by Cheri Lasota
He spoke aloud for the first time, pointing to his head. “Yes. This animal.…” As with his thoughts, the Ddaeran’s spoken words were in demi-Welsh. He turned toward Frankie, who peered up at him, ears perked. “She hears me too. Who are you?” Fascination tinged his voice.
Evie frowned. “I asked you first.” She didn’t understand what was happening, and this man being in her head scared the hell out of her. But, at least, conversing in Welsh was growing easier for her. Frankie whined again and reminded her why she was out here. Best to make friends if she could, Evie decided. “I came from the planet Earth in another galaxy. My name’s Evie. Now, what’s yours?”
“I am Idris. You talk between minds on Earth?”
“No. But you say Frankie can do it too?” At the sound of her name, Frankie rose to her feet and shuffled over. Evie picked her up, noticing the young man made no attempt to stop her. Lucky for him, she thought. Evie hugged her tight and kissed her floppy ear. “Oh, baby. I was so worried about you! I guess all that running while you were sick made you tired, huh?”
Serentyn would have wanted to meet you, Idris thought in Evie’s head.
“Who is Serentyn?” The name sounded strange coming from her mouth.
Idris’s lips drew into a tight line, and he glanced away, toward the west. She is—was—my … died the night you came. The night the rock in sky landed in the west. Serentyn tried to stop it.
“Rock in sky? You mean … a meteor?”
Idris nodded.
Her mouth dropped open. “Impossible. It would have killed them all.”
Who?
“The crew on another spacecraft—like ours—landed in the west. But a meteor? It would have destroyed everything over there. I saw no meteor come down. I think you saw our other ship land. With my friends aboard.”
Idris shook his head. She could see he was trying to make sense of what she’d said, but there seemed to be more on his face than simple confusion. He was attempting and failing to control strong feelings, she decided.
If it wasn’t a … meteor … Serentyn would still be alive, he thought to her. Have to find her. Must leave tonight!
“Take me with you,” Evie blurted out.
Why? Idris frowned.
“Your military took us prisoner. The Thorndikes.”
Bitterness crept into his expression. They’re not my military. They’re not native Ddaerans. We don’t associate with them.
Evie didn’t understand how he could know Welsh and yet be a native of New Eden, an alien planet, but she couldn’t waste time trying to figure it out. She had to find a way back to Tavian. Maybe this man could help her get to the west coast. “I want to see if my friends survived the landing. Will you take me?”
The young man hesitated, glancing at Frankie, still cradled in Evie’s arms. Then he nodded.
If Serentyn is still alive, she would have taken your friends to Castali Village.
Idris held up his hand to indicate he wanted to touch Frankie’s head. Evie nodded. He touched the dog’s temple and locked eyes with her. The mini-schnauzer bobbed her head. In Evie’s own mind, she swore she felt something pleasant from Frankie at the contact.
“What is she saying?” she couldn’t help but ask.
It isn’t words. It’s emotions.
“What is she feeling, then?” Evie thought she knew.
Idris smiled. Happiness.
As he said it, Frankie looked up at her with warm, brown eyes and licked her chops.
Evie smiled. “I’m happy, too, sweet girl. You’ll see Tavian soon. I promise. And then we’ll come back here and save Reina and the rest of the crew.”
Castali
Evie, Frankie, and Idris had been traveling for days across the land mass he called Astraea. Though the trek was taxing, Evie’s health improved, and her psychic skills continued to develop. Along the way, Idris pointed out the strange vegetation. Littering the grasslands they passed through were gollwynhaul, which were similar in appearance to Earth’s sunflowers. And when they traversed the forests, she marveled at the gorgeous, pink-leafed pincdalen and white-leafed gwyndalen deciduous trees reflecting the setting sun’s light. At night, they seemed to glow in the light of New Eden’s double moons.
