To The Stars

  "You got any better ideas?"

  "Not really."

  Fagen handed Parker a canteen. "Hot, eh?"

  "Hot's not the word for it. The gravity doesn't help either. I'm tired. I feel like I've been walking around with sandbags on my back. Seems hotter than it was the first time we came down."

  "It is," Harry replied. "Radiation levels have gone up some too."

  "Oh yeah?" Parker checked his instruments. Sure enough, his instru­ments indicated the same thing. "Well, that's nothing to worry about. The levels are still safe."

  Harry turned to the mission commander. "How long you want to wait?"

  Fagen took his time in answering. "Not much longer. To tell you the truth, I doubt if we'll be able to gain entry."

  "We could cut our way inside with the beamer," said Parker.

  Harry shook his head. "Might be pressurized… maybe gases inside. We’d risk injuring whatever, whoever's inside? Destroying property isn’t the best way to make friends either. Not a good idea," argued Harry. "Let me have a go at it, Edward."

  "What have you got in mind?"

  "Let me approach the structure. If anyone is inside, surely they have a method of monitoring what goes on outside. If that's so, they'll see me and come out."

  ""Maybe they know we're here already."

  "Maybe so, but we're not getting anywhere as it is. Come on, Edward, what do you say?"

  Fagen looked out across the clearing. The odd, featureless building stood silent.

  "All right. But watch yourself. Parker and I will cover you. You won't be on your own."

  Harry nodded. As much he wanted to establish communications with the aliens, he was still afraid. The image of Doris, impaled aboard the alien spacecraft, once again flashed through his mind. If he was successful, upon return to Earth, the whole world would know his name. He didn't want to think of the alternatives.

  He stood. "Now?"

  "Yeah," said Fagen. "Which way are you going to take?"

  Parker interrupted. "The grass at the far end is trampled. I suggest approaching from that side."

  "All right, sounds good."

  Harry waited while Parker and Fagen moved to vantage points that would allow them to watch him unimpeded. When they were set, Fagen signaled.

  Suddenly calm, Harry took a deep breath and stepped from the trees as the sun beat down on head and shoulders. He moved to the area where the grass was trampled and stood facing the building. In keeping with corporation procedures, he raised both hands to show whoever might be watching that he held no weapons and offered no threat.

  Surely, Harry thought, if the aliens were watching, they would see he carried no weapons. Still, it was a dangerous proposition. How they would react was anybody's guess.

  He stood ten feet from the structure and showed the palms of his hands. There was no reaction. Harry felt a tingling sensation and recognized it as a static charge buildup. Taking a few steps closer, the sensation grew. At five feet, the tingling continued to increase and Harry caught the scent of ozone. He knelt and picked up a pebble as he had when approaching the alien shuttle.

  He tossed the rock underhanded at the building. Sure enough, before it made it to the wall, it bounced against an invisible barrier and fell to the ground. Another force field.

  Harry took a few steps backward. There was no way they were going to get past the force field without damaging something. The beamer could possibly cut through, but the risk was too great. No matter how hostile the aliens turned out to be, Harry wasn't going to instigate violence.

  He knew he couldn't take anything for granted. Just because the aliens were advanced, and from the looks of things, they were advanced far be­yond human technology, that was no assurance they were not a violent and dangerous species. The evidence indicated otherwise. Again, Harry thought of Doris.

  Why had they attacked her? Perhaps it was as simple as finding a bur­glar in one's home, perhaps it was a reaction committed in surprise. Or, just maybe, the aliens didn't consider life other than their own to be of any value. Harry preferred to believe the former rather than the latter. After all, didn't advancement entail a condemnation of violence?

  The building remained silent. Sunlight gleamed off Harry's armor plates as he waited for something to happen. He looked back at Fagen and Parker. Fagen gave a little wave to show that, at least so far, all was well.

  Harry turned back. Where he stood the grass was trampled as if recent activity had taken place. The trampled grass led to the structure. If there was an entrance, Harry was sure it was directly in front of him. On the ground, he noticed traces of a substance. He knelt and looked. It was dried blood.

