Six
I thought it was hot back on earth in sticky Alabama, but even the sweet Alabama summer has nothing on this heat. I push through a palm tree of thick yellow leaves, feet dragging behind me as I follow Vax. My bodysuit is doing little against the blazing sun. I want out.
“This place is hell!” I shout to him. He turns back briefly to look at me but carries on walking, black staff clenched between both his hands. He stops every fifteen minutes or so to check the signal position on his chrome glove. The heat of the yellow alien jungle has made me tired and moody. I’m stropping around like a petulant toddler. To hell with this alien man for abducting me.
“Shut up or you’ll get us both killed,” he says without looking back at me. “There’s no telling if the Horkax are in this area or not. There’s a good chance they haven’t found the crash site for the Riga ship, but if a fleet-ship is here it means they’re definitely looking for it. If the Riga crew survived the crash, it’s crucial we get to them before the Horkax do.”
“Wouldn’t they have heard the Riga distress signal?” I ask.
“No,” he says. “It was broadcast on a special network only available to ally ships.”
Vax talks in his oh-so-serious voice and I pull faces behind him, loathing every step I have to take in this alien hell hole. It’s not enough that it’s hot as sin, but Monroe’s stasis shot seems to have done jack squat, because I’m horny as fuck again and the only thing on my mind is sex.
My boots crunch across the floor of the alien jungle. Bizarre insects sing an alien chorus. It’s hot. Too hot. “You might have more fun if you lighten up once in a while, you know that?”
Mr. Serious shoots me back another look and I roll my eyes. “The Horkax are brilliant at getting information out of prisoners. If they find the Riga-ship before we do it could put this entire war at a disadvantage. The Riga used to be close allies to Argonia until very recently.”
My ears pick up slightly at this. “You mentioned that earlier. What happened?”
“A lot of boring alien politics,” Vax says. “Our civilizations have been allies for many centuries and become somewhat codependent. The Riga are more intellectually suited, and we help to keep them safe. Though we are different we are also very similar, we are both head strong, and that has led to many arguments over the years. Argonia was the first race to find earth, and we instantly knew it was a treasure that needed to be protected. The Riga helped us to hide it.”
“Why?”
We clamber over a fallen tree and carry on. “Why? Because earth is precious, but you are also very naïve. You’ve been punching radio signals into outer space for the last hundred years. Argonia were the first to pick them up. It is lucky we found the signal first and not someone else.”
I think of the image of earth scorched with fire and question Vax’s definition of lucky. “Didn’t end that well in the end though.”
He shakes his head. “No, it didn’t, and it was because of the fighting between Argonia and the Riga. It’s hard to explain, but our leader, Raka, basically told the leader of the Riga that we didn’t need them. This was after the Riga leader had spent many months claiming that Argonians were stupid and good for nothing. After Raka’s comment the Riga leader disabled their cloaking technology keeping earth hidden, broadcasting its position for everyone to find.”
“That seems incredibly immature,” I say.
“It was a moment of poor judgement, but the Riga leader got what she wanted. Raka rescinded his claim. Unfortunately for Earth your position had just been broadcast to any civilization that might be listening. Your radio signals had reached the galactic border and were game for anyone that might be listening. The shields were only down for a brief minute, but it was enough for people to take notice. It just so happens that the Horkax were the ones to come running. Of all the races I know, they might just be the worst.”
We walk in silence for a good while after this. We pass ancient jungle ruins, a lake of pure white water. Vax lets us take a brief break underneath a white waterfall that is pleasantly cool. We eat rations that he brought along from the ship. A green bread of some sort is on the menu and it has the consistency of plastic. Not the greatest meal I’ve ever had.
“You don’t like the food?” Vax asks, happily chomping down on his own rations.
“Was it that obvious? It’s a little different than what I’m used to.”
“There is a carbon atomizer on the ship. When we get back we can configure it to make food that is more to your liking. It can read thought inputs and replicate them.”
I stop chewing and go doe-eyed at the thought. A machine that can make any food I think of? Bring me ten tubs of Ben and Jerry’s. Bring me a dish of Granny Denzel’s homemade lasagna. Bring me chocolate! “That’s just given me the strength to carry on.” I throw the rest of my green bread into the white lake in front of us, stand and brush crumbs off my suit.
Something moves in the corner of my eye and I see a small monkey-like creature, with purple fur and an orange mane. The small creature is about ten yards from me and is staring at the both of us with large black eyes.
“That thing is adorable!” I say.
“Keep away from it,” Vax warns. “There’s no telling if it’s hostile or not.”
I take heed of Vax’s warning and simply watch the purple monkey while Vax finishes eating. The monkey scurries back and forth across the dirt, keeping its distance but also inching closer as its trust grows. It forages berries from the floor, stops to play on a tree stump, and chases a butterfly across the dirt. “I want to take this little guy home,” I say to Vax. “How can you not love this?”
