“Can we talk and move at the same time?” Jordan asked. “Time’s awasting.”
“Let us go,” Ash concurred.
They took to the stars, setting the course for Planet Nine as they attempted to come up with a plan that would not get them all killed.
∞
“Cloaking the vessel,” Jaime said as he set the autopilot to descend. They would not be able to enter the atmosphere of Planet Nine with the ship, so they would have to leave it cloaked as they took orbital pods down to the landing site.
The terrain was flat, with nowhere to conceal their pods for miles. A few conical buildings dotted the landscape, looking like greenhouses. Planet Nine was a mostly unoccupied land mass where different species staked claim to the unusually fertile soil to grow rare plant species for sale across the galaxy. As far as they knew, most greenhouses were manned by robogardeners and so they could not imagine what would bring scavengers here. Unless they were picking up more cargo.
“What do we do?” Epone asked Jaime.
“We…blend in. Activate chameleon mode on your suits, and let’s spread out, north, east, west, south; we surround them at the planned coordinates. Take them down fast. Don’t get stuck with poison.”
Jordan snorted. “You call that a plan?” he asked even as he got moving southward.
“We work with what we got,” Jaime replied, heading in the opposite direction. Epone went west and Ash took east. They waited for the cargo ship.
An hour later, the faint drone of a convertible engine could be heard approaching. Jaime checked with Arnold.
“How many aboard?” he asked the AI.
“I count eight living heat signatures,” Arnold replied.
“Can you tell species?” Jaime asked.
“Only AX as he is a half machine, and so emits a very unique bisignal. I also feel Zorica’s magic like a cloud around her heat signature.”
“Uzochi?”
“I cannot tell, sir.”
Jaime sighed. “Okay guys, we are going to assume that all three of our guys are on that transport. The priority is to get them out. The second priority is to find out what the mercenaries meant to do with them. Clearly, they had no qualms about hurting them, what does this tell us?”
There was silence on the comms as everyone pondered and watched the transport approach. “Maybe it’s a distraction,” Jordan said. “They wanted to divert our attention?”
Jaime stiffened, that possibility hadn’t occurred to him. It gave a new flavor to the snippets of…vision or whatever he’d had. Of course, there was no way to know for sure if Jordan was right.
“How confident are you feeling about that analysis Jordan?” he asked.
There was a sound of rustling cloth on the comms as if Jordan was shifting around, or maybe shrugging his shoulders. “It seems pretty likely to me. If it was a kidnapping or they wanted information, why risk maybe killing them with the poison? Coming out of the maze is a feat not many have mastered.”
“Yes but the Soulhags must have some sort of antidote, no?” Epone cut in.
“There is no antidote for the maze,” Ash said.
“So…a distraction…” Jaime said thoughtfully. “Who wants to distract us?”
“We must capture one of the Soulhags and find out,” Epone said at once.
Jaime sighed again. He knew she was right and he had to keep his eye on the prize even though every heartbeat seemed to scream ‘Rescue Zorica!’ for some reason.
“Ash, is it possible for you to reverse your healing power? Use it to disable a Soulhag enough for us to take him?”
Ash was silent for a long while but Jaime just waited. “It is against the code of my people to do that,” she said at last.
“But you can do it?” Jaime pressed.
“Yes,” Ash said.
“Would you do it for us?” Jaime asked.
Ash made a surprised sound. “Is this a request or an order?”
“I would never order you to do something like this Ash. I am asking though.”
Ash gave a deep audible breath. “Yes captain,” she said. “I will do it.”
“Okay great. Thank you. So this is the plan: Jordan, cover Ash so she can get close. As soon as she takes a Soulhag down, move in, help her to secure him and provide cover fire. Epone and I will retrieve the prisoners. Arnold, be ready for fast take off.”
