I blew the dust off this sucker and decided to continue it! Thanks to all the people who reviewed and like this so much! You convinced me!! ^.^ R&R!
Episode III: Snow
"Weee! This is fun!"
"Ivy! This isn't funny! OW!"
"She got you, Pur."
"I know that!"
"OW!"
"Hehe! I got you too, Red!"
The Soldier grumpily brushed the white powder the reports labeled, "snow" from his back. Irk, it was cold on this planet! From space, the miserable rock looked nothing more than a ball of white spotted with black patches that could have been frozen liquid seas. Fortunately, the stuff was deemed harmless to Irkens, unlike its similarity to an Earth liquid that burned their skin like acid. On the other hand, this stuff clung to everything and melted into damp pools, which refroze into sheets and had to be shattered by hammers. It was bad enough being here, but the fact that there wasn't anything to make it valuable to the Empire made it worse. The Invader had nearly frozen to death on this "easy" mission. Now, the thoroughly thawed Irken Invader stood before them, beckoning them into the meeting building. Irkens were efficient. Immediately after the transports and voot cruisers had settled down, a miniature city had sprung up, complete with heat and barracks, as well as laboratories for the students. A few other bases of operation had sprung up within a hundred mile radius of the main one as well.
"Reeeeed!!" Ivy called, jumping up to nearly tackle the Tallest from behind. "Come and play!"
He sighed, prying her hands off him. As much as he'd love chasing her around in the cold whiteness, there was a great deal of work to attend to... "I'm sorry, Vee," Red said apologetically. "But I have work to do. And so does Purple. You can stay out here as long as you don't get too cold. We'll play as soon as we're done..." He added the last part after seeing the look on her face. At eight, she was still a child, a very young child by Irken standards. "I promise."
Her young face screwed up in a frown. "All right..." the female mumbled, kicking her boot in the snow. A sudden smile replaced her displeasure. "Red?"
"Hmm?" he turned from heading into the single-level meeting building Purple had ducked into a few moments earlier.
"Throw this for me, 'kay?" She placed a tightly-packed, freezing ball of snow in his hand. At his slightly confused look, Ivy giggled, then explained. "Pur doesn't get enough fun when we land on planets! He needs to laugh more."
Red had a loud laugh at that. How true! Gently, he patted Ivy on her head and strode into the building. The moment he entered, Red's good mood melted like the snow from his armor. It was always tense at these meetings, someone's temper liable to erupt and cause havoc, a Soldier-Student brawl, anything to disrupt the proceedings and keep him trapped longer. Fingering the ball of snow, he scanned the room for the other Tallest. He shouldn't have bothered. Purple was, as always, seated in his chair at the head of the large table, thin fingers typing away on a device of some sort. Already, his teeth were busily sawing away at his lower lip. That was one habit nothing could make him break. Casually, Red made his way over, whistling to himself. The aids dove out of his path, bowing in a hurried manner that made his mood lighten once again. Students were great little Irkens! Nervous, eager to obey him or give information in case he forgot-which was often-or were always... there. Whenever you needed one, they just seemed to pop up wherever you were.
Seating himself beside the other Tallest, Red waited for the perfect moment to strike. "Whatcha doing?" he asked, peering at the holoscreen where Irken letters popped up in unison with the tap of keys under Purple's fingers. "Notes, report to yourself...? What?"
The stern face swiveled to face him. "Yes, note-" the sentence was cut off by the padded squelch of the snow against Purple's face.
His co-Tallest's expression was more hysterical than Red would have thought. He threw his head back, laughter erupting in a loud explosion that caused all heads to turn to him. Slight smiles crossed otherwise harried faces at their Tallest's mirth. That was, Red had long ago decided, one of his better abilities. That and scare the goo out of anyone. And beat anything to a bloody pulp. "Sorry," he chuckled, calming down. He avoided Purple's gaze, knowing if he looked, he'd laugh again. "Ivy made me do it."
"I see." After a brief pause, the tap of keys began once more. "As I was saying, before I found my eyeballs frozen, I'm summarizing Invader Mook's report to brief your generals with." There was a heavy sigh. Red dared a look over at the other Tallest's, now snow-less, face. Purple was hunched over the holoscreen, his head against both wristguards, fingers drumming his forehead. He sighed again, glaring at the screen. "Did you know there is NO life on this planet other than those giant furry things you tried to shoot?"
He'd forgotten about those furry things... "Remind me why I couldn't shoot 'em," Red said, tapping one finger against his chin. "It wasn't like shooting a few with lazers would do any harm."
Purple only narrowed his eyes at him. The Soldier really disliked that look, it was one of Purple's "I'm superior" looks. He had a lot of them, each one merely serving to make Red angry. His antennae flicked and Purple's look vanished. "Only if you remind me why we're here in the first place," the Student mumbled, folding his arms over his chest and leaning back in his chair to glower at the screen.
Red sniggered. "And deprive Mook of the honor of explaining to his Tallest?"
"I hate you."
"You don't think I know that?"
"Shut up."
"You shut up. You started it."
"No I didn't!"
"Yes you did!" Red had to fight to keep from laughing. Getting into so juvenile an argument was hysterical to the others in the room, not to mention a wonderful source of entertainment for himself. As a few, desperately covered snickers were detected by Purple, his normally serene face flushed brilliantly. He slumped in his seat, glaring out at the world. Red narrowed his eyes this time. "Mother of Irk, lighten up Purple..." he muttered, calm now. It didn't matter anyway. The meeting had begun.
Mook, a thin, wasted-looking Invader came forward, leaning on the table as if it were the only thing holding him upright. He spoke in a high, reedy voice that told of his trying stay on this ice-world. "Tallest and fellow Soldiers," Mook began. "You are all most likely wondering why this planet is of value to the Empire." A star chart appeared over the table, lights dimming as the three-dimensional spheres of planets and pinpricks of stars materialized. The cold planet was highlighted in green, the other planets in the sector under Irken rule glowed red. "As you can see," continued the Invader. "this planet is on the very edge of this sector, making it a sort of outpost for military defense purposes."
"So, the only thing this place offers to us is higher defense?" asked one of the high-ranking Students chosen to represent their class. "There are no other reasons why this place is worth the Armada's time and energy?"
The star chart abruptly switched to a map of the planet. "There are other reasons," Mook said smoothly. Black highlighted sections around mountains and oceans. "Here, there are valuable minerals that are of use to us as fuel or for reinforcing metals. It is dense and powerful. My data on it is already stored in the file on this planet. Also..." The highlights shifted to the equator. "Around this planet's equator, the weather is actually warm. And is livable. This planet is large, and therefore suited for colonies."
There was a murmur among those gathered. Colonization was always a welcome aspect of invaded planets. Irk was far too crowded, and with the high levels of medical technology and long lifespans, the Irken population wasn't decreasing fast enough to keep up with the number of births.
"Eh, what would be so hard about claiming this place now?" a General asked, his medals gleaming in the artificial light. "Are there any lifeforms we need to worry about?"
