Attack of the Hazacks: An Erebus Rangers Short Story Read online

  Attack of the Hazacks

  An Erebus Rangers Short Story

  TM Toombs

  HOME SWEET HOME

  The blue sun beat down on Hannah Briskey's dark blond head. With a heavy sigh, she stood up and wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead as she watched her father, Abram, gently sweep stalks of wheat with his grain cradle. He worked a row over from where Hannah, her mother, Martha and the twins, Sarah and Samuel, were gathering the stalks into bundles. They worked in silence, tying the wheat bundles with longer stalks of rye, then standing them up to dry in the hot field. Hannah sighed. Not my idea of how to spend a beautiful summer day.

  The surrounding forest beckoned to her with the calls of numerous songbirds, all transplanted and thriving, because the first colonists had found the absence of wildlife unnerving. Along with the birds, a mix of game animals had been introduced in hopes of providing fresh meat for future generations of Antitech Settlers.

  Hannah pondered the anti-technology movement that had brought her family here. Her father had once been a software engineer on Earth. Her mother had been a doctor, practicing on the cutting edge of nanorobotic surgery. Hannah had fought the idea of leaving friends behind, crossing galaxies to populate the planet of New Goshen in the Erebus System. But at eight years of age, she’d had no choice. Now, ten years later, her new world’s unending tasks still offered her few choices in life. Whatever had pushed her parents to turn their backs on modern society and join the New Goshen settlers, they refused to say.

  Movement off in the distance drew her attention. A tall, thin figure emerged from the west, out of the thick forest that separated the wheat field from their nearby homestead on the outskirts of the village. Hannah instantly recognized her best friend, Miriam Hartz, from the next farm over, her shiny black hair giving her away. Hannah looked over at her mother and found her looking back with a smile.

  Before she could ask, her mother nodded, "As long as your father says it's fine."

  "Go on," her father said without looking up. "We’re nearly done. Just be sure you're back before dinner. And no boys!"

  "Thank you, Momma! Thank you, Papa!" she yelled over her shoulder as she raced down the harvested rows to greet Miriam. As she passed their snack basket, she snatched two oranges.

  The girls met halfway across the field, throwing their arms around each other in a sisterly embrace. They sprinted down the path leading to the river beyond the field to the north, peeling and munching on the juicy oranges as they went. Delicate butterflies flittered among the wildflowers, blissfully ignoring the two teen girls. Under the canopy of the large, overhanging trees, the soft breeze was cooler and carried the faint scent of the blooming fuchsia-like flowers and dank soil.

  Hannah tried to remember what Earth had smelled like. It, and so many other memories of her past home, were as far away as the planet itself. No matter. She briefly closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the fresh smell of cut wheat and blooming flowers. This was her home.

  Up ahead, she could hear the sounds of water rushing though the gorge to crash over the twelve-foot wall and fill the tiered pools of Pierce Falls.

  And the laughter of boys.

  She stopped in the middle of the path, her throat tightening. Miriam, ahead of her, turned to look back at Hannah with an all too familiar, devious smile on her face.

  SWIMMING HOLE

  "You didn't tell me there were going to be boys at the pools," a shocked look swept across Hannah's face.

  Miriam grinned. "Don't worry! It's only Jacob and Isaac. Ruth will be along after she's done with her chores. Come on!"

  Miriam turned and trotted back down the path. Hannah felt butterflies in her chest. Taking a deep breath, she took off after her friend. She caught up to Miriam where the narrow path opened up, revealing the rocky shoreline surrounding the blue waters of the swimming hole. Across from the shore, the falls spilled over the ledge of the ancient volcanic rock, creating a fine mist in the air.

  Scanning the clear waters, her eyes came to rest on the tanned chest of her prearranged fiancé. Isaac was staring at her and instantly her cheeks grew warm. She glanced down at her feet and fidgeted. Next to her, Miriam was peeling off her outer layer of clothes in her usual exuberant manner. Arms and legs were flailing about in all directions as Miriam perched first on one foot then the other as she wrestled her pants down over her underwear. She tossed the pants over a nearby branch, stood in her underpants, tying her shirttails around her waist. She saw Hannah hadn't moved, and reached back and grabbed Hannah's hand.

