The Battle for Tomorrow (Ilon the Hunter)

by Frederick Bell

“Apparently not. At least for now it has been imprisoned at city Anaxerxes zoo, though I cannot determine with any certainty its eventual fate.”

  “I can. For what reason does she still keep it alive?”

  Her response to Poxiciti’s interrogative hinted of more things to come. “There is something about the creature you should know. Something extremely important.” Reaching down between her legs she opened a sealed case and handed over a mholic memory binder. “Here. Read this.”

  His reaction to seeing it was instantaneous. “The creature’s medical file?” As he began flipping through the pages his curiosity soon turned to astonishment for the information that was contained within it. “How did you ever get your wedges on this?”

  “Pulima Cos is not the only one with her spies,” Borobos chuckled, proud of her small victory, and those in her service who had appropriated this vital piece of intelligence.

  The holographically imaged binder was displaying the data above each sheet that he turned over. After Poxiciti reviewed the pertinent facts he forcefully slammed the binder closed and fought to control his emotions. “Unbelievable! Knowing that Igna Lox has more fat than she has brains, still I must concur with her findings. Did she uncover anything else of importance?”

  Borobos tapped one of the pages in the binder that she was now holding and another image appeared. “When they examined the contents of its stomach they discovered burnt animal flesh. See here?” She pointed to a three dimensional chart that was showing the chemical composition of the material, then flipped over to the next page. “Organic compounds found in the smoke particulate matter are undeniably the result of meat charbroiling. The segathars are raw meat eaters. This animal eats cooked meat. Therefore it must have fire.”

  “So now we understand the how and the why. Fascinating. Do you suppose there are other creatures like this one in the world?”

  “Possibly, although I am mystified by its existence. According to the data it is not an indigenous life form.”

  “And yet it is here. So where did it come from?”

  “That is important to know, yet there is something I have not told you, and it is of far greater importance.” Borobos’s voice was hushed when she leaned forward to tell him, “Enough that we must try to think of a way to wrest it from Pulima Cos and her city.” She made a gesture that signified the conversation was becoming much too sensitive and needed to be discussed in private.

  “Pull over here,” Poxiciti ordered, directing Inelefar toward a row of warehouses. He stationed the vehicle in front of the first building and waited for their return.

  Up until now Borobos had disclosed this information to absolutely no one, and now as she finally divulged her secret to Poxiciti it felt like a great weight was lifting off her shoulders. “Just as you deduced. The segathars have guns. Even better—lag guns—and they know how to use them.”

  “No!” he gasped, horrified, though once this incredible news had sunken in he forced himself to cold reason as any good scientist would. Since Borobos had stated it as a fact, then it was an indisputable fact to her, so he did not doubt the integrity of the information, only the telling. “Are you absolutely certain? Even our own soldiers must be thoroughly trained on their proper use. And yet you suggest that wild beasts from the forest can somehow understand the complex workings of a weapon such as a lag gun.”

  “I suggest nothing. I am telling you. You yourself once theorized it was possible. That has happened. These segathars are learning, organizing, finding new ways to fight back. Unhappily I am forced to believe it is this creature who is teaching them this violence.”

  “Again, just as I predicted. Our presence here soon became their reason to survive. But the gulun gun was the first hard evidence that an armed incursion was possible. Now segathars with lag guns. Where do you suppose they got them?”

  Her stance was as solid as her expression. “From me.”

  “You?” There was confusion, even surprise. “Explain. You gave the segathars weapons?”

  An ambiguous question which could have been taken two ways. His befuddlement was such that Borobos hastened to explain. “Like you, I reasoned that if this one creature can master our gun, the others could learn, so I scattered weapons throughout the forest, places where I knew the segathars hunted. Apparently Pulima Cos discovered our weapons cache, was going to expose us all as—”

  “You were stockpiling weapons!” Poxiciti was aghast. “For terrorist activities!”

