Neverwylde (18 page)

            “Where did you find these, Dox?” Kelen asked.

            The little man pointed to an area behind them where more cylinders were located. “Over there.”

            The action reminded Kyber of something Cooter had told him. “Did you tell me there was an auxiliary portal to the garden from here?”

            The Terran grinned. “Yeah. This way.” He took off in another direction with the others in tow.

They threaded their way between unrecognizable objects, some of which hummed or showed other signs that they were working or in use. Kelen placed a hand on the side of one unidentifiable monolith.

“It’s warm. I wonder what it does.”

“They all look like slabs of rock to me,” Cooter commented. “That doorway I told you about is right up here.”

He led them to a small dais which sat approximately a foot above the ground floor. Like everything else around them, it appeared to be no more than a piece of carved rock, two-by-four meters in length and width. Kyber gave Cooter a quizzical look.

“This is the doorway?”

“Yeah. The way I discovered it was I thought I heard something, and stood on it to get a better look around. Next thing I knew, I was surrounded by trees. Go ahead.” He gestured at Kyber. “Try it.”

“How did you get back to here?” Kyber asked.

“Step off, then get back on. I guess it’s programmed for an auto return.”

Kyber felt Kelen’s hand on his arm. She was hesitant for him to try it. A quick glance at her worried expression confirmed what he was feeling. She didn’t quite trust the man, either.

He opened his mouth to suggest Cooter subject himself to the teleportation device, when Dox dashed in front of them and jumped onto the dais. The redheaded figure lifted his face toward the ceiling…

…and was gone.

“Dox!”

Kelen shrieked and bolted for the platform, but Kyber managed to snag her by the arm to prevent her from following. Cooter held out a hand to stay her.

“He’s okay! Just watch and wait.”

They continued to stare at the empty platform as the seconds ticked by. At one point, Kyber tilted his head to listen.

“What? Do you hear something?” Kelen whispered.

He frowned. “I thought I heard movement, but this place soaks up sound like a vacuum.”

Then, as suddenly as he’d disappeared, Dox popped back into view. A big grin split his face. “That was fun! Go again!”

He stepped off the dais, then Kyber reached over and grabbed him by the wrist. “Not yet. Not until you answer a couple of questions. What did you see, Dox? Did you find the garden?”

The young man nodded.

“Where is the dais located in the garden?” Kelen asked.

“Near the steps leading to the temple.” The grin dropped, and Dox grew serious. “Want to study it. Want to know what makes it go.”

“You’ll get your chance, eventually. I hope. Cooter, are there any more of these platforms?”

“I don’t know. That dais is right below the steps leading up to the temple, just like he said. We passed by it without ever realizing what it was.”

“Is it possible there is one platform per location, but with way stations situated all over the place?” Kelen wondered aloud.

“If that’s the case, there should be a control panel close by where it can be set to allow its creators to go to other parts of this planet,” Cooter continued. “I’ve only been to the gardens, and so far I haven’t found another one of these big slabs in this room. But, given the size of this place, I haven’t explored much further than to find enough to eat and drink, and a safe place to sleep.”

The young man hopped off the dais and quickly strode away. Without questioning what he was doing, they followed him. Kyber observed how Dox paused every time he glanced at something. His movements seemed hyper-intensive. More than deliberate.

“Kelen, is he cataloging what he sees?”

“Yeah. In a way, he is. He has a photographic memory, if that’s what you’re asking.”

For several minutes, Dox led them back to the wall of containers before vanishing between several pillars. They waited for him to reappear, when they heard him call out.

“Found it!”

“Found what?” Kyber heard Kelen mutter as they went to join him.

One look at the massive structure made them all stop and stare in disbelief. It was a freestanding wall, nearly ten meters in height and five meters wide, but only a few inches thick. The pillars had effectively hidden it from sight, and in most cases they would have dismissed it anyway as another slab of rock—if it wasn’t for the tiny twinkling glyphs scattered across its surface.

