Terror on the Trailblazer

by John Thornton

  “I am following you in this,” Ken replied. “So, SB Brankovic, open up the doors, and let us in! But I agree with Janae. Do not tell anyone where we went. Our lives are in danger if you do.”

  “Interesting. I will ponder the ramifications of that. The door will only remain open for twenty seconds, and then will reseal. The biome is safe for you, as no large animals are currently near this egress point. I cannot speak to conditions beyond a ten-meter range, nor can I give any weather report, as I stated previously. I have no other scanning abilities at this location. I will be monitoring as I am able, but after the door closes I will not have audio capabilities to reach you. Remember the sequence code for the door control pads.”

  Janae replied, “The code is blue, green, yellow, and yellow.”

  “Affirmative. Also, look for public-access portals to reach out to other systems. From them you can access the SBN. This door will be opening shortly,” SB Brankovic stated. “Blessings upon you both.”

  “Blessings?” Janae muttered.

  Vents in the ceiling and floor opened, and damp, cold air poured into the small chamber. Then the door to the biome slid back into its pocket, and the air gushed past Ken and Janae and into the biome.

  “It is very bright!” Ken said as he shielded his eyes with his forearm.

  Stepping inside, they both felt gritty sand under their feet, and blinked repeatedly as their eyes adjusted. The door slipped shut behind them with a clank and thud.

  “Tan!” Janae said and checked her RAM suit and it was fully functional, but reading no excessive levels of radiation. She halted her reflex to pull on the hood, gloves, and goggles.

  “Without the particulate dust in the air. Looks like images of Mars, back a hundred years ago or so, when they tried that colony there,” Ken said. “Reminds me of the history classes we had.”

  “All those people died, and Mars was redder, but this is indeed barren. I guess I expected trees or something,” Janae replied. “The sky tube is really bright. Brighter than in the Isle of Pines, or in Ida. And a pale blue ceiling way up there.” Her hand was on her forehead shading her eyes as she looked upward. “That is unlike Mars, too, but not like those other biomes either. I wonder why?”

  “Different ecologies. Here it is not frozen and cold, the temperature is hot, maybe thirty or thirty-five degrees,” Ken observed. “RAM suits can easily handle this. Excellent.”

  “Yes, better than frozen.”

  Looking out, the view was strange. The sky tube was very bright, and difficult to look at directly. Janae considered, again, putting on her goggles, but refrained. She was not sure why, but she just felt like seeing it with her natural eyes was better. The door had opened from the sidewall of the habitat, and as far as they could see along that wall, it was sandy and rocky. Large boulders jutted up at intervals, some piled up as high as four meters tall and sloped into the sandy ground. That made visualizing in any direction, limited, except along a narrow strip right next to the wall. That open space between the wall and the rest of the biome was about five meters wide, and looked to stretch the entire length of the biome. Looking at the environment around them, it was not a uniform color of tan—like the dead Earth outside of Dome 17—but rather a spectrum of browns, beiges, taupes, and even a sprinkling of other colors. As they looked closer, they noticed a much wider variety of things than their first impression had made.

  “I thought this was dead, like outside the dome, but look,” Ken pointed. “Those are plants of some kind.”

  Janae looked at the objects Ken was gesturing toward, and they were a dullish-green color, sort of columnar, with some parts jutting out, like upturned appendages. Those plants were unlike anything she had seen in Ida, or in the Isle of Pines.

  “This certainly is an odd place,” Janae said as she approached the upright plant-thing. Peering in the distance, she noted others which were similar, but not identical. They all were different sizes, and shades of green, but clearly of one specific species. There were other, smaller, plants about, but the large ones caught her attention. They ranged from under a meter tall to about eight or ten meters tall, some of them with their tops poking up above the rocky formations. Each was a tube, or column, or barrel-shape—again Janae had trouble actually defining the shapes as they varied a bit from individual specimen to specimen. They each had different numbers of appendages—branches—or arms. Janae was not certain what to call those projections, but nearly all were kinked, or bent, in at least one place, but ultimately most ended up reaching vertically.

  Approaching the nearest large plant, Janae and Ken were startled, as something winged past them. It landed on the plant, but then seemed to disappear. Stepping even closer, Janae noted a hole, near the joint where an appendage jutted out. She could now see that the plant was lined with vertical ridges which had a vast multitude of spikes coming out from those same ridges. Grooved, or furrowed, the plant’s outer skin was green and hard looking, and the spikes made it look like a defensive fortress of some kind.

  “Can that plant move?” Ken wondered aloud. “If it swings those arms, the spikes would be a mighty weapon. I remember reading about some living thing.” He paused as he contemplated his memories. “I think it was called an a-kid-na, or something like that. It was covered in spikes, and it moved. I cannot recall how big it was.”

  “There was some pine something animal too, which had spikes, and some prehistorical dinosaurs which were spiked, but I am pretty sure these are not animals,” Janae replied. “Their bottoms are buried in the ground at the bases, like the trees in the Isle of Pines, or even what little I saw of those trees on Ida’s buildings. The trees in the Isle of Pines had needles, but those needles were different than these spikes.”

