Yaliana

Yaliana looked out on the dense jungle below, ever watchful for pterodactyls. A faint whistling noise sounded nearby, and Yaliana identified it as a pterodactyl call. She raised her head and scanned the sky. For a moment, she saw nothing. “Pterodactyl overhead!” came a shout. A moment later, the alarms sounded, warning anyone in the compound below to get under cover of one of the concrete bunkers. Yaliana drew her saber. She flicked a switch, and the metal blade erupted in a shower of sparks as it lit up with electricity. A pterodactyl swooped down from overhead, its deep cawing a warning of its impending attack. Its leathery wings spread wide, backlit against the sun. Yaliana raised her weapon, ready to defend herself if it became necessary. Gevery and his squad lined up along the wall, drawing energy rifles. Gevery made a motion, and the squad began firing on the pterodactyl. Its body and head were covered in dense bone-like armour resistant to energy bolts. It made them difficult to kill, which was why Yaliana readied herself to attack with her saber. “It’s closing fast!” yelled Gevery. It came closer and closer, swooping in, its long beak filled with huge, jagged teeth. Yaliana raised her weapon. The creature crashed into the wires running along the top of the wall, and the wires sparked wildly. The pterodactyl used its claws to climb over them without much trouble. Gevery’s squad opened fire on the ptero, but the bolts bounced harmlessly off its boney armour, showing just how ineffective their weapons were against it. Yaliana slashed with her sword, but it didn’t do anything except make a hollow thumping noise against the armour. She swung again, barely grazing the dark burn marks on the armour where Gevery’s squad had hit the creature. Yaliana stabbed at it, looking for a gap in its armour, then slashed at its vulnerable wings, scoring them with long cuts that sizzled with energy. The pterodactyl screeched in pain and bit its arms. Its teeth scraped along its black armour. The awful noise made Yaliana’s ears throb. As she fought the creature, Gevery’s squad came up behind it. Its back was hard to reach from their position. The creature whirled around to face them, screeching. That left its back to Yaliana, so she sank her blade into the pterodactyl’s leathery flesh. The creature screamed as the weapon pierced it, then turned to face her, dragging her weapon out of her hands. Without a melee weapon, she drew her energy rifle. It wouldn’t do much good, even at this range. Possibly if she hit it directly in the eye, but great bone ridges partially hid them, making it difficult. Gevery and his squad stabbed at the pterodactyl’s back, and once again, it turned on them. Some of the knights were left in the same predicament as Yaliana. With the creature’s back facing her, Yaliana leapt as high as her heavy armour would let her and landed on its back. She bore down on one of the squad’s swords that had stuck there, and the weapon sank deep into the pterodactyl’s body. The creature collapsed, leaving its back open to attack. Gevery’s squad joined Yaliana in stabbing the pterodactyl until it quit moving and squawking. They heaved the carcass into the courtyard, because some of the people in the compound liked to make things out of the bone armour and tough leather. Of course, they cleaned it thoroughly of the thick and potent stench. Yaliana took off her helmet to wipe sweat from her brow. Her tight, black curls were damp, and she looked forward to a shower. Gevery removed his helmet as well, and grinned, his generous mouth curved upward. “We got another one, Yaliana,” he said triumphantly. “We’ll get a pay raise out of this one, surely.” “With any hope,” Yaliana said, smiling back. “That was a tough one.” “Must have been an older creature. The young ones have less armour.” “Shift change is soon. Let’s go. We’ve earned it.” * * * * After getting out of her suit and showering, Yaliana followed the rest of the knights to the cantina. It was time to get in some hard-earned downtime after a long day’s work. Yaliana’s squad and Gevery’s squad were closer than others, particularly because they always shared the same shifts. All the facilities were constructed out of thick walls made of the same abenite that was mined from the ground. The steel workers made their material from the abenite right here in the compound. It was an element similar to iron, but extremely hard and durable, even more so than iron. Their final product was called abenite steel, tough enough to withstand attacks by the pteros. “How’s the family, Besry?” asked Gevery as they made their way to the cantina. “The kids are coming along,” said Besry. “They’re growing fast.” “And your husband is looking after them today?” asked Yaliana. “He looks after them most days.” Besry laughed. “He works on his geology stuff from home.” “I never