Seeker's Light

by N. I. Snow

  Salianos looked hard into Tarline's eyes before continuing, “What brings you here? Surely not to show off your new scar in the making.”

  Tarline's half tail flicked across the air. “I received word from Tazal. Zaharak has delivered the girl. She is in Lutianist's keep.”

  A small smile crossed the High Elder's snout. “As I have already anticipated. This is good news; the Ancients would be pleased.”

  Tarline examined the still bleeding wound with boredom, “As fascinating as Tazalian rule sounds, I personally find the idea boring. Not many chances to torture enemy creatures when there are none.”

  Salianos leaned forward, the white spikes along his back arching upward. “What of any possible rebels? Examples will need to be made to ensure order.”

  A smile crossed Tarline's snout as he considered the idea and blue blood flowed onto his sharp, jagged fangs. “Now there's a plan. That little cub better hurry with her translations.”

  As Tarline mused on torture possibilities, the door behind the torturer slid open. The bronze-scaled Elder's back stiffened as the bulky, red-scaled Yahrik marched in. The muscle-bound Elder stopped beside the slimmer Tarline. Stiff-backed, Yahrik pressed his arms against the sides of his body. His long tail curled around his wide-set legs as he stood in a military stance. The look in his dark blue eyes was just as stiff as his posture.

  All muscles and no brains, thought Tarline, as he gazed over at the red-scaled Elder.

  Yahrik's thick voice echoed around the room as he spoke, “High Elder, I have good news. I received word from Commander Comäk that Earth's Eastern quadrant is under full Tazalian rule.”

  Tarline rolled his eyes as Salianos turned his attention to Yahrik, “Then it will not be long before the other three fall as well. Any other news, brother?”

  Yahrik made a curt nod, “We are making impressive time to Tazal. Our navigations officer reports that we will arrive within five months. However, afterwards the Lotardrives will need to be repaired. They were not built for a jump such as this.”

  Salianos narrowed his violet eyes dangerously. “I am well aware of that. Do you believe me to be a half-wit such as yourself?”

  Tarline let out a low snicker, and Yahrik glared viciously at him. Yet, he responded calmly to Salianos choosing his words carefully. “Of course not, High Elder. I merely wanted to ensure you were informed of the ship's status.

  “Understood. Is that all, Yahrik?” Salianos’s eyes returned to their calm look.

  Yahrik nodded. “Aye.”

  “Then leave me. You as well, Tarline.” Salianos waved a clawed hand. “I have much to think about.”

  The two Elders bowed their heads and turned towards the doorway, Yahrik stiff and constrained, Tarline fluid like a river slipping through the red canyons of Tazal. Salianos watched them pass through the doorway with a wild light in his violet eyes. He ignored the skeletons that returned to haunt him as excitement began to boil in his chest. Patience, High Elder, soon, very soon, they will learn to never underestimate you.

  Commander Comäk's bronze eyes gazed triumphantly at the holoscreen in front of his golden snout. The image displayed on the screen revealed the Tazalian-run Eastern Quadrant. Comäk folded his arms behind his back, gently resting his wrists on the tips of his green spikes, as the image flickered, then zoomed in to show a group of ragged humans surrounded by Tazalian soldiers.

  A smile crossed the Commander's chiseled snout, “A beautiful sight, isn't it, Lamor?” his deep voice spoke to the communications technician behind him.

  The thin, tan-scaled Tazalian looked up at the image. His red eyes showing disgust as he caught sight of a human mother holding the body of her dead cub. Lamor did his best to hide the hatred he felt as he replied, “If you say so, sir.”

  Comäk removed a small piece of cloth from the pocket of his gray vest. He began polishing the various metals pinned to his vest as he spoke, “Finect! Of course, I do. There is nothing better than a glorious victory,.” He placed the cloth back into his pocket and smiled with pride at the holoscreen.“And what's more Elder Yahrik was pleased with my success. Eteku! I imagine the High Elder himself was proud to hear that one of Earth's quadrant's is ours.”

  Lamor tried to suppress any hint of contempt in his voice, “Doubtful, sir. Salianos seemed too distracted by his return to Tazal to be bothered with a minor victory on Earth.”

