Quasar

by Philip R Benge

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  Partridge and Alice Dalton were slowly walking across to the black mountain, they were loaded down with as much as they could carry and keeping to whatever depressions that came their way to ensure that the nomads did not catch sight of them. The small Phaser weapon that Rawlins had used they found broken beyond repair, for one of the horse-like creatures had trodden on it after Rawlins had dropped it. Thankfully, the nomads had not entered the lifeboat, maybe out of fear of such a wondrous flying machine, so there was no shortage of provisions, just porters to carry it, oh and weapons to defend themselves. They were both wearing their hats to ward off the sun, and they definitely needed the supply of water that they had taken from the lifeboat’s stores, especially beneath the hot desert sun that was blazing mercilessly down on them. They were forced to lay low on numerous occasions as a local appeared outside of the encampment to attend to his or her bladder. Six riders caused them some anxiety when they set off on a hunt and forcing them to hug the ground, but finally they reached the relative security of the black mountain, and just an hour before the sun was due to set behind it.

  “We need to find a vantage point so that we can get a good view of the encampment, Alice, maybe then we will be able to catch a sight of Jim and Peter.” Partridge said to Alice.

  “Dave, do you have any idea as to what planet this is?” Alice asked as they scrambled up the rocky slope of the black mountain.

  “Not for certain, we could be in the Rega planetary system, that is inhabited, but we could be further out, I just do not know.” Partridge said shrugging his shoulders.

  Working their way ever closer to the encampment while ensuring that they were not seen, brought them to a spot above a deep fissure, the same one that had freed Quasar from his long imprisonment, and here they settled down to search for at least a glimpse of their friends.

  “I reckon that they must be in that small tent in the centre of the encampment Alice, the others all have some sort of family activity around them.” Partridge said as much by guesswork as anything else.

  “Well Dave, we probably have less than an hour of sunlight left to us, hopefully those animals down there will leave Uncle James and Peter alone. They all seem to be busy around that man in the centre of the encampment, the one giving orders to everyone.” Alice said indicating Quasar who was making a speech to his new followers.

  No one entered the middle tent during what was left of the afternoon, and the other tents were indeed the living quarters for the people of the Alemanni tribe. Soon however, the sun began to set behind the black mountain and brought night to this area of Remus. A little later and the temperature began to fall and Alice and Partridge had to put their coats on to keep out the cold as they waited anxiously for the encampment to settle down and its people go to sleep.

  Below them, Quasar was squatting down inside his tent while a young woman served him with his main meal of the day, he was quite happy, quite something for a homicidal maniac with designs on the rest of the galaxy. When he finished his meal and his flask of the local brew, he retired for the night. He took the young woman who had served him his meal to his bed, for he was really beginning to enjoy his new life as an organic. The woman did feel it weird that he kept his hat on all the while, and that she was not allowed to touch his back, or run her fingers through his hair.

  It was early morning; Colt reckoned that it was just after one o’clock their time, Colt and Rawlins decided that now would be the best time to make their escape. They slid their bindings from off their hands and feet, they were feeling quite hungry now and extremely thirsty, for the nomads had forgotten to provide them with anything. Rawlins stood up, stretched his long frame, and rubbed his legs to help him move after his enforced inaction. He was fifty-five years old but today he looked older, and it was not just his new beard and moustache, which made him look older. Today he looked to be around seventy years in age, for the assault had taken it out of him and as he made to move towards the door, he stumbled and had to grab on to Colt, who had just managed to stand up, to stop from falling back to the ground. He stood there for a moment and drew a deep breath. He almost panicked, but he told himself that to escape from the encampment meant his taking an active part in their escape and forgetting his troubles. A moment later and his blue eyes were alert once again, he moved over to the opening in the tent to look for any signs of life within the encampment. Thankfully, they were no signs of a sentry so they exited their prison, and with just the quiet night air around them, they moved stealthily between the many tents, a full moon shone down upon the scene, lighting their way. They left the encampment on the opposite side to where the horse-like creatures were picketed, so as not to disturb them and have them warn their masters of Colt and Rawlins departure, they were just beginning to scale the dark mountain slopes when Alice and Partridge met them.

  “Uncle James, Peter, how on earth did you escape?” Alice exclaimed excitedly, but in a soft whisper that seemed the norm around the Alemanni encampment.

  “Never mind that for now Alice, we have to get away from here before they realise that we have gone. Did you bring any antiseptic from the lifeboat; Peter has a nasty cut on his head?” Colt replied quickly while steering them all away from the nomads’ encampment.

  “Yes Uncle James, and some bandages as well.” Alice replied as the four of them moved along a narrow goat track that took them up the side of the black mountain and away from their barbaric foe.

  The cool night air did wonders for Colt`s headache, which in any case had lessened. They stopped off to pick up their supplies where Alice and Partridge had stashed them, and here Colt and Rawlins put on the hats and coats that the other two had brought along for them. They also took a swig of water from the bottles that the other two had hauled laboriously across from the lifeboat, and then they ate some of the survival food. Rawlins now felt well enough to complain that the food tasted so bland he was not sure that it was even food. These few words were a sure sign that he had put the episode in the tent behind him. Partridge then took a moment to attend to the cut on Rawlins` head, and then dabbed some antiseptic on to his other cuts. He checked on Colt`s ribs but decided that he had only bruised them, so he too only needed some antiseptic for his cuts and some strong Paracetamol to dull his aches and pains.