did understand the science side of things,” Gevery admitted, scratching his scalp. “Always went over my head.” Yaliana shrugged. “From what I understand, they can find the best rock to mine for minerals.” “We all do our parts,” said Besry. “Some people find the minerals, others mine it, some people feed us, and we protect the compound from wild things. We all contribute.” “Not sure what the boss’ daughter does,” someone piped up from behind them. “We’ve talked about this before,” Besry said. “Just because Ulissa only seems interested in tinkering around with flora and fauna doesn’t mean she doesn’t have a purpose.” “I heard the boss wants her to marry someone from the Escazi Corporation,” another voice added. “Join up Escazi and Wacuma Abena so that we can work together.” Yaliana’s heart clenched. She couldn’t imagine Ulissa as the wife of some corporate man. But then, Yaliana didn’t want to imagine Ulissa as the wife of anyone. Except maybe herself. Yaliana cringed away from that thought, because there was no way Ulissa would ever like her, especially not in that way. Ulissa always avoided Yaliana, and if they ever encountered one another, they hardly spoke at all. “Hey, Yaliana, head in the clouds!” Gevery said. “What are you thinking?” “Probably her secret lover!” Besry laughed again. The squads had been teasing her about a secret lover ever since they found out she liked someone. Once, she’d paused too often when asked if she did, and it wasn’t especially hard to suss out that she had feelings for someone, but wouldn’t tell them who. Sometimes they made up silly stories about it to tease her. The two squads entered the cantina and took up a whole table. They ordered beers all around, and Yaliana settled in to relax. This was the best part of her day, usually, unless she got a glimpse of Ulissa from the top of the wall. Gevery sat next to her. Without his armour suit, he was taller than Yaliana by about three inches, and she was pretty tall herself. Even without his suit, he was something of a mountain. “So, Yaliana, what are your thoughts for today?” He usually asked her this question after a long day’s work, and usually, she had something interesting to say. “I don’t really have any today,” Yaliana said. “Most days are the same anyway. Get up, guard the compound, fight the pteros, and rest.” “At least we fought our way up the ranks and are no longer on night shift.” “True that. Pteros are hard to see at night.” “Have you ever thought about getting out of here? Finding a job somewhere else?” “We’ve sworn an oath. We can’t leave.” “I’m just saying, if you think it’s the same, day after day. Have you ever thought about what’s out there in the wide universe?” “Sure I have,” she said. “It must be so much to take in, though, all at once.” “If only we weren’t so far out,” he said. “There’s hardly any other people out here. Just the Escazi clan over on Mawar and us on Harr.” “Don’t forget the people who are here to study the plants, those scientists.” “They don’t count. They just arrived. We’ve been here for decades. We were born here and raised for this.” “They’ve been out there, among the stars,” Yaliana said. “Can you imagine?” “I can, but like you said, we made an oath, one that you yourself said we can’t break.” “Do you think Boss Wakuma is holding up his end of the deal?” “Yes, so far. I don’t have any evidence that he’s ever betrayed us “That’s true. I just wish…wish that we could explore sometimes, you know?” “I hear you. Get off this death planet and give up fighting for a while. One day, do you think we’ll ever have a chance?” “If we do, it will be once we’re retired and too old to fight,” she said with a sigh of regret. “Here comes our beer,” said Gevery. “Let’s just forget about that for a little while, shall we?” * * * * Yaliana heard the news in the cantina the next day—Ulissa was missing. At first, Yaliana was certain Ulissa must be hiding on the compound, because someone resourceful enough could, indeed, find a nice hiding nook somewhere. It allowed Yaliana to believe, for a little while, that there was nothing to worry about. In fact, in her mind, there could be nothing to worry about, because it was inconceivable that Ulissa could be anywhere but in a safe place. “There’s no way she could have left,” Gevery said. “All of the ships are present and accounted for, all the ground vehicles are in their bays. She’s hiding somewhere on the base, you mark my words.” Yaliana didn’t even consider that she could be anywhere outside. The numerous perils, the large, dangerous wild animals, made it far too dangerous for anyone except a knight to venture out. The pteros were the main worry, of course, because they could fly, but other creatures out there—carnivores and herbivores alike—hated the sight of humans, wanting to kill them for the invaders they were. Even knights didn’t go far, and