Chapter One

Not for the first time, I was second guessing my leaving the ship. I was exhausted and this jungle was scarier than it seemed in its description on file. But Shern and Jacob had out voted me. I couldn’t really blame them. Our last stop in Hidon had shown them that I was not capable of handling wild beasts on my own, particularly when they slip in through the plumbing and scare me half to death by crawling out of the toilet. I had managed to kill most of them…but I made a right mess and broke my nose running into a wall. In my defence, the ship is unreasonably small, there isn’t much room to run for your life and my method of execution requires room and concentration to be performed properly. I just exploded anything that came at me. But I would have been fine, it’s not likely that I would ever drain the plumbing system when I’m alone ever again, therefore there would be no way for anything to gain access; at least that was my argument. Jacob wouldn’t listen to a word I said, and frankly I think Shern didn’t want to be alone with him today.

Things kept rustling and clicking, but whenever I turned to look all I saw was innocent leaves, branches or vines in the most intense purples and greens.  “Shern?” I asked, “You’re keeping track of our location right?” I looked over to the right, her face was lit up by the interface panel on her wristband and suddenly the terrifying jungle wasn’t the most interesting thing in my surroundings. Her hazel coloured hair matched our environment eerily well, and her black eyes were mischievous when she turned to me. But it was her smile that always took me away.

“Yeah, yeah, ‘course.” She tapped a key and a holographic image immerged from her wrist, the heat response system registered her quick fingers. She continued walking forward, but made her way over to me avoiding one of many roots which were protruding from the ground. “Check this out, Piper...” I eagerly turned towards the bright blue, opaque screen, all the greenery behind it awash with blueness. I had assumed she was going to show me a map of our current location or of our intended route. Instead I was confronted with what appeared to be a video of a man slowly burning a hole into a tree trunk with his wristband laser.

“What am I..?” She shushed me.

I watched, mortified as something burst through the bark before the gentleman even finished excavating the cut-out. The slimy looking creature went straight for his crotch and buried itself inward, causing the man to drop to his knees. “Christ! What is that?” I exclaimed, but Shern didn’t answer me, we were both mesmerised by the sight of the poor fellow. There was no sound on the video, but I watched him mouth the words shoot me, before something exploded, spattering pinkish goop over the lens of the camera. The holographic video disappeared into Shern’s wrist and was replaced with an article on Secticulus masticipulae, quickly becoming known as the Trouser Slug. “Very fascinating, but why did I need to see that?” I asked her, side stepping an oddly smooth rock that was just begging for someone to slip on.

“You’re our medical officer, you need to know what you might have to deal with.” My eyes went wide with shock, she just smiled at me with perfect little white teeth.

“They have those things here?!” I knew this job would take me to some dangerous places, but I was not up for that.

“Don’t worry, they only take males.” Shern howled with laughter and slapped me hard across the back. I couldn’t help laughing along. I stopped when I saw Jacob glaring at us from ten yards ahead, I glanced at his crotch wondering if I could remove a slug before it destroyed his genitals.

“What are you two doing?” He looked annoyed, it was becoming his only expression these days. “Why is it that every time I turn my back you have managed to find some way to slow us down?” I don’t know if he was talking to me or Shern. Maybe both. Shern purposely ignored him and continued laughing. His frown turned from irritated to angry, gladly it was directed at her, not me.

“Are you doing your job or do I need to do it for you like everything else, Slick?”

Her laughter simmered down to silence in about zero-point-six seconds flat. When she put her hands on her hips it usually just made me notice how slender she was, but the look in her eyes was disturbing. Black as sin and angry as hell.

“What did you call me?”

“Sorry, Freudian slip,” he sneered, clearly showing no regret for what he called her. It took me a second to remember what it meant. It was a derogatory term for Meerdians, I think it cropped up during the Tri-world wars. “Don’t give me that look. Are we about to walk into a f*****g ravine? You wanted to be navigator this time, so navigate!” He moved towards us.

“You still don’t trust me, soldier boy? Fine. But don’t insult my people. Don’t think I won’t inform the Tri-World Council!”

I rubbed my forehead wishing we had opted for a day’s break, instead of rushing from one locale to the next. Not that we ever get along usually, but Hidon really took it out of all three of us. And you know that old saying: exhaustion breeds cranky a******s. Jacob laughed with a specific amount of amusement. None. He crossed his arms and rested his elbow on the long gun held on his belt, the hilt sat, conveniently, just below his chest. “Oh hey, great idea Shern! And how would that report go? Dear No-one Actually Gives a S**t, I have a complaint about one of my colleagues. Jacob called me a mean name, he however, hardly makes a peep when I call him a hairless ape in Meerdei.”

