The Nibiru Effect

Memory 36

The world speeds past in a blur. I catch mere glimpses of my surroundings. A shocked face here. A desperate evasion attempt there. A high-pitched scream. A dart whistling past my ear. My butt slamming into the back of my kaar as it leaps over the river that flows through the korrigan village.

I brace myself for the landing, but the return to solid ground isn't as jarring as I expected. In fact, I barely feel it. I suspect it's because we're moving so fast gravity no longer has an effect on us.

In mere seconds we reach the end of the village. For a brief moment I fear my life will end with me splattered on a tree trunk, but my mount dodges trees like an Olympic hurdler leaps over hurdles during the 110-metre dash. I keep expecting to be ejected from my seat, but it soon becomes clear kaars were trained for this very purpose. The animal tilts its body every time it turns, thus ensuring that I remain firmly planted on its back. This, combined with the high velocity with which we travel, makes for a surprisingly smooth ride. It feels like I'm travelling on a cloud—a small cloud trapped in a powerful storm, but a cloud nonetheless. It takes a while, but I finally grow accustomed to the peculiar method of travel.

Korri has been leading the way ever since our departure, but now that things have calmed down, he reins in his mount and pulls up next to me.

"Having fun?" he asks.

Had he asked me this a minute ago, I would have answered I was having the worst time of my life, but now that I have mastered the subtle art of kaar riding, I'm quite content.

"Yup," I say just as Kara catches up to us.

"How do you slow this thing?" she asks. She doesn't seem worried, merely curious.

"You don't," says Korri once I've told him what Kara said.

"What does that mean?" I ask.

"The kaar I'm riding is the leader of the pack. As long as he remains under my control, the rest will follow."

It's true. No matter how much I pull and heave, my kaar won't slow down, but as soon as Korri tugs on his mount's neck, all three mounts ease up. Only Jonn's kaar is unresponsive.

It speeds past in a blur of movement.

"AAAHHH!!!" yells the grey-haired soldier as his out-of-control mount zigzags in a frantic manner. His large stature is too much for the animal to handle, and the poor beast must continually overcompensate for the man's imposing mass. As a result, Jonn gets thrown around like a cowboy atop an enraged bull. I would probably feel bad for him if it weren't so damn funny.

"What's he doing?" asks Korri.

"I'm not sure," I kid. "Perhaps he's training for the circus."

Kara throws me a reproachful glance, but I can tell she's just as amused by her father's high-pitched screams. We keep watching until Jonn throws up and the vomit projectile nearly hits us. After that, we agree to slow the pace.

"Will the korrigans pursue us?" eventually asks Kara.

Korri shakes his head when I translate the question.

"Kaars are pack animals," he explains. I don't understand what that means until I notice the seven animals following us. Their presence means the korrigans don't have a single kaar with which to pursue us.

"How long will they follow us?" I ask.

"They won't stop unless we encounter another pack," says Korri. "And the odds of that happening are slim."

"What are you two talking about?" asks Jonn. He has a patch of vomit on his shirt, but I'm not about to point it out.

"Nothing," I say, an amused smile curling my lips.