only to find more drilling sites for minerals, keeping the scientists protected. The dangers even included the plant life. There had been reports of carnivorous plants eating creatures as large as a rhinoceros, so they’d be able to devour humans in a snap. Yaliana felt a stir of concern. She knew she shouldn’t be harbouring feelings for the boss’ daughter, but she had for a long time. She still remembered when it had first happened. She had been sixteen, hard in training to be a knight. She and Gevery had been practicing hand-to-hand combat in the gym. Her glance had happened to fall on a girl sitting on the side, watching them practice. Their eyes had met, and it had been so distracting, that Gevery had managed to easily throw her down to the mat. Ever since then, she’d been on the lookout for Ulissa. Yaliana had tried so hard to learn tidbits of information about her, and it had been difficult, because Ulissa was so secretive. Yaliana had asked people about her and had even taken to following her around without her noticing. Ulissa probably had noticed, though, and eventually Yaliana had stopped, because she didn’t want to scare the woman. She still saw Ulissa around the compound sometimes, but always kept her distance. It couldn’t be possible Ulissa was on the outside, but days went by without any sighting of her. Yaliana went from being completely sure that Ulissa was okay, to certain she was in grave peril. It was possible to disappear in the compound, but not for days on end. Yaliana didn’t know what to do, and it was driving her crazy. She often paced and couldn’t keep still, and her jittery nerves had started to affect the other knights as well. Yaliana prayed to some deity out there that Ulissa was safe, wherever she was. All the while she was praying and hoping, the search continued. The base was turned on end looking for her, the storehouses searched, the vehicles counted and recounted, and people questioned. Yaliana wasn’t part of the search crew, but she wished she was, just so she would know what was going on. This void of information wasn’t helping with her mental state. By the end of day three, Yaliana was ready to panic. * * * * On the fourth day, the boss called the squad leaders together. “I need your help,” Boss Wakuma said. “Ulissa has disappeared, and the only possible explanation is she has gone outside.” Everyone murmured in concern. That Boss Wakuma could possibly think that Ulissa had gone outside the walls meant the whole base had been turned upside down and she hadn’t been found. “We found that some of the stores of field rations have also disappeared,” Boss Wakuma continued. “That, plus enough supplies to survive for a week. We think she is trying to reach the nearest compound from here.” “That’s impossible,” Gevery spoke up. “No one has ever stayed that long in the field.” “That’s why I need you to go out and look for her,” Boss Wakuma said. “If there’s a chance she is still alive, I want her found.” “What if she refuses to come back with us?” asked Yaliana. “She must have run away for a reason.” Boss Wakuma looked grave for a moment. “Yes, I was pushing for her to marry Xavier Escazi, one of the younger sons of the Escazi Corporation. But I have reconsidered. I have seen the error of my actions, and I just want my daughter home safe.” He paused, taking a deep breath, clenching and unclenching his fists, as if on the verge of an outburst of emotion. “If you find her, you can tell her I won’t ask her to marry against her will.” This sounded complicated to Yaliana, but she stayed quiet. She felt a clench in her chest at the thought that Ulissa was in harm’s way, and the thought that she could be dead sent a thrill of fear through her. She remembered Ulissa as a quiet, shy girl, who never talked to the knights, keeping her head down whenever she passed by. So to think that she had gotten up the nerve not only to defy her father, but to run away into the jungle, was incredible. Ulissa had jade green eyes speckled with brown, and dreadlocks, which she kept neatly tied back. Yaliana thought she was pretty, but of course, she had no chance with the boss’ daughter, no way, no how. Yaliana was smart enough for an ordinary knight, but she was nowhere near the intelligence of someone like Ulissa, who studied all the time. She wouldn’t challenge her enough. Besides, there was no way that Ulissa’s father would approve of a lowly knight approaching his princess. As soon as they were dismissed, all the knights began preparations for an expedition into the jungle. They powered up armour, stockpiled weapons, put supplies into vehicles, and assigned mounts. The compound had been on Harr for several decades, and in that time, one of the species of the planet had been domesticated. They also had thick bone armour, and copious amounts of thick, coarse hair. The knights called them yaks, because