Subterranean (5 page)

“Imagine when winter gets here; after the monsoon rains next month, this whole region will probably be covered in ice.”

Flynn dropped his head at the thought of such a sight, hoping that he would not be around to see it. With a deep breath, he stumbled to his feet and walked over to the cargo section of the vehicle. Packed inside was an array of strange machines and scientific equipment that needed to be carried over to the survey site. He chose one at random and walked it over to a nearby group of Subterraneans surrounding a large device.

“Be careful with that!” One of the scientists shouted at him when he dropped it hard on the table.

Returning to grab another piece of equipment, Rolan waved to him. “Over here, Flynn. We need your help trapping the creature. The others can unload the equipment.”

Flynn and Rolan gathered around Overseer Vale as she laid out a dozen data pads displaying maps and told of her plan to capture a live hukka, as they called the native apex predator. “One has been spotted around here.” A curled finger circled the area. “We need to be sure of its exact location. Once we know where it is, we can lure it in and trap it.” Since the beasts that roamed the surface were nocturnal, they had to move quickly before they left their dens; preparations were already underway. “Rolan and the human,” Vale pointed at them, “you two scout ahead for the location of the beast den. But be quick about it, the hukkas are preparing to hunt by now.”

On Death’s Doorstep

The sun was still hiding below the horizon, off imposing its will elsewhere while the freezing night took center stage. Flynn lay on his belly next to Rolan looking through his HTS-500’s, spying on the den of the beast. Technically, the creature was supposed to have come out by now.

“No tracks.” Rolan said as he looked around on the hard clay powdered lightly with sand. “It has not left its home in a couple days, at least.”

Flynn thought it hard to believe that anyone could give such an estimate based solely on tracks, but he believed him regardless. Without Rolan, or any of the Subterraneans, he would be a sandy pile of bones ripe for the carrion birds circling high up in the sky. The guided tour of the planet was far more preferable to the aimless, and shirtless, wandering he’d endured a few days ago.

“Maybe it’s moved on.”

Rolan shook his head at Flynn’s conclusion. “No, it is here somewhere.”

Flynn caught himself looking up at the stars, a collection of glistening sparkles winking down at him. Any one of them could be his own sun, but he had no idea which was the one he used to let kiss his skin on the shores of Earth.

“What are you looking at, Flynn?” Rolan’s voice snapped him out of the trance he nearly succumbed to.

“The stars.”

“Why?”

“Just wondering if I could find mine.”

Rolan joined him, staring up at the grand spectacle that replayed every night. “They are so far away… and they all look the same.” He fixed his eyes on Flynn. “How could you possibly distinguish yours from the others?”

Flynn lowered his head. “I can’t.”

Rolan sensed his sorrow. “Perhaps you will return to it one day.”

He almost embarked on a tirade to prove how ridiculous and impossible that statement was, but caught himself before he could. Rolan had just offered him the slightest bit of hope. While blind, it is still something to be cherished. It’s one of the few things that make life worth living during the worst of times; hoping to achieve what is most desired in the future even when all seems lost in the present. He scolded himself for nearly dissolving such a treasure.

“Yeah… hopefully.”

“Flynn,” Rolan rolled over to his side, “has your planet ever suffered before the aliens you call ‘Ravagers’ arrived?”

“Suffered? What do you mean?”

“Has something unfortunate ever happened to it?”

“Yeah.” He thought back to all of the times throughout history; whether it was the chaotic formation of the planet or the relatively recent abuse by humans, there has always been a great burden on Earth. “Seems like something bad is always happening to it. Mostly because itself or its own people.”

“Why does this happen?” He asked, clearly treading on common ground with Flynn.

“I don’t know. I can’t tell if it’s ignorance or apathy or bad luck. I like to think everything happens for a reason, but it’s hard sometimes.”

“Look over there, Flynn.” He directed his view to a landscape far off in the distance. “Do you see that?”

“No.” His eyes strained on the blurry faraway lands.

“Use your zoom.”

With a few tweaks of the HTS-500’s using some buttons conveniently placed around the edges, he was able to see a pile of broken structures hundreds of kilometers away. “Buildings? They look destroyed.” He zoomed back out to normal and looked at Rolan. “What happened?”

“It was a long time ago.” His head hung low. “I only know from what I read growing up.”

Flynn pressed tentatively. “I heard this planet wasn’t always like this, but no one wants to tell me why.”

Rolan frowned, retorting accusingly. “You speak of your planet often because you feel there is still a chance you can save it.” His voice turned sullen. “But our planet…” he gazed off towards the sandy wastes, “it is lost forever.”

