by J. N. Chaney
He grabbed the smallest of the devices and stowed it in his pack. He’d study it more in depth once he got home. In the meantime, he might as well check the rest of the crates, then scout a few more rooms.
Most of the containers broke apart the same as the first. A few had similar devices of the kind he’d found in the first box, while several others only spilled piles of dust into the air. Terry covered his face with a rag, but it was no use. He couldn’t keep the musky smell out, and he gagged, taking a few steps back as he waited for it to settle.
Once it had, he examined the pile of filth more closely. There was something buried in it, which he uncovered with the toe of his boot. The objects were round and fairly brittle. They cracked and disintegrated when he applied pressure. Food, maybe? If this was a storage area, it made sense for them to hold food and other essentials, but why so much? And why underground? He had so many questions.
After leaving the storage bins, if that’s what they were, Terry walked through the halls, exploring several other rooms identical to the first. He ignored them for the most part and continued his search, hoping for answers.
At the end of another hall lay a set of stairs, which descended into a vast chamber filled with hundreds of other crates, most of which were sealed shut. Terry stood at the center of the warehouse. There didn’t seem to be any vehicles or machines to move the objects. How did these people manage to lift such heavy crates without assistance?
What was all of this for? Clearly, these aliens had been preparing for something, perhaps some kind of long term settlement. It reminded him of the history of his own people and how they’d left the surface behind to live underground. They’d done it out of necessity, because the outside world was no longer suitable for human survival. Had the same thing happened here? Did the gas kill them off the way it had his own people?
He went home with more questions than answers, but it didn’t matter. He wanted to know as much as possible about these people and where they came from. More importantly, he wanted to know where they went.
He sat in his new house, chewing on a piece of fruit and fumbling with the ancient device he’d stumbled upon. Using his machete, he pried open the side, revealing a slab of bronzed electronics. Was it a computer? He wished Mei were here to guide him, because he didn’t know the first thing about computers or engineering.
He put the machine away and ate his dinner. The weeks ahead would be filled with exploration, with plenty of time to find his answers. He didn’t know what to expect from any of this, but it was something to do. It was a way to stay busy.
******
Unknown
April 18, 2350
When Terry awoke, he reached into his bag and inhaled four pieces of fruit. Afterwards, he left for the cave, eager to continue his work.
This time he tried the opposite side of the main passageway. As he did, he discovered several bays as large as the cargo holds, many of which contained hundreds of bunks. It seemed as though he’d finally found the sleeping quarters.
Most of the beds were in the bays, lined symmetrically along the walls, but a few smaller rooms contained one or two bunks to themselves, possibly reserved for someone with authority. The mattresses were similar to the kind he’d seen in the domes on the surface—large, but flat, with no sheets or blankets to cover them. Was this some kind of military installation? Perhaps they were planning for an attack of some kind.
At any moment, Terry expected to find the mummified remains of an alien being (or worse, dozens of them) lying somewhere in the dark, huddled in the position they’d died in, similar to the stories he’d read about Pompeii. He recalled standing in the Ortego building, stepping over two hundred year old corpses, gagging at the stink of rotting meat. Shouldn’t these ancient catacombs be ripe with the skeletons of the dead if they had, in fact, expired here? Yet there was nothing, no hint of struggle or panic. It was like the people here were suddenly swept away, their bodies taken to some far off place. Only their technology remained.
Only their ghosts.
******
Ortego Reconstruction Outpost
April 18, 2350
“What’s it called again?” whispered Mei, squatting next to John and Travis near the dirt cab. She was sitting at the edge of a lush field of blue grass, staring at an animal she’d never seen before. It was large, roughly the size of a small buffalo, though it looked strong enough to still be dangerous. Its red skin had patches of black hair, mostly along the spine and thighs. A long, jagged bone protruded from its forehead, reminding Mei of a rhinoceros or perhaps an ugly unicorn.
“A kitobora,” said John. “We call them kits for short. The herd’s nearby. I found them this morning.”
“Are they dangerous?” she asked.
“Not really,” he said.
Travis nodded. “I’ve heard of these. There’s a biologist at Salamander who’s trying to study them. He’s only been messing with them for a few months, but he says they’re pretty tame.”
“Seems like we’re discovering new animals all the time,” said Mei.
“The more we explore, the more we uncover,” said Travis. “There’s a whole world out there.”
“You’d be amazed what I’ve seen,” said John, sounding prideful.
“He likes to brag,” said Mei.
John grinned. “I’ll share a few stories with you sometime, Trav. I’ve got tons.”
“Can’t wait,” said Travis.
“So this animal,” said Mei, getting back to the matter at hand. “Should we be worried?”
“Why would you be?” asked John.
“What if they come into camp looking for food?” she asked.
“They’re herbivores,” said Travis, motioning to the nearby grass. “Look at this field compared to the camp. Pretty sure we’re safe.”
“Fair point,” said Mei.
Travis got to his feet. “Zoe would love this,” he said, looking at the animal.
“Too bad she left for Komodo this morning,” said John.
“She’s missing all the fun,” said Mei.
