The Ruins of Arlandia Complete Series

by William Wood

“Not just locked,” Calvin said, examining the edges of the door. “Look, it’s been welded shut from the outside. They obviously wanted to keep people out.”

  Dev thought about it for a second. “Maybe they wanted to keep something inside.” They shared a look, knowing what the other was thinking.

  “You think they locked the monsters in there?” Calvin asked.

  “I don’t know. If they did, let’s keep them there.”

  “Good idea.”

  “I wonder if the scanner can see what’s down there,” Dev said, taking out his scanner. He examined it for several moments.

  “See anything?” Calvin asked.

  “There are miles of tunnels under the castle. Wow, it’s very extensive; some of the tunnels go out of range. And they are big. It almost looks like there are roads down there. There are hundreds of rooms. Big, small. Wow, some are huge. There’s a lot of stuff down there.”

  “It sounds like there’s a city down there. Any life readings?”

  “Yes, I’m picking up a lot of life down there, but I can’t tell what it is. It could be bugs, small animals, or monsters. I can’t tell them apart. There is a metal shield surrounding the structures that seems to be blocking the signals.”

  “That figures,” Calvin muttered. “Let’s get out of here. This place is giving me the creeps.”

  “Yeah, gladly,” Dev said. “The only place left to check out is the tower.”

  It was a short elevator ride up the tower, but it didn’t go all the way up. They had to walk up six flights of stairs to get to the top.

  The stairs led through a hole in the center of the tower. A short wall with hand rails ran the perimeter to prevent people from falling over. That gave them a completely unobstructed view for miles in every direction. Calvin smiled when he saw the view. He took out a small pair of binoculars and began to search. Dev did the same. For several minutes they studied the landscape in silence.

  “I found the star port,” Dev said. “There.” He pointed to a spot on the horizon. It didn’t take Calvin long to find it.

  “I see it,” he said. “It looks like it’s faraway.” The binoculars provided him with a very clear view of a sprawling complex, spread out over half a dozen large buildings surrounded by a concrete ocean. There was a large glass dome in the middle. Then he noticed something on the small digital display on the binoculars. “Oh, there it is. According to this the star port is twentyseven miles away.”

  “That’s going to be a long walk.”

  “Is that what I think it is?” Calvin asked. “Are those spaceships on the ground?”

  “I think so,” Dev confirmed.

  “There’s a bunch of them. They look like transports. I wonder if we can get one of them to fly.”

  “Those are definitely flyable. Look at them,” Dev said. “I don’t see any damage on them.”

  Calvin hoped he was right, but he had his doubts. Finally, Calvin felt a little bit of hope. Maybe they would be able to get off the planet. Hope felt good. He took a deep breath. The sun, the wind, the fresh air, all felt very good. He looked down at the shuttle sitting near the wall by the sea. Long shadows stretched across the ground. He was about to walk back toward the stairs, when something caught his eye. There was a dark spot on the ground. Fear seized his heart.

  “Dev, what is that?” he said, pointing.

  Dev examined it with his binoculars. “I don’t know.” he admitted. “I can’t make it out. The trees are in the way.”

  Calvin took his rifle off of his shoulder and aimed it at the strange dark object. He looked at it through the scope.

  “What is it?” Dev asked.

  “I can’t tell,” Calvin said. “It looks like a rock. Was there a rock next to the shuttle?”

  “I don’t remember,” Dev said. Calvin pulled his small communicator out of his front jacket pocket.

  “Astra, how’s it going?”

  “Good,” Astra said. “I’m feeling a little better.”

  “Good,” Calvin said. “Can you do something for me, please? I want you to peek out the door for me. There is something outside the shuttle on the ground.” He was still looking at it through the scope. “It looks like a rock, but I can’t tell for sure.”

  “OK,” Astra said nervously. There was silence for a minute. “I don’t see anything.” she whispered.

  “It’s about ten feet from the door, just off to the right.”

  Dev took his rifle off his back and aimed it at the object. “There is a long thin line behind it.” he commented. “What is that, a shadow?”

