by Gun Brooke
Walking on the soft ground, almost dizzy still from the fresh air, Beaux began to relax. She kept an eye on her scanner, not wanting to lose her way. Planning to walk as far down toward the valley as she could before she had to head back to the landing site, she found herself reluctant to return to the Empress, which was entirely unlike her. Perhaps the long months with the rowdy miners and the unbearable suits had made her long for solitude and this…paradise. Beaux shook her head at herself and stepped to the left to avoid one of the broad trunks.
The roar made her stop so fast, she slammed into the tree. Pulling her sidearm, she glanced around her. If whatever beast she had disturbed was as big as the sound it made, she was in trouble. She looked up to make sure the creature wasn’t in the tree above her. Nothing. Her heart pounding, Beaux made sure the safety on her weapon was off. Carefully, she poked her head around the trunk, trying to not make a sound.
Less than ten meters away from her, an enormous, furry animal stood on its hind legs, its massive front legs extended to its sides as it roared again. It stared right at her, and she was certain she would never be able to outrun it. She also wouldn’t be able to climb the tree next to her, as the first branches started too high off the ground. How could she have been so stupid, so damn careless, to walk into a strange environment and completely disregard protocol?
The animal opened its broad mouth, showing off stark-white teeth. Its fangs dripped with saliva, and obviously the beast was just dying to dig them into her flesh. Taking aim, Beaux found her hands trembling, something that hadn’t happened since before she joined the military. Still, the animal was so large it should be impossible for her to miss. She just had to remain calm and let him, if it was a him, get a little closer, as she needed a head shot. If she tried for his heart and missed, he might reach her. For all she knew, his heart could be located in his ass.
The animal lurched forward, landing on all fours. He threw himself into a clumsy, but fast, trot, heading for her. Beaux steadied her hands by sheer willpower, but just as she squeezed the trigger, a shadow burst into the clearing, slamming into the beast’s side and sending the surprised creature into a roll. The other animal, much smaller and odd-looking, with gangly legs and a flat nose, snarled and nipped at the giant’s paws as he tried to regain his footing, which made it impossible for him to get up. Instead, he began to roll faster and faster downhill. The smaller animal gave a weird-sounding gruff bark, followed by what sounded like a hoot, as it disappeared with the clearly frustrated beast rolling among the trees. Not knowing whether to laugh at the ridiculous sight or fall to her knees as adrenaline sloshed through her veins, Beaux gasped for breath and opted for the latter. What the hell had just happened? Where did that smaller animal, which had a definite canine appearance, come from? Were some animals hardwired to rescue others on this planet? Surely that couldn’t be the case?
Getting to her feet, Beaux decided she had had enough sightseeing for today. She would explore the scenery further tomorrow, as her curiosity was most definitely sparked. Veyar wouldn’t like her new decision to remain planetside for now. She had all she required in her backpack and knew the crew had stowed enough of the sturdier tents to include one for her. Hurrying back the way she’d come, as she certainly didn’t intend to wait to see if either of those animals would return, Beaux found herself grinning.
As afraid as she’d been only moments ago, which was hard for her to admit, she also had to concede she hadn’t felt this alive in ages. Yes, sometimes the Empress could run into trouble while in intergalactic space. Hostile worlds, special anomalies, or even passengers that became dangerous all of a sudden were inevitable, but she and security handled them. Here she’d been alone while facing the largest creature she’d ever seen…yet she lived to tell about it. She would inform her crew about the animals, but she would find a way to safely downplay the danger she’d been in, or Veyar and Somas would never let her forget it.
As she neared the landing site, she could tell her crew was doing its usual efficient job. And no matter what she thought of the miners, after all, they were marginally preferable than the damn suits. Their work ethic seemed impeccable. The residential part of the camp was almost finished, and they were making great time erecting the tents that would hold all their equipment.
Beaux clicked on her long-range communicator. “Lestarion to Veyar. Change of plans.”
