12

Dr. Snowden rubbed his arms as he watched a golden surface form between the two rift rods. The surface was the doorway to someplace else, a place with bad memories involving Emily. He shot a look at her.

She smiled back.

He exhaled from his nose. At least she seemed to be okay. Jake looked to be in good spirits as well. Robert stood next to Jake with a concerned expression on his face. Dr. Snowden understood Robert’s apprehension. The last outing could have easily gone a different way.

Evaran was at the rift controller with Helian Base Commander Darius.

Dr. Snowden remembered seeing Helians that looked like angels, and Darius was a spitting image. He had glowing eyes, white wings, and a business suit similar to the managers’. They used a personal hologram that allowed them to appear that way.

He observed the fifteen or so heavily armored INRA agents led by Agent Malz. Although they were Helian, they did not have the angel appearance. They looked like a SWAT team ready to make someone have a bad day. Lee had wanted the agents to secure the entrance once they were through. Evaran was hesitant at first, but Lee and Darius had insisted. Dr. Snowden understood that the INRA was managed by the Helians and used as law enforcement, with the managers being specialists.

Evaran gestured at the rift. “V, scouting mode.” He tossed out a small orb that hovered.

“Acknowledged. Scouting mode engaged,” said V as he shimmered out of view and flew through the portal.

The small orb shot up a projection of the view from V.

Dr. Snowden examined the other side. There was a mounted turret with a black-armor-clad draconian seated on it. To the sides were three others, each one wielding a staff with a crystal on the end. The draconians had leathery gray skin with scales and pointed ears and wore an advanced-looking bone armor suit. They focused on the rift door that had just opened in front of them.

Looking past them, he noted that the environment was one of purplish sand with specks of white in it. Luminous hairy strands of some type of plant swayed as they shot out of the ground in the dimly lit environment. Although there were enough strands to illuminate the area, it created the illusion of dancing shadows.

V positioned himself behind the draconians and, with all four arms extended, hit each one with a stun beam.

The draconians fell over and went limp.

Lee shook his head. “That’s impressive.”

“Damn, we need one of those,” said Agent Malz.

Darius smiled. “Yes we do. We could use a hundred of those.”

“I am sure V would appreciate the compliments,” said Evaran. “I suspect these are the Druuz, the ones who worship Caltorus. I need to go in first.”

“You see something wrong?” asked Lee.

“I do,” said Evaran. “V has indicated that the environment is … unique.” He stepped through the portal.

Dr. Snowden watched Evaran scan around and then interact with his ARI.

After a few moments, he stepped back through and acknowledged Lee. “You may proceed. The environment, while unusual, has an acceptable atmosphere.”

Lee gestured at Agent Malz. “You’re up.”

Agent Malz did a Helian salute. He waved forward as his men rushed through the portal.

Evaran grabbed his orb and placed it back on his belt. He performed a Helian salute toward Darius. “We are ready.”

“Lee, did you share the secure communications channel information with Evaran?” asked Darius.

“Yep. Standard protocol,” said Lee.

“Good,” said Darius. He faced Evaran. “I don’t know how much Lee has shared with you in regard to the protocol, but once you’re through, we’re placing a shield around the rods. However, you can still communicate through when you return. Only after verification will it be removed. It shouldn’t be an issue, but just in case Agent Malz or Lee can’t communicate, at least you’ll be able to.”

“A wise precaution,” said Evaran. “Let us go.” He strode through the rift door.

Dr. Snowden took a deep breath.

“C’mon, we’ll be okay,” said Emily.

Dr. Snowden forced a smile, then followed her and the rest through. He clenched his jaw at the thought that going new places made him apprehensive, even with strong company. He used to love adventuring, but the past feeling of death creeping through him silenced that.

Everyone assembled just outside the rift door.

Dr. Snowden took a moment to survey their surroundings. The hairy strands that he originally thought were some type of plant looked more like solid strands of gas. They stood out like big blades in a large field. Large purple treelike structures stood off in the distance, and the sky seemed to be in twilight. The path ahead of them was well-worn, and there were tracks from some type of vehicle on the edges. The chittering sounds were unusual to him, and the powerful smell of cooking oil filled the air. “This place is … strange.”

“I have been to a world similar to this. It has traces of dark matter, at least one form of it,” said Evaran.

