Eldritch considers my words before he nods in agreement. “What about your team and the
legion?” he says.
“What about them?”
“Are they going too? Their special powers could be useful. You’ve told me before they have
long desired a mission.”
“That is entirely up to them. They will be briefed of all the risks,” I say but maybe I’d rather just take Theo along. He’s the only scientific team necessary and I can protect a few easier than I can
protect many.
“I’ve taken the liberty to send for them,” he says.
“Taking liberties is another bad habit of yours,” I say too frustrated at this point to even be
annoyed.
When I leave the deck feeling some sort of uncertain relief that things have been settled, I see
Rabbit, Biscuit, Zoe and Nya approaching me like a welcome dream. Scout and Tilly trail close
behind.
“We have been summoned by the commander,” Biscuit says. “I brought him his favorite food.
Chicken pot pie.”
“Go ahead then, Biscuit,” I say fighting back amusement. “Get the old man his whatever that is
and hurry back to us. Bring Finn and Theo too.”
“We have all been summoned,” Tilly says trying to follow after Biscuit.
I grab her arm gently. “I have been fully briefed by the commander,” I tell her, “and now we
have much to discuss.”
“We have a mission, I can feel it,” Nya says almost glowing.
“We will all go,” Tilly says. “It will be like old times.”
“Not you, Tilly,” I say. “We can’t have all of us off the station at the same time. I need you to
stay with Pip and Tobi.”
Tilly turns her pleading eyes to Finn as he approaches.
“Do as Freya says,” Finn tells her and then gives her a brotherly hug.
“Not cool,” she whispers under her breath in a resigned tone. Her disappointment lessens when
Biscuit returns to her side. He no longer has the little meat pie and he beams proudly because of it.
“Will you tell me to stay, too?” Finn says with teasing eyes. “I’m just learning something called
shuffleboard. It’s like death only slower.”
“I guess it’s pretty pointless to argue with you,” I say. “And, Theo, I need you at my side under
my protection. There’ll be science and stuff.”
The Saviors smile as one, except Tilly who tries hard not to be amused.
“Well, if there’s going to be stuff, then I’m going too,” Rabbit says.
The officers of Exodus begin to exit Command Deck and I spot Lainey talking to Eldritch. I
wonder where she had been hiding. I see that she appears excited. The idea of me going into harm’s
way must have that effect on her.
“I’ll put together mission specs,” Finn says as pleased as I have seen him in months. I’m happy
to know a little mischief and mayhem still interest him far more than Ella’s attentions.
I turn to see Damian standing a few feet away. He nods at me before he leaves. I know what this
means. The Saviors are still here and we have a mission.
10
The crater is vast and deep with uneven edges like the gaping mouth of hell if hell had a mouth.
All around there is only desert. Not like the deserts in the old geography books with sand and dunes.
This landscape is more like a moon desert. Nothing but rocky surfaces and dust as far as the eye can
see.
The unwelcoming sky seems to press down on us with its low, gray clouds. We hear quiet,
distant thunder. My heart shudders when I bend over the edge of the crater and gaze at the abyss
below. Whatever it was that smashed into this ground must have been massive.
There are no signs of an explosion. No blackened soil, no scent of fumes or chalky residue of
explosive material. There is no spacecraft in sight or any other clue as to what had been here. It’s as if the crater had been sitting in this place for thousands, maybe even millions of years, as the result of the impact of a prehistoric asteroid.
“It doesn’t make sense,” Theo says under his breath. “This is an impact crater but where is the
impactor that caused it?”
I move away from the edge and glance at my team. Finn, Theo, Damian, Nya, Biscuit, Scout and
Rabbit are all on the front line. Behind them stand the ten Exodus fighters and a bit further behind
them my twenty Dark Legion Warriors including Torik himself who insisted that he come along to
ensure my safety. I feel like I should probably tell them something but I don’t know what that could
be. Except for the obvious of course, that I have no clue as to what to do next. The whole situation
starts to feel more and more like a setup.
The prudent thing to do would be to run back to the space pods. At least we would be a safe
distance from the crater and able to escape quickly. But we came here for answers and those answers
might be our only chance to defend ourselves against this new threat.
“Theo,” I say. “Do your magic. Quickly, please. This place gives me the creeps. Collect all that
you can in ten minutes. After that, we’re out of here.”
Theo nods and takes out his nano instruments. The micro-technology that he’s using was all
created on Exodus L21 and owes nothing to the alien technology he’d been using when we lived in
our camp on Earth.
“This is very unusual,” he says. “I don’t see any signs of extreme impact. It suggests the object
did not travel at a high-enough speed to cause its own destruction. There should be some more debris
or sign of harm around the crater. This looks surgical, intelligent.”
If Theo’s confounded, we should probably be leaving now.
Torik comes to my side with big strides sniffing the air like a hound dog. His hand is tight
around the pulse gun in its holster. He turns his face to the east. I follow his eyes to see what has grabbed his attention.