  Comäk stiffened his spine. His bronze eyes narrowed into slits. It looked as though the Commander was about to leap over and behead the smaller Tazalian. Then the golden lizard relaxed. His deep voice was calm and reserved as he spoke, “You are right for once, Lamor.” The image on the holoscreen changed to a battle raging in the Western quadrant. The human army and Q.D. agents were doing well at keeping the Tazalian forces at bay. “We must conquer the Western quadrant. My informants tell me that two of Earth's presidents are leading troops there. Should we take them out, the humans will have no choice but to surrender.”

  “What of that human lieutenant, sir?” Lamor pointed out, “Connell, I believe his name is. There are rumors he has faced both the High Elder and Zaharak.”

  A shiver ran down Comäk's spine at the sound of the Seeker's name, but he managed a snort. “The human was lucky, but he will not be for long. He will fall with his leaders.”

  Lamor frowned; he doubted that was true.

  Lieutenant William Connell gazed over to the crippled Tazalian soldier. The dark blue-scaled lizard tried with no avail to break the bonds around its wrists. Muffled Tazalian curses escaped from its muzzled snout causing dust to rise with each breath. Its broken left leg thrashed uselessly as the soldier tried to break the bond around its ankles. Blue blood flowed from various wounds along its body, droplets falling to the ground the creature lay on.

  Only Connell was present to watch the Tazalian's struggle in the half-destroyed building. He limped over to his prisoner, a long-barreled rifle rocking against his back. Narrowed slits gazed up at him from a sea of gold. Anger and fear and pain shown from those golden depths. Connell's own auburn eyes remained emotionless.

  The lieutenant knelt beside the Tazalian prisoner. He spoke calmly to it, “Next time you'll think twice before sneaking up on someone. You need a lot more practice if you want to be even close to being as good as Zaharak.”

  The soldier's eyes widened even more at the Seeker's name, and he tried even harder to break free of its bonds. The stump where his tail had once been, twitched furiously. Curses became pleas as he tried to work his jaws.

  Connell placed a hand on the Tazalian's shoulder, holding the unfortunate reptile down, “Easy there! He's not here!”

  Connell held the Tazalian down until the creature stopped moving. Its fear-ridden eyes pierced deep into Connell's auburn eyes. Carefully Connell pulled his hand away and watched the heavy rise and fall of the Tazalian's chest beneath its pale-green uniform. There were no marks of rank on its ragged vest making his captive no more than a common soldier. Young, too, by the looks of it.

  “This your first time in battle?” Connell asked the soldier.

  Connell received no answer from the soldier, only a confused and fearful gaze.

  Connell leaned back and sighed, “You don't understand Earthnan, do you?” He ran a hand through his short hair, “I got used to your Seekers and High Elder, so I forgot that some of you don't.”

  Connell adjusted the rifle on his back as he reached for the binder around the Tazalian's snout. The dark-blue reptile watched his movements with keen precision. Connell could see the rapid pulse in its thick neck. He spoke soothingly to keep the creature from passing out. “I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just going to take off the binders so we can talk.”

  Connell pressed a button on the binders. As they snapped open, he quickly leapt backwards as the Tazalian's razor sharp fangs shot towards him. “Hey!”

  The soldier let out a throaty growl like that of a large, angry wildcat. A low hiss followed before the Tazalian began speaking. Connell couldn't
help but notice how the Tazalian sounded like an eighteen-year-old human boy as it spoke in Tazalian, “Tar finect hetral! Pa'cho meht tar alt leme, alt leme hek plare tor alt yertona!”

  Connell held up both hands with bemusement. “Listen, lizard brain, I don't understand your gibberish, but I can tell you're more than a little angry.”

  “Hetral!” the Tazalian snapped.

  Connell frowned. “I have a feeling that was rude.”

  The soldier motioned to the stump where his tail had once been. A string of Tazalian words shot out from his snout, too fast for Connell to catch. The lieutenant knew, however, what the Tazalian meant, “It's not my fault you got your tail caught in a sliding door. Maybe if you weren't swinging it around that wouldn't have happened.” Connell tried to sound apologetic to the Tazalian.

  The soldier gave him an icy glare.

