Avernus: Book One

by Steven Webb

  “Seems to be.” The moment was serene, with a beautiful girl taking care of him. Leaving this situation was the last thing he wanted to do, but if he didn’t start moving his ankle it would stiffen up, and then he would be even worse off. Reluctantly, he stood up and limped around. The blood flowing through his veins helped to dull the pain ever so slightly.

  Nova looked on like a mother bird watching her chick learn to fly, ready to jump in but not wanting to undermine its efforts.

  Joseph stopped to gain his composure, fighting back the need to rest. Looking off into the distance he noticed the mountain seemed off somehow. He focused his attention on its towering peak. What should have been a red and blue speckled landscape was being covered by yellow veins embracing the mountain face. The yellow seemed to branch out in all directions, masking any other colors it encountered along the way. He glanced around to ensure he was seeing things correctly. If what he thought he saw was real it, meant the mars moss was advancing faster than they had anticipated. “Nova look at that mountain.” He pointed his finger in an attempt to guide her focus towards what he was staring at.

  “Why is it yellowing? Is that what I think it is.”

  “Yeah, I’m pretty sure it’s the mars moss. We need to get the others back.”

  “I’d say we should just wait for them to get back, but Addison seemed to be just wandering aimlessly, and I feel like it could go on forever.”

  His best course of action was to find the others, but being unable to chase after them, he decided to hold his hands up to his mouth and shout towards their last known location. “Hey Guys, get your asses back here. There’s something you need to see.” No response. “I really need you guys to get back here. Addison, Rocco, Trent, Sophie. The fuck are you guys.” Realizing shouting was futile he headed back to Nova to rest his ankle.

  Hurried footsteps, which were barely discernible, traveled through the forest. They must have heard his plees.

  Trent was the first to reach Joseph. As he broke from the forest, he stopped in his tracks. His eyes widened. Sophie, who was right behind him, hadn’t been paying attention and slammed into him, sending them both hurtling forward.

  “What the hell, why’d you stop?” Sophie brushed the bluish dirt from her knees and hands.

  “The mountain. It’s covered in Yellow.”

  “Yeah,” Joseph limped over to Trent. “That’s actually why we called you guys back.”

  “What’s going on?” A tired sounding Rocco asked, arriving well behind the other two.

  “Just look at the mountain.” Joseph was already tired of telling people that, but it was the only way to get them to understand the direness of the situation. “The mars moss is heading this way.”

  “But how did it reach the front of the mountain already?” Rocco stared in disbelief.

  “Not sure. Taylor would have known, but since he’s not here all we can do is guess really.”

  Addison finally returned to the others.

  Not wanting to repeat himself, Joseph gave a glance towards Trent, who seemed to read his mind. “The mars moss is heading our way. It’s halfway down that mountain over there.”

  Her face inexplicably lit up. It was as if she knew they were going to see it. “That explains why you where hollering for us. What are we gonna to do about it?”

  Rocco stepped in. “We need to figure out a way to stop it. I’m sorry, Addison, but what ever you were looking for isn’t worth finding right now. That needs to be our focus.”

  “Hey, no I get it.” It seemed strange that Addison was so ready to shrug off the search for whatever it was she dragged them all out to find.

  The options looked bleak. Joseph wasn’t sure that they could do much of anything. “What do you suggest we do? We can’t touch it or breath in the spores. Maybe burning it might make an impact?”

  “We need to figure out how fast it’s spreading too.” Sophie dragged her foot through the dirt drawing a mountain and a hole for the cave. “If it’s advancing towards us we could easily move. But we all saw what it did to just that small chunk of the ship. If it hits the main hull we could lose any possible resources left.”

  “Don’t forget the beacon. I need to know how long I have to make it portable.”

  “Kay, let’s get back to the cave. Joe you can rest your leg, and we can figure out our plan of attack for tomorrow.” Rocco was the planning type. He never seemed to make any rash decisions without thinking them through first.

