CHAPTER FIVE
Don't go into the woods

As always, it took Michael a few moments to regain his senses and shake off the effects of transitioning into another world. The flashing warning messages along with the long familiar scrolling alien error messages again greeted him to this new world.

As he checked out his surroundings and got his bearings, Michael wondered what he would find on this world. He always assumed he was going to different worlds each time he used the alien device. The geography and climate of each place he visited varied and was different. Yet, at night, the star constellations seemed similar in their placements and looked familiar. If he was just moving around on the same world, he should have come into contact with more people than Jaek and the villagers. He shelved those thoughts for now, glancing at the last pair of coordinates on the list. He was running out of places to go and he would need a change in his luck either here or with one of the remaining coordinates.

The warning messages from his armor systems only added to his troubles with the diagnostic system telling him the systems were irreparably degrading and they would fail. The diagnostic couldn't tell him how long the systems would last, but he needed them to last through the twenty-one day waiting period to make another transition. It wasn't a matter of "if" but "when" his armor would fail, and he wasn't looking forward to that moment.

For now, his battle armor was still functional, and he was at a new location as he focused on more important matters. He still needed to plan for his stay which meant he needed to scout the area, determine what if any threats existed, along with locating sources of food and water. Once he did that, then the next step would be to settle in and wait until he could activate the alien device again.

Michael found himself again in another forested area. It was daytime, but only small streams of sunlight were penetrating the dense tree canopy to reach the forest floor. Luckily, the ground seemed solid and the brush covering the forest floor wasn't too dense to impede or slow him down. Even in their degraded state, his monitor sensors showed no threats nearby. He would still proceed cautiously as he began checking out the surrounding area to get the lay of the land.

Michael headed towards the sun, orienting himself, as the ground seemed to rise in that direction. He hoped to find a clearing that would give him a better view of where he was. As he continued, the incline of the ground rose and the forest began thinning around him. It took an hour, but he found himself at the top of a rise which rewarded him with a better view of the surrounding landscape.

The forest of this world seemed to stretch forever, but he caught sight of another outcropping of hills pushing through the trees. The range of hills appeared to be higher than his current position, so he made those hills his next NAV point to head towards. He hoped those hills would give him a better vantage point to scope out the area…

oOoOo

Several hours later, Michael made it to the top of the hill range. He'd been right as this new vantage point gave him a commanding view of the surrounding area. From his position, the ground dropped into a valley-like bowl. The area was still heavily forested, but in the distance he saw a huge lake… at least ten kilometers from his position. Beyond the lake, snow-capped mountains shimmered away in the distance.

At least there's water here… Wait?

A bright flash—like the sun reflecting off something—by the lake caught his attention. He zoomed in with his helmet optics to get a better view of where the flash had come from. His helmet optics were at their maximum range when he finally got a lock on.

"What the hell?" he muttered.

A sense of disbelief filled him as he looked at a building pushing through the trees. The building was a tower that appeared to be sitting on a large base structure. Michael pushed his helmet optics to give him a better view of the structure, but they were already at their limits.

From what he could determine, the building had to be at least four to five stories tall. The structure seemed out of place for its location. As he strained his optics to get more details, a vague familiarness struck him, but he didn't know why.

To add to the mystery, Michael caught sight of light plumes of smoke rising above the trees near the lake. The wisps of smoke didn't look like any forest fire as they seemed contained to a single area near the structure.

A building and now smoke… somebody lives there…

Michael realized he would need to move in closer to investigate. The structure indicated a higher level of knowledge and technology than anything else he'd encountered so far. There was also the possibility of people living in or around the structure. With people there was the chance they could provide him with help… supplies and maybe more importantly information.

He tempered any growing hopes, reminding himself he would need to take it easy and remain vigilant. With the potential for inhabitants, he would need to approach cautiously to determine what if any threat they were and also not to frighten them. With a new objective in place, he made his way down the hill into the forest, orienting himself on the structure. He set a fast walking pace to get closer to the structure before nightfall.

He'd only been walking for over an hour, when his audio sensors picked up the distant sounds of animal roars and human screams. There was no hesitation as Michael sprinted towards the sounds to investigate…

oOoOo

An exasperated sigh escaped Tala as her anger grew at having to tromp through the woods looking for her younger brother. She'd told him to stay in the village, but he and his friends had gone running off into the forest to play, ignoring her. Her frustration and anger only grew because the boys knew they were not to go wandering off into the woods surrounding the village by themselves.

