Colony

The sky was one solid sheet of gray as Marantha looked out over
the forest from the edge of the cliff. She scanned the panorama before
her, deciding her next move. Fingers of mist dipped down to touch the
trees in various places. Nothing moved. Even the air was dead.
She looked back over her shoulder into the cave; almost wishing
she could go back to sleep. But she knew she had to set out. Ronar had
to be told of Tolin’s death. They could no longer ignore the warnings
of the Old Ones. The time had come for all to act.
Resolutely, she pulled herself up to her full height, spread her
wings and took to the air.
Immediately, she had to pull up. Normally, she could ride the
thermals for hours, but this time something was different. It was
almost as if the air was too lifeless to support her.
She made her way toward the Sherot colony, winding here and
there. All the way she was thinking she may find something, although
she had no idea what that might be. Perhaps she was looking for a way
to avoid telling Ronar her news. She was still searching for it when
she reached her destination.
As she approached the village, she thought about how peaceful
life in this area was. Thin trails of smoke drifted up slowly from
several chimneys and gathered at a point above the town. Usually, there
was a soft breeze blowing from the sea, pushing the smoke into the
hills. Today it just hung there, as if it were an omen for the fate of
the village.

She landed in the clearing and walked slowly to where Ronar’s

dwelling place was. Now that she was here, she had to formulate the
words to say.
“Marantha!” Ronar called from inside. “Come. Kneel with us for
the morning food!” Marantha stepped up to Ronar; took his arm in
greeting. The smile disappeared from Ronar’s face as he looked into her
eyes. “What is wrong? Does something trouble you?”
“Tolin is dead. The Quaaxar got him last night as he was scouting
the rim for stones. I would have come straight, but I was too weary
then. I needed rest.” Marantha turned her eyes toward the ground. She
could not keep the sight of the Quaaxar grabbing Tolin from her mind.

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 Colony
“I would have helped but I knew they’d have gotten me too! I
could only remain hidden until they left.” Tears were streaming down
her cheeks.
Gravely Ronar said, “Come, we must tell the Old Ones.”

The Old Ones had been warning them for some time that the Quaaxar
were changing. No longer were they just unintelligent beings intent
only on warring between themselves. They were beginning to band
together. Reports were heard from several of the villages that large
bands of them were raiding. Now there were fewer villages and the
Quaaxar were getting worse.
These Quaaxar lived in the jungles away from the villages. They
would often be seen near the rim scouting for food. Tolin had seen them
there, but they had always left him alone. At least before.
“So. It has come to pass.” The Old One was looking at the floor
through glassy eyes. Ronar could not tell if it was from emotion or
age. He looked up. “The time has come.” He turned and walked slowly
toward the door. “Call Council tonight at the clearing. All shall
attend.” He was gone.

Marantha came in for a landing at the clearing crowded with

others gathered for the Council. Scouts had been sent out to the five
remaining villages to bring word of the meeting.
She looked at the assembled masses and thought, “There must be
more that would not come. Our numbers could not have grown so small!”
There were only about 60 of them there.
She went looking for Ronar and found him over at the edge of the
group with his family. The usual laughter and jovial talk heard when
the village gathered for council was replaced by only hushed tones.
They all knew what the council was about; many even knew what the
outcome would be. Utter silence fell over the group as the Old Ones
stepped up on the dais. Slowly they moved across to the seats that had
been brought for them.
After a moment one of the Old Ones rose and stepped forward. “My
people, we have lived a hard life in this settlement. We have faced
many obstacles in establishing a colony here. It now looks as if we
have met our final obstacle. We have been receiving reports that

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 Colony
Quaaxar are proving too strong for us. We see little choice but to
fight.”
A murmur ran heavily through the crowd, although only a few were
surprised. After a short time, the Old One continued. “We will begin
the assault at Stars Rise on the morrow. Jonak, Lenthree and Ronar.
Come to my dwelling. We will organize the plan.” He stepped back from
the edge and looked at his companions, then proceeded to leave the
dais.
All of the adults in this colony were trained as warriors in case
of such an event. But now that the event had arrived, fear still crept
into their hearts. They had had to function as little more than hunters
since their arrival 17 years before from their home planet.

Marantha looked over to Ronar who was saying goodbye to his

family. He looked up to see Marantha. “I will request that you are in
my battalion.” She said nothing but nodded her head in agreement.
He grasped the arm of his mate, stared at her for some time, then
turned on his heels and strode away toward the Old Ones dwelling. They
watched as he walked away through the crowd.
Marantha refused an offer to stay at Ronar’s place from his mate
then moved off to wait her turn at the runway in the clearing. Myriad
thoughts were playing themselves across her mind. She never thought the
Quaaxar could ever produce enough intelligence to fight a battle.
Evidently she was wrong.
She returned to her cave and spent the night in fitful sleep.

Marantha touched down in the clearing shortly before dawn.

Ronar’s troops were mustering near the south end. He was giving general
information about the plan.
“We are going to scout along the Rim.” He looked toward Marantha
but her gaze was to the ground. “Scouts say there is a large Quaaxar
encampment near the bottom of the valley there and we will assail them
upon Lenthree’s signal. They will be coming in from the south while
Jonak’s group will attack a smaller settlement farther north. If we are
successful, we will gather again at the north end of the valley.”
Mechanically, Marantha followed the others as they lined up to
receive their weapons and gear. Mentally she was not prepared for this,

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 Colony
even though she had witnessed the aggressive act that was the final
element leading up to this.
Shortly they were assembled into ranks and began their individual
takeoffs into flight toward the Rim.
From the position they had taken, Ronar’s group could survey a
large area of the surrounding flatlands. The early morning sun was
shining over their shoulders through cloudless skies and the Rim cast a
long black shadow over the trees. Looking towards the lower foothills,
Ronar spotted the other two groups taking up their stations.
“From here we will zone off the flatland one section at a time.”
Ronar was relaying the final consensus of the previous nights meeting
with the Old Ones. “We’ll need a volunteer to go out across the field
and scout out Quaaxar positions.” He looked at one young male. “Ro—“
“I’ll go!”
The voice startled Ronar. It did not come from the one whom he
was addressing. Marantha stepped forward. Ronar looked at her, eyes
questioning.
“I shall go.” She repeated. “It is perhaps something I could do
for Tolin.” She glanced toward the group and back to Ronar.
“If you must.” He walked with her to the edge to discuss the
region to survey and she was off. He stood silently for a time watching
her fly out over the forest and slowly begin her descent to the level
of the trees. The he returned to the group to wait.
Soon a lookout sent word back that she was coming into land, and
Ronar stepped forward to greet her.
She was coming in fast. Ronar breathed in sharply when he saw the
arrow, sticking out of her breast like a quill. He called to his aide
and they caught her as she touched down hard.
Being careful not to twist the shaft, they lay her down on the
dirt and the aide began to search for the end of the arrow. She
motioned him away.
“I’m dying.” She said through clenched jaws. “ We’re finished.
They’re more advanced than we thought. You must prepare yourselves.”
Ronar watched as her eyes closed and the last breath drifted
slowly from her body. Behind him he heard the first whine of laser fire
as his group began defending themselves against the oncoming hoard.

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