Chapter 4: The M’Goo

I woke up to find D’Monds shaking me gently by the shoulder.

“Time for us to go, Brian,” he said.

I nodded and got to my feet. My legs were stiff and my back ached from lying on the cave floor.

Soon we left the cave. The sun had gone down below the horizon. Soon it would be dark.

We resumed our journey and travelled late into the night. I couldn’t tell where I was in the darkness, but my guides knew. I hoped we encountered no more Haku along the way.

When dawn came, we were travelling along a valley between two ranges of hills. The path led uphill by the side of a stream. I wondered if it had the carnivorous fish or was it safe to bathe in the water.

I had a lot to learn about this planet.

The path ended at a delightful waterfall. The waterfall cascaded down the cliff into a pool before continuing down the valley.

I followed my hosts around the side of the pool until we were close enough to feel the mist on our faces. I looked at my hosts, waiting for their next move.

D’Monds glanced at me before he stepped right through the rock. Others followed him, and in my turn, I followed. The cliff wasn’t solid at all. It was a hologram!

This side of the waterfall opened into a large box canyon, with various structures, and beyond them were fields.

I looked back at the hologram. Higher up was a stone aqueduct that supplied the water for the fake waterfall. The water was real, but the cliff wasn’t.

I turned to find D’Monds watching me.

“You’re the first outsider to see that,” he said.

“I’m honoured. I presume that’s why the Trauts haven’t found you,” I said.

“We’d like to keep it that way,” he said. His face suggested more than his words, perhaps even a hint of an implied threat.

I looked him in the eye and nodded. A moment later, he shrugged.

“Let’s get cleaned up and rested,” he said.

We moved further into the canyon, to their settlement. The M’goo structures had a more advanced look to them. He dropped me off at a structure.

“We talk later. You rest,” he said.

Inside, I found a room with a bed, bath, and table. I saw food and water on the table. I didn’t bother to check for a guard.

After two days forced march, I needed to get cleaned. So I bathed, ate a little, then lay down to sleep. I couldn’t help wondering if I was better or worse here.

I woke up later in the day feeling refreshed. All this walking was good for my stamina.

I rolled out of bed and looked outside the window. Two beings were lounging around nearby, which didn’t surprise me.

Once I was ready, I opened the door to my structure and stepped outside to meet them.

They quickly jumped to attention, and one of them spoke to me.

“You come this way,” he said, gesturing to his left.

We walked together until we reached another structure, where we found D’Monds sat on a bench under a porch.

He stood when he saw me.

“Brian, are you rested?” he asked. I didn’t get the uncomfortable foreboding I had with Krolos. The question seemed genuine.

“Yes, thank you,” I replied.

“Come, sit with me,” he said.

I smiled and moved to sit beside him.

“So why am I here?” I asked.

“We learned of you. Krolos would use you to kill M’goo,” he replied.

“I don’t want to kill others,” I said.

“Then he kill you,” he said.

“And you don’t want my help to kill Trauts?” I asked.

“No. We want to be left alone. That’s all,” he said. He sounded sincere.

“You went a long way to help me,” I said.

“You big magic, kill Haku,” he said.

I smiled.

“I kill one Haku and everyone thinks I have big magic!”

“So it’s true?” he asked.

“I was lucky. Haku flew down, I moved, and he crashed,” I replied. I gestured with my arms, showing how the event happened.

“Big luck is big magic,” he said.

It was hard to argue.

A female M’goo arrived with a tray of food and placed it on a table in front of us. We paused our discussion to enjoy a late meal.

“You’re not M’goo or Trauts, yet you speak our language?” he asked.

I smiled.

“I come from far away, where we speak it. There, we call it Baglogi,” I said.

“I don’t know that word,” he said.

“You have been here a long time?” I asked.

“As long as we can remember,” he replied.

“Did you create the hologram?” I asked.

“Huh?”

“I mean the waterfall. Was that your doing?” I asked.

“It has been there a long time. We believe our ancestors made it,” he replied.

“Let me guess, it’s big magic?” I asked.

