Reality: The Struggle for Sternessence

by Daniel A. Liut

  The total dependency upon the natives had given the Realitians an unexpected much-needed rest. Even Captain O’sihn, having lost his ship along with ten of his crewmembers (the original figure of sixteen personnel dead or missing had gone down) was starting to find peace and comfort, overwhelmed by the Veridiawan hospitality.

  Music and laughter started to animate the occasion. A huge variety of foods and beverages were served, specially prepared by each family. It had not taken long for Duncan to finish his first barbecued wedia. As he got ready for his second, he spotted Erina walking by. She was wearing a dress that had been adapted from a Veridiawan costume. The way it fitted her body emphasized her feminine qualities.

  From a distance, Clara was discreetly aware of her. Duncan was soon talking to Erina quite animatedly. She could not hear what Duncan was saying, but at some point, Clara heard Erina laugh noisily, as she swished her hair from side to side.

  Clara decided to distance herself from the crowd. As she walked away, it crossed her mind that perhaps this would be a good time to start overcoming her feelings. “Really,” she thought, “whatever is best for Dahncion is best for me.” Seeking refuge in lofty ideals is often easy, expecting comfort from them, vain.

  Far from the festivities, Clara could not hear any other sound than the constant singing of the summer cicadas. As she walked through a field, she turned around absentmindedly, and stopped. A threatening cloud of black smoke was emerging from the center of the village.

  101.

  Behind the first wave of enemy fliers carrying impact projectiles (mostly sharpened pieces of stone), a squadron of forty-seven jarrons177 rushed through with incendiary torches, at a low altitude, dropping them on the straw roofs of the houses they flew over.

  The Veridiawan intercepting178 air battalions did not have enough time to get organized. Though all of them had been set airborne immediately, they were rapidly repelled and neutralized.

  The Creptions had apparently planned their incursion quite thoroughly. The initial assault had followed a pattern that efficiently prevented the Veridiawans from reaching their weapons. The impeccable element of surprise and the fierceness of the attackers triggered a state of confusion and chaos that was making any counterattack difficult.

  Nevertheless, the Realitians had promptly united under their captain, and the second enemy air strike was effectively neutralized by weapons that astonished the Veridiawans. But then it was the Realitians’ turn for surprise, for a third enemy wave broke through with modern Establishment weaponry.

  The situation had turned grim. Enemy platoons were breaking in from different spots on the village borders. They were small units—four to five soldiers in number—but there were many of them. Yet the worst was yet to come: platoons with Kervian commandos in their ranks began to attack the village, causing panic among the Veridiawan people.

  Debris mixed up with scattered food, streams of blood, the increasing number of casualties, the moans and crying of children, were all contributing to the dreadful scene. Nevertheless, an improvised Veridiawan company had started to offer a strong resistance, along with O’sihn’s people.

  Amidst the havoc, a humanoid figure made its appearance, riding on a Creption whymeenidy. He did not seem interested in the battle; he acted as if searching for something. At first, nobody paid much attention to him. The humanoid began to ride into the mob, wielding his sword from side to side, efficiently eliminating anything or anybody in his way.

  Realizing his intentions, Antares—the Veridiawan who had fought alongside Duncan in the Battle of the Glen, as the Veridiawans came to call it—ran towards the rider and pounced, intending to pull him from his whymeenidy. As he attacked, a Creption arrow struck his right thigh, rendering Antares out of combat.

  Duncan, who was trying to help Erina up from a minor blow, froze upon hearing Antares’ yell. Immediately after that, he found himself in front of a gray sturdy whymeenidy standing on his back feet, neighing savagely.

  Before Duncan could do anything, the Kervian riding on the Creption whymeenidy aimed an odd long weapon at him and shot. A sticky net wrapped around Duncan, completely immobilizing his body. Leaning to one side, the soldier snatched the net with one hand, lifted Duncan between his chest and the whymeenidy’s mane, and rapidly merged back into the mob. Some Realitians, along with several Veridiawan warriors, tried to stop the Kervian, but they were repelled one by one. The enemy’s focus had suddenly shifted to protecting the Kervian rider as he strove to leave the area with his human captive. Trying to reach Duncan had become impossible. It quickly dawned on O’sihn that the whole objective of the attack had been to capture Duncan.

