The Black Seas of Infinity (32 page)

“This is a military outpost. We’ll dispose of
you here.”

The clouds break, and I can see a huge dome
underneath.

Thousands of lights emanate from its charcoal
depths. A few fragile-looking black spheres slowly rise from the
mammoth structure below.

The surface of the planet encircling it is
rocky and coarse. It resembles the moon, only it harbors strange
pools of dark liquid. Small, tree-like things with fluorescent
orange leaves speckle the terrain. Distant mountains creep in at
the far corners.

The view on the screen shifts slightly, and
we’re headed toward a dark portal along the lower reaches.

“You will be given instructions. I suggest
you follow them.”

With that, the image dissolves. A few minutes
later a doorway appears in the wall. I guess we’ve arrived. I walk
through the portal.

I’m in a long tunnel, the walls the same dark
material I’ve seen recently, only pitted by small imperfections.
The floor is a strange, ribbed grating. An unseen overhead light
casts a pale bluish glow across the grungy underbelly.

I follow the twisting concourse for a while,
when it abruptly curves off to the right and ends in a sheer drop.
Peering over the rim, I see that the falling edge is smooth and
concave, descending into a milky haze far below. I extend my hand
over the chasm and feel the pull of an invisible force.

“Step in the...”

I can’t make out the last bit, but apparently
I’m to step into the drop. As I slowly walk forward, I’m hit by a
blast of air. The current sucks me in and plunges me straight down.
I fly past a few apertures big enough to walk through—probably
separate floors—and then smoothly brake to a halt, touching down
gently on the slick floor of a barren gray chamber. Directly in
front of me is a small room I take it I’m meant to enter. Strolling
in, I scan the premises. The room resembles the one in the ship I
just left. Black glassy walls devoid of anything. A dim overhead
glow coming from nowhere discernible. I walk to the center of the
room and debate sitting. Realizing that’s just a vestigial human
reaction, I remain standing.

After what seems like an hour passes, a
figure materializes before me. It’s wearing a one-piece white
jumpsuit, but apparently not the same as the heftier outfit in the
ship. It’s thinner, with no seams. Boots flow up in a conforming
sheet of fabric that dead ends in a stiff, circular neckline. The
only other break is at the wrists to let out long, spindly hands.
Each sports three fingers that end with long, smooth nails.

“How did you get in that?”

Straight to the point. Maybe if I’m ambiguous
it will buy me time.

“What do you want?”

“You tell us first.”

“I have some questions.”

“Yes, but first, how did you get that? You
are obviously not Al’lak. I would guess you are an Earth primitive.
Was it by accident?”

“Let’s trade info. I have something you want,
you have something I want.”

“What do you want?”

“Who are these Al’lak?”

The figure disappears.

A few minutes later, it reappears.

“The Al’lak are good friends of ours.
Anything—”

“I seriously doubt it.”

The figure dematerializes. That sounded like
a lie. They would know far more and be less inquisitive if this
other race were their allies. I wonder what they’re afraid of? The
figure rematerializes.

“That world is off limits. This could be
taken very badly.”

Maybe they think I’m working for the other
race. They know by the bumbling way I handled their outpost, not to
mention the strangeness of my thoughts, that I’m not Al’lak. And if
they can make out my stream of consciousness, they probably realize
I’m an Earthling. As far as I could tell, that was a crashed
observation ship. There really was no uncalled for presence. Since
they haven’t figured all this out yet, they must not be able to
clearly decipher all I’m thinking. Maybe they can only read the
thoughts I put in the forefront of my consciousness, the ones I
would say out loud if I could speak.

“Why is that world off limits? You’ve
obviously been there before.”

“That’s none of your business.”

“What happens next?”

“Hmm.”

With that, the figure dematerializes. Time
passes in immeasurable quantity. This is not good. My thoughts
race. I can’t seem to focus on a single course of action. I walk up
to one of the walls and press against it. Nothing. I press a little
harder, then harder still. My fingertips sink into the wall. I draw
back my hand, the depressions releasing a fine powder as I pull
away. I can probably break out of here if I need to, but I don’t
want to make any waves just yet. The figure rematerializes.

