The Last Narkoy: Gathow: Book 2

  The Last Narkoy

  Gathow

  Copyright © 2016 by Elizabeth Price

  Cover Design © 2016 by Elizabeth Price

  All rights reserved.

  This e-book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real person, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  ONE

  A dark fog grew heavy over the forest of Diamra, blocking out both moons. High above, a Tiketi bird circled a massive Limble tree for a place to land. Before it could land, it quickly flew off into the sky, squawking as it rose above the dense fog.

  From the forest, a dark figure appeared draped in heavy cloth. His face was shielded so that only his black eyes could be seen. He blinked several times, clearing the darkness from his eyes. His eyes changed from orange to a light green as he approached the path leading to the city of Ortees.

  He paused at a light post with a wrinkled old piece of paper attached to it. It was a poster featuring the picture of a female child. The plastic bands that once attached it to the post were now gray and deteriorating from months of exposure to the weather. The digital image wavered as it changed from front view to side view.

  Below the picture, written in bold words reads:

  Wanted: Dead or Alive!

  Crimes Against The Empire

  10,000,000 Credit Reward

  The man’s tall shadow fell across the poster, blocking the moons’ light. A tattered gloved hand reached to the poster, ripping it from the post. A beam of light flashed across the pole, blasting the metal into pieces. The man rolled his face cloth aside, his face chapped from the harsh summer heat. He looked up, his green eyes switched back to orange, staring into the distant forest. Another shot made him scurry beneath his long, gray robes for his pistol.

  Another blast ricocheted off a signpost next to him, flashing in his eyes.

  “Damn it all!” he scoffed, wiping the debris from his eyes. He stared down at the toe of his black leather boot, noticing a small burn hole where his big toe was snugly housed. A pool of blood gathered within his boot. “Oh, come on!” he grumbled.

  “Rosanheer, stop playing games! It’s best to give up and save us all the hassle,” yelled a man from the forest, from a distance away. His voice was smeared with the thick accent of a Clove.

  Rosanheer forced back his hood, his eyes searching the forest for any sign of the man who yelled at him. He let one nervous laugh escape from his straining throat.

  “Colnoc, I should have known they’d send you. How’s your sister?” he called as a jab.

  “The same as your mother,” the man called back.

  Rosanheer rolled his eyes. “You know…” he paused, reaching into his pocket to pull out three small pieces of explosives, “you’ll never take me alive,” he called back, his voice growing hoarse.

  “I know. That’s the point of having a price on your head,” Colnoc called back.

  “Yeah, and just how much is it now?” Rosanheer yelled back as he ripped the top off the explosives. Before the man had a chance to call back, he tossed the explosives into the forest.

  “Everyone, down!” screamed another man just as the forest exploded in fire.

  Rosanheer ducked down, hiding beneath his robes to shield himself from the flames. He looked up in time to see a massive Limble tree engulfed in flames falling towards him. Without a moment to spare, he rolled down a steep embankment, not stopping until he reached the forest.

  ***

  The wind had an unnaturally bitter taste. At first, Sedom couldn’t tell for certain what it was. Then it occurred to her. It was flesh and blood she tasted. Instantly it caused Sedom's stomach to cringe and cramp up. Her arms wrapped around her waist as she attempted to keep her last meal.

  “Where?” She gulped, wiping the saliva from her lips.

  From her perch, high within the trees of the forest, she could see a massive pillar of smoke rising from one of the cities in the distance. If she was correct, it was the city of Ortees.

  “Oh. The Marisheio are at it again,” she huffed. She removed a bandana from her toolbox and wrapped it around her nose and mouth to keep from breathing in the ash.

  Once again, she reached to her toolbox, removing another nail. With slight hesitation, she hammered the nail into the nearly finished lookout tower, high in a Limble tree. From above her, two silver orbs delivered more lumber with the aid of their small tractor beams. They set the pieces of cut lumber beside her then lifted off to gather more.

  “That's good enough for today. It’s time to recharge,” she called to the orbs around her.

  She removed another nail from her tool box, but her attention was on the distant city. An explosion blanketed the small city of Ortees, sending a shockwave through the trees of the forest. Sedom grabbed the planks of her newly laid flooring, grateful she hadn’t placed the last plank yet so she had something to hold onto.

  Ortees was a small Crehail city that house about six-hundred people. They shunned outsiders and, much like the Narkoy, cared little about technology. Most of the time the city was peaceful, the people of Ortees kept to themselves. Rumors spoke of those who inhabited the city being related by blood. They would intra-mate with one another; brothers with sisters, cousins to cousins. To the Narkoy they were heathens, yet Sedom couldn’t help but think about the Narkoy who first settled on Matrador. There had to be inbreeding between the three men and two women’s children or how else did their population grow to nearly three million? So who were the Narkoy to judge?

  The wind changed, bringing with it the distinctive smell of burning flesh. It was a smell that Sedom was not likely to forget. A smell that followed her nightmares from when her own city was aflame and the bodies of her people were burned in mass numbers.

  A golden orb buzzed next to Sedom, its crystal-top glowing red. “Sortec, danger! Return to the city for shelter.”

