“I already set the coordinates,” she says. “Are you ready?”
I nod as I buckle up.
“Bon voyage!” She calls out as the door hisses shut. Before I can even react, the escape pod detaches from the Cordelia, and I watch as I hurtle violently towards the surface of Ventra.
RAEDEN
Everything has gone horribly wrong since we’ve landed. The Krillux were led to believe that we needed to invade the nearby Ventran village. Although previous negotiations were set, the Ventrans were not made aware that the Krillux would be landing here, and instead, are attempting to fight us off.
The battle is gruesome, and I find myself taking shelter in a destroyed hut. I would rather die than hurt a member of my own people, and it pains me to see them suffer because of these men, and with such limited weaponry to fend them off. Several Krillux have been taken down as well; men that I’ve grown familiar with. This is why I hate fighting, what it does to all of us.
An explosion shakes me onto the ground as yet another hut is struck with a blast. As I look up from my shelter, I can see the mines in the distance - our eventual destination. The only thing standing in the way of the Krillux is this village. Women and children scream as they flee towards the forests. Some of them are among the men, trying to fight the intruders off. I want so badly in my heart to join them.
I try to get up, to see if I can warn the rest of them off, but I’m suddenly knocked onto the ground again, and I feel a searing pain in my side. I look down and see blood staining my tunic. I crawl towards another shelter in a panic, my breath heavy. I was split up from Rex, and as I look up at the sky, I see a small ship coming to land. Is it Alex? I hope it is. I can only hope, as the world grows darker around me…
CHAPTER 9: THE MINE
ALEX
It’s a shaky landing, as I’m thrown from the door of the escape pod, right into the heat of battle. It takes me a second to recover, and when I finally come to, I realize the horror of my surroundings.
Innocent bodies are strewn across the ground. It looks as if the battle has moved closer to the mines and they’ve left the dead here. I’m not sure what could have caused this violence. The Krillux should know they’re not supposed to attack. Unless that was another lie, concocted by my father. I wouldn’t be surprised if he told them the Ventrans were a threat.
I switch on the camera of my helmet, scanning the field.
“Hali, can you see this?” I ask.
“Oh my God,” I hear her say softly in disbelief.
“I’m sending it to you,” I tell her as I record from my visor, trying to capture the worst of it. Makeshift spears and secondhand blasters are scattered in the dirt. Broken shields reveal that the Ventran people weren’t prepared for an attack such as this. Raeden did say that they were typically a peaceful people. It hurts me to think of the horrors these people have faced, and I can only hope the others have escaped safely.
“What do I do with this?” she asks.
“Hold onto it for now, but see if you can get to a data transmission site as soon as you can.” I switch off the camera and make a run towards the battle. I need to find Raeden, and it makes my stomach churn to think he could be among these bodies.
Finally, after what feels like forever, I notice a figure leaning against a tree. Raeden! As I get closer to him, I realize he’s in pain. His skin is pale.
“It’s you,” he breathes.
I kiss him, holding him close to my chest. “I couldn’t leave you here,” I said.
“They’re getting closer to the mines,” he wheezes. “I tried to tell them of the trap but nobody believed me.”
“My father didn’t listen either, he’s still going to initiate the strike,” I tell him.
“We can’t stop the missile,” Raeden says, and my heart sinks. I realize that it’s true. We can’t stop it from all the way down here, and I doubt that Hali would even be able to organize enough people to stop them in time. “The mineral, Alex,” Raeden says. “Get to the mines. We can still stop this.”
I hook my arm around him, lifting him up. We shuffle as fast as we can towards the mines. Suddenly, a blaring flash lights up the sky. We turn to see a meteor-like streak falling through the atmosphere.
“It’s here,” I say, trying to pick up our pace. It’s difficult with Raeden’s injury, but there’s no way I can leave him here.
“Let me get that for you, Missy,” I hear a voice say. A gruff-looking alien comes by, sweeping Raeden over his shoulder. I’m about to protest, but Raeden looks relieved to see him.