  "Come on, Hannah!" Miriam pulled her to the water's edge. "We don't have long before we both have to be back home. And you can blush later, after you're married."

  Hannah pulled back from her friend's grasp and opened her mouth to protest when an eerie screech echoed through the narrow valley, sending a cold chill through Hannah's body. She looked up through the opening in the mottled green canopy above the river in time to see a large, skinny creature zip past, it's bat-like wings spread wide. A second one joined it before they both quickly disappeared beyond the treetops.

  A heartbeat later, a ship at least four times larger than the flying beasts streaked by overhead. A trail of thick, black smoke poured from one side of the craft. All four teens stood staring at the sky, now empty save swirls of smoke, the forest silent except for the sound of the river.

  Hannah looked at Miriam, her eyes wide. "They’re headed for the village."

  Isaac and Jacob charged out of the water, splashing loudly and recklessly, running over the rocky shore in their bare feet. They snatched their clothes from the branches and hastened to dress. A faint explosion caused them to stop and look in the direction of the village. Without saying a word, they shoved their feet into their boots, gathered the clothes they hadn't put on and raced down a path heading through the forest directly for the village. Hannah and Miriam ran after them, their legs burning from trying to keep up.

  Hannah felt like her legs had gained hundreds of pounds by the time her house came into view. Her chest tightened, and she gulped air. The house and barn stood untouched, yet all the birds had gone silent and not a single butterfly flew among the roses lining the porch. Ahead of her, the boys sprinted past her home toward the village, leaving Hannah and Miriam alone.

  She slowed to a stop in front of the cobblestone walkway that invited visitors to their front door.

  Only silence greeted her. Icy tentacles of fear worked their way through her body. She shivered in the afternoon heat.

  LIFE AND DEATH

  "Maybe they're still in the fields," Miriam said in a hushed voice, standing just over Hannah's right shoulder.

  Hannah nodded and started for the door, reached out and opened it. She listened for the sounds of her mother in the kitchen, cooking, or her father in the den, reading to the twins. The house was so quiet that it raised the hairs on her arms. Hannah led the way to the back of the house and out the kitchen door.

  As she stepped out onto the small back porch, she put a hand up to shield her eyes and searched the farmland. No one was working in the fields. She left Miriam waiting by the screen door and walked out into the yard, a nauseating tightness in her chest. Halfway across the manicured lawn, Hannah gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. She bolted for the small garden on the southeast side of the house.

  Hannah stopped a few paces away from her mother's favorite rose bush, one side of it crushed. Red rose petals were scattered around an all too familiar pair of boots lying at the base of the plant. Her gaze ran up the boots and to the legs sprawled amid the broken branches. Her throat tightened. She took a step forwa
rd and collapsed to her knees beside her mother's still body, ready to shake her back to consciousness. Reaching out to grab her mother's arm, she saw long, thin quill-like needles protruding from the right side of her neck and face. Her mother’s dark hazel eyes unblinking, lifeless eyes looked up at her. Hot tears ran down Hannah’s face as a loud sob escaped from her trembling body.

  "Oh no, Hannah," Miriam stepped up behind her and placed her hand on Hannah’s shoulder.

  Hannah swiped at her tears and jumped to her feet, searching around the garden with a crazed look. "Where are the twins? And father? They wouldn't have just left her here like this!"

  Miriam looked around as well, then gasped, pointing up at the sky. A thick cloud of smoke was rising from the direction of Miriam’s family's farm.

  Hannah grabbed her in a bear hug, squeezing her tight. "Go! Check on your family. We'll meet back up in the village square later. Be safe."

  Miriam raced towards her home, fleeing down a long row of unharvested sunflowers. Miriam didn't have far to go before she located her father, laying face down in front of the door to the root cellar on the side of the house. Hannah gasped at the hundreds of quills sticking out of his back. In his hand, he grasped the broken handle to his shovel. She recognized the bright blue color. She and the twins had painted it his favorite color and given it to him on his fortieth birthday.