  “It was necessary!” she shouted back with equal force. “You submissive male pacifists are going to get us all killed. If a fist strikes, how can words alone make the beating stop?” She clenched her own fist and held it before him. “This will make it stop.”

  “Perhaps it is I who was wrong,” Poxiciti apologized, lowering his voice because he was through with arguing. “Ordinarily you know I would never condone such violence, but now I see that these are desperate times and we must do what we must do. So then, the segathars have our weapons.”

  “Evidently so. The shipment was presumed destroyed while in transit, yet I searched further and found evidence to the contrary. I am convinced that it is these same segathars who are hitting targets near the city.” Borobos described her experience at the sky port.

  “Incredible,” Poxiciti said after she was finished. “Almost unbelievable. I heard reports of terrorist gangs. Now armed segathars. You were right to risk coming here with this information. Does anyone else know about this?”

  “No one but you.”

  “Good. See it remains that way.” As he thought about it he realized that something else needed to be done. “I want you to give the segathars more weapons.”

  “More?” She started to protest. “They have more than enough now. With that kind of firepower they can level a whole city.”

  “Precisely. And with any luck, city Anaxerxes will be their first target.”

  “But they kill indiscriminately. Innocent people have already died. We risk a wholesale slaughter.”

  “Every one here is guilty—including us. Had we stayed on Epiphiline then none of this killing would be necessary now. I am convinced our presence here is leading us to another global catastrophe. Our only choice is to go back to Epiphiline and fix what we did wrong.”

  “Go back? It will not be easy to change the people’s opinion, especially with Pulima Cos still in power.”

  “Only she stands in the way. So long as she reigns we will never succeed. Therefore, if we cannot convince the people to leave, then perhaps these segathars can. As for their teacher, it must freed at all cost. With Pulima Cos increasing her efforts to see them disposed of, it may be their only hope for survival.”

  “And ours.”

  “Now we must focus our attention to this one concern. Can it be done?”

  Once Borobos understood the problem finding the solution was just a matter of mental application. “I think so. It is dangerous, maybe foolhardy, but I will do it.”

  Hearing this he realized just how much he was asking of her, the risk was enormous, and yet with so much at stake he depended on her success. “What exactly are you planning to do, Borobos?”

  “You said it must be done. It will be done. Now you must not be afraid.” Before she could speak her plan she heard the thud of running feet, then the creak of the door. Inelefar suddenly appeared in the doorway.

  “Someone is coming!”

  Her only concern was for Poxiciti. “Go! Quickly, quickly, you have to get away from here.”

  She rushed him outside to the waiting vehicle. Within moments they were well away from the scene; no one appeared to be following. Just to be sure Borobos ordered Inelefar to drive them around the city until she was absolutely convinced that they were safe, and the danger had passed.

  “Turn at the next corner,” she ordered Inelefar, then leaned back in her seat and remained quiet for a long time. When she finally spoke again there was a trace of optimism in her voice.

  “Three days ag
o. Someone tried to assassinate Midlothian.”

  “A disgruntled citizen, I hope.”

  “A rebel. She very nearly succeeded. Unfortunately she was killed, but we now have many supporters like her, people who would gladly risk death to see Pulima Cos dead. I believe her government is in serious jeopardy. Her party has lost its popularity. It is just a matter of time before she is overthrown and replaced.”

  Poxiciti scowled. “She and her scurrilous companions may go, but there will always be others like them so long as we keep looking to those who promise to solve our problems. Stop here,” he ordered. Before he climbed out he conveyed the briefest instructions. “You must leave this city and not ever return.”

  “Understood.”

  For the first time since Borobos could remember he reached across the seat and put his arms around her. “Please, Borobos, please be careful.”

  He departed in silence, and as the vehicle pulled away she watched him vanish into the shadow of the buildings. She did not hear Inelefar’s voice until Poxiciti was out of her sight.

  “Where to?”

  “First I must convey important information to my contacts, then we go to city Anaxerxes.”