  Piercing through the crowd, the captain, followed by Lieutenant Bueyington, began to run, struggling not to lose sight of the captor.

  Ivorai, the same Veridiawan who had been part of the mission to rescue Doctor Oyhtter, was right behind them.

  Upon reaching the village borders, the Kervian began riding away into the northeast steppes, following a seemingly erratic trail. When he had reached sufficient distance from the village—about half a mile—the soldier turned to his left and adopted a straightforward path.

  Yet the so-far-flawless enemy plan was about to suffer a glitch. Tripping on a hole hidden by the grass, the Creption whymeenidy broke one leg and fell to the ground. Both rider and captive were cast over the whymeenidy’s head, falling a few yards ahead.

  The Kervian got up on the spot. Running towards Duncan (who remained completely immobilized), the alien soldier picked up the net with one hand and placed it over a shoulder. He looked around hastily and immediately resumed his getaway on foot with a remarkable display of speed and strength.

  102.

  O’sihn, Ivorai, and Bueyington had finally reached the village borders. They had not witnessed the whymeenidy’s accident, but they did spot the Kervian running away with Duncan on his back. Being faster than O’sihn, Ivorai and Bueyington dashed onto the steppes ahead of the captain, only to collapse to the ground when two mechanical devices—similar to bear traps—clenched their ankles.

  O’sihn rushed in intending to release Ivorai.

  “Forget about us, bear-Captain! The boy, run after the boy,” Ivorai gasped.

  O’sihn stopped and looked intently ahead.

  “Look out, Captain!” Bueyington yelled. “The whole field may be rigged with traps.”

  O’sihn picked up a stone and hurled it into the grassland. A trap snapped cleanly from the scrub. Lifting another stone, he repeated the same action, with the same results. Still refusing to give up, he threw two more rocks. In both cases, he could even spot the traps leaping up as they sprung shut. The captain was left standing frustrated and inert, watching the captor and his hostage disappear rapidly into the steppe. Although a free-trap corridor had obviously provided a safe pass-way for the Kervian, it was very well concealed by the tall grassland.

  The entire field had effectively been blocked off by the enemy.

  103.

  Deadly skillful with his weapons, keen and sharp in his movements, incredibly strong: the Kervian was the embodiment of the perfect warrior. As he proceeded with his getaway, his heartbeat was almost pounding on Duncan’s head. The more he ran, the faster he got, as if efficiency and power increased with his speed and exertion.

  Abruptly, a dried-up seawidee179 branch crashed against the Kervian’s legs, and the alien stumbled to a stop. A marine had sprung from nowhere to block his way.

  With clutched fists and a grim expression, Clara stood defiant, gripping a broken branch in her hands. “You must release your hostage—if you want to live.”

  The soldier went through the motions of complying with her demand, until he suddenly slung the net—with Duncan inside—at her. Though taken by surprise, Clara moved aside in time to evade the human projectile. As part of her complex movement, she launched a kick at her opponent. Duncan clearly heard Clara’s boots impacting on the back of the alien’s head and the soldier’s subsequent hea
vy fall.

  “The sword . . . on my back!” Duncan yelled.

  Clara ran towards him and gripped his Veridiawan sword. In seconds, Duncan was free, but only for a moment.

  A sticky net wrapped around Duncan, completely immobilizing his body. O’sihn and his crew followed Duncan’s captor.

  Eight Kervian soldiers emerged from the forest, taking the two Realitians by surprise. Clara and Duncan looked around for some way to escape, but they were surrounded. The Kervians immediately took hold of them.

  The commanding officer of the platoon approached the knocked-out Kervian on the grass. As he did so, Duncan pushed the soldier who was trying to handcuff him, and taking advantage of the split-second confusion, ran off into the woods.

