Space Hoppers - Dance of the Guinea Pigs Page 11

  “Left or right?” asked Xander. Sarah stared ahead in a confusion of indecision. “We have to choose soon or we’ll end up going through the scrub… I really think you should slow down now… SARAH, FOR LIGHT’S SAKE SLOW DOWN … or of course you could go through the scrub. Naturally you arethe driver but considering that YOU’VE LOST ALL NORMALSENSE OF DIRECTION I’M GOING TO TAKETHE CONTROLS NOW… nice doggy…”

  A small huddle of crew members were monitoring the bus’s progress on the screen and were watching mesmerised as the bus on the planet appeared to be moving in inexplicably random patterns. Garth, having been let out of Med-crew on their controlled day release programme, was attempting to map their movements. He conscientiously circled the rocks they appeared to be avoiding, and then, slowly drew a line from left to right going around the circle and then another above it. Garth, now oblivious to the bus’s movements shown on the screen behind him, was finding the exercise extremely restful.

  He didn’t know why but he felt it would be better if he was drawing it in sand.

  Garet gently prised Sarah’s fingers away from the controls and moved the bus upwards into orbit. Behind him they were trying to work out what had happened.

  Xander brought out his checklist. “Right, so, we all showered and put on the special suits, right?” The team nodded. Xander rummaged around for a pen and crossed it off his list.

  “Apart from Monty, no one removed the suit, did they?” He crossed that off.

  “Everyone was careful about meals and contents of drinking flasks – yes? OK, good.” Another line was marked off. “I really don’t know what happened then. It’s not as though anyone was actually at the site where the eruption started, is it?” The crew shook their heads.

  “Um,” Sarah looked at Monty

  “Yes?”

  “Monty ran out of the bushes from that general direction.”

  “Did he have anything with him?”

  “Only my sandwich.”

  “And that was it?”

  “Yes.”

  “You were given the regulation sandwiches?”

  “I was.” Xander breathed a sigh of relief. “But they looked pretty disgusting though, didn’t they? Monty’s quite fussy, it’s probably why he pinched my cheese sandwich…” She trailed off as she saw the expressions of the crew. “What?”

  “You took a cheese sandwich down to a LIP?” Xander’s voice was soft.

  A cold feeling of dread flushed over her. “Is there something wrong with that?”

  “Can’t you figure it out?”

  “Obviously I had a shower this morning, I used the suit you gave me until it ripped, and I took that grey stodge down with me. No, I can’t see what’s wrong with taking the sandwich down with me; no one said there couldn’t be a choice. I would’ve eaten it if Monty hadn’t grabbed it and run off. Good job he moves fast though, because he must have been right at the area where the volcano started... Oh.”

  Xander sat back and closed his eyes waiting for the red mist to go away. “You took a cheese sandwich to a LIP,” he repeated. “I can’t believe you did that. You took cheese to a Lactose Intolerant Planet. Unbelievable.”

  Sarah turned beetroot with embarrassment. “Is there some kind of briefing note that no one tells me about?”

  The crew were silent for the remainder of the trip up to the ship and even Monty was strangely subdued. Xander hadn’t opened his eyes yet and appeared to be concentrating on deep breathing. Occasionally he would pinch the bridge of his nose.

  When the doors opened Brelt fled as quickly as possible, leaving Garet who was locking down the bus, Xander who hadn’t moved and Sarah. Garet flicked the final switch of the controls and waved a tentacle towards Sarah. “How d’you fancy going to the crew lounge for a bit to unwind?”

  Xander’s eyes shot open and he glared at them. “If you’re both planning on leaving your pods over the next forty-eight hours I want you to swear that you’ll both stay sober and keep out of trouble. Understood?”

  “Don’t worry,” muttered Sarah, “I’ll just sit in my pod facing the wall until we land on Kaor.”

  “Good.”

  Garet hooked a tentacle around her shoulder and led her out of the landing bay. “He’s a little stressed right now, best just to leave him where he is. I’ll meet you at your pod in an hour and we’ll find somewhere comfortable to stay out of trouble in. After all, what else could possibly happen now?”

  “You really shouldn’t say things like that, you know, that’s just tempting fate.”

  Eventually, when Xander felt calm enough, he too left the bay and shut the inner door.

  His pod was opposite the landing bay and he paused, considering whether a game of Slider might relax him. He looked at his watch, no time.

  Xander returned to his pod and locked the door behind him before pulling the black-out screens down over the windows. He needed privacy for what he was going to do next. From his neck he pulled out a key on a chain and taking it off over his head moved to a long chest that he kept in a corner of the lounge and unlocked it. The heavy lid moved back and he unwrapped its contents, reverently. The sword underneath was old, at some stage there had been markings or runes down the blade but their outlines were lost to time. The blade was sharp but this was not a sword to use in battle. Xander took hold of the hilt, testing its weight and imagined, as always, how the first owner felt when he was entrusted with it. He knew that in legends weapons were gifted with names and folklore would grow up around them. This was not such a weapon. To give such a sword the premise of life would be dangerous.

