“Mech mode?” Speru asked.
“Her ship turns into a robot when …” Mencari stopped at boy’s blank expression. “It’s easier to show you.”
“I’ve made contact with the ship. Spark is still waiting at the helm, and has not received any transmissions from Toriko. He’ll continue to hold position until we need him.”
“We’ll continue on to the planet’s surface then,” Una said, the flight path updated with her gesture. The ship plunged into the atmosphere, windows covering in hot, white plasma. Gentle vibrations turned to jostles, then into violent quakes.
“There’s more turbulence than predicted. Please strap in,” Una said with urgency.
Already seated, Mencari clamped the seatbelt tight around him. A burning anxiety grew. Perhaps Seigie wasn’t the only one spooked from their initial flight with Toriko. He painfully recalled their first trip using a tunnel drive, which resulted in a section of the ship—the one carrying Seigie—shearing off and careening into the atmosphere of Allia’s world. He didn’t want to admit it, but it seemed he’d developed a phobia of dying in small ships from his misadventures.
“Systems are reporting an increasing number of particulates in the air,” Una said, making constant adjustments to the navigational panels before her. “This data doesn’t align with what we have on the world. Perhaps those quakes are tossing a ton of things into the atmosphere?”
“Warning: signal integrity dropping rapidly,” Bob said.
“Good luck,” Eyani said moments before hers, Bob’s, and Mini-T’s projections zapped out.
“We’re not done yet.” Una smacked a button on a side console. Three quick pops echoed through the interior. A display before them showed tiny spheres moving rapidly upward. Or perhaps they were just moving rapidly downward. “Signal boosters. When they enter orbit we should—” A bright flash filled the cabin. A smiling Mini-T and Bob emerged from the light.
“Miss us?” Mini-T beamed a smile.
“Huzzah! Boosters fully operational,” Bob chirped happily.
“They worked!” Mini-T squealed in delight. “If Toriko had deployed these, the breadcrumb trail would have stayed connected.”
“I’m relieved,” Una said dryly. “Things are changing too fast down here for me to keep up. I need you two.”
“Eyani said she’s available anytime, as needed,” Bob added.
“Bob and Mini-T, patch into the ship’s scanning systems,” Una said. “Use them at will, inform me as needed.”
“Can’t Toriko access this now too?” Mencari asked.
“We didn’t have a frequency set. She wouldn’t know which one to attach to, or even that the new network is available.”
Toriko was much better at handling problems than she used to be, Mencari told himself, and tried to shift his worry about her to what might await them on Ruul.
* * * * *
“We’re over the location of the first breadcrumb,” Una said.
“This looks like a blast zone.” Osuto was reviewing the console before him.
Mencari looked on and saw entire forests lying flat, and deep fissures ripped in dried mud and clay. Towers of debris leaned dangerously on others, or had toppled fully, crushing the makeshift structures along the ground.
“Searching for the breadcrumb’s signature,” Mini-T said.
“Looks bad,” Mencari said. “Could the breadcrumbs have been destroyed, with everything going on here?”
Mini-T stared blankly for a moment, pondering the question. “Well, I guess that’s a possibility. I guess I’d like to think we make things that are more resilient than that, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility. I’m going to keep looking though.”
“Is there somewhere safe to land?” Mencari asked, though he was doubtful.
“No, and I don’t honestly want to set down anywhere,” Una said, shaking her head. “If a big enough quake hits, too many things could happen.”
“Yata! I found the first one! It’s a few meters away,” Mini-T said.
“Good, then we’ll punch out here,” Mencari said, with a motion to the others.
“I’ll head to the northern pole and orbit with the other ships until you call me back,” Una said.
Mencari noticed Speru’s apprehension. “Are you ready, or do you want to stay with Una?”
The boy hesitated, then said, “I want to help.”
Osuto leaned in and said quietly, “Is this wise, Rhysus?”
“We’ll work through it,” Mencari said, leading the group to the rear airlock.
