Jaded Dusk

by Scott Wale

  “The obvious option is the wall right in front of us”, Fenrit started. “Scaling the wall seems feasible, but from this vantage point I can’t tell if that really gets us anywhere or if we’re just faced with trying to find an access point on the roof.”

  “Getting on the roof won’t put us at a good starting point for where we need to go”, Tradok said.

  “Then that leaves the doors, which I’m guessing we can’t just walk right through”, Fenrit deduced.

  “That’s our point of entry, but two things concern me”, Tradok said. “First, the roof is slightly different in that it used to have a protrusion, which sat right above the controller. The protrusion has been removed and the roof flattened out over that section and the hexagonal protrusion that still remains was there before. I wonder if they’ve moved the controller. Second, the only patrols I’ve seen so far have been cymutts. Those doors are only opened from the outside in response to a transponder. Every cymutt used to have one, but we can’t exactly take one out without anyone noticing. I was hoping a living being or two would be available for that kind of pilferage.”

  “Do you know where the doors lead?” Fenrit asked.

  “If the building layout hasn’t changed much, I can get us where we need to go”, Tradok answered. “These doors are lightly monitored and rarely used. They’re the ideal entry points, but getting access has now proven to be more challenging than I had anticipated.”

  “This might sound stupid, but can we simply follow a cymutt through?” Fenrit suggested.

  “Too risky, but even more importantly there’s no traffic going through any of those doors”, Tradok said. “Timing would be extremely difficult and there’s nowhere to hide and wait for the opportunity.”

  “You don’t happen to have an old transponder or cymutt shell sitting around?” Fenrit facetiously concluded as he was all out of ideas.

  “No, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get one”, Tradok said in an earnest tone. “I’ve seen what I need to see. Let’s return to the cave. I have at least one plan.”

  ***

  “What did you learn?” Alejade asked as Fenrit and Tradok returned to the cave.

  “There is a pretty heavy barrier to entry”, Fenrit summarized.

  “I think we can get through with Jandra’s help”, Tradok said. “We should also execute this plan while it’s still dark as that will only help us.”

  “And that plan is?” Nevit asked.

  “There are some questionable factors, but let me tell you my idea and then we can discuss those issues”, Tradok said.

  “This should be entertaining”, Nevit said as his eyes turned blue.

  “Let me start by saying that if the cymutts see us it’ll draw some suspicion, which is why we’re going to rely on Jandra”, Tradok began. “The overall objective is to remove a transponder from a cymutt that will get us through one of the doors at the top of the rock wall. First, we need to draw a cymutt away from its garrison. Fenrit and I saw roving packs of them all around the outside walls of Prominence. To pull one away we simply need to create a distraction for it. What gets a cymutt’s attention? Electromagnetic pulses. If you remember, we have our own source of electromagnetic pulses in this cave.”

  “The Paleen”, Alejade said as her memory was triggered. “I thought you also said you programmed the cymutts to avoid the cave.”

  “I’m getting there”, Tradok said with a hint of impatience caused by the fact he wanted to share his plan all in one swoop. “The Paleen will only draw the cymutt’s attention if a large enough ball of them is formed. This is where it gets tricky. Alejade, I need you to communicate with the Paleen to get them to do this at the top of the rock wall which is the ideal point that is far enough from the cymutt patrol route and far enough from the cave.”

  “That’s asking a lot of me”, Alejade said. “I’ll certainly try, but I’ve never communicated with a single Paleen, let alone several. Do you even know where to find them?”

  “What does this have to do with Jandra or getting a transponder?” Nevit interrupted.

  “Let me answer Nevit’s question first and then we can address your issue, Alejade”, Tradok said. “Assuming we can draw a cymutt away from the pack, Jandra is going to use Nevit’s cyphon to cut into the cymutt and remove its transponder. The transponder has its own internal power source, so it’ll still function after being removed. Jandra can simply return the transponder to us and then we’ll have our key to open the door.”

