Razing Pel (5 page)

"You mean," Kaj said as he hopped
off the bed.

"Yes, I'll be joining you on your
trip to United City.  Together, we can both escape this
planet.  Come, we should get going."

Kaj followed Phos back out to the
main cave room.  Phos pulled open a drawer from the desk and
pulled out a piece of bread, handing it over to Kaj.

"Thanks," Kaj said, taking the
bread from him.  He quickly devoured the piece of
bread.

"You just eat as I get packing,"
Phos said, pulling out a small sac from underneath the desk.
 He unzipped it and put the remaining bread in there, followed
by a few shirts and an assault rifle.

"Um, I don't mean to be rude or
anything, but I just wanted to ask you," Kaj said.  "What
happened to your ..."

"My legs," Phos whispered.
 "I knew you'd be curious to know what happened."  He
continued to pack stuff away as he told Kaj his story.  "It
was a few years ago.  My squad and I were stationed at a small
village, not far from where we are now.  We've managed to stay
out of the way from the Oce for a while.  Then, out of the
blue one day, they attacked.  My squad and I tried everything
to stop them and to make sure the Daj would escape, but they
didn't.  They took out everyone there, including my squad.
 One of them took a swipe at my legs, slicing them off.
 I laid there thinking that only time would soon take me.
 I decided to crawl away from the attack site, hopefully
trying to find another squad that could help me, but I didn't.
 I found this cave here.  It seemed to have been
abandoned.  All around the cave were loose pieces of metal,
which I used to construct my legs.  Every since then, I've
been here."  As he finished up the story, he tightly secured
his sac closed.  He turned and faced Kaj.  Phos held
something in his hand.  "The reason I declare myself former
Captain is because I don't deserve it, not after what had
happened."

Kaj looked at his hand and saw
that it was a badge.  Phos turned around again, placing the
badge in a pocket that was on his vest.

Phos slipped on his sac.  He
placed a worn fedora on his head.  "Well, shall we get going?
 We don't have much time left."

They both headed out to the desert
that surrounded them.

CHAPTER SEVEN

THE CAVE

"Which direction?"  Kaj asked
as the two were just feet away from the cave they left behind.
 He looked up at Phos who was holding a pair of binoculars in
his hand, scouting the area around them.

"I'm not sure," he responded,
still looking through the binoculars.  "I've been trying to
figure out that question for years.  I guess that way."
 He pointed forward with the binoculars.  Phos then
looked down at Kaj.  "Let's hope it's the right way."
 They both headed forward.

The sand started to pick up.
 It scratched their faces, got in their eyes and mouth.
 But they both knew what was ahead.  Putting up with this
was nothing to them, knowing that they'd soon be on the last ship
off this planet.

"What's that?" Kaj asked, pointing
to an obscure object that was up ahead.  They both jogged over
to whatever it was for a better view.  "Oh."

They both were standing over the
skeletal remains of a Daj.  Its skull was wide open as though
it wanted to scream.  The rags for clothes were ripped up and
stained with blood.  They were flapping in the wind.  Its
arms were extended out, and in one hand it was holding something
with a tight grasp.

Phos knelt down and grabbed the
paper that the Daj was holding.  He stood back up and
unraveled it, trying to keep hold of it because of the wind.
 He examined it deeply.  Studying it. Kaj was curious as
to what it was.

"What is it Phos?"

"Something we desperately needed,"
he responded.  He turned the piece of paper around to show Kaj
the other side.  It was a map.  "It's a map!"  Phos
turned the map back around so he could look it over again.
 "And it gives us directions straight to United City.
 Luckily this Daj who had the map marked down his location
before he perished.  Ahh!  We'll never make it in time
using this route."  Phos continued to study the map.
 "Wait, what's this?  It seems there is a cave up ahead.
 Taking it would cut our trip in half and hopefully make us
get to the ship in time."

"What cave?" questioned Kaj.
 He was familiar with the cave names of his planet.  But
he was hoping it wasn't the cave that he was thinking
about.

Phos struggled to find the name
and eventually did.  "It's called Cave of the Alata Jumen,"
Phos responded, trying hard to pronounce the last two words.
 "Whatever that means."  Phos lowered the map from his
face to look at Kaj.

His face was frozen.  "That's
one of the most deadliest caves on this planet," Kaj blurted out.
 "I've heard stories of Daj going in there in search of
treasure and then not coming back out.  It's a death trap.
 Some say these winged brutes inhabit the cave."

"It's the only way we can get to
United City in time," Phos said.  "If we don't go through
there, we'll both be stuck on this planet forever, waiting to die.
 And even if we do die in that cave, at least we don't have to
suffer like the planet does.  But, if we make it out alive,
then we're free and we finally get to leave."

Kaj didn't know what to say.
 He didn't like the thought of going through the cave but Phos
provided a very good point as to why they need to.

"Come," Phos said as he followed
the directions on the map to the cave.  "We don't have time to
waste.  Every second we waste is another second we're stuck
here on this dust ball of a planet."

Kaj followed Phos, not traveling
far until they reached their destination.  The cave, on the
outside, was similar as to how Phos' cave was.  They both
looked down the dark, endless mouth of the cave.  Kaj knew
that something bad was going to happen to them, but they had to go
in.  There was no choice.

Phos tapped the pistol that was
hanging by his side.  He looked over at Kaj.  "Don't
worry," he assured Kaj.  "I've got plenty of weapons that
should protect us incase anything goes wrong."  

They both headed in, but before
they did, Phos pulled out two pairs of special glasses.  The
glasses were a long band with a single black glass to look
through.

"Here," Phos said, handing one of
the pairs of glasses to Kaj for him to put on.  Kaj grabbed
the small pair of glasses and inspected them, not putting them on
until Phos did first.  "It's for us to see in the cave."
 Phos slid on the pair of glasses and so did Kaj soon after.
 His vision changed slightly.  Phos turned to Kaj.
 "Let's head on in."