  He watched the seconds count down on his clock and then moved over to the pink crystals on the table. Using both hands on the hilt to keep it steady, he touched them with the tip of the blade. Pink light exploded into the pod.

  Around the table he could now make out the faint outline of others in identical positions. As the pink light faded the pod around him dimmed and he could see the others clearly. As they had all touched the mineral simultaneously their swords had acted as keys and they opened another dimension. Without severing the link between their sword and the crystal, they laid their weapons down on the table and stood back in a circle, swathed in pink against the darkness. One place had been left empty.

  A tall man with clipped grey hair and piercing green eyes spoke first. “News of a development has come to my attention and I offer it to the circle. Seeker Lucas was killed yesterday in an ambush on the Flenen planet. It appears that there was a strong Pirate presence, the size of which they were not prepared for. I believe Seeker San-tay wishes to add to this?”

  “Thank you Seeker Darlon. There was an attack on a planet in sector two-five-eight that has been reported as unusual. Apparently, a significant amount of the planet was covered in darkness and when it left, everything under it had been burned.” Seeker San-tay paused and closed her eyes. “Everything. Buildings, animals, people, children. Everything.”

  Xander spoke. “We were recently involved in a Pirate ambush. We thought we were going to help a ship but when we got there a fleet was waiting for us. We took a slug hole to escape and ended in sector two-five-eight. The Visitors that gathered for Wave Three were separated by the ship when we retreated before we were able to have the Gathering, leaving only two on my section. One, a Cadovoan, was killed when our Engine room was sabotaged, he was with the other Visitor at the time.”

  “We were aware of the death of Sornath and mourn his loss. Sadly the Cadovoan Council have closed ranks and are refusing to discuss the way forward but they tell me that all things happen at the time they are meant to and hold no anger towards yourself or your crew,” said Seeker Darlon.

  Xander continued, “I have no proof but I feel that there is something happening. I gave the location of the Gathering to no one, it wasn’t even shared with our Council but the Pirates still found us. If the Council wishes I will submit to testing on my return if there is any question of my involvement in the ambush.”

  Seek
er Darlon held up his hand. “There is no need for that, no one here doubts your integrity. There have been many such attacks and it is possible that you were merely unfortunate.”

  “Thank you. There is also the question of the remaining Visitor, a female Earthling. The Cadovoan passed on some of his life-force to her but she seems to have experienced no effects of this as yet although she appears to have a knack of getting into difficult situations.”

  Seeker Darlon smiled. “If Sornath made the pass then she must indeed be worthy of monitoring and she may be of use to us later. Whatever situation may arise, while she is on your ship, you are hereby tasked to protect her until you arrive at Kaor.” Xander bowed.

  Another man, wearing combat fatigues, spoke. “I arrived back on my planet last week, if we had not finished our mission I believe that the crew would have mutinied. They’re a good crew, loyal and I never had any problems before but they got the idea that the ship was haunted. They started to talk about dark areas where there shouldn’t have been any; some would swear that they saw their shadows lengthen even though there was no change in light. In the end it turned into a mass hysteria and when the ship docked they were fighting each other to get off.”

  Seeker Darlon raised his arms. “Such events are happening with increasing regularity, and clearly we can’t dismiss them. The Lights Academy has reason to believe that the Pirates have managed to harness technology to manipulate slug holes, which will make monitoring their movements unreliable. We are working on replicating this but in the meantime we must be alert and keep our faith. Travel with Light.” He reached forward and lifted his sword, severing the link and disappearing from view. One by one the others also removed their swords and the connection was broken.

  Sarah lay in bed and absently rubbed at her leg again. Under the duvet in the dark her fingers massaged the area around the ache and found the skin silky smooth and cool to the touch. The exact spot where the ache came from was like ice. She tried to think back to all the scraps of first aid she had been told; didn’t skin get warm when there was an infection? The ache seemed to come from deep within her leg rather than the skin. Did muscles get cold when they were strained? Was that why people put hot water bottles on muscle injuries? Sleep was making her fuzzy-headed and her mind drifted over to Monty’s snores in the corner. That was it then, muscle strain.

  She pressed her head against the soft pillow. Footsteps could be heard in the hallway and there was a gentle tapping. She swung her feet off the bed and onto the floor and walked over to the door.

  Garet, wearing freshly pressed Hawaiian shirt, was bouncing up and down. “Ready?”

  “Do you mind it I sit this one out, Garet? I’m feeling really tired and I don’t think drinking is a good idea with my headache.”

  “Are you sure? Fon knows the best cocktails for every occasion. My personal recommendation would be that you start with a Blue Day, go straight to a Drug Store, take a Painkiller and end up having a Festival. By then whatever your problem was you won’t be able to remember it anyway!”

  “It sounds… like an experience, but no, really, I’m shattered.”

  “OK, no problem. Sleep well and I’ll see you in the morning.” Garet headed off.

  As the door closed she looked at the clock on her wall. It was getting late and she guessed that Xander probably didn’t want to meet up with her now after what had happened on the planet.

  The headache she had been experiencing since the engine room incident returned with a vengeance and forced her to her knees. What felt like an ice pick was being rammed into the centre of her brain and demanding attention. The effort of ignoring it caused beads of perspiration to form and her vision to blur. Slowly, trying to move her head as little as possible, she crawled back into bed.

