“Por D’har! Oh, thank the four gods you’re alive!”
“Massapa?”
He heard the man tugging on something. Finally able to rear up, Kyber stared at what lay before him.
“We crashed, didn’t we?” he asked the guard.
In answer, another huge sheet of metal fell away, landing with a loud thud and a cloud of dust. Coughing, Kyber tried lifting his legs, when pain jabbed him in the hip. Reaching down, he discovered he’d been pierced with a piece of the metal. From the pattern on it, it appeared to be from the life pod. Jiggling it slightly, he hoped it hadn’t penetrated too far. He took the chance and slowly pulled it out. Four inches. It had gone in four inches. And now it’s bleeding like a gakking rammit. Worse, because of the wound’s location, he couldn’t tie anything around it to stop the slow but steady stream of blood streaking down his leg. Kyber peered closer at the slit, pressing one talon against the cut. The pain wasn’t intense, which was good. It meant the damage was minimal. And because it was running down his leg instead of spurting proved he didn’t have a ruptured blood vessel.
“Kyber, is that blood? You’re injured!” Massapa flashed the light over the bright red stains smeared across the uniform.
“Yes, but it’s nothing. The life pod protected me from more serious consequences. How about you?”
The guard bobbed his head. “I wrenched my ankle. I woke up on my knees. They’re swollen, as well, but I can manage.” The man pulled away another piece of the life pod. When it fell, Kyber gasped. Massapa chuckled at his expression. “Welcome to the arse of the universe.”
Climbing through the opening the man had made, Kyber stopped to stare at the vast, empty plain surrounding them. The night sky was perfuse with stars, their icy white lights stretching from one horizon to the other. Kyber straightened when his feet found purchase on the thin soil and he turned around in a complete circle, taking in the barren locale.
“Where is your life pod?”
Massapa pointed to an area off to his left. “That way. About six majuurs back. I’m glad I found you. Yours was the only signal I could get.” He held up a palm-size navigational aid that linked all pods.
Kyber reentered his life ship and searched for his own link. Unfortunately, the console had been crushed during landing. There was no way he could get to it. Even if he could, there was no guarantee the link would work. He paused and took a deep breath, when it struck him.
“There’s an atmosphere.”
Massapa snickered. “Dia Mose blessed us. Otherwise, we would have died when our pods split open.”
Kyber sucked in another breath. “And it’s warm. It has a temperate climate.”
The guard held up his link as he continued to survey the terrain. “I’m getting another signal.”
“From where?”
The man pointed. “It’s weak, but so was yours. It took me more than three huntas to walk here.” Placing the unit in the small pouch attached to his belt, Massapa bent to pick up a satchel and drape it over his head. “In my opinion, there’s no sense coming back here. You might want to gather all the rations you can find before we head out.”
Kyber agreed, nodding instead of answering and dove back inside the demolished craft to gather the small packets of food and liquid that, miraculously, were still located inside their bins. Shoving them inside a similar satchel, he dropped the carrier over his head. Lastly, he attached his hand weapon to his belt and went to join his fellow crewmember. Together, they began walking in the direction where they hoped to find another life pod.
“What was that thing that overtook us?” Massapa asked after a while.
Kyber shook his head. “It came upon us too fast for the ship to read it. Besides, I was busy trying to get that Terran ship off our butts.” His wound had started bleeding again, and it was affecting his gate. Kyber caught himself starting to limp. A glance at the guard showed the man was also showing signs of his injuries. Yet, it was not his place to question the guard’s physical appearance, or make it be known he was aware that the man was less than fully capable of doing his job. Massapa had every right to point out Kyber’s wound earlier, and to answer his superior’s question about himself. That was considered fact checking. But to insinuate that either of them were becoming too weak to perform his duties was a gross insult. Not to mention punishable by challenge.
Massapa mumbled something under his breath, too soft for Kyber to hear. “What was that?” he asked.
