The New World: Crimson Winter

by Andy Skrzynski

  A cynical grin spread across her light green lips. “I brought some receiver and blaster tubes to deal with the heat your machine will need to handle, but I need a few more things.”

  She picked up a short board from the floor, and a small beam shot from one of her eyes. Smoke floated upward as the laser burned an inscription into the oak. When done, she extended it toward Zo. “Here, this is what I need within the next 30 minutes. Better find someone to get these if you want to hang around here. Hurry!”

  Dumbfounded, he shook his head while every foul name he knew flashed through his mind. Who does she think she is — and what is that stupid frog thing on her shoulder?

  Hoping for a bit of support, Zo glanced at Teli. The young Uke simply smiled with a shrugged. “Hey, don’t look at me. I’ve learned it doesn’t pay to challenge Miss Smarty Pants, but don’t fret, she knows what she’s doing.”

  Zo rolled his eyes. “She better.”

  He turned toward the entrance. “Guard!”

  After a burly female rushed to his side, Zo handed her the list. “Take this to Jrok. I need these things within 25 minutes.”

  “As you say.” She spun and raced down the hallway.

  Teli stepped toward the exit. “While you two are getting acquainted, I need to check with Gno and see if his drone is communicating with the Texans. I enhanced it last night so they could talk with Tiger while they modify some of the muclones.”

  He shook his head. “I mean denamods. I’ve always been curious about their DNA handiwork. Be back in a bit.”

  “Wait!” A twinge struck Zo’s heart as Angrokt’s voice jabbed his brain. You gonna let a Uke wander your caves and mess with your drones? It’s bad enough you’re letting a robot change Quaker. Better be careful. He sighed. She’s got a point. They killed her and many of our clan, but how can we possibly defeat the aliens without their help?

  He glanced at Teli. “Go ahead, but don’t slow them down. They’ve got a lot to do.”

  “No problem.” Waving his hand, the young man disappeared around the corner.

  Zo turned toward the android and scoffed. “Better keep talking while you’re making those changes.”

  “Then, pay attention.” She spun and looked at the drone in the corner. “Speedy. Feed me the coordinate maps of all our Halos.”

  “Will do. It sure sounds like y’all are making good progress.”

  The robot turned back to the controls. “Affirmative.”

  With no exposure to such an unusual accent, Zo found it difficult to understand the quick-tongued Texan. At least the android’s technical conversation proved easier to comprehend, even if her tone left much to be desired.

  Andralec looked at the drone again. “We should be done in 2.77 hours if our friend here can keep up.”

  Zo scowled. If that heap of so-called artificial intelligence was a Skalag, she’d already be floundering at the bottom of the tar pit.

  Another Part of the Cavern

  After rounding a bend, Teli spotted his twin and Vra talking outside the denamod lab. Wonder what they’re up to?

  The closer he approached, the greater his sensitivity to a hint of curiosity stirring within Caru as she spoke. “Has Zo ever mentioned my…?”

  His foot accidentally kicked a stone, and she fell silent. She peered at him with a look of surprise. “What brings you this way?”

  When he was about to reply, Vra’s light steel-blue eyes pricked his soul like a dart with a spell no man could resist.

  His gaze shifted to her wavy, blond side-knot, so different from the other Skalag women’s dark brown, almost black hair. A yearning never felt before welled within him.

  Forget Andralec! Vra’s a real woman!

  While most of the robot’s disguises sent a tingle up his leg, some gripped his soul with horror. Apparently, his attraction to the mechanical humanoid simply fell into the category of ‘misguided infatuation.’

  But not Vra. With a certainty rarely embraced, the tightness across his chest must be love. He locked his gaze on the lovely Skalag.

  Her smudged face and a couple of crooked teeth meant nothing. Looks are superficial anyway. She’s got character! He smiled.

  The chill of the cave failed to halt the raging heat swarming his body like a wildfire. He feverishly unbuttoned his coat as sweat trickled down his sideburns. Wicked! Why is it getting so hot in…?

