by J Battle
She smiled when they took the left turning. If they didn't mark their path, they'd starve to death in those narrow ways.
Without a sound, she moved deeper into her own stone corridor and began to run down the gentle slope. With her body genetically modified to cope with the low oxygen levels and high gravity that pertained on this planet so far from her parents' home, she hardly made a sound as she ran.
There were just the three of them now; Mandy and her Dad, and, of course, Sublan.
Only yesterday they’d come upon the last of the other survivors; a man and a woman; bodies riddled by bullets.
She was sitting, her body supported by the gently curving wall and her head dropped close to her left shoulder. He was splayed on the ground, his outstretched hand barely a meter short of her. The trail of blood and gore that he’d left behind was a love story in itself.
Her father had tried to shield her from the sight, but she’d pushed him to one side. They didn’t seem like people to her. They were just cold lumps of bloodied flesh.
‘Did you know them, Dad?’ she asked as she bent for a closer look.
‘Come away Mandy, leave them in peace.’
‘But…I’ve never seen a dead person before.’
They moved along the corridor.
‘Yes, I knew him, a little. Brian…something, I can’t quite remember. And his wife; Angela. They’ve only been here a couple of years.’
‘Will we find anyone else?’
He looked at Sublan and sighed.
‘No; I don’t think so. It’s just you and me.’
‘And Sublan.’
‘Yes, and Sublan.’
‘As my name rests on your lips, perhaps I can query your plans Billiam?’
‘It’s Bill, or William.’
‘That makes little sense to this lonely Sherdling.’
‘You’ve got us to keep you company.’
Sublan turned to the girl. ‘Indeed. And you have this single creature to add the warmth of support and fondness to your company.’
‘If you say so,’ she replied.
Now, as she raced along, she wondered what plans her Dad actually had. He’d not responded to the Sherdling’s question, but it was not like him not to think ahead.
Chapter 26
Dan slept for three days in total; without a break. There were times when consciousness threatened to crush him with the stink of reality but, somehow, his body fought back against it and prevailed.
He dreamed.
He dreamed of pain; pain that scoured his body for every second of those 72 hours. Pain that showed no respite. Pain that would have pushed a conscious man to the brink of madness to escape its unrelenting ferocity.
He knew that he was dreaming. The pain was in his legs and he’d left them far behind on a distant, unattainable Earth. But that knowledge did nothing to assuage the ceaseless agony that caressed his legs.
He awoke at last. He lay still, his body awash with sweat and shaking uncontrollably with the shock of the assault on his body. The pain seemed no more than a memory. His legs felt whole and painless.
His legs felt whole!
He dragged the blanket from him and tossed it to one side. His prosthetic limbs lay side by side next to his rough bed. They were the best that money could buy; better than the real thing the ad-blurb had said; lacking a little in sensitivity.
Now, it seemed, they were surplus to requirements.
Slowly, he reached out one hand and gently touched the smooth, firm, warm flesh of his calf. His fingers felt his leg, and his leg felt his fingers. They were real. Loosely wrapped with glowing bands, they were exactly as he remembered them; even that little mole behind his left ankle. He wiggled his toes; he‘d had no idea how much he’d missed that simple act. He could have spent the whole of the day, just sitting there, wiggling his toes.
There was something else, however that he wanted to do.
Something that required no decision; no thought.
Naked save for the glowing aliens bands that already covered much of his body, with more were added every day, he strode from his bed and walked along the side of the canal to the entrance he had used, was it really only a few weeks ago? His bare feet pressed lightly against the smooth rock floor as if, despite the crushing gravity, he weighed no more than a child.
Helen hadn't crossed his mind since he awoke, so he was unaware of her empty bed.
On his hands and knees he crawled up the slope, his speed hardly slowed by the position or the incline. When he reached the entrance to the cave he paused for a moment. The light seemed too bright to be normal, after the gentle luminescence below.
When his eyes had adjusted, he stepped out into the full glare of the sun. He was aware of the heat, but it caused him no distress. Before, he'd needed the help of the Cool-Flo air temperature modifier to be somewhere close to comfortable in these conditions. Now, his body adjusted; he could feel himself changing. He breathed in deeply; relishing the heat, enjoying the pressure of his bare feet against the hot rock.