  “Yeah, I think that’s what it is.”

  Calvin looked closer and realized, “That’s not a shadow. It’s going the wrong way.”

  “Calvin, I think it moved,” Dev said slowly. “Look!”

  “I still don’t see anything! Are you sure it’s there?” Astra asked. “You guys are scaring me!”

  Calvin made up his mind. “I’m going to shoot it.” He gazed through the scope, lined it up in the middle of the crosshairs, and gently pulled the trigger.

  There was a loud roar, and the dark object jumped backward. Calvin readjusted his aim and fired again. Dev began firing as well.

  There was another loud roar, and the thing collapsed in a heap.

  Calvin and Dev fired off another few shots, just to make sure it was dead.

  “Astra, are you all right?” Calvin asked. Both Calvin and Dev kept the creature in their sights, just waiting for it to move again. “I’m OK,” Astra said. “Did you kill it?”

  “Yeah, I think so,” Calvin answered. “It’s not moving, and we put quite a few shots into it.”

  “Can you please get down here?” Astra asked. “It’s going to be dark soon.”

  “We’re on our way. Be there in a second.”

  Reluctantly, Calvin lowered his weapon and put it back on his shoulder. They ran back down the stone circular stairs to the elevator and took it down to the main level.

  The sun was touching the horizon when they got back to the shuttle. The two ran up and slowed down as soon as they saw the carcass of a very large animal just outside the shuttle. It was much larger than Calvin expected.

  “Astra!” he shouted. When she heard his voice, Astra peeked out from inside the shuttle, firmly holding her laser pistol.

  “What is that?” she asked when she saw the creature. Calvin and Dev slowly approached it. It was covered with black hair and had a large nose and sharp teeth. Astra smiled when she saw her friends and walked out to join them. She had to walk around the dead beast to get to them. Afraid it might still be alive, she kept her distance.

  “Dinner?” Dev asked.

  “I don’t know about that,” Calvin said, looking skeptically at the carcass on the ground. “I wouldn’t know where to start. Have you ever hunted before and had to clean and quarter an animal?”

  “No,” Dev said simply.

  “I have,” Calvin said. “When I was young my father used to take me hunting. But this is different. I’ve never seen a creature like this before. How do we know it’s safe to eat?”

  Nobody answered.

  “I’m not too excited about eating it,” Astra admitted. “I’ve never had to hunt for my food. Our ships have always provided our meals. But we should try and conserve the food we have. We don’t know how long we’ll be here.”

  “Yeah, you’re right,” Calvin said. “It’s hard to argue with that.” He took a deep breath and unhooked the large knife that was connected to the side of his vest.

  Dev made a fire, and Calvin did his best to cut the animal up. Astra walked around the garden and found some big sticks. They cooked the meat over the fire, and ate it under the stars. It was nice, and it didn’t taste bad at all.

  After they were done eating, they all sat by the fire. Their weapons were close by.

  “So what’s our plan?” Astra asked.

  “Our best chance to get off this planet is the star port. It’s twentyseven miles away, and we’re go
ing to have to walk.”

  “Can we do that in one day?” Astra asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Calvin answered. “On flat open ground we might be able to, but there are hills and a forest between us, and I think a couple of rivers. It’s probably going to take a couple of days.”

  “We only have food for a couple of days,” Dev added.

  “I don’t think we have any other choice,” Calvin pointed out. Then to Astra he said, “Do you think you can handle the walk?”

  “I don’t have a choice, do I.” It was more of a statement than a question.

  “Well, there is another option,” Calvin said. “We could leave you here and come back in one of those spaceships. I don’t like the idea, but you could barricade yourself inside the castle.”

  Astra thought about it for a second, but it didn’t take her very long to decide. “No, I don’t want to be separated from you, and to be honest, I don’t want to be alone.”

  “I don’t blame you.”

  “We still have time to think about it,” Dev said. “I don’t think we should go tomorrow. Remember there’s a big storm coming this way. According to the scanner, it’s going to be really bad.”

