Bartoc Secret

by Clara Woods

  Lenah, suddenly painfully aware of the dim emergency lighting spilling out into the dark night, leaped toward the control panel and switched it off. The cargo hold fell into blackness. Lenah stood tense, unable to see or hear anything. Outside was as pitch-black as inside, and she hoped Uz hadn’t given them away with her swift action.

  “I hear nothing. Not even the breathing of animals,” Cassius said after a long while.

  “Which animal would want to live here?” Lorka whispered back. Lenah felt him move next to her and join Cassius and Uz at the open hatch. “I can start us a warp bubble.”

  “Do that,” Lenah agreed. “The rest of us, all but Cassius and Lorka, should get into the construct.”

  A minute later, they were all shuffled tightly into the interior of the Bartoc robot, and Lenah moved the hooks to get them walking backward out of the Star Rambler’s hold. She tried to be very careful, to not damage Uz’s improvised hatch again, but it turned out impossible in the dark. The construct’s side scratched its way outside. Lenah was glad that she couldn’t see Uz’s face.

  Cassius and Lorka got in, resulting in Doctor Lund’s arm squished tightly against Lenah’s back as she guided the construct down the uneven terrain toward the lit buildings they had passed only a few clicks away.

  25 Sighting

  Lenah stopped the construct and took a moment to take in the scene. They had climbed down into the valley and toward the source of purple light. It turned out to be a huge square building that now stretched several clicks toward their left and equally long toward their right. About fifty chimneys were emitting smoke, shrouding the area around the factory in smog. The air smelled like spoiled eggs and everyone but Lenah and Zyr was coughing intermittently. Even Lenah felt how the air going down her throat left an acid taste in her mouth.

  The big area in front of the factory was brimming with activity. Bartoc and alien species mingled, many of the latter Lenah had never seen before. None were humans or even humanoid.

  “Lenaaaah,” Lorka hissed, pointing straight ahead. Overly long limbs walked into sight. Lenah grabbed the hooks, staring at the aliens that had been so aggressive on Balhudh. Instead of pistol-shooting knives, this group was wearing square boxes tied to their chests and a pack on their backs. They barely looked up as they passed the construct and continued on their way toward the building. Lenah fell in behind them, trying to see as much detail as possible with the limitations of the purple and yellow screen.

  The workers approached the building in a diagonal line and made their way to a hatch that matched the building in size. It opened about fifty meters in front of them, letting out a large swarm of workers. There were at least two hundred moving shapes, only the minority of them walking upright, but then Lenah saw it.

  Someone with the right length of arms and legs broke out of the middle of the group. Could it be?

  “Lund!” Lenah hissed, but she needn’t have bothered. He was already staring intensely over her shoulder.

  “Follow him!” Corinna demanded, and Lenah complied. Her heart beat in her throat. She was almost certain that this shape must belong to a human. To a man, judging by the wide shoulders and broad chest.

  He walked faster than most of the departing crowd, but they all made for the same direction: away from the factory and toward a set of ramps, leading to numerous levels away from the building.

  A group of Bartoc, walking in three tight lines, appeared, and everyone trotted faster. Lenah pulled at the hooks and let herself get swallowed by a group of crawling aliens that were so tall, they reached over the constructs head. The Bartoc passed.

  Trying to move faster again, Lenah searched the screen for the human’s silhouette. “Where is he?” she asked when she didn’t see him.

  “I think he’s gone.” Doctor Lund looked puzzled. “I stared at his outline, but he was suddenly gone. Like swallowed up by the earth.”

  “What do we do now?” Lenah noticed that the group of Bartoc was walking toward them again.

  She let the construct fall back, until tall aliens once more surrounded them. Then she slid behind them, taking a left to create some distance from the Bartoc. At first, two Bartoc seemed to be following, but they stopped by another group of aliens and fell behind. Lenah found a place underneath one of the ramps. Overhead, they could hear the multiple footsteps of departing workers.

  “Try to stick around here,” Corinna suggested. “Everyone is coming here, and we can wait for the next human.”

  * * *

  “There!” Doctor Lund yelled into Lenah’s ear.

