Howdy everyone !
Eh yes, another great period of time needed for that ! Not my fault ! Blame it on my schedule, really ! (I've got such an hectic schedule lately, you have no idea… *sigh*) Time and time again I wanted to go on writing this, but there always came some new task around and I had to leave it aside, delaying it on and on. And there were also some personal issues that somehow dragged me down, but things are somewhat better now.
Thanxxxx as always for your support ! It really motivates me a damn lot !
And now, let's go see the troop start moving !
Oh, and bravo to those who had noticed that there were 21 green dots drawn on Cathy's body and 21 people in the group about to leave (15 soldiers, 3 chiefs, 3 MBC). Very observant, folks ! Well done ! It was a little trick of mine, eh eh ! ;)
And now, N'joy it on !
/
11 _ THE LONG MARCH
/
"No way ! I'm… I'm one of those horrible slugs ?" the jock shouted as his eyes were staring intently into the mirror.
Sam couldn't help giggling. "Ah ah, there you go, Danny Boy. You used to be more of a seducer, back in the old days on Earth, eh !" And she winked at him.
He frowned and grumbled. "Ah ah indeed, very funny, Sammy ! Just look at yourself, with this moth appearance and those huge wings. No better, I guess, eh ?"
"Hum… I still prefer this to the slug, if you'll excuse me." She smiled teasingly at him.
"Pfff… always the last word to everything, right ?" She shrugged and smiled on.
"Okay, I guess we can safely prepare to set out, can't we ?" Chris asked. And he turned his head to Ana, for of course she was to be the leader of their expedition.
The orange fox-looking creature stepped forth. "Very well. Gianell will be our guide, displaying the orders and directions. If there are some suggestions or different opinions regarding these, we can still discuss things together to know what the best solution is. Nothing is "closed" in our strategy. The main point is to find the most efficient way to proceed."
"I think you are right" Sam agreed. "Gianell is the hands-on chief here, she knows the environment better than any of us. It's logical to have her take the lead."
The red-jewel extraterrestrial nodded with a smile. "Thank you, Sam ! I will be honored to guide us through, and of course any suggestion or idea in the strategy will be welcome. And for a start, I do propose we don't walk out of the castle but use a secret exit. There may be spies around, and if they see a huge group of Howlers and Poisoners walk out altogether from the main entrance… hum, I don't know, but even if these creatures are of low intelligence, we shouldn't underestimate them. Using another exit will enable us to get out unnoticed."
"Very good, Gianell ! That's a most sensible argument !" Ana congratulated her.
The addressee of the compliment smiled. "Thank you, your Excellence."
Sam had been thinking for a moment and she decided to also make a proposal. "Listen, I would like to suggest something as well. Even if we use a remote exit, so as to avoid being spotted, there still may be some foes in the surroundings. And it would be best if we don't walk all together, in one group. I don't think slugs and moths-like creatures hang out with each other, especially in such huge groups. We are 21 people here, and why would 21 foes be sticking together ? That may attract suspicion on our group, while if we split into several groups of, say, 5 persons each, then it may just work out and the monsters maybe won't even pay attention."
"That's a clever remark too" Gianell agreed. "I think we should proceed that way. We will use the secret exit and split in groups. That should do, most likely."
Ana nodded with a satisfied grin. "Good ! I see we start in the best way. Let's do our best to keep it like this !"
And the bunch of Howlers and Poisoners left the depths of the mirror, under the lead of a decided Poisoner.
/
It was a long, dark underpass they were following. Its entrance was masked by a curtain hanging behind Ana's bed. As for its exit… they would be soon finding out where it was.
The light of their torches threw gigantic shadows on the wall, which could have belonged to such enormous monsters, while they in fact were properties of rather medium-size beings. But beings who now had the aspect of monsters to every creature but themselves.
"Gee, I've been in so many funnier places before" said Danny, in an ironical rather than worried tone.
"I'm sure you have, as have I" replied Chris, whose recent interest in speleology could find a pretty nice ground to flourish, down there.
