate slamming shut jarred her already overwrought nerves.

  She sat for several moments in relative silence as small noises from the adjacent cells filtered into her own, creating an unsettling ambiance. What have I done? What if they do take me back to the ship? They might attack my friends. If they surprise Captain Coffner and the others, they may not be able to defend themselves. After all, we really weren't prepared for any kind of combat. Burying her face in her hands, she felt the despair begin to rise up within her, threatening to overwhelm her mind. Then with a ferocity that surprised even herself, she hardened her resolve and fought back against the metal tide. No! I did what I had to do. Maybe when we get closer to the ship I can find some way to escape and warn the others—if they're still alive.

  Sudden footsteps in the corridor interrupted her thoughts. Prin's silhouette framed the doorway; its upper two hands held a tray containing some type of food, while the lower pair unlocked the gate and swung it aside. Shutting itself inside the cell, the weasel alien walked over to where she sat and laid the tray down next to her. It then sat on the floor across from the slab, its thin yet muscular legs folded awkwardly beneath it.

  Rebecca stared at the being for several moments, unsure what to do. Now that she was able to get a good look at this bizarre creature, she realized that her initial observation of it having four arms was not entirely accurate. While it only had two arms attached to its torso, each limb had an extra pair of forearms extending out at odd angles from near the elbows. Its lithe, ferret-like body was covered with the same fur and scale combination that she had seen on both Sikaris and Breuun. But whereas their hides had been solid in color, Prin's was yellowish-brown and speckled with flecks of black spots. As she had come to expect, Prin's facial features and body shape were asymmetrical; its slightly protruding snout was slanted to the right, its shoulders drooped awkwardly, and where its nose should have been was a solitary small hole. Stretched out beside its body was a long tail that was split into two sections near the tip, both of which seemed to twitch impatiently.

  "Eat," Prin said, its high airy voice echoing slightly. Taking her eyes off the alien sitting before her, Rebecca looked down at the food on the tray. Arranged haphazardly on the circular dish was a large portion of what seemed to be some kind of fruit as well as a bit of raw meat. Upon eyeing the pinkish fruit, her stomach suddenly seemed to realize it was empty and let out a loud rumble. Yet, hungry as she was, she hesitated. What if it's poisoned or not digestible by humans? Then again, if they wanted to kill me, they would've done it back in the throne room. Deciding to take her chances, she grabbed the fruit and hungrily bit off a large mouthful. It was not very juicy and seemed flavorless, although that could have been partly due to the noxious stench around her interfering with her taste buds. Nevertheless, Rebecca was thankful for something to fill her stomach.

  "My name is Prin, Clan Diodre. You said you were Rebca Clan Vans, no?" the creature asked, the translator's monotonous voice sounding muffled as she chewed.

  Swallowing her latest bite of the tasteless fruit, she corrected it. "Rebecca Evans."

  "Reb-ecca Clan Evans, I am very interested in talking with you. Are you really from above the sky?"

  "Yes, I am," she said cautiously, still wondering as to the alien's intentions.

  It studied her intently. "Yes, yes, you must be. Tell me, what is your land like?"

  Rebecca considered the strange being for a moment. Is this some sort of interrogation, or is it merely being curious? "What do you mean?" she asked. "Do you want to know what it looks like, what its inhabitants are like, what its climate is like, or... something else?"

  "Yes, yes," it said, its tone inflectionless.

  Rebecca thought for a moment how to begin going about describing Earth. "Well, about seventy-one percent of my planet is covered with water. The surface of the land differs depending on the climate. The northern and southernmost portions are covered with ice and are extremely cold. Then there are deserts, mountains, valleys, grassy plains, forests—"

  Prin interrupted her, confusion showing on its crooked face. "What were those last few words? The translator did not understand."

  "Grassy plains are flat stretches of land covered with...small, short..."—she struggled to find the right words to explain—"plants. And forests are areas of land covered by tall trees... more plants."

  The creature stared at her, sudden comprehension spreading across its features. "Yes, yes. Lidrilian. So your clan lives in the deserts and cold lands, and the Lidrilian live in 'grahs pleens' and 'forsts,' yes?"

  Rebecca sat confused for a moment. "Are Lid-ir..."

  "Lidrilian." It corrected.

  "Are Lidrilian plants?" she asked.

  "Yes, yes. Pla-hnts."

  "Plants on our planet cover the ground where we live." She elaborated. "We cut down the trees and use them to build houses, for fuel, and for many other things."

  "Food, yes?"

  "Yes. We eat fruit from trees also."

  Prin's arms and tail fidgeted, and its facial features took on some kind of expression that Rebecca couldn't read. "They are your slaves then, yes? You raise them, eat their offspring, make them serve you, yes, yes? Do any of them roam free in other places on the planet, or has your clan enslaved them all?"

  Rebecca was taken aback. Enslaved? Offspring? Roam free? What in the...? Suddenly, an idea struck her with such force that her mind reeled from the impact. "Do you mean to say that trees...plants...Lidrilian, move, live, are...sentient? Do you mean they can think?"

  Muscles in different parts of Prin's face creased as if in confusion. "Yes, yes, of course. Do Lidrilian...plahnts not move and think on your planet?"

  "Well, no. I mean...yes, they are alive, but they can't move or think. And we do eat fruit, but I...we don't consider it offspring ..." Her voice trailed off as she finished her sentence, another unsettling thought suddenly occurring to her. She looked down at the plate beside her where sat the remains of the fruit she had ravenously devoured. "Are you telling me that what I ate was...some kind of baby? The baby of a...walking, talking, intelligent tree-thing?"

&nb
sp; The ferret alien nodded emphatically. "Yes, yes! From our garden."

  "Garden?" she said, feeling suddenly ill.

  "Yes. Our hunting parties travel to the border of the Lidrilian lands and capture as many of them as possible. We then keep them in our garden for food and other uses. We are lucky to have a large garden."

  "Why is that?" Rebecca asked dully.

  "Because the Lidrilian border is four clan areas away. It is very dangerous to move through them. Do you not have other clans in your land?"

  "What do you mean by 'clans'? Do you mean tribes, races, species, gender?"

  The alien paused for a moment. "The translator does not know those words. I will try to explain. A clan is a group of beings that have the same parents' parents' parents. They look alike and fight together to live. Are there others that look like you on your planet?"

  "Yes. If I understand your definition, then everyone on my planet is part of my clan."

  Prin sat up straight and leaned forward. "Then your clan has conquered all other clans, yes?"

  Rebecca shook her head. "Not exactly. We're the only intelligent species...clan to evolve on our planet."

  The same muscles creased once again on Prin's face. "There are no other intelligent clans? How can that be? How did your clan become intelligent and others did not? Are there no others that speak?"

  For a moment, Rebecca couldn't answer. She had never really thought of it that way before. What happened in the early history of the Earth that gave humans alone the ability to speak, develop language, and think? "I don't know," she said aloud, partly in response to Prin's question and partly in response to her own musings.