“Alex, this is Rex,” he says weakly. “He’s the only one that believed our story.” I exchange a nod with Rex.
“There’s not much time,” I warn him.
“Don’t worry,” Rex says. “You run and we’ll follow.” He signals behind him, and soon we are met with a cluster of Krillux all of them made up of different species. I instinctively take off running, our own miniature army following close behind me.
Rex and the others have helped tremendously and we reach the mines in moments. The battle seems to have subsided as everyone has taken notice of the incoming missile.
“We’ve been tricked!” Someone screams, and soon everyone runs in a panic, as if they can escape their incoming doom. I duck into a nearby shaft, waiting for Rex and the others to catch up.
“He’s not doing good,” Rex warns as he sets Raeden down against one of the cave walls.
“What can we do?” I ask.
None of my training has prepared me for a medical emergency, which terrifies me. I don’t want to lose Raeden, especially not after all of this.
“I can keep him stable,” one of the Krillux, an insect-like species, offers as they step towards Raeden to help. He presses down on Raedens wound, asking one of the others for a makeshift wrap.
I suddenly get a call from Hali in my helmet.
“What’s going on?” I ask, walking to another corner of the cave.
“I’ve got someone from the control room, Alex!” She exclaims. “They’re giving me a live update on the strike.”
“How much time do we have?”
“Less than ten minutes until the blast. Listen… you have to get out of there! Grab your boyfriend and get back on the escape pod.”
“I’m not letting anymore people die today. Can’t anyone stop the missile from up there?” I ask her.
“It’s locked with a password. I don’t know anybody that knows it, and it takes the consent of two people to turn it off.”
“Aren’t you a hacker in your spare time?”
“Not military hacking. That’s a whole other ballpark, Honey. You think I want to go to jail?”
I roll my eyes. “Maybe you can do something else for me really quickly,” I ask her.
“Shoot,” she says. “I need you to take the footage I shot and send it directly to the Space Resource Program on Earth.” I tell her. “Also, tell me once you’ve set up a direct broadcast link to the Cordelia. I’ve got a message to send.”
“I’ll let you know when it’s connected.”
“We have less than ten minutes.” I remind her.
“I’ll do it in three.”
I glance around, waiting for Hali’s response. The walls of the cave glitter with a bright green ore. A faint humming pulses through the rocks, low enough for me to feel the vibrations under my feet. I walk over towards one of the walls, where a thick cluster of Ventran mineral ore waits to be mined. It certainly looks powerful. I place my hand over it, feeling a sudden rush of energy flowing through me like a jolt of electricity. This stuff really packs a punch. I’m surprised when I look down and see the scrapes from my landing, healing before my eyes.
I turn to see Raeden being attended to by the soldiers and Rex. He’s looking really rough, and I realize just how thin of a tightrope we’re all walking at the moment; hovering between life and death.
“Raeden,” I ask, “how do I mine this stuff?”
CHAPTER 10: THE POWER
ALEX
I struggle with the weight of the pickaxe I’ve scrounged from a corner of the cave. Raeden instructs me to find a weak point in the ore, where the mineral is just starting to crack. Searching frantically, I am able to locate one near the ground. All the time I keep an eye on my visor to see when the missile is about to strike. I only have a few more minutes until we’re blasted into another galaxy.
Raeden gives me a weak nod, telling me I’ve found a good spot. Gathering all my strength, I bring down the pickaxe in a forceful swing. The point clangs against the mineral with a melodic tone that rings throughout the cavern. I notice everyone covering their ears, but I continue as quickly as I can. My arms are exhausted, but a strong surge of energy pulses through me, and I’m determined to get all of us out of here alive. It doesn’t look like it’s about to give, but I concentrate all of my energy into a final swing, a fragment of the mineral is moves away from the rest. As it comes loose, a wave of glowing light knocks me onto the ground and a rough vibration shakes my bones. As the dust settles, I can see the faint glow of the mineral fragment waiting for me: it’s roughly the size of a quarter.
