Kate
I’m on an alien planet. A world probably a hundred light years from the shitty little studio apartment I called home. I’d really love the opportunity to explore and take in my surroundings, but Da’vi and Rennek basically informed us there is a good chance we could all die in some uber explosion if the ship crashes. So, we have been hauling ass trying to get as far away as possible from the landing site.
From what I’ve seen so far, this planet has many qualities that are very Earth-like. There are meadows, grasses, trees, rocks. The plants, however similar to their Earth counterparts, are still like nothing I have ever seen before. Back in the meadow there were these long curling flower stems, that towered above me, covered in bell shaped buds in just about every shade of purple imaginable. The palest were so light they were almost white with the slightest bit of lavender mixed in. They were utterly amazing.
I’m most excited to enter the forest ahead of us though. The trees fan out like an oak does, but look bigger than a sequoia. The branches twist and curl, reaching out as wide as the trees are tall. These would make perfect climbing trees if the next set of branches were just a little closer to the ones below them. I appraise the distance. Rennek could do it, I think to myself. Especially with those killer claws of his, he could just take to the trees and build a whole city spanning across the branches, I bet.
We are just about to enter the tree line when we hear a hooting noise. Rennek and Da’vi pause and look at one another. Farther, in the distance, we hear another series of hoots in reply. The guys look a little wary at this, but we continue on regardless.
Very quickly the sprawling branches from the trees block any clear path on the ground.
“What now,” I ask.
“We go up,” Rennek tells me. He hops up onto a limb and turns to grab my hand, effortlessly hoisting me up with his muscular arms. Up in the limbs of the tree I start to get a better picture of the forest around me. Even though I’m only a few feet off the ground I feel like I have a whole different perspective. Branches from trees intertwine and spread out as far as the eye can see in all directions, vertically and horizontally. In most places, the canopy of the trees high above completely blocks out any view of the sky. I get a little vertigo as I look up. These trees are like skyscrapers.
“We must keep moving,” Rennek says, pulling me away from my moment of awe.
“It’s beautiful here. Your people chose an amazing planet,” I tell him as I follow his steps over the wide and winding branches.
“My thoughts are the same. There is so much to explore and discover,” he says and the excitement in his voice is clear.
“It is exciting,” I beam at him and I’m rewarded with that cocky grin of his.
“Exciting and dangerous,” Da’vi chimes in. “Listen to the sounds of the forest. Learn them. Pay close attention to the absence of the sounds you are familiar with. Silence means danger.”
“Why would silence mean danger?” I question.
“It means something scared everything else away,” Allison says.
Gulp.
“Also, be careful to watch your surroundings closely. Many creatures have camouflage and will strike out if you accidentally disturb them,” he adds. “It is easy to focus on a larger predator and miss the smaller poisonous insect that is right under your nose.”
“Great. Great, great, great,” I murmur, my mind now on poisonous alien bugs.
“You have no reason to fear, my Kate. I will always protect you,” Rennek assures me solemnly. I feel some of the tension dissipate instantly. I believe he will always protect me. I look up at him like a lovesick teenager and I see his eyes twinkle in response, like he can read my thoughts and I blush wildly.
“Did you say we have some place we’re headed,” Allison interrupts.
“If we continue to follow this slope, there should be a rocky mountaintop whose peak rises above the trees. If we can make it there we will have some protection if a blast occurs, as well as a visual of the valley,” Rennek explains.
“Let’s do it then,” Allison says and we all continue on, walking along the massive branches of the trees. The path they create is like a labyrinth. Every so often we need to ascend to a higher level to maintain our course. The branches are a good four to six feet wide in most places, so I’m not too worried about falling off, but I’m also not trying to look down either. I watch the vines spiraling up the trees instead, making sure there aren’t any crazy spiders or poisonous lizards or anything.
