by C. C. Ekeke
Under the starry night, they drew out saw-toothed stone knives and began cutting off the dead proneus’s limbs and head for easier transport. Once finished, Mhir’ujiid’s sharp whistle echoed across the vale. A few lengthy macroms later, a rustle of urbrui stalks grew closer and more pronounced. Following that were three approaching shadows, two of them higher up than the middle one. Under the pale moon appeared Gheiig’onil, an elderly Quud with a thin, ropy build and a noticeable slouch. Once an amazing hunter, Gheiig’onil now trained Quud youths. He led two tall horse-like creatures with him: iokki, the main long-distance transport for Quud Farooqua. Both iokki had hides covered in dull, black scales instead of hair, and their muzzles resembled stunted elephant trunks. One iokkas raised its triangular head to let out a thumping drum noise.
“[Blessed be to the Zenith Point and its six elements of totality,]” the elder Farooqua said, his wrinkled arms sweeping in circles toward the crescent of Qos. “[For it has guided your fine kill. Are we ready to return?]” A wide, taumattang-hide pouch was strung up between the two iokki, in which they placed the cut-up proneus portions. Taumattang hide could keep a Farooqua warm throughout cold seasons and was thick enough to contain blood from seeping through.
Gheiig’onil and Mhir’ujiid hopped on one iokkas with her steering. Ekus’oguul rode the other.
Aside from occasional gusts of wind and a soothing symphony, courtesy of the nighttime fauna, the ride was calm. For this, Mhir’ujiid was grateful. She gazed up at the glittering void, where curls of smoky clouds had begun to swirl and coalesce. Imagining how many planets were up there always amazed her. Right now, any of them suited her better than Faroor.
Mhir’ujiid’s mind drifted back to her childhood with the Yanjon Quud, head tribe of the Quud Tribal Nation. Back then, life was simple within the confines of Farooqua tutelage. The stars held the same awe then as now, but Mhir’ujiid had never wondered about life in their midst. Her only focus in the sky was the Zenith Point and its six elements of totality: Estria (earth), Atma (the skies and the void beyond), Pyra (fire and light), Propa (wood and growth), Ebria (water and fluidity) and Talu (metal). She knew the enmity between Farooqua and Ttaunz existed long before her birth. Farooqua only ventured into city-states to barter goods, and Ttaunz only travelled through Farooqua lands to gather certain harvests. Besides that, both races stayed within their respective borders, in accordance to a century-old treaty.
The acrimony between Ttaunz and Farooqua had lasted over two centuries, predating Mhir’ujiid’s nineteen cycles. Her ancestors had welcomed the Ttaunz refugees from a destroyed empire, shepherded to Faroor by a league of many races from far within the Atma—the Galactic Union of Planetary Republics. The biggest grievance held by all Farooqua was the Ttaunz’s lacking gratitude for the Farooqua helping them acclimate to their new home. In fact, the Ttaunz viewed her race as they did mud. So Mhir’ujiid despised them right back.
Then the cold civil war started. The Ttaunz had begun outgrowing the confines of their opulent city-states, and little by little pushed the boundaries set by the joint treaty to build on Farooqua land. Soon stretches of verdant lands gradually became towering Ttaunz cityscapes as borders were ignored. To combat these violations, dozens of Farooqua resorted at first to sabotage, bringing structures down by fist and flame. But then the Ttaunz began implementing security systems around construction projects, including DNA-specific forcefields and armed mechanoid sentinels to name a few. This only encouraged the Farooqua to take their protests to more extreme measures.
Several Farooqua strapped with impact bombs snuck into Ttaunz city-states. Their crude explosive devices contained all the force, yet none of the heat of an infidel bomb as they blew themselves up along with innumerable non-Farooqua bystanders. The Narii and Udaa, two tribes bordering Ttaunz city-states, usually engaged in these tactics. As impractical as it sounded, the more radical Farooqua would rather die protecting their homes than lose them to the Ttaunz. Mhir’ujiid quivered at the thought. Blowing oneself up, no matter the cause or creed, was something she would never comprehend. In retaliation, the Ttaunz mowed down other Farooqua settlements with advanced weapons of war, but always in a different tribal territory. Back and forth these war games went, affecting the whole planet.
So far, the Quud remained neutral. As the most powerful Farooqua tribe, they had to set the example.