  “We should move to a new shelter tomorrow then,” Calvin said.

  “Those rooms we found near the top of the tower would be perfect,” Dev said. “And it would be easy to defend, just the one way up.”

  “OK,” Calvin agreed. “That sounds good. We can pack up our stuff and move it up in the morning. Plus we could do some more exploring while we’re under the weather.”

  “That sounds good,” Astra said. “Did you look in the tower rooms and see what was in there?”

  “No, we were running out of time,” Dev said. “By the time we got into the tower, we just went to the top.”

  No one spoke for several minutes. Astra yawned.

  “If you don’t mind, I’m really tired,” she said. “I’m going to try and get some sleep.”

  “Go ahead,” Calvin said. “I think Dev and I are going to walk around a little bit, make sure the area is secure.”

  The night passed without incident. Calvin and Dev took turns keeping watch in two-hour increments, letting Astra sleep all night. When it was Calvin’s turn, he slowly circled the shuttle. A full moon in the clear sky provided enough light to see by. At one point he thought he heard noises in the distance, but he wasn’t sure. It was hard to hear, and it was probably his imagination.

  CHAPTER TWENTY:

  THE STORM

  It was a long night. Calvin found it almost impossible to sleep. He volunteered to keep watch during the last three hours of the night. The temperature dropped, and he walked around to stay warm. During the long hours, his mind wandered. He jumped at every sound, and all the dark outlines in the garden seemed to be alive. It was a tremendous relief when the sun began to light up the sky behind the castle. Calvin debated with himself about waking Astra up, but he wanted her to sleep as long as possible and left her alone. When Dev woke up, they had something to eat. They decided against eating more of the beast and had some of the dry rations from the shuttle.

  Calvin was thrilled to find the shuttle was stocked with survival gear. He found five backpacks, each loaded with food, water, a blanket, a medical kit, and various survival tools. He and Dev also grabbed all of the ammo packs, communicators, flashlights, spare batteries, extra scanner, and all of the medical equipment they could find. Astra was still sleeping when they’d finished packing and had stacked the backpacks by the door.

  “What about her?” Dev asked, pointing at Astra.

  “I just scanned her,” Calvin said. “The med kit made another injection, a combination of painkiller and something I’ve never seen before. I think it’s making her sleep. I’ll carry her.”

  Dev picked up two backpacks and moved to the door. Calvin picked Astra up gently. Fortunately, she wasn’t heavy.

  They walked through the garden toward the castle. The sun was shining, but dark clouds were gathering in the sky. Calvin walked slowly, careful not to disturb Astra or cause her pain, but she woke up as soon as they were back outside in the sunlight.

  “Good morning,” Calvin said, as she opened her eyes. “How are you feeling?”

  Astra groaned. “I’ve been better. Still in a lot of pain.” Though Astra didn’t weigh very much, she was starting to feel heavy by the time they reached the castle doors.

  They were all grateful that they didn’t have to climb all of the stairs to the top of the tower. By the time they got to the elevator, Astra was feeling heavier. After the elevator trip, they had to walk up two flights of stairs to where the rooms were. After the first flight of stairs, Calvin sat down on a bench under four tall multicolored stained-glass windows.

  “Are you all right?” Astra asked.

  “Yes,” Calvin said firmly. “I’m fine. I just thought you might want to take a break. Are you OK?”

  “I’ll be fine,” she said. “I’d be in bad shape if it weren’t for the painkillers.” Then she paused. “I’m sorry you have to carry me.”

  “Don’t be sorry,” Calvin said. “I don’t mind.”

  Astra groaned softly. Calvin thought he knew how she was feeling. She thought this was all her fault. He wanted to tell her that it wasn’t, but he knew that no matter what he said to her, she wouldn’t believe him. After a short break, Calvin struggled to his feet. He fought as hard as he could to hide his pain the last few steps.