  As he inspected the spot, a seam creased the wall and within seconds an opening appeared. There was a popping sound, like a static discharge, and Harry looked up. As he watched, the sides of the opening stretched farther apart until the hole, or doorway, was quite large. It was dark inside, but Harry caught a glimpse of motion. A long, metallic shaft protruded from the opening, the end delicately placing itself on the ground. In a moment, it was joined by another. As the thing stepped from the opening, Harry drew in his breath. It was the same thing he'd seen in the alien ship.

  When it stepped away, the opening closed. Harry backed away and watched. The rounded, metallic object stood on its spindly legs not ten feet away.

  Harry lifted his empty hands splay-fingered and palms out, showing he held nothing. He hoped the creature recognized the peaceful gesture for what it was.

  It was nearly seven feet in height, but most of that was taken up by its legs. Because its body appeared to be metallic, Harry unconsciously assumed it was robotic. Small, jointed arms ending in claw-like, manipulative digits dangled from its sides. These were constructed out of the same darkened metal. Tools and equipment hung from what could only be described as a utility belt. As Harry watched, the thing removed an instrument from its belt and pointed it toward him.

  It scanned him with the device, trying to discern what he was. Feeling no discomfort, Harry stood stock-still, keeping his hands raised.

  Harry spoke to it, "Can you hear me?"

  The monster remained mute and continued to hold the instrument.

  "We are from a planet called Earth. Where are you from?"

  No sound came from the creature other than a barely audible whine emitted from its servo motors. The longer Harry observed it, the more he began to believe that what he saw was an environment suit. An extremely elaborate environment suit. Maybe the creature sat inside the apparatus.

  Sounding like a scene from an old video, Harry said, "We come in peace. We wish you no harm."

  The creature showed no sign of understanding. But it made no hostile moves either. That was encouraging and Harry took a step forward. Now it was no more than seven feet away. Without warning, it lowered itself until it was no taller than Harry's six feet. It could have been a pose taken in response to Harry's movement, a defensive posture. It could also have been a posture designed to open communications.

  The creature removed another instrument from its belt. Harry watched closely as it again pointed the instrument in his direction. It was a peculiar angled box with what appeared to be a crystal at the end. The crystal began to glow and hum. In a moment, a beam of light sprang forth and struck Harry in the forehead.

  Harry was temporarily blinded. His head swam and images passed through his mind of alien landscapes and strange hulking shapes. The images were accompanied by sounds, utterly non-human sounds. He felt as though his head was about to split wide open. In his mind, an image of the Miaplacidus system formed. In the background, the image focused on another star, a red dwarf. As Harry fought the pain in his head, the image of the red dwarf suddenly exploded. And then the pain, the images, and the light stopped, and once again he stood before the alien.

  The creature seemed to wait for a response.

  Harry found his voice. "What is it you're trying to say?"

  The creature raised the instrume
nt. Harry braced himself as it began to glow. He wasn't sure if he could take more of the thought intrusion. The creature raised to its full height and took a step closer. Harry felt a tingling sensation on his scalp and then, quite unexpectedly, something flew over his right shoulder and struck the alien on the arm which held the offending instrument.

  Harry at first thought that either Fagen or Parker had thrown something and struck the alien.

  "No," Harry said and half-turned to the treeline where he knew his companions watched. From somewhere in the trees, another shaft came streaking down and struck the alien on an armor-covered flank.

  Harry staggered backwards and the creature took another step forward. On the ground were what appeared to be two wooden javelins. The alien lowered itself and picked up one of the spears snapping it into two pieces as easily as one might a toothpick. It tossed the pieces aside and drew another instrument from its belt. This one looked suspiciously like a weapon.

  Harry's training told him to remain where he was, but every instinct in his person told him otherwise. Common sense won out and he began a rapid retreat to the trees.

  The alien fired a beam at Harry as he ducked under a low-hanging branch. It missed and burned through a thick root. A shotgun blast suddenly burst from the treeline.