  She stood silently rooted to the ground, tears flowing freely down her face. His hand twitched. The movement caught her eye and she flung herself to the ground at his side.

  "Papa! I'm here!" she cried, blinking away tears.

  "My baby girl. Thank The Holy you are alive," he wheezed and coughed. "It came from out of the sky. We ran for the house. Your mother. Oh Divine One, she's dead."

  "I know." Hannah couldn't stop the tears. "I'll take care of her after I get you inside."

  He tried to roll on his side and moaned, flopping back on his stomach. “It’s ... too late. I tried to kill it. Couldn’t. You aren't safe out here."

  His words chilled her to her soul. She looked around wildly. "Where is it?"

  "Ran off ... towards the village. Find the twins. Hide until help comes. You can do that for me, can't you?" He tilted his head to look into her eyes, the glaze of life fading even as he spoke.

  "Yes," she whispered. "I can do that."

  "Hannah," he wheezed, "take them back to Earth. To your Aunt Charon."

  "No," she shook her head, bawling. "I'm not leaving you."

  "Listen," he mustered the last of his strength, "get someplace safe. Promise me."

  Hannah choked on her tears. "I promise, Papa. I'll find them and we'll be safe."

  He let go of the broken handle, all shine gone from his eyes, and grew still.

  Alone and trembling, she whispered, "But I don't even know how to get there."

  A muffled whimper drew her attention to the door of the root cellar. Hannah rose to her feet, ran to the door and pulled it open. Inside, her brother and sister huddled together, shaking. She threw her arms open and they raced to her. She pulled them into her, hugging them tightly. They stood there, holding each other and crying loudly until there were no more tears.

  "Hannah," Samuel said softly, his face buried in the crook of her neck. "I'm scared."

  "Me, too," Sarah croaked.

  "It's all going to be well," she squeezed them tighter. "Father wants us to go live with his sister on Earth. So, we won't be alone."

  Sarah looked up into Hannah's face, searching. "Are we going to take them with us?"

  Hannah gently stroked her sister's face and brushed hair out of her eyes. "I'm afraid not. They’ll stay here, together."

  "Forever?" Samuel looked behind her toward their father’s still body.

  "Yes, forever and ever. Where do you think they would want to..." Hannah let the question drift off into the eerie silence, unable to bring herself to finish it.

  "They love the big ole live oak in the front yard," Sarah suggested.

  Hannah smiled softly. The family had brought the seedling with them and had planted it before they had even begun building their house or clearing the fields for crops. A sign of the persistence of life, her father had said.

  "That would be perfect."

  REUNITED

  Emotionally drained, tired and sore from digging two graves and then laying her parents to rest, Hannah shuffled into the village as the sun began to slip towards the west. Sarah held her right hand while Samuel tightly grasped her left. She gave him a reassuring squeeze, knowing he disliked crowds, even if they were small and even though he knew almost every one of the settlers.

  But no crowds appeared, only a few dazed villagers wandered aimlessly. Some wounded. Others sat on porches or in front of stores, quietly sobbing. Here and there, she noticed a broken window or door, looking like a toddler had thrown a fit and randomly hit a building with a clenched fist.

  Hannah searched around, looking for Miriam or Isaac. They made their way to the center of the small community to the village square. Hannah sat on the grass near the large fountain and pulled Samuel into her lap while Sarah leaned against them.

  "Why did it kill mother and father, Hannah?" Samuel asked, looking around at all the damage.

  Hannah fought back a fresh round of tears. "I don't know. We don't even know what it was or how many there were.”

  "Hannah!" a voice called out from across the square.

  Hannah looked up and saw Miriam and Ruth jogging towards them. Hannah lifted Samuel to his feet and stood up. The girls tackled her in a group hug, pulling in Sarah and Samuel.

  "How are you all?" Ruth asked, finally breaking from the huddle. "Miriam told me what happened to your mother. Is your ...” Ruth hesitated, and Hannah shook her head. “I'm so sorry."

