Dark World

by Resha Caner

part 3 of 7

In a world of tunnels where men live like ants, sound is sight and scents have color. To fend off overwhelming enemies, a Red Captain will need not only his own resourcefulness but entirely new senses. And to that end he needs allies...

The foreign voice stopped the Captain in an instant. He stood frozen in mid-stride, straining to pick up the sound once again.

“No one will find us in here. We’ll be safe until they pass.”

Safe? How were they safe when the Captain could smell them as plain as day?

“Thank you.” The little girl spoke.

Rage seared the Captain’s mind. When did the girl start speaking? Of course he should have expected such a development after she bound herself to the Queen’s mark, but her first words were not directed to him. He did not receive a thank-you for laying out his life to preserve hers, but she gave the words to some unknown thing.

“Who’s there?” he bellowed.

“Oh, Captain,” she said, and the sweetness of her voice melted his anger. “Is that you?”

“Don’t go out in the open,” the voice cautioned. “They’ll see you.”

The girl ignored the bidding of the voice, and raced to throw her arms about the Captain. He stepped back, but she clung to him. She seemed taller than when they had parted, and he wondered if her fast growth stage had begun. If so, she would need food soon.

“Who are you?” the Captain growled at the form cowering among the rocks. He needed to take care of this creature first, and then he would worry about food. He stepped forward, thumping his boots against the floor in an attempt to intimidate.

It worked, and the creature retreated up the slope, hiding behind a large boulder.

“It’s no use,” the Captain said. “I can sense you plainly.”

An kind of clicking sound came from behind the rocks, and then the creature rose. “How silly of me. I’ll never get used to you people and your underground ways.”

“Don’t hurt him, Captain.” The girl tugged at his shirt. “He helped me. Feel this.”

She took his hand and placed it against her leg, where the Captain could feel a bandage. He suspected it to be the cut that had left the trail of blood.

“Thank you, Penel.” The strangeness of the foreign voice assaulted the Captain’s ears. It didn’t flow naturally, but chirped and cracked in an odd, mechanical numbness.

“Penel?” the Captain asked, unable to handle everything at once. “What is a Penel?”

“Yes, pardon my presumption, but the girl said she had no name, and I find it difficult to talk to people without names, so I gave her one.”

“I don’t know what a Penel is, but you have no right to give her a title.”

“It’s not a title. It’s a name.”

“I like it, whatever it means,” the girl said. “Please, can I be a Penel? I can be Penel One of One. Isn’t that wonderful?” When the Captain gave no reply, she tugged on his hand. “Come meet Varus,” she said.

The Captain shook himself. “We don’t have time for this.”

“Quite right,” Varus agreed. “Follow me.”

“Where?”

“Up.” The mechanical chirp cut the word short, and Varus was gone.

“Let’s go, Captain.” Penel tugged at his hand.

“Up?” He craned his neck back, realizing a vertical shaft rose above their heads. He shouted up into the void, but it didn’t echo back.

“Yes, it is a long way,” Varus said.

* * *

After climbing for hours, Varus declared, “Here we are.”

“Where?”

“On the surface.”

“Where?” The Captain repeated his question with increased confusion. He called out, but nothing echoed back. He stepped forward with his hands out, trying to locate a wall, but the chamber seemed to have no bounds. Varus apparently ruled a colony greater than any he had ever known, for his room appeared to be even larger than that of the Sixteenth Red Queen.

“I wouldn’t expect you to understand,” Varus said, “but you are safe here. Are you hungry?”

“Yes,” Penel answered before the Captain could say no.

Varus laughed. “Of course. My cabin isn’t far away, and I can feed you there.”

“This isn’t your residence?” the Captain asked, still trying to find the wall or ceiling of this new chamber.

“No.”

“Then to whom does it belong?”

“Belong?” Varus gave a contemplative reply. “I’ve never looked at it that way. I suppose if it belongs to anyone, it belongs to God.”

As they walked, the Captain made another attempt to echo locate, receiving blackness as a reply. “What a dark world,” he muttered.

“Huh,” Varus snorted. “So curious.”

The Captain felt as if the remark condescended in some way, and he moved up to put his arm around Penel. “I am forever in your debt for the aid you have given, and it is most gracious of you to feed us. When the girl is safe, I shall return and do whatever service you stipulate.”

“Penel is safe.”

“No, she is not,” the Captain insisted. “I don’t like this place. If you could help us find the new location of the Red Colony, I would greatly appreciate it. If not, we shall proceed on our own after eating. I do not mean to be ungracious, but I am her guardian, and her safety is my first concern. As I said, once she is reunited with the Red Colony, I will return to do whatever service you demand.”

“I demand no service.”

“You are most gracious.”

