Nomads The Risen God

by Gary Mark Lee

The commerce planet for the profit organizations of the Outer Rim had once been an

  unremarkable world without any inherent value or worth. But its location put it in a perfect orbit to be used as a gathering point for trading unions and other profit motivated consortiums. What had once been little more than a barren orb was now one of the most luxurious worlds ever inhabited, great houses built from the rarest of materials were common and nowhere did you see the slightest sign of decay. And by far its most imposing structure was the Great Hall of Prosperity.

  “Why have our efforts proved futile, and who is responsible for this failure?”

  Those in the ornate chamber of the inter-counsel were very reluctant to answer the Chairman because they remembered the last person who had failed and what had happened to him.

  After an uncomfortable silence one nervous official spoke up.

  “The fault is not with our efforts but with the obstacles that must be overcome my lord”. The person who spoke was a Margalian by the named Cortus-Tor, tall and razor thin, he had a hook nose and unrevealing eyes. He was one of those countless officials that littered the chambers of the Outer Rim governments, shrewd, calculating and unwilling to take the blame for anything. He now stood with his head bowed hoping that his words would not offend the Chairman.

  The Supreme Chairman went by the name Vocarus-Prodonus; his homeworld was a planet called Negodra 4, a rather unpleasant biosphere where only those who could take what they wanted would live to rise to the top. Having raised very high, the Supreme Chairman was not one who took failure well. He was not a tall man by any means, but his girth and demeanor made him a formidable opponent, he had a fat face and a wide flat nose and behind closed doors they referred to him as a Borbo. A named that was given to a large foul smelling grub eater of the Outer Rim planets but few ever dared to utter that name least they vanish without a trace.

  Vorcarus leaned his massive golden robed bulk over the huge conference table and stared down on the holographic map showing a great primary star with a smaller secondary sun and a large planet with several orbiting moons.

  “How can this one little world stand between us and our profits?” then he turned to look into the face of Cortus once more, “send in our collectors and take what we need”. If the planet is acquired I will be able to complete the agreements with the Prymax and double my profits, he thought.

  Again, there was silence, then another official came forward, and this one was a Callaxion, a humanoid with the ability to interface with the powerful Trolacian computers and Data-Coms. His name was Prodor Morgan Dorporcorian and like all of his species he had a large head with an import connection and slim nail-less fingers, he cleared his throat then spoke in a soft intelligent voice. “If I may clarify, the celestial body you refer to is not an ordinary planet; it has a very unique Electro-magnetic pulse that renders all advanced mechanical systems useless, all efforts to place a permanent station on the surface have ended in disaster”.

  “Have these losses been substantial?” having the Chairman ask this was not good, for if the losses were too great it meant that someone would pay with their life. But luckily Cortus-Tor found the courage to speak.

  “The losses have not been sufficient enough to warrant retribution, and we have acquired substantial profits by using the world as a depository for unwanted populations and outmoded warships, our agreement with the Markins assures us a more than adequate margin of growth”.

  This seemed to satisfy the leader of the alliance and so the Callaxion moved to the table and adjusted several knobs so that the image of the planet was enlarged. “As you can see the planet has deep oceans, large fertile plains and a vast amount of valuable mineral deposits, we place its wealth at a level two or above”. Anything above a level four made the Chairman’s mouth water and hearing that it could yield a level two or more in riches made him even more eager to acquire it.

  “Simply bring in the orbital enforcers and blast whatever is sending out the pulses and destroy it!” the Chairman said, we have done this many times before and the profits have been worth it. His voice was slowly filling with frustration and everyone waited for the Callaxion to remain the target of that anger, and they were happy when he spoke again.

  “I am sorry to say but the pulses emanate from deep within the planet itself, a naturally accruing phenomenon some say while others have a theory that it’s due to some kind of lifeform”. Again the Callaxion manipulated some dials and several moons appeared in the image, “we have been monitoring the planet for some time now and have sent down jumper-ships to collect samples of animal life and scientific information. We have more than one thousand genetic cross-references starting with a very interesting form of…”

  “Yes, yes all very well and good”, the Chairman’s voice was becoming angrier, “but are there any obstacles that we need to eliminate?”

  The word “obstacles” was a polite way of saying if there were any intelligent creatures that might put up a fight when they came to take what they wanted. It was at this time that a General of the combined Forces of Peace stepped forward. His name was Ivar-Anoon known throughout the Outer Rim as Ivar the victorious, a name that fit him very well because he had never lost a war and prided himself on the casualties that he could inflict on his enemy. He was not a tall man and if it was not for the overly ornate uniform that he wore you might take him for a seller of hover ships or perhaps a dealer in pleasure perfumes, his face was impassive, and with his shaven head he looked rather forgettable for the most part.