“What do you mean?” Flynn prosecuted his pessimism. “You’ve built a whole city underground! You don’t even need to worry about the surface!”

“Do you fear the unknown?” Rolan asked, prepared to further his argument.

“Yeah, I guess so…” Flynn said, recalling the countless moments of intense anxiety in his life.

“Then you must understand what it is like for us. We have lived underground by choice, since the beginning. Our people can remember a time when lush forests and prodigious creatures melded with the surface and filled the atmosphere with life. Two ecosystems, underground and aboveground, were in perfect harmony… until something changed.” He paused momentarily, unsure of whether he should continue. For a few seconds, he debated the consequences of telling Flynn something he considered so important and sensitive.

“What changed?” Flynn was champing at the bit to learn more.

Rolan sighed, deciding to withhold the information. “Nevermind… Needless to say, we do not want it to happen again. So, let us focus solely on our assigned task.” He felt relieved to refocus on something that didn’t require as much thought, however he did regret holding back on Flynn.

“Hmph.” Flynn, shocked and thoroughly disappointed, grew increasingly annoyed at his denied curiosity. “So,” he changed the subject, “what’s with Overseer Vale? Why doesn’t she like Lisa and I?”

“It is not only you. She dislikes everyone.” He said matter-of-factly. “Sometimes I think she dislikes herself the most.”

Flynn tipped his head, intrigued. “Was she always like that?”

“No, she used to be very friendly.”

“What happened?”

“I do not know. I believe something may have happened to her on the day I joined with my mate, because she came to me distraught.” He adopted a more scientific tone. “However, I doubt the two incidents are related.”

“Were you two close?”

“She was, and is, a good friend of mine.”

“Just a friend?” Flynn arched an eyebrow.

“What are you implying? I have only ever had one mate and it is not Vale.”

“Right,” he backed off, “I was just curious.”

“You are more curious than anyone else I have ever met.” Rolan locked his rifle into place with a metallic click. “It is annoying.”

“Alright, alright, I get the message.” He rolled back onto his belly and studied the entrance of the cave again. “Back to watching the beast den…” he was then suddenly hit by a blast of cold wind that sent shivers to his core, “…and freezing to death.” Flynn took out the energy bar from his pocket and bit off a savage chunk of it, chewing hard and manhandling the wrapper, which caused a great deal of noise.

“Put that thing away! What is wrong with you? Do you want to get noticed?” Rolan snatched the energy bar from him and threw it down towards the beast den.

“My energy bar!”

Rolan held him back. “Now we can use it as bait.”

Flynn slapped his forehead with his hand. “No we can’t, it’ll die if it eats that!”

Although they were yelling in a whisper, they still made enough noise to wake something primal inside the dark place it called home, for it crept out and growled menacingly as it bared its two rows of razor sharp teeth.

It looked angry, and very hungry.

Chapter 4

Feeding the Beast

“Don’t move.” Rolan and Flynn were prone on the ground, still as statues and gripped by fear.

The beast was large, covered in mangy fur that looked smooth in some parts and wiry in others. Strange natural patterns and designs emblazoned its silvery coat. It looked realistic enough; four legs, two eyes, a tail, but it had a skeletal ridge protruding from its back, like a layer of armor covering its spine, except there were bony spikes jutting out from it at intervals that contracted and extended upon stretching and walking. Flynn could feel the animal’s distress; it appeared more disturbed, filled with anxiety, than it was angry.

“Shouldn’t we go back for help?”

Rolan looked at Flynn as if he’d just been insulted. “No, we do not require assistance.”

When it sniffed the air with its nose held high, it discovered the half-eaten energy bar resting a few dozen meters from the den. Pleased by a possible source of food so close to its home, the creature plodded right up to it, seized the morsel in its jaw, and then turned back for a safe place to devour its treat.

“We can’t let it eat that,” Flynn pressed, “we need it alive. Who knows where another one of these creatures is? And we only have one night’s worth of supplies out here.”

Rolan cradled his chin in his hand and thought about how he could prevent the situation from getting any worse. “You go, he cannot eat you.”

Flynn flipped over on his side in shock. “What? Sure he can! I’ll just be the last thing he eats!”

The duo slid down the little knoll they were hiding behind and looked around the empty desert for clues. Suddenly, Rolan’s face lit up and he yanked the pistol from his holster, holding it up to the air. “Flynn, I have a plan; run across the den when I fire my gun.”

