Far From Home: The Complete Series (24 page)

“I never turn a cup of Joe down,” Greene said. “Ensign Rayne, looks like it’s your turn to watch the ship.”

Olivia stood up from her station. “Me?”

Greene and King exchanged looks.

“Do you see another Olivia Rayne in here, Ensign?”

Her face blossomed red. “No sir.”

“Very well. Any problems, I’ll be in the mess getting my fix.”

* * *

“Right,” Commander Greene said. “So we’ll need some sensors to test the wreck. Make sure it’s safe to dig away at it. But, uh  …”

“What is it?” Captain King said. She fixed herself a coffee and walked with him to a table at the back.

“Well, do you think this is a good use of our time? I’m not questioning your orders, Captain. Don’t think that. But I would’ve thought we’d be better off trying to figure out that pyramid before anything else.”

“Del, I understand what you’re saying. But I think that ship might hold some answers for us. More so if it has star charts of the area.”

“True.”

“By the way, did you check the records on missing vessels? To see for links with these transmissions?”

“Yes. From what we have, it was a ship called
Sophie
. Went missing years ago.”

“Oh? And what did you find out about the
Sophie
?”

“Yeah, from what I can tell she was on a classified mission in Draxx space. The last the Union heard from her was a garbled message, and then  …”

“Nothing,” Jessica said.

“Exactly.”

“Hmm. Keep digging. By the way, good news on the supplies,” King said.

“Well, I’m gonna have Chief Gunn do a check on that. Just to be sure.”

“Very well, but I don’t see it being that different,” King said.

“Neither do I,” Del said then drained his coffee.

* * *

Gunn wiped her hands on a rag, but the rag was a greasy number she’d used so many times it was now blacker than pitch. So she resorted to wiping them on the front of her overalls.

“Hello stranger,” she said.

“Hey Chief,” Greene said. He looked around. “Quiet in here for once.”

“Not complaining. It’s not often we get some down time, Del. I sent the majority of them off to get some sleep, get drunk, whatever the hell they want. A few elected to stay in here with me,” she said.

“I guess that’s true. You lot don’t get a lot of rest. And things are pretty quiet around here right now,” he said.

“So anyway, why’re you down here? If you’ve come to pull an inspection then you’re outta luck pal. We’re shipshape, in Bristol fashion.”

Greene chuckled. “No, no, nothing like that. It’s about that inventory. I want us to re-check it. Well, when I say
we
…”

“You mean
me
,” Gunn said with a roll of her eyes.

“Yeah sorry. I’d ask someone else to do it, but I know I can trust you to be thorough.”

“Well  …”

“I’ll owe you big,” Greene said.

She considered, then punched him on the arm. “Yes you will.”

“Thanks,” he said.

The Chief shook her head, thinking,
You already owe me, Commander. This debt is getting bigger and bigger.

* * *

They waited for the next sunrise, then departed for the surface. Dana and Lieutenant Chang sat in the back, next to the peer-to-peer translation devices. Though sophisticated, the tech looked just like a pair of headphones when you wore it. Behind them the limited cargo area was crammed with all of the scanning and excavation equipment, secured in place against the rear bulkhead with straps.

Commander Greene and four other men sat in front of the two women, with Banks on loan from the bridge again for piloting duties. They breached the atmosphere with the sun bathing that alien world in a deep fiery hue. This time, as they approached the burial site of the
Sophie
, they gazed in awe at the black mountain sparkling under that orangey light.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so alien,” Dana said.

“Don’t count your chickens just yet,” Greene said.

“What do you mean?”

Banks took them on a steady descent to the ground. The landing gears made a grating, thunderous sound as they opened out beneath the craft.

“I mean there’s plenty to see in the universe. I bet there are a lot of things far more alien than that mountain out there.”

They settled on the ground with an
oomph
, and Banks equalised pressure with the outside before opening the access door and lowering the ramp.

