Neverwylde (The Rim of the World Book 4) (7 page)

            “Hey, as long as it opens up into a bigger space, I’m game. I’ve never been claustrophobic, but I’m starting to hate these small, dinky-ass enclosed tunnels.” Checking his blaster, Fullgrath waved for them to follow. “Let’s go, people. Time’s a-wasting.”

Chapter 10

Purple

            Unlike the other tunnel, this one remained more or less horizontal. Other than the usual turns and curves they’d come to expect, it didn’t ascend or descend. Jules remained behind Fullgrath, his tablet held in front of him as he continued to watch their progress.        

            “Are we still heading for that purple dot?” Kelen asked the ex-navigator.

            “So far.”

            “Jules, how does this thing know our location? I mean, what is it tracking?”

            “It’s programmed to track me.”

            “How?”

            He gave her a wink and patted his breast pocket. “Little doodad Dox threw together.”

            His comment reminded her of the small communication devices she’d seen the unique young man working on. “I noticed Dox working on a dozen communicators. I bet those will include trackers in them when they’re completed.”

            Jules nodded but didn’t comment.

            She slowed, letting Sandow and Tojun pass her, and allowed Kyber to catch up. As she waited, she pulled one of the pain capsules from her pocket and swallowed it dry.

            “You are giving off heat,” he remarked when he pulled even. “You are running a fever.”

            “I wouldn’t be surprised.”

            “I saw you take one of Sandow’s medications he gave you.”

            She threw a startled look at him, unaware he’d witnessed her interaction with the physician. On second thought, it shouldn’t have been that much of a shock. “You’ve been watching me like a hawk, haven’t you?” she gently accused.

            “What is a hawk?”

            “An animal on my world with acute vision. We use the phrase to describe someone who studies something intently, hoping to catch some sign of weakness.”

            “Yes. I have been keeping you under intense scrutiny.”

            She managed a smile. “Thank you.”

            He appeared surprised. “Why are you thanking me?”

            “Because I know you do it out of love.”

            “I have more reason than that,” he told her. “So much of what I do now is not just because of my feelings for you.”

            “More than love?” A feeling of warmth curled through her after hearing his admission.

            “You have caused me to look inside myself and test myself for the truths I have seen but for years have ignored. You have saved my life more times than I can repay, and you continue to fight for me, even at the risk of your own self.”

            “You do the same for me,” she refuted.

            “It is not the same thing. I have come to the realization that if I and my crew members had crashed alone on this world, by this time I would most probably be dead. If you had not been with your people when we encountered each other at the temple, I would be dead.” He placed a hand on his hip, his only signal to her that his wound continued to pain him. She noticed his wince of pain and commented on it.

            “Most of what you’ve suffered has been because of me as well.”

            “But most of these injuries would not have come about had you not been here, because I would have perished first.”

            She chuckled. “Your logic is skewed, but your sincerity is touching.” She started to say more when Kleesod moved up from where he’d been watching their rear.

            “I may be imagining it, but it feels as though the temperature is getting warmer.”

            “Now that you’ve mentioned it, it does,” Kelen said.

            “I agree. Jules, what is the current temperature?” Kyber called out.

            “Uhh, two degrees Celsius. No longer below freezing.”

            “It feels as if it has grown warmer in the past few minutes,” Kleesod commented.

            Jules stopped and stood to the side. “You’re right. According to this, it’s warmed up one degree…every ninety meters.”

            Fullgrath paused and gave a bark of laughter. “Another friggin’ three.”

            The others halted for a moment. Sandow took the opportunity to bring up breakfast. “We haven’t eaten today. This would be a good time to take in some nourishment. Fortify ourselves for whatever we may encounter once we reach our purple place.”

            They ate quickly and buried their refuse in the loosened dirt piled along the base of the walls. Kelen also took advantage of the break to change her padding and stuff it into one of the cracks in the floor, covering it with dirt and packing it down before they moved on.

