by Athena Storm
I head away from the water fall, so its droning noise fades into the background. The dark, humid jungle offers no clues as to Daphne’s whereabouts. I’m not trained for wilderness like this. My specialty is command, and ship based combat. I have no clue about how to go about tracking her other than the obvious step of checking for footprints or rubbish in her wake.
Perhaps I’m being a bit silly. She is a grown, adult woman and if she’s half as intelligent as she thinks she is then navigating this jungle should prove to be no problem. That’s when something faint but urgent hits my ear. I turn my head, craning my neck and seeking the source of the sound when it comes again.
My heart suddenly thuds in my chest, and my knees go weak. Daphne. That’s the sound of Daphne screaming in terror.
I’m off at a dead run in an instant, leaping over fallen limbs and splashing through cold, bubbling brooks as I follow the source of her scream. Stupid, so stupid of her to wander off alone. What if she’s hurt? What if she’s already dead?
I stop in my tracks and drop into a low crouch, khaffi at the ready, when I spot a tuft of reddish brown fur stuck to a particularly thorny bush. Carefully, silently, I creep forward and take the bit of fur off of the bush. Two whiffs verify what I already know; it’s from an Odex.
There are Odex in the jungle, and Daphne is missing. Fortunately, the big hairy brutes leave a trail my inexpert eyes can actually follow. Tree limbs are snapped, grasses trampled, and their disgusting spoor is fermenting in the dense foliage.
Another scream spurs me on to greater speed. Her voice is much closer, and at least for now she is alive.
I crash through thickly knotted shrubs, their thorns managing to snag and pierce even my thick hide, and find myself in a meadow. Shafts of sunlight beam through the high branches above, lending an idyllic quality totally at odds with the terrifying sight I behold. Daphne is there, a big Odex holding her from behind by the biceps, while its fellow stands nearby. Both of their bestial gazes are locked on me, and something akin to a shriek issues from the one unburdened with Daphne.
My gaze snaps around, assessing the situation. The Odex have projectile weapons, smallish pistols modified to fit into their massive paws, but they usually favor melee combat unless their Shorcu masters order otherwise. Unless I start shooting with the rifle end of my khaffi, they most likely won’t even draw their weapons.
Besides, I don’t have much ammo that survived the crash, and it’s only two Odex.
“Stay strong, Daphne.” My voice has a slight tremble of fear, not for myself but for her. She seems so small and vulnerable in the grip of the Odex’s meaty paws.
She swallows and nods as I march into the meadow, holding the khaffi with the hooked sledge pointing toward my foes. The nearest Odex snarls, and hefts its own double bladed ax weapon high overhead and charges.
I charge right at him, angling my khaffi as if I’m going to go for a strike to his midsection. At the last moment I throw myself to the forest floor, using my body as a tripwire. The Odex’s toe catches me in my ribcage, causing a lot of pain but not breaking bone, and then tumbles head over heels into the undergrowth.
Rising to my feet, my head turns about as if on a swivel as I take in my two enemies. The one holding Daphne throws her to the ground and picks up its own ax. Now I face two enemies, of superior size and strength.
A grin crosses my features. I will try not to enjoy this pleasant exercise too much.
Thirteen
Daphne
My ribs ache around my pounding heart as I slam against the chest of a stinking Odex. It snatches me from the air and smashes my body to his, stifling my face into the fetid fur of his chest. They’ve thrown me to each other like a doll several times now, and I’m helpless to do anything but flail.
My stomach reels as I’m flung through the air again in a sickening arc, only to be wrenched from my free fall by the sickening grip of these filthy monsters.
If you’re going to kill me, just get the fuck on with it. Being tortured like this for nothing more than their entertainment is unbearable. Death would be a welcome reprieve.
It seems ready to come. My bones seem ready to splinter as its grasp tightens, squeezing the air out of my lungs. The world begins to get hazy and dark around the edges. Hot breath broils against my shoulders and horrible rivulets of slaver mat down my hair.