“I said gakking skints. I’m willing to want to bet they had something to do with that thing that downed our ship. What do you think?”
Kyber shook his head. “I don’t know what to think at this point. I’m just glad the d’har ordered us into our life pods when he did.”
“Do you believe the ship made it?”
“Not if the pods were ejected. The ship’s programmed to eject them if it detects a major hull breach.” Kyber reflected back on those last few moments before he was thrown out into the cosmos. “I remember looking back at the Ist Umberu, right before I lost consciousness. I could see it being torn apart as it started to go into that creature’s mouth.”
“As did our life pods.”
Nodding, Kyber said no more as he sank into his own thoughts.
They must have walked a good eight or more majuurs before they spotted a beacon in the distance. Homing in on it, they came upon another pod, but this time there were three others gathered around it. The men greeted each other with relief.
“It’s good to know you survived, Por D’har,” Gaveer said with a big grin that revealed his teeth.
Kyber glanced at the other two. “Is this it? Is this all who’ve managed to survive?”
Isup sighed. “It was Dia Mose who gathered us together. Gaveer found me, and we came across Tojun’s pod as my nav unit gave out.”
“My unit fried upon impact,” Gaveer noted. He bore a huge welt on the side of his face. Dried blood streaked his hair, neck, and shoulders.
“As did mine,” Tojun told him.
Kyber looked at the pod where they were gathered. “This is Ononont’s life pod. Where…” He started to inspect the craft, when Isup raised an arm to bar his way.
“Ononont didn’t make it.”
“Por D’har?”
Kyber turned to find Massapa checking his unit. The consternation on the guard’s face told him everything.
“Your unit’s out?”
“Yes. But right before it did, I was getting a strange reading.”
“Another pod?”
“I don’t believe so.” The man pointed to his right. “That way, approximately six or so majuurs. I’m not sure, but it appeared to be some sort of structure.”
“Structure?” two men echoed.
“Inhabitants?” Kyber questioned.
“I can’t confirm nor deny that, Por D’har,” Massapa apologized. “I was attempting to get a clearer signal when the unit died.”
“What do we do, Por D’har?” Tojun asked. His face was pinched, and he was holding his left arm against his chest. The man was in pain. In fact, all of them were in poor shape. Massapa was close to collapsing.
Kyber chewed over the possibilities. Even with their injuries, he knew they had no other choice. “We’re left with no way to track or find any of the other life pods. All we have is the possibility of a structure eight majuurs in that direction. We have to be on the defensive at all times. Given that we know nothing about this planet, we can’t stay out here in the open where we could become victimized by dangerous creatures. In the dark, we would be fair game. Plus, we need to find shelter from whatever weather this place has.” He nodded in the direction where Massapa had indicated. “We go there.”
“And if this shelter is inhabited?” Isup questioned?
Kyber pasted a grim smile on his face. “Then we fight for our safety. Gather up your supplies. We leave now.”
He headed out across the vast, flat land without checking to see if the others were right behin
d him. He knew they would be. He was now their highest ranking officer, and they expected him to make the decisions that affected their lives and their future. But he would have to answer to those decisions if things went sour.
For, like them, he was bound by the Seneecian code of honor given to them by their four gods. It was their way of life. And at that moment, they had little else to sustain them on this bleak and strange new world.
Chapter 5
Planet-side
Kelen thought she was prepared to see what remained of the Manta. But as the tube lights flashed across the broken and jagged hull, she felt like crying. As well as she knew the ship, there was nothing recognizable in what she, and the others, saw. There was little doubt left in anyone’s mind that the crushed vessel was beyond repair.
“It’s a miracle any of us survived that,” Jules whispered in awe.
“It’s a bigger miracle we happened to land on a planet with a breathable atmosphere,” Mellori added. “I don’t recall there being any habitable planets in this system.”
“We’re not in the Kor Hidris system,” Kelen told them.
Fullgrath looked at her. “Run that by me again?”