  Connell shrugged his shoulders. “Listen I'm going to need your help and I'm sure you would like to remain among the living. Perhaps we can come to an understanding.” Connell pointed to himself, “I'm Connell.” He pointed to himself once more to emphasize his name, saying, “Connell.” He then pointed to the soldier.

  The golden eyes stared angrily into Connell's. For a moment, the two enemies remained in a silence that made Connell wonder if the Tazalian was going to reply or if it even understood what Connell was doing, but a moment later the Tazalian murmured, “Vemque.”

  Connell ran the name through his mind, memorizing its pronunciation perfectly. “Well, Vemque, I don't expect us to be buddies right away, but I hope you will be cooperative.”

  Connell wondered just how much the Tazalian really understood as he gazed down into those angry, fearful golden eyes. He could only hope that the Tazalian was worth the effort, else he would be wasting valuable time. Time he needed for his plan to work. If he waited too long to implement it, the Western quadrant would be vulnerable.

  He remembered the run-in with the violet-eyed Salianos, and a part of him wished the Seeker Kahluna had remained on Earth, perhaps to help. If his plan worked out, the victory gained would be small compared to the threat of the High Elder. He could only hope Kahluna could distract Salianos long enough for Earth to rebuild its defenses. If not, all Connell was about to do would be in vain.

  Thirteen

  Lutianist's eyes slowly opened as his ears caught the sound of his study door sliding open. His milky gaze shifted over to the fair-skinned girl cautiously walking in. The red-and-white dress flowed around her body like a flag waving in a breeze. Her long black hair was still damp from her recent bath. The girl's hands kept fidgeting at the sides of the gown as her gray eyes stared over at him.

  Lutianist smiled gently. “Ah, there she is. I trust the geothermal pools did well to sooth away any tension from your journey.”

  Emma stopped two meters from Lutianist's side. A more relaxed look played in the gray depths of her eyes. “More than I could imagine.”

  Lutianist slowly rose from his seat, bones cracking beneath his fading scales. Standing as tall as he could, he removed a clawed hand from the folds of his cloak. In his hold were a pair of red velvet slippers, “Here wear these. The ground must be freezing to your bare feet.”

  Emma thankfully took the slippers from the ancient Tazalian. She placed them onto her worn feet while grumbling, “Tigret tossed my shoes into an incinerator with my old clothes.”

  Lutianist turned and slowly shuffled towards the pillar in the center of the room. “Can you blame her? Those old clothes of yours were well worn out.” The Elder stopped in front of the pillar, where he tapped his claw on a button on its surface. A holoscreen appeared above the pillar. Lutianist studied the image. “Where to begin? There are hundreds of relics stored here.” He tapped a claw on an image. “This one should be a good start.”

  Emma watched with amazement as a relic moved from a high shelf at the far right corner of the room and hovered there for a moment. Then the box- shaped object floated cloud-like to Lutianist's outstretched claws. The relic had hardly settled in the Elder's hold when his dull claws began opening it. Metal panels slid and turned as he worked quickly. With the blue orb in the relic's center exposed, Lutianist turned towards the table at the far side of the room.

  He beckoned Emma to follow him as he spoke, “This was one of the first relics the other Elders and I discovered,” he slowly shuffled over to one of the cushioned chairs at the table. “Such a simpler time. No wars or senseless killing. We were pioneers of history.”

  Emma watched the old Tazalian settle himself onto the chair. “What about that carving of you fighting that creature?”

  Lutianist stared gravely at her, “You mean my battle with the Otlian? It was either kill it or have it kill my fellow Seekers and me. That creature had quite the temper when we tried to take the relic from it.”

  The ancient Tazalian motioned to a chair next to him, “Sit. Make yourself comfortable. We have much to look through.”

  Emma sat down in the chair. Unsure of herself in unaccustomed clothing, she was careful not to rumple her dress. Lutianist placed the opened relic in front of her. Folding his arms in the folds of his cloak, he watched the girl with curiosity. Gently, Emma pressed the tip of her right forefinger onto the orb in the center of the golden cube. A misty holoscreen appeared above the relic. Images of runes floated in the screen. Even as the two onlookers watched, the runes glided across one another to form new words.