They both slowly headed in,
watching every step they take closely.  Kaj inspected the
walls of the cave.  Weird gems were lodged in the cave wall.
 Kaj went up to one just to feel the smooth surface.  He
then continued to follow Phos down the tight hallway.  As they
continued down into the cave, they soon came into a large open
spaced area.

"Wow," Phos said as he looked
around the area, watching the cave walls sparkle and seeing the
strange formations that nature created.  "It's incredible,
isn't it Kaj.  This is magnificent.  It's a shame that
all this will be gone soon."

High platforms were scattered
around the cave.  In the center was a deep, dark hole that
even the glasses couldn't help them see into.

Kaj walked over to the ledge to
get a better look at the center.  "What do you think is down
there?" Kaj asked.  He kicked down a loose rock, listening
until it hit the bottom.  It didn't.

Phos followed close behind him.
 He patted Kaj's back, scaring him as though he were going to
fall in.  "Not sure," Phos said.  "Best not to find out."
 He walked towards the left of the cave wall.  "Come on.
 Let's get going."

Kaj looked down the hole one last
time before going over to Phos.  A series of rocky platforms
stuck out of the cave wall.  Each one was a little higher than
the previous.  The spiral of platforms looped around the cave
wall, leading up to another entryway into a further part of the
cave.

"You go on up first Kaj," Phos
said.  "It'll take me a little time getting used to climbing
with these legs."  Phos bent down, tightening the bolts
connecting his foot platform with his leg.

Kaj walked up closer to the first
platform.  He crouched a little before leaping up onto the
platform.  Balancing himself so he wouldn't fall back, he
looked down at Phos.

"Good job kid," Phos said as it
echoed slightly in the cave.  "I'll join ya soon."  He
stood up, stretching his arms.

Kaj then proceeded to climb up
onto the next platform.  As he planted one foot against the
wall to help him elevate, a chunk of the cave wall came off,
sending it down to the dark hole.  His leg slipped, but Kaj
caught himself, holding onto the platform, pulling himself
up.

As the chunk of cave wall fell
down into the hole, there was in fact a bottom, which the rock
crushed on.  The echo, which couldn't be heard from Kaj or
Phos' position, was heard by a swarm of creatures that lived at the
bottom of the hole.  One single eye opened up first, followed
by other eyes, showing the incredible number of creatures that
called this cave homed.  The eyes of the creatures looked up,
and the flapping of wings commenced as they headed towards the
surface of the hole.

As Kaj was working on climbing up
to the third platform, he stopped as he heard a slight flapping
sound that was growing louder.  Kaj looked down at Phos who
was making his way up onto the first platform.

"Do you hear that? Kaj asked Phos.
 They both walked over to the edge of their respective
platforms, looking into the hole.  He turned back up to Kaj
and gave him a little nod.  Phos then looked back into the
hole.  The flapping sound was getting louder.  "What is
it?"

A swarm of winged brutes suddenly
shot up from the hole.  Kaj and Phos both jumped back from the
edge of the platforms, both falling on their hands.  They both
looked up as they continued to see the creatures pouring out from
the hole.  The creatures circled around the top of the cave,
stretching their skinny arms out and shrieking.

"What are those things?!"
 Kaj yelled, slowly crawling back towards the cave wall.
 He turned over to Phos, who was also up against the cave
wall.

"They must be the Alata Jumen,"
Phos said.  "From the map.  The cave name."

As quick as he could Phos reached
for his pistol.  He swung it out, aiming it at the horde of
winged brutes.  One shot he fired sent a laser bullet straight
into the middle of the horde, zapping one of the creatures.
 The crisped creature spiraled down, landing on the platform
that Kaj was on.  He studied the creature.  A giant red
eye sat in the middle of its face.  The creature’s mouth hung
open, revealing its long sharp teeth.  Three clawed fingers
extended out from the creature’s hand.

Kaj yelled out in horror as the
creature lunged forward a little before finally dying.

The swirling brutes all dove down
together, flying dangerously close to Kaj and Phos.  Kaj
shielded himself with his arms, mostly covering his
face.

"Phos, what do we do?!"  Kaj
yelled as he tried talking over the screeching of the creatures.
 Phos was also shielding himself with his arms.

"Just keep climbing!"  He
yelled over to Kaj.  "I'll watch your back!  Just hurry!"
 As the creatures passed by Phos, he used his pistol and took
a few more shots.

Kaj listened to Phos and started
up on the next platform, quickly getting on top of it.  The
creatures swooped down by Kaj, nearly knocking him off.  He
jumped towards the cave wall, clinging onto it.

"I can't do it Phos!"  Kaj
yelled.  

"Yes you can Kaj!"  Phos
yelled over.  "Just trust me!"

Kaj didn't know what to do.
 He still was holding onto the cave wall.

The swirling creatures took
another dive at Kaj, one of them scratching through the fabric on
Kaj's back.  He yelled out a little as the claw pierced his
skin.  Kaj turned down to see Phos firing more shots at the
creatures.

Kaj saw that Phos was fearless
against these creatures.  Phos knew that standing up to these
creatures and attacking them was the only way they'd make it out of
the cave in time.

Without thinking, Kaj backed away
from the cave wall, chest pumped out, waiting for the creatures to
take another dive at him.  The creatures again swirled around
at the top of the cave for a few seconds before diving down at Kaj.
As they did, Kaj reached back, pulling out his dagger.  He
slipped the cover off, tossing it away.  The creatures dove
down, flying by right in front of him. Kaj jammed his dagger in the
middle of the horde of creatures, stabbing one of them, causing it
to fall down into the deep dark hole.