Chapter 8

“Attention passengers, we will be landing shortly. Please remain seated with your seatbelts on,” the pilot said.

Drayk awoke and looked around. He saw that the rest of his team were already awake except Ashor who was still sleeping. He looked out the window and saw nothing but red desert. The sun was high in the sky and beamed down on the ship. Drayk could feel the heat of the sun from the window. He was surprised to see that the sun was still out until he remembered that it was early morning here in the Ridgeyawn desert.

“Fuck it looks hot out there!” Nuum said. “Captain, I think I would rather fly back with this ship. I hate the heat.”

Drayk laughed. “Too late, Nuum. You better get hydrated because we are all going out there. Weren’t you the first one to say that you wanted to depart ASAP?”

‘I wasn’t in the right mind, Captain. I was still kind of drunk since last night,” Nuum said. There was a grin on her face.

“Bullshit! You are never drunk!” Drayk said. It was true. Nuum could really hold her liquor. Everyone could except for Fio who could not drink more than two drinks before she had to be carried out of the bar.

Fio looked over at her lover. “No complaining, baby. We are going to find those teraks and bring them back.”

“I just hope we don’t melt out there,” Nuum said nervously.

Ashor woke up and looked at the team as if wondering where she was. She stretched her neck and grabbed at the right side again.

“Are we landing already?” Ashor asked Drayk.

“Yes. How are you feeling?”

“I still feel like shit. My fucking neck is killing me. How about you?” She asked him.

“I still feel weak and tired but I’ll manage. We will definitely need to wear the light armor suits while we are here. The heat is going to be intense,” Drayk said. “We’ll head out with Dart Blasters and have Briji carry a Red Rifle with him in addition to a blaster.”

“Ok. The nano cases will reshape to a smaller size right?” She asked him.

“Yes. We can carry those in our pockets. I just want to make sure we have some weapons in case we come across some combatants out there,” Drayk said. “There isn’t supposed to be a Me’ria presence on this planet but who the hell knows if the military is aware of what is truly out in the desert.”

“Do you remember hearing stories about the Merton people who lived out in the deserts on many planets?” Ashor asked him.

Drayk nodded. The Merton were a wondering group of people who lived specifically in remote desert areas on many of the planets throughout the galaxy. They worshipped various desert gods and chose to live a life separate from society. Drayk had never met one but had heard about their presence on Bhuio while he was out there for combat training. He had heard the Merton people were peaceful and practiced non-violence. They abhorred weapons or any devices that could cause harm to others.

“You think they are out here?” Ashor asked him.

“I don’t know,” Drayk said. “If they have come across teraks, there would be no way we would know because they don’t interact with society.”

“We are descending now. Please remain seated,” the pilot said.

The spaceship descended slowly to the port on the base. The engines winded down then Drayk and his team grabbed their gear. The ramp descended and the heat hit them all instantly. Nuum made a surprised sound.

There was a lieutenant waiting for them at the end of the ramp. He was young. No more than 26 at the most. He saluted Captain Drayk as he walked down the ramp. Drayk saluted him back.

“Welcome, Captain Drayk and Lt. Ashor. My name is Lt. Hweg Gaja. We have a vehicle ready for you to head out to your mission,” Lt. Gaja said. Drayk shook the lieutenant’s hand.

“Thank you, Gaja. We will head out immediately.” Drayk was a little surprised that they were not going to the main headquarters before undertaking their mission. Drayk did not think the lieutenant had been fully briefed on their mission and did not know why they were heading out into the Ridgeyard desert. The mission had to be classified.

Drayk and his team headed out to the vehicle that waited for them. They packed their gear inside and Nuum got behind the wheel.

“I thought we would get a chance to take a look around the town but I guess not,” Nuum said.

“No time especially if we may be saving the galaxy, baby,” Fio said. She sat up front with Nuum. Ashor and Drayk sat behind them while Briji was in the back and did not seem to have an opinion on the matter.