Chapter 2 Tessi #2
He bolts up the rocky path toward the opening.
The moment he passes me, I sprint after him.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been chased.
But I’m in a new area, and there are undoubtedly others who saw the debris reentry on the scavenger scanners besides my usual competition.
And the footsteps that climb the hillside after me, confirm my suspicions.
Carielle isn’t the only one stalking scavengers.
When I reach the cave, I free a shield generator from my pack. I don’t want to use it, because it’s my only one. But I built it for this reason.
As I’m about to enter, I feel a painful tug on the shoulder strap of my backpack.
The red-eyed augmented man lugs me backward. I do not have time to consider the consequences. I simply wrench my body around, and plant a fist square in his closest eye. He swears and grabs his face but doesn’t release me.
I frantically grab my gun, switch it to stun with my thumb selector, and tag him in the stomach, below his armored vest. He stiffens and falls. The others try to squeeze past him.
I redirect my gun at them. First to my right, then to my left. Each ball of electric spiders smashes into them. Their boss, with the green eyes, charges toward me, illuminating a body shield. He steps over the first man as I back inside the cave.
When I toss the shield generator down, it seals the cave off with a wall of iridescent blue light. It will fry itself the moment it dies, so anyone who might find it will never get to know my design. No one gets anything for free from me anymore.
He pounds on the shield, snarls, and glowers at me, hatred warping his eyes. Then he does what I don’t expect. He roars. His teeth extend, his skin changes to something more like fur, and claws emerge from his hands.
Whoever he is, whatever, I don’t want any part of it. So I turn and join Radar, who waits for me just down the passageway.
I switch on my headlamp and check the floor for signs of use as I turn on Radar’s harness lights so he can see too. There’s a worn path that I hope leads somewhere, preferably to an exit.
Keeping Radar behind me and my gun steadied ahead of us, I follow the path. Any time I have a choice to go up or down, I choose up. The last thing I want is to get cornered in a flooded mine again. Once was enough.
“Sorry about this, buddy.”
Radar pants lightly as he hikes at my side.
“I was hoping by now we’d have made enough I could move us into an apartment, get a hovercar, and have real food on a regular basis.
” I always wanted to go back and finish school.
I never thought Radar would be working as much as I am when I found him.
I thought someone would take him in, give him a comfy sofa to sleep on, and lots of toys.
He was born into a world that had abandoned him. Something I can relate to.
When no one would take a groenendael-malnois mix because of how much work they are, I realized how much we needed each other. I needed a partner. He needed a home that challenged him with new tasks every day.
Radar stops behind me and gives me a snort.
I turn around to see him sniffing a path that goes down. The way he lifts his nose into the air tells me there’s something there that he wants to check out.
We’re low on time. If any path leads nowhere, we could find ourselves confronted with a new kind of animal. I’ve heard of Mindorans, the wolf-like Shifters whose world was just attacked by the Nebulous Empire. That guy was something close, but different.
Damn Augments.
“Easy,” I tell Radar as I let him lead.
He hikes at a calmer pace down the pathway. I don’t like it, but I also know that we have a bond of trust that’s important to maintain. And he’s often smarter than I give him credit for because he can sense what I can’t.
The path winds around a switchback and narrows as it levels out. A sliver of light peeks in through the side of the tunnel. Radar runs toward it and begins digging rocks out of the way, trying to form an escape. I jump in and help him, and soon, we have a hole big enough to crawl through.
“Good job, buddy.”
I climb out after him, but when I see the landscape, I call him back to me.
It looks like the inside of a dormant cinder cone with a funnel of dark rock and sand that slopes downward into a forest. There’s a huge chunk of a ship buried in the ground across from us so deeply, it’s tangled in the roots of trees and plants.
Grassy dirt and rocks have no doubt shielded it from ships passing overhead.
Radar listens to my command, but I can tell he’s just as curious as I am.
I motion for Radar to stay, then I step out and onto the loose ground.
The gravel and sand of the steep slope give way, and I slide down to the wreckage.
Only when I pull back the roots, I realize it isn’t just junk. It’s an entire pod.
It’s dented, looks like it has a thruster out, and it’s covered in blast marks. The design is Federation, but it’s so damaged that it has no identifiable markings left to tell me what it’s capable of or which force it belonged to. There isn’t even anyone inside.
Guess the Ginarigon-Mars battle knocked more than a few screws loose.
I have to figure the sandy hillside and the slope softened the landing.
It looks like it barrel-rolled down the hill and smashed into the meadow.
Finding the hatch release, I pull the lever.
The door unseals, but there’s too much debris.
I clear away what I can, then pry the hatch open far enough that I can lean inside and take a look at the dash.
It’s been years since I saw the inside of a pod. A lot of things have been upgraded, but I think I can bring it online.
I flip the starter switch, and the dash lights up. It confirms one engine is down. But it still has three left and five hover thrusters.
“Radar, come!” We are going to sleep somewhere dry tonight.
But instead of his little feet rustling through the gravel, I hear him growl.
Looking up the slope, I see claws reach through the opening in the tunnel and a large, dark creature squeezing out. He’s covered in spiny fur, shaped like something reminiscent of a werewolf and rabid porcupine. He roars with ferociousness that terrifies me.
He can’t seriously be that upset over palladium.
When he charges at Radar, I draw my gun and switch it to the few lead rounds I have. “Radar, heel!”
As Radar backs toward me then sprints down the gravel slope, I fire everything I have at the creature.
I hold the hatch open. “Inside!”
Radar jumps in. I keep firing as I climb in with him and pull the hatch closed.
It latches and hums as I bring the engines’ jump coils online. The monster closes in. I kick on the thrusters I have, don’t bother belting in, and max the throttle.
