“The question is flawed,” Rax said. “Sand’s subterranean Great Machine has created a portal barrier around your world. One needs extra equipment like the chronowarp we used once to reach a different portal in a side dimension to the Eshom home world.”
“I’d forgotten about that. Is this a different side dimension?”
“Negative,” Rax said. “This is an alien world far from your Solar System.”
“Uh…like this planet is in the Orion Spiral Arm?”
“Correct,” Rax said.
“How many light-years are we from Earth, anyway?”
“That is immaterial to our plan.”
Passing the portal, I reached the tree line, listening carefully for dinosaurs. I heard some squawks in the distance, presuming them to be primitive birds or possibly small pterodactyls.
I found a large mossy rock, leaning my butt against it so I could do some thinking.
“The station computer told us Sand had cranked up the Great Machine,” I said shortly. “We know the machine blocks the Antarctica portal from the Shadow Dimension. Did we bounce when trying to get to Earth and get redirected here?”
“You must know that is incorrect.”
“Okay, genius, maybe it’s time you told me about Plan B. Maybe you should tell me why you think our enemy is a Polarion. I get the feeling you used the Asteroid Belt portal to take us here. I’d like to know how you did that and then why, and I’d also like to know why more Gigantopithecuses didn’t come through.”
“You are not rated for such classified knowledge.”
“Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah,” I said. “Okay. We’re past that. Now give me the scoop.”
“Are you attempting to be funny?”
“No, Rax. I’m pissed off and scared. I’m on a freaking alien planet with no way home. You’d better start talking and telling me what you have in mind. I know you think you’re hot stuff, a Galactic Guard Advisor, but I’m the arms and legs here, and I’m also a being with free will.”
“What is your point?” asked Rax.
“I can set you down and leave you if I desire. So, you’re going to fill me in on the full plan or I’m taking a hike.”
“That is a weak threat, but it was the correct response.”
“What’s that mean?” I said.
“Argon has placed restrictions on what I may say to you. Since he needs me and needs even more what I am to collect, I can confide in you. Otherwise, the odds of my succeeding—because of your failing cooperation—fall below acceptable parameters.”
“Say that again.”
“Here are the reasons and the essence of Plan B,” Rax said.
-24-
“By the way,” Rax said, “while I am letting you know what we are attempting, I suggest you head deeper into the jungle. For the present, you are safe from dinosaurian predators.”
“Should I head in a particular way?” I asked.
“Most definitely. Go east.”
“Which way is that?”
“Yes. I understand your confusion. Head straight into the jungle in relation to the portal. You should come to a jungle trail in half a mile.”
“And this trail will take us to where we want to go?” I asked.
“I am hoping so, but that may not be the case.”
“Okay, Rax,” I said, shouldering the rifle and cinching the belt pack around my waist. I had taken a beating tumbling across the sand, and I was still sore from fighting Ailuros’s basilisks, but I felt fit otherwise. I was confused as all get out and more than a little mad at Rax for holding everything secret.
“I am not sure where to begin,” Rax said.
“How about from the beginning?”
“Excellent advice, but I am wondering from which beginning.”
“Figure it out, genius.”
“Argon is a devious and clever fellow even for a Polarion,” Rax said. “He foresaw some of what happened and therefore put safeguards in me. Most of those safeguards appear to have disappeared.”
“That makes total sense.”
“You are being sarcastic?” Rax asked.
“What clued you in?”
“Sand has captured Argon,” Rax said. “You saw direct evidence of that in the subterranean realm before you went to Antarctica. Sand had erred, however. Argon—Polarions in general—often have more than one avenue of succor.”
“What’s that mean? Succor?”
“Help, relief, assistance. In this instance, I am referring to self-help. Argon used a Polarion form of mental communication with me. At first, I suspect it was merely for us to rescue him from Sand’s captivity. You have freed Argon once already in the past, from the Starcore.”
“Years ago,” I said.