  Joseph struggled all the way back, placing all his weight on the right foot then briefly shifting his weight to the left one just long enough to bring the right one forward. By the time he arrived back his ankle was throbbing and his hip was sore. He tried to make himself comfortable inside the cave, but no matter how he sat it brought no relief only more suffering. Maybe a nice cold dip in the river will numb everything.

  A piece of ribbon tree burned bright enough to lite up the path through the narrow passage, flickering against the smooth walls. Each step was deliberate and well thought out so as not to slip. Beyond the reach of his torch lied impenetrable darkness. Inch by inch he made his way towards the growing sound of rushing water. Sweet relief was not far off now. Just ahead, a soft light that was not his own, reflected off the tunnel walls. Someone had already beaten him to the river. A small pile of shredded clothes greeted him at the entrance to the chamber. Humming intermingled with the roar of the waterfall. It was unmistakably a woman’s voice. Joseph crept towards the ledge to see who laid below.

  Standing in the water, Nova was busy washing her hair. The fire danced across her dark skin, and glistened off the water. She almost looked angelic, standing there with not a care in the world, clueless that anyone around was watching her. Old scars covered her back. Since the first day of training, Nova’s back had remained hidden from all but Zea. He had no idea that this was the secret she had been hiding. Deciding he would be better off leaving, Joseph turned and headed out.

  “Joseph, what are you doing?”

  The unexpected response caused him to do an about face. “I was just coming to ice my ankle in the water, but I didn’t know anyone was here.”

  “Don’t let me stop you.” Nova pulled her had from the water and waved him over.

  Joseph couldn’t believe his eyes. This gorgeous lady standing in front of him was completely naked. Not only that but she now encouraged him to join her. He stripped off his pants to expose the bruised, and swollen ankle. He clambered down the ledge, stepping into a shallower region of the stream. The chilled current bit at his legs. He waded over to the sandy bank and took a seat.

  “Does it feel like it’s getting any better?”

  “I can put a little pressure on it now. I’m hoping this’ll get me mobile again.”

  Nova left the lake and joined Joseph on the bank. “You know Zea would have known the best way to treat that.” Her voice wavered as she spoke Zea’s name. The water masked the tears, but Joseph new they were there. He stepped from the river and over to Nova, his arms outstretched. Her chilled body nestled into his and she placed her head against his shoulder. She began shaking, not from the cold, but from her feelings of loss. Joseph pulled her in tight, his hands touching the scars on her back. What ever had caused these was, it left a wound she would never forget, but it seemed the loss of Zea had an even larger impact on her.

  He tried to talk over the muffled cries, “She loved you you know. You managed to pull that shy little girl out of her shell, time and time again.”

  Nova took her head off his shoulder and leaned back, locking eyes with him.

  “If it weren’t for you she never would have left the wreck. And if not for that, you would never of had the chance to share that brief but beautiful time with her.” Joseph felt drawn to her. His thoughts were no longer concerned with his ankle and hip. The flames created a romantic atmosphere. He closed his eyes and pressed his lips against Nova’s. His passion flowed through him, yet the actions went unreciprocated. A strong forc
e pushed against his chest. Nova’s lips left his.

  “What are you doing?” Nova broke free from his embrace, and covered her exposed body. “Are you crazy. What made you think I wanted that. Don’t come near me.” She waded through the water in a furious march.

  Joseph trailed after her trying to explain. “I’m sorry, I just thought we connected.”

  “Shut up. I don’t want to hear it.”

  He followed behind her continuing to apologize, but it fell on deaf ears.

  “Shut up. Just stay here and don’t follow me.” She made her way up the ledge, and tried to pull herself up from the water, when a rock broke loose beneath her foot. Nova tumbled backwards and into the river. A large plume of water lept into the air, temporarily shielding her body from Josephs gaze.