Flynn shook his head in profuse disagreement. “What? No! Your last plan involved me being the main course!”

Rolan pushed him hard and yelled as he squeezed the trigger. “Trust me!” The loud crack of the gun traveled far along the silent, distant dunes.

Unwilling Bait

Flynn stomped the sand with great force trying to push his heavily loaded body forward as fast as he could, hoping to be quick enough to avoid the beast’s grasp. It’d been disturbed by the energy bar incident, but now it was seriously aggravated thanks to the sound of Rolan’s gunshot. The energy bolt from his weapon climbed high up into the sky and lit the way for the path Flynn followed. In retrospect, he figured he would’ve thought about how Rolan planned to save him while he ran, since there was no chance Flynn could outrun the creature, but the only thing on his mind was getting away from the apex predator.

His heart raced faster upon hearing the furious galloping of the beast closing in behind him, growling to dishearten its prey. For a moment, he got onto a short stretch of hard-packed clay and was able to pick up a little speed, widening the gap for a brief time, but it didn’t last. He needed to buy more time. He spun around and held his weapon out, ready to fire. It didn’t seem like anything would’ve been able to stop the creature’s wild descent upon him, but he pulled the trigger anyway like his life depended on it and, sure enough, something gave.

A flurry of energy bolts spewed from the weapon, striking the animal in several places; enough to stun it briefly, but it shook off the hits within seconds and continued its charge, now enraged by the pain Flynn had inflicted upon it. He nervously pulled the trigger again, but nothing happened; he must’ve been out of ammo, or energy, or whatever it was the Subterraneans used to power their weapons, and he didn’t know how to reload.

“Rolan!” Was all he could shout, still holding the weapon out like it would magically save him before certain doom claimed his life.

A Clever Trap

Contrary to all expectations, the beast stopped meters away from Flynn and circled him slowly, measuring its prey before striking. He supposed the hukka wanted to be certain there were no more tricks in store before it pounced on him, as if that were some twisted form of optimism to go along with the few seconds more he had to live.

All he could hear in the desert night was the low rumbling of the injured and aggravated creature before him, hideously carried on by a low undertone of cautious steps. It held its body in a suspended spring, waiting to unleash itself on Flynn while saliva poured out in strings from its wickedly grinning maw.

It was the end, he thought, but just as Flynn resigned himself to his death, he heard a faint shouting in the distance and a deep grumbling. Suddenly, a thunderous roar fragmented the scene and put the frightened beast on the defensive; Rolan had burst in out of nowhere with one of the recon vehicles, revving the engines repeatedly.

“Get in!” He waved his hands violently at Flynn, who took about two seconds to oblige, darting inside the cab of the buggy and holding on tight as the accelerator powered on. “Hold on!”

Sand and rocks flew as the vehicle fought for traction, finally getting its way with the desert surface and launching forward. Amazingly, the beast hadn’t given up, instead giving chase to Rolan and Flynn as they made their escape. Flynn, still disoriented by the near-death experience, couldn’t believe Rolan’s maniacal laughter flooding out of the driver window as he taunted their pursuer.

“Ahahahaha! Come on! Over here! Hahahaha!” Although it was wounded, the hukka’s speed was no laughing matter; it threatened to latch on at any moment and tip the vehicle over in its fury.

Overseer Vale’s Rumination

Overseer Vale wasn’t sure about sending the human with Rolan. Honestly, she was hoping the alien would just die out there in the desert and Rolan would return alone with the ‘bad news’, but she feared the opposite might happen.

What if Rolan died trying to save the human? How horrible that would be!

She didn’t know what she would do without Rolan. She really liked him, a lot. Sometimes he was rash and annoying, but he was also easy on the eyes and a good person. Unfortunately, though, she didn’t know if he was interested in her. Asking him outright was out of the question; she wanted Rolan to come to her, not the other way around, but it was obvious that wasn’t going to happen any time soon given recent developments concerning his mate.

She’d seen his wife; he could’ve gotten better, he could’ve gotten
her
. But even though he was already starting a family, she had the slightest bit of hope that he would finally see the error of his ways and at last come to her. Then they could be happy together. Overseer Vale knew Rolan for years, long before that harpy had bewitched him, but maybe that’s why they were just friends and nothing more. More so, the fact that she was his superior might’ve deterred him, but that meant almost nothing. Although she bore the title of ‘Overseer’, it was purely for the sake of appearances; there was no real military or ranking structure besides everyone obeying Tural without hesitation. In a situation, she would do anything Rolan told her, but more often than not he preferred doing what she told him… Too bad he wouldn’t do
everything
she told him.

