Viole(n)t Skies (The Galactic Era Book 1)

by Derek Baker

  He nodded and we kept creeping in a hunched over position as if it were to make us cause less noise in the underbrush of the nighttime woods.

  My thoughts returned as to what we might be heading towards. Scarcely did I believe in those moments venturing through the woods that my life was about to change forever.

  Gaining ground, the distant landing site gave off a bluish glow that penetrated through the dark forest, into the shrubbery on the ground and into the canopy over our heads. Its brightness urged us ever more to immerse ourselves in the shadows, going from tree to tree in a zigzag path. Whether it was a real physical symptom or just my emotional reaction to the situation, this luminescence gave me an eerie and queasy feeling in my stomach, almost as if it were designed for that very purpose.

  Again to what I thought was my imagination, the glow the blue light projected into the forest changed without warning to an even more uneasy tint of green. With the passing of a few minutes, the light once more changed to yellow.

  By this point, we were within a hundred yards of the object, and we were then able to discern the outline of the craft through the trees and shrubbery, but still not the fine details. We could see, however, that it occupied a clearing in the woods and we began to hear strange unrecognizable voices from the clearing. If I wasn’t convinced that we were spying on something not meant for our eyes to see before, I was now.

  Closer and closer we inched to the tree line that separated the rest of the woods to this grassy field in the middle of nowhere. The voices grew louder, but the words intelligible, and it occurred to me that we were not hearing English but a language I had never heard before. Alexander and I stopped again and made a plan in whispered voices.

  “When we get to tree line, let’s say we take a quick look and then sneak back to camp?” I could barely even hear myself, but Alexander nodded in agreement showing he understood.

  “Delvon, what if, these, people… aren’t really people? What if…”

  “Aliens? I... guess we’ll find out.” I tried to stifle my breathing, believing its noise to be deafening and revealing.

  There was no more time to waste simply talking about it. The suspense was killing us as we had been traveling so slowly to maintain silence. We crossed the last few yards separating us from our view into the clearing and crouched down trying to stay hidden. Brushing aside part of a bush in my way, I gazed out over the field upon a sight that has stuck with me as one of the most unforgettable images in my entire life.

  This object we had seen flying through the sky a short while before was clearly a UFO by my book. Never before had I seen such a craft; it was most definitely not of this world. While it did somewhat resemble a plane, its metallic features and hardened look joined by what looked to be rocket boosters at its rear made it obvious to me that this craft was intended for none other than space travel. However, as I had seen, it was more than capable of traveling as a plane would through the Earth’s atmosphere. Who knows how fast it could go without the lure of gravity. It was just as large as I described before, though in height it stood upon poles that extended about ten feet high from the ground to the bottom of the ship. From there the ship went another twenty feet high to the top. On each side a wing was positioned and the tail end of the ship looked like that of an Earth aircraft. Indeed, its capacity to soar through both clouds and cosmos was quite evident.

  At the front it had a cockpit from which it could be navigated. All of the angles of the ship were smooth and no fine edges could be seen on its surface. The craft was subtly intimidating. As spectacular and awesome as the sight of this ship proved to be, its occupants, walking around on the ground around the vessel from which they came, were far more amazing.

  These people that came from this ship were anything but human. They were at least two feet taller than the average man, their height enhanced by strange, short tendrils that extended from their heads that resembled hair. From these tendrils a short forehead went down to two narrow and crescent-shaped eyes that appeared menacing in nature. Their nose was what appeared to be two nostrils that rested in the middle of their face with a small space separating them towards the bottom. Two slits that came from the sides of their heads and partially onto their faces resembled ears. Perhaps the most fearsome feature on their face was a large, wide open mouth filled with both top and bottom rows of sharp yellow teeth.

  Their skinny necks were about as long as the average humans but connected their heads to very broad, defined shoulders. Like their necks, their arms were also skinny but looked to be quite muscular. At the end of each was a hand with four middle fingers and an opposable thumb on both sides. This feature I found most fascinating. I wondered what anthropological properties necessitated this function that alluded humans.

