Dead World

by Lucas Pederson

  “Then why was the Company 3 commander freaking out? Why did he request an immediate evac?” Rip, he eyes Sully closely as the older man faces him.

  “We were not prepared for what we found on this planet. By all accounts, the lifeforms were considered either dormant, or long extinct.” Sully sighs. “They are not. Some things still roam the land above, as you might have seen upon your arrival.”

  “All we saw up there were these huge lizard-like things,” Gerty says.

  “Those are harmless herbivores. It’s the small creatures that you need to look out for, dear.”

  “Guys,” Alyx says. “Remember when something struck my glider?”

  “Yeah, but we never saw anything after that until we got into the tunnels,” Gerty says.

  “Then you were lucky,” Sully says. “We were attacked on the second day by hundreds of mammal-like creatures. They moved so fast no one could shoot them and we were forced into a cave. That’s when one of the Marines accidently nudged a stone, a lever and the ground opened up under us. Luckily, we didn’t fall far.”

  “Yeah, we met some nasty things in the tunnels over there,” Gerty said. “Lost two of our platoon, including our commanding officer.”

  Sully lowers his head a bit. “I am so sorry for your loss, soldier.”

  Instead of accepting his apology, Gerty steps forward and grabs handfuls of his dirty jacket. She yanks him close to her. “Because of you, we’re all fucked.”

  Rip pats the girl’s shoulder. Gerty’s lips press together, forming a thin white line. Her eyes narrow on Sully for a moment, then she shoves him away and steps back. Alyx steadies Sully so he doesn’t fall from the force of Gerty’s push.

  Once he’s steady, Sully sighs. “Would you like to talk to Captain Rogers of Company 3?”

  Rip’s stony expression melts a bit. “They’re still alive?”

  “Of course. We’ve been exploring this city for a couple days now. I ventured off by myself, curious about where all the inhabitants went.”

  Alyx smiles. It’s exactly what she wants to find out too.

  “I thought you were supposed to be looking for some planet creating artifact,” Gerty says, voice low.

  “I am, though in order to get an understanding of where we are right now, I need to discover who the inhabitants are and what the Coliseum structure over there is for.”

  Alyx turns to the giant, looming structure. “Any ideas what it is, Sully?”

  “No. There’s no way inside, from what I can tell.”

  “Can you take us to Company 3 now?” Rip’s tone is neutral, though his eyes are firm.

  “Absolutely,” Sully says and begins walking down the street. “They’re eating dinner right now, I believe.”

  Alyx watches him walk away. She watches Rip and Gerty follow and soon follows too. But something feels off to her. Not exactly anything about Sully, but just…something feels slightly askew.

  She’s pondering this feeling as they make their way down the street and dust puffs around her shins.

  THIRTEEN

  Company 3 is smaller than she thought.

  Four Marines in total. They huddle around a large fire eating packaged meals, their faces solemn. None of them look up as Sully leads Rip, Gerty and Alyx into the small camp.

  The fire, Alyx realizes, is the source of the pin-prick of light they all saw on the platform.

  Rip shoots the Marines gathered around the fire a salute. A haggard looking man sighs, places his meal on a small, stone table and stands.

  “At ease,” the man says. “Name and rank?”

  “Sergeant Ripley Vross.”

  The man nods, gaze shifting to Gerty. She straightens. “Corporal Gertrude Cortez, Sir.”

  Finally, he squints at Alyx. “And you?”

  “Dr. Alyx Wick.”

  The man sighs again, shakes his head. “Hunt should’ve kept you folks at home. There’s nothing special here.” He clears his throat. “I’m Captain Miles Rogers.” He points at a scrawny man with a bush of messy red hair. “This is Private Maxwell Connors.” He nods at a dismal woman with a shaved head. “That’s Lieutenant Amelia Verity. And over there,” he points at another woman, this one with black hair, glowering at Alyx, “that’s Sergeant Katy Crowe.”