  Caru’s biting voice startled him. “Teli, why are you here?” Her emerald-green eyes probed his soul.

  After throwing his coat to the floor, he glanced at Vra. Despite appearing stunned, his new-found admirer smiled.

  Just as courage shot through his body, Caru’s voice struck his heart-string with a twang. “Teli! What’s gotten into you?”

  He glanced back at Vra and stammered. “I was, uh, I…,” he paused for a second, “…I came to make sure Gno’s drone was communicating with Texas.”

  When the words escaped his mouth, a spark lit his sister’s eyes.

  Like a man caught with his pants down, air rushed from his lungs. Crap! She knows exactly how I feel.

  A Tic Later

  Caru gently clutched her twin’s arm after his new heartthrob returned to her workstation. “Hmmm, that Vra is pretty, don’t you think?”

  A scarlet blush raced up his neck and across his face while he stared at his feet. The rare chance to embarrass her brother was sweet like a juicy cherry atop a big scoop of homemade ice cream.

  Try as she might, nothing could hold back the spread of her grin as Teli’s cheeks flushed a shade of ripe tomatoes. “You owed me one, Little Brother, and I sure hope this means you won’t be having any more dreams about Andralec.”

  Her twin squirmed as his face grew even redder, darn near the color of plums. Though no sister loved a brother more, Caru chuckled inside. Look at the poor sucker. I kinda feel sorry for him.

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  Brain Food

  The Denamod Lab

  Thankful his sister took off to work with other Skalags, Teli inspected a variety of the latest denamod creations. Pungent odors of the worse kind struck his nostrils. Eeew, they stink!

  Pinching his nose, he kept his distance, not sure how aggressive the odd concoctions of different species might be. Something touched his arm, and he jumped.

  A friendly voice of assurance followed. “Remember me? I’m Vra, and that’s my brother.”

  “Yeah, I remember. I helped Gno with his drone last night.”

  Her brother inserted a syringe into the rump of a mutant on a table. Without looking up, the Skalag scientist waved. “Hi. I’m kinda busy now. Your changes to the drone worked. Go ahead and say hi to Tiger. She’s watching through the cam over there.” He pointed at the drone on a table.

  Teli waved. “Hey, Tiger. Getting your fill of DNA experience?”

  “I love it. I’ve always been interested in this stuff. Now, I’m learning from the experts.”

  “That’s great!” Teli panned the vast hollow of the cave.

  Stacked cages of all sizes imprisoned more than 50 denamods against every wall, while frightening squawks and screeches filled the dingy hallway to his left. “Don’t mind me. I’m gonna take a look to see what kinda monsters our friendly neighbors had planned for us.” He winked at Vra.

  Though Teli made light of it in front of his new allies, he knew darn well these ferocious predators would have been unleashed against Ukkiville if a truce hadn’t been formed. When he spun around, Vra’s blue eyes sparkled like a dewdrop’s reflection in the morning sun. “I can show you around. It’s about time for a break.”

  She peered at Teli. “You’re Caru’s twin, right? She seems so nice.”

  He drew a deep breath. “Yes, I’m her brother, and she can be nice, most of the time.” He pointed toward the cages. “I’m amazed at the different kinds of denamods you’ve cloned. I can’t identify half of the species.”

  She laughed. “This is just a tiny sampling. We’re focusing on the ones we might be able to modi
fy for our attack against the clickers. See, here?”

  The slender woman strolled toward a cluster of barred enclosures. Teli’s nerves fluttered as his eyes scanned every inch of the Skalag’s finely built body. Her scantily tight deerskin top and skirt didn’t leave much to the imagination. There wasn’t a single curve out of place.

  It took everything he could muster to settle his heart. Calm down. Take a deep breath.

  Seeming oblivious to the commotion in his chest, she motioned with her hand. “These denamods include different species of canines that spray their surroundings to mark their territory, and over here, we’ve got mutants that include varieties of skunks and striped polecats.”

  She glanced at him as his pulse calmed. “You don’t want to get too close and spook them. Their discharges are pretty potent.”

