by Mark Stewart
BACK INSIDE the shuttle, Clay pushed the button so the shuttle’s internal roof could slide open. The trio reached up and pulled on the parachute until it was on the floor. A thin saw blade was used to hack the material into strips. Florian tied a knot along the entire length at two-foot intervals. The parachute ropes was carefully wound and wrapped about their waists.
“Okay, we’re ready to go,” reported Florian. “I still can’t understand why we needed to cut the parachute into lengths? I thought we might use the trees to climb down to the ground.”
Clay pointed to the last ten feet.
“Once we’re on the ground there’s no way we can reach the first branch. The parachute will act as a temporary ladder. In time, we can build a sturdy one. Today, we’ll have to climb the parachute. Besides, if we come across any animals we can easily climb, retracting the parachute ladder to stay safe.”
Josh descended to the lowest branch first, followed by Florian. Clay brought up the rear. The trio stood on the last sturdy branch waiting for Josh to tie the material around the branch.
“Who should be first to touch the ground?” mentioned Clay.
“Do we have to vote on everything?” asked Josh.
“Yes, I think we should,” said Florian. “I vote Josh.”
Clay backed her up.
“Why am I the lucky one?”
“You’re the monkey in this unit,” said Florian.
Josh raised an eyebrow at her. “What if there is an animal prowling around the forest floor?”
“We’ll signal you,” said Clay. “Besides, I’ll be right behind you.”
Josh hunched his shoulders, checked the area around the shuttle before climbing down, using the knots in the material for hand and footholds. The moment his foot touched the ground, he turned in circles, surveying the forest.
Clay quickly climbed down. Holding his bow and arrow at the ready Josh signaled for Florian to join them.
Both boys stood guard ready to fire an arrow at anything moving while Florian clambered down. In seconds, she stood next to the boys.
For a long time, the trio dared not move. They stood back to back listening for any sound. The only noise they heard was the breeze moving the leaves on the trees. It seemed to whisper their names.
Florian saw movement high above their heads. Focusing her gaze on the trees, she watched a single leaf fall from thirty feet up until it landed on the ground.
“Let’s make a move,” whispered Clay, pointing away from the shuttle, deeper into the forest.
“There’s no point standing here,” added Florian. “If we want to reach the building we have to be brave and go.”
Cutting a narrow path through the forest, the three castaways walked in single file, each scrutinizing the forest ahead, behind them, to their right and their left. Each picked up a short solid branch to use as a backup weapon. Josh left a trail in the ground by dragging his stick in the dirt so they could easily follow the trail, retracing their steps back to the shuttle, especially if they needed to sprint. There was no way they wanted to get lost.
A third of the way to the building Florian, Josh and Clay still heard and saw nothing moving in the forest. Even the breeze was gone. One positive thing about the quiet, another prehistoric bird hadn’t turned up. The ground felt slightly spongy thanks to the years or possibly decades of fallen leaves covering the forest floor. The filtered light, seeping through the canopy, made for an unsettling sight. The giant trees growing straight were at least one hundred feet tall. Few branches grew close to the ground proving a quick escape up a tree was almost impossible.
At the halfway point, Clay signaled a halt. They ducked under a giant tree which lay almost horizontal, fallen over from a long-forgotten storm. The tree’s four-foot girth looked to be rotting. Florian swiped her hand along its surface and watched pieces of bark fall about her feet.
“What’s wrong?” asked Josh.
“Nothing I can tell. This seems too easy,” said Clay.
“I’d have to agree,” said Florian. “I’m having trouble stopping myself from thinking we’re walking into a trap.”
“I sure hope you’re wrong,” said Josh.
“What do you suggest?” asked Clay.
Florian was the first to inject her thoughts.
“The way I see it we have two options. Get to the building or go back to the shuttle. Going back will see us where we were before we climbed down from the tree. I think we should keep moving.”
The boys nodded in agreement. After a careful and thorough examination of the forest ahead, Clay took the lead.
The trio moved on to the next tree where its girth looked wide enough to hide behind.
A strong breeze sprung up causing the trees to drop some of their leaves. Just before they were about to walk on again, they heard a dry leaf rustle. The trio froze in their tracks and studied the ground and the trees. Two leaves fell onto Florian’s hair. She lifted her hand to swipe them away.