  Lenah sat up straight in her seat and blinked into the semi-darkness.

  She had tried not to succumb to her tiredness, but sleep had found her, nonetheless.

  The constant drip, drip of rain was audible on the construct’s roof. Lenah followed Doctor Lund’s outstretched finger.

  He was right.

  A human figure was walking there, head lowered, and shoulders bent not to present too much of a target for the rain. He was crossing the yard with quick steps but not coming in their direction.

  “Let’s go!” Lenah hissed. “Cassius, Persia, Corinna, Zyr, come with me. Uz, Lorka, Lund, Martello, stay here. If we’re not back in six hours, start worrying.”

  “And what are we supposed to do?” Uz’s voice sounded alarmed. “We won’t even know where you went.”

  “Go back to the ship. Take it, and leave.” Lenah said, then turned to crawl down the corridor behind Persia.

  Cassius had already jumped out of the construct, and a sour scent drifted in. Suppressing herself from choking, Lenah jumped down behind him.

  Dark clouds hung overhead, and dirty-looking rain burned Lenah’s skin.

  “Ugh, this rain is poisonous,” Persia commented as she clutched a displeased-looking Zyrakath.

  Lenah blinked through the darkness. She could no longer see the human. The plaza was almost empty, not many workers going or coming from the factory.

  Cassius turned to wave them on. “Quickly, he’s going down a staircase.”

  They hurried to his location.

  “What will you do if he doesn’t want to speak to us?” Persia asked when they reached a ramp.

  Lenah frowned down at it. It was unmarked and no more than a dark opening in the floor. She cleared her throat. “That’s currently not part of my plan.”

  “And you, Corinna?” Persia asked. She didn’t seem to have appreciated Lenah’s answer.

  “I’m with Callo,” Corinna said. “There’s no reinforcement coming. This is what we have to do.”

  “Then let’s go, not talk,” Cassius urged them and took the lead down the steep decline.

  Lenah followed. Several dozen meters down, she could make out the silhouetted back of the man. It was enough to confirm that he was indeed human. She thought to call out but decided to get a feel for their new surroundings first.

  The ramp ended abruptly, joining up to a maze of walkways. A Bartoc crossed one, cackling to himself, then hissed sharply when he almost ran into a group of furry serpents that were winding their bodies over the same narrow path. They scattered, several almost going over the ledge and only holding on with the tips of their tails to let the Bartoc pass.

  Cassius lifted his hand to tell them to fall back. Several serpents passed them, one winding its way so close by Lenah’s leg that she felt its thick fur through the material of her pants. It looked up at her curiously.

  Lenah’s hand tensed around the weapon in her belt, but the creature simply passed and continued its way further down the ramp.

  Cassius quickly led them down another turn, and a panorama of gangways and balconies opened in front of their eyes. Lenah gazed around in wonder. They seemed to have reached the gut of the factory. From deep pits came the echo of hammering and welding. In the distance, a dark-red fire burned and gave the walls a ghostly look. At the other end, Lenah saw an enormous construction. It wasn’t a spaceship, however, it looked more like a train wagon, several times t
he size any Lenah had ever seen.

  Cassius took them down a tight gangway, leading around a corner, then deeper inside the factory. Lenah caught a glimpse of the human in front of them. Tall and muscled, he looked as big as Cassius. His clothes were strange, brown cloth pants and a vest made from different types of fur, arranged in an uneven pattern. His head was shaved bald, but she saw the outline of a thick red beard from behind.

  The man was walking quickly, away from populated corridors, until they were the only ones left in sight. He took the third corridor to the left, the next intersection right, and went straight for four blocks.

  Soon, despite her best efforts, Lenah lost count of the turns. The feeling of stepping into a trap overcame her, but she shoved it down. No one had shown them any hostility yet. With other humans around, her group seemed inconspicuous enough.

  A Bartoc, its feet clicking on the metal floor, rounded the corner, and Lenah’s heart jumped into her throat.

  She saw Cassius in front of her tense his muscles. Otherwise, he kept walking with the same determination as the other human.

