by Rob Buckman
"It was slimy, and stunk to bit, but I didn't feel anything dangerous.
“Really?”
“It was no worse than any other tunnel we've walked down. Just a wet, slimly, stinking sewer.”
"There was something. I don't know what, but I could feel it.”
"What did you feel, Penn? Help me…"
"Fear.” He whispered. Ellis slid down the wall, and took off her forage cap.
Penn was afraid of something. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She didn't think Penn to be afraid of anything. And yet, if the feeling was as bad as he said, why didn't she feel it? Now all she had to do was figure out what was scaring the hell out of him. She wiped her face with her free hand, for once feeling out of her depth.
"What are you afraid of, Penn? What scares you?” She asked softly.
"Nothing,” he growled.
"You aren't afraid of anything, are you, Penn? I can't think of one damn thing. So why this tunnel?”
"I get scared,” he countered.
"But it never stops you, does it? So this is something else, something you won't even admit to yourself.”
"I can handle anything that comes at me, one way, or another.” He took a deep breath. "Let's try again.” Ellis nodded. This time, she stayed close to him as they edged their way along. They managed to get some fifty feet further this time, but soon Penn had taken his knife out, gritting his teeth in an obvious effort not to succumb to fear. Sweat poured down his face, and his grip on Elli's arm became painful.
“We can make it.” She coaxed, gripping his arm reassuringly.
“I don't know… There's something down there waiting for us. I can feel it!” Penn growled. ”Let's go back.”
“Come on, it's just a little further.” It was no use. Penn stopped, shaking like a leaf. She could see the terror lurking in his pain-filled eyes.
“I'm sorry.” He sobbed, and stumbled backward. By the time, he reached the beginning of the tunnel he was running.
“Penn! Stop! Please.”
At last he stopped, leaning back against the rock wall, panting and sobbing. Ellis was shocked. Any resemblance this shaken, trembling young man bore to the competent, self-assured killer she knew was gone. It almost tore her heart in two, seeing the little lost boy he'd once been. Was this how he felt after his parents died? She helped Penn out of his pack, and they both sank to the floor of the tunnel, sitting side-by-side with their backs to the rock wall. Penn had calmed down enough to put his knife away, and for that, she was thankful. They sat there in silence. Ellis fished around in her pack and came up with two energy bars. She handed him one.
“Can you talk about it?” Ellis asked between bites. ”What do you think is there?”
“I'm not sure. Something. Something that will hurt... us.”
“You can't know that. So far, we've managed to overcome everything this damn place has thrown at us.” She could tell he was still uncomfortable. “Do you want me to walk down to the other end and see if I can see anything?” To her surprise, Penn nodded.
“You're not worried that whatever it will attack, or harm me?”
“No…” He gave a weak smile.
“If it's not me who's in danger, it's you, isn't it?” She said it softly, realizing how fragile the moment was. ”So what are you afraid of Penn?”
“I… I don't know.” He said at last.
“Yes you do. You just can't put it into words.” He shook his head.
"Then this isn't something coming at you. It's something you are carrying.” Penn's eyes met hers, a small frown crossing his face. He looked up at the ceiling for inspiration, yet none came.
"Were you ever really afraid, Penn?”
"Once,” he responded at last.
"Go on.” She held her hand out to him. He looked at it a moment, then hesitantly reached out and took it, squeezing gently.
"When they captured me on Earth.” It was like pulling dragons teeth. She knew she had to tread carefully, or the dragon would bite her head off.
"You can trust me…” As she spoke his hand tightened in a crushing grip, and she knew she'd found his Achilles heel. "Penn, do you trust me?” He let her hand go, almost throwing it to one side in anger.
"NO!” Penn shouted as he jumped to his feet, pacing back and forth like a caged animal.
CHAPTER - TWENTY EIGHT: Puzzles and Demons
Ellis knew the answer then. Someone had betrayed him, someone he trusted with his life. How much pain it cost him she would probably never know, but she knew IMPSEC and the fucking Director must had tortured him for months.
"Who betrayed you, Penn?” He made a cutting motion with his hand, brushing her question away.” It was a woman, wasn't it?"
"God damn you, Ellis! Yes, it was a woman. A woman I thought I loved,” he yelled in her face.
He stood over her, his yellow eyes full of fury. At that moment, he could probably kill her with his bare hands, and in this state, she'd be no match for him. He took a step back. For one brief terrible moment, she saw the vulnerable little boy inside. She saw his soul. He'd lived through the death of his parents and friends. Fought a never-ending battle against the Empire. He was an unstoppable killing machine until he'd given his heart to a woman and been betrayed. There was nothing she could say, or do to mitigate that betrayal. Yet if they wanted to go on, she had to try. Opening a shirt pocket, she pulled out a small object, then reached back and pulled her knife out.
"Penn.” She called softly.
"What!”
“This is the remote detonator for the device in your neck, and my knife"
"So?” He growled, his fists clenching and unclenching.