Clay’s forehead dripped sweat. Again, a dry leaf rustled. Florian’s eyes were bulging. Clay felt amazed they didn’t fall out of their sockets.
The third time a leaf rustled the noise came from behind Florian. She whirled around expecting to find the male prehistoric bird coming at her. She faced her aggressor in stunned silence. A lizard, the size of a skink, sprinted about the leaves in the search for food.
The three-stood exhaling their stress. Finally, Clay spoke on a sigh.
“We should be going.”
Josh took the lead this time. Clay outstretched his hand to take Florian’s. She refused the invitation.
“I guess you think I’m paranoid over the slightest noise?”
“The thought never entered my mind,” replied Clay. “It’s good to be extra careful. We don’t know what to expect on our first excursion away from the shuttle.”
Florian relaxed the moment she saw his smile. She took hold of his hand. By the time, they caught up to Josh; they were almost at the clearing. Their confidence quickly grew. They squatted behind a large bush so they could study the land.
“The entire area is a perfectly rounded cleared site,” whispered Florian. “From this angle, it would have to measure at least five acres.”
Josh and Clay studied the entire area of open land and each blade of grass noting any movement.
“The grass appears short all over,” replied Josh. He leaned sideways, swiping up three stones.
Clay watched him toss the first stone near the middle of the clearing. They saw it bounce. He repeated the procedure to his left and his right.
“The grass covering is the same thickness, and the stones tell us the ground is firm,” reported Josh.
“I’m curious why there aren’t any trees,” queried Clay.
“At a guess, I’m thinking along the line of whoever built the place cleared the forest for safety,” whispered Josh.
“I reckon the building is a spaceship,” Florian blurted.
Josh glanced at her before focusing back onto the building. For a long time, he studied the structure directly in front of them. When he finally looked sideways again at Florian, he started nodding.
“I think you might be right.”
“I’ll have to agree with both of you,” said Clay.
Florian looked slowly around the area. “I have a strong feeling something is watching us.”
“I don’t share your thoughts. However, we have to be brave enough to walk across the clearing and get inside so we can find out what’s in there,” mumbled Josh.
“What if we encounter more animals?” questioned Florian.
“We have our bow and arrows and a short, sturdy tree branch each. If we’re extra quiet, watch our backs, we’ll be okay,” said Clay, trying to sound extra confident.
Josh gazed at the ship’s hull, studying every square inch. When he found what, he was looking for he said.
“I believe I’ve found a hatch. Provided there’s power to the door it’ll be a snap to get in.”
“What if there’s no power and the animals turn up, we’ll have nowhere to run,” added Florian sounding slightly agitated.
“You have a valid point,” said Clay, scratching at his ear.
“I think only one of us should go,” suggested Florian, putting an idea forward.
“I think we should all go,” corrected Josh. “Each one of us can watch the other’s back.” He looked at Clay. “What do you think?”
“I believe both ideas are right, but I think we should stick together. I’m voting for safety in numbers.”
“Okay, I’ll agree with you two,” whispered Florian.
Looking towards the ship, Josh pointed. “In my opinion, at this distance, the best place to enter the ship is through the airlock closest to us. I’d be surprised if the ship doesn’t have several to choose from.”
“Is your opinion from a professional point of view?” asked Clay.
“No, from an angle I hope I’m right,” answered Josh. “Besides, from here I can’t see any others.”
The three moved to the fringe of the clearing and studied the entire area time and again.
Josh pointed to a small rock half way to the ship.
“The rock is our point of no return,” he stated. “If we’re seen by a dangerous animal this side of the rock, we turn away from the ship and sprint back here. The other side of the rock we sprint for the ship.”
“Josh, if an animal has us cornered, I’m counting on you to get us inside the ship before it attacks,” instructed Clay.
“I’ll be ready,” he replied.
Half stooped, the trio ran across the open space one behind the other. Clay brought up the rear. Florian came second while Josh took the lead. The three held their bows cocked, ready to fire an arrow at the first sign of danger.
The moment they stepped over the rock at the halfway point, Florian felt nervous. She couldn’t shake the idea something was watching them. The closer they got to the ship the worse she felt. She was positive if they didn’t get inside quick, she’d vomit.
When they got to the ship, they pushed their backs against the metal hull. Josh immediately commenced working. While he studied, the hatch, trying to figure a way in, Florian stood guard. Clay got busy studying the surface area of the ship’s wall.