“What?” asked Dr. Snowden with slightly widened eyes. “How’s that possible?”

“You have my attention as well,” said Lee.

Evaran eyed the group, then raised a finger. “You are all made of baryonic matter, which makes up about roughly five percent of your universe. Dark matter, as humans call it, takes up around twenty-seven percent, with the rest of it being dark energy, once again, as humans refer to it. Dark matter has many varieties, and the breakdown is a bit more complex. This world has clumps of a type I have seen before that can interact with baryonic matter. I call it shadow matter. The denizens of these types of worlds tend to have traces of it in them. The Druuz here have that attribute.”

Dr. Snowden rubbed his chin. “I guess I was thinking of axions or weakly interacting massive particles.”

“There are forms of matter with that, but that is not the case here,” said Evaran. “Shadow matter has its own equivalent atom structures that have shadow protons and electrons, and their own types of quarks, in addition to other particles.”

“Wow, so a completely new type of matter … at least to me anyways,” said Dr. Snowden.

Evaran nodded. “And a new set of physics to go along with it. I am sure shadow-matter physicists would love to talk to us. To them, you are completely made up of exotic matter. However, do not confuse it with true exotic matter that originates outside the universe. Nonetheless, I am surprised that this location is where the coordinates go.” He scanned the Druuz that V had knocked out. “It would seem these Druuz are not native to this world. Their shadow-matter concentration is imbalanced relative to the environment.”

Lee glanced at Dr. Snowden. “Hard to believe this.”

Several INRA agents grabbed the fallen Druuz and dragged them back through the gate.

Agent Malz paused by Lee. “We should get some additional managers and agents here. This looks like it leads to something big.”

“We’re stretched thin as it is. The council has only granted your usage to secure the rift door and return any prisoners. If there are any guard posts ahead … I’ll signal you,” said Lee.

“You could use us for more than that. Darius agrees with me.”

“I know … but it’s the council’s will … and that far exceeds you, me, or a base commander’s decision,” said Lee. “We’ll have to proceed from here with only our group. Just make sure this rift door stays secure until we get back. There may also be many prisoners we capture on the way there that you’ll need to retrieve.”

Agent Malz performed a Helian salute. “You don’t need to worry about that with us. Just be safe.”

“We will.” Lee paused for a moment. “If I don’t come back … I wanted you to know that you’ve always come when called … and it’s been appreciated.”

Agent Malz performed a slight bow. “And you’ve always been a shining example of what a manager should be. Just let me know when we can close the rift door.”

“Will do,” said Lee. He looked down for a moment, and then back up at Evaran. “Let’s go.”

Dr. Snowden could see that Lee and Agent Malz had some history. Agent Malz’s concern was genuine, and with all the unknowns, it mirrored the same feeling Dr. Snowden was having. This shadow-matter environment reminded him a bit of the prison planet, except the plants were dark and hairy. One glance at Emily confirmed she was feeling something similar. He trudged behind Evaran and Lee, with Jake and Emily at his side. After they had gone down the path a bit, he looked back and saw that the agents had formed a perimeter and were moving equipment around. At least their exit was secured.

Evaran gestured forward. “V, scouting mode.”

“Acknowledged. Scouting mode engaged,” said V as he shimmered out of view.

They continued for about twenty minutes when Evaran raised a hand. Everyone gathered around Evaran.

“It appears there is a structure ahead approximately two miles away,” said Evaran. He extended his hand. A projection shot up from his ring.

“Looks like … a fort of some type, made up of … black crystals?” asked Dr. Snowden.

“A worn-down one,” said Jake, pointing out the crumbled sections.

Evaran nodded. “V is going in closer for more detail. I suspect those crystals are used to grow structures here. However, I have stopped for a different reason. There is another guard post ahead, and what looks like guards headed this way. They are not Druuz.”

“You think they know the rift door’s been secured?” asked Emily.

“I do not. However, I do think that they have routine communications, and the rift door guards are not responding.”

“Couldn’t V have taken them out?” asked Lee.

Evaran shook his head. “There are ten coming.”

“Oh,” said Lee. “What’s the plan then?”

“We engage them,” said Evaran. “You and Dr. Snowden will take one side, and Jake and I will take the other. Emily will go ahead a bit and camouflage. V will lure them with a hologram, at which point we can hit them with cross fire.”

