Renegade Star Origins Box Set

by J. N. Chaney

  I realized what he was doing. Fear was a powerful motivator, and from the looks of those around me, there was plenty to go around. Some anger too. I had to hand it to Mario—it was a smart tactic, but I didn’t like it.

  “What does that mean?” someone called out.

  “I’m not sure yet,” he admitted. “But I do not think it is in the best interest of the colony to send our leader into unknown danger. For that reason, I propose that the panel approve only sending one group.”

  He smiled respectfully at his leader, then turned to the Primes, who began to talk amongst themselves.

  The crowd stayed quiet this time as we waited to see what the Primes would do. It didn’t take long for them to come to a decision in Mario's favor.

  5

  A week had passed since Mario and his group left in search of the missing hunters. Every day they didn’t come back, the tension grew within the compound. A few fights broke out over food rations, people seemed to always be in a rush, and my father’s office was flooded with aggrieved colonists.

  The Selection was only days away and that only added to the stress for the prospus. Even Karin, who was usually happy as a rule, had begun to show signs of strain under the added pressure. She changed out the romances for study material and spent more time in the lab, often coming to the breakfast table bleary-eyed and sluggish, as she did today.

  “You alright?” I asked her, setting my tray down a little hard and bobbling the orange juice.

  “Hm? Oh, yeah. Just tired from studying,” she said, not bothering to stifle a yawn.

  “So, what were you going to tell me at the meeting?” I asked, spooning up another of Janus’ concoctions.

  This one he called “eggs,” which I’d always thought was a weird name. The yellow appearance and runny texture didn’t make it one of my favorite breakfasts, but I couldn’t say it was the worst.

  That prize went to—

  “Huh?” said Karin, confused.

  “You said you were going to tell me something about the Selection,” I reminded her. “Something that ‘everyone knows’ about me and Nero.”

  “Oh that,” she said, smirking. “People are placing bets on you two.”

  “Bets? What are they betting?” I laughed.

  “The usual. Chores, extra shifts, trinkets.” Karin shrugged. “It’s just for fun. Anyhow, you and Nero seem to be the ones it's down to.”

  I scoffed at that. “Please. That doesn’t mean a thing. Besides, anything can happen during the tests.”

  She looked pensive and I nudged her. “No matter what happens, we’ll stay friends, right?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Of course. Nothing could change that.”

  “Good,” I said, standing up and gathering my mess. “Look, I want to make sure I’m prepared. Talk to you later?”

  Karin nodded sleepily.

  Deciding there wasn’t enough organic material to bother with the recycler, I took my dishes in the wash pile to rinse them out. A lot of people just left them there, but I’d scrubbed enough dried, caked oatmeal to have a healthy respect for those in the kitchen.

  “The ration count is off again,” said Mary Reynolds, the kitchen boss, from around the corner.

  “Are you sure?” The second voice was Jacob Abbot, the Sustainability Prime. “Maybe you should count it again.

  “If you would like me to, but I assure you there’s no mistake. I’ve already counted it twice and asked another person to as well. The number of ready meals in storage doesn’t match what we’ve produced and sent out.”

  “Perhaps the initial counts were off,” suggested Abbot.

  “I suppose that’s a possibility,” Mary replied, though she sounded doubtful.

  Why would anyone want to take ready meals? I thought to myself as the voices receded.

  I kept trying to figure it out as I went to do a final check on my staff when I spotted Nero coming my way.

  He slowed as he drew closer in the corridor and I groaned inwardly. We hadn’t spoken since the day of the meeting and I wouldn’t have minded if it stayed that way.

  “Hey, Luce.”

  One of my eyebrows winged up involuntarily. He never called me anything besides Lucia or Visaro. Nero’s use of a nickname and winsome smile told me he wanted something.

  It reminded me of how Mario had addressed the crowd during the meeting. He’d used evocative language and took control with a confidence that spoke volumes. I wasn’t the only one who noticed. Both my parents had been reserved and talking in hushed tones, stopping abruptly when I came within earshot.