There was fear in the boy’s eyes. Given his past, Speru most likely had never flown on his own before. He remembered his own initial lessons with Osuto, and then fondly recalled teaching Toriko. The sensation was always disorienting at first. At least Speru had the ground to align with, versus the endless void of space. Even for those trained, if there was nothing to orient with, the first few times in space caused instant vertigo and lightheadedness. Unfortunately for Speru, unlike the weightlessness of space, the planet’s gravity would create considerable drag, forcing him to put greater effort to staying airborne.
“Just focus your energies, I’m right here,” Mencari assured him, wrapping his arm around Speru’s. Nikko took the boy’s other arm.
“I—” Speru started. “I can do this.”
They waited for the others to exit the craft, then carefully stepped in unison into empty air. Mencari felt the weight of Speru’s body quickly lighten as he birthed new levitation abilities. The others hovered underneath, giving space for the trio to coordinate.
“There ya go,” Mencari said, slowly uncoiling his arms. Amazement overtook the boy’s angst. He was a natural. Would the boy master other abilities as fast?
“This—it’s incredible,” Speru whispered.
“And just the beginning,” Mencari said.
Nikko and Mencari stayed by his side, moving with him away from the ship. Mencari saw the apprehension creep back into Speru’s eyes as Eden’s ship flew into the distance.
They touched down among the devastation. A stench of must and rot hung in the air. Tiny woodland creatures scurried about.
A full-sized Mini-T projected beside Mencari. He assumed Mini-T tapped into the Eden communicator’s projection capabilities. Her fox ears twitched while she reviewed a holographic panel before her. “I’ve accessed the information from the first breadcrumb,” she said. “Not as much here as I’d hoped, but I found this.”
A projection of her and her robotic dog Spark, Ujaku, Naijen, Seigie, and Cerna appeared before them. “I can recreate their movements from this data. There’s trace information to the next breadcrumb too. Moving from one breadcrumb to the next isn’t the most efficient way to go, but it will get us to them one hop at a time.”
* * * * *
“Yes, Fia’ra, nature herself is disturbed,” Katen said evenly.
Despite the destruction of their physical beast bodies, Fia’ra and Fio’tro lived on as entities within Katen’s mind. Independently able to use Katen’s senses, they still provided insights and recommendations to him. He imagined how unstable he must appear to the others, citing falling comrades for new insights, or holding one-sided conversations aloud. It didn’t matter.
Only a tiny grove of ancient trees stood unmarred in the terrain around them. He looked about, noticing the chaos among the animals. Beasts that typically took shelter in wooded areas were scampering out into open fields. Even those that dwelled close to water appeared far from any water source. The most docile of creatures were agitated and aggressive. Katen pitied them.
“Watch out!” Nikko yelled as a shadow covered Katen.
Katen ducked as massive claws swooped past. Bursts of wind pounded on him as mighty wings pumped from the vulture-like beast overhead. It circled back, and headed again toward its prey. Katen saw its eyes were crazed. Mentally he reached out, felt the terror and confusion in its mind. Poor beast.
“I will end your torment,” he whispered,
and his lizard eyes locked on to the creature.
As it swooped to attack, the man-beast concentrated his power. His body washed with a golden light, and the crystal at the end of his staff began to glow a light blue. When the creature was nearly upon him, he swiped the staff, drawing a rune-like shape with it midair. The ground ruptured before him and thick, thorny vines shot into the sky.
Unable to avoid it, the great bird was quickly ensnared; barbs pierced deeply into the creature. It squawked mightily as its hollow bones snapped and its form was brutally twisted. In moments it was over.
With a motion of Katen’s hand, the vines lowered the broken creature to the earth. Small flowers budded and bloomed, then belched a sickly yellow powder over the body. The feathers instantly dissolved, and skin bubbled and grayed. Before Katen’s eyes, nature had reclaimed the creature to the soil from which it came.
Their duty done, the vines browned and rotted, dissolving too back into the ground. Katen placed his hands in the enriched soil, filled with a sense of accomplishment and purpose.
