Kraken Orbital

by James J. Stubbs

  Chapter 7

  Mountain Pass

  I don’t talk to Kolt for a while. I rapidly came to the conclusion that he is well and truly off his rocker. I concentrate on the difficulty of the climb to take my mind off some of the things he had said.

  It works. The rock is slippery as the mist begins to form above the elevated crag we climbed onto to get out of the way of some dinosaurs. We need to get down soon though. I can see the base of the mountain ahead, rising up into the sky, after some rolling foothills.

  I keep peering up into the cloud cover to see if I can catch a glimpse of his Kraken Class warship atop the mountain. I wonder though, I wonder if he even has a ship at all, I can’t figure out the reality of the guy. I hope it is a Kraken though. I’d love to see one.

  ‘We should camp up here tonight.’ Kolt finally breaks the awkward silence and stops. He is right. The sun is dipping into the back of the mountain ahead and sending rays of dazzling orange light through the methane soaked atmosphere. It casts a long shadow of the mountain across the darkening jungle floor.

  It would be a literal nightmare getting through the jungle in this darkness. But it doesn’t stop me wanting to. I decide to protest. I can’t figure this guy out. One minute I trust him completely then he drops a bomb like that and my faith in him fades quickly.

  I’m not sure I like the idea of sleeping on his watch. I’d almost rather battle on and try to make it through the dinosaur infested mess, then make the climb up the mountain the next day. I know that will be hard but I’ve pulled many double shifts and feel its worth a shot.

  ‘I think we should keep going.’ He looks at me dazed for a second.

  ‘Ok, it’s your call.’ He answers and starts looking for a way off the rocky outcropping. It doesn’t look like the way down will be any easier than the way up though.

  There are no vines to climb down as we reach the last possible point where we can get down and stay on track as we head for the base of the mountain. There is no more water either. The rocky fissure has dried out almost completely, and by the looks of it as I dangle my head over the edge, the climb is going to be long and difficult.

  I sigh, look longingly at the deceased sun, and prey that I’m doing the right thing by keeping on going. I’m surprised that Kolt doesn’t stop me.

  I lower myself from the rocky edge and grip the top ledge as hard as I can. The sharp rock cuts deep and slowly into my bare palms. Blood begins to trickle along my extended fingers and down into the sleeve of my torso plated armor. The warmth of it feels nice but the metallic smell of the fresh blood immediately hits me.

  It makes me feel sick. I run my feet down the wall until they find a small, narrow and dangerous ledge to take my weight. I can’t see where I’m going at all. I wouldn’t mind the climb at all, but I don’t like the feeling of doing it blind.

  I hang on tight and work out my route. My heart is pounding and the stress is having the opposite effect than the one I want on my grip. I have to concentrate and fight the urge to let go all of the time.

  I can see the rock face slopes away to my right and forms a sort of chimney feature that I think I can just about wedge myself into. I can brace myself between each of it’s sides. That might make the climb a little less harrowing and will undoubtedly increase my already low chances of survival.

  I feel my way along the crag, bouncing my feet along the wall as I find ways to lower myself inch by inch to my target. The light is disappearing fast. I hadn’t thought. I though by the position of the sun when we were on the ridge chatting, that we had a good few hours left. I guess the orbit of the planet might be different than I am used to.

  Come to think of it, the days certainly do seem shorter than I had grown used to back on my own world. They were certainly shorter than an Earth day of 24 hours. I try to look on the bright side as a I scramble down the cliff. If the day is short then the night will be short too. I hope. My logic insists to me that the spin of the planet will be even and the night will be just as long as the day or thereabouts.

  My hands are starting to throb. I graze them across the sandy and abrasive rock every time I reach down for the next insufficient hold. They wont stop bleeding and the slippery texture of the sickly red liquid makes every move all the harder.

  I finally reach the entrance to the chimney feature. It is a hollowed out half tunnel shape in the side of the rock. I brace one foot hard against the other side and tense my leg muscle to hold myself in place. I take that time to rest, get my breath back, align my thoughts and make sure I get my gloves back out from my pocket. I thought my bare hands would have better grip but I’ve just torn them apart.

  My legs will be doing the work for a fair while now so I put my gloves on to stop the bleeding. I glance up to see Kolt follow. He is much taller than I and he is, frustratingly, finding the awkward moves much easier than I do. He pushes down hard on each precarious shelf and lowers himself with ease given his immense strength.

