Unknown Foe

The days had gotten hotter lately. Even with the windows open, the sulfur smell from the Volcan region still found its way inside and clung to my clothes and hair. A yawn escaped me as my bare feet touched the cold stone floor, dust and tiny bits of dirt sticking to my skin.

Rubbing my eyes, I shuffled toward the washroom where some of the older girls were already getting ready. The moment I stepped through the doorway, they grabbed their things and hurried out.

I blinked after them.

“Nice, I have the place to myself,” I muttered, stretching until my shoulders popped. I then leaned over the sink.

The entire building suddenly vibrated, and the walls rattled.

A cup rolled off a nearby shelf and shattered against the floor. My head snapped toward the window.

They are here.

I rushed back to my room and pulled on the only pants I owned. The beige fabric barely reached my ankles anymore, and both knees had worn through from all the floor scrubbing they made us do. My black t-shirt followed a second later as I bolted back into the hall.

The orphanage had already erupted into chaos.

Children poured through the corridors, brushing past me hard enough to make me stumble as they rushed the other way. Doors slammed open and shut.

Someone was crying.

Another kid tripped, scrambled back to their feet, and kept running without looking behind them.

Nobody wanted the black ships here.

The awful smell drifted through the open entrance, mixing with grit kicked up by dozens of pounding feet. Everyone knew what black ships meant.

Some kids never came back.

I followed the noise outside.

The closer I got to the front, the fewer children remained. By the time I reached the front courtyard, only the elders were left, standing in a stiff line while they patted wrinkles from their clothes and tried to look important.

If they need someone, I’m here.

No need to take any other kids.

A hand wrapped around my wrist and pulled me backward.

“What are you doing?”

I bumped into my brother and had to tilt my head back to meet his stare. His dark blue eyes looked darker than usual, and his fingers tightened around my arm hard enough to hurt.

“Let’s go hide,” he whispered, leaning closer to my ear.

He was several years older than me and already way taller. It wasn’t fair. Everyone kept growing except me.

“You know, I always come back,” I whispered back at him.

His jaw flexed, and for a second, I thought he might actually drag me inside.

Then the ship’s ramp hissed open. The metallic clang echoed across the courtyard, silencing everything.

Everyone froze.

Two adults moved behind us without thinking, boxing us in, and a haze rolled across the ground in slow waves.

My brother’s breathing became ragged as his grip tightened.

As the dust settled, a massive shape emerged from the ship’s darkness.

There he was.

Even at that distance, he looked too large to be real. He always had to duck through doorways, and his shoulders were wider than the stone columns holding up the roof. If he punched someone, they’d probably explode into pieces.

Everyone feared him.

Including me.

But unlike everyone else, I knew something they didn’t.

He liked using me.

I was small enough to squeeze into places adults couldn’t reach, and I remembered everything I heard or read. That’s why he kept coming back for me.

I leaned closer to my brother and rose onto my tiptoes. “If he’s here, it means he has a job.”

“Do not go with him.” His voice came out rough. “Just hide somewhere.”

I shook my head.

One elder approached the giant, lifting a trembling hand.

“Welcome back, sir.”

The mountain man didn’t even glance at it. Instead, he pointed directly at me.

“You!” The single word boomed across the open grounds. “Come.”

I stepped forward automatically, but my brother caught my arm before I could take a second step.

“She doesn’t have any shoes anymore.” He cleared his throat. “She outgrew them. Maybe next time?”

The giant’s eyes shifted slowly toward him, and the courtyard seemed to hold its breath with them.

My brother’s grip tightened around my arm until it hurt, and I found myself holding my breath right along with him. For a moment, all I could hear was the wind pushing ash around my feet before the huge man lowered his hand and started walking toward us, the joints in his robotic arm whining softly with every step.

I pulled free and ran to meet him before he reached us.

Up close, he was even bigger. Tattoos covered his bald scalp, and the metallic fingers of his robotic hand flexed open and closed with a faint clicking sound.

“It's fine.” I planted my bare feet in front of him. “I don’t need them.”

The metal fingers twitched again, but his attention remained fixed on my brother.

“He’s too tall, right?” I kicked at the dust with one bare foot. “I’m still tiny. I can help.”

Finally, his stare dropped to me, and he lowered himself into a crouch.

I tipped my head back as far as it would go, trying to maintain eye contact. Even kneeling, he was still as tall as a tower.

