Snark's Quest

by Timothy Ellis

  He paused for a moment, and sipped from his drink.

  "The records talked of the Talisman. That was the translation. But it could mean a lot of things, especially a stone, or a stepping stone. And they talked of power, of destruction and ruin, of great love, and fulfilment. Of course, I searched for the stone, the Talisman, but never found it. The frescoes, they are beautiful. They tell a story, but I could never interpret it. But in the records, there was a prophecy."

  He looked at them one by one, but no-one said anything.

  "They talked of the gods who had come, created the caves, and left. A human female with your name, would return."

  "Did they take the stone with them?" Anna asked in a hushed tone.

  The owl hooted softly.

  "I don’t know."

  Sissness sniffed the air.

  "But you know something else, don’t you?"

  The owl hooted in humour.

  "Ah yes, the careful cat!"

  His beak parted. Perhaps this was an Owl’s way of smiling?

  "I do. But I can’t tell you. I’ll need to show you."

  Fifty Seven

  Snark was angry. His tail was going back and forth, back and forth, and his eyes were wide. Why hadn’t she told him about the 'Custodians' before? He felt lied to, and cheated. Right from the beginning, she'd been lying, so she could get her own way. And what was he? Just some lackey she could use?

  But now he had Grandmother’s quest he'd agreed to follow. He'd promised. And he would fulfil it. With or without high and mighty Anna. He admitted they needed each other. For now. But what else had she lied about?

  Sissness was in seventh heaven. She was accessing new records through the station library. It was a mine of information. More data, meant more sifting, but she now had more to go on. She worried about Snark though. He was angry about something. She thought Anna probably was too excited to notice. Sometimes Anna could be totally fixed on her own issues, and be oblivious to the beings around her. Still, it wasn’t as if she could do anything about either of them. She monitored her downloads, and kept on sifting.

  Jamie didn’t trust the station’s shuttle. It was old, tired, and who knew the last time it'd been serviced, let alone completed a run to the planet’s surface. But they needed to get there, and this was what was on offer.

  He was also aware of the conflict which was brewing between Snark and Anna. Something had happened at the meeting with Old Hootsmoon. Snark had come out like a cat on a hot tin roof, and Anna had come out elated, but oblivious to the rest of them. He knew he should probably raise it with them, but he was putting it off. He was also thinking about his relationship with Anna. They were friends, but he didn’t seem to be getting any further. He knew he had strong feelings for her, but she tended to back off if he got more personal, and now it was like she was in her own little world, and had almost put up barriers to the rest of them.

  It was a hard decision about who to leave on the Seasprite. Snark and Anna both elected to go, as the ones most directly related to the quest, and Sissness also wanted to go, from a field research perspective. He wanted Patters to be there if there in case any sort of fight happened. Even if it was local wild animals. She was a hunter after all.

  He was also worried about Bhatet. Anyone on the station could be a member of the Brotherhood, or in Bhatet’s pay. This is why, although he wanted to go to the planet, he needed to stay on Seasprite. If something happened to the ship, they were lost.

  Fifty Eight

  Pitching was an old trader who'd become marooned on Byways station, and never been able to get away. He worked in various jobs as a handyman, or jack of all trades. His tattoo for membership of the Brotherhood was faded and stretched, but still there. He always made sure it was covered, and no one on the station knew he'd once been a member.

  It was a long time since he’d been in contact with the Brothers. So long, in fact, he’d almost forgotten them. But he was sure they hadn’t forgotten him, they never did. Once a Brother, you were a brother for life, and they didn’t let you forget it. Ever.

  But he’d not had the means to contact them, they had left him alone, and so his fervour for the cause had weakened, and almost disappeared.

  But he was thinking of them now.

  He’d been contacted. After all this time, a cryptic message had come through the station coms for him. Cryptic to others, but clear to him. He still remembered the last code system, and had rapidly translated the message.

  He needed time to process it all. The last thing he wanted was to be in touch with the Brotherhood again. He was almost happy here. He was used to the quiet life. He’d put down roots, had a partner, and children. And he was terrified of what the Brotherhood could do to him, and them.

  When he’d joined, he’d been just a kid. Stupid, looking for a cause, wanting excitement. He’d been taken in by the recruiters, made to feel special, made to feel powerful as part of a powerful and secret sect. But he’d soon found they were ruthless, cruel, and mercenary. They put profits over their own so-called cause. The initial feeling of oneness, sameness, and purposefulness, had soon disappeared, and he was left with, what? Obligation and fear. But he was tied to them for life.

  He could certainly find out the information they wanted. But should he contact them? The last thing he wanted was to be in their focus. However, they had contacted him. Perhaps he was already in their focus, and if he didn’t respond, they would come here. And if they came, the whole station was in jeopardy. It was a small and close-knit community. He’d hate to see it wiped out.

  It was impossible! But he knew what he had to do.

  Fifty Nine

  Snark put them down at the old landing ground for visitors to the caves. There were still the remains of tourist amenities, kiosk, shop, and landing ground facilities. It was all abandoned and overgrown.