  As the ice pick stabbed again she sobbed, “I can’t do this any more, I can’t cope with all this.” Instantly the pain went. Sarah slowly opened her eyes; her head felt as though she’d had nothing more strenuous than a good night’s sleep.

  “Is someone listening to me?” The ice pick returned and Sarah doubled over. “Stop that, it hurts!” The pain dimmed.

  “What if I don’t want to talk to you?” Pulling the covers up, Sarah had given up on reason. She had a headache that wanted a conversation and after what she had already gone through she saw no reason to be logical at all. The pain subsided a little more. “If I talk to you will you stop hurting me?” The pain stopped. How did you have a conversation with a headache? “Was there anything in particular you wanted to discuss?” She felt a wave of warmth envelope her, for no more than a few seconds but it was long enough for her to recognise. “Sornath?”

  Again a wave of warmth circled her, cradling her with its comfort. She felt herself relax.

  “Is this what Xander was talking about?” she whispered. “Is this the handover?”

  There was silence. Monty, alert but unmoving was watching her.

  “Am I supposed to do something?”

  Again silence.

  Sarah curled up into a ball. The headache returned but only very mildly and she let her mind go towards the pain in her head. She felt herself following the point and concentrated on it, burying herself further and further until she was no longer conscious of her body or the surroundings around her. The sensation of pain faded as she concentrated deeper and suddenly she could feel cold stone tiles beneath her hands and her cheek. A summer breeze was drifting from somewhere to her left.

  Welcome.

  Sarah opened her eyes, lifted herself up carefully and looked around. She was on top of a hill on a sunny day; two moons sitting close to each other seemed to hang in the sky opposite the sun. The hillside curved gracefully away to green lands, untouched by farming, which in turn drew the eyes upwards to towering mountains capped with snow. Sarah was standing in the middle of a black-tiled circle. Ten hooded Cadovoans stood on the edge of the circle and when they spoke, they spoke as one.

  Welcome.

  A warm glow flooded her being, filling her with a sense of comfort and love. It was impossible to feel fear, only a sense of wonderment.

  We will show you what you cannot see.

  “I’m sorry, I don’t understand. Where am I?”

  You have been given a gift and we will help you to find it.

  Sarah looked around at her surroundings. “Is this about Sornath? I’m very sorry, I did everything I could.”

  Yes, we know. Although she could not see their faces she sensed that the Cadovoans were not judging her. There is much for you to learn and too little time to learn it in. We will show you what you cannot see.

  “Please,” Sarah felt her mind race. “It’s not that I’m not grateful, because I am, really. Xander mentioned something about Sornath passing over some of his life-force and I’m not completely sure that I’m ready for that right now. There’s just been so much to take in. It probably sounds pathetic but what if my Earth body can’t cope?”

  Nothing is ever lost if it is kept in the heart.

  “That doesn’t help me if my heart’s not beating, does it!”

  The handover must be completed at this time. You will not be harmed. When it is time we will guide you.

  “Guide me to what?”

  Without any more discussion Sarah felt herself lifted up by an unseen force so that she was hovering over the tiles, the breeze picked up strength and her hair was whipped behind her. The Cadovoans raised their cloaked claws to touch their neighbours’ until they formed a connected circle. Clouds raced from behind the mountains and Sarah could see arrows of lightning shoot down while the thunder eclipsed the chanting of the ten Cadovoans. Rain dashed outside the circle. Sarah was lifted higher, her arms were flung backwards from the force and as her head flew back she screamed. The pelting drops lashed her body and she struggled to dismiss the knowledge that the Cadovoans were showing her. She rejected time and time again the simple gift that they offered her, knowing that it was what she should accept but turning away from it as it was
too big, too huge for her to grasp. Time lost meaning as she was bombarded with information.

  Eventually there was silence and she sunk down to the ground, her wet hair stuck to her face, gasping for breath.

  “I can’t do what you do. I didn’t realise that mind-touch could be so physical!

  You will not be alone, as Cadovoan’s we are as one.

  “But I’m human!”

  Yes, and we also welcome you as a Cadovoan. When it is time we will guide you, until then we will leave you to come to terms with this truth.

  “I am human. I was abducted by aliens. I have a pet called Monty. These are my truths.”

  You no longer need those simple beliefs.

  “I am not capable of doing this.”

  Yes, you are.

  No, I am not.

  The handover was complete.

  Six

  Mornings were always a busy time for engineering. Just before dawn was generally the preferred time for crew to call through with problems. However, on this morning the intercom for the crew had been switched off. Out of the three engine rooms only one was functioning at full capacity and Booker had insisted that they refuel or he would not be held accountable for the consequences.

  The orbs had been mended as much as was possible and now needed filling with electricity. According to their data files they were in the vicinity of a planet that was perfect for their requirements.

  Booker took his note pad out of his backpack and tossed it onto a table which promptly broke under the weight. The engineer sighed, bent down, opened the book and wrote “fix table”. He picked up the notepad, put it in his rucksack and moved off.