“I didn’t know you spoke Meerdei, Jacob. Maybe you look up-”

He ignored her, too caught up in his rant, “Maybe you could submit a testimonial, Piper,” He rounded on me now, “He continuously saves my a*s in life-threatening situations...” At this point his voice slipped into a mock-female falsetto, “He does all the grunt work, and makes sure there’s no shortage of food and fuel on board the ship. And he somehow manages to ensure we are on time, even when we’re running late and I have my period and I make him stop at what looked very much like a drug dealer’s house!” He hollered the last few words at us, clearly still upset by the incident.

“That was one time!” I yelled back and then regretted it, because now I was properly involved.

She shouldered me backwards and told Jacob to back off. “You’re ranting like an idiot, maybe you need a tampon too. And we’re never on time for anything, because there is no schedule. Dr Trunt said to come back when we’ve exterminated twenty five mansees. No time restrictions! Maybe if you had relaxed yourself a little, the last month would not have been so taxing.”

His eyes darted to mine briefly, I shrugged. Then he uncrossed his arms and crossed them again, “Well sorry I can’t live for three hundred years like you Meerdians, I don’t have time to waste.”  He managed to say her race’s plural as if it tasted of vinegar. Shern’s face went slack, but her eyes were wide and burning. When she spoke, her accent seeped through stronger, it made me shiver.

“Why do you say my people’s name with such poison, Earthling? Did you lose someone you loved to the wars? Did my people trample over your city leaving nothing but loss and the reminder to heed our word?” Her usual greyish, pale complexion was turning redder by the second. Jacob’s hands clenched into fists and he uncrossed his arms, as if saying he was ready in case she decided to strike. Shern was a good foot and a half shorter than Jacob, standing at five foot five, and she was a feminine twig in comparison to his muscular bulk, but last time this happened they had both ended up equally beaten and bruised. I made a snap decision to intervene.

I pulled my second-sight into focus and began sucking their red whorls of anger into myself, intending to release it, but some of it came out in my next words instead. At least I think it was theirs, maybe I was feeling a little pissed off myself.

“Listen, we only have to kill one more mansee before we can head back to Alaska. And there were three reports of sightings here, so we’re probably going to find one. Why don’t you both just shut the f**k up and do your jobs WITHOUT insulting each other. For once!” I crossed my arms and decided I better release the rest of the anger now, rather than later. I watched it steam off me and float up to slowly only to dissipate in Mordecai’s pristine atmosphere.

Shern sighed slowly and I redirected my gaze to her, the pale greyness re-coloured her face a little. She ran sharp black nails through her long hair which was curling in the humidity of Mordecai’s southernmost jungle. And although she was still flushed along her cheeks, her eyes were soft as she spoke Meerdian at me. She smiled at my frown and translated, “We are lucky to have you. Even though, you’re meant to be our officer medicale, you have become something more of a… second-in-command for two tyrants.”

I shook my head, I was about to say that I didn’t think either of them was tyrannical, just stubborn and perhaps too proud, when I noticed Jacob was smothered in deep purple, a cocktail of fear, frustration and anger.

“I told you I don’t like you using your…powers on me. You did it, didn’t you? Just then.”

“I had to. I’m tired, and listening to you two bickering like titbirds is making my headache worse. And besides, now it’s all over, we can just carry on with the mission. And then carry on with our lives!” I threw my hands in the air, trying for comically over-dramatic.

“It is just a transfer of energy, Jacob,” Shern said in an even tone, “Piper is a skilled sensitive-type. You should feel privileged.” She fixed me with a wink and gently bumped me with her hip. “She has our best interests in mind.” Shern slunk past Jacob, and from his expression I was sure she had made a face at him. I like when she called me a “sensitive-type”, it made me feel special when I was used to feeling inadequate…or a nuisance. I was less powerful than most people from my birth nation, Scarnsel, South hemisphere of Placeade. The other four-hundred or so residents of Placeade are much more skilled than I. Exceedingly more powerful too. Including my older brother Mariole, who never let me forget it. I could see in two different modes and manipulate energy to a certain degree, but a normal Placeadian can see in three modes, manipulate energy in wonderful, mind-blowing ways and communicate psychically… and they do it all without the mind numbing headaches I enjoy. That’s what I get for being an illegitimate child between a Placeadian and an Earthling.

