The Legend of Earth

Chapter 21



Adam’s day wasn’t going as well as Nigel McCarthy’s. All the prisoners had been taken to another tent and tied to the center support poles. They now sat on the grassy floor, struggling as best they could against their restraints. The tent served as some sort of workshop and storage facility, with several long benches set along the canvas walls of the tent and a prodigious number of crates stacked to the rear. They were offered no food or drink.

Jym was apoplectic, while Kaylor tried to assure him that it was only Adam and the other Humans the Kracori were interested in.

“Our races are known well to the Expansion, Jym,” Kaylor said. “Nothing will be gained by testing us.”

“And yet we always seem to be included in whatever misfortune befalls them.”

“That could be as much our fault as theirs—”

“I would say it’s more your fault, Kaylor. It was you who first brought Adam aboard the FS-475 so many years ago. You should have left him to die.”

“Hey, relax you two,” Adam said. “And thanks for that, Jym –

left me to die?”

“I’m only being practical, Adam,” Jym defended. “Many of the recent events in the galaxy would have unfolded just as they have if we had not met you, yet Kaylor and I would have continued with our lives unmolested – if not for you.”

Adam leaned his head back against the metal pole and closed his eyes. Jym was probably right. The sequence of events of the past three years had already been put in motion hundreds of years before Adam came along. He just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Now here he was, sitting on the grass of the planet Juir and about to tested – whatever that means – by a race of creatures who just kicked the ass of the most powerful force in the galaxy.

No matter how limited the Kracori time on Juir may be they had definitely left their mark on the planet for millennia to come. What the Humans would do with the burned out hulk of a planet when they arrived, Adam had no idea. Besides, with the Juireans essentially demoted now to third-world status, the fleet wouldn’t have much to do once they got here. With Juir already destroyed, the fleet might just simply turn around and go home.

But Adam couldn’t let the rest of them know how hopeless he felt their situation to be. After all, he was the great Adam Cain, Starfighter Extraordinaire!

“It will all work out, Jym,” he finally said without opening his eyes. “Trust me. We’ve gotten out of worst situations than this before.”

Jym stared at Adam for several moments before replying. “Seriously – when?”

Adam could only answer with was a grin and shrug. From her place next to him, Sherri just snorted.

About an hour later three large Kracori came and took Adam away. A few minutes after that two more entered the tent, and after eyeing the prisoners for a few moments, took seats at the benches. Only one of the Kracori was wearing a sidearm and appeared to be a guard. The other was a technician of some kind.

Adam was half pulled and dragged to a nearby tent. The interior of this one was nearly empty, just a large open area that had been set up as some kind of viewing area. Two rows of seats had been arranged along one side of the arena and even now about a dozen Kracori were milling about, taking seats and drinking from large, metal mugs. As Adam was brought in, they all looked at him with amused curiosity, like some circus animal being paraded before the crowd. This was entertainment, and after five days of intense action against the planet Juir, the Kracori officers could sure use a diversion about now. Adam Cain was to be that diversion.

Adam was placed at the center of the grass-floored display area and his bindings removed. He had no idea what the test would entail, but he figured it probably would be a physical contest of some kind, since the Kracori appeared to pride themselves on their strength and aggressiveness. It would also be to the death – his. That’s normally how these things went.

A few minutes later Jonnif entered, chatting jovially with his omnipresent companion Mininof. He barely acknowledged Adam, who stood in the middle of the arena feeling awkward and unsure. The Klin had chosen the Kracori as their physical surrogates for a reason, just as they had the Humans. Yet to the Klin, the Humans were expendable, simply to be used as fodder to reduce the Juireans numbers. The Kracori, on the other hand, had been selected to accompany the Klin all the way to Juir. Adam snickered to himself; somewhere along the way, the Klin missed the boarding call.

After passing through the crowd and sharing pleasantries, Jonnif moved into the arena and approached Adam. The Kracori commander had changed clothes. He now wore a pair of impossibly short shorts and a half-shirt of some kind with a black swatch cutting diagonally from the left shoulder to where the shirt ended just under his rib cage. Adam could see the muscles of the creature’s abdomen, showing a nicely defined six-pack. Although the outfit looked gay, the Kracori himself was intimidating.

“Adam Cain,” Jonnif said, more to the crowd than to him. “You are the first Human any of us have seen in person, although we have been aware of your race for a hundred years or more. The Klin looked upon the Humans as mere savages, but useful savages. Being much more patient than we Kracori, the Klin waited until your race had advanced enough technologically before you could play a part in their ultimate plan. With a little nudge here and there, you progressed nicely.”

Jonnif moved to face him, standing only a few inches away. “But all you ever were to them was meat – but strong meat – born on a heavy-gravity rock and possessed of a combination of strength and agility rarely found in the galaxy – just as the Kracori.” A cheer rose up from the audience. “Yet unlike your race, we do not war amongst our own kind, at least we haven’t in over five thousand years.”

He turned back to the crowd with a flourish of his hand. “However, even now members of your own race betray you for nothing more than monetary gain. It is revealed now, Adam Cain, that the one trait that has made you so valuable to the Klin is the fact that you have never stopped warring amongst your kind. This shows that you will kill no matter the enemy. This trait has also made you adept at all the strategies and tactics associated with war – as well as quite the unpredictable type. As the Klin have said – savages.”

He turned to face Adam again. “I will now test that prowess. We will have a contest; I will not seek to kill you – at least not yet. However, if this test reaches the point when it appears you may kill me…” He drew out the sentence as several members of the audience laughed. “…then my companions here will descend upon you for a few moments of sport themselves. If you are lucky, you will survive their actions; let me correct myself – if you are unlucky you will survive. That would just mean another session and even more entertainment.

