by Megg Jensen
"Of course they are," Isobel said. "You learned them from our tablets."
"The tablets? The tark wrote them?" Rell thought of everything the tablets taught. Of what they promised. How they spoke of the Key.
"They were a warning to anyone who might tread on the sacred ground. Your people crashed on the sacred ground and never left."
"We couldn't," Rell insisted. "The rest of the planet is uninhabitable."
"For humans, perhaps. Not for the tark." Isobel spun, sand flying from her hair.
Rell covered her face to keep the sand from her eyes until the pelting ceased.
"We are beings of sand. It is our air. Our life. The small part of the planet with the trees and rivers and leaves is death to us. It is where the gods of fire reside. We have protected them from the others for centuries, but now you carry the liquid inside you." Isobel raised her small arms to the sky. "We will withdraw the liquid and heal you, Rell."
Swallowing hard, Rell realized this might be her only chance to expel the dragzhi. "Can you explain how you'll remove it?"
Isobel's mouth cracked a smile, baring pointy teeth at Rell. She slowly floated closer until her mouth was only millimeters from Rell’s ear. "We will extract it from you."
"Isobel!" a voice called from behind.
Rell shook her head, attempting to ignore the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. She turned around to find a mass of strange little aliens, as doll-like in appearance as Isobel, peeking out from behind the rocky landscape.
"Don't speak to our guest like that." The new tark held out a hand to Rell. "Come with me. We'll take you someplace comfortable."
Rell took the tark's small hand in hers. She walked while the other tark floated next to her, a whirlwind of sand underneath her bare feet.
"I know this seems confusing. First contact with an alien species is always nerve-wracking. Do, or say, the wrong thing, and suddenly you're in a war." The tark smiled at Rell. "Don't worry. I think we'll get along just fine."
Rell bit her lower lip. She grew up isolated, taught to fear, even hate, anyone different from herself. She was probably the worst choice for an ambassador to the tark.
"My name is Gwendal." The tark squeezed Rell's hand. "I'm so pleased to meet you, Rell."
"It's nice to meet you, too, Gwendal." Rell swallowed hard before asking, "When will I be allowed to go back to Hadar? I'm sure there are others much more prepared to meet you than I."
Gwendal paused. Rell stumbled to a stop next to her.
"You are welcome to stay indefinitely. We have no need of your other people. At least, not while they live." Gwendal's laughter echoed off the surrounding cliffs.
Gwendal's face fell when she saw Rell's jaw drop. "That was only a joke, my dear."
"I want to go back to Hadar. Now." Rell let go of Gwendal's hand, crossing her arms over her chest.
"We can't let you do that," Gwendal said.
The sand shifted as hundreds of tark surrounded Rell, their tiny feet scratching on the sand.
"We need to extract the dragzhi inside of you, first," Isobel said, resuming her place next to Rell.
"If you survive that, we may consider taking you home." Gwendal's eyes glowed black.
"I may want her for a host," Isobel said. "My old one is useless. I found Rell first. She's mine to control."
The two tark bickered over who had the right to decide Rell's fate. She looked out of the corners of her eyes, counting the other tark who had gathered to watch, or to trap her, she wasn't sure which.
Unfortunately, she couldn't traverse the desert on foot, and she had no idea how to operate Isobel's sand barge.
She was completely at their mercy.
"I'll stay," Rell said, interrupting their disagreement.
The two tark turned to her, floating in mid-air over their individual sandstorms.
"I thought you would see the sense in staying," Gwendal said. "Come, now. We'll continue to the heart of our home. There is much for you to see along the way."
Rell reluctantly followed Gwendal deeper into the chasm, taking her farther away from any chance of rescue. If she knew Torsten, he was already on his way, even though he knew as well as she did that the desert was virtually impassable. Still, she had faith that he would find her eventually, and she needed to be ready to escape when he arrived.
It was all she had to keep her spirits up.
In the meantime, she'd need to keep herself alive and find out what these tark really wanted from her and the dragzhi.