Red finally spoke up. "Aside from the big furry things?" He shot a smirk at Purple, who just glared at him with dark eyes. Okay, Red thought. I give up. Purple just wasn't in a good mood today.
His question did give him a good laugh from Mook. It was a slightly wheezy sound that grated on the hearing. "My Tallest," Mook said with a small bow. "While those creatures are one of the dominant species here, they have little intelligence to worry about. The most intelligent creatures on this planet are too small to affect us, and live mainly in the deep forests. My research tells me there are larger beasts who scavenge off them for food and the like, but, again, their intelligence is their undoing."
There were nods around the table. Purple drummed his fingers against his keyboard, obviously wanting to say something, but biting his tongue. Crimson eyes rolled. "This place is worth our time," the Student Tallest finally said, catching the look he'd been sent. His antennae flicked at Red. "Do you recommend an organic sweep, Invader?"
"No sir, I do not," Mook replied calmly.
"And why is that?" Purple continued. He and Red would have the final say in the end, but he had always enjoyed hearing the Invader's point of view. For Red, it was an annoyance. The Soldier sat back, folding his arms and looking around for anything else to occupy his attention.
Mook took a breath, gathering his thoughts. His explanation was ignored by Red, who had pulled out a small pad and pen and begun to doodle. He'd never been very good at it, but it was far better than listening to Purple and a bunch of other Irkens drone on about things that didn't concern him. Even discussing military tactics with this dull group put him to sleep half of the time. He wished he'd remembered to bring some paperclips he could break and flick at whoever wasn't paying attention to him. Doodling soon bored him and he found himself digging through his waistbands, trying to find anything else to keep him occupied during this meeting. He must have been a bit noisy in doing so, because he was suddenly the object of everyone's gaze-not all of which were friendly. Sheepishly, he pretended to turn his attention back to what Mook was saying, and ignore the evil look emanating from violet eyes. A few Soldiers glared too, while some Students snickered, trying to cover it in the fabric of their gloves. Purple took command, snapping at them to be silent, and the meeting commenced once more.
Bored again, Red finally found what he was looking for. A single, silver strip coiled in a sort of oval, biting down hard on a stack of papers that were placed conspicuously before the one Student in the room who happened to be in the worst mood in a long while. The paperclip found itself under the fierce gaze of two, half-lidded crimson eyes. Making sure Purple was sufficiently distracted by Mook's ramblings, Red slowly slid the stack towards him, his eyes, now fixated on Purple, alert. He knew the others in the room saw him. Not a problem. They looked almost as bored as him. Once the stack was in range, his quick fingers made the paperclip release its hold and fall neatly into an open palm. Now, he slid the papers back, still attentive in case Purple happened to snap out of this interested-or maybe, ill-tempered-mood of his. He didn't. Red grinned devilishly. His task accomplished, he settled back to break the small clip into throw-able pieces.
"So, we meet again. Eh, my nemesis?" Red muttered to his metal prey, still grinning. "Not so scary now. No paper to protect you!" The first part was twisted and snapped in two. He could almost hear the clip's shrieks of agony as he worked. "Mawhah! So weak now... I'm gonna win this one..." Another part snapped off. Red worked fast, he always had. "And now... for the last part..." he hissed, his look getting even more malicious. The very last joint snapped. Unfortunately, in his haste to destroy the paperclip, he'd forgotten to keep a tight hold on the breaking end. It flew up, heading straight for Purple's eye.
Red could only stare in horror.
Feeling the impact in the tender spot, Purple screeched, jumping to his feet. It wasn't a powerful one, like any other Irken would have given, but a high-pitched, childish screech. The Soldiers stared with a sort of horror and a touch of amusement. Chagrined, Purple held the injury, glaring all around at the laughter he imagined the opposite class was hiding. His face turned a very dark green, screwing up in a look of hatred and anger Red had only imagined himself of being capable of. That look was flung directly at the Soldier Tallest, the only Soldier in the room, in Purple's mind, who was not hiding his mirth, as its owner spun to face him. "How dare you!?" he shouted, eyes blazing violet fire.
"Pur! I'm sorry! It was an acci-"
The other Tallest cut him off. "You've been annoying everyone and everything all day!" he hissed. Seething, Purple loomed over the sitting Red, hands clenched into fists. "Getting into EVERYTHING! Being BORED every second! I don't know why I even asked you to come!! I KNEW you'd do something like this, RED! It's just like you!" The Irkens in the room stared in shock. Such an outburst was uncharacteristic of the Student Tallest.
"I'm sorry!" Red finally retorted, getting to his feet. The Tallest were inches away now, hissing. Both pairs of antennae were flicked inward, standing upright. "I'm sorry if all this pointless babble bores me to death! I'm SORRY I was trying to have a little fun and make this meeting a bit more LIVELY than any meeting you've ever done on your own!"
"Oh, now this is MY FAULT?" Purple snapped back. Not even the enraged Red fazed him at this moment. The others in the room had backed out, leaving the Tallest to "get over their differences," as the term was. "You can't just twist everything around to make it MY fault when you've done something wrong!"
"But it IS YOUR FAULT!"
"How is this MY FAULT?"
Red paced, hissing softly to himself, every inch of him tensed with a bizarre fuming grace. Every so often, he snarled, flashing his teeth at Purple threateningly. His anger only increased when his look was mirrored. "It's your fault," he hissed. "because of your Class."
The Student tensed with rage. "Red, do NOT bring Class into THIS!" Purple snarled. "This is NOT about CLASS! This is about YOUR idiocy! Your five second attention span! Not CLASS!" His face had changed from dark green to white with anger.
"Now he calls it idiocy! Well, let me ask you something! Who was the one who YOU, O mightiest of STUDENTS came to ask about how to conquer a planet?! Hmmm?? WHO!? Not one of your weak little friends! ME! The idiot with the five second attention span!"
Purple bit back a retort. He knew he'd only say something that wouldn't help him. Instead, he paced too. "This is EXACTLY why I think we never should have kept Ivy!" he barked unexpectedly.
Now it was Red's turn to be indignant. "Don't bring her into this Purple! Don't you DARE!"
"Too late! I have!" Purple whirled to face Red, slamming his hands down against the table. "We NEVER should have exposed her to you! You and your incompetence is the reason I can't get her to listen to my teaching or me! We should have shot her into space like you wanted! Mother of Irk! Death would be better for her than listening to your Soldier babble about weapons and lopping heads off!" The ending sentence was enhanced when his hands slammed back against the tabletop.
A soft cry of horror stopped Red from replying. Both heads swiveled to the door, which was open and flapping in the sudden wind. Stunned into silence, the two hurried to find out who exactly had been listening in on their argument. All they could see were the stunned faces of their aids. "What happened?" Red barked to the general crowd.
From the crowd stepped a particularly bold member of the Student class. Red remembered Purple mentioning her name once or twice. Tolia. Tolia Aman. The Student Purple's "teacher" had taken in after he'd become Tallest. Her tan eyes were dark. "The small one ran once she heard your shouting, sirs," she told him simply, tilting her chin upwards, looking quite dignified. "She was in tears, I am afraid."
