Stranded: (Space Outlaw 2) Read online

  "It is none of your business, and it would do you well to focus on the job I have assigned you," said Holger.

  "The job is all but done, my friend."

  "Make sure that it is."

  "Oh, before I go," Rustem said, snapping his fingers. "There was this amazing food that the Earth people almost worship. What was it called again, err, ice-cream I think it was."

  How does he know? It can't be. It must be a coincidence.

  Rustem brought a bowl towards his face and picked up a spoon, lifting a mouthful towards his mouth.

  "I believe they call this flavour chocolate. Truly amazing." With that, Rustem ended the call and allowed Holger to ponder the choices that he had made in life.

  4

  The infighting started before Phoenix knew what hit him. It all began with a simple question from Plowstow.

  "Can you make her fly again?"

  "Not unless you have an engine in your pocket, green man," L replied.

  "Then how the hell are we going to get anywhere? I thought it was your job to look after the engine and make sure that the ship was flying okay." Plowstow stabbed a finger at the now lifeless ship and continued. "Great job you did--"

  "Don't you dare have a go at her!" Saoirse said, walking towards Plowstow.

  "Who am I meant to have a go at? It was her job to look after the ship. It was her job to make sure the stupid thing would stay in the air. Now we are stranded in--"

  "We are not stranded. I know where we are," L muttered, her hair going dull grey.

  "And where, oh where, are we?"

  "Not far from the city where my brother and I stayed. All we have to do is walk," said L.

  All eyes peered into the distance, taking in the heat waves bouncing off the sand. A slight humid breeze blew grains of sand up from the ground, and they all shielded their eyes. Sand dunes blocked any view of what lay beyond in the distance. If there was a city out there, it wasn't within easy walking distance.

  "Walk? And how far is that?" said Plowstow.

  "Not far. Maybe an hour or two."

  "Argh! I can't believe this. I should never have--"

  "Plowstow! No one is forcing you to come. You can always stay here and hope someone–or something–comes to pick you up. L, you know this area best. What do we need to do to make it to this city safely?"

  "Grab any drinkable liquid, cover your head and body against the heat, and above all else, pace yourself. Moving too fast in this terrain will kill you a lot quicker than anything you encounter out there."

  "Everyone do as she says. We leave in five," said Phoenix.

  The sun was unbearable. It beat down upon their shoulders with the force of a bullwhip. The searing heat was relentless. Shade was nowhere to be found. This was the sun's domain, and it tortured anyone foolish enough to enter it.

  Phoenix wiped the sweat from his brow and flicked it off his hand. Taking a swig of water from his bottle, he cast his gaze over the scene around him.

  Sand dunes still dominated the environment. Small shrubs no more than three feet high were dotted around, their branches covered with purple needles that gave a visual warning. Large tunnel-like mounds criss-crossed the sand. The largest ones were at least two hundred feet across.

  Phoenix allowed himself to slow down until he was at the back of the group, walking alongside L. Her head was lowered and her shoulders were slumped forward. Phoenix remained silent, simply sharing the peace with her.

  "I didn't mean for the... I tried my best, but the stupid ship was damaged from the beginning. I couldn't have done anything to save her. She wasn't meant for such a long-haul flight. It was too much for her. I'm not saying it wasn't my fault, Phoenix. Just..." L let out a small sigh and shrugged her shoulders.

  "L, I know you're sorry. It doesn't need to be said--"

  "It's not that, Phoenix. I pride myself on being the best ship's engineer I can be. There isn't a problem I can't fix or an issue I can't solve. I knew that there would be problems with the ship. That there would be a chance we wouldn't make it. More than a chance, actually.

  "But I wanted to take that chance. I just couldn't stop thinking about my brother; I couldn't stop thinking about how long we had been apart. Only Soul knows what trouble he could have gotten into. At any other time, I would have told you to get another ship. But I was..."

  "You were blinded by the love for your family. I know how that feels," said Phoenix. He thought back over the last few months and what he had done. What he would have done, just to see his family again. Just to see them and make sure that they were safe. He understood.

