The Guardian (Coranite Chronicles) (12 page)

“I’m sure.” Darek tried to pull away. Darek took only a few firm steps before he collapsed again. Slade helped him up.

“You might be worse off than you think,” Slade said. “Maybe we should get you checked. I think there’s a nurse somewhere around here.”

Darek didn’t reply. Slade examined him. Darek had fallen sound asleep.

CHAPTER 8

Mistaken

“Stop moving around, will you! Your foot is in my face!” Kite shouted.

“Sorry,” Berik snapped, “but you’d move around too if you knew what was in my face!”

Vincent told them calmly, “Might I remind you humans that the life support is rather limited. It would help conserve resources if you would refrain from shouting, as you have been doing for several minutes.”

“Shut up,
Vincent
,” Berik growled. “Stay out of this.”

“Don’t tell him to shut up!” Kite said. “He’s absolutely right. We’ve been making a fuss ever since we launched this pod. We haven’t even bothered to set the destination yet. Get to work, Rookie.”

“Yes…sir,” Berik moaned. “What did I do to deserve this?” he quietly asked of no one in particular. Vincent sounded like he was about to answer him, but Berik, realizing this, quickly said, “And no, Vincent. Don’t say a word. I don’t want your detailed, computer-generated analysis about my life and how stupid I was to agree to board the
Hercules
in the first place. I’m an Ace! My life should be glamorous! If I had known I’d be stuck in a tiny escape pod with two other men, I would’ve agreed to be under Captain Ulstather instead…”

“I heard that, Ace Pilot,” said Kite.

Sounding depressed, Berik said, “Doesn’t matter. We’re never getting home anyway.”

Berik stretched one arm and blindly groped for the controls. It was difficult to move around. Three humans and a small lizard now occupied this pod, which was originally intended for one person.

Along with Kite and Berik, Commodore Ladestorm was cramped inside, still unconscious, his wounds rather severe. His skin was covered in electrical burn marks and his head had suffered some trauma.

Fitting everyone inside was quite a feat. Their spacesuits took too much room, so they had to strip down to their body suits before getting in. And even after they had stripped down, they needed to fit themselves together like pieces of a puzzle in order to close the hatch.

When they had first entered the pod, Kite and Berik were both upright and Commodore Ladestorm had his head facing down, their bodies squeezed closely together. However, because it was terribly uncomfortable and awkwardly intimate, Berik moved around to better position himself, causing Kite to change places as well. Now their arms and legs were tangled.

Berik carefully navigated his hands around someone’s leg, wishing not to grab something he might find unpleasant to touch. Finally, after feeling around, he was able to locate the controls to the computer. He ran his fingers around the raised letters, trying to understand what the labels read. Then he hit the switch, thinking it was the correct one.

A sound informed him that it was the right switch. It was the sound of the computer’s voice. “Verbal interface has been enabled,” it said in a female voice. “Greetings, Captain. What are your orders?”

“Computer,” Kite said firmly, “what is the nearest inhabited world?”

“The nearest inhabited world is Vareshk.”

“Can you take us there?”

“Affirmative. Destination: Vareshk. Is the destination acceptable?”

“Yes.”

“Initiating teleportation sequence in five seconds. You may abort sequence during this time.”

The convoluted arrangement of their bodies made it impossible to see the computer screen. The only way for them to tell that the pod was going somewhere was the subtle rattling. The trip through space lasted about fifteen minutes. When they reached Vareshk, the rattling stopped.

The voice of the computer said, “Initializing sub-light engines.”

The rattling began again as soon as the engines ignited. When it reached the atmosphere, the rattling became a powerful jolting. Luckily for them, the interior was covered with soft padding, providing them with a safe cushion during this painful part of the ride. However, it was still a rough descent. They were crunched and twisted together during the uncontrollable bouncing and shaking. They were scrambled into random positions that they dreaded. Berik was even about to do a split.

Then, after one loud bang, it all stopped.

“Destination reached,” said the computer. “You may exit.”

“About time,” said Kite. His head near the ground, he reached for the lock on the hatch with his foot and, after disabling it, kicked it open. They were now able to see the bright sky above. “Berik, climb out first. Then pull out the commodore.”

“Yes, sir.” Berik stuck his head out, and then lifted himself up, past the hatchway. Upon looking out, Berik was stunned.

“Berik?” Kite said, waiting for him to move. “What are you waiting for?”

Berik said nothing. He continued to stare out at their surroundings.

“Berik,” Kite said again. He still gave no response. “BERIK!”

“W-what?” Berik looked back into the shuttle. “W-what is it?”

“I told you to get the commodore out of here.”

Berik said, “That might not be a good idea.”

“Huh?”

“It doesn’t look like we’ll be going anywhere.”

“
What?
What are you trying to say, Rookie?”

“Well…apparently, we’re in the middle of an ocean,” Berik said weakly. “There’s no place for us to go.”

“That’s impossible!” Kite exclaimed. “These escape pods automatically search for sand or land when they fall—not the ocean!”

Berik said, “I don’t really understand it either, but come up here if you don’t believe me.”

Flustered, Kite said, “Computer! What is the surface of this planet comprised of?”

The computer replied, “The surface of the planet is: 76% water, 24% ice.”

Kite slammed his own head against the floor. “A water world! I can’t believe we ended up on a water world! I should’ve double-checked! I’m such an idiot!” Kite squirmed around to put himself back upright. Poking his head above the hatch, he gazed into the far ocean. Algae-covered waves beat against the side of the buoyant escape pod. There was nothing but green murky water for miles ahead. Even at the edge of the horizon, there were no signs of islands or ships.

Kite heaved a great sigh. “The computer did say that this world was inhabited. Someone’s out there and they’re bound to find us sooner or later.”

