Hell Fighters from Earth

by William C. Seigler

  “We are to emplace a watching post somewhere near the planet without being seen.”

  “Where are you planning to put it?”

  “That is something of a problem. We are quite sure the Reptilians will find it, if it is in orbit. We do not expect it to last long.”

  “That would only serve to give them another piece of your technology. How big is it?”

  “Come.”

  Smith followed him to a small storage area. Cee showed him the device. Actually, there were two of them. They were not too big, smaller than a duffle bag.

  “Do your people need the Reptilians under constant surveillance?”

  “We are not really sure. I’m afraid all this is new to us.”

  “So whatever they get will be better than what they have.”

  “Is this guile?” asked Cee.

  “No, I’m just trying to see the strategic situation.”

  “What can you give me on those moons?”

  “What do you want?”

  “How often do they pass over the enemy base, and how big are they?”

  “Enemy?”

  “Oh boy; how often do the moons pass over the Reptilian base? Oh yes, are they tidally locked?”

  The alien worked on his computer for several minutes. Smith took sips of the calming tea. This stuff could use some spiced rum; he thought to himself.

  “They are small, not enough gravity to be spherical. No, they are not tidally locked. One should have the base in line-of-sight for…”

  He turned to Denver, and his thoughts flooded the human’s mind. “Whoa, whoa … too fast. Take it easy man.”

  “You want to implant the observation devices on one of the moons.”

  “How about both, there are two of them.”

  “Yes, let me prepare the details. I believe you can implant the devices and still get to your lost-ling while we are on the side of the planet facing away from the Reptilians. It will take a while; why don’t you get some sleep?”

  As Denver finished his tea and carefully moved in the low ceilinged spacecraft to a comfortable looking piece of the deck, he began to wonder what was meant by “you can implant”.

  * * * *

  His eyes popped open. There was a hand on his shoulder. He looked over his right shoulder into the face of Cee. “Yeah?”

  “I apologize for disturbing your rest, but we are almost ready to drop back into real space. When we have the time, I wish to discuss this dream state you humans have.”

  “Yeah, right.” Smith was groggy and stiff. He wondered where the head was on this tiny tub.

  “What you got?” He asked.

  “We have worked out a plan for getting you onto the moons.”

  “What about a combat suit?”

  “That we do not have, but we have an environment suit we built for your Separatists.”

  “They’re not my Separatists. How do you know it will fit me?”

  “We have constructed it to be very adaptable for a variety of users.”

  “Don’t you have a suit?”

  The alien paused. Denver felt uneasiness from him.

  “We have rescue suits operated by machines. We don’t really ‘EVA’. Is that the correct word?”

  “Then who does work for you outside?”

  “We have mechanical devices that do that.”

  “You mean robots?”

  “Yes, robots.”

  “Interesting.”

  “Do we have any of these robots on board?”

  “No.”

  “Too small?”

  “Yes.”

  “All right, what do we do?”

  “We will set down near one of the poles, just over the horizon from where the device needs to be emplaced. I will then direct you where and how to set up.”

  “Okay, which moon do we set down on first?”

  “Observe.”

  An image arose over the computer with red lines which showed the path of flight and what might have been a timetable down the side.

  “You see, we will come into the system in such a way that the larger moon, the farther one, will hide our approach. We will have several hours to set it up. Then as the smaller closer moon flies by we will land on it.

  “You will have to work fast. We should be able to get back to the larger moon before we come into view of the base.”

  “Will we be able to use the observation device ourselves?”

  “I suppose we could, but why? Oh, you want to see if it can find the lost-ling. Good idea, I’ll see what I can do.”

  “Let’s see the suit.”

  “Suit?”

  “The EVA suit, the spacesuit.”

  “Oh yes, good idea.”

  Cee led him to the storage area and helped him with the suit. “Are there any weapons on board?”

  “Do you mean ship’s weapons or personal weapons?”

  “Both.”

  “No.”

  “Wunderbar.” He caught the confusion this caused in the little alien’s mind, and it struck him as a possible way to keep his thoughts private.

  Carrying the device in the almost non-existent gravity will be easy enough, but the terrain was bad. They had hidden in a small crater. He climbed out of it carrying this thing, which actually helped keep him anchored to the rock.

  Over a small rise, not quite a kilometer from the ship’s hiding place, he got his first glimpse of the planet from space. There were small seas, and he could see the sheen of the atmosphere over the edge, it looked earthy red and uninviting.

  He quickly set the viewing systems up and was able to hide the bulk of the device under some rocks. There was not much left to be found except for the solar panels. These had to be set out where they could catch the sun. If a ship came by with the sun at just the right angle and caught a glint of the panel, another bit of Grey technology would be in their hands. That is unless…

  An idea filled his mind. He mouthed the words, “Cee, do we have any explosive devices on board?”

