Rigel

by Eli Ingle

  Hurtling towards the light, there was little they could do now to alter the course of events. Laurie, still at the controls, motioned for Rigel to come over. In an undertone, he murmured,

  “If this doesn’t all work out, then I’m sorry. We should have just left you. We were trying for a better life for you … if that doesn’t happen then I’m sorry.”

  Rigel patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t. It … it’s ok. It’s not your fault. But anyway, I’m glad you took me even if we do crash. I’ve had a better couple of hours here than I have had in the rest of my life.”

  Laurie snorted but gave him a weak smile anyway. Rattling and jolting, the ship travelled ever closer to the light.

  Then with an almighty flare it burst through, sending a flash cascading around them, illuminating the cabin and causing the pilots to wince at the brightness.

  As they left the wormhole, a different set of rules seemed to rule the ship – gravity became heavier and pulled the ship down faster than it had inside the wormhole. The failing engines made it even more difficult to keep the ship under control. Laurie, ever the inventive one, ordered his crew to cut the engines and pull out all the drag flaps. After the pilots followed his instructions, the ship fell deathly silent as the roar of the engines stopped. A mechanical whirr was heard as the drag flaps were opened. Silence followed, interrupted only by the rush of air.

  Standing up and moving over to the window, Rigel looked down at the land below. The ground appeared broken and hard but his view was obscured by clouds that kept blowing in front of the windscreen. Directing their course away from the broken ground, the pilots slowed the ship even more and attempted to bring it around.

  “Activating landing gear now,” said Spanner, preparing to spin a handle.

  “Engines back on and put them all into reverse!” said Laurie.

  “Yes, sir.”

  The roar filled the cabin and they slowed even more. Nearing the ground every second, the ship seemed to feel the oncoming impact, rattling all the harder and shaking violently.

  “Brace yourselves!” Face taut with determination, Laurie brought the Persefoni down to land as best he could.

  Shaking violently, they were thrown about like skittles as the ship rattled in. It hit the floor with a crunch and Rigel felt the landing gear rip off from the body of the ship. The Persefoni bounced, skidded, and bounced again before finally grinding to a halt.

  Rigel stayed on the floor, suddenly too exhausted to move.

  A clattering of shoes nearby made him turn his head and see Laurie swaying on the spot, holding his head where a bruise was quickly forming.

  “Damage report,” the Captain ordered.

  “Wires hanging from above, sparking occasionally,” reported Spanner. “Burst valve in the engine room … the ship’s damaged but not irreparable.”

  “Very well. Good job everyone. Glad to see we made it,” said Laurie.

  Rigel clambered to his feet, wincing as his legs cramped after being bent at an unpleasant angle.

  “Where are we?” he asked.

  “Location report,” Laurie instructed. When Rigel looked blankly at him, the Captain pointed at the window. “Go and have a look.”

  Moving to the window and wincing as he walked, Rigel peering outside to see a landscape that was not as otherworldly as he had expected. The floor was paved with slabs of white stone, cracked with age and bordered by weeds. In the distance a line of trees stood watch. Looking further afield he spotted what appeared to be the ruins of an old city. Buildings constructed out of the same stone that paved the floor were standing or crumbling, the pieces of old masonry blocking large sections of abandoned streets. An eerie fog hung around the buildings on the southern side, obscuring any view they might have of that direction.

  The sky lent the scene an unpleasant cast. Craning his neck, Rigel gasped as he spotted two suns, both almost three times bigger than the Earth’s sun, burning with a dark orange glow. Their distance should have rendered the planet inhospitable but their weak temperature produced no ill effects – only a strange light that gave the city the appearance of being under a constant sunset.

  “Where are we?” asked Rigel, after describing what he saw.

  “Absolutely no idea,” said Laurie. “Tink, where are we?”

  “Not a clue,” the mechanic grumbled, flicking a switch and getting no response from the screen in front of him.

  “Might as well go and have a look around,” commented Laurie.

  Quimby and L’aroche ventured deeper into the ship, returning a few minutes later laden with supplies packed in sturdy canvas bags. They were also carrying rifles that they distributed among the others.

  “Is that everything?” asked Laurie.

  “Yes sir,” replied L’aroche.

  “Good. Tink? Shut down the main engines but keep all the controls running. Reset them to defensive shutdown though.”

  “Very good, sir,” replied Tink, saluting.

  “Are you alright?” Laurie asked Rigel.

  He nodded but the Captain caught him looking wearily at the guns.

  “You’re worried that we’ve got these? Don’t be; it’s just a precaution. We don’t know what it’s going to be like out there. If it’s dangerous, then this way we have something to protect us.”

  “Oh, okay,” replied Rigel, feeling slightly better.

  Standing by the main door, Laurie pulled a lever, making the door open, and the stairs sprung out with a hiss from their concealed point under the ship. Rigel bumped into the Captain when he did not immediately exit the ship.

  “Hang on, hang on!” Laurie said, holding up a hand. “Not very clever to go wandering out there – how do you know if it’s safe to breathe?”