They came across few animals, save small, rodent-like creatures and insects. But once she spotted what Idris called a gwynddoeth climbing a pincdalen tree. It had the look of a lemur, and Frankie yipped with excitement when she sniffed out the cat-sized animal. Idris said gwynddoeth were sentient, just as Frankie was learning to be. Many Ddaeran kept gwynddoeth as lifelong companions, he explained, and they were often helpmates in the daily lives of Ddaerans.
As they traversed hills and valleys, Idris taught her more about his language and his culture. His people had been on Ddaera—his name for New Eden—for as long as anyone could remember. The Founders, as she already knew, had arrived one hundred fifty years earlier, and relations between the two peoples had deteriorated over the years.
Wary of their telepathic powers and how they might one day use them against the Founders, the Founders had systematically rounded up and interrogated the native Ddaerans.
The three of them had just set up a primitive camp one night when Frankie’s head snapped up from where she lay at Evie’s feet. Idris had already taught Evie how to refine her mental connection with Frankie, and though she was new to it, she sensed Frankie’s fear as the schnauzer peered into the gwyndalen trees to the southwest.
Idris immediately grabbed Evie’s hand and led them both away from the fire they’d just gotten going. Something or someone was coming. Of that she was certain.
“What is it?” Evie asked, still unable to telepathically project her thoughts into other minds.
Frankie hears strangers approaching. We’ll hide in the trees and watch.
“Thorndikes?”
He nodded. Ddaerans would have communicated with me already.
Idris held a finger to his lips and said nothing more. He led her deeper into the trees, away from the firelight. It was then they heard the crack of boots crunching through underbrush. They saw people-shadows skulking around the fire, heard angry voices carrying on the slight wind.
They’re Thorndikes. Be alert.
Her heart racing with fear of discovery, Evie picked Frankie up and held her tight.
Shots rang out. A shout of shock and pain invaded her mind. She saw shadows fall in the moonlight, the victims of a skirmish.
Hands grabbed her from behind, and Frankie tumbled to the ground with a yip. Evie screamed before a hand clamped over her mouth.
“I’ve got her! Where’d the other guy go?” The man holding her had directed his question to a companion, who moved into view. She struggled against the man restraining her until he finally removed his hand from her mouth.
“Who are you?” the second man asked. He was tall and lanky, and the gun he pointed at her made it hard to find her voice.
“A traveler,” she managed.
“Your companion is Ddaeran. I’ve seen him before. Where is he?”
“I don’t know,” Evie answered, eyes focused on the gun barrel.
“You’ll have to do better than that.”
Before she could answer, the hands restraining her suddenly relaxed as her captor fell backward. The man asking the questions suddenly collapsed too, almost like he’d been pushed.
In her peripheral vision she spied Idris. Something told her he’d used some kind of power, telekinetic maybe, to force their attackers to the ground.
“Come, Evie,” he shouted. “I can’t hold them for long.”
She sprinted after him, moving as quickly as she could to get away from the multiple melees springing up around them. She glanced around wildly but couldn’t find Frankie anywhere. She searched with her mind, then, but instead of finding Frankie, she heard a voice she didn’t think she’d ever hear again, calling out Frankie’s name.
Tavian!
He was here
. Somewhere. Shouting commands.
“Tavian!” She knew it was foolish calling out to him, but she didn’t care. She was desperate to see him. Then she saw Frankie leading Tavian straight toward her and Idris.
“You’re here! I can’t believe it.” How many weeks had it been? How long had she been plagued by the fear she’d never see him again?
Tavian walked swiftly toward her, but she saw shock descend over his features. Then a hand grabbed her from behind, the Founder who’d captured her earlier.
“Evie!” Tavian called out, running now.
To her right, the other man knocked Idris to the ground, where they struggled for some kind of weapon Evie could barely see under the dark canopy of trees.
“Stay back, Frankie!” Tavian shouted.
Evie heard a barking growl behind her, and the man holding her cried out as Frankie bit into his leg. Tavian charged into him, knocking him to the ground and grappling for his gun.