  "Look, L, if it was anyone else looking after the ship, we would be dead by now. Don't beat yourself up about it. You have given me the best thing I could ever ask for," said Phoenix.

  "And what is that?"

  "I'm the first human to step foot on a different planet!" Phoenix grabbed L in a bear-hug embrace, swinging her around as she giggled uncontrollably.

  Unimpressed, the others stopped in their tracks and looked back at the pair. Phoenix didn't care, though; this was the adventure he had been missing for so long. He felt alive again. He felt free again. He could travel anywhere he wanted. Life wasn't restricted anymore. He had stars, planets and galaxies, that no other human had laid eyes on, to see.

  His future looked bright.

  5

  The sun was close to setting when the crew saw lights up ahead. They blinked in and out of existence like fairy lights on a Christmas tree.

  Phoenix stopped and squinted ahead. "Is that what I think it is?" he gasped.

  "Yup," came the simple reply from L.

  Phoenix licked his cracked, dry lips and tried to concentrate. He lifted his water bottle to his lips; a few droplets burnt on his tongue like water on hot asphalt.

  "You sure those are city lights and not something else? I would hate to get lost again," said Plowstow.

  "It was a few wrong turns. If you like, you can always go your own way," said Freyan.

  "I was just saying, that was all."

  Phoenix looked over his shoulder, puzzled, scanning the sand behind him.

  L said, "Once we get to my old stomping grounds all will be forgotten. We can all have a nice hot meal, get the dirt and grime off us and just relax. Then have a few drinks.".

  "Are the drinks free? Because my credit is a bit low at the moment," Plowstow grumbled.

  "Yes, the drinks will be on me, Plowstow. Wouldn't want you to starve or die of thirst."

  Phoenix shielded his eyes with his hand. Was that a large sand mound coming their way?

  "I ain't saying I can't pay my own way, you hear? Just that life has seen me on hard times at the moment, and if one of you could see it in your hearts to show me a bit of kindness, then it won't go amiss," said Plowstow.

  "Don't worry, I'm sure there are many old or disabled members of the public that you can prey on once we get to the city. Your pockets will soon be overflowing with all your ill-gotten gains," said Freyan.

  "I only do what I need to do, to keep myself alive!"

  Phoenix was sure of it now. Something was out there. Something was moving towards them, and it was large.

  "Err...L? Are there any animals out here that could do us any harm?" asked Phoenix.

  "No. Not this close to the city. Why?"

  "Well there seems to be a large sand--"

  "What!" L spun around and Phoenix recognised the look of fear plastered on her face. "Oh no--"

  Plowstow pushed past L and took off like the hounds of hell were after him. He didn't look back. He didn't wait and see what was headed their way. He simply sprinted towards the city lights ahead of them.

  "L, what's wrong?" Saoirse asked.

  "It's a dust worm. Run towards the city!"

  "A worm?" Phoenix said in disbelief. He turned back around and could now clearly see how big the sand mound really was–at least fifty feet across and traveling at some speed. Whatever worm created that would be able to swallow him and the res
t of the crew in one bite.

  "Let's move--" Phoenix turned back around, and noticed that he was the only one still standing still. "Fuckers!"

  Phoenix's arms pumped up and down as his feet pounded the sand. The sand made a firm foothold impossible. His calves burnt and his heart punched against his chest.

  Was the mound getting closer? Could he hear the shifting of the sand as the animal made its way through it like a snowplough?

  Finally he caught up with the remaining members of the crew. He didn't know how long they could push this pace for; heat, sand and dry air made each lungful of breath painful. Freyan would be okay, but the heat had affected them all.

  "Shouldn't we stand and fight?" said Saoirse.

  "Dust worms... grow...to...two hundred...feet," L huffed.

  "They grow up to two hundred feet? My gosh, I would love to have a specimen to study," Freyan said.

  "They...attack...everything."

  "L, save your breath," said Saoirse.

