The Slave Planet

by Seven Steps

  Arees tried to compose herself through her tears. “Who are you?”

  “The enforcer who is about to kill you,” she replied. She swung her fist in a wide arc and connected with the side of Arees’ head, knocking her out cold.

  Lex charged at the enforcer.

  The large woman pulled out her blaster, and fired at him. He suddenly couldn’t feel his body. That’s when everything went black.

  CHAPTER 48

  A splash of fragrant liquid brought Lex back into consciousness.

  Eva stood over him, a bucket in her hand, the early morning sun behind her. A crazed smile stretched across her lips.

  “I remember you.”

  Lex groaned, trying to shake off the liquid that now stung his eyes.

  “Eva?”

  He tried to move, but each limb was tied to a stake in the ground, the ropes stretching him. He tried to squirm as bugs moved beneath his back, but the ropes held fast.

  Lex glared at her. “Eva, what are you doing?”

  “When I left the tunnel, can you guess who I ran into? It was an enforcer scouting party looking for Arees. Apparently, they found the tracking signal from her suit. Someone mysteriously must’ve turned it on last night. And what do you know? They followed that tracking signal right to the Mountain of Prayer. At first, they were very ... concerned when they saw me. Imagine, another Venian here on Earth. They understandably questioned my intentions. But when I told them about Arees’ change of heart, they thought that the best thing to do was to smoke her out. And now here we are.”

  “That was you?” Arees shouted.

  Eva smiled wickedly. “Not me. Them. They just let me watch.”

  Arees screamed. “My people died down there!”

  “Things died down there,” Eva said. “I wouldn’t exactly call them people. Anyway, those creatures are the least of your worries. If I were you, I’d be asking myself, what am I going to do to occupy my time while I am digested by the Preyers?”

  “Why would you do that, Eva?” Nadira’s voice came from Lex’s right. “Why are you doing this?”

  “You know, Nadira, I can’t remember much of what happened before we landed. But what I do remember is you betraying me time after time after time. I remember being loyal to you. I remember standing by you. All of you. And what do I get? You chose a murderer over me. A murderer!” She stood over Nadira. “Was I that bad?” She kneeled over Nadira’s outstretched arms. “I loved you, Nadira. I loved you most of all. But it wasn’t enough. You loved them more.” She stood. “I would have done anything for you! And what do I get? Cast aside. I am better than that. I deserve better.”

  Eva turned and walked back toward the jungle.

  “You will anger the Magistrate by doing this!” Nadira roared. “She will avenge us!”

  “Let her come,” Eva said. “Before her time is over, even she will bend to my will.” Several enforcers moved closer to Eva. “Let’s go. Leave them here for the Preyers.”

  “No!” Nadira cried.

  “Yes,” Eva said. “In fact, here they come now.”

  Nadira looked to her right.

  “Oh, I hope you don’t mind that I covered you all with Preyer pheromones,” Eva said. “It’s the strangest thing really ...”

  Several giant creatures thundered out of the jungle and headed toward them at an amazing pace. Their bodies were thick and round, segmented like giant worms. Atop these large bodies were tangles of thick green and purple tentacles that squirmed and jiggled independently, as if each one had a tiny mind of its own. One of the tentacles was longer than the rest and hung down the front of the creature, dragging along the ground between dozens of tiny, sharp legs. Within the tangle of tentacles was a large mouth encased in rows of jagged teeth. With each movement, the purple veined underside of the monsters rose and fell. The beast had no discernible eyes or ears. Nevertheless, they seemed to know exactly where they were going.

  “Do you know that a Preyer will follow a potential mate for miles?” Eva asked. “Typical Earth male, I guess. But this is the best part. The only way that they can mate with a female is by paralyzing them with stomach acid. Isn’t Earth disgusting?”

  Eva looked at her former friends one last time before she and the enforcers retreated into their awaiting ship, leaving them to the mercy of the Preyers.

  “Goodbye, Nadira,” she called over her shoulder. “I’ll give Jun-Su your regards.”

