Omina Uncharted

by Roland Starr

  “Come this way,” he ordered.

  Vonner preceded Den Thol, and entered an even bigger chamber. There was a long table at one end and more than a dozen Zukons were seated around it. At the near end of the table were two empty seats, and Tryxx escorted them to the seats and made them sit down.

  “The alien on the right is an Earthman, Masters,” the Zukon space captain said in respectful tones, and Vonner felt a start of surprise as he realised that Tryxx was capable of respect. “He is Captain Vonner of the space ship Orion. The Earthman I took prisoner is Captain Vonner’s Second Officer. The alien on the left is Pravan. His name is Den Thol and he is the commander of the outpost on Obal.”

  Tryxx moved back a couple of paces and stood behind Vonner and Den Thol. Vonner looked at the black, triangular faces turned towards him, and saw dull gleams in the reptilian eyes. He assumed that these Zukons were the governing body of the planet, and looked for emotion amongst their expressionless features. If they were concerned at the plight of their people, none of them showed it.

  Den Thol got to his feet and placed his hands upon the table. He leaned his weight upon his hands and looked around at the watchful alien faces.

  “I assume that you have all learned the language of Captain Vonner,” he said, “because Captain Tryxx has addressed you in English. “I presume you have extracted enough knowledge from Commander Bardo to be able to understand the emotions of the Earth people, and if so you will comprehend the reasons why Captain Vonner has risked his life to make contact with you.”

  “We understand!” The Zukon at the head of the table was dressed in a green uniform He leaned forward and stared at Vonner. His dark eyes were unlike any that Vonner had seen anywhere. They had a hypnotic intensity in their depthless quality, and Vonner was thankful that he had been immunised against the pressures that were being brought to bear up him.

  “I am a Pravan and I understand the Zukon mentality,” Den Thol went on. “I was not prepared to risk my life at the first time of asking, but Earthmen have more compassion, and I was persuaded to take part in this mission which I considered suicidal. The mission is intended to aid the Zukon race to avoid extermination.”

  “Captain Tryxx has given us his report of the situation,” came the steady reply. “You chose a strange way to help us. The device that was planted in the volcano. You have the remote control with you.”

  “I have!” Den Thol nodded. “It has a preset pattern that cannot be formulated by anyone without the mental key. If it is removed from me by force then the device will explode. The explosion will be of sufficient force to destroy this entire planet.”

  “Yet you have come to help us, you allege!”

  “We had to take precautions against being killed on sight,” Vonner said.

  “The Pravans have no wish to prolong this futile war,” Den Thol said sharply. “You have no chance of winning, and while you are destroying yourselves against our defences your planet is being burned out by volcanic eruption. Ten million of your people have died in a single year, and the process can only get worse until the planet explodes and burns itself out.”

  “And Prava would help us by giving us one of the five planets in her system?” The Zukon leader was expressionless.

  “If it will end the war between us!” Den Thol sat down.

  “How do we know that you have not come here to spy on us?”

  Vonner stood up. “There is no point in our coming here to spy. The device was planted without your knowledge, and can be detonated at any time. This being so, we have nothing to gain by risking our lives in this attempt to talk with you. I am an Earthman, and I came to find out if Obal is suitable for Earth colonisation. President Treb of Prava has agreed that Earth may use the planet if I can help promote peace between his world and yours. He is prepared to do this for peace, and he will permit Zukons the use of another planet in the System if you will agree to end hostilities. There will have to be trust on either side. But as I see it the Pravans are taking more on trust than the Zukons will have to do. This planet is doomed and you will all die unless you find another planet. This is your opportunity to settle in everlasting peace.”

  “But we are winning the war against Prava,” the Zukon leader said.

  “Slowly and surely, because we are running down,” Den Thol said. “But you must realise that by the time you do succeed in overpowering us it will be too late for the masses of people on Zukon. Indeed, I would say that Zukon will disintegrate before you can destroy us. But apart from that I will not be divulging vital information by telling you that we are preparing for the day we lose the war. In the event, we plan to destroy the entire Odan System. The five planets will be devastated by nuclear fission explosions. There will be nothing left for the victors.”