A chorus of ‘yes sirs’ came through his comm. and then Jaime was turning to the ship, raising his own rifle, aiming for the fuel pod. If he could slowly drain their fuel, they would be stranded here for a while, unable to follow right away. He took the shot, zooming in to see if he’d hit his target. The black tar of Stits fuel was already dripping to the ground, coating the surrounding rock with a thick viscous dark sludge-like layer. Jaime nodded, straightening up and sheathing his weapon.
They watched as the transport landed exactly at the coordinates mapped and waited to see what would happen next.
Chapter Twelve: Search and Rescue
Zorica was trying to wake up but it was not easy. She could feel the telltale sway of the ship that hinted at landing. She wanted to be awake for whenever they came for her. Whatever they would do to her next, she would be aware of it. She wasn’t going to let herself be experimented on or used as a toy for anyone’s amusement. She’d heard of the games Soulhags liked to play and she would be damned before she let herself be treated in such a way.
She began to call for the imps, knowing full well how dangerous that was in her diminished state. She was so happy that she’d learned to send her spirit forth from her body, and also how to move things psychically. She always had Essence of Rue on her person as well as St. John’s Wart. A salt packet in her shoe and…she needed an offering. She opened her eyes, looking around the bunker they were locked in. Uzochi was awake, gazing at her as if he knew what she was planning. He shook his head slowly as if to stop her, but she ignored him. She turned her head, seeing AX on the ground, folded up and abandoned like an old piece of tech. But there was a human in there too. Or had been. If Dr. Teke had been poisoned, he might be dead now. What that would do to AX, Zorica had no idea.
“AX?” she called out softly, and the AI jerked as if startled.
“AX can you hear me?” she tried a bit louder.
There was a low groan and then a whispered, “help.”
“AX?” Zorica said a bit louder, wanting to shake him.
“Not…AX…Teke,” he said in an extremely weakened voice.
“Where’s AX?” Zorica couldn’t help the question.
“Shut…down,” Dr. Teke said.
“Can you, er, can you move your body?”
“No.”
“Can you wake him up?”
“Tried…”
Zorica looked at Uzochi, eyebrows raised.
‘Now what?’ she mouthed at him.
Uzochi merely shook his head slowly.
“Some help you are,” Zorica thought.
“I can’t speak. They are in my head.”
Zorica cast a startled glance at Uzochi, wondering how he’d done that. Could she read his thoughts or was he projecting?
His mouth turned down in a frown, and he shook his head again. She was afraid to ask what that meant.
“Help,” Dr. Teke’s faint voice filled the room like he was shouting.
“I will help you, sir. I will. Just gotta think how,” Zorica replied with as much conviction as she could inject in her voice.
Uzochi just shook his head again.
“What?” Zorica sent at him, irritated beyond belief. But Uzochi just frowned.
There was a rumbling and the room was shaking and shuddering like there was an engine malfunction or they were being hit over and over by some huge battering ram.
“What’s…going…on?” Zorica called, unable to even talk properly.
“He-lp,” Dr. Teke replied as his body juddered around the room, unable to anchor
onto anything.
∞
The earth tremors were a curveball the team was not expecting. The ground shook beneath their feet, rendering them off balance. Jordan had to jump down from the rocky outcrop he was stationed on lest it crumbles beneath him. There was a loud clap and then there was a crack in the dirt, expanding rapidly in so many directions. The earth was opening up beneath their feet.
Jaime looked toward the Soulhagian transport, but no hatches opened, no one tried to flee or take off. The vessel was right in the epicenter of the action and unless they took off, they were essentially trapped, surrounded by unstable ground on all sides, with deep steadily widening rifts making things worse by the second.
“What do we do?” Jordan asked in his ear.
“We wait. We watch. Conceal yourselves,” Jaime said. He had the feeling this was no ordinary quake. He hastened to do as he’d instructed his team and not a moment too soon. He’d just lain flat in the grass, optics turned up to the maximum when he saw a mechanical hand questing from beneath one of the rifts, seemingly searching for something.
“Guys? Do you see that?” he whispered.
“You mean the giant hand that just appeared out of nowhere? Yes,” Jordan said, sounding freaked out. The hand came out further and Jordan gasped.