  “Agreed. Ida’s trees were vastly different than these things,” Ken was interrupted by another thing that zipped past. “What was that? What flew by?”

  “It must have gone in that hole. I… did the plant… is it a tree of some kind? Or, did it just trap and eat that flyer?” Janae wondered. “A hunting tree? Lures in its prey and eats it?”

  “Or is there a symbiotic relationship between the spiky-tree and whatever flew into it?”

  “Oh!” Ken let out a startled gasp. Something with bright orange eyes peered out at him from the hole in the spiked plant. “Do you see that?”

  “Yes, something is in that cave in the tree. I suggest we get away from these crazed animal things, before one of them attacks us,” Janae had drawn out her revenger, but was unsure what, if anything she should aim toward. The experience of the bruins was fresh in her mind, and while the spiky tree was big, it was stationary, and she really doubted it could swing its arms, yet she was uncertain. The bright orange eyes were creepy as they peered out at her.

  Without warning, the orange-eyed creature flew out of the hole. It was a bird, and was a smudged mix of browns, whites, and tans. It was about as tall as one of their palms, although it was still troubling, despite its diminutive size. The orange eyes were hauntingly beautiful. It soared away from them. A moment later, another bird of some kind, brighter in colors, with some brown spots, flapped into view and then settled carefully onto the top of one of the spike-laden trees. The bird was not injured, and just stood there, tipping its head as it looked at Ken and Janae.

  “There is life all around out here,” Ken observed. He too had drawn out the revenger, but the look on his face was more marveled than terrorized. “John would love this place. My RAM suit says no radiation to speak of, and the hot temperature is easily controlled. Rather a pleasant surprise, compared to freezing in that other place. Humidity here is about like inside Dome 17, and this air! So, fresh, so invigorating.”

  “That is nice, but recall that in biological ecosystems there were things which were poisonous if you ate them, and venomous if they ate you, or tried to. Bites, and stingers, and spitting venom, if I recall John’s lectures. Not his fish things, but land animals. Well, maybe his fish did stuff like that to, you know how he w
ent on and on about fish. But, I was thinking of little things, like insects, and some squirming things called snakes, and something cold-blooded, a… reptile… I think it was called. A toxic toothed dragon thing.” Janae was looking all around and seeing more and more life in what she had at first thought was a copy of Mars, but now she understood it was actually a living, diverse, and active biome. “Maybe coming to the biome was not the best idea. I thought since we knew Ida’s environment, and that of the Isle of Pines, we would know what to expect, but this is so different.”

  “Correct, but I am not sure what else to do,” Ken said as he turned slowly around. “In the Isle of Pines, we followed that downward water flow, but here, I do not see water anywhere. Ida, had some river thing as well, and Ida was built like a high-tech place with their tall buildings. Here, I see nothing high-tech, but a lot of unknown life.”

  “Well, we stay away from these spiky trees, and their little world of critters, and head toward the center of the biome. Butterfield, I think it was, but maybe a tant, said this place was high-tech, and if it is we can use that. Well, maybe. I am wondering how to get back to Kimberly. Anyway, I will mark our door here, and then we can know how to get back here. If we need to,” Janae turned around, and holstered the revenger. “Keep an eye out while I get out our molecular torch. I will just braze a larger mark on the wall here. One we can see for a good distance. The official sign for the exit is too small.”

  “If one of those prickly trees uproots itself and charges at us, I will shoot it,” Ken replied, in all seriousness. “The inexplicable, I have already seen, yes, I have.”

  Janae quickly scored the permalloy over the door with a meter-wide X-shape, which would be visible from a good distance. “Just in case we need to follow our path backward. If Kimberly were not rampant, we could have tracking and a whole lot of help.”

  “Yes, we are handicapped by that loss, but I have hope. When we get there, we will be able to do something,” Ken replied. “You got to that reproduction place, and that helped us. We can do this together, you and I.”

  Walking away from the door, they observed the landscape all around, and by careful observation, they realized that the sand beneath their feet was concealing a trail of sorts. Ken squatted down and brushed off the sand, and found a meter-wide path of permalloy. The sand had drifted over it in many places, but its flatness was obvious—after they realized it was there. It wound in a serpentine way along the rocky piles of boulders, and generally headed toward the center of the biome. That was Janae’s guess anyway, using the sky tube as a reference for where she thought the center was located.

  “There are some more birds up there,” Ken motioned with his hand. “They are larger than our friend with those orange eyes. Can you tell how far away they are?”

  Janae saw the birds Ken had noted, and they were far overhead, circling around in slow, lazy glides. Their wings stretched out to each side, but it was tough to estimate the distance with her naked eyes. Again, she hesitated to use her technology, and just watched instead, she was unsure why. “Different birds probably play different roles in the ecosystem here. If any attack us, that might come suddenly, and unexpectedly. In the history of warfare, air-superiority—I think that was what they called it—was always a tactical advantage.”

