The Lost Planet of Ko'sstahn, where beasts with three heads and five tails roam the city streets at night, is in peril. Summoned by the Princess Kelliana, James Carver must battle dangerous and powerful foes if the day is to be saved ... A collecti...
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A Princess? "I don't think so. My name is Carver, James Carver. I'm from Mars. Can you tell me the name of this place?"
Kelior frowned and crossed her arms. "I have never heard of this 'Mars.' What land do you come from?"
Carver paused for a moment, considering his answer. How advanced were these people? He couldn't tell from what he had seen so far. Still what did he have to lose? Either Kelior was going to understand or else she'd think him crazy. Deimos! Maybe he was crazy - maybe all this was an hallucination.
"I think I'm from another world," he ventured. "We call it Mars. It's the fourth planet from the Sun in our system."
"This is no time for jesting! Everyone knows Ko'sstahn is the fourth world from Sol." Her eyes flicked over him impatiently, then looked at the dead serpent with the small blade still stuck in its head. "You are big and strong - and a stranger. You must be the warrior the Princess has summoned. Follow me, Carver James Carver."
The woman turned and he realised he had been mistaken when he thought she wasn't armed. A short bow and quiver were fastened across her back and a silver dagger hung from her belt.
Carver hesitated. He knew he was not a warrior summoned by the Princess, or anyone else for that matter. He was an officer in the People's Third Martian Forces and he needed to get home and tell his superiors that the rebels had broken the ceasefire. What if that ambush was only the first strike in an all-out assault?
His guide looked back over her shoulder.
"Hurry!" she scolded. "Bring your weapon. Darkness falls soon."
What choice did he have? Carver shrugged. He yanked his pocket knife out of the serpent's head and followed.
Kelior led the way to a small indented circle in the grass. As Carver stepped onto the platform, he realised he towered above his guide by at least thirty centimetres. If she was representative of her people, no wonder she called him tall.
Kelior pressed a lever with her foot and the platform descended into the earth, down a shaft which was lined with small bricks. The drop must have been about four metres and they came to a halt in a small chamber with a brick-lined tunnel going in both directions.
His guide took the bow from her back, notched an arrow and held the weapon in front of her, before striding ahead. She walked quickly, without waiting to see if Carver followed, her eyes scanning the dimly lit tunnel.
"It's unlikely we'll run into a Bursa down here, but best be safe than sorry."
"Bursa?" queried Carver.
"Don't you have them, where you come from? Or perhaps you call them something different. They are monsters with three heads and five tails."
"Oh," said Carver, uncertain if she was joking or not. The tunnel continued for what must have been a kilometre, and there was more than one stretch where Carver had to duck his head. The tunnels had definitely been built with a smaller race in mind. Eventually they reached a closed door with a grill set into it at Carver's chest height.
Kelior approached closely and spoke into the grill.
"Armsman Kelior here, Gatekeeper, with the warrior for Princess Kelliana."
The door opened and a small man stood on the other side. His eyes widened as he took in Carver's size. "Welcome to the city of Koftan, Warrior," he said.
He ushered them inside, then closed the door behind them and shot several large bolts home. Then he went back into the guardhouse, a small alcove set into the tunnel wall.
Kelior led the way again, striding along the tunnel until suddenly it opened out into a vast space, filled with the houses and streets of an underground city. The street ahead of them stretched into the distance, surfaced with small bricks like the tunnel, but he could see that the smaller side streets were beaten earth.
The houses were different sizes but all rectangular, rising from the ground straight up to the roof of the cavern, as if they were giant pillars holding it up. As far as he could tell, they were made of bricks and stone, with wooden doors and window frames. Carver had never seen so much wood in his life. Trees were protected on Mars - not to mention very scarce.
A few people were out and about, but he could see no vehicles of any kind. Unlike his guide, most of the people seemed to be wearing knee-length tunics in shades of brown or grey. They all turned to stare at him before hurrying on their way, a little faster than before. In his red suit, muted as it was, Carver stood out like a pillar of fire.
"Koftan," announced Kelior proudly. "At least, the lower level."
"There's more?" asked Carver.
"Yes. Most of the buildings have another story above ground. Though it's becoming more and more dangerous to live up there, especially after dark. But come, we should hurry. The Princess will be waiting."
Carver wanted to spend more time looking around but when Kelior took off at a brisk pace, he followed obediently.
After about another kilometre, they reached a building which was larger than all the rest. Two guards in ceremonial dress stood to either side of the open double door.
Evidently Kelior was well known to the two guards because they allowed her to enter without comment. The entrance hall was painted white and decorated with intricate clay carvings. A huge colourful tapestry hung from the wall opposite the entrance, above the doorway to the next room. There was no furniture other than a couple of long benches against the side walls.
"This is the Palace," Kelior told him, rather unnecessarily. As he followed her across the hall, to the room beyond, Carver couldn't help wondering what would happen when the Princess saw him and realised he was not the warrior she was expecting. Would she be able to send him back to his own world? From the little he had seen so far, this was not a highly technological society. But then he had absolutely no idea how he had been transported here in the first place. Perhaps there was a gate, or a transfer spot between one multiverse and another, somewhere near where he had woken.
With Jupiter visible in the sky, Ko'sstahn was obviously in the same spatial location as Mars - it just wasn't his Mars.
