To The Stars (The Harry Irons Trilogy) (33 page)

As far as communicating with the aborigines, the tail presented quite a problem. Harry didn't have one. He quickly observed that in addition to their verbalizations they signed with their tails as well. The tail signs helped him to understand what they said, but it hindered him in speaking.

When the Bedorans grew weary of the strangers, they taught Harry how to say good night, then climbed higher into their chosen sleeping spots.

Harry stretched out on the mammoth tree limb.

Fagen remarked, "That was impressive, Harry. Your language skills are remarkable."

"Thanks. I'm catching on. Their language is similar to some of our own primitive languages."

Fagen nodded and fell silent.

But Harry pressed on. "What did you mean earlier? When you said it always was strange?"

Fagen stretched his legs. "What are you talking about?"

"Earlier. I said this was a strange place and you said it always was."

"Did I say that?"

"Yes, you did."

"Well, forget it."

Harry looked at the man for a second and wondered what it was that drove him. It wasn't just the stars and the nose for adventure; that was part of it, true enough, but there was something else. Fagen seemed relaxed all the time, as if he knew what to expect. He had even brought non-standard issue weapons and armor suits with helmets. It was as if he had expected to find trouble even before the trip started. Now he'd inadvertently said something that indicated he'd been on Mia Culpa before.

Was it possible? Could it be that Fagen had been there before?

"Have you been here before?"

"Where? Up in a tree? Figuratively speaking, more times than I'd like to admit."

"No, not figuratively. Actually."

Fagen didn't say anything.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Are you going to answer my question?"

Fagen took a breath. "Leave it alone, Harry. I'm tired and I've already said too much. Do us both a favor and forget about it."

Harry shrugged and settled back. So Fagen was hiding something after all. He'd been there before. But why would he want to keep it secret? How could he have kept it secret? Harry was just too tired to think about it any longer. He closed his eyes and was asleep in less than a minute.

The others, Fagen included, likewise slept.

*

Hours passed. On the forest floor, the night creatures stayed away and small animals came and went, unaware of the men sleeping in the tree above their heads.

Sometime before dawn, two small, furry mammalians romped at the base of the tree. They tumbled and rolled and chased one another. They both suddenly froze, pausing as a shadow passed overhead.

A black flying rodent landed upon a branch and perched. The two on the ground ran away in bounding leaps.

The flying animal looked like a flying squirrel. It stared at the forms of the sleeping men, then flew back into the forest. Moments later, a faint tone drifted through the trees.

The three exhausted men were not coaxed from their sleep by the noise. Kretin and Arai, on the other hand, awoke instantly and stared through the branches, searching for the source. Both had heard the sound before and both expected trouble to follow.

Steadily, the sound increased in volume. Fagen opened an eye and sat up. He shook Harry.

"Wake up."

Harry looked at Fagen. "What is it?"

"Listen."

The noise moved closer. "What is it?”

"Stay put. Wake Parker."

Parker was on the branch below. Harry leaned down and whispered through cupped hands. The doctor woke with groggy eyes. "What's happening?"

"Shh," urged Harry. The aborigines were gone, or at least completely hidden from view.

Half an hour before dawn, the forest was dark and still, other than the faint sound of an almost hypnotic high-pitched whirring. So subtle had the sound arrived it was quite a start when quite suddenly, the sound stopped. The men pulled their helmets on and peered into the darkness, trying in vain to locate the source. An electric snap pierced the silence and a beam of light cut through the darkness.

Harry couldn't see the originating point, but he knew the aliens had located them. Fagen was up and running down the branch. Harry thought about following, but the quicker way down was the way he'd climbed up. Should he go that way?

He peered over the side and saw Parker climbing around the tree, to the side away from the light. The spot of light moved methodically through the tree, along the branches. It looked for them.

Harry almost panicked. He couldn't follow Fagen: the light worked its way up the branch he stood upon. The other way took him down.

The brilliant lumens of the light coupled with the night vision capabilities of the helmet blinded Harry, so he removed it again. Holding the helmet in one hand, he moved from the tree to the ground causing a think branch to slightly sway. Immediately, the light shifted in his direction.

On the open ground, without a weapon, he had no chance; he had to make a run for it. The only escape was across a wide open area between the trees so he crouched and ran as quickly as he could, sore legs straining to carry him at maximum speed. He was nearly to the shelter of the next tree when another light switched on, much closer than the one behind. This one was right on its mark and it held Harry in a tight circle of light.

His heart raced as he dove for cover barely in time to avoid a burst of yellow light that seared the ground behind him. He hit the turf and rolled. Another shot grazed the armor plating atop his shoulder. Harry smelled the burning tracer and ducked behind the tree trunk.

Without another thought, he got to his feet and ran, keeping the tree trunk between himself and the direction of the last shot. He ran several hundred yards before he finally pulled up behind a mammoth fallen tree.

Light flashed through the trees but didn't appear to be headed his way although they didn't appear to be going away either. There was no sign of Fagen or Parker.

The tree was partially hollowed out and offered some kind of cover so Harry crawled inside. From rotted holes he watched the lights dancing in the trees. To his relief, they never came his way. In the distance he heard a series of shotgun blasts, then nothing.

The lights went out and all was quiet. Harry waited and watched as morning broke through the canopy. For a long time, he waited and looked for signs of either the aliens or his companions. Nothing moved.

Chapter 28

Kathleen lay upon a soft, fluffy material in a cozy darkness. She had no idea how long she'd been there. She felt rested but knew it would be easy to drop back to sleep. She wondered where was and opened her eyes.