of the long hair. They were tough and strong enough to carry a knight in full armour, a considerable feat. The preparations were finished, and Boss Wakuma wanted them to set out right away. He gathered the sergeants in the main courtyard, where they usually gathered before a scientific expedition. Gevery looked at Yaliana, then set down his pack. “Sir, we can’t set out now, the night comes soon.” “Every moment you wait, my daughter has less chance of survival,” Boss Wakuma replied, also looking at Yaliana. “The night is dangerous for us to travel, and we might miss a sign from Ulissa in the dark,” argued Gevery. Yaliana felt at war with herself and kept silent, because she wasn’t sure whose side to argue on. On one hand, she felt the same urgency as Boss Wakuma to get out and search, no matter the time of day. It had already been four days. What if Ulissa’s chances of survival went down while they delayed? On the other hand, she could see Gevery’s point. It was certainly more dangerous at night, and missing anything in the dark would possibly impede their final goal of finding Ulissa. Her gut churned with indecision, and with fear for Ulissa. A compromise was made that they would start out at dawn, as soon as there was enough light. That meant that everyone had to be in place before then. Yaliana sighed. They wouldn’t get much sleep this night. * * * * The dawn came, and the dim light coloured everything a soupy grey. The compound doors opened to let out the knights. Only a few would stay behind to guard the compound, pulling double and even triple shifts to make up for the absence of their fellows. The jungle stirred around them as animals went about their business. “The aircrafts have already been out searching for her in a grid pattern,” said Gevery. “But they found no sign of her from above. It might be that the foliage of the trees is too thick and interrupts our instruments. If we set out in the direction of the next compound, we may be able to find her.” “Or what’s left of her,” muttered Besry. “Don’t say that,” Yaliana said. “We mustn’t give up hope, not until it becomes obvious that she is beyond our help.” Besry snorted and shook her head, but fell silent. Between the wall of the compound and the jungle was an area where all the vegetation had been sheared away. As the doors opened, the potent smell of the jungle wafted over them, sweet and musky, like earth and blossoming plants. The sound of it hit them next, the chittering and lowing of animals. The jungle was alive. Yaliana and her squad moved forward, and the shadow of the trees loomed over them. Yaliana entered the forest first, feeling a prickling on the back of her neck as she did. They were being watched by hostile forces already, she sensed. Yaliana urged her yak forward, and her squad followed. The group stretched into a line along the probable direction of Ulissa’s journey and began their search. The knights had to take out their sabers to slice their way through, making a trail. They trekked far into the jungle, and eventually, the thick vegetation blocked the view of the compound walls. All around, the trilling of birds and hum of insects filled the air. Calls of larger animals sounded once in a while, reminding them that they were not alone. A group of creatures that reminded Yaliana of dogs scattered at their approach. The compound didn’t have dogs, but pictures of them portrayed their likeness to these creatures. Normally, they would have defended their territory, but the sheer number of knights made it too risky for the creatures to attack. What were they called again? Yaliana couldn’t help but think that Ulissa would probably know their proper scientific name. As they rode their yaks, more and more animals avoided their path. Bird-like animals swooped overhead, and through breaks in the treetops, looked like nothing but a blur of grey-brown in the low light. The foliage had closed off the sunlight from view, and the farther into the jungle they progressed, the darker it became. “There’s no way she could have made it this far,” Besry said, clearly uncomfortable with being outside the safety of the compound walls. Yaliana pursed her lips. She felt a steady ache in her chest at the thought that Ulissa was in danger, and it was unimaginable that she could be dead. Impossible. “She might have,” Yaliana said with a certainty she didn’t feel. “We owe it to the boss to make sure.” “The jungle is so thick; she could be anywhere,” Gevery said. “How could she have made it through without a weapon to slice a path?” “She wasn’t wearing our armour, so being thin enough, she could have made it through.” “There’s been no sign of her at all,” Besry said. “It’s only been a few hours,” Yaliana said. “Let’s continue on.” “The next compound is a seven day trek through rough terrain,” said Gevery. “She can’t have imagined that she