What added to her anger and frustration was that now being the eldest child in her family, she had to keep an extra eye on her younger siblings. Tala hadn't asked or wanted these extra responsibilities, but her older brother's death over the winter had thrust all this on her shoulders. Also adding to her problems was her parents' constant pressure on her to choose a mate from among the men in her village. She knew she had duties and responsibilities to her family and village, but it all seemed too much for a young woman only eighteen seasons old.

Another sigh escaped as she knew she would give in to her parents' wishes, but it all seemed unfair. She pushed away bleak thoughts of her future, focusing on finding her brother and his friends, "Adahy! Where are you? You know that you shouldn't be out this far from the village," she shouted.

There! She caught a glance of Adahy with his friends. Her frustration and anger flared as she saw him laugh and then run off, "Adahy… You are so in trouble now!" Tala muttered, giving chase.

oOoOo

For Adahy, he was having fun with his friends as they laughed and ran. He and his friends were running around, trying to tag one another. Adahy decided it was time to have more fun at his sister's expense, catching sight of her and noting the anger on her face.

He sprinted off, breaking away from his friends, moving deeper and deeper into the woods to lose her. He laughed, imagining the look on Tala's face as he caught the frustration in her voice as she shouted at him while struggling to catch up to him. His plan was to go deep into the forest then circle back around to the village, leaving his sister wandering looking for him. When she finally gave up looking for him and went home, she would find him already there. His attention and focus was so intent on his plan and how much trouble he could cause his sister, he missed the tree root sticking out across his path…

Adahy caught the tree root and went flying. He hit the ground hard and ended up tumbling down into a small hollow. For a few moments, he laid there stunned, trying to catch his breath while waiting for the shock and pain to pass. He recovered enough to sit up and fortunately, other than a few scraps and damage to his pride, he was unhurt.

As he crawled out of the hollow, the sudden realization sank in that he was alone in the woods. A momentary sense of panic hit, causing him to shudder. The panic ebbed as he caught his sister's voice calling for him. The fun of the moment was now over as he glanced around the dark and forbidding forest. Adahy shuddered again, deciding it was time to go back to the village and the safe confines of home.

"Tala! I'm over here!" he yelled, moving towards her voice.

Tala heard him and adjusted her path towards him. They kept calling out to each other until she came upon her brother. Her anger and frustration somewhat faded, seeing the scrapes and bruises on his body along with the embarrassment and fear in his face. A sigh escaped as she shook her head, "Adahy, you know you are not to go out this far from the village by yourself! You know the warnings about the forest demon!"

Despite his previous panic, the young boy snorted, "Those are only stories told by old people…! There are no forest demons!" he said.

Tala gave her brother a stern look, "Either way, you are in trouble with both mother and father when we get back!"

At the mention of mother and father, Adahy's eyes widened in fear at how they would react. Tala didn't take much solace from her brother's fear. She knew she would get her own share of blame for his disobedience and letting him go deep into the forest. This worry took a back seat as they began to retrace their path to the village and Tala realized how deep in the woods they had gone. She hoped it wouldn't take them took long to get back home. The thought of being deep in the woods at night sent a ripple of fear through her as she set a fast walking pace.

As Tala and Adahy made their way through the woods, neither of them realized they were being watched and stalked by cold hungry eyes.

oOoOo

Tala figured they were about halfway back to the village as they entered a small clearing in the forest. Thoughts and worries about getting home faded as she caught the sound of movement coming from the heavy brush on one side of the clearing. Chills ran down her back as she froze in her tracks, causing Adahy to walk into her.

"Hey, watch where you are going!" he whined.

"Shh! Something is following us!" she whispered, scanning the brush for any further sounds or movement.

Adahy reacted by moving closer to his sister. All sound seemed to drain from the forest as they stood in the middle of the clearing scanning the brush and trees for any threats. Fear and panic gripped them as they both caught the sound of something thrashing in the woods… getting closer to the clearing.

Tala pushed down her growing fear, turning to face the approaching sounds and putting her brother behind her. She swallowed hard as the sounds grew louder. Out of instinct, she drew her knife, holding it how her older brother had taught her. As the approaching sounds drew closer, she glanced at her knife, knowing it was a feeble defense, but it was all they had.