“Maybe,” said Berik, not sounding hopeful.

Berik sat up on the side, being careful not to fall in the ocean. Kite did the same. They stretched their arms and legs a little. Even though Kite tried to be optimistic, he knew it was pointless to get his hopes up. The world was large, and the inhabitants could be anywhere. Depending on the level of technology, the population could be either living on houseboats across the seas, or beneath the surface in underwater shelters. There was also the possibility that they lived in the sky.

“I’m sorry,” said Kite.

Berik raised a brow. He thought he heard the Captain give an apology, but the idea seemed ludicrous enough to ignore.

Kite studied Berik’s strange expression. “What? Do you want me to repeat it again?”

“That would be helpful, sir…” he said apprehensively.

“I’m sorry, for…what happened,” said Kite. “I normally wouldn’t apologize for something out of my control. But…seeing that we probably won’t make it and no one else is around, I figure, I might as well get it off my chest.”

“No, sir,” said Berik nervously. “You don’t need to apologize. I was just kidding before about wanting to be under Captain Ulstather. I think you’re a great captain.”

“Am I really?” Kite laughed bitterly. “My crew…most likely dead by now. I knew of the risk. I knew that the Gargoyles might come, but I still…thought it was necessary. Oh well. What can you do, right? I do what I must…and apologize to those who get hurt on my behalf.” He smiled and turned to Berik. “And in the end, I think about the bright side. At least my
entire
crew isn’t dead.”

“Yet,” Berik added.

The hours went by slowly and the twin suns fell beyond the horizon. Night had come upon them. The whole time they did nothing but wait. Talking seemed like a waste of energy when survival was on the line. And so they remained still and quiet.

Hoping that sleep would take their mind off their troubling situation, they stayed in the pod and closed their eyes.

Berik opened one eye. “I’m hungry.”

“I know,” Kite muttered. “Go to sleep.”

“I’m not telling you I’m hungry,” said Berik. “I’m just saying I’m hungry. And I bet you’re hungry too.”

Kite groaned, “Shut up and go to sleep. That’s an order.”

“Yes, sir.” Berik closed his eyes and focused on the black curtain that veiled his sight. His stomach rumbled. It was loud enough to be heard over the sound of the waves. He opened his eyes again.

“I’m too hungry to sleep.” Berik climbed up and sat upon the hatchway. He stared at the stars in wonder. “Wow. I’ve never seen such a beautiful night sky like this…in all my life. Kind of takes your mind off things. Almost makes me forget—”

“Okay,” Kite barked. “You don’t
have
to go to sleep. But you
must
shut up!”

Berik nodded. He proceeded to gaze at the distant horizon. A sliver of moonlight broke through the clouds and reflected clearly over the pristine emerald water. While staring, something caught his eye. It was too far off to be identified. However, he knew that something was there. Something was coming across the water, heading towards their pod. Could it be a ship?

“Captain.” Berik stooped and shook Kite by the arm. “The—”

Kite glared at him with one eye open. “Didn’t I tell you to shut up?”

“But sir!”

“No buts, Rookie. Give me some peace and quiet.”

Berik gave up. His captain didn’t want to hear it. He figured that he might as well try on his own to get the attention of the object in the distance. Whatever it was, it could have people on board. Leaning forward, Berik tried to stand as high as he could.

Berik waved his arms wildly, shouting, “HEY, OVER HERE! WE’RE OVER HERE! WE NEED HELP!”

Kite grunted, “What are you doing?”

Berik ignored the captain. “COME ON! WE NEED HELP! HEY!”

Kite reluctantly pulled himself out of the pod and looked across the water to try to see what was going on. His vision blurry, he rubbed his eyes and looked out again. There was something out there all right.

“What is it?” Kite wondered out loud.

“I don’t know,” Berik admitted. “But I want to find out.”

In time, the floating objects reached them. Upon closer inspection, Berik felt disappointed. They were living creatures. These organisms resembled manta rays. Flat, winged and smooth, these creatures floated across the waves. There was a bunch of these things making their way around the escape pod, not even caring about the hunk of space metal that blocked their path.

Berik suddenly became curious about the rays. “Do you think they’d taste good?”

“Are you willing to eat it raw to find out?” Kite replied.

“It might just be my last meal.”

Kite looked down at the small lizard by his feet. “Hey Vincent, I have a question.”

Vincent uncurled his scaly tail. “Yes?”

“Could we kill one of those things and put your mind inside? You know, so you can control it?”

“No,” said Vincent. “Only another Cyzom would have the knowledge to plant a Cyzom’s seed. It is a delicate process that differs from host to host. And even if you were to succeed, I would never allow it.”

“Why’s that?”

Vincent replied flatly, “Our programming does not allow killing in order to gain hosts.”

“Your programming doesn’t allow it? Even if it meant the survival of the Cyzom?”

Vincent nodded. “Yes, we are not allowed.”

Berik laughed. “What is that, some kind of moral code? Oh man, can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m starting to respect this lizard.”

Persistent, Kite asked, “What about if we…accidentally killed one?”

“If the accident was truly accidental, then I would accept your terms and agree to the attempt of transplanting my seed. If I discover that the accidental killing was on purpose then I shall refuse to be reawakened when I am in my new host.”

“Stubborn to the very end,” said Kite.

“Like I said,” said Vincent, “it is a part of my programming.”

“All this talk is making me hungry. Maybe it won’t mind a nibble.” Berik jumped out and landed on the back of a ray. The ray thrashed, attempting to knock him off. Berik wrestled with it, unwilling to let it go. He toppled over into the ocean. The ray, angered by the sudden attack, head butted Berik in the face before swimming away.