“It has not been that long.”
“It feels like it. But the Starcore is dead or destroyed, anyway.”
“That comment was a non-sequitur, but you are correct in assuming the Starcore plays a part in the tale. It was a sentient crystal entity with vast power. You do remember that much, I hope.”
“Sure, sure, the Starcore was a mad Polarion’s construct for funneling cosmic energy. Its creator was driven even crazier using it, though.”
“That is sufficient, Logan. At the time we fought it, you saw many of the Starcore’s stasis-held creatures in subterranean Greenland.”
“I remember,” I said. “Kazz the Neanderthal and Philemon the Homo habilis used to be in stasis there. Hey, wait a second. Was that a clue for you—the Gigantopithecuses?”
“Yes. The Gigantopithecuses were another slave race to the Starcore. I believe the Starcore or its Polarion master—in the beginning, anyway—sent the Gigantopithecuses to a different world.”
“So…when the Gigantopithecuses attacked the Antaran Saturn station, you knew all this was going to happen?”
“No,” Rax said. “But Argon set up parameters in me. The appearance of Gigantopithecuses was a trigger, among others. I now believe I know the identity of the Ocelot’s pirate captain.”
“How could you or Argon possibly have known in advance?”
“Not in advance,” Rax said. “I did some research while on the Polarion Asteroid station.”
“And the station computer?”
“There was irregularity at work on the station, certainly. I do not know if Ailuros or the Ocelot’s captain were the reason, or if the computer had gone Hal.”
“Gone Hal?” I asked. “You mean from 2001 Space Odyssey?”
“That is the correct cultural reference, yes.”
“Fine, you don’t know why the computer went crazy at the end.”
“That is what I said.”
“What did you find on the Asteroid station?”
“Confirmation and information concerning the possible Polarion in charge of the Gigantopithecus shock troopers. I am seventy-nine percent sure of his identity, as he was a special servitor of the Starcore.”
“Did you tell me about him before?”
“No. He was a secret agent, one I had believed forever neutralized. Now, according to my research, he has awakened from stasis and reentered circulation. He has come many hundreds of light-years to reach the Solar System. Along the way, clearly, he pirated the Ocelot.”
“And he’s a bastard of the first order?” I asked.
“I do not understand—oh, you mean he is exceedingly dangerous?”
“Sure,” I said.
“He is likely the most dangerous Polarion of them all. In the distant past, the Starcore suborned him and awarded him extra powers. He had become the Starcore’s nuclear option.”
“So…how bad of a dude are we talking about here?”
“You have referred to Polarions before as gods, is that not so?”
“You know I have,” I said.
“Nerelon Brontios or Nerelon Thunderer is his name.”
“Thunderer like in Thor the Norse god?”
“Not quite,” Rax said. “In Norse mythology, Thor is strong but often acted in
a simplistic manner. Nerelon Brontios is not simple. He has great strength, great power like Thor, but perhaps also the cunning of Loki.”
“You mean he’s hard to kill?”
“That is exactly what I mean. That is why we came here as part of Plan B.”
“What is Plan B?” I asked.
“Forging a weapon to slay Nerelon Brontios, which will in turn allow us to dispatch the Gigantopithecuses and regain control of the Ocelot. That, in turn, will save your planet from destruction.”
“We can’t make a deal with this Nerelon dude and send him on his way?”
“Doubtful,” Rax said.
“Okay, I’ll bite. What is so important about Earth that Nerelon whatever-his-name has to destroy the planet?”
“Sand and whatever Polarions he can awaken will attempt to stop Nerelon. In the fight, your planet will surely face worse than nuclear winter.”
“That doesn’t answer the question about what’s on Earth that Nerelon wants.”
“Revenge, for one thing,” Rax said. “The other is the X-Sphere.”
“Oh, of course, the X-Sphere,” I said. “Sure. That makes total sense.”
