

### The

### Mars Conspiracy

Cydonia

Brian Smith

Copyright 2014

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

### 1

The little shuttle was swiftly gliding across the Martian surface. At its controls was Captain Kim Pottinger of the International Mars base Hermes. The shuttle was switched to autopilot and apart from keeping an eye on the controls in case anything went wrong he didn't have much to do. Sitting beside him was Larry Wathen the newly arrived base physician. Kim didn't know much about him other than what he'd gleaned from his file. He knew that Larry was from Texas and had worked in a private hospital for a while before joining NASA two years previously. Two years was a very short time to get posted to Mars, the most sought after place to go to, and he wondered whether Larry was an exceptional person, had extraordinary luck or just the right connections. Kim himself couldn't have been more different. At 39 he was ten years Larry's senior. He was a former RAF pilot and had worked on the international space station for several years before being posted to Mars where he was second in command. Normally he would not have taken Larry along as he had only arrived that day and newcomers were allowed a few days to get used to gravity again after months in space, but this flight was different. A team of scientists was overdue and couldn't be raised on the radio. The team would slowly be running short of supplies and it was necessary to find out what was wrong. Probably some mechanical problem, but he had asked Larry to come along just in case, though what that case might be he couldn't imagine. There was seldom any work to do for doctors on Mars. He looked out of the window. The sun was already low on the horizon, a tiny red orb whose weak light shone through the thin atmosphere bathing everything in hues of red. As though there wasn't enough red yet. Below them a desert landscape passed by. The plains were strewn with boulders and sometimes a nullah, an ancient watercourse, could be seen. Everything was painted in various shades of red. Even the sky was red with dust blown up by frequent winds and occasional dust-storms that could last for months. Kim sighed and noticed Larry looking at him questioningly. 'You know, I'm really tired of this place.' He paused as though waiting for a reply, but then went on. 'Of course, when you get here first you're all excited and delighted to have made it to Mars. After all there are so many others who would gladly swap places with you.'

Larry nodded encouraging Kim to go on.

'When you first approach Mars the magnificent sight is breathtaking. Seeing Olympus Mons alone, a mountain several times higher than Everest, is worth coming for and there are many other things such as the great canyons that dwarf anything back home. But after a few years Mars loses its charm. You can never go out without a cumbersome suit and everything you see is red. The sand is red, the rocks and mountains are red and even the sky is a permanent monotonous red. There are no blues or greens anywhere. The whole place is just one big ball of dust and stone.'

He paused almost as if being a bit embarrassed at this sudden outburst to someone who as yet was a complete stranger. He looked at Larry a little nervously wondering what his reaction would be. There was a thoughtful expression on Larry's face.

'I never thought of Mars as a red dust ball before,' Larry said slowly. 'But I suppose you could be right. I might feel the same if I was here for several years. It's still too early for me to say, though. As yet the place is far from dull and dreary. In fact it's the most exciting place I've ever been to.'

Kim smiled. 'Yes, of course. I know what it feels like when you arrive on Mars. Don't let me put you off. I've just been here a bit too long and we don't get many new faces around here. Sometimes it's good just to talk to someone you haven't seen before. You're not a psychologist as well, Doc?' he said smiling a little slyly.

Larry laughed. 'Nope, sorry. I've only learnt about cutting up people's bodies, not their minds.'

They fell back into silence for some time when coming up to their right Kim saw what is perhaps the most famous feature on Mars. A mountain known as 'The Face', which when seen from high above looks like a human face. He pointed it out to Larry who strained himself in his seat to get a good view.

'It's amazing how real it looks,' Larry said as the mountain passed from sight and he sank back into his seat. 'Has it ever been examined?'

'We had a look at it when we first got to Mars twenty years ago, but nothing was found, of course. It's just a natural rock formation and you can only see the face from a certain angle. Sometimes nature plays these little tricks on our imagination, that's all. You can see similar things on Earth. Mountains that look like heads of humans or lions and they all have a story to go with them. I just haven't met any little green men here to tell me the story of the face.'

Larry grinned. 'Well, maybe I'll have better luck if one of those greenies gets sick.'

'And maybe you will, Doc, maybe you will. I don't know if you'll ever have the chance of getting up close to the Face, but if this sort of thing interests you, we're going to land by some pyramid-like mountains where our missing scientists are.'

Larry looked thoughtful at this change of topic. 'What do you think is wrong with them? Could they have had an accident?'

'I don't think so. We know they arrived safely and an accident on the ground involving all of them would be very unlikely. Much more probably they have some simple problem with the radio equipment or those crazy scientists got so excited about some mountain or other that they just forgot to come back,' he said laughing. A look at his eyes though, would have revealed that he was not so sure at all. In fact, privately he was rather worried, not only because something serious might be wrong, but also as his girlfriend Jane was part of the expedition. Jane! The thought alone of anything happening to her made him go queasy in his stomach. He had first met Lieutenant Jane Gardel when serving on the space station six years ago. She was as charming and beautiful as the proverbial French Lady and Kim had been enraptured by her the moment they met for the first time. What would they find at the scientists' base camp? He prayed fervently that everything was well and that some minor problems had caused the breakdown in communication, but it was no use lying to himself. The more he told himself everything was fine, the more convinced he became that something was terribly wrong. He didn't let his worries show, though, and smiled at Larry. 'In any case we'll be there soon enough, so there's no point in racking our brains over the matter. If you look out of the window you should be able to see the mountains I mentioned to you just ahead of us.'

A few minutes later the shuttle began its descent and Kim switched back to manual. At the spaceport the autopilot would have landed the craft, but out here there might be boulders or other problems only a pilot could handle. As the shuttle approached the ground the rocket engines whirled up large quantities of dust enveloping the shuttle in a red cloud. It came to a virtual standstill a few feet above the ground, hovering for a moment before a soft touchdown barely perceptible in the cockpit. The incessant whine of the engines died down and for the first time in hours everything was quiet. They waited for a while till the worst of the dust had settled down and then donned their surface suits. The scientists' craft was not far and when they opened the outer hatch they could see it standing not a hundred yards from where they had landed. They walked across to it and Kim noted that it looked all right. He couldn't see anything outwardly wrong with it. They climbed up the steps and entered the airlock. The cabin pressurized and Kim was about to take off his helmet when Larry stopped him.

'Maybe we should leave on our helmets in case the crew have come down with some mysterious bug. It won't take long to check the ship.'

Kim nodded his agreement and they walked off into different directions, Larry going to the crew's quarters and Kim to the cockpit. It was empty and he sat down in the pilots seat to check whether there was anything wrong. The ship seemed to be in good order. He couldn't find any problems and even the radio equipment worked well. Larry came into the cockpit and shook his head when he saw Kim's questioning look. He had removed his helmet already and Kim followed suit.

'The ship's completely empty,' Larry said. 'There's no one here. They must have gone out.'

Kim said nothing as he turned his gaze back to the control panel. He looked thoughtful and his eyes moved from dial to dial rechecking each one again. He was sure everything had been in good order when he checked the first time and yet there was something that was bothering him. Some seemingly insignificant matter that taken by itself meant nothing, but still he was sure he had overlooked something and he was determined to find out what that 'something' was.

Larry was about to say something to him when he saw a shadow pass over Kim's face.

'Whatever has happened to them,' Kim said haltingly, 'they won't be coming back. The ship's oxygen tanks are more than half-full. They couldn't have survived for such a long time on so little oxygen.' He paused briefly fighting to regain control over his voice, which had begun to shake. 'We'll stay here tonight. There's no point going back to the shuttle, besides this ship is bigger. We'll look for them tomorrow. Please leave me now.'

When Larry had gone he reclined in his seat and looked up at the sky. The Martian sky at night was stunning in its magnificence. Due to the thin atmosphere stars were far clearer and more numerous than on Earth and there was no moon or city lights to interfere with the starlight. When there was no dust in the air myriads of stars, big and small, cast their faint light across interstellar space and gave anyone looking the impression of being adrift in space. Normally Kim revelled in the view above him, but that night the thought of Jane was like a dagger in his heart and so he drifted off into an uneasy slumber.

The following morning Kim was awoken by the sun shining on his face and after a breakfast of tangy food grown on Mars he and Larry donned their surface suits again and left the ship. The first thing they noticed was that the ship's rover wasn't to be seen anywhere. Wheel tracks went in several directions, but most led to a nearby mountain that looked remarkably similar to a weathered pyramid. They decided that, not knowing where the missing crew was, the best thing to do was to go in the direction most tracks were pointing to. The ground was sandy and difficult to walk on especially for Larry, who after several months in weightlessness found it hard to readjust to the feeling of gravity again. By the time they had reached the base of the mountain he was quite out of breath. The foot of the mountain was remarkably straight just as it would be with a real pyramid. They saw the rover's tracks go in both directions so Kim suggested they split up.

'There's no point in staying together. We can cover the area much faster if we set off in opposite directions.'

Larry nodded, but still struggling to regain breath said nothing. He turned and walked away albeit at a slower pace.

Kim watched him for a moment and then turned round himself. The tracks followed the foot of the mountain till they came to the end where both mountain and tracks made a sharp turn to the left. After some time he saw footmarks lead away from the main track into the desert. Kim stopped and followed them with his eyes. The sun was shining into his eyes and so it was difficult to see, but he thought he could see something gleaming in the sunlight some hundred yards or so away. His heart beating rapidly he set off at a brisk pace. When he reached the object he saw it was not what he had feared it might be. Sticking out of the ground was a bent shiny metal rod about two feet high. Some of the sand and gravel around it had been dug out in an apparent effort to dislodge the rod from the ground, but to no avail. Kim tried to pull it out himself, but as expected it didn't budge. He stepped back and looked at the rod and the ground around it. The rod seemed quite new, though the ground around it, with the exception of the futile attempt to dig it out, didn't appear to have been disturbed for a long time. It certainly didn't belong to the missing expedition and he couldn't think of any satellite or spacecraft that had crashed in the vicinity. Whatever it was, he decided it would have to wait and went back to the main track.

He walked for about four hours without seeing anything when he heard his radio come to live again.

'Hi, Kim. Good to see you again!' Larry's jovial voice greeted him. 'I can see you, but you can't see me', he said teasingly. 'I'm the invisible man.'

In spite of himself Kim smiled and looked around carefully without seeing any trace of Larry. 'All right, I give up. Where are you?'

Larry chuckled. 'That was quick. You have to look up the mountain. I'm about four hundred feet above you on some sort of ramp. I'm standing right at the edge and waving furiously.'

Kim directed his gaze upwards and with the help of the telescopic lens built into the visor of his helmet he soon spotted Larry.

'I spy Larry at ten o'clock above me,' he replied jokingly. 'Have you found anything?'

'Our missing rover is up here. There's no sign of the crew, though. They must have gone further up the mountain. I'm on what looks like a ramp. It's quite broad at the base, but up here it's become too narrow for the rover so they must have walked on. There's still oxygen left in the rover's tanks so we have more time before we have to return to the shuttle. I'll wait for you here.'

Kim digested this latest information as he walked along the mountain looking for the place where the ramp began. They had gone all around the mountain without finding any member of the missing team so they had to be somewhere up the mountain. And yet the mountain's slopes were quite steep. If they hadn't fallen, where could they be?

Eventually he reached Larry puffing and panting from the exertion of walking uphill in a heavy suit.

'When I first came to Mars I thought going around with only a third of the gravity we have back home would be a lot easier. But here I am walking up some wee hill and I feel as though I was climbing Montblanc.'

Larry smiled. 'I suppose after a few months journey here our bodies are not used to much gravity at all. And besides, you have been here for five years. That's plenty of time for your body to adjust to a reduced gravitational pull and for your muscles to get weaker. You should do more exercise.'

'Gladly, if you can persuade my boss to relieve me from my desk duties more often. But anyhow, what have we got up here?'

'The rover works all right, which will save us the walk back and there is some oxygen as well, so we don't have to hurry. There's no sign of our friends, though. We'll just have to follow this ramp or ledge farther uphill.'

They topped up their oxygen supply and then walked along the path slowly ascending the mountain. All the while the ledge became narrower until they were forced to stop.

'Look's like a landslide covered the path. Do you think they were caught by it?'

Kim looked doubtful. 'It doesn't look very recent to me. Maybe there is a way round it.' He examined the boulders carefully. There was a narrow gap between two large ones that went straight up. With some difficulty it might be possible to climb up. Ignoring Larry's protestations that the climb was too hazardous he carefully climbed up the crevice and soon reached the top. Looking down on the other side he saw that as difficult the way up had been as easy the way down would be, for a gentle slope stretched down till the ledge became visible again. Further down the path he saw a large dark opening, which looked like the entrance to a cave. Kim quickly related what he had seen and after Larry had followed him up they went to the entrance of the cave together. It was a large oval opening its floor covered in debris. Kim took his electric torch, which belonged to every surface suit in case someone was surprised by nightfall, and switching it on stepped into the cave. In the front of the cave was a pile of debris that was highest in the middle and sloped off to the sides and the rear of the cave. He climbed up the pile to examine the far part of the cave. It was a lot bigger than he had first thought descending deep into the mountain at a steep angle. It was not possible to see its bottom and he had the feeling of gazing into some bottomless pit. Larry came beside him and tugged at his sleeve.

'Look!' he said, pointing to one side. 'It seems we're on the right trail.'

Kim saw immediately what he meant. In the dust and sand which had accumulated between the pile of debris and the wall of the cave they could see quite clearly footmarks leading down into the depths of the cave. Kim began to move cautiously downward when Larry held him back.

'That looks dangerous. All the prints lead down but I don't see any coming back up. Don't you think we should get some proper equipment before going down?'

Kim paused for a moment. 'You are right, of course, but there is no suitable equipment on Mars. If we make a report to Hermes Base they will just tell us to return and not risk anything as the team is beyond help. But I must know what happened to them. If I don't go now I'll never get the chance again. The best thing is for you to wait up here and let me go down on my own. If anything happens to me return to the shuttle.'

Larry nodded and though he did not feel happy with the arrangement there was nothing he could do as he felt clearly that Kim was determined and would not be stopped. He watched Kim descending slowly and carefully. Kim's figure became smaller steadily until he disappeared from sight as the cave made a bend. A little after that even the faint glow of his torch vanished and the cave was once more plunged into total darkness. The radio contact, however, held and while the reception was poor he could still hear Kim breathing and making occasional comments. At last he heard a series of strange muffled sounds. He could still hear Kim breathing, but there was no reply to his questions.

There, at the bottom of the cave stood Kim dumbfounded. What he had found was so totally unexpected and incomprehensible that he was quite unable to mutter a single word. There was still no trace of the missing team, but what he had found was so incredible that he even forgot for a moment why he had come. Hearing Larry's anxious enquiries he came out of stupor.

'I think you'd better come down here, Larry! I've found a door.'

### 2

Actually it resembled more a hatch one would find on a submarine than a normal door. It was round with a handle in the centre and its silvery reflection suggested it was made of metal.

'Well, I suppose there is nothing to it than to see if we can open it,' Larry said stepping forth. He grabbed the handle tried to turn it first one way and then into the other. It was very stiff and wouldn't turn easily, but slowly and with the help of Kim it was made to give way and they pulled the door open.

Beyond was a small, square room with another identical door at the other side. They stepped inside and the hatch closed behind them with a clank.

Through their helmets they could hear a hissing sound and Kim's visor display showed that the air pressure was rising. They were in an airlock!

Kim watched his visor display as the air pressure rose. The numbers went on rising until they reached a level that was high enough for humans to breathe in. 'Well I'll be darned, Larry. If that's not the strangest thing that's ever happened to me then I don't know what is.'

'Do you have any idea who could have built this?'

'I'm quite sure it wasn't us. At least I've never heard about this before and besides it looks old.'

'How about the sino-russian programme? They came to Mars twenty or thirty years ago, didn't they?'

'They did, but they didn't stay very long and I can't see how they would have been able to build this in total secrecy. And why should they go to the effort of building a base so deep underground? In fact, I don't know why anyone in their right mind would do so.'

At that point they turned the handle on the second hatch which they were able to open much more easily than the first one. On the other side was a corridor going to the left and right of the hatch. Apart from the shine of their torches it lay in total darkness. The entire corridor, floor, walls and ceiling were made of metal. The walls rose at a slightly slanting angle and a bit above his head this angle increased suddenly in a V-shape put on top of the walls upside down. The appearance this had was most peculiar.

At that point the second hatch closed suddenly and they turned to make sure it could be opened again. That done to their satisfaction it was time to think about what they were going to do next.

'Well then, Larry, there's not much choice here. Shall we go left or right first?'

'Let's go left then. But we'll have to hurry. I don't want to run out of oxygen down here.'

'Do you think the air in here is breathable?'

'I've got no idea, but even if it is there might be dangerous germs here. We can't take the risk until the air has been tested.'

They were walking along the corridor at a steady pace when they saw stones and dust on the floor. There was no way on. The corridor had caved in ahead of them.

'Do you think our team is buried under this?' Larry asked.

Kim examined the twisted pieces of metal that had been torn off the ceiling and the walls. 'I don't think so. This doesn't look like recent damage. My guess is this happened quite a long time ago. Anyway, we've got no time to lose. Let's try the other corridor.'

They hurried back down the way they had come and on into the corridor beyond the hatch where they hadn't been yet. The corridor took a turn to the left. When they went round the corner they saw that there were numerous doors on either side of the corridor the end of which was not visible as it disappeared into the dark beyond the reach of the beams of light from their torches.

'Well, that's that then, 'Larry said. 'There is no way we explore all that. It's far to big and we won't have enough oxygen left to return if we go on. We shall just have to come back another time with more equipment and oxygen.'

Kim considered that for a moment before he reached a decision. 'I know you're right, Larry. But I can't go back now. It's personal and I've got to see it through.' Without giving Larry any time to reply he reached for his helmet and opened the seal. The air supply from his bottles was cut off and he breathed in the outside air. The air was damp and cold and smelt musty. He took several deep breaths holding his helmet ready in case he felt the need to put it on again quickly. At last he looked at Larry and grinned.

'Not a very nice smell, but it seems to be all right apart from that.'

'You're taking a big risk. You could still become ill later.'

'I know, but there are times in life where you have to take a risk even if it seems unreasonable to others. What are you going to do?'

'I don't like it, but I can't leave you alone now,' Larry said and took off his helmet.

'Glad to have you with me still. Let's go and see what we can find then.'

They went to the first door. It was about nine feet high and, like the corridor, it resembled a 'V' turned upside down. Running down along the middle of the door was a thin line that showed where the door opened. They tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge. There was no switch and they couldn't make out how it could be opened. Left with no choice they went on hoping to find a door that was open. Soon a dark hole instead of the silvery shine of a closed door showed them that they were in luck. They stepped through the doorway and stirred up a cloud of dust. The floor of the room was covered in a layer of thick, black dust. In some places the dust formed little mounds as though a large object standing there had disintegrated. Whatever there had once been in the room had long since vanished. Disappointed they turned round and went on hoping to come across another room where they might find more. However, even though they found some more doors that stood open there was nothing of interest inside the rooms. Everything looked ancient and derelict. Then, just as they were about to go into another room, Larry switched his torch off.

'Look down there, Kim! Isn't that light?'

As Kim switched his torch off so that they could see better they were engulfed in an eerie, silent darkness. He looked in the direction Larry had pointed and waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. In the distance, far down the corridor was indeed a faint glimmer of light not unlike the sky on Earth during the first few minutes of the coming dawn when light first appears on the horizon. They rushed towards it making sure not to miss any rooms on the way that might be of interest. As they approached the source of the light it gradually increased in intensity until they could see that it came through an open doorway at the end of the corridor. Kim was the first to step through the half open door and drew in his breath in surprise. He had half expected to enter a room full of mysterious machines and lights, but not this. In fact this was not a room at all. They were in the open. The ground in front of them was covered with a grass-like plant and a bit further away were shrubs and bushes with shrouds of mist drifting between them. He looked up and saw a dense layer of fog and clouds obscuring the view of what lay beyond.

'What is this place?' Larry said. 'We can't possibly be back on the surface again.'

'I suppose we're in a large underground cavern with artificial lighting. I'm sure we'd see the ceiling if it weren't so cloudy.'

'But who could have built all this? It's just incredible!'

'I wish I knew, but whoever it was I'm sure it wasn't us. And it doesn't look as though the builders were still around. Everything we've seen so far is old and dilapidated.' Suddenly something shiny in the grass caught his eye. He walked over and picked it up. It was a piece of plastic wrapping from one of their prepacked food rations.

'At least we know now that we're still on the right trail,' he said looking at Larry.

'Couldn't they still be alive then? They've got enough air to breathe here and maybe there is food available here as well.'

'It's possible, but I don't think so or they would have left again. We tried the air lock ourselves. It's no problem getting out of here again. No, I'm sure they're dead.'

'Speaking of food, I'm getting quite hungry myself.'

'All right, then let's have a rest, but don't eat all your food. You may want some later.'

They sat down in the coarse, bluish-green grass. A gentle breeze chilled their hands and faces and the light from up above gave them no warmth. At times they could see a short distance when the fog shifted, but as another bank of fog moved in the land was hidden from their sight again. What they could see was a bleak, monotonous landscape interspersed with bushes. A bit further away Kim thought he could make out some trees or some sort of large plant, but he wasn't sure. He shivered and checked the temperature reading in his helmet. It was only seven degrees centigrade. Even with his surface suit on he was beginning to feel cool as his head and hands lay exposed. He noticed that the light coming through the clouds seemed to be less intense and a few minutes later he was sure. It was getting darker! He checked the time. The onset of dusk corresponded with the time on the surface. Apparently the underground cavern had the same rhythm of light and darkness as the Martian surface had. Another surprise after a sol – sol being the name for 'day' on Mars - of seeing things that would have seemed laughable to him only a short while ago. The thought of life on Mars never mind in Mars was preposterous. When they returned he would have to take along some sort of proof or they would just be declared insane and sent back to Earth. No one would bother to come here and verify what they had seen. Even with proof it would be difficult to make people believe something they did not want to believe. The implications of this underground world were enormous. It could possibly change the entire understanding of the history and origin of mankind. The site was not easily accessible as it was far from Hermes Base. It was unlikely that the space agency or the governments funding it would want to investigate a matter that would put them into a league with UFO freaks and other people believing in alien landings on Earth. He shook his head as he was absorbed in thought. He hadn't even realised how dark it had become when Larry interrupted him in his thoughts.

'I think it will be quite dark soon. Maybe we should lie down and sleep. We can explore the cavern tomorrow.'

Kim looked up startled. It took a few moments till Larry's words registered in his mind and he had grasped their meaning.

'Yes, you're right. But I don't want to stay out here. I'm getting cold and we don't know if there are any animals or other creatures around. Let's go back into the corridor. At least we'll have some shelter there and we can retreat quickly should it become necessary.'

Larry nodded his assent and they walked far down the corridor until they were close to the airlock before they lay down on the floor. Tired and exhausted from all the sol's events Kim fell asleep quickly, but it was an uneasy sleep he slid into. He tossed and turned about tormented by visions he could not understand or explain. It was as though in these ancient corridors the past had somehow come alive and found its way into his mind.

When he awoke many hours later he was aware he had witnessed strange things in his dreams, but he could not remember what they were. And yet there was something in the back of his mind that disturbed him. He was sure he had half awoken several times during the night. He wondered if he had heard something in his sleep or whether it had just been nightmares that had bothered his mind. The corridor lay in total, absolute darkness and not a sound could be heard apart from Larry's regular breathing. He felt uneasy. Suddenly he jumped up. A surge of adrenaline went through his body and he could feel his heart beating frantically. He knew his torch was on his belt and grabbed it quickly. He turned it on and a reassuring beam of light tore through the darkness. He looked in both directions of the corridor and even up at the ceiling, but he saw nothing. The corridor was empty. He had almost panicked for no other reason than that his mind had played tricks on him. He swallowed hard and tried to calm down. His rapid movement and the light had by now woken up Larry whose dark, bleary eyes looked at him in surprise.

Kim was a little embarrassed. 'It's nothing,' he said seeing that Larry was alarmed. 'I just find this eerie silence unnerving. I don't know what got into me.'

'Don't worry about it. Total silence will make anyone jumpy. It'll pass once we get out of here.'

They walked back towards the cavern, eating and drinking what was left of their meagre rations. The picture that presented itself to them when they reached the cavern was no less gloomy than it had been on their last visit.

The air was murky with mist and fog and the ground was wet. It must have rained during the night, though how this was possible deep beneath the surface they couldn't make out. But then that was only another small mystery in this enigmatic land of surprises. The clouds seemed denser than the sol before and the milky light was dimmer making the cavern look even more forbidding and dreary. Not knowing in what direction to begin their search they decided to set out in a straight line from the entrance to the corridor.

This would take them through the middle of the cavern where, they hoped, they would stand a better chance of finding anything that might be of interest. They set off and slowly wended their way between the shrubs. After two or three minutes walk the entrance had already disappeared from sight behind a dense sheet of fog. There wasn't enough space for them to walk next to each other so Kim took the lead. The ground was muddy and he could feel the waterlogged ground clinging to his boots. He cursed under his breath. Mars was supposed to be completely dry and dusty, and now he found himself wading through ankle-deep mud that made every step harder than the one before. Their view was very limited and he could only see a few metres ahead. Dark, shadow-like shapes told him where plants were, but for all he knew an entire army could be standing a mere stone's throw away from him and he would be totally unaware of it. Then a sudden and unexpected sound behind him made him turn round. As he turned he heard Larry yell in surprise and pain as a dark, furry creature had thrown him to the ground. Making two large steps Kim quickly got to the place where Larry was lying and kicked the creature as hard as he could. There was muffled, cracking sound of bones breaking and the creature retreated into the fog. Larry had a huge bite in the back of his thigh and blood was running out of holes in his suit. Whatever had bitten Larry, its fangs must have been enormous as they went clean through his leg to come out on the other side. Larry groaned and Kim gave him a shot of morphine to relieve the pain. The wound was too deep to be disinfected where they were so he could only try to stop the bleeding by spraying on a liquid plaster. He hoped there wasn't too much damage inside Larry's leg or he could die from internal bleeding. Larry had gone pale and if it hadn't been for his dark skin one could have called it a ghostly white. Clearly he was in shock.

'Don't worry about it, Larry. I'll get you back to the ship and you'll be fine.'

He gently shook Larry to make him recover from his shock and helped him to his feet. They retraced their steps back which were clearly visible in the mud. They made slow progress as Kim found it difficult to support Larry in the confined space between the bushes and as Larry's leg was just being dragged along. He could not move it anymore at all. He heard a noise behind them and when he turned his head to look he saw several dark shapes moving in the murky mist. They redoubled their efforts in the vain hope of reaching the entrance to the corridor before they were attacked again. They pushed on and when they were not attacked immediately a glimmer of hope was rekindled in their hearts. Shortly after they saw several dark shapes emerge ahead of them. Their way back was cut off! Kim looked back and saw the creatures behind them approaching steadily. Left with no alternative they went off to one side in an attempt to evade their pursuers. Desperately they fought their way through some dense undergrowth. The direction they had chosen took them to higher ground. There were fewer bushes now and they could get ahead faster than before. Kim stopped briefly and looked back.

Their pursuers were out of sight and he couldn't hear anything. Still they could be close by, though at least there were no more bushes where they could be taken by surprise. Kim looked around trying to get his bearings. He thought he knew in which direction the saving corridor lay, but he couldn't be sure. Moving about in a dense fog without a trail to follow in a land where everything looked similar was almost a hopeless undertaking. If he was honest with himself he had to admit that they were probably lost. There was some comfort in the thought that the strange creatures were apparently not too close. Maybe they didn't like the open ground. Deciding upon a course he helped Larry along who was hopping on one leg. After walking for about half an hour Larry groaned and sat own on the ground.

'Looks like we've been walking in a circle, Kim. Those are our footprints, aren't they?'

Clearly visible in the mud were three footprints making their way into the fog. There was no mistaking them. Kim sat down next to Larry.

'How are you doing, Larry?'

'I'm pretty tired. I don't think I can go on any longer. Maybe we can wait here till the fog lifts and we see where we are.'

Kim shook his head. For all we know it could always be foggy here. We've got no more food and water and you're hurt. Time is working against us. We'll have to try and get out of here before we get too weak. Let's just have a short rest and then go on.'

'But how will you find the way?'

'We'll have to follow our footprints till we get back onto our original trail.'

'And what about those beasts? They'll tear us to pieces if we come close to them again.'

'We've got no choice but to risk it if we want to find our way back. If we make a dash for it we should be able to get past them before they realise we're back again.'

'I wish I had a gun. As the saying goes, a kingdom for a gun!'

Kim laughed sardonically. 'There isn't a gun on the entire planet. The international space protocol forbids arms in space or on other worlds. Besides there wouldn't have been any use for guns on Mars. Not until now.'

They fell silent again as one of them was really too weak to make conversation and the other tried to think of some way to extract them from their predicament. Kim turned the matter over in his mind time and again, but he always came to the same conclusion. Unless a miracle happened and the weather cleared their only way to safety lay in the way they had come. It was impossible to find the right way in the fog without footprints to follow.

Thus, lost in thought, raking his mind for an answer to their problems he was startled when he felt a cold, pointed thing prod him under his ear. He turned in surprise and found himself looking up the shaft of a spear. Threateningly close to his face was a shiny, metal blade. Further away, holding the spear was a very tall and thin creature. It stood some eight feet high and was very hairy. In all it looked like a weird crossing of man and monkey and the features of his face certainly looked humanoid. Before Kim and Larry had time to react they were completely surrounded by other such creatures all holding spears. Kim realized that they were at the mercy of these beings. Even though the spears might seem antiquated they would still be highly effective against two unarmed men, one of whom was wounded and couldn't move fast. At least these beings were not like the wild beasts they had encountered earlier. Having spears with metal blades showed a certain amount of intelligence. And that these beings had not attacked them immediately was another good sign. Maybe they would be able to talk their way out again. With such thoughts going around his mind the beings motioned them to get up. Kim helped Larry up and together they followed the strange men who kept them surrounded at a safe distance. The men talked in a strange guttural language. Kim thought it sounded a bit similar to Arabic, but that was obviously just a coincidence. He could tell they were heading in a certain direction and wondered how these men were able to find their way. Maybe they knew the lie of the land so well they could find the way even with their eyes closed. The men seemed to be getting impatient at the slow pace and prodded them with their spears. Seeing that something was wrong with Larry's leg one of the men jabbed Larry's wound with his spear.

Larry yelled in pain and dropped to the ground. Infuriated Kim lashed out and hit the spear aside shouting angrily. The men withdrew a few paces, taken aback by the sudden outburst. They murmured and held their spears up in defence pointing at Kim and seemed at a loss what to do next.

'They almost seem more afraid of us than we of them,' Kim said. 'Come on up, we have to go on with them and maybe they will even help us.'