  As the water rained back down, it landed on a still body. Red strings spread through the water. Joseph tried to reach Nova, but the river pulled her away. He slogged through the water trying to grab ahold, always just out of reach. The water carried her into the tunnel ahead. With all his effort Joseph pushed forward. The water grew deeper and deeper around him. The light from the fires was starting to dwindle away. Nova floated away into darkness. The only remains were dark spots in the water surrounding Joseph that quickly followed along with the current.

  There was no hope of seeing her in the dark. Joseph turned back and grabbed a ribbon torch. He jumped back down into the river, and waded into the dark but no glimpse of Nova could be found anywhere. He searched till the flame was all but gone. Devastated, he turned back.

  Nova’s clothes still sat strewn about the landing above the lake. Seeing these brought tears to Joseph’s eyes. He collapsed on the ground.

  “What did I do?” He looked down at his swollen ankle. “This stupid fucking ankle. If I had just watched where I was walking. Why didn’t I resist kissing her. It’s all my fault. She shouldn’t have felt like she needed to run away. God damnit. Maybe she’s still alive. If I wait here maybe she’ll come walking out of the tunnel and be ok.”

  He stared hopelessly at the tunnel.

  “If only I could turn back time. Do something different. What do I do? I need to tell the others. But they’ll blame me.”

  The light went out but Joseph refused to move. The glowing embers crackled in the silence. He didn’t know what to do next.

  A light broke from the entrance to the room, breaking Joseph’s self punishment. Rocco stepped out bearing a torch of his own, blinding Joseph.

  Rocco seemed confused. “Why are you sitting in the dark? Wasn’t Nova with you. I swear I saw her come in here ahead of you. Have you been crying?”

  He wiped away the tears from his face. “She’s gone. I upset her and when she tried to leave she fell. I chased after her but the river took her away. I looked. Really. But I couldn’t find her.”

  “Where did she go?” Rocco picked up the torch and ran towards the water leaving Joseph behind on the ledge.

  “I checked. No matter how far I went I couldn’t keep up. I had to go back for light and then she was gone.”

  “Was she moving?”

  I mean, the river was carrying her but no she wasn’t. There was blood pouring out of her.” The guilt was eating away at him. He knew Rocco knew. His mouth moved as if on its own, “It’s all my fault.”

  “I thought you said she fell?” The voice echoed back.

  “She did, but she wouldn’t have fallen If I hadn’t upset her,” he shouted, the guilt weighing heavily on him.

  “I’m not seeing her. I’m afraid she’s gone.” The light drifted back up stream. Rocco pulled himself out of the water and over to Joseph. “Now listen to me. It wasn’t your fault. When we get back let me do the talking okay?”

  “Why are you helping me. I’m a monster.” Joseph felt like throwing up at the thought of what happened. Visions of him smiling forcing Nova up the ledge and making the rock fall filled his imagination. He knew deep down he could find no redemption. Her judging face when he kissed her would haunt his dreams. It was stuck on a loop. A never ending self torture.

  Rocco comforted him the whole way back to the main room, but his attempts seemed disingenuous and shallow. Joseph knew exactly how the others would react. He plotted a way to run as soon as he got back to the others before Rocco could tell them what had happened. He was all set. His plan felt flawless, but when the time came he couldn’t move. Seeing the others relaxing just made him feel even worse. They had no idea what news was about to strike them. He tried not to sob.

  “Addison, Sophie, Trent come here.” Rocco beconed. “I have something to tell you.”

  “What’s going on?” Sophie said nonchalantly.

  Trent refused to move. “Just tell us from there, or you can come over here.”

  Addison reached out and slapped his head. “Get up you lazy shit.”

  He rubbed the back of his head. “Dude, seriously? I’m going. I’m going. Man this better be good. I just got comfortable.”

  “There was an accident by the waterfall. Nova fell into the river from the ledge and drowned. Joseph tried to save her but didn’t make it in time.”

  “So you just left her in there?” Trent asked.

  “Actually she floated down the river. We lost sight of her.”

  Silence fell. This time the devastation seemed worse than with the others. Nova was the glue that held the group together. Instead of accusations and disparaging remarks, The group fell into a depression. No one said anything. His guilt felt even heavier.