  As she leaned back Borobos sighed heavily. She hated to be parted from him and wished everything could somehow be different. If he knew only a small part of what she was planning to do he certainly would have tried to stop her. Nevertheless now she was on her way, and as the distance between them increased she knew quite possibly that she would never see him again.

  Chapter Thirty Six

  The journey to city Anaxerxes was equally long and uneventful. Instead of taking the air shuttle, Borobos chose the most onerous route, mainly because it was also the least likely to be watched. Parts of the main road were still under construction and there were numerous traffic snarls that tested even Inelefar’s famous patience. But after two solid days of travel both were happy to have the city in their sight.

  That afternoon Borobos hobbled into the administrative building. Inelefar’s steady shoulder was giving her some assistance. Together, the two of them endured a brutish physical search for concealed weapons before finally being allowed into Pulima Cos’s private suite of offices. As usual, Midlothian was there to greet them at the door.

  “Sad to see you’ve recovered so quickly.”

  Ignoring her insulting remark Borobos pushed past her to find Pulima Cos’s grotesque figure seated behind her desk, her one eye watching her as she limped forward. Pulima Cos smiled as she addressed Borobos with her usual sarcasm.

  “How lucky for you to be able to walk again, Borobos. Let us hope that the next time something less fortunate doesn’t befall you.”

  She made no attempt to conceal the anger that was within her, and likewise was equally rude and insulting. “I wish that for you every day.”

  Pulima Cos’s smile decreased as she leaned forward across her desk. “You should thank me that my soldiers didn’t recognize you at the sky port. Perhaps instead of saving your life they might have mistaken you for a rebel and spared me this meeting.”

  “There were people arrested? How many?”

  “Only three were captured. Naturally these seditioners confessed their crimes and were punished.”

  “You mean executed.”

  “Of course. My only regret was that you were not among them.”

  “I am certain the ones you apprehended weren’t anywhere near the sky port. Undoubtedly this was another convenient arrest to make yourself look good to the people. Those who you condemned were innocent.”

  “Yes. And they died. I assure you that more arrests are coming. And you’re in the position to do nothing. There is only one reason why I still keep you alive, so I would give careful thought to your situation. For instance, where have been these past five days?”

  “Sightseeing.”

  “Why not just kill her now?” Midlothian snarled. She glared at Inelefar, her hand caressing the segathar hide case which holstered her sidearm. “And what about you, pretty one?”

  As a privileged scientist, Inelefar wasn’t used to being addressed so discourteously, though he did manage to blurt out the same response as Borobos without it sounding too sarcastic.

  “Lies, lies, lies!” Pulima Cos raged. “You think of untruths and speak only lies. I feel dirtied by your kind of lies. Now enough of this lying. No more lies. I want to hear only the truth.” She terminated any further attempt to lie by indicating that Midlothian was ready to punish anyone who should try.

  Ignoring Borobos’s complaints of female brutality, Midlothian instead concentrated her efforts on Inelefar, who already was cowering beneath her clenched fists. “You will not even dare to think of lying to me. Admit the truth, or I will give you a beating to remember.”

  Feelings of despair crept in. Midlothian hovered over him, her ready fists bearing down.

  “City Tsilix,” he blurted out, speaking only because he had no tolerance for pain and did not wish to risk a beating.

  “A very primitive city. A dot of scum on the ocean of civilization. Why were you there?”

  “We were . . .” He glanced nervously at Borobos, then back to Midlothian who again was bringing up her fists. “We were recruiting new members.”

  “For what reason?” she asked him impatiently.

  Inelefar was such a good liar. Borobos was surprised how well he lied, for the story she now heard him tell was vastly different from the truth. In any case, now that some civil communication had been reestablished she indicated to Pulima Cos the real reason for her visit.

  “Word is spreading throughout the scientific community that you have a mystery animal in your zoo. Tell me, what are your plans for this creature?”