  But he had practiced long and hard before a reflection plate and could cause fear with just a glance. He marched up to the Chairman and after giving an overzealous salute he spoke.

  “I have studied the intel-coms and can say that the indigenous humanoids that now inhabit that planet are little more than savages and would be of no concern to a contingent of well-armed pacifiers”. Victory would come quickly.

  Again, the word “pacifiers” was not a truthful interpretation, but it was more easily excepted then an invading army of well-paid mercenaries, trained to kill anything in their way.

  “Then I don’t see the problem?” the Chairman smiled.

  Once more the Callaxion stepped forward, “Might I remind you that the electromagnetic pulses would disable any machinery, targeting devices and directional equipment, and then there is the matter of the plague”.

  “Plague?” Vorcarus asked, for all the Chairman’s forceful mannerisms he was dreadfully afraid of diseases of any kind so much so that he had long given up his sexual activities least he catch CMA or Vermanyon syndrome. But he still used his personal gratifier of course.

  Prodor tapped more buttons on the holographic table and a molecular configuration appeared, “this disease infests all creatures on the planet, it has no cure but regular intakes of a certain complex mineral will stave off death and restore good health, the natives call it Grana”.

  “And this Grana will enable our pacifiers to complete their assignment?” the Supreme Chairmans voice sounded hopeful.

  “Yes, it would” the Callaxion replied, “but it is only found on the planet and cannot be duplicated, and without mass-drilling equipment we cannot extract it from the ground”.

  The Supreme Chairman began to move away from the table and pace up and down, it was a sign that he was thinking and everyone understood not to question him at this time. At last he returned to the table and looked at his officials and spoke, this time his voice was soft but it still carried a great deal of menace.

  “So, our problem is this, we have a planet rich in wealth but with no way of extracting it, is this correct?”

  “That is correct” replied the Callaxion.

  “THEN WHY ARE YOU WASTING MY TIME!” he yelled pounding his fat fist upon the Hologram table causing it to short out for a moment. Fools, I’m surrounded by fools and wasting profits.

  There was silence for a time then Prodor found the courage to speak, “If I may my lord, as I said we have b
een monitoring the planet for a great deal of time now and we have detected something that may work to our advantage”. “And what is that?” “The Callaxion adjusted the Hologram until it showed a clear picture of the world in question, “the Electromagnetic pulses are declining”. For a moment, the information didn’t register in the mind of the Chairman then with a sudden flash of understanding he smiled. “So, you’re saying that soon we will be able to land on the planet and reap its rewards?” Prodor nodded his large head (yes). “How soon?” the obese creature asked.

  “The orbit of the planet has reached its furthest apogee from its primary star and is now moving into a closer proximity, if the magnetic impulses continue to subside at their current rate we should be able to take control in six point nine standard time references”.

  Knowing what the Supreme Chairman was about to say General Ivar stepped forward, “I can have a fleet of our most powerful enforcer ships in orbit over the planet filled with our best men when that time comes”, it will be a glorious victory. Vorcarus-Prodonus began to rub his thick hands together in anticipation of the wealth that would soon be filling them. Seeing that their Chairman was content the officials in the room began to smile.

  Then the wealthiest man in the Outer Rim gazed at the image of the world that would soon be his, and turning to the Callaxion he asked, “And what is the name of this prize?”

  “The planet is in the Gornogal section with a file number of one, one, nine, seven, six, U,P,O, but commonly known as Gorn”.

  “Gorn?” The Chairman asked, “A rather silly name”. And hoping the head of the Alliance had made a jest the others in the room began to laugh softly.

  The world of Gorn was emerging from its frozen sleep, its orbit had taken it far from its primary sun and was now returning it to its warm embrace, the heat of Karus the larger sun was welcomed by the creatures of the world, now they could come out of there hibernation and live in the brightness once more. Micos the smaller secondary sun had traveled with Gorn as she moved through the outer darkness but her meager light was only enough to keep life going and not strong enough for it to grow. Together the two brother suns would join and the land would flurish.

  Rimar, Ax-breakers, Doff birds, Dagger-mouths, and all the other strange life forms that made Gorn their home once more began to move over the hard ground, even the all-powerful Earthshakers rose up filling the sky with their awesome presents. Bark Bees, Blaze ants, Arrowtails, even the tiny Burrow Babies began to scurry about in their never-ending search for food, from the far-off forests of Caltarine to the shores of the Western Sea life was waking. But there was one place that the twin suns never shone, the place the Egan-Mar called home.