“We’re not in the Kor Hidris system,” Jules repeated.
“Then where the hell are we?”
“Inside the belly of a monster-sized wormhole,” Dayall answered.
There was a pause as everyone chewed over the ramifications of his response. Kelen took that moment to sit on the ground, partly because her head continued to swim, and partly because her legs were about to give way. Jules joined her, and reached over to rub his sealed hand over the packed dirt. Picking up a handful, he crumbled it up and watched the dust fall between his fingers. The soil seemed to glitter in his gloved palm.
“God, what I wouldn’t give for a working bio scanner at this moment,” he admitted.
“Heads up, everyone!”
They all turned to see Jamse Cooter striding toward them, his beloved pulse rifle in his hands. “Find anything?” Dayall asked the security officer.
“Yeah. Lots of nothing for as wide as the eye can see. This place is as barren as any moon rock I’ve explored, and that’s what’s bothering me.”
“How so?” the commander inquired.
The big, brawling redhead waved a hand to indicate the expanse before them. “No vegetation. No signs of life. But this planet has an atmosphere. It doesn’t make sense.”
“If there’s no water or vegetation to sustain life, by the natural order of things, it wouldn’t be inhabited,” Sandow remarked.
“I know that, Doc. But have you ever heard of a planet with a breathable atmosphere and not one living organism to breathe it?”
“Hey!”
They turned to see Dox with an armload of scrap material. In fact, he was carrying so much salvaged equipment, he was having trouble not dropping anything. In spite of the problem, the man positively glowed with excitement.
“What is it, Dox?” Kelen asked the little man.
He held up his supplies. “Got enough to use,” he proudly remarked.
“That’s great, Dox,” Dayall commented. “But use them for what?”
To answer, Dox carefully placed the odds and ends on the ground and pulled out a device from the little belt he’d strapped around his waist. “For lots of things. Like this.” He held it out for them to see. A little white light blinked steadily on the makeshift face.
Mellori took it from the man and examined it. “Dox, is this a navigational unit?”
“A what?” Jules hurried over to take it from the engineer. He stared at the contraption, then at Dox. “I don’t know how in hell you’re able to do what you do, Dox, but this is great!”
“I done good,” the little man grinned.
“Hell, yeah, you done good. Commander, we have a working navigational unit!” He tapped in a few commands on the tiny keyboard, then held the device steady as he slowly turned in a complete circle, panning the area. “And X marks the spot.”
“You got something, Jules?” Fullgrath asked.
“I got a signal. It’s weak, but it’s definitely a homing beacon.”
“A homing beacon? To what? To where?” Sandow questioned.
“So much for uninhabited,” Bertriol drily commented.
“Commander?” Kelen waited for Dayall to give her his attention before continuing. “I’m not certain about this, but I would almost swear I saw the Seneecian ship get caught in the wormhole’s grasp.”
“Could that be what you’ve located?” Cooter hefted his rifle, prepared to face their enemy.
Jules shook his head in bewilderment, then looked at Dox. “Is this an emergency beacon?”
Dox shrugged. “It’s an anything beacon.”
“What does that mean?” Fullgrath gruffly asked.
Dox’s reply was a puzzled stare.
“It doesn’t matter,” Dayall stated. “Whether or not it’s the Seneecians, or something else, we can’t stay here. We’ve neither food nor water, nor adequate shelter to contain all of us. The sun, or however many stars this planet circles, should be coming up soon. With the land being this dry and barren, I’m guessing the temperatures could blister the skin off a ship’s hull. Even with our suits, I don’t want to take unnecessary risks.” He motioned toward the nav unit still in Jules’s hand. “Can you give us a bearing?”
Jules grimaced. “Specifically? No. This world doesn’t seem to have any magnetic readings I can triangulate from. All I can tell you is…” He pointed a finger in a direction. “It’s that way.”
“Any idea how far?”
“Two, maybe three miles.”
