The Hidden Treasure of Darfor

  ***

  The first thing that struck Patrick as he disembarked the aging spacecraft and stepped onto the gangway heading into the main spaceport was the smell. It hit him like a ton of bricks and he had to stop for a moment as others jostled around him and half-pushed him out of their way as they hurriedly marched towards the pass-check point, obviously having done this journey a hundred times before. The second thing that struck Patrick (literally) was a loud, obnoxious creature that was clearly late for something and was in a foul mood. He whacked into Patrick’s shoulder and snarled at the human for a second, before remembering he was late and hurrying off again.

  Patrick was in somewhat of a daze, but he mumbled an apology – which the creature ignored – then leaned against a nearby barrier to catch his breath and compose himself. He gazed at the alien as he left. The creature was very tall, a good ten inches taller than Patrick, and had dark blue, slightly mottled skin. He also had a long – mane? – for lack of a better word, running from the top of his head down to the backs of his knees. Patrick wondered how he didn’t constantly trip up or get tangled in that thick mane of purple hair, before suddenly realising he was the only person still on the gangway. He quickly checked his pockets to make sure he had everything then grabbed his bag and walked purposely towards the pass-check point.

  He made it to the check point and joined the end of a large queue which was filled with creatures from a dozen different worlds. As the line slowly moved forwards, Patrick sneaked glances at some of his fellow passengers. There was a large, bird-like creature just in front of him, with a body almost entirely covered with feathers and long, supple, multi-jointed arms that carried a multitude of bags, hand-held computers and other devices which Patrick didn’t recognise. A little further down the line was a medium-height alien that was covered in reddish fur, then further along still was a tall creature with silvery, slimy skin that glistened as he/she/it fidgeted and blinked his/her/its big, black eyes rapidly. At the front of the line was a small alien, probably around three feet tall, who appeared to be remonstrating with an official over something. Eventually the little alien got tired of arguing, reluctantly took a ticket with an indecipherable symbol printed on it from the official, then waddled away looking somewhat dejected.

  Even though this was a nerve-wracking experience for Patrick, the sense of fear he initially felt was slowly abating and was being replaced by a kind of excitable, anticipatory energy. He felt his lips curve upwards in a smile, then suddenly it became a full open-mouthed grin of excitement. He was here. He was finally here! The capital planet of the whole galaxy! A world with a million places to explore, a million treasures to be discovered and billions of different people to meet, each with their own stories and cultures from their own planets! A wave of exhilaration washed over Patrick and he started fidgeting, suddenly desperate to get past the check point and into the world beyond, eager to explore.

  When it was finally Patrick’s turn, he walked up to the official who was manning the pass-check point with a big smile on his face. The official regarded him with a stare that, if not exactly icy, definitely showed complete disinterest. ‘Hi, here are my documents,’ Patrick said pleasantly as he handed over a small data chip. The official simply grunted a response as he took the chip from Patrick, swiped it over a machine, then handed it back. ‘Thanks,’ Patrick said, his smile beginning to fade.

  Not exactly a warm welcome, he thought absently.

  The official then turned and began typing away at something on a nearby terminal as Patrick was the last of the line of travellers queuing to enter the main spaceport.