The first step came without forethought, but it was such a good idea that he took another one; then another. Soon he was running. Effortlessly, tirelessly. With the sun on his back and the thin air rushing through his lungs, he lengthened his stride and ran. His arms began to pump and his knees lifted higher and his speed increased. His body remembered speed, even after all these years. He'd always known exactly what pace he was running; if his coach had decided on 48 second lap reps, then he'd hit that mark every time.
Now, across the rough ground, in bare feet, in 1.8 G, he was running at that 48 second pace. He accelerated to 45 seconds; 20 miles per hour. He held that pace for a moment, savoring it, wondering how long he could keep it up before he had to change his speed. Then he did change; faster and faster, until even he could not measure his pace.
Without a conscious decision he ran along the route he'd taken when he first arrived on TCE. Until he came upon the craft that had brought him here.
He stopped and glanced back at the dust that was still settling behind him. He felt a little nervous at being so close to the craft. Perhaps it reminded him of his past; now so far behind him despite the lies the calendar would say. He put his head through the door and sniffed. He could smell the metal, plastic, dust. Inside, it was even hotter than outside.
He was just about to turn and leave when he saw her foot peeping from behind the furthest acceleration couch.
He rushed to her. He couldn’t believe that he’d not given her a thought since he awoke. What was she doing here, so far from the safety of the subterranean refuge? He knew that she was less comfortable than he with the attentions of the Evinesse, but when had that changed to fear? Fear that had driven her to leave her underground bed and seek sanctuary here.
She was curled up behind the coach; her short red dress ridden up, exposing her long tanned legs, now ringed with glowing bands. Above her closed eyes another band circled her head as she jerked and muttered in her sleep.
He bent and collected her up in his arms, almost without effort. Then he began to retrace his steps back to the underground world that now felt like home; hoping that, when she awoke, she would feel the same.
*********
'The area is now clear of all attackers.' There was actual glee in the AI's voice. Andreas had never heard the sound of glee before, but he was sure that was what he was listening to.
'I don't believe they actually attacked. Mostly they were just standing there.'
'Intent is to action as mother is to a child.'
'Did you just make that up?'
'What do you think? I'm trying to enrich my conversational style now that I have two humans to interact with.'
Andreas glanced at his son who was currently lining his weapons up on the deck in size order.
'You'd better give me one of those guns if we're going outside,' he said, reaching out for one of the ancient handguns.
As soon as he felt the weight, he knew something was w
rong, so he picked up the other gun.
'These guns are not loaded, ' he said, then he sighed, as if he knew what was coming back at him.
'Of course not. That'd be dangerous, man.' Iron didn't even look up as he swapped two of the weapons on the deck that were almost the same size.
'And the matter blaster?'
'Nope. Can you think what'd happen if that went off by mistake?'
'What about the ballistic missile launcher?'
'I've got the launcher; look. But the missiles were too big to fit inside my jacket.'
'At least we've got the fragmentation...'
Iron was shaking his head.
'Duds?' asked Andreas.
Iron nodded.
'So we've no weapons we can carry with us?'
Iron looked at his array of weapons on the deck and frowned.
'No weapons we can actually use to defend ourselves with.'
Andreas corrected himself.
'No man; 'cept this knife.'
The blade he whipped from inside his jacket was perfectly adequate, as far as knifes go. It had a 15cm blade, with serrations on one side and a nice brown leather covered handle. In terms of being of any use at all in a possible battle between species, it lacked a certain something.
Andreas shook his head and picked up the matter blaster. It looked the most fearsome of all the weapons, and it was the lightest. It might make an alien dinosaur think twice about attacking; or maybe not.
'Come on, then, son. We can't stay inside forever. We'll never find Mimi sitting on our butts.'
'Cool, man,' replied Iron as he began to secrete his weapons about his person.
'You could leave them behind. They're not much use.'
'No, man. I need them. You never know when they'll come in handy.'
'You think so?'
Together they stood before airlock and waited for the AI to open the door.