Suddenly, her focus shifted when she thought she heard Rolan’s voice from afar. Landing on her feet after she pushed herself from the pile of crates she sat on, she tilted her head to point an ear in the direction of a barely perceptible noise. Rising above one of the dunes was a buggy, kicking up a sandstorm in its wake and obscuring much of the encroaching scene in a cloud of sand and dust, but the hulking beast that trailed behind was still visible through it all, barely.

By the Skin of Their Teeth

“Everyone ready the trap! Grab a weapon! They are returning!” Overseer Vale cried out as she grabbed a rifle and headed towards the scientists and soldiers who readied themselves at their stations.

The trap was essentially five people armed with rifles strategically placed around a rectangular area whose sole role was to fire as many of the stun blasts into the creature as possible, and then drag the sedated body into the cage.

“Ready yourselves!” Vale shouted at the soldiers, who held their rifles pointed in the direction of the incoming beast, waiting for the perfect shot.

Rolan gunned the accelerator one last time, swerving hard to drift into the survey site, nearly flipping the vehicle over. The beast followed close behind, taking the brief moment of reduced speed to pounce on the buggy and bite down on the rear as it was instinctually programmed to do. Rolan and Flynn didn’t waste any time; they kicked the doors open, landed out onto the sand, and then ran madly towards Overseer Vale.

“Now! Fire!” With a swift motion, all of the soldiers fired their rifles and the beast was peppered with a flurry of stun blasts.

The beast let out a booming howl in response, staggering everyone in the area and even taking some of the scientists off their feet. Seeking immediate revenge, the animalistic rage of the beast flared as it swung around the camp in a wild bid for destruction. A couple of the Subterraneans were sent flying into the air by the muscular arms of the creature and more than a few of the others ran for their lives.

“The plan is not working!” One of the soldiers shouted right before he was raked in two by a set of long, sharp claws.

Screams and unintelligible shouting pierced the freezing night air as their trap backfired in a disastrous fashion. Flynn was separated from Rolan and Overseer Vale in the confusion, but in a stroke of sheer luck he found the cage that was meant to house the creature upon its capture, already opened and pointing towards the destruction.

“Hey! Over here!” Flynn waved his arms and taunted the beast. Rolan and Overseer Vale must’ve noticed him and deduced his plan because they suddenly appeared behind him and joined in.

Whether it was because Rolan challenged the beast to an arm wrestle or because they were the only survivors left standing from the onslaught, something worked, and soon enough an unstoppable mass of enraged muscle was sent charging their way like a cargo train pushed to its limits. The beast was moving so fast that Flynn wasn’t sure how soon to gangway. Too soon and the trick wouldn’t work, too late and he wouldn’t live to tell about it. At the last second, he felt the decisive shove of another propel him out of harm’s way, avoiding a fatal collision by inches. Soon after, the door of the cage was swung closed behind the tricked animal, and the relieving sound of metal on metal signaled the end of a long day and one plan turned horrible mess.

Conflict of Interest

“That was a disaster!” Rolan said aloud while he, Vale, and Flynn scrounged through the rubble strewn across the survey site in search of working equipment and surviving team members. “It should not have caused us that much trouble! We captured the last one with far less effort and losses than this one!”

“Another one dead…” Flynn shook his head in sorrow while he pressed his fingers against the pulse point of a fallen scientist.

About half of the survey team was incapacitated due to injury. There were a few deaths, either from the creature itself or from the fallen equipment that had crushed anyone unlucky enough to be in the path of the heavy machinery. Some were MIA, scared so out of their wits that they had decided to simply run as far away from the mayhem as possible, taking their chances in the desert wasteland.

Overall, it was a pyrrhic victory… so far. As for the bodies of the fallen Subterraneans, they were to be left on the surface… apparently that was their custom if someone perished above ground. As for the scientists that fled, on the other hand, Rolan expressed a great deal of concern for them, wishing wholly to embark on a manhunt to retrieve them.

“We must find them.” He examined a piece of shattered equipment in his hands before dropping it to the ground.

“We cannot.” Overseer Vale refused him, seeming intent on denying anything further Rolan would have to say.

“But they are…” he paused and sighed deeply, “…in danger.”

“The next matter is more important, Rolan.”

“Then why did we not pursue that first?”

“It was a simple matter of timing and location.”

He crossed his arms. “This simple matter could inextricably complicate things.”

“Rolan,” she relayed his name sternly, “be silent.”