The wall they were leaning against appeared to be at least forty feet in each direction, at least twenty feet high and the width, too hard to imagine at such an early time.
‘The roof might make a good home,’ thought Clay, hearing a click.
Josh had discovered a small panel next to the door. He pushed the top right-hand corner, popping the cover open. Inside the panel, there were three buttons. He pushed what he hoped could be the entry button. No light flashed. He waited a few more seconds before pushing the next button.
Nothing moved.
Josh pushed the third button. From inside he heard a whine. At least five agonizing seconds ticked off before the hatch slid sideways, revealing the interior of the ship. Overhead lights blinked on, lighting a narrow corridor.
The three visitors quickly moved inside. Slowly, quietly they started down the corridor. More lights lit the way the deeper they walked.
The three didn’t want to talk, each one taking in the surrounds knowing and feeling the danger. Bow and arrows at the ready they looked inside the first room on their left.
There were rows of racks stretching from the floor to the roof full of equipment. Florian could hardly contain her excitement at the Christmas presents.
Quietly they moved on to the next room. The hatch slid open revealing a giant room which appeared to be at least 500 square metres full of vegetables. The countless plants were growing in water.
“This Hydroponic garden is about half the size of the one on the USS Lock,” whispered Josh. “There’s enough food in this room to feed us three times a day for years.”
Clay stepped back into the corridor to keep guard. Every few seconds he looked back into the room. Florian took off her shirt, placing the material on the floor. She wasted no time in picking fruit and vegetables, placing them on the material. Clay and Josh caught on, throwing their shirts onto the floor. The air felt moist and warm against their bare shoulders. The thermal singlets they were wearing always kept their body temperature relatively the same.
“How is all this possible?” whispered Florian.
“Somebody must have planted the crops,” said Clay, glancing back at the sunlight outside. “Let’s keep moving. Hopefully, we’ll find him. The coast is clear. Bring the bounty.”
“The ship must have enough power to supply fresh water to the garden,” hinted Josh deep in thought. “Someone must be running the show, why else would there be food growing.”
Clay answered him cautiously. “This place has brought up more questions than answers.”
The moment they stepped out of the room the hatch closed automatically.
Florian led the way down the corridor. At the end, they were facing a closed hatch. Josh stepped up to the metal door to start finding a way in when the door opened. The trio stood gobsmacked at what they were seeing.
“This room looks like the bridge,” whispered Florian.
Marching through the open doorway, Josh stepped up to the bouquet of monitors in the middle of the slightly elevated room.
“This equipment has taken me to heaven.” He moved to sit on a chair when he spied a dark stain covering the entire black leather surface. He followed the stain to the other side of the bridge where it vanished. “Interesting,” he whispered.
Clay didn’t squander any time and commenced to search the round shaped room. Except for the bridge in the middle, the room was barren. The moment he felt satisfied, there were no animals he relaxed for a few minutes, joining the other two on the bridge.
“What’s the dark stain on the chair?” he asked.
“I have no idea,” replied Florian, scrunching her nose.
Josh moved his fingers at speed over the many buttons on the flat screen monitors. Different images popped up before being replaced by others.
“What are you doing?” questioned Clay.
Josh answered without looking at him.
“I’m trying to find a way of copying the entire information this ship holds on the discs I found on the shelf under the middle monitor. As for the chair, I’m working on the answer. I love working with computers. Hopefully, I’ll have the question answered over the stain on the chair in a minute.”
The answer came in a couple of seconds.
“Here it is. The Captain of this vessel left a video recorded message.”
An image of a man’s face appeared on the monitor directly in front of Josh. A mid to late fifty-year-old man looked to be in excruciating pain. The three explorers stood listening to the message.