The thought of trying to runaway flashed in her head, but whatever was coming towards them sounded big and fast. She also didn't want to chance being separated from her brother. Thinking of Adahy, alone and wandering in the woods tore at her. She again swallowed hard trying to prepare herself for what was coming.

Tala was ill-prepared for the nightmarish creature that burst into the clearing. It took all her strength and courage not to turn and run as she stared into the creature's glowing eyes. As the creature pushed into the clearing, Tala backed up keeping Adahy behind her. Even while fear and panic gripped her, a part of Tala noted how the creature looked as the old stories had described a Gorack—a forest demon.

All that played in her head from those stories was how Goracks would feast on the blood and skin of the people. She hadn't completely believed the old stories, but her beliefs didn't matter anymore as she now faced one. Any further thoughts died as the Gorack roared causing Tala and her brother to scream in terror.

The four-legged creature moved further into the clearing, sensing out its prey. It momentarily stood up on its two rear legs, before dropping back down.

Tala pushed down her fear, studying the approaching creature and realized there was only one option open to her. Resigned to her fate, she hoped she could distract the Gorack long enough for her brother to escape.

As the creature now began circling them, she kept turning to keep the creature in front of her, "Get ready to run when I say," Tala whispered.

Adahy realized what his sister was planning to do, "No! I won't leave you, sister!" he said, shaking his head.

"You must! Only one of us might escape!" she hissed, momentarily distracted.

The Gorack picked up on her distraction and took the opening, leaping in one quick motion to strike them down.

Tal only saw death coming towards her as her body tensed. She only hoped to keep her body between her brother and the Gorack and take the blow, giving Adahy a chance to escape.

Everything changed as a loud roaring sound filled the forest. Tala's eyes widened as bright streaks of light struck the Gorack, causing it to howl in pain. The Gorack's body fell to ground, landing beside her and Adahy. The siblings stared, open-mouthed at the dead creature as blood oozed from wounds covering the creature's side.

Tala shook off her shock, turning to face from where the streaks of light had come from. She froze as a huge man-like creature, with no face and a huge golden eye, holding a strange object in his hands stood on the edge of the clearing. A part of Tala's mind screamed at her to run, but she couldn't move, finding herself rooted to the ground while staring at the huge man-like creature. Her shock and surprise only grew when the man-creature spoke.

"Is everyone alright?"

Tala didn't completely understand what the creature had said, but she didn't feel threatened by its tone. She was struggling to find her voice, but before she could say anything another Gorack charged out of the forest and struck the man-creature, throwing him across the clearing…

oOoOo

Michael tracked the screams to a small clearing. His motion sensors were degrading, giving him sporadic readings with only an effective range of fifty meters as they cut in and out. It was only as he closed on the clearing did he get a hard return on his sensors with three targets coming up. The computer designated two of the targets as green for friendly and one red hostile.

Michael's timing was perfect as he reached the edge of the clearing in time to see a huge vicious-looking creature attacking two humans. There was no hesitation as his training and instincts kicked in, bringing up his pulse rifle to engage the creature.

Time slowed to a crawl as he engaged the creature. Besides the creature, Michael noted the two humans… the female appeared to be 18-20 years of age, while the boy was around 9-11 years. It was funny as a part of him picked up the details of the young woman, noting she was pleasing to the eye. He'd never noted things like that before… at least he hadn't before meeting Faith. The tactical part of his mind noted how the young woman was brandishing a primitive-looking knife and using her body to shield the boy. It was a brave, but futile gesture against the creature they were facing.

Michael drew a quick aim and emptied the last of his pulse rifle magazine into the creature… watching it fall to the ground beside the woman and boy. He smirked, noting their shocked looks as they turned towards him. This seemed to be a normal reaction whenever people first saw him.

Michael asked if they were all right, but he wasn't sure if they understood him. He didn't worry about their lack of response because they could work on any language barriers later. Any plans or thoughts he had got interrupted when something came charging out of the forest behind him. The creature moved so fast that Michael had barely turned around when the creature struck him, sending him flying across the clearing. Michael hit the ground hard, pain flaring in his side as he tried shaking off the shock and recover to face this new threat.