  Their torso was as well defined as the shoulders and the muscles of their abdomen practically bulged through the tight fabric they wore over their bodies. Their legs were covered in the same fabric but it was apparent that they were skinny like the arms. I imagined their feet to be much like their visibly useful hands but I could not see them as these creatures wore slipper-like footwear over them.

  Last but not least, their intriguing two-thumbed hands held on to what looked like guns of some sort. For the moment I ignored this detail, letting my imagination run wild…

  As Alexander and I gazed upon the scene I wondered as to the purpose of these creatures being here. There were plenty of possibilities; of course, I had been well versed in science fiction. Such literature often goes hand in hand with astronomical interests, all woven into a similar hobby. They could be here to study our planet, maybe to conquer us, or perhaps their arrival was entirely accidental. In any case, my mind’s perception of the universe had been sealed forever.

  No longer would I doubt that we humans were alone in the universe, no longer would the taunts of other people hurt me when I tried to explain the logic of there being other intelligent life forms out there. I now believed every single person that had claimed to be abducted by aliens. There was not a doubt in my mind that we had been visited frequently by these creatures in our past. In that case, the legends that our government had held them captive in secret military bases were probably true as well. While part of me felt that this moment could be a turning point in history for human kind, I remembered the possibility that these creatures could be hostile, and the last thing I wanted was to be killed or kidnapped.

  Taking another look at the weapons, with a fear rising up in my chest, I whispered to Alexander, “Maybe we should leave, man. You see those things they’re holding? I bet they could use those to kill us in an instant.”

  “Or stun us,” he replied, applying his knowledge on science fiction, “Who knows. There’s no telling. They’re not human, so their psychology could be all different.”

  “I think our best bet is to just get out of here. Before they know we’re here.”

  “But no one is going to believe us, Delvon.”

  “Well, let’s take a picture, then.”

  I got out my night vision camera from my back pocket that I always took with me when stargazing. It was always a trusty tool if I wanted to zoom in on something in the sky and take a picture; such was the case for Halley’s Comet on that particular night. I looked at the picture of the comet I had taken earlier; it seemed like an eternity ago that I had taken it. Disbelief swelled inside of me. In just one night I had completed a child dream and more importantly discovered for myself that aliens truly did exist.

  Engrossed in my task of taking a photo and the hushed conversation with Alexander, neither one of us took note of the rustling in the bushes directly behind us until it was too late. Suddenly, a loud, guttural growl rang out and we sprung around in time to see one of the previously mentioned aliens heading right for us. Its face was most especially horrifying up close and personal. All of the hair on my body shot up and my spine shivered in the instant that it took me to duck out of the way as this monster leaped upon us. Noise was no longer an issue
as our would-be assailant made what sounded to be a warning call out to its allies for help. Apparently subtlety was not a key in how these creatures hunted their prey.

  Abandoning our every-man-for-himself idea, Alexander and I sprinted away arm in arm trying to retrace the path we had taken from our campsite.

  “If we can get to my truck,” Alexander panted, “I have a handgun there and maybe –”

  “We don’t stand a chance! It’s us in a pick-up truck versus them in a starship!” I shrieked.

  Over our own noise we made running through the woods I could hear the alien following behind grunting. A few seconds later I started to hear more footsteps coming after us. How fast they were and if they gaining on us I couldn’t tell, but I ran harder and faster than I had ever thought possible. It’s interesting what man can achieve with adrenaline.

  After a chase that felt much longer than it truly had been, we miraculously stumbled back to our camp site, our telescopes untouched since our departure. Halley’s Comet still glimmered beautifully in the night sky, seemingly undisturbed.