  “Simply?” Nevit said completely bewildered. “Problem two on your list is how you think Jandra will be able to use my cyphon. I have no doubt that it’ll cut through cymutt outer plating, but you’ll have to build up at least some momentum for that to happen.”

  “Remember, I told you there would be issues”, Tradok said. “The beauty of this idea is that we can test both of our dilemmas before making an attempt of it. We can figure out how to communicate with the Paleen and we can test Jandra’s dexterity. If neither of those will suit our plan, then we can come up with another one. I’ll remind you though that the more we insert ourselves into the plan the riskier it becomes.”

  “Let’s knock the easy one out first”, Nevit said drawing his cyphon from his pants and activating it by bopping the base of the rod. “We’ll figure that Jandra gets the weapon with the blades exposed. All she has to do now is pump it to get the blades spinning.”

  Nevit set the cyphon on the cave floor and nodded his head in Jandra’s direction. Alejade looked over at the raptor and explained to her how the item worked. Alejade pantomimed the action that would build up the blade momentum. Jandra looked curiously at Alejade and then directed her attention at the cyphon lying on the cave floor. She hopped over to the weapon and stared at it for a few moments as if working through her head the best approach on how to use the weapon. She grasped one end of the cyphon with one of her claws and then the second end with her remaining free claw. She spread her wings and lifted herself a short distance off the ground. While Jandra hovered above the ground she shifted the cyphon in her talons as if trying to find an optimal grip. She began the pumping motion that Alejade had demonstrated when she was finally happy with her grip. Jandra’s talons contained the necessary muscles for grasping, but not clapping her talons together in a fast, repetitive motion. The initial pumps were difficult, but as the blades slowly began to spin it became a little easier to carry through with the motion. Enough momentum had built up to get the blades to spin, but now everyone who was observing began to wonder if it was enough to cut through a cymutt’s casing.

  “Is that going to be enough?” Alejade wondered aloud.

  “I’ve definitely seen the blades move faster, but I can’t say that I’ve ever tried to cut through cymutt armor”, Nevit commented.

  “Have her thrust it into that rock”, Fenrit said pointing to a large rock with a flat surface on the far chamber wall.

  Alejade directed Jandra without questioning Fenrit’s logic. The raptor swooped over to the rock and drove the cyphon into the flat surface. The impact repelled the cyphon and Jandra with it as she clung to the weapon. Jandra managed to regain her balance and hovered over the rock still holding on to the now motionless cyphon.

  “What did that prove?” Nevit said upset that the pointless action would dull the blades.

  “Everyone take cover”, Fenrit said as he pulled Scourge off of his shoulder, drew an arrow and knocked it.

  Fenrit took a glance around to ensure that everyone, including Jandra, had obeyed his command. When he was satisfied with their position, he aimed at the same rock that Jandra had struck and pulled back the bow string to a full draw. He released the string and sprung behind a nearby column just in case of a ricochet. The arrow struck the rock and broke relenting to the durability of a more massive object. A mark where the arrow had struck the rock could be seen just a short distance from the mark produced by Jandra’s cyphon attack.

  “Now we compare the damage, knowing that these arrows can p
enetrate cymutt armor”, Fenrit said.

  The group anxiously approached the rock and began their comparison. The mark that had been left by Jandra was not only wider, but also had penetrated slightly deeper into the rock. There was no argument that Jandra could generate sufficient momentum to pierce the cymutt armor.

  “The transponder is right behind the cymutt’s left shoulder blade”, Tradok said with a rare smile to Alejade for translation to Jandra. “All she has to do is reach in and pull it out.”

  “And where can we find these Paleen?” Alejade asked getting back to her question.

  “I’ve been thinking about that too”, Fenrit interrupted. “You’re going to have to reach out to several of them. Maybe it’s your turn to try this.”