  I have to get going again or he is going to be on top of me and impatient to complete the next section of the wall. I find a good spot for my hands and brace my back as hard as I can against the back wall of the tunnel shape. I think if I increase my surface area against the rock then I will be able to stay on it for longer! I start to slide my leg down and step by step lower myself down. I slip occasionally but a quick brace of the back and a tight tensing of whichever leg is taking my weight stops the slide dead before I end up plummeting the remaining few feet into the jungle overgrowth below.

  I glance up to see Kolt enter the chimney. He braces his two arms against each side and takes on the shape of a starfish. Alright for him. I think to myself. He is as strong as an ox and I can‘t help but feel deeply envious of him. I take another few steps and descend below the canopy of the jungle.

  I can finally see the end of the climb. My body brushes past some moist leaves and I battle a few sharp stabbing branches to descent into the darkness of the jungle. I can see the water below. It is murky and I can’t tell how deep it is through the veil of darkness. I have two choices. Leap for the water and let my battered and aching muscles rest a while as I embrace the fall, or I jump for a tree trunk near by and try to wrap myself around it and shimmy down. My muscles scream for me to take the first option.

  I scream in anger and to let out the frustration, let myself go limp, and leap with all the might my legs can manage, away from the hard and crumbling wall. The fall feels like a long time. But in reality it was probably only a few seconds. I flail my legs around and swing my arms to try to stop myself toppling and spinning before the impact of the water.

  I feel the waves part as my feet hit first. The cold of the water is unreal, not welcoming, and very scary as I feel my head sink below the surface. It’s immediately pitch dark and the water gushes up my nose and fills my lungs. I want to breath in with shock but fight the urge. My armor suddenly feels heavy and I battle with already over exerted legs to make the surface.

  I finally break through the water tension at the top and gasp for air. I must have been the loudest thing around. A few flutters sound from the jungle undergrowth to the side of the body of water. I didn’t realize at first but the water is fast moving.

  I only realize when I look up to see Kolt, he is still clinging to the rock surface with his massive hands. It looks for a while as though he is floating there, suspended by his enviable ability to stick to vertical walls, but I realize that I’m quickly moving away from him. I just about catch the look of horror in his frightening eyes before turning my attention to wherever it is I’m being sped off to. I hear the splash behind me as Kolt dives in to try to help me. Why do I keep second guessing this guy?

  I’m starting to panic hard. I have no control over where I’m going and can’t steady my erratic breathing. I suddenly feel a cold, wet, but very strong hand grip around my shoulder. I jump a little at first then quickly remember that it’s Kolt.

  ‘You should have stayed on the wall!’ I sho
ut to him, mostly through sheer embarrassment, but also because I don’t want both of us to have to die because of my silly mistake.

  ‘Hold on Parker!’ He shouts back and lifts his drenched arm out of the water to point to a sheet of white foaming bubbles ahead. My heart leaps. My mind irritatingly points out the cliché but we are sure as sure heading for the cusp of a waterfall!

  I instinctively try to battle against the rampaging current but find I have nothing against it. Kolt just stares at it and focuses.

  ‘Don’t fight Parker.’ He pushes me back and launches himself forth. He swims a few hard breast strokes towards the fall and leaps out of the water like a majestic dolphin. He transforms his stance into a practiced, ornate swan dive and jumps headfirst down into the unknown. I can just let the fury of the water carry me helplessly. I take a few breaths and hope inside that they aren’t my last.

  The force of the waves pound me over the edge and I immediately see the distance I’m about to fall. The vertigo hits me immediately as my helpless body is thrown over the side. I feel weightless again, just like I had back in the rig when I first stole it, but the feeling that follows I had not predicted.

  The adrenaline calms me, focuses my eyes, soothes me and appeases my panic. I even enjoy the fall. The darkness is broken by the reflections cast upon the jungle from the moons in the sky. The silver light sharply penetrates the jungle canopy and shows us the way. The fall is not long but the impact of the next body of water hurts bad.

  That sensation of enjoyment fades quickly, luckily, so does the powerful current. I though it might drag us both under and drown us before we had any chance of breaking past the gushing torrent of water from above. We are, instead, thrown aside and float gently to the shore of the calming river.

  Kolt laughs contently, through labored, rattling breaths and grabs hold of the first boulder big enough to support his weight. He holds out a solid hand and pulls me from the rivers cold grasp. I waste no time in hauling myself up onto the muddy shore, rolling onto my back, and staring up at the sky as I’m filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude. The river has, I eventually notice, carried us in the right direction.