“Shern may appreciate your skills,” Jacob said, reminding me that we weren’t quite done. “But I do not, especially without my permission, which is against regulation, as you know.” He looked hot and agitated in my energy vision. One of the many restrictions on the immigrant Placeadian was a ban on using manipulation skills without written permission from the other party. Which is why Jacob signed a contract dictating that the only skills I was allowed to use on him involved healing. Of course he still didn’t let me use it on him most of time, forcing me to bandage and disinfect things I could otherwise heal in seconds. “I’m pretty sure you did something to me this morning too.” He waved his wrist about. “Medibots are fast, but not this fast. Maybe I’m the one that should make an official report? The Council wouldn’t be pleased to hear about you healing people however and whenever you please.” I shifted my weight to my left leg and cocked my hip. He was right, I did heal him, while he was sleeping. But if he was trying to scare me, that wouldn’t do it. There were almost no cases that went to trial. With only a dozen or so Placeadians living on Earth, there aren’t many staff dedicated to persecuting for minor breaches of contract. Unless someone dies or is seriously injured, nobody really cares. His aura, however, was starting to frighten me. I could see a tornado of reds from diluted raspberry to the dark colour of blood. His fear had retreated mostly.

I took a deep breath to steady my nerves and severed my second sight, finding it more distracting than helpful at this point. “Do it. Report me! See what happens.” I refused to drop his gaze, even though I was a hair shorter than Shern and had to look up into his face.

“Follow me if you want to live, pupae!” Shern trilled. I made to follow her voice, but Jacob grabbed me by the arm.

“We’re not done, Piper. Undo whatever you did.” I had given up on a nursing career because of people like this. I had snapped four years ago after an incident in a doctor’s office. I now opted for random positions on whichever boat, aircraft, or spaceship was leaving in the next few days from wherever I landed. Sometimes I got to use my energy manipulation skills and nursing knowledge, sometimes I just took up a post working in the kitchen or cleaning, even administration. And to be perfectly honest, I was beyond sick of it.

Shern’s voice careened through the trees from somewhere I couldn’t see. “Yoooohoooo! Guys?!”

Tears pricked my eyes from a long building frustration, but I told him as gruffly as I could manage, “It can’t be undone. And it doesn’t need to be undone. And I will do it again if I feel it is necessary, nuts to the contract!” He let go of my arm, “If you two get into another fight it’ll be me who has to mend your slashed up face and Shern’s broken bones again. So, just try and relax…please.” I finished, rubbing my arm where he had grabbed me.

I waited for him to say something. He searched my face, looking for what, I don’t know. Perhaps he was simply wondering if he should just plug me right here in the spider web we were both standing in. If not for Shern’s swift and likely revenge, I think he might have. He sighed and yanked his gun out and I flinched away from his movement. His expression became confused, before he glanced at where my hand was holding my other arm. When he looked at me again, his whiskey coloured eyes seemed tired, sympathetic, not aggressive and stubborn as they often are. Shame about that chin. 

“I don’t mean to upset you, it’s just...it’s difficult,” was the reply I got, in a whisper. He turned and then quickly turned back, “I’m sorry I hurt your arm.” Then he took off after Shern, leaving me with a few seconds to breathe in and out and compose myself. He was such an intense guy. A man more than a “guy”. But he seemed so incomplete sometimes. I wouldn’t tell him that I was rubbing my arm because it was buzzing from his touch, not hurting. I looked around warily when a twig snapped behind me. There was nothing there again, just large leafed trees, their roots tunnelling underneath us through dark soil and occasionally surfacing to provide homes for bugs and small creatures. Or make me trip. The web around my legs now had a small thing with a silver abdomen and dark legs crawling towards me. I got moving.

They were waiting for me a little ways ahead, Shern nodded to me and continued on. Jacob followed closely behind her, he had pulled his sleeves up to his elbows. I noticed he had exposed the tattoo on his left forearm - a large bird of prey with the spherical shape of a planet resting on its back, flames burning underneath the bird always reaching towards the delicate feathers on its belly. I had been trying to figure out what it was, or what it meant for the last four weeks. At first I thought it was a military tattoo, that everyone in his platoon got one or something. But he said no when I suggested this and gave me no other explanation or hint. Internet searches proved useless and questioning him became a frustrating and fruitless twenty minutes I will never get back. I couldn’t help but sympathise with his situation, his life was obviously displaced when the war ended five years ago. Now he was working alongside a military-trained Meerdian, the type of person who he was used to killing, and a Placeadian. Now I’m not someone he would have met on the battlefield but… I suppose my powers can be very confronting.

