The three sets of appendages of a Hyben were divided into distinct types, with the bottom, shorter arms ending in two very sharp-looking claws. These were used primarily for feeding: cutting and pulling away meat and then stuffing it into an opening located between the two arms that looked like — well — like a giant vagina! As it turned out, the digestive system of a Hyben was completely separate from its speech and respiratory organs, which were positioned above the lower section of the thorax, in the place you’d normally expect to find them. But with this separation came the ability for the Hyben to feed while continuing to breath and speak. Adam had experienced about two dozen alien species in his time in The Expansion, and the Hyben were one of the most exotic yet.
The next set of arms above the claws were about twice as long as the lower appendages, and ended in tiny three-finger hands. The final set was placed high on the thorax and were about normal arm’s length. These ended with hands made up of two thumbs placed next to each other, and four normal looking fingers.
The head of a Hyben was conical in shape, with a small mouth, no discernible noses and with eyes that looked like black marbles simply glued to the skull. Occasionally, a clear eyelid would flick over the black globes, depositing a coating of a gooey fluid, which tended to flow down and crust on their hard-skinned faces.
The Hyben had long, articulated plates of hardened cartilage covering their backs, and oozing out from between the plates appeared to be the same viscous goo that lubricated their eyes.
Adam had researched the Hyben in the Library prior to his arrival on the planet, and he knew the natives required prodigious amounts of water each day to lubricate their various bodily systems. Their bodies then produced this thick fluid that drained from between their joints and accumulated on the floors of their chambers. The Hyben found this accumulation soothing on their feet and legs, and so made no attempt to rid their living quarters of this foul-smelling, mud-goo mix.
But for Adam, he now found himself standing in nearly five inches of putrid Hyben shit! Even if he had not just barged into the inner sanctum of the Hybens and taken them by surprise, Adam would have been stunned into a momentary inaction himself, simply by the disgusting scene before him-
“It’s them!” the small male cried out, “the ones who killed the Juireans!”
The large, dominate female began to move forward; Adam calmly swung the MK over in her direction and her movement stopped. There were two other females in the chamber, but they huddled together next to another, even smaller male.
The dominate male — the one with the blood-stained robe — stepped forward, addressing Sherri. “Why have you come here? I did as you instructed.”
“It’s okay,” Sherri said, soothingly. “We haven’t come to harm you — or to take away the credits. They are yours to keep.”
Adam noticed the three females look at each other quickly and began clicking their lower claws together. They appeared to be excited by Sherri’s statement.
“Then why are you here?” the male asked.
Adam stepped up to the table, lowering his weapon. “Like I said, I need you to do me a favor.”
“No! I cannot help you. You have killed Juireans. We cannot be involved with you in any way.”
Adam scooped up a handful of the credits from the table and let them fall back on the pile through his fingers. “You are already involved with us, my friend.”
The Hyben seemed to shrink smaller in size. “What do you want of me?”
“First of all, what’s your name?” Sherri said as she stepped forward, lowering her weapon as well. Even though the Hyben were much larger than the Humans, neither Sherri nor Adam had any real fear of them.
“It is Poul. My lumic-mate is called Rillia. The others are of no concern.”
“Pleased to meet y’all.” Sherri said with a grin — not a smile — which would have bared her teeth to the aliens, signaling an implied challenge. She continued: “In our conversation at Lann Hall, you mentioned you work at the shipyards, the ones located not too far from here. Is that right?”
Adam couldn’t read the eyes of the alien, being as they were simply solid black orbs, but he did sense a relaxation of sorts in the creature.
“Yes. I have been employed there for nearly ten standard years. Why is this important?”
“Good. What we need is a long-range linking device. We need to communicate with our ship so we can get off the planet.”
“No, I cannot help you. There is a communication center in the yards, but if I help you escape, then I will be complicit in your crime.”
Adam spoke up, “Listen, Poul, all we need is a communicator. Just get us in the yards and show us where it’s located. That’s all you have to do. And then you can go in peace and return to your happy home.” He was sure the alien wouldn’t pick up on the sarcasm embedded in his remark.
The Hyben looked back at his mates. They all began to debate the issue back and forth, as Adam and Sherri waited patiently for a decision. Adam knew he was going to get his way; he just needed to let the aliens come to the same conclusion.
As he waited, Adam looked around the alien chamber. There were several large holes dug in the opposite wall — maybe a couple of dozen or so — and for the first time, he saw several large heads sticking out of them, watching. This was where the offspring lived, and from the look of the holes, most of them were unoccupied. Adam knew the Hyben were prolific breeders; he began to wonder: Why so many empty chambers-?
“It is decided,” Poul announced suddenly, shaking Adam from his thoughts. “I will take you to the shipyards and show you the communication center. But I cannot be involved in helping you make any communications off the planet. That assistance could possibly be traced back to me.”
“That’s fine,” Adam said. “Just get us in — we’ll do the rest.”
“Let me change my robe, and then we can leave. The yards are only about ten minutes from here by foot.”
The trio left under the cover of night and headed down the deserted streets, winding their way through the numerous mounds of dirt and mud. But the moment the door to Poul’s chambers closed, his lumic-mate Rillia picked up the home’s linking module and began to enter in a number.
“Who are you linking to?” asked one of the nin-mates.
“I am notifying the authorities,” Rillia stated without emotion.
“But you should not do that,” the other female protested. “Then mol-mate Poul will be captured, and possibly even killed.”
Rillia set the comm device on the table. “We have credits enough for over two standard years, and with one less mouth to feed, they could last even longer. By that time, elder-newvin Kiiax will have matured, and mol-mate Poul will no longer be necessary.”
Rillia could see the two nin-mates look anxiously at each other, their nin-claws clicking approvingly. She knew the younger females were attracted to their younger brother, and the idea of a vital, young mol-mate soon made them forget all about Poul. They continued to click and converse as Rillia retrieved the communicator and completed the link. Poul had served his pod admirably for many years, but now it was time for some new sperm to be introduced into the pod. And Kiiax was just the depository the females desired.
Chapter 6
On his way to the shipyards, Adam couldn’t shake the feeling that he and Sherri were still knee-deep in some shit.
Even if they were able to contact Kaylor, he still couldn’t conceive of a scenario where the alien could land the Exitor-class starship on the planet and then manage to leave the planet without the whole might of the Juirean forces in this Sector crashing down upon them. The only alternative Adam could think of would be to contact Kaylor now, and then lay low for a while until the fervor died down. If they could stay hidden for that time, the Juireans would assume that they had somehow managed to get off the planet and would then allow the normal shipping routine to return to Hyben. Kaylor could make his landing then.