Kyber focused on the block. Something about this piece didn’t fit. The way it sat, propped upright, wasn’t natural. Even the veins running through the piece marked it as being unlike all the other strata that made up this planet.

Cooter lightly ran his fingers down the side. “This one’s different. It doesn’t look like the other rocks.”

“You’re right.” Walking up to it, Kelen also delicately touched the surface. “I’m no geologist, but this rock’s been through hell and back.”

“What do you mean?” Kyber inquired.

“See these?” She pointed to the swirls that seemed to undulate through the wedge. “I remember what my professor told us in one of my academy courses regarding planetary structure and terra-forming. Those striations and curves are caused when the earth is put under intense pressure and heat for millions of years. Whoever put this rock here got it from someplace else. Someplace deep and closer to this planet’s core, or in a location where there’s been volcanic action.”

“What are all those glyphs?” Cooter questioned. “They’re not arranged in rows like they are in the tunnels. And why are they twinkling? I’ve never seen any other lights blinking like that. Maybe the power’s fluctuating?”

Dox stepped between them and pointed to a larger yellow symbol. “It’s a map. We’re here.” Moving his finger upward, he stopped at a greenish marking. “That’s the forest.”

Kyber stared in shock as it all clicked into place.

“By the four gods, he’s right. This is a representation of all the interconnecting caverns and living areas.” He pointed to an orange glyph further up. “Dox, is this the temple?”

“Yes.”

“Look at this,” Kelen noted. “Is this what I think it is?” There appeared to be several tiny black veins running to the edge of the slab, where they abruptly ended. Her hand clutched the edge of the monolith. “This is where the world ends, isn’t it? This is the rim of the world.”

“Holy Toledo,” Cooter softly commented. “Look at this!
Look!
If we’re reading this correctly, there are more caverns below us. Hell, there are lights all around us! For all we know, this planet could be one massive hive.”

“Which means there could still be inhabitants living among us,” Kyber addressed. “They could be in hiding, watching our movements.”

“Trying to determine whether to accept us or not,” Kelen added. She turned and pressed herself closer to him. Kyber slid an arm around her shoulders. “If there are natives on this world, we have to be more careful about what we do,” she said. “They could be dangerous.”

“Or they could become our ally,” Kyber interjected.

“Or they could become property of the Grand Alliance,” a haughty voice announced behind them.

They whirled around to see the D’har standing beyond the pillars. At his signal, Massapa and Verin came forward, effectively circling Kyber and the others.

The D’har snarled as he observed Kelen embracing Kyber. Instinctively, Kyber’s arm tightened protectively around her. He felt his fur rise on end as his need to protect her rose to the fore.

“Thank you for making it easy to find out where you’d gone,” the Seneecian remarked. “Your voices led me straight to you.” He made a motion for the other two Seneecians to advance. “Take the female back to the outlying area. I’ll deal with her when I’m finished here.”

Kyber shoved Kelen behind him before taking a stance in front of the D’har.

The time had come when he had no choice but to challenge the man for dominance. He also knew he didn’t have the strength or endurance to last very long. This had to be quick, or else he would lose everything, including his life.

Worse, he would lose the woman he loved.

Chapter 26

Challenge

            “And take the weapon from the skint.” The D’har made a motion with his hand to indicate Cooter’s rifle. Massapa hesitated slightly, then strode forward to jerk the gun out of the man’s hands. No one said anything as the Seneecian took his place back behind his commander.

            Kelen glanced up at Kyber. The man was hunched over, his arms held out to the sides, his claws extended. The wound in his shoulder looked raw. By the small traces of blood running down the side of his leg, she knew the puncture in his hip was still bleeding. He hadn’t had enough time to recover, and now he was faced with the most dangerous moment of his career, and of his life. She was less than a meter away from him. If she wanted, she could reach out and touch him. But she couldn’t. She couldn’t show him her support or her love in one final caress.

            It was the hardest damn thing she’d ever had to do.

            The D’har wheezed, evidence that he still wasn’t over the massive shock Dox had given him earlier. It gave her a little hope.