  There would still be a trek, and although the planet wasn’t inhabited by any sentient beings, there were probably many local species they would need to watch out for, although the owl said the place was 'Mostly harmless'. Old Hootsmoon oriented himself, and led them to a wide track which could still be seen amongst the overgrown grasses and foliage. They followed it, Patters on point with her bow up, arrow notched, as well as more conventional weapons over her shoulder, and on her belt. The others were also variously armed, with Snark wearing his stun gun in a special holster which had appeared on his suit. He also had some traditional weapons. The old owl didn’t seem to have come with any weapons, just a long staff which he used to help him navigate the broken pathway. Anna and Sissness were not armed.

  The planet was very beautiful. Very green hills undulated away into the distance where mountains dominated the horizon. Nests of snow could be seen on the slopes, and the tips were blanketed in snow and ice. Strange colours swirled across the sky over the mountains, hazy green, purple, and red light pulsed, and hung in moving curtains.

  It was cold, brisk, but not wet, and the wind blew softly enough to not cause them discomfort. The air was fresh and sweet, and tasted of cinnamon.

  The track led them down a small dip into a valley, and they followed the valley floor until they came to another old tourist spot, with ruined and overgrown concrete amenities, but smaller than the landing point.

  As they moved, twittering could be heard around them, but when they stopped, it would stop. They looked for creatures, but couldn’t see any.

  Old Hootsmoon stopped, and his head swivelled around. He seemed satisfied there was no one there. The twittering had stopped. Only the sound of the breeze, rustling the grass, shrubs, and scrub, could be heard.

  They followed him to a rock wall which rose out of the valley floor. He seemed a bit disoriented for a while, but led them over to a place with dark shadows, and overgrown. They cleared some vines and weed, to reveal a narrow opening. No-one had been there for a long time.

  The narrow chasm cleaved the rock wall, and the strip of shadow was dark in the bright sunlight outside. They’d brou
ght torches, and extra lights in their backpacks, and Snark led the way through the opening.

  They slipped through a narrow passage with no width, but was quite tall, the darkness disappearing above them. And then their torches swept into a large cavern where the passage opened up. It was enormous. Their paltry torchlight didn’t extend to any back wall or passages, the light being swallowed up by the dark.

  The owl stepped forward.

  "Over to the right," he said briefly, and they followed in his footsteps, over a rough rock-strewn sandy ground.

  The air was dry, with a breeze blowing steadily from the depths. Snark’s eyes were wide, and the reflections of his orbs from the tracking torchlight glowed. The Owl’s eyes were also extended as wide as possible, while the other cats’ eyes shone out. Anna found it eerie, her primal memories disturbed by the alien looking eyes in the darkness.

  They came to a wall. Not a rock wall, uneven and natural, but a being made wall hewn out of the rock face. It extended into a plastered wall, like you would find in a large impressive public hall, extending up into the darkness above, and out past where they stood.

  A coloured mural leapt out of the darkness as their torches tracked over its surface. Dramatic scenes seemed to play out. Figures and defined faces stared down at them. Anna gasped as she played the torchlight on the figures.

  The 'God-like' figures gestured at each other, and out at the watchers. They were human-like, and seemed to have glowing halos, or helmets around their heads, and brightly coloured suits. Anna gazed, mesmerised, and moved forward to see a mural of scenes extending into the distance.

  The owl watched her carefully. In the shadows, he saw her face slacken in awe, her mouth wide, and her eyes glistening. He nodded.

  He took them further on, searching for a particular scene. They moved past the 'gods' interacting with different beings again, local animals and birds perhaps, fantastical figures. There was an agricultural scene, and a scene of what looked like a village.

  And then they came upon a most spectacular scene indeed.

  Three waterfalls fell into a deep pool, seen through a rock archway.

  Anna stood there in shock. It was the Monifieth painting. Except in this scene, the 'god-like' figures were crossing the pond on stepping stones in the water. One was moving through the curtain of water into the beyond.

  Patters took off her backpack, and set up one of the lights. The steady light beamed a strong wide beam to illuminate the scene. Anna studied it. It had much more detail than the painting. But it told her nothing more. She turned to Old Hootsmoon, as he stood looking up at the scene.

  "Do you know what it means?"

  He shook his head.

  "No-one does. Were the 'gods' humans who came here in the past? They were here long enough to create all this. Or was it long dead local inhabitants who created this as a memory? Why? What was the purpose?"

  He gestured out to the middle of the cavern. Patters swivelled the light around to point in the opposite direction. At first they could see nothing, the darkness was so vast. But they soon started to pick out the stones. Huge standing slabs of stone in a circle.

  "There are two circles," said Hootsmoon. "The inner and outer matching each other in exact circumferences. The mathematical dimensions were carefully studied for clues as to what the purpose was. There is what was seen to be an altar stone at the far side towards the back of the cavern, and opposite the entrance. Two gateway stones near the entrance. And a central flat stone, like the altar stone, but larger. Over time, they have fallen, perhaps earthquakes? Who knows?"