  The platoon shot at Duncan with weapons similar to the one used to capture him in the village. The jettisoned nets clumsily wrapped each other and the bushes lying along their trajectory.

  The aliens rushed after Duncan, as their leader turned impassively towards Clara. Both her legs and hands were handcuffed. The Kervian glanced at Clara for a moment, and then forced her to the ground, putting a foot on her neck. Efficient and businesslike, he held an instrument to her right ear. Immediately, the device began buzzing until it flashed white.

  The officer nodded and recalled his personnel. Back from their failed pursuit, the soldiers found their leader still holding the instrument he had just used on Clara.

  “Never mind the boy,” he said, pointing to the woman with reassurance. “Here is all we need; she’s a quickener, all right.”

  104.

  The grass was soft and dense, gracefully covering the silky soil where it spread. Weamooses stood tall here and there. These leafy bushes did not bear flowers, yet needed none for beauty. Swiniadas further enhanced the greenish-blue scenery with yellow, indigo, and purple three-clustered flowers. Each flower of every cluster had a distinct aroma, which when blended produced an exquisite fragrance.

  But all the surrounding beauty was imperceptible to Duncan. After running for a couple of minutes into the thicket, he threw himself to the ground, exhausted. Pulling himself together, he quickly decided to return to try to help Clara.

  Locating the spot was not difficult, but no one was there anymore. After aimlessly searching for clues, he glimpsed a shadow slithering through the foliage, not very far away. Having no gun or any means of communication, the best he could do was to keep track of whatever signs the captors might have left, and try to follow them.

  Two shots came from the forest, and immediately, Duncan threw himself to the ground. He tried to locate the attacker, but the thick vegetation made it very difficult. Resuming his chase, Duncan was now looking around, trying to find any trace of Clara or her captors.

  Eventually he stumbled upon the small ribbon of a blue lace, from Clara’s hair. A few yards ahead, a smashed swiniada three-flower was lying on the ground. Trying to visualize a straight line between the ribbon and the tattered three-flower, Duncan started moving in that direction, helped by his compass. But soon he was out of clues again. Tired, he picked up a small stick, and started fiddling with it.

  As he thought of what to do next, he heard a metallic and recognizable buzzing sound. He stood up immediately and began moving towards it as rapidly as he could. All of a sudden, he found himself in an open area that had been wiped clear of vegetation in a crude manner. Duncan looked up above the treetops and was struck by what he saw. An unmistakable assault vessel was lifting off the ground, gaining altitude very rapidly. He kept staring at the craft until he lost sight of it behind the surrounding treetops.

  Disturbed by the implications and overwhelmed by how quickly everything had happened, Duncan knelt down, beating his forehead in frustration and despair against the singed smoky grass.

  As he lay there, Laida arrived. She paused for a moment and gently approached Duncan. Kneeling down beside him, she placed a hand on one of his shoulders.

  “They’ve taken Clara away,” Duncan said in a low tone.

  Duncan knelt down, staring at the craft until he lost sight of it behind the surrounding treetops.

  Laida gripped him tightly with tears in her eyes. Getting back on her feet, she gently extended one arm. Duncan glanced back at her with a strong manly expression, finally forged by war.

  “We’re gonna get her back, Dahncion.” Laida nodded. “We will get her back.”

  _______________

  176 General term applied to individuals that did not belong to Veridiawa.

  177 Jarrons: intelligent flying species with strong predatory features.

  178 Veridiawa had intercepting air battalions and attack air battalions.

  179 Seawidees are very tall trees with thick foliage and long branches. They are well known for their bright yellow flowers.

  CHAPTER 16

  Sternessence

  105.

  “Somebody is coming,” Seidy said, walking to the top of Boldowa’s head to try to get a better look.

  “It’s very, very night. I can’t see anything, Seidy.”

  “It’s too dark all right, even for me. Go ahead, Boldo; ask them, ask them.”

  Boldowa cleared his throat, finally inquiring in a loud languid tone: “Who is living in the darkness?”

  “Warrior Engadye, leader of the expedition to the Ruins of the South.”

