Chapter 5
Captain Thorpe's team had scouted out as much of the underground chambers as they could, but apparently much of it was caved-in. They reported that the existing structure was stable, however, and the personnel topside could begin descending.
This excited Chalmos, but Threv felt only dread. Not only did it mean that he'd be spending more time with his chan bondmate, but his time at the pole would be extended too. There were still giant Draco somewhere out there.
Supervisor Grum had, of course, insisted on being among the first to be lowered into the pit along with Lt. Sylor and some of the other Starfleet scientists. Chalmos was content to wait until the second group, to stay with Threv as long as possible. Thankfully, Threv and three other MACOs would stay up top along with the engineers operating the crane.
It took a few minutes to lower the first group down, the crane loudly whirring against the rushing winds. Threv tried to keep his attention on the surrounding snows while Chalmos continuously chatted.
"What kind of artefacts might we find from a civilization over two hundred millennia old?" the skinny archaeology apprentice was saying. "Captain Thorpe said there was a lot of 'stuff' down there, but that's not very descriptive. What would such an old culture be like? Why did they come to Berengaria? For what purpose were these underground chambers built?"
Threv sighed, his breath misting before him. "I'm sure you'll find all that out, and more, when you get down there."
"Yeah," said Chalmos, a lopsided grin on his narrow face. He checked his scanner and toolkit for the third time as the crane started to slowly lift the now-empty platform back up to ground level.
"It's a shame you have to stay up here, Threv," Chalmos said. "It's been great seeing more of you. With me pulling those late shifts in the base library and you doing all that extra training, we barely spend any time together. Just the guys." He smiled. "Although, I'm sure Azhri and Sherene enjoy having our quarters to themselves."
Threv allowed himself a small chuckle.
Chalmos stepped closer and placed a hand on Threv's arm. "Whatever we find down there is gonna make my career… I just wish I could share the moment with you."
He gave Threv a peck on the cheek and crunched through the snow over to the pit. Threv watched after him, feeling immensely guilty for wishing himself time away from Chalmos.
While he still wasn't sure if he'd take Doctor T'Ling's advice anytime soon, and share his wartime trauma with Sherene and Chalmos, he was starting to think that he shouldn't close himself off from them, and Azhri, so much. Perhaps if they all spent more time together - outside of trying for a baby, as Andorian culture demanded - he'd feel more comfortable opening up to them.
He mulled this over as he turned away again, back to facing the endless white - only to find himself staring into a distant pair of eyes.
They stared at him out of the blizzard, as pale as the snow around them, but they were unmistakable a pair of large reptilian eyes.
Threv stood frozen a moment, feeling as if his blood had solidified, before desperately trying to recall the correct MACO terminology.
"T-T-Tango sighted!" he shouted to his fellow soldiers. "Nine o'clock!"
As they were at the north pole, they couldn't rely on compass points for reference (every direction was south of them, technically), so they had previously labelled the shuttlepod landing sight as "12 o'clock" based on the Terran analogue chronometer, with the pit in the centre.
His cry attracted the attention of the scientists and engineers still topside, while the other MACOs - Warren, Carter and Harley - ran over to him. Their reactions confirmed to Threv that he wasn't seeing things from ice-madness.
"What's it doing?" Harley said, straining to see through the whirling snow.
The eyes were still and unblinking. A vague, massive shape could just be made out surrounding them.
"Sizing us up?" Carter ventured a troubling guess.
"Threv," said Warren, the senior-most MACO, "scan for other biosigns."
Threv fumbled with his scanner, almost dropping it before taking a wide-area reading. "Nothing, Corporal," he reported.
"The Draco emit a bioelectric field that disrupts sensors," Carter said. "Plus, there's a lot of magnetic interference here anyway."
"I… I am detecting a strong bioelectric reading from it," said Threv, nervously. "V-Very strong and very big."
"But still just one reading, right?" said Warren.
Threv nodded, his gaze jumping from his scanner readout to the distant grey eyes staring back.
Warren sighed. "Makes things a bit easier, I guess. Threv, Harley, get the EMP generator over here, just in case. I'll update the Captain." He started to remove his communicator slowly.
Threv was only too eager to put more distance between himself and the shrouded creature, but as soon as he and Harley made for the EMP generator, an ear-splitting roar cut through the chill air.
A vast mouth had opened up under the eyes, big enough to swallow the entire expedition whole, and came barrelling towards them at high speed.