They took a last bend to the left and Gianell announced : "We are about to get out now. It's right at the end of this tunnel."
And indeed it seemed that there were some splinters of light shattered in a distance, further on.
The troop proceeded a bit more and reached the place. Instead of a rocky wall, the end of the tunnel consisted of a vegetation curtain hanging thick before them, with bits of light emerging in some places.
"We will now have to put out our torches and walk in separate groups under these plants. The first group will have to state whether coast is clear or not. And now, be very careful : as long as we are walking alone, without any enemy in the surroundings, we can talk, but in a low voice, because the creatures on these planet have a rather accurate hearing. Now, should there be any Howler, Poisoner or any other monster in sight, we will have to communicate by telepathy. I will now repeat the instructions in alien language for our guards."
The General took the time to utter a bunch of alien sentences, to which the soldiers all nodded, then she turned to the MBC members again. "Have you already used telepathy ? Do you know how it works ?"
Sam was about to answer, but Danny was quicker : "Hum, we have never actually tried it ourselves, but Cathy's cousin gave us an insight of that."
Chris shook his head. "You're wrong, Dude : that's mindreading. You should not confuse it with telepathy."
"Well, it's the same thing, overall, eh ?"
"Not sure someone who can decipher thoughts can necessarily communicate via thinking, and vice versa. I think it's not related. In my opinion, one can have either talents, both or none of them. But there is still a distinction to me."
Ana gestured approvingly. "Exactly. We can use telepathy, but not mindreading. The only Beaba to have both these abilities is Her Majesty."
It was Sam's turn to speak : "Well, regarding telepathy, you have to keep silent and focus on your thoughts and what you precisely want to mean, then focus on the addressees of these thoughts and concentrate to "send the thought". Is that right ?"
"That's correct, Sam" Ana replied "It's indeed the way it works. We will try it once outside, but should one of you have difficulty with it, please do not phrase anything aloud, just wait a bit more and whisper to someone once we are far away from the enemies."
"We will do that" the tech agreed.
Gianell took back the lead. "Alright. I'll walk out with the first group. Please Chris and Danny, join me with Desmira and Takkilion. Sam, I would appreciate if you would stay with Her Excellence. I need someone both very sensible and very athletic to protect her, and you have these two qualities at your best. You shall go with three other guards. I will form the rest of the teams."
She spent the next minute gathering the group in 5 parts of 5 members each, except for the last one, where a supplementary soldier was, because of their being 21 people altogether.
Once this was done, Gianell put our her torch and started under the vegetation curtain. Chris and Danny followed, then came Desmira, and last Takkilion.
They emerged in a desolate land where some fog had settled. Neither any movement nor any sound to be noticed. It looked that nothing was there, save for the landscape elements they could make out in a short distance. Coast indeed seemed to be clear, but Gianell took all her time to squint her eyes everywhere around, both eyes of a same side moving together, then the two other eyes together. And when she deemed it safe enough, she stepped back underneath.
"As far as I can tell, there is no enemy in sight. You can follow me."
All groups emerged in the foggy air. The light seemed to be halfway between night and day, as if it was dawn now. Everything but reassuring. Not much light, and visibility bounded by that haze… it seemed like omens of menace. Possibly of trap, somewhere…
"Right, there is no one around, or so it appears…" Gianell said in a medium voice, avoiding to raise it, in case some monster could be wandering closeby. "Now, we will have a look at Chris's scanner and determine the direction to follow. Then we will leave one group after another, leaving at least 5 minutes between the departures, to make sure we aren't too close and thus won't be identified as a troop. Does this sound alright to you ? Any suggestion ? Anything is welcome. I speak as a soldier who's used to making up strategies, but I'll always listen to what you have to bring up. Just let me know…"
She repeated all of it in Beaba language, then gave a look around, waiting for someone to add something or just confirm that they were all okay with her directions. They looked at each other in silence. Sam's eyes met Ana's.
"What do you think, Sam ? Does that sound alright to you ?"