Larry nodded and, biting his teeth together, stood up with Kim pulling him up under his arms. Exhausted they did their best to keep up with the men leading the way. The ground they were on was getting rockier and there was less mud. After a while Kim saw a large, dark shape looming out of the fog in front of them. As they got closer the contours became clearer and he could tell it was a wall. The wall stretched in both directions and was lost in the fog. Let into the wall was a gate. As they stood in front of the gate their guards shouted to others behind the wall and what seemed to be a heated argument ensued before the gate was opened. More of the men came out holding sticks and ropes. They forced Kim and Larry to lie face down on the ground. Beginning with Kim they placed a long stick on his back. The stick was just under his shoulder blades and stretched out on both sides longer than his arms. Then his arms were pulled out till they were at a ninety degrees angle from his body and tied to the stick. He was now unable to get up by himself. Finally a rope was tied around each ankle and brought up through a loop on the stick his arms were tied to. He wondered what these were for and found out soon enough. When Larry had been tied up in the same fashion they were lifted to their feet. With a guard on each side holding one of the ropes tied to their feet they stood wondering what would happen next. One of the guards jabbed Larry in the back with the butt of his spear. Aroused into anger Larry tried to turn. His two guards pulled at the ropes they were holding and suddenly Larry found his feet being yanked away from under him. He howled in agony as he first fell onto his knees and then, being unable to stretch his arms out, onto his face. When his two guards pulled him onto his feet again Kim could see that Larry's nose was bleeding. It was a bright, red river running down the black skin of his face. They were given no time to contemplate the unfavourable position they found themselves in. Their guards led them through the gate and Kim understood that any resistance was not only futile, but would also harm their cause. To gain the trust and understanding of their captors it was necessary to cooperate and to be friendly even when they were faced with brutish, cruel behaviour. They were taken along a rough path to a small tower made of roughly hewn rocks.

Inside the tower a staircase went underground. At the bottom was a large, round room with six doors let into the wall. They were taken through one of these into a small cell. They were made to sit on the floor with the back against the wall and the ropes, which were tied to their feet, were again tied to large, metal rings in the wall. Their guards left then and Kim and Larry were alone in the cell. Kim looked around. It was a dark, dank cell with only very little light from a small hole high up in the wall. The stone floor and wall were cold and grey and when he breathed a cloud of steam rose in the air. He felt cold, hungry and miserable, but he knew that Larry had to be feeling incomparably worse. Larry had fallen asleep instantly, exhausted and tired, his strength sapped by his wounds and the strenuous march. Kim tried to free himself, but gave up after a while. The ropes were securely fastened and he could not reach the knots with his fingers. His arms were still held in place by the stick and he realized that it was too thick and strong to break.

Resigned to his fate he let his head drop and was soon soundly asleep himself, giving his body the opportunity to recover its strength. In spite of the uncomfortable position he was in he slept well that night, better even than the previous night. In his dreams he was still blissfully unaware of what their destiny was to be.

### 3

The grand Hall of Lothrod was a dark and forbidding place. Along the path leading to the entrance were placed poles each of which had a rotting head stuck firmly on its end, thus forming a ghastly alley. On each side of the entrance carved figures of dread with blazing eyes glared at anyone who approached as if to decide who might enter and who would be permitted to leave. Old and worn their bodies seemed as they were undoubtedly from a time far removed from the creatures who used the hall at present. Indeed, nothing was still known about their makers and not even the most ancient lore and legends spoke of the ancients who had built the hall.

The first thing that struck anyone entering the Hall of Lothrod was that the only light was a red glow emanating from the floor. Warm though it seemed, there was no warmth in it and its evil glow was reflected but weakly from the dark walls and ceiling. From the doors a path lead through the hall that was flanked on both sides by guards and ended at the far end when it came to a dais. A throne made of an eerie dark material that seemed to swallow any light cast upon it stood in the middle of the dais. It was reserved for the master of Lothrod and no one else was permitted near it upon pain of death.

It was here that Kim and Larry were taken the next day. They were awoken by brutal kicks and angry shouts. In a trice the events of the previous day came back to Kim and he tried to get up, but sleeping on a cold dank floor in a semi-crucified position had taken its toll and he found it difficult to move. Next to him Larry was groaning. He struggled to sit upright but didn't manage.

'How's your leg doing?' Kim asked. There was sweat on Larry's brow and his face had acquired a sallow unhealthy complexion.

'No pain,' he replied. 'Bad news, man, bad news. If I don't get myself into sick bay soon I'm done for.' He could feel cold sweat running down his forehead. 'Looks like I've got a really bad infection, probably developing sepsis, that's blood poisoning.'

Seeing that Larry and Kim were unable to get up the guards cut their ropes and pulled them up by their arms all the while cursing fiercely. Kim didn't understand what they were saying but the tone and voice said more than enough while angry eyes filled Kim with a foreboding of dread. He knew he had to get Larry out. It was his fault that they were in such a dangerous situation. Instead of helping the missing crew he had just put Larry and himself in danger. Too late he regretted not to have heeded Larry's words of caution. 'Return to the base and get back-up'. No use wasting time with regrets, he told himself and racked his brain for a way out.

The guards pulled them up a flight of stairs out of their dungeon for the night. While getting out was a relief Kim wondered whether they weren't getting out of the frying pan into the fire. Their treatment hitherto didn't leave much to hope for. Out in the open the same dreary weather met them as on the previous day. Under a hoar sky streaks of fog slowly glided across the landscape like wraiths on the prowl for their prey. They walked through the swirling fog to the Hall of Lothrod. Their guards slowed down when they reached the carved figures on either side of the entrance and even though Kim understood that the intent was to intimidate them, he still felt a chill in his heart for his subconscious side could not fail to be affected.

They were marched past the rows of guards through the middle of the strangely illuminated hall and came to a halt in front of the dais. Two spearmen on each side of the dais lifted and dropped their spears on the floor thrice, three times the sound of wood on stone echoed through the hall. Kim felt the gaze of the guards keenly on him though his eyes were spellbound by the throne of darkness and the figure on it. He heard one of the guards speak angrily to him but he didn't understand what was expected. A low murmur suddenly arose in the hall, quiet voices in awe of the place they were in, and yet voices of outrage. Again the spearmen let their spears drop to the floor thrice. Silence returned to the hall and Kim knew that they were committing some kind of offence though he knew not what. Then suddenly sticks were swung against the back of his and Larry's knees and rough hands forced them to the ground grovelling on all fours. A kowtow! Just as with the Chinese emperors of old they were expected to kowtow in front of the ruler on his throne. Larry began to protest vociferously at the humiliating treatment but Kim quickly stopped him. 'It doesn't matter, man. Just do what they want and try to get out alive,' he hissed forcefully while taking care to keep his head low.

Larry's outburst seemed to have inflamed tempers further for now the quiet murmur from before arose again and swelled through the hall gathering strength as it spread and intensified. His eyes closed Kim cursed under his breath. Everything seemed to be going wrong. Far from engaging with their captors and building up a relationship they'd alienated them even further. A ringing sound that came from the direction of the throne brought back authority and with it a hush fell over the hall. In fact it was so quiet that Kim could hear his own heart beating. The silence lasted for some time and he hoped fervently that Larry would keep quiet.

After a few minutes that seemed like an eternity to Kim, or at least like the longest in his life, he heard a voice from the throne. A deep, husky voice that spoke slowly but with strength in a strange guttural language. When the voice stopped no more than a few seconds passed before a guard gave Kim a savage kick to his groin. Groaning he understood that a reply was expected. He opened his eyes and saw the feet of the guard next to him. 'I'm afraid, sir, that I don't understand your language.' The effect of his short sentence was as immediate as it was unexpected to him. The multitudes in the hall burst out into angry shouting and the guard beside him beat his back with a stick. Three fell blows and he was writhing in agony. What had he done wrong? Did his use of another language offend? He never found out, because at that moment Larry was beside himself with rage. His heart beat like the engine of a racing car pumping adrenalin through his body. Oblivious of his wounded leg he jumped to his feet and started shouting furiously and shaking his fists at the figure on the throne.

For a moment this shocking display of anger stunned everyone in the hall, but then a furious spearman shouted a word several times. Moments later a small door on the side was flung open and a beast ran in. It looked like a weird cross between a wolf and a sabertooth cat with thick black fur and gleaming eyes. It was across the hall in a trice and pounced on Larry like a vicious tomcat on a mouse. He was hurled to the ground and the creatures large canines ripped his belly open and tore out his innards. One last cry of terror and anguish made Kim shudder and then all he could hear was the sound of the creature tearing Larry's body apart and feeding on it. Terrified Kim bit his teeth together. He knew it was not a brave thing to do but he also knew that there was no bravery in the present situation. There could only be folly followed by a gruesome death or a complete yielding to the foe that might offer some slim hope. He chose the latter and passed out.

Kim stirred. He was lying face down on a dank dirt floor. Slowly, very slowly he moved his aching limbs and turned onto his back. He was keenly aware of all the places on his back where he had been beaten the day before. Or was it the day before? The dreadful events of the Hall of Lothrod came flashing back into his mind as he became more alert. Surprised to be still alive he opened his eyes. There was nothing to see. He looked in all directions but everywhere there was complete and utter darkness. The heart of darkness. He seemed to be right in it \- in every sense of the word. Drip. There it was again. A dripping sound. Slow, steady and regular. He turned onto his knees and tried to make out where the sound came from. It was the first time in his life that he was blind. Very cautiously he crawled in the direction of the sound. He felt thirsty and famished. How long was it since he had last drunk and eaten? Where was he? Was he alone? Questions assailed his mind. 'Take it easy now,' he told himself. 'You're still alive so it's not all bad.' The ground under his hands and knees was uneven yet not too hard. It felt like dry beaten earth. His hand touched something. Slowly his fingers felt the object. It was hard uneven and round. He picked it up and decided that it was a bone. Holding one end of it he gently hit the ground ahead. A hollow sound indicated more bones. Coming upon more and more bones he understood that he had disturbed a complete skeleton. The dripping was very near now. He stretched out his arms and groped in the darkness until a wet drop hit his hand. Water! Greedily he let several drops accumulate in his hand before licking it. His throat was parched and the cool liquid tasted wonderful. He didn't dare think what might be in it. But he needed more. Where was it going? He lowered his hands to the spot where he thought the water was dripping and found a pool of water. Was it a pool? He moved his hands around and discovered that the water had accumulated in a skull. A bare skull devoid of any hair or skin. It must have been there a long time, he thought. His gnawing hunger was bad enough, but his thirst and the water right in front of him were too much. Without a second's thought he picked up the skull and drank gulping the water down as though he was in a beer drinking competition. Beer! The word was expunged from his mind like a remnant from a distant life, a life that might never have been real. Having finished the water he carefully put the skull back to collect more.

'Now what the hell am I going to do?' he said to himself. 'First things first,' he continued not noticing that he had started talking to himself. 'Let's find out where I am.' The water was dripping down along a rough stone wall. He steadied himself against the wall and slowly stood up clutching a long bone in one hand. He reached up but couldn't find a ceiling. Holding out the bone in front he slowly walked along the wall. It didn't take long to reach the first corner and soon after another three. But where was the door? He walked the length of the room again drawing the bone high up along the wall but with the same result. He sat down despondently. 'Thrown down and left to rot,' he said to himself realizing that there had to be an opening higher up or in the ceiling. Wherever it was, it was out of his reach. 'Did I fly millions of miles through space and toil away for years on this dustball just to starve to death in this shit hole?' He beat the ground angrily with the bone. 'Think, Kim, think. There has to be something you can do. Where there's a will there's a way,' he said and with each word he hit the ground with the bone. Thud, thud, thud it went. He stopped talking and did it again. The sound was not the clear harsh sound of a bone striking stone but the soft thud of earth.

Earth! The thought galvanized him into action. He grabbed the bone firmly with two hands and smashed it against the wall. It didn't work the first time but after a few attempts he heard the satisfying sound of breaking bone. The end was sharp. The very thing for digging into earth! 'Now then, where do I best start? If I do manage to dig down into the ground I don't want to be digging all the way across under the building.' He decided that the only indication he had of the exterior was the dripping water. Unless there was a burst pipe somewhere – if there were such things at all here – the water had to come from the outside. He chose a spot near the dripping water and started to dig a hole down the wall. The ground proved to be softer than he had feared and he made good progress with his stone age digging tool. After a few hours of incessant digging he reached the bottom of the wall. Exhilarated he took a short break, drank some water and then redoubled his efforts. Even though the way up on the other side was a lot farther than he had hoped for, his effort paid off in the end. The earth ahead of him gave way and he pushed his way out into the open. Never before had fresh air smelled so sweetly, he thought as he crawled out of the tunnel and lay panting on the ground.

Exhausted from his toiling and the lack of food his body cried for a long rest but his mind told him otherwise. The wall of his prison rose up like a sheer cliff next to him threatening the loss of his freedom and death. 'Get away, get away!' his mind cried out to him and his weary body obeyed the command unwillingly. He looked around. There was nobody to be seen, only some dark shapes in the mist indicated where some shrubs grew. Taking care not to make any noise he staggered off towards the shrubs and for once he was almost glad of the fog as it concealed him. His tired legs carried him on as he put distance between himself and the prison but he knew that he wouldn't be able to walk too long. Digging his way out had taken its toll on his body and without anything to eat he was approaching starvation. He squeezed his way through between some bushes and suddenly he fell down when his right foot failed to find firm ground where he had expected it. He rolled a few feet down a slope and found himself lying at the bottom of a dell. The dell was encircled by bushes and seemed to offer better cover than he could have expected to find. 'I just hope folks here ain't got sniffer dogs or the like,' he mumbled to himself before dropping off into a restless and yet exhausted sleep.

While Kim was sleeping under the hoar sky shrouds of mist slowly drifted between the bushes and over the dell. Had his escape been discovered? Had the hue and cry been raised by the aliens to recapture him? Or were they as yet unaware of his escape in the belief that there was no way out from his underground prison? Blissfully unaware of these and other pressing questions Kim slept for many hours allowing his body to find reserves of energy that he would need when he awoke.

Finally, when his body decided that there could be no further gain from more rest he was allowed to open his eyes once again. Shivering he looked up at the hoar sky and the sides of the dell that had given him a safe place to recover. 'What now, old chap?' he thought. 'What I need is food and a way out of this cursed place.' He climbed up the side of the dell and set off in a direction he hoped would take him farther away from the prison. The dismal foggy weather both hid him and yet also hindered him as he might be walking around in circles without knowing it. He came round a tree and suddenly stood face to face with a surprised looking spearman. 'If you hesitate you're dead,' was a message his instructor at the air force had hammered into his head time and again. He didn't hesitate. He yanked the spear out of his opponents hands, rammed the shaft into his belly with all the strength he had and ran off. The spearmen collapsed behind him with a spine-chilling scream that reverberated across the land and was followed by calls to his comrades. Voices hidden in the fog responded and the hunt was on. Kim ran as fast as he could crashing through bushes and jumping over roots and fallen trees, but he was no match for a rested and agile foe. Soon he heard them closing in until there were shadows all around him in the mist.

### 4

Kim knew that this was the end of the chase. Any further resistance was futile and would probably mean his immediate death. Resigned to his fate he dropped his spear to the ground. All he could do was to throw himself at the mercy of the barbarians if they at all knew what mercy was. The spearmen stood around him and looked at him passively. He was surprised that they did not seize him until he realized that they had to be waiting for something. Shrouds of mist whirled around the tall, dark men standing around him. It was almost like a scene from Macbeth somewhere in the moors of Scotland. If the situation had not been so serious he would have laughed at the notion of a modern day astronaut on Mars finding himself suddenly in a medieval world of savage barbarians. He was used to dealing with nuclear fusion powered spaceships and he had attended courses that taught how to confront an alien race. It was always assumed that these aliens would possess a far superior technology enabling them to travel through the infinite vastness of space. A technology humans did not have and would not have for a long time. No one had prepared him for an encounter with a species at the very dawn of civilisation. He had never learnt what to do as a space age Robinson Crusoe stranded in a wild and savage world. Lost in thought and staring at the ground he had not noticed the figures approaching out of the fog.

'Kim!' one of them called and threw herself at him with such force that they both toppled over backwards. It was Jane! In all his search she had really been foremost on his mind and he had not expected to ever see her alive again. Lying on top of him she looked into his eyes.

'Oh God, Kim. I'm so glad to see you again. How are you?'

'Well, I'm half starved to death and dying of thirst, I've seen a friend savagely murdered before being hounded like a wild animal myself and I'm lying in the dirt, but apart from that I'm feeling pretty pukka.'

She laughed. 'Then maybe we should stand up.'

They set off surrounded by spearmen.

'Don't worry, they're only here to protect us,' she said.

'Where are we going to and why are you safe?'

'We are in the land of Lord Ta-ke. There are four other Lords, but he is the only friendly one. We were lucky to fall into his hands when we got here or I wouldn't be alive anymore. The others and the priests want us dead.'

'The other two are safe too?'

'Yes, they are. We now live in little huts that were built for us, but you can see for yourself in a minute. We're almost there.'

Presently they came to a hamlet of some five or six huts. These tiny hovels were made entirely of mud with no windows and had but a single room inside. The entrance was low so that it was necessary to stoop when passing through a doorway. In each hut dwelt a family. The dwellers stood in the open watching Kim's arrival and he noticed that they were filthy and greasy. Their hair was entangled and many of them wore no clothing at all. It was clear that they lived in the most abject poverty. Kim had never seen such wretched and miserable people before. He stepped through the entrance into the dark and sat down beside the hearth where the remnants of a fire were glowing faintly and gave a little warmth. The air was full of smoke and he coughed as he warmed his hands by holding them over the hearth.

Jane handed him a bowl. 'Here, have some of this. It should put a bit of life back into you.'

He sniffed tentatively at the contents and found that they didn't smell too bad. Hungrily he began eating and soon the bowl was empty. Feeling better he sat back against the wall and looked at Jane saying nothing. He had the curious sensation of having a lot of questions to ask, but maybe due to the large number of these and because his mind hadn't yet digested the events of the previous days he wasn't able to ask a single question or, indeed, say anything at all. It was as though they had been sitting around the fire all their lives with nothing left to say and so they stayed silent. He closed his eyes which were burning slightly from fatigue and the smoke in the air. Only a few days earlier he had wished he could go out in the open without having to wear a surface-suit. Now his wish had come true in a way, but he was even less happy. He smiled wanly at the irony letting his mind wander. Suddenly there were shouts outside the hut. He could hear people running around and the yellow-red light of fire illuminated the doorway. Jane had risen to her knees and was about to stand up when several spearmen burst into the hovel. A spear came flying through the doorway and struck her in her shoulder throwing her against the wall. The spearmen were excited and their faces were distorted into hideous masks of terror showing their feelings. A hatred so strong it would wipe out anything in its way. One of the spearmen grabbed Jane by her hair, pulled her up to her knees and pushed her head back. Her eyes bulged in horror and her mouth was agape in a silent scream as another spearman pushed the blade of his spear deep into her throat. He pulled it out again swiftly and a jet of bright, red blood gushed out. He then turned to Kim and jumped over the fire raising his spear at the same time. With his feet Kim kicked and pushed at the ground frantically as he tried to back away. He saw the spear with blood on its blade come hurtling down at him. He turned and twisted his body in a last effort to avoid the fatal strike and banged his head hard on a stone. The hard blow mercifully knocked him out so that he never felt the spear rip through his body.

Some time later Kim recovered from his faint. At the side of his head was a throbbing pain where he had banged his skull. He opened his eyes and looked around. The hut was empty. There was no sign of Jane or the spearmen. He remembered that he should be dead and was pleasantly surprised to find that he wasn't bleeding and that he was unharmed apart from the bruise on his head. He realised that he must have had a dream or rather a nightmare. His body was drenched in sweat as it had been in his childhood after very bad nightmares. He wondered how long he had been asleep. It was light outside, but was it evening or was it already morning the next day? He was sure he had only slept a short time, but then time had an uncanny knack of passing by while he slept. Indeed, whole hours or even half a day could shrink into seconds. He would have to find Jane to be sure. He stood up and came crashing down again immediately. He had forgotten that the he was too tall to stand upright in the hut and had banged his head again. Pressing his hands against his head in agony he cursed inwardly and waited for the pain to subside. He then got up again stooping low and taking great care not to come to any more harm as he stepped outside. Looking around he saw some peasants, who were a lot smaller and dirtier than the spearmen, toiling in a nearby field. Jane's hut stood by itself a few hundred metres from the nearest hamlet. Not seeing any familiar face he decided to walk towards it. The hovels seemed even more miserable and filthy than the one he had slept in and most of the people he saw were old. He was surprised at the dearth of young people. Had they gone away to do some work he was unaware of? Or had a tragedy befallen the small community bereaving it of its young? Questions over questions came to his mind as he strolled along but, above all, where was Jane? Had she gone to do some chores or did her disappearance have more sinister implications? Hearing a noise behind him he turned and saw some street urchins. They were filthy and naked and when they saw that they had been found out they turned and fled scampering down the street as though the devil himself were hard on their heels. But apart from this the people didn't seem to take any notice of him. In fact they looked apathetic, absorbed in what they were doing with not enough strength to turn their heads and gaze at the stranger walking down the street. He turned a corner and saw Jane standing at a short distance and talking to someone who was obviously not one of the dwellers. He was tall and clad in garb of a kind Kim had not seen before. His bearing showed he commanded authority and stood in contrast to the diffident village folk. Kim approached them, but when he got nearer the man turned and walked away. Hanging from his shoulders was a dark blue cloak with a pair of red wings on it. As the man walked away he rapidly vanished into cloud of fog that had suddenly appeared.

'Hello there', Jane greeted him cheerfully. 'So you've woken up at last?'

'Did I sleep that long?'

'It's almost noon now. You fell asleep right after finishing your meal yesterday afternoon. But what's happened to your head? There's blood on your temple.'

'Oh, I banged myself while I was sleeping and then when I got up again', he said pulling a face which made her laugh. 'But never mind that now. Who were you talking to?'

'That was Toko. He is Ta-ke's valet and prime minister or something like that. Basically he's in charge of daily affairs and carrying out Ta-ke's orders.'

'Right, you mentioned him yesterday. Where is the fellow anyway? Does he also live in one of these luxurious mud bungalows I've seen so far?'

'No way', she burst out laughing. 'He lives in a big tower one or two miles from here. But beware of him. I've seen him have people killed because he didn't like the way they looked at him. Did you see the stick Toko was carrying?' she asked and went on without waiting for a reply. 'In it is a sword. If you get in his way he'll hit you with the stick, but if you move the wrong finger in Ta-ke's presence he'll run you through with the sword.'

'Charming place, the longer I'm here the more I like it. I'm sure it'll prove immensely popular with holiday-makers.' At this he paused and for the first time since they had met again had a good look at her. She wasn't wearing her surface-suit anymore, but was clad in a kind of brown woollen gown and with a brown fur.

She saw his look and smiled a little sadly. 'The local fashion is a bit rough, but you'll get used to it. Here, this is for you', she said holding out a bundle of clothes to him. 'You'll look less conspicuous wearing this and, besides, you'd better preserve your suit if you ever want to be able to get out of here again.'

He nodded and took the bundle slowly as the reality was sinking into his mind that his role as a modern day astronaut was rapidly being changed into that of a medieval serf and one of an alien lord at that.

'Where do you keep your suit?' he asked feeling glum.

'I made a cache near the wall so that my stuff can't get stolen. It's dry there as it doesn't often rain here so there shouldn't be any problem with it.' She looked him up and down critically. I think we should give you a bit of a wash first, though. With all that mud and blood and stuff clinging to you, you look like some monster out of a rubbish dump.'

'Yes, I suppose I don't exactly look like Mister Mars at the moment', he said and followed Jane as she walked towards a well to get some water. At the well he noticed some more dwellers who looked old. Their hair grey, filthy and entangled and their bodies emaciated.

'I've noticed that there are few young people around. Where are they?'

Jane followed his gaze and looked at the dwellers. 'Those are young people,' she said sadly. 'The conditions of life are so harsh that they grow old very quickly. The children are dented in their growth and often deformed and if they reach maturity they bloom for a short time before withering away. It is the cruel bane of their life and there is no way out. Any ten year old here knows that by the age of twenty he'll be past his prime and should he be lucky enough to stay alive till he's twenty-five he'll look like a sixty year old. The worst thing is when there is a famine. The old people run away into the country, but are soon caught again. Then the dwellers kill and eat them. You can even find this form of cannibalism within a family. One day the grandma will help cook dinner, but the next day, if there isn't enough food, her family will slaughter her. And even when they have enough food they eat their dead.'

Having got a bucket of water Kim began to wash himself near the well and listened intently as Jane continued.

'When I first got here with Pauline and Morris we were lucky not to end up like that too. At the instigation of his son Ta-ke refused to hand us over to the priests. There was a huge row over that and it is still ongoing. I'm afraid that I haven't seen Pauline and Morris since then. Ta-ke's spearmen took them away and Toko won't tell me anything about them. The only reason why I have a little hut of my own and enough food and clothing is because Ta-ke's son, who is called Anu, has taken a liking to me. He frequently wants to see me and asks me endless questions about the outside world. But even he won't tell me anything about Pauline and Morris. Oh, and when I talked with Toko earlier on he said that they had decided you could stay here for the time being. They want you to learn the local lingo before anything else is done.'

Having washed off most of the dirt and grime Kim put on the robe and fur Jane had given him.

'Well, does that look better?' he asked turning around as if he were in a fashion show.

'It does indeed. You could almost pass as a Neanderthal gentleman now.'

### 5

Some weeks later Kim saw Toko come down the path towards the hut he and Jane lived in. Toko was carrying his sword-stick as usual and his cloak was fluttering in a slight breeze. He was making big steps and at each step his long thin legs seemed to be in danger of collapsing under the weight they supported. It looked a bit like an elephant with the legs of a giraffe and would have had a comic effect if it hadn't been for the power he wielded. His chin stuck out showing his determination and there was an air of purpose around him which stood in contrast to his usual aimless wanderings on the lands of his master Ta-ke. He walked to Kim and addressed him without any greeting or other form of recognition. He was all business on this occasion and would not let himself be distracted by anything not pertaining to the instructions he had been given.

His Lordship,' he said making an elaborate movement with his right hand, 'our dread Lord Ta-ke,' and here another grand gesticulation, 'Lord of the air and all the lands here which he possesses, has decided to do you the great and inestimable honour of permitting you an audience tomorrow at noon.'

Without waiting for a reply or to see if Kim had understood Toko turned on his heel and walked away. He was satisfied to have accomplished his mission just as he had been told to and yet had upheld the dignity that his high rank demanded of him.

Kim was surprised at the sudden outpouring of words by the normally taciturn Toko who preferred monosyllabic questions and answers rather than having to make the effort of putting several words together into a complete sentence. Kim was also unsure whether he had understood all of Toko's instructions properly and so he hastened to Jane to ask for her opinion as to what ought to be done.

The next day they set off at daybreak as it would take them over an hour to reach Ta-ke's tower and as it was better to arrive well before the time stipulated by Toko. At their arrival they were taken to a small room somewhere in the lower parts of the tower where one of the spearmen established their identity and purpose of visit before allowing them to proceed to another part of the tower where they were met by Toko. Toko led them to an antechamber and motioned them to sit on a bench.

'Lordship,' he muttered and gesticulated, 'see you presently.'

With these words, and they were all he had said since their arrival, he left hurriedly through a small side door as if relieved to be away from them. The forenoon came and went and at noon Toko reappeared briefly to tell them that 'Lordship' was in an important meeting, but would soon be available.

Why are you smiling?' Kim said when they were alone again.

'Oh, I don't think he ever has any important meetings. There isn't much to govern and if he has to take decisions he'll do it alone anyway, unless his son happens to be around which isn't very often. If Ta-ke is busy in a room for several hours then I think he's probably having an orgy or is being entertained by some perverse spectacle. I am told he has people snatched from the street by his spearmen and then they are forced to have sex in front of him. It can even happen to children.'

I suppose we're in for a long wait then,' Kim remarked drily. Does he have many wives?'

'You would think so, after all any woman here who is dissatisfied with her husband merely has to say "I divorce thee" thrice and she is free to go. Many women who think they can have a better life with someone else do this. Of course it only works if the other man is willing to marry them. But there is no limit to the number of wives here. The husbands just have to provide for them.'

'Hmm, interesting system. Can men here also divorce their wives that easily?'

'No, once they're married only the wife can divorce herself. The husband is bound by law to feed her and share everything he has with her and to treat all his wives equally.'

They wiled away the afternoon hoping that their 'Dread Lord' would soon have satisfied his lust, but either he was still randy or he had forgotten about them. Quite probably it was a combination of the two. In any case Toko came back in the evening saying that "His Gracious Lordship" was unavailable and that another audience would be arranged. He told Jane to go home as she had not really been asked to come anyway. Kim, he said, would lodge at the tower until the audience. Neither Jane nor Kim had a good feeling about being separated, but they were left with no choice. Besides, there was nothing to worry about. Toko had not shown them any hostility and if any had been intended it would have been easy at any time. Toko led him deep into the lower part of the tower where he instructed two guards to take him to a room. They descended further and Kim was sure they were well below ground level. At last they came to a low door. When they opened it Kim was met with a cloud of stinky air and before he had time to do anything the spearmen pushed him through the door. He fell about three feet, as the floor in the room was lower than in the corridor, and landed in an ankle deep puddle as the door behind him fell shut. The puddle he lay in was a mixture of piss and shit and he quickly scrambled to his feet cursing loudly.

'Hello there, seems we have company at last,' a voice said with a distinct Texan twang.

Kim peered into the darkness, but as far as he could tell it was pitch black. He couldn't see where the voice was coming from.

'Morris?' he said. 'Is that you?'

'It sure is and Pauline is with me too. Were you expecting to find anyone else? I guess you're the cavalry come to our rescue!'

'I'm afraid so, yes. But I've got to tell you that I've lost my horse.'

'Ah well, I wasn't thinking we'd be riding out of here soon anyway. And don't stand in that pool of piss. Come over here, it's dry.'

Kim felt his way along the wall until he reached dry ground and found Morris.

'When did you get here?' Morris asked.

'Just a couple of weeks ago,' he said and related what had happened.

'I had no idea it's been so long since we got here,' Pauline said. 'Down here there is no way of telling how fast time passes. We weren't even sure if we'd been here for years or merely weeks. The only thing that ever happens here is when they throw some food and water to us. If you want to have any you have to be quick and push the others aside.'

'There's a whole gang of those monkeys over there,' Morris added pointing somewhere as he momentarily forgot that no one could see his hand. 'They gave us a darn hard time at first and one of them even tried to bite me, but I soon taught 'em not to mess with me.'

'What a ghastly place,' Kim murmured.

'Ah well, there's one consolation. You've reached rock bottom and won't be going down no further. Nothing to worry about any more.'

'Maybe, but somehow I'd rather not be here. I prefer to face the risks and perils of the world up there.'

Kim was shivering by then. His clothes were wet and would not dry well in the dank and damp environment of the abominable hole he found himself in. A cold icy draught down his back made matters even worse, but at least provided some fresh air. He drew his fur closer but only succeeded in making some of the raw, undiluted sewage run down his back. The stench barred any description. A dirty toilet would have been paradise in comparison. He wondered how long the ordeal would last. Morris said that things couldn't get any worse once you were here, but in his experience things always seemed to get worse. No sooner had he adjusted to living with one nightmare when he was pushed into an even deeper pit. He tried to imagine what could possibly be worse than the situation he found himself in. He couldn't think of anything, but was sure that sooner or later he would find out. He was right.

