Discovery at Nerwolix (6 page)

“Boss!” Jace points over a mound of snow,
maybe twenty yards away. “I think I see…”

We follow his focus and find three more
bodies being dragged through the snow. One lies limp while the
other two squirm, trying to get free.

Reid pauses, lifting his Traxpire to aim.
“Fallon, can you make the shot?”

“Yes,” I do the same.

“I’ll take the left and middle. You go for
the right,” he looks to Jace and Booker. “We’ll give you a head
start.”

“Pobo, go with them,” I say. “I need you to
cut the rope from the three being dragged.”

“Pweboles follow orders. Always have.”

Reid nods to the two Rogues. “Go.”

Jace and Booker take off, the furry blue
Pobo running on all four legs next to them. Following Reid, I lift
my Traxpire and focus on my target.

“Got your shot?” Reid asks.

“Yup.”

“Let’s take it at the same time. In three,
two, one…”

We both fire and the Dofinikes on either end
fall face first into the snow. The middle Vermix only has seconds
before he follows his comrades. Jace and Booker arrive with Pobo
moving along the ground, stopping at each body. Reid and I take
off, jetting through the snow to the five Rogues. Tucker and Werzo
scramble to their feet, but as Reid and I race over, we find Able
lying unconscious in the snow. Booker lifts the Rogue, tossing him
over his shoulder, eyes scanning as we approach.

“What do we do, Boss?”

“We have to find Sampson,” he pants,
frantically searching. “But we need to get out of here.”

“And go where?” Tucker reaches for one of
the Vermix’s Traxpires, tossing another one to Werzo.

“I don’t know,” Reid scans again, “but we
can’t stay here. Come on,” he jets off and the rest of us follow,
Pobo at my side. Reid leads us back near the cave’s mouth, our herd
keeping together when a Vermix rams into Booker and me, knocking us
to the ground and sending Able flying again.

Booker scrambles for Able as Reid races to
block me. But before he can fire off a shot, another Dofinike
launches into the first, tackling him down to the snow. They
wrestle, talons flying through the air as deep, gurgling snarls
exchange. Paralyzed by the sudden blood lust in front of me, I’m
pulled back by both arms and hoisted to my feet by Reid and
Tucker.

With a final twist of his head, the second
Dofinike lets the first drop to the snow in a loud crunching thud.
I’m about to reach for my Traxpire when I notice the circle and
alternating dots in the upper right hand corner of his shelled
chest.

“We need to get you out of here,” Clarence
says, his yellow eyes flickering between us, counting to make sure
we’re all here. “Quick, follow me!” He takes off behind the cave,
down a mountain of snow and we trail after him, Booker carrying an
unconscious Able.

“Where’s Sampson?” Reid rushes by his
side.

“Fighting,” Clarence says. “Blovid and Vix
too. I’m not sure what happened to Qippert.”

“Why are the Pweboles are on our side?” I
race closer to him, Pobo at my hip.

“When Sampson realized it was an ambush, he
had Pobo advise the others to assist all humans,” he glances to me.
“You first.”

“Why?”

But Clarence ignores this, moving faster,
“Quickly everyone. They’re trailing us.”

We move as fast as possible, Booker at the
back of our group with a sleeping Able over his shoulder.

“Why did they listen to him?” I ask.
“Weren’t the Pweboles originally under orders from the Vermix?”

Clarence nods, leading us further down the
mountainside with rapid steps. “Their allegiance lies with the
Fychu. Any order he gives supersedes previous orders. That’s why
they had to attack us before Sampson could redirect their
order.”

“Shouldn’t we go back and help him?” Reid
asks.

Clarence shakes his head, his long green
whiskers tossing from side to side. “As trained as you are, you are
no match for the fleet of Vermix Reuzkimpart brought.”

“He’s here?” I ask.

“Blovid spotted him.”

“And Blovid’s still out there?” I gasp.
“He’s Dellapalania’s last Arizal Leader! He
can’t
get
hurt!”

“We’ve left four Arizals against all those
Vermix,” Reid shakes his head. “We have to go back.”

“You go back and you’ll be killed. Not right
away, but they’ll take you to Dellapalania and kill you slowly and
publicly,” Clarence slows to a halt near a brush of skinny, gray,
leafless trees. Exhaling, he spins to us. “Reuzkimpart wants a
triumph for all the fighting Vermix. Witnessing the death of his
enemy will be just the boost they need.”