  When the Bartoc passed, they all moved to the side, and it murmured something that might have been a greeting. When no one answered, the Bartoc passed them and vanished behind the next turn. Lenah let out a breath, trying to slow her fast-beating heart.

  They walked on, alone in the corridor now, and Cassius brought them closer toward the human.

  Corinna turned toward Lenah; her eyebrows lifted in a questioning look.

  Lenah nodded at her. “Let’s get even closer,” she whispered to Cassius.

  They sped up the steps, trying to catch up in earnest now and rounded a corner. The red-haired man was there, facing them, glaring. They were still twenty meters away, but even at that distance, Lenah could see that he wasn’t smiling.

  She pulled Corinna forward until they were about ten meters away. The man crouched down as if willing to fight. But he didn’t pull a weapon.

  Lenah stopped and raised her arms in a gesture of surrender. Corinna did the same.

  “My name is Lenah Callo.” Her voice was loud and echoed off the high ceilings. “I would like to speak with you,” she added, less loud.

  He didn’t answer.

  “Can you understand us?” Lenah asked. She hadn’t even considered that these humans wouldn’t speak G-Standard but realized now it was possible. They’d been away from the rest of human civilization for centuries, long enough maybe to develop their own language or lose their original one.

  Corinna growled and Lenah saw her mind magic erupt outward. As one, Persia and Cassius knelt and dropped their weapons.

  Then, Lenah saw it.

  A trickle of mind magic emanated off the man and was being countered by Corinna. Lenah realized that she was kneeling, her hand already at her belt to leave her weapon on the ground as well.

  She jumped up and readied her own mind magic.

  Adrenaline pumped through her veins. They had found a mind mage.

  26 Marakk

  The man’s forehead wrinkled as he pushed against Corinna’s mind magic. He was gaining on her, so Lenah extended her own magic, and together, she and Corinna managed to hold him at bay.

  To Lenah, the man looked angry but not surprised to see mind mages.

  “Let’s not attack, just hold,” Corinna said through clenched teeth.

  Lenah nodded. “We don’t mean any harm,” she said loudly.

  He didn’t react. Lenah, with very slow movements, let her gun drop to the ground, then lifted her hands. His eyes followed her every move, but he did not drop his magic.

  “Can you understand us?” Lenah asked. “G-Standard?”

  He finally said something, guttural clicking sounds that barely sounded possible with a human mouth. It sounded like Bartoc.

  “Zyr, is that Bartoc?”

  The drone, still in Persia’s arm, shook his head. “I did not bother to learn the sounds.”

  Lenah turned toward the man. She put a hand to her chest. “Lenah.” Then she pointed. “Corinna, Cassius, Zyr, Persia. You?” She pointed at him.

  The man said something that sounded like “Halakaaka.”

  Lenah shook her head. Was this how they would fail? Language barriers? She couldn’t believe that she hadn’t considered the possibility, but in the Cassidian sector, there was only one human language. The Cassidians had their own language, but the ones that mingled with humans always spoke G-Standard. So did the Craff and the only Bartoc that Lenah had ever encountered.

  The man repeated what he was saying.

  Lenah shook her head again. “This isn’t working,” she muttered.

  “So, what do we do?” Corinna asked.

  “He might think we’re hostile,” Lenah said. “We’ll drop our magic.”

  Corinna inhaled sharply but nodded.

  Lenah let her magic dissipate, so did Corinna.

  The man frowned at them, not letting his own magic go, but also not pushing it at them. Then, he pointed at his chest. “Marakk,” he said and waved a large hand. He dropped his magic, turning to walk away.

  Lenah took a tentative step forward, but Cassius’s hand snapped around her arm.

  “Careful. I’ll go first.”

  Marakk was watching them with interest, then shrugged and started to walk. He kept a fast pace, never allowing them to get close, and Cassius seemed content to keep it that way. He was tense. Lenah could see it in the way his muscles showed through his jacket. He seemed to be ready to spring into action.

  Marakk led them down several ramps, more turns, and down two flights of stairs.

  “Human construction,” Zyrakath whispered.