  CHAPTER 49

  “We can’t die here!” Nadira screamed. “We survived giant gators, earthquakes, cave-ins, and everything else, and now we’re going to be drugged and raped by an overgrown tree?”

  Kiln burned through his ropes, and with his hands and feet free, he turned to Nadira’s bonds.

  Lex moved his hands and ankles through his ropes and dissolved Arees’ ropes at the wrists.

  “Hurry!” Seven called. “They’re almost here!”

  Before Seven finished her warning, a shot of liquid landed next to her. It sizzled and popped as it sank into the grass, giving off a sharp, fishy smell.

  Lex dissolved Pennick’s ropes then moved to Seven’s.

  Five Preyers slunk in their direction. More were coming out of the jungle by the second.

  “Arees, Seven, Pennick, take cover,” Lex commanded.

  Kiln extended his hands. Fire rushed from his palms and engulfed the first Preyer, melting it down to a slimy puddle.

  Lex picked up a Preyer and dropped it back to the ground. It splattered purple goo onto the jungle floor.

  Nadira flew to the sky. It quickly darkened. Thunder echoed through the jungle. Hail began to pour down on the Preyers, smashing large holes into the Preyer’s soft bodies.

  And still they came.

  A dozen more Preyers skittered toward them, their tiny legs expertly picking over the grass.

  “Nadira!” Kiln called as his fire swept toward the line of Preyers.

  Nadira lifted the flames upwards, then flew in a circle, causing the flames to swirl. The whirlwind surrounded several Preyers and whisked them toward the sky. The tornado suddenly caught fire, liquefying the thrashing beasts.

  And still they came.

  Lex raised a wall of earth, separating the Preyers from them.

  The wall held for a moment before the Preyers smashed through, using their thick, gooey bodies as battering rams.

  Lex picked up a nearby tree, broke it into a thousand spears, and hurled them at the Preyers, impaling them to one another. The newly attached Preyers sprayed their sizzling liquid at each other in a vain attempt to get away.

  And still they came.

  Nadira poured blinding rain from the sky. Lightning followed, systematically striking the Preyers. Their bodies lit purple with each strike of lightning before exploding.

  And still they came.

  Kiln’s body turned into flames. Blue fire shot from his hands relentlessly, melting the beasts as they moved closer. The monsters picked their way over their melted brothers, boiling themselves in an attempt to get to their prospective mates. A river of stinking, hot, purple goo began to cut its way through the field and into the jungle.

  Nadira flew higher in the sky and looked out over the jungle.

  Hundreds more Preyers were steadily streaming toward them.

  “Oh no!” she gasped.

  She flew back, screaming for Kiln and Lex to stand down.

  This was a fight that they could not win. They had to run in order to live. “There are too many!” Nadira shouted. “We have to—”

  Nadira was knocked from the sky.

  Kiln sensed her fall and caught her, acid sizzling through the soft fabric that covered her leg. He ripped off the bottom of her dress, throwing it to the ground.

  “I can’t feel my leg!” Nadira cried. “My leg is numb!”

  “It’s okay.” Kiln said. “You’re going to be fine.”

  “There are too many of them!” Nadira cried, the numbness creeping steadily up her leg. “There are hundreds more i
n the jungle, and they’re all coming this way! We’ve got to get out of here!”

  Kiln’s eyes blazed and he turned to Lex. “Lex, we’ve got to go.” With Nadira in his arms, Kiln sprinted toward the jungle. He turned to see Lex running behind him, the sizzling goo raining down on him as he escaped.

  They ran into the cover of the jungle, the Preyers close behind.

  Nadira pushed out of Kiln’s arms and rose to the sky. They dashed through the jungle, deadly poison snapping and sizzling behind as the Preyers followed.

  “Where are we going?” Lex asked.

  “Follow me!” Pennick shouted.

  They ran through the dense jungle, careful to stay in patches where the Preyers could follow them.

  Enraged over their escaping mates, the Preyers barreled through the jungle, knocking the bark off of trees, sending deadly wooden missiles in every direction.

