Energize (From the Logs of Daniel Quinn Book 1)

by Thomas R. Manning

  Laraar came out of nowhere and tackled the dog before it could finish me. He grappled with it, throwing punch after punch to various parts of its structure. All the impacts should have broken his hand, but surprisingly they didn’t. I attributed this to my lack of knowledge where Dawnian biology was concerned. He threw his leg forward and kicked the machine in its midsection, sending it flying away from him.

  “Finish,” he said, pointing to the machine which was already starting to recover. I was about to answer him when I saw the first dog running towards him from behind, and pushed him out of the way just in time. I tried firing my EMP rounds again. Still jammed.

  “It’s not working!” I yelled at him.

  He thought about it for a moment, and then sang out “Sorania . . . empyreus! Find!”

  Of course! The liquid would enhance my weapon the same as it enhanced the machines Cessa was using. Now I just had to find some. I suspected the few houses in the area held some supply of the fuel. I just had to get past the animals to reach them, but that would leave Laraar facing off against two of them. Unless he was some secret martial arts master, he would die. I wouldn’t allow that.

  “Can you handle one of them?” I pointed toward the dogs. He did well in his first round, but like Chorta and his men, Laraar would tire out over time. He nodded to me, his eyes completely locked with his opponent, knees bent and arms at the ready. I didn’t waste any more time and took off towards the first house. I turned to see if one of the dogs was following me and sure enough, one was. I had hoped their mechanical minds would think in mathematical terms and balance the ratio one to one.

  I jumped into the house’s opening and threw every furniture item I could find in the path of the dog including chairs, tables, and cupboards. There wasn’t nearly enough crap to block the enemy’s path, but with any luck it would slow it down some. This house was equipped with a main area and three separate rooms. I had only searched one of the three rooms in the house when I heard the dog slashing at the debris. Chairs and a cushioned mat inside the room suggested this was their sleeping area. There was no way of checking the other rooms without being spotted by the dog, so I did my best impersonation of an action hero and leapt through an open window I took notice of. Since I wasn’t an action hero, I bumped my right elbow, both of my knees and fell right onto my face. I was not graceful.

  From this angle I couldn’t see Laraar or his progress in keeping the other machine busy. I had little time before my pursuer realized I wasn’t in the house, so I ran full speed to the next one. Their pantry had food in it and I was fairly sure that empyreus was used as an ingredient in their food recipes, but I didn’t think rubbing my gun with food would do the trick. I ran to the middle room, which turned out to be their version of a washroom. I cursed and almost ran to the third room, until I realized they didn’t utilize water the way we did. I turned and took stock of everything. There was a large round bowl I assumed was a tub, but there were no faucets. A chair, some linen, and other various hygienic items were placed next to the bowl. This didn’t make any sense. If this was a bathroom for them surely there would be some way of washing or lathering.

  I leaned over the bowl and took a deep breath. That’s when my bionic eye picked up irregularities from the bowl’s floor. I jumped in and placed my hand on the ground, feeling the smooth texture. Knocking on various parts of the floor, there was a small round hollow spot, but I couldn’t open it. I turned my gun around and hammered it down over and over, cracking the marble or granite, whatever the hell the material was. When I broke through, I picked out the pieces to find the rich, amazing glow of the empyreus below me. I almost cried out in joy, but thought better of it. The last thing I needed was to give away my damn position. Besides, the smashing noises I made were probably more than enough.

  Not entirely sure of what to do, I mimicked Laraar’s movements when he fused the energy into my eye. I took off my glove and dipped my hand in the warm liquid, cupping a small amount and sprinkling it over the entirety of the weapon. I waited, though I wasn’t sure for what.

  There was a crashing noise from outside and I knew there were only seconds to spare. Not knowing exactly if my weapon had accepted the fuel or not, I switched to my plasma rounds and stood in the opening arch of the washroom, weapon at the ready. In the far distance my eye picked up various Dawnians recovering and running away. Suddenly a terrifying thought occurred to me. What if the dog turned its attention to someone else? Shit. Once again, running for my life may have cost someone else theirs.