“Is this even enough?” I ask Raeden, horrified at the smallness of it.
“That’s more than enough,” he assures me, and I place the mineral in my pocket.
“What now?” I ask him.
He thinks for a second. “We have to get to a beacon,” he says. “A distress beacon.” His eyes flutter, and I can tell he’s trying to hold on as long as he can. I can’t lose him here, not now. “There,” he adds, pointing to a ragged rock structure just a few yards away. “There should be one there.”
“I’m not doing this alone,” I tell him, signaling for Rex to lift him back up.
We take off running towards the forest, where a large rock structure waits. This must be the beacon he was talking about. I look up at the sky, the streak in the sky is growing closer, more eminent. I’m wondering where the hell Hali is right now and why she hasn’t contacted me. The tower has a spiral staircase cut into the rock. Rex ducks as he follows me, Raeden breathing raggedly over his shoulder.
“We’re almost there,” I say, worried that my helmet now tells me I have just a few minutes left to save this planet.
“Alex?” I hear Hali say.
“Thank God,” I tell her as I bound to the top of the stairs. My legs are exhausted from the climb, but I tell myself I’m going to make it. We’re all going to make it.
“I’ve made a connection. You’re live right now!” Hali tells me. I look back as Rex leans Raeden up against the wall of the beacon. In the center, there’s a rock formation, a small pillar, open to hold something even smaller. I have to work quickly, but also I need to send my message … just in case we don’t make it out.
I press record and take off my helmet, pointing it at my face.
“My name is Alex McKinley,” I begin, every part of me shaking. “I’m the daughter of Captain McKinley of the spacecraft Cordelia. Months ago, we set a course for Ventra in hopes to mine resources for the United States Space Resource Program. We’ve made an alliance with the Krillux army in hopes they’d provide assistance. But other plans have been made. My father has lied to these people as well as this entire planet.”
I point the helmet at the missile, and I hear Rex cry out as the missile breaks in half with a thundering crack, the payload about to pass through the atmosphere.
We’ve all been tricked,” I hear myself, talking at a thousand miles-an-hour. These could very well be my last words. “My father set a trap to extinguish the Krillux, breaking space trading codes-”
“Alex!” Rex cries out. “We don’t have time for speeches!” I realize I don’t have as much time as I thought to make my speech, but someone else can. I rush over to Raeden and hand him the helmet. “I got the beacon,” I tell him. “Just say what you need to.”
RAEDEN
I hold the helmet in my hands as Alex rushes over to the beacon. She fumbles with the mineral in her pocket, looking back at missile just moments from exploding.
I’m Raeden,” I say into the helmet, not quite sure what it is I’m doing. I understand I’m about to reach thousands of people, and I only have a short amount of time. “I am the only one of my kind in the Krillux. Ventra is a peaceful planet, and we have been violently attacked under Captain McKinley’s unauthorized command.”
Through the glass of the helmet, I can see footage of bodies, my own people, lying defeated on the battlefield. Alex must be transmitting all of this to our audience. The sight of these poor people fills me with unexplainable rage.
“This is what fighting has done to a peaceful people,” I tell everyone. “These people didn’t know they were going to be attacked. The Krillux were fed lies by a corrupt captain, and now we are all about to suffer, because someone decided wealth was more important than thousands of lives. But I’ve found love, even through the hatred, and we will die here knowing that we tried our very best. Let this be a message that fighting met with fighting can only separate us further.”
I can feel myself growing more tired, the fiery passion of my voice cracking as I feel more and more weak. The helmet rolls out of my hands, and I can hear the faint voice of Alex crying out to me. The world looks dark as I fade in and out, my eyes feeling heavy. The missile burns brightly, and I use my last seconds to look at the one I’ve come to love the most. She looks at me, tears in her eyes.