Crimson eyes flicked to violet ones, aghast that Ivy had overheard. Before any other conscious thought had time to register in astounded minds, the two were off, running in the direction which the lower Irkens had sent them. For hours, they scoured the camp and everything within as far a radius as they assumed Ivy could get. For hours, they came up with nothing. Not even a trace. Snow had begun to fall, covering everyone and everything. Darkness and the amount of snow finally forced the Elite Guard to drag the Tallest indoors, steeling themselves to ignore the threats and curses of their superiors.
A scuffling in the dark snapped Purple to attention. He'd been sitting up in bed, staring hopelessly at a small holograph of Ivy. She was standing on Red and his shoulders, waving as if she were the Tallest and they her advisors. Outside, snow covered everything in a fresh foot. Now there was no way of ever finding his little student again... and it was his fault... all his fault for yelling and letting her hear. None of those words... mother of Irk, he hadn't meant any of those things. Just lost his temper and shouted the only coherent thing he could grasp. Remembering the exact wordings made the Tallest wince. He wanted to lie down and die of shame.
"Purple!" The scuffling sound came again, followed by the hiss of his door sliding open. Light spilled in, sending a shadow over the floor and outlining a familiar silhouette, eyes shining red. It ducked into the room, closing the door behind it. "Why is it so dark in here? By the first Tallest!" Red's face appeared beneath the single light Purple had turned on. There were unusual dark circles beneath the crimson eyes. "What are you trying to do? Disappear?"
The Student managed a weak smile. "A little," he sighed. "What are you doing here Red? I want to be alone."
"Come on!" Purple found himself hauled roughly to his feet by a powerful arm. "We're going to go find your Student."
"What!?" he cried, pulling away from Red's grasp. The Soldier stared firmly at him, one eye half-lidded. "Red..." Mother of Irk... how was he supposed to say something like this? He didn't even want to believe it himself... "Red," he tried again. "Red, it's night... it snowed... they didn't find her in daylight..." Purple put his head in his hands, hiding what he knew would be tears. You didn't let Red see weakness. Even if you had known him for as long as Purple had. How long had it been now? He couldn't remember. "Red, Ivy's... even if she stayed alive through the snowstorm... Ivy's dead... she couldn't survive this cold..." There. He'd said it. Now he had to accept it. His Ivy-tam, with her green eyes and aggressive moods. How tall would she have been? How smart, graceful? Would have been more like him, more like Red...?
An angry glare from tired, swollen, crimson eyes broke off his misery. Red shook him hard. "No! She's not! Purple... mother of Irk, she's not dead!" There was a panic, an urgency, in the Soldier's voice that was frightening. "She's not dead and we're going to find her and bring her back!"
"Are you insane!?" he cried, pulling back from Red. "She's probably frozen to death by now! If the snowstorm didn't kill her, this cold has!" He tried to turn his tone rational, in hopes that would calm whatever mind Red had. "Please Red... this is... suicidal!"
He was stunned to see a flicker of some unusual emotion in those glaring eyes. Sorrow...? "Can we at least find her body so we can give her an Irken burial?" asked the once-terrifying Tallest. His aggressive, almost bloodlust, was gone, replaced by a somber, almost depressed air, which was so different from his usual attitude that it was as if a completely different Irken resided now in his skin. "For the love of the mother of Irk, Purple... can we at least do that for her?"
"Ye-yes, of course..." Purple stammered, scared more by the other Tallest's sudden emotional swing than anything. Soldiers... just didn't HAVE emotions. They just didn't. That was the way things had always been. But, Red... why all of the sudden did he care so much about the little student? "Right now?"
Red's antennae pricked up. Already, the idea that he was going to go find Ivy had altered him back to his original, nearly-hyperactive self. "Duh, right now!" he exclaimed, planting his hands on his hips. "I've got everything we need. Lights, personal heating units, food, weapons, paperclips-"
"Why do we need paperclips?"
"In case I get bored. Plus, I managed to get Mook's maps of this place. That'll help. We have enough stuff for weeks. Oh, and there's communication devices and extra power cells. I grabbed a med kit too, in case things get really bad. Like if you fell off a cliff or something..." He trailed off, seeing the look on the other Tallest's face. "What's wrong?"
"This. Is. Insane!" Purple finally shouted. "We can't do this! She could be anywhere! What hope do we have of finding her?"
"A big one," Red answered calmly. "You have to know of some mechanical thingy that locks onto Irken... stuff and can track her!"
The statement brought a smile to Purple's face. "Yeah, I have something. Let me find it..." Turning to his desk, already decorated in its usual dusting of various papers, the small device was plucked from an inconspicuous drawer. "Here." It dropped into Red's open hand. "Keep it safe. I only have one."
After a brief examination, it was handed back to him. "I don't know how to work it," was Red's flat reply. "You hang onto it. After all, you're coming with me on this."
"I guess I am..."
It was so cold... Her breath came in large white clouds hidden by the whiteness of the snow around her. Rubbing her gloved hands over her arms was the only way to keep them warm. Unlike the rest of the Irkens she knew, save the Tallest, her arms were bare, making them vulnerable to the frigid air. Tears were frozen to her face. Her sobs were long gone by now.
Why hadn't she intervened earlier? She'd known Pur had been tense about something for a long time. She could sense odd things like that in other Irkens. Odd things like what they were thinking, how they were feeling, and other little things of that nature. Nobody knew about it, and she had only become aware of this talent recently. Most of the time, she despised this ability, as seeing others' thoughts often yielded unwelcome images. She should have told Reddy... she should have told him to watch himself... she should have known they had never wanted her... How could she have ever thought two Irkens as powerful as they would ever want someone who had no knowledge of even what Hatchery she was from? They both had lineage. She was... Mother of Irk, she didn't know if she was just a Student or a Soldier with defunct eyes!
Ivy sank down into a sitting position in the snow. Cold... She couldn't get warm. But, what did that matter? No one cared about her anyway. No one even wanted her around them. They all wanted her to die... Even Reddy and Pur wanted her to die... The tears came back in full force. Hugging her knees to her chest, Ivy cried harder, letting the tears freeze to her soft green dress. It wasn't her fault she didn't know anything about herself. It wasn't her fault! Why'd they have to blame it all on her? Why?
It began to snow.
Startled, the little Irken looked up at the sky, her antennae flicking in both disbelief and surprise. The air around her had grown colder while she'd sat, sobbing her green eyes out. Frightened, Ivy got to her feet, looking around for someplace to hide from the bizarre falling snow. Around her was what may have been an open field, had a thick covering of snow not hidden the grass from view. Far off to the west she could make out a large dark blob that swayed in a slight breeze. Wild plant life. Ivy had seen it before on other planets. Deciding the snow wouldn't be able to get her there, she marched towards it, and veering left of the originally straight course she'd been taking. Behind her, the snow filled her tracks at an alarming rate. She didn't care. She wasn't going back to the base anyway. Not now, and not ever. There was no point in staying in a place where no one wanted or cared about you.