There was little to see but what she saw she didn't like. A dull light passed through a membranous material over her head. Enclosed in a comfortable, although tiny cell, she pushed against a padded ceiling that was but a foot from her face. It gave way like rubber but snapping back and reforming when she withdrew the pressure. With waves of claustrophobia washing over her, she tried again and managed to poke a hole through the material.

Peeping from the hole, she saw she was in a small room, or maybe the end of a tube-shaped corridor. There were other cells next to hers. The air was musky and didn't smell particularly good.

She stuck a finger in the opening and pulled. The membrane stretched and started to tear. Once started, it was easy to pull a flap loose large enough for her to squirm her way out.

The other cells held things as well. She bent close to one and tried to see. Something underneath moved and Kathleen backed away. Her head spun and suddenly weak at the knees, she sank to the floor. With dawning realization, it came to her that, somehow, the aliens had drugged her.

She began to crawl up the tunnel. Light came from recessed areas in the ceiling. To her right, another small chamber opened up. It looked just like the one she'd left except this one had a couple of empty cells. She continued on her way.

She tried to remember what had happened, but everything after she was grabbed remained a blank. Although she didn't know for sure, she assumed she was still inside the alien structure.

Kathleen was afraid but not panicked. The young woman was blessed with an ability to stay calm even in the most trying situations. And this was certainly one of those. Her sense of humor didn't hurt her either. First, she was abducted by primitives on an alien world, then her clothes were taken away, then she was taken out in the night and left to wander. Now she was being held captive by the first advanced aliens to be discovered by humankind. And she had no idea why. Instead of considering herself to be in a serious situation, she was amused. It was almost fun. Still, she had to be careful. Perhaps she could find a way to escape. Or maybe she would discover she didn't need to escape, maybe the aliens would help her. After all, they were intelligent.

She stopped at a corner and peeked around the edge. Two small crea
tures leaned over an examining table and fussed with whatever lay on top. They were unaware of Kathleen and she took the opportunity to get a good look at them.

They were small, between four and five feet tall, and humanoid in the sense they had two arms and two legs. After that, any resemblance to humans was a stretch. Their skin was a wrinkled pale grey and they wore identical grey jumpers that covered them from neck to ankle. They appeared to not wear shoes and Kathleen saw that their feet ended in three thick toes. Claws protruded from the end of each toe.

They didn't appear to be particularly ferocious. They were simply too feeble looking to offer much of a physical threat. Away from the examining table, she saw the environment suits. Unlike the aliens, the suits did look dangerous. They were large and metallic with three pronged, pointed legs and two smaller mechanical arms. They hung limply, suspended from the ceiling.

There didn't seem to be a way out, at least one she could readily recognize. The air was damp and humid and it was difficult to breathe, as if the oxygen was thin. Foul odors tainted the air. Kathleen recognized the smell of blood.

She crawled from the tunnel and edged along the wall. There were machines and tubes of various sizes running out of walls, ceiling, and floor; their purpose a total mystery. The aliens busied themselves with their specimen, an animal of some kind, presumably picked from the forest. Hoses filled with running fluids wound their way out of the animal's abdomen and into an apparatus attached to the far wall. Needles protruded from places in the animal's cranium where the aliens had attached fine wires that ran up to the ceiling. Kathleen wondered if she was in line for a similar fate.

Wires and cables of various sizes ran across the floor. Some went to equipment and some went to the walls. Kathleen carefully stepped over a cable and squatted beside a machine set against the wall. It was warm and vibrated a little.

The aliens finished with their specimen. As Kathleen watched, they selected two tubes that dangled from the ceiling and began to spray a white, fibrous substance upon the animal. In seconds, it was fully cocooned.

One of the aliens took the animal, wrapped in its cocoon, and placed it against what Kathleen thought was simply a blank wall. As she watched, the wall seemed to fracture, then to split and pucker until the undulating sides managed to pull the cocoon inside a hidden compartment. Afterwards, the wall resumed its previous appearance.

The other alien walked away from the table to a beach ball-sized bulb that dangled from the ceiling. He looked at the bulb closely, then, with the tip of one its three fingers, it pierced the membrane and pulled until the tear was three or four inches long. A black furry head popped out and took a quick look around.

Shifting its beady eyes, it sniffed at the air and became agitated. It squirmed out of its nest and jumped onto the shoulder of the alien. From there, it scanned the room until it locked eyes with Kathleen.

Leaping from the alien's shoulder, it flew across the room and landed atop the machine behind which Kathleen hid. The flying rat chattered excitedly as it looked down at her.

Both aliens saw Kathleen at the same time and moved in from two directions. There was no escape and she felt faint again.

"Leave me alone," she screamed as they took her by the wrists and ankles. "Let me down!"

Hefting the feebly struggling woman between them, the two aliens lifted her to the examining table. A beam of light hit her as she touched the table and it seemed as if all the air was sucked from her. Just before she passed out, she saw one of the extraterrestrials peering at her as he took one of the hanging tubes in a wrinkled, three-fingered hand and the fibrous cocoon substance begin to fall over her like snow.

*

Grandfather stumbled three times before he realized he was too tired to go on. It was difficult for him to climb the trees anymore so he stayed to the old, worn paths. His weariness had crept up on him and caught him unexpectedly. Now, before he could rest, he had to find a suitable tree, one that wasn't too difficult to climb.