Gwendal led Rell to a hole in the rocky face of the mountain. "This should look familiar to you," Gwendal said. "Does it remind you of home?"
Rell peered into the darkness, seeing nothing. Her people’s tunnels were usually lit, either with a torch and flame or by natural bioluminescence. If a tunnel was dark, it was likely Rell already knew it in her mind after years of exploration. But these tunnels were new to her. It was nothing like her home.
"Yeah," Rell lied, her voice shaking.
"No need to be nervous, my dear." Gwendal patted Rell's hand. "There is nothing in there to hurt you. Now, come. Follow me."
Gwendal led the way into the tunnel, the darkness quickly swallowing her.
Rell hesitated. She looked back, dismayed to see hundreds of tark still behind her, watching with their vacant eyes.
Gwendal's hand shot out of the darkness, yanking on Rell's shirt, pulling her into the tunnel. Rell stumbled after her.
Rell blinked a few times, hoping to acclimate to the darkness, but there was no light to aid her. No dimly lit torches. No bioluminescent plants in the dirt walls. Her heart pounded erratically. She felt as if the darkness was sucking the very life out of her.
Gwendal tugged again on her clothes, dragging Rell behind her. Rell found her footing and began navigating only by the occasional gentle tug as she moved from one direction to another.
After what seemed hours, Rell emerged in the light once again. She rubbed her eyes to adjust to the unexpected rays of sunlight streaming in through a hole in the cavern above.
Rell looked around, grateful she was able to see what surrounded her again, only to find a horror awaiting her. She gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "No," she whispered.
"Oh, do you like our tombs?" Gwendal asked. "Come see them."
Rell stood in place, refusing to move any closer to the tombs.
"They were already dead, Rell." Gwendal clicked her tongue. "We didn't kill any of them. We simply preserve their bodies in case we ever have need of them. Just like today. Isobel made good use of that small human girl's body."
"You used her as bait. That's disgusting. The poor thing should have rested in peace long ago. Why would you do that?" Rell spat out the words, horrified at what the tark had done.
Gwendal cocked her head to the side. "The human body is but a shell. Once the inner organs cease their functions, the body is empty. We are only repurposing what we find in the desert sands. It is how we survive in such a harsh environment. We do the same with intabas, as well as the other animals found on Setion. I don't understand your concern. What do humans do with discarded bodies?"
"They aren't discarded," Rell said, her hands in fists at her sides. "After a human dies, we bury them, respectfully."
Gwendal shrugged. "Perhaps you haven't found a good use for their remains, yet. Organic matter can make for good fuel. Food. Fertilizer. You humans squander so much in the way of resources. No wonder you haven't found a way to make it off the planet yet. You're too focused on your comfort."
Rell refused to argue with this alien. They would never see eye to eye. Maybe a defender trained in alien encounters could argue the humans' perspective. Maybe another could even strike up a friendship with the tark. Rell had neither the patience, nor the interest, in doing so. All she wanted was to get out.
"When will you extract the dragzhi?" Rell asked.
Gwendal's porcelain face contorted into a gruesome smile. "Are you really so eager to proceed? Fine, the
n. We shall begin." Gwendal raised a hand, gesturing at the other tark who had followed them into the cavern.
They quickly advanced on her, their small hands reaching out for all parts of Rell's body, pinching her skin as they took hold.
"Wait!" Rell yelled as they tipped her body from vertical to horizontal. Countless hands grasped at her, carrying her into another dark tunnel. "What's going to happen? Tell me what you're going to do before you start!"
"That wouldn't be any fun, now would it?" Isobel whispered in Rell's ear. She cackled, sending sheer terror down Rell's spine.
"Gwendal?" Rell shouted.
Sand whirled over Rell as Gwendal rose above her, moving along with the tark underneath Rell.
"Yes?" Gwendal asked.
"What are you going to do?" Rell held back tears.
"We will extract the dragzhi from you." Gwendal lowered herself until she was floating just above Rell.
"How?" Rell asked, even though she was afraid of the answer.