  Gerty and Rip quickly salute each other. Though none return the same respect. To Alyx, all four soldiers appear on the verge of some mental breakdown. They’re all covered in dirt. Their eyes are bloodshot and weary. There’s a strong sense of tension biting the air around the four. After a moment, they all return to their meager meals and continue staring into the fire.

  Captain Rogers turns to Rip. “Hunt didn’t send a full platoon?”

  “Company A, Sir. Elite Marine Unit. There was only six of us. Lieutenant Hannah Briggs is back at our cruiser repairing it.”

  Rogers nods solemnly. “Company A? Where’s Captain Row?”

  Rip draws in a slow breath, blows it out. “He’s dead, Sir.” Rip pats his pack. “Ashes are in a containment tube, along with Sergeant Fern Williams. They both perished in the tunnels.”

  Rogers shakes his head. “Those tunnels. We lost four of our own in them.”

  “How’d you guys get through the really narrow spot?” Gerty asks.

  The Captain frowns. “Really tight spot?”

  Sully clears his throat. “I do believe we arrived in the city through different tunnels. Ours were wide, though our presence awakened the creatures living in the dirt floor.”

  “Yeah,” Gerty says. “Not so different than what happened to Fern. Were there holes in the walls too?”

  Sully shakes his head. “No holes, dear.”

  Everyone falls silent for a few moments. One of those awkward silences where no one can think of a good thing to say.

  Then Sully takes Alyx by the arm and leads her away from the Marines. He takes her to what might have been a home at one time but now is a crumbling ruin. The ceiling has caved in on one side and the inside appears to have been destroyed. Only…

  Alyx brushes her fingertips over a few deep grooves in the stone walls. And the more she inspects, the more of the same grooves she finds. So many in such a small room.

  She glances at Sully over her shoulder as he places the cylinder on the floor and taps the top of it. A dark purple light consumes the room. She should’ve realized what the thing in his hand was right away. A dark light. One of the trinkets Sully loved to use. It eliminates all the shadows, bright, scarlet splatter marks are revealed. The dark light shows what is invisible to the naked eye.

  “What…” She’s at a loss for words.

  “So far,” Sully says, walking to one of the splatter marks. “These aren’t in any other buildings besides those on this street.”

  “Shit, Sully, what the hell happened here? Looks like a massacre.”

  He turns to her, winks. “You’re probably not too far off in that assumption, kiddo.”

  She once more touches the deep grooves. “And these…?”

  “What do they look like to you, Alyx?”

  Four deep gashes in the stone. In some places it’s two or three, but here, on this wall, it’s littered with the four. So many amongst all the splatters.

  “Claw marks,” she says through numb lips.

  “That they are. So, what do think might have happened here?”

  She eyes the splatters, the claw marks, the brokenness of the place, then faces Sully. “An assassination?”

  Sully smiles. “More like a purge, dear.”

  “A purge?”

  “That’s my theory, anyway. Why are these found only in the homes of this derelict street? Why is everyone gone? Where’d they go? My theory is this, the most powerful in their society ordered a purge of the poorest among them. They let loose some kind of beast that devoured the poor.” His face is grim in the dark purple light. “Then they all gathered in that large structure out there.”

  Alyx shakes her head. “But why? Why would they gather there? Mass suicide?
”

  To this, Sully shrugs. “We won’t know until we find a way inside. But collecting all the data and evidence of this city as I can, it makes sense they migrated there. With the lack of bodies or bones, this is the only thing that might have happened to them. However, this is just a theory of mine.”

  “Sounds plausible,” Alyx says, frowning at the scarlet splatters all over the walls. “You’re right, though, we need to get in that structure to know for sure. And maybe the artifact Hunt wants is around here somewhere.”

  “To be honest,” Sully says, “I don’t think the artifact truly exists. Nothing here points to it.”

  Alyx nods. “I figured as much. So, what are we going to do? I mean, we can get out of here and haul ass back home.”

  Sully strokes his white beard for a moment, thinking, then says, “There might be something here to find, though. Maybe not the artifact General Hunt seeks, but something close. In a house on the main street there were pages on a table indicating a special object shaped like a pentagon in cylinder form. This might very well be what is called a healing tool. If I interpreted the drawings and text correctly, it might enlarge a planet two-fold.”