But Mhir’ujiid knew it didn’t help. A number of overzealous Quud branched away, joining their radical Farooqua brethren in the escalating attacks. A full-scale civil war looked imminent, threatening to plunge Faroor into chaos.
But by the grace of the Zenith Point, that day had not arrived yet. Instead, this Galactic Union returned four years ago, with an army of mediators to try and resolve the bitter conflict. Mhir’ujiid never forgot the moment she laid eyes on some of the visitors to the Yanjon Quud: bizarre creatures with long necks and small, egg-shaped heads—Kudobans, they called themselves. Leaders from both Ttaunz and Farooqua sides met; talks commenced. And while Mhir’ujiid clearly recalled the volleying attacks being temporarily quelled, at this point there was still no permanent truce. Decades of hatred had festered too long, ruining any headway toward concord. Tribal leaders had all but forgotten how the rivalry between both species had gotten this bad.
One suggestion from mediators, for easing the tension, included members of each race spending prolonged periods in the other species’ natural habitat. Peace by immersion. This way, the mediator posited, both sides might gain a better understanding of the other’s history and culture. As anticipated, the stupid Ttaunz scoffed at the notion—all save a few. In contrast, many Quud had sent some of their brightest youth to learn more about the Ttaunz. Mhir’ujiid smiled to herself as she recalled how, with her father’s blessing, she began attending secondary school in the Ttaunz city-state Kabakuru.
Kabakuru, one of the many cities inhabited by Ttaunz and other strange races on this planet, was the most accepting of the Farooqua. Forward-thinking Farooqua from several tribes sent offspring to Kabakuru for short lengths to school and reside there, funded by bartering Farooqua goods for monetary credits.
Mhir’ujiid remembered living on school facilities for half of the week and returning to her tribal lands the rest of the time. Several other Farooqua tribes followed the Quud’s lead, sending children to Ttaunz schools in megapolises like Kabakuru, Coiroque, and Normandy. Many Farooqua opposed this, convinced that this would dilute the younglings’ minds with undesirable teachings. But Mhir’ujiid’s parents did not bend, especially after witnessing how their eldest daughter had benefited. Other parents began to see how the cross-species education garnered the Farooqua an understanding into the inner workings of Ttaunz civilization. The wondrous experience had opened Mhir’ujiid’s eyes to life beyond the Quud tribe.
Mhir’ujiid recalled meeting amazing beings who didn’t fit the spoiled Ttaunz stereotype she had been force-fed since birth. Sadly, Ekus’oguul and his family never treated her the same way after she came back, as if she had returned with some contagion.
But because of recent actions by Ghuj’aega, the renegade who sought to destroy the Ttaunz and unite all Farooqua tribes under his twisted ideology, Mhir’ujiid and other Farooqua could no longer safely attend their schools. The fear and loathing from the Ttaunz had poisoned even broadminded city-states like Kabakuru. For all intents and purposes, Mhir’ujiid was trapped within Farooqua lands indefinitely—
“AH!” Something sharp jabbed Mhir’ujiid twice in the arm and her reveries faded. For some reason, both iokki had stopped moving and were now drumming anxiously.
Rubbing at her limb protectively, Mhir’ujiid glared at Ekus’oguul, knowing he was the culprit. “[What?]” she motioned with a one-armed shrug.
Gheiig’onil and Ekus’oguul replied by feverishly pointing east. She turned, what she saw almost throwing Mhir’ujiid off her steed.
Towers of dark smoke rose from behind a vast spread of rolling hills covered in red urbrui, swelling upwa
rd across the clear night sky, smothering the twinkling stars above. A flood of tiny figures had begun spilling over the hills away from those poisoned clouds with alarming quickness, heading in their direction. Some ran, others walked, more stumbled in a wounded stupor. Either way, all were Farooqua fleeing from whatever had occurred beyond those hills.
Even at a distance, Mhir’ujiid immediately recognized the tribe.
“N’noa,” both Gheiig’onil and Mhir’ujiid gestured at once. The N’noa was a fairly sizeable tribal nation neighboring the Quud. This panhandle of hills served as a border between the lands of their two tribes. Mhir’ujiid could only guess what might have happened, but the young female held her tongue. She didn’t want to believe it until she heard it from the N’noa themselves.
“[Come,]” she gestured while readying the reins of her iokkas. “[We must get to the bottom of this.]”