  Though everything was as we had left it, we should have known better than believe these aliens didn’t know our intentions. I wondered if they were telepathic or had just scouted our location earlier, but either way, our hopes of putting up a fight to these creatures all but evaporated when the truck that served as our last attempt at salvation burst into flames right when we reached it. The sudden blast of fire showered onto my clothing and I immediately dropped and rolled on the ground to extinguish the source of the burns now singeing parts of my body. I should have felt pain, I could subconsciously sense it, but I was giving every amount of energy left to escaping.

  Those short few seconds that it took to prevent death by fire were all the aliens needed to completely surround Alexander and me. They now stood around us, watching us closely as we huddled against one another, back to back. Our only option by now, it appeared, was to try to communicate with them and see if peace could be reached. For a short moment, after rising from the ground, Alexander and I stood back to back facing these aliens and their gruesome faces returned the shock that was evident in the way my eyes darted back and forth among them. There were about ten of them, some taller and more fear-striking than others, and the smallest one almost looked to be a female.

  The silent interaction between us was broken when I decided I had better speak up and see if they understood me.

  I took a quick look at Alexander. The shadows danced his face from the light given off by the flames of his charred truck. Sweat glistened and dripped from the ends of his hair.

  “Hello,” I started, trying to speak slowly and clearly, “we mean you no harm. We were just curious as we have never seen your kind before. Please let us go and we promise we will never mention your presence out here.”

  It seemed like a reasonable thing to say, but it seemed to have no effect on the aliens as the one I believed to have discovered us commenced to speak in its strange tongue to its comrades. I wondered what they were saying, though the thought was short-lived.

  “Watch out!” I heard Alexander shout.

  Without warning I was struck in the side of the head and I fell down managing to catch myself with my hands. Then a sharp stabbing sensation, evidently a needle, entered through my neck and everything started to go black. I stared straight ahead, laying on my side. The last thing I remember seeing before unconsciousness took over was my camera flashing the picture of Halley’s Comet I had taken only hours before. So much for a photograph of these kidnapping fiends.

  Chapter 8

  “Your Taude meat, your highness.”

  The platter was set before him, delicately and with a trembling fear. He picked up the slab of meat whole in his double-thumbed hand, perfect for strangling, and gave it a long stare before engulfing it in his mouth. His yellow fangs ripped the bloody mess apart. Juices ran down his chin, staining the platter below.

  “Is it as you would like, your highness?”

  His eyes widened. “It’s chewy!”

  The one who brought him the platter cowered. “I’m….deeply sorry.” Tears welled up in his eyes.

  “Are you kidding? It’s just the way I like it!”

  “Ohhh….” His relief was annoyingly obvious to the Emperor. He refuted, however, “I thought Taude was preferred served tender, your highness?”

  The Emperor’s brow sunk. “Come here, boy.” His thumbs beckoned the chef towards him.

  “Perhaps to you people who live on the world of Genmo Kaya, Taude meat is preferred served tender. However, the Wendran Emperor Albalon the Fourth prefers his Taude chewy. Do you know why this is?”

  The trembling returned to the chef. Before he could answer, the Emperor continued, “I’ll tell you why. One reason is physical: My fangs are sharp and need tough things to keep them in pristine shape. The second reason is symbolic. The chewy nature of this Taude meat you served represents ancient struggles for my race. For generations we fought and hunted these creatures –which, I should point out, are native to our planet and not yours– until we finally captured them and domesticated them. One species had dominated another. The Wendrans are a species of conquest. What we achieved against the Taude we shall duplicate time and time again with each new world we encounter. We have already proven successful against you pathetic Genmo Kayans.”

  The chef refused to meet eyes with the Emperor, not saying a word.

  “Does this seem clear to you?” the Emperor pressed, his voice bellowing through the chamber.

  The chef shook with fright, unable to speak.

  “DO YOU UNDERSTAND OR NOT!?!?”

  The chef’s mouth moved to speak, his jaw’s muscles making the motions but no audible response came. At the point of convulsion, his head finally gave what appeared to be a nod.

  “Excellent.”