  The jagged edge of the frowning mountain sticks out like an unwelcome thorn from the sides of the horizon. The crisp moonlight illuminates the compacted snow that settles so firmly to the rocky abyss. We are just about at the start of the mountains foothills. We are by no measure out of danger yet.

  ‘We should get going.’ Kolt insists and drags himself out of the water. He stands tall, un-fazed, and waits as the water gushes over his shoulders and washes down the leather apron across his chest. He leans down, stretches out his hand, as water droplets from his chest and shoulders splash onto my bright red face, and pulls me to my feet. I’m amazed I can still stand.

  The atmosphere of the crowded jungle turns tense as I look around, still panting for breath. I straighten out my armor, take off my gloves and turn them up side down to get all of the water and blood out. I can feel the humidity rise and know that means my clothes aren’t going to dry out until the morning sun breaks.

  The steam coming from my soaked body chokes my nostrils and stops me taking a deep and satisfying breath. Kolt reaches around his back and takes hold of his ancient gun. He starts playing with the rifle and takes off a few parts to let water out.

  I don’t think it’s ever going to work again. He must reach that same conclusion and tosses it aside. I really should protest, those guards from the Morris-Cooper Company could be anywhere behind us, and I don’t want to give away any clues as to where we might be. I comfort myself with the thought that they will most likely lose the track as we entered the water and decide to say nothing.

  I start to look around and watch the gentle sway of the leaves above my head. The wind gently caresses the tree tops but I feel nothing of the benefit of a light breeze. It’s still stifling and hot down here at ground level. We need to move but the tense atmosphere has me genuinely spooked.

  Maybe we should have camped after all. I start to listen for every sound against the eerie backdrop of silence. A bug here or there chirps away until it gets picked off by a lizard or frog. I can hear their tongues slapping away trying to catch the flies and crickets.

  We start to walk, minding our every single step, and make slow progress though the mud and grass. I can hear my boots squelch with every rise of my leg and I wish that I could do something to stop it. I feel like there is something listening to my every move. I feel something has eyes on me at all times. I hope I’m just being paranoid but can’t dismiss the feeling that we are being watched. I control every single exhale as I battle the urge to suck in a deep, loud, and oxygen filled lung full of air.

  I’m following Kolt, trying to focus on his every footstep so that I can follow it. I watch his apron fold and sway as he picks his way into the deep vegetation. I take care as I brush past the oversize leaves not to snap them and alert the surrounding predators to our whereabouts. I calculate every sway and press of my heel, sometimes balancing one hand on his shoulder, to stop myself falling into a muddy hole.

  I can make out a few creatures against the green, silver lined, and harshly yet unsatisfactorily lit background of trees and shrubbery. The odd spider or two, dinner tray sized each of them, and a few snakes coiled around the branches above our heads. I can hear their tongues slide out of their greasy mouths and slap the air, tasting it to see what new victims had entered it’s territory. They must be poised to strike but we give them no reason to and pass on by amicably. These snakes aren’t big enough to feast upon us. I think if we leave them be then they will leave us be. They will only strike out if we threaten them or give them some other reason to do it.

  I try my hardest to comfort my over active mind with that reality but it does nothing to calm my sharpened nerves. I let Kolt step ahead a little and give him some breathing space. He must think I’m some small child who just needs to be led by the hand the whole time.

  I don’t know how long we have walked but the effort of hiding my every motion is tiring me out faster than I thought it would. I start to get angry at myself. I should have listened to Kolt and stopped for the night up on the safety of the ridge. But those thoughts are useless now. Hindsight paints a wonderfully vivid image.

  Foresight? In that I am clearly lacking. We have made our choices, found ourselves deep in the heart of a jungle infested by snarling beasts that were supposed to be, in my mind at least, extinct, and there is no turning back.

  The jungle eventually opens into a welcome clearing and I take a deep, long overdue breath and exhale out with a gentle rumble in my throat. I’m relieved to be able to see a few feet ahead of me at long last. Kolt casts me a disapproving glare and holds a raised finger against his closed lips to shut me up.

  The clearing reaches as far as the first gently sloping grassy hill that we need to climb as we inch closer to the mountain ahead. He crouches down to hide under the shadow of the gentle hill. He can’t see over it and I certainly can’t. Maybe he can sense something atop and over the other side. I take his same position and rest my tired hands against my raised knee.

  He starts creeping, stalking, up the slippery, dewy moist grass and step by step, shuffles closer to the crest of the hill. I join him at the top and see nothing. But the deep, rumbling, belting and terror inducing roar that shatters the very sky confirms we have stumbled into something we might not be able to run away from!