THE ROAD TO RUIN
Night was firmly setting in as the smoldering ashes from the earlier aerial battle could be seen in the distance. Orion began decelerating the Fonantian hovercycle. He looked in both directions to see that Rio and Gordie were also doing the same.
“Jeez.” Gordie said.
He seemed just as taken aback as Orion did. They entered the battlefield, hovering right above the ubiquitous craters and metallic debris that were all around. He cringed at the sight of the mangled body parts and alien blood. Even the mounting darkness couldn’t hide what had happened out here. This wasn’t much of a fight at all. It was a massacre. He found a clear area away from the debris and powered down the hovercycle. It lowered to the sand as he turned back to Delly.
“What do you think?”
“Oh yeah, we’re definitely in the right place.” She said.
Orion hopped off the hovercycle and started surveying the landscape. Still a good distance away, straight ahead of them, appeared to be a city.
Unlike Fonantis, which was highly advanced and technological, this city didn’t have a dome. In fact, it looked ancient in comparison as large illuminated spires could be seen from their position. It reminded him somewhat of Aphotriton, although, it was not nearly as pristine-looking.
From this distance, Orion was unable to determine if the battle had also taken place within the Paprijian borders. He turned back to see that the other hovercycles were still activated.
“I don’t think they made it to the city.”
“I want you all to take a good look around you.” Marius said. “If this is any indication of what these Paprijians, as Delly calls them, are capable of, then it stands to reason that we’re going to be in for the fight of our lives.”
Orion looked at his sister. She kept her head down while their mentor spoke.
“I understand if any one of you doesn’t see this as worth the risk.” Marius went on.
Everyone began looking around at each other, with the exception of Delly. She continued to keep her head lowered. God only knew what was going through her head right now. There was a good chance that Marius was right. He noticed some hesitance in everyone’s body language. Not that Orion could blame them. First, it was a sand wave and now they were in a dead zone.
“All right guys, listen up.”
Orion stepped forward as everyone turned to him.
“Somewhere in that place over there is the alien who saved my sister’s life.” He pointed. “And when Andrew and I were in that Felician ice prison, I gotta admit—there was a time where I thought we’d never see any of you again. And just when we were this close to giving up hope, who should appear, wearing Draconoire spacesuits no less, but Marius and Gordie.”
Orion turned his attention to Marius.
“It’s a disgrace that I never thanked you for that. I mean, really thanked you. You never gave up on us.” He pointed. “And it’s because of that, and the example you’ve been, that I can’t just let the guy who made it possible for me to see my sister again—die without at least trying to save him and his family. I wanna be able to thank him in person.”
Marius stood there for a moment just looking at him. He neither swayed nor said a word. No one else spoke either. The silence was quite awkward. Orion wasn’t exactly known for making emotional speeches.
“All right. You’ve all heard him. What does everybody think?” Marius asked.
“I think, what the hell are we waiting for?” Rio said.
“Orion. As usual.” Andrew added.
“Seriously, when did you get so damn chatty? Can’t you see where we are?” Gordie remarked with a chuckle.
Some light laughter ensued as Orion could only nod in response. He got the hint. They were with him all the way. They dispersed back to the hovercycles as he and Delly made eye contact. No words were exchanged between them as he waited for her to get into the passenger seat. He got on the hovercycle next and started it up.
He felt a tap against his thigh and looked back. Delly was smiling at him. She had to know that as long as Orion was still breathing, he would always have her back. It was family over everything in the Moore household. That was a mantra that now extended to everyone on the Red Rover—Gordie included.
<>
Delly sat introspective as Orion activated the hovercycle and took off. They were headed towards Paprijia. She was numb to the carnage of the battlefield. After all, soldiers existed to be killed.
She glanced in Marius’ direction. His hands were clasped against his helmet. Perhaps he was taking a moment to pray. It could have been for their protection or for this to be over—not that she would dare to ask. She had already asked so much of them to begin with.
Her brother’s impassioned speech aside, she understood that this group took their cues from Marius. He was the linchpin of this entire operation. That this particular group had made it this far without the Rover Base was incredible. Orion was still a kid when she left and now he was capable of rescuing her and leading a siege on an alien city. That was a testament to Marius’ leadership, because the Orion she knew was nothing like this.
As much as Delly wished to see him become more confident in his abilities—his growth was even beyond her wildest expectations. Orion was a man now—one their parents would have been very proud of.
“Everybody slow down.” Orion said.
Delly pivoted towards the front. They were approaching a border that they couldn’t see before. Orion decelerated the hovercycle as she turned her body completely. There was a chasm between their side and the other. While the desert was covered in darkness, there was a bright light coming from it. The Paprijian city was just across it.
The hovercycle came to a stop and lowered to the ground. Orion hopped out and approached the chasm. The other two hovercycles stopped beside her.
“So what now?” Gordie said. “How are we supposed to get into the city?”
She hopped out next. She followed after Orion, who was peering over the edge into the chasm. She sidled up next to him as he turned to her.
“Well, we’re not going this way, that’s for sure.” He said.