  It took some time before Emma could finally begin to translate. Lutianist sat quietly, his half-closed eyes burning with interest as he listened. Half in a trance, Emma's voice flowed around the room, “This day marks the thirtieth day from our home planet of Tazal.”

  As Emma’s words echoed around them, Lutianist sank lower in his chair as a distant vision played within his mind’s eye. Slowly the image became clearer and events began playing in his mind as if he had lived through them 8,000 years before.

  The golden-eyed Tazalian looked up from his recording. His bronze scales glittered like gems in the vibrant, tropical light of Ethor One. The thick, humid air wrapped around his body like an extra layer of clothing. As he gazed around the jungle he caught sight of another Tazalian from his expedition petting a mumet. The large creature let out a loud groan as it shuffled away from the blue-scaled Tazalian.

  The golden-eyed reptile smiled as he returned to his recording. With each word he spoke, writing appeared on the holoscreen in front of him. “We have yet to find the Ethonians. My companions, however, have been enjoying our stay within the jungles. We have discovered that despite being territorial, the mumet are friendly, simple creatures.”

  The Tazalian drew back as a long, furry trunk pushed through the holoscreen. He let out a soft chuckle as the tip of the mumet's trunk ran along the tuft of black hair on his head. His golden eyes looked up at the dark orbs at either side of the mumet’s wide head. His gentle voice continued with his entry, “It will be difficult to leave, but our journey to find the elusive Light must go on.”

  A screech ended his entry. The sound came from the blue-scaled Tazalian that had been petting a mumet. When the gold-eyed Tazalian looked, he saw a spear shaft protruding from his fellow explorer’s right shoulder. The tip of the spear was buried well into his thick muscles. All around the two Tazalians, the mumets panicked into a stampede. The bronze-scaled Tazalian was nearly trampled as he hesitated to snatch up the recorder. Clutching the box in one hand, he hurriedly scaled a nearby tree with his fellow Tazalians doing likewise. However, the injured blue-scaled Tazalian could only get a single claw on a tree trunk before vanishing beneath the hooves of the terrified mumets.

  When the stampede cleared, the bronze Tazalian looked with horror at the crushed body of his comrade. Pieces of the shattered spear lay in a pool of blue blood. Tears formed in the bronze Tazalians eyes. Poor Herjak, he was the youngest of the group.

  Loud whooping began echoing around the jungle. Spears whizzed through the air landing dangerously close to their reptilian targets.
Luckily most of the Tazalians managed to blend their scales in with their surroundings making them hard to discern. Others who were not as skilled in hiding were forced to dodge the deadly projectiles.

  A spear flew a meter behind the bronze Tazalian as he pressed his body closer to the tree that he desperately clung to. Carefully he tucked the recorder into his pale green tunic. Breathing heavily, he looked up at the treetop above him searching for an escape route. His golden eyes caught sight of an odd creature.

  Large, orange, cat-like eyes looked down at him. A furry, bat- shaped head tilted to one side as it examined the unfortunate lizard. Long, thin hands held a spear at ready in its claws. Its blue fur lay flat against its body despite its being ready to kill. A long, lion-like tail twitched as the creature released the spear.

  For the bronze Tazalian, everything moved in slow motion. He could feel his heart beat in his throat as he pushed himself away from the tree. The large scales on his chest twitched as he felt the spear pass beneath him. Twisting his body to the right he flung himself to the tree trunk. His snout slammed painfully on the rough surface. Blue blood flowed from his nostrils as he looked up at the jeering creature. Gritting his fangs, the bronze Tazalian made his move.

  Lightning would pale in comparison with his movements. In a flash of bronze he had the creature in his claws. The bat-faced fiend yowled in his hold as it tried to break free. The Tazalian's deep voice was lined with a calm fury as he spoke, “Stop moving, you.”

  The creature stopped its struggle. For a moment the Tazalian thought it had understood him. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw movement. Glancing around he found himself surrounded by more of the odd beings. All of them stood on or hung from the limbs and vines of the tree, spears pointed at him. Carefully the Tazalian set down the creature in his hold. Placing his empty hands over his head, he curled his long tail around his legs in a display of surrender.