  “We can not risk collecting anything else from the life boat, although the two of you seemed to have brought most of the water and supplies along anyway.” Colt said in admiration. “We had better try for that small town that I saw on the way down; maybe we will find some of your people there to help us get away from this hell hole.” Colt said to Alice and then flashed her a smile to try to reassure her, although she could only just see it in the blackness of the night, for the large moon had set behind the black mountain.

  Down below them they could still see the fires of the Alemanni encampment, although only faintly now as they began to burn down, behind them the planet’s second moon rose above the distant horizon and would soon light their way forward, even if only faintly. By the time that the sun had risen once more, they had passed over the summit; luckily, it was at a point where the summit was only two thousand feet above the desert floor. They now begun to descend down to the slightly greener but still arid land that would take them to the township in another six days, if the fates allowed it.

  The day soon warmed up and they had to take off their coats, they rested up for breakfast which came out of a tube, and they drunk the cool water that gushed from out of the rocks to make a large pool of water, one that seemed so out of place in the arid landscape. Colt was able to fashion four spears from the branches of a small tree using his small knife, their only defence on this planet that had greeted them with such ferocity. It was hard going walking through hot days and enduring the cold nights, and they were soon feeling exhausted, not used to such exercise or the terrific heat of the desert. On the third day, they saw a dust cloud moving away from the black mountain and parallel to their course, it was Part
ridge who ventured a reason as to the cause of it.

  “I reckon it could well be that our nomadic friends have also decided to visit that township Jim. If you follow the line taken by that dust cloud, then it could easily have come from the valley that you saw during our hectic descent.”

  This planet was certainly no paradise; it threw every sort of hardship their way. A snake to edge away from, a large cat like creature to deter with their home made spears, a cracked and hard land to cross and the odd high ground to conquer. They were delighted when they finally got their first view of the tents that made up the only place on Remus that could be termed a township, of sorts anyway. Colt was also amazed that they had been able to navigate their way there, and without meeting any more of the planet’s violent inhabitants.

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  The Alemanni warriors were annoyed to find that their prisoners had escaped their encampment and they spent some time searching the area around the lifeboat without finding any sign of them, later they enlarged their search area, but again without success. However, the time that they had to devote to their lord Quasar effectively prevented them from making a much more comprehensive search.

  It was just one day after the four friends had begun their trek to the only town on Remus when a thought occurred to Quasar, he was the leader of a very small group of barbaric beings, this was hardly what he had been created for, so he ordered his tribe to set off for the town of tents. The going was slow, for they had their flocks of goats to take with them. Their animals had to be fed and watered on the way, luckily while they were moving alongside the black mountain they were able to camp near to water holes that they found on their way. However, for the final leg of the trek it meant carrying water for their flocks along with them. Many of the older members of the tribe, the children and the women had to rely on their legs and this made the going even slower. Quasar did think about having the older people of his tribe killed, but he decided that the devotion showed to him by the Alemanni might evaporate if he attempted this, and then he would have the bother of controlling their barbaric minds.

  Quasar found to his astonishment that he was much more content with this lifestyle, even more so than the one before, and then he had been the emperor of the galaxy and able to do most anything, except finally win the war against the Regan Empire. He decided that he was in no real hurry anyway, he could amuse himself with the people of the planet Remus for the moment, and the time to engage in galactic war could wait a while. Why should he be in a rush anyway, for was he not a god, one with a devoted people to obey his every whim and all the time in the universe to play with.

  Chapter Five

  Earth is in Danger

  A small spacecraft flew low over the black mountain and hovered above the newly formed fissure that had given Quasar his chance to escape his prison. It contained just one crewman, John Olsen and he looked to be very worried as he surveyed the scene below. He turned from his instruments, they told him that no living creature was alive within the fissure, but he now decided to rely on what nature had given him. He sent his mind into the fissure and searched the massive cavern for any sign that its former occupant might inexplicably be still within his long time prison cell. This was quite dangerous; for he did not know how strong Quasar would be after his long confinement.

  “Shit, the bastard is out!” Olsen swore grimly.

  The monks of Rega had told him that a savage tribe guarded the mountain, one that was waiting for their dark lord to rise again, one that would lead them in battle against the other tribes of Remus who believed Quasar to be a demon from hell. There was no sign of the tribe; the only thing of interest was the lifeboat and the burnt remains of the freighter. Olsen landed his small craft near to the lifeboat and walked across the hot desert to see if it could tell him anything. Inside he saw that the small craft was from a freighter out of Earth, studying the craft’s mini computer Olsen played back its final moments. He saw the remains of the freighter crash into the black mountain; this had been the cause of the fissure.

  “Four survivors, but for how long with the Alemanni out there? Damn, what did their presence mean, were they friend or foe?”