“What?” Jaime asked.
“The streaks on its…flesh,” Jordan said. “They look like the things that appeared in the infected. In the hospital.”
Jaime craned his neck to see. “So…the source?” he whispered.
“Or patient zero,” Epone’s voice was sardonic.
The hand found purchase and pulled as they all waited with bated breath to see what would emerge.
∞
A Soulhag walked into the room, caught sight of AX bumping around the room and laughed.
“It’s no fun bein’ helpless huh?” he said between chortles. Zorica glared at him, wishing Epone was still in her head so she could tell her to possess him. She let her eyes roll into the back of her head as she let her spirit go, searching for Epone. She called her name out loud, hoping their connection would pull her spirit to Epone.
“Uh, not a good time Z,” Epone said, right back in her head.
“The shaking?”Zorica asked.
“Yep. Some creature emerging from the earth.”
“I need you to come back in here and possess a Soulhag for a hot minute so you can let us go.”
She could feel rather than hear Epone’s sigh, but pretty soon she was back in her head with an accompanying presence.
“Where?” Epone asked.
Zorica turned her head so that Epone could see the Soulhag through her eyes.
Epone took a deep breath and then she was gone. The Soulhag stiffened, head coming up to stare straight ahead, arms stiff at his sides. Epone turned his head first left and right, and then walked awkwardly, stumbling occasionally, over to Zorica.
“Do you know how to open the restraints?” Epone asked, using the Soulhag’s mouth.
“No, I don’t. You need to wake AX up. He would figure it out.”
Epone turned slowly, walking like a child wearing adult shoes. She shuffled over to AX, turning him over and looking into Dr. Teke’s eyes.
“Don’t hurt me,” he said in a weak voice.
“It’s me doc. Epone,” she said and then helped the human-AI hybrid sit up. He trembled, listing to one side, almost landing on his back again.
“You need to power AX up,” he said.
“How?”
Dr. Teke’s eyes moved around the room, looking for something. Epone simply waited, holding him up.
“The cable there, it uses electricity. Get it,” he said, pointing at an exposed piece of wiring. Epone shot him a skeptical glance but went to tear it out of its mooring and drag it over to the hybrid’s body.
“Power it up,” Dr. Teke said.
Epone’s expression within the Soulhag’s face became even more skeptical but she did as he asked.
Dr. Teke inclined his head, pointing at his temple. “Right there. Hit me.”
“No. That could kill you.”
“It’s alright, he won’t let me die. Hit me.”
Epone looked from the sparking cable in her hand to Dr. Teke’s temple and sighed.
“Here goes nothing,” she said and pressed the exposed wires to his temple.
Dr. Teke cried out, his back arching so that he was almost bent in two, mouth open in a silent scream. Then he began to shudder and shake, looking like he was convulsing. Epone pulled the cable away, putting it carefully back before coming to stand over the hybrid, waiting to see what would happen. It stilled suddenly, collapsed in a heap on the ground, and then AX’s eyes opened, shining bright blue in the dark room.
“Welcome back,” Epone said impassively.
“Ouch,” AX replied.
“You back with us?” Epone asked.
AX nodded slowly. “Why are you helping us Soulhag?” he asked.
Epone laughed. “Don’t you recognize me, AX? I’m hurt.”
AX’s eyes shone as he looked up at the Soulhag standing over him, staring intently. “Epone?”
She raised the Soulhag’s hand and waved. “Hi,” she said.
“This is all very nice but we don’t have all day,” Zorica said.
“Oh yeah, can you figure out how to get them out of their shackles?” Epone asked AX.
The hybrid stood up and made his slow way toward Zorica. He leaned in, examining her restraints. Then he turned to Epone, examining the suit her Soulhag was wearing closely. He pointed at a patch of green on the grey suit. “That’s it,” he said.
Epone looked down at the patch, which was located at almost wrist level.
“What do I do?” she asked.