“I love you,” she shouts to me, and I realize that I would be fine to die in this moment after hearing those words.
Before I can say anything, a blinding light engulfs us, as a warm wave of fiery energy whooshes past my ears as the ground rumbles with incredible force. This is it.
I open my eyes, disoriented, my vision blurred. I’m in the afterlife, my spirit about to leave my body behind. As I gain focus, however, I realize that I’m very much alive. Alex hovers over me, holding me up and kissing my forehead.
“Look Raeden,” she whispers. “We did it. We’re alive.” I sit up and gaze up at the sky. A beautiful glassy field of energy surrounds us. I watch the dark smoke from the extinguished missile softly fall and conform around a massive energy force field protecting us, encasing this part of the planet in the safety of the mineral.
I lie back down, breathing in the smell of fresh Ventran air, and I feel extremely grateful.
“Thank you,” I say to Alex. She takes my hand, pressing it to her cheek. “I love you too,” I tell her, and she smiles her beautiful smile. I’ve done it. I’ve cracked her shell. But now it’s too late, as I feel myself growing heavier, my wound pulsing in pain.
Suddenly, I feel incredible warmth, and I wonder if this is what death feels like. I realize I’m feeling more and more energized, however, as if I’m being shocked with electricity. I sit up, full of life, and see that Alex is now holding the mineral against my wounds. The skin around it heals up quickly, and suddenly I feel as if I had was never in the battle in the first place.
“It worked,” I tell her, but she’s preoccupied with something else. She brings the helmet over to me. “Listen,” she says, her smile spreading from ear to ear. She holds the helmet up between us, and I can hear the roaring cheer of what sounds like hundreds inside.
“They got our message,” Alex says tearfully. I wipe away one of them from her eye and kiss her as if I’ve never kissed her before. I realize I can hear even more cheering, now, this time coming from nearby. Alex helps me up and we look over the edge of the beacon’s tower. Below, Ventran people are emerging from the forests, women carrying their babies, soldiers tired from running and fighting. The rest of the Krillux army is standing nearby, in peace. They look up at us, their applause mighty, all of them relieved to be blessed with life. Alex and I look at each other, hand-in-hand; cherishing what would truly be one of our greatest moments together. We’ve saved my people, and countless others.
Now, I am truly home.
EPILOGUE
ALEX
&n
bsp; I wake up at the first light of the sun. I can hear the faint laughter of people outside, and the business of life carrying on for the day. I look over at Raeden sleeping beside me, his breath peaceful, and I kiss him gently on his cheek. He moans softly, waving me away.
“It’s not time to wake up,” he says smiling a tired smile.
“Oh yes it is. We’ve got a lot of work to do,” I tell him, getting dressed for the day. I open up the shutters of our hut, letting the morning sun hit his face. Raeden covers his face with the covers and I laugh. This is the new norm around here now.
Once he’s finally ready, we step out of our hut and into the Ventran village we’ve made our home. After the battle, a couple of years back now, we stayed behind to rebuild and, well, I couldn’t bring myself to leave after connecting so well with the people that live here. So, while we were adding new huts for the villagers, we decided to make some space for one of our own. Raeden and I arranged an official Ventran marriage ceremony shortly after, and I must say that the Ventrans can throw one hell of a wedding reception.
I say my usual hellos to the local shaman, and the men and women that dye fabrics to sell at the nearby marketplace. Children are numerous here, and they play happily in the forest, finding animals and teaching them how to help them farm the land. Sometimes they’ll bring me the treasures they find. Being the only human here has brought quite a lot of attention to us, but I’m grateful to find that everyone is very accepting of not only me, but of our marriage as well.
Rex also stayed behind, as well as several members of the Krillux army. They decided it was time to retire from a life of pillaging and fighting, and made a peaceful village of their own in the nearby valley, where Raeden and I are headed now.
Saving Ventra: Alien Romance (Lovers of Ventra Series) Page 6