The pod shudders and begins to move. Claws scrape over the glass. And finally, we shoot out of the hillside and careen upward, through tree tops.
I can’t see if he’s still with us, so I circle back much higher in the sky.
He paces the hole where the ship was, sniffing. For what, I don’t know.
I steady Radar between my boots, strap myself in, and fly us away from the town and the crash sites. I’ve had enough action for today.
I land us in the soft light of dusk near a small creek in the distant mountains. I will have to fix the pod before our trip into town for food and fuel. But it will serve us well tonight.
After a meal of canned beans cooked over a campfire, and some toasted bread, I let Radar have the last of the jerky.
“You know, I love you. Right, buddy?”
He leans against my back and watches the perimeter of our camp. Radar makes a mouthy noise like he’s trying to talk.
Thinking of the monster makes me realize it might be time to do the one thing I hoped I’d never have to do. I think General Viriden needs to know what I saw, in case we don’t live much longer with that thing hunting us.
I dig through my pack and find my Isonian com, my mother’s last gift to me. I charge it every chance I get. But when I turn it on, I only have fifteen percent left. Still, I call. If nothing else, I can leave a message.
General Viriden’s glowing face shows up on my screen, but it’s difficult to focus on him with how bright his skin is. “Who is this? How did you get this com link?”
“General, I am Tessi, daughter of Sergeant Shior. She met you on a mission in deep space, beyond Alpha Prime. My father was…”
“A Master Sergeant, first name Leos.”
I nod, relieved he recognizes them. “She gave me this com in case there was ever serious trouble with the Nebs on Earth. It was the only duty she gave me before she died.”
He glances around him and then moves into a different room. “I apologize for how I answered. It has been a long time. What’s happened?”
“I just encountered Neb debris on Earth. I have no one left. Just you.” I pull the panel out of my armor and show it to him. “And I just had a Myndrous chase my dog. He wanted my palladium.”
“I am sorry for your loss. Are you and your dog okay?”
“Fine. But I don’t have a lot of battery left on this thing. I didn’t want to bother you, but you’re literally the only person I trust not to hunt me down and take what little we have left. But I also feel like someone needs to know.”
“You’re certain it was a Myndrous?”
“Tall, built like a wicked blend of a Mindoran and a Nebulous with some augmentations.”
“Eyes?”
“Yes.”
He hums a low note. “The pairing seems compatible but most of the Nebulous who take Mindorans do not produce strong offspring. They need augments to function as their emperor expects. That is concerning that they have found their way to Earth.”
“There were at least four.”
“Okay. Do you have somewhere safe to stay tonight?”
“An escape pod.”
“That should hold. But you need to find something more permanent.”
Should? I don’t like the sound of that.
“Yeah, I’m getting tired of almost dying every day. I just don’t have any other contacts. No other way to survive.”
General Viriden moves into a dark corner. “You need to find someone to protect you. Once those Myndrous catch your scent, they will hunt you until you are either dead or, for females, carrying their pups.”
“Ew.”
“They are not the most intelligent or respectful creatures.” General Viriden grimaces. “I will alert Earth’s authorities that a contact of mine has discovered them. What colony are you near?”
“Halfhaven.”
He nods. “Okay. Best get inside.”
A growling howl echoes through the woods.
Radar picks his head up.
General Viriden grunts a note of disgust. “Definitely Myndrous. Get yourself somewhere safer, Tessi. Until we can get them in custody, you are going to be safer with permanent security.”
“I can’t afford that.”
“Then maybe look into the Alien Bride Race. It connects protectors looking for mates with…”
I frown. “Women who need an escape from a shitty life. I know.”
“I have some friends who met there. They are very happy.”
“I appreciate the pep talk. But I better go so I can save battery. Thanks for getting the word out. I’ve tried to talk to police in town and even the military. But unless I already carry a rank, they don’t care what I found. They think I’m a crazy alien fanatic. So I just stay out of the way.”
“Shior was too smart to raise a quitter.” He eyes my armor. “Anyone who can stitch in anti-Neb boning into the collar of their armor knows a thing or two about surviving.”
If only he knew the reason why. “Myndrous aren’t the only monsters here. Some humans are pretty awful.” Like Carielle.
“Your mother was highly respected among our people. They both were. Stay in touch, Tessi. I can’t move our fleet right now, but I will look into getting you an escort. I want to help in any way I can. And maybe someday, I will tell you about them.”
“Thanks. I’d like that.”
I close the com, douse the fire, then pack everything into the pod.
Once Radar is loaded, I hover us up and over the mountain range, far enough that I don’t think the Myndrous will be able to follow.
At least not in one night. After a scan of the area, I set us down, and shut off the pod.
The back of it has benches, so I take one, and Radar jumps onto the other.
“At least we have a solid roof tonight.” Our luck proves even better as the pitter-patter of rain on the hull greets my ears.
It is the safest I have felt in a long time, and yet I can’t sleep. I keep thinking about Carielle shooting at me and how Falgus and Reji want a threesome. Now this Myndrous either wants me dead or to carry his pups.
Gross and weird.
My body finally relaxes, and all the bumps and bruises of the day complain with more force. I have a cut on my arm I didn’t know about, and a bloodied scrape on my cheek and shoulder that makes them feel like they’re on fire.
But it wasn’t the tumble down the cliff that scared me most. It was seeing the Myndrous charging Radar. I reach across and stroke his head, lingering on the softness of his fur, the warmth of him, and his loyalty.
Why can’t more people be like dogs?
He is my world now. And I’ll do anything to keep him safe.
Even…maybe…looking into the Alien Bride Race.