A fortnight later the door to the dungeon was cast open again and Kim's name was called out. He slowly stood up, his body aching and stiff with sores in the places he had been sitting on. Some of these were infected and hurt terribly. He stank and was covered in dirt. Altogether he was in a far worse condition than when Jane had described him as a 'monster out of a rubbish dump'. If she saw him now she wouldn't even be able to recognise him. He walked to the door through the dreadful puddle that had introduced him to the dungeon and climbed up into the corridor. The guards took great pains not to come too close to him. He wondered if they had ever seen one of their prisoners before. Maybe the prisoners were usually left to die. Whatever the case, his release was good news and even if he was to die it was better than slowly rotting away and falling to pieces. He was taken out into the open where he had to cover his eyes with his hands. After a fortnight in total darkness light was painful to his eyes. When he recovered his eyesight he was made to strip and then wash with buckets of cold water. The dirt was difficult to remove from his skin and even after vigorous rubbing with his hands he looked like someone who had just spent a fortnight swimming in sewage. Still naked he was taken back inside to a little room. To his amazement it had a bath in it, filled with warm water. There even was a bar of soap. He hadn't seen soap for ages. He didn't think he would ever smell it again. But there it was, a fresh piece of soap which scented the air in a way that was the most wonderful contrast imaginable to... well, all that he would much rather forget and never be reminded of again. He plunged into the hot water scrubbing, rubbing and soaping himself all over, time and again. When the water had taken on a brown colour the bath was emptied and more hot water brought in. He relaxed and untensed his muscles and was about to nod off when a door opened and two girls came in. They asked him to get out of the water and gave him a towel to dry himself with. Seeing his skin not covered with a thick pelt amused them no end and they kept giggling. For his own part Kim thought that having girls with a thick fur did not make them very attractive. They gently took him by his arms and led him to the room next door. It was steamy and warm and had a wooden divan on which he lay face down. The girls slowly oiled his body and applied ointments to his sores. They then massaged him for what seemed a very long time to him.

He awoke shivering slightly and realised he had fallen asleep during the massage. The room had become cold and the door stood ajar. On a chair were some clothes which he donned quickly. He walked to the other room and was delighted to find a table full of food in it. He sat down and ravenously devoured as much of the food and drink as he could stuff into himself. The food tasted quite good, a fact he was surprised about now that he had finished eating and had time to think. Indeed, it was the best meal he had had in weeks. What a strange place he thought. First cast into a dungeon so horrific it was beyond imagination and then treated as though he were the honoured guest at a five star hotel. He wondered if he was going to be executed. Maybe the lavish meal was the local version of the last wish. But then they didn't normally seem to make a fuss when it came to killing people. All in all, he thought, things seemed to be looking up. He sat for a while turning the bizarre events over in his mind. However, his thoughts were interrupted when he heard footsteps. They seemed to come from behind a door at the other end of the room. He could hear the steps echo in what had to be a long corridor. They were coming nearer and nearer, but only very slowly. He looked around nervously, but there was nowhere he could hide. He briefly considered going back into the massage room, but quickly dismissed the idea. There was no point in hiding in the tower and besides even if he managed to leave without being seen he was at the mercy of these creatures. He sighed and told himself that whoever had gone to such lengths in treating him well could hardly want to harm him. He saw the handle turn and then the door opened. The person who entered the room was one of the last he had expected to see. It was Anu, the son of their "Dread Lord Ta-ke" as Toko would have put it.

'Hello Kim,' he said and smiled a little.

Kim was amazed. Anu had never talked to him before. On previous encounters Anu had ignored him. And he had never seen Anu smiling before. In fact, he couldn't remember having seen anyone here smile.

'I hope you liked the meal. I was sorry to hear that you did not have a very nice stay here and I hope that you will bear us no malice.'

Kim was too surprised to say more than mumble a few barely audible words, but Anu did not seem to mind. He just went on as though he had not expected any response. Maybe he was just used to people accepting everything he said so that it was unnecessary for him to hear a reply.

'Follow me. I will take you outside and then you can return to your hut. I will arrange another meeting for you with my father. I will let you know in a few days. Next time I will go with you.'

They soon left the tower and at the gate Anu said "Goodbye" and went back inside before Kim had any time to reply or to ask in what direction Jane's hut lay.

Some weeks later, it was late at night, Kim and Jane were lying by the hearth in their hut. The fire had died down, but the glowing embers still provided enough heat to keep the little room warm. Kim's head rested on Jane's shoulder with his eyes half open. He was tired. Not that he'd had much to do of late. In fact there was almost nothing for him to do except to spend time with Jane and wait for word from the castle. Since they had been reunited they had spent as much time as possible together dreading the future and a renewed separation. And so they had spent the evening in much the same way as all the other evenings, with dinner, chatting, dreaming and sex. After making love he had expected to fall asleep quickly, but something kept him awake. Was there anything in the back of his mind that bothered him he wondered? Of course he knew that it was a mistake to think. It would keep him awake till dawn and then, when he fell asleep at last everyone else in the hamlet would awaken and make enough noise to tear him out of his sleep as well. After that he would feel tired and irritable all day long. The thing to do really was not to think at all and then sleep would come of its own. He heard Jane's regular breathing and could feel her chest slowly rise and fall. He envied her. She never seemed to have any difficulty in nodding off. After having sex she would just fall asleep immediately leaving him alone in his thoughts. Being awake he wanted to move but dared not as he didn't want to wake her. Maybe it was being so close to Jane that kept him awake. He turned a little. The fur that covered them had slipped down a little and he could see the mound of one of her breasts against the glowing embers. The red light steeped it in a warm color and her milky skin looked hot. The pink nipple had turned dark red and looked as though it could burn a hole into anything it touched. It looked tempting. He knew he had to resist the temptation. The right thing to do was to turn around, close his eyes, and forget what he had just seen. He sighed feeling a little disappointed and yet also proud of his strength and courage to resist temptation. He was about to move and turn when he found, much to his surprise that his left hand had already got to the breast in question and was massaging it gently. He had no idea how it came to be where it was. Sometimes it seemed to him that his body had a mind of its own. It could almost have been another person altogether. How was it possible that he was so out of touch with his body? But then what could he do if his body ignored decisions he made? He realized that there was nothing he could do and resigned himself to his fate. Thus encouraged he and his body, now united again, began massaging the breast with more vigor and he could soon feel the nipple grow hard to his touch. Jane's breathing got a little faster and she stirred, stroking his neck with one hand. Her other hand moved to his chest and played with his chest hair, curling it around her fingers. As he kissed her neck he could feel the hand slowly move down. It soon found the old man it was looking for. The man had once been a mighty warrior, standing tall and strong, never afraid of going to new places and fighting long and arduous battles. When the old man thought of his glorious past he felt proud, but now, alas, he was old and tired. There was no strength left in him and he felt as small as a midget. Really he was dead. But when the hand touched him he rejoiced, for he experienced a veritable resurrection and was soon restored to the strength he had once known. It was truly divine!

As they became more passionate Kim moved on top of Jane. Suddenly the fur covering the door to their hut was flung aside. Cold air blew in followed by a dark figure. They moved apart quickly and Jane pulled the fur up to her chin. The stranger squatted on the other side of the fire and drew back the hood which was covering his head. In the faint light he recognised Anu. He put wood on the glowing embers and blew into them so that soon a bright fire was blazing away. Anu said nothing all the while and Kim was cursing inwardly. He was angry that anyone could just come into his home at such a time and he was even angrier at the timing. Couldn't the fellow have come twenty minutes later? Remembering what they had been doing when Anu burst into the room he felt embarrassed and awkward. Damn the fellow! Had he noticed? It wouldn't make much difference to him. He had to be used to his father's orgies and other excesses. But it certainly mattered to Kim. They sat in silence for some time. Jane looked uncomfortable and stared in to the fire. Kim glared at Anu, but this didn't seem to bother him. He looked quite at ease and a casual observer might be forgiven if he thought that Anu was the rightful master of the house entertaining some guests. At last Anu moved a little and made some noise as if he was clearing his throat.

'So, Kim, you said you were a soldier in your own world, yes? How would you like to work for me? You must be a good fighter if your king sent you so far to a distant land. I, that is we, my father and I, could use someone like you.'

'You have many able warriors' Kim replied after a pause. He spoke slowly trying to gain time and work out what it was Anu wanted. He wouldn't come all the way so late at night just to ask Kim to become a simple spearman.

Anu weighed his head from side to side, but Kim just waited not wanting to say more than he had to before finding out what Anu was getting at.

'True, our warriors are good, but some things are not as they used to be. Things are changing and we want you to help us manage the change. Maybe you have some different, some new ideas about fighting, yes? After all you said that in your fights you would fly, didn't you?'

Flying! Now that was something he hadn't thought of. Of course he had flown. But that was with the help of an aircraft. When he told folk here about this he never expected anyone to take him up on it. Flying was such a normal thing to him. If Anu was interested in his flying skills he would be in trouble. How could he explain that he needed a machine to fly in a world where machines had been forgotten? And if he couldn't show he could fly then Anu might disbelieve him in other matters too.

'Yes, in my world we can fly, but not alone. In fact I have to tell you that I alone can't fly. I would sit on a kind of big animal that lives in my world and which can fly.'

Anu sat still pondering Kim's words before replying.

'Well, anyway it is not really important. I just want you to train a small group of warriors in your fighting ways. If, or when, there is a war it might help. In fact I would say a war is coming quite soon. Surely you will want to take part in it. You are a warrior after all. You have nothing else to do here until you leave and only my father and I will help you with this. Remember what happened to your friend.'

Was this a job offer or a threat? Kim wasn't sure what to make of it, but then he probably didn't have much choice. He did need help if he ever wanted to escape from this strange world and Anu had been the only friendly face he had met.

'I would be very happy, no indeed honoured to accept your offer, but I'm afraid this is impossible at the moment.'

'Impossible!' This time Anu was shocked. No one had ever dared tell him that something he wanted was impossible. He was visibly angry and Kim wondered if he had gone too far. But there was no turning back now and so he sat and looked Anu in the eye with a stony face that showed he was serious.

'Why should this be impossible?' Anu demanded finally. 'You are a warrior, aren't you? If you are a warrior then why is it impossible for you to fight? Maybe you can't do it alone as well, just as you say you can't fly alone?'

'No, it is nothing like that. I can fight alone. I can fight for you as well. But how can I fight for you and your father while my friends are kept in your dungeon? My honour,' he said and paused significantly,'does not allow me to fight for you while my friends are kept prisoners.'

'Your friends?' He looked a bit puzzled for a moment before his face lit up and he laughed.

'Oh, yes. I remember. I will speak to my father if this is so important to you. I'm sure it will be no problem. Come to the castle tomorrow and we'll arrange everything. Is that all you want?'

Although his face did not betray his emotions Kim was surprised by the swift answer and just gave a quiet 'Yes' in response. Was there anything else he could have asked for? Perhaps reading his mind Anu smiled gently and stood up.

'Well, I'll be expecting you tomorrow morning then. Good-bye'

When Anu had left and the fur fallen back in to place across the doorway Jane smiled delightedly.

'That's great news, Kim. At last the others can join us and get out of that hellhole of a dungeon.'

'Well, let's wait and see what happens tomorrow. If something looks as if it's too good to be true then it usually is. I have a notion Anu expects me to turn a bunch of barbarian spearmen in to flying supermen. We may soon be back in the dungeon again if I disappoint him.'

'I don't think Anu would do that. He's always been friendly and helpful.'

Kim looked a bit doubtful but said nothing.

'In fact, I'd say that if there's anyone pukka here it's Anu. He looked after me before you came and he got you out of the dungeon too.'

'I'm not so sure. What about Morris and Pauline? They're still stuck in their hellhole and Anu even forgot about them till I reminded him. Seems to me his kindness is rather selective or only done for some selfish reasons. Anyway, I just don't like having to depend on total strangers who are aliens at that and I most certainly don't want to get embroiled in local wars and politics though it may be too late for that. I just want to get us out of here as fast as possible. If that means licking his rabble into shape I'll do it. I just hope he won't ask for any flying performances or some miracle like that.'

'Don't worry about it, Kim. I'm sure everything will turn out to be fine. But I think we'd better sleep now. It's too late to be talking and tomorrow will be a long day.'

She turned to one side and fell asleep quickly as Kim could see from her regular breathing. With regrets he recalled the unfulfilled promise of pleasure, unfulfilled thanks to Anu's unexpected arrival. He lay back and tried to sleep, but a restless mind, haunted by shadows of ghosts yet to come, and a dull yearning in his loins meant a restless night without relief.

### 6

The next morning came as it had to, of course. Excited about the way things had changed for the better Jane woke up earlier than usually and, not wanting to waste any time, she immediately roused Kim who had fallen asleep a bare hour before. He had known the night before that he would feel knackered, but just how bad it would be he hadn't foreseen. Feeling dismal and sluggish he crawled out from underneath his warm furs and out of the hut where Jane, who had decided to speed things up, welcomed him with a bucket of cold water. Drenched and too stunned to complain much he hastily changed in to dry attire, gulped down a few mouthfuls of something Jane had apparently laid out for him and then followed the now impatient Jane along the path leading away from the hamlet. As they wended their way towards the castle Kim wondered how his lovely Jane could be sweeter than an angel one evening and the following morning a fierce, merciless being which seemed to be entirely indifferent to the pain and agony it caused. In fact she even seemed to be happy about the state of affairs she was responsible for if one could go by her cheerful chattering and energetic stride. Struggling to keep up he limited his part of the conversation to grunts and occasional monosyllabic replies. The castle well in sight she noticed at last that he was not quite to his usual self.

'Come on Kim, what's up? You're not sulking about that little water I splashed at you this morning, are you? And then look at you. You're looking awful. I can't remember having seen you with such a long face for ages and your eyes look like two pissholes in the snow. Didn't you sleep well?'

'I've had better nights honey, but don't worry about it. Let's just get our business with Anu and his great dread lord behind us and I'll be fine later. I just don't feel like talking now.'

When they got to the castle the great entrance doors swung wide open and four guards escorted them down a corridor to a little door. It opened a few moments later and revealed a small empty room. As soon as they had entered the doors closed and they moved upwards. It was a lift! But was it electric or was it a simple device lifted by the weight of stones or something similar? He had no time to ponder the question at length as the lift stopped after a brief journey. They were received by Toko who led the way to Ta-ke's chambers on his spidery legs. Kim could almost hear the knee joints cracking with each step Toko made.

'The supplicants have arrived, your highness!' Toko announced with an elaborate gesture of his right arm and a deep bow as they entered. His highness Lord Ta-ke was seated on a large throne that seemed to have been carved out of a ball of stone and was standing on a dais so high that anyone seated on the throne was always taller than even the tallest person standing in front of it. If standing had been allowed that is. They walked towards Ta-ke bowing low and then sat on some cushions on the floor keeping their heads low and looking to the ground. Ta-ke gazed at them and Kim felt his blood chill as the old monarch's steady gaze came to rest on him.

'My son has conveyed to me the arrangements you wish to make. It is well. Your friends have been released. But remember to serve me well, stranger. I know not where you are from and what it is you seek. And I do not believe our priests. The old fools think you are demons from the past who must be destroyed. But I do know they are right in saying that you are changing our order. Be with me and you shall be well rewarded. Deceive me and you will not live long enough to rue the day you were born.'

They were dismissed with a flick of his hand and left the room walking backwards. Outside Toko motioned Kim to sit and wait while he led Jane away. He took her outside where she was shocked when she saw Morris and Pauline. The two were squinting in the light. As they had been in the dark for so long even the least amount of light hurt their eyes. Their clothes were in rags and their skin full of open sores. Where their skin was unbroken she saw black dirt flaking off. Speechless with rage and pity she helped them undress and wash. The once burly Texan smiled a little.

'Good to see you again, Jane.'

She turned away from him and threw up. His mouth was a mass of rotting teeth and putrid gums. The stench from it was overwhelming. Shaken and pale she rinsed her face with cold water. When she looked at Morris and Pauline again she saw that they had not moved. Until then they hadn't fully realized how bad a state they were really in, but now they clearly saw it in Jane's eyes and face. It was unmistakable how disgusted she was.

'We are that revolting then?' Morris said in a slow mournful way.

'I'm sorry. It's not you,' she lied. 'It's just the smell. You'll be all right again soon. You just need a bit of a wash, some good food and lots of rest.'

'And maybe a toothbrush,' he said slowly licking the black stumps of what had once been teeth.

Kim, who had all this time been waiting outside Ta-ke's chambers, had fallen asleep quickly after Toko left with Jane. He was woken up when he felt something prodding him in his side. He opened his eyes and saw a stranger clad in black leather and with a sword at his side. The stranger held the cane in his hand with which he had poked Kim.

'I am warleader Nim,' he said in a dark grave voice. 'I have been commanded to show you your duties and to assist you. Follow me.'

Nim walked off without waiting for a reply and Kim leapt up quickly.

'You said you were here to assist me. Does that mean you must take orders from me?'

'Yes, if they agree with your duties.'

'And if not?'

'Then I am to remind you of your duties.'

'Where are we going to?'

They came round a corner and Nim pointed at a wooden door.

'Your quarters.'

Kim opened the door and looked inside. It was a small room with a window into the yard. The room itself contained an empty cupboard and a bed. After weeks of sleeping on bare ground finally a bed. He sat on it. It was soft. Not too soft, but just right. He sighed happily. A pukka bed with wooden posts, a nice mattress, sheets, a pillow and a quilt. Things were looking up again and he quite forgot how tired he had felt just moments earlier. He saw Nim waiting for him and got up feeling lively and enthusiastic. His eyes shone as if a long absent light had returned to them.

'Very well, Nim. What's next?'

Nim turned in silence and led the way down and out into the open. They walked across the courtyard and came to a low building from which sounds of laughter could be heard. Nim stopped and pointed to a spot in front of the building.

'Wait here, Sir. We'll review your troops.'

Nim shouted some orders and within a few minutes a bunch of ragamuffin spearmen stood in a group in front of Kim. Some had spears while others were holding food and drink and didn't seem to take much interest in Kim. It took a few more minutes of shouting, begging and cajoling by Nim before the men stood in anything resembling lines and paying attention.

'How many are there?' Kim asked in a stern voice.

'Maybe two hundred, maybe a few more or less,' Nim replied in a voice that didn't show much concern.

'Then I suggest you find out exactly. We're not at a party.'

After counting and recounting, which was necessary as the men moved about at first, the exact number was established.

'One hundred and twenty-two, Sir.'

'And how many should there be?'

'Two hundred.'

'Where are the rest?'

'I'm not sure, Sir. Maybe they are ill,' he added hopefully seeing that Kim didn't seem to be very impressed. In fact the new commander seemed to be quite upset. And this, Nim knew, boded ill for the comfortable and lazy life he and his men were used to.

'Then you will send someone to find the rest. Troops already assembled will not be dismissed until we are fully assembled.'

'But Sir, it may take a long time and..'

'You have your orders,' Kim fell in abruptly. 'See that they are carried out.'

Kim stood rigidly erect while watching the men and Nim detailing someone to find the rest of the unit. The men were grumbling and complaining and Nim had to constantly reassert his authority to prevent them from leaving. Kim noticed two men in particular who actively encouraged others to defy orders and as the hours went by Nim seemed to be less and less able to keep the men under control. The missing men came in slowly, one by one, being cursed by those already there. Towards evening seven men were still missing and the tense atmosphere reached boiling point. One of the two agitators ignored Nim completely and started shouting at Kim. The others watched intently to see what would happen and Kim knew he had to take decisive action or he would face the prospect of a general mutiny. He walked across to the agitator with brisk steps and always looking the man firmly in the eyes. When he reached the man he hit him without warning in the stomach and then, as the man doubled over, he delivered a blow to his neck rendering him unconscious. The men were silent now and before the second agitator had time to recover from his surprise Kim knocked him down too. After that there was no more trouble with the men in a grim but cowed mood standing to attention.

The last of the men came the next morning. Kim looked at the unit. The men were tired and in a foul mood. The two agitators of the previous day had recovered from their faint and were, for the moment at least, as quiet and calm as he could have wished for. The object lesson he had taught them had not failed to make an impression and everyone knew that he was capable and willing to assert himself and that he was not afraid of them. But how long would the effect last? If he didn't change the men's attitude then sooner or later it would come to another showdown. A showdown that would be much more difficult to handle as it would be well prepared and might catch him by surprise. The thing to do was to keep them too busy to have any time or strength left to even think about making trouble. He smiled sardonically and bade Nim to call the unit to attention.

'Gentlemen,' he bellowed. 'You are in Lord Take's army as warriors. You are not here for fun. Henceforth you will be on time and you will bring your spears. Latecomers will be strictly punished.'

He watched their faces closely to see what effect his words had. There were one or two angry faces, but most of the men seemed resigned to their fate. Probably a lot of them were simply too tired to think or even act against him. He was determined to keep things that way.

'You have four hours to rest. Be back at noon.' He nodded at Nim to dismiss the unit. It would be a long day and, he knew, many more long days would follow.

There passed a number of weeks of physical training and exercise which left everyone deadbeat and exhausted at the end of each day. Hand in hand with the level of fitness the troop's sense of discipline increased until Kim was almost satisfied, if that is at all possible for an officer. And yet, despite the progress he had made, Kim knew that something important was missing. His men did not see him as their officer. To them he was an outsider. Not to be trusted or even liked and while they would obey him in training he was not at all sure what effect active duty would have on their behaviour. Warleader Nim was no great help to him in this respect either. Nim kept the men under control, but he seemed to maintain a distance to Kim beyond what would be normal between two officers. 'Did Nim dislike him?' he wondered, 'was he afraid or was there something else altogether?' He couldn't fathom Nim at all and whenever Nim addressed him he would hide his face behind an inscrutable expression that even an Egyptian sphinx would find puzzling.

One day he was leading a detachment of men through the Black Mountains which took their name from the pitch black rock they were made of. It had rained the day before. The air was heavy with water and visibility was more limited than usual due to dense clouds and fog. Somewhere below them water in a sidearm of the Great Nullah could be heard raging in the normally dry bed. Kim walked at the head of the unit that looked like a great snake slithering along the narrow winding path on the hillside. Their armor was coated in a thick layer of grease to stop the pieces of metal clanking. He was determined to make the unit as stealthy as possible. Nim, he knew, thought it was silly 'wasting time' on such matters. Why bother being silent when all warfare was conducted openly on prearranged battlegrounds where no surprise were possible? But Anu had asked him to bring a new element into warfare, hadn't he? If Ta-ke stood alone against the four other lords then his army would need to take advantage of every dirty trick Kim knew. Suddenly there was a muffled noise behind him followed by a scream of terror and excited shouting among his men. A few seconds later he heard a splash. One of his men had slipped on the wet path and taken a plunge. One of his men grabbed his arm. He could feel the man shaking with fear and shouting wildly. Though his grasp of the local lingo was quite good Kim still had difficulty when people got excited or didn't speak clearly. Much of what the man was saying didn't make any sense to him, but he understood the main point clearly. None of them knew how to swim! Coming from a place where everyone could swim he hadn't thought the man in the water would be in any danger. To the surprise of his men he shook himself free, dropped his things and hurled himself into the water. As he went under the shock of the cold water made his body go rigid for a few moments. Then he pulled strongly with his arms and reached the surface again where he sucked in the air greedily. Luckily the current wasn't strong and so he soon found the half-drowned spearman thrashing around in the water. He got behind the man, as he knew one must never approach a drowning man from the front. In the panic a drowning person can hold on so tightly to anything he can grasp that a would-be rescuer could go under himself. Putting his arm around the man's chest he quickly pulled them both to the safety of the bank.

A few days later he was on patrol with another group of spearmen. They had crossed the Black Mountains in a forced march and reached the Great Nullah not far from where it flows into Lake Gelid. The nullah was a mass of seething water swollen from recent rains and in part even flooded the surrounding plains. It was an exceptionally clear day. In fact, Kim was hard put to remember such a clear day and, looking around, the view stretched from the Black Mountains across the lake to the distant shore. Tired and weary from the march they made camp near the nullah. Tents were pitched in a circle, as was their custom, and a great fire was lit in the middle. They ate hungrily and after the meal sat around the fire and chatted merrily as they were wont to do before settling down for the night's rest. Later on Kim sang them a song. He was invariably asked to do this as they had never heard music before and hungered after this novelty. At the end they clapped their hands politely in the manner Kim had shown them. He bowed in return and then made a joke about one of the men having big feet. They all laughed loudly with big grins on their faces. Kim felt elated. Until then his remarks had always gone unnoticed, but now, he knew, he had been accepted. In future the men would treat him as one of their own.

### 7

Clutching a bar of soap in one hand and a clean tunic in the other Morris and Pauline slowly walked to a little stream on the edge of the hamlet where Jane was staying. Their treatment contrasted starkly with that of Kim. They had been let out and saved from rotting to death, but nothing more. The soap and clothes Jane had found for them and she had also invited them to stay in her hut. The stream meandered through the bleak countryside past coarse grass and small bushes. An occasional tree was the only concession to beauty that could be seen. The water was mostly clear yet at the point nearest to the village a murky inflow showed where waste water and sewage polluted the rivulet.

'That's no damn good,' Morris cursed and walked a short distance upstream where he hoped the water would be clean. Seeing no one around they took off their filthy rags and stood in the shallow water. 'Goddamn freezing,' Morris cursed again and dipped the soap in the water. Their sore and aching bodies made washing painful and the cold water made removing the thick layer of grime, dirt and faeces more difficult. Where the dirt finally came off their skin was covered in many open sores and ulcers from which liquid and blood oozed out. While Morris vented his fury in curses and sordid language that even he hadn't known he was capable of, Pauline kept silent though tears in her mournful eyes indicated how deeply she felt hurt by the state her once beautiful body was in. Beauty creams, scented shampoos and aromatic oils had become distant memories of a life that she could hardly bear to bring to mind. Slowly and without being aware of it herself this kindled a flame of vengeance in her heart that was hidden from sight but ready to burst out into an all consuming conflagration if enough flammable material was there.

It took them nearly two hours till they felt clean enough to step out of the water and put their fresh clothes on. Their fingers were numb and their bodies chilled to the marrow. 'Back to the hut,' Pauline said. 'And let's hope there's a hot fire blazing. I'm half frozen to death.'

'And starving, too,' Morris added. 'If I don't get some chow soon I'll be dead.'

'At least we'll die clean,' Pauline replied.

Morris laughed though it sounded more like a cackle. They made their way back through the village past mud huts and along a dirt path strewn with small and broken bones and other debris. They ducked through the doorway and saw Jane smiling at them. She still felt bad about the way she had reacted when first seeing them and wanted to make up for it quite apart from her genuine desire to help them recover. 'Hi, you two. Take a seat and dig in,' she said handing each of them a bowl of warm food. They sat on the ground close to the fire that slowly warmed their emaciated bodies. While Pauline and Morris gulped down the food Jane let her eyes wander over their faces and arms. She was appalled by the sores and oozing ulcers. 'Got any more, Jane?' Morris said bringing her mind back suddenly. 'Oh, I'm sorry, that's all there is,' she said looking somewhat crestfallen though she tried to smile. Pauline saw her face fall and guessed the truth. 'You mean there's nothing left for you even?'

'Food is scarce here,' Jane replied. 'I get a ration but that's all. You've seen the village. Poor is an understatement.'

Just then Toko made one of his surprise appearances and popped his head in to see how the 'newcomers' as he deemed them were getting on. His sere face was inscrutable as usual and he said nothing as he eyed those within.

'Toko,' Jane said and rose. 'Good you're here. There's something important we need to talk about. I'm only getting my ration but now my two friends are here we'll need more.'

Toko turned his gaze from Jane to the others and after a short while back to her. 'Only guests of Lord Ta-ke get rations. Others must find in village.' His head vanished from the door. When he walked past the next hut they heard him banging it with his stick and shouting at the dwellers, 'Food for new ones'.

Jane was speechless. 'I don't know how to tell you but...'

'No need to tell,' Morris replied. 'We had stacks of time to learn the language here from other prisoners. There was little else to do all day long. Anyhow, if Toko said take from the village, then that's what we're gonna do.'

'They haven't got enough themselves,' Jane said.

'I understand,' Morris said softening his tone for a moment. 'But we ain't got much choice here. It's them or us and I'm looking after number one.' He quickly went across to the next hut before its inhabitants had time to hide their food.

There were five dwellers sitting on the ground when Morris entered. Two ragged urchins were near their father watching mother prepare their dinner in a bowl. It wasn't a large bowl for five hungry mouths. The only other food was in a basket in front of the grandmother. When Toko had shouted his command at them she was sitting somewhat aside from the others thinking about the day. It hadn't gone well and she was worried. Setting off at daybreak she had toiled all day collecting berries to supplement the little food that the family had. But she was old and weary. Her legs didn't carry her as far as they used to and her cold numb fingers made picking berries hard. Some slipped through her grasp and wouldn't come off while others got crushed by her inept hands. As a result there was less and less in her basket when she returned home every evening and today her basket was less than half full. For several weeks the food her daughter and son-in-law shared with her had been gradually getting less. And now, adding to her woes, had come Toko's devastating command. Morris didn't know about any of this and even if he had known it wouldn't have changed anything. Neither he nor his friends were going to starve if he could help it and if that meant some aliens dying of hunger he couldn't help it. Determined to 'look after number one' as he put it, he strode across the room and quickly took the bowl of food with two hands. Before the dwellers had time to react he was out again and back in Jane's hut.

The dweller family sat in silence. They dared not rebel against Toko's orders and there was no help to be expected from any of the other dwellers who had little food and even less interest to get into trouble with Toko. The father took the basket and opened it. Half full only. He had never seen grandmother come home with so little. He shared the few berries with his wife and children. There was nothing for grandmother. 'It'll be more tomorrow,' she said quietly. 'I don't need to eat anything but I'll work hard and tomorrow will be better again.' She kept repeating this and similar things with her son's gaze resting on her. She knew what he was thinking about and hoped to stave off the inevitable a little while longer. 'Why had the strangers taken their food?' she thought. It was a disaster. How far would her legs carry her? Where could she run? Tonight was the night. She knew but she still kept on talking about working harder and finding more food again in the forlorn hope of cheating destiny.

'Go to sleep grandmother,' her son-in-law said in a soft voice. 'You need to rest for tomorrow will be a hard day.'

She lay down and closed her eyes understanding full well his intent. 'Don't fall asleep!' she kept telling herself. 'Don't fall asleep!'

The little fire soon died down and the glowing embers were the only source of light in the pitch black. For a while she listened until she was satisfied that the regular breathing indicated everyone was asleep. Without making the slightest sound she crawled to the doorway and out of the hut letting the flap fall back into place when she was safely outside. The sound of the flap falling back into place was barely audible but it was enough.

Another dweller had been feigning sleep. The son-in-law sat up when he heard the flap and listened for a moment. The he quickly crawled to where grandmother was lying but found the spot empty. Cursing under his breath he quickly left the hut. The night was dark and still. Guessing that his prey would take the shortest way out of the village he set off towards the nearest hill at a brisk pace. Despite the darkness there always was a faint glow in the clouds that permitted anyone with a keen eyesight to make out the outlines of buildings and other features. He made out the dark line of the stream and leaped across. Ahead were the woodlands where grandmother was wont to wander collecting berries. He understood that the intimate knowledge his prey had was to his disadvantage, but he was young whereas she was old and slow and fatigued from toiling all day. He decided to go into the woodland and proceed uphill in as straight a line as he could and to listen at intervals. His prey was bound to make some noise in the undergrowth that would give her away.

By this time grandmother was safely hidden in midst of a large bush that allowed her to spy out her surroundings without being seen herself. Her son-in-law had guessed correctly about her escape route and, indeed, it had been part of her plan to be predictable – up to a point. The day had left her utterly exhausted, far more than even her son-in-law had guessed, and she was unable to go back up the hills. But to let him clamber around the hills on a wild goose chase was an entirely different matter. She barely managed to hide in the bush when she saw her predator jump across the stream and make his way into the woodlands. He passed close to her and she took care to breathe softly lest she be heard. She waited for a few minutes, listening intently while gradually he made his way uphill rustling leaves or brushing against branches. 'You sound like a whole army on the march, fool,' she laughed to herself. Then she carefully left her hiding place and went back the way she had come to the stream. She slowly stepped into the water and started wading downstream. 'Let the fool get lost in the hills,' she said quietly. 'I'll be far away by then.' Of course she knew that he would return to the stream by daybreak if he failed to find her at night. He would follow her trace and probably work out that she had gone into the stream. But into which direction? Upstream or downstream? She smiled a grim smile of satisfaction at having outwitted her pursuer. By daybreak she would have almost a whole night's walk ahead of him. Enough to get away.