“I smell something strange,” Biscuit says.
“Strange how?” I say but then the ground beneath our feet starts rumbling in a rhythmic sequence.
Three, two, one, stop. A moment later it repeats. Three, two, one, stop.
“Something’s wrong,” Theo shouts. “Back to the space pods! Run!”
The sensory receptor in my pocket goes into alarm mode. I take it out quickly and see a worried
look on Damian’s face.
“Freya!” he yells. “Watch out!”
That’s all I hear before Torik grabs my hand; the one holding the sensory receptor. Within a split
second, the receptor is out of my hand and into his.
I stare at him in shock feeling a thousand swear words racing in my head. I never get to
formulate a single one as he puts his hand around my mouth while lifting me off the ground. As in a
dream, I see Damian breaking away from the line of the Saviors and immediately being struck down
by two Dark Warriors who have left their ranks anticipating his reaction.
I try to call the receptor with as much focus as I can muster. As it starts to respond, Torik drops
the receptor to the ground and crushes it under his heavy boot.
The rest of the Dark Warriors move closer to the Exodus fighters. They disarm them within an
instant and with coordinated movements slit their throats. The fighters fall to the ground, life rushing away with their blood.
I fight to get out of Torik’s grip as the Dark Warriors walk menacingly toward the Saviors like
bloodthirsty bats. They are slow and deliberate, almost as if sending a message
that if we surrender, our lives will be spared. The Saviors form two lines of defense as we’ve practiced so many times
before. The fight seems so uneven that I start to get dizzy. The Dark Legion are the most trained,
dangerous and lethal warriors in the universe. We have our skills but we are not killing machines.
Finn, Theo and Zoe are on the front line with Scout, Rabbit, Biscuit and Nya behind them.
Through my hazy eyes I see Finn jump on a Dark Warrior with a knife between his teeth. He’s so fast
that he takes the Warrior by complete surprise and sinks the knife in his chest. Nya shoots her arrows at an incredible speed amidst a cataclysm of pulse shots from the rest of the Saviors. To my horror, I realize that the shots cannot penetrate the skin of the Warriors except in the dead center of their
chests. They take blows and stumble but they keep shrugging off their injuries and eventually form a
circle around my friends.
Torik’s hand keeps my neck immobilized and I cannot turn to see what’s happened with Damian
and the two Warriors he’s fighting.
Panic sets in as the vibration gives way to a loud growl from within the crater. The ground
shakes like an earthquake. Torik’s arm lets go of my neck and presses hard on my stomach as he pulls
me toward the crater. I feel like the wind is knocked out of me but at least I am finally able to see Damian. He’s pounding one of the Sliman. The other one is already on the ground writhing in agony.
Damian possesses a rage and a determination greater than any of the Dark Warriors. There’s no
defeating him in a fight. He drags the other Sliman by the hair and throws him into the trembling
crater.
Damian takes a step back shocked as a small ship emerges from within the crater’s belly with its
engines spitting out fire and smoke. It hovers over Damian for a second before two aliens drop in
front of him with their glowing receptors in hand. I want to scream, but Torik anticipates my desire
and squeezes my throat so hard I can’t breathe.
My brain reaches a moment of clarity. All is lost. No matter how much we fight it, there’s no
escape. Two receptors are against us and we have none. Once again, I have led everyone to their
doom.
The sounds of the battle and the loss of oxygen dizzy me and I don’t want to see the fate of the
other Saviors. I keep my eyes on Damian as a blast from the alien’s receptor knocks him back by the
shoulder. I close my eyes for a second and desperately hope that Finn or Nya will come to Damian’s
rescue, but I know they are losing their own battles. They’re tied up in their own struggle for survival, desperately fighting against the vastly superior warriors that were created with the sole purpose of
controlling us.
Damian is stunned by another blast. He takes a few unsteady steps backward but manages to stay
on his feet. Adrenaline rushes to my head and I kick Torik frantically. I feel my voice returning to me.
I scream as loud as I can. His grip is lethal. The more I squirm, the more he squeezes the life out of me. He seems different, emotionless, made of stone, stripped of self.
The aliens train their gray eyes on me for a second. They look to each other before they aim their
receptors at Damian again. They are not going for his heart. I know how receptors work. They used
minimal force on him the first time because they want him alive just like they want me alive, these
children of the odious Empress.
The world starts spinning as the aliens blast Damian again. This time he falls hard on his back
and stays down moaning. At the end of my field of vision a Sliman gets his hands on Scout and
Rabbit. That’s all they are again. Sliman. Not my Dark Legion. Not dark warriors. Just robotic Sliman of the worst kind following orders blindly.
Torik drags me toward the alien ship hovering above the edge of the crater. I haven’t felt this
powerless since my days as a child at Plantation-8. The feeling stings. I am not ready to give in but I don’t see a way out. I replay in my head all the things I’ve been meaning to tell Tobi when he’s older.