Gheiig’onil and Ekus’oguul both nodded in agreement as the latter took the reins of his steed, commanding it into motion. Together, the Farooqua pounded through the hilly expanse. Five macroms or so flew by before they faced the N’noa leading the mass exodus. In the dark, the N’noa looked very much like the Quud. Up close, the physical contrasts were obvious. N’noa had much less hair on their stouter and more strapping physiques, showing off pinkish complexions and velvety black faces.
“[Farooqua of the N’noa,]” Gheiig’onil gestured and squawked out croaky noises, greeting the assemblage in the N’noa tongue. “[Toward the Zenith Point we strive. What has happened here?]”
The procession of N’noa halted. Hundreds of wide, milky white eyes stared back at them. Each pair told their own tale of pain, fear, and misery. With just a glance, Mhir’ujiid spotted the fatigue and injuries by the N’noa’s weary stances and quivering limbs. Some told completely different tales as they shot ravenous stares at the bloody proneus the Quud carried. Mhir’ujiid did not attempt to suppress a shudder.
“[Farooqua of the Quud, toward the Zenith Point we strive,]” said the N’noa leading the throng.
As a sign of respect, the N’noa returned their greetings using Quud kineticabulary. He, like many other N’noa present, appeared bruised and bloodied. He then resumed speaking in N’noa tongue, “[Our settlement suffered a surprise attack from the Ttaunz Defense Force. We were forced out, not even allowed to bury our dead or carry out the severely injured.]”
The message caused Gheiig’onil to turn away in disgust. The iokki, as if sensing the melancholic air, tossed their heads back, letting out nervous drumming noises from deep in their throats. A hollow sensation filled Mhir’ujiid, threatening to steal her consciousness. She felt Ekus’oguul glaring a hole into her, but couldn’t care less. Another attack on Farooqua land, the third this past week. Why were these rebuttals from the Ttaunz happening with increasing frequency?
The N’noa continued, his gestures and squawks showing greater fatigue. Mhir’ujiid feared he might crumple before them. “[We simply pass through this land to reach the rest of our N’noa brethren and warn them.]”
Somehow, Mhir’ujiid managed to regain her bearings enough and gesture a question, “[What prelude caused the attack on your settlement?]”
Another N’noa stepped from the crowd with a baby cradled in one arm. “[Ghuj’aega,]” she squawked in contempt. The name sent a bristle of mixed hatred, fear, and even wistfulness through the N’noa. Gheiig’onil looked as repulsed as Mhir’ujiid felt. Ekus’oguul, however, looked wistful at hearing the terrorist’s name. Ghuj’aega was champion to many Farooqua who wanted the Ttaunz eradicated.
The N’noa female continued, “[His followers orchestrated another suicide bombing in the heart of a night market in Nohr Barii. Many Ttaunz were killed, several more injured.]”
“[How is that bad?]” Ekus’oguul gestured brazenly.
If not for another tribe’s presence, Mhir’ujiid would have slapped her cousin. Instead, she ignored him to address the N’noa, “[That city-state borders the southwest coast. When did his reach extend there?]”
The head N’noa male frowned, his milky-white eyes narrowing into pale slits. “[What slab of Estria have you Quud been hiding under, child? A large amount of the Ajjadr tribe has joined Ghuj’aega’s Ghebrekh. The rogue Farooqua has also been sacking a number of Ttaunz and non-Ttaunz transports crossing over Farooqua lands. Sometimes through the hands of his followers, other times using the very Atma itself as his weapon.]”
That last claim sent scores of N’noa into a hooting fluster. Mhir’ujiid, who had never seen Ghuj’aega, recalled claims that he possessed powers granted by the Zenith Point directly. A load of dung, she seethed.
Mhir’ujiid was about to gesture another question when the N’noa cut her off. “[Now, if you don’t mind, we must find shelter and warn our leaders of the Ttaunz’s latest attack.]”
“[Of course,]” Gheiig’onil gestured in concordance. With that, the two iokki joined by a satchel carrying their fresh proneus moved aside for the flood of N’noa Farooqua to continue southwest toward their lands. Dark clouds of smoke still rose from the east, pretty much blotting out the night sky. As the last N’noa vanished over the hills, Mhir’ujiid hopped off her iokkas.
“[Take my iokkas and head home,]” she gestured, her attention fixed on the east. The only two items she took from her steed were a hide flask of water and her spear. “[I’m going to find out what happened.]”