“Let me start by introducing myself. My name is Bill Rowark. My title reads; I’m a priest. God, bless you, which ever planet you came from. Thank you for finding my recording. My ship, ‘The Piper,’ the planet and whatever life forms remain walking about belong to you. How did I get here, where am I now? These are questions I believe you might be asking yourself. I pray I’m in heaven. I don’t have much time to live, so I’ll make my summary short. My ship’s stabilizer shorted out in a meteor shower. I scanned space. I found this planet to have air which could sustain me while I made repairs. Just before I entered the stratosphere a piece of meteorite struck the dome directly above your head. Oxygen was being sucked out into space at an alarming rate. Life support had gone critical well before I entered the atmosphere. Believe it or not, the clearing around the ship was heavily treed before I landed. I didn’t have a choice. The ship came in hot. I just managed to set the ship down before I blacked out from the lack of oxygen. The moment I landed I hit the hatch switches. All the hatches sprung open, including the animal cages. They escaped. In the few days, I spent trying to round them up; I caught only a third. When I realized, I was dying; I let them go. Thanks to ‘The Piper,’ I hav
e been able to travel back and forward through time, collecting specimens, from prehistoric to modern 3012AD back on Earth. I discovered a new species of mushroom growing right here on this planet. I didn’t scan the fungi. I know I should have. I couldn’t wait. They looked delicious. I ate one raw. It tasted magnificent. The only trouble is they are poisonous to the human body. My goal was to collect a lot of species, a male and a female to populate another world. If you don’t find my body, the animals dragged me away. Watch out for the Pterosaur birds they are extremely clever. Anyway, the dome above your head can never be fixed. If you can’t replace it, I’m afraid the ship will never enter space again, so I never bothered to fix the stabilizer. Thanks for listening to my final recording.”
“The Captain of the Piper signed off nearly twenty Earth years ago,” reported Josh.
“I feel sorry for the man. To live through the crash only to be poisoned by a mushroom,” said Florian.
“What a horrible way to die,” said Clay, adding to her comment.
“At least he helped us survive by reporting about the poisonous mushrooms,” said Josh. He glanced about the bridge. “This ship might make a great home. Captain Rowark did say it’s ours.”
Clay nodded vigorously. “You might be right. There’s certainly more room on this ship than the shuttle.”
Josh tapped a series of buttons on a flat screen monitor to his left.
“I’ll see if I can start the internal cameras,” he said.
Florian saw a monitor light up. She set her gaze on the scene.
“Guys take a look at this,” she said pointing.
Clay and Josh gazed at the monitor.
“It’s not a good sign. If I’m looking at the monitor, correctly, the other side of the ship is full of large and small cages.”
“They’re all open exactly how Rowark reported,” whispered Florian.
“Is there a ledger on what animals were in the cages?” asked Clay.
“I’ll see if I can find out,” said Josh. He ran his fingers over the screen, tapping the glass at speed. A library full of animal species came up. “Eureka.”
Florian read the names of the animals. “Lions, tigers, snakes, lizards,” her voice trailed off into mumbles. “Guys this list is endless.”
Josh continued by reading the next animal on the list.
“Prehistoric bird, Pterosaur: Large wingspan, massive head, long beak with a crown on its head, excellent carnivorous killer, eats only fresh meat.”
Clay whispered, looking sideways at Josh. “Add razor sharp claws. Finish copying everything you can. I don’t want to be here any longer than we need to be.”
“Agreed,” whispered Florian, looking around nervously.
Josh tapped the monitors faster. He touched a small screen on his left. It lit. The schematic drawing of the ship came up. Josh spied a narrow slot directly below the monitor. He touched the edge. A disc, three-inches in diameter sitting in a black frame was ejected. The main menu came up on the screen. On the top of the menu list, he read the words. ‘Copy entire files.’ He touched the okay button. Almost immediately the disc was sucked back into the computer, and the files started copying to disc.
Clay heard the computer whirr to life and stepped over.
“The copied disc will take two minutes twelve seconds,” announced Josh.
“Good going,” said Clay. “The moment it’s finished we’re out of here.”
Josh brought up the menu again and scrolled over the files. He stopped at the word homing beacon. It was highlighted and flashing.
“Is something wrong?” asked Florian.
“I believe the Captain pushed the button to activate the homing signal before he died. My guess is the USS Lock picked up the signal. The moment we had been pushed into the shuttle the computer took over, mounting a rescue.”
Florian picked up on the thought. “The computer must have decided we were the rescue party.”
“The idea does explain why we were flown to this exact location,” said Josh.
“How we came to being inside the shuttle in the first place still holds a mystery?” added Clay.
“At least we know why we are here,” remarked Florian.
“I’m not one hundred percent positive I’m correct,” Josh stated.
Florian placed her arm over his shoulder. “Your hypothesis is good enough for me.”
Clay tapped Josh on the shoulder. “How’s the copying going?”
“Ten seconds.”