For hours, she stumbled proudly through the thick white powder, pretending she didn't feel the cold. Ivy only paused to rub the icy tears off her green cheeks. It was exhausting work to plow through the fallen and falling snow. More times than she cared to, Ivy found herself lying still, gasping to get her breath and strength back, fighting off the suddenly overwhelming urge to curl into a ball and sleep. At these times, an anger from somewhere distant would spark up, giving Ivy the mental strength to haul her little body back up and coerce it into plodding along once more. The sky began to darken, snow falling faster with the minutes that ticked by. She started to wonder if she would ever reach the green destination she was heading for. Now it seemed unlikely.
Finally, on her last ounce of will, Ivy dragged herself into the cover of a small grove of trees. The snow still fell through them in places, but their leaf-like needles refused much of it access to the ground below them. It was almost warmer under their shelter. Feeling the nearly snow-free earth under her gloved hands, the little female summed up just enough strength to crawl beneath a large bush, curling into a ball. Her antennae felt stiff. Glancing at her arms, she was surprised to see a blue tone to the bare appendages. Ivy had never seen such a thing in her life. She was scared, cold, hungry, exhausted, and emotionally shattered. Burying her face in her numb arms, Ivy sobbed with fresh tears. It was awful, knowing that everything she'd known and loved had been one gigantic charade. They hadn't ever loved her. They hadn't cared when she was frightened, crying, or even sick. They had only been faking it.
That hurt. That hurt her more than the stinging cold did. They had hated her, and Ivy had naively loved them. Loved them unconditionally. But now... she was so very alone on this frozen world, and no one cared to even come looking for her.
Ivy shut her eyes tightly, feeling that sleepy feeling come over her again. It was so cold... In moments, she'd fallen into a dangerous sleep, the vapor from her breath invisible to those who were not looking for it.
By the time Ivy was actually found by someone, her damp clothing had frozen to her little body, her breath was faint and her pulse almost nonexistent. Afraid for her life, the rescuers lifted what, to them, was a tall creature, taking her down into the hole from which they'd come. "What is that?" one asked, meeting its fellows at the entrance to what looked like a large cave.
"Big. Green. Not from here," the rescue party's leader replied.
"From sky," piped up another, who was hit over the head for its impertinence.
"He cold," the leader said, gesturing to the half-frozen Irken the party had dragged down the tunnel. "Fell sleep. Dead, methink."
The one who had asked the first question moved to examine the Irken female, frowning. "SHE is not dead. Frozen, yes. Dead, no. Bring her to the main fire," it ordered, still going over the unconscious body. "These green ones have not harmed us yet. It is the least we can do to care for this one in return for their peace."
By the Mother of Irk, it was cold.
Their disappearance had gone unnoticed by the patrols and even their personal guard, making their escape simple. Hours later, the Tallests marched in a direct line from camp, following Purple's Irken DNA scanner and bowing their heads against the cold.
Blasted cold. How many times had that thought popped into his head? Too many for Red's liking. And dark. It was dark too. Even with the four hoverlamps surrounding them, it was difficult to see much. Purple's back was directly in front of him, the purple parts of his back pod black in the darkness, while the rest glowed white. There was a single moon on this planet, a phenomenon somewhat disturbing to Irken eyes. The moon didn't do a great job of lighting the place. Despite it being out, the blackness around them swelled to envelop almost everything. Did he mention how much he disliked the dark?
Apparently, he had, for Purple was annoyed with him. "It was your idea to sneak out in the dead of an alien night," the Student snapped, pulling one of the bright orbs closer to him. His head was hunched over the small screen he carried. "So don't complain about how dark it is."
"I don't see you jumping for joy over the dark," Red grumbled. He turned the heating unit up a notch, sighing happily. Now that temperature was secure...
"Don't waste the batteries," Purple muttered, still gazing at the screen. How he'd seen Red try to turn the lights up brighter was a mystery to the Soldier. "We'll need them later..." Again, violet eyes sought the directional confirmation of the screen. "This way... looks like we're getting closer."
Red shivered, despite the warmth from his heat unit. "Can you tell if she's...?"
"No... I can't."
"Oh..." Red kicked a snowdrift irritably. They'd come into a hilly place. How Ivy had managed to come this far, he didn't know. She was so small... to them anyway. She was taller than any other Irken at the moment, standing an even four feet. Only a foot and seven inches separated her from her two guardians. Mother of Irk... Red could barely remember when he'd been able to hold her in one hand. A faint smile came to him when he remembered her indignant reaction to his hold. That bite mark had scarred, he reflected. If anything, Ivy was a fighter. She could survive this insane cold. No matter what Purple said. "Why haven't we found her by now?"
Purple sighed. "She's probably just farther off than we'd thought, Red," he muttered, checking the screen yet again. "If you're so impatient maybe you should try putting that hideously loud voice of yours to work," he said sarcastically.
"All right," Red answered, obviously not hearing Purple's cynical tone. In the darkness, he cupped his hands over his mouth, breathed in the frozen air and yelled with all his might.
"IVY!!"
"Red!!" Purple hissed, whirling around. "Don't DO that!! I was being sarcastic!! You'll cause something... I don't know, something BAD to happen!!" There was panic where scorn had been originally.
Crimson eyes rolled. "Please. Like everything is my fault," he scoffed. He called again, louder this time, despite Purple's attempts to silence him. "IVY!! WHERE ARE YO-"
"RED SHUT UP!!"
Both of them were silent, glaring at each other. Neither one could speak for a moment. Each tried to get their anger and frustration with the other under control before they uttered anything they'd regret later. Purple was the one to break the silence. "Red," he muttered. "I'm so-"
"Shh!" His apology was silenced. Red's antennae twitched frantically, as if listening to something they could just barely grasp. Soon, Purple could pick it up as well. A low-pitched, scarcely audible rumble. It soon got louder. The realization only took the two Tallests moments to reach. "Avalanche!" the Soldier shouted over the now too-loud for comfort rumble of falling snow. "Run!"
Mechanical legs sprouted from two pods as both fled in the opposite direction. Red easily outdistanced his Student partner, but the sudden need for flight he felt clouded all other judgment the Soldier had. He heard Purple yell for him to wait, faintly, but the Student's cries for aid were soon swallowed by the roar of the snow. His mechs picked up their pace, moving through the snow with an easy, yet panicked grace. Red ran faster. Purple had been silent for what seemed like hours. Stealing a glance over his shoulder, the Soldier could see no sign of his partner, only the towering, roiling sea of white death. It was so close...
The snow caught the Soldier then, smashing into him with a force unlike anything he'd felt before. Sky was ground, air was snow, there was nothing in that white blindness to tell one thing from another. He couldn't breathe... until, mercifully, one of the mangled mechs smacked against the button on the pod which activated a Soldier's breathing mask. As the clear bubble closed over the Tallest's head, something hard cracked into him, turning pure white to dead black.