  Olsen saw the signs of the Remus horse all around the craft and knew from this that the crew’s reception had not been a good one. He saw the drag marks that told him that two of the crew had been taken; he also saw the footprints of two other people walking away from the lifeboat. Olsen checked the crafts calendar and noted that this had happened three days ago, time enough for Quasar to take control of the Alemanni, however, there was still time enough for Olsen to act to ensure that Quasar stayed put on Remus, until he was ready to deal with him and put an end to their age-old fears.

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  Quasar smiled as he looked across at his people, he was feeling happy, a strange emotion for one such as him. When he got to Tent City, he would begin to enjoy himself seriously, he decided, for a start he would take on more wives to tend to his ever-growing needs, needs he had never felt before, not even once during the time he had spent in his previous hosts.

  The trek to Tent City was long, but quite slow. It was hot during the day with the sun blazing down upon them, but pleasant in the warmth of his tent at night. He quite liked the animal upon whose back he sat, using his mental powers he ensured that it gave him a smooth ride, unlike some of the other beasts he saw who were rather fractious. The six long days passed with not a sign of a village or even a hamlet. He had felt the presence of many other people mentally, but now he saw their multitude of tents on the horizon, next he heard the sounds of their livestock and last of all the voices of the inhabitants of Tent City floated across to him.

  The headman, Rajiah, of Tent City, saw the dust raised by the approaching Alemanni tribe and guessed who it was approaching them. From the direction that they came, the black mountain, it had to be some of the warriors of the Alemanni, for no other tribe would dare to live by the tomb of the dark one. He thanked the ancient god that looked after his people that it was market day; this meant that the five tribes that lived nearby would be in to trade and to gossip. The five tribes plus the people of Tent City got along; there was always the odd fight that broke out between the warriors of the tribes, but never bad enough to cause any serious trouble between them. He hurried to the market place and quickly located the headmen of the five tribes, with these men to back him up he walked out to meet the Alemanni and to inform them that he would brook no trouble whilst they were near the city. The Alemanni tribe were followers of the dark religion that worshipped Quasar, so they were not trusted by the other tribes, and with good reason, for they occasionally raided their neighbours’ encampments and stole anything not nailed down. As Rajiah approached the Alemanni tribe, he was surprised to see that it was the whole of the Alemanni tribe coming towards him, not simply a few dozen warriors.

  Quasar rode forward, stared at the six leaders standing before him, and smiled contemptuously. “I am your god Quasar; you will bow down to me and praise my name.” The voice of Quasar boomed out across the plain.

  Rajiah and the other headmen were about to burst out in laughter when suddenly they saw before them a figure now fully thirty feet high and immediately they realised that the age-old myths of Remus were not myths at all, they were true tales, for here before them was the demon Quasar in all his terrible glory.

  Quasar reached out his hand theatrically, for the wave of power he sent across came from his mind and not from his hand. The six headmen fell to the ground screaming, as pain rushed through their bodies; they lay there writhing in agony, pleading for their lives. The warriors of the Alemanni now moved up to form a skirmishing line and opposite them, lined up on the outskirts of the city were some of the warriors of the five tribes along with those of the city. They warriors fighting for the city bravely moved forward to come to the aid of their headmen, and it was indeed against a terrible and powerful foe. Quasar laughed at them, stretched out his arm, and sent waves of pain against the brave
men. Warrior after warrior fell down screaming in pain, while Quasar, his mind roaming through them, told them not to attempt to fire their weapons. The warriors obeyed this command, for unfortunately they did not realise what stopped them from opening fire upon the demon. The last warrior fell screaming in pain just feet away from him, but Quasar never once gave an inch, for to do so would have shown fear, and gods do not possess this emotion. Even so, Quasar had been a little worried by the bravery shown by these men.

  “Mahan, have each of these warriors bound and taken into the city, later tonight I will want to see each of them and lead them to the light so each one will know that I am the only true god.” Quasar ordered his headman disdainfully. Quasar then sent his mind into the city to cow the inhabitants into obedience.

  Within the city, more and more people saw Quasar, and they saw the fate meted out to their warriors and began to fear for their souls. All those who did not see their warriors fall were terrified by the sight of the giant demon before their city, no longer was this a city of individuals, now it was a city of slaves, subservient to the demon Quasar. His laughter rang across the large city of tents, and into the tents that were the homes of the missionaries of the Church of the Universe.

  Quasar led his tribe into the large mass of tents and chose the largest as his new home; it was the communal meeting hall. Soon they were cleaning his tent for him, his meal was cooked, his possessions neatly stored away within his tent. During this time, six young women were brought to his tent, each one a daughter from each of the families belonging to the six headman who had come to meet the Alemanni, as Quasar had led them towards Tent City. They were to be his wives, to assist his other wife in her duties and do their lord`s bidding. The headmen had not offered their daughters to their new god; Quasar had insisted upon it on pain of death, should anyone resist his order. He did find one fault with his new home, for after his devastating display of power, no one had resisted his entry into the city, and so he could find no one to torture, for now anyway.