Dana and Chang carried the translation equipment away as the boys set about assembling their sensor equipment.

It wasn’t long before the L’ucrah showed themselves. “Uh oh,” Greene said. His hand fell to his side arm.

“Please Commander,” Dana said. “Rest easy, they’re harmless.”

“That’s not how it sounded in that message  …” he mumbled.

There were three L’ucrah, and not a single one of them carried a weapon. They kept their distance from the men of the
Defiant
, and when Dana approached the one in the lead, he seemed to be on edge. She made it clear she wouldn’t hurt him, and offered him a set of the headphones.

It took several minutes for him to realise he was to wear them like her. As he settled them down around his ears, Dana tested the system.

“Hello,” she said.

He jumped, startled. The headphones dropped to the ground. Dana picked them up and handed them back to him.

“I did not mean to scare you,” she said after he slipped them back on his head.

His face went from confusion to realisation. “Hello,” he said with caution.

Dana heard it not as, “Jin jinoa,” but merely, “Hello.” They were working.

“Put yours on, they’re working fine,” she told Chang.

“We saw your bird in the sky,” the L’ucrah told her.

“Yes. We have come to test the ground. Something of ours is buried here. From long ago. Don’t worry. We also want to look at the mountain.”

The L’ucrah appeared fearful at the mention of it, but he bowed his head anyway. Who was he to argue with a god?

Dana and Chang waved to Commander Greene and set off with the L’ucrah to his village.

* * *

“It is strange. I hear two voices from your mouth,” the L’ucrah told her as they walked to the village.

“So that we can understand one another,” Dana said.

“I see.”

“What is your name?”

The L’ucrah held a fist to his chest. “I am
Night-River
, son of
He-Who-Watches
.”

“Pleasure to meet you,
Night-River
.”

“We are honoured to have you visit us,” he told them both. “It has been a long time since the gods returned from the stars. We are truly blessed.”

“Can you remember what happened the last time the gods came here?”

Night-River
looked at the others, then said, “It is myth.”

“Tell us.”

“There was only one. He came to end the dry season that had ravaged the land, to put an end to the poison killing the people. And he did. He made it rain.”

Dana and Chang didn’t say anything.

“He tamed the mountain.”

As they entered the jungle, Dana wondered what he meant by that exactly.

* * *

They were in the village several hours, nosing about with
Night-River
as their tour guide. Dana asked him questions about everything. From the irrigation of their fields, to the pattern of the seasons, to the character of the society in which they existed.

They experienced no change in the seasons. It rained when they need it to, and the rest of the time they basked in the sunshine, unobstructed by any clouds. It became apparent that they lived in peace because it was the law to do so.

“And who enforces the law?”

“The all-seeing mountain. It cannot be disobeyed.”

Chang looked up at the black peak. “The mountain?”

“Explain,” Dana urged him.

“If we break the law, the mountain will punish us.”

“How?” Chang asked.

Night-River
swept his arm to indicate the lands around them. “The dark times will come again. The lands  …  will be spoiled. No rain. No crops. Only death.”

Dana swallowed.

* * *

Night-River
would take them only so far. They went the rest of the way by themselves. He waited back in the jungle whilst they approached the base of the black mountain.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Chang said. She laid a hand against the smooth black material.

They decided to walk around it and see if they could find some kind of opening or entrance. When at first it looked like they wouldn’t find one, Chang noticed a small slit in the material. It was only inches long, but it was a definite imperfection in the otherwise perfect black pyramid. In that way it stood out like a scar.

“Doctor, here,” Chang said. She got down to examine it.

Dana joined her. “How strange,” she said.

“Isn’t it?” Chang said, and ran a finger across the break in the mountain’s perfection. To her surprise the crack got bigger. They both stood well back as the crack shot up the side of the mountain. They watched it break left and right to form a doorway that opened up. Inside, the mountain was dark.

“I’m a little scared,” Dana whispered.