“Still,” Tucker pants, “is there anything
else we can do?”

“We need to get off planet. We need to keep
you safe.”

“We can’t leave them,” Reid shakes his head,
looking back up the white mountain. “I’ll stay.”

“And do what?” Clarence grabs his shoulder
before he can take off. “You’ll only die. Sampson wouldn’t want
that. We need to get you out of here.”

“But—”

“Sampson is a Fychu. He will be fine.”

“What about Blovid? And Vix and Qippert?” I
ask. “He’s not even fully healed.”

“We need to get you off planet. If you stay,
you
will
be killed. If the others are captured, they’ll be
interrogated and tried as traitors.”

A crunching sounds down the side of the
mountain and we all turn with our Traxpires, ready. But it’s a
smaller, familiar Dofinike with the same circle with alternating
dots on his upper chest. He stumbles closer, Clarence taking off up
the steep slope to help him.

Throwing Qippert’s arm over his hardened
shelled shoulders, Clarence brings him back to us. “What
happened?”

“The Fychu said to get off planet
immediately
,” Qippert cups his side, to his wound that has
reopened. “He said he would meet us at Nerwolix.”

“And Blovid? Vix?”

“They are holding their own…” he exhales,
“for now…”

“We must go!” a familiar female voice calls
from above. “NOW! They are coming!” Vix races down the slope,
eyeing an unconscious Able over Booker’s shoulder as she reaches
us. “I will take these two. Hurry,” she turns to Clarence. “Sympse
and Blovid are right behind me.”

Vix and both Rogues disappear just as two
Dofinikes reach the top of the slope where Vix was mere seconds
ago.

“Oh thank God,” I exhale.

“Hurry,” Clarence has us all form a circle
as Sampson and Blovid race closer, a hoard of snarling Vermix on
their trail. “Ready?”

“GO!” Sampson calls, disappearing
mid-run.

Right behind him, Blovid does the same.

Reid squeezes my hand and the familiar wind
whips under my feet. But just as the purple fogginess rises,
something hard knocks into me, separating me from the group. I lose
touch with Reid’s hand and fall to the snow under the hard body of
a Vermix. Over his shoulder, Reid’s eyes bulge, his guttural shout
reaching the top of his lungs just as the circle disappears.

“
NO!”

Shit
.

A set of talons grip my neck, securing me to
the wet, white ground as something happens down at my ankles. I
can’t think. I can’t concentrate. My heart is pounding too hard in
my chest and all I’m aware of is one thing.

I’m alone.

I gasp for air but the talons pinch my
throat, making it hard to breathe. I tug at them but it does no
good and swiftly, my hands are stretched above my head, bound like
my ankles. How did this happen? I was with Reid and the others only
seconds ago and now they’re gone. And I’m still here.

Alone.

The Vermix releases his hold and suddenly
I’m being tugged forward. They’re taking me somewhere. Probably
back to Dellapalania to kill me in front of the Vermix, as some
sort of morale boost. I have to get out of this. I have to escape,
but I’m by myself. And against how many?

I’m not even sure.

Trying to sit up, I scan the thick herd
surrounding me. There must be two dozen Vermix. Maybe more. But I
only have a second to look. Talons come flying across my face and
everything goes black.

***

When we are we returning?

The Supreme Leader wishes for our patience.
He will return when he is ready.

What do we do with her until then?

Keep her where she is.

She will try to escape.

Then she will die sooner.

My eyelids hurt too much to open, my face
still stinging from something. But what? And I’m dizzy. And my
entire body aches. What happened? Racing through the last few
details, I try to piece the blurriness and pain into something I
remember. But it’s all fog. All confusion.

Concentrate, Fallon. What do you
remember?

We arrived on Larupip…we met up with Blovid…
then… there was an ambush of blue creatures. Pweboles. And we
followed them out. We were looking for—

My eyes shoot open, everything rushing back
in a sudden flood of ghastly images. The attack, the near-escape,
but me—I didn’t make it. I was separated at the last second. I was
captured. My heart pounds, the air in my lungs evaporating. Christ,
I’m captured. I’m surrounded by Vermix. And I’m here, wherever here
is.

