The Book of Ominiue: Starborn (3 page)

The camp was not far away. As they passed through the edge of the forest they could see light from the campfire, which disappeared each time a tree broke their line of sight. As they came closer to the plateau they could make out figures surrounding the red glow of the flames. On one side sat the massive bodies of the native creatures called lionmen by the Earthmen, and Fa’Orian in their own tongue. On the other side sat the Earthmen with their assortment of equipment.

The lionmen all stood as Shayne stepped out into the clearing, slightly bowing their heads in respect. Their leader, Kushnalor
[2]
Madan’rah, an impressive male with a cape hanging over one of his shoulders that reached down to the back of his knees, bowed deeper than the others as he greeted him. They were giants compared to the Earthmen, towering over them. Even though they had spent a couple of months together it still felt strange for the Earthmen to crane their heads to look at them. The native captain took a step back, allowing Shayne plenty of room. He extended a hand in the complex movement of honour before returning to his seat.

The Earthmen wore general utility armoured uniforms, except for Shayne and the Brigadier who were in parade dress to impress the aliens. Shayne was the very first Starborn-redundancy to be awarded an officer position, beforehand all military-based Starborns were general infantry so their division did not possess officer attire. Shayne was given an altered Special Operations uniform with the SB soldier platoon badges and intelligence officer badges sewn in its place. They also added factitious decoration to make him look more impressive, but it soon became the butt of jokes to most of the other defence forces, many calling him the
Star Born Officer
in mockery. The Special Forces were not impressed either, the use of their uniform was a deep insult to them, but their black formal dress was the closest to the SB uniform, so they were forced to accept it.

Shayne sat by the fire and opened his meal. Kíe, the lionman diplomat, came and sat beside him; he flicked his tail gently behind him to avoid sitting on it. Kíe was not the leader of the search party, but he was the authority, and the others respected him. There were also five native soldiers dressed in heavy armour: The captain, another male soldier and three female warriors. The group was also accompanied by three light armoured soldiers; two females and another male, who carried most of the supplies. The lionmen armour was simple and with little decoration except for the Kushnalor’s, which had simple carved patterns denoting his rank. The militant lionmen did not let their tail hang loose like Kíe. Instead they wrapped it tightly around their waist so it did not get in their way and only unwound it when they needed improved balance.

Kíe was a scholar who also acted as a spiritual teacher, he had an eight string guitar slung across his back which he played most nights during his regular teaching. He was dressed in winter gear that was far too large for him and underneath his heavy woollen cloak was a blue Shawl-like garment fastened at the front with a decorated bronze clasp, they called it a scholar cloak. It was the finest thing the young alien wore and is what identified him as a journeyman.

Kíe stood out amongst present company. He was just as tall as the others but he had a very short mane that stuck out in every direction, being at that stage where it was impossible to tame even if he bothered to try. His hair was light in colour; with an orange tint that shined brightly when the light fell on it. He had a casual rough appearance and always had a relaxed and friendly smile printed upon his face. The other three males in the party were much stricter in their appearance, they had longer manes and wore them the same way; brought back tight and braided.

The females were maneless, just like a lioness and though they were not as large as their male counterparts, they were just as formidable and imposing. Their average height was two-and-a-half meters, even the smallest looked like she could break a human with her bare hands.

The night wore on and the camp was separated into their social contingents. The Earthmen and the two droids 73B-GMSR and 14D-SCMSR happily sat by one side of the fire. They were led by the Brigadier General Christov Hanniver, a friendly and open man but also a hard worker, chosen for those very characteristics. He was a youngish man with an easy smile. His features were not considered attractive, with auburn-brown hair and the same colour eyes he easily blended in the crowd when he was not wearing his Star Officer’s uniform, yet his charm had a way of making him the centre of attention. At the Brigadier’s feet lay an unusual pet; A Tasmanian tiger named Red Rocket. He had a second thylacine named Cascade back at the settlement. Pets were rare in new colonies for both transport expanse reasons and potential habitat destruction. The two marsupials were given exemptions as a reconstructed species, which held prime status in the Earth Rejuvenation Project. Normally a top listed project specimen would not be allowed off planet, especially an unlinked-planet, but Red Rocket suffered severe separation anxiety when away the Brigadier so for the health of a breeding pair they were granted an otherwise impossible animal-transportation request; so wherever you saw Hanniver you also saw the slim striped creature trotting happily at his side.

The other members of the party were also hand selected for their charismatic and easy manner. There was Lieutenant Rae Wong the medical officer and only female member other than the SB soldiers. She was not a fighter, like those who were a part of the female battalion regiments; she was a field doctor, who was trained in basic combat as all in the military were, but would rather avoid any form of violence. The rest of the party were general infantry. Lance Corporal Omar Shalvie headed that particular area, a dark skinned man from Canada. He was a great leader and had plenty of senior officer potential but he was a man of the field and loved avoiding paperwork. Omar’s best friend also accompanied them, Corporal Dominic Bianchi, the one who never stopped talking, and often the one who was always digging holes for subordination; his crimes were never anything serious, but he found it hard to resist the opportunity to play a prank. If anyone could friend the enemy into submission it was him. The other two were privates, both big men. Rahul mostly kept to himself but was pleasant enough when spoken to, while Jackston always maintained a professional manner while on duty but the moment they were relieved he would drop his mask and pull out a deck of cards. The rest were all Starborn; all passive and quiet, nothing to suggest a single thought passed through their minds with the exception of Shayne: who saw all.