Travis sighed. “Yeah, it’s a shame. Maybe I’ll bring her here tomorrow when she gets back.”
“I wouldn’t count on it,” said John.
Travis looked at him. “Why?”
“From what I’ve seen, they’re heading east. Yesterday they were a kilometer west of here. They move pretty fast when they’re not stuffing their ugly faces.”
“How’d you find them if they’re constantly on the run?” asked Travis.
“Part of my mission here is to scout the region and plant sensors. I spotted these guys using some I already set up, but pretty soon they’ll be out of range. By this time tomorrow, I won’t have eyes on them.”
Travis looked at the kit and frowned. “Damn.”
“Take a picture for her,” suggested Mei. “She’ll appreciate it.”
He scoffed. “A picture would only make it worse. She’d be mad she missed out.”
“Man, you’re really into this girl, huh?” snickered John.
“Don’t tease him,” said Mei.
“Why not? You do it to me all the time.”
“I’m allowed to make fun of you when you’re being all cliché and lame. It’s different.”
John clutched his chest. “Why can’t you let me love you?”
She grinned. “If it wasn’t a challenge, you’d get bored.”
“So true,” he said with a sigh. “What can I say? I’m a hunter. I must conquer.”
Mei rolled her eyes. “Yeah, okay. You couldn’t hunt a tree.”
“Don’t listen to her, Travis. Mei wouldn’t know romance if…” He paused. “Hey, where’d he go?”
Mei glanced around, but spotted him four meters behind John, creeping slowly toward the kitobora. He had a tuft of grass in his hand. “There he is,” said Mei, pointing.
“Hey!” called John. “What are you doing, man? Are
you stupid?”
Travis shushed him. “Give me a sec,” he whispered.
Mei edged forward, but John grabbed her wrist. She looked at him, but he shook his head. Did John actually intend on letting Travis go through with this? It was a wild animal, completely unpredictable. Maybe it wasn’t carnivorous, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t violent. He was going to get himself killed.
Travis calmly approached the kit, reached with his hand and presented the food. Until now, the kitobora had been strangely oblivious to their presence, but only because John insisted they keep a dozen meters between them.
“Have you ever seen them attack someone?” asked Mei.
John kept his eyes on Travis. “No.”
It sounded like a lie, but Mei couldn’t be certain. She fought the urge to argue and instead kept quiet and waited.
The kit raised its head and blinked at the grass in Travis’s palm. Its little black eyes reflected the light of the sun as it set along the horizon. It sniffed at Travis, flaring its large nostrils and tilting its head slightly. “Hey,” whispered Travis. “Hey, boy, look what I got here.”
The animal took a step toward him, pausing to look around, and finally moved in to snag the food. It nibbled on his palm, snagging the grass with its tongue and grinding its large, flat teeth together as it ate. Travis touched the kit’s neck, flattening his hand and gliding it across the animal’s fur. He did this several times, whispering to it. “There you go,” he said. “Good boy. There you go.”
“Holy crap,” said John. “He’s actually doing it.”
“But why? Doesn’t he understand it’s dangerous?” asked Mei.
Travis stepped to the side of the kit and continued to pet it. Despite the attention, the animal bent down and took another bite of grass. Travis gave the signal for the others to approach.
Mei hesitated. “This is a bad idea.”
“Come on. I’ll protect you,” teased John.
Travis ran his fingers along the kit’s neck to its forehead. “He’s not so bad,” he said.
“Okay, but I’m not touching it,” she said, and finally joined them.
“I’ve never done anything like this,” said Travis, brushing the kitobora with his fingers.
“None of us have,” said John.
“What a weird animal,” said Mei.
The kitobora raised its head at this, grass hanging from its mouth. It stared at Mei, almost curiously.
She returned the glance. “What?” she asked it.
The kitobora said nothing.
“He wants you to pet him,” said Travis.
“How the hell do you know?” asked John.
Travis shrugged.
Mei held out her hand, reluctantly. She rubbed the kit’s neck. It dropped its head and continued eating. “You know, we might be the first people to ever touch one of these,” said Mei. “Have you thought about that? No one else in the world has ever done what we’re doing right now.”
Travis smiled and nodded. “Which is why we should absolutely take it home with us.”
John arched his brow. “Come again?”
“Travis, don’t be ridiculous,” said Mei.
“Why not? We know he’s docile. Look at his face.”
She did and saw a vacant expression and a mouthful of grass. “I don’t think so. We have enough to worry about without having to take care of a wild animal.”
John scoffed. “Besides, you’re only doing this because you wanna impress your girlfriend.”
Travis ignored the jab. “Doctor Curie, think about this for a second. We’re doing all this work with the coil and the excavation, but the board is still on your ass to deliver more research. I could send an invitation to the biologist at Salamander to see if he’s still interested in these animals. If he is, our outpost suddenly gains an extra project and an added scientist, one with some weight behind his name. It isn’t much, but it could help in the long run.”
“What’s this biologist’s name?” asked John.