  “Good idea,” Sedom said, dropping her hammer into the tool box. She rose from the decking she was hammering then turned her eyes to the sky. Two short-range fighters released cannonball sized bombs upon the city. The bombs collided with the ground. Even from as far as she was from the city she could feel the earth quake with the impact.

  “Sortec, danger,” the orb insisted.

  The sky grew dark with smoke, leaving her no option, but to run for cover in the tunnels, near the base of the tree. Within the safety of the tunnels, Sedom took a heaving breath of stale air. Stale air was far better than air contaminated with the embers of burning flesh.

  Within the tunnel Sedom paused, watching out the opening. Outside, small white and gray flakes fell from the sky. For a moment she thought it was snow, except it was the middle of summer. She pushed herself away from the tunnel wall and held her hand outside. Within her open palm, she gathered several gray flakes. Satisfied with the amount she had collected, she pulled her hand back inside the tunnel.

  Her golden eyes grew wide with horror as she looked into her hand. In her palm sat an adult’s bloody, charred molar. A flick-jerk reaction sent the molar tumbling to the ground. The molar bounced against the rock flooring with a high-pitched clink.

  For a long, bewildering moment Sedom’s golden eyes peered down at the tooth, unsure of what she should think. That morning it most likely was helping its owner chew a meal, unbeknown that it would soon be nothing more than a piece of waste; no more special than a pebble on the bottom of a lake, destine to live out the rest of its days without an owner. What of the tooth
’s owner? What fate became of him? Considering she was now in possession of his tooth, it was doubtful there was little left of him.

  Sedom turned to the forest, searching the now still trees for answers. Ash and softly glowing embers gathered in small mounds outside and slightly within the opening of the tunnel.

  “Huh,” she grimaced, her top lip nearly touching her thin nose. “Well, I guess I better update my maps.” She shrugged bitterly, knowing it wouldn’t be the last time she would have to update her maps or redraw them entirely.

  Another tremor caused the molar to rattle on the rock floor. It rolled to her foot, resting against the toe of her right boot. She reached down, picking up the molar. She wasn’t certain why she picked up the molar save that she felt guilty leaving it there. It was a piece of a whole, a whole that would never know the full of its parts again… much like her. She shoved the molar into her pocket and started towards home.

  The underground city of Gathow was eerily silent when she returned. So quiet that Sedom could hear her eyelashes rub against one another when she blinked. With only seven people present within a city meant for millions, it was bound to be filled with deafening silence. Sedom hated the lack of noise. Without noise, her ears hurt her worse than someone screaming.

  When she lived in the forest, if it was too quiet it meant someone or something was about to attack. Thankfully the internal light source was changing from day to dusk. The generators that provided the energy for the light source produced a gentle hum during the times when the day faded to night. The hum was at least something her ears could focus on.

  “Sedom!” called a woman's voice.

  The sudden noise caused Sedom to jump. She spun around to see her new friend, Cidele, running towards her. Her long blond hair was whipping around her throat as she ran towards her. In her right hand, she was waving a computer pad. Her expression was taught and determined as she approached.

  “Sedom, something is happening outside,” she exclaimed out of breath, her light blond hair shielding the left side of her face. She pushed her hair away from her throat and her face. She grabbed Sedom's shoulder as she gained her breath. “Father... father sent me to find you. The Marisheio are attacking. Should we evacuate Gathow?”

  Cidele offered Sedom the computer, but Sedom refused to take it. There was no need to read what she had already seen.

  “And where would we go?” Sedom asked amused. “Tell Lolum and the others not to worry about it,” Sedom said, noticeably unnerved by the fighting above as well.

  “But--” Cidele followed close as Sedom walked away.

  A rumbling from above caused a cloud of dust to shake away from the cavern’s ceiling. Both paused. Cidele paused from fright. Sedom paused, wondering if the cavern was going to hold, even though she knew it would.

  “Go home. The orbs will protect Gathow,” Sedom barked.

  She turned with a jerk down a row of buildings she knew Cidele would not follow her down. The street had little light and was hard to navigate unless you knew where you were going, which she did. When the city was in full production, the street served as a red-light district. Streetlights were not necessary. Now the street was nothing more than abandoned bars, nightclubs, and gambling houses.

  “Sedom, are we in danger?” Cidele called out before Sedom was out of range.

  “No,” Sedom called back, waving her hand behind her. The city stood two miles below the surface. If the Marisheio did manage to break through their main defenses, the orbs would take care of any intruders.

  A small, head-sized blue orb passed over Sedom's head, paused to scan her then moved on. A few moments later, another blue orb passed over, stopped, scanned Sedom, then moved on. Not until the third orb passed over her did Sedom bother to look to see what was happening.

  Above her, several hundred orbs circled around the city, scanning for anything that moved. Sedom paused, turning back to look down the road she came from. A shriek echoed across the vacant buildings and straight into Sedom's ears.

  “Cidele!” Sedom called back, running to find her friend.

  In the middle of the street, where they had parted, Sedom stopped to look for her friend. The streets were again empty; there was no sign of Cidele. Above, the orbs began to circle around an area one street over. Although tired from her time in the forest, Sedom pushed her legs towards the circling orbs.