The mountain man grabbed my forearm with his normal hand and turned me slightly from side to side as he checked me over.

“Is she eating?” he grunted. “She’s not used to me if she passes out.”

The elder stepped behind me and dropped a hand onto my head.

“Of course, sir.” His voice shook. “You know how children are. Always running around.”

I frowned and slowly leaned away until he let go.

I don’t like to be touched.

He laughed nervously and stepped back, rubbing his palms against his clothes. “We can send snacks for the trip if you desire.”

“When did you eat last?” The giant’s gaze never left him.

I tapped a finger against my chin while I thought.

“Yesterday morning.” My shoulders lifted in a shrug. “One meal a day. That’s the rule.”

The giant moved in a blur.

One moment he was standing beside me.

The next he was gone.

A wet gurgle echoed off to my side, followed by a loud crunch that made me feel sick. Then something hit the dirt with a heavy thud.

I didn’t turn around.

I really didn’t want to.

When he finally walked past me again, blood dripped from his robotic arm. He stopped and tossed something toward the other elders standing by my brother.

Curiosity got the better of me.

I turned and looked.

The head rolled through the dirt before finally stopping near the orphanage entrance. My stomach twisted, and I clapped a hand over my mouth to keep from screaming.

My brother’s eyes widened.

He rocked forward onto his toes as if he was about to run toward me, but I gave a small shake of my head.

Don’t move.

The mountain man continued toward the ship as if nothing had happened.

I followed silently.

The ramp sealed shut with a hiss, and moments later the ground disappeared beneath my feet.

Inside the ship, I ended up squeezed between two bulky Volcans who smelled like rotten eggs, dirt, and something even worse. Covering my nose didn’t help much.

Their dark skin was covered in tattoos, and their belts carried enough beam and core pistols to start a small war.

“Give the girl something to eat,” the giant called from the pilot’s seat.

One of the Volcans reached into his pocket, pulled out a ration bar, and handed it over.

I tore the wrapper open and devoured the entire thing before I even thought about chewing properly.

The second bar disappeared almost as fast. With my mouth still full, I peeked through the viewport. Volcanoes drifted beneath the clouds as we flew, their peaks poking through the haze. Everything was so tiny from up here.

Maybe that’s what he saw whenever he stared at me.

The thought stayed with me for the rest of the flight.

When we finally landed, the four of us stepped outside and stopped in front of a tall, gray building. Several windows were broken, and parts of the roof looked like they had been blasted apart years ago.

The mountain man approached and handed me a communication device.

“Go around back,” he said. “Take the service stairs all the way to the top floor.”

My attention shifted toward the broken walls, but a sharp snap of his fingers pulled my eyes back to him.

He knelt next to me. “Once inside, find the room with the newest door.”

His wrist bracelet flashed, projecting a three-dimensional image between us.

A large metallic container hovered above the floor.

It was shiny, very shiny.

“See this?” he asked.

I nodded.

“If you find it, press this button twice.” He pointed to the device's side buttons. “Then leave immediately and return to the ship. Understood?”

I quickly nodded again.

He studied me for a moment before standing up and turning away. He and the other two Volcans headed through the main entrance while I stared at the floating image one last time.

Then I held the communicator tighter and hurried toward the back.

One guard lingered near the back of the building, but the moment voices started shouting from inside, he glanced toward the noise and hurried after everyone else.

Good, my turn.

I sprinted for the service stairs.

Sweat stung my eyes as I stepped onto the top floor. I wiped it away with the back of my hand and slipped through the doorway.

The halls were enormous compared to the orphanage. There were barely any walls, only wide-open spaces that let every voice echo up from the lower floors. Somewhere below, people argued loudly enough that I could hear every other word.

The newest door wasn’t hard to find.

It practically glowed.

As soon as I approached, the device beeped twice, and it slid open with a hiss.

I stepped inside.

The metallic box floated exactly where he’d shown me.

That was easy.

“Hey!”

The shout nearly made me jump out of my skin.

A large man stepped out from behind it.

My fingers mashed the communicator's button as I spun around and bolted for the exit.

I almost made it.

A hand caught the back of my shirt and lifted me clean off the floor. My legs kept running anyway, kicking uselessly through the air before I was tossed sideways into the container.

The impact rattled my teeth.

Stars exploded across my vision.

I blinked hard, trying to make them go away, and when my eyes finally focused again, the tall man was standing over me.