  Rigel opened his mouth to answer, realised he could not, and shut it again. He watched Laurie, who had pulled out a device that looked like a small television remote control except that it had three clear lights down the right hand side and a dial that spun around to the left. Sticking the device outside, he watched as the first light lit up green. Then the second showed orange. The third did not illuminate. The dial spun around almost in a full circle before coming to rest.

  “Alright, you lot,” said Laurie, descending the stairs. “The radiation’s a bit high but the air’s breathable. Just make sure we don’t stay exposed to the suns for too long. Move out!”

  Walking in a line, they crossed away from the ship and along the stone floor, at first seemingly unsure of their destination.

  “I guess it’s the city,” said Laurie, staring uneasily at the ruin. “It looks empty but there seems to be no other chance of finding help.”

  Rigel was feeling as uneasy as Laurie looked, but he nodded anyway and followed the procession ahead. The shade of the sky was changing, though, and they realised as they were halfway towards the ruin that both of the suns had nearly sunk behind the horizon, the second closely following the first.

  Sometime later they finally arrived at the edge of the city. The first sun had set; the second was rapidly sinking out of sight, splashing the buildings with a dull orange glow as it did so. The streets ahead were already shrouded in shadow, but another kind of darkness also seemed to cling to the edges … lurking. Laurie halted the procession, looking uneasily at the way ahead.

  Rigel noticed a sign constructed out of old pieces of wood. It was hung near to the entrance to the streets and dripping red paint spelt out words in another language. Rigel pointed it out to Laurie.

  “What does that say?” he asked. Laurie squinted up at it.

  “Can’t read it,” he said, frowning. “Hey, Tink. Can I borrow your Specs? Thanks.”

  Tink handed over a pair of binoculars that attached like glasses around his face. Looking up at the sign again, Rigel saw as the Captain’s face paled and he pulled the Specs off suddenly.

  “Well, what does it say?” asked Rigel.

  “The city has fallen. The dead have risen
. Now nought but the ghosts rule the streets. Enter and be damned.”

  Silence fell over the group. There was no help to be found here. Rigel, feeling scared even to be standing near to the edges of this haunted town, was just about to suggest that they went back to the Persefoni.

  Then they heard the girl scream.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  No longer thinking of their own safety, they ran down the streets, leaving the fading sunset behind and plunging into the darkened city. Tink pulled out several lanterns and handed them around. The light did not do much to stave off the darkness, but it gave them a little comfort to see its glow in the streets.

  They ran, trying and failing to locate the scream. Pulling out a glass ball, Tink (whose pockets seemed to be lined with technological treasures) squinted at it, apparently looking for something inside it. Rigel looked as well but could see nothing. The mechanic hit it in frustration.

  “It can’t lock onto her location because it didn’t hear the original scream,” he explained.

  From further in the city, another heart-wrenching wail filled the air.

  “There you go,” said Laurie, grimly.

  At once the machine burst to life: a red dot appeared near one edge and it emitted a pulsing beep.

  “This way,” he said, leading them down the street and through others.

  Soon they arrived in a large courtyard that was surrounded by the shells of large, empty houses. The line of pilots formed an eerie procession as they walked in.

  “Keep alert,” instructed Laurie. “She could be anywhere around here.”

  Loading their rifles, the group formed two lines. Rigel sighed, exhausted and scared, both of the city and whatever was making the girl scream. Shivering, he pulled his coat tighter around himself but seemed unable to draw the chill out.

  A flicker of movement caught Rigel’s eye; he turned his head to stare at one corner of the courtyard, attempting to work out what it was. There was a moment where he almost felt as if he could see a small face peering from a ruined window … then it disappeared. Rigel was just about to say something when the remaining sunlight faded completely. It was night and even their lanterns failed to make an impression. The pilots, muttering unhappily to each other, drew closer together. Had it not been for yet another scream, they might have all left the city there and then.

  “Come on, we’ve got to see what’s going on. She might be in trouble.”

  The pilots began to hurry away from the courtyard in their orderly manner, keeping a tight grip on the rifles. Rigel followed them but as they reached the other side of the courtyard, something strange happened. The world spun around and Rigel was stumbling forwards again back into the courtyard. He looked around, confused. What had happened? Turning around, he tried to leave again and was met by the same disorientating spinning sensation before finding himself back in the courtyard again.

  “Oh great,” he muttered. The other pilots had disappeared and Rigel was overwhelmed with a feeling of loneliness again. He walked into the middle and sat on a large slab of fallen stone. Why he should feel that he might never see the others again was unclear to him, but the feeling persisted, leading him into a spiral that brought old fears and insecurities back. He groped for his lantern before realising with a jolt that it was missing. He looked but could not see it anywhere.

  “Looking for this?” asked a smooth voice.

  Yelping, Rigel jumped to his feet as he spotted a man garbed in black standing at the entrance to the courtyard. He was holding the lantern at arm’s length, leaving his face in shadow.

  “You won’t be needing it, I don’t think,” said the figure. Exhaling sharply, he extinguished the flame. It should have been impossible – there was glass surrounding the light.