“Thank God this planet has an atmosphere,” Cooter remarked. “Our skin suits wouldn’t have enough oxygen to get us there if it didn’t.”
“All right. Keep your eyes open. If anyone sees anything move, call it. Let’s go.”
A tremor of fear went through her as Kelen stared out into the blackness. At the miles and miles of dark flatland, and whatever it held. God knew what they’d find out there. That is, if God made it through the wormhole.
Dayall took the lead, with Jules next to him. Cooter took rear to guard their backs. Kelen found herself trudging alongside Dox, who continued to juggle the paraphernalia he’d gathered to bring with him.
“Here. Let me help you with some of that.”
“Thanks.” He handed over two large sections of what appeared to be the inner workings of one of the engines. Kelen eyed it with apprehension.
“Dox, is this an amplification module?”
“Don’t worry. It’s not working,” he assured her.
“Are you sure? I didn’t know you could arbitrarily turn those things on and off.”
He grinned at her. “Doesn’t work if it doesn’t have any power.”
She started to question him about that, when he dug into one of the many pouches hanging from his belt and brought out a power quartz. It glowed like a miniature sun, attracting everyone’s attention. She immediately backed off a few meters. “Geez, Dox! Put that thing away before you irradiate us all!”
Dox snickered but put the quartz back into its pouch. She hoped the sack was adequately shielded against the quartz’s rays. “Don’t worry. Suits are protecting us,” he told everyone who stared at him in disbelief, and calmly continued walking.
Kelen exchanged looks with the rest of the crew. They knew how different Dox was. How his thought processes were an evolutionary leap above theirs. Still, there were times the little man would do something that would totally throw them for a loop. Sighing, she shook her head, hefted her armload of junk, and stepped back in line, along with the rest of them.
Chapter 6
Hope
“We’re here. This is where the beacon’s brought us.”
Kyber nearly stumbled to a halt. The last three majuurs had been excruciating for himself and the others, but no one had complained or made it appear that they were incapable of keeping up. Somehow, the
y’d all managed to get this far. He kept his hand pressed over the wound that refused to stop bleeding. He’d lost so much blood, he wondered how much further he’d be able to go before collapsing into unconsciousness.
He looked out into the darkness. For the past couple of huntas, they’d noticed something slowly rising from the horizon like a ghostly presence. Gradually growing larger and taller, and blotting out more and more of the stars as they drew nearer.
From where he stood and stared upward, the building rose hundreds of meters into the sky. It didn’t appear to be one single structure. If it was, its outline was jagged, with the tallest spire in the center. Narrowing his eyes, Kyber tried to get a clearer look at the edifice, which continued to be veiled in darkness.
“Is there a doorway?”
“Hard to tell,” Gaveer remarked.
“How big is that thing?” Isup hobbled a few meters closer. “Is it a city? Or a dwelling? What?”
“We won’t know until we get some more light on it,” Massapa said. He observed the skyline. “I don’t see any signs of a sunrise. Perhaps this planet has long nights.”
“Or perpetual night. Either way, it doesn’t matter,” Kyber told them. “We need to find an entrance and get inside.” He sniffed for emphasis, and the others imitated him.
“What’s that smell?” Tojun whispered.
“I’ve been detecting it for the past hunta. Hurry. I think it’s getting closer because it senses we’re getting nearer to where it can no longer stalk us.”
The unseen threat gave them the added boost of energy they needed to make it to what appeared to be a rocky area that sloped upward toward the building. Isup leaned over and ran his sharp talons over the material, then pounded it with a fist.
“Must be made out of some sort of rock, but I’m not sure what kind of rock this is.”
They continued climbing up the almost ten-degree rise. They were all at the end of their endurance and needed to rest. However, Kyber knew in his gut they had to get inside, and soon.
A soft howl came from behind them, setting their hair on end. It was low and breathy, and definitely alien. Apparently whatever had been following them wasn’t able to move onto the rocky slope. Without commenting on the sound, they pushed on with greater determination.
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