'Now where has the old hag gone?' the son-in-law wondered after clambering about the hill for a while. 'She was just ahead of me when I left the hut. 'I should have caught up with her by now.' He stopped again to listen but heard nothing in the night. It was so quiet he could hear his own heart beating. 'Damn crone. She must have hidden somewhere and let me pass her. Just you wait, thrice-cursed hag. I'll get you yet.' He turned and quickly went back to his starting point at the stream. As there was still no sign of his prey he decided to go back to his hut and fetch a torch and a cudgel. Thus equipped it didn't take him long to find her trace on the ground and soon he was standing on the bank of the stream. 'Now where would you have gone?' he said to no one in particular. 'Upstream or downstream, I wonder.' Holding the blazing torch low above the ground he carefully examined the area where they had crossed the brook earlier. And there in shallow water he found what he was looking for. A footprint of the right size pointing downstream. His prey had less than an hour's headstart.

Grandmother had been wading through the water for two hours and though she seemed to be moving at a leisurely pace it was all she could manage. For truth be said she was at the end of her tether. All that kept her going was the pleasing thought of having escaped her predator and the knowledge that she was too close to the village. The banks of the stream were flat and muddy. She needed a different kind of terrain to leave the water without showing a pursuer where she had gone. She stopped for a second to catch her breath and look around. In the dark of the night the blazing torch looked the angry eye of a fell beast glaring at her. With a shriek she turned and went forward with all the speed she could muster.

The shriek had not gone unnoticed and the predator dashed forward sure of his prey now. He ran along the bank and soon caught up with his victim. With the torch in one hand and the cudgel in the other he was ready to fell his prey. But it wasn't necessary. The final effort to escape had been too much for the old woman who collapsed in a faint just before being reached. With a grim grunt of satisfaction he tied her arms and legs, lifted her up on his shoulder and set off back home again.

The next day Morris and Pauline could be seen chatting outside their hut. The tragic events of the night – not only the chase but also the gruesome end in the hut next door - had gone entirely unnoticed by them. Relieved at being out of the hellish dungeon they had slept soundly and even the itching ulcers had failed to bother them that night. Their open sores had begun to heal though how long the ulcers would take to close was anyone's guess. With obvious distaste Pauline looked at the ulcers on her arms. Morris spat on the ground.

'God, I hate this friggin' hellhole. If you'd told me about this a year ago I'd have thought you mad or been gobsmacked. What a fucking nightmare we're in.'

Pauline sighed. 'The only thing I want to know is how to get out. You better keep your fucks for then. It's better done than said.'

'You're preaching the converted, girl. The problem is we ain't got no clue where our suits are and where the exit is. The only suit I know of is hidden in our hut.'

'It's Jane's'

'Hell, yeah, honey. But number one comes first and we'll send the cavalry to her rescue. She seems to be doing well enough for herself here anyway.'

'It's still only one, even if it works.'

'I know. You'd better start quizzing Jane about our suits. Maybe she can get this Toko dude to cough 'em up. If not we'll have to work it out ourselves, even if it means wringing every goddamn alien neck here.'

Pauline looked doubtful and was slightly distracted by the children next door who were playing on the path.

'They seem quite energetic and cheerful this morning. Where do they take the energy from? I would have expected them to be a bit more glum and quiet after missing out on dinner last night.'

Morris turned and watched them in silence for a little while. 'Damn right they look cheerful. You'd think they had a nice breakfast from the way they're romping about. And speaking of breakfast I sure could use some. With Jane not around I guess we're on our own to find something just like that Toko guy said.'

He strolled across and peered in through the door. The mother was alone in the hut busy with a pot of food. There were several other pots like the one she was working on. He strode in to take a closer look. The mother stopped in her activity and looked at him with a vacuous expression. He ignored her and examined the contents of the pot.

'Looks like stew to me,' he said in surprise. 'Just the thing I wanted for my breakfast.'

So saying he took one of the pots and went back to Pauline. 'We're in luck,' he said. 'Stew for breakfast!'

Several hours later Jane returned. Her day had been long and weary and not very successful, as usual. Getting food was a daily concern and the little Toko let her have was barely enough for herself. How three people were supposed to live off one person's meal was beyond her. And getting more food from the famished dwellers in the village was equally unrealistic, unless they were prepared to let all of them starve to death. It was clear to her that Morris had no qualms about doing just that and after all he had gone through it was hard to fault him. And yet it was equally unfair to the dwellers who barely eked out a living and had never wronged anyone. With all this in mind she had sought Anu to get more food supplies on a daily basis. After waiting for several hours all she could show for her efforts was a small bag of food and no promises for the following days.

When she was approaching the village she met the father from the hut next door. She enquired after his family and when he understood that she was concerned about how much food he had for his family he related the events of the night. She was horrified and it showed on her face.

'It's all right,' he said. 'She was old anyway and not much use anymore. Only eating, but not finding food. Whether last night or next week makes no difference. But now the family have food. Everyone feeling good, so everything good.'

Then he walked off abruptly leaving her to ponder the terrifying aspect of getting old in this alien world. She felt guilty about Morris taking the food from them the night before and didn't dare think what would happen if he continued to do so. She resolved to make an even greater effort to get food from Anu and Toko. The palace seemed to be wallowing in food. There were fat people everywhere. Why was it so hard to get just a little extra food she wondered. The dwellers in the village were all skinny and were even reduced to eating their own at times while those in the palace could afford grotesque food orgies. The unfairness of it all appalled her more than anything else.

'Hi Jane,' Pauline greeted her suddenly. Lost in thoughts she had reached their hut without noticing it. 'Oh, hi Pauline,' she said with a wan smile. 'I've brought some more food for us. Where's Morris?'

'He's right here and doing great,' he said stepping out from inside the hut. 'Great to hear about the food. We'll have it for dinner.' He chuckled seeing her surprise. 'Yeah, that's right. For dinner I said. We've been eating quite well today, haven't we Pauline? We got a nice stew. There's still a bit left if you want any.'

Jane's stomach turned and she knelt down pressing her hands to her mouth.

'What's wrong, Jane?' Pauline asked. 'Aren't you feeling well?'

It took Jane some time to recover but then she told them what she had heard about the family next door.

It was Morris' turn to look green in the face. 'So you're saying we've been eating that old woman in there, their grandmother? Those fuckers actually killed and cooked and ate their own grandmother? What the fuck?'

Dismayed and agitated he walked around in circles trying to compose himself while Pauline just looked sick.

'I don't know what to say, I'm just gobsmacked. I only know one thing Jane. We've got to get out of here.'

### 8

As on most days it was misty and grey. Lord Ta-ke's army was drawn up in a long row. The reserve, commanded by Kim, stood in the rear. While his own men where quiet and disciplined the main body of the army gave an altogether different impression. The spearmen were arranged in a sort of haphazard row chattering excitedly and not standing still for even one moment. In front of them was Anu, son of Lord Ta-ke, chosen for this auspicious and august day to lead and command the great army into battle and to bring victory and glory to His Dread Lord. While Kim stood patiently waiting for the show to begin Anu could be seen strutting up and down the ranks exhorting his men to valor and promising them a banquet in case of victory. And while the prospect of glorious deeds did not seem to arouse much interest - the men could be seen talking and ignoring Anu during this part of his speech - the word banquet brought on immediate cheers.

'What an array of gluttons and drunkards', Kim thought with his eye on a group of particularly fat spearmen who were smiling and rubbing their hands in delight.

At the end of his speech Anu hurried out of the danger zone to the rear of his army, close to the reserve where help might be found in case of danger to himself. In front of the army was a flat plain some three miles wide and on the far side stood the opposing army barely visible through the mist. The cheers died down as the spearmen remembered that before the banquet there was still the unpleasant matter of the battle. And this could mean that some of them would not be able to attend the banquet. Seeing the change in mood coming Anu quickly gave the order to attack before his men became too fearful. Like a horde of sheep the spearmen rushed forward crying and bleating to meet the opposing army in the middle of the plain. Half way across one of the spearmen fell behind. He was hopping on one leg and holding his right foot. Apparently he had dropped his spear while running and right onto his toes. Kim heard his pitiful cries of pain and agony until the din of the two armies doing battle became too strong. It was difficult to see what was going on as the mist obscured the view and the two armies, now mingled into one great seething mass, looked pale and grey, almost ghostly.

'Maybe', Kim thought, 'maybe it was better they couldn't see too clearly what was happening. For the mist not only obscured the armies, but also hid mercifully the suffering. The chopped off limbs, disembowelled warriors writhing on the ground and the blood which was mixing with the dust giving the plain a red hue. It soon became apparent their army was being pushed back and gradually came closer to Kim and the reserve. Anu was uncertain whether to commit the reserve yet or to wait; or maybe he should keep the reserve for his protection? But fields of glory are not made for ditherers and funks and he who waits too long is doomed. Before Anu reached any decision on the matter the ranks broke and Lord Ta-ke's spearmen came rushing back. Closely pursued by their opponents the warriors ran for dear life. Disorderly and seething they resembled a wave running ashore until the first of them passed Kim. On seeing the result of the battle Anu did not wait for the spearmen to reach him. He turned and fled abandoning Kim and the reserve. Kim watched the oncoming tide of the foe and stepped into place. He had seen that the tactics of both armies consisted of simply running towards one another, fighting and hoping for the best. Barbarian tactics that could hardly have been more primitive. And what better weapon and tactic to defeat barbarians than the one with which one man once conquered half the known world with a small army. A man who conquered all the lands from Greece to Egypt and on to India. The man was Alexander the Great and the formation he used was the phalanx. The phalanx consists of spearmen standing several rows deep. When the spears are pointed to the front their blades form an impenetrable wall. When properly deployed on even ground the phalanx is unstoppable.

At an order from Kim the reserve fell into position and marched forward at an even pace. The first warriors of the enemy either hurled themselves into the wall of blades or were pushed in by the main part of their army coming up from behind. They fell to the ground pressing their hands to their bellies in a vain attempt to stop their blood from spewing out. As the phalanx marched on and stepped over the bodies of slain warriors the onward rush of the opposing army was brought to a standstill. A tremble of awe went through the ranks as the warriors realized they had come upon an obstacle that would not yield. An obstacle that was new and unheard of. And as the warriors at the front tried to push back to escape the wall of blades those in the rear were still pressing forward causing confusion. It did not last long. The phalanx pushed forward slowly but relentlessly and soon turned the army's slow retreat into a general rout. The opposing army fell apart into small groups and single warriors. They ran across the plain away from the phalanx and vanished into the mist. For the first time since the start of the battle it was quiet again. The air was thick and still, except for some groans from the wounded and the dying. The plain was strewn with bodies and abandoned weapons. A sweet sickening smell of blood was in the air. A sudden spine-chilling scream made Kim turn. Not far from where he was standing a wounded warrior was clawing at the dust. His legs had disappeared into the ground and he was being pulled down. Where his body went into the ground dust was being thrown up. After a few seconds his head went under followed by his arms and hands, which were desperately clawing at the ground to the last. Kim was shocked. What was this new horror? He looked around and saw other bodies disappear into the ground. His men didn't look concerned and were busy cleaning their spears. Whatever it was, it had to be well-known to his men and not pose a danger to them or they wouldn't have ignored the screaming man. He went to Nim and told him what he had seen.  
'Don't worry about it. It is only the Slork. They live underground in burrows. They can smell the blood of the wounded and then they pull them into their burrows to feed on them. But you are not hurt, so there is no danger.'

Kim was flabbergasted and didn't know whether to be more horrified about the creature or the careless indifferent attitude Nim had. 'But don't you want to help the wounded?'

Nim looked puzzled. 'What do you mean?'

'I mean we should ask our men to carry the wounded to safety so that they can recover. I don't want them to die and if they do then not in this way.'

'But we have never done this before. It is something new. Why should we do it? The men won't like it if they have to carry the wounded.'

Kim was growing exasperated as all the while they were talking more of the wounded and dying were being dragged underground. 'Look, I will explain it to you later. Just tell our men to do it.'

Nim was about to reply, but seeing the determined look in Kim's face he knew it was no use. Reluctantly he ordered the warriors to do what Kim had asked him. The men were still delighted at their victory and while ordinarily they might have refused to do such a, in their eyes, nonsensical task, they complied without too much grumbling. Going in pairs they slowly took the wounded, both friend and foe, of the battlefield and laid them to rest on higher rocky ground where there was no danger from the Slork. For Kim it was all too slow as there were still people being pulled away by the Slork. He exhorted his men to hurry, but to no big effect. At long last all the wounded were in safety and Kim instructed the men to make simple stretchers from their spears. This done, the wounded were placed onto the stretchers and the little army slowly wended its way back home.

Several days later Kim was standing at the entrance of Ta-ke's banquet hall watching his men entering. The days since the battle had been full of excitement and surprises for everyone. First Anu had returned with dreadful tales of the overwhelming odds his army had to do battle against. He even hinted that he might have won the fight if it hadn't been for Kim's cowardly and treacherous behaviour. He boasted that he had stayed till the very last when, deserted by even some of his troops, he was forced to flee. It didn't go unnoticed, however, that Anu arrived well ahead of his troops. When Kim and his men arrived in a well ordered manner that contrasted starkly with how Anu and his warriors had returned, the panic that had gripped Ta-ke's realm for several hours turned to joy. Suddenly Kim was transformed from coward and traitor into a hero. The tale of his great victory spread rapidly and the fact that he had even brought the wounded back only added to the sense of awe people had towards him. Anu revised his story quickly, but this did not prevent people from ridiculing him. Even his father, Lord Ta-ke made some pointed remarks and though Anu did not show this openly he was incensed and bore a deep grudge against Kim. Nim and the warriors on the other hand were revelling in all the attention they were given and for the first time they were truly glad that they were under Kim's command. Then Lord Ta-ke had announced the banquet to be held 'thrice three days after the great and historic victory' and what was more – it riled Anu to no end – the banquet was to be in Kim's honour while he, the son of Lord Ta-ke, wasn't even mentioned. Kim had been given more spacious quarters and he had received permission to bring Jane from her hovel in the country to live with him.

The hall was almost full now and Kim went to take his seat of honour near to where Lord Ta-ke would be seated. The tables were arranged in a great X, a shape believed to be propitious and lucky in particular for someone sitting in the centre. The centre was, of course, reserved for Lord Ta-ke whose table was on a dais so that he would always be able to look down on everyone else. Kim's seat was at the foot of the dais his own table being slightly higher than the others to symbolise a bridge between 'His Dread Lordship' and the commoners.

Then the guards at the doors pounded their spears thrice on the red stone floor and everything fell silent. Lord Ta-ke was coming! Or rather he was being carried in on a sedan-chair while all those present bowed their heads respectfully repeating the traditional greeting 'Hail! Our dread Lord Ta-ke. Hail! Our blessed father, giver of life and food!' three times, just as everything seemed to be done thrice as this was an extremely auspicious number. The sedan-chair arrived at the Lord's table and Ta-ke lifted his weighty body slowly out and half rolled onto his cosy seat. His hands were still greasy from his last repast and he seemed to be drunk already for when he tried to pick up the chalice standing on his table he knocked it over and the red liquid within gushed over the green and yellow table-cloth. Quickly servants refilled the chalice and when Lord Ta-ke had drunk from it the feast was opened. The men greedily dug their hands into large bowls of food and drank as much as they could. Kim, who was normally an abstemious drinker and despised drunkards and gluttons, took a sip of the red drink everyone seemed to enjoy so much and found it tasted like some concoction of vinegar, beer and sugar mixed together. He spewed it out and his men who thought he had introduced some new game or custom started spraying one another with the drink. Even Lord Ta-ke found pleasure in this activity. Then Lord Ta-ke took a lump of soft mushy food, formed it into a ball and threw it at someone. A roar of delight went through the hall and everywhere men could be seen either throwing food or trying to catch it in the mouth. Later great pots were brought in and put on the floor. In these was a thick blue mixture similar to cheese in taste. Fires were made under the pots and the men stuck chunks of a vegetable on their spears to cook these in the blue cheese. Whenever someone lost the vegetable in the pot great cheers arose for that hapless fellow would be laid on a table and whipped by one of the servants. After a whipping he would lie on the table guzzling down the red drink before joining the cheese and whip game again. At one point someone even fell into a pot. Shouts of laughter rang through the hall. When he clambered out again covered in thick blue cheese he was welcomed with a shower of red drink before being taken to a table to receive an extra strong lashing. After this everyone went back to the tables for the high point of the evening when feast turned into orgy. Steps were added at the ends of the tables and in quick succession girls ran up these and along the tables. The men sitting on both sides reached out and tried to grab their ankles while they were running. When someone caught an ankle the girl was pulled off the table amid bursts of laughter and the girl shrieking with delight would lustily romp about on the floor or a bench. The girls, Kim noticed, weren't trying very hard to elude their captors and not one of them managed to run across the whole length of the table. Meanwhile those men who had been too drunk to catch a girl simply joined one of the couples. Soon the hall was filled with groaning and moaning and the sounds of cups and chairs being thrown over. Hands could be seen grabbing furry breasts while servants brought in more to drink. The party had really moved onto the floor and the food that had fallen down earlier was mingling with spilt drink. As couples and larger groups rolled about they splashed around in the large quantities of red liquor and some began to lick it off the floor.

Kim watched the whole business with a kind of disgusted fascination. He did not enjoy wild parties at the best of times and a foul tasting drink and girls covered all over in fur didn't help to improve matters. So he was quite happy to be seated close to Lord Ta-ke where he was expected to keep out of the worst excesses of the banquet. Anu had in fact encouraged his father to do Kim this particular honour, for while he disliked the idea of a banquet in Kim's honour he hoped that by keeping Kim away from the main fun he might anger him considerably. Had he known how Kim really felt about the matter he wouldn't have taken as much pleasure in the orgy as he did.

### 9

While Kim was busy soldiering Morris and Pauline decided that their best course of action was to lie quiet, or lie doggo as Morris called it, and all the while find out as much as possible about the world they were in until they could discover a safe way out.

'From what I can gather,' Morris said one evening to Pauline, 'there are eight different regions to this world. There are the five kingdoms, the area ruled by priests, a wilderness and the forbidden land. What I really want to know is what's in the forbidden land. It's clear that there's much more to this place than just a bunch of alien savages and barbarians. They were never capable of building all this. Heck, I bet the smartest of them wouldn't be able to change the battery in a cheap toy. So who built all this? I reckon we have a good chance of finding out more in the forbidden land. If it's off limits to our local savages here then there must be something interesting.'

Pauline frowned. 'Maybe, or it could just be a dangerous place.'

'Heck, honey, everywhere's dangerous here. And I'm not sure sleeping with hairy barbarians who eat their own grandmother is any safer than sleeping out in the wild with those monster beasts, whatever they're called.' Pauline shuddered. 'I don't know, Morris. I guess you're right in a way but what we have here is the best we've seen in this nasty little world. The ulcers have all healed and we're fit and healthy again even if the food isn't great. I'd be loath to leave this for another nightmare.'

'Yea, and who gave us those ulcers,' Morris said scornfully. The same savages you're so grateful for letting us out of their dungeon and feeding us with scraps of lousy food. Hey, don't get me wrong. I'm grateful to Jane and Kim for their help and I ain't saying anything against them but we'll never be safe in this place. If his fucking lordship takes a fancy he can have us slaughtered and served up for dinner any day he likes. Now's the time to leave. We're fit again, we've stashed away some food and weapons, no one seems to take an interest in us at the moment, and best of all I know exactly where to go.'

Pauline looked surprised. 'You haven't told me anything about that yet. How can you be sure of the way?'

Morris grinned. I put the last few weeks to excellent use. I got one of Kim's officers to teach me how to read the local writing and on top of that I found a map of where I want to go. At least of the way we need to go. What's in the forbidden land no one here seems to know.'

'But how can you be sure the map is right?'

'That's just what I wondered. Kim gave it to me so I say to him, hey are you sure this thing's accurate and he says, yeah it's pukka gen. So I say what the heck does that mean? Can't you speak plain English? And he just grins and says it means it's totally reliable. Says he's been most of the way himself when marching around with his band of soldiers. I guess there's something useful about his playing war after all.'

The next morning they were ready to go with daybreak so as to make the most of the daylight hours. After a brief breakfast and good-bye from Jane they left their hovel and the village before even the first of the dwellers ventured forth. Not far from the village was their cache which they had carefully concealed in a shrubbery. Morris pulled out a long wrapped bundle and eyed its contents: two daggers, a spear, two cloaks for cold nights, two flasks of water and a week's supply of food. 'Not much,' Morris said, 'but it'll have to do. Kim thinks it's about four days' march to the boundary of the forbidden land, maybe three if we hurry.'

'Where's the map?' Pauline asked.

'Right here,' he said patting his pocket. 'Let's get going.'

They walked briskly throughout the forenoon only occasionally stopping for a brief respite to check the map or to sip some water. The village soon vanished from sight and they found the walking easy. There was still a good footpath to follow which the dwellers used every day to reach their fields. Later in the forenoon the path narrowed. They had left the area frequented by the dwellers behind and the only people who came this far were soldiers on training exercises who kept a path open by hacking away any plants trying to grow over it. The day was uneventful and both Pauline and Morris began to enjoy the fresh air and quiet. The ubiquitous filth and stench of the village was happily forgotten and the vegetation, while coarse and not very beautiful, offered a pleasant change. The land they passed through was flat and covered mostly in trees and shrubs. Only an occasional stream or dell interrupted this monotony. There was a total absence of any living creature and Pauline in particular was glad they didn't meet anyone or encounter some wild beast. The weather was dry and unusually clear so that the cloud cover seemed higher than on most days. They kept walking as long as there was light to see and only when this failed they chose a dell partly obscured and sheltered by some bushes to spend the night. The long walk had left them tired and weary and they were soon sound asleep. The second day was similar to the first except that the ground was now gradually rising as they approached a range of hills that lay between them and the forbidden land. On the evening of that day they reached the foot of the hills. The path was by then barely visible and it became clear that the easy part of their journey was over. It was almost dark when the trees receded and they came out onto an open stretch of land. Rising in front of them was the first hill they would have to climb the following day and at its foot they discovered a ruin. 'Well I never,' Pauline said in surprise. 'What do you think it is?' Morris shook his head. It was a square windowless building with only one entrance about two feet above the ground. Only rusty hinges remained of the door. There was overgrown rubble around it and the inside was covered with large stones. The roof had caved in long ago and it was hard to tell how tall it had been or what the inside had looked like.

'Looks like we found our motel for the night,' Morris said mockingly. 'At least we'll be able to light a fire in here. We won't have to worry about being seen and it'll be a bit warmer than last night. And look, I've even got a lighter.'

Pauline assented with a nod and a wan smile and helped Morris gather dry wood from the ground outside which happened to be plentiful. Soon they had a lovely blaze going. That with some food saw them drop off to the land of dreams before they had even noticed that they were falling asleep.

Pauline awoke with a start. Her heart was pounding. She looked around. It was dark. The fire had died down yet the embers were still glowing brightly. Everything was still. Or was it? She couldn't remember dreaming anything as is usual when awaking from a nightmare. So what had roused her? She stared intently into the dark. The glow of the embers barely sufficed to shed the faintest of lights on the surrounding walls. Morris's steady breath showed that he was still asleep. Not a sound disturbed the tranquil night and there was nothing to be seen, and yet a strong sense of unease kept Pauline alert. She felt that something was wrong. She turned to reach for some more wood to rekindle the fire. As she changed her position she suddenly saw it. There it was. She was sure. A very weak reflection of the light in a pair of eyes at the door. Putting her hand on Morris's mouth she shook him and whispered, 'there's a pair of eyes looking at us from the door.'

He grabbed the spear lying next to him and kept his eyes on the door. 'Get the fire going,' he whispered and sat up. Like a large cat ready to pounce a huge dark shape suddenly lurched through the air when he moved. There was no time to stand up. He only just managed to point the spear at the dark shape before it came crashing down. Terrified Pauline hurried to put small twigs on the embers and blew. Little flames leaped up and hungrily consumed larger pieces of wood that Pauline put on. Soon the fire illuminated the whole room. The beast was lying beside Morris, the point of the spear sticking out from its back. It was the size of a lion though its fur was dark brown. They examined its head cautiously. The mouth was gaping open exposing the kind of huge fangs sabre tooth cats once had. Morris cursed. 'These fucking things are the last thing we need now. Let's move the fire to the doorway. That should keep them out if there're any more.'

'What about being seen?'

'We'll just have to take that risk. Better than being surprised in the dark and carved up with those teeth.' He kicked the carcass. 'We won't be that lucky again. That the thing just impaled itself and died on the spot is beyond luck. It's a fucking miracle.' He climbed onto the carcass and managed to pull the spear through while Pauline carried firebrands to the doorway and built up a nice big fire to block the entrance.

'We'll have to take turns to keep the fire going,' Morris said. 'I reckon we still have half the night before us. I'll take the first watch so you can lie down again and get some sleep.'

'I don't know if I'll be able to sleep after this,' Pauline sighed. 'Just try. We've a long tiring day ahead and it won't be any easier if we don't sleep. I'm keeping watch so just relax and close your eyes.'

The remainder of the night passed without any more events and dawn saw Morris and Pauline relieved to be alive. The carcass had begun to smell and they were both glad to leave it behind and be on their way. There was no path to follow anymore but fortunately the hill was covered in grass rather than bushes and trees. The grass was turquoise and coarse and it wasn't always easy to walk through it up the hill where it ranged from ankle deep to knee deep in length. They reached the top after an arduous walk and stopped to take a rest. Below them woodlands and brush stretched into the distance, from the horizon right up to the ruin where they had spent the night. Pauline pointed to the ruin. 'Looks like the beast had friends.' Two dark shapes scurried about the ruin, in and out of the door and around the building. One of them reared its head and let out a wailing howl that was answered by a similar howl from the woods.

'Shit,' Morris said. 'If those things come after us we're done for.' He pulled Pauline down to the ground so they couldn't be seen from below. As if in answer to his fears the shapes turned away from the ruin and trotted towards the hill. They had their heads to the ground turning here and there as if to make sure they didn't lose the scent.

'They're sniffing,' Morris said. 'It means they haven't seen us yet and they don't seem to be very fast following our scent. Let's get moving. We have to keep ahead of them. Judging by that thing last night they'll be moving a whole lot faster once they catch sight of us.'

They crept backwards away from the ridge of the hill. When they had descended a few feet they leapt to their feet and started off downhill running as fast as they could on the grassy slope. Sometimes their feet got caught making one of them tumble and fall and roll but fortunately there were no stones or boulders of any kind so they were unhurt. The way down was fast but the next hill was already waiting for them. They now faced a much steeper and rugged hillside that did not allow for a rapid ascent. Straining every muscle to get to the top as fast as possible they had almost reached the peak when their pursuers reached the summit behind them. It was not possible to hide anymore and their movements made Pauline and Morris easily visible. The beasts howled triumphantly and charged downhill. Out of breath and exhausted from the scramble uphill Morris and Pauline needed to rest and yet dared not linger for even a moment. The terrifying howls were enough to hurry them along. The descent proved much easier down a gentle slope that was lined on both sides by towering cliffs. Stumbling and rolling downhill they reached the bottom of the valley where Pauline let herself fall to the ground. 'Oh god, Morris. I can't anymore. My legs just won't work. I need to rest. If you don't do something to keep those monsters away they'll kill me.'

'Well what the fuck do you want me to do about them? I only have one spear. We gotta move. It's the only thing. Come on, I'll help you up.'

Pauline shook her head. 'It's no good. I really can't. Just do something.'

'What?'

'Then set the goddamn hillside on fire. That should keep them for a while.'

'Fuck, why didn't I think of that before?' He took his lighter out and started to set the grass on fire several feet up the hill to ensure the fire would only spread in one direction. He repeated this in several places to start a fire that reached from one side to the other leaving no room to go around. Soon a long line of fire was burning up the slope and dark smoke poured forth obscuring the view. Morris sank to the ground next to Pauline and took out his map.

'Great idea. If that doesn't slow them down I don't know what will. Anyway, by the look of this we've made good time. One more day should see us reach the forbidden land if we follow this valley. No more climbing,' he said and grinned.

They fell silent and gazed at the thick black smoke billowing upwards. From behind the smoke curtain a startled howl showed that their pursuers had come up against the unexpected obstacle of fire.

'Time to go,' Morris insisted. 'Lord knows how long the fire will keep them off.' He helped Pauline up to her feet and they set off down the valley at as brisk a pace as they could manage. The sides of the valley rapidly became steeper and turned into towering cliffs that did not allow for any change of direction. With the beasts behind them Pauline and Morris had no choice but to hurry towards the forbidden land and hope that it would be less forbidding than the name implied. The vegetation gradually became less and as they proceeded up the valley the already sparse vegetation was entirely replaced by rock and stone. The rocky ground of the valley was uniformly dark just like the cliffs on both sides. That and the cloudy sky above made Pauline feel almost forlorn.

'What a dreary place,' she said. 'No plants, no animals, not even a drop of water in sight anywhere.'

'I don't mind about the no animals,' Morris answered. 'I'm quite happy if we don't see the ones from earlier today again. I'm more worried about the water though. If we don't find any ahead we'll be in trouble. And look at the sky. The clouds are moving quite fast. I've never seen them like that before. Everywhere else in this world they just seem to be hanging in the air.'

Pauline looked up. 'They come from the forbidden land. Maybe that's where they're made.'

'If there's a cloud machine there, then there'll have to be water too, I bet. This is getting interesting. The valley's changing too. Have you noticed that the ground is quite easy to walk on now? There're virtually no stones lying around anymore and the sides have become very smooth. They're more like walls than cliffs now.'

Their voices echoed in the now narrow canyon yet when they didn't speak an eerie silence pervaded the place. Only once did a distant howl echo down the canyon. A sign that they weren't alone even if they were far ahead. The canyon was curved so they couldn't see far ahead or what was behind them. A few hours after setting out from the burning slope they reached the boundary of the forbidden land. On the way both Morris and Pauline had wondered what they would find. Images of skulls stuck on stakes and other horrors to scare off uninvited guests came to their minds but reality was far more surprising. They came round a sharp bend and faced a wall. The canyon simply ended. It ended and yet not quite. A large red gate was let into the black wall. They approached it and Morris rapped it with his knuckles. They heard a hollow metallic clang. Along the bottom of the gate dust and dirt lay piled up. 'If we can't get this open we're in trouble,' Morris said and tried pushing. It didn't budge.

'Try the side,' Pauline suggested. 'There's a gap here.'

They put their fingers in the gap and pulled. It wouldn't move at first but when they yanked and shook it the gate very slowly moved to one side revealing a deep dark tunnel.

'We can't leave this open with those things somewhere behind us,' Pauline said, but how are we going to see?'

Without a word Morris pulled the lighter from his pocket. 'We'll just have to find something to burn.'

They grabbed the gate and tried to pull it shut again but it wouldn't move an inch. Suddenly there was a peep and the faint green glow of a human hand appeared on the wall to one side of the gate.

'This doesn't look like the handprint of one of our savage friends,' Morris said. 'Let's try it.'

He placed his hand firmly on the green glow and the gate began to shut automatically while at the same time the tunnel came to life. The dark receded as the walls began to emit a warm white light and soon the tunnel was bathed in a pleasant warm glow. The gate closed with a clang.

'I'll be darned,' Pauline said flabbergasted. 'This is beginning to look a lot better than I'd feared.'