“Let’s wrap this adventure up. We’re moving out.” Clay led the way to the hatch. When the door slid open, he stepped into the long narrow corridor.
Florian walked right behind him. She turned, whispering to Josh through a cupped hand.
“Come on; we’re going.”
“Coming,” he called back. The disc popped out. Josh snatched it from the black plastic frame and accidentally dropped it. When he bent to pick it up, he spied a small handheld laser on the floor under the chair. He placed the disc inside his thermal singlet against his stomach. Holding the laser in his hand, he ran for the closing hatch.
“You took your sweet time,” growled Florian.
“I apologize.” Josh picked up his bounty of food and swiped his bow from off the floor.
Slinging the bounty over each of their shoulders and the bow and arrow at the ready, Clay led the way down the long corridor to the outside. Florian walked behind him, and Josh brought up the rear. The three walked quietly, observing everything. Hoping not to encounter a lion, the three didn’t breathe too many times. At the room where the vegetables were growing, Clay signaled they should stop. He silently walked to the outer door. He stood at the threshold studying the clearing and the trees.
Florian came up behind him, whispering in his ear. “What do you see?”
“Nothing, that’s what’s wrong,” he whispered back.
Josh crawled between the two. “After reading the animal list, I think we’re just spooked. We can’t stay here all day. The sun is moving towards the ground. Soon it will be too dark to find our way back to the shuttle.”
“He has a valid point,” said Clay. “It’s safer to walk during daylight hours. Besides, we don’t know if there are any animals around here. It has been twenty years.”
“Yeah, I know, but something is watching us. I can feel it,” said Florian.
Standing in the doorway, the three kept up a silent vigil for the next five minutes. Disappointed, Clay finally stepped out into the sunshine. He looked back at the blank faces of the other two.
“Forget what you feel, we have to go.”
Florian froze the moment she stepped outside. “Did you hear the noise?”
Clay and Josh shook their heads.
Florian raised her bow to eye level, preparing to shoot an arrow.
“I heard something again,” she whispered.
Clay turned to face the trees in time to see a lamb emerge from the forest. A second and third lamb quickly came into view.
Florian dropped her bow and walked towards them. A deep throated growl made her freeze in mid-step. It came from the forest directly behind the lambs.
A lion leaped from behind a large bush. It pounced on the closest lamb. The attack lasted only seconds. The small animal didn’t know it died. Josh and Clay back stepped inside the doorway leaving Florian three large steps from the safety of the Piper, completely unprotected, totally frozen in fear. The lion glanced up at her. Its bloodied mouth opened, showing its razor-sharp teeth. He discarded the dead lamb before walking towards Florian. Clay wrapped his arm around her waist, dragging her inside the corridor. The lion quickly picked up speed, the magnificent dull red mane on the back of its head swayed in the running movement. If the hatch wasn’t closed in time, the lion could easily slip through the gap. Inside the ship, it’ll have a three-course meal. Clay raised his bow to eye level. He pulled back on the arrow, firing a hurried shot. The arrow went wide of the lion. The beast growled again. A lioness emerged from the fores
t. She spied the easy meal and started running towards the ship.
Clay raised his bow again. This time, the arrow landed short. The two animals were within seconds of the open hatch. Florian swept the shock from her mind, snatching her bow from off the floor. In one easy movement, she loaded an arrow and fired. The arrow struck the lioness in the foot. It growled but kept coming.
A condensed beam of light cut through the air. The first lion hit the dirt in full flight landing at the entrance to the hatch.
Florian screamed.
The second beam of light hit the lioness in the exact center of its head. It died where it fell.
Clay glanced back at Josh, noting he still had the laser pointed towards the forest. Slowly he lowered the weapon before looking at Clay.
Florian said slowly, “Where did you get the laser from?”
“Somehow it had wedged itself under the seat on the bridge of the Piper. I read the instructions before pulling the trigger. I didn’t have time to find out if it worked. I’m glad it did.”
“Me too,” said Clay, exhaling his fear.
“Thanks for saving my life. If you didn’t find the weapon I’d be dead by now,” said Florian, her trembling slowly subsiding.
“I think the three of us would be dead,” added Clay. “Come on; I think we’ve had enough excitement for one day.”
“What about the lambs?” Florian asked.
“We’ll see to them tomorrow. Once we’re back in the safety of the shuttle, I’d like to propose a plan.”
CHAPTER FIVE