Defending Hippotigris

by Smith, T. L.

  Signaling him back I got a scowl, then a nod. He passed a coded message to both teams. Between several deep breaths I studied my path, fixing it in my head, leaving my every reaction for the plan. Four…three…two… one! I burst out from my hiding spot and did a mad dash for the giant wheels of the drill.

  Every weapon from our two teams was pointed at the drill or the other pods of resistance. Schaeffer’s job was to keep their heads down and my path clear. My job was to take the drill operator out before his weapon reached the forest edge, team two, or any Parredet who lingered too close to the battlefield.

  The path was in my head, a twisted variation of boot camp as I zigzagged twenty or so meters. The last thing I needed to pay attention to was the zip-zinging sounds of weapon fire aimed at me. Four meters, three… and my feet were off the ground, my hands out to grab a tire at least twice my height.

  My toes scrambled for a hold, then rubber gripped rubber, my boots catching the wide treads. I scaled the tire, coming up at the side of the control chamber.

  The operator didn’t see me, his eyes focused on the ridge as my second line continued to fire at him. I grabbed at the door, jerked it open and swung my rifle up, opening fire with a laser blast that filled the control box.

  The drill shut down abruptly. The chamber jerked to a stop as the operator’s body fell onto the panel. Spinning around to jump to the ground, a fist landed on my jaw, knocking me back against the control chamber door. My head hit hard enough to make things go dark for a second, long enough for him to rip the rifle off my shoulder.

  There was a blur of grey as my attacker yanked me to my feet, spinning me around as a body block for the snipers. “Okay, back off or we kill the pretty girl.”

  He shouted over my shoulder, making sure to move me around enough to keep anyone from taking a shot at him. I felt the metal of a pistol at my neck. I squeezed my eyes tight to drive away the fuzziness.

  When I opened them Schaeffer stepped out from behind the rock crusher, his rifle pointed upwards. “Resisting is pointless. You don’t have anywhere to go, especially since you destroyed your own shuttle.”

  The shuttle. That was why I was here. I had to get past the drill before I could get to the shuttle… no… to Remy. A voice shouted at me to think, to react. She was tearing to get out if I couldn’t. I had to get to Remy.

  No. I couldn’t let her out. She wasn’t trained for this. Kazan was. I was. The dizziness let go and my mind focused on what I had to do. I had to get away from this guy, then get up to the shuttle. I focused on Schaeffer as he closed the distance towards the driller. “Surrender and no one else has to get hurt.”

  “Surrender to who?”

  “U.N. Space Alliance.”

  “Surrender to the Alliance? You don’t have any authority here. This is outside Earth’s solar system.” The man in the grey jacket pulled the gun away from my throat to wave it at the mountain. “We claim this planet. This is our world.”

  “Yeah, see that’s where we disagree, since this world is already occupied.” Schaeffer pointed to the trees. “The residents are already pissed off.”

  “You mean the gorillas?” The camp leader laughed. “A few bananas ought to appease them. If not, they’ll learn to stay away after we shoot a few of them out of their trees.”

  “Even if your assumptions were remotely true, you still can’t claim this planet. We were here first. The Alliance. You and whoever you work for, have no rights here.” Schaef pointed to his soldiers. “We intend to protect this world.” His hand shifted to the sky. “We have two cruisers in orbit, way more of us than you.”

  The camp leader shook his head, shoving the pistol into my side. “We have a cruiser too, armed. You Alliance people never thought of that, did you? So it don’t matter how many ships you got, once ours comes after you.”

  Schaeffer laughed. “You’re misinformed. We didn’t come to a gun fight with a knife. We’re fully outfitted with weapons, so it’s two against one, whenever your cruiser gets here. Which won’t be for at least another month.”

  “We’ll see. I can tell you my employers aren’t going down without a fight. They’re done with this Alliance monopoly.” The gun dug deeper into my side. “I’m taking the girl and we’re leaving.” He pulled me backwards with him.

  I had no idea how he intended to get us down from the tire, but I wasn’t about to be a hostage. Until now I’d maintained the dazed affect, playing it now by letting my knees buckle and my body go limp.