  With a small shrug, Patrick pocketed the data chip, slung his bag over his shoulder and marched onwards. He turned right then left, this way and that, through a veritable maze of corridors, walkways and escalators. Eventually, he stepped through some large doors into an enormous room. It might have been originally designed as a waiting area, but now it had expanded to include numerous shops, eating establishments, computer terminals, communications booths and many other things besides. Once more, Patrick found himself standing still in shock as he took in the sight. There were more people here in this large room (if it could even be called a “room”. That word was a definite understatement) than Patrick would typically see in a whole month back on the rural settlements of his home planet. There must have been thousands of creatures milling around, chatting, walking, eating and engaging in various other activities. There were so many different species that Patrick stopped trying to count them after a while. Some were tall, some were small, some were scaly, others were furry, some had two eyes, others as many as six! Or was it eight? Patrick closed his eyes and pressed his fingers to his temples, which were starting to throb. This was just too much to absorb and process in one go. He walked over to a nearby bench and sat down, using his hands to steady himself as his legs began to go a bit wobbly. There must have been at least a dozen different conversations going on within Patrick’s earshot. He tried to tune them out and focus on his next move. Ok, he had got here safe and sound. What next? He fished a crumpled magazine out of his bag and studied the pages on Nexus One. It was more of an attempt to lure tourists to the planet than a thorough, informative guide but it would help him get his bearings. At least, he thought it would. Minutes passed as he studied some of the simplified maps of the main city adjacent to the spaceport. Patrick squinted as he tried to make some sense out of it, but he was struggling to understand the labels. Suddenly, he became aware of an individual standing over him. The creature was a couple of inches taller than the human – probably six feet or six feet one and of medium build. It was rather humanoid in general appearance: it had one head, two eyes, two arms and two legs. However, there were many things about it that were very alien to Patrick: the creature had bright green skin that was mottled with shades of brown, rather pointy ears and various spiky protrusions sticking out of its hairless head. He (Patrick assumed it was a “he”, anyway) was wearing thin, shiny, silver material over the top part of his body and light blue trousers of another material over his legs. His arms, hands and head were the only parts of his body exposed. Patrick, in contrast, was clad in relatively dark (some might say drab) colours – his murky-coloured jacket and deep red shirt were well-worn, as were his dark blue jeans. His look was completed with grey, thick laced boots and even thicker, tousled brown hair atop his youthful face.

  If shiny fabrics and light colours are the fashion here on Nexus One, I won’t have to tell anyone I’m from another planet. They’ll know just by looking at me, thought Patrick.

  The tall, spiky creature beamed at him and drawled ‘Hay mann, how yuu doe-eeng?’

  Patrick blinked several times and then understood what the alien meant.

  ‘Oh, you meant to say “How are you doing”, didn’t you? I-I’m fine, how are you?’ Patrick spoke with a stilted accent but was undeniably fluent in the common language used throughout the galaxy, commonly known as simply “Standard”.

  He had studied hard at the main university on his home planet and had been told by many teachers he had an unusually high aptitude for learning languages. The alien was somewhat less capable in comparison but seemed to have boundless enthusiasm to make up for it.

  ‘Sorry, my mistake buddy,’ he replied in a casual, friendly manner. ‘Welcome to Nexus One! I’m Saleek, by the way,’ he held his hand out as he said this.

  Patrick was surprised, but he stood up and shook the alien’s hand.

  ‘My name is Patrick. I’m impressed, I was told not many species know of our customs,’ he said.

  ‘You’re a hoo-mann, right? I could tell, you know, plain as day. You do kinda stand out around here, not that that’s a bad thing – some people would give anythin’ to stand out from the crowd. In any case, it’s really great to meet you, dude!’

  Saleek was shaking Patrick’s hand with much vigour. He was using a mixture of Standard and old American English in his sentences.

  ‘It’s actually pro
nounced “human”,’ corrected Patrick as he withdrew his hand from the alien’s grip. ‘You seem to know an awful lot about human customs and...how did you know some of those words?’

  ‘Well, I have a bit of a hobby. Well, to be honest, some might say obsession. I like to say passion!’ Saleek replied, grinning. ‘I just love learning about different languages and cultures. I particularly enjoy learning about you humans. You were the last major sentient species to join this particular galaxy. I know loads about every other species that are part of the Galactic Network. But you humans, you’re like an enigma! You tend to keep to yourselves and no one knows much about you. So I made it my mission to learn!’ Saleek seemed quite pleased with himself as he said this.

  ‘Well, it’s nice to meet you. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what kind of reception I’d get in a place like this. I take it that not many of these people here have seen a human before?’

  ‘That’s true, that’s true. However, there are so many thousands of different species on this planet and everywhere is so busy all the time that I don’t think anyone has even noticed yet! Except for me, obviously. Must be my keen observational skills, huh?’ Saleek explained, still smiling.

  ‘Sure, I guess.’

  ‘So, what are you here for, stranger? Can I help you out with anything?’