They cautiously walked into the tunnel. The dirt that covered the floor near the gate became thinner and several yards in the surface of the floor became visible. The walls looked the same all down the tunnel but when they came near a section the familiar green glow of a hand appeared on both sides of the tunnel.

'That wasn't here a moment ago,' Morris said. It looks like some sort of motion detector registers where we are and reacts to our presence.'

He stepped forward and placed his hand on the green panel. A door slid open revealing an empty room. He tried the door opposite with the same result. 'This place,' he said haltingly, 'has been empty for a long time. Lucky the stuff still works.'

'All we need to find is a launch platform with a little spaceship waiting just for us,' Pauline joked.

Morris gave a wry smile. 'Your words in god's ear. But then, who knows. After all we've seen anything is possible. And this definitely beats anything we've come across down here.'

They left the rooms and walked along the corridor. At the end of the corridor was one door. Pauline operated the opening mechanism. The door opened and all they saw was another empty room.

'That can't be all,' Morris said looking crestfallen. 'I mean, what's the point of building all this just for three rooms?'

'Maybe there's more to them than meets the eye,' Pauline suggested. Let's go in and see if we can find anything.'

They entered the room and the door closed behind them. As in the tunnel the walls of the room emitted a pleasant warm light. On the left side of the door two hands began to glow, one green and one purple. Morris tried the green one and the doors opened again. 'At least we know we can get out again,' he murmured. He let go and after a few seconds the door closed. He placed his hand on the purple panel. A symbol appeared on the wall next to his hand. They waited but nothing else happened.

'Try moving your hand,' Pauline said.

He moved his hand up and down and sideways but every time his hand left the panel the symbol vanished. He stepped back and shook his head. Pauline approached from the side and put her hand on the panel. The symbol appeared again. As she moved her position to be in front of the panel her hand turned slightly and the symbol changed. Surprised she let go and they could feel the room moving down and then stopping again.

'There we go,' Morris grinned. 'Up and down just turn your hand.'

They experimented with the panel to make sure of how it worked and in particular to make sure they remembered the symbol of the entrance level. Then Morris turned his hand and chose the last symbol. 'There's no way up so let's go all the way down,' he said.

When they reached the bottom they opened the door. On the other side was a dome shaped round room bathed in ubiquitous warm light. All along the wall green hands indicated the presence of further rooms.

'Hello, is anyone home?' Morris called, but the only answer was the echo of his own voice. 'Nice to know we've got the place to ourselves. I've met enough aliens to last a lifetime.'

'I'm thirsty,' Pauline said. 'We haven't got any water left. Let's see what we can find.'

The first room they entered looked surprisingly familiar, almost like in their own space station. A desk, bed, chair and wall cabinet that was empty. Morris tried the bed but it crumbled away into dust. Pauline noticed another green hand inside the room and tried it. 'Yes,' she said triumphantly. There was a large hole in the middle of the floor and a showerhead hung from the ceiling. 'There's got to be water here. The question is just how to make it flow.'

'Try closing the door,' Morris guessed.

As soon as the door was closed water began pouring down drenching Pauline. She laughed enjoying the experience. She tried the water and it tasted alright so she drank her fill and refilled her flask.

'This is great,' she said to Morris when she came out. 'The water's nice and warm and quite drinkable too. Have a go.'

After they had both washed they explored the other rooms which all proved to be the same as the first one.

'Living quarters,' Morris said. 'That's all there is down here. And it's stripped bare. Pity there're no pictures or anything else like that. Let's go up one level and search everything. We've been damn lucky so far. Talk about the forbidden land. It's more like the inviting land.'

'Touch wood it stays that way. When we first came down from the surface of Mars past the airlock we also thought we'd found a great place. But it turned into a nightmare very quickly.'

'This is different,' Morris insisted. 'You can see no one's been here for ages, centuries at least. Amazing that all this equipment still works, now that's quality for you.'

'Whoever the builders were, they didn't seem to like decorations or pictures. All the walls and ceilings are the same. They shine, they're practical and no more.'

They went up one level. A corridor stretched to both sides and again they began the task of trying all the doors they came across. Again all the rooms were identical but they were apparently not intended as living quarters. Each room was quite short and narrow and a single seat stood in front of what looked like an instrument panel.

'Don't touch it, Morris,' Pauline said. 'You don't know what they're for. I don't want to be left in the dark just because you cut the power.'

'Ah what,' Morris scoffed. He found a familiar hand shape and activated the panel by putting his hand on it. Lights flashed and the wall behind the panel turned into a huge screen. A human face appeared on the screen and spoke a few words.

'I can't believe this, Pauline said. 'How can humans have been here?'

'Looks like our history books got some things wrong,' Morris remarked drily. While he kept his hand on the panel the same message was repeated over and over again.

'That doesn't sound much like what our aliens speak,' Pauline said.

'It doesn't, but it sounds like the language on my map.'

'Can you understand him then?'

'I think he's asking for a password to operate the instrument panel.'

'Well that's a relief. At least you can't do anything stupid then.'

'Thanks a lot,' Morris said annoyed. 'And without me you would never have seen the recording, would you?'

Pauline ignored the question. 'Look, there's something on the floor between the wall and the instrument panel.'

Morris stretched his arm and managed to retrieve a rectangular letter size object. He examined it but it looked the same all over. Pauline placed her open hand in the middle and the object came to life. Several large red symbols appeared on a green background.

'That looks like the writing on the map.' Pauline said. 'Can you read it?'

'Yes, it says "Nadamu".

### 10

Every three years the five tribes would gather in the Great Hall for a special event. It was an immemorial custom that in the three months preceding it, when any form of fighting was forbidden, the tribes would each select one team, which went high up into the Phallic Hills. There a large tree was chosen – each team tried to find a tree higher and bigger than all the others – and cut down. The trees were hewn into shape and then each carved into a large phallus. A great deal of effort was put into the carving and polishing of the phalli and when all was ready they were slowly carried downhill to the River Swive. There rafts had to be constructed to transport the phalli along the river to Lake Gelid, across the lake and up the Holy River till they reached the Great Hall. In the hall the phalli were erected in special stands and one morning at dawn the priests chose one of them to be put in the Dome of Eternal Life. There the chosen phallus was preserved forever representing both continuity of life and fertility for the following three years. The lucky team whose phallus had been chosen was showered in honours and returned home in the knowledge of having gained a great victory for their lord. And while the ceremony was supposed to be fraternal in character in reality each lord hoped to best the others so that the glory and honour of having won was his for three years.

It was for this reason that Toko, the joints of his long legs creaking, went to Kim. The message from His Dread Lord was rather long as it was to be expected that Kim would not be familiar with the aforementioned custom. Toko wondered why Kim had been chosen for such a delicate task. Having an outsider live in the realm was already unheard of, but to charge a stranger with creating a phallus was passing belief. Toko did have his moments when he doubted his lordship's sanity, though he never spoke to anyone about this, and this was one of them. But there was nothing to be done. His Lordship had charged him with commanding Kim to lead the phallic expedition. Not being a man of many words Toko carefully selected and chose those that were most apt to describe the sacred task Kim was to do. He found Kim exhorting his troops to do some silly exercise or other. Being a firm believer in tradition and customs of yore he did not approve of any kind of innovation and exercising warriors was just one of those things he could not understand. It had never been done so why did this stranger insist on such silliness? However, this was one more thing he could do nothing about and breathing in deeply he stepped up to Kim and delivered his message.

'So when do we have to start?' Kim asked.

Toko sighed fingering his stick nervously. It was going to be one of those days where he had to explain everything twice and in great detail. Normally he might have used his stick to help someone remember more quickly, but seeing Kim surrounded by his warriors that was not an option.

'Ten days hence you and your chosen men will set forth,' Toko replied.

'And I can take anyone I want with me?'

'You may take three dozen men including yourself.' And with that Toko abruptly turned on his heels and walked away before Kim could ask any more questions.

Though Kim may have had his doubts about the expedition his men were quite happy when they heard the news. For while in general they were not very keen on doing things that involved any effort the honour of carving a phallus and taking it to the competition along with the prospect of more banquets more than offset their sluggish character. The only thing that remained to be done was to choose which of his men would be allowed to come. And here Kim decided that, having another ten days before their departure, he would watch how well they behaved and then choose on merit. This caused an unprecedented burst of energy from his men with even the laziest avidly carrying out his orders. Even unpopular tasks such as cleaning out the latrines seemed to have found considerable favor among his men with each of them vying for attention. In the end, though, a choice had to be made and inevitably there were a lot of disappointed faces among those who couldn't come. Their faces got even longer when told that war leader Nim would stay with them to take them out for further exercises. Nim himself wasn't happy as he had wanted join the expedition, but as Kim had pointed out there wouldn't be anyone to look after the men if he came as well ruling out his absence.

On the day ordained Kim's little band set off at first light. They were seen off by Lord Ta-ke and much of the populace waving them on cheerfully. The girls in particular were enthusiastic to see their heroes go on another adventure which, though not as dangerous, promised as much if not more glory than their previous exploit. Self-conscious and proud of having the attention of so many beauties the young warriors stood very erect and pushed out their chests as much as possible ostensibly to impress his dread lordship, but it would be nearer to the truth to say they wanted to show off to their sweethearts. With the steady thump of their feet on the ground they soon left the little crowd behind them. The country around them was dry with sparse vegetation. A little cloud of dust followed in their wake and after several hours march, it was sometime in the late forenoon, Kim called a halt. They had reached the top of the pass across the black mountains. Below them lay bleak dusty plains in the middle of which the Blood Nullah could be seen snaking towards Lake Gelid. Beyond the plains Kim could see the famous Phallic Hills. The shrubbery low on the hills slowly gave way to grey tree-like plants higher up. It was these trees they had come for. They would have to select the tallest and straightest tree they could find, chop it down and take the trunk to the banks of the River Swive. There it would be their task to carve the most intricate and beautiful phallus imaginable out of the hard wood, build a raft and transport the phallus down the river and on through Lake Gelid till they were near the Great Hall where the phallic exhibition and competition was to take place. Kim sighed deeply as he looked back at his men contentedly munching their rations. Nothing he had ever studied and learnt had prepared him for the carving of a giant phallus out of an alien tree. Not in his wildest dreams would such a thought have occurred to him and if, as was altogether unlikely he had had such a dream, he was sure he would even in his sleep have dismissed it as ludicrous and gone on to dream more sensible things. But there he was, Captain Kim Pottinger of the European Space Agency, marooned on the very planet he had wanted to come to and preparing to carve an extra-terrestrial phallus. He wondered what he would tell people when he got back home or rather, he corrected himself, if he got back. The truth obviously wouldn't do. The only reward for being truthful would be to get locked away in some asylum or other. He sighed again. It was one of those vexing questions he couldn't make up his mind on and he would have to let it wait. There were more pressing matters at hand in any case. He gathered his men and they went on their way again up hill and down dale as the saying goes.

The following days passed uneventfully, that is to say everything went as well as could be wished. They reached and ascended the Phallic Hills and quickly found a number of trees suitable for the task at hand. It came to Kim to choose the right one and he picked a magnificent two hundred and sixty foot giant. His men eagerly attacked it with saws and axes and it was not long before this pride of the forest came crashing down. They all cheered and set to cutting off the now unwanted branches so that the huge trunk could be pulled down the slope to the River Swive. Moving such a giant without machines or animals proved to be very hard and they all lost a good deal of sweat on it, but they managed by rolling the trunk on short round logs. Thus they reached the River Swive a good two days ahead of schedule as Kim was pleased to note which gave his men some welcome time to go hunting and foraging for food as well as some rest before their next task.

Ainu, the master carver of Lord Ta-ke's warriors, busied himself measuring and examining the colossal trunk. He marked out the dimensions the head and shaft of the phallus were to have and split the little band of warriors into teams with very distinctive tasks. As in every undertaking it is important that responsibilities are laid out clearly. Ainu was now completely in charge of the carving of the phallus while the overall command of the expedition rested with Kim. And so Kim along with his warriors set his still aching muscles to work on the trunk. Privately Kim was as much astounded as delighted with how much gusto his men set about their work. Normally they were quite lazy and he had to keep a constant eye on them even more so in a situation where their rather pampered stomachs were under assault from the less than delicious food gathered in the woods. But quite apparently their hearts were into their present task and Kim only hoped that it would last. What would happen should they lose the phallic competition was not something he liked to think about.

After a few days of concerted exertions the phallus was beginning to take shape. Some detailed work done by Ainu himself took away the last roughness and soon thereafter their Herculean task was completed and this proud and erect part of the male anatomy, both human and alien, lay on the bank of the River Swive. One of the other teams had passed them by earlier in the day floating down the river with their own phallus, but Kim and his warriors weren't bothered. They were still well within schedule and as the winning phallus was chosen on aesthetic grounds it didn't matter who got there first. All they had to do was to get their phallus on the ground and in position ahead of the deadline looming in the back of Kim's mind.

When the raft that was to carry them was ready they secured the phallus to it and then heaved and hauled both raft and phallus into the black waters of the River Swive. They all clambered aboard and the current carried them away. Until they reached Lake Gelid there would be little to do and a collective sigh of relief was audible on the little vessel. Aching muscles were rubbed and massaged, ointment applied to cuts, sores and bruises, and hungry bellies filled. The river carried them steadily away from the hills they had come from and woodlands gave way to more barren terrain. In fact the nearer they got to Lake Gelid the more the surrounding country reminded Kim of a Siberian tundra. Little wonder, he thought to himself, that the lake went by the name of Gelid. The river water was very cold already and the icy lake probably well deserved its name. It was not a place he would be too keen to go bathing in. The matter of names brought his attention back to the river. Why was it called Swive? Was it so named because of countless generations of phalli passing through it? Or was there some unrelated reason? His men didn't know and were rather surprised by his question. They merely told him that the river had always had this name. Not satisfied Kim made a mental note to enquire when he got back to Lord Ta-ke.

Their journey down the river had begun on quite a cheerful, even upbeat note. Kim greatly enjoyed watching the alien and yet strangely familiar landscape pass by. But now that they neared Lake Gelid the weather began to change. The perpetual ceiling of clouds came visibly lower and a chilling wind brought the damp air of the lake to them. Then it started to rain. A steady drizzle soaked them to the skin and slowly washed grime and dust away with their bodily warmth. And while his men seemed resigned to their fate, or maybe it was just that their thick furry pelt protected them from the worst, Kim felt chilled to the marrow and every minute seemed longer than the one before. As they entered the dark waters of the lake the current which had carried them so far slowly ceased and they had to row. And while rowing in a constant icy drizzle is far from being pleasant the men and Kim were glad to take their turns as the exercise warmed them. The shores of the vast lake vanished behind a grey curtain of rain and mist and they only made slow progress. Kim now wished they had built a canoe rather than a raft, but his men some of whom had been on previous expeditions had assured him that using a raft was better. And so they struggled to push the unwieldy raft forward while pulling the dead weight of an enormous phallus behind them. Fish though plentiful in the River Swive had become hard to catch and Kim hoped they would reach their destination before they ran out of food. Rowing in a cold drizzle was bad enough without doing so on an empty stomach. In the event, however, everything went well and one afternoon the estuary of the Holy River came in sight. Being so close to their final destination lightened their spirits once again and the rowers strained in their oars with renewed gusto. At last they drew up at the quay near the Great Hall. Men with burning torches were on the quay to welcome them and to show them they way in the waning daylight. Kim and his men climbed up the steps to the quay and fastened their phallus securely to the quayside. They resolved to lift it out of the water the following day, but that evening they were too tired and weary to do anything. And so, after a heartening meal, they were shown to their quarters and immediately dropped off into a deep exhausted sleep till late the next day.

When Kim awoke the next day, the forenoon was almost gone, his mind was filled with the images of their reception the night before. He and his men had been given what was theirs by right of ancient tradition, food and shelter, but through the faces and voices of the temple workers he had discerned an underlying resentment and even hate. It was clear that they were not welcome and this worried him. Fighting, of course, was not allowed at the great phallic fertility ritual, but mightn't the priests resort to trickery? There was nothing for him to do while everyone was waiting for the other entries to the great phallic competition to arrive, a competition where, Kim hoped, size did matter. It was with good reason that he had chosen the tallest tree they could find. After a quick breakfast made up of the purifying foods chosen by the temple folk he made up his mind to go exploring. He was particularly interested in the Great Hall of the Phalli. Which entries had won in past years? He strolled up to the huge gate that stood open at this time of year and entered the immense hall. A dull red glow emanated from the floor that reminded Kim of his first horrifying introduction to alien culture at the Hall of Lothrod. Long rows of phalli stood upright on both sides of the hall bathed in a gentle red light. The hall was windowless leaving the ceiling black so that the phalli appeared to glow against the dark background. He strode into the hall and scrutinized the phalli. Most were lifelike with veins going up the sides and a bright red head at the top. The sizes ranged from medium to tall but as far as he could see none of them surpassed his team's phallus. Was this good, he wondered, or was there some sort of height limit? He looked up at the ceiling. There was plenty of space between the tip of the highest phalli and the ceiling so erecting his team's phallus shouldn't be a problem. He smiled at the thought of 'erecting a phallus'. No pun intended and not in his job description. He walked the length of the hall. Everything was uniform and looked the same except for small variations amongst the phalli. The ceiling and walls were dark all around drawing attention to the phalli. Finally he gazed at the floor. 'There's more to this place than meets the eye,' he mumbled. 'Much more. I can't believe that those degenerate perverts who run the place today are even remote descendents of the original builders. Something's not right.' He resolved to keep his eyes and ears open for any clues to this mystery and left the hall.

Outside he saw groups of workmen walk towards the quay. When he got there he saw that others had put up a huge wooden crane and were beginning to attach ropes to the giant phallus in the water. Under the stern gaze of a priest they slowly lifted the giant member out of the water and placed it on a cart of enormous proportions. It took all the workmen to heave and push the cart with all their might and main to set it in motion. They managed to move it past the great hall towards the Field of Fertility where the winning phallus would be chosen during an elaborate ceremony. At the entrance of the field a gigantic vagina dentata took the place of a gate and the phallus entered it head first, the shaft following deeper and deeper until the entire phallus had passed the welcoming lips and threatening teeth of the entrance. Thus the symbolism of the entrance was twofold: The lips offered a pleasant welcome and fertility to the winning phallus while the teeth threatened destruction to all those phalli that had been found wanting. The field itself was round in the shape of a womb and lined with erect stone phalli. At the far end opposite the entrance an area was reserved for the wooden phalli in the competition. Beside this area was a raised platform for the ceremonies to be performed. After considerable exertions the workmen managed to erect the newly arrived phallus and everyone stood back admiring its enormous size, the biggest one that had ever been seen in living memory and well beyond.

The day of the ceremony came and the five phalli were arrayed like huge explicit maypoles, each awaiting its moment of glory or doom. The Field of Fertility was crowded with eager onlookers whose incessant chattering, shouting and laughing caused a din that Kim had last heard on Earth. The sight of the huge phalli was, by local standards, a huge source of excitement and Kim was feeling rather chuffed with himself for having contributed by far the tallest phallus. 'I think we've got a good chance of winning,' one of his men standing nearby said. 'Just hear how many here admire our size. They've never seen one like it before.'

'So I see, but I'm not sure the priests share their enthusiasm,' he said wryly. 'They'd much rather have me on a sacrificial altar than standing here.'

'Never mind,' the soldier said. 'Here the people choose by acclaim. The priests can't go against popular choice. If we win the crowd we'll win the competition. Then Lord Ta-ke can take his rightful place in the great ritual and we shall have anything we want.'

'Anything?'

'Yes. We name it, we'll get it.'

This gave the competition much more importance than even Kim had expected. Would Lord Ta-ke's magnanimity go so far as to let them have their surface suits again along with an escort back to where they had entered this bedlam world?

Suddenly a group of horn blowers created a deafening din by blowing their horns in what sounded to Kim more like a cacophony than any discernible melody. Nevertheless a hush fell over the crowd who recognized the racket as the fanfare that marked the opening of the competition. Thousands of eager faces turned to the podium where the priests were assembled. The first part of the competition consisted of ceremonial speeches, incantations and the singing of hymns that dragged on for several hours. Kim at least thought of them as 'dragging on' and felt profoundly bored as the forenoon slowly wore on. The crowd on the other hand revelled. The more they chanted and sang, the more speeches they heard, the more excited they became until the mood had reached fever pitch. At last the priests moved to one side and actors climbed onto the podium to enact a mystery play. It told the search of the earth goddess for her lost child symbolizing the birth, death, and reappearance of vegetation. It ended with the scattering of reproductive organs of animals on the field where everyone was standing and Kim took care not to be hit by any. Then erotic pastry in the shape of phalli was handed out to the crowd and soon everyone was biting into the holy pastry starting at the head and finishing with the testes as custom demanded. Since time immemorial generation upon generation had done this in the belief that it would promise fertility and fecundity for them and their land. While the crowd was busy devouring the holy phallic pastry the high priest walked from one wooden phallus to the next giving praise and extolling the virtues of each. It was clear which one the priests preferred: a phallus of medium size. When the priest reached the phallus Kim and his men had wrought and brought his speech was very short and almost disdainful. Kim's very presence was poison to their minds and it was their way of telling the crowd whom not to choose. To Kim's delight this didn't have the desired effect on the crowd. The winning phallus was chosen by popular acclaim. The high priest walked from phallus to phallus and the crowd then cheered for the phallus they liked best. Kim's entry drew by far the loudest and longest cheers and when the irate high priest repeated his walk along the phalli in the hope of a different outcome, the choice was clear. Even those in the crowd who had opted for a different phallus the first time now cheered for the tallest and biggest phallus that had ever been seen: size did matter.

'That'll teach you bloody god-wallahs,' Kim thought and walked at the head of his men to the podium. Behind the high priest's smile Kim quickly discerned an incandescent rage that boded ill for the future. With a friendly smile that Kim hoped would not betray his feelings as clearly as the high priests, he stepped forward and accepted the prize: a golden phallus that would grace Lord Ta-ke's realm for three years until the next competion. He turned to the crowd and held it high above his head. He was answered with a roar of religious and sexual frenzy. Thrice he lifted the golden phallus and three times the crowd roared. This marked the end of the first part of the day's events. The afternoon would be spent with a feasting and merry making in which many a poor dweller could consume more food than during the entire rest of the year. Little wonder that everyone was ecstatic.

Outside the Field of Fertility stood five tents belonging to the five lords who all hoped to win the competition. Kim walked to Lord Ta-ke's tent with his men. He bore the golden phallus in his arms and was greeted with shouts of joy from the guards. 'Come in, come in,' Lord Ta-ke shouted and with all matters of ceremony being forgotten for once, Kim and his men poured into the tent. 'Ah, victory! Victory is ours,' a delighted Ta-ke said. He almost seemed to be dancing on his portable throne moving hither and thither in his eagerness to hold the golden phallus in his hands which caused the masses of fat on his body to shake and wobble in a way that made his lordship look like a gigantic jelly. Kim couldn't help himself at the ludicrous sight and burst out laughing but fortunately Lord Ta-ke mistook his laughter as a sign of joy at having won the competition. 'My dread Lord,' Kim said while bowing low and holding out the prize. 'May this golden phallus bring glory and fertility to you and your realm. May your reign last for a thousand years.' His Lordship grabbed the phallus with evident delight and greed. 'Mine,' he said. 'Mine at last. You have done well, Captain Kim. I am most pleased with you and your men. How those gormless priests must be angry now,' he chuckled. 'Tell me, how was the high priest when he gave you this?' he patted the phallus.

'He tried to smile,' Kim replied, 'but I could see he was furious.'

'Good, excellent, splendid,' Lord Ta-ke chuckled again. 'But now you must leave me. We'll talk again when we're back at the palace. Tonight are the phallic festivities and I must prepare for I will have the central part. Get some rest this afternoon. It's going to be a long hard night of fun,' he said with a wave of his hand that showed they were dismissed.

'Ta-ke was unusually friendly and talkative,' Kim thought, 'but then he bloody well ought to be after what we did for him.' He gave his men leave to enjoy the festivities and walked off on his own.

The afternoon was uneventful. There was food and drink galore and folks stuffed themselves before going for a nap and upon awakening straight back to the feast. Even Kim, who as a rule wasn't keen on the alien food, had a hearty meal and some drinks of what looked and tasted like mead. He saw the festive spirit that everyone enjoyed though he himself couldn't fully enjoy himself. He was alone and felt somewhat lonely. Towards the late afternoon, he was just walking around looking at the things displayed in sundry stalls, his luck changed. 'Kim!' an overjoyed voice called behind him. He turned and saw Jane waving. 'Oh Jane,' he said taking her in his arms. 'I'm so glad you managed to come. Life's dull without you.' She smiled and kissed him. 'Then you already know why I had to come. And besides, who'd want to stay in a mud hovel when there's a huge festival going on. Anu helped me get here. When he heard from Ta-ke that you'd won the competition he was jubilant and tried to get credit for being your mentor.' Kim laughed. 'I'm sure he would. Always ready to take credit where none is due and never at hand when there's something to be done. Good old Anu. Wouldn't our lives be dull without him,' he said with a twinkle in his eye. Jane boxed him playfully. 'Oh come on,' she said. 'He's not that bad and he has done us some good turns.'

'That he has,' Kim admitted. 'But never mind Anu. Let's enjoy ourselves here while it lasts. The pleasure of good food and a bursting full stomach is going to be all too fleeting in this world I fear. Are you hungry?'

'Famished,' she said. 'I only just got here and had no time to eat yet.'

Kim took her to some of the better food stalls and they came away with as much they could carry. While Jane was eating Kim related the events of the previous weeks leading up to the triumphant victory in the competition and Ta-ke's promise to see him upon their return to the palace. 'One of my men told me,' he concluded, 'that I would be able to ask for pretty much anything I want and Ta-ke will give it to me. Sounds like our winning ticket out of here.'

'Oh Kim, that's marvellous. If we can get all our suits back and a guide or escort to the exit we'll finally be out of here.'

Kim nodded. 'If Ta-ke keeps his word. There's no end to treachery in this world. I hope he's not too fond of us or our services. But anyway, there's four of us. If we can just get him to let one of us go it should be enough. The other three will just have to wait till help comes. It would take a few months to send arms or soldiers from Earth but I can live with that if I know I'm getting out in the end.'

At last it was dusk. Gradually everyone left the food stalls or awoke refreshed from a pleasant slumber and went to a great open space by the lake. The sounds of musical instruments could be heard from there, though again it was hard to say whether the musicians were trying to play together or if every musician just made whatever sounds he thought best. A large pile of wood was by the shore and when most people had come a priest set fire to it. Soon the pyre blazed away. Torches were handed out to everyone and like everyone else Kim and Jane lit theirs in the flames of the pyre. Then the priests followed by the band led the way on a ceremonial procession. They walked past the shrine of fertility and the fane of fecundity, there was a rock of life and a chasm of death. They crisscrossed the fields chanting magic words until they came to the spring of life, the waters of which were said to be not only holy but have magic properties that promised a long and healthy life. Little wonder then that the procession hastened there where everyone drank avidly. 'The water's magic doesn't seem to work for very long considering how young most people here die,' Kim said. 'Odd how they don't notice.'

Jane smiled sadly. 'That's religion for you. The true believers never see the difference between their beliefs and reality. Having said that I'm also going to have a cup of magic water. If I ever get back to Earth I'll be able to tell everyone that I drank from the magic spring of life on Mars,' she laughed.

The procession then wended its way back to the Field of Fertility through the vagina dentata like a long fiery snake. This time the priests did not climb onto the podium but halted in front of it. There was only one person on the podium whom Kim and Jane recognized immediately: Ta-ke.

He was clad in a bright red ceremonial robe that reached his ankles. Arms akimbo, he stood in silence while the procession entered the field until everyone was present. Then he raised the golden phallus high above his head calling, 'Oh mighty phallus, bringer of life and rod divine, hear my prayer and grant my wish, that death be banned from us tonight for we who adore thee celebrate life!' The crowd echoed his holy words that were part of the evening's ritual and never varied.

Then thrice three virgins walked onto the podium behind him who were dressed all in white and wore wreaths on their heads. The crowd below fell silent in eager expectation. It was believed that a fertile marriage would result if virgins were first deflowered by means of the golden phallus and the nine chosen virgins counted themselves lucky to be in the ceremony. At a nod from Lord Ta-ke they disrobed themselves and let their white garments drop to the floor. Especially the male members in the crowd eyed their luscious naked bodies with glee and lust. The virgins then turned round and bent down to expose their most private parts. Lord Ta-ke applied holy oil to the golden phallus and approached the first virgin. 'May you be blest with many children,' Lord Ta-ke called loudly and pushed the golden phallus into her tearing her hymen. She gave a shriek that was greeted with delight in the crowd and then Lord Ta-ke held up the golden phallus glistening red with blood for all to see. This was repeated another eight times. The nine virgins still stood bent forward. By then Lord Ta-ke had become very excited himself and Kim soon discovered why. Ta-ke quickly took off his red robe and put the gory phallus on top of it on the floor. To ensure the promise of fertility it was his duty, or as Ta-ke would see it his pleasure, to mate with each of the nine deflowered girls. His excitement was visible in his erect member and he quickly set to work on the first girl. The crowd was spellbound as his grunts and moans and the girls' shrieks came from the podium. His thin legs seemed too thin to support the masses of fat that swayed back and forth and it was nothing short of a miracle that Lord Ta-ke not only managed to stay on his feet so long but that he was able to fulfill his duty on all nine girls. When his last and greatest moan of ecstasy had echoed over the field the spellbound crowd awoke into a frenzy of copulation. The men just took whatever woman was nearest to them and no one seemed to mind or even notice if they were complete strangers to one another. The experience also aroused Kim and Jane who sought a more secluded spot. Everyone else was too busy to notice them but they still felt the need to be alone. They found a quiet nook behind a stone phallus and kissed passionately. 'We couldn't have found a better spot,' Jane giggled and looked up at the phallus towering above them.

'Right ho,' Kim said. 'Let the golden phallus work its magic.' He grabbed her buttocks firmly and pulled her to the ground where he rogered her to his heart's content.

Thus the night wore on until at long last the outburst of passion and lust had been satiated and all its participants lay exhausted. Jane and Kim lay in each other's arms their nude bodies pressing tightly against each other as much for love as for warmth. Without the fur that the aliens boasted the night was too chilly to be undressed for any length of time. With the heat of their passion dissipated they soon felt the need to get dressed again and none too soon for the last act of the festival was about to unfold.

Suddenly the sound of a mighty drum boomed through the still night. The crowd stirred and woke from the slumber of sexual exhaustion. Slowly clothes were sought out from amongst all the garments on the ground and when the right coat or tunic couldn't be found anymore one simply made do with another one. Gradually the crowd drifted out of the gate, the vagina dentata, and towards the rhythmically booming drum. Kim and Jane were among the first to reach the drum. It stood at the foot of a knoll on whose top a stone altar was illuminated by burning torches. 'Whatever next?' Kim mumbled.

'Aren't you enjoying yourself?' Jane asked teasingly and squeezed his hand. 'I've enjoyed everything immensely, but right now I'm feeling knackered and I wish I was lying in a nice warm bed. With you,' he added quickly and gave her a kiss.

When the crowd was assembled the drum fell silent. Several people walked up to the altar. Kim recognized the high priest and the four captains of the losing teams in the competition. 'Hello,' he said. 'What's this? A ceremony for the losers?'

'I'm not sure anyone would want to be in this one,' Jane said. 'See their hands bound behind their backs?'

