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  Grant was thinking the same thing. It was the most surreal moment he had experienced, and one of the most terrifying.

  "Keep an eye on those cameras Sam, we have no idea what to expect tonight. I have an unsettled feeling; we aren't going to get much sleep."

  Sam nodded his agreement and silently made his way up to the bridge. From his chair, he could watch the cameras and monitor the sensors he set out earlier in the day to see what may be skulking around their site. He closed the shield over the view screen. He didn't really want to see firsthand what may be out there in the night.

  The day had come and gone in a hazy hot blur and Sam wasn't ready to face anything larger than a house cat or possibly a small possum. The heat had really taken a lot out him, along with the stress of the crash, coupled with the day's events. He was ready to shower and get some sleep, but the adrenaline rush from the thrill of seeing new life for the first time kept him glued to the cameras.

  "Let me know if you see anything moving out there, Sam."

  The sudden burst of noise startled Sam just as he thought he saw something move in the distance at the edge of the camera's view.

  "Oh my God, Grant you scared the holy crap out of me! I think I may have wet myself a little."

  Grant had come onto the bridge unbeknownst to Sam who was intently watching for the slightest movement. "You are such a sissy! What do you think you're going to see out there, a T-Rex or something?"

  "Well, now you've said it, yes, it is exactly what I think I might see out there. He might have some rather large friends with him, too, who knows? Right before you snuck up on me I thought I saw movement just at the edge of camera two. It was slight; it could have been a rodent or something else fairly diminutive in stature."

  "Did it have sharp teeth and razors for claws, Sam?"

  "Stop, I really do think I saw something."

  Grant took on a more serious tone and asked Eliot to scan for life forms. "Large and small, please."

  Eliot replied, "I could not read them before we landed, but I am getting readings now. There is a static charge just above the tree line. It is the reason the planet appeared to be desolate upon approach. I have adjusted my sensors. The planet is teaming with life."

  This was great news, but also unsettling for Sam. His imagination went right back to the image of T-Rex and his friends strolling up to the shuttle looking for a fight or possibly a midnight snack.

  "It's going to be a long night, Sam, if you keep thinking you're seeing things."

  Sam could not take his eyes off camera two and with good reason, something had moved and he knew it. He wasn't going to let whatever it was come any closer than necessary to get a good look. Even though the Varizone was a research vessel, it was equipped with several large guns in case wildlife truly got wild and intended to bring harm to the ship or the crew.

  "Eliot, can you please set the sentry guns to defend? I want to scare away anything venturing too close to the ship tonight. We need to meet our enemies — if that's what they are — in the daylight. Besides, it'll make Sam feel safer."

  Grant continued, dripping with sarcasm, "I mean taking into consideration we are twenty-five feet off the ground, inside a large armor- covered space vehicle able to withstand a missile blast and the icy cold depths of space. I think it best to ease Sam's fears of the unknown and arm ourselves against the planetary rodents."

  If Eliot were programmed to laugh he would have belly laughed.

  "You're one to talk! Let's shine a light into the darkness and run like a girl into the ship, because it got all quiet."

  "You were right there with me Sam, don't deny it."

  "I was being pushed along by the biggest sissy on the ship. I had no choice but to get in."

  They laughed, then mumbled "chicken" under their breath, only to laugh at themselves again.

  "Since you're so into the cameras and finding a trespasser, I'll get a few hours of sleep."

  "Works for me Grant. If I see anything significant, I'll let you know."

  "Significant being the key word, Sam. Significant! Don't wake me for a rodent unless he's 30 feet tall, covered in scales, and about to destroy the ship."

  "Gotcha! Thirty foot tall rodent with scales, eating the ship, wake Grant, got it."

  With a smile and a chuckle Grant headed off to get some much needed sleep. Meanwhile, Sam returned his focus to the cameras and turned on some music to view by. He was intent on capturing a glimpse of whatever was lurking in the dark.