  Patrick’s mind instantly went back to a time when he was younger. He was travelling to the main university to start his studies and he had just disembarked from a transport in an unfamiliar town on his home planet. People were bustling around and rushing everywhere, some knocking into him as he tried to get his bearings. A stranger with a warm smile and a thick coat came up to him and shepherded him away from the heaving throng of people and offered to help him with his belongings. Patrick, being young and naive, didn’t think anything of it at the time. He was stressed, tired and desperate to get to his accommodation at the university, so he instantly accepted the help and before long the two were chatting and walking along. Cutting a long story short, that evening ended with Patrick being mugged and having his belongings stolen from him by the guy with the thick coat and some of his friends. Patrick learned that day to think twice about accepting anything from a total stranger, especially when it’s obvious that you don’t know where you are or what you’re doing. Being the only confused-looking human in a spaceport full of other species probably, as Saleek had said, made Patrick stand out by a mile. It would also make him a prime target for any would-be muggers or pickpockets. Patrick quickly weighed up his options in his head. On the one hand, this alien called “Saleek” (if that was even his real name) could be a potential mugger, or worse. It was possible that he and his friends made a living out of hustling, mugging and picking the pockets of the many travellers and tourists that would come through this spaceport on a daily basis. It was also possible that he was just a very friendly person who had a genuine interest in learning about the cultures of other species.

  And I sure could use a guide to navigate this city. Even this spaceport is set out like a maze, thought Patrick. What the hell? I’m pretty sure I can handle myself and there is no way this guy would try and mug me in a place as crowded as this. I’ll play along for a while and see what happens. If things start to turn suspicious, I’ll bail. First things first...

  ‘Well, I’m sure you’ve heard it all before. I’m coming here to find work. Everyone knows about the poor jobs market on the human colonies, right? I mean, with all this advanced technology, automation and personal robots, the human race has never had it so good but that also means no jobs for the majority of people there. Hence,’- Patrick spread his arms out wide, as if to display himself - ’why I’m here on Nexus One. Hell, I’ve hardly got a credit to my name. These clothes and my bag here on the only things I’ve got at the moment,’ he half-lied.

  Patrick did have a few thousand credits stored on a secret account, but that was only for emergencies. And the real reason that he had left his home planet? Well, no one on Nexus One knew that right now and he was determined to keep it that way. There was no way he was going to tell the first alien he met.

  ‘Gee, I wish I could tell you that you’ve come to the right place, buddy, but I’m afraid there ain’t many jobs goin’ round here. The sheer number of people that are on this planet means any vacancy gets filled within days, sometimes hours of being advertised. Still, no worries, if you get into any serious trouble, you could always crash at my place. It’s not far from the port. It ain’t exactly fancy, but it’s a roof over ya head anyways!’ Saleek was still beaming, and the offer appeared genuine.

  Does this guy ever stop smiling? Patrick thought to himself.

  Still, he couldn’t help himself and he cracked a small smile too. It was nice to feel like he had a friend, even if he wasn’t 100% sure he could trust him just yet. It was easy to feel lonely and overwhelmed on a planet this enormous and so heavily populated, especially as Patrick had been born and raised on the much quieter, much smaller outer colonies. He decided he would let his guard down, just a little.

  Besides, even conmen don’t smile as much as this guy, he reasoned. He seems harmless enough.

  Their conversation was suddenly interrupted by a group of aggressive-looking aliens walking up to them. There were four of the creatures – three were of medium height and build and were all of the same species. They looked vaguely like bipedal rats and stood slightly behind the fourth, who was an altogether different species. He was very large, around six foot six and extremely heavily built. Apart from the lack of foliage sprouting from his body and nearby clouds circling his head, he could easily have been mistaken for a mountain. His overdeveloped muscles were seemingly an attempt to hide an underdeveloped brain however. This became apparent when he opened his mouth to speak.

  ‘What we got here then? What kinda species are you?’

  He was addressing Patrick with a sneer and barely even looking at Saleek.

  ‘I’m a human. And you are?’ Patrick replied, attempting to be polite.

  It’s typical. The last thing I want here on Nexus One is trouble. I thought I’d come here to get away from stuff like this, not walk straight into it, he thought.

  He could instantly sense that these four were trouble and if he wasn’t careful, things could get ugly rather quickly. Generally Patrick could handle himself, but he didn’t like the odds he was facing. Four on one was impossible, especially with the big guy to take care of. He quickly glanced at Saleek, as if to silently ask ‘Can I count on you?’ The spiky alien gave an almost imperceptible nod, signalling the affirmative, then turned away from Patrick to fully face the newcomers.

  ‘A what? A hoo-mann? Never heard of ya!’ came the response from the large alien.

