by T. J. Quinn
“You should have told us before. This is one of the purposes of our organization – to help each other,” Krug scolded him.
“We’re doing our best, besides, won’t they find it weird our sudden wealth?” the man replied.
“We’ll find a way,” Krug assured him. “But we’re straying from our main topic.”
“There’s not much more to say. Tomorrow, I’ll go back to the palace and after discussing a few more things I should be leaving the planet, just to return the day after, under the radar,” Ethan explained. “You won’t hear much from me during the following days, but I’ll be able to contact my ship and, they’ll contact you, using the code we’ve already established.”
“Perfect. The Dreshanians will think we’re doing business and they shouldn’t find it too strange,” Krug concluded.
“That’s right,” Ethan agreed. “And if I’m right, they will be too busy organizing another hunting game to pay much attention to our meaningless conversation.”
The men nodded, and they finally ended the meeting.
Ethan went looking for Neela immediately. The gathering was practically over, and he saw no sense in sticking around when she wasn’t there.
Seeing two strong men guarding her bedroom door set off all of his alarms and he closed the distance with a few strides. “Is there a problem, gentlemen?” he asked, with a deep frown.
“Our sister is visiting your woman,” one of the men answered with a friendly tone.
Still not convinced, Ethan opened the door and stormed into the room.
Sarya, Krug’s sister was there with Neela.
“Ah, Citizen Ethan. I was already leaving,” Sarya said, getting up before she turned to look at Neela. “Please, try to stay in touch. I would love to hear from you,” she asked, hugging her new friend.
“Thank you, I will,” Neela assured her.
Ethan waited until the woman left the room before he interrogated Neela. “What’s going on?” he asked coldly, crossing his arms over his chest, in a very intimidating position.
But that didn’t affect Neela. She looked at him with a faint smile, as she tried to decide how much of the incident she should tell him. She didn’t want to cause any more problems. But hiding the truth from him wouldn’t do any good either.
“Vlyse tried to attack me on my way here,” she started explaining.
“What?!” Ethan shouted, dropping his arms and clenching his hands into powerful fists.
She raised her hand, trying to calm him. “He didn’t do a thing. Sarya saw him follow me and guessed his intentions and came to the rescue with three of her brothers,” she explained.
“I’ll kill him,” he snarled.
She got up and stood in front of him, ready to stop him. “No, you won’t. Nothing happened, Ethan, you’ll not put you and all of your men in danger over something so meaningless, please,” she called up to his common sense.
“He had no right coming close to you,” he ranted, again and Neela could tell he was having trouble containing his rage.
“I know, but this man is used to doing whatever he wants and going unpunished,” she reminded him. “Going up against him right now would be a huge mistake, and you know that,” she added, caressing his face, trying to appease him.
He hugged her and pulled her closer to him. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to protect you,” he whispered in her ear.
Knowing Neela had been in danger while he was at the meeting was extremely disturbing. She was his priority now, not some people he hardly knew and that probably, in the end, wouldn’t even appreciate his help.
Over the past few days, Neela had become more to him than anyone else in the universe, and yet he had disregarded her safety, and he was having trouble accepting that.
“Ethan, nothing happened. And even if it had happened, it wouldn’t have been your fault. You can’t be around me every minute, it’s impossible,” she said, in a gentle tone.
“I should have walked you back here before I went talking with Krug’s friends,” he insisted, shaking his head.
“You couldn’t have known Vlyse would act the way he did. He had never paid any attention to me before,” she replied.
He sighed and took a step back, running his fingers through his hair. “It’s a good thing we’ll be away from him in the morning,” he said, in a stern tone.
“Exactly.”
He walked towards her again and cradled her face. “I’m sorry you had to go through that,” he murmured.
“I’m fine,” she assured him turning her face to kiss the palm of his hand.
With a loud sigh, he picked her up in his arms and carried her to bed, where he spent the whole night making love to her as if there was no tomorrow.
The following morning they left the colony and headed straight to Ilea. On their way there, Vlyse gave Ethan the rules, prices, and instructions to become one of the Dreshan colonizers.
“Thank you for your assistance. I have more than enough information to give my client, and I’m sure he will take this planet into serious consideration,” he said, as truthfully as he could. “I’m sure there aren’t many planets like this one around.”
Vlyse smiled, pleased. He had looked a bit cautious when they first met that morning, but when he realized Ethan wasn’t going to retaliate, he rapidly resumed his arrogant attitude.
“Of course, there isn’t, and even less with all the advantages we have here on Dreshan.”
“Well, I really appreciate all your help and assistance during these last few days,” Ethan said, doing his best to keep a neutral expression and finding it impossible to smile.
“I was wondering since you’ll be leaving the planet in a few hours, perhaps you would be interested in selling the slaves you bought, back to the king,” Vlyse suggested, in a cautious tone. “After all, these women are native from this planet and might have trouble adjusting to living somewhere else.”
