by Lisa Lace
"Don't underestimate the Runics, especially Salabar and his crew," Thiago insisted, scowling at Eden. "They may look small, but they're swift and much stronger than their size would indicate. We aren't even halfway through your training yet."
"I know, but I think Arleda's correct. I'll need to step out of my comfort zone at some point." She looked at Thiago pointedly. "Granted, I could do with a little more target practice, but I think I know how to swing a windsor now."
Thiago shook his head, pulling down a lever to activate the shields.
Nothing happened.
He pulled the lever again, hoping that the same action would have different results this time, and made an exasperated sound when the shields refused to deploy. Pulling up a control panel on the dashboard screen, he began a troubleshooting procedure. He tried repeatedly but couldn't get the shields down. All his attempts resulted in irritating sounds reinforcing failure after failure.
"Unbelievable. The shields are not functioning," Thiago muttered, nearly crushing the shield lever in a last futile attempt. "That's strange. They seemed to have been working last night when I tested them."
"You should have gotten your ship checked out back at the station like I recommended," Arleda sang. She lifted up one side of her mouth. The gold flakes crusted on her lips shimmered under the cockpit lighting. Her face turned solemn. "There are a few ancient Runic tribes scattered all over the area. They are uncivilized, violently unstable, and don't need provocation to attack. Leaving Eden here without any sort of protection on your spaceship would be just as irresponsible, if not more dangerous, than bringing her with us."
Eden imagined a horde of angry Runics with bloodied spears, blasters, and bags of explosives strapped over their knobby little shoulders. Shuddering at the thought of a hundred slimy webbed hands pawing at her as they pinned her down, she leaped to her feet. The imagery was frightening and perhaps the product of a disturbed imagination, but she wasn't going to take any chances.
"I'm convinced now. I'm not staying here."
"Fine. I guess we're all going then," Thiago conceded. He took a quick look at Eden's outfit. It was a pink jumpsuit she had borrowed from Arleda. "You may want to change into something more water-resistant."
As if on cue, a brief burst of blinding lightning flashed outside the spaceship windows, followed by the ground-quaking roar of thunder. Waves of rain began pattering noisily against the ship top and windshields, solidifying his case.
"Thiago's right," said Arleda, reaching into her satchel. She switched on a computer and headed out the door without consulting with anyone. "Let me see if I can get a head start. It's going to be difficult locating Salabar's cavern in this terrible weather. "
"Thanks. I'll round up Hercules."
"Thiago, wait," Eden called after him, hastily grabbing his arm.
"What is it?"
"I know you're worried," said Eden softly, squeezing his hand. "I'm scared, too. But I'll promise you something. I'm going to keep my mouth shut and my ears open. I'll listen to every word you say."
"You really want to tag along with me, don't you?"
"I do. I should probably contribute to society somehow, shouldn't I? Even if the people around me are aliens? If you're worried about splitting the bounty with me, don't be. I'm not interested in the money. Technically, we are married. Humans are barely people here, so you're morally obligated to make sure I don't die in your care."
"Equality laws don't apply to humans," said Thiago, laughing. "Okay. You've got five minutes to meet us in front."
"You know what? I'll be out in three. I promise I won't let you down."
"Good. I know you won't."
Chapter 17
Eden shivered, sniffling her wrinkled nose as the pouring rain attacked her like a runaway shower head. Dragging her windsor behind her, she ducked under one of the swirling masses of overhanging leaves for cover. She adjusted the black protective helmet over her head. It projected a full-sized screen onto her retina behind the visor. The night-vision setting cast a spectral green glow on her surroundings. Arleda and Thiago's silhouettes also appeared on the screen. Their bodies were reduced to blobs of neon green and orange, allowing them to stand out from the thermal imagery.
"Got it!" Arleda declared, waving the tracking device over her head triumphantly.
Eden slung the windsor over her shoulder. She joined Thiago and Arleda around a brown, dead patch of vegetation. It was a sharp contrast to its surroundings: the slight incline of a green hill covered with moss. Thiago squatted on the floor, digging out a frayed end of a piece of rope sticking out of the ground. A droplet of sweat made its way down the center of his face as he gave it a hard pull. A hidden door swung open, and he toppled back onto the ground, knocked over by his strength.