“You’re being transported elsewhere. For
interrogation.”

“That is not what I wanted to hear. I’m
voluntarily cooperating, but that will end real soon if I don’t
start to get some answers.”

“You’re cooperating because you have no
choice.”

I wonder if that is the case.

A door opens on the wall to my right.

“Follow the path until you reach the
end.”

“I’m not going anywhere or answering any more
questions until I see someone in the flesh and get some
answers.”

“You don’t have a choice. Obey or we will
destroy you.”

“Then you’ll never learn anything.”

The figure dematerializes again.

It’s back a moment later.

“At a new location, you will receive your
answers.”

“No. Here. Now.”

I don’t trust them. Right now I’m in a place
I can probably escape from. If they move me elsewhere, that might
not be the case.

“You don’t have a say in this. You are being
accommodated by our even talking to you. We can destroy you at any
point. Be cooperative, and you might live.”

Not a good answer.

“I may not be Al’lak, but you think this is
all a coincidence?”

The figure stares blankly at me for a minute,
then disappears.

If they could remove me from this body
easily, I think they would have done so already. They are being
incredibly cautious in light of their claim that I have no
choice.

Maybe removing me from this body would kill
me, and they are so suspicious of these Al’lak that they want
answers.

A section of the wall disappears, sucking in
like a whirlpool to reveal a round portal. One of the creatures
walks out. He’s covered head to toe in a thick, charcoal gray
jumpsuit. There are no seams, the fabric flowing smoothly over the
muscles and joints. An oval orb encases the head, which is
featureless with the exception of two large black bubbles for eyes.
A silver cylindrical object is clutched in the right hand, the tip
pointed at me. I would guess it’s some sort of weapon. Considering
the decline in circumstances, now is probably a good time to exit.
I leap at the creature and punch the headgear. My fist tears into
the hard shell, continuing in a flourish that carries it through a
soft, organic clump and out the back. My feet crater the floor as
they come crashing down, almost sliding out from under me on the
slick rock.

The alien is now bent in a bizarre backward
position, my lodged forearm holding the body upright. Coated in a
sticky slime, I realize my arm is stuck, my fingers dangling out
the back. I put one foot on the chest and shove forward, freeing
myself in a glittering spray of greenish-yellow fluid.

The mutilated body flies back, skidding
across the floor and into the tunnel. I turn and run at the wall,
jumping into a double front kick as I impact.

A huge piece of the wall gives way, soaring
out in a jagged chunk. I fly through, rotating as I fall into a
roll. Landing on my feet, I bound up and pause, tensely coiled for
an emergency sprint.

A dim corridor of that same black material
surrounds me, the dislodged chunk resting against the far wall.
Oddly, its torn edges look smooth, as if cut by a machine. A group
of five creatures start to materialize around me. That would be my
cue! As I break into a run, part of the wall to my right disappears
in a globe of light. Glancing through the hole, I see another dark
tunnel running parallel to mine. They’re firing at me! I pick up
speed and begin to zigzag. Chunks of wall start disappearing on
both sides, revealing more of the corresponding tunnel. I turn a
corner, hit another intersection, and turn right. It’s the same
everywhere! Long passages that all look exactly the same! Ahead of
me is a dead end, corridors heading off to the left and right. I
head left, a chunk of the corner disappearing in a ball of radiance
as I round it. Is this even the same group? I don’t know where any
of this leads. I could be running in circles. I reach another split
at a dead end. Trying to avoid looping around endlessly, I dart
right. These tunnels are so twisty, it might be a wasted
effort.

The corridor suddenly turns around a bend and
widens into a large domed room. It’s brightly lit, the concave
floor broken up by countless cylindrical stumps, many of which are
manned by the creatures, roughly thirty of which occupy the room.
None are wearing spacesuits, and all eyes turn my way. They look
stunned, the shocked expression amplified by an upsweep of blue
light from the cylinders below. So bizarre—a swarm of beady yellow
eyes all trained on me. A throng of frozen figurines wrapped in
mottled gray skin. A hint of sharp teeth beneath thin lips taints
them with a vein of horror.