We’re in some sort of dark space, similar to
Blovid’s cave except that the empty walls are black, keeping the
warmth away. Blovid had torches lined every few feet but there
aren’t any here. Only a few babeebs float above the Dofinike heads
as they enter and leave again through the one narrow tunnel on the
left. The small, circular suns I knew on Harrizel offer only a
faint yellowish glow and in this immense darkness, they give off
very little light. Adding to their slim warmth, a small jar of
crushed Callix petals sits on the ground in the corner. Next to it,
a group of Vermix huddle together. They’re pointing at a map laid
on a table made from the same dark rock as the walls. A few go back
and forth in argument while others strum their green beards,
listening and studying the pictured landscapes in front of
them.

I look to my right. Two Vermix sit on
boulders, busily cleaning and inspecting their Traxpires. They
don’t look up as they work, keeping dedicated focus on their task
as a nasally voice mutters in the corner behind them.

“Pallooloo did as requested. Pweboles follow
orders, always follow orders. Humans found…Fychu found… Pallooloo
did as requested, always follow orders. Pweboles—”

“Will you shut him up,” one of the Vermix
growls, waving his arm. He looks over the map again, pointing to
something just as one of the Dofinikes to my right rises. Taking
the blunt end of his Traxpire, he jabs Pallooloo in his blue snout
and the Pwebole king falls back. A deep navy stream runs from his
nostril but he keeps going in his mumbling nasally voice.

“Pallooloo did as requested. Humans
found…Fychu found… Pweboles follow orders, always follow
orders…”

The Vermix rams his gun into Pallooloo
again, knocking him back. He falls to the ground but gets up, still
mumbling in a consistent rhythm. The Vermix drops his Traxpire and
grabbing Pallooloo in one hand, he punches him over and over with
the other. Finally the Pwebole king slumps against the wall, one
eye closed and two navy streams flowing from his blue snout. His
mumbles die into soft whispering as the Vermix selects his Traxpire
from the ground. He sits down again, resuming his cleaning.

I can’t tell if Pallooloo is dead. I don’t
think so, but he won’t last long. Just like me.

I need to get out of here.

But how? My arms are strung straight above
my head. Craning my neck back, I find a rope is hanging from the
darkness. I give a little tug and my wrists scream at the prickly
twine digging into the raw skin. How long have I been held up here?
And how did I get like this?

“She is awake.”

Both of the sitting Vermix watch me through
yellow slits. The one that silenced Pallooloo glares but returns to
his work, rubbing down his Traxpire.

“Should we retrieve the Supreme Leader?”

“No,” the first grumbles. “She is of no use
until we return.”

“He may wish to question her.”

“For what reason? She is not here for
questioning. He would not seek help from a human.”

The other Vermix nods, cleaning his Traxpire
like his partner. They continue ignoring me as more Dofinikes move
in and out of the space. My eyes dart around the darkness, from
Pallooloo to the group of Vermix huddling over the map and to the
tunnel on the left.

I have to get out of here.

Maybe Sampson and Clarence will come for me.
But how will they know where I am?
I
don’t even know where I
am. It could be anywhere. But the wind chill sweeping in through
the only opening suggests we might still be on Larupip. Would the
others come back here first?

Would Reid?

The thought of him brings a painful knot to
my chest. He must be going crazy. The look on his face—the guttural
echo of his shout when he disappeared. Where is he? What must he be
thinking? A tremor of fear runs over me at the thought of never
seeing him again. But I refuse to believe that. I’m getting out of
here—I know I am. And if not, I won’t make it easy for them.
They’ll have to fight me for my death.

Looking up, I examine my wrists more
carefully. Even with Reid’s Callix on the left, both are red from
where the rope has cut into the skin and pulled so tightly that my
arms are hoisted straight above my head. The twine itself is thick
and rough, plaited down from the ceiling where it hangs in the
shadows. I try tugging on it again, getting a feel of my restraints
but I only end up irritating my wrists, so I stop.

The Vermix cleaning his Traxpire is watching
me again. He holds my stare for a solid minute before returning to
his work. Other Dofinikes pass between us but none of them look at
me. In fact, most ignore me. Good. Maybe they’ll pretend I’m not
here. I’ll keep quiet and study their movements and groupings. Any
information I can obtain, anything useful I can bring back to the
others, I will. This won’t be in vain. Because I
will
escape.