“Press it here, on this yellow part here,” AX said, pointing at a strip on Zorica’s shackle.
Epone did as she was bid and, sure enough, the shackle unlocked. She repeated the action with the other shackle and then helped Zorica to her feet. They all turned to Uzochi.
He shook his head.
“Why do you keep doing that?” Zorica asked irritably.
Uzochi glanced at the Soulhag.
“It’s okay, that’s just Epone,” Zorica said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “Talk.”
“They’re here for you, they want you,” Uzochi said.
“Who? They who?” Zorica asked, furrowing her brow in confusion.
“Stits,” Uzochi said.
Zorica stiffened. She did not have much knowledge of her father’s people, but what she knew of them made her wary to be a person of interest to them.
“How do you know?” Zorica asked.
“I am a seer,” Uzochi said, his unibrow raised.
“What do they want with me?” Zorica breathed.
“I think they want you to go with them. You are a Stits-Human hybrid. Probably the only one of your kind.”
“You think? You don’t know?”
“The Stits are a very insular people. They do not interact much with others. It is very difficult to understand their reasoning.”
“So the Soulhags kidnapped me in order to turn me over to them? What about you two?”
“Expendable,” Uzochi said.
“Z, you guys, we have to get out of here now,” Epone in the Soulhag’s body said.
“How?” Zorica asked, turning to Epone.
“I will go and scout. Be ready to move,” she replied, dragging the Soulhag’s body out of the prisoner bunker.
Zorica, Uzochi, and AX moved together to the side of the door, listening keenly to everything happening. The ship was quiet considering the quaking going on outside. Zorica could only assume they expected it. Her mind was reeling with the thought of being a person of interest to the Stits. Never in all her eighty years had they tried to get in contact with her. She didn’t understand why they would choose this method – kidnap, demon poison, collateral dam
age to her friends – to finally catch her attention. She would have been happy with an invitation to visit…or even meet. She knew nothing of her people bar what she’d heard in form of rumor and innuendo. She wondered if Uzochi might have gotten it wrong.
“I am not wrong,” he whispered to her.
“Are you reading my mind again?” Zorica asked him.
“I do not need to read your mind to sense the turmoil in your soul. We shall see what we shall see once we leave this ship. The Soulhags intend to hand us over. We could just let them instead of trying to escape.”
“You think you will be safe with the Stits?” Zorica really wanted to know.
Uzochi shook his head. “The Stits require something of you. You will not let them harm us.”
“And what about the rest of the team, waiting out there for us?”
Uzochi shrugged. “Epone can tell them what is happening.”
Zorica nodded. “I don’t like it. If they want to see me, it should be on my terms. Not theirs. We cannot assume that we are safe. Better to get them to come to us in a position of advantage.”
Uzochi said nothing but Zorica sensed he did not disagree. AX simply watched them, the blue of his eyes shining like two sapphires.
∞
The Soulhag’s body was not easy to manipulate. It was bulky at the top, tapering to almost nothing at the lower extremities, and then ending in huge feet. Finding its center of gravity was a challenge. Moving the body so it looked natural was taking all of her concentration. She could not decipher its psyche which seemed mostly to be made of a continuous desire to kill, harm, eat, hurt. The Soulhag showed no awareness that it was no longer alone in its body and gave no resistance to Epone’s possession of its mind. This was a relief because Epone didn’t know if she had the strength to fight it and manipulate the vessel at the same time. She shuffled into the command and control center, trying to look unobtrusive.
Black-eyed beings dotted the room, all watching a screen that showed the outside of the ship. The being that Epone had left emerging from the earth was standing beside the ship, looking around as if in confusion. The Stits was taller than the average human, at about eight feet. Their hands were abnormally large, and veined black. Epone wasn’t sure if that was natural to the Stits or something to do with the infection Jaime had mentioned. The Stits shook its head, scattering moisture everywhere. All the plant life the moisture touched died immediately. Epone was guessing that wasn’t normal.
Mage Marine Misfits: Book 01 Page 10