“Accept these nutrients and begin life anew,” he said quietly.
Satisfied, he was about to return to the sky when he saw the fear in his companions’ eyes. “Fia’ra felt it would help restore this ailing world,” Katen said ruefully. His companions’ concerns were abruptly eclipsed by a new sensation. He knelt down and felt the ground.
Mencari said, “What’s wrong?”
A deep tone drifted on the wind, and within seconds a rumble like thunder rolled toward them. Birds took to the air, leaving their sanctuaries.
Katen looked about, confused. The ground was in pain, groaning in anger. As the soil shook beneath his feet, he fled to the skies as well.
Wind whistled through the trees as the massive trunks of the remaining forest began to quiver. In the distance, the sound of wood snapping was followed by that of earth splitting. As the ground began to violently shake, trees were being ripped from their roots, their ancient limbs broken off.
Mencari yelled, “Fly—now!”
Summoning their auras, the group lifted skyward, dodging birds and debris being flung from the trees. Cracks opened in the ground, which skittered along like insects and opening into deep chasms. What took generations to create, took moments to destroy.
When the rumbling subsided, there wasn’t a tree standing in any direction. As they floated down to the ground, Katen saw many creatures stagger about, in an attempt to regain their bearings.
“This is bad!” Nikko yelled.
Mencari’s communicator chirped to life. Through it a panicked Una blurted, “Are you all right?”
“Yes, but that was quite a quake.”
“I did a scan and didn’t detect any bombs or other unnaturally occurring phenomena causing them.”
“We should keep going before another quake hits,” Mini-T said. The holographic projections of Toriko and the team continued forward. Katen followed the group.
* * * * *
“Smoke—lots of it.” Osuto pointed. On the horizon, above the piles of fallen space debris rose a thick stack of black smoke. “Look at the size. Whatever is burning must be mammoth.”
A deep rumbling filled the air moments before the ground shook beneath their feet. “Quake!” Mencari yelled. It dwindled quickly, as did their alarm. “Just a small one.”
“For now,” Osuto said.
A path continued through the tall piles of debris.
“I’ve found the next breadcrumb.” Mini-T’s projection of Toriko and company appeared in a flash, then ran forward. “Let’s move. They went this way.”
“Do you hear that?” Daleron said. “That screaming?”
The others stopped to listen. In the distance came a cry. “Over there!” he said, pointing over a mound.
“Do we check it out?” Mencari asked Osuto.
His old mentor hesitated long enough for Mini-T to add, “It’s actually on our way. The path snakes a bit from what I can tell.”
Another gentle rumble filled the air, followed by quivering underfoot. The desperate call became a shriek.
“Let’s go,” Osuto said.
No sooner had they rounded the corner, a gruff voice shouted, “Stay back!” A static smell filled the air as a bolt-like discharge exploded in the debris pile next to Osuto.
The high-pitched whine of Mencari’s weapon added to the ringing in Osuto’s ears. Osuto explained, “We heard screaming, we wanted to help—”
“Please, Bale, get me out!” a boy screamed.
Behind the gunman called Bale was a boy half-buried under fallen debris. The ground began to rumble again, causing the boy to shriek.
Bale’s face was stark white, and his hands shook. “Stay back!” he yelled again. “Just go on—get outta here!”
A blur flew at the man, striking his forehead with a loud smack. Stunned, he lost his balance and fell to the ground. “Move now!” Daleron yelled, dashing toward the boy.
Osuto, Katen, and Nikko moved quickly. Mencari noticed a small cloth sack lying next to Bale.
“You hit him with a hacky sack?” Mencari asked Daleron, helping to move debris.
“It’s called subdual,” the graying catman said matter-of-fact.
Together they made short work of the pile above the boy. They reached a wing-like structure with long metal rods protruding. One of them impaled the boy’s leg, straight through his calf muscle. He shrieked again when they attempted to move it.
“We have to do something about the rod,” Daleron said, looking about. He pulled what looked like a tube of paste from his pocket. “Hold him down!”
