Before they were aware of it, they found themselves inside a cavernous enclosure. Their hard gasps echoed and reechoed around them as each man turned around in surprise.
“There weren’t any doors,” Massapa remarked. His words rebounded like unseen apparitions. Shining their tube lights upward revealed intricately carved figures adorning the walls and arches, until the beams disappeared into the vast spire. There was no way to tell how high up the ceiling might be.
Kyber felt a shiver go through him. Even with his instincts no longer telling him they could be in danger, this place couldn’t be assumed to be a completely safe haven. “I hate this,” he noted aloud. “I don’t like what I can’t see.”
Some more scratching caught his attention. He turned to see Gaveer scraping a pillar set in the floor. The cornered post also bore similar carvings to those on the walls, most of which appeared to be hieroglyphics.
The man saw Kyber’s scrutiny. “More of that same stone we saw outside,” he told him.
Kyber nodded. “All right. We’ve arrived at what we have to assume was the source of that beacon. Although it appears we may have missed becoming something’s meal, we have to believe that whoever or whatever built this place could still be here. At least, though, for now, we have shelter. Let’s find a less-open area where we can rest and eat. Hopefully, daylight will come soon, and then we can get more of an idea of what our sanctuary looks like.”
They soon found a long, narrow alcove far enough away from the building’s openings to give them a sense of security. Rather than start a fire, they ate their rations cold. It was fortuitous that the ambient temperature was mild.
Kyber crouched near the alcove’s entrance, taking the first turn at guard duty while the others rested. For the moment, the dried blood over his wound was keeping it plugged, and the pain was minimal, giving him the chance to think. After an hour, Gaveer moved up to join him. “Yes, I know I’m not due to relieve you yet, but I couldn’t sleep.”
Kyber snorted. “Now you know why I chose to take this shift.”
The man turned on his tube light and played it over the nearest wall. It, too, bore row after row of those strange symbols which had been etched into the rock. All the way from the floor, up to where the wall disappeared from view. Oddly, the only area that didn’t bear any of the carvings was the floor.
“I don’t know what you’re thinking right now. I know as our Por D’har you don’t have to tell us or explain to us what your thoughts are, or what the reasons are behind your decisions. Personally, I’m glad we made it this far. But I need to ask you something, if I may.”
Kyber looked over at the crewman. “You may ask.”
“With the Ist Umberu gone, have you given any thought as to how we’re going to get off this planet?”
Gaveer’s question was laced with uncertainty, which Kyber understood. The realization that none of them would ever see their home world again was a more terrifying possibility than what they might encounter on this world.
“Although I didn’t agree with the D’har’s decision to lead the Terrans away from our galaxy, where I believe we could have easily defeated them, I had to accept his order. Now, with our ship destroyed, and no way to request a rescue vessel, I don’t see us leaving this planet. I have to accept it as well. In life, there are some things we simply cannot challenge.”
“Wasn’t a distress call sent out prior to our life pods being ejected?”
“Yes. I sent it.”
“Then there is hope of recovery.”
Kyber sighed. After another moment, a smile slowly lifted the edges of his mouth. “You could say there is hope. And hope is another one of those things we simply cannot challenge.”
Gaveer managed to chuckle. Clapping Kyber on the shoulder, he got back to his feet and turned off his light to return where the others were sleeping. “I will relieve you shortly. Until then, hopefully I will manage to get some rest.”
He turned to go, when the sound of movement came from the far side of the building where the opening was located. Both men froze. Kyber’s hand went to his weapon as they strained their eyes and ears. Behind them, someone, also awakened by the strange sound, took the initiative to turn off the one other tube they’d kept on to provide them with light.
The sound came again. This time there was no mistaking the pattern of footsteps. Many footsteps. A pale blue aura appeared near the opening.
Kyber flattened himself on the floor as he counted the creatures walking into the building. Three…five…nine.