Let it be now.
Its body jerks and goes rigid for a moment, then the vice hold on me goes limp and I drop to the ground, rasping in one massive lungful of air after another. The Gargantua looming over me staggers, and a whistle pierces through me.
Barely able to move, I shift my head to see my captor sweep back in a lumbering effort to see what is behind him, only to be knocked violently off balance again by a shattering blow.
It’s Duric.
The second swing of his club sends the Odex tumbling to the ground and splashing into the stream. Its companion thunders toward their attacker, only to have him duck out of the way at the last moment, sending the brute smashing headlong into a tree.
“Can you move,” Duric fires over to me. I nod to him and he commands, “Do it.”
Every inch of me aches, but I drag myself bodily toward the tree line. As I do, I can feel the ground vibrate under me with each charging step. Each terrible crash.
Finding a stand to shelter against, I turn back to see the first Odex up again and joining its companion to square off against the bristling, naked Vakutan. Their jagged claws slash wildly as they surge toward him, but Duric dives low to split between them and sends a wicked swipe with his cudgel directly to the base of one of their spines.
The beast emits a horrible screech and buckles, crumpling to the ground in a heap. The other wheels on Duric and swings wide, managing to hook a claw into his flesh as he darts away. Duric grits his teeth and lets out a hard grunt, but manages to right himself and brace for more.
He’s bleeding from the left side of his ribcage, but it’s appears to be more of a slice than anything serious. At least, I hope so.
The grounded Odex is squealing and scratching at the turf in a terrible effort to stand. Its hind limbs are tangled in an inert pile. That was no wild swing Duric landed – that was a calculated blow. He shattered the spine of his opponent, leaving only one left to deal with.
That’s a master stroke, you bold devil. This Vakutan is no mere bruiser; he’s a strategist.
With its partner felled, the standing Odex sizes his adversary up with more caution. I can see his nails twitching, his jaws working as he studies to find a way in. Looking for any advantage.
But Duric is square, poised and ready. If the gash on his side has weakened him, you would never know it. If anything, the pain seems to have sharpened his resolve. He seems more formidable now than ever.
With a sudden spring, the Odex lunges at Duric, darting an arm forward to spear him in the stomach and spill his intestines in the grass. Duric lunges to one side, swinging his club in a wide arc that finds its home squarely on the wrist of the startled beast.
Even where I’m huddled, I can hear the bones snap. That terrible sound is matched by the wail of agony the Odex peals out, gripping its shattered paw.
For his part, Duric stands tossing his weapon from hand to hand, idling just out of reach. Taunting.
Don’t get cocky, you smug son of a bitch. That’s how you get yourself killed.
Owning the pain, the standing Odex bears down into its attack. The swipes are more focused, and more vicious. There is no more attention to spare or sport to be had. Every inch of this titanic ogre is bent on destruction.
Seemingly off his guard, Duric just barely manages to dodge these lunges, backing clumsily along in a wide circle until he is very near the monster scrambling in the dirt. The confidence of a few moments before has evaporated and he seems to be coming alive to the danger he’s in.
For its own part, the Odex on the ground has dug his nails deeply into the dirt and seems ready to push itself at Duric th
e moment he is within range. And that moment is coming dangerously due.
With each snarling advance, the standing Odex is forcing Duric nearer to its the prostrate companion. The stupid Vakutan has found himself in the clutches of an ugly trap.
The moment arrives for the trap to spring. The standing brute pistons out a brutal jab at the precise moment the crippled lunges up to spear him. Instead of letting himself be eviscerated from two sides, Duric glides out of the path.
Instead of gutting him where he stands, the claws of the able Odex sink deep into the throat of its partner. With a sickening gurgle, the lamed monster struggles, jerks and ultimately goes limp.
The strategy of the subterfuge is breathtaking and I’m dazzled by the acumen this Vakutan warrior has just demonstrated. He’s orchestrated a situation where one adversary was bound to slay another on his behalf. It’s a brilliant strategic move.