  Deep beneath the ground was the domain of the Earth-Eaters, they spent their entire lives toiling with hand and tool and without the warmth of the sky, they ate Brillcaps and any creature that crossed their path, their bodies were heavily muscled and their skulls were thick, to look at them you would see, little difference between the males and females other than the fact that the females were a bit smaller. Their jaws were massive but their eyes were small and of little use for they relied on smell and hearing rather than site, they wore the dried skins of the Giant Rockworm, the viscous creature the Sandjar miners call Gorno, to this they added small bits of metal for protection, their tools consisted of crude picks and shovels and other digging devices.

  They dug endlessly for that was their nature but there was one other reason, Grana, the green salt that all creatures of Gorn must consume to live, most animals obtained it from eating the grasses or roots that absorbed the mineral, others like the Norgonie of the Caltarine forests got it from eating worms that burrowed in the ground, but the Nomads had only one way of obtaining the needed salt, they traded with the Ergan for it. The Miners dug it out and gave it to the Outlanders and in return the diggers got loaves of Stone Bread, heavily spiced baked dough that the Nomads made just for them, to them it was a fair trade for they relished the taste of the hard fare. The Miners lived throughout the lands of Gorn, but no one had ever ventured into their underground homes and returned to tell what they have seen, if they did they would have seen a marvel of construction, miles upon miles of intricate tunnels and caves, endless levels that went from just below the surface to far below, if they had not possessed the same power of direction that the Nomads had they would have been hopelessly lost. The tunnels were lite in a dim glow by Starfall, an organic moss that gives off a cool light and allows the Ergan to see a little in the darkness.

  Now a small band of Miners dug in a section of earth they had never ventured into, the group was led by a large man whose name was Tark, names mattered little to the Egan but having a label meant that you were strong and a leader, and Tark was that by any standard, he was a head taller than most of his kind and his strength was massive, he could do the work of any two of his species and took the pick of the females in his tribe.

  “Hunnnk!” the leader growled as he swung his heavy pick, and as he did the chunks of rock spun through the air and showered the other miners with chocking dust, again and again he attacked the hard stone and more fragments fell to the ground, then with one last blow a large section of earth gave way and tumbled to the floor of the tunnel. In doing so one of the miners was crushed to death but this had little effect on the others for death was common and they paid little notice.

  When the dust had cleared the Earth-Eaters saw a strange site for there before them was a large metal door. Ergan-Mar have no use for doors or anything of the kind, their tunnels were always open unless there was a cave in so seeing such an obstacle momentary stopped them from their work, then after a moment or two Tark moved forward and places his large hand on the steel access, it was rough and cold to the touch, the surface was pitted with age and there was no sign of a handle or latch, again this meant nothing to the miners and with a growl Tark swung his pick hard at the thing baring his way. It rang out with a loud “ding” but it did not give way, again and again he struck at the door but nothing happened, then as the large Ergan was about to swing again there was a loud “click” and the door slowly opened. The diggers was hesitant and waited for the first to enter, then Tark moved forward and poked his large skull inside the doorway, what he saw his tiny brain could scarcely imagine.

  It was a room, but a room like he had never seen, its walls were not made of rock or any other material he had ever seen, the surface was smooth and shiny and had strange mechanisms protruding outwards, the ceiling was high and it too had weird machinery hanging down like the tentacles of an Earthshaker and everything was covered in ice. Egans were familiar with ice for their tunnels ran far into the North and sometimes intersected with ice flows so Tark understood what he was looking at, now with slow steps he entered the vast chamber. He moved carefully holding his pick like a weapon and ready to strike at any sign of danger, when he had stepped further into the room the other Miners followed their leader.

  Tark stopped for a moment to feel the floor under him, having spent his entire life deep underground and traveling through tunnels cut from rock he never experienced the feel of a totally smooth floor and being covered in ice made his progress even slower, he was also confused by the light in the room, it wasn’t from Starfall or torch but seemed to be from some sort of cold light emanating from fixtures on the walls? A cold bluish luminance that gave the whole room an eerie feeling, but he continued to move forward, and then he saw it.

  There in the middle of the room was a round object made of a clear substance that looked like ice, but what made the Earth-Eater stop in his tracks was the thing inside, it resembled a man of sorts but grotesque and misshapen, a huge bulbous head with beady eyes that were closed and a small opening that could have been called a mouth, its body was reptilian with two small legs and two tiny arms but how that creature managed to move about with such feeble appendages was unknown? Looking at it made even the strong Ergan leader feel afraid, there was something about it that made the skin crawl and a
sick feeling in the pit of the stomach, it was like looking at some vile thing from some other time and place, and if the dwellers in the earth had a demon God to fear, this would be it. Tark had seen enough and was about to turn and leave this forbidden place when he once more looked into the face of the creature, and as he looked the eyes opened. Ergan-Mar are strong fearless creatures, they die without complaint and never run from danger but looking into the cold dead eyes of the thing that now gazed at him made the Miners scream in terror.