The Thorndike counterbalanced, throwing Tavian aside and leveling his weapon. Without thinking, Evie leapt for the attacker as Frankie charged again with bared teeth for the man’s leg. When Evie’s weight hit the man, the gun fell from his grasp, and Tavian gained the leverage he needed to flip his opponent to the ground again. As Tavian closed his hands around the man’s neck, Evie crawled away to find the gun among the leaves.
The other soldier punched Idris in the jaw, and while he lay momentarily stunned, the Thorndike went after her. Evie frantically sifted through the leaves but couldn’t find the weapon anywhere.
She called Frankie, who came running at breakneck speed to her and launched herself from the stump of a fallen tree and onto the man’s back, digging her teeth into his neck. He screamed and struggled to pull Frankie off, finally throwing her to the ground.
Idris rose slowly to his feet, hand outstretched, eyes closed. The soldier froze in place, unable to move under the thrall of Idris’s power.
“Frankie, come,” Tavian called, and the schnauzer leapt into her master’s arms, licking his face with joy. “There’s a good girl. You saved us all.”
“Go,” Idris said, his voice strained from his effort. “I will follow you to Castali.”
Tavian nodded. “Thank you. Let’s go, Evie.” She saw the first soldier, the man Tavian had struggled with, lying on the ground, his neck askew, eyes open wide in death. She shuddered and allowed Tavian to lead her away.
“Stay toward the east. The way will be clear,” Idris advised.
“Come on,” Tavian whispered. “It’s not far to the village of Castali.” They skirted the other melees still ongoing among the trees.
“Who are all these people, Tavian?”
“It’s our Reacher crew fighting the Founder military. They’ve been tracking us, it seems. Tracked us all the way to the deserted village of Castali.” He put a finger to his lips as a couple of Thorndikes ran past them. He whispered, “No more talking until we reach safety.”
Evie felt Frankie’s fear begin to wane as happiness at being in her master’s arms took over. Evie knew exactly how she felt.
* * *
Tavian was right. The village wasn’t far, and Idris wasn’t far behind either. He caught up with them, but Evie couldn’t help but notice the blood on his shirt. Had he killed the Thorndike?
“Are you hurt, Idris?” she asked in Welsh.
“No, I am well.”
“Does he speak English?” Tavian asked.
“No, but he does speak a kind of Welsh, which I know a little of. He brought me all the way across Alba from an island where the Thorndikes imprisoned us.”
“You mean the rest of the crew from your shuttle are still under guard there?”
Evie nodded. “Reina too. We have to go back for them.”
“We will. I’ll alert Commander Reach as soon as he comes back to Castali. Are they in immediate danger?”
“No, but a lot of them are sick, and there’s no telling when the Thorndikes will ship them off to a prison camp. We can’t delay.”
Tavian nodded. “Tell him thank you for me … for keeping you safe.”
Evie turned to Idris. “Tavian Hunt thanks you for your assistance.”
Idris gave Tavian a slight bow. “You’re welcome. Have you seen a girl here in Castali? Or on the shore when you arrived? She would be the only native you would come across. The rest of our people fled to the north.”
Evie translated into English for Tavian since he didn’t speak Welsh.
Surprise lit Tavian’s eyes. “Actually, yes. She’s there. In Castali Village.”
When Evie translated via her mind, the joy written in Idris’s eyes was unmistakable.
I must go to her now, Evie. Thank you. If your Frankie hadn’t found me, I would never have seen Serentyn again.
Idris placed his hand on Frankie’s head and closed his eyes. When he opened them again a few moments later, Frankie’s tail went into auto-wag mode, and her little body shook with happiness.
With one final smile for Evie, Idris took off at a run into the trees.
Minutes later, the village emerged amid the tall trees, each house in Castali floating atop a shimmering lake. It looked so magical, Evie felt compelled to ask Tavian if it was real. He assured her it was as they slipped onto a floating deck and walked into the heart of the village. Reach Corp crew from the commander’s shuttle were everywhere, some taking stock of food and supplies, some tending the wounded, and some glancing warily their way as they passed by.