Not wasting the moment on gloating, however, Duric seizes the advantage afforded by the stunned grief of the surviving Odex. Spinning in a full circle to gain momentum, he brings the ball of his club smashing into the base of the remaining Odex’s skull. It lets out a yelp, and stumbles to the bank of the water before shambling to the ground.
Duric towers over the fallen, and delivers another mighty swing, crushing the fiend’s head decisively. Never one to be too cautious, he takes a firm grip on its shoulders and drags it so that the beast’s head is submerged in the brook.
For good measure, he paces leisurely over to the prostrate Odex and delivers a devastating blow directly to its forehead. If it wasn’t dead before, it certainly is now.
Without realizing it, I’ve risen to my feet and steadied myself against a tree. The spectacle was harrowing, but thrilling. I’m tingling with life.
Duric turns his attention to me, but only manages a step or two in my direction before I sail across the meadow and fling myself into his arms. He catches me ably, and despite his exertion, I can’t catch even the slightest quiver of weakness. Duric is firm, and strong, his thick arms pressing me into him with a considered gentleness I find very welcome after the crushing embraces of the two dead Odex.
“Let me see,” I say, breaking away from him and pushing his arm away to clear my view of his side. The slash is deeper than I thought, but still not as serious as it could be. All told, it’s a pretty light price to pay for fending off two monsters of that size.
He hisses when I prod at the wound and pulls my hands away.
“Does it hurt,” I ask, more stupidly than I would have wished.
He smirks at me, and stoops to grip a handful of soil which he rubs smartly against the cut.
“That’s how we deal with it where I come from,” he smiles at me, crinkling up the ridges of his face. “It’ll be cleared up in no time.”
It’s hard to tell if he’s putting on a brave face for my sake. I don’t think so. Having seen what he looks like when he’s reached the end of his ability to bluff, this odd little gesture has the ring of authenticity about it.
“Come on,” he chucks me lightly on the shoulder, and rests his arm easily around my neck as we start to head back.
“Wait,” I cry out suddenly. Darting back to the bank, I jumble our little feast back into the bag where it fell and jog back to his side. When I reach him, I lift his harm and step under it, settling his loose embrace in the same spot. It feels strange. Like the move of an infatuated schoolgirl.
Regardless, he just saved my life again. I can’t even count how many times it’s been since we met. If he wants to put his arm around me, I say:
“Let him.”
Fourteen
Duric
Daphne and I trudge back to the cave, my arm draped around her shoulders with a familiarity that I perhaps have not earned. My side aches a bit from the Odex’s blade, but with my metabolism it will heal swiftly enough. I’m certain that humans would have to worry about infection, but Vakutan are not the type of creature to be brought low by tiny organisms which cannot be seen without a microscope.
“For a woman who is so brilliant, heading into the jungle by yourself was most foolish.”
“I know.”
“Why must you turn everything into an argument…what did you say?”
I stop, my arm dropping off her shoulder as I stare at her with great incredulity. Of course, I heard the words emanating from her mouth, and certainly I comprehended them, but given the strange utterance I feel I need confirmation.
“I said, I know. It was ignorant and short sided of me to venture into the verdant green alone. I put your life at risk as much as my own.”
Her lower lip trembles, and I see her gaze fixed firmly on the clump of dirt hiding my partially healed wound. I throw back my head and laugh with great gusto, both from amusement at her pathos and because I want to reassure her that I will be fine.
“This little scratch? My siblings used to do worse to me, when they weren’t even angry. Vakutan sport and play tends to be quite rough.”
“Still, I’m sorry that you were hurt on my account. I—I’m not used to people sticking their neck out for me. Thank you.”
She’s having trouble meeting my gaze, looking at the forest floor or her own feet. Using my finger, I push up under her chin gently to raise her eye level until she’s gazing at me.