“There are plenty of food supplies back on the ship,” Vax says. “We don’t need any more.”
“Not to eat, you idiot. As a pet. Don’t you think he’s cute? Look!”
I point at the monkey who is now on his back, rolling around in the dirt while chewing on a stick. “I think I’ll call him Punky. Punky the monkey.”
“You will do on such thing because we are not keeping it. I already told you we have—”
A distant roar echoes through the jungle air and Vax jumps to his feet, immediately picking up his staff. We both stand in silence, looking about to see if more sounds follow. It’s deathly quiet, and all wildlife seems to have silenced. After a few seconds the insects start their chorus again. “What the heck was that?”
“I’m not sure,” Vax says as he packs up our things. “But we should get going again. It’s already taking longer than I wanted to find the site. It will be dark soon.”
I look around and see Punky as he emerges from behind a tree. The sound seemed to have scared him just as much. I notice he’s holding two red seed pods in his hands. The jungle floor is covered in them. I walk over to him and crouch, maybe ten yards in front of him. “What you got there Punky? You going to eat them?”
I pick up an identical seed pod off the jungle floor and turn it over in my hands. It’s hard, and it doesn’t look that appetizing. The tough exterior might not be a problem for a wild monkey, but Punky doesn’t seem too interested in eating them. He looks around just as Vax and I did a moment earlier and drops the pods back onto the jungle floor. He quickly resumes his routine of play, scrambling up a tree and plucking a green fruit from one of its branches.
“Come,” Vax says. I turn around and see he’s packed up and ready to resume his expedition. I shove the red seed pod into my suit and follow him. We quickly resume our trek, with Vax stopping every now and then to check the signal. All the while I’m thinking about the current situation. Where was Vax taking me?
“Your people want you to run and hide with me, don’t they?” I ask.
“How did you know?” he says.
“Lucky guess. You suggested that human females are important for Argonia survival. If there was an attack it would make sense to protect those things and run.”
“That’s right,” Vax says. “The first Horkax invasion failed, but they will send another wave. The mothership was damaged quite badly, and I’m not sure it will survive the second attack. Our leaders made a decision in that moment. All assigned Argonian mates were to travel down to the surface and take their mates. After that we are to flee as far as we can, to avoid Horkax detection. If the mothership dies the majority of my people die. If a few of us can escape there might be hope.”
All in all, we were now two races, trying to survive against a tide of death. Vax might be the last Argonian man in the near future, and I might be the last earth female. The prospect felt heavy and surreal. “How many other mates were there? Where did they go?”
“I don’t know,” Vax says, shaking his head with some sadness. “An Argonian named Guran Polax was the census keeper for Project Phoenix. I’m pretty sure I saw his ship get destroyed in the Horkax invasion.”
“Project Phoenix? Is that what it’s called?”
Vax nods. “One of our linguists learned of the Phoenix while we conducted our initial earth research. He reported that the creature is seen as a symbol of rebirth amongst your kind, for its unique ability to reincarnate. It was decided to use that symbol as a beacon of hope, that we might be able to return Argonia to its former glory. Tell me… have you ever held one of these Phoenix?”
He looks at me with fascination in his eyes. I shake my head. “No… Vax. The Phoenix isn’t a real creature. It’s mythical. It’s made up in stories for children. There’s no such animal on earth.” The hope in his eyes breaks at that moment, and it almost rips my heart in two.
He drops his gaze, searching his eyes at nothing. His voice has quietened, sounding almost despondent. “Oh… mythical? Then…maybe our hopes of restoring Argonia are mythical too…” He looks up and stares at the jungle around us in confusion. “Did it get darker here?”
I look around too. The sun is a hot as ever. The jungle is bright and unforgiving, but I think I know what’s going on. “No Vax. I think maybe you’re just feeling sad.”
He stares at me with question in his gaze. “Sad?”
I nod. “Yes. Don’t you know what that means?”
The Argonian stands up tall, clenching his staff in his hands. “I know what it means, but Argonians don’t feel emotions like that. We are a warrior people. Emotions are useless baggage. They are an obstacle to victory. I don’t have these… feelings!” He scoffs at the notion.
“Really? Because I’ve definitely seen emotions from you in our short time together, even if you don’t admit it. Maybe you’re just not in touch with them?”
He gives me a lofty eye roll and carries on walking. “Like I said, we have no need for them. Emotions only bring pain, and pain only detracts from combat.”
“There are good emotions!” I say as I scramble after him. “Happiness, laughter, love. Are you telling me they are no good?”
He stops and faces me. “They are not Argonian. We have none of those things. We only have suffering. I’ve never felt those… things.” He marches on again and I follow.