  Chapter Two

  Grant made his way down the hallway and entered his cabin. It was large and luxurious for a cabin on a research vessel. The room was white with grey accents and some splashes of bright colors to make it interesting. There were a couple leather chairs, a table in one corner, and the head was in another corner. It would have looked institutional, luckily there were pictures hanging on the walls. One picture was his favorite. It was the rise of Earth's full moon, over a body of shimmering water with bright oranges and yellows, and a dark back drop of the mountains on each side. He believed it was taken somewhere in the mountains of southern Missouri, of all places. Its beauty reminded him of the life he left behind a short time ago. Situated across from his bunk was his desk. It was littered with charts, drawings, and various other research items he was using since they left the spaceport at New Liberty.

  The crash scattered things across the room despite the gyro keeping the desk level. The sudden impact had not given it time to properly adjust. Grant was the captain of the ship and it was a hard won battle to get there on his own. His education was thorough and he had excelled in all his classes, but at the expense of his social life. He dated but nothing ever become of them. He was married to his career before it ever started, and knew someday he would travel through space seeking new planets, and new life. A love interest left behind would nag at him, and make him second guess his decision to explore new worlds. It was his, and Sam's, dream since they were kids. Grant absentmindedly leafed through the papers on his desk with little enthusiasm, then rose, and promptly fell face first into his bunk. The day had been a long and stressful, filled with mishaps, an explosion, a crash, and a mystery guest Sam probably conjured in his own mind.

  Grant drifted off to sleep, visions of Sam running, and screaming as he was chased by a T-Rex. He chuckled and fell into a deep, but troubled sleep. What if something was out there, and what if it was big enough to destroy the ship. It could possibly be small enough to enter the ship undetected, attached to their clothing, or dart in the door when they weren't looking.

  Grant tossed and turned, his mind drifted to a much more serene thought. What if the life forms on this planet were intelligent? What if the life forms were intelligent, and thoughtful? What if the life forms were intelligent, thoughtful, and humanoid? His imagination was going wild. If there were humanoid life forms on this planet, what would they look like? What if there were no men on this planet and the women viewed him and Sam as gods? He woke and realized he had been around Sam too long. He was visualizing one of Sam's typical, nightly dreams, he shook his head in disgust. He drifted back to a peaceful, restful sleep.

  Meanwhile, Sam was wide awake scanning the monitors for movement, trying desperately to find something, anything, moving. Sam, having attention deficit disorder, was easily distracted when Eliot reminded him he had not eaten his evening meal, and nutrition was of the utmost importance. Sam obliged and headed off to the galley to get himself a bite to eat, leaving the cameras unattended. Sam loved the galley, it was one of his favorite places on the ship, although it was nothing compared to the galley on the Ebony Belle. Sam decided on a chocolate, peanut butter and bananas protein drink. If he was going to stay up he needed to be alert and well fueled. He was gone for fifteen minutes, and upon returning to the bridge, he again swore he saw movement in one of the monitors. He hadn't been quick enough to get a good view. Drink in hand, eyes peeled on the monitors, Sam settled in for the long haul.

  It was coming up
on 4 am and Sam had not seen any other movement. He was a little deflated nothing had had the guts to walk within the camera view, or within range of the gun turrets mounted on the top of the shuttle. He was exhausted, his eyes were getting heavier, and heavier. The protein drink had worn off and he knew Grant would soon be up to relieve him, but it couldn't come quick enough. With his focus on the monitors, and the protective screens closed, Sam had no real idea what the planet looked like at night. Except for the brief moment just before he and Grant quickly entered the shuttle afraid for their lives, but it was just a glimpse. Sam waited for Grant to relieve him before he opened the screens, and got a look at the planet at night. Eliot was tracking small life forms, and an occasional medium dog sized creature looking much like a dog, but had six legs, and a small head. Nothing posed a threat to the Varizone.

