Everyone in the valley watched in awe as the Venusians flung themselves across the sky and began slowly climbing down the trees they had landed on. Dionaea led them from the woods as the remnants of the ship crashed to the ground, another blast of hot air rushing past. Patrick and Flupotia were frozen on the spot as Dionaea approached them. She nodded to Flupotia first as she arrived and then help a hand out to Patrick.
“I’ve already met Flupotia, but allow me to introduce myself formally. I’m Dionaea, Queen of the jungle and it is an honor to finally have you here with us.”
Patrick reached out slowly, still in shock and shook her hand. It felt as tough as leather but soft as cotton all at the same time. The shock of their actions was slowly subsiding, and with it, the realization that they had just saved the Queen of these lands from being imprisoned back on Pluto rose to the surface.
“You’re the Queen of Venus?” Patrick didn’t even bother with introducing himself.
“Not the entire planet, but the jungles of Venus, yes. All of its creatures, big and small. They come to me with their concerns, their hopes, and dreams. I am the ruler of the beautiful lands you now stand-in.” She smiled at him while he remained speechless.
Flupotia nudged Patrick’s shoulder and gave him a wide-eyed look when he turned around. “Right,” he said turning around as he gained his bearings, “my name is Patrick and it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“And where is that you hail from Patrick?”
“I hail from Earth.”
“I see.” She gave him a quizzical look. “And those who fight with you are from Earth as well?”
“Some, but not all. We have quite a few planets represented here.” Patrick looked around at his small army.
“Wonderful.” The Queen looked as if she had made her mind up about Patrick and his intentions. “I would ask that you join us back in my home. We should feast tonight in honor of you and those who follow you.”
All Patrick wanted at that moment was to question the prisoners and continue search of the planet. But he knew that he could not refuse her offer. He looked back to Flupotia for her support and she nodded her head. Both of them knew this was the first step towards a new alliance.
“Queen Dionaea, we would be honored to join you. I would ask that you allow me to leave most of my soldiers here. We must salvage what we can from the Plutonian supplies and send them back to our camp. We’re a small army, we would be fools to waste the opportunity to commandeer such a cache.”
“That is well. My people here will guide you through the jungle, I must move on ahead and make preparations for your arrival.”
“What about the prisoners?” Flupotia spoke up now. “Where are they going?”
“They can come back with us as well. We have plenty of space to contain them for now. Tomorrow will be a new day for you to do with as you wish. But tonight, you dine as we do on Venus. Tonight you enjoy our customs and celebrations.”
With that, her hair unspooled from her head and flew to a branch at the edge of the forest. Seeming to fly away she was gone in the blink of an eye.
Eclogite refused to leave Gabbro’s side before she was buried. Yuzar wanted to stay and see if he could indeed find his cousin amongst the dead or injured. Since both of them were heavily distracted, Patrick decided to leave Roger and John behind to make sure all the supplies made it back to camp. That left Flupotia, Frize, and Patrick to join the Venusians on a trek through the jungle, towards their great city.
◆◆◆
IX: Prince Pollenia
As Patrick, Flupotia and the others were fighting their own battles to free the Venusian prisoners, Gin-us and his group were off having their own adventures.
“Those things are huge!”
Avido was staring out at a large valley with dozens of brithogs milling about. Near the center of the valley was an active volcano, the brithogs not bothered in the slightest by its presence.
“Any chance we’ve got an army of those little guys hanging around?” Avido laughed.
“Curse the moons.” Gin-us threw his hands up in the air.
“Look, over there.” Zolay handed the scope to Gin-us as she pointed across the large valley before them. “Definitely looks like a Plutonian camp to me.”
Gin-us focused the scope on a small clearing across the valley. “Looks like an underground bunker.” He dropped the scope to his side and surveyed the valley in front of them. “But getting across this seems like a suicide mission.”
“We have to try though,” Nevo spoke up. “It’s what we’re here for, isn’t it?”
