The Calm (Short Story)

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Source

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

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Gaan brought up a holo-projection of the compound and looked over it. The main gate was the obvious entry point. Unguarded. The gates seem to have been damaged. One missing, and the other bent and broken. Klennu's scans showed that the gate that remained was buried in about 2 feet of desert sand.

Walking into the compound boldly would certainly make for a good entrance, but the element of surprise would be given up if they had some sort of security system in place.

He swiped his hand carefully, and the projection rotated. The Eastern wall was broken, but not entirely breached. Debris lay scattered inside and out, that too had been eaten by the desert. Banks crawled up each wall, which would make even undamaged sections easy to hoist himself over.

From the corner of his eye he noticed a glare. The small metal orb had returned.

"There you are," Klennu said, feigning breathlessness.

"Here I am," Gaan replied, still looking at the image of the compound. He reached out a hand, the orb landed making his hand dip slightly and he reattached it to his belt.

"The Eastern wall does seem like your best bet, but then you'll have to walk the length of the open yard to get to your target." Klennu said after a few moments of silence.

"Not ideal," Gaan replied. He swiped his hand once more and the image rotated. The Northern wall seemed like the best bet. He could climb it and then land nestled between the wall and the buildings. Through that alley he could walk right around the buildings and through the main entrance.

His hand followed his thoughts, expanding areas, and moving the projection while he was thinking.

"Seems like a solid plan, but you know, you could avoid walking through the main entrance." Klennu said. "There's a breach near the back of the first building you'll encounter. You could get through that and be right in there."

"Interesting," Gaan said. "I think I'll do that then. Any idea what's in that room?"

"I'm afraid not, I didn't want to risk moving inside. I could if you want, but expect the sky-seer to be damaged or taken."

"With it would be our element of surprise. No, I'll chance it." Gaan replied.

Gaan toggle a switch on the side of his helmet, and with it, the image faded away, leaving him in total darkness.

Lights flickered within the compound, but the vast majority remained solid.

He descended from the ridge, and walked the length of the Eastern wall. The desert was still. The serenity of it was only occasionally disturbed by the sounds of loud talking. Over the wall was his target. He continued to walk further, turning the end corner to reach a suitable section of wall.

"You'll finally get a chance to put that suit through its paces." Klennu said, as Gaan stared at the obstacle in front of him.

It seemed much taller than it did in the projection.

"You could use those directional rockets to give you a boost," Klennu said.

"Too noisy. I can manage it unaided." Gaan replied under his breath as he rested a hand on what seemed to be blast damage.

The stone felt brittle and some disintegrated beneath his weight. But, the structure remained firm enough to boost himself up. His boot found another dent, which gave him enough stability to climb higher. Slow and methodical, he continued to climb, choosing each placement carefully, until finally getting high enough to raise a hand over it. Then another. With his grip secure he pulled himself up. Kicking up, he stabilized himself. The wall felt loose. He couldn't tell if it was him swaying or the structure. He positioned himself to jump down to the alley. As he moved he could feel his perch give way beneath him.

He dived, followed by some old stone which collided with him as he landed. The rest fell back thumping against the soft sand. Debris pelted the walls of the building, and a large dust cloud formed.

Gaan dived into the shadows behind the building, avoiding any more knocks.

"That's sure to get their attention," Klennu said as the stones settled.