"Prepare to fire!" Warren shouted at Carter, the two of them being equipped with grenade launchers. "Get that EMP ready!" he called to Threv and Harley. "Everyone else, to the shuttlepods, back to base, now!"
Everything happened at once. Harley continued towards the generator, but Threv remained riveted in place, his cowardice overtaking him again despite how much he internally screamed at himself to move. The science and engineering teams foolishly tried to pack up some equipment instead of instantly escaping.
And an enormous beast emerged from the blizzard.
It was easily a hundred times the length of the average humanoid, almost as tall as Starbase 1's main tower if it were upright. Its shape was like that of the other Draco - a quadrupedal serpent with a long neck leading to a jagged, snouted head - except that it had no wings. It was also bone-white in colour, barring a few blackened scars, explaining how it had blended in with the snow so well.
It charged towards them all, rearing its head and roaring again. Warren and Carter opened fire, unleashing a volley of grenades in its path, obviously trying not to harm the creature. Threv did not think that this was the time to be gentle, however, and the resulting explosions only served to enrage the monster further.
Threv saw that the others were now running for the shuttlepods, while Warren and Carter fell back towards him and Harley. The giant Draco ran straight through the smoke from the incendiaries continuously lobbed by the two MACO grenadiers. It would be upon them soon. The EMP generator might be their only hope; Harley would need help setting it up.
Threv wanted to help, he really did. But his instincts betrayed him again.
He bolted for the shuttlepods.
Halfway there though, he felt the sharp sting in his antennae from an EMP. Harley must have gotten the generator working himself.
The beast roared again, clearly also affected by the pulse. It writhed in pain, thrashing its enormous, sinuous body about in the snow until it landed right in the path to the 'pods.
Everyone halted, babbling in a panic, unsure of what to do with the creature blocking their escape like a great white wall. Looking around, Chalmos seemed shocked to see Threv so close, and Threv felt a pang of guilt again.
Before anyone could move, the Draco easily grabbed a shuttlepod in its massive jaws, its razor-sharp teeth making short work of the ditanium hull. It then proceeded to throw the 'pod over everyone's heads towards the EMP generator, evidently trying to knock it out.
The shuttlepod narrowly missed Harley and the generator, crashing to a halt a few meters behind them. The Draco didn't take long to recover from this failure, roaring loudly again before opening its mouth wide. Threv knew what that meant.
"Fire!" he cried. "It's going to breath fire!"
"Into the pit!" someone else shouted. It was the only other option - with one 'pod damaged, they wouldn't all be able to get in the other.
Everyone, including the MACOs, ran for the pit, cramming into the enclosed platform hanging from the crane's hoist. Strictly speaking, they were over-capacity, but it seemed worth the risk under the circumstances.
They had fled the Draco's path just in time, as it unleashed a torrent of blue-hot flame from its mouth towards the EMP generator. The heat was felt strongly, even at a distance, making everyone recoil while the snow around the blast instantly evaporated into a line of mist. Given that his antennae stopped sensing the electromagnetic emanations, Threv assumed the generator had been melted by the fire.
Once their were all packed onto the platform as safely as possible, an engineer activated the attached control panel, sending them slowly downward.
"Can't this thing go any faster?" Warren shouted to the engineer.
"Not with this many people," was the reply.
Mercifully, Threv saw that the Draco seemed to be exhausted from its burst of flame, panting for breath just before they disappeared beneath the surface.
They reached the bottom without further incident, although they could still hear the creature roaring and thundering around, the sounds echoing off the vertical tunnel.
They all piled off of the platform, taking in their surroundings, illuminated by flashlights and lanterns. It appeared to be a spacious hub of sorts, ringed with numerous doors leading off elsewhere. It looked and smelled old, dank, but the architecture was elegant, almost regal with intricate markings carved into the walls.
"What the hell happened up there?" Captain Thorpe demanded of them.
Corporal Warren started to brief the Captain, and Threv searched around the crowd for Chalmos. With the Draco prowling around topside, and a shuttlepod out of commission, they'd be trapped down in the underground chambers for a while, and he expected that would suit his ch'te perfectly regardless of the cause.
Instead, he found Chalmos glowering at him, looking both accusatory and crestfallen. He had seen Threv's undignified and unsanctioned retreat, leaving his comrades to face danger alone.
It seemed like Threv's revelations might have to come sooner rather than later.
