Castaway Planet

Galactic Calendar 259872/ 2000 [ Sol Year 4387/ Day 154 of 365. Sol standard year]

Days after of Crash landing/ 2

Uninhabited Island / Underground tunnel/ Circle Cavern

Galactic Standard Time / 1350

As Jinn ran towards the small ramp-shaped hill, he heard the screech of the lizard apes as they resumed the chase. His leap had only given him a bare moment, but it was enough of a head start to buy some time. And with how this was the only way back up, he could use his blaster and hopefully hold them off. All he had to do was wait until Roy made it to the others and Racha came with Al to back him up. And he had found the way out, once they beat those things they could figure out what they would do next.

The fact that Roy was here without anyone else with his clothes still in one piece bothered him. Jinn could only think of a few reasons for that, and none of them were good. Some idiot could have taken power in his capsule, some creature could have destroyed it. But the others in the capsule could have gone mad. He didn’t want to admit that was possible, for if it was then the passengers back in his capsule could go mad too.

A screech from the lizard-apes told him they were back on the hunt. He risked a glance over his shoulder and saw they had gotten to their feet and were trying to get his scent. He went still and frowned as he tried to feel the wind’s direction, but there was nothing. The hole above must block the wind from blowing down. If he was quiet and moved slowly he might be able to get away from them. But before he moved he need to buy some time. He looked down, seeing a small stone the size of an apple, he slowly reached down and picked it up. He looked around, seeing a large cave to his right near the lizard apes.

It was near where he had hit the floor, and it might be a good way to get those creatures to leave him alone. If he could take advantage of what he had they didn’t, then that was all the easier to survive them.

Without saying a word, Jinn threw the rock and it hit the ground near the cave with a small crash. As he watched, the four lizard apes turned and screeched again before they ran towards the rock. Jinn smirked as he started to move up the ramp slowly, only to freeze as he realized the lizard apes had gone silent. Looking towards the cave he saw that each of the creatures had gone still. He watched as they were slowly backing up, and that scared him more than he wanted to admit. These things had hunted him with a wild will, what could scare them, what did they smell or hear that he couldn’t?

One of the lizard apes tried to move forward and growled at the cave. Jinn watched as the lizard ape started to bang its chest before something shot out of the darkness. He could only stare in horror as the lead lizard ape was impaled by a large white spike on an organic-looking rope. The lizard ape barely had time to moan before it was pulled into the darkness with a screech. Moments later a savage chomp was heard. Jinn felt a spark of fear as he watched the lizard apes move back, each one trying to make itself look small.

From the cave’s darkness came a black chitin leg. It was just a spike but it pieced the ground before another leg to dive into the stone ground a good ten feet across from the first. From the darkness, a white chitin body pulled itself out into the light. To Jinn this thing was a true mutant, it seemed to have been the offspring of a bear and some kind of insect. It only had four limbs from what he could see, and its head was bear-like in shape. It had two eyes that were a solid black and on its back were four spikes. All in all, it was at least nine feet tall and five wide. It looked at the lizard apes and opened its mouth, and from within its maw, a large spike shot out.

This time the lizard ape it was aiming at tried to dodge and only got impaled in its arm.

As the other lizard apes moved away from it, Jinn felt something in him he didn’t expect, pity. He looked at the lizard ape as it tried to cut itself free and he sighed, shaking his head. He just stood there for a moment as he brought up his blaster and sighed again. “Racha Is gonna give me such a yelling when I tell them about this.”

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The creature looked at the small-scaled ones as its feeder spike drew in another one. It screeched as it came closer, and the creature grinned. Another bit of food, and there was nothing for the little morsel to do. But those things always tried to fight against it, but its muscle was too strong, thanks to that thing it killed so long ago. It didn’t know what the makers wanted of it, but it would live until it did. And to live, it had to eat, and to eat it must kill.

And killing the little things was such a pleasure to it. It pulled the spike back slowly as the little morsel kept trying to fight. Some of them kept doing that even when there was no choice to survive. It would never understand them, but then it would never be in that position. But as it prepared to savor the kill bite, only a jolt of pain hit it as its tongue was burned through.

The pain caused the creature to screech in pain. It bucked backwards, the remains of its tongue shooting into its mouth. The little morsel moved away, returning to the others it was with as the creature tried to deal with the pain.

As it looked around it saw something it had never seen before, a big small one. It had fought some of the small ones, but they always took their dead with them, so it had never eaten one of them. This one was pointing something at it, something it had never seen before. As the morsels moved away they ran towards the small big one and ran by it, moving upwards.