Emily cracked her neck. “Let’s do this.”

Everyone took their position.

Dr. Snowden gulped as he squatted behind a prickly purple bush near a tree with silver hairs on its dark-gray trunk. The insects writhing and crawling around did not make the situation easier. He felt a hand on his shoulder.

“Steady there,” said Lee.

Dr. Snowden sighed. “I’d feel a lot safer with the Torvatta.”

“I understand. The Torvatta is a powerful ship.”

“Yeah. Let’s hope it’s here.”

Lee nodded.

After ten minutes of waiting, the guards came into view on the path. V shot a projection of a Time Warden, which the guards opened fire on.

“Now!” said Lee. He fired at an angle into the side of the group.

Dr. Snowden fired a mist beam, and Emily appeared behind the guards and fired a stun beam. Half of the guards fell.

Evaran rushed out of the jungle and pushed them back with a repulsion beam.

Emily fired a mist beam at the remaining guards trying to get up, while V fired a stun beam. The guards stopped moving.

Everyone assembled around the last group of guards that fell.

“Impressive,” said Lee. “I really like that mist and stun combo.”

“I do too,” said Emily with a grin.

Jake knelt near one of the guards. “These are Raskarian. I bet Count Boris is here then.”

Evaran scanned the guards. “I concur. There seems to be a mix of Druuz guards and Raskarian vampires on this world.”

“Great. Just stack on the enemies, we’re used to it,” said Dr. Snowden, shaking his head.

Lee tapped at his device. “Agent Malz, we have about ten more up here that can be taken back. Probably another four ahead at the next guard post that will be dealt with here shortly.”

“Affirmative,” said Agent Malz over Lee’s wrist device.

“V, take care of that guard post,” said Evaran.

“Acknowledged,” said V. He flew away.

The group continued until they came to the guard post.

Dr. Snowden could see the guards were surprised by the positions they were in. V’s stealth and stun combo was quite effective. He had taken off to investigate something interesting off in the dark jungle.

Lee used his wrist device to contact Agent Malz. “This should be the last retrieval. Sending you the coordinates.”

“Affirmative,” said Agent Malz over Lee’s wrist device. “And … good luck.”

Lee sighed as he closed the communication channel.

“You two are close,” said Dr. Snowden.

“We have fought many battles together. I wouldn’t be here … without the help he’s provided. We’ve also become good friends over the last twenty years. We’ve been through some tough situations … and he’s been like a mentor to my son, Zed.”

“You seem worried about something.”

Lee cleared his throat and raised his head a bit. “We’re dealing with potentially the most powerful group ever seen since my species came here … and we’re now in their territory. We know Count Boris is here with his Raskarian guards … and potentially Caltorus with his Druuz. It is a tense situation … and Agent Malz and his men may have to face that alone without the help of this group.”

“I got ya,” said Dr. Snowden. “You want to be there to help him if he needs it, but can’t if you’re here with us.”

“We’ll get through this. I trust Agent Malz can handle what is tossed his way.”

V flew back. “Analysis. There are remains of a village in the jungle.”

Evaran rubbed his chin. “Any inhabitants?”

“One,” said V. He shot down a projection showing a small green female humanoid with silver vines that snaked around her body. Light-yellow glowing eyes stood out on her head, while dark-gray leafy pads hid under the silver vines. A bumpy ridge with small tentacles ringed the back part of her head.

“Perhaps this individual would be willing to talk to us,” said Evaran.

“It’s worth checking out,” said Lee.

“I concur. Let us investigate.”

Emily had her faceplate lowered to let in the smells of the dark jungle. Although it was nice having it up to see V’s view, the smells helped her be more immersed in the environment. She knew the world supported human life since Caltorus used the coordinates. She imagined the jungle as one on Earth, except everything seemed color shifted. Maybe that was an attribute of shadow matter. From what she had experienced so far, it seemed like normal matter to her, other than the constant smell of cooking oil and the variety of other smells she was detecting.

The trek to the village only took fifteen minutes.

She wrinkled her nose at the smell of decaying flesh. Shadow matter or not, it was pungent. Large bright-blue bulbs sat on the ground, with what looked like doors carved in them. More were up in the trees. The dead bodies similar to the one V had shown made her stomach turn. They were almost white, with black patches scattered over their skin. “These poor people.”