  My fears were put to rest when the wall behind me was smashed in by the mechanical beast. Pieces of wood hit me and before I could recover, one of the blades stabbed me in the shoulder. I cried out in pain and gritted my teeth together so hard I thought they would break. With adrenaline and empyreus running through my veins, I one handedly brought the gun up to the dogs face.

  “Flux you, you piece of shit!”

  I pulled the trigger and with a great BOOM and recoil the entire top half of the dog was blown away in a flash of intense green plasma. The recoil threw my arm backwards in an awkward position, nearly dislocating it. I was really going to have to brace myself for any additional shots. I allowed myself twenty seconds of leaning against the wall and catching my breath. My shoulder was bleeding, but it was manageable. The wound didn’t seem too serious and it only punctured the front side. I could have gone back for empyreus to heal it, but my seconds were up. I had to make sure Laraar was safe and if it wasn’t too late, I needed to shut down that communication station.

  I ran outside the house and found myself limping slightly. My ankle must have gotten twisted during the fight. My ankle and shoulder fought each other over which was going to hurt the worst, but I was too focused to pick a winner. I ran behind the houses into the next lot which was a part of the main hub of the village. I saw Laraar still standing, pulling a number of impressive moves against the dog. He wasn’t being overly offensive, just keeping its attention and trying to stay clear of its claws. He wasn’t entirely successful, as I saw multiple cuts and blood. To my left, Cessa wasn’t at the communications station and as much as I wanted to help Laraar, I had to check her progress.

  This was the first time I had a chance to look at the alien controls and keys. Two screens transmitted something, but I couldn’t make out the symbols or dials. Cessa’s equipment was attached to it though, and whatever she brought with her was adequate enough to transmit her script and orders to the alien computer. I searched through the boxes and adapters she hooked up, and finally found a small touch screen display.

  The display read, ‘Transmission Complete’. I was too late.

  “No!” I shouted, and ripped all the attachments from the main console. Sparks and electric discharges ignited in front of me.

  “Sorry you missed the show,” a woman said behind me. I turned to see Cessa standing over a Dawnian, her foot on his chest. He looked like one of Chorta’s companions. I stared into Cessa’s eyes, my own shedding a tear for the damage done and lives lost.

  “Cessa . . . Why? Why did you do this? . . . All the people . . . you killed them . . . you brought those monsters here on my ship . . . how could you?” I was choking up inside and couldn’t grasp one single thought. Cessa flashed a grin. She looked so happy, it was disgusting.

  “I did what I was told, Daniel. Find the empyreus and send the coordinates back to Erebos. If I were you I would run and flee the system. Take your quaint little ship and go before he gets here.”

  “But . . . why did you kill? What’s the point of murdering, of ending so many lives?”

  “Because they’re animals! I told them what would come from locking me up! Besides, Erebos will want to claim this planet for himself. We can’t have any native competition giving us trouble.”

  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Deep down I realized that I knew all along what she was capable of, but chose to look at the better side of her, to try and reason with her. My hope for her, my attempts to
trust her, were all for nothing.

  “So you’re going to exterminate everyone? Are you fluxing crazy?”

  Her grin turned into a scowl. She looked at me with death in her eyes.

  “Don’t get in my way Daniel or you will end up in the same pile of bodies as these vile creatures!”

  With her last words she raised her sword up, pointed the tip down at the guard and thrust it into his stomach. He howled in pain for a moment then drifted off into death. I screamed and raised my gun to Cessa, my finger hugging the trigger tightly. She didn’t try and run, nor did she attempt to engage me. She just stood there looking at me.

  “Go ahead,” she said so softly it was just above a whisper. “Do it. Shoot me. Kill me.”

  Her smile returned and I tried to pull the trigger. My mind started playing tricks on me and in Cessa’s place stood Sarah King. Underneath her boot was the same girl I had found on my bed, stabbed to death. Ashley. Her name was Ashley. I shut my eyes and shook my head violently. When I opened them Cessa was once again in front of me, but now she was laughing.