How I would talk to him about my mother and the siblings I lost. How I would teach him to face up to
his fears. How I would encourage him to be an honest man.
I think of all the things I struggled to tell Damian. Have I even told him I love him? I think of Pip.
Kind, gentle, innocent Pip. And I think of Finn. My brave, handsome, strong Finn without whom I
wouldn’t have survived.
And then suddenly I know what happiness is: stability and understanding and a place to call
home. Curiosity, dreams, imagination, all those things come next. The beginning of everything is our
ability to belong.
But no realization ever comes without consequences. My eyes get hot and teary as I know now
that I did not fully appreciate what I had, what I was given. And now it’s forever gone.
I hear the ship’s engines firing up again. The aliens nod at Torik and there’s not a doubt in my
mind what that means.
Finn and Nya fight side-by-side with hands and teeth in an effort to protect the younger Saviors.
I see Zoe and Theo using their pulse guns to cover for them. The Sliman seem to be amused at the
young humans who ignore what their hearts are telling them. That resistance is futile.
But then something strange happens. Finn and Nya break away from the fight and toward the
crater. Nya bends over and Finn jumps over her back using her as a step. He lands next to Damian and
immediately drops to the ground, arms and legs spread out.
Everything happens so fast it feels like I’m having a dream or watching an old movie. Nya pulls
an explosive arrow out of her boot. The Sliman panic and run to her. She flips a small switch and
activates the arrow manually. With a swift motion she throws it at the aliens with her bare hands.
Three Sliman throw their whole weight on top of Nya and toss her to the ground. The aliens both
turn their receptors on the incoming arrow and blow it up in midair. Those precious distracting
seconds is all the time that Damian and Finn need to get to their feet in a coordinated leap.
I focus my gaze on them as they acknowledge each other for a split second. Finn nods and at the
same instant Damian plunges at Torik who practically has one foot inside the alien ship. Damian
bangs his forehead hard against Torik’s forehead. The sound it makes is like rocks smashing together.
Torik loses his balance and falls backward trying to pull me with him. Damian punches him again and
again with rapid blows until he manages to pry my helpless body out of Torik’s hands just before he
kicks him down into the now fiery crater. He collects me in his arms and dashes away.
I feel a cold breeze on my face and I don’t know where it could be coming from. Could it just be
the speed of our escape? I am confused and I don’t know what’s going on around me anymore. Finn
fights the aliens behind us to give us time to escape. I can see this much. He’s chosen to sacrifice
himself. Two Sliman attack him from behind. Then I don’t see Finn anymore. I hear Scout crying. I
can’t see her, but I feel her cry enter my blood.
Two Sliman jump suddenly into Damian’s path. He doesn’t slow down one bit. He throws me
over his shoulder and explodes into them. Within the confusion, Nya and Theo overpower the
distracted Sliman that have been keeping them pinned to the ground.
Damian. I know what he’s trying to do. He’s trying to get to a space pod. They are all sacrificing
“No,” I yell at Damian and start hitting him across his face and chest. “You can’t save me and
leave them all behind.”
He doesn’t respond. His whole being is concentrated on reaching those space pods. He triggers
the door of the first craft he finds. The door falls slowly away from its seal until it lands lightly on the ground. He sets me down and shoves me roughly inside the pod. He turns quickly back to fight the
Sliman who have made it to us. He fights with a rawness and growl beyond his own control. The
power of his blows surprise the other Sliman.
“Damian!” I warn him when I see the aliens lift their receptors in an effort to stop him. He spins
a dazed Sliman around and uses him as a human shield. When I try to leave, he swings his arm back
and launches me brutally back into the pod.
He throws the shredded and lifeless Sliman toward the aliens and jumps straight back into the
pod. When another Sliman leaps to grab his leg, Damian meets the beast with a boot in the mouth.
“Start the engine, you idiot!” he yells at me.
I feel ice cold guilt shoot through me. I feel stupid. They are all out there dying for me and I am
not even doing my part. It comes to me suddenly, all those times sitting next to Joshua in space pods, watching his hands prepare the pod to take off. I look at the cockpit and find the lever I’ve seen him pull so many times. The engines start with a soft moan and then go silent.
Damian slams the door. Interior lights turn on with a warm green glow. He types a code in the
main console.
“Can you even fly this thing?” I say.
“We’re about to find out,” he says grinding his teeth.
The space pod takes off slowly, takes a hard blow from some energy field outside, then
accelerates madly up into the gray sky at speeds that seem beyond its capacity. The walls tremble
momentarily until Damian pulls back slightly and we glide smoothly at a still incredible speed.
I click on the outside monitor and zoom downward as the pod zooms up and away. There. A
distant glimpse of Finn raging against a horde of Sliman. They overtake him easily. And then he is
gone. The clouds block my view. My friends are down there, left behind. My powers are gone. What
[scifan] plantation 04 - beyond the river of time Page 9