Who's the evilest person on FFN??? ^.^ To be continued!! MWAHAHAHA!!!
Episode III: Snow
"Weee! This is fun!"
"Ivy! This isn't funny! OW!"
"She got you, Pur."
"I know that!"
"OW!"
"Hehe! I got you too, Red!"
The Soldier grumpily brushed the white powder the reports labeled, "snow" from his back. Irk, it was cold on this planet! From space, the miserable rock looked nothing more than a ball of white spotted with black patches that could have been frozen liquid seas. Fortunately, the stuff was deemed harmless to Irkens, unlike its similarity to an Earth liquid that burned their skin like acid. On the other hand, this stuff clung to everything and melted into damp pools, which refroze into sheets and had to be shattered by hammers. It was bad enough being here, but the fact that there wasn't anything to make it valuable to the Empire made it worse. The Invader had nearly frozen to death on this "easy" mission. Now, the thoroughly thawed Irken Invader stood before them, beckoning them into the meeting building. Irkens were efficient. Immediately after the transports and voot cruisers had settled down, a miniature city had sprung up, complete with heat and barracks, as well as laboratories for the students. A few other bases of operation had sprung up within a hundred mile radius of the main one as well.
"Reeeeed!!" Ivy called, jumping up to nearly tackle the Tallest from behind. "Come and play!"
He sighed, prying her hands off him. As much as he'd love chasing her around in the cold whiteness, there was a great deal of work to attend to... "I'm sorry, Vee," Red said apologetically. "But I have work to do. And so does Purple. You can stay out here as long as you don't get too cold. We'll play as soon as we're done..." He added the last part after seeing the look on her face. At eight, she was still a child, a very young child by Irken standards. "I promise."
Her young face screwed up in a frown. "All right..." the female mumbled, kicking her boot in the snow. A sudden smile replaced her displeasure. "Red?"
"Hmm?" he turned from heading into the single-level meeting building Purple had ducked into a few moments earlier.
"Throw this for me, 'kay?" She placed a tightly-packed, freezing ball of snow in his hand. At his slightly confused look, Ivy giggled, then explained. "Pur doesn't get enough fun when we land on planets! He needs to laugh more."
Red had a loud laugh at that. How true! Gently, he patted Ivy on her head and strode into the building. The moment he entered, Red's good mood melted like the snow from his armor. It was always tense at these meetings, someone's temper liable to erupt and cause havoc, a Soldier-Student brawl, anything to disrupt the proceedings and keep him trapped longer. Fingering the ball of snow, he scanned the room for the other Tallest. He shouldn't have bothered. Purple was, as always, seated in his chair at the head of the large table, thin fingers typing away on a device of some sort. Already, his teeth were busily sawing away at his lower lip. That was one habit nothing could make him break. Casually, Red made his way over, whistling to himself. The aids dove out of his path, bowing in a hurried manner that made his mood lighten once again. Students were great little Irkens! Nervous, eager to obey him or give information in case he forgot-which was often-or were always... there. Whenever you needed one, they just seemed to pop up wherever you were.
Seating himself beside the other Tallest, Red waited for the perfect moment to strike. "Whatcha doing?" he asked, peering at the holoscreen where Irken letters popped up in unison with the tap of keys under Purple's fingers. "Notes, report to yourself...? What?"
The stern face swiveled to face him. "Yes, note-" the sentence was cut off by the padded squelch of the snow against Purple's face.
His co-Tallest's expression was more hysterical than Red would have thought. He threw his head back, laughter erupting in a loud explosion that caused all heads to turn to him. Slight smiles crossed otherwise harried faces at their Tallest's mirth. That was, Red had long ago decided, one of his better abilities. That and scare the goo out of anyone. And beat anything to a bloody pulp. "Sorry," he chuckled, calming down. He avoided Purple's gaze, knowing if he looked, he'd laugh again. "Ivy made me do it."
"I see." After a brief pause, the tap of keys began once more. "As I was saying, before I found my eyeballs frozen, I'm summarizing Invader Mook's report to brief your generals with." There was a heavy sigh. Red dared a look over at the other Tallest's, now snow-less, face. Purple was hunched over the holoscreen, his head against both wristguards, fingers drumming his forehead. He sighed again, glaring at the screen. "Did you know there is NO life on this planet other than those giant furry things you tried to shoot?"
He'd forgotten about those furry things... "Remind me why I couldn't shoot 'em," Red said, tapping one finger against his chin. "It wasn't like shooting a few with lazers would do any harm."
Purple only narrowed his eyes at him. The Soldier really disliked that look, it was one of Purple's "I'm superior" looks. He had a lot of them, each one merely serving to make Red angry. His antennae flicked and Purple's look vanished. "Only if you remind me why we're here in the first place," the Student mumbled, folding his arms over his chest and leaning back in his chair to glower at the screen.
Red sniggered. "And deprive Mook of the honor of explaining to his Tallest?"
"I hate you."
"You don't think I know that?"
"Shut up."
"You shut up. You started it."
"No I didn't!"
"Yes you did!" Red had to fight to keep from laughing. Getting into so juvenile an argument was hysterical to the others in the room, not to mention a wonderful source of entertainment for himself. As a few, desperately covered snickers were detected by Purple, his normally serene face flushed brilliantly. He slumped in his seat, glaring out at the world. Red narrowed his eyes this time. "Mother of Irk, lighten up Purple..." he muttered, calm now. It didn't matter anyway. The meeting had begun.
Mook, a thin, wasted-looking Invader came forward, leaning on the table as if it were the only thing holding him upright. He spoke in a high, reedy voice that told of his trying stay on this ice-world. "Tallest and fellow Soldiers," Mook began. "You are all most likely wondering why this planet is of value to the Empire." A star chart appeared over the table, lights dimming as the three-dimensional spheres of planets and pinpricks of stars materialized. The cold planet was highlighted in green, the other planets in the sector under Irken rule glowed red. "As you can see," continued the Invader. "this planet is on the very edge of this sector, making it a sort of outpost for military defense purposes."
"So, the only thing this place offers to us is higher defense?" asked one of the high-ranking Students chosen to represent their class. "There are no other reasons why this place is worth the Armada's time and energy?"
The star chart abruptly switched to a map of the planet. "There are other reasons," Mook said smoothly. Black highlighted sections around mountains and oceans. "Here, there are valuable minerals that are of use to us as fuel or for reinforcing metals. It is dense and powerful. My data on it is already stored in the file on this planet. Also..." The highlights shifted to the equator. "Around this planet's equator, the weather is actually warm. And is livable. This planet is large, and therefore suited for colonies."
There was a murmur among those gathered. Colonization was always a welcome aspect of invaded planets. Irk was far too crowded, and with the high levels of medical technology and long lifespans, the Irken population wasn't decreasing fast enough to keep up with the number of births.
"Eh, what would be so hard about claiming this place now?" a General asked, his medals gleaming in the artificial light. "Are there any lifeforms we need to worry about?"