            Sandow had been right. She felt better after eating. With the temperature becoming more tolerable, she allowed herself a bit of hope. Hope they’d find a place where they could bunker down for a day or two. Hope they’d find a source of food and water. Hope they’d find a way back to the other temple.     

           
What if what we find here is better than what we left behind?
She mulled over that possibility.

           
If we go back, we’ll be closer to our crashed ships,
her subconscious argued.

           
What good is our crashed ships? We’ve already scavenged everything from them that we can use.

            Have we?

           
Damn her subconscious.

            Deep in thought, she nearly ran into Massapa, who walked in front of her. Curious, she maneuvered around the Seneecian to see why everyone else had also stopped.
Please, let it not be another collapse.

           
She blinked, unable to believe what she saw.

            Mellori grunted. “Well, it
is
represented by the color purple.”

            Yes, it was. Far ahead of them, perhaps thirty more meters down the tunnel, they could see a light filtering through an opening. A light that was definitely purplish in color. Or, in this case, a dark lavender.

            They advanced with caution and relief. As the light grew brighter and lighter in tint, the air also became noticeably warmer. When Kelen moved up next to Jules, she glanced at the tablet.

            Six degrees Celsius.

            He caught her reading over his shoulder. “Warm enough to sustain life,” he murmured.

            The tunnel opened up to a manmade cavern. They stepped onto a long, narrow slab of rock and stared at the unbelievable sight.

            The cavern’s floor was one solid sheet of…

            “Is that metal?” Kelen asked aloud.

            “Looks like it,” Mellori answered. He walked over to the edge of the slab and peered over the side. “It’s just a step down. Hold on.” He sat. Swinging his legs around, he tested the surface, hitting it with his booted feet, then stood to see if it would support his weight. “I can’t tell you what kind of metal it is, but it’s solid and strong.”

            “What color is it? Is it gray or white or…”

            “Hard to tell in this light.”

            “Damn, this place is
huge
!” Fullgrath exclaimed. “How in hell can there be one solid slab of metal that big? Damn room can fit the
Manta
inside it!”

            Kelen agreed. “I’d venture to say it’s as big as the garden and the orange rooms at the other temple.”

            “Bigger,” Dox chimed in.

            “At least we know now why it’s designated with a purple button,” Mellori dryly remarked.

           
Kelen moved closer to the edge of the rock. Sunlight poured through opaque windows which filled one wall. The panes were the origin of the violet cast. The purplish glow filled the room that was otherwise and virtually…

            “Empty,” she whispered to herself. “This place is nothing but one big empty room. Why?” She glanced over at where Mellori stood with his mouth agape. “What is the purpose of this place?”

            “Maybe someone stole all the furniture,” Fullgrath jested.

            Kleesod crouched down to study the floor. “What I cannot understand is how this floor has managed to remain flat after two distinct disturbances…that we know of.”

            Tojun squatted beside him. “Perhaps it is tensile and can adjust, which is why it did not buckle or break.”

            “What do we do now?” Kelen asked.

            “If this place is on the panel in the upper temple, then there has to be a corresponding panel here,” Kyber reminded them. “We need to find that panel.”

            “I agree,” Mellori remarked. “But where would it be?”

            Kyber waved at them. “Spread out. Ring the edge of this platform and see if you can spot it.”

            They lined up along the rock rim and tried to locate the teleportation console. After a few minutes, Sandow sighed loudly. “Perhaps it’s somewhere where we can’t see it from this vantage point.”

            “You got a point, Doc,” Fullgrath agreed. The ex-weapon’s master pointed to one side of the cavern. “I’m going to start over there. Someone, Kleesod? You start over on that side.” He pointed to the opposite end of the cavern. “We’ll get a close-up view of the walls and all, and meet in the middle.”

            “What if we do not find the panel once we meet up?” Kleesod asked.