  “For now it will remain alive. Only because it is a mild curiosity. I understand it is a very popular attraction with the people, a real profit-maker.”

  “I wish to see it today, conduct a rudimentary medical examination for my own scientific curiosity. Also, to study any existing records and biological tests. Is this possible?”

  Pulima Cos straightened her stance of authority. “No.”

  Undeterred, Borobos went on, knowing that if her plan was to succeed then the only recourse was to bribe this greedy thing with lots of money. “I would pay handsomely for such an opportunity. Is 2000 konats enough?”

  In light of this new offer Pulima Cos relented and said, “Then I permit it. For 3,000 konats, and it cannot be removed from the facility. Nor will you examine it without the presence of my guards.” She indicated Midlothian would join them.

  Agreeing to her list of conditions, Borobos left the office with Inelefar in tow. None of her movements betrayed what she was thinking, and so as they found their way outside the plan was made and her moment of triumph was one step closer.

  By evening the zoo was closing to the public; people drifted outside. The building was now mostly deserted except for the workers who were busy feeding the animals. Greeting their party at the entrance, Boa Loam escorted them to the segathar pen. One of the guards was posted in the corridor while the second joined Midlothian and Borobos. Inelefar was in the adjoining laboratory preparing the examination table.

  “And you say this was found with the creature?” Borobos closely examined the sharp tipped pole before handing it back over to Boa Loam. Midlothian’s back was turned to them. How easy it would have been to run it through her.

  “Why yes,” Boa Loam answered. “Apparently to spear through animals. We found traces of blood on the tip. It may very well have been used to kill Epiphilinian citizens.”

  “Indeed. Then this is a very dangerous animal. How will it be retrieved from the segathar pen?”

  “First it will have to be stunned,” she explained. “And the segathars as well.” Adjusting the stun level of her gun she handed it over to Borobos who studied it inquisitively. “At that setting the effects are nothing too traumatic. Temporary paralysis, followed by a state of disorientation, then a short duration of
dizziness.” She watched Borobos increase the stun level and cautioned her. “Be very careful. That setting will kill. Have you used one of these before?”

  Borobos nodded. “Never.” Without the slightest hesitation she swung around and pointed it directly at the guard. “Until now.”

  No one seemed to react when the guard crumpled and went down. Even Midlothian was surprised by the speed of which everything was happening. Yet before she could react the gun cracked again and she slumped to the floor. Borobos leaned over her dead form and disarmed her.

  “Don’t shoot!,” Boa Loam pleaded, backing against the wall with both hands held shakily up in front of her.

  Seizing her by the neck Borobos pushed her to the sealed double doors. “Open them,” she ordered.

  “Are you insane? The segathars haven’t been put down yet. We’ll be torn apart!”

  She pressed the gun firmly to her head. “Do it now!”

  During the commotion Inelefar had just returned from the laboratory with an armload of equipment. It made a resounding clatter as it crashed onto the floor, and as he looked over the sprawled bodies his eyes were wide with terror.

  “What have you done, Borobos?”

  “No time to explain. Here, take this.” She handed him one of the stun guns. “There’s another guard stationed at the end of the corridor. Take care of her.” When he hesitated she pushed him backwards. “Go on!” She watched as he went away in silence, then turned to Boa Loam and said, “Now get these doors open.”

  Shortly there was a hum of noise as the first set of double doors slid open. Now only one more remained and Boa Loam wailed in protest as Borobos shoved her toward the next. They were almost there when she heard Inelefar’s voice in the tunnel behind her.

  “Stop.” Turning slowly around Borobos saw that he was now pointing the gun directly at her. “Move away from there, right now—or die, Borobos.”

  “You! So it was you all along, Inelefar.” Clenching her fists, every muscle in her body rippled with hatred and loathing. “You, who burnt down our building, caused all those deaths. Told Pulima Cos about all our plans, betrayed everyone, didn’t you?”