Slowly, he drew his pistol, when a piercing beam came on and swung directly over to where he and the others were gathered. There was a collective gasp of disbelief. Then someone yelled.
“Shit! It’s Seneecians!”
Chapter 7
Attack
Kelen dropped her armload of material and reached for her hand weapon. It was an automatic gesture, made more instinctive than habit after rigorous training. Realizing she wasn’t wearing it, she grabbed a section of one of the consoles she’d been carrying and held it up, ready to swing it at the first Seneecian who approached her.
Yet, none of them did. They stood there, their fangs and talons showing, and growled. But no one appeared to want to take the initiative until Cooter rushed to the front and raised his rifle. A split-second before he fired, she whacked the barrel of the gun upward, and the shot went wide.
“Chambliss!”
“Wait! Wait! Look!” She pointed at the creatures facing them. “They’re injured.”
“Good!” the head of security shouted, and aimed his rifle again, directly at the immense Seneecian standing in front of the others.
She started to cut off his shot a second time, when something tried to skitter across the toe of her boot. As it made contact with her protective skin, it hissed. Kelen swung her makeshift club at the thing. It made a squishing sound upon impact, and the creature went flying across the floor.
Someone swore. “Shit! There’s more of them!”
For a moment, she thought someone was saying there were more Seneecians, when the floor seemed to move. A beam of light swept over the ground to find it nearly covered with dark, reddish-colored wormlike things with legs. A single eye stalk rose from the center of their bodies. As the nearly foot-long creatures spotted them, they rose up to on their hind legs to reveal a slitted mouth along their underbellies.
“Waste the fuckers!” Jules hollered, grabbing a piece from Dox’s collection. He started mowing down the wormy creatures, but more of them continued to advance toward her and the others, as well as the Seneecians.
Kelen pounded them with the console. Others fired their weapons. That noise, along with the sound of Cooter’s pulse rifle, clashed inside the temple walls like a thousand bells. The volume became deafening.
Striking the invading creatures was more difficult than she could imagine. Every one she hit exploded into blue-black goo that clung to the end of her club. Goo that adhered to another one of those things, until the piece of metal was crawling with a dozen stuck wormy bodies all struggling to fight back. Their combined weight quickly sapped what little strength she had left, and Kelen knew she’d soon be unable to lift her weapon, much less continue beating with it.
At some point, she became aware of a large presence at her back. She barely had time to glance over her shoulder to see the huge Seneecian standing there, firing his own weapon at the mob advancing from behind her. Tightening her grasp on her weapon, she continued the bat the wormy things.
She felt a hard tug on the side of her leg. Swinging the club downward, she missed hitting the worm trying to gnaw through the tough protective skin. It redoubled its efforts, when something slammed against the side of the face. Kelen shrieked, dropping her weapon, and grabbed the creature adhered to her cheek. She heard it hiss, and an oily substance began to delve into her ear. Crying out again, she pulled on it, when the thing dug its feet into her face. It released a thick cloud of noxious fumes, choking her, m
aking her dizzy. She could feel herself sinking into unconsciousness.
There was a sudden jerk on her head. Blue-black ichor sprayed across her face, and she gasped. Another jerk, and she could feel the thing’s pincers being drawn out of her skin. Kelen rolled her eyes upward, to find the big Seneecian standing less than a meter away from her. He tossed away the piece of the creature he’d dragged off her face as his arms and talons dripped dark colored gore.
Time seemed to hesitate. Her eyes locked with his. Into that nearly ethereal green gaze. A gaze filled with worry and…
Compassion.
“Thank you,” she gasped. She tried to lift her club, but her arms had gone numb.
The Seneecian’s expression froze. He reached out toward her, and she flinched as he shoved her to the floor. There was a high-pitched whine, and a worm exploded inches above her. More ichor splattered across her face and neck.
She gasped. Placing her hands beneath her, she attempted to sit up, but her muscles would no longer obey. She laid there, unable to move, as the darkly furred alien towered above her.