Chapter Four
Moon looked down from the thick, ragged branch where she crouched. Dancer was having way too much fun, considering he was risking his life. She didn’t know if he realized he was saving two lives over at the clearing—the all-too-familiar huge mammal of the same breed that had nearly killed her once, as well as the clueless woman who’d just fired her weapon. Moon hadn’t counted on running into one of the people from the shuttles already. Fortunately, she had heard the woman’s steps from far enough away to hide high in one of the skinnier trees. Its branches sat evenly spaced and low enough for her to jump up and grab them. The hooks she had fashioned and carried in two thin, braided vines around her wrists made it safer to grip the narrow trunk and climb to safety.
When Dancer had heard the unmistakable sound of the animal that Moon had designated a brummer, which fittingly described the terrifying gurgling sound the enormous creature made, he had launched himself in its direction with glee in his eyes. Wanting to call her friend back, Moon knew she couldn’t, for two reasons. While in his most avid protective mode, he would ignore her, and she couldn’t let the person up ahead hear her.
Now Moon saw the woman stagger sideways and fall to her knees, and she couldn’t blame her for being afraid. Standing face-to-face with a brummer was a horrible experience. Dancer was now rolling the beast out of sight where the mountainside was steeper. The brummer wouldn’t bother anyone anymore today. Curious, Moon studied the woman as she got up, holstered her weapon, and began walking in the opposite direction, back toward the shuttles. She was at least a head taller than Moon and wore what looked like a uniform, but not any military version Moon remembered seeing as a slave. She could be part of a private crew.
Stealthily, Moon climbed down from the tree and began following the woman on a parallel path to the left of her. From this distance, Moon still saw how the sunrays filtering through the leaves above them made the woman’s hair glimmer like dark gold. Short, it framed a face that appeared strong, even from far away. And something was unusual about her. Having been in mortal danger only moments ago, the woman had recuperated very quickly and now strode among the trees with obvious confidence. She kept glancing around her, but not in a way that suggested fear. Instead, she moved with a feline grace, and Moon guessed this person could be lethal.
During Moon’s life as a slave, it had been a self-preservation necessity to be able to read people who were above her in status, which meant everyone who wasn’t a slave. If she misread anyone’s intentions or needs and that person complained about her, her punishment would have been severe. Studying crewmembers and passengers had become second nature, and watching this woman trekking through the forest, oblivious to Moon’s presence, told her she was no underling. Nobody who bowed their neck to any other person would move as if they owned the space they occupied.
When Moon judged they were almost too close to the shuttles for it to be safe for her to remain on the ground, she spotted a slender tree again and scurried up the trunk. She couldn’t risk being seen.
Once the woman was out of sight, Dancer showed up at the foot of the tree. He circled it twice and then lay down. He wouldn’t leave her side until she was back in their own area, unless another brummer came along. He had a special fondness for the huge animals.
Listening to the noisy people farther up, Moon began to grow frustrated that she couldn’t see properly. The sun was changing color and would begin to descend and hide behind the mountain where they were in a short while. If she was going to find out anything useful, she had to climb a tree closer to the shuttles.
Carefully
, she slid down the trunk and motioned for Dancer to follow her quietly. They used some sharp rock formations as protection and circled to the front of the shuttles. If these vessels were like any of the ones Moon had seen, cargo and passengers’ exits took place via the aft-side hatches. It was logical to assume fewer people would be located at the stern.
She poked her head above the lowest rock, keeping a warning hand on Dancer’s nose. She could feel it vibrate and knew a growl wasn’t far away. “Shh. I’m serious,” Moon whispered.
Dancer huffed in the depth of his throat but obeyed.
Moon scanned the area, and what she saw made her heart ache increasingly with each new beat. For a terrifying moment she feared she wouldn’t be able to follow the order she’d just given her friend. She wanted to howl at the sight of row after row of tents—at least fifty, and maybe more. No way these people were leaving any time soon.