He nodded emphatically.

“This magic is familiar to me,” I said.

His eyes lit up, and he grinned. “Then perhaps you can help fix it.”

Several days later, the hyper-drive went offline. Ship arrived in a new system.

Jem and Laine stood, watching the tactical display.

“What do we know about this system?” asked Jem.

“It’s our first visit here. I am gathering data now,” replied Ship.

Several planets appeared on the tactical display as Ship’s probes explored the system.

“Ensign, does this system have an obelisk?” asked Jem.

“No, Commodore,” said Laine.

“Populated?” asked Jem.

“Unknown,” said Laine.

Jem sighed. She turned and walked to the food dispenser. She got herself a coffee and sat on the sofa.

“Ship, you have more probes ready to go?” she asked.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“They have the narrowed search list?”

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

“Send the probes now,” ordered Jem.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

Blue dots emerged from Ship on the tactical display.

“I’ve a feeling there’s nothing here for us,” she said.

Laine turned to her and nodded grimly.

“Once we confirm there’s nothing of interest here, we’ll move on to our next destination.”

“Fix it? Your waterfall illusion worked fine when I arrived,” I said.

“Sometimes it flickers. I believe the magic is failing,” said D’Monds.

Now I know why they brought me here. Krolos expected me to destroy the M’goo. D’Monds wanted me to fix their hologram. Either way, I’d be disturbing the natural course of events. I had to leave this planet soon!

“Perhaps tomorrow,” I said. By then circumstances might change. I needed time to consider my actions and the consequences.

D’Monds smiled at me.

“The M’goo are peaceful. We hide from the Trauts because they want us dead,” he said.

“And this magic allows you to hide,” I said.

He nodded.

“It harms no one. It protects us,” he said.

Without the hologram the Trauts might find and destroy them. The M’goo might attack the Trauts. It was the less disruptive choice.

“I’ll look at it in the morning,” I said. I didn’t know if I’d regret the decision.

“Thank you!” he said.

“I don’t have any tools or supplies, but I’ll see what I can do,” I said.

A while later, I returned to my structure to rest.

The next morning, I rose and got ready for the day. I stepped outside to meet D’Monds. He was keen, that was certain.

“Good morning, Brian,” he said with enthusiasm.

“Good morning, D’Monds. Let’s see your big magic,” I said.

He walked with me back to the waterfall. I stood there, looking at the gap in the cliff, the aqueduct.

“Do you have scouts in the valley?” I asked.

“Yes,” he replied.

“Good,” I said.

First, I had to locate the holo-projectors. Based on the area projected, they’d have to be along the sides of the opening. I walked over to one side and studied the area carefully.

Something about half-way up the side caught my eye. That led to my first problem. The rock was too steep to climb.

“I need a ladder to climb up there,” I said, pointing at the rock.

He nodded, then spoke with another M’goo. They ran off to fetch a ladder.

Soon, I had a crude ladder. I asked D’Monds to steady it, while I climbed up to examine the area.

Recessed into the rock, I found a holo-projector, together with bits of rock and years of dust. I reached in to remove the larger bits.

Below me was shouting and general panic. They were pointing at the hologram.

I looked behind me and saw part of the waterfall was missing. My hand was blocking the light from the holo-projector.

I removed my hand from the hole and came down the ladder.

“Sorry about that!,” I said.

“It looked like a giant spider on the rocks,” said D’Monds.

“The magic is quite dusty up there. I need a damp cloth to wipe it clean,” I said.

D’Monds spoke with another, who fetched a cloth and dipped it in the nearby pool.

“I’m just going back up to clean it. Please warn everyone,” I said.

He nodded and passed the word to everyone.

I climbed up and wiped around the holo-projector, paying attention to the lens. I also wiped around the inside of the hole to remove as much dust as possible.

Once finished, I climbed down and washed the cloth in the pool.

Several M’goo watched me as I worked on their waterfall.

I returned to D’Monds and pointed to the other side.

We soon moved the ladder in place, and I climbed up and did my magic. This time, the M’goo understood and didn’t panic.