It was then she realized how quiet it had gotten. The only sound was everyone’s heavy breathing as they surveyed the gory remains that covered the floor.
“Is it over? Was that all of them? Did we kill them all?” Fullgrath wondered aloud.
“Maybe they retreated to lick their wounds,” Jules answered.
Mellori agreed. “I think they’ll be back. And they could bring reinforcements if they do. Commander, it’s not safe to stay here.”
“I agree,” Dayall admitted. “We need to find a safer location.”
The Seneecian bent down and held out a hand to her. Despite the gore smeared on his claws, Kelen reached up to him. His warm grasp hauled her to her feet, where she swayed a bit but managed to remain upright.
“Alright, shit face! You’re next!” Cooter lifted his rifle and aimed it at the Seneecian. Without a second thought, Kelen half-fell, half-shoved the alien, and, again, the shot went wide.
“Chambliss!”
She whirled on the commander, who stood a few meters away, his pistol also aimed at one of their enemy. “For God’s sake, don’t shoot!” she yelled. From somewhere within her, she found the strength she needed. Taking several strides toward Dayall, she deliberately stopped once she was between him and the green-eyed creature who’d fought alongside her.
“Chambliss, get out the way,” Dayall ordered.
“No.” She gritted her teeth and refused to budge. She knew she was disobeying a direct order, but she had no other choice.
Dayall gaped at her in disbelief. “Chambliss, I gave you—”
“I know what you did, and I’m telling you I’m not moving. Not until you put away your pistol and at least hear me out.” Throwing a stern look at Cooter, she added, “You, too.”
“Kel, what are you doing?” Jules whispered. “They’re the enemy!”
She took another look around where both species were gathered. Intermixed. Not separated into two groups. “Look at them, would you? Look!” She pointed to the furred aliens. “Don’t you see? Don’t you understand what just happened? We weren’t fighting each other. We were fighting them. Those wormy things! For the past few minutes, we were a united front against something that was determined to destroy us. And the Seneecians sided with us without hesitation.”
She turned to face the one who remained standing behind her. His deep green gaze never left hers as she stared up at him. “You risked your life to save mine. Twice. Thank you for that.”
Without waiting to see if he understood, she whirled around to address her own crewmembers, aware that the other Seneecians hadn’t moved. “I don’t know about you, Commander, but I think every rule we’ve ever followed and enforced has been broken today. I mean tonight. Whatever time it is. In case you haven’t noticed, we survived a major crash and we’re stuck here on this planet. We’re stuck here! You, me, all of us, and the Seneecians! If we start fighting each other, whoever survives is going to have to face whatever else this Godforsaken world might throw at us. And then what do you think our chances of survival will be? I don’t know about you, Commander, but I want to live. For as long as I’m able, I want to survive, for as long as we have to be here, or until, by some miracle, rescue arrives. And honestly, I don’t think that’ll be possible unless we and Seneecians make peace with each other.”
“You want to cohabitate with a sneek?” Cooter sneered.
“Maybe cohabitate is too strong a word,” Kelen shot back. “More like coexist.”
“She is right,” the big Seneecian spoke up. His voice was low and rough, but the words were crisp and clear, thanks to the translators built into their suits. “We were injured when our life pods crashed on this world. If we’d been by ourselves, I seriously doubt we would have prevailed over the number of creatures that attacked us.” He waved a hand at the carnage. “In a strange way, we have you to thank for intruding. Your presence alerted us to their attack. Otherwise, we could have been caught unaware until it was too late.”
Cooter hoisted his rifle on his shoulder. “I don’t give a fuck about no peaceful coexistence,” he growled, and took aim. This time, it was Mellori who swatted the rifle before it was fired.
“Chambliss has a point. I want to live as much as she does, but who knows what else this world plans to throw at us? Those worms could be gathering fresh forces this very minute while we argue. I vote we stow the hostility and let’s find a safer place to stay until daylight.”