“You’re welcome.” I wrestle with myself for a moment, and it’s surprisingly hard to get the next words out of my mouth. “Thank you for saving my life yesterday.”
“Well, I wasn’t about to let you become food for a random marine based vertebrate.” She smiles, and it makes my heart ache with how attractive she is. I long to stroke my fingers through her silken hair again, but instead I turn and gesture toward our destination.
“Come. It’s not safe in the jungle. The Odex may not have been alone, but rather were part of a foraging party.”
“Foraging?” She follows in my wake. I bend back a hefty branch so that she can move past unimpeded, then let it spring back amid a rustling of triangular shaped leaves.
“Indeed. Their ship couldn’t have made the descent much more easily than our own, and Odex tend to keep their ships lightly supplied to leave room for slaves and plunder.”
“Slaves and plunder?” Her face is crossed with a frown, and I recall our argument from the other day. Perhaps she still has reservations about being involved in a war between two alien—to her perspective—intergalactic civilizations. I don’t want to fight, however, so I don’t bring it up again. “It sounds so medieval.”
“It sounds so what? That’s a human word I’ve yet to hear.”
“Medieval. It refers to a time when humanity was much less enlightened than we are now.”
“Less enlightened? How intriguing. Explain this enlightenment.”
We come to the same babbling brook I splashed through minutes ago. Without thinking about it I stride into the middle of the frothy water and reach over to grab her around the waist.
“Ah, okay.” Daphne stiffens as I lift her bodily over the stream and put her down on the other side.
“No need for both of us to have wet feet. Now, as to this concept of enlightenment…”
“Right. Well, back in medieval times, humanity was a lot like the Vakutan.”
“Really? Powerful, capable warriors?”
“Not quite what I was getting at.” She laughs, a musical sound that seems to surprise her as much as me. “We were ruled by base desires, seeking conquest and valuables. Our society was divided up into unequal segments, where the nobility had all the land and power and the peasantry was forced to slave away just to scrape by.”
“That arrangement sounds very much like the Ataxia Coalition. The Odex slave away on brutal assignments while the Shorcu lounge in their high tech ships.”
“Maybe.” She sighs and shakes her head. “I can’t help but feel like humanity has been the subject of a cosmic joke.”
I grunt, ducking underneath a low hanging branch that she fits right beneath.
“How so?”
“We survived so much, like catastrophes, and environmental calamities, and unrestrained capitalism, only to finally make it to the stars and run right into the same problems over and over again.”
“Perhaps it is not humanity, but societies in general, which are so deeply flawed.”
“I’d like to think that, but I’m afraid we carry a great deal of the blame. We’ve brought our problems off world with us, just another part of our culture.”
We reach the waterfall and our cave base camp. This time we enter through the left side, avoiding a thorough soaking. Settling down by the fire pit, we share the food she managed to forage. At length she stops chewing and moves on all fours over to my side.
“Let me see.” Daphne reaches for my dirt clogged wound. I start, but then relax and let her fingers brush away the damp soil. “Incredible. It’s already scabbing over.”
“We Vakutan are a hardy breed. Literally made to be fighters.”
“Well, I believe that there’s a lot more to you than just fighting, Duric.” She smiles at me, and my heart wilts. With great reluctance, I force myself to bring up a touchy subject.
“Daphne, I feel I must broach a difficult conversation with you.”
Her eyebrows arch high on her olive skinned face.
“Is that so? What a formal request. I have a feeling this makes you quite uncomfortable, whatever it is.”
I let out a short bark of laughter.
“Quite. Our…our encounter the previous evening. I have been troubled ever since. You must understand that I’m not given to flights of fancy or indulging my libido with just anyone.”
“Good. I’m not either.”
“Right. Well, that night, as, ah, as invigorating as it was, represents a personal failing on my part. A moment of weakness, if you will.”
“I see.” Her voice is a bit stilted, but I sense relief as well. Perhaps she was just as conflicted as I.