  “Yes we do, for self-destruction purposes, but I see your idea. That must be guile.”

  “We call it dirty tricks.”

  “I’ll have it ready for you by the time you return to the ship.”

  “How are we doing on time?”

  “If you hurry, we will just make it.”

  After the last watching device with its little surprise was installed, Denver stopped for a moment to take in the scene: odd little moon, “flying saucer” glowing softly in its crater, black sky filled with the Milky May. “Who would have ‘thunk’ it?”

  Back at the ship, as he was removing the suit, Cee got excited. “What’s going on?”

  “We are receiving data from the device you just implanted. It seems a ship has gone into orbit around the planet. We are powering down everything we can.”

  For a moment Denver thought about suiting up again, but what good would it do? “Do you think it is coming for us?”

  “No, the orbit is wrong.”

  “Probably just a routine patrol.”

  As the ship was in a lower orbit, it soon passed the moon.

  “This is not what we were told about you humans who live on the surface.” As the alien ship slipped silently away in the distance, Cee’s thoughts filled Denver’s mind.

  “What were you told to expect?”

  “That you were barbarous and loved to fight. You do love to fight, but you use stealth as well.”

  Denver thought about this for a long moment. “That’s interesting; we were told that you were so far-out that you could not be communicated with readily. You think there is a pattern here?”

  “Guile?”

  “I’m starting to wonder. I would like to have a talk with Commander Fitzpatrick, if we get out of th
is alive. In fact…”

  The pause was so long; Cee began to become concerned.

  “If they are up to something,” he continued, “they don’t want me going directly to your people and buggering up their plans. It might not be good for my health.”

  “Your health?”

  “If they are up to no good, I might be seen as a threat to them. That would put my life in danger.”

  “Many of The People have an uneasy feeling about the Separatists.”

  “Yeah, I’m beginning to get a funny feeling about them too.”

  For a moment, Cee appeared to be listening to someone else.

  “The pilot informs me that the ship in orbit will be out of sight for at least 35 minutes. He believes that now is the best time to get to the surface without detection.”

  “Can you calculate when we could be in the open at the surface, without the orbiting ship being overhead?”

  “Yes, I’m running that now. You want to hide should the Reptilian ship pass overhead, correct?”

  “Yes. I wonder why they don’t put up another ship or two so that the whole planet will have coverage. I’m sure there is a reason.”

  “We must move quickly.”

  “Yes, let’s go.”

  The ship lifted up from its hiding place and shot toward the South Pole of the planet, on the side away from the base and the orbiting ship. Denver was soon ready to go with what combat gear he had available.

  “Can I get a look out of the ship?”

  “Yes if you like.” Cee led him to the tiny flight deck. The Greys were seated with screens surrounding them. He knelt between and behind them. They looked up at him.

  “Thanks,” he said.

  “They say that you are welcome, Friend Human Who Risked Himself to save the Lost-lings.”

  “Why don’t you call me Denver, it’s shorter?”

  “Interesting, to you a name is more than an identifier. It is …”

  “It is an extension of ourselves, like our arms or legs.”

  “Yes, that is so, but it would be bad manners if we did not honor your selflessness and bravery.”

  “Denver will do.”

  Panels slid open, and he could see directly into space. The planet loomed large and appeared to be overhead. After several minutes they closed, and Cee called him back to his rigged seat.

  The tiny ship rolled with the bottom down and forward as they entered the atmosphere. They would have less than 20 minutes to find a suitable hiding place, just in case the orbiting ship had some way to sense their presence. Smith was in no mood to take chances.

  “You say that you can see my thoughts after I’ve used the device even though I’m not wearing it?”

  “Yes.” The little alien was wondering why Smith needed reassurance.

  “What about a human who you have not spoken with?”

  “No, I cannot hear his thoughts. It would be unethical to even try.”

  “Okay, can you detect human minds, even if you cannot communicate with them?”

  “Yes if we are close enough. Are you thinking, I might be able to detect your mate?”

  “I don’t know. If I’m wearing the device, can I detect her or her me?”

  “I do not know the answer to that question.”

  The little ship slipped in undetected over the southern pole and was soon skimming the surface, very fast and very low.

  Chapter 19: The Foundling

  “Get me as close to the site of the medical facility as you can,” insisted Denver.

  “But why, I’m sure it’s been picked over thoroughly,” argued Cee.

  “Do you know a better place to start?”

  “The pilot tells me that there is a deep valley near the site, less than two kilometers. We should be able to hide there undetected.”

  “Okay tell me, do these things,” pointing to the headband, “work better when there is a clear line of sight?” asked Smith.

  “Yes, somewhat.”

  * * * *

  Argie awoke cold. She was hungry but had managed to find drinking water. She was alone and lost and did not expect rescue. She had been dreaming and was awakened by Denver calling out to her.

