THE PLANET THAT LOVED PEOPLE (standard:science fiction, 3201 words) [7/12] show all parts
Author: Danny Raven	Added: Mar 12 2016	Views/Reads: 1686/1159	Part vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
PART 3 - CH 7

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story


Blaze's eyes widened. “Think I might go for a swim after all,” he said,
trying to sound innocent. 

He reconsidered when he saw the look Kane gave him with his steel blue
eyes. 

“On the other hand, it's probably too cold,” he wisely decided. 

Kane nodded and threw an arm round his shoulder. “She looks safe enough
out there, “he said. “It's time you learned how to make breakfast,” he 
went on, steering Blaze out of the Bridge and along to the Galley. 

“Okay,” Blaze agreed. “What are we having?” 

“Omelettes,” Kane told him. 

Blaze frowned. “How d'you make them?” 

Kane glanced at the trilling bird on his shoulder. “You need eggs. Come
on. I'll show you how it's done.” 

Half an hour later the Galley had a wonderful breakfast aroma about it
as Sarah wandered in. 

“That smells good,” she said. 

Kane grinned at her. “And you look good,” he told her. 

Her long black hair was still damp and clung to her neck and shoulders,
her face glowing. She looked fresh and alive and happy. She strolled 
over and hugged Blaze and then hugged Kane. 

“You should've come for a swim,” she said to him. 

“Somebody wanted to when he saw what you were wearing,” he told her. 

Blaze pretended to be engrossed with his breakfast and Sarah threw her
wet towel at him 

“Guess what happened when I was out swimming?” she said to Kane. 

“Oh Christ,” he muttered, “not another miracle.” 

“It was the waves,” she said, ignoring his remark. “They died down. It
was rough when I went in but within a couple of minutes it calmed right 
down and stayed like that.” 

Kane poured himself a cup of coffee and strolled along to the Bridge. He
picked up the remote control and panned the view on the Screen along 
the beach and slightly out to sea. 

The sea was definitely a lot calmer than before she went in, he had to
admit that. Nothing but the smallest waves were rippling across it to 
break gently on the beach. 

As he was turning away something else caught his eye. The sun. It came
out briefly from behind some clouds transforming the sea and shore into 
a golden bay then it went behind the clouds again. 

For half a minute, seeing the planet changed before his eyes, he almost
believed what Sarah had been saying about the place. That it liked 
them. 

“Jesus, I'm going to wind up as crazy as her!” he muttered, turning away
from the Screen and heading back to the Galley. 

***** 

Kane spent the rest of the morning carrying out a complete maintenance
check on the Falcon, aided by the Computer. Surprisingly they had not 
sustained any damage travelling through the Corridor and he was 
extremely pleased about that. 

With no repairs requiring to be carried out he instructed the Computer
to divert all power into recharging everything on the Ship. Including 
all weapons, the Cloaker and the Drive. 

Blaze had been sent out to bring back more of the fruit samples which
he'd tested yesterday and also to stock up on their water supply. One 
time Sarah called him through to the Galley to see his latest finds – 
two piles of what looked like potatoes and tomatoes which were lying on 
the table. 

“Test them!” he told her then quickly retreated to the Bridge before she
could start on about the planet again. 

Towards noon, after a shower, he found them both in the Galley again.
Sarah had changed out of her uniform into jeans and a white t-shirt and 
damn if she didn't look good! 

He and Blaze were still in their black jumpsuits and he asked her how
she had managed the change of clothes. 

“A woman needs different clothes,” she had told him. “So I brought some
along just in case. You guys can wear the same outfits for weeks but we 
can't.” 

“Hey, we're going on a pickneck!” Blaze told him. 

“Picnic,” Sarah corrected. 

“Yeah that,” Blaze said, grinning. 

“I wondered why you were packing all the sandwiches and fruit,” Kane
said. 

“We're all going together,” she told him. “And that's an order!” She
turned to Blaze. “You – get to your cabin and have a quick shower and 
change that jumpsuit!” 

He saluted and disappeared along with his constant bird companion which
was perched on his shoulder. 

Kane grinned and poured himself some coffee. As he sat down and watched
her it suddenly struck him that she was acting just like any woman 
trying to get her family organised for a day out. He watched her till 
he finished his coffee then went through to the Bridge and collected a 
laser rifle. 

He had a quick scan round the outside of the Ship on the Screen then she
called that she was ready. He had a final careful look then followed 
her out. 

She was waiting down at the Exit Bay for him. Her long black hair was
blowing gently in the breeze and she looked good in the midday light. 

She turned and caught him staring. Their eyes met and held. He walked
down the steps and brushed some hair from her face and she leaned her 
cheek against his hand. He smiled at her and unslung his laser. He 
checked it and set it at ‘kill'. 

“You won't need that,” she told him and there was such complete
confidence in her voice that he glanced up from the rifle. He was about 
to say something when the sun appeared from behind some clouds and 
stayed out. 