  Alyx smiles. “I missed you, Sully.”

  He chuckles, embraces her in a firm hug, and steps back to look at her. “And I you, dear. Been too long.”

  “Yeah. I’m sorry about that.”

  “Oh, never be sorry, Alyx. Never. I’ve been following your findings over the years.”

  She gulps. “You…you have?”

  “I can’t say I agree with your methods, but I do admire your drive to discover and find the unfindable. Even if you are considered a pirate to some, I admire you still.”

  Her heart swells a little. To hear the one she admires say he admires her somehow makes everything bad she’s done for the sake of money moot.

  “Thank you,” she manages.

  “Now,” Sully says. “How about you help me find a way into that structure?”

  Her smile feels too big and silly on her face, but, “Yes. Let’s do this.”

  It’s been a long time since she got a chance to work with her mentor and she can’t wait to get started.

  “We shall,” Sully says. “First, have you eaten yet?”

  “No. Been pretty much on the run since we arrived. Maybe about twenty-four hours by now.”

  He chuckles. “Well, there are a few of those dreadful packaged meals the Marines brought with them. Taste like carboard and dishcloths, but it will fill the stomach just fine.”

  “I’ll give it a whirl.”

  They joined the Marines by the fire and Sully handed her one of the packaged meals.

  She didn’t know what to expect when they returned to the Marines, but laughter hadn’t been on her mind.

  And yet, here they are, laughing and cracking jokes. Even angsty Gerty is all smiles. This does Alyx’s heart good. The girl has a beautiful smile and she needs to do more of it. Here she has other women to talk to that share her struggles. Even if the others are a bit older, they all went through the same shit daily. The whole equality thing, even after centuries, hasn’t quite stuck. Maybe a little, but for the most part, the men can still be assholes with a woman among their ranks. It’s like they just can’t fathom a woman by their side kicking more ass than they are.

  It’s more than stupid. More than ignorance. It’s a goddamn tragedy because women have proven time and again they can be more badass than some men.

  It’s a battle that might very well last forever.

  Sully clears off a chair and tells her to sit. She does, and rips open the packaged meal.

  Years ago, the military ended their MRE run. Proven not to be beneficial to sustain energy or nutrition, the meals were redesigned. Crackers and such were replaced by tubes of protein paste and vitamin pastes.

  Now, as Alyx looks at the thing, there’s only one item that resembles actual food, the pretzels. She chows down on these first, savoring their saltiness. Sully hands her a canteen and she takes a few deep swallows of cool water. Then she tears open the protein paste tube and empties the entire thing into her mouth. She chews a few times, then swallows. The taste isn’t horrible, for the most part. Like stale peanut butter. There are worse things. She finishes with the meal and tosses the trash into the fire where it melts into nothingness.

  “Tasty?” Alyx glances to her right, finding the dark haired woman—Katy Crowe?—giving her a withering look and looming over her.

  “Um,” Alyx says. “Not really.”

  “That’s our food.”

  The tension is like steel cables twisting in the air. Cables getting tighter and tighter. Sooner or later, they’re going to snap and then…

  Alyx stands. “Didn’t see your name on it.” Her hand drifts toward the revolver.

  “That’s quite enough, Ms. Crowe,” Sully says, stepping between the two women. “Dr. Wick is my most trusted protégé.”

  “Doesn’t give her the right to eat our food. We could be stranded down here for months.”

  Alyx can’t help but laugh. “Not if I can help it.”

  Sully is shoved aside and a blade is pressing against Alyx’s throat faster than she has time to react. All she can do is suck in a sharp breath.

  Crowe’s foul breath puffs into Alyx’s face. “Oh, you’re a real badass, aren’t you? A real smart lady.” Crowe grins, revealing yellow teeth. “Tell me, badass smart lady, have you ever killed anything?”

  “Crowe,” Rogers shouts. “That’s enough.”

  Before Crowe can step away, Alyx wrenches the knife out of her hand, sidesteps and taps the blade against the woman’s deeply bronzed cheekbone.

