“Ah,” Mal said, seeing the buildings in the distance. “Vorian architecture is rather interesting. They build tall communal housing out of mud and stone that has been harvested from the surrounding desert. The only building that is made entirely of stone is the legateal mansion.”
A road began about three hundred meters from the city. It was paved in cream-colored stones. Dry, choked-looking trees with gnarled, leaning branches lined the road. They had dark, tough-looking leaves on them and bark that was rough and bumpy with tiny spikes running along it.
“Vorian Taguaro,” Mal said. “They are similar to Earth cacti, yet distinctively different as they lack flowers.”
“What is this place, Mal?” Skye asked.
“This is the Vorian city of Tinube,” Mal said. “Population two million seven hundred and ninety-five Vorian people. I do not have a population count for the Drekynns. It was built roughly five hundred years ago and was taken by the Drekynns a decade ago during their first voyage here for colonization.”
“Seeing this planet, I don’t understand why they’d want a colony here.” Skye said.
“The answer lies below your feet,” Mal said. Skye looked down at the crusted earth below her. “Vorian was once covered with oceans teeming with life,” Mal continued. “What remains are vast swaths of easily accessible biomatter.”
“The Drekynn use fossil fuels? How can that be? Humans haven’t used them for-”
“While the Drekynn’s are a spacefaring race, they haven’t changed the way they live on the ground. Having access to cheap resources like those found on Vorian mean they have no reason to invest in renewable technologies like humans have.” Skye nodded her head.
“That helps explain why they stole the T.A.S.”
“Not necessarily,” quipped Mal. “I have a feeling their intentions for the T.A.S. are misplaced.”
“Weapons. They want to print weapons,” Skye said.
“Precisely.”
“You’re very wise, Mal,” Skye said.
“Why, thank you.”
“Do you always have conversations with yourself?” Bharat asked. “I wonder if the Council planned on it speaking like a raving lunatic.”
“Mal and I are a ‘we,’ not an ‘it’,” Skye replied shortly. She didn’t know how much longer her tolerance for Bharat and his nasty personality would last.
They entered the city itself with two hours to go until first contact with the Artemis. The city was worn and shabby. Up close, the buildings seemed condemned and in disrepair. However, there were throngs of Vorians everywhere. This city was filled to the brim, with rickety-looking tents made of a battered, soiled canvas set up along the sidewalks, tucked in beside the buildings.
The buildings themselves were elaborate despite their bulky structure. There were large arches held up by intricately molded columns, large domed buildings that were painted a lovely cerulean blue color, covered walkways that had vined plants wrapped about the pergola-type coverings of the walkway.
The team spotted many Drekynns. They were tall beings with pale, sage-green skin. Their skulls were thin and bulbous; their eyes were narrow, though Skye couldn’t be sure if they were merely squinting due to the high levels of ambient light. While they were muscular in nature, their mouths were wide and hung downward. Behind their fleshy pink mouths, up against their bottom jaws, a set of two yellow tusks curled outward. They tended to wear black pants of animal skin, knee-high combat boots with thick soles, and the packs carrying the ammunition for their weapons were strapped to them via a harness crossing their chests. They carried the plasmathrowers, keeping the long, metal tubes trained on the Vorians, who cowered a bit as they hurried through the streets.
The team passed by many Vorians as they were entering the city, and as they walked through the streets, looking for a safe place to make first contact where they would be hidden from unfriendly eyes. Many Vorians were lying in the road, obviously sick or starving, while others walked slowly, heads down to avoid notice by the Drekynns. The away team saw one Vorian who had collapsed beside the road. He was surrounded by a group of five Drekynns, who were kicking and poking him with short spears.
“Oh, how awful,” Mal said. “If I had a body…”
“You would have to remain hidden like the rest of us,” Skye finished for him.
Up ahead, the crowd of Vorians seemed to become thicker. The team’s pace slowed. They continued to walk, making sure that they were toward the center of the street, and surrounded by a few Vorians on each side, so that the Drekynns that patrolled the streets could not see them. Looking ahead, Commander Bradley gasped.