“Me too. Come on,” Chang said. She unhooked her scanner, held it in front of her so it could record as much as possible, and led the way.

* * *

“It’s useless Commander,” Ensign Ladd said. “The reading shows us a clear image of how she’s laying under all that. And from what I can tell, she’ll just snap in two the minute we try to do anything like get her out of there. She’d never take it.”

Greene drank from his water bottle. He wiped his mouth.

“Well, it was worth a try,” he said, disappointment apparent in his voice. Secretly he’d been quite looking forward to getting his hands dirty and doing something useful for a change.

“And the signal?”

“Well to be honest sir, how it’s still transmitting is a miracle. Must have the heart of a Hikarian Ox.”

Green laughed despite his disappointment. “Tell them to pack up. We’ll go back to the
Defiant
once we hear from the girls. Besides, it’s getting late. They should’ve shown by now.”

As if on cue, Dana and Chang returned.

“Ah good,” Ensign Ladd said. “Maybe they can tell us what to do about this  …”

“Forget it,” Chang said.

“Lisa?” Greene asked her. He looked at her, studied her complexion. She was white as a sheet. “Are you okay?”

“Yes sir. Just feeling washed out.”

“
You
don’t look much better, either,” he told Dana.

She dismissed him. “I wouldn’t worry about digging up that old ship. Or piecing together its transmission like you’re doing a jigsaw. It’s not worth it.”

“What do you mean?” Greene asked her.

“We already have the transmissions.”

“But how? You’re not making sense  …”

“The mountain, sir. We went
inside
the mountain.”

7.

Chang helped Dana load the data taken from the mountain into the ship’s systems. The
Defiant
’s computer had to work to convert it all into something they could understand. Eventually they had Lukas’s last will and testament - as Greene put it - ready for everyone to watch. They used the holo display in the conference room, and it did a good job of displaying the recording.

“Okay, first of all, Doctor Oriz has found something in the memory of that monolith down there that she feels we should all watch.”

“Yes,” Dana said. “I believe it will shed some light on everything.”

“Afterward, we’ll get onto other business. Dim the lights,” Jessica said. She sat down next to Commander Greene. Chief Gunn was there. Lieutenant Chang and Dana, Ensigns Boi and Rayne were also present. Chang started the recording and they watched as Lukas -

* * *

- started up the ladder. The ship jumped beneath him as he climbed. He clambered out onto the sand, regained his footing then moved quickly away from the sinking vessel. When he was a good twenty feet away he turned to watch as
Sophie
slid beneath the sands.

“Farewell.”

He climbed the embankment and with the sun nearly at its zenith behind him, he followed his Captain’s footprints into the barren wilderness. And whatever awaited.

* * *

Moonwatcher took the last remaining invader and dragged him in front of the sacred stone. The carvings at the top depicted the Star God, the Guardian of Sanctuary. The village elders assured the rest of them that sacrificing the invaders would bring the rains they so desperately needed. The drought had lasted far too long.

The man struggled in Moonwatcher’s arms, but he was no match for the L’ucrah’s lean strength. The others in the village cheered.

“Sanctuary,” Moonwatcher said, then withdrew his blade.

As he moved to draw it across the invaders throat, a flash of lightning tore through the atmosphere over his head. Only it wasn’t lightning.

He spun about, as did everyone else. Stood on a hill above the village was another invader, only this one was different. His hair was bright blonde.

One of the hunter-warriors made to move. The invader shot him with the weapon, blew him to bits. The villagers staggered back.

“Stop!” the invader yelled. He walked slowly toward them. He raised his hand to the sky, made as if he were clutching at something there. “I come from the stars. I mean you no harm,” he said, thumping his chest.

The gesture of connecting sky with self had an instant effect on them. A steady murmur spread throughout the village as the invader came to stand before Moonwatcher.

“No more killing. Please,” the invader said.

Although his words were meaningless, his actions were not. He was brave in front of them, cool and collected. In control. He could make a man split apart with the stick in his hand.