Gin-us knew Nevo was right but didn’t want to admit it. Getting across the valley was going to be incredibly difficult if not impossible. Gin-us had noticed a small path, largely hidden from the brithog’s view. There was a thin strip of land surrounding the edge of the volcano where the flowing lava met the water surrounding it. The soil in the area must have been incredible fertile as large ferns grew from the water’s edge despite the volatile temperatures. There was a small stretch of land on the far side of the valley that was wide open with no cover but led to a cutout in the side of the ridge that seemed to rise as it disappeared into the Earth. It was a risky move but was far less dangerous than a mad dash across the short stretch of open land.
“We drop down over there.” Gin-us pointed to an area of the ridge where large trees jutted from the edge with heavy vines hanging to the valley below, right on the edge of the volcano. “Once down, wait under cover near the volcano. We’re going to use that stretch of hidden land to make our way across the valley. It’s going to be hot, but we’ll survive. We move as quickly as possible and then run the final stretch of land.”
Everyone nodded in agreement, loyally following Gin-us without question. Gneiss took the lead without a word and started towards the descent point. Everyone followed, slowly making their way down to the valley below. It was a slow descent as nobody wanted to make any sudden movements. The brithogs were content milling around and everyone else was content leaving them that way. Gin-us was the last to make his way down and when he landed he saw sweat already beading up on the heads of Zolay, Avido, Tect, and Zinta. Nevo, Gneiss himself appeared unaffected by the heat. He made his way to the front and started to move as fast as he could while still remaining silent.
They were closing the distance with no issues. Gin-us was keeping one eye on the brithogs even though they continued to mind their own business. Suddenly, he felt the hair on the back of his neck rise. He surveyed the brithogs yet none had moved towards their position. A low, repetitive clicking noise filled the silence around them. Gin-us strained his ears to find the source. A scream filled the air and Gin-us stopped abruptly. Gneiss did not stop and tripped over Gin-us.
As Gin-us fell to the ground he saw Avido at the back wrestling with a large lizard covered in scales of orange, red, and maroon. Gin-us shoved Gneiss off of him and raced towards Avido. He could see Avido’s clothes and skin burning where the lizard touched him.
“Everyone, keep moving!” Gin-us hollered as he pushed to the back of the line, ripped his sword from its sheath, and flung himself at the lizard.
The sword made contact but did not pierce the creature's scales. Gin-us collided with the lizard and together they rolled back into the pool of lava. Nobody had listened to Gin-us and had instead stayed back to help. Zolay was helping her fallen friend to his feet while Nevo and Gneiss dove into the lava after Gin-us. The lizard thrashed against the three of them, snapping its massive jaw out where it could. The three managed to dodge its attacks as they continued their own. Ultimately, it was a blow from Gneiss at the base of the creature's neck that brought the fight to an end. The lizard twitched a few times and slowly sank into the lava beneath it.
Gin-us looked to his injured soldier and the others just standing there. Over their shoulder he saw three of the brithogs slowly approaching, feathers ruffled up in an all too familiar manner.
“Move now!” Gin-us jumped from the
pool of lava, the remnants of his clothes falling off leaving only his Stretto Skin beneath.
The group was now moving as fast as possible with no regard for how much noise they were making. Clicking noises filled the air around them as several heads popped up from the lava, snapping out at their feet as they ran. Gin-us was the first to break free of the path and enter the clearing. The brithogs had noticed them and there was no time to slow down. He shot a blast of fire on either side of them, cringing away from the flames as they flew from his arms.
The soldiers were now dragging Avido who had all but slipped into an unconscious state. Cursing under his breath Gin-us ran back to help them move faster.
“Everyone, grab on and run!”