Arleda picked up the dislodged door and lay it flat on the opposite side of a gaping 4-foot-wide hole. She tapped on the side of her helmet, which matched the stripes and color scheme of her spaceship. A bright shaft of light radiated from the headlight centered above her visor, illuminating the dark opening.
"It looks like a long way to the bottom. I think it's a thirty foot drop, at least. We're looking at the location of someone who wants to say hidden," remarked Arleda. "There's only one way to find out what lies beneath. I'll jump in and send a signal if it's safe to come after me." She gave them a quick thumbs-up, nodding determinedly.
"Don't be reckless, Arleda."
Eden tiptoed over to look down into the pit. "Oh my God!" she screeched, nearly losing her balance in her shock.
As Thiago reached out to steady Eden, Arleda hopped into the opening, yelling whoops of exhilaration that echoed down the shaft behind her. After pacing around for a few painful seconds, a square band around his wrist blinked twice. He pulled up his visor and whistled.
Hercules came scampering at his master's call. The bristles of hair that carpeted his body matted together from the rain. He shook himself dry to get ready for action. Eden wasn't ready for the beast's attempt to dry himself off, and she experienced the brunt of the inadvertent attack; water splashed all over her body.
Thiago patted the creature twice on the leg. Eden watched the jumbo-sized Hercules shrink back his legs like a closing accordion, adjusting his build so he could squeeze down the hole. Thiago turned to Eden. The heels of her feet scuffed against the mud as he guided her towards the edge. Her palms were sweating as she peered down the stark black hole beneath her feet, wondering what was waiting for her at the bottom.
"Whatever you do, keep your hands at your sides at all times," Thiago instructed as he took the windsor from Eden. "Are you ready?"
"No, not really," Eden squeaked. She closed her eyes and exhaled deeply, counting to ten. It was too late to turn back now. There was nowhere else for her to go. "Okay, I'm good. I'm as ready as I'm going to be."
She clamped her arms tightly against her sides. Keeping her eyes squeezed shut, she jumped. The jittery sensation in her stomach moved up her body, to her throat and head. Her back crashed against something solid, and she started sliding. She tried to take control of her descent, but there was nothing for her to grab. As she hurtled down the chute, her body smoothly skated down spiraling twists and turns. Her breath caught in her throat. She heard someone screaming, and she realized it was herself.
"Eden! Are you okay?"
She had stopped moving. A hysterical Eden quieted down immediately, trembling as she pushed up her visor. Arleda held out a hand, her pink brows knitted together with concern. Still shaking like a diabetic low on blood sugar, Eden looked around at the dark environment of the underground cavern. Hercules tilted his head, staring at her blankly.
"Herc, you're drooling all over me," Eden groaned. She reached up to accept Arleda's extended hand. "I'm okay, thanks. Who's that behind you?"
An airborne Runic with a crossbow slung over his shoulder appeared. It was swinging a baton with a tip ablaze with flames. Although she was disoriented, the sight of an enemy was enough to shoo
t adrenaline into Eden's system. Even though she didn't have any feeling in her legs, she dragged herself off the floor, tackling Arleda and shoving her off to the side.
Arleda helped Eden off the ground and brushed the dust from their bodies. Without looking back, she removed a snow-white weapon with a barrel tube from her satchel. Catching sight of the barrel of Arleda's weapon, the Runic sprang off the ground with his powerful hind legs. His webbed feet stuck onto the rocky walls of the cavern with suction cups, bits of gravel crumbling under his weight. Hercules clawed at the ceiling walls with his legs, snarling ferociously at an unseen assailant overhead.
Arleda trailed the Runic with the muzzle of her blaster as he leaped from wall to wall in an attempt to avoid her line of fire. She pulled the trigger on her weapon and a bolt of bluish-white light spurted out at her target. The Runic didn't have a chance. Arleda shot him in the center of his body. His entire body changed to a block of ice within seconds. Eden watched in horror as the ice sculpture fell from the cavern ceiling like a falling icicle and splintered into bloody fragments on the floor.