  The uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach had only grown, and though I couldn’t explain it, I knew it was just the beginning.

  Resigning myself to a talk with Nero, I nodded and stopped walking. “Nero. What’s up?”

  He looked around conspiratorially then motioned me off to the side.

  “You up for a hunt?”

  “What are you talking about?” I folded my arms across my chest and looked at him expectantly.

  He stepped closer and leaned in to speak without his voice carrying.

  “All the prospus are going into the caves tonight to check out the Boneclaw tunnel.”

  I just stared. My father had instituted a curfew and put out the order that no one was to go in the caves unless he approved it. We’d gone with Alma as planned, but not very far and definitely not anywhere near the tunnel.

  “Unless you’re too much of a coward to go against your dad?”

  My temper flared at his words, even though I knew it was what he wanted.

  “I am not,” I said hotly. “But Selection is almost here. Do you really want to get caught going against leadership right now?”

  Nero smirked. “No, but what are they going to do, kick us all out?”

  Much as I hated to admit it, he had a point. Still, my stomach churned at the idea.

  “Everyone is going?” I asked suspiciously.

  “Yeah. As soon as you convince Karin. She won’t go unless you do.”

  That gave me pause. If I wanted to avoid a potential catastrophe, I could refuse to pressure Karin, though it probably wouldn’t take much to get her to go. Part of me wanted to explore the tunnel. Being confined to the facility had started to make me a little claustrophobic and it would be interesting to look into the mystery of the tunnel.

  He must have sensed I was close to agreeing because Nero pressed on. “C’mon Luce. With my dad out there, I could use the distraction.”

  That tipped the scales for me and I softened at his plea. Nero might be a jerk at times, but I could understand the worry.

  Giving in, I let my arms drop. “Alright, fine. When?”

  He grinned. “A few hours before curfew. We’ll say we’re studying so no one will come looking for us.”

  “Okay,” I said with a sigh. “I’ll talk to Karin. You better hope we don’t get caught, Costas.”

  Nero waved my warning away with a flick of his hand and continued down the hall. “Make sure you two aren’t late, Visaro,” he called over his shoulder.

  I rolled my eyes at his back and sent Karin a message to meet me.

  A few hours later, the six of us were standing inside a room near one of the entrances to the cave dressed in hunting armor. It had taken a solid ten minutes just to make our way through the maze of corridors to get to this point. I was a little concerned that we wouldn’t be back in time for curfew, but we’d come too far to go home now.

  Surprisingly, Karin hadn’t balked at the idea. I figured she felt cooped up like I did and wanted to expend some energy. The excursion had already taken my mind off the apprehension that gripped the compound. Unfortunately, it had only been replaced with anxiety of getting caught.

  The room was large and filled with broken furniture and equipment that had been too much of a hassle to haul into the compound.

  Nero pulled out his datapad and motioned for us to do the same. We’d planned the route beforehand and our progress showed
in the form of a green marker on the screen.

  “Make sure we stick together,” he said, pausing when his voice echoed off the walls in the empty space. “Nell,” he continued in a quieter tone, “you’re the best at tracking. Once we get there, you take point. I’ll take the lead for now.”

  Part of me wanted to object and ask why he should be leading, but I held my tongue. This wasn’t the time or place to start an argument. Besides, it gave him something to focus on other than the fact that Mario still hadn’t returned.

  “Are you sure about this?” whispered Mark, looking anxious.

  “Put a sock in it, Nagata.” Even though Allan spoke in a low undertone, his voice seemed to carry in the room. Unlike Nero, he didn’t pause. “We’re already here. You can go back if you’re going to be a coward. The rest of us are leaving.”

  With that, he brushed past him and stood next to Nero. One by one, we followed suit until Mark was alone. He glanced furtively at the way we’d come then scurried to catch up once we’d started to leave.