“Piper, did you want me in the rear?” Jacob asked, surprising me.

“Um…Excuse me?” His innocent expression told me he had no idea why I sounded so insulted.

“…Would you prefer me in…the rear?”

“Oh…right. Behind me, yes that would be better.” As he let me pass him, he gave me a quizzical look. I was too busy fumbling with my weapon to explain. It’s pathetically small, and standard issue to small children in some regions.

“It’s so brave of Piper to let you take her rear!” Shern called out over her shoulder.

“What… why?” Jacob asked.

“Well, some people say it can be a little uncomfortable is all,” was Shern’s answer.

“Shern!” She turned and raised her eyebrows at me over her shoulder. I turned my gun on by pressing the square near the butt and heard it whirring then I returned the Mac87 to its holster on my hip.

“Well, if you mean… because people struggle to trust the rear-most soldier? I’m sure both you and Piper know that despite our differences, I will pay the utmost attention. Piper you have to flick the CG setting on.”

“I know! I was just about to do it...you distracted me, with all that rear business.”

“Is that why you re-holstered it?” he said and I could hear his smugness. “See, this is exactly what I’m talking about, you should feel perfectly comfortable with someone like me behind you.” He actually sounded kind of hurt, apparently forgetting all the arm grabbing and threatening tones from before. I covered my amusement by getting a drink out from the bag slung across my back.

Shern was having the time of her life, “Yes of course, if there was anyone positioned at my rear, I would certainly hope for someone like you, Jacob. You’re strong, with a good stamina. And you’re freakishly tall, makes for a good angle.” I choked on the Electrasip Lite I had so foolishly intended to drink. Shern laughed, loud and powerful. Powerful like her walk. Powerful like the wink she gave us. My stomach fluttered briefly, she was so damn sexy sometimes.

“For f***s’ sake…” I heard Jacob mutter. I tried to catch his eye over my shoulder, but he busied himself with something on his wristband computer, I did notice he was a little pink around his ears though. I was chuckling while untucking my shirt and wiping my neck when I felt a negative whisper of energy touch my awareness. I felt compelled to check my weapon again, I tried to ignore the see-through, neon pink effect which my spilled drink was having on my top.  At least I was wearing Doppler’s standard-mission underwear, it leaves plenty to the imagination. And it’s heavily padded for protection from claws, knives and small calibre bullets �" plus for those of us who only made it to a B-cup during puberty, it also provides a fuller bust than usual.

“Close by?” Jacob asked someone.  Shern was already crouched on a thick tree root, the gleam from the laser at her wrist cast a red sheen across her impossibly black eyes. I nodded when she did.

“My sensors must be malfunctioning, there can’t be two. They always live alone.” Shern whispered before she suddenly rolled off to the side and took off sprinting into the jungle, a purple leaf cascaded down from somewhere above us and I moved closer to Jacob.

He spoke without looking at me. “I know I said I don’t like you using your powers on me, but would you mind sensing around us? Shern’s right, our sensors must not be working…maybe it’s the heat.”

I rolled my eyes, “F*****g…Okay, just make sure nothing eats me.”

I focussed completely on sensing the energy patterns around us, and scenting. Most of what I saw wasn’t terribly surprising, the calming auras of the trees and moss underfoot, a few flickering bird energies were stationed above us as if watching the show. Behind me, Jacob’s flame of blue was a comforting presence. I could feel Shern moving away from us, chasing a mansee and gaining fast. Then I sensed a cat sized creature circling us almost entirely made up of bloodlust. “Shern was right there’s more than one,” we had encountered twenty four mansees on our patrol of Southern Mordecai, and we had always encountered them alone. The creatures were “accidentally” dumped here during the Tri-world wars, which began almost eight years ago and officially ended five years ago. It was generally believed that the creation and release of the mansees were the final attempt by the United European Army to swing things Earth’s way during the battle for Mordecai, it was unsuccessful and the Meerdians ended up giving all claim to the Mordeccians after their win. I think they were released after Earth lost Mordecai, as a kind of ‘f**k you’ to the Meerdians. Regardless of why they were here, I was sure I felt two auras, smelled two furry, sour bodies. I opened my eyes to Jacob’s back about two inches from my face, his shoulders lifted slightly and his back was tense under his dark blue jumpsuit. “There’re two, at least,” I whispered into his back.

“Are you sure?” he whispered back.