The creature didn’t care about them only, the big small one that looked at it as the morsels ran away. It felt its fury grow as the thing that wounded it was shot at it again, this time it hit the creature’s back. With a screech, it summoned the lighting before it sent it at the big small one.

But suddenly the big small one was covered in lights and it dodged the lightning! For a moment all the creature could do was look at the big small one as it landed and looked at. The creature didn’t like this, it was the one to kill not the one to be killed! With a gargled screech the creature shook off its shock and charged towards the big small one, it would kill it!

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Racha cursed as she ran, her mind going to strange places. Why had she let Jinn leave without her in the first place!? So far, they had fought off that vine beast, fought off giant spiders, and found a ship from the Cooperate Rebellion. And now? They found someone else from the Spirit who was looking after a baby. They fought and killed a regenerator that was stronger than she thought could be possible. And they still hadn’t found him, and that was making her more worried than she wanted to be. She didn’t think Jinn was the type to go looking for trouble, but this place was crazy!

She just hoped that whatever Jinn was up to, he was just fighting off the other regenerators. If he found something worse down here. These tunnels were smooth, too smooth for any natural process to have created them. There might be something, but she couldn't think of it. And the way these tunnels were so strange something was bothering her about them. She couldn’t exactly see it, but it was there.

She usually had a better memory than this, but whatever it was, it was at the tip of her tongue and she hated that. She was a special operative, her life was usually on the line if she didn’t notice things. She had trained to notice the smallest things, she lived on the razor’s edge where it seeing them meant life or death. Any other place and she would know what used these tunnels and

“He came this way, I’m sure of it!” Al said as he looked around the floor.

Racha looked at him and followed his gaze, sighing as she saw a regenerator corpse cut down the middle. “Of course he killed it.”

Racha looked around, finding the hole up and frowning when she didn’t hear anything from it. They must have been deeper than he thought or the hole’s mouth was covered up there. Both answers didn’t fill her with confidence, but she had to keep it together. As she looked around the tunnel, at least it was straight. Without a word she moved on, Al following behind her.

At least Al was able to work like one of her agents. And she had to talk to Jinn about where he…… Racha stopped and let Al pass her by, as she let her thoughts run their course. She was so shocked that she had missed it before, that all she could do was stare at Al. She was usually better at this than that, but finally, everything clicked together. From the remarks Jinn made before the scream to Al’s reaction, it all slotted together. And she needed answers about this piece of the puzzle now. Normally she wouldn’t even dare to do this, not with what was on the line. But like her old trainer said, you needed to trust those people who were fighting at your side.

Al had looked back at her with an unreadable expression on his face. “You okay Racha? We have to move, Jinn could be dying! So handle what made you stop and……”

“How do you know gene alteration is needed for class then Nanites?” Racha interrupted Al went silent

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Al had almost kept running, but when he looked to the side, and saw that Racha had fallen back. He had only stopped to get her moving, but this was something else. He knew that there would be problems, but he didn’t expect them so soon. Racha was smart, quick, and if Paige was right, a member of the Special Service. His faith wasn’t a state religion, the laws of the Federation prohibited that. Most planetary systems where Tech popes reigned only did so through diplomacy. So if he could prove he wasn’t a terrorist, he would be protected under the greater laws of the Federation. But could he dare to hope she would help him? But he couldn’t answer her, and he couldn’t dodge the question, not if they going into battle.

“I…… I looked over the data from a friend’s experiment. It showed that nanites were affected by the body’s genetic structure. And well the nanites used were special too,” Al admitted and Racha looked at him with a frown.

“Why in the name of black holes wasn’t this published? Isn’t that what you people do, broadcast all your research papers?” Racha demanded and Al winced.

“They don’t if they declare the research heretical,” Al said and Racha blinked, staring at him. He knew exactly what she was thinking, that was impossible. The treaty with those planets said that the only research that was to be declared heretical was…….

“She experimented on sentient life?!” Racha demanded and Al looked at her and frowned.

“No, they were just rats. Rats she gene modded but rats. She wasn’t the kind of person to do that! Why?” Al asked and Racha looked at him, shock on her face.

“Because the treaty with says only sentient experimentation against their will is heretical. You know about the treaty, don’t you?” Racha asked as Al looked at her in shock.

However, before he could say anything a large thunder boom echoed off the walls. As the two of them covered their heads the boom echoed died away and they looked down the tunnel.

“Later, we’ll talk later, we have to help him!” Al said as he turned, running towards where the thunder boom came from. He didn’t look back, but he heard Racha following after him.