When they reached the altar each of the bound men was given a drink from a chalice held to their lips. Unseen by the crowd their heartbeats slowed and a heavy leaden stupor overcame them. They were still standing but their eyes were half-closed. A priest approached them with a short knife and cut off their clothes which fell to the ground. The four captives were then taken to the altar and made to bend over it with their backs to the crowd. The high priest sprayed them with holy water while chanting a divine hymn to the gods of fertility and fecundity. A shadow fell over the land. From the other side of the altar four priests reached out and slashed the captives' throats. The crowd was by then as silent as death and the blood could be heard splashing onto the altar. The high priest quickly went to the captives from behind and cut off their genitals which he collected in a golden vessel. He turned to face the crowd again. The dead men dropped to the ground behind him. No one cared.

'Behold oh gods and spirits of the south and grant fertility and plenty!' the high priest called while holding up the first set of genitals. Then he threw them off the knoll. He repeated the same to the north, east and west.

'Kim's face was as white as a sheet. 'I can't fucking believe that,' he said. 'That's where that bloody high priest wanted me and I'd be lying there with my throat slashed if it hadn't been for the crowd here. I can't believe that son of a bitch Ta-ke and his slimy Anu just sent me here knowing what might happen. If I ever get my hands on their sodding necks I'll wring them...'

'Steady now Kim, steady,' Jane said. 'You know we still need them. I can't imagine how you must be feeling but we need to keep our goal in mind. Don't be angry, please.'

'Oh I'll keep myself under control,' Kim said with clenched fists. 'Don't you worry. But if ever the day comes when we don't need those rotters anymore and I get the right chance...' He breathed hard and glared at the high priest on the knoll. 'And the same goes for these bloody god-wallahs and the other four lords. They've got everything while others starve, toil and get slaughtered. This world doesn't need them. Nobody needs them.'

And thus it came that Kim's hatred for all the rulers and priests in the land grew akin to a barrel of gunpowder biding its time until the right spark should come. But he controlled his feelings and banished them into the deepest recesses of his heart so that none but Jane knew how he really felt.

### 11

The argent light of the waxing moon shone onto the serene land of the world's greatest island, Nadamu. A myriad of twinkling stars lent their majesty to the all encompassing heavens that surrounded the peaceful landscape. The calm mild weather had induced the cows to stay out in the open rather than seek shelter in one of the many byres that were everywhere in the countryside. The occasional movement along with the regular breathing of the sleeping kine in the dead of night were the only sounds to be heard. All was still except for a shadow moving silently along the footpath leading towards the byre. The lonely figure carefully avoided coming near any of the cows lest an animal disturbed in its sleep betray his presence. The shadow was none other than Abutnet, son of a local farmer and as handsome as Adonis himself. On his way to the byre he paused at intervals and peered about to make sure he wasn't being followed. As on several previous nights he was on his way to meet the beautiful Talana. From the day they first met their affections and desires had grown with the waxing moon, each tryst being more passionate – and desperate – than the last; for theirs was a forbidden love. He, the son of a farmer, a thrall, a serf, a mere half-human, born to toil the fields and supply the populace with victuals. A being closely linked to the earth and the natural world and thus a link between the animal kingdom and the human world; but not a full human. And whom had this sub-human fallen in love with? Talana the beautiful, a pulchritude amongst the demi-gods of the island's society and as distant from a thrall as a soaring eagle from a lowly earthworm.

'I am come, my love,' Abutnet whispered into the dark open gate of the byre. His heart beat fast as he remembered the previous night, her warm embrace and his hands on her lithe body, feeling her silken skin and moving upwards to her soft round breasts that gave him such delight. She had pulled him into the dark byre where their love and passion shone as brightly as a thousand suns.

'I am come, my soul,' he whispered again into the dark interior of the byre, this time a little louder and with more need. They had first met a fortnight before. Her family owned a large and opulent country estate not far from the farm. Abutnet had been angling in a brook when she passed with her father. Smitten by his beauty she missed a step and fell into the water. The touch of the bare skin on her arms as he pulled her out was electrifying. Only one look passed between them and yet it was enough. Her father condescended to mutter a brief word of thanks to a man he would never otherwise have noticed and then walked on with his daughter.

'I am come, my life,' Abutnet whispered with more urgency into the beckoning dark. His yearning for her was the greatest he had ever felt, his need to be in her arms, her thighs was more than he could bear. He had no thought for the morrow and knew not what future there was for them, for in truth, they could never live together in Nadamu. And as for the barbaric lands beyond the sea, who could find a way there and who would want to live in the sordid caves that went by way of home? If Abutnet paused to think he knew all this and that was all the more reason for him to banish any thoughts about the future from his mind. The only time that counted was the present moment. The throbbing sensation in his loins became overbearing and he stepped into the dark byre. Suddenly he was thrown to the ground and pinned down by strong hands while bright lights cut through the dark. He felt his hands and feet being tied together so tightly that the rope cut through his skin. A heavy boot kicked him in the side and he rolled over. Towering over him was the Fascocrat, ruler of Nadamu and Talana's father, his face distorted by intense hatred. The Fascocrat's angry words were like a dirge to Abutnet's perished dream, a raging storm that wrought ruin. He lay in a dazed stupor. His life was over, a fact his brain had understood the moment he was cast to the ground, and the same instant his brain had shut out everything that was happening around him thus letting him believe that his love was there with him. Nothing is awry it told him, don't let anything disturb your dream, your love.

The absence of any reaction by Abutnet infuriated the Fascocrat even further and he kicked him viciously. They dragged him out and drove to Abutnet's farm where his parents and siblings lay asleep. They held his bloody and bruised head up and made him watch as they cast firebrands into the farmhouse. He was made to watch as his father and mother, his brother and sisters burned and screamed in agony ere death brought relief from their excruciating pain. His eyes saw the misery and suffering, the total destruction of his family, and yet his brain did not see. For his mind was far away in a byre in another time.

Earlier that day blazing green shuttle engines lit up the sky as the little craft ascended towards a spaceship stationed in orbit. The thrice yearly service was ready to depart when an urgent request by the Fascocrat to take on one more passenger had resulted in a brief delay. The shuttle docked and hurriedly discharged its cargo. A lone figure entered the spaceship and was taken to a spare cabin out of sight of the other passengers. Hers was a one -way trip of no return. The captain was under strict orders not to permit any contact with the other passengers or any crew members beyond what was essential. Talana passed through her cabin doors that shut automatically behind her. She surveyed her home to be for the next five weeks. A bed, a small desk with a monitor on it and a narrow door to the bathroom were all that offered variation to the small room's monotony. She lay down. The ships mighty engines started up and pushed her firmly down onto the mattress. The ship would continue to accelerate for a fortnight hurtling through space at an ever greater speed and providing artificial gravity for those on board. Talana turned to one side and pulled up her legs and started sobbing uncontrollably. Every minute, every second that the engines accelerated the ship her home, her life, her love receded in the distance until at last all that was dear to her would be no more than a dot in the dark sky, a twinkling star called Paradise Lost. She cursed herself. Why had she confessed everything when confronted by her father? Why hadn't she lied and denied everything? But then she knew that she couldn't. She had never been able to withhold the truth from her father, a cold overbearing figure with the well-nigh unlimited power of the Fascocrat. His voice still echoed in her head. 'A thrall,' he had yelled. 'You not only defy me over choice of your husband but bring shame upon all our family by having an illegal affair with a thrall. It's a shame that a thousand years couldn't expunge. This family casts you out.' He left her to his most loyal man, Mortnot, who quickly arranged her banishment to the distant planet that adventurers were eager to go to, but then only because they knew a triumphant return awaited them with life-long privileges. To be exiled there for ever on a little dusty world that knew not the sound of birds singing or the pleasant sound of waves lapping on a glorious white beach, to be exiled far from kith and kin, friends and social life was a crueller fate than Talana had ever imagined could befall her. Where was Abutnet she wondered? What had her father done to him? She had implored him to tell her. 'Mortnot will deal with him,' was all he would tell her.

There was nothing to do for five weeks. As each wearisome day wore on she gradually forced herself to hide her emotions. She had never been a strong person, willful yes but not strong. Her high social position had allowed her an easy life whose excesses were only checked by her father. But now she would have to learn to be strong. From most sought after belle to disgraced outcast on a rough frontier world. She turned her wounded heart to stone and waited for her new home.

Five weeks later she arrived in another small room under similar circumstances. Unlike the other passengers she hadn't even bothered to look out of the window when their shuttle descended. From the landing site to the entrance of her new abode it was but a short distance. They stepped onto a metal platform and slowly descended into the depths of the planet. The sunlight receded and soon the luminescent walls she had grown used to on her voyage were the only source of light. She sighed and wondered if she would ever see the sun again. Now in her room she emptied the meagre contents of her bag and put what few possessions she had into a wall unit. The door buzzed and opened a few seconds later. A tall stern man entered without asking for permission or giving any kind of greeting. 'I know why you are here and you know,' he said and looked at her with cold icy blue eyes. 'I am Pantocrat Anhep. Your father has entrusted me with the knowledge of your shame. You are to obey me in all matters and I will brook no insubordination. Be obedient and you will find your existence here tolerable, cross me and I will turn your stay into a waking nightmare. Do you understand?'

Talana nodded in silent assent.

'Very well, then. You will stay in your room unless you're asked to come out until...,' he paused looking at her belly with distaste, 'until that thing has come out.'

She felt his gaze burning on her abdomen and her face flushed. She cursed herself inwardly for being so foolish. How could she not have thought of it? She was carrying his child, a small piece of Abutnet had come with her. For the first time in weeks there was something that pleased her.

'After the birth,' Pantocrat Anhep continued, 'you will be relieved of your burden and if you live virtuously you may be readmitted into society.'

'You will take my child from me?' Talana asked and felt an icy hand grab her heart.

'It is not a child, it's just a thing, an abomination,' the Pantocrat said strictly. 'It's a burden to you and we will relieve you of it. Leave the matter to us. You need not concern yourself anymore with it. As I said before, obey and your life will be tolerable.' He cast one last glance at her and left the room.

During the months that followed Talana only saw two other people, a physician called Imhorep and a woman called Nefera who brought her food, clean clothes and anything else she needed. Nefera came several times a day and was always happy to exchange a few words even though they were not supposed to talk. 'Good morrow, Mistress,' Nefera would say when she came in every morning with Talana's breakfast. 'How is the little one today?' Talana merely smiled and put Nefera's hand on her belly. 'Can you feel him move?' she asked with a wan smile. She felt joy at having Abutnet's child in her yet at the same time Pantocrat Anhep hung over her child like the sword of Damocles.

Nefera left her hand on Talana's belly until she felt the child move, little kicks that heralded a new life. Nefera smiled with satisfaction. 'Now eat well, Mistress. You're eating for two. We want the little one to be strong when he comes, don't we? Have you thought of a name yet?' She busied herself with the breakfast things but when Talana remained silent she turned and saw tears in Talana's face. 'But whatever is the matter, dear? Surely your child is well or Imhorep would have said something. I saw him just last night. He's always so concerned about every little thing, almost fussy I call him though maybe that's a good thing with a medical man.'

Talana shook her head and looked to the floor. Nefera sat down beside her and took her hand. Ever since she had been charged with taking care of Talana she had wondered who the mysterious lady was and why she had come so far only to be confined to her room day and night. Talana's tears gave her an inkling of the truth. 'They're not letting you keep the child, is that it?' Nefera said for the first time guessing the truth. She had been admonished not to make enquiries about her ward but now she felt enough of a bond had grown between her and Talana that she could ask without fear.

Talana nodded. 'They'll take him away at birth. I shall lose my child ere I can call myself mother. I dread the day of his birth more than anything ever before. But where can I go? What can I do?' she said with pleading eyes.

'There's nowhere to go here, Mistress. If that's why you're here then that's how it will be. The Pantocrat controls everything. If there's anything you want he's the only one who can help you.' She patted Talana's hand and rose to finish her work. She turned to give Talana a last sad look but said no more before she left the room.

While Nefera's visits were always something to look forward to Talana felt rather different about Imhorep. In his capacity as physician he was a constant reminder of childbirth and the fate of her own child. As a person she found him smarmy and unctuous and he often gave her the feeling that behind his smiles and pleasant words he hid a much darker personality that boded ill for her. It was her first pregnancy and she was unsure what a physician really needed to examine and how regular his visits ought to be, and yet she couldn't help notice that his visits became more and more frequent until Imhorep came on a daily basis. She was young, inexperienced and cut off from any outside help or advice. Thus being vulnerable and at the same time exceedingly beautiful meant that she was rather hard to resist for an honest man. For a sleazy person like Imhorep she was irresistible. At first she welcomed his visits as a break from the long tedious days. He was quite ingratiating and knew how to please her, while always pushing the limits of how close and intimate he could be without pushing too hard. If he sensed that his advances caused unease he quickly put them off with a jest and a smile. His medical examinations too became more intrusive as time went by. Had he at first limited himself to more general examinations like taking her pulse, this slowly developed into an examination of her belly which he carefully felt with his hands, until at last he insisted on inspecting her genital area always citing the strict necessity of preparing for an unproblematic birth. His insistence on performing this last examination every day and his habit of firmly placing his hands on her thighs and then even moving them gently, increased Talana's feeling of unease till she was revolted and disgusted by him. But when she tried to object to his examinations his smarmy charm quickly gave way to anger and he accused her of endangering the life of her child. Too embarrassed to ask Nefera for advice she had no one else to turn to. Imhorep knew this and he derived great satisfaction at having a ravishing young woman quite literally in his power. He knew exactly what he wanted and things were progressing rather well, or so he thought. The Pantocrat had not enquired after Talana for several months and no one else seemed to show any interest in her. He was not aware of any messages from Nadamu regarding her. It seemed as if she had been forgotten.

His trump card was the thing she dreaded most, losing her child after birth. It had been easy for him to find out her feelings and how attached she was to her baby. The merest hint of Talana being able to keep her baby was enough to draw her ever closer into his grasp just like a moth attracted by a bright flame. Once he had planted the idea in her mind it was almost difficult for him to slow her down in her eagerness. Although she was doing just what he wanted from her he didn't want her to understand this but keep her in the belief that the idea was her own and that she had to persuade Imhorep to go along with it. As the time of the birth inexorably drew nearer her pleading with Imhorep grew more insistent and desperate. He toyed with her like a cat with a mouse, so that one day she felt he would help her and on the next he would be withdrawn and more cautious again. It was this that made her a willing victim. On the days he seemed to acquiesce to helping her and her baby she still felt revolted by his touch in intimate places, but when he appeared to withdraw his consent to help her or talked about the dangers of any such plans she almost yearned for his touch as it seemed to her the only way to get what she desired. Imhorep enjoyed all this very much. In reality he had never had the intention of helping Talana to go anywhere. Duping her into sex in return for nothing more than cheap words was all he had intended and it suited him while the birth was still months away. But as the date of confinement drew nearer he began having second thoughts. Not that he had become a moral man who felt pity for a young mother. His motivation was pure self-interest. If Talana gave birth where she was intended to her baby would be taken away immediately and there would be no more incentive for her to continue her relationship with him. And so with the date of the birth approaching he began to think in earnest if not some way could be found to let Talana escape from her predicament while at the same time maintaining his hold over her. At first this seemed quite impossible as there was nowhere on the base where one could hide and the world beyond was off limits unless one had a special permit. He didn't have such a permit and his attempts to sound out the official in charge of issuing them was met with blank refusal. Just when he felt he had come up against an insurmountable wall fate intervened in the form of a very sick and equally beloved princess in the barbarian yonder.

'Imhorep,' the Pantocrat had addressed him very seriously. 'We don't usually like to be involved in barbarian affairs as long as they supply us with what we need. But at the moment we have a lot of different problems on our hands and there's one of the barbarian leaders I depend upon to keep our supplies safe. His daughter is sick, maybe dying. I need you to go and see what you can do.'

Ordinarily Imhorep would have tried to refuse going but the opportunity that offered itself to him seemed too good to be true. His mind raced as he thought how he could exploit it to his advantage. The Pantocrat interpreted his frown as an unwillingness to go, something he had anticipated. The outside was perilous, dirty and barbaric. No one in their right mind chose to go there if there was no urgent need. 'Of course you'll be handsomely rewarded for your efforts, in particular if you're able to save the girl, and if there's anything else I can do for you...'

This was more than Imhorep had hoped for in his wildest dreams. The offer of a boon by the Pantocrat was most unusual and unheard of. 'Well, sir,' he began slowly while his sleazy mind looked for a way to persuade the Pantocrat to do what he himself desired without making it obvious. 'It would require quite a sacrifice for me to go and stay with those creatures, not least as it may involve personal danger,' he said emphasising the last word, 'and while I am quite willing to make such a sacrifice if our people need it, I am rather concerned about my present patient. Leaving her alone at this stage could be risky.'

The Pantocrat looked bewildered for a moment. 'Ah yes, I'd almost forgotten. When is the, ah, birth expected?'

'The date is set a fortnight hence, but that is just a prediction. It may be a bit later and it could also be earlier. In fact it could happen quite suddenly at any time now already. If she gives birth while I,' he added importantly, 'am away her very life could be at risk. Of course you will understand that I cannot take any responsibility for her well-being while I'm away.'

Imhorep managed to find just the right button to press. If something went wrong during the birth and the Pantocrat had sent the only available physician away at just that time he would be held responsible by the Fascocrat. And though Talana's father was far away it was entirely unclear whether he cared about his daughter and how he would react in the event of anything happening to her.

The Pantocrat frowned in thought. 'Very well,' he said guessing that Imhorep was trying to use Talana as an excuse for not going. 'You're quite right and I'm grateful for your consideration. However, unfortunately for you,' he said with a wry smile, 'you're still going.'

Imhorep looked crestfallen and the Pantocrat laughed at having guessed right. 'You're still going and you're going to take that woman along, where her well-being will be entirely your responsibility. Just as you wished, my dear Imhorep,' he added with more truth than he knew. Imhorep went through a storm of emotions. One moment he thought he had lost everything he had bargained for and the next he was getting more from the Pantocrat than he could ever have devised by himself. And best of all the Pantocrat believed that he was reluctant to go. Imhorep sensed the opportunity to get more for himself. 'Of course you'll understand that taking a pregnant woman along will require considerable supplies. She shouldn't be moving about much at all and...'

'Certainly, Imhorep, certainly. You shall have whatever you need.' He removed his personal seal from round his neck and handed it over. 'Take this and get whatever you need. Within reason,' he added with a frown almost as if he was beginning to regret a rash act.

'Of course, sir. You may rely on me. Only what is strictly necessary. I'll make all the necessary arrangements.' An exultant Imhorep bowed to the Pantocrat and left. Fortune had truly smiled on him he thought. He decided to make all his preparations as fast as possible. A chance such as this was not to be missed. He feared that the Pantocrat might rue his unheard of generosity and change his mind.

### 12

Morris stopped reading to Pauline. 'This is all very fascinating but we'll have to go on later. I'm thirsty and damn hungry. We're not likely to find anything to eat here so let's try to search the whole place as fast as possible.'

Pauline nodded. There's those bloody beasts waiting for us outside if we have to go the same way back. Better see if we can find something a bit more useful than your spear to deal with them.'

In spite of their best efforts to find anything else beside the book they turned up empty handed after several hours of search. Level after level, room after room the same picture presented itself to them: empty rooms that were either clean or where a patch of dust and debris showed an object had once been. Some rooms had obviously been living quarters but most had served a function that was not discernible. The sizes ranged from small as with the living quarters they had first encountered to huge rooms filled with consoles or very often rooms where marks on the floor showed that the contents had been removed long ago. There were no signs of any bodies or even living creatures, not even the tiniest of insects could be found. Everything was eerily clean.

'Looks like everyone moved house,' Morris remarked drily. 'If we stay here any longer we'll be eating dust soon. I hate to admit it but our trip here is a waste of time and effort.'

Pauline frowned. 'Oh come on, all this is sensational, and we don't know what else we're going to learn from the book. Back home that'll make you the most famous discoverer of all time.'

Morris laughed bitterly. 'Yeah, back home. Here it's just trouble to carry around. Who gives a damn about some old story. We ain't gonna live long enough in this place to enjoy a story if things go on like now.'

'Maybe we've made a mistake,' Pauline said thoughtfully. 'I mean if we're looking for useful stuff we could be in the wrong place. We also don't keep our gear deep inside a base. We store it near the exit where it's needed for going out.'

'And so? We saw all the rooms on the way here. There's nothing.'

'That's what we thought. But what if the first two rooms near the entrance were not simple rooms but actually lead into a different part of the complex. The stuff we're looking for could be there.'

Morris slapped his forehead. 'Of course, you're right. Why didn't we think of it before. It's certainly worth a try and we haven't found another way out so we'll have to go back there anyway. Let's get cracking.'

They went back up to ground level and were soon walking along the corridor toward the main gate. As soon as the doors opened onto the corridor they heard the sound of a beast howling.

'Great,' Morris said. 'That's all we need. If we don't find anything really good here we're in serious trouble. Hope your idea is right.'

'Maybe they'll give up after a while and leave.'

'I don't know,' Morris said shaking his head. 'They're damn persistent. Either they're really hungry or they're vengeful. Either way we're screwed if we have to rely on a spear against those things.'

They operated the wall panel and the door to one of the rooms opened. Once inside the door closed and Pauline immediately found a panel to operate. She turned her hand and the room descended. There was only one setting and they rapidly reached the next level. The door opened.

'Bingo,' Morris said. 'If any of this still works as well as the rest of the facility then we've struck gold.'

Pauline said nothing and simply walked into the large hall. On one side a row of vehicles was parked along the wall. Large metal wheels that were covered in knobs and spikes supported large purple cylinders with windows at the front and doors at the rear. Morris patted a vehicle admiringly and looked in through the door. 'I bet these were built as surface rovers. Look at the shape. Exactly what you'd need to withstand a difference in air pressure. And if that's the case there has to be another exit here. There's no way any of these would be able to get to the surface through the entrance that we came in.'

'You mean the lift?'

'No, goddamn it. Well, yeah that as well. I mean when we came down from the Martian surface we made our way down that cave in the mountain. It was much too small for a vehicle. There has to be another way up to the surface from here. If we find that and one of these rovers still works we can drive back to our shuttle and off we are on our way back home!'

'We'd still need spacesuits though to get to the shuttle, wouldn't we?' Pauline added doubtfully. 'And I'm not sure I'd want to trust this ancient thing to keep air pressure stable. All we need is one leak and we're done for.'

'Nag, nag, nag, Miss Pessimism,' Morris said somewhat disgruntled. 'This is a fantastic chance and maybe we'll find some spacesuits as well. Come on, let's see what there is.'

They spent the better part of an hour rummaging through the contents of vehicles, boxes and cabinets. Much of what they found was either too badly damaged to be of any use or of such an unusual appearance that they couldn't fathom its use. To their great disappointment there was nothing that resembled a spacesuit so Morris decided to examine some of the unknown artefacts more closely. Her hungry belly rumbling Pauline sat down on a box and watched Morris.

'I really wish we were back in the village with Jane,' she said. 'Dismal as it is, there's at least something to eat there. None of this old junk is going to help us. It's just like that book you found earlier, interesting but useless.'

Morris controlled his emotions, but inwardly he seethed. 'Just like the damn woman,' he thought. 'If I stay in the village and do nothing she'll complain that she wants out and when I get her out she complains that she wants to be back in the fucking village.' He decided to ignore her and went on fiddling with a shiny black object that looked a bit like a short umbrella except that in place of the fabric there was a hard cover and the handle was covered in strange glyphs. Annoyed by his silence Pauline continued to nag but was cut short when the handle began to emit a green light. A split second later there was a piercing sound and a flash of light shot from the tip of the object and slammed into a box right beside the one Pauline was sitting on. The box exploded into a cloud of smoke and debris.

'Holy cow!' an exuberant Morris shouted. 'It's a gun. This is just like Star Wars.'

But if Morris was delighted Pauline was outraged. 'You bastard,' she yelled. 'You nearly shot me. Can't you look what you're aiming at if you're playing around with a gun.'

'Come on,' he protested. 'I didn't know what it was.'

'Oh yeah? And that make's it okay trying to shoot me?'

'I wasn't trying to shoot you,' he said feeling increasingly exasperated. 'I just wanted to find out what that thing was, to find something to get us out of here.'

Pauline burst into tears. 'You men are all the same, you just care about yourselves,' she sobbed. 'So go on and play with that stuff. Maybe you'll find a bomb next and kill both of us if you want it so much.' She turned round and stormed off furiously to the far end of the hall. Morris cursed and kicked some of the debris lying around with his foot. 'Women,' he muttered angrily. 'Why do they always have to make things so damn difficult?' He decided to ignore her and try to work out how exactly the gun was operated. Merely touching the last light he had touched before the gun went off had no effect and it took him some time to get the right combination. He was more careful where he was pointing the gun at and when he finally managed to activate the weapon again it sent its deadly blast at a pile of junk. He repeated the action twice more to make sure he 'had got the hang of it'. Satisfied he turned to look for Pauline but there was no sight of her. 'Probably sulking in a corner,' he muttered. He shrugged his shoulders and decided to inspect one of the vehicles. He climbed in through the open hatch at the rear. The interior was cramped and there was little headspace. Crouching he made his way to the front and sat down on the single seat. Unlike any vehicle he had ever seen there were no instruments or levers. A blank flat panel was all there was. 'Now how the heck does this thing work?' he mumbled. The shiny black surface offered no clue to his question. He put his palm against the console but nothing happened. He tried different places and movements. The result was the same. 'Damn,' he said. 'Either I'm doing something wrong or this thing really is as dead as the dodo. Let's see if I have any better luck in another rover.' There were six other identical vehicles but to his great disappointment his efforts met with the same lack of success in all the vehicles. He sat down on a box and contemplated the rovers. 'Now why is it,' he wondered, 'that so many things here work perfectly and out of all things only the rovers are broken?' There was no apparent damage on any of them. They looked in good condition, almost new, like the whole facility they seemed to have been built to last for eternity. Morris sighed.

'Stumped?' a voice said behind him. He turned to see Pauline looking down at him with a sardonic smile.

'I don't want to walk back, but I just can't get them to work,' he said with a wave of his hand in the general direction of the rovers. 'I don't get it. Everything else works just great here. Why are the rovers the only things that are broken?'

'Maybe they aren't,' Pauline suggested. 'You just haven't tried the right place.'

'Oh come on, I tried all over. There's just nothing. I tried the hand trick but there's no beep, no light, nothing; it's just dead.'

'You're just not looking what you're doing. The same as when you tried to shoot me with that gun,' she said as a parting shot and walked to the nearest rover. Standing next to the section where the glass dome of the front connected to the main body she placed her hand on the side of the body. Instantly a panel similar to that they had found on all the walls lit up bright green. A high-pitched sound came from the vehicle and lights came on inside the rover and at the front bright headlights shone against the wall opposite. Then the glass dome began to swing upwards giving access to the driver's seat.

'Holy cow,' Morris shouted and jumped to his feet. 'I can't believe I've been so stupid. It was there right in front of my eyes all the time.'

'Well, you better believe it,' Pauline said with biting sarcasm. 'What would you do without me? You'd never be able to manage.'

'All right, all right,' Morris said and waved his hand in annoyance. Why she had to try and spoil the moment with petty remarks was beyond him. He eagerly approached the rover and climbed onto the driver's seat. He had barely sat down when the dome closed automatically and the panel in front of him lit up brightly. He gestured to Pauline to get in, impatient to try out the vehicle. 'Now we're in business,' he grinned at her when she sat down behind him. Time to go home.'

'And what way are you going to drive,' she asked with a provocative smile.

Sensing a trap Morris hesitated before answering but he was too slow.

'You have no idea,' Pauline said triumphantly. 'I told you that you can't manage without me. Good that I had a look around while you were busy playing with your gun. There's a huge gate right down there,' she said and pointed with her hand.

'Right,' Morris said drily. 'How good I have you.' He placed his hand in the middle of the panel onto a flashing purple circle. When he moved his hand up the rover moved forward. He quickly discovered that all the rover's wheels could turn independently enabling it to move in any direction he indicated with his hand.

'This is brilliant,' he said. 'I've never driven anything this good before.'

'What about that gate then?' Pauline asked. 'Or do you love this place so much now you can't tear yourself away?'

He set the rover in motion towards the gate. They slowly rolled past the other vehicles, their metal wheels rumbling on the hard floor. When they came near the gate a yellow symbol appeared on the instrument panel. Morris touched it and the gate opened. With bated breath they watched as the opening gate revealed a long curved ramp that lead upwards. The rover accelerated up the ramp until they came to a second gate at the top. It swung open and they were back in the long ravine they had walked along on their way from the village.

'Not quite the surface of Mars,' Morris said feeling disappointed. 'There's got to be another way out. Let's go back and check.' He was about to turn the rover around when Pauline stopped him. 'Later, Morris. Let's first go back to the village. I'm starving and anyway we'll need to tell Jane and Kim about what we've found.'

He nodded and drove off but then brought the rover to a sudden stop. 'There's just one score to settle before we leave here,' he said and climbed past Pauline to the rear hatch. 'Those damn beasts are still hanging around and I don't want them following us back to the village.' He opened the hatch and was greeted by furious howling that was abruptly brought to an end after two blasts from his gun. He slammed the hatch shut with a satisfied smile. 'There now. I've been wanting to do that ever since they started following us.' He hopped back into the driver's seat and sped off. The rover covered the distance in the ravine that had taken them several hours on foot in just a few minutes. The spiked wheels dug into the ground when they went over some surprisingly steep hills and finally past the ruin they had spent a night in. The rover charged across the stream by the village and drove past dumbfounded or terrified dwellers before coming to a halt in front of Jane's hut. They jumped out of the rover.

'Aren't you just gobsmacked,' Pauline said to Jane with a huge grin. 'I bet you never expected to see us again and here we come bringing the cavalry.'

Jane looked from Pauline to Morris and to the rover and back to Pauline again and really was unable to say anything for some moments.

'Where the hell did you get that thing from?' she asked. 'I've never seen anything like it before.

'It's rather a long story and we're dying of hunger. Give us something to eat and we'll tell you everything.'

### 13

The sun was already high in the clear blue sky where not a single cloud offered respite from the heat of summer. The birds which a few hours before had cheerfully sung to a new dawn were all silent in the brooding heat and sat still in trees and bushes. A broad plain extended to the foot of some densely wooded undulating hills, but on the plain itself the vegetation consisted mostly of grassland interspersed with the occasional tope or shrubbery. A herd of bison was the only sign of life. The animals had chosen to stand clear of the shade offered by trees, clear from any danger that might lurk behind the dense vegetation. In the open grassland the animals felt more secure and as an added precaution some of the older bison stood around the herd and kept watch while grazing to make sure no predator could approach the females and calves unseen. Their restless heads could be seen going down to tear off some grass only to rise again moments later looking about and taking in the air with wide nostrils. If they saw and smelled nothing they relaxed for a short time while chewing on the grass in their mouths and then went back to grazing in an almost endless cycle. And they had good reason to be watchful. The herd had attracted the attention of a band of hunters from the wolf tribe, all of them experienced men in the art of hunting. Two of them had been observing the herd for a few days and now the rest of their band had arrived eager to harvest the riches of nature, the thick pelts and furs that would keep them warm in winter and the meat that would feed their tribe for months to come. Armed with javelins as well as bows and arrows they formed two groups that had positioned themselves in ambush where the grassland narrowed between a tope of trees and a shrubbery. A third and smaller group was stealthily going around the herd to reach a point opposite. When everything was ready they would spring the trap by jumping up and running towards the herd shouting and beating bones together to frighten the animals away and towards the hunters lying in ambush.