  Ahead she could see two orbs hovering a foot above the ground. Instead of their normal blue color, both were glowing reddish-orange. Beneath them, Cidele sat hunched over, holding her knees and keeping her head down.

  “State your name!” ordered an orb. The orb circled Cidele, forcing her to remain.

  Her panicked eyes turned to Sedom. “What’s going on, Sedom?” Cidele asked between tight lips.

  “Say nothing,” Sedom exhaled. Both orbs turned to Sedom. One scanned her, then the other. “Cidele is not an intruder.” She pointed to her friend. “I have given her security clearance tal'mako ensanti,” she ordered the orbs.

  The orbs turned back to Cidele and scanned her again. “Security not valid,” relayed the orb on the left. “Restate level three security clearance.”

  “Damn,” Sedom grumbled. “Can't find good help these days,” she thought for a moment, trying to remember the code she assigned for Cidele for secondary security measures. As she spoke the code the orbs’ internal lights flashed to blue.

  “Valid entry,” spoke the orb on the right.

  “How many have security clearance?” Sedom asked to make certain that none of her other friends would be pestered by the orbs.

  “Seven,” both orbs spoke together.

  “Good,” Sedom returned, inhaling deeply. Two other orbs flew by her, both red. “Wait… how many people are currently within the city confines?”

  “Eight,” the orb replied.

  Sedom's face contorted in thought as she counted in her head how many people there were supposed to be inside Gathow. By her calculations, there should have been only seven. “Eight? Clarify.”

  Cidele nodded, her voice wavering as she spoke. “Oh, Noral’s friend arrived a little while ago. We tried to tell you, but we didn’t know where you were.”

  The two orbs flew away, allowing Cidele to calm. Sedom’s eyes drifted to the ceiling. All around them the orbs swarmed like insects, every one of them glowing red and ready for battle.

  “He couldn’t have chosen a better time to arrive. Don’t worry, the orbs won’t harass you again,” Sedom said reassuringly as she helped her frightened friend to stand.

  “Are you sure?” Cidele gulped, her eyes peeled to the ceiling above them. Sedom nodded. “Why are they flying like that? They look angry.”

  Sedom thought about Cidele's words. Can machines look angry? She brushed the thought aside to focus on more pressing matters.

  “Marisheio are attacking the next city. The orbs are on alert.” Sedom explained as an orb buzzed passed them. It paused, scanned them both, and then continued.

  Sedom waved down another orb. The orb flew down and hovered above Sedom. “Chadon, state request,” the orb hummed.

  “Capture, do not destroy invaders unless authorized by me. The last man to enter Gathow is under restricted access,” Sedom ordered.

  “Order accepted,” the orb announced.

  “Nice to know you can do that.” Cidele attempted to stand, but her knees buckled and her body fell against the wall of the old building.

  Sedom grabbed her before she hit the ground. “I know. I wish I would have thought of that earlier. Let's get you back to the others.”

  “They’re at... at father's place,” she said. Her skin was pale and ghost-like and her eyes constantly shifting from one orb to another as they whizzed by them.

  When they reached her father’s quarters, Sedom didn't bother knocking. She opened the door and guided Cidele inside. “Lolum,” she called out for her father.

  Two men, Noral and Lolum, stood from their seats around the kitchen table. Noral, a husky o
lder Mandicien man with salt and pepper hair, hurried over to Cidele. “Child, are you hurt?” he asked as he helped her sit on the beige sofa.

  The aged Lolum nearly leaped over the table to get to his daughter's side. He forced Noral aside so he could sit next to her. “What happened?” he asked, his stone eyes beating red directly at Sedom as he held his daughter’s hand. “Sortec!” he demanded an answer, the veins within his thin white skin pulsating on his forehead.

  “I'm fine,” Cidele spoke in a croaking whisper.

  Sedom stepped back from the group, her hands raised in defense. The attitude Lolum was showing was outside his character and she wanted nothing to do with it.

  “The orbs didn't register her, so they started to attack,” Sedom explained. “I stopped them in time. For some reason, I forgot to enter her information into the computer.”

  “What?” Lolum yelled. “Sedom, that was damn stupid of you. What if you weren't there to save her? My daughter might have died, thanks to you!”

  “Father,” Cidele called back. “It's okay. I'm fine.”

  Lolum ignored his daughter's words. His face deepened to a crimson color as he spoke. “Need I remind you you're why we're down here?” Lolum continued with his rant.

  Sedom turned away from Lolum to speak to Noral. “Where is everyone else?” she asked Noral.

  “They’re in the cafeteria. What's going on?” Noral asked concerned.

  “Stay in Gathow. Ortees is under attack. And tell your friend to stay clear of the orbs until I can meet him.” She turned back to Lolum. “I feed you, clothe you, and keep you from harm. You neither need nor want for anything. Life is good for you here… remember that next time you even think of yelling at me,” she scolded. She hurried out the door, finished with their conversation.

  There was enough on her mind already. She had no want to add dealing with the overbearing words of her friend to her mind. She was beginning to question why she saved them from the Marisheio and she knew better than that.