  Phoenix looked up ahead and could see the distant outline of Plowstow. Fucker hasn't even looked behind him. He threw a sharp glance over his shoulder and couldn't quite believe what he saw. "I don't want to worry anyone, but there's more than one."

  Two snake-like mounds moved almost as one, the dust worms' interest only on one thing: their next meal ahead of them.

  L stumbled forward, losing her footing, and collapsed on the sand. Saoirse went to pick her up but was pushed away by Freyan.

  "I do not have muscles that tire. Save your strength."

  Freyan picked up L, threw her over his shoulder, and continued running.

  Saoirse and Phoenix looked at the rapidly approaching mounds and mirrored each other's worried expressions.

  "Towards...city! Safe," L gasped, bouncing upon Freyan's shoulder.

  "Freyan, can you run faster than you already are?" asked Phoenix.

  "I can. How did you know?"

  "Hunch! I want you to take L... and...get to the city!"

  "But--"

  "Do it!"

  Freyan gave Phoenix a look that said be careful–that said they might not make it out alive. None of that mattered to Phoenix right then. He had promised to take care of L, and that was what he was going to do.

  Phoenix gave Freyan a small nod and waved him forward. That was all that was needed. Freyan sprinted ahead, leaving a small dust cloud in his wake. He ran with the power of a high-performance sports car, his footing precise and sure.

  As Freyan's sleek white body became smaller and smaller, a part of Phoenix wished he had asked for a ride. "Damn! Look at that boy go," he said. He looked behind once more and saw that the image was no less daunting than before. "We're nearly there."

  "You don't have to reassure me, Phoenix," said Saoirse.

  "Just--"

  "Less talk. Run faster," she snapped.

  Freyan had now passed Plowstow, and he and L made it to the city walls first. The city loomed ahead of them like a beautiful woman now aged and down on her luck. Black smoke bellowed from her lungs as if she smoked thirty cigarettes a day. Dilapidated towers leaned at awkward angles, encased behind a stone wall.

  Freyan had carried L up what appeared to be a metal ladder up the side of the city wall. Plowstow was close behind him and made his way up the ladder like a rat up a drainpipe.

  Saoirse reached the ladder before Phoenix and looked behind her.

  "Go! Don't wait," Phoenix yelled, waving her onward.

  She cast one last look his way but didn't hesitate in making her way up the ladder.

  Phoenix's breathing was pained. His legs felt like hot rubber. By all accounts, he should have already collapsed, but something kept him going. He was more of a sprinter than a long distance runner. The strides had been relatively painless until now. It seemed he was nearly out of juice.

  He saw the ladder in front of him, its rusty metal offering him salvation, but his foot caught on something and he fell forward before he knew what was happening.

  Rolling onto his shoulder, he came back up and reached for the first rung of the ladder. He glanced behind him and what he saw froze him on the spot.

  A circular mouth with teeth as long as he was tall bore down on him. It appeared to have swallowed the sun, as he could see nothing but darkness.

  6

  Move, Phoenix! Fucking move!

  His body didn't want to respond. It seemed frozen to the spot. A hand descended from above and snatched him up in the air. He saw ladder rung after ladder rung fly past his face in a blur.

  I'd better grab one.

  He reached out with both hands and grabbed whatever he could, slamming into the stone surface of the wall. His face scraped against the rock and left him with a cut lip and a black eye. He felt like his shoulders had nearly been ripped from their sockets, it had taken so much force to latch onto the ladder.

  Phoenix looked below him and saw Freyan's white features staring up at him.

  "Thank you for pulling me up," said Phoenix.

  "I thought for a moment that I used too much force and you would forget to grab onto the ladder when the time came."

  "Thank God for my survival instincts." Phoenix looked down and saw that the dust worms were circling the sand below, their bodies once again hidden under the sand. Every so often, black skin, glistening like marble, broke the surface.

  "It appears that they can only detect movement on the sand," Freyan said, following his gaze.

  "Lucky for us."