"Yes, Ana, it seems a good strategy to me. Let's do it that way ! Now, Chris, take the A-Scan out and let's check if something is lurking around, then where we must head to !"
"Right, here it is !" the tech replied as he took the device out and glanced at the screen.
There were a few dots but they were remote enough. No immediate danger was about to menace them.
"Good news : coast is clear... for now. Now we must check where the Queen is located. Ana, would you please hold this as you did before ?"
The Chancellor approached and grabbed the A-Scan the blue member was handing her, and immediately all bright dots left the screen. All but one. Gianell considered the place the dot was shining at.
"Mmmmh... this is north from here. It will take some time to reach. And are there any enemies on the way ?"
"For that, I will have to take back the scanner, since only Queen Lauren – or rather, the dot which probably represents her – is on the screen when Ana holds the device. Your Exc... I mean, Ana, could I please take it back, so that we can view the other aliens around ?"
"Here you are, Chris !" said the orange creature as she gave the small machine back to him. He took and looked carefully at what was now displayed. Then he pushed a button and a small red arrow, head down, appeared on the screen, right in a mass of yellow dots.
"So, this red arrow stands for the A-Scan, and the dots surrounding it are of course all the Beabas. Now, we can see that there are two groups of aliens located north of us. We will meet them on our way... unless we make a detour to avoid them ?"
His eyes were coming and going between Sam and Gianell, the two strategists of their group.
"What do you think, Sam ?" asked the General. "Better to avoid them, no ?"
"I think so. As long as the bend we don't take too much time. We really have to get there quickly. We haven't got days before us. Just a certain amount of hours..."
This being said, they all set out in direction of the North.
The foggy landscape was so silent that they couldn't help feeling some trap laid somewhere. They also had a strange impression... as if they were being observed. But when Chris checked on the A-Scan, nothing showed up. Still, the unpleasing sensation that there was a mysterious presence didn't fade away. All this silence around them... The only sound raising into thin air was their steps as they kept walking. But since they were walking slowly and discretely, to avoid being heard, even that unique sound was rather low.
After what seemed like an eternity, Chris checked on the electronic gadget and saw that a first large group of dots was now close to them.
"If we choose to avoid them, we have to make our move now. Afterwards, we will probably be too close to change direction without them spotting us."
"Why don't we go right through their group ? We'll waste less time. Straight line is always better." Danny proposed in a decided tone.
"Hum, yes, but it's also more dangerous !" Sam analyzed. "If we can avoid meeting foes, we should take this option. For if we find ourselves among them and then make some noise – like e.g. sneezing – they will know we're not really monsters and we will have to fight them, which also will take us time. Moreover, we may lose soldiers in the battle, and we'll need all our forces once inside the basis. Seems to me a detour wouldn't be that much time-consuming, and it would be way safer."
"Your wisdom and reason are remarkable, Sam !" Ana praised. "You and Gianell have a lot in common. I think your arguments are very convincing." She cast a look to her right-hand female to gain her opinion.
"Her Excellence is right. You have a great analytic mind, Sam. And I had the same idea as you regarding the necessity to avoid fights now, as it will be way more perilous within the base, hence the need to save our forces for that last part of the journey."
Danny sighed. "Okay, once again everybody thinks differently from me. Right. Let's do it your way, but we must hurry. There has to be enough time left to find Cathy's shadow !"
Chris saw the concern on his features and felt sorry for him. "Don't worry, Dan', we'll save her, even if we have to leave all our strength in the battle."
The red member gave him a grateful look. "Thanks for the support, Dude !"
Gianell looked behind and saw the scattered groups closing in. "Come on, let's go ! We must remain distant from the others, not to raise suspicions !"
The first group started again, and the second one followed a few minutes after. The troops started for a large bend to the left, making their way behind what seemed dunes. Light brown streams weaved a wet web in that area. Gianell advised that they were to be spanned over, since the liquid, which looked liked melted chocolate, was in fact nefarious enough to cause severe burns which lasted a rather long time.
