by Joe Crouch
“It’s absorbent so I won’t smell as bad,” he admitted, “I’m the precious little interesting alien on this planet, I’m going to play it up while I can.” With a sigh, she pulled him along to catch up with the others.
The large crowd looked at them both in different ways, she got glares of contempt and hatred while he got greeted by everyone in the friendliest manner, they couldn’t walk thirty foot without another Theran theatrically flailing its arms about telling him how interesting his species were. “I love this world, I wanna retire here,” he said after greeting what felt like the thousandth alien, “Everyone’s so friendly.” He received nothing more than a nonchalant shrug from his crewmates.
They turned off the busy street and found themselves down a lightly populated back alley. Flashing neon signs blared in their faces advertising all the various goods on sale in their respective shops, much of which looked to have seen better days. Gone were the extravagant, colourful shopfronts from the main street, instead replaced by the crumbling, run-down stores of the lower class and the criminal gangs. The area had a bad vibe to it, but Taris was certain this was where the best lambda was to be found, ‘The expensive stuff is only expensive because of its name’ she would say, he had to believe her, at least for now.
It didn’t take them long to find what they were looking for, a bright yellow sign that flashed and pointed them towards a lambda den which was nothing more than a jet-black door whose paint peeled away from the light metal material it was made from. As they drew in closer the sound waves from the thumping loud electronic music that came from the other side rippled through their clothes, with a single hand on the door handle he twisted and pulled the large hunk of metal towards him.
Beyond was a small room, tables and chairs were lined up against the decrepit walls, overhead decorations flashed different colours illuminating the entire den in a wash of bright light. Every head in the den turned to face them as they walked in and kept focus as they approached the bar, the place was decidedly hostile, and for Taris that made it all the more exciting.
Sat on a rickety old stool he looked around at the assortment of run down, gruff looking deadbeats who made up this establishment’s clientele, to his surprise an old looking Ioution sat in the corner, scars covered his sagging face as he sat with a single eye watching over everything that happened. The barperson, a dimly lit green Theran, plodded over to them and waited without saying a word, instead only looking Sean dead in the eye with a curiosity that chilled him to his core. “Four lambdas,” Taris ordered without preamble, “A squeeze of Um-Ghi in mine, too.”
“What do you think this place is, fleet freak, this isn’t some swanky bar back on Desciea, if you want Um-Ghi you go find me some damn Um-Ghi,” the bartender barked with a snap to its rugged voice. It didn’t take long for their drinks to arrive, the atmosphere in the bar was still, as if all eyes were on them, he knew their fleet uniforms didn’t help but usually they were a deterrent more than a target.
Sean picked up his glass, the thick, viscous liquid swished around the tube that he was to drink from, if hadn’t known better he would have assumed it was a shot of toxic waste. With a hesitant look to all those around him he poured the drink into his mouth, within moments it morphed into a type of cement that clung to his tongue. As long as it took to turn, it once more turned into an oddly smooth liquid that ran down his gullet, coating every surface in a warm, pleasant aftertaste that reminded him of blueberries.
“Wow,” he gasped, looking for words to describe the taste, “I’ve never had anything like that before, Fez was right, though, it is far too sweet.” With a huff Taris slammed the lambda down her neck, swishing it about in her mouth.
With a sudden change, the bar returned to a state he would deem normal, chatter filled the air as they each ordered their individual cocktails, sipping at them as time passed. With a tap on his shoulder, he turned to see the rugged Ioution stood towering over him, his destitute clothes hung freely from his malnourished body. “Human, correct?” he questioned, the man’s voice had experience to it, there was a deep rumbling that projected his underlying power to those around him. Confused, Sean looked at the Ioution with his mouth agape, unsure what to say, “You’re Human, I’ve seen you on the news,” the man added, this time pulling a stool over with a deafening screech across the floor.
“I am,” he replied hesitantly, “Look, I’m on vacation, I don’t really feel like signing autographs or taking pictures… here,” he said while he pulled out a small device, “Put your communicator on this and it’ll share the details of my PR team, get in touch with them for anything.” With a wry smile the Ioution gently pushed the device away, instead, he leant in closer.
“I know your crew’s mission,” he whispered, drawing an uncomfortable look from the squad, “I’ve detected it, too, as have many more who stay tuned to those frequencies.” A glum mood descended upon them, if this man knew about it then scavengers, as well as pirates, must know about it, too. Their only saving grace was that the outer rim was a dangerous place to go without the right preparation, anyone… or anything they encountered out there would have had to expend significant resources to get there. Whatever they were going to find it would more-than-likely be surrounded and scavenged by those with a head start as well as those who had access to powerful equipment…
Chapter 6
Bickering amongst themselves, the crew of the Mar’Ell decided to return to the cruiser and report the new information to the High Council. With a concerned look over towards the ageing Ioution, they rose from their seats and headed towards the rickety door which separated the loud noise of the bar from the relative tranquillity of the outside world. Fez led the way, with a hearty push on the solid metal exit they were exposed to the light wind which gusted down the narrow alley with a ghostly whistle. Sean’s Human instincts were in overdrive, the lack of pedestrians, as well as the bolted closed shops and windows, sent him bad signals. Using his elbow, he prodded his Captain in the side and spoke up, “I think this is an ambush,” he whispered, listening for the faintest of noises to alert him to another presence.