  “Who are you?” asked Rigel.

  “Who am I?” asked the figure, stepping a little closer. “That is a good question. I have many names. Here I am known as the Dark Angel. Rather a romantic name, isn’t it? The people gave it to me before I destroyed them. Yes, gave it to me as I descended from the black sky, with no idea what I had in store. I shall be sad to lose it when I leave but it is inconsequential. There are other places to go, other names to acquire.”

  Evil clung to the man. Rigel wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go and the pilots had left him. At least while the man was talking there was a possibility of finding something out from him.

  “So what happened here?” asked Rigel.

  “Here?” asked the man. He picked up a fist sized rock and threw it. It sailed across the courtyard, travelling further than it ought to before gliding through a shattered window with apparent ease. “Oh, this is nothing. I came looking for someone, that’s all.”

  “But where is everyone?”

  “A very good question. Where did they all go? Death will reveal all.”

  “You mean, they’re dead?” asked Rigel, feeling cold.

  “Yes.”

  “All of them?”

  “Quite.”

  “All dead?”

  “Very dead.”

  He couldn’t get his head around it.

  “How did you survive?”

  “A killer is not killed.”

  Rigel stared at the man, dread gnawing at his stomach. Before he had time to respond the Dark Angel was talking again.

  “I had great need of you but the people protected you and resisted me. That was their mistake …”

  “What do you want me for?!”

  “Well, I admit you weren’t the one we thought we were looking for. The records we have about you children are rather sketchy, so they were bound to provide some inaccurate information at one point.”

  Rigel blinked. When he opened his eyes again, the Dark Angel was gone. Turning around, he spotted him standing in a similar manner at the eastern entrance to the courtyard. The man smiled and sauntered closer.

  “Impress you?” he asked, walking closer still. “Amaze you? Scare you?”

  “What do you want?” asked Rigel, backing away. He tripped over a rock and fell onto the dusty floor. The resulting silence weighed heavily as the man considered him.

  “To take you back to where you belong, Ancient One. Too long we have lurked in the shadows, recovering from the last time our paths crossed. So we came back. The problem is: so did you. But you are weak and cannot seem to remember what filled your past …”

  Rigel tried not to let his emotions show but the unease of what the man said was strong. How many times had he wondered what had happened in the past, where his parents were? What else could he not remember? He scrambled to his feet again, brushing the grey dust off his coat, staring at the man.

  “No matter,” continued the Dark Angel. “Your lack of knowledge builds unease. Unease builds doubt. Doubt builds weakness. You will be easier to conquer this time. You have failed, oh Light One. What ought to be a defence mechanism to save you has left you weak and vulnerable. Pity. Despite making it easier for me, I would still have relished the prospect of one last fight. Nevertheless, the time for talking is over; we leave now for the Dark Realm. There I think we will find uses for your power … before you become useless to us.”

  Rigel turned on his heel and ran. With a snort of laughter the Dark Angel made a twisting motion with his hand and Rigel tripped, falling to the floor and bashing himself against the cold, hard stone. Every time he tried to stand up again, he was pulled down by an invisible force. Staying on the floor but turning over, he looked around but saw nothing.

  A moment later a foot rested heavily on his chest.

  “So glad you could join me,” the Dark Angel purred.

  Looking behind, Rigel saw the man grinning wickedly at him.

  “Come on, up you get.” Pulling him to his feet, the man started dragging Rigel away whilst he struggled, terror coursing through him.

  With a new breath of wind they heard discordant shouting filling the air. The man looked up, appearing amused.
r />   “Ah! I see your friends have walked into my trap. That is good, very good indeed.”

  The shouting grew louder as the Dark Angel dragged Rigel past the street the crew had gone down. The sound of rifles could be heard shooting, making the man chuckle as if amused before pulling Rigel further away.

  Rounding a corner, he was surprised when the Dark Angel stopped walking and hissed loudly.

  “What are you doing here, child?” he spat, raising a hand.

  A girl stepped into view. Her hair was almost a pure white, despite the fact that she looked less than twenty years old. She was wearing an old leather jacket covered in loose straps. She walked slowly towards the man, pointing with a many-ringed finger.

  “He’s not the one you’re looking for,” she said. “I am. He’s just come here by mistake.”

  “Really?” purred the man. He paused and cocked his head as if he were listening to something neither Rigel nor the girl could hear. “Yes. I see that you tell the truth … but I also see that he is One too.” The girl’s eyes widened and she stared at Rigel with an intensity that made him look away. “Yes … you were not expecting that, were you? Well, well, well, this is a pleasant surprise! I ravage the city attempting to find you, and get another in addition. Lucky. Me. Just tell me one thing, oh Light One. How did you escape me for so long? And what brings you to me now?”

  “I don’t know why you expect me to answer your questions,” she spat. “You of all people after what you did to my home. I’ve just come here to stop you.”

  “Good … good! So you are aware of the power within yourself? That is good. It will make it easier to … extract when the time is right.” He stretched out his hand towards her. “Come along,” he said briskly as if he were her father, expecting her to take his hand. “Let’s go.”