“Definitely two. There’s one right in front of you, and Shern is chasing the other one to our left. I’m not sure if-”

Even though I was expecting Jacob to fire, the sharp pop and following sizzle made my adrenaline spike and I took several steps away from him. Shortly, a thud followed with no rustling or thrashing after it, which was good, no thrashing meant it was dead.

As I breathed a sigh of relief, “Next time, just let me stay in the ship, I’m not cut out for this.” I made to check on Shern but Jacob got in front of me again. This time his chest faced me and I spared a moment to appreciate his dense, masculine scent, cutting through the rancid smell of death that was creeping outward from the dead creature.

“Firstly, after the events at Hidon we are never leaving you alone on the ship. And secondly, before you go for a walk: Where’s the other mansee now?”

Oh, right. I re-focussed for a few seconds. When I didn’t feel anything like a mansee or a Shern, I shut my eyes and spread myself a little further. “She’s by a river, maybe…forty metres to our left. She killed it.” I was about to suggest we tell her to bring the thing up to us and let’s get the hell outta here, but then I felt it. A third presence. Small and youthful. “What’s that?” 

“What?” Jacob whispered.

It had very similar signatures to a mansee, the exact same size and shape too. But it was so small. “A baby? I thought they couldn’t breed? Maybe it’s just a really small…” I was too freaked out to remember to whisper.

“Piper! Where!?” Jacob was turning a slow circle, he raised his gun slightly to sweep it over me. He didn’t have to raise it much. I pointed to a small, bulb shaped tree ahead of us. “Stay there, tell Shern to come back.” He began closing the distance while I asked Shern to join us through my wristband. She didn’t respond, all I got back was static.

“Damn, Shern must have damaged her band.” More likely she forgot to charge it, she was addicted to playing some silly game on it, Funny Flapjacks…or something equally ridiculous. “Jacob, I don’t think it means us any harm.” I felt Shern arrive at my back just as Jacob reached the slimy bulbous plant I now recognised as a Nimb tree. I flicked my ambient vision completely off and relied only on my energy-sight, I saw Jacob’s excitement in pink flurries now dominating his aura, oh bless him… he must be missing combat. The creature in the Nimb tree was curled up around some soft looking fibres. It was bathed in the faint white glow that most creatures held when they slept. I couldn’t hold back the sigh that escaped my lips, it was so…sweet. I’d never seen one sleeping before, let alone one this small. Suddenly convinced it was something different to what we had been hunting and at very least, an infant, I called out, “Jacob, don’t kill it!”

He flinched, “Why?”

I informed him of what I saw and Shern approached the tree. Seeing no way of viewing the creature through the Nimb’s slimy outer flesh, she used her nails to slice open a small circular window for herself. And I tried to forget about there only being a few hundred left in the wild, Nimb trees were almost harvested to extinction over the last few years. Humanity strikes again! Luckily the Mordeccians announced last year that anyone caught with a Nimb tree or engaging in the uprooting of one would be killed on sight. Jacob stepped back a little, his fear becoming the more dominant of the energies making up his six-foot-eight frame. I watched Shern’s dark green determination splinter with bright yellow curiosity as she leant her slender body over to peer into the Nimb tree.

“Oh...” She stayed there for a half a minute or so, before I gathered my nerves and made my way to her side.

“Piper…” Jacob said tensely, I waved away his warning and softly told him that it was still asleep. I switched to ambient sight and couldn’t help my sigh once again. The little mansee was sleeping peacefully despite the commotion. Fluffy, light brown fur covered its body, but beige skin showed strongly through the lighter fur covering its legs and face…and its tail too. Its two-foot long tail, all wrapped around it. The rabbit DNA showed through in its face, little whiskers twitched adorably and I bit my lip. I missed my pet chinchilla so much. I’d had to leave her with Kaisha, her stable lifestyle being much better suited to keeping pets.

 “So, what do we do? Shoot it and take the three of them back in the freezer?” Typical Jacob, mind on the mission. 

“Do we have to shoot it?” I asked frowning, “Don’t we have cages in the hold? We could use the containment field in the engine room.”

“For what purpose?” asked Shern, she was still staring at the baby mansee, then she answered her own question, “If they have started breeding…Dr Trunt and his team may need this baby alive, to figure out if it was a fluke…or…”

“If the others can reproduce too,” Jacob finished for her. “Alright, we’ll take the bodies of the other two. And I suppose it would make sense if the baby comes alive. But let’s sedate it.”

Author's Note

Mature language warning.
Feel free to leave comments or ask questions or whatever.
I have a lot more I'll be posting soon!
:)