Finally, we get to a point where the mountain juts up into the trees. The rocks pushing up out of the ground remind me of the wild formations out in the Joshua Tree National Forest, only these are covered in moss and have ferns bursting from any and every available crack in the stone. This is definitely more of a rainforest climate--there is certainly no shortage of greenery here.
We follow a branch that leans against the rocky mountain. It appears we now have only a short climb before we reach our stopping point. Rennek sends Da’vi up first and instructs Allison and I to watch his foot and handholds, so we can mimic them when we make our ascents. Rennek remains behind to catch us if we fall. The climb isn’t actually that strenuous at all, Rennek is just being overprotective---which is totally fine with me in this scenario. We quickly make it up to a small plateau without any issue.
Once all four of us are up, we finally have a moment to take in the view. For the first time in my life I feel like I really get why people say something takes their breath away. This world is incredible. The forest seems to go on forever, rolling with the hills and mountains like an ocean before us. Puffy white clouds accumulate high in the sky and mist hangs like a veil in the valleys. Farther still, there is a mountain range so tall that fades into the clouds. The peaks spike up from the ground like spears. I count at least six waterfalls disappearing down into the greenery below. As a matter of fact, I think I can hear the sound of rushing water. There is likely another fall somewhere nearby us.
“Look,” Allison points out in another direction. “Is that an ocean?” She squints. We all look where she indicates.
“I think you’re right, it looks like there are some islands along the coast,” I agree.
Just then, a loud noise breaks through the peaceful scenery. It’s like a screech and a witch’s cackle had a baby… an ugly baby. I jump about ten feet in reaction to the horrific noise. The men burst into their warrior stances, but we quickly find the culprit receding farther and farther away in the distance. It is a large black bird. The size reminds me of something you would expect from Jurassic Park, but it is covered in drooping black feathers. It looks more like a muppet than a dinosaur to me. We see it join three more birds just like it.
“That was the most awful sound I’ve ever heard,” Allison says.
“Right?! That scared the shit out of me,” I exclaim.
“Quiet,” Da’vi reprimands Allison and I, “we do not know if they are birds of prey. It would be unwise to call their attention to us.” Allison nods, unfazed by his harsh tone.
“I will check in with Dax now,” Rennek announces. We turn our attention back the direction we came. I see the meadow in the valley below and am surprised at how far we came in such a short time. I mean, it wasn’t easy getting all the way up here, but the valley seems much farther below us than I expected. The pod looks like nothing more than a tiny white dot.
I also notice that in this direction the sky is clear and the flora changes significantly. I think I can see a herd of something in an open meadow, but it is too far away to be sure.
“Report your status Dax,” I hear Rennek saying into the personal comm unit he carries with him.
“We need to move in on a landing now boss. We have lost hull integrity in a few areas of the ship and had to put air locks on the doors. Luckily, they were all non-crucial locations, but I want to get this over with before she falls apart on us, if that is alright with you,” comes Dax’s voice from the comm.
“Transmit projected landing path, we are ready when you are,” Rennek tells him.
“This way,” Da’vi calls and I see him waving to Allison and myself. We make our way over, but my attention is on Rennek. We round a rock formation and once on the other side I see that Da’vi has found something like a small cave… or more like a large hole between some rocks.
“This will shield us from a blast,” he tells us. Allison squeezes in without hesitation.
“I’ll wait with Rennek,” I tell them, but before I can make my way over to him there is a noise like a sonic boom.
“There!” I hear Rennek yell.
I shield my eyes and follow his line of sight. I see the ship hurdling through the air, tiny at first but growing larger by the second. A trail of smoke follows it. Something snaps off and goes spiraling behind the ship. Actually, I see a series of somethings break off. The first of which falls into the ocean--I can see a great white splash shoot up from the water. It’s obvious they are going to overshoot the meadow, just as I realize this I see debris from the ship raining down on the place where we parked our only means of leaving this planet. The little black dots of the herd in the distance turn and dust kicks up as they make their escape.