“What is it?” Bharat asked, craning his head to get a better look.
“The Drekynns have a checkpoint up ahead,” Commander Bradley said. “They are on the lookout for us.”
“We should never have come to the city,” Bharat muttered angrily.
“Are you questioning your superior, Bharat?” the commander’s voice was threatening. It was clear that her patience for Bharat’s shenanigans was growing thinner by the minute.
“No, commander,” Bharat replied in a tone that said otherwise.
“Next time I hear you speak, it should be something helpful,” Commander Bradley snapped. “Or I am leaving you behind on this godforsaken planet. Understood?”
“Understood,” Bharat mumbled as he backed down.
“Lieutenant? Mal? Any ideas on how to get out of this?” the commander asked.
“I may be able to break into their satellite system,” Mal offered. “We’re almost within range of one of their boosting nodes. I can feel it.”
“Won’t we be traced?” Skye asked.
“Hopefully not. Give me one moment,” Mal said.
“Mal’s trying to give us a better angle over the street,” Skye said over the com.
“Ah, here we go. Let me beam this to everyone’s HUD.” A street map appeared on the inside of Skye’s helmet. It showed several streets which they could turn down in order to evade the checkpoint. The flow of foot traffic was already bringing them dangerously close and the crowded group of Vorians made it difficult to navigate. From the top-down satellite view, the away team saw a Drekynn reach down and grab a Vorian by the front of her brown robes. She struggled against him, flailing her limbs wildly. The Drekynn began to shake her violently. She looked a little like Dai.
The Vorians began to yell at the harsh treatment of the female Vorian. Another Drekynn manning the checkpoint lashed out with a longer spear than the others had been carrying, which ended with a diamond-shaped tip. It flashed the bright emerald color of Vorian blood in the bleak, dusty sun. A Vorian fell forward, slipping out of sight as the angry crowd surged forward. The team found themselves pushed along by the crowd.
“We have to get out of here,” Commander Bradley said. “Before—” One of the Drekynns let loose a blast of plasma. Many Vorians shrieked in terrible pain, with many bursting into flames. There was the distinct and overwhelming scent of burning flesh that permeated even the team’s filtered atmosphere. “We need to go now!”
“This way,” Skye said, quickly ducking out of the crowd and under a barrier. The team quickly ran down the side street, which appeared to be uninhabited. It was roughly half a meter wide, and it immediately began to twist and turn.
“So much for Vorian city planning,” Bharat said.
“What did I say about the next thing to come from you?” the commander replied.
“I’m sorry,” Bharat said.
“He’s right, actually,” Mal said. “There appears to have been no urban planning at all. Even the sewers were dug after most of the buildings were built.”
“Mal says that even the sewers were unplanned,” Skye said.
“There’s an idea,” Commander Bradley said, her face lighting up.
“I am not going into a sewer of any kind,” Bharat said, throwing his arms uselessly in the air.
“Do you always have to be so difficult?” Commander Brad
ley asked him.
“I became an engineer so that I wouldn’t have to leave the ship,” Bharat explained.
“Fair enough,” the commander said.
“It’s dangerous to venture into Vorian sewers,” Mal said in Skye’s ear. “They have collapses quite frequently since the buildings have such a high density and the sewers were dug too shallowly.”
“Mal says the sewers often collapse,” Skye reported. “I think, maybe, that should be a last resort.” Commander Bradley sighed heavily.
“Not to mention the Verbenav that live down there,” Mal said into Skye’s ear as the commander and the Artemis’s engineer followed them in silence.
“What is a Verbenav?” Skye asked.
“It is a strange creature,” Mal replied. “It likes the dark. No one knows how it got down into the Vorian sewers, but one did, and now the sewers are overrun with them. They are carnivorous, and they have long, spindly legs and webbed feet, a massive, teethy jaw, and huge eyes that glow green. They look very similar to that anglerfish that I was telling you about.”