  Sam calculated the tilt of the shuttle, what it would take to bring it to level, and make life aboard much easier for all. With the shuttle askew the survey bots could not exit, and perform their tasks of collecting samples, and surveying the surroundings as planned. He was sure Grant overlooked the fact the exterior lab doors were buried two feet into the surface of the planet. The landing gear buckled during the crash making it impossible to right the shuttle without some serious assistance. He scanned the composition of the surrounding trees finding them extremely sturdy, and capable of supporting a portion of the shuttle's weight, making it possible to repair the landing gear. He determined a rock melting torch in the lab could be used to bring down a few trees. They could fashion a hoist, or lever of sorts, to lift the sagging corner, and make the needed repairs. It was late and his eyes were getting heavy.

  He soon nodded off, and drifted into short, but intense dreams. There was a girl, of course, but she was different. She was covered in black clothing, with a sword neatly tucked into her belt. She carried a bow, and a quiver of arrows. It was so surreal. He had never seen anyone like her, or anything like her weapons, and then the dream faded. Again, he drifted into a dream vignette and found himself face to face with a small child, who's piercing dark eyes made him aware he was dreaming, and he woke with a start. Just in time to see movement on one of the monitors.

  "Damn it! I know you're out there and I am going to catch you, you little bastard!" Sam was ticked off he had dozed, and missed their intruder yet again. The images in the dreams were haunting. The woman in black, and the child with the dark eyes, really made an impact on him. His fear of being eaten now became a fear for the woman, and what he guessed, was her child. He shook his head, rolled his shoulders wildly, and let out a big burst of air trying to clear the images from his mind. It would be his turn to sleep in ten minutes, and he couldn't wait to see what became of his dreams. Would they pan out into longer, more detailed scenes, or would they become nightmares of people getting eaten by monsters. Being a biologist you would think he had more of a backbone, and an inquisitive nature towards the fauna of the new world. He drifted into the ether once again, and was soon startled awake by Grant who came to replace him.

  "Sam, there's movement in monitor two again, hurry, hurry, hurry!" Sam bolted upright staring into the monitors trying to locate camera two.

  Grant laughed with great delight. Once again he scared the crap out of Sam, with minimal effort.

  Sam was not amused and was too tired to argue, and he decided to let it go, much to Grant's surprise. "Let's open the shields and see what's out there."

  "Good idea, but aren't you afraid of the dark?" Grant took great joy in teasing Sam, and Sam knew it was all in good fun, always had been.

  "Eliot, are you recording this? I mean the opening of the view shields, not the ribbing I'm giving Sam."

  "Yes, I am as always, recording everything." Grant and Sam looked at each other with a bit of surprise.

  Had Eliot let slip his little secret or was it just his programming? Either way it made them pause and think for a moment about what Eliot may have recorded over the weeks they were in the Ebony Belle. Was he gathering information to send back to headquarters, was he doing what he was programmed to do, or were they being watched? With a slight hesitation they returned to looking out the view screen, at a dark sky full of stars, moons, and probably a planet or two. The view was so different than the view from Earth. The lights from Earth's ever growing cities had long ago blotted out all, but the brightest of stars. Grant looked in amazement at the twinkling array of stars, and the numbers were mind boggling.

  Sam must have been having the same moment, but from a different perspective, "Job security, that's what it is, job security."

  "One day at a time Sam. Remember, we crash landed, we have limited resources to repair the shuttle, and we need to get back to the Ebony Belle."

  "On that note, I'll be heading to bed. Did I tell you about the dream I had while I dozed off for a minute? Never mind, I know I didn't, but here it is. I dreamt of a woman...."

  "Let me stop you right there Sam. All your dreams are of women, and this reeks of yet another escapade I have no interest in."

  "This was different Grant, no nakedness, no sex, and no talking, just her standing there in all black, carrying a sword, and a bow with a quiver of arrows. She had a kid with her and they got really close. Close enough I could see the shimmer in their eyes. The color was like black mercury, and piercing, like they could see right through me. It gave me the willies, and I woke up."

  "You never fail to amaze me Sam. You fall asleep on your watch, and dream of a woman with her kid. Then have the balls to tell me about it like it happens all the time. You're not making me feel very secure Sam!" Grant knew Sam slept on watch, and he had done it several times as well. Being the ship's captain he felt it was his duty to give him pause for thought. Especially after Eliot had given up his secret of recording everything.