“What a load of shit! You laughed before back on the bridge when I was teaching you about apologizing. I heard you! You were happy!”
He looks back at me but doesn’t stop. “That was different. I was laughing because your ways are stupid.”
This time I’m the one that rolls my eyes. I can tell Vax is obviously just trying to set me off, but it won’t work. I decide to let him walk on and have his man sulk. A short while later I notice we even have a little follower. Punky is clambering through the trees above us. It’s about this point when I also notice that I’m not feeling as tired anymore. If I’m being really honest then I’m actually feeling kind of good. My raging libido has subsided some (though I would still jump Vax at any given chance) and I actually feel kind of strong.
We carry on through the dense alien jungle for another hour. I’m just about to ask Vax if we can take a break when he raises his right arm as a fist. I bump into his back and he wraps his arm around me, steadying his staff in his other hand. “Stay still and stay very quiet.”
I try to keep my heart from bursting from my chest with our close proximity. I’m pressed right against Vax and it’s a nice sensation. His skin is warm from the sweet heat, and his muscles are doused in sweat. There’s the raw scent of testosterone in that sweat, and it’s making me all kinds of horny. I chew at my bottom lip while trying to ignore the dampening in my spacesuit, wondering how I’d rip the thing off for a quick fuck anyway.
Vax uses his hands to signal through the bushes ahead at the clearing on the other side. Squinting, I can see the wreckage of a large cuboid-shaped ship which is checkered in black and opal tile. The ship itself is the size of a large house. It is laying at an angle, one corner dug into the jungle floor. A ring of felled trees lay around the crash site.
“That’s the Riga ship,” Vax says. “Follow me.”
We tiptoe through the foliage and only emerge into the clearance when Vax is absolutely sure it’s empty. I have to marvel at the large cuboid ship which towers above us at its odd angle. It’s a thing of beauty. I can’t understand how it ever got off the ground, it looks about as aero-dynamic as a brick. Vax approaches the ship with caution, his staff held before him. As he does a door opens in the side. Pink smoke billows out.
“Stay back!” Vax warns me. We both tense as a slender figure climbs out of the hole, and I relax slightly when I realize it’s not a Horkax. An impossibly tall and slim woman with white skin and deer-like eyes crawls on to her feet and shakes her head at Vax. She wears a crown of stunning silver jewelry on her head, and a long white dress that is light and radiant.
“Sweet mother of creation,” she says in a voice that crackles like fire. “Hunted to death by a Horkax fleet-ship and the cosmos sends a single Argonian male to help us. Arrogance at its finest.”
For a second, I’m worried there’s going to be hostility between Vax and the Riga woman, but instead he lets out a long hearty laugh. “It’s good to see the crash didn’t affect your inflated sense of self-worth, Riga woman. What is your name? Are there many survivors?”
“My name is Loola Restingstar. I am the commander of this ship. We are a small crew of four, and three of us survived. Our ship was damaged beyond repair. Can you help us escape…” she trails, waiting for a name.
“Vax Enzala. First class captain.”
Loola pulls her head back in surprise. “The Vax Enzala? It is an honor. I have heard many stories of your prowess in combat.”
Vax seems uncomfortable at the recognition, and brushes past it quickly. “The past is behind us now; the present is what matters. You say there are three survivors?”
“That’s right. Including myself. Can you help us?”
“I guess I haven’t got much choice. My ship is a few hours from here. If we leave now we can make it before dark. Are you all able to travel?”
Loola nods quickly. “Yes, but, you mean, go now?” Vax’s urgency seems to take her off guard, and I must admit I’m a little surprised.
“Vax, wouldn’t it be better if we stay here for the night and make it back in the morning?” I ask.
Vax points his hand out to a dark spot on the forest soil and looks at Loola. “That’s blood, isn’t it?”
The Riga looks down at the pool of dried blood that has stained the jungle floors and nods sadly. “This planet is bearable in the day, but the night times are particularly bad. The wildlife here is ferocious. The marks you see in the dirt beside you are the last place of my charting pilot, Zandria. A bear the size of a Arnok got her.”
We both stare at a dark-red blotch in the amber soil and I feel a sudden sense of uneasiness. Surviving the night here might not be so easy after all.
“If we leave in the next five minutes we will make it back before sunset. Staying here another night will only make it more likely that the Horkax find your ship. Can you get your crew ready and leave?”
Loola looks shocked. Her skin is already fair, but it’s especially pale now. She nods quickly and hurries back to the ship. Just as she does we hear the sound of that great roar once more. It shakes the trees, it temporarily silences the jungle. We all look in the general direction of the horrific sound. It’s nearer now.
“Change of plan,” Vax says. “Five minutes is up. Get your crew now, we’re leaving!”