  ‘That’s not surprising. Patrick ain’t from round here, are ya buddy?’ said Saleek, entering the conversation.

  ‘An’ who asked you, ya spiky little lyan?’ boomed the large alien, regarding Saleek with a hostile glare.

  ‘Yeah, who asked ya?’ shrieked one of the three who were standing just behind the enormous mountain on legs.

  ‘I’m from the outer colonies. Most of my people don’t come to the inner core systems very often, so it’s understandable that you don’t recognise my species,’ explained Patrick diplomatically. ‘What’s the name of your species?’

  ‘I’m a Trantik. You musta heard o’ my species! We’re some o’ the foremost athletes and soldiers this side o’ the Parses Nebula!’ said the large alien, flexing his ample arm muscles as he did so.

  Whilst he was undeniably impressive in size, his vain behaviour betrayed the truth of someone who was actually very insecure about his comparably small intellect and frequently tried to overcompensate. When that didn’t work, Patrick assumed he simply beat the offending party into a pulp and dragged them back to his cave somewhere to hang up as a trophy.

  ‘Actually, that’s a bit of an exaggeration,’ interjected Saleek, much to the chagrin of the enormous Trantik standing in front of him. ‘Your speci
es are capable athletes and reasonable warriors. But then again, you’ve still lost more than your fair share of conflicts. What about the Waldoran rebellion, eh? That was a pretty one-sided and short-lived war, huh?’

  While Saleek was grinning from pointy ear to pointy ear, the Trantik was getting more and more riled by the second. His three friends began hopping from one leg to the other and produced a low hissing sound, apparently their species’ form of nervous behaviour, alternating glances at Saleek and the giant Trantik. Some of the nearby people walking past started to give this group a wide berth and others retreated altogether, as if sensing what was about to happen.

  ‘An’ what kinda wars have your pathetic species won, lyan?’ spat the large alien, his voice dripping with venom.

  ‘Well, one or two. The thing is, we don’t go to war that often, ‘cause we’re smart enough to be able to negotiate and come to agreements with other species. A skill that seems to be lacking in Trantiks, wouldn’t ya say?’ answered Saleek, still smiling.

  The large Trantik started to move slowly and deliberately towards Saleek, his jaw clenched in anger. Patrick shot a glance at Saleek, as if to say ‘What the hell are you doing?’ but the spiky lyan didn’t see it. Saleek darted towards the big alien and closed a distance of several metres in less than a second. He paused momentarily as he bent his knees, then Saleek launched himself upwards in a kind of uppercut motion. He struck the Trantik on the chest and jaw and the impact sent the large creature backpedalling rapidly. Patrick was stunned into inaction for a moment, before he noticed one of the three rat-like aliens starting to edge towards him, hands raised and yellowish teeth bared in anger. Patrick instinctively brought his hands up to protect his face and neck from attack. Without further warning, the rat-like alien leapt towards Patrick, jaws snapping violently. Such a large motion was easy to spot however, and Patrick ducked out of the way. The flying rat hit nothing but thin air before landing in a crumpled heap about a metre and a half away. The human sprang back to his feet, took one large stride and then introduced his boot to the alien’s chest with alacrity. The rat-like creature coughed a large pool of dark purple fluid onto the floor and then wheezed in pain. One of the remaining rat-like aliens looked scared and stood stock still several metres away, but his friend was either too angry or too stupid to think clearly about what had just happened. He rushed at Patrick, hands slashing, aiming for the human’s eyes. Patrick spun out of the way of the first attack, dodged the second then parried the third. The adrenaline was coursing through his veins now and his breathing quickened in response. Patrick planted his feet firmly, raised his arms and tensed his muscles. The rat-like alien was only an inch or two shorter than the human, but he had to be giving up at least thirty pounds in weight, possibly more. He slammed into Patrick’s guard with full force and, stunned, began to stagger backwards. Patrick stepped forwards and rammed his fist into the alien’s face, before unleashing his heavy boot once more, this time connecting with the alien’s stomach. The unfortunate alien was sent flying backwards and landed unceremoniously on his friend which Patrick had floored mere moments earlier. As Patrick turned to face the final rat-like creature, all he saw were the alien’s heels as it made a hasty getaway, obviously deciding that trying to avenge his pals was not worth a stay in the local hospital. Patrick then turned and started to move to help Saleek, before he realised that the spiky alien needed no assistance at all. In fact, he seemed like a surprisingly gifted fighter. The large Trantik was incredibly strong but he was no match for Saleek’s amazing speed. Every time the huge alien made an attempt to grab Saleek or punch him, Saleek was no longer there. In fact, every time Patrick blinked, the spiky lyan seemed to be in a different place. Eventually, after much ducking and weaving, Saleek jumped into the air and hung there for a moment, before launching a snap kick into the Trantik’s chest, which was now severely bruised. The Trantik stumbled backwards and clutched his chest, before deciding that continuing the fight was pointless. He stood up and stretched his spine while unleashing an almighty roar. Saleek instantly darted backwards and within seconds was standing next to Patrick again.