Evaran scanned one of the corpses. “It appears this is also a shadow-matter being. I suspect they are not in alignment with Caltorus or Count Boris. Judging by the rate of decay, and taking shadow matter into account, the attack on this village was approximately one month ago.”

V hovered on the other side of the village, scanning a particular bulb.

Evaran pointed in V’s direction. “The inhabitant is over there. Come.”

They walked over to the bulb sitting at the base of a tree.

“Analysis. The inhabitant is inside the structure.”

Evaran pulled a translation orb out and tossed it into the air. “We come in peace and mean you no harm. We have some questions if you have some time.”

Emily heard movement inside the bulb.

A small female humanoid stepped out. She raised her hands and got on her knees. “Please. I … I’m not a threat.”

Evaran scanned around with his ring. “We are not here to hurt you. My name is Evaran, and these are my friends.”

The female humanoid stood up and lowered her arms. The tentacles on the back of her head stood straight out. With a frown and in a warbled, high-pitched voice, she said, “My name is Gi. How is it we can speak?”

Evaran gestured at the translation orb. “That orb can translate.” He waved a finger between Emily and Dr. Snowden. “That is Dr. Albert Snowden and Emily Snowden. They do not need it, nor do I.” He then waved a finger between Lee and Jake. “That is Manager Lee and Jake Melkins. They would need it in order to understand you. The orb flying around is V.”

Gi looked around with her big glowing yellow eyes. “You’re not like the others.”

“Were the others in black uniforms with pale skin and red eyes?” asked Lee.

“Some were,” said Gi. “Others had scaly skin and yellow eyes. They came to my village and killed everyone. We couldn’t understand them. Those who could get away did. Those who could not, died.”

“This is your home?” asked Emily.

“Was,” said Gi, looking down.

“I’m so sorry,” said Emily. She swallowed hard. “Did you have a family?”

Gi’s eyes misted. In a strained voice, she said, “I did.” She looked back down and away.

“We are all sorry for your loss,” said Evaran. “Did this attack occur recently?”

“It happened only a month ago, but these … monsters have been here for years. They’ve destroyed our civilization. We were no match for their weapons and powers,” said Gi.

“Is there a resistance?”

“There was,” said Gi. She gulped. “We hide now. The jungle and mountains protect us with their arms.”

“I see,” said Evaran. “It appears Count Boris has engaged in genocide with the help of Caltorus.”

Emily could see the fire in Evaran’s eyes. He had a line, and things always ended badly for those who crossed it. Count Boris and Caltorus were now on that list.

“What … what are you doing here?” asked Gi.

“We have come looking for my ship. We suspect the monsters, as you call them, have taken it. If we run across them, we will deal with them.”

Gi perked up. “You’re … going to fight them?”

“We are,” said Evaran with his head raised a bit. “What they did to your world is unacceptable.”

Dr. Snowden ran a hand across his mouth. “They’ve been at this for a while it seems. How big was your civilization?”

“We had cities with thousands. Our technology was far inferior to what the monsters had. They had staffs that could shoot purple beams and metal devices that shot small pieces of metal. Some even drained our body fluids. I don’t know what happened to the major settlements, but every city and village within a four-hour walk has been crushed.”

Evaran shook his head. “Count Boris and Caltorus will be held accountable for this.” He motioned off in the distance. “Did your species design the fort structure?”

Gi nodded. “It was one of the first structures to fall.”

“How did the rift door get here?” asked Emily.

“We don’t know,” said Gi. She raised her arms. “It just … appeared from the sky, and then the monsters came. Many believe it is Nanya punishing us.”

“Nanya?”

“The god of punishment.”

“Oh,” said Emily.

Evaran knelt and looked Gi in the eyes. “We are going to help in any way we can. Do you need food or water?”

Gi shook her head. “The jungle sustains us. As long as we hide, we’re safe, but we miss the open fields.”

“Understandable,” said Evaran.

“You remind me of Gara, the god of balance.”

“I assure you, I am no god,” said Evaran. “However, balance is what I intend to restore. We will take our leave of you.” He stood and began to turn, then pivoted back around. “Once we remove these monsters, how can I get in contact with your species?”