“Does it have a little light, too?” Skye asked.
“No,” Mal replied thoughtfully. “I believe its eyes are suited to low light levels. The sun would most likely have the strength to blind them.”
When they drew nearer to the heart of Tinube, the team ducked into an alley between two large, blocky buildings. It was dark and rather dusty inside of the alley, and it was filled with the detritus of the city-dwelling Vorian people. There was a large bin, presumably for waste, in the alley. The team hid behind it, crouching down in the dusty, murky space so that they weren’t visible from the street.
Skye looked up. Above them, strung onto clotheslines, were rows of the brown canvas cloth, drying in the desert heat. Windows from the buildings around them were open. She hoped no one would look down, or they would all surely be caught.
Behind them, there was a scuffling noise. The team froze. Skye turned slowly to see who had caught them. A figure dressed in the dark canvas cloth of the Vorian people gestured toward them, raising a flat, opened palm above its heart in a gesture of peace. Commander Bradley repeated the gesture in order to confirm their good intentions toward the Vorian.
“Wait!” Bharat hissed. “What if it’s V’ktal?”
“He has a point,” Mal said in Skye’s ear.
“We have been betrayed by a Vorian,” the commander said. “How do we know that we can trust you?” The Vorian removed the hood. It was the face of a male Vorian, but not V’ktal.
“Dai has sent me. You are not safe here. Though the Drekynn have overrun one of our places of hiding, we have others that are still undiscovered. We would like to offer you refuge,” the Vorian said. “We wish to assist you in any way we can.” The commander looked at the rest of the team.
“We might as well,” she said. “We can contact the Artemis from there.” She began to lead the way toward where the Vorian was standing. “My name is Commander Laura Bradley.”
“Qur’lag,” the Vorian replied, placing a hand to his chest.
“This is Lieutenant Commander Sekar Bharat and Lieutenant Skye,” the commander said. The Vorian made a bow with his head.
“It is my pleasure to meet you all,” he said. Skye repeated the bowing gesture.
“And you, as well,” she said.
“Follow me,” the Vorian replied. They followed the quickly moving Vorian through more back streets that wound rapidly through the city. Skye watched their progress on the map. She saw a point on the map, set off from the city.
“Mal,” she said. “What is that place on the outside of the city?”
“The legate’s mansion,” Mal replied. “Or what was formerly. The Drekynn leadership resides there now.” Skye nodded.
“Thanks, Mal,” Skye said. The Vorian led them to one of the bulky buildings. Opening the front door, made out of a lightweight wood, the Vorian ushered them inside. It was dark on the inside, lit only with some tarry torches along the mud-daubed walls. They climbed up a large, sculpted staircase.
“Mud,” Mal said in an impressed voice. “This whole building is made of mud that they use like concrete. It’s highly dense, and it is extremely durable.”
The Vorian led them down a dark hallway, where he stopped at a door, giving a series of knocks. The door was opened a crack. There was a smattering of the Vorian language before the door opened all of the way, revealing Dai. The away team gasped in shock and relief to see her, although she showed signs of being badly beaten. One of her eyes had a dark emerald bruise forming around it, and she had a long, ragged cut along her cheek. Her brown robes were splattered with green blood.
“I am so glad that you have all been located,” she said in her heavy accent. “Please, come in.” The away team entered the Vorian tenement, and the door was closed and locked behind them. Skye looked about her. The room that she was in was stretched out around her comfortably. The tiny windows were opened slightly, creating a current of dry air. Most of the room was taken up by sleeping pallets on the floor. The covers were rumpled, slept-in. There was a lumpy, stained couch up against the wall and a round table that was covered in maps and schematics. She walked over, glancing at them.
“Anything that you recognize?” she asked Mal.
“There is a map of the sewers,” Mal replied. “You should warn them of the Verbanav.” Skye nodded. “There is also a schematic of the city and the Drekynn checkpoints. That will definitely come in handy.”