  Nearly impossible to imagine anything smelling worse than the odors already floating around in there, he decided to take her word on that one.

  He’d seen plenty of skunks in his time, but these muclones were much larger with heads from another animal unknown to him. The creatures in the cage labeled polecats were similar but with brown fur and white stripes. “What other mammal did you mutate with these?”

  She laughed. “Haven’t you seen a wolverine before. We wanted something smelly with a nasty disposition.”

  “Hmmm, that makes sense given all the other denamods you’ve sent our way over the years. They’re always mean and aggressive. How many you got in these caves?”

  “You sure you want to know? Wouldn’t want to give you nightmares.”

  “Come on, how many?”

  “Well over two thousand.”

  He lifted his brow. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “Nope. Serious as ever. We’ve been building an army to fight Ukkiville for years — everything from sting-suckers to prehistoric monsters.”

  She bit her lower lip. “I can show you later this evening if you want.”

  “Blazes, yes!” His heart pounded against his chest. “But let’s skip the sting-sucker tour. I have nightmares about those things.”

  He prayed that someday he’d be able to unsee the vision that still haunted him from his teenage years.

  Twelve Years Earlier

  In the Heart of Ukkiville

  Horrified, Teli tried to catch up with his teacher who ran toward a commotion across the gravel road. What’s going on?

  A crazed woman jumped from a neighbor’s porch and sprinted to the nearest tree with Queasy on her heels. “Get out of my mind!”

  A sinking feeling filled Teli’s gut. Oh no, Deeruk’s delirious! Must be the sting-sucker’s venom.

  Wrapping her hands around the trunk, she banged her head against the pine several times. When Queasy grabbed her shoulders, she spun around and slapped him. “Don’t touch me!”

  Doc and Aluki raced and helped restrain Deeruk. The distressed woman’s eyes were bloodshot, and one was swollen to the size of a chestnut.

  Blood streamed down her forehead as she struggled for a second, then slumped. Catching her, Queasy and Doc gently laid her on the ground.

  The physician knelt and grabbed her wrist. Biting his lips, he looked up. “No pulse.”

  He turned to his female assistant. “Help me give her CPR!”

  Doc pumped the victim’s chest with the heels of his palms. “Aluki! Pinch her nose and breathe in her mouth whenever I pause!”

  As the woman blew air down Deeruk’s throat, she jumped back. The swollen eyeball jiggled. Blood dripped from around its socket.

  Queasy held the helper back. “Careful, let me I check it out.”

  He knelt next to the body and touched the puffy area of her face as Doc tried to revive her. Suddenly, hordes of larvae crawled from around her enlarged eye. Like swarming maggots, more of the wormy creatures squeezed their way out from the other eye.

  Gagging, Teli forced the stinging puke back down his throat. She’s dead.

  His mentor pointed at him. “Run and get a petri dish! Hurry!”

  After sprinting to Queasy’s cabin and returning, Teli handed the container and a pair of tweezers to his teacher. After plucking a handful of the plump, disgusting specimens and dropping them into the small glass receptacle, Queasy inspected the remaining parasites.

  Teli peered at the scientist. “Are you sure we can’t help her anymore?”

  “Positive.” Queasy pinched the swollen eyeball with the tweezers and turned it to the side.

  “See here? Half the eyeball is missing. Look! The larvae have been feasting on her brain.”

  He removed the half-eaten orb. “See that large cavity behind the socket. That’s where part of her frontal lobe used to be.”

  With the tweezers, he snatched another squirmy straggler swimming in the gray, liquefied goo and squished it. “We need to kill every one of these suckers.”

  Back to Present Time

  The Denamod Lab

  Teli shook his head and the vision of Deeruk’s gory demise dissipated. When will this horrible thought stop tormenting me?

  Something poked him. “Are you okay?”

  He spun and found Vra’s caring eyes. “It seems like you wondered off to la-la land there for a sec.”

  “I’m fine; really, I am. I just can’t get this terrible memory out of my head.”

  “Sorry.” Her stare turned sad. “Is there some way I can help?”