  Seven’s bare feet pounded the forest floor. Pennick had her by the hand, nearly dragging her along. She felt her lungs burn with exertion. Her legs grew heavy.

  “Pennick, I can’t run anymore!” she cried.

  “Don’t stop! Keep going!”

  She fell to the jungle floor, her face buried in the soft dirt. She looked back. Her foot had caught in a raised tree root with a giant Preyer only steps away. It raised its long tentacle at her.

  “Seven!” Pennick cried.

  As if in slow motion, Seven saw the fiery acid shoot toward her.

  I’m going to die.

  She squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the acid to hit her.

  And then she was airborne.

  Seven floated for a moment and felt the heat of the Preyer’s blubbery body on her neck before she surged forward, staying slightly in front of Lex. Seven looked back and saw acid hit the ground where she had been just moments ago. She breathed a sigh of relief.

  “When I say the word, climb into the nearest tree as fast as you can!” Pennick cried.

  They dodged around the trees as the Preyers rushed toward them, overrunning the jungle in a crazed thirst for progeny. The only sound they emitted was the wet slap of their long tentacles against the trees and the snap and sizzle of their venom.

  The jungle burst to life. Birds flew out of the Preyer’s reach, calling their alarms. Small rodents and brown, spotted, deer-like creatures scurried past them, anxious to stay alive. To their left the golden glow of a pack of megros could be seen darting between the trees.

  Seven heard a yelp. She turned around.

  A Preyer had caught one of the deer-like creatures. It used its multitude of tentacles like fingers, pulled the creature above its head, and released it into its mouth. Satisfied, the Preyer stood still, its tentacles limp around it.

  Seven felt nauseous.

  “Don’t look back!” Lex screamed. “Don’t look back!”

  The Preyers were gaining fast. Only a few, trees separated the beasts from them.

  Pennick cried, “Quickly, into the trees!”

  Seven felt herself rise and saw everyone else rise with her onto the branches of a tall tree.

  The Preyers were in hot pursuit. When they saw their victims getting away, they raced faster and faster, their tiny legs a blur beneath their oversized bodies. They reached their tentacles upwards toward the tree in preparation for a quick grab. Faster and faster, they came for them.

  But they ran too fast. They had only a second to make a grab before they overshot their targets. Their tiny legs didn’t stop in time, dragging their reluctant load above them. Before the Preyers realized it, they were running directly into the river.

  Seven heard a splash as the first set of Preyers hit the water.

  The next wave of Preyers stopped in time and surrounded the tree, raising their tentacles toward the branches to emit their spray and secure their mates.

  Lex stretched the tree higher, out of the reach of the sprays.

  Nadira dropped down to Kiln’s branch.

  Trapped atop their tall perch, they caught their breath.

  “What do we do now?” Seven asked. “We’re trapped here. The Preyers will never let us get down from this tree.”

  Lex crossed his arms over his chest and dropped his head. He wasn’t strong enough to keep them afloat all the way back to the ship, and the Preyers would never let them climb down from the tree.

  What were they to do now?

  “We’re not trapped,” Pennick said. “The river. I brought us to the river for a reason.”

  “What reason?” Lex asked.

  “Can you fly me out over the river?” Pennick asked.

  “Yes, but why would you want to do that?”

  CHAPTER 50

  Lex flew Pennick over the river.

  Sunbathing on the shore below was a group of gators. The ancient giants lay motionless, their green, spiky skin wet and shining in the morning sunlight.

  “What are we doing?” Lex asked.

  “Just watch,” Pennick said.

  Several Preyers emerged from the jungle.

  “They’re following us,” Lex whispered, dread filling his soul. The beasts had followed their scent to the river’s edge.

  They’ll never let us leave this place.

  The Preyers picked their way down to the muddy shore away from the gators, stopping just short of the water. They raised their long tentacles in Lex and Pennick’s direction, as if confirming they were in the sky. A few of them halfheartedly sprayed their numbing liquid in the air, dropping their tentacle when the liquid fell shy of the two flying men and hit the water.

