“Estimated figure, Tammy. Your best guess. I need to know how much time I have to find the beacon if I start showing signs.”
Hint, hint, how much time do I have?
“Days, a week at most.” She sighed but kept my secret.
I had a week to find and repair the beacon.
“Okay, I’m off to see the wizard.”
Angie gasped at my reference. We had watched the ancient movie, The Wizard of Oz, over and over as kids. The colors were over-the-top fantastic for two children growing up in a gray station orbiting Saturn. The movie filled our heads with dreams of living planet side one day. We hadn’t earned enough credit to ever move though.
I gazed at the smoke pillar fading into the violet sky. Our dream had come true in a nightmarish way. I just hoped this world didn’t contain any flying freaking monkeys.
I stared around the crashed ship at the endless jungle. Up ahead, there were mountains that appeared jagged and the size of asteroids. The jungle clung to the steep sides until halfway.
The ship had gouged a deep trench across the landscape, tearing up the massive trees and leaving a debris trail. It also gave me a clear road to travel that would lead straight to my goal.
It was my yellow brick road. Walking out into that landscape with nothing but the clothes on my back and a pretend spear took every ounce of courage in my body.
I trembled as I picked my way over the uneven ground. All I knew about the wild came from vids. The closest I’d come to a forest or jungle was eating a hydroponic grown salad. I had been raised on Saturn Space Station. My playground had been the cargo docks that shipped out raw material to the home world and colonies.
Vacuum of space I could handle. Broken equipment and metal walls I could handle.
Walking on loose rocks and dirt every step? Not so much.
Something smashed into the visor of my helmet and turned into yellow slime. I yanked off the useless helmet and tossed it, all the while screaming as if I was fighting off another tiger-fox.
Buzzing sang in my ear and I waved my hand around my head. Bugs? I could not handle. I ran, flapping my arms until they left me alone.
There were half a dozen people waiting for me in the wreck, depending on my finding the beacon. I could turn around. No one would blame me for not wanting to become an alien creature’s meal, but that would mean a definite death sentence for all.
We’d sit on the bridge and slowly starve to death or die of radiation poisoning. Could I do that knowing I had a chance to make a difference? Could I watch my little sister waste away and do nothing?
So I tore at the buckles of the ripped environment suit and jerked it off. It could have given me more time before I died of radiation poisoning, but I needed to move faster, and the oversized suit slowed me down. Made moving difficult. Not to mention the heat.
Holy crap on a stick, sweat slicked my skin in places I didn’t know could sweat. The humidity coated me like a blanket as I dropped the last of the suit on the ground.
I touched the earpiece. “Can you still hear me?” The shipwreck was still visible through the trees.
“Loud and clear,” Leah responded. “But we can’t see you on the viewing screen anymore. The cameras don’t point in the direction you’re heading.”
Good, I didn’t want to hear the speech about wearing the suit again. “I’m heading toward the smoke in the mountains. We left a beautiful trail of debris for me to follow.”
“Like bread crumbs.”
“Yeah, big metallic crumbs and plowed earth.” I continued hiking, eyes scanning the jungle for any trouble. “I’m going silent. I don’t want to attract any unwanted attention.
Venturi
This was new.
I didn’t recognize the alien species picking its way along the deep scar in the ground. Skin of shiny silver and the grace of a lumbering Manoth. It stumbled, then clasped its big bulbous head, twisting it at an abnormal angle. I flinched, straightening to get a better look.
The thing popped its head off!
I realized I was exposed, standing in the center of the bush I had been using as a screen. I crouched again, frowning at my mistake.
But its head! I parted the foliage and saw that the thing still lived. It also had another head inside. It had been wearing a strange hat. Curiouser and curiouser.
Two days ago, a fireball had fallen from the sky, leaving trees smoking behind in its wake. Warriors from my village had been dispatched along the trail to assess the danger. Be it fire, meteorite impact, or hostile aliens from a new crashed ship. There hadn’t been any new arrivals to this part of Crashlander for two generations.