would actually make it there alive.” “She must have, or she wouldn’t have tried,” Yaliana said. “We’ve barely made a dent in this forest,” Gevery said. “How long before we give up?” Yaliana didn’t know. Her hope was, of course, that they would find Ulissa alive. Her hope struggled against all the odds. But even she had to admit that it was highly unlikely, and it was more likely they’d be bringing back a body to Boss Wakuma. It was hot going, and Yaliana sweated inside her armour, muscles aching, even with the help of the power running through the mechanized metal suit. Her helmet stopped her from wiping sweat off her face, and she shook her head to try and stop it from running into her eyes. It had been hours when Yaliana found it—an empty ration package. Ulissa must have dropped it accidentally. Yaliana held it above her head in triumph and a shout went up and down the line. The news travelled fast, and Yaliana felt her hopes rise. It was possible, then, that Ulissa was alive. Her heart pounded, and her spirits renewed. Ulissa was smart, much smarter than a lot of people she knew, and if anyone could figure out how to survive in this deathtrap, it was her. All Ulissa had to do was survive until Yaliana found her, and everything would be fine. Hope fluttered within her breast, and she smiled. They hadn’t found Ulissa yet, but it was a start. Before she could gloat over her find, someone screamed from the other end of the line. Their short celebration must have disturbed some creature. Yaliana couldn’t see what it was, but she heard the crashing and shaking of trees. It must be a large animal to be able to move through the thick vegetation. A moment later, even louder crashing sounds erupted, then the creature was in sight. It was about fifteen feet tall, with thick scales covering its body. The creature had a horn on the front of its head, like a rhinoceros of Earth, and was similarly proportioned. The one difference were the jagged rows of teeth inside its jaw. It ran down the line, knocking aside knights and yaks as if they weren’t even there. Yaliana’s armour slowed her movements, so she couldn’t move in time to prevent herself from being bowled over by the beast. She rolled several feet and smashed into a tree. Her armour protected her from harm, apart from her head spinning. She got up, only to realize that the creature had turned around and was preparing to charge again. “Get your rifles out, hurry!” shouted Gevery. The creature trumpeted loudly and charged again. Yaliana fired on the beast, but much like the bone armour of the pterodactyls, the scales deflected the energy bullets without much trouble. Yaliana gritted her teeth and got out her saber. The creature had finished its charge and was standing, puffing and snorting, at the end of the line of knights. Gevery also got out his saber and raised it to s***h at the animal’s side. The saber sounded loudly against the scales. Yaliana shoved her saber upwards, between the scales. The creature howled, and with a quickness entirely unexpected, snatched Yaliana into its jaws. The world tilted alarmingly, and the rest of the knights yelled in surprise. The knights charged, but their sabers only seemed to enrage the animal. It shook her until she was too dizzy to see. Then, it charged again, battering aside the knights. Yaliana struggled feebly to free herself, but to no avail. Her saber had been stuck in the side of the creature, but it had jostled loose and fallen, leaving her without it. Her arm was wedged between two massive teeth, and she couldn’t reach her rifle. The creature kept running, dragging Yaliana with it. Yaliana didn’t know how far, or in which direction. Yelling didn’t seem to have any effect on the creature. Eventually, it slowed to a jog, then a walk. Finally, after who knew how long, it dropped her on the ground. It snuffled at her body, its tough, bone-hard nose scraping on her armour. Yaliana slowly reached for her energy rifle, careful not to let her movements startle the creature. The animal took her leg into its mouth and bit down. It didn’t do much the first time, but it bit down again, harder. Through some sort of luck, it bit right on the crease of Yaliana’s knee, and the armour creaked, then caved in. Yaliana held in a scream as the creature’s jaws crushed her armour inwards. Shooting pain leapt up her leg. She whipped her energy rifle into position and shot the beast in the mouth. The thing roared in pain and rage, and stomped on her foot. It twisted her leg enough that it sent more pain bolting through her. She screamed this time, and shot the beast in the mouth again where it was gaping above her. One of the shots must have done some fatal damage, because the beat collapsed in a heap and lay still. Yaliana panted for a few minutes, trying to fight through the pain in order to sit up. It was painstakingly