3. Chapter 3
Chapter three
~Kitari~
A t first, the clearing appeared to be empty, but I knew this was the spot. I’d tracked the noise, drawing nearer as it moved above the trees, until it had reached a crescendo and suddenly stopped. My senses told me it was here, even though all I could see was the waving grass, the slanting sunlight, the lazy swarm of tiny chittra flying in the air. I shifted in my hiding spot among the branches of a large tree, squinting between the leaves. A movement caught my eye; a slight shift in the air, like the haze of heat above baked earth when the sun was at its most vicious. It was difficult to see while it wasn’t moving, but now that I had caught it I could make out the almost invisible form of a domed shape sitting in the center of the wide clearing.
I leaned forward, making sure I remained hidden while getting the best possible view. I could not pass this opportunity up, but, as Arcay had said, I did not know if these aliens were dangerous. And if I got hurt, my father would never let me forget it. I resolved to linger only a moment, to see what could be seen and return before my absence was noticed. My father was already displeased with me, but if he knew where I was and what I was doing, there would be hell to pay. Not to mention disobeying a direct order from Arcay, a high alpha. No, I would remain only long enough to satisfy my curiosity, then I would return.
But nothing happened. Time stretched on and tension built within me. I could not leave until I saw the aliens. Still, nothing happened. And still, I sat and watched, intent on the barely-there shimmer.
Finally, real movement. My eyes snapped to it. A waist-high protrusion of smooth metal appeared from nowhere, floating in mid-air. Then a black foot, an arm, and then the whole creature was in the open.
I stared, breath held, pulse racing.
It was unlike anything I had ever seen before. Aldaroid in shape, upright with two arms and legs, but with a shiny head and one huge, bulging eye where its face should be, like a giant insect. Its body was hard and black, segmented at the joints, and, perhaps the most alarming of all, it held what I was sure was a large weapon at its side. I held perfectly still. The weapon did not mean that it was hostile, but it also meant it was capable of inflicting harm if needed.
It was at that exact moment I realized I did not have my spear with me. I had left it, buried tip first, at the base of the tree where I had parted ways with Arcay. A foolish mistake, but I excelled at stealth. This creature would not see me if I did not want it to. There would be no need for a weapon.
As I stared, two more creatures emerged, almost exactly the same apart from their build. The first was tall and broad and walked with a slight stiffness. Despite this it held itself with confidence, scanning the clearing with quick, efficient movements. The leader?
The three creatures moved around the area, apparently looking for something, scanning with their heads and weapons and fanning out. I shifted back on my branch, preparing to soundlessly descend. I had seen what I came to see, it was time to return. I had already lingered too long.
But before I could, more of them emerged, carrying boxes and equipment, and I stopped to watch again. I counted twenty in total. The noise rose up to me as they scurried around. What were they doing? Fascinated, I watched for some time as they moved around, and—
Suddenly, they were gone.
The creatures, their objects, all of them disappeared in an instant. I gasped.
It must be their tool for concealment, now expanded to cover the whole clearing. Apart from the occasional fracture of light, it looked as if nothing was there at all. Amazing technology unlike any of our own. My people did not use underhanded mechanisms such as these, they were considered cowardly.
I just happened to find them fascinating.
My absence most definitely had been noticed by now, but if I told the others of my observations, I could prove my usefulness as more than just a scribe. I carefully scaled down the trunk. I may not be able to observe them, but that does not mean they could not observe me.
I stopped abruptly at the sound of approaching feet. Four of the creatures emerged from the edge of the clearing closest to me, moving together into the trees. These strange insect creatures were hard to tell apart, but the one in front appeared to be the same one that I had first seen, judging by its gait and the way it held itself. Every cell in my body froze, the air trapped in my lungs as they passed beneath me, close enough for me to reach out and touch. Unaware of my presence, they disappeared into the shadows of the trees.
The logical part of me knew I should go back, inform the others. My father would be enraged.
But the urge to follow them was impossible to ignore, and it only took a fraction of a moment for my curiosity to win. How could I pull myself away from the most exciting thing that had ever happened in my mundane life?
This jungle was as much my home as the dwelling I slept and ate in. I moved within it as if it were a part of me.
I slipped the rest of the way down, my feet soundless on the soft ground. They would not see me.