People moved among the tents, carrying crates, wiring, backpacks, and barrels. Some wore clothes that reminded her of the wealthy passengers on the ship she’d escaped from. They didn’t carry any of the larger items but walked around with small devices, talking animatedly with each other. Another group of people could be distinguished by their sturdier clothes, which suggested they were some sort of workers. Not slaves, no. Their body language radiated too much self-assuredness for that to be the case. Then there was a smaller group dressed similarly to the woman from earlier. Perhaps she had guessed correctly—they looked like a private crew.
Moon searched for the woman she had followed but couldn’t see her. Perhaps she had boarded one of the shuttles and was returning to whatever mothership had to be in orbit? Rubbing her hand over her face, Moon drew a trembling breath while trying to figure out what it all meant. Why were they here? What were they planning to do that required them to erect an entire village of tents and bring all that equipment? Moon had lived in space for as long as she could remember, but mainly aboard luxury cruise vessels. She had never seen so many professionals in one place, and that sight, combined with not having spotted another human being in more than four years, was nauseating her. She clung to the rock with one hand and Dancer with the other. They couldn’t be a hunting party. That was one thing she had come across as a slave—rich passengers fancying themselves as brave, skilled hunters set down on planetoids where cloned prey were created and placed.
These people weren’t like those self-proclaimed hunters. They brought heavy equipment, whose purpose she couldn’t begin to fathom, and though their activity appeared chaotic, she assumed every one of them knew exactly what he was doing. And whatever it was, it wouldn’t benefit Haven…or her.
Moon motioned for Dancer to follow her. She had intended to just satisfy her curiosity and then return to her side of the valley and ignore the temporary visitors, but what she’d just observed changed everything. Whatever the motivation for this settlement was, she had to remain and find out, and that meant locating a better place to spend the upcoming nights. No matter what the people milling around the tents were here to do, they wouldn’t stay put around the shuttles. Moon needed to be careful and not leave any traces that could make them suspect a human other than them was present in this area.
As soon as she was out of sight and earshot of the camp, Moon ran toward denser vegetation. More rock formations shot out from the mountain and provided cover. It was hard to maneuver among the shrubbery and the sharp protrusions, but she was used to hiking up and down the mountainsides—and the unwelcome visitors weren’t. Here she would hear them coming, and if she didn’t, Dancer would. He was right behind her, content, for now, for her to lead. Usually, if they walked along familiar paths, he was happy to walk behind her.
Once she couldn’t hear the voices from the camp at all, Moon studied the rocks. Finally, she spotted one extending from the mountainside and half covering a shallow cave, but deep enough to provide protection.
“Here.” She pointed at what would be their shelter for the upcoming days. “I don’t think it’s deep enough to be a brummer’s den.” That would have been disastrous.
Placing her backpack at the inner rock wall, Moon climbed yet another small tree. When she was far enough up, she started hacking away at the thinnest branches, letting them fall to the ground. She needed to mask the entrance to the shelter, and it wouldn’t be smart to use the shrubbery below. It would be easy to see someone had cut off them at ground level, but no one had any reason to look up several meters and search for cut-off branches.
Carrying the branches over to the opening, she sharpened the ends and shoved them all haphazardly into the ground. Her backpack contained a thin net she’d taken from the escape pod, probably meant for ocean fishing, which she would attach on the inside of the branches to keep them from moving too much.
Dancer watched her efforts for a while but then clearly decided he needed to check out the perimeter and left. Moon wasn’t worried. He wouldn’t go far. Too much was different for him to stray. As Moon kept securing their space, the shadows grew longer. She needed to find water gatherers and some berries before it grew too dark. If she could avoid tapping into her emergency rations, she would last longer out here.
Finally pleased with the shelter, Moon tucked the backpack in behind the mesh, glad the material containing her equipment and supplies held some metal fiber that made it impossible for animals to chew through it. Unless a large animal came along and carried away the entire backpack, it would be safe.