slow-going, but she knew if she sat up all at once, she would pass out from the pain. Eventually, she could sit up and evaluate the damage. Her armour was crushed, and without taking it off, she had no way of knowing what was wrong with her leg. She wasn’t sure how she was going to remove the amour without help. Protocol didn’t take into account being lost alone in a jungle while injured. Speaking of help, where were her fellow knights? An examination of her helmet told her that, at some point, it had been damaged as well. Her comm unit inside her helmet, plus her GPS signal, didn’t work either. She had no way of knowing where her comrades were, or how to get back to them. How on Harr was she going to get back? She examined what she still had. Every armour kit came with emergency rations, plus a flashlight, a compass, and a tent. Not that a tent would do her much good in the middle of a deadly jungle. There should be an emergency flare in her kit somewhere; maybe they could find her if she let it off. She searched and searched, and began to panic as she realized she had forgotten to pack one. She was so screwed. No one could find her. Not to mention, she wasn’t their main priority. A beep told her that her armour had only half its power left. Another day and a bit, and it was going to be useless. She looked to see if she could find the trail that the beast had left, but the dense foliage had sprung back into place, leaving her without much of an idea what direction she had come from. Ulissa wasn’t the only one in horrible danger; Yaliana might end up being a victim of the death jungle. First things first—she needed to figure out what was wrong with her leg. Usually, performing first aid, one was supposed to find a safe place to do it. However, that wasn’t an option at this moment. Her armour had been dented, and couldn’t be removed the normal way. She would have to undo some of the screws to get it off. She could only hope no animal came upon her while she worked at it. She didn’t have a screwdriver, but she did have a knife. The knife wasn’t made to be a screwdriver, so it was slow-going. The tip of the knife broke off, which surprisingly made it easier to use for her purpose. Yaliana worked as fast as she could, but every time she heard a howl of some kind, or rustling in the bushes, she froze with fear. She was in no position to run from anything; she was completely helpless. The whole process was nerve-wracking, and the sweat building on her forehead wasn’t just from the heat of the day. She had been working for what felt like an hour when she sensed a pair of eyes on her. She froze, and without moving her head, she raised her eyes. A cat-like animal stared at her, and when it saw her looking at it, the creature bared its teeth and came out of the shadows, revealing coarse greenish-grey fur and patches of scales. It yowled at her, and Yaliana winced. Then the beast turned to examine the massive corpse of the rhinoceros animal. The back and head were armoured, but its soft underbelly was fair game, and the cat creature tore into it. The smell was thick and potent. After a while of gorging, the creature seemed to lose interest in the corpse and Yaliana both, and it left. Yaliana, who hadn’t moved and barely breathed the entire time, let out a whoosh of air. Through some sort of incredible luck, the cat thing had ignored her. She waited another fifteen minutes or so, then went back to work on her armour. After a lot of effort, and after hearing the screech of metal on metal for hours, she finally accomplished her goal. Her leg was free. Her knee had swollen inside the stretchy black material she wore underneath her armour. Through tears in the clothing, she saw she had deep cuts and bruises from the metal. Her measly first aid kit didn’t do much for the injuries, but it would have to do for now. Butterfly adhesives kept her wounds together, and two sprays, one antibiotic and one sealant, would keep them dry. It was the best she could do; she would have to wait until she returned to base to receive proper medical care. Her entire leg felt like it was on fire with pain, so she swallowed as many painkillers from her kit as was advisable. Looking at her leg made her feel sick, so she concentrated on other things. First off, her armour would have to come off completely, since without the support of that one leg’s metal, she wouldn’t be able to walk. She would have to abandon the rest of her armour here and take all the supplies she could carry with her. This was madness. Already, she felt vulnerable, and taking off her armour would make her easy prey for any number of predators. But the fact remained that it would be impossible for her to walk otherwise. So with a strange sense of wrongness pervading her thoughts, Yaliana struggled out of her armour. It had twelve different compartments with supplies, and