“See what I mean,” she said, smiling. 

She held out her hand to him and he took it, slinging his laser rifle
over his shoulder. Blaze appeared and he turned and pressed a button on 
a small fob and the Exit Bay door slid shut. 

They set off across the moor, heading towards the forest to the right of
the rocky foreshore, Blaze and the bird zipping ahead of them. Above 
them the sun was still out and the sky was slowly clearing. Kane 
glanced up now and then, pessimistically expecting to see dark rain 
clouds rolling over but none appeared. 

Sunlight shafted into the forest as they strolled through it, dappling
the leaves with patches of bright light. The thick branches still 
dripped damply from all the rain but the soft breeze and the warmth 
were beginning to dry them off. The grass was thick underfoot and they 
hardly made a sound as they strolled along. 

Suddenly something started flapping about in a tree above them,
showering them with droplets of water and Kane had the laser up and 
pointing when Blaze swooped down out of some thick branches towards 
them. He hovered upside down in front of them, grinned madly then was 
gone. 

Kane laughed and shook the water from his black hair. He slung the rifle
over his shoulder and gently wiped some rain drops from Sarah's face. 
He put his arms round her, drew her to him and kissed her and they 
stood close for a while, holding each other. Up ahead they could hear 
Blaze crashing around through the trees. 

“Look,” Sarah said softly, nudging him. 

He glanced over his shoulder. Behind them where they had strolled
through the forest, flowers had sprung up in their path. As Kane 
watched a circle of flowers appeared around them. 

Sarah smiled and kissed him on the chin. “This place likes us,” she
said. “It really likes us.” 

“Sure,” he said, taking her hand and tugging her on but he was now
beginning to wonder. 

They strolled on and reached the curved bay which Blaze had found
yesterday. At the far end of it, a broad stream cut through it and 
meandered out to sea. The sun had been shining steadily for an hour and 
the sea sparkled and the sand looked golden. A gentle breeze rustled 
the fronds of the trees which bordered the bay. 

“Palm trees!” said Kane. “So that's where Blaze got the coconuts from.” 

“It's a beautiful little bay,” Sarah said, looking round at it. “We can
picnic here.” 

Tired from his constant dematerializing, Blaze was sprawled on the sand
near one of the palm trees, the small bird trilling happily nearby. 
Sarah and Kane strolled over and joined him and Sarah spread a blanket 
for them to sit on. 

“Pickneck time!” she told Blaze. 

She unpacked the sandwiches, fruit and water and they sat there,
enjoying the sun and the meal. Kane had his laser rifle next to him 
though – he still wasn't convinced completely about the planet's 
friendliness. 

After they had eaten, they dozed a little under the warm sun then Blaze
decided he was off exploring. 

“There's some funny looking cliffs I want to take a look at,” he told
them. “Straight back over the forest near a waterfall.” 

Kane glanced at his watch. “Half an hour,” he said. 

Blaze nodded and checked his. 

“Be careful,” Sarah said to him then he and the bird were gone. 

Sarah stood up and stretched and looked inland. At the far end of the
circle of palm trees, the broad stream wandered down and across the 
sand and into the sea. 

She walked over to Kane and pulled him to his feet. “Let's go and see
where the stream leads to,” she said. 

“Yeah okay,” he agreed, bending and picking up his laser rifle. 

Holding hands, they followed the broad stream back into the forest where
it widened gradually and then they saw the pool. There was a small 
waterfall behind it and it looked tempting in the afternoon sun. Sarah 
was the first to react. She stripped off to her black bra and panties 
and Kane quickly followed, stripping down to his shorts. 

Together they ran to the edge of the pool and holding hands, jumped in.
The water was pleasantly warm and they splashed around awhile then swam 
over to the shallows, lay side by side and kissed. 

Suddenly Sarah sat up. “Did you feel that?” she asked. 

Kane grinned. “I certainly felt something interesting,” he replied. 

“No. Something just brushed past me.” 

“What?” 

“I don't know.” 

They stood up, water dripping from them and peered round. 

“There!” said Kane. “It's a fish!” 

“There's another!” yelled Sarah. 

“More!” Kane said, pointing. Quickly he waded to the bank, grabbed his
black t-shirt and came back in. “Let's try and corner one,” he said to 
her. 

Very slowly they cornered the plump slow moving fish and after a couple
of attempts managed to catch it in the t-shirt. Kane waded over to the 
bank and rolled it on to the grass. He came back in and they quickly 
caught another. They waded out and Kane found a rock and quickly 
dispatched the fish. 

He grinned and held them up by the tails. “Guess what's for dinner
tonight?” he said. 

Sarah grinned. “I can fry some potatoes to go along with them,” she
said. 

“Let's get back to the bay. When Blaze returns we'll go back to the Ship
and test these.” 