  ‘Fine!’ the huge Trantik shouted. ‘We’re done here. But this ain’t over, ya little Ketchwa!’ and with that, he marched over to his two friends who were still dazed and in a heap on the floor.

  Showing impressive strength, he picked up first one of them, then the other, before walking away, essentially holding a large rat under each arm as he departed. The sight was a little surreal, to say the least. Seconds later, the heaving throng of people returned, as all the aliens who had backed off in order to avoid the fight resumed their journeys and duties. If you hadn’t been there, you never would have known any fight had occurred at all.

  ‘You OK?’ said Saleek to Patrick. The spiky alien did not even appear to be out of breath, the human noted.

  ‘I’m fine,’ answered Patrick as he trotted over to the nearby bench and grabbed his bag of belongings. ‘Thanks for that. I really couldn’t have handled all those guys on my own,’ he added.

  ‘No problem, buddy. To be honest, anything you said was going to result in a fight anyway.’

  ’It sure looked that way. This wasn’t exactly the welcome I had imagined when I decided to come to Nexus One.’

  ‘Yeah, I’ll bet they never mentioned any of this in the travel brochure, right?’

  ‘That’s certainly true.’

  ‘The thing is, I know that Trantik although he doesn’t know me. I have a friend who works for the police and he’s told me many times about this guy, who is easily recognisable ‘cause he’s so tall and belligerent. He’s constantly gettin’ into fights in this city with all kindsa different species. My guess is he likes tryin’ to prove his species is the strongest in the galaxy. He’s been cautioned many times but they’ve never been able to do anything further ‘cause none of the witnesses will testify against him.’

  ‘I guess that makes sense. He is pretty intimidating. What was that word he called you? A “Ketchwa”?’ Patrick pronounced the unfamiliar word slowly, unsure if he had heard it correctly.

  ‘Yeah. The guy’s classy to the end, ain’t he?’

  ‘What does it mean?’

  ‘It means a rather unpleasant act done to a person’s Barrabol,’ came the reply.

  Patrick was none the wiser and decided not to pursue that particular line of conversation.

  What would my family think if the only words I picked up whilst on Nexus One were various swear words? He thought to himself, chuckling slightly. Still, I guess I can trust this guy after all. I mean, who is willing to fight for a total stranger unless he really is one of those goodie-goodie types?

  ‘Well, as I said, thanks for the help,’ said Patrick, slinging his bag over his shoulder.

  ‘Are you sure you’re gonna be okay?’

  ‘Yeah, sure. I’ve just got to find my hotel.’ Patrick once more retrieved the crumpled magazine from his bag and began to study it.

  ‘Where are you going, then?’ asked Saleek, peering at the map from over Patrick’s shoulder.

  ‘Um...over...here, I think...’ the human said uncertainly, his finger hovering over an area of the map that was a light blue colour.

  ‘The Rezwani district? Are you sure? That’s mostly industrial – plants, factories and stuff like that,’ said Saleek with a brow furrowed in confusion.

  ‘Well, I do have the address written down here somewhere,’ Patrick added, as he checked his pockets for a scrap of paper upon which the address was scrawled.

  ‘Well, how ‘bout you tell me what it’s called and I’ll help ya find it. Plus, I can keep an eye on you – we don’t want you causing trouble and startin’ any more fights now do we?’ said Saleek, winking.

  Patrick laughed and nodded in agreement.

  Boy, if I didn’t know better, I’d say that this guy was in the scouts, trying to get his merit badge for “helping a stranger” or something...

  Chapter 2