Delly looked into the chasm. The bright light that she had seen was coming from a moat deep below the surface. From this height, it didn’t appear to be molten rock. The substance was more gooey-looking than anything else.
I wonder if this is the same shit they threw on me back in Fonantis.
She looked again at the Paprijian city. While Marius had gone above and beyond the call of duty thus far, she doubted he’d be willing to have them cross this chasm on those hovercycles. She walked away from the group, while remaining parallel to the chasm. There had to be a bridge or some kind of crossing that the Paprijians used to get in and out of their city. Delly just needed to locate it.
“Hold on. You guys hear that?”
She turned around to see Orion’s girlfriend stomping her left boot against the ground. She walked back over to them.
“Sounds like metal.” Orion said.
“Exactly.”
His girlfriend began kicking sand away as everyone just stood around watching.
“Uh, hello? Don’t just stand there. Help me.”
Everyone else joined her, kicking the sand around, which revealed what seemed like a metallic surface. The desert had concealed it. It could have been for defensive reasons as they saw not too long ago.
Delly noticed Orion wasn’t helping them. She turned to see him back by the chasm’s edge, looking over it.
“Orion, what are you doing?”
“One second, sis. I think I got it.”
Everyone stopped moving the sand and turned to him. He was traveling along the edge, heading in the opposite direction from her. He came to a stop and began kicking the sand. He moved away from the chasm, staying on a line, kicking sand away.
He dropped to his knees and began moving the sand with his gloves. Marius and the others approached him as she brought up the rear. She found an opened space between them and looked down. Orion had found a secret hatch with a handle attached to it. He grabbed the handle with both hands and pulled. It barely moved as it fell back closed.
“A little help?” Orion said.
His friends gathered around the corners of the hatch as he pulled back on the handle a second time. He lifted it a little higher, allowing them to get their hands underneath it. They continued pushing as Orion released the handle and jumped backwards.
Delly activated her suit flashlight and peered inside the opened hatch. There was a built-in ladder that led beneath the surface.
“Ha. How’s that for a metal detector?”
Orion seemed pretty proud of himself as he nudged her.
“Not bad little bro. Now all you gotta do is go first.”
“What? Why me?”
“Cause you found it. It’s only fair.”
He just stared at her for a moment, incredulous. She had forgotten how much fun it was to get under his skin. Those were much simpler times for all of them.
“All right. Enough with the sibling rivalry. I’ll go first.” Marius said. “Just watch my back, please!”
Delly nodded. Marius sat on the ground and scooted next to the ladder. He placed his legs against the ladder first and pushed against it.
“It appears to be sturdy. Wish me luck.”
Marius began descending the ladder. Orion went next, followed by his girlfriend. Delly felt a tap on the shoulder. She turned to see it was Gordie.
“Are you sure you’re gonna be able to climb with that thing?” He asked while pointing to her prosthetic.
“I’ll manage. Thanks.”
Delly entered the hatch next and began descending. She soon discovered that Gordie was on to something. Using a ladder with only one working hand was an arduous task. She reached the bottom of the hatch as Orion and his girlfriend were waiting for her. Marius had disappeared.
“Where’s Marius?” Delly asked.
“He just went that way.”
Orion pointed to a tunnel that was connected. The last two cadets joined them as Marius returned.
“All right, people. I got some good news and some bad news.”
“Ugh, why do people always say that?” Gordie asked.
Delly chuckled. A cliché was a cliché for a reason. There were certain situations that warranted the use of one. This was probably one of them.
“What’s the good news?” Orion said.
“We should be able to cross to the other side.”
“And the bad news?” His girlfriend asked.
“See for yourself.”
Marius stepped aside as Orion and his girlfriend entered the tunnel first. Delly followed them and scoffed. The tunnel appeared to be sturdy for approximately twenty-five feet before changing into a different composition. There were pockets of light that were coming from the tunnel floor. That particular section had to be over the chasm. This was a bridge to the other side.
“Anybody got any straws?” Orion remarked.
“No need. I’ll go.”
Delly stepped through and moved closer to the tunnel bridge. She was careful taking her first step on it. It creaked from her body weight. She slightly turned back.
“I’m thinking we should probably go one at a time here. Who knows how much weight this thing can support.”
“You got it, Sergeant.” Marius said.
Delly extended her hands for balance and took her time getting from one side to the next. The bridge creaked, but it wasn’t as unstable as she initially believed. She noticed that the ground had become sturdy again and looked back. If it wasn’t for their flashlights she wouldn’t have been able to see them at all. She tapped her telecommunicator.
“I’m on the other side. Come on over.”
“Copy that. We’re on our way.” Her brother answered.
One by one, they joined Delly. Each time one of them traversed the bridge, she could tell they were breathing a sigh of relief. She owed them all. Big time. Marius was the last one to make it across.
“All right, people. Guns up. I’m guessing we’re about to become very popular around these parts.”
“Don’t like the sound of that.” Andrew remarked.
Marius pulled his sidearm from his holster. There was no longer any reason to beat around the bush. The simple fact was they were on death’s doorstep and they were about to ring the bell.