"Take the detonator and the knife. The only way we are going to get to the prize is if you trust me. If you don't… take the trigger device, and kill me now, or go after the prize yourself, or leave, if you can. Just leave me here.” He gave her a puzzled look. She pressed on. ”You know as well as I do that I wouldn't last a day in here on my own.”
"I'm not going to kill you.” He made a dismissive motion with his hand, as if brushing the notion away.
"Why not, Penn?” Two small tears, like a bright stars formed at the corner of her eyes. He wasn't the only one who needed someone to trust. He turned and faced her, his golden eye looking at her with… Ellis wasn't sure what the emotion was.
"Because... damn it… Ellis... I love you!” He said at last, his words hesitant, as if afraid to speak them aloud. Ellis sucked in a gasping breath as the twin tears rolled down her cheek. He'd said it, said it aloud, not just in the warm embrace of their lovemaking.
"Make your choice, my love. Trust me, or leave me.” Penn knelt down next to Ellis and gently wiped her tears away. He leaned forward to kiss her. Her tears tearing at his heart in a way he never imagined a woman's tears, would again.
She could see in his eyes the almost desperate need to trust her. Not for the prize, Penn didn't give a damn about it. Letting himself trust again was his prize. He let out a shuddering breath and, at last, nodded his head. Ellis stood and took him in her arms, swearing silently that no matter what, she would never betray this man. No, not this man, her man. She realized that she'd been waiting all her adult life to hear the right man say those words to her. How they'd found each other, the combination of circumstances that led to them coming together didn't matter. If the Empire thought Penn and Ellis were dangerous on their own, they were a hundred times more dangerous together. She knew that from this moment on the Empire was her enemy, and she didn't waste a moment's thought wondering about her shift in perspective. Penn's enemies were her enemies. In the end, Ellis did the one thing she knew would help him through the ordeal. She convinced Penn to let her cover his face with a tee shirt and lead him through the dank, oppressive tunnel, holding his hand. She knew she held more than that, she held his heart and his soul. Penn held Ellis's hand tight, as if, even now she would abandon him here. If she did, there was no way he could even pass through this tunnel, and he w
ould die alone, betrayed and forsaken again by someone he'd given his heart to. Ellis never faltered, even as Penn held her hand in a death grip, panting in fear beneath the suffocating folds of the tee shirt. At last, they reached the end of the tunnel, and the light strengthened. Finally, Penn let go of her hand, and she shook it to restore blood flow before taking his blindfold off and turning him around. Penn let out a long sigh of relief and used the tee shirt to wipe the sweat off his face, giving her a weak smile as he did.
“I want you to do something for me,” she asked, seeing Penn nod. ”Walk back down that tunnel.” Penn looked at her a moment, then the tunnel, hesitantly.
“Trust me.” She said. Penn nodded, and began to walk slowly back down the tunnel. He’d gone a few feet, and then his steps sped up to a normal walking pace.
“Well?” She asked as he walked back.
“It's odd. There's no stink, and no black slime. It's all gone.”
“Thought so.”
“I don't get it.” Penn looked over his shoulder for a moment, disbelieving. Then he nodded. ”That's what I was carrying all these years.” Ellis smiled. There was nothing to say. They were beyond words now. Hand in hand they carried on, both feeling something new, something that wasn't there before.
In time, exhaustion set in and they stopped for night. This time however, there was no convenient grotto, and they spent a miserable night huddled together in the dank, drafty corner of a rocky passageway. As usual, Penn refused to sleep and sat with his back to the wall with Ellis cradled in his arms. He looked down, wondering how he'd got so lucky all of a sudden. Could this beautiful, smart, tough woman really be in love with him? She was everything he'd ever dreamed of but never thought he'd have. Now that he'd found her, he wasn't sure he could live up to what she expected of him, or handle the risk of losing her. Rested, they started again with Penn in the lead, striding purposefully forward. For hours on end they struggled through tight passageways, up rocky shafts and along ledges over deep crevasses, helping each other where needed, or finding solution to obstacles. How long they traveled they didn't really know, as time here didn't have the same meaning as outside. Cold, hungry, out of food, water, and exhausted they entered one more tunnel in the endless quest to find something that had any meaning.
"What's that." Ellis asked.
"What? Where?"
"Don't you smell it?" Penn lifted his head and sniffed the air, his eyes opening in surprise. He could smell fresh air and growing things, and picking up his step, push on down the tunnel, the air growing fresher as the progressed.
After climbing a narrow shaft, much to their surprise they exited inside a patch of lush jungle like plants, similar to those they'd walked through when they'd crash-landed. This place was much dryer and less dense, with a sandy soil instead of the stinking black mud they'd slogged through. Through the overhead canopy they could see real sunlight streamed down, and feel a warm breeze on their faces.
“Penn! Stop a second. I think I hear something.” Ellis grabbed his arms, pulling him to a stop. Penn looked around, listening. ”What is that?”