Gi swished her mouth around for a moment. “We will be watching.”

Evaran pointed up. “I will shoot a light into the sky. Will that suffice?”

Gi grimaced as green tears began to flow down her face.

Evaran’s eyes softened. “Know that you are not alone.”

Gi rushed over and hugged Evaran’s leg.

He laid a hand on her back as she cried.

Emily realized it was probably the first alien Gi had seen that did not want to kill her. The fact that Evaran spoke with confidence probably gave her hope, something in short supply on this planet, it seemed.

Gi stepped back. “Go, hope bringer, and may Gara guide you.” She wheeled around and then scampered off into the jungle.

Emily dabbed at her eyes. “Why would anyone do this to them?”

“I do not know, but we will find out. Let us go,” said Evaran. He clenched his jaw for a moment.

They headed back to the jungle path. After ten minutes, they arrived within viewing range of the fort. They took a moment to observe.

“According to V’s scan, it does not appear to be heavily guarded, but there are many tunnels underneath that he cannot scan from above,” said Evaran.

“So we just gonna enter it?” asked Emily.

“We are. However, V has also identified the southeastern tower as one we can enter from. He will neutralize the two guards there, and it will give us an advantage.”

Dr. Snowden exhaled from his mouth. “Lightly guarded fort? That sounds … deceptive, especially after the guard posts.”

“Maybe they aren’t expecting an attack,” said Lee.

“It is possible,” said Evaran. “However, it may give us information on this planet, Count Boris’s reach, and, more importantly, whether the Torvatta is here.”

“Are they Raskarian or Caltorus’s guards?” asked Lee.

“It appears to be a mix,” said Evaran. He tossed out a remote viewing orb. “V is now going underground.”

Emily watched as V flew through the tunnels. It was like a maze. There were a lot more guards than she expected. She noticed that there was advanced technology tacked onto the walls throughout. It looked like they were hastily hung, without much foresight into aesthetics. Skeletons littered the hallways. The tunnels were rounded and had smooth walls, as if they were punched out with a cylindrical device.

“A fusion of high and low tech,” said Jake. “I feel so bad for Gi’s people.”

“I do as well,” said Evaran. “I plan to come back to this world after finding my Torvatta, and then I will remove the rift door.”

“Makes sense,” said Jake.

“Look!” said Emily, pointing at the projection. It showed a room with high-tech workstations in it.

“A control center of some type,” said Lee. “That should be our target.”

“I concur,” said Evaran. “Let us head out.”

After a half hour, they had reached the outskirts of the fort. They were right at the intersection between the jungle and the fort grounds.

Emily observed that although the fort was made of black crystal, it had purple wooden sections on the outside with silver plant life swirling around it. The southeastern tower they needed to get to was the closest to them. The smell was different around the fort’s edges. It was a mix of something burning with the strong odor of the jungle. It was a new scent to her, but not one she particularly enjoyed. There were also small insects flying around everywhere. Hopefully they did not have stingers or suck blood. So far they had not bothered her, but that could have been due to her body armor.

Evaran motioned to the base of the tower. “V has neutralized the guards. We must hurry.”

They hustled to the base. Evaran shot up a grappling beam and extended a hand out. “I will take each of you up. Lee, you are first.”

As Evaran took Lee up, Dr. Snowden bumped into Emily. “Wish our PSDs had a grappling beam.”

“I’ve been thinking about that too,” said Emily.

“I think I might invest in one,” said Jake.

Dr. Snowden tossed a hand out. “We should have gotten it on our last adventure. Ahh well. Better late than never.”

Evaran returned and then took each of them up to the tower.

Emily studied the two downed guards. Like the others she had seen, they were taken by surprise. The crystal that the fort was made of was not as slick as she thought it would be. It had a slight friction to it.

Evaran rooted around one of the bodies and pulled out a small device. He scanned it with his ring. “It appears this is a communication device. I do not know what their check-in schedule is or if they even have one. However, there is nothing in that regard on this device.”

Lee looked out into the empty courtyard area on the ground level. “So we descend this tower, enter the lower levels, and head toward that control center.”

“Yes, and in order to do so, we need to head to the southwestern tower. From there, we go north toward the northwestern tower. Halfway there is a ramp to the command center level. I suspect we will be fighting below. Prepare for a battle.”