Yaliana set herself to transferring everything into a backpack, which she’d found among the emergency supplies. It seemed that whoever designed the mechanized armour had foreseen her exact problem and had provided a solution. The tent, fairly useless as a safe shelter, was made out of waterproof material, so she shredded it in order to make a covering to put over her bandages. That should hopefully stave off some infection. She had lost her saber, and her energy rifle would likely run out of juice soon. She didn’t have a way to recharge it out here, unless…. Using a charger, she connected her rifle to her armour, sucking the power out of it. At least, until the battery eventually drained, she wouldn’t be totally weaponless. She had a knife with a broken tip. She looked around and saw lots of broken branches nearby. She could make a spear from a large and thick one she saw, which could double as a walking stick crutch. Soon, she began cutting the end into a point as quickly as she could. It would do no good to linger here long. Finally, she had all of the supplies she needed in the backpack, she had her spear and her rifle, and she was ready to set off for home—wherever that was. The compass did her little good without a map. There were no maps of the jungle—there was no need for them. All one needed was the coordinates of the other compounds. People would fly to them by hovercraft or speeder rather than drive by ground vehicle. The jungle canopy was too dense to see any landmarks or gain any direction, so Yaliana set out in what she approximated as the correct way. She was disoriented still from being shaken by the creature that had attacked her. But anything was better than staying put in the middle of the jungle. It was late spring on Harr, and the plants around her blossomed freely. All manner of foliage and trees grew around her, most of them with a shiny type of leaf or flower. The sound of birds calling came from overhead. Yaliana knew Harr better than to expect the birds to be benign. Most of the creatures here attacked people on sight. It was exhausting work trekking through the jungle, and Yaliana had to stop often to rest. The damnably hot and humid temperature made her wish longingly for the internal temperature controls of her armour, which she had to leave behind. Soon, she lost sight of the place where she had abandoned it, although she couldn’t have gone very far. The jungle seemed to have swallowed her whole. The sky began to grow dark earlier than Yaliana expected, and she made camp hastily. She hoped that the forest creatures would be scared of fire, and she proceeded to build a small campfire outside her lean-to tent she’d built by leaning broken branches against one tree trunk and covering it in forest foliage. The ration pack tasted divine after having gone all day without anything to eat. She was used to ration packs, because sometimes the supply ship was late in its delivery, forcing them to eat emergency rations. However, nothing had tasted as good as still being alive in the jungle. She was just finishing her dinner when she heard a sound. A rustle in the undergrowth caused her to spin in that direction. There was another rustle, and Yaliana took out her spear in place of her normal saber, readying it for attack. What if it was another of those creatures? She’d nearly been killed the first time, and that was with armour protecting her. Her heart pounding, she waited for it to emerge from the jungle. Whatever it was, she was as ready as could be. The undergrowth rustled more until a strange figure emerged. It looked terrifying and weird in the firelight. She had an impression of bone and leather, and then it spoke. “Put out that fire!” “What? Why?” Yaliana asked in confusion. The being pulled on its head, revealing it had been wearing a helmet. The face underneath…it was Ulissa’s! “Ulissa!” cried Yaliana. “How?” She had so many questions, chief of which was how Ulissa had managed to survive so long in the jungle by herself. She stepped closer, revealing that she was wearing a kind of armour made of bone armour and leather. The scraps of beasts that the knights had killed had been put to good use. “We need to put out the fire and get out of here,” Ulissa said. “The creatures of the jungle are unafraid of it, and the light is drawing them to your position.” “How can you know this?” “I’ve been watching from above. Come, we must leave.” “I can’t move quickly. My leg is injured.” Yaliana extended her leg so Ulissa could see the extent of the damage. “Come, I will help you climb.” Yaliana stood and gathered her supplies as quickly as she could and Ulissa stamped out the fire and lit a glow stick. Ulissa helped her stagger to the nearest tree, then boosted Yaliana with her good leg so she could reach the nearest branch. Luckily, Yaliana was tall, and her arms were strong. She managed