What the hell was that? A tank?

Pain shot through his side as Michael gritted his teeth and rolled back on to his feet to face the creature. If that wasn't bad enough, his helmet display was screaming warning messages that his armor systems were now at critical levels. The biofoam injectors—built into his armor—reacted to his injuries and injected themselves into his skin, adding to his pain.

"Damn, that hurts," Michael muttered, eyeing the creature he was facing. It looked to be a combination between a bear and hellhound… with a lot of nasty thrown into the mix. The creature had to be at least nine feet long and looked plenty strong.

At least there was some good news… the creature hovered around Michael, staying away from the other humans. That meant the creature perceived him as the greater threat.

Unfortunately, the bad news outweighed the good news. On top of his injuries and his armor flashing critical messages, he'd lost both his pulse rifle and shotgun when the creature struck him. This only left him with his strength and combat knife as his only weapons.

There was no hesitation as Michael, ignoring the warning messages on his helmet display, drew his combat knife from his shoulder scabbard and crouched into a knife fighting stance. He stayed on the balls of his feet as he studied the creature, watching for any tells or shifts in its body language as the creature began circling him.

Michael picked up on a change in the creature's stance and sidestepped as it rushed at him. He slashed at the creature as it blew past him. A howl from the creature rewarded him, indicating he'd scored a hit on the beast…

oOoOo

Tala stood in awe as the man-creature, now only armed with a knife, faced off against the Gorack. Her heart raced as the Gorack charged. In the blink of an eye, the man-creature dodged the charging attack and slashed at the Gorack with his knife. She'd never seen anyone move that fast before as she heard the Gorack howl in pain as the man-creature's knife struck a blow.

A voice inside her head was urging her to take Adahy and run away with the Gorack distracted. Yet, despite this opportunity to escape, Tala couldn't leave as she witnessed these two creatures battle it out. As she watched, she remembered the stories the elders would tell during village celebrations. They told stories of great warriors fighting against great demons to protect the people. Her mind raced recalling how the stories said the warriors were not of the people and they were the ones who had built the temple by the shore.

Could this be one of them…? Has one of them returned?

oOoOo

Michael studied the creature, noting from its movements and body language that this was no dumb animal… which made it even more dangerous. What surprised him was that the creature also seemed to study him too… sizing him up. He realized he would need to stay mobile and unpredictable, but he also knew he couldn't drag this fight out.

Michael decided he needed to take the initiative and get aggressive. He faked a lunge towards the creature, hoping to draw it closer. The creature didn't respond to the fake, instead it stood on its hind legs to face him.

That's not good, Michael thought, noting how the creature was adapting.

This change in the creature's stance, now forced Michael to have to get in closer if he was going to have any chance with his knife. Even with pain throbbing in his side, Michael figured he still had the advantage in his speed and reflexes.

Again, he lunged, this time going all the way through, slashing at the creature with his combat knife. He caught the creature across its left arm with a deep slash, causing the creature to roar in pain. The creature responded, swinging its right arm, catching Michael with a glancing blow on his helmet, spinning him.

Michael recovered, but the creature showed its own fast reflexes as it recovered faster and attacked… catching him in the chest with its claws. If it wasn't for his armor and augmentations, Michael's chest would have collapsed from the blow. Yet, despite his armor and augmentations the blow still left him struggling to breathe as a critical warning message flashed on his helmet display.

*** WARNING ***
ARMOR INTEGRITY COMPROMISED—SYSTEM FAILURE IMMINENT
*** WARNING ***

Damn!

The creature's claws were sharper than he'd imagined and they cut through his chest armor plating. If that wasn't bad enough, he figured the blow had broken another rib as more pain flared in his chest and side. He was still trying to recover from that blow he missed the creature's other arm coming up in a back swing…

oOoOo

Tala was a helpless spectator as the tide of battle turned in the Gorack's favor. The creature was mauling the man-creature with repeated strikes from its powerful arms and claws. Her helpless frustration flared into anger as she realized she couldn't stand there and do nothing… she had to do something.

Adahy watched the creatures fight it out still glued to his sister in fear. She snapped him out of it, ordering him to run back to the village to get help. He hesitated at first, not wanting to leave his sister, but her shouting got him to focus, and he ran off, leaving her behind.