Red finally spoke up. "Aside from the big furry things?" He shot a smirk at Purple, who just glared at him with dark eyes. Okay, Red thought. I give up. Purple just wasn't in a good mood today.
His question did give him a good laugh from Mook. It was a slightly wheezy sound that grated on the hearing. "My Tallest," Mook said with a small bow. "While those creatures are one of the dominant species here, they have little intelligence to worry about. The most intelligent creatures on this planet are too small to affect us, and live mainly in the deep forests. My research tells me there are larger beasts who scavenge off them for food and the like, but, again, their intelligence is their undoing."
There were nods around the table. Purple drummed his fingers against his keyboard, obviously wanting to say something, but biting his tongue. Crimson eyes rolled. "This place is worth our time," the Student Tallest finally said, catching the look he'd been sent. His antennae flicked at Red. "Do you recommend an organic sweep, Invader?"
"No sir, I do not," Mook replied calmly.
"And why is that?" Purple continued. He and Red would have the final say in the end, but he had always enjoyed hearing the Invader's point of view. For Red, it was an annoyance. The Soldier sat back, folding his arms and looking around for anything else to occupy his attention.
Mook took a breath, gathering his thoughts. His explanation was ignored by Red, who had pulled out a small pad and pen and begun to doodle. He'd never been very good at it, but it was far better than listening to Purple and a bunch of other Irkens drone on about things that didn't concern him. Even discussing military tactics with this dull group put him to sleep half of the time. He wished he'd remembered to bring some paperclips he could break and flick at whoever wasn't paying attention to him. Doodling soon bored him and he found himself digging through his waistbands, trying to find anything else to keep him occupied during this meeting. He must have been a bit noisy in doing so, because he was suddenly the object of everyone's gaze-not all of which were friendly. Sheepishly, he pretended to turn his attention back to what Mook was saying, and ignore the evil look emanating from violet eyes. A few Soldiers glared too, while some Students snickered, trying to cover it in the fabric of their gloves. Purple took command, snapping at them to be silent, and the meeting commenced once more.
Bored again, Red finally found what he was looking for. A single, silver strip coiled in a sort of oval, biting down hard on a stack of papers that were placed conspicuously before the one Student in the room who happened to be in the worst mood in a long while. The paperclip found itself under the fierce gaze of two, half-lidded crimson eyes. Making sure Purple was sufficiently distracted by Mook's ramblings, Red slowly slid the stack towards him, his eyes, now fixated on Purple, alert. He knew the others in the room saw him. Not a problem. They looked almost as bored as him. Once the stack was in range, his quick fingers made the paperclip release its hold and fall neatly into an open palm. Now, he slid the papers back, still attentive in case Purple happened to snap out of this interested-or maybe, ill-tempered-mood of his. He didn't. Red grinned devilishly. His task accomplished, he settled back to break the small clip into throw-able pieces.
"So, we meet again. Eh, my nemesis?" Red muttered to his metal prey, still grinning. "Not so scary now. No paper to protect you!" The first part was twisted and snapped in two. He could almost hear the clip's shrieks of agony as he worked. "Mawhah! So weak now... I'm gonna win this one..." Another part snapped off. Red worked fast, he always had. "And now... for the last part..." he hissed, his look getting even more malicious. The very last joint snapped. Unfortunately, in his haste to destroy the paperclip, he'd forgotten to keep a tight hold on the breaking end. It flew up, heading straight for Purple's eye.
Red could only stare in horror.
Feeling the impact in the tender spot, Purple screeched, jumping to his feet. It wasn't a powerful one, like any other Irken would have given, but a high-pitched, childish screech. The Soldiers stared with a sort of horror and a touch of amusement. Chagrined, Purple held the injury, glaring all around at the laughter he imagined the opposite class was hiding. His face turned a very dark green, screwing up in a look of hatred and anger Red had only imagined himself of being capable of. That look was flung directly at the Soldier Tallest, the only Soldier in the room, in Purple's mind, who was not hiding his mirth, as its owner spun to face him. "How dare you!?" he shouted, eyes blazing violet fire.
"Pur! I'm sorry! It was an acci-"
The other Tallest cut him off. "You've been annoying everyone and everything all day!" he hissed. Seething, Purple loomed over the sitting Red, hands clenched into fists. "Getting into EVERYTHING! Being BORED every second! I don't know why I even asked you to come!! I KNEW you'd do something like this, RED! It's just like you!" The Irkens in the room stared in shock. Such an outburst was uncharacteristic of the Student Tallest.
"I'm sorry!" Red finally retorted, getting to his feet. The Tallest were inches away now, hissing. Both pairs of antennae were flicked inward, standing upright. "I'm sorry if all this pointless babble bores me to death! I'm SORRY I was trying to have a little fun and make this meeting a bit more LIVELY than any meeting you've ever done on your own!"
"Oh, now this is MY FAULT?" Purple snapped back. Not even the enraged Red fazed him at this moment. The others in the room had backed out, leaving the Tallest to "get over their differences," as the term was. "You can't just twist everything around to make it MY fault when you've done something wrong!"
"But it IS YOUR FAULT!"
"How is this MY FAULT?"
Red paced, hissing softly to himself, every inch of him tensed with a bizarre fuming grace. Every so often, he snarled, flashing his teeth at Purple threateningly. His anger only increased when his look was mirrored. "It's your fault," he hissed. "because of your Class."
The Student tensed with rage. "Red, do NOT bring Class into THIS!" Purple snarled. "This is NOT about CLASS! This is about YOUR idiocy! Your five second attention span! Not CLASS!" His face had changed from dark green to white with anger.
"Now he calls it idiocy! Well, let me ask you something! Who was the one who YOU, O mightiest of STUDENTS came to ask about how to conquer a planet?! Hmmm?? WHO!? Not one of your weak little friends! ME! The idiot with the five second attention span!"
Purple bit back a retort. He knew he'd only say something that wouldn't help him. Instead, he paced too. "This is EXACTLY why I think we never should have kept Ivy!" he barked unexpectedly.
Now it was Red's turn to be indignant. "Don't bring her into this Purple! Don't you DARE!"
"Too late! I have!" Purple whirled to face Red, slamming his hands down against the table. "We NEVER should have exposed her to you! You and your incompetence is the reason I can't get her to listen to my teaching or me! We should have shot her into space like you wanted! Mother of Irk! Death would be better for her than listening to your Soldier babble about weapons and lopping heads off!" The ending sentence was enhanced when his hands slammed back against the tabletop.
A soft cry of horror stopped Red from replying. Both heads swiveled to the door, which was open and flapping in the sudden wind. Stunned into silence, the two hurried to find out who exactly had been listening in on their argument. All they could see were the stunned faces of their aids. "What happened?" Red barked to the general crowd.
From the crowd stepped a particularly bold member of the Student class. Red remembered Purple mentioning her name once or twice. Tolia. Tolia Aman. The Student Purple's "teacher" had taken in after he'd become Tallest. Her tan eyes were dark. "The small one ran once she heard your shouting, sirs," she told him simply, tilting her chin upwards, looking quite dignified. "She was in tears, I am afraid."