  The owl blinked.

  The group stood in awe.

  Sissness purred loudly, while Snark’s whiskers stiffened. His tail was still, and straight. Patters, ever practical, moved into the cavern with Snark’s backpack, and set up a second light, which revealed more of the scene. It only served to show them how puny their efforts were to try to see the whole.

  "Why?"

  Anna breathed what they were all thinking. To set a standing circle of stones in a cavern, with a wondrous mural, that no one could see.

  "Why indeed?"

  Old Hootsmoon’s breathe hooted eerily, and echoed away into the shadows. The owl shrugged, and turned back to the wall, which was now in shadow.

  "I have the records of the studies. There were many suppositions and theories, but no one really came up with enough evidence to put forward something proven." He turned again. "There’s something else."

  The owl hopped across the floor of the cavern towards the centre of the standing stones. The others followed. When they reached the centre, Patters set up Sissness’ light. The centre stone had shifted sometime in the past, and instead of being propped up on two plinths and level, it had fallen sideways on an angle. Hootsmoon ran one hand over the surface of the stone.

  "There’s a carving," he said simply.

  Sissness and Anna moved over to the stone, and shone their torches directly at the surface. Scratches could be seen in the stone. They seemed random. Snark moved over to them. He had a piece of chalk in his bag, in case they'd needed to mark dimensions or anything while they were there. He ran it over the stone, and the marks showed more clearly. Anna and Sissness puzzled over it. Snark looked over their shoulders.

  "It’s a star chart," he said.

  The others looked at him in disbelief.

  "See? It’s not how we’d draw one now, or how we’d recognise it. The maps we use now are of systems with jump points. But there are far more stars we haven’t found jump points to, than ones we have. This is a map of all stars. My father used to play a game with me when I was a kitten, and he’d draw star charts in the dirt with a stick. I’d recognise the same thing anywhere."

  "A star chart," repeated Anna. "But for where?"

  Snark studied it further.

  "Like you did with the last map, we need a reference point. It’s useless without it."

  "But could we recognise it later if we studied different charts?"

  "Maybe. But you’d need some sophisticated software to do the analysis. We might need to ask Queen Jane for help. She has access to the best computers anywhere. Rumour has it she has an AI. It might take one to match the maps with actual stars, perhaps going a long way back in time."

  Anna took photos with her tablet. She’d already taken as many photos as possible of the Waterfall scene. Sissness was also documenting everything she could.

  The owl stood by stoically. He’d puzzled for many years over the collective data for this place. He had his own ideas, but he understood their excitement. It had excited him too, once.

  Patters was uneasy. The cavern was silent, apart from the breeze. There must be an opening somewhere to create a draft. It was quiet, but she was sensing danger.

  "I want to go back to the entrance, and make a check," she said.

  The others didn’t even seem to hear, so she made her way through the stones, and towards the entrance stones, and out through the cleft in the wall.

  Snark did see her go. He at least was aware of the time they’d been here. The lights wouldn’t last forever. They should gather what they could now, and leave. While they were alone on the planet, they were exposed in what could be a convenient trap. He brought up coms on his pad, and opened a channel to Seasprite.

  There was no answer. He wasn’t too surprised. They were deep in the earth, so the signal could be blocked. He moved a few paces in a different direction, and tried again. Still nothing. He thought to join Patters outside, and get in contact with Jamie to establish the situation up there.

  ‘Let’s finish this up soon," he said to Anna, Sissness, and the Owl. "I’m going to go outside. Can’t reach Jamie from in here."

  Anna signalled her agreement, and went back to her studies with Sissness.

  Snark went to follow Patters, but his torchlight picked up something strange on the opposite wall from the mural, so he moved in that direction to have a look. He tripped suddenly, and sprawled on the floor of
the cavern. His torch went out. He lay still for several moments as the dust settled around him. He sat up slowly, winded, and held a paw to his head. He was about to call out to the others when a noise at the entrance stopped him.

  It was a slow laugh.

  He froze.

  He could hear the rustle as the others turned, and then their intake of breaths.

  Silhouetted against the sunshine at the entrance of the cavern, were several figures. They seemed to be Bats, with weapons at the ready, and seemed even more menacing given they were highlighted against the light as black and shadowy forms.

  There was no sign of Patters.

  Anna thought about a fight. But Snark had the only spare gun, and he'd vanished. Her suit would be difficult to penetrate. But the owl and Sissness were vulnerable. She was also a terrible shot, despite Jamie’s efforts, even if she did have a gun, which she didn't. She thought of him. If there was a force here, what had happened to him and Seasprite?

  A voice called out.

  "Put down any weapons, and everything you carry. We are armed. You are trapped. You have no escape."

  No kidding, thought Anna.

  Sissness and Anna stood very still. They were caught in the light like moths on pins.

  The owl hooted softly. They were here. And he was out of time. But he was prepared.

  "Walk this way. Slowly. Drop your weapons," the voice came again.