I followed the tiny alien cautiously from the cover of the jungle. It tugged at its skin until I saw buckles loosen at its part. Not skin—thank the stars, what an odd color. It was shedding clothing.
Was it a child? The outfit seemed too large for the thin limbs and head emerging like a Beonin Fly from its cocoon. Experience with other races on Crashlander made me wary. People came in all shapes, sizes, and colors. I wouldn’t rush to the creature’s rescue just yet. Not until I was sure it was harmless and didn’t need to be destroyed. A cautious hunter was a wise hunter. A wise hunter tended to grow into old hunters. I planned on growing gray.
The alien had shed its silver clothing and now wore a blue one-piece suit. It stared at the horizon, twisting so I had a better look at its appearance.
Female. Well, for a Im’oe, she’d be considered female with nicely curved ass and breasts. Definitely not a child. I approached closer. She seemed oblivious to my presence just on the other side of the foliage. My dark skin helped me blend in with the shadows, but it didn’t magic me invisible.
If I leaped onto her path, she would most likely scream and try to strike me with that poor excuse for a spear she carried. Scaring her was a terrible thought…a terribly funny one. I grinned at the vision in my head of blundering first contact because of a thoughtless prank. I wasn’t stupid enough to actually do it. New to this world or not, she was unknown to my kind. My chief wanted to keep the peace with our alien neighbors. There were enough things on this forsaken planet that wanted them all dead without trying to kill each other.
Not all the races on Crashlander agreed. I would observe the female longer, see how many traveled with her and if they proved dangerous.
Now that I was closer, I saw her skin was smooth looking, almost hairless and a pretty shade of pink. It reminded me of the sweet flesh of the Soolie fruit. The mane on her head was shorn short and a soft brown. Sunlight shone off the thin silken strands. No signs of spots, ridges, or horns. Not even a tail. What a pity.
Mine swung reflexively at the thought.
She wiped her brow and licked her lips. She carried a pack but I didn’t see a water skin. That didn’t mean much. According to the elders, when new ships crashed on this world, their tech would work for a few days before the energy of the small sun destroyed it. It was most likely she’d either come from a newly crashed ship or was investigating the fireball like me. Maybe it was time to introduce myself and find out what I could.
She was small. If she proved aggressive, I would just disarm her. Pink was my favorite color after all.
Wendy
In the distance, I saw a waterfall spilling off a cliff into the thick, dark foliage below. I swallowed reflexively with a parched throat. I headed toward it, off the ship’s trail. After walking for what felt like forever, the ground grew steeper, and I followed it up. The higher I climbed, the cooler the air seemed. Plant life thinned enough for me to thread easily between leaves instead of having to shove and contort past. The constant feeling of being watched and the fear of being eaten didn’t outweigh my need to drink.
The water could contain parasites or toxins that might kill me, but I was already dying. No point in being thirsty. I wished I’d brought a container to carry water. We’d been so focused on my surviving the alien animal’s attack we hadn’t thought beyond the fact that I might actually l
ive long enough to need something to drink.
My shoulders ached from carrying the tool pack. Each jarring step sent a sharp jolt in those pulled muscles. My head still hurt from being knocked out during the crash, then being clocked by the creature earlier today. At least I could ease the shoulder pain by shifting the pack around or resting. The headache wouldn’t let off. Nausea rolled my stomach. Maybe I had a concussion? Great, I couldn’t afford a bout of confusion. Too many people depended on me to keep my shit together.
I just wanted to curl up and cry. I wouldn’t. I’d save that luxury for after the beacon started to work. Until then, all I could do was ignore the pain and place one foot in front of the other.
Turning around, I squinted up the side of the rocky cliff. Water sheeted over the edge and crashed onto the sharp stones below. Let it be cold. I could use a cool drink. I rushed forward, the sound growing louder. I shoved apart the leaves of a huge plant and stumbled into a clearing.