  Addison was the first to move. She took off on her own out of the cave. No one chased after her.

  Joseph needed to make this up to the group some way. He wasn’t sure how. He figured some fresh air might help. Outside the cave he still felt the judging eyes of Nova locked onto him as she fell. He wandered back to the sight of the original crash. All of the memories of Nova and the others came back one by one. Upon seeing the metal beast, he knew what he had to do. With the Mars moss coming, he could make the distress beacon portable all by himself. That would get others would forgive him.

  He climbed over the collapsed remains of the observation deck, now a twisted mess of metal and wires. It was a dangerous game he played in this broken jungle gym. The transmitter remained just as he had left it. The dish was still pointed skywards. The battery had run dry. If this was going to work he needed to shrink the dish. There was no way a large object like that would allow for movement through the ribbon trees. Inorder to make the entire antenna system portable, he needed to first create a smaller version of the dish to connect the feed horn to. The ground made a passable substitute for a white board. He scribbled tirelessly for hours, etching mathematical formulas in to the surface. At last he had the perfect specs for his make shit dish onto which he would attach the feed horn.

  Joseph grabbed scraps of metal, and bent them around, checking his curvature as he went. The outside edges folded over to help hold it’s shape and secure the overlap. He banged at the bottom and sides with a rock to curve the edges into the desired shape. It wasn’t pretty, but it would do the job. He found a clamp lying in the heaps around him, and attached it to the dish. Now came the hard part. The feed horn was attached to wires and a metal box. He had to open the horn to remove the wiring. Without tools it was a delicate process. His hands were shaking while he tried to loosen the connections and feed the wires through the metal hull. He had no concern for the old dish, ripping it up to free the important part.

  The relay box was already exposed from when he hooked up the battery. It was still attached to the wall. A few hard hits with a metal pole broke it loose. Joseph picked it up, and hooked up the horn to the wires once again. Everything seemed to come together perfectly. The battery would have to be carried separately, but it was small enough to not be a problem.

  One look at his work and Joseph noticed bloody fingerprints all over it. He had been oblivious to the metal tearing up his hands. It was a small step in his ultimate penance. His conscience still a
te away at him but he could at least do something to help the others. The components all sat nicely inside each other. He carried the creation back to the cave.

  Maneuvering along the forest floor, he stumbled on his still sore ankle, and sent the dish hurtling forward. his body rammed face first into the ground. The emotions took over, and he started to cry uncontrollably. He had failed everyone twice now, first with Nova and now with the dish. The parts were in a clump a few feet ahead. He had wrecked all of his hard work. There was no way he could repair it this time. He hit himself out of frustration. Failure was all he ever knew in life, and this was just adding to that. He picked the broken pieces up to check for damage. Despite his worries everything seemed ok, but something had to be wrong. He checked everything again. No signs of damage anywhere. He still believed that some internal damage had broken the system, but until he filled the battery back up there was no way of knowing. He put all the pieces inside the dish and continued on.

  Once he was at the cave Addison, Trent, and Rocco seemed to not realize he had returned. Without a word he set up the satellite outside and wandered in to get Rocco’s canteen. At this point the three others had finally grown interested in what he was doing and were watching silently. He dumped the water inside the battery’s wells. The box sprang to life and the antenna started beeping. It was a miracle. The others joined him in a cheerful shout. Should the Mars Moss hit the ship, they still had a way for NASA to find them.

  ROCCO

  Under normal circumstances, Addison’s disappearance would be of no consequence; however, with the recent events Rocco was worried about her. She’d stayed out all night with no sign of that she would return. He took to the cold morning in search of her. The ground was damp from the morning dew. Her tracks were still visible in the blue dirt. Judging by their direction she seemed delibrit in her path, and the large gap between steps meant she was in a hurry. Focused on only the footsteps, Rocco had No idea where he was, or where the trail would lead him. He had to find her. If her strange behavior the last few days was any indication, she was in danger.