“Can we give you some food and hydration?” Qur’lag asked, rubbing his hands together.
“That would be quite lovely,” the commander responded. The Vorian bustled off into a room adjoining the one that they were in. Meanwhile, Dai sighed deeply.
“I am relieved that you all were able to get out in time,” she said.
“I’m surprised that you survived at all,” Commander Bradley replied. “How did you?”
“Just barely,” Dai replied. “We lost many members of the Resistance. The Drekynns killed most on sight. They closed all of the exits in our cavern, and then set fire to it.”
“That’s horrible.”
“Yes. The rest of us ran for our lives,” Dai said. “I sent out a message to all of our safe places like this one. They were all searching for you. After what my traitor brother did…” she trailed off, her gills puffed. “After what my brother did, the least I can do is to help you.”
“We appreciate this,” Commander Bradley said. “More than you can know.” Dai nodded.
“Have you been in contact with your ship?” she asked.
“Not yet. That was my next question. We need to be somewhere that we can get a good signal to the Artemis,” the commander said. “It’s only within contact range every few hours, and the next scheduled time is coming up soon.” Dai nodded.
“The roof of this tenement should do the trick,” she replied. “I will lead you up there.” She peered out of the front opening, checking to see if it was all clear. She gestured toward them, leading them back out and into the dark hallway. They continued farther down the way that they had come, arriving at a thin ladder that went up to a square opening in the ceiling.
“Up there,” Dai said. “I will keep a lookout down here.” The away team climbed up the thin, rickety ladder. It was made out of the same thin wood as the front door.
“What kind of wood is this?” Skye asked Mal.
“It’s from the Vorian taguaro,” he replied. “You could easily kick a hole through that front door.”
“Great,” she mumbled sarcastically. They came out of the hole on top of the ladder, finding themselves several stories up from the ground. All around them, the city spread out in every direction. It was breathtaking and vast.
“Okay, Skye, Mal,” Commander Bradley said, looking down at a watch that she had on her right wrist. “Do your stuff.” Skye could hear a crackling in her earpiece as Mal began to manipulate the radio waves to make contact with the Artemis.
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��Hello,” Mal said. “This is the away team on the surface of Vorian. We are contacting the Artemis to ask for assistance to be sent.”
“Away team, this is the Artemis,” said a man’s voice. “My name is Lieutenant Gordon. What is your location?”
“Hello Lieutenant,” Mal said. “We are in the Vorian city of Tinube, about five miles east of the original landing site.”
“Why are you not near the coordinates of the Resistance Movement’s location?” the Lieutenant’s voice was calm, but concerned.
“V’ktal betrayed us to the Drekynn Empire. He’s stolen the Swallowtail and the T.A.S.”
“I’ll alert the captain immediately. Is there anything else we should know?”
“He’s demanding the surrender of Skye and myself,” Mal replied. “They want the technology from the Swallowtail Program.”
“Are Commander Bradley and Engineer Bharat still with you, and unharmed?” The man asked.
“Yes,” Mal said. “Commander Bradley has requested that I ask for you to send a ship to extract us from the surface of Vorian.” Skye could hear the Lieutenant sigh heavily.
“At the current time, the Artemis is unable to assist. We were spotted by a Drekynn destroyer at 1300 hours and had to make an unplanned jump. We won’t be able to help until we’ve had a chance to recharge our IP-Drive.”
“Oh, dear,” Mal said.
“Do you know how long that’ll be?” Skye asked. “We’re stuck in enemy territory.”
“We’re looking at three hours to charge, but we don’t want to make another jump until our long-range scans confirm the destroyer is gone.”
“Tell them we will make alternate plans,” Commander Bradley said. “And that we will be in touch shortly.”
“We will see what we can come up with,” Skye told Lieutenant Gordon. “We will be in touch shortly with our plans.”
The Vorian Incursion: The Swallowtail Voyages, Book 2 Page 5