Evie stopped Tavian with a touch to his arm. There, in the main square at the center of the lake, stood Idris. He faced a beautiful woman, and they seemed to be communicating in the Ddaeran way. A torch lit her face, which was smeared with dirt and weariness. At first, she looked at him with shock, but this slowly melted into a kind of relief. But Evie didn’t sense a warmth between them. She reached out to Idris’s mind, trying to sense what he felt. And what she discovered there was dark and complicated and angry.
“What is it?” Tavian asked Evie.
“Idris found the woman he thought was dead, but his feelings about her are not as simple as I once thought.”
“She is far more complex than you could ever imagine possible. She saved all our lives. I’ll tell you all about it after we’ve rested.” Tavian steered them into a darkened hut similar to where she’d been held prisoner on the Island of Ffynnons, then turned and embraced her fiercely. Frankie yipped when Tavian crushed her against Evie in an embrace. The mini-schnauzer’s tail wagged incessantly as she licked Tavian’s cheek over and over. Evie felt the joy coming from the little dog’s mind in waves. She knew Frankie felt her own contentment in return.
“You came back to me,” Tavian said. “You’re both alive and you’re here. It’s more than I could have hoped for, Evie.” He kissed her and squeezed her tight, until she thought her heart would explode.
“It was all Frankie’s doing. We wouldn’t be here without her.”
“You’re such a good girl, pumpkinhead. Did you miss me?”
Frankie barked a reply.
“She says she’s happy. Apparently I can read minds now,” Evie said.
Tavian smiled, half in wonderment and half in understanding. “Me too. This world is a strange place, isn’t it?”
Yes, Evie thought to him, but now I get to read your thoughts, Tavian. You better watch what you think. She flashed him a half-smile.
No need, he replied in her mind. Apparently, he’d learned this new trick as well. Somewhat self-consciously, Evie realized, she’d better be careful with her own thoughts too. You and Frankie are the only ones I want to see on any planet.
Well, since we’re here on New Eden, Tavian, I think we should make the most of it. Don’t you?
Tavian smiled. Agreed.
Evie kissed Frankie’s ear. “What do you think, girl? Are you ready to explore more of your new home planet?”
Frankie licked her chops and barked.
Evie and Tavian smiled and sealed the deal with
a kiss.
A Word from the Author
Frankie, the miniature schnauzer who features prominently in “PlanetFall,” is a character I pulled from my Paradisi Exodus series, which is set in the open-source Sci-Fi universe known as the Paradisi Chronicles. Why a schnauzer? Well, my best friend growing up was our mini-schnauzer, Stirling. We were inseparable from the very start. So when I was exploring plot ideas for my series, the notion of “the first schnauzer in space” popped into my head one day, and Frankie’s story just grew from there.
The Paradisi Chronicles is an unusual project born out of Sci-Fi author Hugh Howey’s open call for a multi-author simultaneous book launch set in the same universe. Seven of us wrote Paradisi books and published them all at once. Since then, the venture has grown exponentially, with dozens of authors writing all manner of stories in a variety of Sci-Fi sub-genres. You can learn more about the venture at ParadisiChronicles.wordpress.com.
The Paradisi Chronicles has been my most rewarding project to date. I love collaborating with other authors, and creating an entire planetary system from scratch with multiple peoples on several habitable planets spanning two hundred years of history was too irresistible to pass up. I plan to write more stories set in the Paradisi Chronicles far into the future, and I reckon Frankie will make more appearances in those works as well. So, stay tuned.…
If you’d like to know more about me and my writing, please sign up for my newsletter at www.CheriLasota.com.
Copyright
PLANETFALL. Copyright © 2018 by Cheri Lasota. All rights reserved by Cheri Lasota. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Ever-Sea Press
To book the author for engagements or gain permission for reprints and excerpts, contact: Cheri Lasota via CheriLasota.com or [email protected].