The Earthmen talked amongst themselves, laughing and enjoying the night, which was warmer than it had been up in the mountains. The trees were much larger now that they had cleared the worst of the mountains, the forestland slowly changed from stunted high-land growth to a nightmare of dense jungle-like undergrowth that became more wild as the rough and uneven terrain flattened out into the lower-lands of the more temperate climate. Despite the weather being much more agreeable the lionmen kept close to the campfire; on the opposite side of the Earthmen, huddled around it for warmth. Two of the natives were conversing in hushed voices; the rest were grim and silent as they held their arms out to the fire, their eyes and armour dancing in the flickering light. Shayne sitting apart from both groups was accompanied by the three other Starborns, the mechanical pack mule and Kíe. Not a single sound could be heard from them other than the occasional shifting for comfort.

The lionmen feared the forest; they believed there was some malevolent force still living within it. At night time they sat silently by the fire, constantly looking out into the darkness and during the day they trudged on as fast as they could, but the thick and tall trees often blocked their way forcing them around massive root systems, some of which were as tall as their pikes. Their apprehension was driven by a superstition that the forest was forsaken, a reminder of the Afradians, a god-like people who once dwelled there. Kíe explained to Shayne after
first contact
that the original people of the forest were wiped out in an ancient war of their kind and ever since the forest had been cursed. Kíe did not seem frightened like his warrior kin were, but he did talk about it with awe and sadness. It seemed to grip them and there were times when even the Earthmen noticed it was unusually quiet, with no sounds of animals at night or birds during the day. When they came to these ‘silent’ zones the entire party would withdraw into themselves; becoming part of that eerie silence, wishing only to get away as quickly as possible.

As the night advanced the campfire’s flames began to wane, giving way to hot coals that glowed brightly when a stray breeze passed. The members of the camp slowly drifted apart, retiring for the night. The Earthmen retreated to their bivouacs and the lionmen lay on a cleared area of ground, wrapped tightly in fur blankets that sheltered them from the cold. Shayne retired at the command of the Brigadier, but he remained restless. He laid atop his gear, too restless to sleep. He cast his eyes up at the stars, but most were obscured by the tree canopy with only those directly above visible. He laid back and watched them with his hands tucked underneath his head. He had a good view of the colonyships in their stationary orbits set in one of the moon’s Lagrange Points. Clarkes Moon was angled 30 degrees above the horizon, so the construction of the
Gateway
was almost directly above them. It would have been a wonder for the natives to look up at the night sky one night and discover three new stars in their sky that outshone even the closest planets; stars that behaved just like their moon and did not move throughout the night.

***

It was a warm, dark night. The stars shined brightly in the sky, yet they looked strange, twinkling unnaturally overhead. Shayne cast his eyes at the great grassland around him, gazing out as it disappeared beyond the horizon; flowing like an endless ocean as a hidden wind guided it along. His eyes were drawn to something bright flickering on the horizon. He gazed out at the growing light upon a slight rise. The glow grew, flooding the hill with beams that penetrated the night. Alone in the grass-lands it cried out as a beacon, beckoning him to follow.

As he gazed upon it a moving shadow caught his eye. It flashed past his peripheral vision so fast that he snapped his head around in surprise. A pair of glowing eyes peered at him through the long grass. Shayne watched with fascination as the small shadowy creature stepped forward, revealing a pure black fox. She sat down and looked up at him, an intelligence radiated from her as her mouth cracked open into a wide grin. Her eyes danced in the moonlight as she studied him.

He is here
, a voice echoed in Shayne’s mind. He knew it came from the little fox, but its mouth never moved.
We must find him!
The soft sweet voice echoed again through his mind. She rose up and faced the light radiating on the horizon. Her head twisted around to glance once upon him before she bounded towards that strange glow. Shayne became overwhelmed with a sudden urgency to follow the small creature now racing through the long grass, as if the fox’s own urgency surged through him; he knew he had to reach the light so he chased after the little fox. She urged him on, always calling out as her words became more pressing.

As they raced onwards the light grew brighter until it engulfed the entire field, blinding him so he could run no further. Shayne extended his arm to shade his eyes, squinting as he tried to see through the painful glare. As the pain in his eyes subsided the shape of a man formed, standing on the rise with his back turned to them, silhouetted by the light. The radiance began to dim; allowing Shayne to see more clearly. The stranger wore fine native clothes with a blade hanging from his hip. He turned to face them revealing short black hair and a chinstrap beard. Shayne’s attention was pulled away from examining this young man before him, instead he was drawn to the stranger’s eyes, which burned brightly, like the light of the Sun was within him and its power radiated out, creating a god-like and lordly appearance, but the stern gaze softened in kindness the very moment he looked down upon Shayne. He smiled warmly as he took a step closer. His mouth opened to speak —

***

Shayne woke with a start. He was breathing heavily and sweating even though the morning was cool. Kíe was standing over him; his face a mixture of worry and curiosity.

‘You have had nightmares every night since our departure.’

‘It is not a nightmare,’ Shayne replied perfectly in the lionman’s language.