“Is this your famous instincts again,” Taris groaned, air quoting with her long fingers because she had heard it all before, “Last time you used your instincts we ended up half way across the city and…” She was interrupted by a blaster bolt slamming into the sandstone wall of the bar, debris ejected outwards as three of them dropped to a single knee. Yumie stood in shock, unsure what to do, only a forceful tug from Fez brought him crashing to the soft sediment covered ground. Lacking equipment, the team scattered, each took up position behind cover to avoid fire, energy blasts tore at the stone leaving a thin mist that wafted through the humid atmosphere.
“What do we do?” Sean shouted to the others who patted themselves down, looking for anything they could use as a weapon, “Does anyone have anything?” Out from his jacket Fez pulled a small device. He took aim at the shadowy figures that hid behind large stone pillars and fired off a single blast. The arcing blue energy snaked towards its target, eventually impacting nothing more than the column. Relentlessly, they were assaulted, the fire didn’t subside but a lone figure appeared above Sean, stood heroically against the sun on the rooftop.
“Take this,” the being shouted. A small plastic box landed beside him in a cloud of kicked-up sand. Tearing the top of the crate open revealed four pistols aligned neatly along two sliding rails. Picking out the weapons he threw them amongst the crew, keeping the final one for himself. Cautiously, he peeked around the corner and let off a single blast, a bolt of luminous green plasma fizzed at unimaginable speeds towards the entrenched enemy. In a detonation that rippled through the air a chunk of their cover was evaporated into nothing more than a cloud of dust. Weapons fire continued streaking towards them from both sides, scorch marks were burnt into the rugged walls which protected them as they took pot shots at the hidden foe.
“Got him!” Yumie cried, “I took one of them down.” There w
as no time for celebration, though, as a small spherical device landed in the sand with a thud. Without time to react the device expanded with four small antennae, propelled itself up into the air and glowed a blinding blue light. With what felt like someone pulling on his shirt Sean was yanked out from cover by the gravitational power the sphere produced. He came crashing down face first into the loose sand as his crewmates followed suit, they were exposed to the onslaught that was bound to come, but nothing came. Instead, while being held in place with waves that pushed them deeper into the ground, three aliens strolled up towards them, it was a race he didn’t recognise but was about to become familiar with.
“Nice shirt,” the being proclaimed, pointing towards his flamboyant yellow attire. The two men and a women looked almost identical, their skin was as black as charcoal, ears that laid flush against their fine, elongated, chiselled faces finished with a point that looked as if it could skewer him alone. Their eyes burned a demonic red as the leader knelt beside Sean, as he drew closer he noticed the cybernetic implants that ran down the man’s neck. “Do you know who we are, Human?” the man asked with a smooth but piercing voice, “We’re the Aeyreon Collective,” he answered without giving Sean time to think. “It’s funny we should meet you here, Sean, there’s some people out there that want to see your group fail, I can’t say I’m one of them, I love a good story, but they do pay well,” he said, running his hand through his thick head of hair.
“Who would want us to fail?” Sean quivered, the sight of the new being was an imposing one, one that instilled fear into him as he looked the alien up and down, unable to move.
“That is a good question,” the man smirked, confident in his own ability, “Who would want your ragtag group of Ioution fleet brothers captured, or killed, I had no specific instructions,” he shrugged. Drawing in closer he got into Sean’s face and began to whisper, “Thing is, I’m too old for all of this, hunting targets across the galaxy at my employer’s whim for little pay and few actual benefits,” he said, contemplating the situation.
“Well…” Sean sighed, “Kill us then, get your reward and return home to wherever you came from you piece of shit,” he spat.
“Whoa, calm down,” Taris shouted, “You may not know who they are, but I certainly do.” With a confused glance around, he noticed the remainder of his team looking on in anticipation, almost as if they were worried at what he may say. Getting to one knee the alien let out a large breath as he struggled to bend down.
“Look here, I’ll be blunt with you, I want to come explore with the fleet, my last hurrah around the galaxy and I hear you’re off to find something pretty exciting,” it said, serious in its tone. With a raised eyebrow towards Fez, Sean pointed his head towards the being, instructing the captain to provide him with an answer.
“I’m Feghouli-Azer-Taren, Captain of the Ioution Fleet cruiser Mar’Ell and I order you to release us, I know all about your vile race,” Fez bellowed, puffing out his chest in a sign of dominance.
“You? A Captain?” the man laughed hysterically, “The mighty Ioution Fleet will hire anybody it seems these days,” he said after composing himself. “Captain, may I come aboard your ship and assist in any way I can until the end of my years,” he asked, looking behind him he covered his mouth as if to tell a secret, “Which aren’t many by the way,” he whispered.
“Will you get us out of here?” Sean asked. Taking that as a final answer the man stood, grabbing the pistol from his belt he shot over their heads killing the assailant that took guard behind them. Dropping to the floor he let off two more rounds, killing the others who blocked their route back to the ship, with a wink back to Sean he waved his blaster about, cooling it from the intense action.