  “Countersign,” Boldowa challenged.

  “Light shower!” replied Engadye. “Counter-countersign.”

  Boldowa kept standing at a loss, until Seidy discreetly added, “Swiniada of the sky-lights.”180

  “Oh, yes, swiniada of the sky-lights,” repeated Boldowa to himself. “Swiniada of the sky-lights!” he howled, looking ahead.

  Four keiros carrying O’sihn, Laida, Duncan, and Erina emerged from the tenuous fog, followed by six other keiros, three whymeenidies, two jarrons, and five wuols.

  “Please, newones,” Boldowa said as Laida passed by. “Please, rescue the girl-Captain, please?”

  Laida patted Boldowa’s back. “Will do, Boldo.”

  The keiro stared at Laida, as if wanting to add something.

  “He doesn’t like people calling him Boldo,” Seidy explained, rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

  Boldowa stepped back slowly. Engadye’s voice was heard again, ordering the group to speed up the march. They had a long trip ahead, and they intended to cover it in half the time it would normally take.

  “How can they find their way to the Ruins of the South, Seidy?” Boldowa asked. “This is the northern post.”

  “They have to get around the Creption fortress, silly.”

  “Oh, yes, yes, the Creption fortress. But it’s very dark. How will they find their way to the Ruins of the South, Seidy? It’s badly dark.”

  Seidy flashed one of his self-confident smiles. “There are five wuols following the formation. For us wuols, darkness is not a problem. Besides, turn around.” Seidy walked across his friend’s neck towards his back. “Do you see that sky-light with the long white tail in the sky casting faint shadows on the field?”

  Boldowa raised his head over the foggy layer, which lay above the ground no more than three feet. “I see a thin white cloud up in the sky, Seidy.”

  “That’s it. The sky-light with the tail will show them the way.”

  106.

  It was the last night of the expedition, and the last night of a long journey. If everything went according to plan, tomorrow Duncan would step on the trans-universal chamber at the center of the technon, and a moment later, he would be back to Earth. The thought gave him a measure of relief, but for some reason, he did not find the peace he expected from it.

  Perhaps it was about Clara. She had fallen prisoner to the Establishment while trying to rescue him; the idea of leaving her behind was not pleasant. He felt he had to stay, at least, until her situation was clear. But that would mean staying in that universe for who knew how much longer. It could be years, if ever, until he could get back to Earth. Even as he consid
ered this possibility, he knew Erina would not share it, although he had not discussed the subject with her. His attachment to her was intense, and he could not find the strength to let her go back to Earth alone, perhaps forever.

  On the other hand, even if it had not been easy for him, he had somehow grown accustomed to the life he was leading. Meeting new races, being exposed to amazing technologies, making contact with very different and intriguing cultures, contemplating the beauty of a sunset on one planet, and then on another, and another, witnessing the magnificence of space—and all in a different universe. Wasn’t all that much more than what he had always dreamed of? Hadn’t such impossible dreams come true, far beyond any expectations?

  Back on Earth, he would certainly have the great benefit of his incredible experience, which could open many doors for him. And he could not wait to share all this with his family and his closest friends.

  But now, Duncan had to contend with an unexpected grief. He realized he had developed a strong affection for those close to him, to the Realdom, and even to the Royal Navy, things he had never thought would happen, at least not to that degree. He had made excellent friends, like he had never had on Earth. They felt like family to him. He already had a life in Reality.

  However, the unresolved sternessence issue, combined with the anxiety caused by the high (though silent) expectations that many in the Realdom had about him, Duncan felt, produced in him a strong desire to go back home where he belonged.

  Duncan was sitting on the ground, somewhere in the Pampwinian steppes. As he thought, he stared at what he recognized as the Milky Way. It was not a faint belt in the sky, as he would expect to see on Earth, but two vivid crossed bands, one with stars shining in pure white, and the other, with dots of light that radiated yellow and blue. Glimmering here and there, red and crimson stars completed the scene. Yet all the beauty was beginning to dim with the light of a new large moon rising above the horizon.181