"I'm going to cut it out of you." Gwendal pulled a long knife from under her tattered clothes. Its blade winked in the light; the tip sharpened to a point. "You will be happier with it gone, but you may look a bit different when I'm done.”
13
Rell fought against the tight grip of the tark, but to no avail. Their size belied their strength. Despite looking like dolls, they were as strong as a well-trained defender. They carried her through a dark tunnel, finally emerging outside again in the desert. The tark set Rell down on a large slab of rock. Before she could sit up, they ripped at her clothes, tearing them off until she was stark naked.
Rell wrapped her arms over her most private parts as the tark gathered around the stone slab in a wide circle.
Gwendal shot out of the crowd, a sand tornado underneath her feet guiding her to Rell's side. She still held the long blade in her small hands.
"You should relax, Rell. This will hurt less if you cooperate." Gwendal waved to a male tark off to the side.
He came forward, holding a smoking weed in his hand. Waving it over Rell, he muttered unintelligible words under his breath. The intonation was so strange, Rell was sure they must be words in the native tark language.
She pursed her lips, attempting to make similar words come from her mouth, but her lips fell slack.
"It's working," Gwendal said somewhere in the distance. "Keep doing it."
The male tark waved the smoking herbs more violently over Rell. She lay back, her eyes closed, letting the sweet scent overwhelm her nostrils. It brought back memories of her childhood. Her mother had burned this same plant when they shared a pod. It always helped Rell fall asleep after a troubling day.
"No!" Rell struggled to sit, but her limbs wouldn't cooperate. Rell fought to remain awake.
As suddenly as it had disappeared from her consciousness, the dragzhi reappeared.
You mustn't sleep. Not now, it begged inside her. Stay awake, you fool! They're going to kill both of us. You'll end up in their tombs, and I...
Rell wondered what would happen to the liquid dragzhi.
They will enslave me. The tark are twisted creatures. They have no regard for life. They only mean to destroy. Don't fall asleep, Rell. For both of our sakes!
Rell's eyelashes fluttered as she struggled to keep her eyes on the tark. It took all of her strength just to move those tiny muscles.
Gwendal's arm rose high; the dagger gripped tightly in her hands. The other tark began to ululate, their voices stabbing at Rell's ears. If she could move her arms, she would have covered her ears to block out their shrill screams. Instead, she lay still, focusing all of her energy on keeping her eyelids open.
The dagger moved over Rell's chest, the tip of it aimed straight toward her heart.
Do something, you foolish human! Save us both, the dragzhi screamed.
Rell's eyelids fell. She focused all of her strength in her arms, resulting in a mere wiggle of her pinky finger.
More than that! Or I'll have to take over!
Rell imagined forming a fist with her right hand. She imagined clocking the tark the same way she'd hit Torsten when he kissed her the first time. Everything inside her screamed, but the scent of the smoky herb had relaxed her muscles. She couldn't move them, no matter how badly she wanted to.
Gwendal's ululating reached a feverish pitch, and she plunged the dagger into Rell, under a lower rib. Another tark jumped onto the rock slab, reaching its hand inside Rell's gut. It fished around, jabbing her organs. She expected pain, but felt nothing. A side effect of the smoking weed.
"I can't find it," the tark yelled. "Try again!"
Gwendal stabbed Rell's right shoulder. The tark pulled her hand out of Rell's gut with a sucking sound, then reached into the wound in Rell's shoulder. "Nothing here! Again!"
Gwendal opened Rell's eyelid with her free hand. Rell gazed in horror at the dagger, dripping with her blood and flesh.
"Where is it, Rell? Can you guide me to the dragzhi? I can take it out of you, and then this can stop. Help me." Gwendal waited a moment. "Perhaps she had too much of the weed. She can't even respond. I suppose we'll just have to keep stabbing until we figure out where the dragzhi is hiding."
Gwendal proceeded to puncture Rell's body all over, staying clear of her vital organs. More tark swarmed the stone slab, probing Rell's body with their hands. All of them came up empty.
"We may need to gut her!" someone called from the crowd.