With her brother safely away, Tala made her next move, grabbing good-sized throwing rocks. She didn't hesitate as she began shouting and throwing her rocks at the Gorack.

"DEMON! GO AWAY! LEAVE US ALONE!"

The Gorack ignored the rocks hitting it at first, but this changed as a rock struck one of the creature's open wounds, causing it a searing jolt of pain. The Gorack distracted by the pain, shifted its attention to Tala and began moving on her.

oOoOo

Michael felt as if he was on fire from all the medical biofoam being injected into him to deal with his wounds. The pain from his injuries were causing him to lose situational focus as he kneeled trying to catch his breath. That was the other problem… he was having problems breathing, getting shortness of breath. A sea of alarms and warning messages filled his helmet display. He realized his armor was on the verge of failing, but he didn't care as he tried to catch his breath.

Fresh air…! I need fresh air…!

Michael struggled to take his helmet off, dropping it to the ground next to him as he finally got it off and tried taking a deep breath. His reward was even more pain stabbing his sides and chest. The creature's roars caught his attention and Michael wondered why the creature hadn't bothered to finish him. Through his pain induced haze, he realized something or someone else was drawing the creature's attention, distracting it.

The young woman's shouts caught his attention, watching as she threw rocks at the creature, admiring her courage at standing up against the creature with no real weapons. With the creature turning its back on Michael to deal with this nuisance it had made a critical mistake…

Never turn your back on a wounded opponent…

Michael realized that he and the woman would most likely die, so he threw everything he had left into one last desperate move.

oOoOo

Tala hadn't completely thought out her plan when she'd picked up rocks and begun throwing them at the Gorack. Her plan had been to distract the Gorack to give the man-creature a chance to recover. She belatedly realized how well her plan worked as the creature turned on her, rising on its back legs. Tala struggled to keep her fear and panic in check as the creature closed on her.

The man-creature leaped out nowhere, catching her by surprise, landing on the Gorack's back. She watched in awe as the man-creature wrapped one arm around the Gorack's neck and began stabbing the creature with its knife.

Her surprise and shock grew as she glimpsed the man-creature's head and realized that the man-creature was an actual man. She could read the pain on his face, but his eyes radiated a determination as he held on to the Gorack's neck and continued stabbing it. It was obvious that this man was a strong warrior.

oOoOo

Michael had an iron vise lock on the creature's neck as he stabbed the creature with his knife. The creature howled in rage and pain, swinging from side-to-side, trying to shake its attacker off. Michael maintained his lock on the creature even as it staggered towards the edge of the clearing and swung him through the trees to brush him off. The tree limbs battered him, but Michael kept his arm wrapped around the creature's neck.

The Gorack flailed desperately, trying to shake off its attacker, but Michael refused to give up. Even as he felt his strength starting to wane, his determination refused to yield. With his vision blurring and his arms losing feeling, Michael dug deep and stabbed the creature again in the neck.

"I'm not letting go… I'm not letting go," he muttered, almost chant-like as it became his mantra in this battle. He refused to yield or give up… this creature wouldn't stop him from getting home to Faith.

This bastard isn't going to beat me…

In his pain induced haze, Michael detected a shift in the battle as the creature slowed as the wounds and loss of blood were finally taking their toll. The weakened creature collapsed to its knees, and Michael's feet could touch the ground, giving him the leverage he needed.

Michael dug deep into what reserves he had left, running on pure determination and instinct, dropping his combat knife and putting his right arm on the creature's head. Sweat dripped from his forehead as he began applying pressure, struggling against the creature as it made one last weak attempt to break his grasp. The creature started to howl… only to get cut off as Michael snapped its neck.

Michael let go of the creature, letting it slump to the ground as he staggered backwards. He glanced towards the young woman who was staring back at him, wanting to say something to her, but he couldn't focus as the forest began spinning around him. His blurred vision worsened, and he found it hard to keep his balance as he staggered. Darkness began creeping into the edges of his vision, but he didn't fight its loving embrace waiting to take him as his strength gave out, falling to his knees.

My luck just ran out…

"I-I'm sorry Faith… I-I guess I'm not making it home…" he mumbled, collapsing to the ground.

oOoOo

Tala stood frozen in place, staring in awe what she'd just witnessed. She finally shook off her shock and moved warily towards the fallen man to check on him. It was obvious the Gorack was dead, but what of the man?