“So, what do you say?” he asked. The entire team remained silent, waiting for him to decide, why the task fell on him he didn’t know, but for now, it was his responsibility. After a moment of silence, he looked up at the man.
“So, what’s your name?” Sean asked.
“Zarid, Zarid Shumer,” he replied. With a tap on the topside of the grenade the pulses which held them in place dissipated. Pushing himself up he shook the sand out from his clothes and held out his hand.
“Nice to meet you, Zarid… I think,” he said, still cautious of what the newest member of their crew could do. Turning, he saw the watchful gaze each one of his squad gave Zarid, he knew the alien would have to gain their trust but he had a good feeling about him, sometimes trust had to be extended instead of earnt.
Gathering up the equipment that was scattered across the street, they dumped it all in the box and handed it to Zarid, “First task, carry this,” Taris barked, slamming the crate into his chest. Waving to the locals as they strolled away from the chaotic scene behind them they made their way out from the alley and back onto the bustling main street.
“So, I’ve never seen your race before, Zarid, tell me more about them,” Sean questioned.
“I’m part of a race called the Fre, we come from a planet called Koran that sits in the Barix system. Years past we were genetically modified to be stronger, faster, more durable, we were the slaves of the galaxy, used carelessly in dangerous mining operations and space salvage,” Zarid answered. “The masters decided they could get even more work out of us if they enhanced our bodies with cybernetics, while they weren’t wrong it had unintended side effects. With the close bonds we as Fre share, the nanomachines held within the cybernetics latched onto that and built long range communicators inside our minds to maintain our close ties. So, unwittingly the masters gave us a technology to secretly communicate over vast distances, this eventually led to a coordinated rebellion and here we are today, we called ourselves the Fre and took up residence on Koran.” With his mouth agape and wanting to know more, he looked at Zarid with a passion that he hadn’t felt for many other races.
“That’s an incredible story,” he admitted, still processing what had been said, “Where are the masters these days? They couldn’t have all been killed off I imagine.”
“A clear majority were,” he sneered, “We offered them the chance to work for us, not as slaves but as equals, and to no one’s surprise relinquishing power was not easy for them, so they ended up in the lava pits.”
The light breeze that rolled down the road seemed to halt at the mention of mass executions, the atmosphere felt heavy and turgid the more he thought about it. Silence took over as they strolled around the city but a thought took hold within Sean’s mind, who was that who threw us weapons he thought, was it someone we knew? His chain of thought was interrupted as a communication came down to Fez, the acting captain let him know that the ship had been refuelled and that they were ready to disembark.
“Alright everyone, make sure you’ve gotten everything you need before you head back to the shuttle, we won’t be stopping for a while, if at all,” Fez announced. With a nod the captain walked towards the shuttle with everyone apart from Sean and Taris in tow, they wanted to stay behind to make a few last-minute purchases.
“Can you believe that Zarid stuff?” Sean asked, “I’ve never heard of anything like it, it’s absolutely mental.”
“Not only can I believe it, I know it’s all true,” Taris replied while flicking through an assortment of alien meats that were stacked on a table. With a questioning glance from her significant other she elaborated, “When I was part of the hunters back in my ‘old life’,” she emphasised with air quotations, “We heard there was a lot of money to be made helping them out, so we took a small team and went to assist, the rumours about the credits were rubbish but the carnage… That was undersold.” With a shake of his head, he paid the Theran behind the counter for the meats and headed off down the street, searching for a place to buy a few bottles of Lambda for their trip.
It didn’t take long for night to take hold across the world, although within this binary system night was more akin to dusk as a bright red palate washed across the sky. Arriving at the spaceport they noticed their inpatient t
eam fidgeting beside the shuttle, with a coy wave the duo approached with their heads held in shame. “What took you so long?” Yumie asked, “Did you buy the entire world?”
“Almost,” Sean sighed, “Just look at all this rubbish,” he said, holding up the vast array of bags he dragged along with him. It didn’t take long for the team to prepare for flight, but as Sean was about to close the outer door a familiar Theran skittered towards him at high speeds, kicking up the sand behind him. “Cestos,” he smiled, watching as the flamboyant alien made his way up the ramp.
“Oh hello there,” Cestos beamed, “I thought I’d come and see everyone a final time before you departed,” it said, looking around checking if anyone was watching them, deciding it was safe it leant in closer, “How did you like that little care package I dropped for you?”
“You,” Sean gasped, “You dropped those weapons down to us? Not that we managed to do much with them, it was only a matter of luck that we escaped that one.”
“And a new ally, I gather,” it smiled, “Be careful of that one, friend, their race is only loyal if the credits are good, treat him with a dishonest eye at all times and keep your back armoured.” With a quick glance into the compartment, Sean saw Zarid and Fez deep in discussion, there appeared to be no hostilities… yet.
“I’ll take it into consideration,” he replied, worried the Theran had some prejudice against the Fre. “Is there anything else I can help you with, Cestos? We’re cleared for atmospheric exit so have to get going in a minute.”