Ethan clenched his fists hard, by his sides, doing his best not to punch the other man’s face beyond recognition. “That’s very thoughtful of you, but my men and I have grown attached to the women, so we’ll be keeping them,” he assured him, in an icy tone that didn’t permit any further arguing.
“Well, it was worth trying,” Vlyse said, shrugging.
A few minutes later they landed back on Ilea, and after picking up the rest of their things, along with enough supplies for a while, they finally said goodbye to Vlyse and his men.
The women looked a bit confused with the whole situation, leaning against their men as if looking for protection. They finally boarded the vessel, and it only took them a few minutes to leave the planet’s orbit.
“Khalil, James, talk to me, what have you discovered?” Ethan asked, calling up his men, right after the greetings and introductions.
“Perhaps I should go to my chambers,” Neela suggested, but Ethan shook his head.
“I need you here.”
“Well, boss, the woods in this planet are quite dense. We lost count of the trees and bushes species, not to mention the weeds and wildflowers,” Khalil informed, putting up in the main screen the images their probes had collected.
“Neela, what can you tell us about them? I was told some of the plants are as deadly as the animals,” Ethan asked, looking at the woman next to him.
“Yes, we have some carnivorous plants and others that are extremely poisonous. A simple brush will cause you excruciating pain, and it can easily kill you if you have full contact with them,” she explained, pointing out some of the plants as Khalil show them. “But, you’ll also find a lot of food in these woods. These and these and these over here are edible and quite delicious,” she added, pointing at fruits on the screen.
“What about the animals?” Ethan asked.
“The most dangerous ones are nocturnal,” Neela explained. “But we can never be too careful. Even some of the insects can be lethal if you’re not careful enough,” she indicated some of the animals James was showing now.
/> “What did you find about the settlements?” Ethan asked.
“All I could find were the colonies. If the tribes live out there in the woods, they are very well hidden, because I wasn’t able to find any sign of them,” Khalil said, showing his frustration.
Neela nodded. “They live underground, in deep caves and only come out to hunt or collect food,” she explained. “The Dreshanians forced us into the caves when they arrived on the planet.”
Ethan pursed his lips but didn’t make any comment about that. “Do you think you could guide me to the tribe you’ve described as more prone to rebellion?” he asked instead.
She looked at him with a slight frown. “Why would you want that?”
“The colonizers want to give the Dreshanians a bit of their own medicine. They know they will be demanding more and more of them and they want to stop them,” he explained.
“I guess it was expected. But why do they want to contact the tribes?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
“They want to do this with them. Their idea is to form a council with all the colonies and the tribes and rule the planet with it,” he explained.
“Why would the tribes accept that? This is our planet, after all,” she pointed out.
“Yes, a planet you lost to the Dreshanians and one you’ll never recover without the help of the colonizers,” he replied calmly.
“Yes,” she sighed. “I could take you to them, but I doubt they would accept that.”
“Do you think they would tell the king about our intentions?”
“No, never. No tribe would ever help the Dreshanians in any way,” she assured them.
“Are you willing to take me there, now?”
She looked at him surprised. “Now? These aren’t just conjectures? The colonizers are really going to do this?”
“Yes, of course, with or without the tribes,” he assured her.
She looked at the images still displayed on the screens before she turned back at him. “Yes, of course, I’ll help you.”
“Can you tell us the best place for us to land unnoticed, based on these images?” he asked, signaling the aerial pictures they had from the planet.
“Things look different from above, but I think I could. The Exion tribe lives mostly in the caves located in the nearest point to the other continent,” she explained.
Khalil touched the controls and searched for the mountains she was talking about. “This one?” he asked Neela.
She looked at the screen and nodded. “Yes, that looks like the one.”
“Where would it be safe for us to land a flying pod without being spotted by the tribes or the Dreshanians?” Ethan asked.
“The woods surrounding the caves are quite dense, and if we land at the beach, they will know we’re there. The nearest place is at least a day away from the caves,” she explained.
“That’s not that far,” Ethan said, checking the area as well. “Are you talking about this clearing here?” he pointed to the screen.
“Yes, that should be the one. It’s a rocky hill, I’m sure is big enough for us to land on,” she explained.
“We should go a couple of hours before the sun comes up,” he suggested.
“That’s a bad idea,” she shook her head. “We would arrive at the caves with the nightfall, and we wouldn’t be well received by the tribe. “If we leave now, we would get to a midpoint by nightfall and at the caves at midday, which would be perfect,” she explained.
“Very well.” He turned to look at James. “Have you heard from the other vessels?”
“Yes, Kenyon called a couple of times. The planets he has visited have a lot of potentials. Gideon called once, but so far he hasn’t had any luck. As for Jaffar, the planet he was visiting when he called seemed friendly and willing to accept an alien colony though they have none. He was investigating a bit more,” James explained. “But I haven’t heard from him in a couple of days.”