  He scrambled to pull me upright, not seeing my hand dig into my leg pocket. I came up fast, spinning around. He tried to grab at me again. A stunned expression replaced the anger. Face-to-face with him, I bared my teeth. “He might not have brought a knife, but I did.” I jerked my blade free of his chest, flattening myself to the tire as his people started shooting at me.

  Dropping down on the other side, I made a dash for cover as Schaeffer let go a barrage on the drill. Creeping around the huge machine, I saw the path to the plateau and ran. The way had been cut into rock, rubble plowed to the side of the ramp, providing me with cover. “Please be okay, please!”

  I repeated the mantra with gasps by the time I crested the peak. I had to cover my face with my arm to keep from inhaling the acrid smoke spewing from the shuttle. “Remy!” I screamed his name, working around to the rear of the shuttle. “Remy!”

  The tail end was open again, but the shuttle had landed on a boulder, nearly tipping the shuttle over onto its side. Someone had tried to lower the rear door, but I was on the wrong side to be able to look inside. There was no choice but to run back around the shuttle, through the toxic smoke.

  My eyes burned from the fumes as I climbed through the opening. “Remy, where are you?” He didn’t answer. No one did.

  Backing out, I hacked out half a lung before being able to look around. Where was everyone? “Team Three, report!” My voice cracked as I shouted into my comm.

  Schaeffer’s voice responded in my ear. “What’s the condition of the team?”

  “They’re gone. The shuttle’s empty.” I moved clear of it, searching the ground. There were a lot of footprints, but also blood. “There’s injuries.” Blood trailed towards the trees. “They must have gone into the forest for cover. Get up here as soon as it’s clear.”

  I saw our sister shuttle appear over the trees, but there was no time to wait. I followed the trail into the trees, five meters, ten, deep enough the shuttles were barely visible, then the blood trail ended. No soldiers. Now real panic surged. “Remy, where are you?”

  After screaming his name until my throat hurt, there was a rustling behind me. I turned to give orders to the soldiers Schaeffer sent after me. Instead a female Parredet dropped to the lowest branch, extending her arm to me. “Reee…meee.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  My mind formed terrible images, fed by silence, fed by Batista’s fear. She was terrified. So was I. Why didn’t they answer? How bad were they injured? I hailed them several times and was near screaming when someone finally answered. “This is Ops Base. We got locals dropping in with wounded… confirmation, Team Three. We have Team Three.”

  “Ops Base, this is Col. Kazan. Give me a status. Who’s wounded, how bad?”

  “Colonel, you’ll have to wait. We just got them and need to do triage before we can tell you anything.” There was a pause. “We’re aware your husband is part of the team. Give us a chance to stabilize the situation. Hold…”

  “Shara, it’s Lizzy. I’m here. I’ll take care of Remy. The Parredet are going out again to get more wounded from the camp.”

  “Okay, Lizzy.” Hearing her voice calmed me a little. “I should be there in a few minutes. Tell him I’m coming.”

  “Will do, gotta go!”

  Lizzy terminated her end. The Parredet carrying me let out a strange sound, maybe trying to comfort me. Maybe because I was crying into her shoulder. I bit back the rest of my tears, holding my breath.

  She moved gracefully, quickly, I h
eard the camp before seeing it, voices shouted out orders, engines fired up for departure. My friend swung down to lower branches. With a practiced grasp of my arm and twist of her body, she deposited me on the edge of the clearing.

  I was already running to where at least a dozen soldiers were laid out on the ground, people hovering about them. For as tiny as she was, Lizzy was easy to find in the chaos. She knelt next to a man covered with an emergency blanket. It had to be Remy. I wove my way through the medics and support personnel, pushing someone out of my way.

  Lizzy’s eyes were dark when she looked up and saw me. She jumped to her feet and rushed for me. “Shara… I’m sorry… He’s bad, real bad.”

  “Let go!” I jerked free of her hands and in a few more steps saw Remy. Burns covered his exposed head and shoulders, making him unrecognizable, but I knew it was him. I dropped to my knees. “Remy, I’m here.”

  His hand twitched. Gently I slipped my fingers into his and they tightened. He knew I was with him. “You’re going to be alright. We just need to get you onboard.” He didn’t respond. “Remy, I promise.”