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Sara held her head as the booming died down, the sound still reverberating in her bones. She hadn’t expected something like that, she had heard about them but to experience them for herself. As she came back to herself, she looked around and paled in shock as she realized that she had fallen to the ground.

“You okay there?” Paige’s voice came from Sara’s right. Looking up she saw that Paige had fallen against the right wall. Locking eyes with Paige she saw that her friend was in as worse shape as she was.

“Barely, barely. I….. I’ve never experienced something like that before,” Sara admitted and Paige grinned back.

“Nothing like your first great thunder strike. That was something else hu? Good news, that has to be from down the tunnel, so this leads outside. I guess it goes up or something,” Paige said and Sara felt a spark of wonder. After everything she had just learned about Paige, she was still shocking her so much.

Sara could barely remember what happened to bring them here. But Paige was looking at what was happening beyond the now, she had weathered it so well. Sara didn’t know if she should be impressed or worried about how Paige dealt with this.

Thankfully, she had kept from feeling the emotions that those thoughts brought. Or Paige was better at hiding reactions from other people’s feelings. For she only got up and looked around, a frown on her face.

“Paige?” Sara asked as she pushed off the ground and got back to her feet. Paige looked at her and frowned, a strange emotion in her eyes.

“Nothing, I just…. I was sure I heard something echoing, I don’t…..” Paige said and Sara nodded.

“Good ears on ya,” Sara said and for a moment she wondered how the sound could have echoed at all. They were underground, and how could the sound have echoed…… Sara’s eyes went wide her eyes dilated as she suddenly realized the how.

“Oh nova!” Sara exclaimed and looked around, a scared look on her face as she started to feel pure terror.

“What?” Paige asked and Sara looked up, seeing the reflected fear in her eyes.

Sara swallowed, thinking back to what she had figured out, and spoke in a whisper.

“Remember how Roy got into the tunnel? I don’t think he ever told us. If he fell down a hole, there might be others. And that sound might have called anything to dinner!” Sara said and Paige swallowed.

“Oh nova. The baby!” Paige exclaimed as she turned and ran back towards Roy and the cargo he was carrying. Sara waited a moment before running after her, hoping that she had made the right choice.

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Above the forest was quiet as the thunder boom echoed off the trees. A small reptile-like creature with a wolf-like body moved toward the source of the sound. The lizard wolf looked around, not seeing anything before it looked up, gazing at the clear sky above. Just looked, trying to find anything that could explain the sound it just heard. But whatever the sound was, its source was beyond its small brain. It was about to turn back around when it heard a strange shrill sound, unlike anything it had ever heard before.

The lizard wolf looked around, but its brain wouldn’t let what might be a danger to it stand. If it knew what caused both the strange sounds, then it could deal with whatever it was. As it moved off into the forest, it kept its eyes open, waiting for anything to attack. It had been feeling like something was tracking it, but it never saw anything. Maybe this would be…… It stopped as it walked out into a large clearing. It was on a ledge, overlooking a large hole ten feet wide that went down deep into the ground. As it stood above a hole bigger than it was long, its mind went blank. This was unlike anything that it had ever seen, and it needed to figure out what to do. It just stood there for a few moments before it took a step forward.

Before it could even move five small spikes flew out of the forest around it. Each one hit the lizard wolf, penetrating its flesh. It fell to the ground as its blood flowed around the spikes, some of it dropping into the hole. After a few moments the lizard wolf whimpered and fell, its eyes started to lose focus as it started to die.

For a few seconds, nothing happened as the forest came back to life. The forest going back to normal as if the thunder never boomed at all. As the forest woke up, the spikes moved backward, pulling the lizard wolf with them. Each spike had a line connecting from them off to somewhere just out of sight. As the lizard wolf's dying body was dragged into the darkness, it heard strange sounds. The sounds were strange in unlike anything else, these seemed to be repeated.

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“Heave! Come on boys, that’s tonight’s feasts we’re bringing in!”

“Hunt Master, do you know what made that sound, I’ve never heard anything like that before!”

“No, since you’re from the Mountain Keep. Sometimes things are dropped here, that was one of them. Old Thunder Spike is fighting something at the old mine. Wonder what came there now, or who.”

“Who boss?”

“We all saw the falling stars boyo, keep track. Someone else has come to this thing’s trap. I wonder if it’s all or just some that survived?”

“Not our problem. We’ll head for home and let the Elders make the choice. For now, let’s bring our food home and feast!”