  Oh no, Harry thought. Not this way. Things were rapidly falling apart. He had wanted so badly to do his job, to establish a dialogue with the aliens. And now, what was happening was the worst thing he could imagine. Jumping behind the cover of a tree, he soon began to consider an even worse scenario.

  Another shotgun blast rang out. Harry peeked around the trunk. He could clearly see Fagen and Parker, both squatting behind tree roots. The creature, however, was obstructed from his view. Fagen fired again and urged Parker to fire as well. Parker looked at the clearing and poked the barrel of his gun into the air. He fired and his shot went ineffectively upward ripping through the tree and causing a shower of pine needles and small branches to rain down over him.

  Both Fagen and the doctor turned and ran toward Harry. Fagen paused just long enough to hand him his rifle and helmet.

  "Let's go! Now!"

  Harry didn't think twice. In a moment he was ahead of Fagen and straining with each breath. His body felt heavy and sluggish. Beside him, Fagen was equally suffering. Both men half-fell over a large root. Too winded to speak, Harry peeked over the root and was nearly decapitated by Parker, himself close on their heels and seeking shelter. The doctor pulled himself over the root and puffed to regain his wind.

  "What now?" He managed.

  "Stay together. We'll work our way back to the shuttle." Fagen peeked back in the direction he’d just come. "One of them's coming this way."

  "One of them?" Harry asked.

  "Yeah, when you made a run for it, another one came out of the building."

  "What happened?"

  "Something... up in the trees. I saw them," gasped Parker.

  "No time to talk now." Fagen got to his feet and led the way. The three men ran to another tree where they again stopped to breath. This time there was no talk. Harry strained to control his racing heart. It pounded within his chest and he could hear his ears sing with his heightened blood pressure. Above the ringing in his ears came another, whining sound.

  Peeking around the tree, Harry saw the creature with its legs neatly folded away, flying a few feet above the ground, headed directly for his spot.

  Chapter 26

  In juxtaposition with the action taking place on the surface of the planet, the Magellan sat quietly in its geosynchronous orbit. Earlier, Blane excused himself and wandered down to the lab. The two remaining crew members were bored. They'd watched the alien spaceship closely and, to their relief, there had been no further action. To give themselves something to do, Nadine and Bonner continued to sift through their data and monitor radiation levels.

  "Why haven't they called?"

  Bonner shrugged. "Try contacting them again." he suggested.

  "I just did."

  "Then wait a while longer. Heck, Nadine, I don't know."

  Silence filled the cabin. Bonner tried to concentrate on the figures and graphs displayed before him.

  Nadine checked her instrument readings. "Radiation levels still rising," she said. "Also, luminosity readings for the variable star are rising. Jesus, we're gonna get fried if we stay here."

  Bonner checked his readings. "We're okay. The levels aren't anywhere near deadly."

  "Yet," Nadine added. "But you know as well as I that we could be seeing the beginning of an event. A hot event for us. If that variable star goes nova, this entire system will be bathed in radiation."

  "We don't know the star's about to explode."

  "Well, it's getting hotter and brighter, those are pretty good signs."

  Nadine's answer wasn't scientific, but it was on the mark. There was no denying that the danger from Gamma-2 was real and growing.

  "Want some more coffee?" Nadine offered.

  "No thanks, I'm about to float already."

  Nadine stood and stretched her muscular body. "I guess I've had enough too. It just makes me more nervous. I wish Fagen would answer our calls."

  The engineer nodded in agreement.

  "Seems like years since we left Earth," she said. "When I get back, I'm going to throw the biggest party anybody has seen. You're invited, Mr. Bonner."

  Bonner looked at the black woman sheepishly. "If we get back all right, I'll be there. Wouldn't miss it."

  "It's that 'if' part that bothers me."

  "Why? Want to live forever?"

  "Maybe not forever, but the next fifty or sixty years would be nice." Nadine hesitated before speaking again. "How long do we wait?"

  "For word from Fagen? As long as it takes."

  The woman frowned. She didn't want to get into the same argument, so she decided on a different tactic.

  "Aren't you getting tired of sitting here just waiting, staring at the data?"

  "Yeah, I guess so," he replied. "But there's nothing else to do."