'Are you sure that you want to do this? It doesn’t seem very wise.' The soft Irish tone the AI used reminded Andreas of his mother.
'Just open the door,' he snapped. He'd never got on with his mother.
When they'd cycled through the airlock, their next problem was presented to them.
Angel's Kiss was not really designed for landing on planets. It could manage the process without too much difficulty, landing upright on its splayed tail fins, but it was really configured for deep space flight. The living quarters were in its nose, as far as possible from the engines, which made perfect sense; until you tried to exit the ship and found that the airlock was positioned nearly 100 meters from the ground.
'How do we get down, man?' Iron whined.
His father leant forward. 'There's a ladder built into the side of the ship.'
Iron joined him. 'It's a long way down.'
Andreas stepped back into the airlock. 'I can't climb down that. And if I could, I wouldn't be able to get back up it.'
The AI chose that particular moment to butt in.
'Would the kind gentleman like to use the auxiliary exit?'
Andreas closed his eyes for a moment. 'Auxiliary exit? Where would that be?'
'Through the engine rooms at the base of the ship.'
'Well at least climbing down inside the ship will be a little safer.'
'Perhaps you could use the elevator?'
Andreas smiled. 'That's the best thing I've heard all day.'
Chapter 27
Dan went looking for the aliens.
He hadn't seen them for several days and he needed to talk to them.
When he first arrived, he'd thought of the northern human settlement as a possible haven; somewhere they had to get to if they were going to survive. Now things were a little different, and his perspective had switched. He was now thinking that he should make his way there to see if they needed his help. They might be injured, frightened, starving.
All he needed to do was to persuade his hosts to extend their generosity a little further. Shouldn't be a problem, should it?
And of course, there was Helen. She hadn’t awoken when he carried her back from the lifeboat, and she was still sleeping. When he’d tried to wake her, she’d pushed him away with a grunt or a moan.
How long was she going to be like that before she woke up and felt as good as he did?
Ardeenallwys was by the edge of the canal, apparently focused on the water as it flowed past her. She made no response as Dan approached her.
'Greetings, Ardeenallwys.' He spoke the words as it helped to clarify his thoughts, even though the actual spoken words meant nothing to her.
'ALSO TO YOU DANROBINSON. URGENCY SHADES YOUR THOUGHTS.'
‘How long will Helen be like this? Before she wakes up?’
‘TO SPEAK THE TRUTH, WE HAVE LITTLE UNDERSTANDING OF THIS REDUCED CONSCIOSNESS PHASE YOU EMPLOY. THE KNOWLEDGE WE DO HAVE INFORMS US THAT THE CHANGES SHOULD BE COMPLETE SOON. SHE RESISTS; CAUSING DELAY.’
‘Is she OK?’
‘WHEN RESISTANCE IS OVERCOME, FULL CONSCIOUSNESS WILL RETURN.’
Dan decided that was as close to an answer as he was going to get. He hesitated for a moment, unsure how to phrase his next question.
'My people may be in peril. They have suffered an attack from outside; from destructive aliens.'
'AWARENESS OF ASSAULT IS SHARED. FEELING OF LOSS IS ALSO SHARED WITH OUR FRIEND DANROBINSON. BUT ????'
'Thanks for your concern. I need to go and see what I can do. I need your help to find the way there.'
'WATER WILL CARRY YOU TO YOUR DESIRED DESTINATION. IF YOU UNRAVEL AND RELEASE YOURSELF TO ITS CONTROL.'
'I can't unravel. I'm solid; not like you.'
'EVEN SO; THE WATER WILL CARRY YOU.'
'I can't swim that far.'
'EVEN SO; THE WATER WILL CARRY YOU.'
'Will you help me?'
'HOW WOULD ASSISTANCE BE DEMONSTRATED? WHY WOULD ASSISTANCE BE OFFERED? OUR FRIEND IS DANROBINSON; NOT INVADERS INTO OUR NORTHERN REGION, WHO FOUL OUR WATER, AND THREATEN OUR ECOSYSTEM.'
‘I’m sure that they meant no harm. When I explain your concerns to them, they’ll take steps to insure that they do not impact on your environment. If any of them are still alive.’