“Who are you?” He frowned, lips pressed tight.

Before I could answer, shouting erupted somewhere below us, followed by the first blast.

Another followed, then several more, until the entire place shook.

His head whipped around toward the doorway. Drawing a beam pistol, he rushed out without waiting for an answer.

Great. Go away.

Holding my aching head, I pushed myself upright and stumbled toward the back stairs. The air already smelled of ozone and burned metal, and every few seconds another explosion sent vibrations through the floor under my feet.

Halfway down, a blast thundered somewhere nearby.

The wall shook, and dust poured from the ceiling.

I dropped to my hands and knees as smoke rolled through the corridor and chunks of debris crashed onto the steps around me.

Crawling my way back to the stairs, I worked my way down one step at a time while blasts continued to shake the walls. Every explosion sent more debris drifting from the ceiling, and the shouting below never seemed to stop.

I slowed at the front entrance and peered outside. The giant and the others were nowhere in sight.

For a moment, I considered running.

The idea lasted all of two seconds.

Even if I escaped, I didn’t know how to fly a ship, and I had no idea where my brother was. Worse, if someone found a small kid wandering around alone, they’d probably dump me in another children’s home.

No thanks.

Spinning on my heel, I sprinted toward the ship instead. My bare feet slapped against the metal ramp as I climbed inside and started searching. If he was in trouble, then maybe I could help.

Storage compartments, cabinets, and every drawer I could pry open yielded nothing but tools, cables, and parts I didn’t recognize. Frustration was already building when a small, sealed box caught my attention beneath one of the seats.

“This can work,” I muttered, dropping to my knees.

The nearest toolbox gave me an idea when I spotted a laser screwdriver.

The tip glowed to life with a faint whine as I pressed it against the metal seam and began cutting. Sparks danced across the floor while the smell of burned metal curled into my nose, but I kept going until the opening was wide enough to fit my finger through.

Then I saw them.

Two orb-blasters.

“Yes!” My heart jumped.

I snatched both spheres and scrambled back to my feet. If the giant lost whatever fight was happening inside that place, I was probably in trouble too. But if I helped him win, I’d get food, new clothes, and maybe even another mission.

Clutching them tightly, I took off running back toward the building.

The shouting and the blast had died down by the time I climbed onto a stack of crates and peeked through a broken window.

“You double-crossed us!” someone shouted before firing toward a column.

Near the far side of the warehouse, the mountain man and his two helpers blasted back while three others retreated toward the rear exit.

“They’re going to leave with the box.” I fumbled with the spheres, turning them until my thumb found a row of tiny buttons. “If I stay here, he’ll get angry. If those guys win, they’ll probably get rid of me.”

The devices flickered green as the ignition sequence completed.

A grin tugged at my mouth. “But if I help him, I go back to my brother.”

I hurled both orb-blasters through the broken window as hard as I could toward the retreating men. The warning beeps sped up faster and faster, and I threw myself off the crates just before the explosion hit.

The blast swallowed everything.

Light flashed white across my vision, followed by a thunderous crack that rattled my teeth. I curled into a ball as pieces of wood, dust, and debris crashed down around me.

Then everything went dark.

“Kid?”

The voice sounded far away.

“Kid!”

Closer this time.

“Keep looking.”

“Yes, boss,” another voice answered as boots crunched across the floor.

A moment later, bright light pierced through the darkness as crates were lifted away one by one. Somebody grabbed me under the arm and pulled me free.

My hands flew to my ears.

The giant was talking, but all I could hear was muffled noise.

“Did I grow?” I asked.

His laugh boomed loud enough to shake my chest, and a second later my ears popped. The world rushed back into focus, and I realized he was carrying me like I weighed nothing.

He took me back to the ship and dropped into the pilot’s seat while the other two secured the shiny container behind us.

“Let’s go get you some shoes and new clothes.” He flashed a grin, revealing dark teeth that caught the light.

“I’m hungry too.” My fingers tightened around the harness buckle.

The mountain man laughed again as he adjusted the controls.

“You got it, kid. And it’s time you learned how to shoot properly.” His eyes flicked toward me for a moment. “No more orb-blasters for now.”

My plan had worked.

He needed to trust me.

He needed to teach me.

And I needed to grow.

Once I got rid of him, no other kid would disappear.

He just didn’t know he was training his worst enemy.