Something else tumbled out of the chute. It was Eden's windsor. She seized her weapon and hauled it out of the way, clearing an area for Thiago, who landed on the ground with a thud. Before they could orient themselves, a band of Runic underlings began swarming out from the south, charging towards them.
"Arleda, protect Eden. I'm going to find Salabar before the bastard tries to escape."
Hercules spread his opposable limbs, swooping in on the four unfortunate Runics leading the mob. There was a sickening crunch of bone as Hercules trampled and twisted their necks. Thiago clubbed a couple of aliens out of the way, darting into the hall and out of Eden's view. As Arleda blasted ice bolts at the Runics to their left, three minions wounded by Thiago started dragging themselves towards Eden.
Eden couldn't feel her legs any longer, but she managed to hoist her windsor over her head and start to swing. Her vision filled with blinding flashes of red. Her attacks knocked the three Runics back and forth. The windsor head pierced and gouged at the alien's sides, their shrieks of anguish resounding through the cavern as they held their maimed faces.
"Eden! You can stop now!"
Eden gasped as her haze lifted. Her eyes blinked in disbelief at the bodies littered on the ground. Arleda pulled up the visor of her helmet, displaying her hand and beckoning Eden to her side.
"It's time to go."
Eden nodded wordlessly. She lifted her windsor off the ground and raced after Arleda. The pair entered a series of winding tunnels, accelerating their pace as the sounds of a struggle grew louder.
Finally, they stumbled out of the closed tube. Eden needed to hold her thighs to keep herself standing upright. She took a deep breath to soothe her wheezing. Eden's frazzled eyes darted around wildly as she tried to locate Thiago.
"Watch your step. You don't want to fall over a cliff again," warned Arleda, holding an arm out in front of Eden.
"Whoa," Eden breathed. The core of the cavern in front of them consisted of rock formations forming natural bridges and footpaths, all suspended above a hissing pit of brilliant golden-red lava.
"Up there!"
Eden jabbed a finger towards Salabar and Thiago. The tussling pair was struggling on an unbarred footpath above them. Hercules snapped his pincers helplessly; he couldn't attack Salabar without hurting Thiago. He shifted uneasily across a path that was much too narrow for his size. He struggled to keep his balance, but he was devoted to his master and refused to leave.
Thiago grunted as Salabar wriggled free from his grasp. He spotted Arleda and Eden on the ground below them. He motioned towards his weapon, which lay just a few feet away from them. He scrambled after Salabar.
"Can one of you try to stun him?"
Eden dove into the corner, grabbing hold of Thiago's weapon. She tossed it to Arleda, who snatched it in midair with her gloved hands. Salabar had heard Thiago's instructions, of course. He narrowed his eyes as a look of surprise spread across his hideous features. He clenched his knotted fingers in their direction.
"You..."
Eden would never know what Salabar intended to say. Arleda fired, striking Salabar directly in the chest. Thiago's weapon was meant to kill, not stun or turn a victim to ice. A pool of red began to blossom on the thin fabric of Salabar's clothes. Small trickles of blood appeared on the corners of his mouth as he started to stagger backward.
Time slowed down for Eden as she screamed and reached out in a futile attempt to save the alien. Salabar's arms flailed as he toppled into the pit of lava.
Salabar was determined to take someone with him. His arms grabbed onto Thiago and Hercules in one final act of vengeance before his death, dragging them down with him into the fire below.
Chapter 18
"Thiago! Hercules!"
The imminent danger woke Eden from her slumber and forced her to take action. The apparent time shift that had cemented her in place as she watched Thiago, Hercules, and Salabar tumble over the edge shattered as quickly as it came. All that remained now was an empty platform above them with a severely chipped edge. The sweltering sea of hot lava underneath swallowed every falling piece of debris.
Eden yanked off her helmet and flung it aside. The rooms of the underground cavern reverberated with her traumatized screams of despair. She grabbed clumps of her hair, wrenching and twisting as tears seeped out the corners of her bulged, panicking eyes. Her teeth were chattering in shock as she turned to Arleda.
"How did that happen? Are they dead?"
"I don't know." Arleda wasn't moving.