‘EXPLANATION IS REQUIRED TO NURTURE LIVING SPACE? STRANGENESS AND WRONGNESS PERCULATE THROUGH THAT IDEA.’
‘Will you help me? I need a boat.’
‘BOAT? I SEE THE IMAGE IN YOUR MIND. THIS WILL CARRY YOU IN SAFETY AND DRYNESS TO YOUR PEOPLE?’
‘The boat needs to be made of buoyant material and I’ll need oars to pull me through the water.’
‘YOU PULL THE WATER? I SEE NOW, THAT REALLY WORKS? I SEE AND UNDERSTAND. BUT BUOYANT MATERIAL IS NOT FOUND EASILY ON OUR WORLD.’
Dan thought about his sleigh, back near the entrance. The back packs wouldn’t be waterproof. They’d sink in second; pulling him down with them.
‘How deep is the water?’
‘AS DEEP AS IT REQUIRES ITSELF TO BE. WHAT A PREPOSPEROUS QUESTION.’
‘If I was in the water, would it cover my head?’
‘WOULD DANROBINSON BE STANDING UPRIGHT OR SQUATTING?’
‘Standing; why would I squat?’
‘I HAVE OBSERVED YOU SQUATTING.’
‘Just take it that I‘m standing as tall as I can.’
‘IN THAT SITAUTION THE WATER WOULD COMPLETELY SUBMERSE YOU.’
‘Thank you.’
Just then a small group of aliens joined them. They lined up along the edge of the water; each one a variation on the usual theme, with three legs, one or two vertical torsos, and flattened rounded heads.
When the first one began to unravel, Dan gasped.
‘What are they doing?’
‘ASSISTANCE WAS REQUESTED.’
‘But, you can’t do that; it’s not right. You can’t sacrifice yourselves like that for me.’
‘I SEE THE MEANING OF SACRIFICE BUT THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE TERM IS HARD TO GRASP. PUTTING ANOTHER’S WELFARE BEFORE YOUR OWN WHEN THE COST CAN BE BOURN WITHOUT SIGNIF
ICANT HARDSHIP SEEMS A WORTHWHILE AND CONDIGN PRACTICE.'
‘Not everyone would see it that way.’
'WHEN THEIR SERVICE IS NO LONGER REQUIRED, THEY WILL MAKE THEMSELVES WHOLE ONCE MORE.’
All of the newcomers were unraveling now; tossing bits of themselves into the water; their movements silent and unhurried.
Within moments he was alone again with Ardeenallwys.
‘What about Helen?’
‘SHE WILL BE CARED FOR UNTIL RETURN IS ACHIEVED. HER RESISTANCE WILL LENGTHEN HER PERIOD OF REDUCED CONSCIOUSNESS. YOU CAN RETURN BEFORE SHE REGAINS HERSELF.’
Dan was unsure what he should do. He could hang around here for a couple of days, waiting for her to wake up, or he could leave, check out the situation further north, and be back before she woke.
But, if she woke up before he returned, she might be distressed and in need of his help.
‘WHAT PREVENTS ACTION?’
‘What do you mean? On some sort of philosophical level? Is that what you mean? Well I suppose there’s a long list of possible impediments that might get in the way of someone taking a particular action. Fear of consequences would be one…’
‘MY QUESTION,’ interrupted the alien, ‘WAS SITUATION SPECIFIC. THIS SITUATION. THIS TIME. WHY DO YOU NOT MOVE TO THE WATER NOW?’
‘Oh, I see. Well, nothing's stopping me, I suppose.’ Suiting his action to his words, and with the decision made, Dan walked towards the edge of the canal and looked over.
Below him, floating on the surface of the water, stationery despite the current, was a little boat. A boat that glowed a sickly green against the dark of the water.
‘Wow!’ Was just about all he could come up with at the time.
‘GET ON THE BOAT. NO, GET IN THE BOAT. NO, GET ONBOARD THE BOAT. WHICHEVER TERM IS CORRECT.’
Dan sat on the hard smooth rock that bordered the canal and stretched out one of his legs; one of his brand new wonderful legs. The boat dipped precariously as it felt his weight. He pulled his leg back.