  “You really are a coward, aren’t you Daniel? You’re unwilling to kill even when it’s someone who has killed so many of your beloved animals. You say I’m crazy, but I’m willing to bet you’re crazier than me.”

  I aimed again, jamming the gun into my shoulder so hard it hurt. One click and Cessa wouldn’t be any more trouble for me or these people. I looked down the sights, locked on her with my bionic eye, but I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t kill her.

  “If you can’t kill me, maybe you should help your friend. Save him for me would you? I promised him I would kill him.”

  I looked towards Laraar and sure enough, he was losing the battle with the last dog standing. I had no idea where Chorta and his other guard were, maybe dead or helping out others who were injured. I turned back to see Sarah King walk off towards the forest. No, that wasn’t right, damn it. Cessa was the one escaping. I kept my gun on her and wanted to shout, ‘Stop’, but I knew she wouldn’t listen. I did the only thing I knew I could do, and disengaged her to help Laraar. The dog pounced on him and had him pinned down, its claws seconds away from shredding him. I ran at full speed, ignoring the pain I felt, or the tears I shed. I roared at the top of my lungs and threw my left foot right into the dog’s chest. I felt bones shatter, heard my voice screaming, but also saw the dog fly off my friend.

  I was on the ground, exhausted, in pain, and close to blacking out. With the last bit of energy I had, I raised the rifle toward the last animal, which was readying itself for another attack, and pulled the trigger. The blast was a little high, but it still seared off the upper half of its head and body. The machine fell to the ground as my arm was bent violently a second time.

  As my eyes darkened, all I could see was death, the death of multiple Dawnians . . . the death of the guard under Cessa’s foot and the death of Ashley, someone in my past who I cared for very much. I was a harbinger for death. It followed me wherever I went and now I was going to be the catalyst that initiated the potential extinction of an entire alien race.

  FOURTEEN

  The lines drawn between reality and fantasy were erased, leaving me in a profound state of confusion. As I tried to look at my surroundings I couldn’t help but feel like I was in multiple places at once. I felt my feet touching the cool blue grass of Dawn, watching Cessa run her sword down into her victim. Then I stood on a thin line of carpet covering a metallic surface of a ship, looking at Ashley Pierce who was dead, stabbed multiple times on my bed. Next I felt the hot surface of concrete. I was standing on a street facing a small family owned restaurant on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. It took me some time to process where I was, but it eventually came to me. I had just graduated the Star Naval Academy with my friends Jason Hobbes, Benjamin Gregson, and my girlfriend Ashley Pierce.

  Every sequence I lived, everything my vision showed me looked, smelled, and felt absolutely real. Then I felt the intense pain of injuries and soreness. I was thrashing on my back, a pair of hands holding me down. I didn’t dare open my eyes or concentrate on the sounds surrounding me. I didn’t want to see anymore death, but the three other visions would not allow me solace. They came in waves showing me friends lost or killed, Dawnians scattered on the ground of their homes.

  Then came the music. A strong, lovely voice pierced through the images and the pain. It sang with a calm fluidity like a soft ballad without words. The song touched my very soul bringing with it a suggestion of peace and relaxation. I didn’t even have to try to ignore the images. They simply vanished before my eyes. The pain was still there, but it wasn’t suffocating my body as before.

  Something inside my head told me I could open my eyes. I slowly drew back the curtain of my eyelids and looked to a beautiful, lavender colored face. Her eyes were sparkling, her mouth lifted into a smile. When our eyes met her shoulders relaxed. Idza was standing over me, singing me the beautiful song.

  “Daniel . . .” her neck device translated after she sang her melody. “Relieved . . .”

  Surprisingly I didn’t find myself in the cell that had been my home here, but in a small room. The walls and ceiling were a light brown color. I tried moving my hands and feet. They all seemed responsive, but I was sore and even numb in a couple places. My neck felt like it needed a lube job. Every time I tried to turn, it throbbed with sharp pain.