The teams proceeded carefully and soon could come back to the original itinerary. They were silent for some time. The landscape changed : they were now entering a thick forest. The trees consisted of very twisted shapes bearing purple leaves, and some dark green bushes were growing, every now and then. It recalled the MBC of the wood they were walking through before being attacked by the slugs, short after their arrival.
Chris checked the A-Scan again and advised that the second alien group was not far now. "I'm not sure, but if this forest is a large one, we may even encounter them in here…"
Gianell thought for a while, gathering the infos she had, then she answered : "If I recall correctly, it's an important vegetal space on our planet. Therefore, it could be that we come across those monsters in here, yes !"
Chris got an alert face and spoke on a very serious tone. "That means that we may have to communicate by telepathy very soon. For it's not sure that we will be able to change our itinerary this time : this forest seems very thick and I'm everything but convinced we can make our way through those "walls of vegetation", you know…"
Danny had listened and he felt a tad uneasy about it. "That means we'll have to use our thoughts to communicate, right ? Is it tricky to do ?"
Gianell smiled. "No, not at all" she replied in a comforting voice. "All you have to do is choose to whom you want to "talk inwardly" and direct your thoughts to this or these persons. You have to be very focused to do that. If something draws your attention while you're trying to do it, the communication bond will be left pending until you can fully focus again on it."
"Hum… that doesn't sound easy…" the scarred boy remarked in a skeptical tone.
"From what Gianell just said, you have to pay attention to two elements : be focused on communication and direct your thoughts at the right persons. If you meet these two conditions, there is no reason things should get problematic" the geek intervened.
"Mmmmmh, okay…" the jock replied. But one could see he wasn't completely convinced.
They walked a few more minutes in silence, watching their surroundings. Then the tech stiffened as his eyes locked on the screen.
"Careful, we are very close now !" Chris informed. "We may have them face us any moment. Time to stop talking and communicate by telepathy."
All five members of the first group grew completely silent, and the red-jewel alien decided to warn Ana, Sam and the rest of the troop that monsters were now within their scope. So she focused, her eyes all still, staring intently before them, and she released her thought.
(Gianell) Your attention, everyone : we must start using telepathy NOW, since Chris just advised us that the second alien group is really close now. We should come across them any minute. Please remember to communicate ONLY by thought, and not utter any word from this moment on. It's very important to remain silent, or else our cover may be blown !
The General sent that thought to Ana and all MBC, then she did the same in alien language for the soldiers. There was a short while where nothing else came, then a thought could be sensed in the humans' minds as well as Gianell's.
(Ana) Thank you, General ! We will all pay attention now. Beabas are familiar with telepathy, but once again, should any of you humans have difficulty with it, just wait until no monster is around then we'll fix it. Don't hesitate to inform Gianell or myself.
And right when the Chancellor had finished thinking this, a group of Howlers started to crawl up on the road.
There were bushes everywhere on the sides, so it was difficult to retreat anywhere. They had to face danger and confront it bravely.
(Gianell) LOOK OUT ! There they come ! Please all, remain calm and avoid fidgeting !
Whenever we're nearby we'll judge how to behave, but make sure to remain collected !
The Howlers slowly advanced and came to a stop. One of them raised its head and directed the white circle in the center of its head towards Danny. It remained in that position for a moment, then opened its mouth and let out a horrible shriek.
The second team, with Ana and Sam, froze in a short distance from the first group. They didn't dare to move on, but observed intently the sequence of events.
The red member felt himself stiffen as he watched the horrid creature shrieking at him. Was that thing menacing him ? Was it about to attack him ?
That's when he heard Gianell's voice inside his head.
(Gianell) Please stay calm, Danny ! Don't panic ! That Howler is not willing to attack you ! It's just a way to…hum, greet you, could we say. We have already seen those slugs shriek at each other before continuing their respective way, so we deduced it was like their own way of acknowledging their presence and identity. But you should answer the Howler, or else it may appear suspect or hostile to it, and we must avoid to blow our cover at any cost !