Cautiously approaching the man, she got a better view of his face. His pale skin looked strange to her, but other than that he would look at home among her people. He appeared to be an older man… around her father's age with short dark brown hair that had some gray mixed in at the sides. She noted the scars on his face, proofing to her that this man was a great warrior… he could have only gotten those scars in battle.

She studied the man for what seemed like an eternity unsure if he was alive or dead. His chest did not move, so she held her hand to his face, and a weak tickle of breath on her hand rewarded her. Relieved that the man was still alive, her curiosity only grew as she studied him. She warily touched his strange green body, her eyes widening in surprise at how cool and smooth his body felt… almost like the walls of the temple. It dawned on her that the man was wearing a special garment—like clothes—to protect him in his battles.

This proves it! He has to be one of the great warriors from the stories, she thought.

Tala realized she had to help this man. The temple guardian would expect nothing less of the people than to assist one of its own. She tried to turn the man over on to his back, but found he was too heavy to move by herself. Tala despaired that she wouldn't be able to help and the man would die. Movement in the bushes caught her attention, and for an anxious moment, she thought it was another Gorack. Relief filled her, seeing her brother and father, along with a party of warriors emerge into the clearing.

The men paused at the edge of the clearing, frozen at the scene that greeted them. Despite Adahy's panic-filled story, they weren't ready for what they found… two dead Goracks, and Tala kneeling beside a giant man-creature, lying on the ground.

"Tala! Come away from there!" her father hissed in fear.

Tala shook her head fiercely, "No, father! This man saved mine and Adahy's lives! I think this man is a warrior from the temple!"

Tala's words set off murmuring among the men, "Then it is a better reason to leave him. We don't want to anger the Guardian!" one warrior replied.

Tala's frustration and anger grew at their lack of action, "What do you think the Guardian will do, when he finds out that we didn't help his warrior?"

Her response struck home as the men again murmured and discussed what to do. Tala's frustration at the dithering forced her to step up, "ENOUGH! This man needs our help! We must take him to the temple!"

Tala's father saw his daughter's determination, and it shook him into action, "She is right! This man has killed two Goracks that would have killed my son and daughter. It is only right that we help. What can we do to help?"

Tala, thankful for her father's support, didn't hesitate, "This man is heavy, and we can't carry him. We need to make a litter to drag him to the temple… it will require all of us to move him."

The men organized and got to work on making a litter. They also sent a runner back to the village to let the people know what had happened and to bring back more people to help move the wounded man.

oOoOo

Pain shot through Michael's body as he drifted in and out of consciousness. He knew his injuries were bad, but it was hard to focus on what was happening. There were voices talking around him, but he couldn't understand what they were saying. Even if he wanted to do anything, he couldn't move… his armor was in lockdown mode from all the system failures. There was no way he was moving on his own right now.

More pain shot through his body as Michael felt himself being lifted and lowered on to something. A part of him realized he was being dragged—from the number of voices—by a large group of people. Yet, there was nothing he could do to stop them from whatever they had planned for him.

Time lost all meaning as the pain became a constant throb as they dragged him, causing small moans to escape his lips. He thought he heard a woman's voice whispering to him, but he couldn't be certain of anything right now.

Despite the pain, he knew he was being dragged somewhere as he caught flashes of a tall structure, looming closer. A detached voice echoed in his head, noting the tower was the same one he'd been making his way to… only now he was being dragged to it.

Pain wracked his body as he felt himself being lowered again. The darkness was beckoning him again as an image of Faith drifted through his thoughts. Clarity returned briefly as he picked up snatches of the conversation going on around him.

"… Guardian …"

"… Leave this place …"

"… Returning your warrior …"

"… I have no warriors or no need for one …"

A female's voice pleading especially stood out, "… help him! He is dying!"

A warm sensation replaced the pain as a bright light suddenly bathed him. The relief from the pain ended as the light disappeared just as suddenly as it appeared. As the pain returned, Michael finally gave into the darkness pulling at him. He willingly embraced it as it promised to relieve him of his pain along with his sense of failure.

At the edges of the darkness, he realized he was moving again… only this time it felt like he was flying. As he succumbed to unconsciousness, he caught one last word…

"Reclaimer."