  There was silence, and Den Thol’s voice echoed across the long room. Vonner waited tensely, knowing that if he was faced with this choice he would not have hesitated one instant to accept the Pravan terms. But these aliens had different attitudes towards life, and lower values.

  “We must have time in which to discuss this,” the Zukon leader said at length. “Will you give us time?”

  “Certainly,” Den Thol said at once. “So long as we are returned to the surface of the planet that we may communicate with our ship! The crew have orders to detonate the device if we do not contact them within a specified period. Let us return to the outpost where we were picked up and give permission for our ship to remain in Zukon orbit and you can have a reasonable length of time in which to consider. If you wish to talk to Pravan experts then I will arrange for them to be transported here.”

  “Very well. I, as Zukon Master of the Planet Bnkl, order that you are to receive hospitality, and you will be notified of our decision. Captain Tryxx, you will remain attendant upon the aliens and ensure their safety. They are to be treated with every courtesy.”

  “I understand, Master Bnkl!” Tryxx saluted. “You will be obeyed.”

  “There is one thing, Master Bnkl,” Vonner said, getting to his feet as the Zukons arose from the table. “A member of my crew was made prisoner by Captain Tryxx. He was ill, suffering from space sickness, when he was captured. I fear for his life. Perhaps you would show some good faith by permitting him to return to the outpost on the surface with me.”

  “I would oppose the request very strongly, Master Bnkl,” Tryxx said instantly. “These aliens from Earth have a high degree of cunning, and all this talk of having the upper hand in the war may be a screen to enable them to come here and seize the prisoner. I feel that we should retain the prisoner as a hostage, and if the aliens are to show any good faith themselves then they will agree to this.”

  “I would remain here in the prisoner’s place,” Den Thol said. “Captain Vonner has to return to the surface to contact his ship. Let the Earth prisoner go with him and hold me as hostage.”

  Bnkl paused for a moment, then shook his head. “There has never been any trust on the part of the Zukons in the past,” he said. “Now we must show some faith. Captain Tryxx, have the Earthman prisoner released and sent to the surface outpost with these two aliens.”

  Vonner started with pleasure at the words, and sighed with relief. He began to revise his opinions of the Zukons. They were able to judge the situation. They could see that they had no real choice in the matter if they were to survive.

  Captain Tryxx saluted once more, and Vonner looked at the Zukon’s face. He thought it was just as well that Zukons could not register expression, because Tryxx looked as if he was ready to burst.

  They were led from the room, and Den Thol’s face showed relief as they were driven back to the craft that had brought them to the undersea city.

  “I think we are going to be successful, Captain,” the Pravan said. “It’s all thanks to you! We should never have got this far if you hadn’t appeared.”

  “We’re still a long way from any kind of a settlement,” Vonner replied. “But at least we have made a significant breakthrough. It wi
ll be up to your statesmen and the Zukons to get together now and thrash this out. The Zukons will be under considerable pressure to hurry the process because this planet is fast becoming uninhabitable.”

  “There has been no peace in my lifetime,” Den Thol said. “My father fought the Zukons for most of his fife. Millions have died in the fighting. The war has been bitter for both sides, and neither side could win. We have long known the futility of it, and we have been on the defensive for decades.”

  “You are a weak nation,” Captain Tryxx said sharply. “If we had the advantages Prava had all these years the war would have been finished long ago, and there would be no problems for Zukon. As it is, all our sacrifices have been in vain, and the dead have died for nothing.”

  “Nobody dies for nothing,” Vonner said quickly. “Understanding was lacking between your two worlds, and the dead have come to form a basis for understanding. If Zukon had won the war long ago it would not have been satisfied with the Odan System. Zukon ships would have ranged through the galaxies and Universe, looking for other worlds to conquer. It is likely you would have discovered Earth, and then you would have met your match. Wars are games that the victor seldom wins. We discovered that fact to our own cost.”