“Take cover,” Rennek shouts, his eyes fix on a point behind me. He is talking to Da’vi, who grabs me like a rag doll, dragging me back to shove me into the hiding space. I don’t fight him, but keep my eyes on the ship as long as I can as he pulls me along. The last thing I see is the massive ship skimming the rocky top of a mountain before Da’vi pushes me into the hole and uses his body to shield Allison and myself.
My mind is reeling, I can’t think straight enough to worry in specifics… about Rennek, about myself, about everyone on the ship. My heart pounds and my mind is blank, save for fear. This is how a rabbit must feel when cornered. I expect us to be engulfed by an atomic blast, but silence stretches on. I blink a few times as my heart starts to relax a bit, and then I hear it. The chirp of the comm unit. We pile out of the crevice in the rock.
“Whooo!” comes an ecstatic holler from the other end of the line. It’s Dax. “I won’t leave you in suspense my friends, we are all alive and well!”
“Thank the Goddesses Dax,” Rennek exhales.
“There is some bad news though, Captain.” I hear Dax say through the excited cheering and chattering going on over on his end.
“What is the bad news?” Rennek asks.
“The ship is dead. Zero power, no control to any of the systems. I will not know if we can get things running again until Bossan has a chance to poke around. Also, I believe we have landed in a swamp.”
“Can you transmit your coordinates through the personal comm units?” Rennek asks.
“Yes sir, those are independent systems and are still functioning fine. Sending them now,” Dax replies. There is the telltale beep of an incoming message. Rennek studies the information on his unit.
“Does the swamp pose any immediate threat to you or the ship?”
“The water is not so deep that we will sink. Tennir and Kellen are doing manual scans of the area now, but it is likely our landing caused any nearby creatures to scatter,” he tells us. “There are significant ruptures to the exterior of the ship, but if any predators become curious enough to poke around, we have blasters.”
“Would you like our assistance?” Rennek asks.
“Honestly Captain, although there is much work to do here, there are more than enough able bodies to do it. I suggest you and the others continue with your goal and we can rendezvous at a later time. If the situation changes we can always communicate via the comms,” comes Dax’s easy voice.
“That is true, however, we will be more than a rotation’s journey from you. If you are in danger it will take time for us to return to you for backup,” Rennek challenges.
“We are eight bodies strong, we have blasters as well as the safety of the ship. It is more likely that you will call us in need of assistance,” Dax laughs. Rennek looks at us with appraising eyes.
“Somehow, I think that will not be necessary,” he shoots me that gorgeous cocky smile and flicks his untamed black hair. I eye his wide, muscular shoulders and the V of his hips. I think we’ll be just fine too.
“It is agreed upon then, my friend. We will proceed to the beacon, scouting the surrounding areas as much as possible. Safety checks at sunrise and sunset,” Rennek tells him.
“Yes sir. Good luck, my brother!” Dax says cheerfully.
“May the goddesses be with you,” Rennek replies before turning back to our group. He paces in front of us, like a jungle cat. His eyes are wild and full of amusement in a way I have never seen before.
“Are you ready brother?” He bounces a little in place and takes a couple playful swings at Da’vi, who blocks him methodically.
“I am ready for anything, Captain.” Da’vi responds.
“And you, my mate?” Rennek stills and looks at me intensely, waiting for my reply.
“Like the man said, I’m ready for anything, Captain,” I give my best salute and Rennek scoops me up, laughing heartily. It’s exhilarating seeing him like this, so easy and playful. I can’t help but laugh along with him.
“Allison, my sour friend? What about you?” He asks, nodding to said sour friend.
“I was born ready,” she says, unaffected by the barb.
“Good! Because now our adventure begins!” he bellows.
“What the hell have we been doing up until this point…” Allison mutters as she walks away. Rennek doesn’t hear her though, he’s too busy nuzzling into my neck and giving me kisses that are almost a bit too sultry for company. I don’t know what has gotten into him, but I’m going to go on the record here and say that I like it.