“If I didn't know better, I'd say that was surf!” she laughed.
“You have to be joking. Surf. Here?”
Heading toward the sound, they soon stepped out of the undergrowth onto a white sandy beach. This came complete with blue sunny skies, a soft gentle surf lapping the shore fifty feet away, and a rough bamboo cabana, roofed with dry palm leaves. Ellis let out a sound, half way between a sigh and a groan.
“You have to be kidding me.” she muttered. ”How do you put an ocean inside a fracking building?” Penn stood there shaking his head in wonder.
“Well, Princess, they've put everything else in here, so why not? Anyone for a swim?” He asked, already shucking his pack.
“Actually, that's not a bad idea." She answered, thinking how she'd dreamed of a place like this to rest and clean her weary body.
They stripped naked and swam in the warm water, laughing and splashing each other like a pair of kids. Time seemed to slow as they wandered along the beach in the gathering twilight, hand in hand, the mission forgotten for moment. That night, they lay on the Thrakee thermal blanket under the stars and made love, pulling the end over their naked bodies as the cool of the night descended. They found food in abundance in the surrounding jungle, as well as small game. The sea provided fish, shellfish, and something that tasted like lobster and looked like a throwback to the Cretaceous period, all spiny and ugly as sin. The cabana proved tight and snug against the tropical rain that come every other day or so. Together they explored the beach, discovering they were on an island, complete with a running fresh water spring. Crates and boxes that washed up on the beach provided many of the small things they needed, like soap, toothpaste, coffee, and sugar. Ellis commented they must have fallen off passing ships, but in truth, she didn't care where the supplies came from. She had everything she needed now, and the time to enjoy it. No more fighting and killing, no more death and destruction, just a peaceful island, food, shelter and the man she loved. What else could she ask for? Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew there was something she should be doing, but couldn't remember what.
It obviously wasn't that important, or she'd remember. She thought of mentioning it to Penn, but looking down at the bronze God lying naked in the sun next to her, she forgot the question. He opened his sleepy eyes, drinking in her body, as his hands reached for her, losing herself in his touch and the demands of her body for the satisfaction he could provide. The next day, Penn found a small single masted yacht, half buried in the sand near the high tide line, about a mile down the beach. It didn't take him long to get it unearthed, cleaned out and afloat again. The sails proved usable, and loading it up with food and water, they spent days sailing from island to island with no destination in mind. Time became a meaningless concept as they sailed through paradise. Eventually, they returned to the first island, and the cabana and spend their days sunning, playing and making love. One morning Penn awoke early and rolled over, kissing her softly.
“Ellis?”
“Yes, my love.”
“How long have we been here?” He asked with an odd look of concentration on his face.
“I don't know.” She thought about it for a moment. ”I'd say a day or two at the most, why?”
“Get dressed,” he snapped.
“What? Why? We don't have to go anywhere.”
“Yes we do, and we have to go now.” Penn growled.
“Penn… What's wrong?”
“Everything. This place, us…”
“I don't understand. We have everything… What else do we need, and where do you want to go?”
“Get dressed damn it, or I'll carry you as you are.”
“Penn, please, just tell me what's wrong…” She followed him across the cabana.
Without warning, he turned and slapped her across the face, hard and fast, first one way, and then the other. Ellis screamed in anger, and launched herself at him, spitting with rage. He met her charge and they fell together, fighting and kicking until both were bruised and bleeding. At last, they parted, crouched at opposite ends of the cabana, ready to launch another attack at each other.
“Penn! What the hell has gotten into you?”
“How long have we been here, Ellis?” he yelled.
“I told you! A day or two at the most!”
“Think about it Ellis! Look around you.” As he spoke, Ellis felt a fog lifting from her mind. ”We've been here for a lot longer than that, haven't we?” In a sudden moment of clarity, she realized they'd been here for a very long time. Probably weeks, if not months, but why should that matter? It wasn't as if they had somewhere to go.
“Why are we here, Ellis?” Penn asked his head cocked sideways.
Ellis blinked. It was a silly question, they were here because… Her mind drew a blank. She couldn't remember why, or even how they'd got here, but did it really matter? They were free, happy, with no responsi
bilities other than to themselves.
“I don't understand the question!”
“Of course you don't, and neither did I, until now.”
“Then why are we here?”
“We are here to get some sort of prize, whatever it is. This is nothing more than another trap, a mind trap this time.”
“Huh?”
“Up until now, all the traps have been physical trap, or problem-solving tests. This is a mental trap, one designed to seduce us, to make it seem we have reached the Prize. Remember what I said? This building gives you what you want the most.”
Suddenly, Ellis knew the truth. This was what she had wanted most. Freedom, peace, tranquility. No more fighting and killing, no more struggling against prejudice and intolerance, no more doing the Empire's bidding. Just the time to enjoy each other's company. It was a startling thought. They were supposed to be searching for a way to turn off the gravitational effect that dragged starships to their death. Somehow she'd forgotten all about the mission.