Gin-us quickly grabbed the legs of Avido and pulled him into a horizontal position as Tect and Zinta grabbed his arms. They ran as fast as they could. The brithogs had advanced to their position and were now rearing up for an attack. Gin-us’ vision went as steam filled the air around them, the brithog’s water jets quickly evaporating as they hit his wall of flames. They were now only a few yards from safety. With one final burst of energy, they pushed through the steam and made it, collapsing with exhaustion as soon as they were safe.
“That,” Tect took a few rapid breaths, “was incredibly,” more rapid breaths, “too close.”
“Survived.” Gneiss shrugged as he answered, his features betraying no emotion. “How is orange one?”
“Not good.”
Gin-us was already looking over his fallen soldier. The burns were severe and covered large portions of his body. His breathing was labored and he was unconscious.
“I don’t know that he’ll make it through the night without proper medical attention.” Gin-us clenched his fists as small flames licked around his fingers.
“Let’s move a little further in, just in case. We’ll get him as comfortable as we can. Zinta, Gneiss, and Nevo, I want you to scout ahead and make sure this tunnel leads where I think it does.”
Without great fanfare everyone set about their tasks. Zinta and Gneiss followed Nevo into the tunnel, her flames lighting the way for them. Zolay and Tect helped Gin-us move Avido a little deeper into the cave and set him up for the night. Every now and then sounds of pain would escape his lips but there were no other signs of life. Gin-us sat and watched the whole night, refusing to leave his soldier alone.
◆◆◆
Up on the ridge in the Plutonian camp, Pollenia was sitting in his cell plotting the final steps of his escape. He had felt like such a fool when he was first captured, sacrificing himself to make sure his best friend got to safety. But Pollenia was not one to sit still long and he quickly turned his self-pity into motivation for redemption. It hadn’t taken him long to find a small group of Plutonian soldiers that no longer wished to follow their King. They saw his actions as those of a reckless tyrant willing to do whatever was necessary to rule the galaxy. Through their influence, Pollenia had managed to set things up perfectly for a rebellion to ignite.
The Plutonians all knew he was the prince of the desert and had been keeping him in isolation. They knew that with his status he was most likely to motivate the other prisoners into fighting back. It had taken some time, but Pollenia managed to convince one of the soldiers to swap him with another prisoner. It had worked and Pollenia was now in a much larger cell, currently home to well over two dozen of his elder brother’s subjects as well as roughly a dozen prisoners from the jungle Queendom.
It hadn’t been hard to convince those of the desert to fight with him. Those of the jungle, however, took a great deal of convincing. Their Queen had foolishly led them to believe the attack on their lands was a ruse by his King. Only after three of the desert Venusians came back bloody from interrogations did those of the jungle start to believe what Pollenia was telling them.
After that, things fell into place quickly. The Plutonian rebels were able to sneak in some rudimentary weaponry and place some more advanced equipment just outside the cells. The countless days of preparation were over, it was time to act.
◆◆◆
Gin-us and the others stood around a small funeral pyre where Avido’s body had been laid. He had passed early that morning when his body no longer had any fight left in it. They had carried his body up the winding tunnel until they reached the ridge where Gin-us insisted they give him a proper send-off.
“I didn’t know Avido very well, I don’t think any of us here did.”
Gin-us paused as he waited for any other to say something. When none did, he continued.
“Avido was a brave fighter, one of my best. His spirit will be greatly missed.”
Gin-us stepped forward and placed one hand on the edge of the pyre. I’m sorry this happened to you. He closed his eyes as flames shot from his hand and engulfed the pyre.
“May the moons watch over you on your journey from this world to the next and may your passing be used to bring life to others.”
He stepped back and stood with his soldiers watching as the flames consumed Avido’s body. The smell burned their noses and the smoke stung their eyes, yet no one dared move until Gin-us had. He would have kept standing there until the fire had burnt down to embers, the embers turned to dust, and the dust scattered in the winds. Gunshots echoed through the air, however, quickly pulling them back to the urgency of their mission.
“Did you hear that?” Zinta turned in the direction of the shots that were ringing through the air rapidly now.