The panicked boy looked at the catman.
“What are you going to do?” Bale yelled.
“Take it out.”
“He’ll bleed to death!”
“I’ll pack it. Then we can move him. Now hold him.”
“No wait!” the boy said, shaking under the hands holding him down. “No!”
“Breathe, and be ready,” Daleron said sternly. “On three. One … two … three.”
A scream echoed off the debris piles as Daleron lifted. The boy’s leg moved up the metal rod. Sweat poured from the boy’s face, and the color began to drain away.
“You’re hurting him!” Bale screamed.
Osuto saw Nikko began to dance subtly, just out of view of Bale.
“The rod’s hurting him,” Daleron said, frustrated.
A calming warmth spread over Osuto, an effect he saw reflected in the eyes of Bale, and the boy. Nikko’s empathic abilities, manifested through her dancing, were a useful marvel. Even Daleron seemed more at peace.
“Almost there,” Daleron said, moving the leg steadily upward.
A river of blood gushed from the hole as the leg cleared the bar. The others strained to contain the screaming, writhing boy. Daleron popped the top of the tube and squeezed the milk-colored goo into the hole. “It’s too deep,” he snarled. Looking around, he spotted some dirt. He palmed a paw full, squirted it with a silvery liquid taken from a hidden pocket, then packed it in the top of the wound, filling the rest of the hole. “At least it’s sanitized. This will have to do.”
“Where’s the rest of your people?” Osuto asked Bale.
Bale kept his gaze on the boy. “We’re supposed to meet at the transport lines—our evac point to our regional hub—”
“I’m getting readings from the next breadcrumb,” Mini-T said. “I think the transport lines must be where Toriko’s group went.”
* * * * *
“They’re totally destroyed!” Bale bellowed, looking out from atop a debris pile.
Mencari scampered up the pile, Mini-T floating along with him. Large pylons lay toppled and broken; thick-gauge wire lay frayed and sprawled across the ground. In the distance, he made out what looked like passenger cars crushed like tin cans and tossed across a field of debris.
“Everyone was supposed to meet at the tram station,” Bale said with growing desperation. “But I don’t see anyo
ne down there.”
A new projection appeared before Mini-T, showing Toriko’s team running down the embankment toward the tram. “They did go this way,” Mini-T said softly. “If we can’t follow the tram, I don’t know how I’m going to find the other breadcrumbs.”
“Where was it supposed to take you?” Mencari asked Bale.
“To the only place it goes, the central hub.” Bale pointed toward the billowing stack of black smoke.
“To that?” Mencari asked. “Are you sure people should be going there?”
“It’s the only place to go. There’s no alternative. Even our transports offworld are there.”
“The ferry,” the boy said weakly.
“It might be up and running yet!” Bale said. “Brilliant!” To Mencari he explained, “It crosses the lake, also goes to the central hub. The dock isn’t far from here. Hopefully it hasn’t left yet.”
“And maybe I can pick up a breadcrumb there too,” Mini-T said.
A tension gripped Mencari’s chest. He hoped Mini-T would do more than just pick up the breadcrumb trail. He hoped they’d find Toriko and the others. Were they already in the hands of the Nukari commander called Jencho? Even if they weren’t yet, what did Jencho have planned for them?
* * * * *
Countless structures were toppled in ruin, the air thick with dust and smoke so heavy, Mencari could taste the char in his mouth. Bricks lay strewn across the ground along with large pieces of splintered wood. People in yellow vests ran about putting out fires, answering cries for help, and tending the wounded. The scene grew more dismal the deeper they went into the town, especially toward the docks.
Screams echoed from around one corner, where they found a cluster of people lifting a section of collapsed wall off a woman. Strangers brought a makeshift stretcher and quickly shuffled her away.
As they approached the shoreline, a group of yellow-vested men and women were frantically trying to clear debris around a large boat. Across the lake, thick smoke billowed into the sky.
D'mok Revival: The Nukari Invasion Anthology Page 72