  Sam was about to defend himself, but Grant cut him off. "Go to bed Sam, and dream all you want of women, and their kids. I'll see you in a few hours."

  "Thanks my friend, see you in a few." The angled floors made walking difficult. Sam shuffled down the hallway to his cabin, and like Grant, fell face first into his bunk. With the shuttle not level it was hard to move around. The beds, desks, and chairs were all attached to a swivel of sorts and remained fairly level no matter what direction the shuttle was leaning. It was disorienting, but Sam was exhausted and at the moment, didn't care about anything.

  He adjusted and quickly drifted off to sleep. The woman in his earlier dream appeared again, this time he could make out more detail. She wore a leather tunic made of hide from some yet to be determined creature. It looked like it was made of scales, and didn't have much of a shine at all. The britches were the same material as the tunic, and went to mid-calf, showing her muscular legs. The clothing fit so well he could make out every curve, and ripple. Her skin was deeply tan, but it could just be the night, and no lights to show its true color. Her long black hair had an iridescent shimmer to it, it was beautiful.

  Suddenly, the eyes were once again right in front of him, staring directly into his. The gaze was piercing, searching, knowing. Sam knew he was having a lucid dream. He was aware he was dreaming, and from past experience, he knew he could manipulate the dream how he wanted. He asked the child with the big eyes to back off, and it did. What happened next threw Sam's mind into a whirl. The figure the eyes were attached to quickly backed away, with a completely puzzled look on its smallish, human looking face. It moved its head from side to side. Sam was shocked when he realized the eyes belonged to the woman in leather. It was like she was right there in the room with him, watching him sleep. She quickly darted away leaving Sam's mind to wonder in complete disbelief. He knew he was still dreaming, and wanted to go tell Grant what had happened, but his body was not as responsive as the woman's was. It was still sleep paralyzed, and no movement was to be had until his mind, and body were good and ready. Sam drifted back to the deep sleep stage and dreamt no more.

  Meanwhile Grant was on the bridge planning out the day's activities, with
the help of Eliot. "How are we going to right the shuttle with the stuff we have? The rover is still strapped down in the bay and the door cannot be opened until the shuttle is level. Not to mention, the soil and debris we're going to have to remove from every crease and crevice. It could take days, or even weeks to make it happen."

  Eliot said, "A focused stream from the rock melting torch will perform like a saw, easily cutting down nearby trees. They can be used as a fulcrum and lever, in a ratcheting sequence. Each time it raises a few feet, another support is added, increasing the height of the fulcrum, and the supports."

  "Eliot, you are a genius."

  "No, I am an EL-10-T."

  "Whatever, you have a great plan if we can make it work."

  "The idea was Sam's, we discussed it while you were sleeping. I will give you the dimensions when you're ready."

  "Hold off until Sam can hear them too. He's the mechanic and chief thingy builder. I just make sure he makes things happen. What is the distance to the mountains to our south?"

  "Fifteen miles."

  Just then in his peripheral vision Grant caught movement in one of the monitors. He was as intent as Sam was earlier. He thought he saw a foot, a small, human like foot. It couldn't be, he began to think his mind was playing tricks on him, or possibly the oxygen in the shuttle was adjusted too thin. He kept his eyes glued to the screens and hoped to see the movement again.

  Grant was wide awake now and ready to go. "Eliot can you scan the area closest to the ship? See if anything slipped by while we were talking. I swear I saw something, and I'm starting to see why Sam was so adamant."

  "The scan did not show any life forms large enough to be detected by the sensors."

  "Maybe we can turn on the exterior lights and force something into view. Wait, hold that thought. I do not want to be a bright beacon of light in this complete world of darkness. If there is anything intelligent out there, it will know exactly where we are, and I'm not quite ready for our location to be known. A better thought, can the cameras be switched to thermal? If so, see if anything out there is hot. "