  Nadine smiled coyly and leaned toward the engineer. "Oh, I can think of something."

  *

  Kretin and Arai padded silently along the tops of the large branches. Below them, the flying monsters floated after the strangers. They had tried to kill one with their spears, but their weapons only bounced off the hard skins. All the same, Kretin was determined to take his revenge. Just how he wasn't sure.

  Kretin watched the three strangers rise from their hiding place and run to another spot where they again stopped. Kretin couldn't understand why they kept stopping. Perhaps they plotted an ambush for the creatures. They seemed to hate the monsters as much as he did. They made loud sounds with the sticks they carried, probably in an attempt to frighten the beasts, Kretin thought. It hadn't worked. The creatures were unaffected and relentlessly pursued them.

  Arai whistled to his brother and motioned toward the tree where the strangers hid. The trunk of the tree had grown twisted and gnarled. It was the kind of place the Bedorans used to ambush their prey. There were plenty of places to hide among the branches and one place in particular was perfect for stringing a net.

  Kretin nodded to his little brother and, unknown to the three men on the forest floor, the two natives silently crossed the branches until they reached the tree.

  *

  Parker turned to Fagen. Gasping, he said, "I don't think I can go much farther."

  "We've got to," Fagen replied. "Either that or die here."

  "Maybe we can disable the thing." Harry suggested.

  Fagen shook his head. "I hit it square in the body three times. The shots bounced off. No effect at all."

  "Well, what are we going to do?" Parker's eyes were wide with fright.

  Fagen looked around the trunk and quickly pulled back. "Can't run. It's headed this way. Get ready." Fagen checked his firearm.

  "I can't believe this is happening," said the doctor. "There's got to be something we can
do!"

  "Don't shoot the trees," Harry mumbled.

  "Shut up!" snapped Parker.

  The three men huddled and waited for the attack. They didn't have to wait long. There was a change in the air, a static buildup, then a high-pitched whine of airjets filled their ears. Fagen was the first to stand and fire. As he did so, a beam of white-hot light sliced the air over his head, missing him by inches.

  Harry rolled away and into a position where he could get a shot. It was much closer than expected. It hovered above the ground with its legs drawn up underneath like an insect in flight. Harry sighted the high-powered rifle to a place just over where he imagined the face to be. He squeezed the trigger and the projectile flew from the barrel impacting and exploding right on target.

  The creature wobbled in the air and floated backward, rolling with the blow. "It felt that!" Fagen shouted as he fired a burst from his own weapon.

  The alien avoided Fagen's shot by floating behind the tree.

  Fagen shot Parker a glance. "It's coming around to your side!"

  The doctor cowered against the tree trunk, cradling the shotgun in his arms. "No," he said, "I can't... it isn't right..."

  A look of astonishment and disgust passed over Fagen's face.

  Harry turned his rifle sights to cover the area behind Parker while Fagen watched the other side. To their surprise, instead of coming around, the alien chose to attack from above, appearing at a giant crook in the tree trunk, some fifteen feet over their heads. The beam again shot down and cut a path between Parker and Fagen. The ground sizzled and burned wherever the beam touched.

  Harry rolled onto his back and got off a shot. It ineffectively glanced off the rounded metallic surface resulting in the creature orienting itself in Harry's direction. Harry tried to shoot again but his gun jammed. He dropped it and rolled away just in time to avoid the path of the laser beam.

  Backing against a fallen log, he watched as the beam swept toward him. Time slowed. Harry smelled the burning pine needles and saw the beam steadily advance.

  Without warning, the laser shot off in another, cock-eyed direction, into the trees. Harry looked up at the alien.

  Its spindly legs and robotic arms struggled within the constraints of a woven net. An attached rope went taut. Pulling at the end was an odd apelike creature. Fascinated, Harry watched.

  The rope closed the loop and the alien became fully enclosed. It continued to fire its ray in an effort to burn its way free. To some extent, it worked, but not before the simian succeeded in destabilizing the thing's gyros. The alien finally turned over in mid-air and toppled to the ground, hitting and bouncing off a large branch in the process.