LINKS
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The Christa Affair
Chapter Forty-Five
The heat was stifling. The rain had long since stopped, but torrents of water still spilled sporadically from thick branches overhead as they rustled in a light breeze; at ground level the air was deathly still, and a heavy mist swirled about their feet as they walked.
Though Falturon was still high overhead, the dense canopy above effectively shut out her intense light, reducing the floor of the rainforest to a state of perpetual twilight that they knew would quickly fade into night as sunset approached. The combined effect of the fog and relative darkness lent an air of spooky unreality to the scene.
The surface beneath their feet was a spongy mass of rotting vegetation, unable to support their weight in places, dotted here and there with occasional sparse undergrowth. Tabor claimed to know the trail, but twice a member of the team had fallen thru to their armpits. They were linked together mountain-climber style with safety line of Elviran SpiderSilkk and there were no serious consequences, but Jashi was having major doubts about the Federation assassin. When they were forced to stop to fish Tabor out of a pocket that yawned three feet above his head, Jashi ordered another rest.
They'd been walking for what seemed like forever, forced to take frequent breaks to keep from becoming dangerously overheated -- at this rate Jashi was beginning to doubt they'd \ever\ reach the village. They all unhooked from the safety line and sank wearily to the ground, thankful for the brief rest in spite of their slow progress. Only the tiny cooling units of their helmets and the effects of the L-4 they were drinking kept their body temperature under control in the unbearable heat and humidity.
Karli moved among them, checking the biostat readouts on each helmet, and passing out new supplies of insect repellant. It was standard Federation military issue -- supposedly effective against all flying or crawling predators -- but several of Sanctuary's creepy critters seemed to be immune to it. No one had yet been bitten, but several times, members of the party had found one of the poisonous varieties crawling on the legs of their coveralls, in spite of their liberal use of the foul-smelling stuff.
"What \are\ those things, Tabor?" demanded Jashi, referring to the holes they had fallen into. He took a long pull from his canteen of L-4. "That last one was too big to be a natural formation, I don't care \how\ fast falling leaves cover up dead branches!"
"The burrow of a Zolith, Captain... All three of them were, but I'm damn glad the owner of that last one wasn't home. A burrow that big probably belongs to a mutant, and they've been known to attack things lots bigger than me! The normal ones'll run when they hear you coming."
"How much farther?" Tabor's map had shown the village to be only twelve miles east of the city; he was sure they had walked farther than that already. Jashi looked at his chronometer -- a little better than six hours since they had transported from the \Klondike's\ watery hiding place to the activated cases left behind in Tad and Marty's former home beneath the \Decaying Orbit\.
"Bout another mile and a half, Captain, but the going gets easier as we near the village. The natives have cleared some of the land for farming." Jashi wondered what kind of food crop could grow in such a climate -- too damn much water! "Once we top this next rise, you can see the village. There's still better'n three hours till dark." They had to make the village before nightfall; even the natives didn't go into the jungle after sunset.
(.... "Done, Captain....") came Tad's voice in Jashi's head. (.... "but I still think we oughtta leave more than just one this time... We're getting pretty close ....")
(.... "Agreed, Tad. But we may need em worse later....") Jashi would have liked to have planted one of the L'sa'rian transport cases every mile, or planted them in groups of five every few miles, but there was a limit to what they could carry. The little "manifest cases" that became the booths when activated were larger on the inside than on the out -- like most everything manufactured by the L'sa'riani -- and could easily be packed one inside another to infinity, but weight soon became a problem. Tabor was unaware of how many they had brought, or that Jashi had instructed Tad to leave one behind, activated, each time they took a break. Jashi only hoped he could remember the address code of each of them.
Jashi discreetly signaled Roi in spacers' sign, asking about the situation back in the \Klondike\. Tabor was unaware of the telepathic link to the ship, and had complained bitterly about the lack of communications. To pacify him, Jashi had rigged an antenna just beneath the surface, with orders that comm silence was to be broken only in the event that the team met with unexpected disaster; then had carefully disabled the transmitter in Tabor's helmet.
"Toko found the faulty circuit Jashi," signed Roi in reply. "They're ready to fly."