Ekus’oguul and Gheiig’onil both gawked as if she had sprouted two more arms.
“[Mhir’ujiid…not an option!]” Ekus’oguul gestured sharply, trembling with anger. “[You heard the N’noa. The Ttaunz are still here. They will kill you on sight!!]”
“[I’ll be careful,]” Mhir’ujiid waved dismissively, already jogging toward her destination. “[I know these lands far better than the Ttaunz do. I will return before morning.]”
Ekus’oguul and Gheiig’onil squawked to get her attention, but Mhir’ujiid was already hurtling down hilly slopes of blood-red urbrui grass. The wind blew in mournful wails, warning of danger. With every step she took, the towering columns of smoke in the east grew larger and more foreboding.
The ground grew stonier, rising and falling more sharply the closer she got to the hilltop. The pungent stench was growing worse, wracking her body with coughs. Now the fading embers scorching the former N’noa settlement became clearer, as did several unnatural lights flying high around the towering pillars of smoke, carrion birds waiting for their prey to die.
Mhir’ujiid’s chest tightened in hatred. Ttaunz Defense Force fighter jets.
Still, she broke into a full-on sprint down the hillside.
Chapter 2
The viewscreen footage played out deep in the bowels beneath Terra Sollus’s surface, an overhead outlook of three gaunt figures tearing frantically through a dank realm of endless conduits and tunnels. Their footfalls splish-splashing through puddles marked the desperation in the trio’s flight. Despite running for days, these three Korvenites, a teenage boy, a bald older male, and a young female, would not stop. Their entire existence reduced to the singular drive of survival, each Korvenite’s alabaster face told equally harrowing tales of exhaustion, terror, and pain.
Months ago these Korvenites were imprisoned in separate internment camps. Until the radical leader Maelstrom freed them, this trio had never known hope. The boy had never even used his telepathic Mindspeak abilities before! Soon after, the newly liberated Korvenites found themselves on a massive spacestation commandeered from the Union and Kedri governments by Maelstrom and his bold followers, poised to reclaim their homeworld.
But hope had abandoned the Korvenites yet again, leaving Maelstrom dead and his Korvenites scattered. These Korvenites had been part of the lucky assemblage not aboard the terrorist leader’s spacestation upon its destruction. In the ensuing chaos, this rudderless group had somehow made their way beneath Terra Sollus’s megapolises, scavenging for scraps of food, staying low-profile for months.
Now someone had been hunting t
hese Korvenites, whittling their numbers down to just three. So the Korvenites found themselves on the run again, fear and fatigue taking an obvious toll. Their observers wanted desperately to rescue the trio—but only after learning the identity and location of their pursuers.
The older male Thaull’s whitish skin was dripping with sweat, his pace barely faster than a jog. Before long, Thaull finally stumbled to all fours with a splash on a shallow puddle. He couldn’t even hold his head upright while gasping for air.
Both younger Korvenites heard him fall and stopped. “[Thaull,]” the female hissed in the Korvenite dialect, Korcei, “[get up! They’re coming!]”
“[C-Can’t…Jomè,]” Thaull wheezed in reply, flailing an arm to wave them off. “[You and Kyraeus…go. I’ll…slow you.]”
The one named Kyraeus turned and dashed to Thaull’s side.
Gawking in disbelief, Jomè ran her hands through matted purple hair and shrieked, “[I sense them closing in on us!]”
Kyraeus remained near Thaull. “[I know, Jomè. I’m not mentally blind,]” he said.
“[Ky—]” she cried again.
“[I am NOT leaving Thaull!]” Kyraeus barked back at Jomè. She scowled at Kyraeus right before turning on her heel and dashing with renewed vigor into the pitch-black tunnels ahead.
Thaull caught his breath and looked at Kyraeus. “[She’s right… I’ve lived long enough…and the paradise of Yvyria…is waiting.]”
“[No.]” The youngster shook his shaggy mane of violet breathlessly. “[We’ve already lost too many. I won’t lose you—AAAAGGHH!!]”
A bolt of sizzling red energy seared past Thaull’s head, briefly chasing away the dark and nailing Kyraeus square in the chest. As the young Korvenite flopped to the ground, his pain clearly vibrated through Thaull, meaning the two were telepathically linked.
One spectator watching on the viewscreen cringed. Another made a distressed noise that was quickly stifled.