“How do you know about the X-Sphere? It is the most dangerous weapon and device on your planet. It is extremely well hidden. If Lord Beran had not forced open the way to the Shadow Realm, Sand would not have needed to uncover…”
“Go on,” I said. “This is interesting.”
“You were being sarcastic a moment ago.”
“You’re pretty sharp, there, little buddy.”
Rax didn’t respond right away. The sounds of my footfalls and rustling ferns took his voice’s place. I was starting to get seriously hot and wondering when we would find this footpath.
“What do you have in way of armaments?” Rax asked softly.
“The little blaster I took from Ailuros, my fists and the Polarion rifle,” I said. “Why, what’s the problem?”
“Gigantopithecuses,” Rax said even more softly. “They are following us. I count ten of them.”
“Ten, huh? That’s a few too many for the rifle to take out all at once.”
“No. You do not understand. There are also…”
“Yeah?” I asked.
“Basilisks,” Rax said several seconds later. “And if my scanning is accurate, I sense Ailuros as well.”
“With the Gigantopithecuses?”
“That is odd. I sense two separate groups. I do not understand this, Logan. Something backfired.”
I didn’t know what he meant.
“The Gigantopithecuses have halted,” Rax said. “I believe they are turning around. Logan, they must be setting up an ambush against Ailuros and her basilisks.”
“Not my problem,” I said.
“It might be. Ailuros…I cannot fathom why she has come or how she was able to use the portal to reach here.”
I halted and cocked my head. I heard the whine of distant laser rifles. Were the Gigantopithecuses murdering the basilisks and Ailuros? Thinking about that, I broke into a trot. I didn’t run back to help, but tried to put as much distance between the two groups as I could while I was able.
-25-
The sound of laser rifles firing dwindled as I burst out of the tangled undergrowth onto a worn dirt trail. It was a narrow jungle path, more of a wolf run than something men normally used. I used it nonetheless to increase my pace. After a few turns in the trail, I no longer heard the laser rifles or screams.
“You should have returned to help Ailuros, by stealth,” Rax chided.
“You’re kidding me, right? She was going to blind me and cut out my tongue. Screw her.”
“You did not.”
“That’s a crude joke, Rax. It isn’t like you.”
“True. Well, you have made your choice. Perhaps it was the correct one. The results will bear the tale.”
“Uh-huh,” I said. “Now, how about you finish telling me about this Nerelon Brontios?”
“I concluded he must be the Ocelot’s pirate captain due to certain hints I found on the Asteroid station. That unlocked a few of the memories Argon had sealed in me.”
“And Argon did all that while trapped in the tube Sand showed me underground?”
“Such is my assumption.”
“More Polarions,” I said. “It always ends up being about these Polarions. Why couldn’t they have chosen a different planet?”
“You are not privy to the reason.”
“I already know a few of them. Rifts, you said before.”
“More accurately, I said dimensional rifts.”
“This doesn’t have to do with another dimension or parallel world, does it?” I asked.
“Not this time,” Rax said. “We can complete our mission by visiting two particular worlds many hundreds of light-years apart. There are certain reasons these two planets have remained…pristine, as it were.”
“You mean how they were long ago?”
“There are surrounding energy fields—you do not need to know about that. Logan, it is possible intelligent life still resides on the surface of this world, although the probability of that is quite remote. These were—that is not important, either. Long ago, certain Polarions broke a great weapon into pieces. One of those pieces lies on or inside the Earth. Another piece lies elsewhere. The third piece—or first in our way of reckoning—lies inside a great ziggurat on this planet.”
“I get it. We’re tomb raiders.”
“That is an irrational statement.”
“No, it’s not,” I said. “Pyramids were tombs for pharaohs and other important Egyptians.”
“Excuse me, Logan. I said a ziggurat, not a pyramid.”
“Same difference.”
“Again, you are sorely wrong. Pyramids were burial structures, as you have already indicated. Ziggurats were temples, and most often built in Ancient Mesopotamia, the Land between the Rivers.”
