Planet Of No Return

They both slept well — until Brion woke suddenly during the night. Something had disturbed him, but he had no memory of what it was. He lay quietly looking up at the stars. He had noted the major constellations the night before, so now he could work out the time from their movement. It was well after midnight, just a few hours before dawn. There was no moon, Selm-II didn’t have one, but the ground was bathed in soft light from the stars. This solar system was somewhere close to the centre of the galaxy so that myriad stars burned down from the wide belt that spanned the sky above.

What had disturbed him? The night was quiet, so still that he could hear Lea’s soft and regular breathing. Had he sensed emotions then? He reached out and was barely able to detect something. At the very edge of his perception. It was human. And feeling a single emotion. Hatred. Blind hatred, and rage, and the desire for death. It wasn’t a single person either, but was coming from more than one source. Directed at him.

Brion rolled over slowly and shook Lea awake, his finger resting lightly across her lips when he saw her blink and open her eyes. He put his lips against her ear and spoke in a quiet whisper.

“We’re going to have some company soon. Better get your things packed together and be ready to move.” He was aware of the sudden tenseness and fear in her body as she pushed herself up on her elbows.

“What’s happening?”

“I can’t be sure yet. But I can feel them, people out there in the darkness. They are coming this way. I can’t tell yet how many there are. But one thing I know, it is me they are after — and there is very little love in their hearts. Wait …”

He concentrated on the single emotion pattern, trying to separate out this individual from all of the others. Putting to use all of the skills that he had been perfecting ever since the day he had discovered that he was an empathetic. He willed himself into the other’s skin. Yes, the identity was positive. Brion nodded into the darkness.

“One mystery solved. Vjer is among them. At least we know now that he’s not living alone out there in the hills. There must be a fair-sized population at home because he is bringing a good number of them with him to look for me.”

“I thought you said he was your friend,” Lea whispered.

“I thought so too. But that seems to have all changed. I’d like to know why — and I have a feeling that we are going to find out soon enough.” He rose quietly and loosened the large knife in its sheath. “You just stay here out of sight while I sort them out.”

“No!” Her fingers bit hard into his arm. “You can’t go out there alone, in the darkness …”

“I certainly can. Please believe me when I say that I know what I’m doing.” He took her hand gently away. “I need plenty of space around me when I meet them. And I don’t want to have to worry about you at the same time. It’s going to be all right.”

Then he slipped away into the half-lit darkness. Staying flat on the ground and moving silently in the direction of the night stalkers. Stopping when he was well clear of Lea’s hiding place. The emotions that he had been feeling were stronger now. There were at least a dozen individuals out there. Perhaps more. He waited until he could see their dark forms — there appeared to be about twenty of them — before he jumped to his feet and shouted. “Vjer! I am here. What do you want?”

He could feel their dismay washing over their other emotions, sudden fear replacing hatred at his unexpected appearance. They stopped — all except one — who ignored the burst of fear, letting it be carried away by the hatred that had swallowed all other sensation. This man was still moving forward, doing something.

A spear appeared out of the night and buried itself in the ground a yard from Brion’s feet. The situation was growing dangerous. He could sense that the others were getting over the first shock, were feeling the same hatred well up again. They started forward, one after the other.

Brion moved back from their steady advance, retreating towards the lake, away from the spot where Lea was hidden. She would be safe. He was not concerned about his own safety, feeling sure that he could take care of himself if the men attacked him — particularly if they were all like Vjer. He could outrun them if he couldn’t outfight them. But why were they doing this? He shouted again to draw their attention.

That was when Lea screamed — and he felt her explosive burst of panic at the same moment.

Brion hurled himself in her direction. There was a man, two men, rising up before him — but he hit them at top speed, brushing them aside like insects, not even slowing. Lea screamed again and he could see the people who were holding her, the upraised spears. He never even thought of his knife as he crashed into them; his fists were weapons enough.