  In that moment, Albalon’s closest advisor and right hand man Quansor came into the Emperor’s dining room.

  He took in the scene around him: The cunning smile on the Emperor’s face, the near-seizure the poor Genmo Kayan was experiencing. Up to his usual tricks, it would appear, thought Quansor.

  “Ah! Quansor! Just the man I wanted to see!” the Emperor’s face instantly turned to delight. “Come, sit with me.”

  Quansor strode over to the table, taking his normal place by the Emperor’s side.

  “Boy, fetch my good friend Quansor here some more of that Taude meat. But this time, make it tender. That’s the way he prefers it.”

  The chef, however, was unable to move, distraught and overwhelmed with fear. His eyes focused on the floor, refusing to look up at the source of terror.

  The Emperor sighed with annoyance. “Boy, this is your last chance. GET THE TAUDE OR DIE!!!!”

  Knees trembling, the chef managed to turn around, miserably walking out the chamber doors to complete his task.

  When he returned, he did all he could to avoid eye contact with the ferocious Emperor. He set the plate before Quansor, politely adding: “Here is your Taude, sir. Enjoy.”

  As he tried to walk away, Albalon couldn’t resist what he did next. “Oh, boy: one more thing before you’re dismissed.”

  The chef stopped dead in his tracks, slowly turning around. “Yes, your highness?” He couldn’t help but look into those menacing, yellow, crescent-shaped eyes that marked the Wendran race.

  “You’re relieved of duty, boy.” And with that, the Emperor quickly withdrew his hand laser, firing upon the chef with one quick shot. One shot was all it took.

  It appeared not to phase the Emperor at all, calmly re-harnessing his weapon. He motioned to the guards at the door, as if to say: Take that thing out of my sight.

  If the Emperor wasn’t excited about the matter, it certainly affected his assistant, Quansor. He tried to contain himself from his own fear of his boss. “Your highness, are you alright?” His voice unmistakably quavered.

  That’s right, my pawn, my darling Quansor, fear me, thought Albalon before res
ponding.

  Aloud he spoke: “Why yes, never better, my lad. I resolve only to practice one of my fundamental beliefs in dealing with those lower than myself.”

  How casually he explains away this meaningless murder, thought Quansor. Then he said, “And what belief is that, my lord?”

  “I think you know fairly well, Quansor. Authority, in my experience, lies with the strong, or the assertive who can grasp this power. Oppression consequently is the reward for weakness and stupidity. Opportunity to gain power must never be missed. This is how I became the man and leader that sits before you today. This is how I ended the civil war that reigned after my father’s death with the death of my siblings. This is how I took the fledging world of Wendra and turned it into an imperial might.”

  “Speaking of your father, you sound like him when you speak thus.”

  “I’m much better than that damned fool,” the Emperor confided, staring off into the distance in reminiscence. “Never would I ignorantly forgo choosing a successor. If I had been him I would have obviously chosen my elder brother Traquor, but we both know how that turned out.”

  Quansor blinked, nodded in agreement.

  Albalon continued, “History teaches us lessons, Quansor. I learned from my father’s greatest mistake and have already chosen my son Beltrush to succeed me after my death.”

  “So it’s already been approved by the House?” Quansor asked.

  “Indeed. Not that it would matter to me if they did anyway. Soon I’ll do away with that uselessness.”

  Quansor looked intrigued. “Do away with them?”

  “That’s correct. When this war with Robhustare is over the masses will cling to me. That will be the perfect time to dispose of the House. The people will agree with me.”

  “Ah yes. Robhustare…” Quansor said with a seductive tone.

  “My last opposition before Wendra controls this entire sector…” the Emperor muttered.

  Both the Emperor’s and Quansor’s head dropped in conspiracy. Here lied the reason for Quansor’s arrival in the Emperor’s chamber. After all, Quansor was Albalon’s right hand man, his main advisor in military affairs. He had basically designed Wendra’s entire conquest up to that date.