“Metal stingers.” Gneiss was facing the direction of the sounds.
“Definitely gunfire. Let’s go.”
Gin-us grabbed his weapons from where he had left them leaning against a nearby tree. He had tied a thick vine around his waist to create a new holster, as he had burnt his off while fighting the lizard. He had no other clothes to wear and was now trekking through the jungles in only his Stretto Skin.
He closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh as he rotated his shoulders slowly. His shoulders came to a stop after a few revolutions. He opened his eyes and took off running, not bothering to look back and make sure everyone else was following. The gunfire led them directly to the clearing they had noted from the other side of the valley. Where the gunfire was coming from, however, nobody could tell. Just like Earth. Gin-us thought to himself as he stared at the ground beneath his feet and then quickly searched the clearing.
The sounds of an approaching ship pulled his attention away from his current task. Turning around he saw two Plutonian ships approaching, far enough away that they had likely not seen Gin-us and his soldiers.
“Hide! In the jungle, now!”
Everyone ran for cover as the ships made their descent. Gin-us watched with great interest as the ships landed and the ramps extended to the ground below. Twenty soldiers piled out from each ship and ran for a tree near the edge of the clearing. One stepped forward and leaned close to the tree and shortly a familiar sound rang through the air. Just as I expected!
Gin-us held his hand up, holding his soldiers back until the ground had fully opened and the Plutonians had all disappeared beneath the surface. Only then did he motion everyone forward as he jumped from his position.
◆◆◆
Prince Pollenia was actually winning the battle. He had seen a few of his own fall but had seen dozens more of his enemies hit the ground. Their numbers were dwindling rapidly as they retreated further and further. Only a matter of time before they surrender.
“Keep pushing forward!”
Pollenia wiped sweat and blood from his forehead. He had been struck early in the battle by one of the Generals whose office had been directly across from the prison cells. While Pollenia was recovering from the blow it had been one of the jungle Venusians that stepped forward and dispatched the General, saving Pollenia’s life in the process. He quickly scanned the battle before him and saw the same Venusian still fighting strong, taking on three Plutonians, her hair restraining two of them while she attacked the third with a heavy battle-ax. I wi
ll not forget what you and your people have done here today.
Before he could return to the battle, Pollenia noted a new noise mixed with the sounds of battle he had now grown deaf to. He strained his ears to listen and saw the ceiling of the room they were in begin to open. Light from outside flooded the room as a staircase rose from the floor he was standing on. His legs buckled beneath him as one foot rose faster than the other. He rolled down the staircase as it finished forming, taking down Plutonians and Venusians as he went.
Only when he had reached the bottom and propped himself up did he realize the implications of what had unfolded. At the top of the stairs, silhouetted against the daylight outside were the reinforcements. This is it, Pollenia raised his weapon and began to fire at those descending the stairs.
◆◆◆
Gin-us and his soldiers wasted no time racing across the clearing, firing their weapons as they went. The Plutonian soldiers were caught off guard as they were met with shots from both sides. With no option they retreated into the base, fighting back the Venusians as they tried to gain some foothold in the battle.
This ends now! Gin-us raised his sword above his head and called upon the firepower. It raced up his blade which he swung in the air, creating a long strand of fire that spun above his head. With a heavy-handed snap he brought the sword down and the trail of fire followed. It made contact with the troop at the top of the stairs, igniting each of them in flames as they fell backward.
The soldiers fell down the stairs then, a blur of fire and smoke. By the time they had reached the bottom, the fire had touched most of them and their weapons were tossed to the ground as they swatted the flames.
Pollenia watched in disbelief as the scene unfolded before him. The newcomers quickly surrendered once they had put their flames out. The rest of the Plutonians in the base realized their reinforcements had fallen. They dropped their own weapons and held their hands up in surrender.
Aliens from Arapholanx: The Burn of Magic Page 11