  Fenrit reached into his satchel and pulled out the aft crystal. Alejade just stared at the crystal lying in Fenrit’s open palm. She was hesitant to touch it, unsure what the effect might be. She remembered her promise to Tradok to at least give his plan a try. She quickly snatched the crystal from Fenrit’s hand and then closed her eyes and opened her mind like she had done so long ago when first trying to communicate with Jandra. The crystal had already performed one miracle allowing Fenrit to communicate with Jandra and now they needed it to perform a second.

  A surge of voices flooded Alejade’s mind. She suspected they were the thoughts of all the creatures in the nearby vicinity. Some were everyday thoughts, some were focused on a task at hand and some were cries for help. Alejade struggled to focus on any single voice. She dropped the crystal to the cave floor and all the voices immediately withdrew from her head.

  “What’s wrong?” Fenrit asked.

  “It’s too much”, Alejade said. “All I can hear is a jumbled mess of thoughts. I don’t exactly know what or where they are coming from.”

  Fenrit paused as if recovering a memory.

  “A long time ago, I remember you coming back from one of your lessons with Arkiva”, Fenrit began. “You were frustrated and in one of those rare opportunities where our roles reversed, I was able to help you gain your composure. You were upset that Arkiva had put you in a room with a number of creatures and she put an immense amount of pressure on you to connect with one. She knew you could hear their voices and she wanted you to be able to focus and concentrate, but you had failed to do so that day. I remember sharing with you what I do to clear my mind. I take one deep breath, envision myself consolidating all of that stress and forcing it into a single part of the body, which I need to perform next. When I’m using my bow that’s my hands, but I’ve used it in so many other different ways. When you returned to Arkiva the next day you used the same tactic, but somehow concentrated all that energy into your head allowing you to focus. You took it a step beyond anything that I could do as putting it all in your head is the last place I could deal with it. You made it work that day and that’s when the bird called out to you in a room full of all different kinds of creatures. Do you think you can do that here and now?”

  Alejade breathed a sigh of relief. She had long forgotten this memory. Her brother was right and she still owed Tradok an honest effort. She kneeled to the cave floor and took the aft crystal back into her hand. The voices once again flooded into her mind and she felt the stress building just as it had done the first time she touched the aft crystal. The stress peaked and she began the process of consolidating all the stress into a single point and then moving it into her mind just as Fenrit had described. When she envisioned the buildup of stress hitting her mind, instead of her mind overloading, as it had done during the first attempt, she felt her mind come alive. She took in one voice at a time and began to scan through them to look for the ideal candidate.

  I must begin the hunt to feed myself.

  When nightfall ends it will be time to return to the cave.

  My hind leg is maimed; there is no way I can return to the safety of my home.

  The rock is broken here, making it an ideal spot to burrow.

  The last thought triggered Tradok’s voice in Alejade’s head from when he had earlier described the Paleen. They do this from time to time to create small fissures in the rock which they can then chip away at with their own muscles to create their burrows. The last thought in Alejade’s head as she had reached out must be coming from a Paleen. She began to reach out to the thought in a process she had never performed before. She focused on it and began to establish a connection. Soon Alejade was able to determine where the thought was coming from. It was in the wall of a nearby chamber. Alejade continued her focus keeping the connection with the creature. She wanted to reach out and communicate, but wasn’t sure how. Stress about opening up communication began to creep into Alejade’s mind and just as she had done with the previous stress she began to consolidate this new source and push it into her mind. As her mind felt enlightened from the arrival of the new concentration of stress she spoke out so that even the group present in her chamber could hear her.

  “I need your help, creature of the Maker”, Alejade said.

  Alejade’s mind began to fixate on the creature conjuring up an image of the Paleen. The Paleen ceased its rock scraping activity startled by Alejade’s voice. The message had been received, and now everything hinged on Alejade’s negotiating abilities.

  “Who are you?” the Paleen asked.

  “I’m Alejade, one of the Maker’s creations from the Jade Plains”, answered Alejade. “I’ve traveled into these mountains looking for a resolution to the problem that is the mechanical beasts we call cymutts.”