A gray-furred Seneecian stepped forward. From the way he held his arm, it was clear it was severely wrenched or broken. “My name is Tojun. I am…was a systems operator on the Ist Umberu. I admit I’m not happy with the idea of having to battle alongside with you, but I will do whatever I must to survive, too.”
The big Seneecian continued. “I concur. We may not be able to have peaceful interactions between us, but the female is correct. There are more life-forms. We were followed here by some sort of creature much bigger and I believe more dangerous than these little ones.”
“Followed?” Jules repeated.
“Outside. Underneath the soil. We didn’t see it, but it’s out there. Waiting for one or more of us to leave.”
Dayall moved a step closer to the alien. “You said you crashed in a life pod. Does that mean your own ship was destroyed?”
“It was destroyed as we entered that multi-colored entity,” the Seneecian acknowledged.
“Which you created!” Another Seneecian with reddish fur spoke up with undisguised venom. “How ironic that you would be caught in a device of your own making!”
The big Seneecian gave the creature a stern glance. “That is enough Isup!”
“Don’t you see? They’re lying to us! They’re trying—”
“I said enough!” the big Seneecian almost roared.
The other immediately backed off, but it was clear he wasn’t happy doing so.
Kelen took a deep breath, coughing up the last of whatever the worm had tried to dose her with. “My name is Lieutenant Kelen Chambliss,” she introduced herself. “I was the pilot of the Manta.”
“Was your ship destroyed?” the Seneecian asked.
“It crashed. We’re lucky to be alive.”
“As are we.” He glanced behind him at his men.
“And you are?” She continued to stare at him. At the tall, muscular creature with the blackest of fur covering every inch of his body. At the way he presented himself, in an undisputed position of authority.
The Seneecian smiled, baring his sharp teeth. “I am Kyber Nau, Por D’har of the Ist Umberu.”
“I’m Commander Hod Dayall,” Dayall introduced himself, giving the Seneecian the barest of nods. “Our captain was killed in the crash. I’m the commanding officer. If my memory serves, being Por D’har means you were second in command, correct?”
Kyber gave a slight bob of his head. “Our D’har is missing. Until we receive confirmation of his passing, o
r he resumes his station, I am acting in his behalf.”
Dayall took a deep breath and glanced around at the others. “All right, crew. Enough chitchat. Let’s get the hell out of here and see if we can’t find someplace else to finish out the night.”
Kelen watched as Kyber turned to rejoin his men where they had re-gathered to one side of the room. The next moment, he collapsed to his knees and pitched forward onto his face.
Chapter 8
Safety
Kyber jerked to consciousness with a growl, talons extended.
“Settle down,” a voice sternly ordered. “This is a safe zone. You’re not in any danger…at the moment.”
Blinking, he stared up into the Terran’s face. Another glance around their surroundings confirmed two things. They were in a different location, and someone had built a fire where two of his crew huddled.
The human made a laughing sound. “I’m Dr. Sandow. I go by Doc, Finn, and sometimes Hey You. I was the physician on board the Manta. And since I take it none of your people here are in the medical field, that leaves me with having to deal with your unique needs.”
“I need to speak with my men.” Kyber started to rise up on his elbows. Sandow quickly shoved him back down.
“If you need to speak with them, I’ll let them know and they can come over here. Whether you know it or not, you’ve lost a lot of blood. It’s a wonder you were able to stand and fight like you did. You need to get as much rest as you can.”
Kyber couldn’t tell him his head pounded. His eyesight was fuzzy, and his hearing wasn’t as keen as it usually was. He tried to roll over onto his non-wounded side to face the fire, when the doctor left and Massapa crouched down to take his place. “Status,” he croaked.
“We found a large room with a door. We’re effectively barricaded inside…with them.”
“A door? What kind of door?” He was having difficulty trying to visualize what the portal would look like, or be constructed from. “What is it made of? Rock?”
Neverwylde (The Rim of the World Book 1) Page 4