  A few that came to mind, he really couldn’t share, so he fibbed. “I don’t think so. Let’s just change the subject.”

  He scanned the room. “Are you planning to use all of the denamods to fight the aliens?”

  “Yep, as many as we can. We’re going to prepare and release them the night before the battle — some to spray spores, others to inject venom, and the rest to distract and kill those clickers as best they can.”

  While Teli mulled what he heard, a frightening thought weaseled its way to the fore. “That’s fine and good, but what happens after the battle. Will we all be fighting your starving denamods forever?”

  Gno broke out with a mocked laugh. “That’s a good one.”

  He pointed at Teli. “You’re hilarious! You think we’d want those things wandering the hillsides to attack us whenever they got hungry?”

  “Well, I hope not.” He didn’t appreciate the dry humor the Skalag seemed to enjoy.

  Vra nudged him with her knee. “Don’t let my brother get to you. He can be annoying.”

  She shot a wry grin at her brother. “You don’t have to worry about the denamods. We’ve embedded kill switches near the hearts of each of the clones. They’re remotely programmable to shorten their life or kill them instantly. What I worry about most is the cooler temps.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Some of our denamods are mutations from insects and amphibians. They don’t move well in the cold.”

  Tiger’s voice pierced the air. “We can help.”

  Teli looked at the drone. “How?”

  “Glow Heat can keep them warm. I can fly you a couple of barrels immediately.”

  Vra wrinkled her nose. “I don’t understand. What’s Glow Heat?”

  Teli smiled. “It’s a liquid that keeps things hot. The Texans sent us some a year ago. All of Ukkiville uses it to keep our cabins warm in the winter, and few people use it to grill meat.”

  His new friend scrunched her face even more. “I don’t want to cook the denamods.”

  Tiger chuckled. “That’s not what he meant. Let’s say you were to spread a tiny amount on a crate of large stones in a corner of your denamod cages. Then, if you cover your transport wagons with a thick tarp, it would keep your nasty killers toasty until you unleash them on the snatchers.”

  Vra’s eyes grew large. “How’s that possible?”

  “Suffice it to say, it’s a chemical that one of our scientists discovered several years back. Here in Texas, we’ve been using it to heat homes and smoke meat for a long time.”

  Teli nodded. “Believe me, it w
orks just like she says. You’ll be amazed.”

  “If it’s true, that means we’ll be able to take all of our denamods to the battle. The more they harass the aliens, the better our chance of striking them with more effective weapons. In fact, once they leave the cages and that frigid air smacks them, they’ll be even more eager to sink their teeth into something warm.”

  Blazes! Teli sucked a deep breath. This same beautiful woman was about to unleash those vicious muclones on us!

  Gno snapped. “Vra! You done flirting over there? We’ve got work to do.”

  Shooting a quick smile at Teli, she glared at her brother and stomped toward her workstation.

  As his new friend grabbed a scalpel, Teli shook his head. With so many muclones, it’s a good thing we’re allies.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Spurned Hate

  In a Deeper Recess of the Cavern

  Caru followed the Skalag ruler down a dingy trail. Hopeful anticipation filled her heart, but caution tempered her emotions. In the flickering glow of her torch, Zo’s muscles flexed with each step. Hmmm, must be training a lot. There isn’t a soft spot on his body.

  She peeked around his bulging biceps. “Where in the world are you taking us? I gotta warn you, I hate the dark!”

  “You’ll be fine if you stick to my tail.” He stopped and waved the flame across the narrow, rocky path ahead. Both sides fell sharply into dark nothingness.

  Zo lifted the light and peered at her. “Be careful. A wrong step here would be your last.”

  She kicked a rock off the edge, and seven seconds passed before the faint plop of a deep splash reached her ears. She gulped. “Yeah, I see what you mean.”

  His strong fingers clutched her palm, sending goosebumps down her spine. “Here, grab this.”

  He guided her hand to the rope snugging his brown leather pants against his hardened waist. “Stay close.” He continued forward.

  A few seconds later, an eerie squawk cracked the still of the cave’s musty air. Her body jerked. What was that?