Crimson eyes flicked to violet ones, aghast that Ivy had overheard. Before any other conscious thought had time to register in astounded minds, the two were off, running in the direction which the lower Irkens had sent them. For hours, they scoured the camp and everything within as far a radius as they assumed Ivy could get. For hours, they came up with nothing. Not even a trace. Snow had begun to fall, covering everyone and everything. Darkness and the amount of snow finally forced the Elite Guard to drag the Tallest indoors, steeling themselves to ignore the threats and curses of their superiors.
A scuffling in the dark snapped Purple to attention. He'd been sitting up in bed, staring hopelessly at a small holograph of Ivy. She was standing on Red and his shoulders, waving as if she were the Tallest and they her advisors. Outside, snow covered everything in a fresh foot. Now there was no way of ever finding his little student again... and it was his fault... all his fault for yelling and letting her hear. None of those words... mother of Irk, he hadn't meant any of those things. Just lost his temper and shouted the only coherent thing he could grasp. Remembering the exact wordings made the Tallest wince. He wanted to lie down and die of shame.
"Purple!" The scuffling sound came again, followed by the hiss of his door sliding open. Light spilled in, sending a shadow over the floor and outlining a familiar silhouette, eyes shining red. It ducked into the room, closing the door behind it. "Why is it so dark in here? By the first Tallest!" Red's face appeared beneath the single light Purple had turned on. There were unusual dark circles beneath the crimson eyes. "What are you trying to do? Disappear?"
The Student managed a weak smile. "A little," he sighed. "What are you doing here Red? I want to be alone."
"Come on!" Purple found himself hauled roughly to his feet by a powerful arm. "We're going to go find your Student."
"What!?" he cried, pulling away from Red's grasp. The Soldier stared firmly at him, one eye half-lidded. "Red..." Mother of Irk... how was he supposed to say something like this? He didn't even want to believe it himself... "Red," he tried again. "Red, it's night... it snowed... they didn't find her in daylight..." Purple put his head in his hands, hiding what he knew would be tears. You didn't let Red see weakness. Even if you had known him for as long as Purple had. How long had it been now? He couldn't remember. "Red, Ivy's... even if she stayed alive through the snowstorm... Ivy's dead... she couldn't survive this cold..." There. He'd said it. Now he had to accept it. His Ivy-tam, with her green eyes and aggressive moods. How tall would she have been? How smart, graceful? Would have been more like him, more like Red...?
An angry glare from tired, swollen, crimson eyes broke off his misery. Red shook him hard. "No! She's not! Purple... mother of Irk, she's not dead!" There was a panic, an urgency, in the Soldier's voice that was frightening. "She's not dead and we're going to find her and bring her back!"
"Are you insane!?" he cried, pulling back from Red. "She's probably frozen to death by now! If the snowstorm didn't kill her, this cold has!" He tried to turn his tone rational, in hopes that would calm whatever mind Red had. "Please Red... this is... suicidal!"
He was stunned to see a flicker of some unusual emotion in those glaring eyes. Sorrow...? "Can we at least find her body so we can give her an Irken burial?" asked the once-terrifying Tallest. His aggressive, almost bloodlust, was gone, replaced by a somber, almost depressed air, which was so different from his usual attitude that it was as if a completely different Irken resided now in his skin. "For the love of the mother of Irk, Purple... can we at least do that for her?"
"Ye-yes, of course..." Purple stammered, scared more by the other Tallest's sudden emotional swing than anything. Soldiers... just didn't HAVE emotions. They just didn't. That was the way things had always been. But, Red... why all of the sudden did he care so much about the little student? "Right now?"
Red's antennae pricked up. Already, the idea that he was going to go find Ivy had altered him back to his original, nearly-hyperactive self. "Duh, right now!" he exclaimed, planting his hands on his hips. "I've got everything we need. Lights, personal heating units, food, weapons, paperclips-"
"Why do we need paperclips?"
"In case I get bored. Plus, I managed to get Mook's maps of this place. That'll help. We have enough stuff for weeks. Oh, and there's communication devices and extra power cells. I grabbed a med kit too, in case things get really bad. Like if you fell off a cliff or something..." He trailed off, seeing the look on the other Tallest's face. "What's wrong?"
"This. Is. Insane!" Purple finally shouted. "We can't do this! She could be anywhere! What hope do we have of finding her?"
"A big one," Red answered calmly. "You have to know of some mechanical thingy that locks onto Irken... stuff and can track her!"
The statement brought a smile to Purple's face. "Yeah, I have something. Let me find it..." Turning to his desk, already decorated in its usual dusting of various papers, the small device was plucked from an inconspicuous drawer. "Here." It dropped into Red's open hand. "Keep it safe. I only have one."
After a brief examination, it was handed back to him. "I don't know how to work it," was Red's flat reply. "You hang onto it. After all, you're coming with me on this."
"I guess I am..."
It was so cold... Her breath came in large white clouds hidden by the whiteness of the snow around her. Rubbing her gloved hands over her arms was the only way to keep them warm. Unlike the rest of the Irkens she knew, save the Tallest, her arms were bare, making them vulnerable to the frigid air. Tears were frozen to her face. Her sobs were long gone by now.
Why hadn't she intervened earlier? She'd known Pur had been tense about something for a long time. She could sense odd things like that in other Irkens. Odd things like what they were thinking, how they were feeling, and other little things of that nature. Nobody knew about it, and she had only become aware of this talent recently. Most of the time, she despised this ability, as seeing others' thoughts often yielded unwelcome images. She should have told Reddy... she should have told him to watch himself... she should have known they had never wanted her... How could she have ever thought two Irkens as powerful as they would ever want someone who had no knowledge of even what Hatchery she was from? They both had lineage. She was... Mother of Irk, she didn't know if she was just a Student or a Soldier with defunct eyes!
Ivy sank down into a sitting position in the snow. Cold... She couldn't get warm. But, what did that matter? No one cared about her anyway. No one even wanted her around them. They all wanted her to die... Even Reddy and Pur wanted her to die... The tears came back in full force. Hugging her knees to her chest, Ivy cried harder, letting the tears freeze to her soft green dress. It wasn't her fault she didn't know anything about herself. It wasn't her fault! Why'd they have to blame it all on her? Why?
It began to snow.
Startled, the little Irken looked up at the sky, her antennae flicking in both disbelief and surprise. The air around her had grown colder while she'd sat, sobbing her green eyes out. Frightened, Ivy got to her feet, looking around for someplace to hide from the bizarre falling snow. Around her was what may have been an open field, had a thick covering of snow not hidden the grass from view. Far off to the west she could make out a large dark blob that swayed in a slight breeze. Wild plant life. Ivy had seen it before on other planets. Deciding the snow wouldn't be able to get her there, she marched towards it, and veering left of the originally straight course she'd been taking. Behind her, the snow filled her tracks at an alarming rate. She didn't care. She wasn't going back to the base anyway. Not now, and not ever. There was no point in staying in a place where no one wanted or cared about you.