  Tryxx made no reply, and a few moments later they broke surface and took to the air. Shortly they reached the outpost where they had been picked up, and Vonner and Den Thol put on their space suits. Before they left the craft, Tryxx called up Orion, and Vonner spoke to Lieutenant Hanton.

  “Everything under control aboard here, Captain,” the Lieutenant reported. “How are you making out?”

  Vonner smiled as he nodded, knowing that his face would be appearing on the screens aboard Orion.

  “It’s going better than we dared to hope, Mr. Hanton. The Zukons are considering the Pravan offer. But stand by on red alert and maintain your present orbit. I’ll be in touch with you again.”

  Tryxx let a gleam show in his black eyes as he looked at Vonner when communication with the ship was cut off.

  “You are an optimist, Captain,” the Zukon said in his sibilant tones.

  “Are you a war-monger, Captain?” Vonner countered. “Do you care more for your war than for the innocent lives of your women and children on this doomed planet? You’ve been in the forefront of the war, and you must have formed an opinion of the Pravans. You know they have been fighting a defensive war for years, and only because they have abhorred deliberate slaughter. But your people have made a game of the war, and pursued it indiscriminately. I think it shows a deal of proof of the Pravan’s good intentions because they are taking a gamble with their very existence in trying to help you.”

  “You are an idealistic man, Captain,” Tryxx responded, “and from our studies of the prisoner we have we came to the conclusion that you are more allied to the Pravans than to us. You and the Pravans are similar in physical appearance, and like the Pravans you must look down upon us as an inferior race, as a people who are freaks and little better than animals.”

  “The history of Zukon action is an indication in that direction, Captain,” Den Thol said swiftly.

  Captain Tryxx smiled, and his triangular face filled with menace. He nodded slowly.

  “We shall see what transpires from your visit, but don’t consider that this is cut and dried. You have forced our hand for the time being, but we may yet come up with a counter. It has happened many times before in the war.”

  They left the craft and went across to one of the buildings. Vonner looked around at the belching volcanoes, and what he saw gave him room for real concern. The skies were dark with falling ash, and sooty smoke drifted quickly on the hot wind. The ground trembled unceasingly and the landscape looked grotesque and nightmarish.

  “You are not being held prisoner in this building,” Tryxx said as he escorted Vonner and Den Thol into comfortable quarters. “But for your own safety I advise you not to leave cover. You can remove your space suits inside the building, but wear them at all times outside. I will leave three of my men here with you, but I shall be in contact with you at all times. There is a communication console in the next room. You can speak to your ship from there, Captain.”

  “Thank you, Captain Tryxx,” Vonner replied. “But where is my crew member? Is he being brought here?”

  “He is! He’ll be shown in here as soon as he arrives from where he is being held.” The Zukon turned and departed, and two Zukons remained in the room while another departed but remained outside. The two Zukons remaining were armed, but their weapons were on their belts, and they did not appear to be too alert.

  Vonner looked at Den Thol, and they stripped off their space suits.

  “I don’t trust Tryxx,” the Pravan remarked. “I think he’d be happier with the war continuing.”

  “Fortunately he doesn’t have much authority on the planet,” Vonner said.

  The Zukons paid little attention to them, even when Vonner led the way around the building to explore it. They ascended to an upper storey and found an observation point, giving perfect views of the surrounding landscape, and Vonner studied the volcanoes in the distance. He glanced at Den Thol’s intent face.

  “What do you make of all this, Den Thol?” he demanded. “Are the days of this planet numbered? On the orbits we made we recorded that almost every volcano here is erupting.”

  “All the signs are bad, Captain,” the Pravan said slowly. “I would like to get away from here as soon as possible, and start organising the evacuation of these people.”

  Vonner nodded. He was of the same opinion, and he stared across the smokey countryside, knowing that this was the beginning of the end of Zukon.

  Presently he spotted a Zukon craft descending to the landing space nearby, where Captain Tryxx’s ship rested, and after it had landed Vonner recognised one of the emerging figures as Ed Bardo.