“The assault on Juir has been rather disappointing for warriors like the Kracori. We had been hoping for more face-to-face combat with the Juireans. Unfortunately, even as we begin our more intense sweep of the planet, the officer corps here rarely has the opportunity to experience combat first-hand. As a warrior yourself, I’m sure you are aware of such a division of labor. So as long as you live, we will make sport of you – and also of the other Humans we have captured.” He turned back to the crowd and smiled. “I only wish there were more of you!” The crowd roared.

“Give it a few more months and you’ll be up to your a*sholes in Humans.”

Jonnif turned to Adam, never losing the smile. “Ah yes, your fleet! I almost forgot.” As he took a step in closer his smile disappeared. “Your fleet will not be arriving anytime soon, Adam Cain – or ever for that matter.”

The seriousness of Jonnif’s words made Adam cringe. “What do you mean?”

“I mean soon your fleet will be returning to your homeworld, there to tend to the massive destruction wrought by the Kracori nuclear strike upon your Earth.”

Adam felt the blood drain from his face. Could the Kracori be speaking the truth? “Bullshit, Jonnif!”

“Bull…shit? What an interesting phrase. What does it mean?”

“It means you’re lying.”

“Jonnif turned to his audience of Kracori officers. “Am I telling a none-truth, my Ludifs?”

Uniformly the crowd shook their heads and said no, some even calling out: Death to the Humans, let them all die!

When Jonnif turned back to face Adam, he wore the most diabolically-satisfying look Adam had ever seen on a living creature. “It is true, Adam Cain. Within a very short time – days as a matter of fact – a Kracori force will be arriving to ravage your home planet with enough nuclear death and destruction to render it uninhabitable for hundreds of years. Your fleet will have no choice to break off and return to Earth like a whipped krymelic. The Legend of Earth will be broken forever. Without the resources of your planet to supply the bodies and tools of war, the Human race will cease to be a significant player in galactic affairs. The Kracori will remain on Juir and within the Alliance Cluster. We will continue to hunt down all surviving Juireans, and we Kracori will rule the galaxy for thousands of years to come!”

He stepped away from Adam, who now stood with his mouth agape, feeling dizzy and drained from the Jonnif’s sincere revelation. He wasn’t lying; he had taken too much satisfaction from the telling of his story to be making it up. And then something stuck in Adam’s mind: within a very short period of time – days! So the attack has not occurred yet! Would it be possible for Adam to warn the Earth of the impending attack? Possible, but not while standing in the middle of a fighting arena on the planet Juir….

Adam took a deep breath and felt his energy return. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. “F*ck you, Jonnif!” he yelled. “Let’s get this thing started!”

Jonnif turned back to him, a look of confusion on his face. “I am truly puzzled, Adam Cain. You wish to engage me in a sexual act, just as we are preparing to fight? Are the mating rituals on Earth ones of such physical combat and submission? If so, then you truly are savage.”

Jonnif squared up his stance. “Then let us begin. I will go first.”

Adam was stunned by the remark, not understanding what the Kracori meant. But suddenly Jonnif stepped forward and swung out with his right arm. He was fast, faster than any other creature Adam had fought since being cast into the galaxy, but Adam was able to easily dodge the blow and sweep the Kracori’s arm away with his own. Jonnif looked stunned, yet he countered quickly with a left hook that came at Adam from way too far out, like what you’d see in a schoolyard fight as two young boys flailed away at each other. The Kracori may be warriors, Adam thought, but they obviously don’t know any real hand-to-hand fighting techniques.

As he swept away the Jonnif’s arm, Adam grabbed his left wrist and twisted it backwards, spinning the Kracori around and pressing the alien’s arm against his back. Next, Adam clamped his right arm around Jonnif’s chest and pulled him tight. For a moment Jonnif struggled against Adam’s hold, but was unable to break free.

And then the most remarkable thing happened: The Kracori’s head twisted 180-degrees around, until their two faces were only inches apart. Jonnif smiled – and then spit in Adam’s face!

He released the alien and staggered back, wiping the disgusting spittle from his face. He had no idea what kind of alien germs could be contained in the sticky liquid. And they call us savages!

Jonnif took the opportunity to lower his shoulder and charge at Adam. In the light gravity of Juir, the Kracori was extremely fast and he impacted Adam with a force that knocked the wind out of his lungs and sent him crashing to the ground. Immediately, Jonnif was on top of him, striking his face with blow after incredibly-strong blow.

Stunned, Adam kicked up with his right knee, hitting Jonnif in the back and sending him rolling over Adam’s head. Recovering quickly from the blows he’d suffered, Adam scrambled around and fell on Jonnif’s back, pressing the alien’s body into the grassy floor of the arena. He then sent a powerful fist into Jonnif’s ribcage – once, then twice.

The Kracori cried out in pain and managed to roll over, dislodging Adam from his back. Now on his knees, Adam struck a strong right cross into Jonnif’s chin. The creature’s eyes grew wide at first, and then the eyelids began to flutter. Adam followed with another strong fist to the same region and Jonnif collapsed to the ground.

Adam’s victory was short-lived, however, as he suddenly felt his body pommelled by kick after kick to his ribs and face. One of the kicks sent him rolling over onto his back, where a flurry of booted feet came crashing down upon him. Within moments, the kicks had no further affect, as Adam slipped into the numb blackness of peaceful unconsciousness.