  “Great, now I’m losing my mind,” she said to no one. So this is where it ends, on some far away planet. No one knows or cares where I am. Still she could have sworn …, she thought.

  She looked around, nothing. At least, the patrols had stopped. It might be safe to go back to the med site, or maybe not.

  At least, she had paid attention during survival training. Have to find something to eat.

  * * * *

  “We show no sign of enemy activity. We should be safe here until the orbiting ship flies directly overhead.”

  “Do you know if they can detect you?” asked Smith.

  “No, but prudence dictates we plan for the worst.”

  Denver cracked a smile. “You are starting to think like a soldier.”

  “Is that good?”

  He didn’t answer. “Are you receiving signals from the moons?”

  “Yes.”

  “Okay, how will your people get them?”

  “Once we report, they will send a ship to receive the signals. It will lay out in the Ort Cloud undetected, and then carry the information back to our headquarters,” answered Cee.

  “Can you help me to see what you see when you look at the images?”

  “We are working on it, but as of yet we cannot even do that ourselves.”

  “Okay, get as much as you can on the detail of the enemy base. You can relay a description to me if you have to.”

  “What do you hope to accomplish?”

  “I don’t know yet, but if you see any sudden activity, let me know immediately.

  “I’m going to this prominence here,” he said pointing to the holographic image. “From here I should be able to see the med sight and possibly find her by her body heat.”

  “You are also hoping the headband will help you?”

  “Won’t hurt.”

  Cee turned to the flight crew and back to Smith. “Time to go.”

  The hatch dropped. Smith turned back to Cee, “See you and thanks.”

  “And thank you, friend,who …” Suddenly he broke off and Denver’s mind was filled with sadness.

  “It’s okay little buddy; I’ll be back.”

  “With your lost-ling mate!”

  “Yes.”

  He ducked and quickly slipped out of the ship. He found himself in a narrow ravine. If someone happened upon them, he could drop rocks on the ship. Otherwise, it would be hard to find.

  The sun was getting low, and he knew the temperature would be dropping soon. Good for him but not the lizards, unless of course that is just another ‘space cadet’ prejudice and they happen to be endothermic.

  He made his way up the rocky ravine to a side channel which he believed, based on the map device he carried, would be the easiest way out. The going was rough, and the walls he had picked were steep, not technical climbing. Still it would not pay to slip and fall.

  Carefully sticking his head over the edge, he looked around. It was dusk now and getting hard to see. He wondered for a moment if the lizards saw in black and white and might have better night vision than he.

  Not far away was a tree line, or more like bushes, but still they would make good cover. He quickly rushed across the open area keeping low. Some flying creature was not happy with his sudden approach and squawked angrily as it flew away. As the creature might have alerted someone, Denver waited several minutes before moving on. Quickly and quietly, he moved up the slope always seeking the heavier cover.

  Most of this resembled cedar in that they were short, about twice his height and round. That is where the resemblance ended. These things had big bunches of
needles with empty spaces between them; he did not want to tangle with those for sure. Soon he was at the summit of the low hill.

  The bushes had become much smaller and more widely spaced. Crawling on hands and knees, he reached a place where he could see, hopefully without being seen. He reached in his kit and pulled out the binoculars.

  Switching to night vision he said quietly to himself, “Okay let’s see what they’ve got.” Scanning the valley below and the playa beyond, he soon found what had been a forward medical station. Say what you want about the legion, but they take care of us.

  He slowly swept the surrounding area. There were a few nocturnal animals just becoming active, not much else.

  “Cee?”

  “Yes friend Denver not of the Separatists who risks himself and his fellows to rescue the lost-ling of the people, how may I assist you?”

  “Oh boy, just Denver.”

  “Is that a term of honor?”

  “If you’re from Colorado.”

  “Please explain.”

  “Look, it’s just a name. If we are alive in a few hours I’ll explain anything you want.”

  “It is understood. How may one serve?”

  “Do we have a moon in position to observe the Reptilian compound?”

  “No.”

  “How long has it been?”

  “It has been between 28 and 29 minutes.”

  “What is the level of activity?”

  “As the sun went low all activity outside ceased. However, there are lights on inside.”

  Denver pulled up the temperature, sixteen degrees centigrade and dropping. It was not going to be a pleasant night for anyone. He tried not to think about Argie out there in the cold alone.

  “How long before the next moon can give us information?”

  “That will be in four hours.”

  “Great.”

  “What is so great about you not being able to see the enemy for four hours?”

  “Nothing, forget it.”

  He switched to IR and slowly scanned the area below him. Apparently, there are some warm-blooded animals on this planet. He wondered for a moment, what its evolution might have done had this world been left unoccupied.

  “Now that’s interesting. In the distance, coming down from some low hills was a warm-blooded creature. It did not stop and look around and take a few more steps like an animal hunting while trying to avoid the hunters. It walked steadily in a more or less straight line.