  She smiles. “I’ve killed more things than you can imagine, lady. Do not fuck with me.”

  Crowe’s eyes are wide. Her breathing pauses.

  Alyx presses the revolver into the woman’s stomach. “Now, we can work together down here and find a way out. We can survive and honor those who have fallen, or I can kill you right now. It’s your choice.”

  She shoves Crowe away and hands the knife back to the woman.

  Sully pats Alyx’s shoulder. “I need to talk with you a moment, Dr. Wick.”

  Crowe steps away, sheaths her knife, and returns to the meager group of Marines.

  Sully leads her to the street. “There’s something you must understand about these soldiers, Alyx.”

  “That they’re assholes?”

  “No. They are actually a very kind group, considering. What they don’t like are outsiders, like you. They’re skeptical. They don’t trust you. You need to understand that before interacting with them further.”

  Alyx sighs, then nods. “Understood.”

  “And do not antagonize them. They are loyal to each other. Not us.”

  “Okay. Sorry. I just don’t take kindly to someone talking to me like that.”

  Sully chuckles. “I know, dear. But try and play nice, okay?”

  “Alright, Sully. Alright.” She points at the giant shadow of the Coliseum structure. “Ready to tackle that thing now?”

  The old man smiles. This time she can see it through the beard, even in the flickering glow of the firelight. “Absolutely. We need to inform the Marines. Perhaps they will join us.”

  “Gerty and Rip are good people, they’ll come along.”

  “So are the rest of Company 3, actually. They’re just different personalities that tend to clash from time to time.”

  “Well, let’s see what happens then.”

  Together, they approach the Marines sitting around the fire.

  Gerty shoots Alyx a smile. “There she is.” She nudges Amelia. “This lady saved us from some shit.”

  “Thought you lost two?” Crowe spouts.

  “We did. But Alyx here, she warned us before anything happened. She was watching after us, but no one listened.”

  “And we should have,” Rip adds.

  The other four Marines stare at her and once more she wants to step back into the s
hadows. She hates being the center of attention.

  “What’s with the hat?” Crowe asks. “No one wears those hats.”

  “It was my father’s,” Alyx says. “Brings me luck.”

  Sully steps in front of everyone, garnering everyone’s attention. “Dr. Wick and I have a plan. One that might offer rewards.”

  “You better not be talking about finding a way into that giant whatever it is over there,” Rogers says. “Because that’s a waste of time, my friend.”

  “Not necessarily. Every structure has some kind of entrance. We just need to look.”

  “Dude,” Crowe says. “We’ve been around that damn thing over and over. There’s no way in.”

  “Ah,” Sully says and grips Alyx’s shoulder. “But I have an extra mind here to help. One of the best.”

  Crowe humphs and looks away.

  “In any case, I believe time is of an essence. Dr. Wick and I can go alone, if you all need rest.”

  “No,” Rogers says, standing. “You go, we all go. You’re lucky you snuck away the last time.”

  “I didn’t go far, but yes, please, if you want to help, that would be fantastic, Captain.”

  Rogers gives a single nod and rouses the Marines. Gerty and Rip immediately stand beside Alyx. Once everyone is ready, Sully gestures for them to go.

  No one moves until Rogers says, “Move out.”

  They make their way to the structure in silence.

  FOURTEEN

  The Coliseum structure, to Alyx, appears to be at least one hundred feet tall and about three hundred feet wide. The thing is massive. Beyond massive. How they’ll find an entrance, she doesn’t know. It’ll take years if every inch is to be inspected.

  But Sully says, “Remember when we were on the planet Gul and we were looking for the Velician Coin?”

  Alyx thinks a moment, then nods. Another insane exploration that yielded one of their biggest finds. But she’s not sure what Sully means. What about that planet?

  “Remember the old rock wall that went around the entire island where the coin rested?”

  She blinks. “Yes.”

  He touches the solid stone structure. “We couldn’t get through it. Couldn’t climb over it because of the venomous vines. So, what did we do? I honestly cannot remember.”