Alien Sky: Alien Hunters, #2

ALIEN SKY

by

Daniel Arenson

Table of Contents

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

CHAPTER THIRTY

AFTERWORD

NOVELS BY DANIEL ARENSON

KEEP IN TOUCH

CHAPTER ONE:

SPIDER WINGS

Wreathed in smoke and flame, the dragon-shaped starship swooped toward a planet of mist, rainforests, and massive winged spiders the size of pterodactyls.

Remind me again, why did we ever come here? Riff muttered.

Captain of the HMS Dragon Huntress, he sat in his suede captain's seat, clutching the frayed armrests. He wore his old jeans and a white T-shirt, and his beloved plasma gun, Ethel, hung from his hip. Sweat dripped down his forehead. Before him, through the ship's windshield, he saw swirls of clouds, a snaking river, and the jungle of Planet Adilor below.

Giga turned toward him and tilted her head. The android's black hair fell down to her chin, framing her pale face. Appropriately, she had chosen to wear a green kimono embroidered with small golden spiders.

Captain? It was your order to fly to Planet Adilor, sir. Something about . . . Mechanical clicks rose from the android as she searched her memory banks. . . . being so poor we should charge rent from the moths in our pockets.

Riff grumbled. Yes, but now we have bigger concerns than moths. Much bigger. He gulped and pointed. Much, much bigger.

Outside the windshield, a massive spider buzzed across the sky, beating translucent wings. Its belly was so large and round it put potbellied pigs to shame. Its many eyes blinked, large as human heads. With a screech, the creature whizzed away, vanishing into the mist.

Riff gulped. How many of these creatures did the colonists say are here?

Giga tilted her head to the other side, clicking and humming as she calculated. Seventeen adult spiders, Captain. And several thousand eggs at the time of our last report. She smiled sweetly. If the eggs have already hatched, then four thousand, seven hundred, and eighty-four spiders, sir.

Riff sighed as the starship kept descending. And definitely no chance the colonists would agree to let us nuke the whole damn forest from orbit, is there?

The android's smile never faltered. Not if we want to get paid, Captain.

Riff rubbed his temples. I hate my job.

The HMS Dragon Huntress kept descending through the atmosphere, heading toward the rainforest. Planet Adilor was a vast world, larger than Earth, covered with rivers, forests, and mostly harmless life—birds, fish, and fuzzy little rodents that purred when patted. A perfect planet to colonize. That is, until an asteroid covered with eggs had slammed into the surface only a few kilometers outside the colony . . . and started spewing aliens.

Alien spiders, Riff muttered. Goddamn alien spiders with goddamn wings.

And venom, sir, Giga reminded him. Quite venomous, actually. Did you know, Captain, that a single drop of Velurian spider venom can kill one thousand, three hundred and twelve and a half men? Assuming average distribution of weight, age, and health.

He wiped sweat off his brow. I think I've had enough figures for today, Giga.

The Dragon Huntress descended farther until its thruster engines blasted the forest canopy, bending trees and vines and scattering mist. Birds fled. The ship leveled off and skimmed across the treetops. Riff rose from his seat, approached the windshield, and leaned against the glass. He pointed.

There!

A few kilometers away, he saw the colony. A hundred Earth settlers had built wooden huts, a concrete silo, and a palisade of sharpened stakes. An area of forest had been cleared out, making room for a field of turnips, squash, wheat, and other produce.

Just outside the colony rose a granite mountain, its boulders and trees covered with cobwebs.

Riff winced.

The Dragon's dashboard speakers crackled to life, and a voice emerged from them, staticky, stuttering. Captain Starfire! Thank goodness you're here. They killed another colonist this morning. Oh stars . . . you have to exterminate them, you—

The voice from the speakers died with a screech of static.

Riff grimaced and clutched his gun. Giga, take us right over the mountain. Right over those cobwebs.

Giga smiled. Happy to comply, Captain!

Obeying the android's wireless signals, the Dragon Huntress shot over the colony below, its engines bending trees, scattering thatch off hut roofs, and sending laundry flying off strings. The starship soared above the mountain, the cobwebs spreading below them. Riff glimpsed several large, shadowy figures scuttling between the trees. On the mountaintop, a massive web rose like a circus tent, gleaming with pale beads like dewdrops.

Spider eggs, Riff realized. He gulped.