  Nero led the way in silence, traversing the pathways that had been constructed to near geometric perfection by our ancestors. I’d been in sections of the caves that hadn’t been touched and it was a shock how different they were.

  Here, the walls were smooth and etched with lines in a design that showed up in all of the facilities. The original parts were rough and bumpy, uncut and wild-looking.

  As we moved farther away from our starting point, the scents began to change too. The air had a dank quality, but it wasn’t altogether unpleasant. It was different from the unchanging smells of the compound and made me think of the outdoors.

  It was mostly quiet, except for our movements as we made our way through the wide passages. Once or twice, I thought I heard a thumping sound, but no one else said anything and I ignored it.

  Our location dot moved past the blue lights demarcating the transmission signal limit on the map. I tried not to think about what could happen if we got into trouble. No one had wanted to look for information on the tunnel in case Janus noticed and logged the search. We’d be traveling blind soon.

  When we passed the final transmission marker, the datapads stopped tracking our location, unable to connect to a signal. I’d anticipated this and suggested that everyone bring something to help us mark our way.

  The best we’d been able to come up with was infrared reactive paint. If a Boneclaw did tunnel through the rock wall, it was highly unlikely that they’d taken the time to create false trails or passes that branched off from the main one enough for us to get lost. Still, when our group reached the entrance made by the Boneclaw, I made the first mark.

  Our plan was to make a mark every ten meters.

  Nell stepped forward and studied the two-meter-wide opening with a handheld flashlight. It didn’t take her long to inspect both sides, and soon she was turning around and nodding.

  “Definitely a BC,” she murmured. “You guys ready?”

  When she had our collective acknowledgement, she moved quietly into the tunnel.

  “Engineers, the Boneclaws are not,” muttered Allan.

  “Really, Allan?” Karin snorted.

  “Sorry, it just looks so…” His voice trailed off as he tried to find the right word.

  “Uncivilized?” I offered.

  “Yeah, that.”

  Nell turned and glared at us. “Will you guys shut up? Kind of hunting something that wants to rip us to shreds and eat us for a snack.”

  We stopped talking and continued to follow her through the crude passage. She paused every so often to inspect a wall or mark on the ground then would continue on.

  After we’d been inside for a little while, my pad buzzed. I pulled it out and saw that the alarm I’d set had gone off.

  “Guys,” I whispered, trying not to be louder than I had to. “We’ve got an hour before curfew.”

  Nero looked at everyone with a pensive expression. “I say we follow it to the end.”

  Allan nodded almost instantly.

  Nell shrugged. “None of these tracks look new. I see one set going in and one going back. It’s like they dug until they were inside then walked back out.”

  Karin and Mark looked nervous but didn’t say anything.

  “If we don’t go back now, we’re probably going to get caught,” I warned. “Is it worth it if we find nothing?”

  Nero focused on me with a piercing gaze. “We won’t know unless we keep—”

  At that moment, a loud thump sounded. It was impossible to tell which direction it came from because the acoustics in the tunnel distorted the noise. We all froze and looked at each other.

  Before anyone could speak, Nero took off down the passage on the path we’d been heading. Nell and Allan joined him, jogging to catch up. Not wanting to be left behind, I gestured for Karin and Mark to follow.

  They did so reluctantly, both of them wide-eyed and unsure.

  “It will be better if we stay together,” I reminded them. “Safety in numbers.”

  Karin nodded. Mark didn’t seem convinced but followed anyway. I doubted he wanted to stay by himself in a dark tunnel made by a Boneclaw.

  Nero and the others had disappeared around a bend and we had to jog to catch up. The thumping grew louder with each step and I felt the fear give way to a hunter’s mentality now that the threat had been realized. Anticipation was always the worst part.

  I came to an abrupt halt when the tunnel veered sharply to the left and barely stopped short of running into Allan’s broad back. He, Nell, and Nero stood perfectly still, staring down the tunnel.