            Fullgrath shrugged, throwing a thumb over his shoulder. “Then I guess we turn ourselves around and head back down that tunnel to see what’s on the other end.”

            Not waiting for the others to agree or disagree with him, the big man hefted his blaster and took a cautious step onto the metal floor. Guardedly, he placed both feet onto the plating, then bounced a little on his toes. “Seems sturdy enough.” He flashed them a thumbs-up, turned, and took another step.

            The plating swung vertically, and Fullgrath dropped down through the floor with a cry of surprise. Before everyone could grasp what had happened, the sheet of metal swung back and settled into its original horizontal position. Kelen stared in horror as the edges sealed themselves, once more making the floor appear to be one smooth and seamless sheet.

Chapter 11

Beneath

            As they stared at where Fullgrath had disappeared beneath the metal surface, Kleesod launched himself off the rock platform. He belly-flopped onto the flooring, arms and legs spread-eagle, and landed with a hard thump. For several long seconds they waited for him to vanish, but he remained unmoving.

            “Why didn’t he drop?” Kelen asked.

            Mellori crouched, tilting his head to examine the surface. “Not sure, but I think his weight is too evenly distributed. Jules?” He look over at the ex-navigator. “You were recording, weren’t you?”

            “Yeah.”

            “Let me see the footage of Fullgrath going down.”

“Hold on.” Jules made a few adjustments and turned the tablet around. The screen replayed the incident one frame at a time.

“Hold it! There!” The engineer stared at the image, then looked over where Kleesod remained immobile. Kelen started to ask what he’d noticed, when the man rushed to the rim of the platform. Bending over, Mellori pushed on the edge of the metal. He applied more pressure until the section tilted, then shone his tube light into the recess.

“Just as I thought. This floor is the roof of an underground cavern. It looks like a three to four meter drop.” He checked the Seneecian who hadn’t moved. “Shift your weight and it should allow you to slide down. Keep your knees soft when you land on your feet. It shouldn’t be a hard fall. Stay where you land. We’ll join you shortly.”

Kleesod nodded. As he leaned to his left, the plating underneath his abdomen began to angle downward. He slid off, and the floor reset itself.

Mellori pointed where the Seneecian disappeared. “Our turn. Let’s go.”

“I will go next to catch you,” Massapa volunteered. Sitting on the edge, he pushed on the floor until it opened and silently dropped from sight.

“Kelen, you go next,” Kyber instructed. “Tell him Dox will follow so he can catch him.”

“Okay.”

Falling forward was like taking a plunge into the unknown. Her heart leaped into her throat as she launched herself off the platform. She saw the trap door-like opening rise in front of her face, but instead of being swallowed in darkness, a pair of strong hands caught her mid-thigh and lowered her to the ground.

Kelen gasped at the sight of the person who’d caught her. “Fullgrath!” Throwing her arms around the man, she gave him a big hug.

The man chuckled and moved her to the side. “Stay close.”

“Dox is next,” she hurried to inform them.

Kleesod braced himself. A moment later, the young man slid into view. The Seneecian deftly caught him, then set him on the ground next to Kelen. One at a time, each person joined the group. Tojun remained above to drop their bundles of supplies, coming down when he finished.

While everyone relocated to the lower section, Kelen studied this new area. The exact stone columns, the interlocking maze-like passageways, the translucent walls of the blocky compartments scattered within—all definitely appeared to be manmade.

Kyber came up behind her. “It looks like a small city.”

She started. He was right. That’s the word she’d been looking for. A city, with streets and buildings. Except the roof of every building and the sky above the streets was the same slab of metal plates rising above them.

“Who lives here?” Jules softly asked.

“Is it deserted?” Kyber added.

Mellori moved ahead of them and stopped in front of one of the columns which helped support the metal ceiling. Kelen saw him run his hand up and down the stone obelisk, then unexpectedly stop. The engineer glanced at Kyber.

“You need to check this out.”