Eden stared at Arleda. She hadn't known the alien for a long time, but in her experience, Arleda kept her composure and never lost her head. Perhaps this was Arleda's way of panicking. The Arkadian woman's translucent skin had turned a pasty white. The expression on her face was equally hopeless. Eden's heart sank.
"We can't stand here! Isn't there anything we can do?"
"Eden!"
Their horrified eyes moved toward the edge of their path. A cry for help rang faintly from underneath them, coupled with the unmistakable whimpers of a distressed alien arachnid. Racing to the side, they peered over the edge.
In the thick, yellow billows of smoke rising from the simmering red lava pit, Eden spotted the hazy silhouettes of Thiago and Hercules. The creature and his master were huddled together on a narrow crag protruding from a rock formation. Their arms clung to invisible handholds around them to stabilize their footing.
Eden didn't see Salabar anywhere.
"Thiago, hold on!"
Eden looked around for anything she could use to haul them up. Arleda had already sprung into action. She was stripping off thick, sturdy vines that grew wild on the cavern walls. Eden dashed off to help, positioning herself in front of another wall. She rested a boot against the rocks and wrapped her fingers around a vine as wide as a fire hose.
Her veins extruded from her neck and temples as she pulled with all her strength. She had to lean back and use both legs for leverage to make the vine finally give under her weight.
Eden carried over her small vine and handed it over to Arleda. The Arkadian bounty hunter had accumulated dozens of vines in the time it took Eden to obtain a single one, and had already knotted them all together, fashioning a makeshift rope. Thrusting one end of the rope in Eden's hands, Arleda tossed the opposite end over the cliff.
"Get ready to pull! I don't know how much longer we can safely stay on this ledge!"
Arleda positioned herself behind Eden, twisting the vines around her arms. Eden mentally ordered her uncontrollable, trembling fingers to clench, securing them around the vine. The minute, sticky fibers felt almost like velcro against Eden's sweaty palms, adhering to her flesh. Her eyes squeezed shut as the throbbing muscles in her arms started to burn from the exertion. She could feel the heels of her boots scraping against the ground. Whatever happened, she knew she could not let go.
Thanks to the alien strength b
uilt into Arleda's Arkadian genes, the women began to inch slowly backward. Incredibly, they picked up momentum, wheezing and panting as Eden passed back additional knots of the retracting vine. With one last jerk, the other end of the vine emerged. Thiago had tied it around Hercules' torso as he clutched the creature's tubby frame. Hercules grabbed at the edge, gravel crumbling under his slipping legs as he struggled to clamber onto the platform.
Thiago leaped onto solid ground. His hands never left his beloved companion's side. Arleda and Eden moved forward, each grabbing hold of one of the creature's eight limbs. Snapping his pincers gratefully, Hercules dragged himself to safety.
Everyone collapsed from exhaustion and fell flat on their backs. The group was spread out on the ground. Their outstretched arms lay limp at their sides as they recuperated. An equally exhausted Hercules slumped over on top of Thiago, bleating weakly in resignation.
Eden was the first to move. "We should get out of here," she said, squeezing Thiago on the arm as she sat up. She attempted to dust off the dirt marks on her jumpsuit, but she was a mess and couldn't clean herself. "This place is still dangerous."
"What were you thinking?"
The women jumped back in surprise as Thiago turned to confront Arleda. Unconsciously, he had made his teeth visible, and his rage was on display.
"I'm sorry. I meant to stun him. I made a mistake."
"You used to be meticulous and careful to a fault in the field. Has something changed?" he said suspiciously.
"What are you suggesting?" demanded Arleda. Anger had replaced the typical confidence in her voice. "Are you delusional enough to believe I intentionally killed him? What would I have to gain?"
Eden and Hercules exchanged worried looks as the tension escalated further.
"Guys. Let's be grateful Thiago and Herc are still alive."
"Now that the target's dead, we are only entitled to a third of the bounty," Thiago seethed, making a face as he loosened the kink in his neck. He reached into his jumpsuit and pulled out a blood-red amulet with an antique silver chain, swinging the necklace in Arleda's face. "If I hadn't taken this from the slimy bastard, we might have nothing left after expenses."