Danny wasn't sure that he understood all of it, but he was especially focused on the last part of it : he should answer the Howler. But how would he do ? He hadn't got a clue, and therefore he needed to ask Gianell. Which meant he had to use telepathy. And he didn't feel too confident about it.
But he had to.
He did his best to concentrate on what he wanted to say, and looked intently at the General, to make sure he was directing his thought at her. When he felt ready, he tried to unwind it and let it pass on to Gianell. And he managed to do it without problem.
(Danny) Gianell, what do I do ? How do I answer the Howler ? I can't shriek ! How does it work to reply to it ?
He had succeeded in answering but couldn't be aware of it, not until the addressee of the mental message sent a thought back.
(Gianell) Don't worry, Danny ! You can actually reply by shrieking. The metamorphosis you all underwent isn't just physical : you all can in fact use the same communication means as the creatures you like to our foes. That means that if you're a Howler, you can shriek like one, and if you're a Poisoner, you can hiss like one. All you have to do is focus on your throat and on the creature at the same time, then open your mouth, and you will shriek like that slug. Take your time and do it.
But just then, the monster shrieked a second time, louder this time, and thus did the green-eyed boy conclude that the slimy was getting impatient to be greeted back. Therefore, Danny focused hard, staring at the slug, and finally opened his mouth.
"RAAAAAAAGH !"
What the Jock uttered wasn't human. It was something animal, something monstrous. The scream of a beast, not of a man.
Chris felt a shiver shake him as he heard this. Same thing for Sam, who was standing a little way behind her two teammates. They didn't expect that !
Danny stood there, completely astonished at what had just taken place, not believing any of it. Had he just… shrieked ? Made the same sound as that blob there, in front of him ? He felt himself getting paler and shivering a bit.
The black slug considered him for a moment, then shrieked again and slowly slid away.
(Chris) You okay, Dan' ?
The spiked-hair boy flinched when he heard the voice in his head. Then he concentrated and answered.
(Danny) Yeah, but honestly I wasn't expecting that !
Another voice echoed in his mind.
(Sam) Danny... are you alright ?
(Danny) Yes, I am. But this shrieking thing freaked me out. I mean, I can express myself just like those things ! Can you believe that ?
(Sam) It's part of the metamorphosis, I'm sure. Don't worry, it will be fine. Just make sure to keep cool-headed and not betray yourself when a monster is close to you. We absolutely must remain under cover.
(Danny) Hum... okay, I'll do my best. Thanks for your concern, Sam.
(Sam) Sure thing, Buddy. (she widened the scope of her thought) Hey everyone, I think we could go on now. The Howlers seem to be passing by now. I guess the one which screamed at Danny must somehow have been the leader of the group, hence his greeting the one he thought was the leader of our group. But now, we can walk on, right ?
(Ana) The path is clear, so I take it we can safely proceed.
(Gianell) Exactly. Let's go on and find the exit to that forest ! (she then asked her troops to move on).
Soon, they were out of that creepy place and found themselves in front of dark orange marshes.
Danny gave a look around and, seeing no alien in sight, phrased his though aloud.
"Hum, how are we gonna cross these ?"
Chris immediately shushed him. "Shhhhh, Danny !" he said in a low, upset voice. "Don't speak ! Use telepathy !"
"But there are no monsters around !" protested his friend.
The geek didn't reply but pointed to the sky. The jock followed the direction and blenched.
Two Poisoners were flying in a distance, in large, idle circles. They weren't closing in but could actually be within earshot. Therefore, telepathy remained the rule.
The second group, including Ana and Sam, had just arrived. They joined the first team, while Gianell ordered the rest to wait in the back, and always in separate units.
(Chris) How can we go through these marshes, Gianell ?
(Ana) I'll answer, if you don't mind. I have the power to create a path through that area. It won't be a problem.
The Chancellor stepped by the bank of the first muddy pool and put her hand down, palm facing the dark orange liquid. A blue shimmering cloud emerged from her hand and started to float down in a spiral pattern. When it reached the marsh, it got solid and yielded a kind of blue tile. Ana raised her hand in a circling movement and the cloud spread further, creating new blue segments of solid matter.