“But you’re still going to leave?”

“Yes.”

Varus sighed. “Very well. I will help you find them.”

The Captain struggled to hear the footsteps of Varus; even his own were faint. He reached down to touch the floor, and found soft plants covering the entire surface. It reminded him of a moss field, but these plants had long, thin stems. He felt them waving back and forth, and realized the chill breeze would further complicate his ability to navigate as it caused the plants to rustle with a distracting static.

He held out his hands, always hoping to find a wall. They passed a steam vent, and the heat reminded him of the tunnels. He stood near it, drawing the warm, damp air into his lungs. Though the rush of steam clouded his hearing, it also brought a close comfort that chased away the cold, empty spaces above his head.

“How could we possibly find Red in such darkness?” he asked. “The Colony is destroyed, and I do not know where the Queen might have gone.”

“I have my ways,” Varus said.

Penel tugged on him to follow. “This way.”

The Captain noticed she had grown more since their arrival in ‘surface’. If properly fed, she would stand just below his shoulders in less than a week.

“Ah, here we are,” Varus declared.

The Captain echo-located to find a square structure of woody material standing in the middle of the expanse. The idea of a small room to ward off the terrifying blackness was intoxicating, and he struggled not to rush inside, to retain a dignified demeanor.

Once inside, Varus showed them to a table, and then began to set out a variety of strange, smelly items. He hummed to himself, putting hollow cylinders on the table and filling them with water.

Penel dove in with enthusiasm, consuming everything on the table, but the Captain sniffed in suspicion. Picking up an item, he noted the dry and crusty feel of it.

“What is this?” he asked.

“So curious,” Varus paused in his humming. “I suppose a bottom dweller like you has never had bread.”

“Bread,” the Captain repeated the strange word. He took a sip of water while he continued to study the food, longing for fried grubs sautéed in mushrooms. With a sigh, he resigned himself to taking a few bites.

“Where do you come from?” Penel asked between mouthfuls.

“Far away.” Varus spoke toward the ceiling. His voice cracked. “Pardon me.”

“I understand. You miss your home.”

“No, I... don’t.” His voice cracked again. He pounded on something. “There, better. This thing grows less reliable every year.”

“What thing?” Penel asked.

“My voice box,” Varus replied. “I don’t have a natural voice, so I need this machine to speak.” The voice rustled as he lifted his shirt to tap the device strapped to his chest. “My species only has radiatory senses.”

“Huh?” Penel’s question was muffled by a mouthful of bread. She had already consumed a complete loaf by herself, and moved on to a second. The Captain noted her appetite, and his concern grew. She needed more than bread for her fast growth stage. She needed protein and vitamins.

“Radiatory senses,” Varus continued. “My species speaks through electrical impulses. I see light and hear magnetic waves. About the only thing you and I have in common is touch, though mine is more sensitive to heat than yours, less sensitive to pressure.

“For example...” Varus rose and left the table. He walked to a wall, and the Captain heard a creaking sound as a hole opened in the wall. “I can look out and see stars in the sky. I expect you cannot.”

“Stars? Sky?” The Captain began to wonder if Varus was making up words.

“Yes, stars. Millions of kilometers away are large balls of burning gas called stars. I can see their light.”

The Captain rose to join Varus at the opening in the wall. “Millions? I don’t believe you. This chamber can’t possibly be that large.”

“Chamber,” Varus laughed. “This isn’t a chamber. There is nothing above us but empty space.”

Now the Captain laughed. “You’re crazy. Come on Penel, we have to go.” He took the girl’s hand and lifted her from the chair, surprised by her increased size.

“Wait, I have an idea,” Varus said.

“We’re going.” The Captain refused to listen. Though he could have easily mastered the girl in strength, for some reason he could not prevail against her gentle tugs, and stopped with a sigh, surrendering to her desire to hear Varus.

Loud static burst forth, swelling from Varus’ voice box to fill the small cabin. The Captain started and dropped Penel’s hand to cover his ears. Varus adjusted the connection, and the static began to take on patterns. Black dots were surrounded by white swirls, and the depth went on for what seemed an infinity. The Captain gained a sensation of floating through vast spaces between massive spheres, some solid, some fluctuating with energy.

“Turn it off,” the Captain growled. “It’s just a trick.”

“No, it’s not,” Varus said as he reconnected his voice box.

“So could you fashion an instrument that I can take outside and use to listen to these great empty spaces you claim? Could I hear these stars for myself without the tricks of your device?”

“Hmm,” Varus rubbed his chin. “A ‘hearing’ telescope. What a fascinating idea.”

“You said you would help us find the Red Colony.”

“Yes, I did. I suppose the telescope can wait.”

* * *

Proceed to part 4...