Ethan nodded. “Call him. Make sure everything is alright. Let me know if you have important news from them.”
“Of course.”
“Ask Kenyon and Gideon if they have heard from him as well,” he insisted, a bit worried. He knew some planets had some signal blockers, but he wanted to be sure everything was alright.
“Yes, Sir, right away.”
With a sigh, he turned to look at Neela. “Let’s get ready,” he told her, taking her by the hand. “Khalil, please prepare us a couple of backpacks with enough food for a few days, just in case.” His man nodded while he walked out of the control room with Neela. “I want you to put on one of these suits. It will protect you at all times while we’re in the woods,” he explained to Neela as he invited her into his chambers.
“They look interesting,” she said, looking at the suit he was wearing.
“I found these suits on a nearby planet. They are made of a unique fiber that controls your body temperature to a certain point and also warns you of potential dangers. Khalil and James have programmed it with all the information they collected from the planet and the information you gave them.”
“Wow, that’s amazing,” she said, with a smile.
“Yes, that’s why I bought a few before I left that planet,” he said, handing her one of the black suits. “Though I love your long hair, I believe it would be better if you braid it,” he added, looking at the way her long mane fell down her back.
She smiled and nodded. “Yes, of course.” She took off her tunic and put on the suit that covered her from her toes to her neck. Though it clung like a second skin, it felt very comfortable.
Ethan showed Neela some of the suit functions, especially the communication device incorporated to its left sleeve. “This will allow us to be in constant communication with the ship and my men.”
“Won’t the Dreshanians detect those communications?”
“No, I don’t think so. I was told the channel was private and encrypted. But, either way, we’ll just use it in case we need it,” he replied.
Chapter Eighteen
A few minutes later they were ready to board the flying pod.
“No news from Jaffar?” he asked his men when he met them at the docking bay.
“Nothing yet, boss, but James is still on it,” Conrad replied, with a slight frown.
“Let me know as soon as you have news. I’ll keep in touch as much as I can through the communication device installed in the suit,” Ethan told his men. “Keep the communication channel under the radar and shut it down if you suspect they have noticed it, after sending me the distress signal,” he added, talking to Fitzgerald.
“I will; don’t worry, but I doubt they manage to detect it. For all I saw while we were there, they don’t have that kind of technology,” his man assured him.
Ethan helped Neela to get into the pod. “Stay as far away as possible and if questioned, inform them you’re having some trouble with an engine.”
“We will be fine, don’t worry,” Conrad assured him.
Ethan finally entered the pod and moments later they were leaving the ship and heading back to the planet. As expected, they managed to reach the surface unnoticed and land the pod in the clearing they had chosen for it.
After they exited the pod, Ethan activated its camouflaged mode before they went their way towards the Exion tribe’s caves.
“Just stay behind me and try to follow my steps as much as you can. I’ll warn you if I see any potential danger, but you have to be attentive and avoid touching anything,” Neela warned him.
He frowned. “I should be the one leading the way,” he protested.
“In other circumstances, I would agree, but you don’t know what’s dangerous and what’s not. That would endanger us both,” she stated in a firm tone.
“I know you’re right, but I wish I could do more to protect you,” he replied, caressing her face.
“You have my back, what more could I ask for?” she asked, with a smile.
He smiled back and stole a kiss from
her lips. “Let’s get going, then. I want to find a safe place to spend the night before nightfall.”
She nodded, and they finally left.
Crossing the woods wasn’t easy. Vegetation was dense, and you had to continually be on the look-out for any possible danger. Neela was using a laser sword to cut the best way through the vegetation, but even so, they weren’t going as fast as he had expected.
“Did you have to go through woods like this one during the hunting games?” he asked, after a while, with a deep frown.
“Not quite. The woods where we’re released aren’t as dense as these. Two tribes wander through them, and there are some trails on it,” she explained. “This part is a lot wilder and less populated.”
“Do you think we’ll be able to reach a safe place before nightfall?” he asked, sounding a bit concerned.
“Yes, I do. If I’m not mistaken, we should be close to the river that we have to follow to reach the mountains where the Exions live,” she explained.
“Is it safe for us to go down the river?”
“It’s as safe as crossing the woods, but it’s a bit faster,” she said.
“How come you know all this?”
“Being an orphan had a few advantages. After I was twelve years old, people didn’t pay much attention to my whereabouts,” she replied, with a sad smile. “So, I spent most of the time hunting or exploring the woods, using all the knowledge my father had given me. It got me more bruises than I like to remember, but we are fast healers, so, it wasn’t so bad, and I was able to escape the tribe.”
“Didn’t you have a foster family?”
“No. I was raised by the whole tribe. People took turns watching over me while I was too young to care for myself, but that’s all.”
“What about relatives?”
“None that I know of. People used to say my mother was an alien and my father was an orphan too. When they died, I was all alone.”
“You’ve had a rough life,” he said with some sadness in his tone.