Crisp, clear liquid pooled at the base of the cliff. Mist formed over the water and caressed my face with a cool touch. Big blue flowers the size of tabletops grew on vines climbing the cliff. The petals shifted but I felt no wind.
I froze where I stood, suddenly feeling quite exposed in the clearing.
Velvety moss covered the ground like a thick carpet to the edge of the water. I peered into the mist. Movement? It was hard to tell. The waterfall made so much noise.
A creature launched into the air and winged up along the cliff toward the open sky. Small like a bird but the feathers glinted in the light as if metallic and sharp.
One of the flowers shot out as fast as a whip, snatching the bird mid-flight within its petals. The flower returned to the cliff wall, petals tightly clenched.
Okay, I’ll make sure not to stop and smell any flowers.
The urge to drink was stronger than the urge to run. I edged closer to the pool, ready to sprint at the slightest splash. My heart hammered. Nothing grew along the shore. Only trees surrounded the clearing, towering over me, some skyscraper tall.
I knelt by the pool, cupped a handful of water, and sipped greedily. It tasted like orgasms. I resisted the urge to plunge my whole head and chug. Maybe something Jerry packed me could be converted into a bottle. I needed the drink but couldn’t afford to get sicker. Taking small sips seemed prudent at least until I was sure it wouldn’t give me the runs.
Leaning forward for another drink, I spotted a face reflecting on the water’s surface. It hovered over mine.
A face with huge electric green eyes and a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth.
The ground thumped behind me as the thing stepped closer. My body actually jerked from the thump.
I twisted around and screamed, crab walking on hand and feet along the edge of the pool.
The thing lunged for me, snapping its huge jaws.
I kept screaming as I rolled. Its bite barely missed me.
Holy fuck, a dragon wanted to eat me.
Black scales covered the huge body but I didn’t see any wings. How had something so big snuck up on me?
Run, run, run, chanted the little voice in my head. Oh wait, that wasn’t my voice. That was Angie shouting at me to move my ass. I’d forgotten they could hear me on the ship and I’d just screamed like a horror movie chick.
I leapt to my feet, already sprinting as they hit the ground. I ran between the dragon’s legs. Yes, it was that tall or I was that short. I called it a dragon because dinosaur didn’t seem intimidating enough.
Please don’t let it breathe fire.
Funny how fast a person with no wilderness experience could run through a jungle with the right motivation. I jumped logs, plants, and rocks like a gazelle. My feet touched dirt only long enough to launch the next step.
The ground still shuddered behind me though. Apparently, this dragon liked fast food—yes, I went there. I broke through some yellow leaves and hit a solid steel wall.
Now I knew how that bug had felt when it’d hit my visor.
I started to fall, but a large hand gripped my arm. My gaze met a set of violet eyes. The pupil was slit vertically like a cat’s. An inner translucent eyelid blinked sideways from the outer corner of his eyes.
He wasn’t human.
Humanoid in shape, but that was where the similarities ended. His skin was black as deep space and he melded into the shadows so well I had trouble seeing the details of his face. A black mane of hair cascaded over his shoulders in thin braids to his waist. He was huge, easily two feet taller than me, built like a swimmer with broad shoulders and narrow hips.
He yanked me to my feet and spoke sharp, guttural words. Spots rose to the surface of his skin where we touched and spread up over his wrist. He gasped at the sight, his grip on me tightened.
The ground shuddered again and the dragon roared.
Spot’s—for a lack of a better name—eyes widened as his gaze traveled from me to what wanted to make me its lunch. He shouted something that clearly meant run since he yanked me off my feet as he sprinted away from the dragon. Pulling me along, deeper into the alien jungle.
P artTwo
Chapter One
Wendy
I blinked.
It was a person.
A not-human person that I had run into full tilt and he was gripping my hand. Humanoid in shape, but that’s where the similarities ended. His skin was black as deep space and he melded into the shadows so well I had trouble seeing the details of his face. A black mane of hair cascaded over his shoulders in thin braids to his waist. He was huge, easily two feet taller than me, built like a swimmer with broad shoulders and narrow hips.