For hours, she stumbled proudly through the thick white powder, pretending she didn't feel the cold. Ivy only paused to rub the icy tears off her green cheeks. It was exhausting work to plow through the fallen and falling snow. More times than she cared to, Ivy found herself lying still, gasping to get her breath and strength back, fighting off the suddenly overwhelming urge to curl into a ball and sleep. At these times, an anger from somewhere distant would spark up, giving Ivy the mental strength to haul her little body back up and coerce it into plodding along once more. The sky began to darken, snow falling faster with the minutes that ticked by. She started to wonder if she would ever reach the green destination she was heading for. Now it seemed unlikely.
Finally, on her last ounce of will, Ivy dragged herself into the cover of a small grove of trees. The snow still fell through them in places, but their leaf-like needles refused much of it access to the ground below them. It was almost warmer under their shelter. Feeling the nearly snow-free earth under her gloved hands, the little female summed up just enough strength to crawl beneath a large bush, curling into a ball. Her antennae felt stiff. Glancing at her arms, she was surprised to see a blue tone to the bare appendages. Ivy had never seen such a thing in her life. She was scared, cold, hungry, exhausted, and emotionally shattered. Burying her face in her numb arms, Ivy sobbed with fresh tears. It was awful, knowing that everything she'd known and loved had been one gigantic charade. They hadn't ever loved her. They hadn't cared when she was frightened, crying, or even sick. They had only been faking it.
That hurt. That hurt her more than the stinging cold did. They had hated her, and Ivy had naively loved them. Loved them unconditionally. But now... she was so very alone on this frozen world, and no one cared to even come looking for her.
Ivy shut her eyes tightly, feeling that sleepy feeling come over her again. It was so cold... In moments, she'd fallen into a dangerous sleep, the vapor from her breath invisible to those who were not looking for it.
By the time Ivy was actually found by someone, her damp clothing had frozen to her little body, her breath was faint and her pulse almost nonexistent. Afraid for her life, the rescuers lifted what, to them, was a tall creature, taking her down into the hole from which they'd come. "What is that?" one asked, meeting its fellows at the entrance to what looked like a large cave.
"Big. Green. Not from here," the rescue party's leader replied.
"From sky," piped up another, who was hit over the head for its impertinence.
"He cold," the leader said, gesturing to the half-frozen Irken the party had dragged down the tunnel. "Fell sleep. Dead, methink."
The one who had asked the first question moved to examine the Irken female, frowning. "SHE is not dead. Frozen, yes. Dead, no. Bring her to the main fire," it ordered, still going over the unconscious body. "These green ones have not harmed us yet. It is the least we can do to care for this one in return for their peace."
By the Mother of Irk, it was cold.
Their disappearance had gone unnoticed by the patrols and even their personal guard, making their escape simple. Hours later, the Tallests marched in a direct line from camp, following Purple's Irken DNA scanner and bowing their heads against the cold.
Blasted cold. How many times had that thought popped into his head? Too many for Red's liking. And dark. It was dark too. Even with the four hoverlamps surrounding them, it was difficult to see much. Purple's back was directly in front of him, the purple parts of his back pod black in the darkness, while the rest glowed white. There was a single moon on this planet, a phenomenon somewhat disturbing to Irken eyes. The moon didn't do a great job of lighting the place. Despite it being out, the blackness around them swelled to envelop almost everything. Did he mention how much he disliked the dark?
Apparently, he had, for Purple was annoyed with him. "It was your idea to sneak out in the dead of an alien night," the Student snapped, pulling one of the bright orbs closer to him. His head was hunched over the small screen he carried. "So don't complain about how dark it is."
"I don't see you jumping for joy over the dark," Red grumbled. He turned the heating unit up a notch, sighing happily. Now that temperature was secure...
"Don't waste the batteries," Purple muttered, still gazing at the screen. How he'd seen Red try to turn the lights up brighter was a mystery to the Soldier. "We'll need them later..." Again, violet eyes sought the directional confirmation of the screen. "This way... looks like we're getting closer."
Red shivered, despite the warmth from his heat unit. "Can you tell if she's...?"
"No... I can't."
"Oh..." Red kicked a snowdrift irritably. They'd come into a hilly place. How Ivy had managed to come this far, he didn't know. She was so small... to them anyway. She was taller than any other Irken at the moment, standing an even four feet. Only a foot and seven inches separated her from her two guardians. Mother of Irk... Red could barely remember when he'd been able to hold her in one hand. A faint smile came to him when he remembered her indignant reaction to his hold. That bite mark had scarred, he reflected. If anything, Ivy was a fighter. She could survive this insane cold. No matter what Purple said. "Why haven't we found her by now?"
Purple sighed. "She's probably just farther off than we'd thought, Red," he muttered, checking the screen yet again. "If you're so impatient maybe you should try putting that hideously loud voice of yours to work," he said sarcastically.
"All right," Red answered, obviously not hearing Purple's cynical tone. In the darkness, he cupped his hands over his mouth, breathed in the frozen air and yelled with all his might.
"IVY!!"
"Red!!" Purple hissed, whirling around. "Don't DO that!! I was being sarcastic!! You'll cause something... I don't know, something BAD to happen!!" There was panic where scorn had been originally.
Crimson eyes rolled. "Please. Like everything is my fault," he scoffed. He called again, louder this time, despite Purple's attempts to silence him. "IVY!! WHERE ARE YO-"
"RED SHUT UP!!"
Both of them were silent, glaring at each other. Neither one could speak for a moment. Each tried to get their anger and frustration with the other under control before they uttered anything they'd regret later. Purple was the one to break the silence. "Red," he muttered. "I'm so-"
"Shh!" His apology was silenced. Red's antennae twitched frantically, as if listening to something they could just barely grasp. Soon, Purple could pick it up as well. A low-pitched, scarcely audible rumble. It soon got louder. The realization only took the two Tallests moments to reach. "Avalanche!" the Soldier shouted over the now too-loud for comfort rumble of falling snow. "Run!"
Mechanical legs sprouted from two pods as both fled in the opposite direction. Red easily outdistanced his Student partner, but the sudden need for flight he felt clouded all other judgment the Soldier had. He heard Purple yell for him to wait, faintly, but the Student's cries for aid were soon swallowed by the roar of the snow. His mechs picked up their pace, moving through the snow with an easy, yet panicked grace. Red ran faster. Purple had been silent for what seemed like hours. Stealing a glance over his shoulder, the Soldier could see no sign of his partner, only the towering, roiling sea of white death. It was so close...
The snow caught the Soldier then, smashing into him with a force unlike anything he'd felt before. Sky was ground, air was snow, there was nothing in that white blindness to tell one thing from another. He couldn't breathe... until, mercifully, one of the mangled mechs smacked against the button on the pod which activated a Soldier's breathing mask. As the clear bubble closed over the Tallest's head, something hard cracked into him, turning pure white to dead black.
Who's the evilest person on FFN??? ^.^ To be continued!! MWAHAHAHA!!!