  “Are you well?” Idza asked me.

  I couldn’t help but smile, happy knowing she was alright. I hadn’t seen her at all during the assault on the village and I feared the worst. She didn’t come out of it completely unscathed though, as her left forearm was bandaged and she had minor cuts and bruises all over. She noticed me studying it.

  “When Cessa assaulted Ortu and Druga, I ran for help. Chorta . . . his men came with me, but . . . machines attacked us . . . Cessa ran for village . . . I was thrown . . . injured . . . I am okay now.”

  I smacked my head back against the bed and a painful ringing surged through my ears. It wasn’t the smartest thing to do, but the pain distracted me from the guilt that flooded through my conscience. How many total lives were lost? What kind of irreparable damage was done to the village? It was all because of me. I let Cessa out of the cell and I alone gave her the opportunity she needed to attack.

  “What happened to Cessa?” I asked, completely forgetting that the last time I saw her, she was retreating into the forest. “Was she caught? Do you have her?”

  Idza’s shoulders slumped and her eyes closed.

  “I fear not. She evades us.”

  Damn.

  “I never should have brought her here. This mission, the empyreus . . . everything started with me. I should have told Erebos and his people to shove it.”

  I palmed the ring at my neck and held it tightly. The diamond that sat at the top had gone missing years ago, but I would never let it go. It served as a reminder to me of how my actions, regardless of whether or not I knew what I was doing, got people into trouble. It felt like Murphy’s Law, anything that could go wrong did go wrong. If I had never set foot into the academy almost a decade ago, would any of this have happened? That was a dumb question. The world didn’t revolve around me, nor did I want it to. Someone else would be in a similar situation. Even if Ashley was spared, someone else would have taken the fall. Cessa would have had someone else to order around and threaten.

  “You loved her?” Idza asked, and I about choked on my own saliva. My ribs were hesitant to laughter, but I couldn’t help myself after everything that happened.

  “Cessa? No! She betrayed me,” I muttered over a cough. “I thought that maybe there was a shred of humanity in her, but I was wrong.”

  “No, not her. You spoke of another. Your sleep was riddled with confession of a time long ago.”

  She pointed to the ring around my neck.

  Ashley? Just thinking her name brought uncomfortable images to my mind.

  “Yes,” I said softly. “Her death was my fault, just like all your pe
ople who were murdered. I’m so sorry.” My voice caught in my throat, and my eyes watered. I felt an uncomfortable fluttering in my upper chest and tried to contain it. My head and throat felt bad enough without cascading into more tears and sobs.

  I felt a hand take mine and a second wrapped gently around my wrist. Idza knelt down next to me. I couldn’t read her face to see whether she was angry or sad. She just stared down at me and it wasn’t helping me contain my emotions.

  “Tell me,” she said to me. “Share . . . confess. The weight on your life force is great.”

  I smiled at her, thinking that her translator was operating a lot smoother. Her voice sounded less like some broken accent. She sat down on the bed next to my waist, folded her hands on her lap, and waited for me to speak. I had never had the chance, nor did I trust anyone well enough to explain what had transpired five years ago. Lying on the bed I still wasn’t sure if I should say anything, but before I could consider it any more, tears formed in my eyes and I spoke without thinking.

  “Years ago I trained at a naval academy on Earth so I could travel into space. It was a dream of mine. My father was a scientist who worked for the government. He always bragged about his job and how it would help usher in a new era of space exploration. I wanted to be a part of it so I applied to the academy. When I graduated, I was positioned to serve on the Earth Star Alliance’s newest flagship, the Echelon.”

  Idza sat and listened as I told my story. I was in awe of how much I remembered. I remembered the noise and commotion as all the new officers arrived at the docks for boarding. I remembered the smell of the brand new ship. I remembered reporting to my senior officer for my first job. Most of all, I remembered Ashley Pierce.