  “Right, and in the 90 Hour War, that was what led to radiation in the upper atmosphere of the old-Earth. Pity, really,” Ken remarked as he looked again at the readings on his RAM suit. “Nothing like that here, and hopefully those birds circling up there, are not predators seeking us for a meal.”

  Coming around a corner, between some of the rock formations, they saw a man standing right next to one of the spiked trees. He was wearing a white garment which covered his entire body, but was not billowy so much as just a loose covering. It wrapped about him and secure in front. On his head was a blue, red, and white checked cloth wrapped about to make a tight head covering of sorts. With one hand he was digging about on the tree, but on his other arm was perched a large bird. He turned to them.

  “Visitors? Out here? I knew there was a general alarm, but out here?” the man said in a startled voice. He looked at the bird, and said. “Stobor, we have new people here.”

  The bird tipped its head a bit and opened its beak. It was a large bird with dark brown and creamy mottled feathers on its broad wings. As it stood on his arm—which was roughly level with his waist—the bird’s head was slightly above the man’s head, even with his cloth wrapped hat. The eyes of the bird were intensely looking at Janae and Ken, and they each could feel its visual assessment on them. Obviously—due to the natural weapons it had—that bird was a predator of some kind. Its mouth opened and it let out a quick, but shrill yelp. The sharply curved beak was yellow, as were the taloned-feet which clenched onto a thick, black-colored pad which was strapped to the man’s arm.

  The man withdrew his other hand from inside a hole in the tree, and he pocketed something, then touched the top and back of the bird’s head. “Easy, Stobor, strangers are not always a threat. Now, soar up and join Turu, and Orel. I may need you to bring down something. I will let you know.” With a gesture, and subtle move of his arm, the bird took to flight.

  With powerful flaps of its wings, which spanned at least two meters, the bird rose swiftly into the air. In but a few moments, it was circling with the other two which Ken and Janae had already seen.

  “Greetings, strangers. I am Lollard. How my I render hospitality to you this fine day?” the man asked as he walked toward them. His face was pleasant, and his beard was nearly trimmed and very black in color.

  “You… and that bird?” Janae stumbled out a question.

  “Stobor, and his two companions, Turu and Orel, and I have a partnership,” Lollard stated. “You seem to not know the ancient arts of falconry. Or, am I supposing incorrectly?”

  “Falconry?” Ken managed to ask. He was watching the birds as they circled overhead, wondering about their size and majesty. They were larger than any of the flying animals he had yet encountered. They were scary.

  “Falconry is a sport, or more accurately, a lifestyle, where a person and raptors—a kind of bird—work together as a team. Have you seriously not seen a falconer before? Forgive me, I do not mean to judge,” Lollard dropped to one knee and bowed his head. “My sin of hubris is always before me.”

  Ken looked at Janae, but she just mouthed, “Crazy people again!”

  Ken said, “All is forgiven, if you will forgive my ignorance. I am Ken, and this is Janae.”

  “It is my pleasure to meet you. The general alarm said we had visitors, but I never expected to meet someone way out here,” Lollard said as he stood up, and with a surprised look on his face replied, “I offer any forgiveness, however, the way I understand matters, ignorance is no sin, just a situation which can be remedied. I would consider it an honor to explain falconry, if you are unaware of it.”

  “Playing around with large, dangerous, birds?” Janae asked, “And we expected a high-tech habitat. Does anywhere on the Trailblazer have technology which…” she stopped herself, and then looked at Ken and raised her dark eyebrows.

  Ken gave a slight head shake, and looked to the man, “We are unfamiliar with falconry, and in fact, we are unfamiliar with all of this habitat.” He feared what would happen if he told their story, since when he had related it to others, they had had less than ideal responses. Yet, somehow, he felt some strange connection. “We came from elsewhere.”

  “May I surmise that you are some of the people who came here in the Class 1 shuttle which recently crashed in Hanger Bay H6A76? The general alarm sounded after that, but I suspected its genesis was more in the constituent joints, than the crash. Am I correct?” Lollard asked, although as he mentioned the hanger and the crash there was some odd tone in his words. “If you wish to retain your privacy, I withdraw my question. No offense is intended.”

  “You knew about the crash?” Janae asked in surprise.

  “Yes, I receive reg
ular news updates and notifications. The general alert sounded, but I assumed… well, one knows what happens too often in assumptions. I had prayed for the well-being of anyone in that shuttle, but assumed it was an unmanned probe like the others before it. I knew the hanger was in a relatively unused section of the shell. Forgive me, I am rambling in my answers. I am thankful you two survived, if I am correct in assuming you arrived here in Christianopolis in that manner. I am unaware of any method of safely traversing the needle ship, what some call Axis Mundi, but perhaps I am ill informed. Or my knowledge is outdated. If you wish to elucidate me, I am happy to learn. Hence, your see, the only way I know of for strangers to arrive here—this far from the constituent joints—is from a shuttle. You are obviously not among my unfortunate siblings who inhabit the needle ship. They do sometimes visit us, through the constituent joints, but you are not of those people.”

  Janae looked at Ken, and they exchanged glances several times, each pondering what all to say.