  He squeezed my hand again, but it wasn’t a response. It was in pain. I could feel it radiating from him. “Medic! I need a medic over here.”

  Lizzy slipped up on Remy’s other side, not holding back her tears. “Honey, they’ve already done all they can. He was just waiting for you.”

  “No! Don’t say that. Medics!” I screamed, but they didn’t even look up from their other patients. “Medics…”

  “Shara, you only have a few more minutes…”

  “Noooo…” I screamed at her, at Remy, at the sky. The spinning of the coin in my head was quick, landing with force on Batista. I clutched at Remy’s hand. “You can’t leave me! Don’t leave. Fight!”

  I was answered by keening from all around us, then a rush of Parredet. Yinet was with them, grabbing Lizzy and pulling her away from Remy, setting her aside and reaching for me.

  More gently, but firmly, she peeled my hand from Remy’s, pulling me to my feet and away as several males surrounded Remy. They removed the blanket. Only then could I see how burnt and broken his body was. It was horrible, but I couldn’t look away.

  Lizzy came to my side, her face turned to my shoulder. “What are they doing?”

  “I don’t know.”

  One of the males poured a liquid into Remy’s mouth, tilting his head back so involuntary reactions made him swallow. One of our medics finally pushed up next to me. “What are they doing to him? He can’t be handled.”

  I had no idea what was happening, but I sensed something in Remy relax. I looked at Yinet and she gave me a slow head bob. A nod. “It doesn’t matter does it? You’ve already written him off for dead.” I couldn’t help sounding harsh. “If they can help him, I don’t care what they do.”

  The medic didn’t argue, or leave. He knelt down, watching as the males unwrapped large leaves, spreading them out on the ground like a blanket. Over those they laid down a second layer of a different leaf, broad, but filmy looking.

  The trees above rustled again as another Parredet arrived. An old female. She joined the males, handing them flasks and chirping out orders. They started pouring a thick gel onto the top leaves, while she went to crouch over Remy.

  Her cheek almost touched his lips. She gave a soft chirp and moved on down his body, speaking to the males as she pointed to the burns and breaks. The medic crept closer, giving the woman a nod as he grasping Remy’s ankle. “Pulse is barely there, but it’s steady, as if… as if they’ve suspended him?”

  Lizzy turned her head off my shoulder, but looking at Yinet, not Remy. She made several gestures, pointing to Remy. “Deep sleep, no pain. He can’t feel what they’re doing.” She knelt down to touch some of the gel spilled onto the bottom layer of leaves. “Hmmm, kind of feels like the… ow, ow, ow…”

  She quickly wiped her fingers off on her pant leg. “Yeah, that’s what they gave me for my feet, but a thousand times stronger…damn.” She flicked her fingers. “Totally numb, like they’ve been cut off.”

  “Really?” The medic reached to sample it for himself, but the old woman made a clucking noise at him. “Okay. Guess I better not.” He looked at the bed of gel and at Remy. “They’re going to wrap him up in that stuff. It heals?”

  “The diluted stuff did for me, real quick too.” Lizzy asked Yinet, their talking accompanied by hand signals. Their hands flew through motions, Lizzy giving the briefest of interpretations, busy jumping to the next question in her head.

  Finally she nodded and looked at the old woman still looking over Remy. “Yeah. They’re going to wrap him up, but mostly keep him in a coma type state, since it’s the pain that is stealing his soul… ability to fight. Then you can do whatever repairs you have to.”

  The medic nodded. “Okay, I get most of that. Can I help? I know human anatomy better than they do. We need to work something out to deliver medications and oxygen. His lungs are burned by the toxic fumes. And I need to realign his broken bones, as best as possible.”

  He spoke to Lizzy, but did his best to mimic what he wanted, what was wrong internally with Remy. The old woman was watching him, listening as Yinet translated what both he and Lizzy were saying. She waved a hand over Remy, stopping where bones erupted through his thigh. She gave a twist of her hand, pointing to the medic.

  “She says yes, put the bones where they belong.” Lizzy tipped her head. “His clothes need to be removed.”