When the orange alien laid her hand down, a narrow blue path was formed before them, until the center of a pool. It was left incomplete at that place, and needed to be built on.
(Ana) I'll have to walk first, I'm afraid, Gianell, because I need to go on forging that path and I must be right in front of that blue way to do that. I can't from the rear. But you can watch my back, remaining right behind me.
(Gianell) I will do that, your Excellence. Please be very careful and tell me if anything seems suspect to you.
They walked for a moment on the blue path, Ana forming it as she advanced, the others following. It lasted that way until the first two teams reached a solitary mound. From up there, they could see another part of land right behind. Big blades of black grass were growing nearby, and some mountain range could be perceived, in a distance.
The MBC craftsman took out the A-Scan and referred to it. And his eyes widened imperceptibly. He focused to communicate with the rest of the two main teams.
(Chris) We are on the spot ! Right on the spot ! The dots representing us are in the middle of the yellow dots' group. I can tell by the position of the arrow. Therefore, we should be in the center of the base right now ! But... I don't get it ! There's nothing here !
(Danny) We're in the middle of nowhere, Dude. Are you sure your thing works correctly ?
(Chris) Listen, I-
(Sam) Guys ! No fight ! (she had been addressing only Chris and Danny, but then, she started communicating with the whole crew) I think that the A-Scan is working perfectly. So if the lair is really here, somewhere, I guess its entrance is hidden.
(Gianell) Good guess, Sam ! Those who created that base probably wanted to protect from attacks by concealing the main entrance. Very smart ! We must now find where it is.
All 21 fighters started searching the surroundings, looking for any sign that would show evidence of a hole, a cave or something similar. They walked up to the dark grass and began looking everywhere, but no clue could be shed light on. It was really frustrating.
Suddenly, Sam stiffened. Some blades of grass were moving just by her. She froze. A Howler came crawling out, spotted her and slid in her direction. When it was right in front of her it stopped and...
"RAAAAAAAGH !"
What a horrible shriek, really. I hate it !, thought Sam. But she had to reply, to avoid raising suspicion. So she opened her mouth, but let out a different sound, since she had the appearance of a Poisoner, not a Howler.
The slug kept its white circle aimed at her, as if it was staring at her and obviously hesitating about what to do next. It seemed somewhat puzzled that he didn't get the same sound in response. Howlers and Poisoners probably don't often communicate with each other..., she thought.
But the blob then turned away and slowly crawled on in direction of the marshes.
The MBC leader sighed and turned her gaze to the place where the slimy had emerged from. She took a few steps and bent down, just in front of the giant blades. Then she parted the latter and...
(Sam) Please all come here !
They were soon around her and could see what she wanted to show them.
Behind the thick vegetation was a hole. It wasn't big enough for a human to walk fully upright, but may be just high enough for one to make it bent forward. It wouldn't be very comfortable, but at least, crawling could be avoided.
(Sam) I bet we have found what we were looking for. I saw a slug come out of here, so I take that hole to be one of the ways out of the base. It's time for us to get in and find Queen Lauren and Cathy's shadow. And also to discover who is pulling the strings in the shadows...
/
At last ! Damn, my fingers are full of blisters this very moment, and bleeding all over the keypad !
...
But no, of course they're not ! ;P Yet I must admit I got somehow crazy with that chappy, stretching it to no end. I promise I'll try to be more reasonable for the next one ! *crosses fingers in his back*
I would like to seize the occasion to thank Blood-of-Silver and even more BeachBabe123 for publishing new chapters. Girls, I had been waiting for these... and started getting older, with a long beard and all... XD
Masterminor, TheDannyWTF, regarding your stories, I'm STILL waiting ! *glares, then stops and winks*
Thanxxxx again for reading and reviewing ! And please go on updating !
Oh, wait ! Since I just published, I'm number 1 in MBC stories again, for the sake of updating ! YAAAAAY !
Anyway, take care and good luck wz yr own stuff, Dudes ! So long ! 8D