  "Nothing feels real anymore." Hannah shook her head. "How are your families?"

  "We lost our barn, two horses and a cow," Miriam reported. "But everyone is fine. Mom said you guys are to come stay with us."

  Ruth fussed over Sarah's hair. "Whatever it was didn't make it near our place."

  "Did anyone see what it was?" Hannah asked.

  "Dad said he's never seen anything like it," Miriam frowned. "He said it looked like something out of a nightmare. My brother Ismael described it as long and thin but covered in quills instead of fur, like a cross between a greyhound and a porcupine. And it had leathery wings like a giant fruit bat. Its face was like a vulture with small, sharp tusks in the corners of its beak. It also had four large cat-like paws with retractable claws. One of the horses was clawed so bad, half her insides were outside. It was horrible. We had to put her down."

  "I wonder if that is the same monster that was at our place or if there are more than those two," Hannah wondered out loud. Out of the corner of her vision, she noticed the village medicine woman, Rebecca Wittner, strolling into town with a huge basket brimming with a variety of flowers and herbs, sighing and shaking her head as she perused the town.

  "Hannah," Isaac said as he ran up, breathing heavily, "are you ok? Are your parents safe? Where are they?"

  She looked at him with angry tears brimming her eyes. "If you hadn't left me, you would know the creature attacked my family."

  Isaac looked stunned. He opened his mouth to say something when Samuel gasped and began to sway on his feet. His knees buckled, falling towards Isaac. Isaac caught him and gently laid him down on the ground.

  "Samuel!" Hannah knelt next to her brother and grabbed his hand. "Samuel, answer me."

  "I don't feel good, Hannah." His eyes fluttered and then closed.

  "Oh my," Rebecca mumbled as she walked closer, looking at Samuel. "That doesn't look good. Nope. Not good at all."

  "Help him," Hannah pleaded. "We've already lost our parents. I can't lose him, too."

  "I don't even know what's wrong with him, young lady." Rebecca shook her head and tsked a couple of times.

  "Look!" Issac pointed to a small quill in Samuel's upper arm.

  "Odd,"
Rebecca observed, setting down her heavy basket. "Move out of the way, child."

  Sarah did as she was told and the old woman took Samuel's arm in her hand and looked closely at it. Then she felt his forehead and cheeks with her weathered hands.

  "Poison, I'd say," she rubbed her nose. "What kind? I don't know. Not without seeing the beastie that this came from."

  "Can you heal him?" Hannah felt panic rise in her throat.

  "I would need a venom gland from the animal. Given that it is some strange creature I have no reckoning about." She tilted her head and glanced from Samuel to Hannah and back. "You better hurry, though. I'd say he has two, maybe three days before I can't help him."

  Rebecca slowly rose to her feet, knees creaking in protest and looked down at Hannah. "Bring him to my apothecary. The girl, too. They can stay with me while you track the beast down. Hurry now."

  The old woman turned, plucked up her over-flowing basket and hobbled down the street to her shop. Isaac, without a word, scooped Samuel up in his arms and followed after the old woman. Sarah slid her hand into Hannah's and started after them, pulling her along. Ruth and Miriam trailed behind, wordlessly.

  THE QUEST BEGINS

  Rebecca spread out a thick blanket over the low, wide bench and stepped back out of the way. Isaac lowered Samuel onto the makeshift bed then took another blanket Rebecca handed him and covered the sleeping boy. He turned and found Hannah watching him and smiled weakly.

  "He'll pull through, Hannah," he reassured her. "I have a good feeling."

  "I need to pack," she told him and turned to her sister. "Sarah, can you watch over Samuel while I'm gone? And help Rebecca?"

  "Yes." Sarah nodded as she sat at her brother's feet and clasped her hands in her lap.

  "Thank you. That will put my mind at ease. I'll be back as soon as I can. Promise." Hannah smiled at her sister, then bent over and gave her a quick hug before joining Rebecca next to her workbench. It was overflowing with fresh and dried plants of all varieties.