They strolled back down to the bay and waited for Blaze. The sun was
still warm overhead and they lay on the blanket and waited for him. 
Kane sensed her staring at him. He could feel a lecture about the 
planet coming on. He was correct. 

“We've only been here a couple of days and look what the planet's given
us already,” she said. “Clean drinking water, oranges, pineapples, 
mangoes, coconuts, potatoes, tomatoes, flowers and now fish. Oh and the 
weather's  beautiful now.” 

Kane shrugged. “I can't argue with any of that,” he said, “but it'll
take something a lot more dramatic to convince me that the place 
actually likes us.” 

“Well I'm already convinced,” Sarah said. “We've landed on a planet that
likes people.” 

Blaze suddenly appeared, startling them. This time he had two birds with
him. They perched side by side on his shoulder. 

“I think he's got a friend,” Blaze said. 

“A girlfriend!” said Sarah. “She's smaller than him.” She strolled over
and stroked the two of them. 

“Hey, look what we caught!” Kane said, holding up the fish. 

“Wow!” said Blaze. “They look great! Where did you get them?” 

“A pool up behind the bay,” Kane told him. “It's full of them.” 

“Can we have them for dinner?” 

“Yeah, I'll show you how to clean them.” 

“Okay,” said Blaze. 

“Did you get to the cliffs?” Sarah asked him. 

“Yeah,” said Blaze. “They're incredible! I was at the top. You can see
for miles. I'll take you tomorrow if you want.” He reached into a 
pocket. “I brought you some presents,” he said, grinning at her. “Some 
shiny stones.” 

He held out his hand and showed her them. 

Sarah's mouth dropped open. Kane dropped the fish. 

Blaze was holding a handful of diamonds! Big shiny glittering
multi-coloured diamonds! 

***** 

Blaze was asleep in his cabin, the two birds sharing the blanket nest on
his shelf. Kane had shown him how to clean the fish and after testing 
them, they had a delicious dinner, sitting outside the Ship in the warm 
evening air. 

Now, sharing a drink, Sarah and Kane were lying on the Bridge couch. She
had brought back more flowers and their beautiful scents seemed to be 
responding to them, growing stronger the closer they became. 

On the Observation Screen they had a fine view of the sea, with the
golden moon hanging above it, casting shimmering reflections on the 
water below. 

Kane held up one of the diamonds and examined it. Even in the dim light
on the Bridge it glittered and sparkled. “Just one of these would be 
worth a small fortune back on Earth,” he muttered. 

“And Blaze said he found a pile of them,” Sarah added. “I told you – the
planet likes us. It's giving us presents all the time.” 

“How the hell can a planet respond to people?” Kane asked her. 

“Very simple,” she replied. “It was lonely before we came. Lonely for
people. Now we're here and it's not lonely anymore.” 

She said it with such belief in her voice that he knew she meant it. 

He smiled at her and stroked her hair. “You know if you said that on
Earth they'd lock you up. A planet that was lonely for people!” 

“But we're not on Earth,” she said, rising on an elbow and looking at
him. “We've come through a Black Hole. The first ever to do that. We've 
entered a new Universe. The same rules don't apply here.” 

“Alright I can understand that,” he said, “but what I don't understand
is how it's happening. Is the planet alive? Does it--” 

She laid a finger across his mouth. “Don't question it. Perhaps if we
stay here long enough we'll find out. For the moment just accept it. 
The way the planet accepts us.” 

She lay back down beside him and he held her close. They lay in silence
awhile and the flowers perfume drifted over them. 

“You know,” she murmured, “I could sense something about this planet
from the moment we landed. Even on that first day when the weather was 
really bad and everything looked awful there was something in the air. 

“Yeah, rain,” said Kane and laughed. 

She elbowed him but he knew what she was going to say next. 

“Wouldn't it be nice,” she murmured, trailing her fingers over his
chest, “to stay awhile longer?” 

He remained silent. 

“Well?” she asked, nudging him. 

“Having given it considerable thought for at least half a minute I've
come to the conclusion that yeah, it would be nice to stay awhile 
longer.” 

She laughed softly then hugged him. Responding to their closeness, the
fragrance of the flowers grew stronger. 

“What about Blaze?” she asked. “Would he want to stay?” 

“Christ yeah,” he replied. “You've seen what he's been like over the
last few days. He loves the place and its helping him get over losing 
Corthan. It's like paradise to him.” 

“It could be paradise for all of us.” 

“Yeah, I suppose it's a bit different from Sirene,” he muttered,
laughing. He laid the diamond on a table and pulled her closer. “Enough 
talk,” he said. “There's something I want to explore apart from the 
planet.” 

“What?” 

He kissed her. “You!” 

Outside, the yellow moon rose higher above the sea sending dancing
reflections over it. Inside the warm Bridge, the perfumes of the 
different flowers grew stronger and more beautiful, mingling together 
until they slowly reached their zenith. 


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