to get on the first branch, although the effort jostled her bad leg. Ulissa easily climbed up beside her without any help, in spite of her shorter height. “Come on, climb,” said Ulissa. She was up the tree in an instant, effortlessly swinging onto higher branches. Yaliana followed at a much slower pace. Even without the injury, she probably wouldn’t have been able to move that fast. Heights were not her friend. A sound from below caught Yaliana’s attention. Just as Ulissa had predicted, there was an animal snuffling around the campfire remains. It seemed like it could smell Yaliana as it followed her trail to the tree. “Is it a pig?” asked Ulissa, coming down to Yaliana’s side, holding out the glow stick to see the animal. It sort of resembled a pig, except with scales and more teeth than necessary. Also, it had a long tail and what looked like thick hair on its underbelly. It made a snorting noise as it rooted around the base of the tree and Yaliana wrinkled her nose. “Don’t worry, it can’t climb,” Ulissa said. “Come on, there’s a better place to rest further up.” Yaliana wearily climbed, and eventually she came upon a place where several of the branches forked out and created a space large enough where two people could comfortably sit. Yaliana collapsed there, breathing hard. “Let’s see that,” Ulissa said, pointing at the bandage. “I’ve got a better first aid kit.” A pack hung off one of the nearby branches. “How did you find me?” Yaliana asked. “I could see your campfire. At first I thought it was a search party trying to find me, but it was only one small fire. Not to mention, you’re pretty far off course. So I came to see what you were doing alone.” “I am part of the search party that was looking for you.” “Oh, I know. You’re Yaliana, Sergeant of Squad B. I thought you must have been separated from the rest somehow.” “A creature attacked us. It dragged me out here. I don’t know where the rest of the group is and how close they are to us. I was trying to find my way back.” “Well, I can tell you right now, you’re going in the wrong direction. Your group of knights is nowhere close to here, wherever they are.” “How do you know that?” Ulissa lifted her chin. “I have a map.” “I thought there were no maps of the jungle.” “I made it. I knew what my father was planning. I had time to make my map, my armour, gather supplies. Study the types of animals that lived here. It wasn’t easy, but I was able.” That seemed impossible. How could Ulissa do something others couldn’t? It was true that none of the scientists showed any interest in cartography or studying the animals, but surely if scientists couldn’t do it, then Ulissa wouldn’t be able to either. Almost immediately after having these thoughts, Yaliana felt bad. She was doubting someone she knew to be intelligent and resourceful, and not only that, someone she liked a lot. She should have more faith. “You have a map?” Yaliana said after a moment of reflection. “So we can get back to the compound?” “I’m not going back!” “Your father said he’s calling off the arrangement. You can go back. We can go back together.” “My father lies all the time. I know he won’t renege on the deal he took so much effort to make.” Yaliana shook her head in disbelief. Boss Wakuma couldn’t lie, not to the knights, not if he wanted them to remain loyal. Yaliana trusted him, and Ulissa wasn’t safe here. She had to get the woman to see reason and come back with her. “But I found you,” Yaliana said. “No, I found you. If anything, you’re coming with me. You’re injured. You can’t force me to go with you. Besides, if I leave you, you might be killed.” “You don’t even have a weapon.” “It doesn’t matter, I don’t need one. The animals seem to think I’m one of them. The armour does a better job than I’d first imagined. Anyway, I’m not proficient with any weapon. Now, let me look at that.” The wound was crusty with dried blood, and her knee was swollen. She must have twisted it when the beast bit on her knee joint. At least the wounds weren’t caused by the animal’s teeth, but by the edges of her metal armour. “It’s a nasty injury,” Ulissa said. “Here, I have better dressings.” Ulissa wrapped the leg, but there wasn’t much she could do for the swollen knee except elevate it. “It’s safer up here. You can sleep without worry.” “What if we fall out of the tree?” “If you’re concerned, tie yourself down.” Ulissa took off her bone armour and laid it nearby. Then, she put down the glow stick and dug in the pack. She took out a silver emergency blanket and wrapped herself in it, then pulled out another packet, which she tossed to Yaliana. “Thanks,” she replied, tearing open the package and drawing out the thin blanket. She hadn’t thought it would keep her warm, but it did, reflecting her own body heat back at her. The tree was surprisingly comfortable, and before she knew it, she was asleep.