  There was an open space at the top of the next set of stairs with a large desk behind a short wall. A hallway wrapped around the perimeter of the tower. The doors to the rooms were spaced around the tower, which were all closed.

  “This looks like a security station,” Calvin said.

  “It’s a perfect place to put a guard: in the only way into the tower.”

  “It almost seems too good to be true.”

  “What do you mean?” Dev asked.

  “Oh, nothing really,” Calvin said. “It just seems like there are days when everything goes wrong, and then there are moments like these. Everything’s going perfectly. I shouldn’t complain.” “No, you shouldn’t,” Astra said.

  Calvin put Astra down on a bench near the stairs, and Dev and Calvin checked all of the rooms to see if they could find a good place to set up camp.

  All of the doors were unlocked, and a quick search revealed that all of the rooms on that floor were plush bedrooms. But the best part was, just like the garden, everything was clean. All of the beds had fresh linens on them with blankets and big fluffy comforters. Calvin took Astra to the nearest room and gently laid her on the bed. She was already asleep, so he covered her with a blanket. She looked like she was sleeping peacefully.

  He unpacked the medical scanner and slowly waved it over her. The scanner displayed a detailed analysis, most of which he couldn’t understand, and produced another injection. He gave her the shot and quietly left the room. Calvin left the door open so he could hear if she made sounds.

  Dev met him out in the hall. “How is she?”

  “I wish I knew,” Calvin answered. “I’m not a doctor. I just do what the medical computer tells me to. She’s sleeping, which is probably best for her right now.”

  Dev followed Calvin to the stairs.

  “This place is great,” Dev said. “There are rooms for all of us. How could we get so lucky?”

  “Don’t get too comfortable,” Calvin said. “I’ve noticed our luck goes in waves, and we’re due for another downturn. By the way, have you checked the scanner recently?”

  “No,” Dev said, suddenly looking worried. “I’ll do it now.” He went into one of the rooms and came out with a scanner. He turned it on and waited. After a second, he said, “No life signs, just birds,” he said and relaxed. “The storm will be here soon, maybe an hour.” Outside, they could hear the wind as it beat against the tower. Calvin looked through the windows. The sky was getting dark.

  “OK,” Calvin said. “I want to go see w
hat’s on the next level.” Dev followed him up the stairs.

  Just as on every level, there was a bench near the stairs, but this level looked different; there was only one door. Calvin walked through it first.

  The first thing he noticed was the tall stained-glass windows all around. The second thing he noticed was the four large computer stations in the middle of the room. They were arranged in a circle, with two large flat monitors hanging above each one.

  “Finally,” Dev said happily. “This looks promising.”

  “Some kind of command center,” Calvin said. “This is exactly what we need.”

  “Let’s find a way to turn these things on,” Dev said, examining the nearest computer.

  It wasn’t too difficult. There was a large red switch on the back of each one. They walked around and turned them all on. The monitors flickered and came to life.

  “Good job,” Calvin said smiling. “Do you think we can contact the Frost on one of these?”

  There was a soft hum as the computers warmed up.

  “Let’s find out,” Dev said. Calvin walked around the room as the computers were starting up. He looked out the windows. The sky was full of black, angry clouds and the sea was white with swelling waves.

  “I can’t read any of these screens,” Calvin complained, when the computers finished booting up. “I can read the words, but the configuration is very strange.”

  Dev walked around and looked at it. Then he typed a few keystrokes into one of the computers.

  “These are sensors,” Dev said. The screen on the left showed an image of the planet and surrounding space. The right screen displayed a close view of the castle and immediate vicinity. “Long and short range,” Dev said. There was a trackball, placed prominently in the center of the console, surrounded by keyboards and controls. Dev rolled the trackball and moved the view around the planet. He scanned space until they found a small dot not far from the planet.

  “What’s that?” Dev asked. He moved a cursor over the dot and clicked on it.

  The image of a spaceship appeared on another monitor. It was unmistakable.

  “Azure Frost,” Calvin whispered. “Can you zoom in on it some more?” Dev played with the controls a little.