"Gut her! Gut her!" The cry was raised. Every time another voice joined in, Rell sank deeper inside herself, waiting for the inevitable.
The dragzhi would die.
She would die.
There was no way out.
The stone underneath Rell began to vibrate. The tremors increased in intensity until Rell felt as if she would bounce off the slab and onto the sand.
Hold still.
Rell would have laughed, if she could. Hold still? She couldn't move, no matter how much she wanted to.
The rock cracked open, swallowing Rell whole, and sealed her inside.
Her lungs screamed for air. No, this was worse, much worse, than the dagger. Death couldn't come fast enough.
The rock crushed her from the outside, pressing down on her bones.
Stop resisting, the dragzhi inside her screamed. Call upon your fire!
Rell thought of her biological father, and how it felt to join him in the volcano. She remembered the fire springing forth from her hands while she fought the rock dragzhi in the jungle. Her entire body ignited with flame.
Good! Now, give in to the liquid and the rock! Become one with us.
Rell thought of the liquid dragzhi inside her and the cold stone against her skin, crushing her. Her lips parted, she took one final breath, and then her entire body exploded.
Rell rose from the rock, thrusting out her arms. With one angry swipe, she knocked the tark far away from where she stood. Holding her arms out in front of her, Rell was surprised to see they were made of stone, and now four times larger than they'd been when she was human. Because now she was... something completely different.
Rell stomped around the sand, crushing the tark who had the misfortune of being too close. Their bodies crunched under the weight of her foot.
Gwendal rose up from the sand, floating out of Rell's reach. Her eyes narrowed. "You have done it. You have become one with the dragzhi. Three become one. You are now a god."
Gwendal lowered herself to the ground, the sand settling under her as she bowed, her forehead touching the ground. The tark who hadn't perished at Rell's outburst did the same, falling to the sand, their heads bowed in acquiescence.
Rell opened her mouth to speak, but the words emerged in an entirely different language. One she had never heard before, but instinctively understood.
"You bow before the gods. Never forget this day. Tell your descendants." Rell raised her arms again, fire bursting forth from her rocky hands. Her insides swam with silver liquid, directing her every move. Her lef
t hand dropped, setting the tark on that side aflame.
Rell tried to control herself, but her consciousness had been relegated to a small corner of this new body. She could do nothing, only observe.
Gwendal lifted her head from the sand, then floated up to meet the giant dragzhi who was and was not Rell. "We are here to serve as your minions, my lord. Anything you command, we will do."
"You have hidden my brethren from us for centuries. They were missing, and you didn't report them. You will pay for this." The words were not Rell’s. She screamed inside, but the liquid dragzhi ignored her. She was alive, but trapped within this thing that had formed when the three parts of the dragzhi came together to form one being.
Gwendal showed no fear in the face of death. "I accept any punishment you deem worthy, but remember, we have a cache of human bodies. They can be used, and only we know how to manipulate them."
"My people are coming from space to rescue me," the dragzhi inside lied. Rell could feel its strength wavering. Something was wrong. "When you are contacted, you will do their bidding. Promise me!"
"I promise, my lord." Gwendal bowed.
The dragzhi took off in a run, headed into the desert with a remarkable speed. After running for a time, it looked over its shoulder. The tark were no longer visible. It collapsed onto the sand, the rocks falling apart and cracking open.
Rell's body fell out onto the sand, rolling a few meters away from where the rock had collapsed.
The dragzhi spoke inside of Rell. I'm thrilled we got away before the tark realized we were manipulating a dead rock dragzhi. Couldn't have held that form much longer.
"That's what happens to you when you merge?" Rell asked as she ran her hands over her naked body, checking for wounds.
They had all healed.
It was not our true form, but a shadow of what we can become. The dragzhi are the most powerful beings in the universe when united. None can stand against us. Are you sure you want to remain human, Rell? Join us. Feel that power again.
Rell didn't respond. Instead, she hummed a song she had learned as a child. It was better than thinking about the liquid dragzhi's proposal. Something had healed her skin. She would have died if they hadn't joined, even so briefly, with the rock dragzhi.