            “I see I was wrong to assume you worked alone when you attacked me back in that room,” the D’har growled. Like Kyber, his back was arched, teeth bared, talons ready to shred.

            “I did not attack you,” Kyber replied in a dark tone that sent chills up Kelen’s spine. She’d never heard him speak like this before. It was more than menacing, more than deadly.

            For a moment, she got the impression that the three Seneecians who’d accompanied the D’har were surprised by Kyber’s response.
Damn Seneecian protocols!
There was more going on beneath the surface than she could understand.

            The D’har slowly bobbed his head once. His eyes never left Kyber.

            “Yes, you did. You or your skint accomplice attacked me. You fired on me. You attacked me from behind. From that act of treason alone, I have the right to kill you here, rather than wait for the Alliance to sentence you.”

            “I did not attack you,” Kyber repeated without further argument.

            “He’s speaking the truth!” Kelen took a step forward until she was almost standing beside him. “He’s not the one who hit you!”

            “
Silence her!
” the Seneecian commander yelled.

            Immediately, both Massapa and Gaveer jumped forward, but Kyber swept an arm out toward her, knocking her backwards, but not hard enough to make her lose her footing. He never turned to her, but kept his gaze on the Seneecian standing less than three meters away.

            Massapa took her arm and pushed her further back. Jerking herself from his grasp, she gave him a dirty look, then he lowered his head to whisper.      

            “Do not make this harder on Kyber. If he’s to win, you must remain quiet and in the background.” His voice was almost pleading, and it was then she realized her earlier guess had been correct. The other crew members were afraid of the big, white-furred D’har. They would rather follow Kyber than to remain subjugated to their current commander.

            She heard Kyber take a deep breath. “Plat audo Reen, I hereby challenge you for position of D’har, of the warship
Ist Umberu.
”

            The D’har chuckled. His mouth widened to reveal a full set of long, pointed teeth. “I’ve been waiting a long time to hear you say those words, Kyber Nau.”

            The Seneecian suddenly launched himself at Kyber, swinging and slashing with his claws. Kelen couldn’t keep from crying out in surprise and fear as Massapa shoved her and the others further away from the fight, giving the two combatants ample room to tear into one another.

            Kyber ducked and managed to elude one arm, but the other caught him mid-thigh, leaving a row of slash marks. He retaliated, hacking upwards, hoping to catch the D’har in the throat or upper chest. The D’har managed to twist his body at the last second, and Kyber’s claws caught the strap on the Seneecian’s uniform. With one support gone on the heavy outfit, the D’har tried to adjust the balance.

            Kyber refused to give him that advantage. Lowering his head, he charged. The D’har leaped to the side, but not before Kyber managed to grab a handful of leather straps from the man’s skirt. He gave them a hard jerk and the D’har lost his footing, falling sideways. Kyber kept his momentum going and brought a hand down across the Seneecian’s shoulder. He connected, and blood sprayed into the air.

            The D’har roared as he rolled and jumped back to his feet. Shaking his injured arm sent bloody streaks rolling down his fur.

            “How dare you attack me from behind! I would have thought you would be less cowardly when you challenged me.” He clashed his teeth, making chomping sounds. Kelen realized the commander was referring again to the incident in the apartment.

            Kyber sighed loudly but didn’t respond. Obviously, if the D’har continued to harp on that moment, no amount of denial was going to change his mind.

            She narrowed her eyes as the two circled each other.
Or maybe there’s a reason why the D’har continues to insist it was Kyber’s doing.

           
Reaching out, she touched Massapa’s arm. The Seneecian tore his eyes from the two combatants to look down at her.

            “Why does the D’har insist Kyber attacked him from the rear?” she whispered.

            “It is the ultimate sign of betrayal. It is an automatic death sentence. Even if Kyber wins, if the rest of us believe the attack took place, it gives us the right to finish him.”

           
The right to finish him?
Her body went cold with fear. “But Kyber didn’t attack him. Dox did.”

            The Seneecian’s face paled slightly. “Are you…”