  “I don’t know what you speak of”, the Paleen replied.

  “Not far outside of your mountain roam mechanical beasts that pillage the land we share”, Alejade explained trying to establish a mutual cause.

  “My entire life has been within the confines of this mountain and I’ve never encountered such a being”, the Paleen responded. “What do you want of me?”

  Alejade didn’t want to make a request without first creating a bond she could work from. She needed to determine where her world and that of the Paleen intersected so her plea stood a chance of being considered.

  “I need your help, but I want to make sure we share the same goals”, Alejade reasoned.

  “My only goal right now is to burrow and create shelter for my kind”, retorted the Paleen.

  “What causes you the most frustration with your work?” Alejade asked wary of the Paleen’s agitation.

  “Burrowing is endless work with my kind’s ever growing numbers and the occasional destruction of previously made shelters”, the Paleen answered with a more responsive tone.

  “Surely shelters made from rock don’t deteriorate”, Alejade commented in an attempt to build a rapport.

  “My sentiments exactly, but sometimes through circumstances beyond one’s control the burrows collapse following a tremor”, the Paleen explained.

  The words collapse and tremor triggered Alejade’s memory back to the Calcarx. He had made the same comment and associated the tremors with the construction of Prominence and the Calcarx had even mentioned the tremors had continued after the completion of Prominence due to the continuing maintenance. It wasn’t much, but maybe Alejade could use this to gain a temporary ally of the Paleen.

  “The mechanical beasts are the cause of these tremors”, Alejade simplified the situation. “Their own chiseling into the rock has upset your surroundings.”

  “How can you be sure of this?” the Paleen asked skeptically.

  “I’ve seen their fortress which is planted in the ground using the rocky terrain for protection”, Alejade said creating an image in her own mind from the descriptions that Jandra had relayed to her.

  “This sounds like superior competition”, the Paleen concluded. “Why do you seek my help?”

  “I’m given to understand your kind can form powerful masses which can generate pulses to help break up rock”, Alejade began. “I only ask that you generate one of these pulses just outside of the mountain.”

  “
What good is our collective energy if not to break up rock?” the Paleen asked.

  “It would serve as a distraction allowing my friends and I to shut down these mechanical beasts and hopefully bring stability to your world”, Alejade explained.

  “I suppose you’re not asking much of us”, the Paleen replied. “Where and when does this need to be done?”

  “We need the task performed tonight if at all possible, and I will have to direct you on where”, Alejade answered.

  “From the cave exit you follow a short path to a rock wall near the top of which a boulder exists near the edge of the cliff”, Tradok said having listened to Alejade’s half of the conversation.

  “Are you familiar with the nearby cave entrance?” Alejade asked unsure of the Paleen’s concept of its surroundings.

  “I can’t say I’m familiar with anything outside of this mountain”, the Paleen answered. “Rock that I’ve burrowed through is all that is familiar to me.”

  Alejade began to think. How could she get the precise coordinates of where the mass of energy needed to emanate? All rock looked the same to her, but the Paleen was apparently able to differentiate based on burrowing experience. The image of the Paleen that Alejade had formed in her head began to lose focus and was slowly overlaid by the images in front of her own eyes. Jandra, who had perched herself on a nearby ledge, came into view.

  “I have an idea”, Alejade stated aloud.

  “And that is?” Tradok asked.

  “I need to see what you’ve seen”, Alejade said to Jandra while gazing into the aft crystal still in the palm of her hand. “Show me the boulder near the cliff’s edge that Tradok mentioned.”

  Alejade waited patiently for some type of response from the raptor. She had only ever verbally communicated with Jandra, never entered her mind. If the aft crystal had allowed Fenrit and Jandra to communicate verbally, then maybe it would give Alejade the boost to communicate telepathically. If Alejade could see the image herself, then maybe she could also project it to the Paleen. It was the best idea she could come up with short of going to the boulder herself and calling out to the Paleen.