Stepping through the shrubbery, Moon gave a thin whistle and nearly bit her tongue when Dancer poked his head up only a meter away from her. Glaring at him, she signaled for him to join her. Then she began to search for the purple flowers that grew in abundance during the warmer seasons. Wherever they grew, she collected water gatherers. It had taken her an entire year on Haven before she sampled the strange-looking pods that turned out to hold sweet-tasting water. At first, she had picked them and drunk from them. After a short while, it had dawned on her that if she let them be after drinking instead of picking the pods, they refilled via their root system within a day or two. She had learned to carry plants with her and plant them wherever she spent the nights while hiking.
After walking for a while, she found some of the berries most common in the area. She filled two containers that she carried in her pockets and kept walking. Circling another dense set of shrubs, she finally glimpsed some of the purple flowers and, beyond them, under some low trees, an impressive gathering of water gatherers. Using her knife, she dug a large tussock of the plants, careful not to damage their thick roots. She gathered it into her arms and made her way back to the shelter. Dancer was ahead of her now, and his relaxed body language made her able to draw full breaths for the first time since she saw the people up by the shuttles.
Moon planted the water gathers close to the opening, well within the protective branches. Leaning sideways next to one of the pods, she tilted her head as she tipped it gently and quenched her thirst with two pods, then let the water from a third drip into her hand for Dancer to drink. He crinkled his nose afterward and licked away the drops that had stuck in his silky whiskers.
“We need to sleep for a while. Once it’s dark, we’ll go back up there,” Moon murmured, needing to talk to her friend. She took the containers out of her pockets and ate some of the berries. She offered a few to Dancer, who looked mildly affronted at the idea of eating something he considered so vile, as usual. Crawling in next to her backpack, Moon leaned against it and closed her eyes. She was certain she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but she still needed to rest after running down her mountain, through the valley, and up the other mountain earlier.
She hugged herself as fear of what might be happening in her paradise threatened to overcome her. This was her world. Moon had made it hers despite tremendous loneliness at times, and she had found a way of coexisting with the animals—plus, she had Dancer. Now it could all be taken away and destroyed by people who looked a lot like the ones she’d narrowly escaped from.
>
Curling her hands into tight fists, she pressed them against her sides. She would stop them, no matter what it took. Once before, she had done the impossible, and she could do it again.
Chapter Five
Beaux hoisted the pack holding a double tent onto her shoulder and began walking toward the part of the camp where her crew had set up theirs. None of them would dream of staying close to the suits or the miners. They liked to keep to themselves while on away missions. She intended to give them a bonus after this job. That, or she’d be hiring new crewmembers on the next one, and no way in hell was she bringing on new ones unless she had to. She already had the best crew and very little turnover. Somas usually pointed out that she demanded more of herself than anyone else. Perhaps this was true, but work was her life and the Empress her freedom.
Somas and Veyar had sounded exasperated, but not entirely surprised, when she had paged them to let them know she’d be remaining planetside for now. She hadn’t told them about the beast in the woods but kept the conversation short before she fetched a tent for herself from shuttle one’s cargo hold. Sooner or later, she would have to inform them, as one of her rules was transparency with her senior officers. Beaux wasn’t looking forward to that conversation.
“You bunking with us, Cap?” One of the youngest among her crew, a blond girl who looked deceptively cute, beamed at her from where she knelt while securing the last corner of her tent.
“In a manner of speaking, Nia.” Beaux took in her surroundings. Her crew had located a sizeable clearing surrounded by trees on three sides and rugged rocks on the fourth. The rocks extended like half a ceiling, which would protect them against rain—and from a potential assault from above. Spotting an area at the far end of the clearing, close enough to her crew but not right on top of them, Beaux nodded at Nia. “I’ll be over there. Gather the ones who are here right now in ten minutes. All right?”