“Dar!” The alien shouted and yanked me toward denser jungle undergrowth. I didn’t need a translator to understand he wanted me to run. I guessed the dragon right behind me liked to eat his kind as well as mine.
For every stride he took, I needed three. Made nimble and speedy by pure, unadulterated terror, I kept pace over the uneven ground as if my feet had grown wings. Throughout the obstacle course nature laid in front of us, he never once let me go. His iron grip made my fingers throb.
My heart thundered in my chest, thundered in my ears, almost drowning out the dragon’s roar.
The beast was not pleased that we were making it work hard for its meal.
I didn’t dare look back, but glimpsed its shadow looming over us as it drew closer. Oh god, what if something this size attacked the ship? Could the compromised hull withstand such sheer power? My crew wouldn’t have a chance.
We had landed on a prehistoric planet and I had pissed off its version of a dinosaur while an alien caveman was saving my life. He pointed ahead and shouted orders over his shoulder as if I’d magically understand his language.
Why was he helping me? We looked very different. He had to know I wasn’t from around here. I think if our roles were reversed and I had found him on Earth, I’d be calling the authorities. After the obligatory freak out of discovering an alien on my world.
A stitch in my side burned and my injured shoulder ached from the back pack as we raced the large predator on our heels.
My foot slipped on a slick patch of mud the huge alien had leaped over. Only his hold of my hand saved me from sprawling on my ass. By sheer strength, he kept me on my feet, dragging me forward until I found my balance. A dry sob rattled in my throat as I clutched his hand and sprinted alongside him.
Run! Run! Run! This single word repeated itself in my mind in sync with my short breaths.
The alien shoved his way through the solid wall of broad leaf plants, clearing a narrow space for me to pass. The foliage fell closed behind me, creating a visual shield from the dragon, but it still plowed forward, shoulders slamming into the massive tree trunks.
That’s when I noticed the trees grew closer here, making it difficult for the dragon to follow.
My alien buddy was a genius.
A different cry resonated to our right and echoed in the silent jungle. A smaller dragon tore pas
t the trees, cutting off our escape route.
I screamed in reply and ran full force into the alien as he backpedaled. Fighting to stay on my feet, I swirled around to watch for the one behind us.
Less than a day outside the ship and I was going to be eaten.
At least I had lasted longer than Darren.
“Wendy?” Angie spoke in my ear, voice filled with concern. Shit, I’d forgotten about the headset.
“There’s alien life here. I don’t mean monsters. People alien.” I was out of breath and spoke in a gasping rush least I was consumed before I could relay this important information. “Seek out their help if you can. One is helping me now.”
“You’re breaking up,” Tammy answered. “Did you mean intelligent life forms?”
I pressed my back to the alien’s as the two dragons circled. “Yes.” I could barely force the word out, my teeth chattered so bad from fear. My legs were dead weight as the cold claws of terror sunk into my spine, paralyzing my limbs. “And watch for dragons,” I whispered.
A powerful hand gripped the back of my flight suit and hefted me off the ground. The alien set me on his back, my legs around his torso and my arms hugging his neck as he dived under the belly of the larger of the two beasts.
I clutched him tight, pressing my face to his neck and squeezing my eyes shut. The scales of the creature scraped the top of our heads as it squatted to crush us. I heard the smaller dragon rush in our direction, teeth snapping. By the deep baritone howl, I’d say it bit the bigger beast. The bellow shattered my hearing.
I wanted to clap my hands over my ears but I wanted to remain on the escaping alien’s back more. I still didn’t understand why he was helping me. It would have been easier to sacrifice me to the creatures while he ran.
This wasn’t the time to figure it out.
Opening my eyes, I glanced back. Two sets of sharp teeth were right on our tail. Literally, because the big guy had to keep lashing his back and forth to avoid his from being bitten.
Venturi, Complete Serial Parts 1-4: Alien SciFi Romance (Crashlander) Page 4