A pair of keen, watchful eyes spied across the open space looking for any sign that the beaters had arrived. They belonged to Wolfeye, one of the best hunters of the tribe who was known for his acute eyesight. It was his third summer as a hunter and he was fiercely determined that he would make such a success of it that the long winter months would be wiled away with tales of his daring-do during the great hunt.

But suddenly the bison stopped grazing. Wolfeye felt that something was wrong. The bison stood motionless listening for the slightest sound and taking the air. The herd was tense for a few moments and then relaxed again. Yet Wolfeye did not relax. The beaters were still not in sight and he had a strong feeling that whatever had disturbed the bison was not related to the hunters of the wolf tribe. But what was it? He was impatient to start the hunt even more so, now that something unknown threatened their carefully wrought plans. There was no wind. Everything was still. To his relief Wolfeye spotted the beaters at the arranged place. He prepared to give the signal for the hunt to begin when the bison became tense again. And this time Wolfeye and the other hunters heard it too. Faint at first but rapidly becoming louder the sound of thunder echoed from the hills across the plain. The men of the wolf tribe looked up at the clear blue sky, not a cloud in sight and yet a continuous roar as of a thousand thunders filled the air. Their hearts beating they cowered into the undergrowth. Confused Wolfeye looked towards the bison. The herd was in the early stages of a panic with animals running hither and thither not knowing where the sound came from and where they should flee to. Desperate not to let the animals escape Wolfeye gave the signal to start the hunt but none of the hunters looked to him. Then the unthinkable happened. A large thundering bird, shiny like the sun, came roaring across the top of the nearest hill. The bison stampeded and ran away from the hunters most of whom didn't even notice but were transfixed with the terrifying appearance in the sky. Faster than even the wind the thunder bird approached the open space where shortly before the bison had been grazing and descended to the ground. The hunters were lying face down on the ground in utter terror, but not Wolfeye. The urge to see was stronger than anything else and not for a moment did he take his eyes off the large thunder bird whose body shone like the moon upon water and whose mouth bellowed fiery thunder. The thunder bird swooped across an arbour and landed on the open plain vacated by the bison. With bated breath Wolfeye saw how the gigantic bird came to a rest on the ground. Suddenly a dark opening appeared in the side and a man came out. His skin shone like that of the thunder bird. He fell to the ground but quickly picked himself up again and stumbled across the open ground. The opening in the bird vanished again and with a deafening roar it lifted up into the air and flew back in the direction it had come from. Wolfeye saw its fiery breath throw the man to the ground ere a foul wind shook the trees and bushes where Wolfeye and his tribe were hiding.

Then everything was still and quiet again. Wolfeye cautiously rose to his feet and approached the man on the ground. Several steps from the man he stopped and crouched with the sharp point of a stone spear tip at the end of a long shaft extended towards the man. Nothing happened. He crawled nearer until he was close enough to reach the man with his spear. He gently prodded the strange looking man. Still nothing happened. Wolfeye rose to his feet. He could feel the eyes of his fellow tribesmen on his back and walked up to the figure on the ground. The man's eyes were closed but a heaving of his chest showed that he was breathing and alive. Wolfeye touched the man's leg with his foot but there was no reaction. 'Skyman,' he said at last. He turned to the other hunters who were coming from their hiding places to see for themselves who the man was. 'It is Skyman,' Wolfeye called. 'Skyman has come to the Wolf tribe. Let us take him to Moonwolf.'

Moonwolf was the tribe's shaman and wise woman. She cast the bones to learn about their fates, she controlled animals and plants with her paintings in the cave, and she communed with the moon when it was waxing and sacrificed when it was waning to ensure the return of the moon spirit.

She was squatting in front of the holy cave grinding herbs when a procession of hunters carrying Skyman approached. She scowled and hissed. The hunters coming to her cave instead of being busy skinning their prey and carving up meat could only mean one thing: The hunt had ended badly. The hunters had failed and some of them were hurt. She saw Wolfeye leading the group who were carrying someone. 'Hail, Moonwolf,' he called.

'Hail, Wolfeye,' she replied. 'What ill tidings do you bring?'

'This is Skyman whose skin is like the rays of the moon on water,' he said while the hunters carefully lowered Skyman to the ground. Moonwolf listened to Wolfeye relate what had happened, her gentle hands examining Skyman all the while.

'Leave Skyman to Moonwolf,' she cackled, 'and return to the hunt. Evil the tidings may be, but the hunt shall not fail you now,' she said and motioned them away with her hands.

Many moons later Abutnet, or Skyman as the folk of the wolf tribe called him, had learnt their language and was accepted into the tribe. After Moonwolf released him from her care he learnt the art of chipping flint into blades, arrowheads and other tools that were needed. This happened more by chance than by design. A broken leg meant that he was unable to walk for a long time yet sitting by the fire every day and eating the tribes food meant he had to find something useful to do. There was no place for idle mouths. At first he banged his fingers as often as hitting the flint but he soon got the knack of it and became adept at shaping flint in the way it was needed. He usually sat at some distance from the midden, the communal rubbish heap where everything from bones to flint shards was dumped, as he found the stench coming from it overpowering. For some reason the tribesfolk either didn't notice or didn't mind the stink and the myriads of flies and other insects that inhabited it. They sat around or even on it at almost all times, when doing everyday chores, when feasting, and even when welcoming guests from other tribes. The midden was, in short, the focal point of the community.

It was dusk one evening and the western horizon glowed in a warm red that belied the cool autumn weather. The wolf folk were gathered by the midden with a blazing fire to keep warm and for roasting the meat they were gorging on.

'Hail all,' a familiar voice suddenly called out from the shadows, 'and hail to you Wolfeye'. Several of the men rose and Wolfeye stepped forward to greet their guest. 'And hail you Uncle Piscmere,' he said with a delighted smile and embraced his uncle. Wolfeye's father had married a wench from the fisherfolk down by the coast. The two tribes had a long and friendly relationship and were wont to exchange fish and other seafood for meat, bones, horns and antlers that the hunters had.

'Sit and eat with us,' Wolfeye said. 'What tidings do you bring? If you bring no fish,' he said gesturing to Piscmere's empty hands, 'then you must be bringing something to tell.'

'And so it is,' Piscmere assented and took a place by Wolfeye's side. The company settled down again and Piscmere gladly partook of the meat offered to him for the walk from the fishing village to the wolf folk had taken him all day.

'Yes,' he said after a while, 'tidings I bring and what they portend none can tell. For whether they be good or ill I cannot say, but strange, most strange they certainly are. Stranger even,' he said with a glance at Skyman, 'than the tidings the wolf folk have had.'

'What do you mean?' Wolfeye asked.

Piscmere frowned and looked into the fire as if to collect his thoughts. 'My father and my father's father lived in our village before me and their forebears before them. They fished and lived off the bounty of the sea to sit by the same midden where our folk sit today.' He paused and shook his head. 'But now we cannot sit round our midden anymore. For many moons already we have seen that every new tide came closer to our village than the last one. And when the waters recede they don't go out as far as they used to. Our land is low and flat and as you all know it is so all the way from the sea to here and beyond. And yesterday when the highest tide came in the water went right up to our midden. It has come so far that soon all our village will be taken by the sea. Our forebears who are with us now will then be lost.'

An excited murmur arose among the wolf folk.

'What are you going to do?' Wolfeye asked.

'We don't know, but it is sure that we can't stay in our village. We must leave and find a new home. But where to go? How far will the waters come?'

'And the fish? What about the fish?' Someone asked.

'The fish are as plentiful as ever,' Piscmere replied. 'But winter is coming and we must build new houses where the water can't reach or we shall perish from the cold.'

'You and your folk will always be welcome here,' Moonwolf said. 'Come and spend the winter here with us and next spring you may see where to rebuild your village.' She knew it would mean hardship for the tribe to find enough food for the extra mouths to feed, but there was a longstanding friendship and kinship with the fisherfolk to which they had all pledged their troth.

Piscmere smiled yet shook his head gravely. 'I thank you for your kindness and generosity,' he said feeling touched for he knew full well what sacrifice this would mean for the wolf folk, 'but we must needs be near the sea. There are our boats, our food, our lives. It is where we have always been. But that is not why I am come. Is there none amongst you who knows why this is happening?'

At first Moonwolf thought that Piscmere had come for her advice but when she saw his furtive glance at Skyman she understood. Skyman the mysterious, now a member of the wolf folk and yet also a man who had come to them from the above. The ways of the heavens were as mysterious as Skyman, and even though he had tried to explain what had happened to him, to the wolf folk it sounded like a quarrel from amongst the gods. Was Skyman a harbinger of the rising waters? She turned to him. 'Is there aught you know?' she asked Skyman. 'Can you tell us why the heavens are letting the sea rise and take the land down to the realm of the forebears?'

'I am sorry, Moonwolf, but I don't know anything about the sea,' he said feeling decidedly uneasy. He knew that the wolf folk thought him to be some kind of supernatural being. It had caused problems before but if they believed he was in any way responsible for the sea claiming their land then things might get very unpleasant. Trying to explain to them that their gods were just other worlds in space might prove risky and as for their belief that water had magical properties and worked as a kind of bridge between the world of the living and the underworld, it was something he just considered silly. But he knew better than to try and disillusion them about their beliefs. Firstly he was sure that no matter what he said they wouldn't believe him and secondly it could become dangerous meddling with their religious beliefs. And so he usually just played along. But he understood that if the idea got hold in their minds that he, in his capacity as a supernatural being, was in any way responsible for natural events he would have a serious problem. 'I never lived by the sea and I have never heard about land sinking into the sea before. I'm sorry but I can't help you,' he said firmly.

Wolfeye leant forward. 'I will go back with you to your village on the morrow, uncle. I want to see myself if we can help you. Maybe Skyman will come with us?' he said in a tone that showed what answer was expected.

Skyman was not keen to go knowing there would be no reward at best and trouble at worst but he assented. 'Of course,' he said wearily, 'if it is Wolfeye's wish I will come.'

'It is agreed then,' Wolfeye said to Piscmere. 'We leave at dawn.'

As it turned out they left well before dawn. The feeling of apprehension that they shared, albeit for very different reasons, meant the three men awoke while it was still dark. Seeing no point in hanging around Wolfeye lit three torches and they set off towards the coast. The path they followed was well trodden and easy to make out and the firebrands they carried ensured their safety from nocturnal predators who never approached fire. They walked briskly and without interruption until the late forenoon when Wolfeye called a halt by a small river. Piscmere was visibly tired on his second day's march and he decided that a break would do all of them good. The land they were crossing was densely wooded but it was clear that there was something wrong with the trees. Many of them were completely bare and though it was normal for them to lose their leaves in autumn it was as yet too early for them to be bare.

'What's wrong with the trees?' Wolfeye wondered.

'It's not just the trees,' Piscmere said. 'Look at the grass and bushes along the river, all the plants are dying.'

Wolfeye stood up and looked at the river. Farther inland where they had come from the vegetation looked normal but towards the sea there was a mass of dead and dying plants.

'Strange,' Wolfeye said. 'The water in the river isn't moving and it's very high, in fact it's close to overflowing.' He knelt down to drink but spat the first mouthful of water right out again. 'Phew! It's salty. That's more like seawater than anything else.'

'It's as I told you,' Piscmere said. 'The sea is coming in. It's taking the land away.'

'But how in heaven's name can seawater flow up the river?' Wolfeye asked. Water never goes up.'

'Skyman sighed. 'If seawater is coming up the river it means the sea is getting higher. There must be more water in the sea. Don't ask me why or how for I don't know but it's the only explanation.'

Piscmere nodded slowly. 'Skyman may be right. The sea is higher than the river so the water is going up the river. One day the sea may get to Wolfeye's folk.'

Wolfeye shook his head. 'Let's get going,' he said. 'If we hurry we'll be at your village ere the sun is low in the sky.'

They continued along the track at a brisk pace and though the sun shone a cool wind blew from the sea across the land. The three men were glad to have warm furs to protect them against the cool wind that heralded the cold and icy months to come. Noon came and went and the sun gradually moved from its high place downward until it was halfway between its highest point and its setting place.

'Seagulls,' Piscmere said pointing in the air. 'I can smell the sea now. It's not far to go. See there, I can see the tops of our roofs. And in spite of his worries it was evident that Piscmere was genuinely happy to be back at his home, his village of honest hardworking fisherfolk living their happy and carefree lives off the bounty of the sea. Yet when they entered the village the sight could not have been more different from the one they were wont to see. Instead of being busy with their boats and nets, the fish and fish traps, the fisherfolk were standing in midst of their village and talking loudly and excitedly. It was immediately apparent why. Their boats that used to lie on the beach were pulled up beside their huts. The sandy beach that had been with them for generations had vanished beneath the sea and even their midden, a huge mound consisting of thousands of shells, bones and other debris stood in the water.

Piscmere was shocked. 'What is going on?' he called to his fellow villagers even forgetting to greet them.

'Hail Piscmere,' one of the elders said. 'The sea is rising faster than before. Since last night the water just keeps rising and when the tide is supposed to go out the water barely recedes. When the tide is coming in the water just keeps advancing. Soon our huts will be gone.'

Wolfeye looked around. 'The village is already on the highest ground,' he said. 'Soon we'll be cut off if we stay here.'

Piscmere nodded. 'Put the children and our things in the boats, I'll take them upriver. Wolfeye will lead the others along the track inland to his folk.'

'But what about our village?' some of them cried.

'The village is lost,' Piscmere said. 'If the waters recede we'll return, but if not we'll have to build anew when we see how far the sea goes.'

Sad yet determined to save what they could the fisherfolk loaded their possessions and children into their boats with some of the strongest rowers to take them up the river. The others quickly gathered what food and clothes they could and followed Wolfeye into an uncertain future.

They hurried along the track through a moribund land. In places the little river was already overflowing and growing puddles appeared along the track.

'We'll be getting wet feet soon,' Skyman said.

'What do you know about it?' Wolfeye asked.

'I only know what I see,' Skyman replied. The land is flat all the way back to the wolf folk and beyond. The water won't have to rise much to flood everything.'

Though loath to admit it Wolfeye had to agree. 'We'll have to walk through the night.'

They halted briefly to light some firebrands. While Wolfeye was busy lighting a fire the others looked back. The sun had all but set and the track behind them was gradually being flooded. The water wasn't deep, scarcely more than after a rainfall, but it was obvious that soon the path would vanish beneath the water.

Fortunately they had enough tinder and firemaking equipment along and after a short time several torches were blazing brightly that kept the encroaching darkness at bay. They pressed on. At first there were only occasional puddles on the path or rivulets that ran across. But as the night wore on the puddles became bigger and more numerous until there was no dry land left. They splashed through the shallow water, at times catching a glimpse of the others in the boats when the meandering river drew near, and at times they heard animals in the dark fleeing inland away from the ineluctably rising sea. The night was not yet half gone when the water was already ankle deep slowing the group down and making the way ahead increasingly tiring. Thus they only reached the site of the wolf folk's holy cave by sunrise. Exhausted they stood in the water and looked about but no one answered their calls.

'It's cold,' Skyman said to Wolfeye. 'I know it's your home but the others have gone. We can't stay here.'

Wolfeye nodded. 'We'll have to make for the hills. They aren't far and I suppose the wolf folk will be there too.'

'But what about our boats?' the fisherfolk wondered. They were cold and tired but didn't want to be separated. 'We agreed to meet here. We should wait for them.'

'They're safe in the boats,' Skyman said. 'When we get to the hills we'll signal them.'

They waded past the cave and along the sheer rock face that had seen the hunters of the wolf folk come and go for many summers. Wolfeye raised his hand to the cliff and let it drop again. Not long after the water quickly became shallower. The land leading to the foot of the hills gradually rose allowing the weary group to get out of the cold water at last. Many of them let themselves drop to the ground. Wolfeye would have preferred to go on and find his kin but he saw that there was no going on till everyone had rested and eaten.

'Let's make a fire,' Skyman said to Wolfeye. 'The fisherfolk will know where to find us when they see the smoke and I'm sure the wolf folk are keeping a sharp lookout too.'

'All right then,' Wolfeye said and busied himself with the tinder and flint stone. 'I don't really want to let everyone else know we're here but I suppose you're right.' He saw Skyman's perplexed look. 'There must be many who have lost their homes and are looking for a new place to live. They won't all be friendly and there isn't enough land here for everyone.'

A great hullabaloo interrupted them. The fisherfolk in the boats had guessed they would make for the hills and were now greeted by their tired kin on the ground.

'Hey ho,' Piscmere shouted while overjoyed men, women and children were hollering and laughing. 'How are things with you, Wolfeye? Did everything go well?'

Wolfeye nodded in silence.

Piscmere understood. 'Don't worry. Your folk can't be far. They were near the hills when the water rose. If we managed to get here all the way from the coast then what could happen to them. They're sitting round the bend of a hill and enjoying some roast, you'll see.'

They pulled the boats up onto the gentle slope and unloaded what they needed while Wolfeye got a nice fire going. Soon they were all sitting together and enjoying the first food in a long time.

'Not a bad spot here,' Piscmere said. 'A slight slope, just right for boats and huts, here or a bit further up. We'll see how far the water rises. And you know what Wolfeye,' he said with a twinkle in his eye, 'this could turn out to be great. We'll finally be living together.'

'Wolfeye laughed grimly. 'And so we will, I hope.'

'Oh stop worrying about your folk. I tell you they're fine.'

'That we are,' a voice called.

'Moonwolf!' Wolfeye shouted and jumped to his feet. 'Where is everyone? Are you all right? What happened to you?'

'That's too many questions at once,' Moonwolf smiled. 'We're camped a bit higher on the hill. From there we can see our hunting grounds becoming fishing grounds. Piscmere is right, we may soon be sharing our home though whether the wolf folk will continue to hunt or become fisherfolk it is too early to tell.'

The sea continued to rise relentlessly over the following weeks. The old river vanished from sight within days and when the fishermen went out in their boats they navigated between trees that stuck out of the water as a constant reminder of their vanishing home. Every day the water showed up higher against the trees until at last only the very tallest, the giants of the forest could still be seen. The fishermen took care to avoid areas of former woodland where their precious nets might get caught and torn. At dawn when the fishermen set out into the new sea with their boats Wolfeye and Skyman would often stand together and watch them depart before going on the hunt. The rising water meant that wildlife was plentiful in the areas that had stayed dry and it was easy to find prey. Their recently enlarged tribe was in urgent need of furs and skins for the winter. The fisherfolk had lost their huts and many belongings. Now they needed tents and warm clothes. This also meant that there was a huge surplus of meat and everyone gorged on sheer mountains of it.

'You're fattening us like a tribe of bears preparing to hibernate!' Piscmere laughed one evening when they were sitting together.

'Aye,' another fisherman said, 'and if you continue wolfing the stuff down you'll be so fat you'll sink your boat when you sit in it.'

Everyone laughed.

'And yet it won't last,' Wolfeye smiled. 'Winter is upon us and the herds are moving on. The hunt will be much harder soon. Come spring we'll all be lean so enjoy the feast while you can. What about the fish, Piscmere? Will they be bountiful during the cold months?'

'Who can say?' Piscmere said. 'Normally you can always get enough fish and if the weather's too bad to go out fishing we always had the dried fish. But we lost that and I don't know if the fish will be easy to catch here. There are too many trees under water. Maybe you're right, Wolfeye. There won't be enough for all of us till next spring. We have a cold hard winter ahead.'

'Can't we dry the fish and meat now?' Skyman asked. We have so much, why aren't we keeping any?'

'Too late,' Piscmere shook his head. 'You need warm sunny weather to do that. It has to be dry. If we hang the fish now it'll only rot. No, there's nothing to it but eat and grow fat enough to get through the winter. Here, have some more of this salmon. It's wonderful,' he said and handed Skyman a huge chunk of fish.

Skyman grinned and bit into it. Piscmere is right, he thought. The fish is delicious.

The pale evening sun shone on the waters across the new sea and Skyman felt good. I am among friends, by a hot fire and with wonderful food. What more could a man want? His old life seemed no more than a distant hazy dream. Who was Abutnet? The name occurred to him suddenly but he dismissed it. I am Skyman, he thought and smiled at his friend Wolfeye.

Just then there was a shout. Someone pointed and everyone turned to look. There on the edge of their camp several men had appeared. They were clad in thick furs and came armed with spears and bow and arrow. Their faces were painted blue and they had bones pushed through their noses and ears. Many around the fire rose to their feet and Wolfeye stepped forth to confront them.

What do you want here?' Wolfeye demanded.

Their leader, a burly thick-set man grunted and pointed at their camp. 'We're hungry,' he said.

'Why don't you hunt?' Wolfeye asked.

'We've come a long way. Give us some.'

Wolfeye didn't like the tone and the manner he was spoken to but wanted to avoid a confrontation. 'All right, we'll give you some, but then you move on.'

'This is a good place. We're tired. We'll stay here tonight, maybe longer,' the man barked.

'You can't stay here. There's too many of us already. You have to move on. We'll give you meat and fish and then you go.'

The man shook his head angrily. 'We're staying. Make us go if you can,' he said pointing his spear at Wolfeye. There was an angry murmur amongst the men in the camp who were armed with nothing more than chunks of meat and fish. Wolfeye quickly raised his hand to calm them down as he was still hoping to avoid a conflict, but the strangers misunderstood his movement. Almost simultaneously two arrows flew past their leader. The stone arrow tips cut through Wolfeye's throat and stuck into his spine. He fell and there was a furious uproar amongst his folk. Wolf folk and fisherfolk rushed to arms. Suddenly seeing how badly outnumbered they were the strangers fled. Skyman knelt beside his friend. The blood was gushing out red and hot.

'My friend, don't leave me my friend,' he called and looked at Moonwolf with pleading eyes.

She shook her head sadly and took Wolfeye's hand. 'May your journey be swift and pleasant,' she said.

Wolfeye opened his mouth and tried to speak but only blood rushed out. His body was gripped by a sudden spasm and then fell back.

Moonwolf felt his head and chest. 'Wolfeye is going to his forebears,' she said and closed his eyes.

### 14

Morris put the reader down and drank some water. His throat was dry after talking so long.

'That's so sad,' Jane said. 'How does it end?'

'We'll see later,' Morris answered. 'I think it's quite a long book and we've got other things to do. Thanks for the meal Jane, but honestly the food here sucks.'

'So what do you want?' she said slightly miffed.

He grinned. 'We've got guns, we've got a set of wheels, let's get the hell out of here and go back home!'

'We still need our suits,' Jane objected.

'And we will get them, believe you me. If any of those hairy monkeys say No to me again I'll incinerate them with this,' he said and patted the gun. 'And anyhow, isn't Kim a glorious general and leader of troops here?' he said with marked irony. 'Come on, let's go and get Kim. The rest will be a piece of cake.'

They grabbed what few belongings they had and left the hut. Outside a crowd of dwellers stood around the rover talking excitedly. Morris pushed his way through and opened the hatch. While the two women climbed in Morris stood on a step and waved to the crowd. 'Farewell monkey land. Hope I'll never see any of you again.'

'Oh Morris,' Jane said reprovingly. 'It's not their fault. They're just poor sods, the lot of them.'

'I don't care,' he laughed. 'All I want is to get out of this nightmarish place. If there's any such place as hell, this must be it.'

He accelerated and the rover sped out of the hamlet towards Lord Ta-ke's palace where they hoped to find out where Kim was and get at least some of their spacesuits back. After just a few minutes' drive the rover pulled up in front of the palace enveloped in a cloud of dust. The two guards at the main gate stood dumbfounded.

'Open the gates,' Morris shouted at them.

'Oh come on, Morris,' Pauline said. 'Let's talk to them nicely first. There's always time for being nasty if we can't get what we want.

But there was no stopping Morris. 'Open the fucking gates!' he yelled, 'or I'll blow you to pieces.'

The guards were too shocked to react and Morris had no patience. He fired the gun and the huge massive gate was shattered to smithereens. The two guards dropped their spears and fled.

Morris laughed. 'Be nice,' he said to Pauline. 'Be nice my ass! When were they ever nice to us? Did they ever ask us what we wanted? Hell, no. They killed, they tortured, they threw us into that horrible dungeon. No need to be nice to those bastards. Let's teach'em about the American Wild West and see how they like that. By the time I've finished with them they'll do anything just to get rid of us.' He laughed loud and stepped over the smashed gate. 'Heck, this is fun.'

'And woe betide anyone giving you reason to have more fun, ain't I right?' Kim grinned at them. 'Where did you get that from, Morris? It's fantastic.'

'Tell you later, now we've found you all we need is our suits.'

'Let's find Toko,' Jane suggested. 'He's usually the man to ask if you want anything.'

'And he probably knows more than his drunkard lordship,' Pauline added.

They laughed. For the first time in months they felt that their destiny was under their own control again. Like a hostage who after long captivity is finally told about his impending release, the relief was enormous. With confidence they strode through the palace calling for Toko. News of how they had destroyed the gates spread like lightning and with equal speed everyone seemed determined to keep out of their way. Not a single guard remained to challenge them, in fact there wasn't even anyone to talk to.

'Looks like that wild west thing was a bit too successful,' Jane gently chided Morris. 'If they keep running away from us like this, how are we going to find out about our suits?'

'They'll calm down soon enough,' Kim said. 'And besides, if there's no one here we can search the place. Maybe we'll find the suits without any help.'

'Hell yeah, let's ransack the place,' Morris said. 'I've been wanting to tear it down ever since those bastards left us to rot in the dungeon.'

'I know how you feel Morris,' Pauline said. 'I was in there with you, but is it wise to antagonize them more than we need to?'

'And what does it matter?' Morris asked. 'There's nothing they can do against this,' he said and patted the gun. 'Just look how they're all running after what I did to the gate.'

'If we break all their things and destroy the palace they might be just angry enough to do the same to us,' Pauline said. 'If they're really pissed off they might cut our suits and smash the helmets and then we'd really and truly be stuck, wouldn't we?'

'They wouldn't dare,' Morris said. 'If they did anything like that I'd...'

'Pauline is right,' Kim interrupted him. 'We shouldn't take any unnecessary risks. Anger makes blind and no matter what we could do to them in revenge, it wouldn't be of much use to us if we can't get back to surface and contact Mars base. Let's stay focused on what we want to achieve. Any other feelings we may have are irrelevant. We don't even know that all the suits are in working order. Some of them could be damaged already. Risking the loss of even a single suit could be fatal.'

'All right, all right,' Morris said grudgingly. 'I get the point. But we're not going to achieve anything by standing around here either. Let's search the place, and I'll be careful not to break anything,' he added seeing the others look at him nervously.

They searched the palace for several hours, emptying boxes and cupboards, looking under beds and examining every nook and cranny. In the end they were left with a rather woebegone expression on their faces.

'At least now we know where they're not,' Pauline said.

'Great,' Morris said. 'We just wasted a whole afternoon. Let's get our hands on that Toko guy and make him talk.'

'The question is just where to find him,' Pauline said.

'Don't worry,' Kim said. 'He can't be far. I bet you he's with Ta-ke and that fatso can't move fast. He's probably lurking about outside somewhere waiting for us to be gone.'

'Well, what are we waiting for then?' Jane said.

They left the palace the way they came in. When they came through the gate Morris grinned again and patted his gun.

It soon became clear, however, that Kim was wrong about Ta-ke. Even with the mountain of fat to slow him down he had made good his escape and was nowhere to be found.

'Now where might a fat unpopular Lord on the run go?' Jane mused. 'He won't be going to any of the other Lords, they all hate him.'

'I wouldn't be so sure about that,' Kim said. 'They hated him because of us. He didn't kill us as they wanted and we helped him win a war and that phallic competition against them. If he tells them that we turned against him and that they were right all along they might make common cause with him.'

'So where has he gone?' Jane asked.

'Ask our soldier boy here,' Morris grumbled. 'He spent all the time hanging out with the local fat cats.'

'I'm not sure, but I'd guess that he would try to meet the other Lords on neutral ground. The only such place I know of is the religious area around the phallic hall.'

'All right, let's go and look at the dicks,' Morris said. 'Let's hope the dickheads are there too.'

They burst out laughing.

'Oh Morris,' Jane said, 'you're so funny at times I could kiss you.' She patted him on his back and got into the rover not knowing that her careless remark had caused Pauline a pang of jealousy.

'You know the way, general, you drive,' Morris said. 'We'll soon catch up with Ta-ke in this thing.'

'If we're going the right way,' Pauline said. She gazed out of the window and watched the spiked wheels churn up the ground and fling dirt and dust into the air. 'But what if Ta-ke isn't there?'

'But, but, but what,' Morris said peevishly. 'If he ain't there we'll look somewhere else. And anyhow, who says we need Ta-ke. Any of the other lordly bastards will do just fine for me, especially the first one who had Larry murdered. We've still got a score to settle there.'

'I guess you're right Morris, but...'

Oh, I know, I know, Jane. First the suits then we get out. All I'm saying is if by chance the swine happens to be in our way then we'll know what to do.'

'And what would that be?' Kim asked from the front. 'Murder him?'

'I wouldn't call it murder, man. He murdered Larry. If we get even with him that's justice, not murder. An eye for an eye, that sort of thing.'

They spent the rest of the way in silence. When they arrived at the phallic hall it was evident that Kim had misjudged Ta-ke again. Apart from a few priests no one was there.

'Dicks and no dickheads,' Morris said. 'Let's burn the place down. If it's so important to them that should get them here fast enough.'

'I've got a better idea,' Jane said. 'Let's stay here and ask the priests for help.'

'Yeah right, like they're gonna want to help us,' Morris said.

'I think Jane is right,' Kim said. 'They won't want to help us, of course, but they'll want to help themselves by getting rid of us. If the only way to make us go away is to co-operate they'll do it.'

'Your last two ideas didn't exactly work out the way you expected,' Morris remarked sarcastically. 'I say let's drive to the other Lords one by one till we find someone if you don't want to burn this down.'

'And use up all the fuel in the rover while we're chasing after them?' Pauline said. 'Do you actually know how long the fuel will last? I don't want to have to go on foot.'

'No, no, no,' Morris said annoyed. 'Everything I say is no. So how do you want to do it then?'

'Relax Morris,' Jane said. 'We're all on the same side. Let me talk to the priests. I'll explain to them that we don't mean to harm anyone. We just need some of our things that they have. If they give us what we want we'll go away and leave them alone. We just need the priests to contact the Lords for us. That's all.'

'All right,' Morris said and threw up his arms. Have a go. If it works, all the better.'

Left with little choice the priests sent out messengers. It was obvious from the way the priests talked to and looked at them that the four Earthlings were most unwelcome but they didn't dare take any openly hostile action. The four spent their time looking around the phallic hall and the adjoining temple complex. Morris never put his gun down for a second and the priests had heard enough to understand that he was dangerous.

Outside the hall Kim recounted how the losers of the phallic competition had their throats cut and were sacrificed on the hill.

'They're fucking psychopaths,' Morris said. 'Never turn your back on them, if you do you'll end up dead.'

'I never did like god-wallahs,' Kim said, 'but these are just too much to bear. This place wouldn't be so nasty and brutish without them and the Lords.'

Morris chuckled. 'God-wallahs you call them? Dick-wallahs is more like it. Look at their obsession with dicks. Who in their right mind would build a hall and fill it with dicks and murder those poor folk whose dicks weren't good enough?'

'There were many fertility cults back on earth that revered phallic symbols,' Pauline objected.

'Where I come from only hookers and perverts revere dicks,' Morris snarled. 'I hate the fuckers. Give me half a reason and I'll blow them away.'