Travis snagged his pad from his pack. “Hang on,” he said, searching. “Doctor Christopher Tabata. He’s a medical doctor…volunteered to work in the slums for…geez, twelve years. Did that until he got reassigned to Central where he…”
“What?” asked Mei.
“It says he got offered a job on the board,” said Travis.
“There’s no one on the board named Tabata,” said Mei.
“Yeah, he turned it down. It doesn’t say why. But this was before the Second Jolt. As soon as the outposts went up, he moved to Salamander. It says he’s the resident physician there.”
“Tabata,” muttered Mei. “And you think he’d say yes?”
Travis shrugged. “It couldn’t hurt to ask him.”
Mei knew Travis was only trying to do this in order to impress Zoe, but in doing so, he’d brought up a good point about Tabata. If the board liked this guy enough to offer him a seat, he could prove to be a valuable asset, even an ally. Mei would have to do her own research first, but she could certainly see the value in Travis’s proposition.
“Ma’am? How about it?” asked Travis.
“If you do this, you have to take care of it,” said Mei. “I’m talking about building a pen, feeding it, cleaning up after it. Do you understand?”
“Sure, I can do that.”
Mei held up her finger. “I’m serious, Travis.”
“Okay, I promise,” he said.
John laughed. “Looks like your mom said you can keep it. Isn’t that awesome?” He gave Travis a pat on the back. “Congrats, buddy. You deserve it.”
******
Ortego Reconstruction Outpost
April 21, 2350
“What do we have?” asked Mei, staring at Zoe in anticipation. “Did they find anything? Is it stable?”
Zoe took a moment to answer. She was busy monitoring the flippies’ feeds as they traversed the newly uncovered sub-basement of the former Ortego building. “One sec.”
Mei fidgeted, tapping her thigh as she waited for answers. The flippies found the path to the basement less than an hour ago. This was expected, given the daily scans and a fundamental understanding of the building’s architecture, but there was no telling what awaited them beyond this point. Mei’s scans were limited in range to twenty meters, making them useless for anything long range, given how the basement actually extended several hundred meters below the surface.
She tried to manage her expectations. There was a solid chance most of the underground compartments were crushed or destroyed, which might mean weeks of tedious work clearing the path even more than they already had. For all she knew, this could be the end of her mission altogether. Only Zoe and the flippies could reveal the truth.
“It’s so dark under there,” said Zoe. “I had to turn their night vision on.”
“So you can see now?” asked Mei.
“Sort of. There’s still stuff in the way. Morty’s doing a scan right now to see how bad it is.”
After a few minutes, the monitor dinged, and Zoe read the report. “Okay, looks like five meters of collapsed hallway directly ahead.”
“Anything else?” asked Mei.
“Not yet, but we won’t know until we’re farther in.”
“How far can the flippies go before you have to pull them out?” asked Mei.
“You mean before the signal fades and I can’t reach them anymore? Not much longer. The piles of FlexCrete between us and the flippies doesn’t make it easy.”
“Start clearing the hall, then. We need to be able to walk down there.”
Zoe nodded. “You got it.”
“How long will it take?” asked Mei.
Zoe mouthed some numbers as she did the math in her head. “Two hours. Probably.”
“You don’t sound very sure.”
“Two hours,” she repeated, this time with more confidence. “No worries.”
“Okay.”
“You might wanna call Travis, too. He should probably be here in case there’s a problem with the flippies.”
Mei nodded. “Alright, if you think we need him.”
“I’m adequate at this, but Travis is the one who built the little bastards. If anything goes wrong down there, we’ll need him nearby.”
Mei agreed and made the call. When Travis answered, he was already talking to somebody else. “Go right ahead and see what happens,” he barked. “But I’m telling you, if you don’t use a better coolant, the coil’s gonna fry itself. Hey! You listening to me?”
“Don’t you have a goat to feed?” asked Bart.
“He’s a kitobora, not a goat!” yelled Travis.
“Looks like one to me.”
“Because you’re an idiot!”
“Hey!” shouted Mei. “Will you two stop bickering like a couple of children? You’re giving me a headache.”
“Oh, uh, sorry, Doctor Curie. I thought it was Zoe calling.”
“Nope, just me. I need you to drive here immediately. We accessed the basement and you need to be around in case the flippies get crushed by a collapsed wall and need fixing.”
“Whoa, seriously?” The frustration in his voice was instantly gone. “When did you guys reach the basement? Did you find anything yet? What’s the scoop?”
“What’s up? Did they hit the bottom level?” asked Bart.
“Hang on. I’m asking,” said Travis.
“Tell her I wanna go with you,” said Bart.
“Stop nagging me.”
Mei sighed. “Both of you can come, but you need to get moving. I’d like to start as soon as the flippies clear a hallway.”
“We’ll leave right away,” said Travis, frantically. “Hurry, Bart. We gotta go.”
“Fine, but I’m driving,” he said.
******
Unknown
April 21, 2350
Terry managed in a matter of days to map dozens of tunnels near the opening passage in the underground complex. Since his discovery of the bunks and the storage rooms, he’d also found many empty ones, a few half-completed tunnels, and what he could only assume was a mess hall.