  “Your officer, I believe,” Den Thol said drily, and Vonner started for the stairs, wanting to be on hand to greet Bardo when the man arrived.

  Bardo came through the airlock and entered the room, and his face was haggard inside the plastic dome of his helmet. Vonner hurried to his side, grasping his gloved hand and shaking it warmly.

  “Ed, am I glad to see you!” he greeted. “How did they treat you?”

  “I’m okay, Captain,” Bardo replied. His voice sounded slow and mechanical.

  “Take off that suit. You don’t need it in here.” Vonner was emotional with relief. He had figured that he would never see Bardo alive again, and had already given his subordinate up for lost. He watched Bardo strip off the space suit, and he felt a trickle of alarm go through him as he studied Bardo’s wan features. “Did they give you a bad time, Ed?” he demanded.

  “No. They didn’t treat me rough at all.”

  Den Thol appeared at Vonner’s side. “Your man looks as if he’s been mentally drained, Captain,” the Pravan said. “I have something that should restore him a great deal. The Zukons treated all our men like this, and we had to develop a counter-measure. You’ve been treated, and now the Zukons cannot pressure you. But Commander Bardo has been unfortunate enough to take the pressure without immunisation.”

  As he spoke, Den Thol produced one of the small immunisers and moved towards Bardo. Vonner was startled when Bardo swung his fists and attacked the Pravan. He leaped forward to restrain Bardo, and glanced apologetically at Den Thol.

  “I understand what has happened,” the Pravan said. “They have treated him to have this attitude against us. Hold him, Captain, and I’ll give him this process. It will calm him at least, and might counteract against the treatment he’s received.”

  “So the Zukons might not go along with us as readily as I was beginning to hope,” Vonner said, grasping Bardo firmly. He waited until Den Thol had used the immuniser against Bardo, then released the man, and Bardo moved to a seat and dropped heavily into it.

  “I have warned you there might be trickery ahead of us,” the Pravan replied. “We must be on our guard.”<
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  Vonner glanced at the two Zukons at the far end of the room, and he was slightly surprised that neither seemed very interested in what was going on. He looked at Bardo, and saw his colleague was beginning to lose the haggard, hunted look that had marked him upon his arrival. There was animation seeping into Bardo’s blue eyes, and Vonner sat down beside the man.

  “Feeling better now, Ed?” he demanded.

  “Yeah, sure, Captain. I’m glad to see you. I figured I wouldn’t see another friendly face ever again. How come the Zukons managed to capture me? Did they board Orion? And how is it you’re here without trouble, and with a Pravan?”

  “You’ll learn all about it later, Ed,” Vonner said. “You’d better rest up now. You’ve had a hard time of it. I’ll try and get you back aboard Orion as soon as possible.”

  “That’ll be a relief,” Bardo said.

  Vonner moved away from Bardo and Den Thol went with him.

  “What do you think, Den Thol?” Vonner demanded. “Is he going to be all right?”

  “If their pressure hasn’t already permanently damaged his mental processes then he will recover soon and not know what happened to him. But he was suffering space sickness before Captain Tryxx set to work on him. The way he attacked me at the first opportunity makes me fear the worst. I believe he’s been processed to cause as much disruption and trouble as possible. Captain Tryxx has had access to his mind, and that is a bad thing no matter which way you look at it.”

  “The Captain would like the war to continue,” Vonner mused. “But there’s little Ed can do here against us, is there?”

  “Not if we watch him carefully. And I’ve given him a dose of immunisation. That should help against Zukon influence.”

  “Can you give him a second shot?” Vonner demanded.

  “It isn’t advisable yet. In any case the shot he’s had will take full effect in time. I wish we had used one of our craft for this mission. It has our Transporter system on it. We could have beamed him aboard with no trouble at all.”

  “I’ll keep an eye on him,” Vonner said. “I won’t let him spoil anything now. There’s too much at stake, and I’m not thinking of my own life, Den Thol.”