'We had our share of violence and cruelty, too,' Pauline said. 'The Catholic Church murdered some nine million people they considered as heretics and witches. The Aztecs commonly sacrificed prisoners and cut beating hearts out of their chests. Muslims slaughtered some 80 million in a war of extermination against Hindu India, and in the ancient Middle East even child sacrifice was common. Religious violence and bloodlust is everywhere.'

'All right, I get the point,' Morris said, 'but I never defended any of that. If some priest or whatever came along to murder my kid or my friend or anyone else for their god I'd fucking hate them too. Religion ain't about killing folks. Anyone who says he's a priest or religious and kills others is just a murderer and should be treated as such. If anyone finds that offensive, hey I'm sorry but I find murder offensive.'

'I quite agree with you,' Kim said. 'Any ideology be it a religion or other that condones or encourages killing is evil and should be banned. As I said before, this world wouldn't be so bad without the god-wallahs. And with the god-wallahs gone the Lords wouldn't be in power for long, I wager. If we come back here again we should do something about that.'

'You'd really want to come back here and change the way they do things here?' Pauline said. 'Do you think we have the right to tell people of another culture how to run their own country? That's just like 19th century colonialism.'

'Yes, I would come back,' Kim said. 'And don't tell me about how the natives here like to keep their own culture. Look at the place. The Lords and god-wallahs exploit everyone. Ordinary folks are on starvation rations while fat swine like Ta-ke have a life of uninterrupted banquets, orgies and gluttony. Anyone who objects is quickly murdered. Everyone else is so hungry and poor they even eat their own. This world deserves to be freed from the priests and lords, the sooner the better. It's not colonialism, it's liberation. And if liberating these poor sods equates to colonialism then I'm all for it.'

At that point they were interrupted by one of the priests. 'Messengers have returned,' he said. 'Follow me.'

They entered one of the administrative buildings where a messenger was waiting. Instead of greeting them or even bowing as was the custom with respectable folk he just looked at them haughtily.

'Well then,' Kim said imperiously. He didn't like the messengers attitude and was determined to put him in his place. 'What have you got to say?'

The messenger looked Kim from head to foot superciliously before responding. 'The five dread Lords,' he began and made a pause for dramatic effect,' will graciously deign to consider your humble requests. You have their permission to approach the Hall of Lothrod and plead with their merciful Lordships.'

'So what's that supposed to mean?' Kim said angrily. 'Do they agree to give us our things back or not?'

'Their gracious Lordships agree to hear your request,' the messenger said. 'Of course you will come unarmed and with the becoming humility of supplicants.'

This was too much for Morris who exploded with fury. With one big leap he was by the messenger and grabbed him by his clothes. 'You fucking asshole,' he yelled and dragged him across to the phallic hall with everyone else following. He stormed through the door, pointed his gun at the nearest phallus and shot. The huge wooden phallus exploded into a cloud of wooden fragments that flew in all directions. The messenger shook in terror while behind them the shocked priests broke out into loud wailing. The sacrilege Morris had committed was unheard of, unprecedented, unimaginable.

Morris pulled the messenger to his face and growled at him. 'Tell your fucking lords what I've just done and you tell them that I'm going to blow away every single one of their precious phalli one by one if they don't send us what we want. We want our things here and ain't going anywhere to get them. Your lords ain't lords, they're a piece of dirt under my foot, they're the supplicants for their lives and if we don't get what we want I'm coming after them and they're going the same way this dick just went. Now get the fuck out of my sight,' he yelled and pushed the messenger away with such force that he almost flew through the air. The horrified messenger stumbled away backwards while the priests looked on in stunned silence. In the entire history of their world nothing even remotely like this had happened before. In their eyes Morris seemed like the devil incarnate and they would have to get rid of him, one way or another.

'Make sure the lords give these demons what they want,' the Chief Priest whispered to his attendant, 'about the rest we'll see when they've gone from here.'

The attendant nodded and hastened after the messenger.

'Let's see if my way works better than yours,' Morris growled at his comrades and walked off.

This time their demands had their desired effect. Within two days several men came with bags full of equipment. Excited the four unpacked them and tested the different components of their spacesuits to see if anything was damaged. They tested the seals, oxygen tanks and batteries.

'Amazing,' Jane said. 'Everything's working perfectly.'

'There're only three suits,' Pauline said.

'Never mind,' Kim said. 'Three of us will go out and I'll come back with a spare suit. It's just a minor problem.'

'If the shuttles are still there,' Pauline said. 'If someone else came looking for us and...'

'Oh for Pete's sake,' Kim exclaimed, 'you know as well as I do that we can link into the satellite by radio. Be happy we've got the suits back.'

Morris chuckled. 'Now you're getting as irritable as me. All you need is a gun and you'll have everyone running away in terror.'

A stony faced priest interrupted their laughter. 'Everything is well?' he asked icily. 'You will be leaving then, yes?'

'Come to think of it,' Morris said, 'we'll need a guide to find the way back to where we came from.'

'We need nothing,' Kim said quickly. 'Let's pack up and go. I know the way well enough. It's not for nothing that I spent months clambering around the countryside.'

The Chief Priest stepped forward. 'Excellent. Maybe you would like something to eat before going on your journey. I have a meal prepared for you,' he said with a thin smile.

Kim looked at him for a minute. 'There's no need. We'll just be going.' He looked around but the others were still standing and watching him. 'Come on then folks, grab our stuff and let's go to the rover.'

'You seem in an awful hurry,' Jane said. 'It's not that I don't want to go but...'

'Don't trust the calm,' Kim said quietly. 'My gut feeling tells me something's wrong so let's get the hell out of here while the going's good.'

'For once I couldn't agree more,' Morris said.

They quickly took everything and almost ran to the rover before the surprised priests had time to react. Kim started the engine while Morris slammed the rear hatch shut.

'All right, man,' Morris shouted, 'let's rock and roll.'

'What was all that about?' Pauline asked slightly bewildered.

'They never liked us,' Kim said. So why do you think they were trying to be friendly? Because Morris destroyed their precious phallus and treated them like shit? If they're friendly it means they're up to something. I don't want to hang around long enough to find out what it is. We'll eat when we're on the shuttle. It'll be soon enough.'

The rover raced at top speed through the misty countryside until they arrived back at the entrance to the corridor through which they had entered the underground world months before.

'You really did know the way,' Morris said. 'Boy am I glad to see this place again.'

'We haven't decided yet who'll be staying here,' Jane said.

'All right,' Morris said. 'I'll hold the fort while you guys find me another suit. Be sure you don't forget about me once you're back on that wonderful shuttle.'

'Are you sure?' Kim asked. 'I was going to volunteer myself but...'

'Nah, it's all right. I'm the man with the gun, remember? If you don't come back I can always shoot myself.'

'Not to worry old boy,' Kim smiled wryly. 'We'll be back in a trice.'

Kim, Jane and Pauline suited up but decided not to use the oxygen in the tanks until the last possible moment. They walked along the corridor and found that everything looked the same from when they had been there last.

'Here we are at last,' Kim said when they reached the air lock. They stepped into the lock and closed their helmets. Kim could see the air pressure change on his instrument gauge. Then the outer lock opened.

'Here we go,' Jane said and switched on her torch.

They walked up the slope past boulders and lose rocks.

'I don't know,' Pauline said. 'I somehow remember this as being different.'

'It was different,' Kim said. 'None of this rubble was here before, well not much anyway.'

They didn't get far.

'And here's why,' he said. 'The roof's come down.'

A huge pile of rocks and boulders stretched from the ground to the ceiling of the cave.

'That can't be,' Jane said. 'I mean this place has been here for thousands of years and it just collapses now when we're here?'

'I don't think it collapsed,' Kim said. 'Look at the ceiling. Do you see those black marks? That looks like an explosion to me.'

Pauline scrambled up the pile of rubble. 'There's got to be a way through,' she said and started pulling out rocks frantically. 'Come on you guys, don't just stand there. Help me clear the way.'

'I'd be careful with that,' Kim warned. 'More could come down on you. This is not even half way up to the surface. We won't get through like that and our oxygen is limited. Let's go back and talk it over with Morris. We need tools and we need a plan if we want to do this.'

'Hey, that was quick,' Morris said a few minutes later.

Kim quickly explained the problem. 'Any ideas, Morris?' he asked.

'Give me your suit,' Morris said. 'You don't actually know how much rubble there is. Let me have a go with this,' he said and patted the gun. 'It's quite powerful.'

Kim looked doubtful. 'All right,' he said. 'Have a try, it can't do any harm.'

But when Morris came back not much later his failure showed clearly on his face.

'No use,' he said courtly. 'Every time I fired just more rubble came down. If we want to get through there we'll need professional mining equipment.'

'I think we'd better think about how to improvise,' Kim said. 'Professional equipment isn't exactly abundant here and if we want to get through that mess we'll...'

'And who says we want to dig our way through there?' Morris said.

Kim looked stupefied. 'What do you mean?'

'I think I know,' Pauline said. She couldn't help smile at Kim's surprised expression. 'Now you do look gobsmacked, Kim.'

'Well I am,' he said. 'I thought we wanted to get out of this place, so what is there to smile about?'

'I'll give you a hint,' Pauline said. 'Look at the rover's wheels and the hatch.'

'I think I can guess,' Jane said. 'You've found another exit.'

Morris grinned. 'Well, we haven't exactly found one but we've got a good idea where to look. The air lock here can't have been their main exit. It's much too small and at the opposite end of this underground world. There must be another much bigger exit at the main base where we found the rover. Let's drive back and look.'

### 15

Talana was in heaven and in hell. Bliss for her was her son Bonabutnet – the son of Abutnet. When she held her beloved baby in her arms, when she smelled his hair, when she saw her love for him reflected in his eyes she was in paradise. With motherhood she had discovered a love and a bond so strong she had never thought possible. Bonabutnet was her own and a part of herself. Life without him was unimaginable, it would mean the end of her own life.

Yet at the same time she felt the presence of a veritable sword of Damocles in the person of Imhorep very keenly. For well-nigh one year she had lived in the stone tower where he had given her refuge. Situated half-way between her people and the native villages it allowed her a certain amount of personal freedom. She was the mistress of her own home – when Imhorep wasn't there. All too often, though, he was there. She detested him, his touch on her body revolted her and the thought that someone other than Abutnet possessed her made her life a misery. Only the thought of protecting Bonabutnet gave her the strength to bear the unbearable and smile at Imhorep. Thus her heaven was kept alive by the existence of her hell.

Every morning when she woke up she dreaded what the coming day might bring. Would the wrathful arm of her distant father at last reach out and wreck vengeance upon her? He had already taken Abutnet from her and forced her into exile. How long would her innocent son be safe from him? This thought tortured her mind every day anew. And yet there was no way out. The way back to her own people was barred by her father. The native aliens of this land were warlike and barbaric, as likely to give her shelter as to sacrifice her or Bonabutnet on an altar dripping with the blood of its hapless victims. Even the wilderness was no refuge, fierce and fell beasts roamed the country that tore anyone to pieces who was careless enough to wander about. With nowhere to turn her new home in the tower was both refuge and prison, and Imhorep was both rescuer and cruel guard.

But then, one day he simply stopped coming. At first his absence was like a breath of fresh air and watching her son romp about on the floor made her forget about everything else, for a while. Imhorep was never away for more than a few days at a time and when a week went by without him Talana began to wonder what had happened. Had Imhorep had an accident? Was he healthy? Or had he been ordered not to go to her anymore thus abandoning her and her son? As the days went by her questions and doubts kept nagging and spoilt the freedom she had without Imhorep. Yet after a fortnight had passed she began to get seriously worried. Imhorep always brought their supplies, food, clothes and anything else they needed or wanted. Now they had nothing left and faced the stark choice of either seeking help from the natives or of returning to the main base. The way to the nearest alien village was long and dangerous whereas going back to her own people meant that Bonabutnet might be taken from her. In the end she decided to risk going back to the base. At least she would have the certainty that Bonabutnet would not be killed by wild beasts. She looked about the tower. There was nothing really worth taking and so she made up he mind to go there and then.

She was just about to gather up their few belongings when she heard a familiar sound approach. She quickly went to the door. At last Imhorep was there again. She was almost glad to see him when he stepped from the vehicle. And yet one glance at his face showed that something was different, something was wrong. Without a word he brushed past her into the house and dropped a bag of supplies on the table. He sat down.

'I'm hungry,' he grunted.

Talana filled a pot with water and put it on the stove. 'You've been away a long time,' she said while emptying the bag of supplies. 'I was getting worried. We had nothing left to eat.'

'Well, you've got something now,' he said gruffly.

The distant and rough way he talked to her began to worry her. Even though she didn't like Imhorep he had at least always tried to be friendly and polite with her.

'What's wrong?' she asked.

'What's wrong?' he repeated. 'Get on with the cooking and I'll tell you what's wrong. Pretty much everything is wrong. Nadamu is no more. An enormous mass of ice collapsed on one of the continents and slid into the ocean. The tidal wave and rise in sea level have wiped out Nadamu. Most people are dead but some have managed to escape to the barbarian lands.'

Talana had her back turned to him and was cutting ingredients for the meal. The news was terrible but even so she could feel his eyes on her. She knew he was looking up and down her figure, at her narrow waist and large round hips.

'What about my father?' she asked. 'Is he...?'

'Hell, what do I know. I don't know. All I know is that we're leaving here and returning to our world. There will be no more ships coming here. In fact this is the last time I'm coming here.'

Talana tipped the food she had been cutting into the pot of boiling water. Confused she turned to face Imhorep.

'But if we're all leaving then of course you're not coming here again. What do you mean?'

Imhorep gave a brief laugh. 'Did I say 'We'? Yes, of course we are leaving, but not you. There's no place for you on the last ship. And in any case no one would have him along,' he said pointing at her son. He stood up and walked to her. There was something in his eyes she had not seen before. There was lust in them as always mixed with a certain cruelty that made her shiver.

'You can't leave us here,' she said pleadingly.

'I can and I must,' he replied. 'It's not up to me anyway. But there is one thing I can do,' he said and grabbed her arm.

She tried to push him away with her other arm but he was too strong. He twisted her arm behind her back and pushed her face down on the table. He quickly lifted her robe and smeared some of the cooking fat from the table onto her before entering her brutally.

'Let me go,' she shrieked as he was pounding her. She struggled but it only made him wilder. He finished soon and she felt a warm trickle run down her legs.

'You bastard,' she said. 'At least take us with you. Please don't leave us behind, I beg you.' She was crying now.

Imhorep withdrew from her. 'No one wants you, you slut or your bastard boy. What I gave you is all you're good for. Just a cheap slut for a cheap fuck. Or why did you think I kept you here for? Because I care for you?' He laughed and turned his back on her. Something snapped in her. Beside herself with rage and humiliation she grabbed the pot from the stove and threw the boiling liquid at Imhorep. He fell down with a scream of agony. Talana jumped at him with the pot and started beating him like a berserker. Blow after blow she vented her fury until his head was a pulpy mass of blood and hair. He lay still. Out of breath she stood upright and looked at the bloody mess at her feet. Disgusted she let the pot fall on the floor.

Several hours later Talana stopped Imhorep's rover outside the base. The main gate stood wide open and she hurried through it with her son on her arms. Bonabutnet clung to her and she felt the tension and fear in him. It was the first time in his short life to be away from the only home he had ever known and Imhorep's brutal death and their flight had caused Talana much anxiety that had affected Bonabutnet. He pressed his head to her neck and whimpered.

She comforted him as best she could while striding through the corridor. Suddenly Anhep the pantocrat came from a door and stood in front of her. It took him a moment to remember her, but when he did his face darkened.

'You here,' he said annoyed. 'What are you doing here? We have other things to worry about than you and that child.'

'We're here to catch a ship back home,' Talana said.

'A ship?' Anhep said surprised. 'There's no place for you and there's no return for you, ever. And don't you think that Imhorep can help you this time. I overlooked how he helped you last time because it didn't really matter when you were off the base but there's no question of taking you back.'

Talana glared at him. 'You know what,' she said furiously. 'I don't need Imhorep any more than I need you. And there is a place for my son and me on the ship. Imhorep left his to us and he won't be coming back. Now get out of my sight and don't you ever dare bother me again!'

She didn't wait for a reply and pushed past Pantocrat Anhep. The corridor glowed in a familiar light that she had not seen for all the time she had spent in the house with Bonabutnet. It was a light that reminded her of home and of civilization. She stepped into a lift and they went up to the departure area where they had access to shuttles that would take them to the ship in orbit. The departure hall was full of boxes and metal crates. People were walking around busy making the final preparations for the flight back to Nadamu. Talana walked into the hall but no one noticed her. She smiled. 'Chaos', she thought. 'Just what we need.' She simply walked to the boarding area and mingled with a group of people already waiting for the next shuttle. With everyone leaving no one checked who was supposed to be boarding and apart from the pantocrat nobody knew she and her son were to be left behind. The airlock opened and their group went through.

'At last, my love,' Talana said and stroked Bonabutnet's soft hair. 'At last we're going home.'

Several months later they were in orbit around their home planet. The sight of white streaks of clouds above the blue ocean was welcomed by everyone on the spaceship. Many of them hadn't been to Nadamu for a very long time and they longed for the clear blue sky and fresh air that were impossible to find on the dusty planet with its strange underground world. And yet there also was a strong sense of apprehension. With their island home wiped out and completely submerged the only places they could go to were refugee settlements in the barbarian lands, a far cry from their beloved fatherland. The only person on board who did not look forward to their homecoming with joy was the former pantocrat Anhep. In the colony he had been the most powerful person whose powers were only slightly limited by the distant fascocrat. Now he faced an uncertain future. The only thing he really liked was power and he was determined to get power in the new settlement at any cost. The only thing that worried him was the absence of information how the refugees had organized themselves and whether there was a functioning government already.

Talana on the other hand was overjoyed that her forced exile was coming to an end much sooner than she would have ever thought possible. The ocean below meant freedom to her, freedom from the odious Imhorep, freedom from the danger of losing her son, and freedom to live her life the way she wanted to. There was even the chance of meeting Abutnet again, for even though she understood the enormity of the catastrophe that had befallen Nadamu she clung to the hope that he had survived.

As there were no more shuttles from Nadamu the spaceship was forced to land on the planet. It would be the vessel's last flight and the crew felt sad at having to leave their ship for good. Slowly the large silvery disc turned downwards and entered the upper atmosphere. The ship's mighty engines powered up and decelerated the spaceship to prevent it from overheating as it flew through the air. The engine's fiery glow blotted out the planet below from the passengers who were eagerly looking through the windows hoping to catch a glimpse of where they were going to. Not long after and with their fuel nearly exhausted the huge vessel touched down on a green plain. The engines burned the grass away and threw up an enormous cloud of dust and ash that was visible from far away. Fortunately a gentle breeze blew the cloud away so that they didn't have to wait long before they could open the outer hatches. The main ramp was lowered and everyone streamed out of the spaceship. They walked out from under the ship and looked around. The sun was shining and large white cumulus clouds decorated the azure sky. The huge cloud of dust whirled up by the ship was moving across the grassland but already the smell of grass filled the air around the ship again. While almost all the passengers were admiring the country around the ship Talana had used the time on board to find some items that she thought vital such as clothes and food which she packed in a bag and a small gun that she concealed under her clothes. She carried Abutnet with a cloth tied around her back and lifted the bag on her right shoulder. It was heavy but it would have to do she decided. Talana walked down the ramp and towards the cheering crowd. She made out the ship's captain and approached him.

'Captain!' she said loudly to make sure as many of the passengers as possible could hear her. 'Thank you for landing us safely. Now that we're here the only thing you still have to tell us is where the camp is. Where are we going to?'

The captain looked at her slightly taken aback. 'It's not far from here,' he said. 'But I suggest you wait till we hear from the camp. As far as I know the camp is overcrowded and there is no space for more people. It might also be dangerous walking off into the countryside on your own. There are wild animals around. It's not like Nadamu. You better stay here in the ship where you're safe until we know what the arrangements for us are. And that,' he added loudly to the crowd, 'goes for everyone here.'

'Then who's in charge at the camp?' Anhep said. 'It's important that I meet the local leadership as soon as possible.'

'There is a council but who is on that council I can't tell you. I've been advised by the council to remain here until further notice and to ensure everyone's safety. Please be patient.'

'But can't you tell us in what direction the camp is?' Talana asked.

The captain looked at her reprovingly. 'I have a feeling that if I told you so I'd be helping you to go out into the wild where you're likely to meet a bear or a lion or even a band of head-hunters. And I certainly won't allow a young child to be taken into such danger when you're perfectly safe here,' he said sternly.

Talana looked around. The camp might be in any direction. She resigned herself to the inevitable and followed the other passengers, who were leaving a trail of ash from the burnt grass under the ship, back up the ramp. At the top she found her way blocked by Anhep.

'I know why you're in such a hurry to get away from here,' he said. 'But it won't help you. You don't think I've forgotten about Imhorep, have you?'

'Leave me alone,' she hissed. 'Imhorep was a monster. He got what he deserved.'

'I'm not interested in your excuses. You've no right to be here, but now that you've come I'll make sure you get the punishment you deserve.'

Talana drew the gun and pointed it at Anhep. 'If you don't leave me alone you'll end up like Imhorep.'

'Very well,' he said and stepped back. 'But this is not the end of the matter, I promise you.' Talana watched him walk away and hid the gun again. Her heart was racing and she felt very worried and vulnerable, especially with little Bonabutnet to look after. She decided that the best thing for her to do was to stay near the ramp so she would meet anyone coming from the camp first. She sat down in a corner from where she had a clear view and gently rocked Bonabutnet to sleep.

Not long after the high pitched whine of engines heralded the approach of an aircraft. Talana watched it swoop in across some tall trees at the edge of the plain and land near their spaceship. When the engines died down a hatch opened and a tall lanky man of about sixty followed by two armed guards stepped out onto the grass.

'Well, well,' Talana thought. 'An aircraft. How very convenient.'

She let the three men pass by before going down the ramp both quickly and unobserved. She entered the open hatch and looked around for a place to hide. At the front were two seats in the cockpit. The main body of the aircraft contained two double rows of seats with backrests pointing in the direction of flight. The apple green of the seats contrasted with the purple floor and panelling. At the far end of the cabin was a door. Talana hurried across and opened it. Behind it was a small storage compartment. It was empty but she hoped that no one would use it on the flight back if, as she suspected, the former Pantocrat Anhep would throw his weight around to get a quick ride to the camp before other passengers or cargo were unloaded. She didn't have to wait long before she was proved right. Several people boarded the aircraft and she recognized Anhep's voice. The engines started up and the aircraft took off. After a very short flight they landed again. Talana wished she could see outside but there were no windows in the storage compartment. She waited until everything was quiet before she carefully opened the door. From the passenger cabin she looked out and saw that they were on a makeshift airfield. On one side there was a metal fence with a forest behind it and on the other side were an almost grotesque assortment of metal huts, buildings built from crates and tents. There was no one near the aircraft. She seized her chance and quickly walked across to the nearest buildings. The narrow lanes between the buildings were bustling with people and she quickly got lost in the crowd.

'Now one thing's for sure,' she thought. 'That bastard Anhep thinks I'm still on the spaceship, so I've got some time to act freely before he discovers I'm gone.'

With some help she found her way to a large brown tent that was reserved for single women and women with young children. In the great flood a lot of couples were torn apart and for most of them there would be no happy reunion. Talana was given a camping bed in the middle of the tent. There were screens between the beds to afford the women and children a little privacy, but there were not enough of them so that Talana had a screen on one side while on the other side a little old lady with blue eyes and short white hair sat on the bed and welcomed her with a smile.

'Oh my dear,' the little lady said, 'but you do look tired. Have you come a long way?'

Talana smiled back and nodded.

'By the way, my name's Marha. I've been here for months already. Oh, it was terrible at first with all the dirt and nowhere to stay and wash but now things have become much better. Only the food is still a problem. There's never enough and what we get isn't really what I'm used to. You know at my age one does have set ways and it's very hard to adapt to new circumstances. But what am I doing talking about myself, how selfish of me. Is there anything I can do for you?'

'You're very kind,' Talana said. In fact you're the first really kind person I've met in a long time.'

Marha looked shocked. 'Oh, but surely the world can't be all that bad,' she said. 'There are many kind people around, though I must admit,' she said with a frown, 'that there are also parts of the camp where pretty young woman shouldn't go on her own.'

Bonabutnet woke up and started crying. Talana quickly got some food from her bag and started feeding him. Marha watched them with evident interest.

'What an adorable boy he is,' she said. 'When I was young I also had a little boy. He was such an angel when he was little though of course they all become a bit naughty and less adorable as they grow older. But I loved him very much.' She sighed. 'And now I don't know what has become of him.'

'I'm sorry,' Talana said. 'I hope you'll still find him. What about your husband?'

'He died several years ago. He was security chief at the central government offices.' She sighed and her eyes seemed to fix on some distant point. 'We had such a good life back then. The garden parties and other occasions with many important people. My husband even knew the Fascocrat himself quite well. We used to stay at his country estate in summer regularly.'

Talana was astonished at the sudden turn of events and tried to remember if she had seen the old lady before at her father's home. She pictured different people at summer parties until she remembered a distinct face.

'Your husband was quite tall,' she said, 'with wavy ginger hair and a narrow moustache, wasn't he?'

'But how do you know that?' Marha said in surprise.

Talana hesitated. 'Tell me,' she said. 'Did you get along well with the Fascocrat?'

'We did, yes, but why do you ask?'

Talana decided to take the risk and confide in Marha. She told her everything from when she first met Abutnet to the maltreatment at the hands of Imhorep and her flight back.

'So you see,' Talana said. 'If Anhep finds out where I am it would be very dangerous for me and Bonabutnet. I'm sure he would treat my son very badly.'

'That's terrible,' Marha said. 'I would never have thought such a thing possible. Now don't you worry. Your secret is quite safe with me. In fact I can help you to elude Anhep. One of the officials in charge of identity documents here is an old friend of my husband's. We'll go to him today and I'll tell him that you're my daughter-in-law.'

'Are you sure?'

'Why yes, of course I'm sure. He really is an old friend of the family he certainly won't mind doing me a good turn. We won't tell him the truth, of course. Only that you're my son's wife and that you've lost all your papers. There are plenty of other people without papers and as far as he is concerned all he will be doing is to help you get new ones a bit faster.'

Marha was as good as her word and later the next day Talana and Bonabutnet were in possession of new identity documents in the name of Marha's family. Anhep too had lost no time in going about his business. As the most senior surviving official with the will and ambition to get things his way he had no difficulty in taking over power from the indecisive council with its squabbling members. He had not forgotten about Talana but in spite of sending word to the spaceship and all food distribution stations for her arrest both she and her son seemed to have vanished into thin air. After a brief investigation by officials who mostly felt they had more important matters to deal with, it was concluded that she had left the spaceship to try and reach the camp on foot and that for reasons unknown she had not survived the trip.

For his part Anhep didn't quite believe the official findings as he knew her too well, but as he was preoccupied with establishing himself first as the sole ruler of all the survivors and then with subjugating the surrounding barbarian lands he lost interest after a while.

### Epilogue

The being slowly wended his way down a long wide corridor. One might have expected to hear the sound of each step echo along the corridor and yet everything was silent. The opaque floor and walls seemed to swallow even the slightest sound thus making the being appear like something from the spirit world and not a being of flesh and blood. The gravity of Earth made each step slow and ponderous and it was with an inaudible sigh of relief that he reached the end of the corridor. His indistinct appearance not only defied any attempt of description but also made him a little grey man in the extreme. This man then, who was only too happy not to be noticed by anyone, stood in front of the wall at the end of the corridor. He paused for a moment as if to catch his breath or clear his thoughts and then said a few words that almost no one on Earth would have understood. The opaque wall in front of him suddenly became transparent and he stepped through it. As soon as he was through, the wall resumed its opaque and solid character. The chamber he stood in was large and devoid of any character. In the middle was a large armchair with a tall man ensconced in it. The newcomer stood and waited at the entrance until the tall man beckoned him. He advanced and then stood still at a respectful distance where he felt the other's eyes gazing at him.

"Well," the seated man finally said, "what news do you bring?"

"The demolition was successful, my Lord. We sent in a team under a pretext and blew up the entrance. The opening is completely closed."

"What pretext did you give?"

"One of our aerologists issued a statement saying that the area is instable and that the missing astronauts have been swallowed up by the ground. A statement, I may add, that is not far from the truth," he said wryly.

"I see, but what about the demolition?"

"It wasn't necessary to publicise this. Only the demolition team knew and they were involved in a tragic and fatal accident on their return trip to base."

"Excellent. I trust no further visits to the area will be allowed?"

"It has been declared unsafe and off limits."

The tall man mused things over. "I rather wish I knew what they found down there," he said. "It's been such a long time, such a terribly long time. Do you think the systems there still work well enough to let them survive?"

"Hard to say," he said and shrugged his shoulders. "Everything was built for eternity, but still one can never be sure with machines. Personally I think the air there is still breathable."

"Why?"

"Two teams went in but they didn't come out again. I think they discovered an environment that allowed them to explore without their breathing equipment or they would have gone back to their spacecraft immediately."

"There was time for them to leave before we destroyed the way out. Why didn't they?"

"The others, I would guess. Remember there were the others we left behind."

The tall man nodded. "Indeed, I remember. But there was another way out, wasn't there?"

"Our satellite photos show that the place of the main exit has been destroyed by a meteorite. There is no way out for anyone down there, should they still be alive."

"Very good. Humans must never be allowed to find out the truth. They must never be allowed to suspect or even just imagine the truth. For should they understand that it is We who have pitted them nation against nation, faith against faith and race against race, that we have given them all their different beliefs and creeds, their addictions and mind numbing pastimes, that we have enslaved them into one long night of darkness, they would rise against us and their vengeance would be terrible. Never," he said slowly, "must they even imagine who their real masters are. Let them have their conspiracy theories that only serve to divide them all the more." He chuckled. "Let the blind stay blind."

"Yes, Lord," he said with a slight bow.

"Is there any other news?"

He shook his head and was dismissed with the flick of the other's hand.
By the same author

Eight gripping apocalyptic short stories about the end of the world. As we all know from Hollywood films the end usually begins in America - the rest of the world is an afterthought. Aliens, doomsday bugs, ancient Greek Gods and even time travel are among the surprising ways that destroy planet Earth. The surprising twists and humour make each of the stories unique and fascinating to read.

The End of America

ISBN-13: 978-1499534122

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/525968

Sycko is a loser: he can never hold on to a job for more than a few weeks, he's got no girlfriend, no one knows how he scraped through school and he's just been fired again. But when his friend Judas, who realizes that Sycko has his final pay along in cash, takes him to a seedy bar that also runs a brothel upstairs, Sycko gets into a chance encounter with Jeremiah, Master of the Temple. Master Jeremiah decides to take Sycko to his Temple where he has the chance to completely change his life. Little does Sycko know that lurking beneath the attractive surface of the Temple dark secrets are hidden. Suspenseful, sinister and dark humor capture the frightening reality of a young man descending into religious fanaticism.

<https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/525741>

### Dare Quest

Series for young readers aged 8 – 12.

There is an evil man prowling the streets of London in 1892. He lures poor children with food and the promise of a better life. Where does he take the children?

A terrible murder is committed. What is the dark secret behind it?

It's a case for Sherlock Holmes.

Then Edward and Anthony are called in on the case. Who made the dare? And what is the connection between the murder and the missing children?

Can YOU survive the Dare Quest challenge?

Read them all:

The Chinese Pirate

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/505718

The Red Planet

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/506063

The Tiger

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/506260

Queen Cleopatra

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/514200

Free the Slaves

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/516725

The End of the World

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/521406

Sherlock Holmes

The Man from the Ice

The Crystal Skull

www.briansmith.de