  Their stances put me on high alert and I instinctively lifted a fist to halt Karin and Mark. I edged around Allan’s wide frame to see an adult Boneclaw baring its teeth at us. I unslung the spear I’d brought and readied myself, expecting the Boneclaw to charge, but it didn’t.

  Instead, it backed away in a slow movement, swinging its head from side to side.

  I looked at Nell, who shrugged. She had to be thinking the same thing as me. Boneclaws never retreated.

  “What’s it doing?” asked Karin under her breath, voicing what we all seemed to be wondering.

  “Can it tell how many of us there are? Maybe it doesn’t think it can take us all on,” whispered Nero.

  “Have you even been studying?” I hissed. “The gene manipulation? Heightened aggression?”

  Nero stared at me blankly.

  “There could be a hundred of us and it would keep coming,” I explained in an exasperated tone. “It’s wired to kill.”

  “She’s right,” said Mark. “There would need to be a stimulation that overpowers the instinct to attack.”

  “So, what’s causing this?” growled Allan.

  No one had an answer for that.

  “I say we follow it,” Nero announced.

  “That’s not a good idea,” whispered Nell. “We have no idea where it’s going. For all we know, it’s got a nest nearby. If we get too close, it’ll go berserk.”

  “I’m with Nell on this,” I inserted. “I say we go back and report what we’ve found.”

  “No,” said Nero fiercely. “If those things killed my dad… I just need to know where it’s going.”

  Before we could object, he took off again.

  Allan sighed. “He’ll get himself killed if he’s alone. I’m going with him. You coming, Nell?”

  For the first time since we’d left, she didn’t look so confident. Her brow creased with uncertainty and she chewed on her bottom lip.

  “I… I don’t think so.”

  “Figures,” snorted Allan. “What about you guys?”

  Karin shook her head and turned to look at Mark, but he wasn’t there.

  “Where did Nagata go?” I asked, whipping my head around, but I didn’t see him.

  “Probably off wetting his pants,” sneered Allan. “Whatever, I’m not letting one of our friends go after that monster alone.”

  Friend is a bit strong, I thought as he tu
rned to leave. He might be a jerk, but Nero was still one of us and we couldn’t just leave him alone.

  “Fine, I’ll go with you,” I said.

  “Lucia—”

  I held up a hand to stop Karin from protesting further. “Hang back here for five minutes. If we don’t come back, go for help.”

  Without waiting for a response, I tore off after Nero. Allan’s clomping feet pounded the cave floor next to mine, bouncing off the rough walls and echoing like rifle blasts through the passageway, but we weren’t worried about making noise anymore.

  A roar echoed from somewhere up ahead and a scream followed. It had to be Nero. Allan and I exchanged a look, nodded, then dug in and went into a full run.

  The tunnel widened into a cavern and a blast of icy wind hit us, blowing in from the entrance. The Boneclaw stood at its full height near the opening, surrounded by weak light, but I didn’t see Nero anywhere.

  As soon as we stopped running, the Boneclaw let out an ear-splitting scream that shook me to the core. Not wanting to drop the spear, I cupped one hand over my right ear in an attempt to dampen some of the noise.

  When it stopped, a muffled yell came from the center of the cave. It took me a moment, but I was certain it was Nero.

  “There,” I said, pointing. “Do you hear it? Listen.”

  There was silence, followed by Nero shouting. We couldn’t understand what he was saying, but I was certain it was him.

  “I’ll go,” said Allan.

  Not arguing, I nodded. “Okay. I’ll go around the far wall and distract the BC.”

  I moved away from Allan and started stomping to attract the Boneclaw’s attention. Its ears perked at the racket, and I started yelling. “Over here, you overgrown hairy icicle!”

  The Boneclaw didn’t come, though, but only stood there.

  “Why isn’t it charging?” I muttered, looking quickly behind me to find Allan.

  “That’s weird,” he said. “Is it hurt? What do you think it—”