The stare is oppressive, the communal glare
searing into my mind as a wall of outrage. I can feel a palpable
tug, the sides of my vision blur. Time grows confusing, and I
stumble through thoughts. Where am I? Am I back at home, fourteen
years old and trying to hide the smell of cigarette smoke from my
dad... Hoping he won’t notice the tiny thread I have strung through
the fresh hole in my ear... No... I’m older, I don’t live at home
any longer... I’m waking up late for my shitty job at the strip
mall, and I don’t think I have much gas left in my Honda Civic.
That’s not right either... I’m in school, barely awake from my late
night working at the club. I’m trying to concentrate on the
computer screen, but all I want to do is go to sleep... No, I’m
downtown, noticing how cute my future wife is as she scurries
around the shop, trying to act like she doesn’t notice me...

With a crisp jolt, I snap back to the
present. The aliens have all disappeared. Only smooth, solid walls
surround me. The only opening appears to be the one I just came
through. The glowing stumps are splayed in a rough circle sloping
downward toward a giant oval depression, a whitish glow emanating
from its depths. A muffled roar, like waves over a waterfall,
resonates through the room.

I can’t go back the way I came. Heading
straight for the farthest wall, I weave through the stunted
pedestals. My feet instinctively adjust to the inconsistencies of
the sloping floor, allowing me to flow through in one long, smooth
trajectory. My body seems to be reacting to the stress, picking up
the slack. Rounding a stubby outcropping, I brush by something
soft. It gives way a little, and I hear an indignant hiss. The
creatures are still here! They are projecting something, duping my
mind into overlooking their presence! The wall closes in, and I
pick up speed, leaping shoulder first at the stone. Instantly my
momentum comes to a halt. With a violent smashup I crumple and
slide to the floor. Twisting my head up in defeat, I stare at the
wall. It looks somehow denser than the previous barriers, made up
of a deeper black that’s more akin to solid granite than hardened
lava.

I raise my head and notice there is a slight
depression where I hit. I struggle to my feet and begin beating on
the indention with my fists. The hollow deepens. I glance over my
shoulder. The room feels abandoned, truly empty this time. The
glowing white mass dominating the room flickers, a few arcs of
electricity tearing out from the nucleus and cracking into the
pedestals. Not a good sign! I pound frantically on the wall. It
buckles a little more. A grating creak is followed by a shredding
wail akin to nails scraping against a chalkboard. A huge section
gives, flying outward in a mass of fragmenting pieces that tear
into the loose sand of a planetary surface. Plumes of dust shoot up
in twin streams as the chunks carve long furrows in the soil. The
gravity must be low. Clouds of sand slowly pirouette into the night
sky.

The air pours past me in torrential waves,
escaping in panic through the hole. The atmosphere of the planet
appears to be far thinner than the compound. I saw vegetation so
there must be some ambient gases, but evidently less than what
these creatures need.

The hole isn’t nearly large enough, only
about two feet in circumference and garnished with jagged edges. I
grab two opposite each other and pull frantically. This material
has to be incredibly tough if it’s giving me this much trouble!
Then again, they might be defending themselves against the
technology that created my body.

It gives slowly, the sides tearing away in a
dim crackle. With the escaped atmosphere, the sound waves must be
operating in a much weaker medium as well. Come to think of it, the
air has stopped rushing past me. There must be an emergency seal
that’s preventing the base from depressurizing.

The opening has expanded to waist level; it
should be big enough. I raise my right leg and extend it through
the hole. Ducking my head and tucking in my arms, I wriggle out. As
my weight shifts over the edge, I fall forward, the low gravity
gliding me down into the sand. My impact sends up twirling plumes
in a grandiose arc. Struggling to my feet, I survey the
landscape.

A long field of rocky soil stretches out
before me, rising and falling as it flows over small dunes. Black
glassy stones speckle the landscape in clumps. The wiry, tree-like
vegetation marks the terrain in scattered groves, the gray branches
twisting fiercely as they spread out into clusters of bright orange
leaves. Actually, I’m not even sure they are leaves; they’re too
rounded and smooth.