  Lenah realized that he was right. Stairs were not meant for Bartoc bodies. Nor did they need them.

  At the foot of the stairs, Marakk reached a door and pushed it open. Once through, he stopped to hold it open for them.

  Cassius nodded at the other man, a gesture that wasn’t returned, and ducked through the door. Lenah followed quickly behind, feeling tense. She could feel dozens of minds. The room beyond was cast in white light, so bright after the contrast with the purple lighting that Lenah’s eyes started watering.

  Then she saw the humans. Everyone was wearing the same loose pants made in a dull brown color. Some wore fur vests, like Marakk, but most had brown shirts matching their pants. Everyone looked up from their work—sharpening knives and other cutting tools, weaving baskets, sowing more brown pants—to stare at them. Some urgently patted their neighbors on the sleeve, hissing quiet words.

  Marakk said something in Bartoc but with no visible effect. They kept staring and their looks weren’t friendly. Only some did seem curious instead of hostile. With her inner eye, Lenah could see their minds, and their mind magic that was built like borders in front of them. At least no one was using it against them. Yet.

  Her heart pounding wildly, Lenah smiled at a few people, but no one seemed to appreciate the gesture or reciprocate.

  Marakk led them through the long room and toward a hatch at the other end. Behind it, Lenah could feel even more minds. The hatch was round and snapped open like a drill, then closed once Persia and Zyrakath had passed through.

  The room beyond looked different from anything else Lenah had seen here so far. The walls were covered in fur, and soft yellow lights hung from the ceiling. A large table and bench, clearly made for humans, stood in the center. About ten children were hungrily spooning something yellow into their mouths. Many soft conversations stopped when Lenah and her group stepped into the room. Someone’s spoon fell into a bowl with a loud clatter. A female voice hissed.

  At the front of the room, separated by half-walls, stood several groups of couches, and right against the wall, was a large chair with pillows on the floor surrounding it.

  People were playing games on the couches, but everyone stopped when Marakk barked something into the room.

  A young girl jumped up at his words and ran out of the room, using a side door.
>
  Lenah turned her head left and right, feeling trapped. She didn’t dare pull up her power, afraid it might look hostile. She was keenly aware that with so many people around, many of them likely mind mages, she’d be easily overpowered anyway.

  “Let’s hope they have someone here who speaks G-Standard,” Corinna said. Lenah could see the white knuckles where Corinna’s hands clutched her belt.

  She was about to answer when the young girl came back, saying something in rapid syllables to Marakk. He turned to Cassius and Corinna, gesturing at the pillows on the floor.

  No one moved.

  Marakk retracted his hand, then immediately repeated the gesture. The young woman, smiling at them and saying something, walked toward the pillows, then kneeled down on one. Her head bobbed up and down.

  Lenah finally moved, and the rest of her group followed. They knelt on the pillows, though Cassius looked like he was ready to jump up again in the blink of an eye.

  Lenah considered the fact that no one had taken their weapons from them yet. It was a good sign.

  They sat in silence, and Lenah tried to smile at the girl. She was maybe twelve years old, and by her lanky build and clothes that were slightly too short, seemed to have had a growth spurt recently. She smiled back shyly. At least one friendly person.

  The door opened once more, and an old man walking with a stick came in. He limped toward the chair and dropped heavily into it. His gnarled body was wrapped in a floor-long coat of furs and skins, stitched in a patchwork pattern. One of the pieces looked bright yellow and scaly, reminding Lenah of the spitter from Balhudh.

  Lenah stared up at the old man, who smacked his lips and stared back at them. If she had to bet, she’d say that he was looking at them like appearances from a dream. And maybe that was exactly what they were to these people.

  After a long time, the old man cleared his throat. “Name is Olonka Bren,” he said in broken G-Standard, his accent so heavy that it took Lenah several seconds to understand.

  “And my name is Corinna Cheung,” Corinna, who sat next to Lenah, answered. “This is Lenah Callo, and that’s our crew: Cassius, Persia, and Zyrakath.” She pointed at Lenah, then nodded at the others. “We have come far to speak to you.”