  “Yeah, we didn’t get them all in triage.” The medic pulled out a pair of surgical scissors and started cutting at the burned rags, having to peel singed fabric out of wounds.” He barely glanced over his shoulder. “Kev, need you over here.”

  Lizzy wrapped her hand over my arm. “How you doing?”

  “Can’t answer that, but as long as he’s still alive...” I wrapped my fingers in hers. “As long as I get him back. I have to get him back. She never wanted this… I never…”

  “I know, honey. No one could have seen this happening.” Lizzy wrapped her arms around me. “Just hang in there. Yinet won’t let him die.”

  The other medic crept into the circle, frowning. “What are you doing, Jonas? He’s a red tag. We have other wounded coming in right now.”

  Jonas looked over his shoulder and shook his head. “Kev, you’re standing next to Mrs. Batista… Sorry about that, ma’am.” He jerked his head at Kev. “Get your ass over here.”

  Kev bowed his head to me as he went to Jonas’ side. “What are we doing?” He pulled out his own scissors and started removing cloth and flesh from Remy’s other leg.

  “The woman here is their doctor. We’re getting Mr. Batista ready for some type of medical stasis. They already got him in a near coma.” He jerked his head over to the leaves, the males meticulously adding more layers of gel. “We’re going to learn some native medicine.”

  Kev looked over at the Parredet. “Okay, if you say so.” He finished with the few strips left on Remy’s leg.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Jonas checked Remy’s pulse for the tenth time. “Go get me the LO kit. We’ll fill up his lungs. That will keep his blood oxygenated… oh, and a tissue extraction kit.”

  “You’ll explain more when I get back?” Kev was already getting up.

  “Yeah, hurry. He still has a pulse, but I’m seeing more hypoxia.” The old woman gave him a curious look. He pointed to his own lips, taking in a deep breath, then to Remy’s as he mimicked trouble breathing.

  “Wow, you’re good at that.” Lizzy sounded a bit jealous.

  “Had to learn when I was a kid.” He moved to kneel over Remy’s head, tipping his head back as Kev returned.

  Kev ripped open an intubation kit, leaning over with the tube while Jonas kept the airway open. “There’s a lot of damage, but whatever they gave him seems to… yeah…”

  He shifted his eyes away from Remy to a computer screen in the kit’s lid. “Lots of damage, but the cords are relaxed. Going for the right lung fi
rst.”

  I didn’t want to look, but had to, watching the inside of Remy’s airway through a camera on the end of the tube. It should have been pink and red, but there were black smudges and blisters. In some places it looked like the tube couldn’t get through, but it did.

  Through the tube he inserted two smaller tubes, passing down until they appeared in the camera. The thinner one he worked deeper into the lung, the other he left near the camera.

  “Okay, we can administer the LO.” He reached over to the kit and activated the process. A blue fluid flowed through one of the tubes and into Remy.

  It only took a minute before bubbles started flowing back up the airway. Kev activated the other tube and they were sucked into the tube. The color got darker, brackish. “Yeah, that’s definitely not good. I’m upping saturation.”

  Jonas looked at me. “We’re replacing the fluids already built up in his lungs with liquid oxygen. That will keep his blood oxygenated. We can also start delivering medication internally, try to keep infections from setting in.”

  His hands moved, explaining as best as possible the technology to the Parredet doctor.” He saw Lizzy watching his hands. “My little brother was born with a defect to his auditory systems. For eight years it was the only way to talk to him. Guess you never forget it.”

  Lizzy nodded. “Babies learn sign language easier than standard languages, some signs coming naturally, like wanting food.”

  “Comes in handy.” He looked at Remy, then to the old woman, tapping his lower lip. “Already working. Going pink again.”

  She gave him something of a smile, turning to the males as they finished their task. She rattled off something to them and they backed away from the leaves. From another bundle of leaves they started wrapping their hands.

  Jonas watched them, leaving Kev to move on to Remy’s left lung. He gave an odd smile as one finished and held his mittened paws up like some surgeon afraid to touch anything. “Every instinct is screaming for an anti-bacterial, but clearly we don’t really have any choice right now. No offense…” His bobbed his head at me. “Not trying to be insensitive.”