“Hey, guess what, Mr. Know-It-All. People also built ziggurats in the New World, in Mexico and in Central America.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
I snorted. “Right. You just made my point for me.”
“Oh,” Rax said. “Is this because you feel woefully inadequate to me?”
I laughed and shook my head, shaking sweat off my face. “You do know a lot, Rax. Sometimes, I wish you’d tell me what’s going on before I’m stranded on some alien world with an energy field around it. Isn’t it enough I had to sled through the Asteroid Belt while stuck in a spacesuit?”
“I am attempting to rectify your ignorance.”
“I know. Nerelon Brontios is a tough guy. We’re here to get part of a super-weapon, a super-science weapon, I figure. This particular part has been sitting around thousands of years. It’s in a ziggurat. But that’s what doesn’t make sense. I saw hieroglyphs on the sea floor.”
“Oh. That is too bad.”
“Which part?” I asked.
“That you saw the hieroglyphics. Did you decipher their meaning?”
“Yes,” I said on impulse.
“Oh,” Rax said again. “Then, you know we shall probably not survive this world?”
“I was wondering when you would get to that.”
“Why did you wait so long to tell me?”
I decided to push my lie a little further and play a hunch. “Ailuros is here,” I added.
“She is the Keeper of the Prometheus Stone. Oh…”
I smiled to myself.
“I have run a quick check of your bodily functions,” Rax said. “You tricked me and now feel insufferably smug with yourself. You saw the hieroglyphics, but you could not have deciphered them. Thinking you had was an error on my part. Still, you did not learn the worst.”
My smile slipped a little. What was the worst he was talking about?
“If Ailuros is dead or possibly captured, the Gigantopithecuses will have the advantage over us,” Rax said. “They will torture her into revealing the needed codes.”
&n
bsp; “Do you have the codes?” I asked.
“Not all of them.”
“Are you lying to me?”
“No, Logan. You are the Probationary Associate Galactic Guard member, the only representative of the GG—besides me—here on this world. That means I am bound under oath to give you accurate data concerning the mission.”
“Seems like you play fast and loose with your restrictions,” I said.
“That makes us a good match then, for fast and loose is your middle name.”
My stomach growled. I was hungry as sin. I was thirsty, too. It seemed all I did was sweat these days.
“So, which is it,” I said, “a ziggurat or a pyramid?”
“Despite this being a proto-Egyptian world,” Rax said, “it is a giant ziggurat. It is the anomaly here, and sacred because of it.”
“Huh, that’s interesting. Did the Polarions introduce Egyptian culture onto Earth way back when?”
“A moment, please, I must use my scanners at long range. Logan!” Rax said sharply. “To your left, eleven meters off the jungle floor—they are coming in fast.”
I whirled around to my left as I unslung the Polarion rifle. I actually did a double take, which kept me from firing. Three basilisks, the lanky, scaly kind I’d slain on the Asteroid station, were swinging through the trees like overgrown chimpanzees. None of their forehead lenses were glowing. One of them bled a blackish substance, blood, I guess. He suddenly let go of his branch, crashing past ferns and leaves as he plummeted to the ground.
The other two ignored him, swinging toward me, releasing a branch and sailing to another, swinging to it and going yet again to another. They had to be prodigiously strong to do that, and they had greater grace and agility than the greatest gymnast I’d ever seen on Earth.
“Do not fire,” Rax said. “I believe these two wish to aid us.”
“What about the third?” I asked.
“He is already dead, having sustained previous laser fire to his torso. Given his wounds, it was impressive he made it this far.”
The two basilisks swung from a low branch on a nearer tree and landed on the ground before me. Each panted. Each stank with his own kind of sweat as his scales glistened.
I lowered my rifle, although I certainly did not trust them.
Invaders: Dreadnought Ocelot (Invaders Series Book 4) Page 12