  With one final downwards glance at the terror that lay below, Phoenix began making his way upwards. A midnight-blue hand appeared in front of his face. He grabbed it and allowed himself to be helped up onto one of the rock ledges cut into the wall at different levels all the way to the top.

  L waved at him exhaustedly from where she lay in a heap on the floor. Plowstow sat with his back to the wall not much further away, chest heaving and head between his legs. Phoenix took a spot next to L and sank down, his shaking legs giving out underneath him.

  "You're still alive, I see," muttered Phoenix.

  "Yeah, well, you know..." L said, smiling at him.

  "That was tense. I thought we had a bug problem back at home, but that takes the biscuit," said Phoenix.

  "Dust worms are normally found deep out in the wild. They are rarely found this close to a city. I just don't understand. Something has changed, and not for the better," L said, pushing her hand through her yellow hair. "All cities and villages on Tingo are located on large rocks like these, the reason being they can not be attacked by dust worms. Travel from one city or village to the next is dangerous and costly."

  "You've been gone a while. Things change. Sometimes not for the better," said Phoenix.

  "Hmm." L got up from where she sat and dusted herself off. "Let's see by how much, shall we?"

  Dust hung in the air like a thin veil, tinting the whole city brown. The buildings were old, crippled and decrepit. Boards adorned the windows of more than one building and metal shutters on others remained permanently down.

  Towers dotted the skyline like spots on a teenager's face, but they too seemed to be on their last legs. As the sheet of day was slowly pulled away to allow night to take over, floating round orbs gave off what light they could. Most flickered on and off with dying effort.

  Larger orbs floated hundreds of feet in the sky, never staying stationary. Their black metal gave them an ominous appearance. Phoenix stopped in his tracks to gawk at them.

  "They collect energy from the sun and power drills below the desert's surface that collect water," said L, pointing to the large orbs. "But the thing is, no one in their right mind would drill so close to the city. The disturbance it causes would attract too much attention from the worms."

  The crew moved through the streets as one with L leading the way. Phoenix snapped his head back and forth with a slight frown on his face. The air smelled of oil and tasted of sorrow. Laughter was nowhere to be found. Legs could be seen sticking out of doorways, and co
ughs bounced off alleyway walls.

  "You are disappointed?" Freyan asked.

  "No, I... Yes, I am. Just...I thought... I just thought that my first alien city would be more awe-inspiring, rather than reminding me of a third world country back home. I mean, where are the floating robots and mind-blowing gadgets? This is just so...depressing."

  "It is good you saw this first. Not every world is advanced, although they may be able to space-travel. Some worlds have hit an economic downturn, some may have gone through civil unrest. The reasons for how they have become as they are are many. But remember this, Class One planets are best avoided. Higher-grade technology equates to better surveillance. Better surveillance means that we are easier to apprehend."

  Phoenix gave a nod.

  "This all looks so different," L said. "So... So...disgusting. When I first came here, years ago, everything was on the up and up. Everything was clean. Everything was nice. Now look at it." She spun on her heels, taking in everything around her.

  Shouts came from their left, quickly followed by a body being thrown out of a window. Glass littered the floor and the body lay in a heap. It moaned slightly and tried to lift itself up off the ground but fell back down, face first.

  Freyan moved towards the body but was stopped by Phoenix, who grabbed his arm.

  "I don't know what y'all are complaining about. This is my kind of place," Plowstow said with a slight nod of his head.

  "I'm not surprised," said Saoirse.

  "What's not to like? Cheap drinks, cheap females to suit most races, and fights aplenty. I am going to have some fun here," said Plowstow, walking off down a side road.

  "We'll be staying at an inn called Dusty's! Meet us there!" L shouted at Plowstow's retreating back.

  Plowstow gave a single wave to show that he had heard and then he was gone.

  7

  Plowstow walked down one side street after the other, constantly looking over his shoulder. He wished he could have stayed out in the open, as the alleyways and back streets seemed busier. They teemed with life.