All right, Gig. You're in command of the ship until I get back. He patted old Ethel. Time to go hunting some aliens.

Giga saluted. Happy to comply, Captain. Good luck out there.

He nodded and left the command bridge. His boots thumped down metal stairs and along a hallway lined with doors. Finally Riff stepped into the Dragon Huntress's main deck. The couches had been pushed back against the walls, clearing a space for the landing party.

Nova was already here, clad as always in a golden catsuit, the kaijia fabric thin but hard enough to stop bullets and plasma blasts. The ashai gladiator unrolled her whip, letting the tip crackle with electricity. Large, pointy ears thrust out from between strands of her blond hair, and her green eyes shone with excitement for the hunt.

Fragging aardvarks, Riff! Nova said. Did you see the size of that one what flew by us? Goddamn bugger nearly larger than Romy's backside.

Hey! rose a voice from above. It's not my fault, Nova. It's Riff's fault for stocking so much cake in the fridge.

A hatch on the ceiling opened, and Romy leaped down onto the deck. She wobbled, fell down onto said backside, then groaned and struggled back to her feet. The demon's skin was red, her fangs long, her claws sharp. Wings spread out from her back, and a tail flicked behind her. She held a pitchfork, and fire crackled upon her head instead of hair. Despite her fearsome appearance, she clutched a teddy bear, and a cartoon dinosaur smiled on her T-shirt.

Oh hai, Captain Riff, sir! The demon squared her shoulders and saluted, dropping her pitchfork with a clatter. Cadet Romy, reporting to duty. Ready to stomp on some spiders, sir.

Romy, you are not to stomp on spiders, Riff said. Your job is to flap those demon wings of yours, fly above us, and warn us if any spiders approach. You're purely tactical cover.

Tacty-what-now? She tilted her head.

Riff groaned. Fine. Stomp on them!

Or just sit on them and squish them, Nova muttered.

The demon pouted. You're just jealous that you didn't get any cake. You— Ah!

The demon squealed, Riff cursed, and even Nova jumped. A cow-sized spider slammed against the porthole only feet away. Its mottled, bloated body pressed against the glass, its eyes blinked, and then it buzzed off.

All right, ladies. Riff hefted his gun. It's show time. Remember, we're bound by Earth laws even out here. That means we can't kill any endemic life. No stepping on local insects. No burning any birds. Can't even snap a twig without a stack of paperwork from the Humanoid Alliance. Those spiders, now, they're alien invaders, hatched off an asteroid, so they're good to kill—but we don't kill anything else. I don't want to even see anyone tear a leaf off a tree. Got it?

Nova grumbled. "Fragging Earth laws make no sense. Are you sure I can't bring any grenades?"

Riff glared at her. I told you. No grenades!

Back in Ashmar, we'd blast the whole damn forest apart. Nova sneered.

That's why Ashmar is a desolate wasteland. Riff marched toward the airlock and yanked open the inner door. Now come on. It's hunting season.

He stepped into the airlock, gun in hand, and walked down a flight of stairs. His companions walked behind, whip and pitchfork ready. At the edge of the airlock, waiting by the outer door, stood Riff's brother.

As always, Sir Steel Starfire wore his knightly armor, the metal plates polished to a shine. Solflare, his antique sword, hung at his side. The knight's brown mustache, his pride and joy, drooped down to his chin. As ever, Steel's brown eyes seemed sad, older than his years, the eyes of a man who had seen too much tragedy, felt too much pain.

Cables all set to deploy. Steel pointed at a spool near the doorway, four cables wrapped around it. We're ready.

Riff nodded. Harness up, everyone. We land by the spider eggs. He pulled on a harness and attached a cable. We kill every adult spider we see, and then we burn those damn eggs before they hatch.

Nova wriggled into a harness of her own. The ashai's eyes gleamed, and an eager smile twitched on her lips. Her hand tightened around her electric whip. Nova craved battle, Riff knew. These missions made him queasy, but she lived for them.

A few steps behind, Romy tried to wriggle into a harness too, but she ended up entangling herself in the straps and falling onto the stairs. Finally the demon managed to stand on one foot, limbs sticking out at odd angles, the harness straps stretching across her torso and face.

Ready to deploy, Captain! A strap muffled her words.

Nova grumbled. You don't even need a harness, Romy. You have wings and can fly down.