  Lex tried not to let the utter defeat he felt color his words. “Pennick, we should get back—”

  “Just watch,” Pennick interrupted.

  The Preyers remained on the shore like suitors waiting for their bride to arrive. Lex almost felt sorry for them.

  Two, dark eyes popped up from the water, followed closely by a rough-hewn back full of short, sharp spikes. A tail appeared, thick, long, and absolutely still.

  The dark creature floated in the water for a moment, examining the Preyers in front of it. The Preyers sensed that something was wrong, their crab feet dancing beneath them as if uncertain which way to go.

  The gator lurched from the water, grabbed one of the Preyers around the middle, and pulled it back into the river.

  The Preyer’s tentacles thrashed in the water before being pulled down into its murky depths.

  “You brought me out here to watch the Preyers get eaten?” Lex asked.

  “I brought you out here so that you can see that the Preyers aren’t on the top of the food chain,” Pennick said. “They have a hunter. The gators.”

  The gator resurfaced, the Preyers’ limp, purple bodies in their jaws. It ate sloppily, using its dozens of sharp teeth to rip into the soft Preyer bodies, tearing its brown skin open to feast on the purple underbelly. Chunks of Preyer flew in the air, landing on the ground with a sharp slap. Small legs and still tentacles hung from gator’s teeth. Purple goo ran down into the clear water.

  Even as Lex’s stomach roiled at the disgusting vision before him, he understood what Pennick had told him. They didn’t have to defeat the Preyers. The gators would do it for them.

  “I know what to do,” Lex said.

  He flew Pennick back to their tall tree.

  “We have to push them to the river,” Lex said as he landed. “There are a nest of gators there. The gators eat the Preyers. If we can just get the Preyers into the river—”

  “But there are still a hundred of them,” Seven interrupted, gesturing to the Preyers who were stationed below their tree.

  Some Preyers on the outer edges of the group had moved away, caught a meal, and were standing in self-imposed hibernation. It seemed as if the fallen trees in the forest were being replaced by the worm-like beast.

  The vast majority, however, were closely packed together, ringed around the tree. Seven could see into their open mouths. The black hole was surrounded by rows of small teeth. The teeth were flanked
by at least twenty tentacles, all wriggling and pulsing at once. Many of the Preyers had their long tentacles pointed up at them, shooting their venom and hoping for success.

  Seven became entranced by the squirming tentacles. It was as if they were calling to her, crying out for her to come down and greet them. Cold fear gripped her. She felt her knees wobble and her body began to sway. Images of the tentacles wrapping around her, squeezing against her mouth, blocking her screams, dragging her down consumed her thoughts. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. There was nothing but the creature, its tentacles, the draining heat, the thirst, and the pulse that pounded in her ears. She fought to remain conscious.

  “Seven.” A man’s voice sounded distant, garbled. She tried to focus on it, tried to hold on to it.

  Pennick! Her mind cried.

  Seven’s stomach roiled, and with nothing in it to expel, it cramped violently, doubling her over in pain.

  “Seven!”

  His voice was coming in clearer now. He was close.

  She felt death’s icy grip on her, knew it was the end.

  Please, God, she pleaded. Please. Just let me hear his voice one more time before I go.

  “Seven.”

  She felt a hot hand on her back, steadying her, anchoring her to the world.

  “Seven, are you okay?”

  She felt herself being lifted, carried, and laid down.

  His scent surrounded her, bringing her back to the land of the living. She was here, in a tree. The Preyers were far below. She was safe, for now.

  Something cool and wet drizzled on her, and she opened her mouth, allowing Nadira’s cold rain to run down her throat.

  “She’ll be okay,” Pennick said. “She needs rest.”

  Seven turned away from the cold water, and with her thirst satisfied, she wrapped herself around Pennick’s waist.

  “We have to do something,” Pennick said, worry lacing his voice. “We can’t say up here forever.”

  “I know that,” Lex said. “But you propose bringing the entire pod of Preyers to the river. There are a hundred of them. How do you expect me to do that?”