Jashi mentally breathed a sigh of relief. After DeCarlo's escape, he'd been reluctant to follow Tabor into the jungle, native contact or not; if Tabor \had\ been the one who released the Squire, they were probably walking into a trap, but he had to find out. If there really was a way into the natives' "Place of the Gods", it offered their best chance to kill Licti and get out alive. If the whole thing fell apart on them, Suu's orders were to blast the top of the spire and get the hell out; at least with the \Klondike\ flyable, the mission would be accomplished one way or another. They'd use their PRDs to transport aboard -- if they could.
Roi shouldered the heavy pack of precious stones -- brought along as gifts to the natives -- and they moved on, more carefully this time, with Tabor probing the ground ahead of them with a long pole fashioned from a fallen limb. They were climbing a gentle rise -- the last one according to Tabor -- and the going was rough; the heat and humidity continued to take their relentless toll on the party and they were soon forced to stop again.
Of the five of them, only Tad seemed not to feel the effects. The boy was tireless, restless and impatient each time they stopped to rest, drinking only sips of water from his canteen, instead of the quantities of L-4 being consumed by the rest of them. "One of the advantages of a higher body temperature, Captain," he laughed when Jashi commented on it. "This is just a nice warm day; wait'll it get's hot!" Jashi failed to find it amusing.
This time they left behind two T-cases, and wearily moved on again. The undergrowth became thicker and the grade steepened; the overhead canopy began to thin, and the rising horizon ahead grew brighter as they neared the crest of the hill. At Tabor's signal, they dropped to the jungle floor and crawled the last ten yards; suddenly they were at the end of their torturous journey.
*********
The scene wasn't what Jashi had expected. They lay at the edge of a large clearing; the land ahead was flat as a table top, and under cultivation. About a half-mile away, in the center of the clearing, stood the village -- surrounded by a tall fence of sharpened wooden stakes.
He surveyed the buildings beyond with the glasses. They were made of what appeared to be kiln-fired brick; the windows and doors were equipped with heavy wooden shutters, latched back to allow ventilation. (.... "The fence keeps out the Zolith, Captain....) Tad had sensed Jashi's question. (.... "and a few other rather nasty night-crawlers. The shutters offer protection against a night-flying vampire about the size of your fist the natives call Ah Sit'chu ....")
(.... "Sounds like a sneeze!....") They laughed together silently.
What a softy! Karli's comment was private. What happened to your apprehension?. Jashi decided to ignore her.
(.... "This is it, Tad. Probably the last chance we'll have. If Tabor's led us into a trap, it's about to be sprung. Five cases, needlegun and Uzi in each one....")
(.... "Aye, Captain....") Jashi could feel Tad's rush of adrenaline as he faded noiselessly out of sight into the jungle.
Karli snuggled close to him and Jashi put down the glasses. You're right, Kitten. It really isn't so bad. Sorry I've been such a baby.
Not a baby, My Love... just an insecure male! She squeezed his hand tightly. "I love you, Jashi Abram!" she whispered fiercely.
(.... "Done, Captain... I hope we get a chance to use em!....") Jashi realized Tad was actually looking forward to this -- he wanted the hostilities to commence \now\. He hoped the boy's youthful eagerness wouldn't get them into trouble.
Not to worry, My Darling, just boyish enthusiasm, Karli reassured him. He'll be alright... I'm monitoring him closely.
Tad rejoined the group, wriggling in between Jashi and Karli. He was grinning from ear to ear, flushed with excitement, and for the first time since they entered the rainforest, he was breathing hard; he handed each of them a PRD, programmed to one of the transport cases he had just activated. "I hid em real good, Captain," he whispered. "Bout fifty yards out, and they're arranged like you told me. Where's Tabor?"
Jashi looked around. Where \was\ Tabor? "He was here a minute ago," he answered. "You didn't see him?"
"No, Captain," responded Tad emphatically. "I was very careful that I wasn't follow..." The sentence was choked of by a gasp of pain. Tad's eyes widened in surprise, and for a moment his body was rigid. His jaw worked frantically, but no sound came out; he collapsed face-down in the dirt. A tiny blue feather was attached to his back, between the third and fourth rib.
Karli screamed in Jashi's head, and he was assaulted with incredible pain that faded instantly into nothingness as she lost consciousness. It was all too fast, too unexpected -- and too late Jashi recognized the feather of the tiny poison dart, fired silently from a native blowgun. Jashi fumbled for the PRD at his left wrist, held fast by the elastic of the cuff of the sleeve. He felt the sting of the dart as he depressed the activation stud.
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
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