The Cadaverous Beasts of SSARG [In the Hunt for Arallets' Kingdom] Cadaverous Planets

Advance: For those who have read the stories of Siren of SSARG [the Planet of Grass], and the few stories on Tangor, Space Traveler, and the Cadaverous Planets, this might be appealing to you. Here we meet again on the planet SSARG, but this time Siren is not present, but her daughter Arallets has come by way of Tangor, and his spacecraft to the isolated planet of grass; she seeks her right as Queen of her father's kingdom: the "Chamber Kingdom," in the cliffs and caves on planet SSARG. Tangor, an old lover of Siren's has given her a lift, he owes that to her mother for saving his live [which is in another story]. Here the King Rat II is still alive on the planet as well as the Viper King, Blaze II. And on the Moon, Rotma, the Prince was Yllim, is now gone, still looking for his father's lover, Siren, and the old king has died, King Roliv, of Nay. The new generals of Blaze's Army are: Laruz, Chief General; and Nakluv: third in command.

Chapter One

The Story Introductory Chapter

Had I not been sitting at the El Parquetito Caf in downtown Lima [Miraflores/4/25/2006: 1:36 PM/a Tuesday], eating my lunch with my wife, whom had to go for a spell and check on some business, this story would have never been written, for there is where I met the stranger (drinking a beer about twenty feet to my direct left and up a-ways; who knew me by sight: a picture I assume, and said to me, how he"while in his lab"how he listened to this story of Siren's daughter (Arallets), first by radio broadcast, from some distant planet [later on talked to the broadcaster himself, with a hissing voice, about Arallets], and that my name was mentioned, brought up, for I had written about Siren the Great, as she is known, and a legend on SSARG (our time span is quite different of course, according to their time and our time there is a 1100-year difference). But I had not mentioned anything about her daughter. Hence, he told me what he knew, what he heard, and what they told him, as I am about to tell you what I heard, and the stranger told me: it all seems to fall in a straight line, so why make it crooked; thus, I shall tell you it without a bend, and let truth the truth lie where it may.

She was 22-years old, and shockingly beautiful, like her mother Siren, and Siren's mother Jokaneen, was. To be frank, she did not have any qualms about who she was, and what she wanted"not for the most part anyhow; it is although up to us to find out, to find out, I suppose, how far she is willing to go to get it, perhaps a hidden agenda, or perhaps just growing pains, whatever they are, or were she has landed on the planet SSARG, hitched a ride from her mother's old lover, Tangor, whom was on planet Moiromma, her mother's main planet, where she had lived so many years, and the one she was taken to as a young child after her birth on SSARG. She can't remember much on this, how she got there, but she was raised there on that cold, desolate planet nonetheless, and survived its hellish dark age of silent arctic ice, and freezing winds, long months. She had learned of her heritage, her Mother's being Queen of SSARG, and her father being a King of some kind, for what was known as the Chamber Kingdom. Thus, she had two birthrights perchance.

Chapter Two

The Landing

The ship landed on Planet SSARG, it had been a century since Siren had been there, and Blaze II, her old friend, King of the Vipers, the ruler of them all ruled the land Ral, a village now, on the mound she had build a Fortress, build over a century ago, perhaps 140-years since them stones were placed under those two big trees; there must had been 1000-vipers waiting for the landing, had seen the ship descending from space.

The vipers had circled the spacecraft; Laruz was standing with his assistant general, Nakluv, and all kept their eyes piercing on the craft as it landed in the twenty-foot high grasslands of SSARG.

Once landed it had burned the grass leaving a wide circle around the craft so that both Arallets and Tangor could see the replies gathering outside of their vessel. They were huge, some twenty feet long, hundreds of pounds, with upper saber teeth, like a walrus. Arallets stepped out of the craft first as if she owned the planet, was the commander of the ship, as if she had practiced this over a million times, she stood erect, as her mother might have stood, as a statue of her mother was erected in the city of Ral, yet to be seen by her, "Hello, I am Arallets, daughter of the Great Queen, Siren!" And she was not quiet about it. Blunt she was, out spoken also, but right she was to be forthright.

"Then who is your father?" asked General Laruz.

Ah! She didn't know, he was a king, was all she had heard, from the Chamber Kingdom, or perhaps it was one of the Kings servants. She was hesitant about this.

"I don't know his name, perhaps you do, or Blaze II, King of the Vipers knows, if he is still alive; you vipers are as young as I, so you would know. But she was captured by this king, and I was born then afterwards, so it is my birthright you make me your queen and bring me to the King of this land far off!"

"We have never heard of you, but the legends of Tangor have come down to us, the great space traveler, and we know by reputation, he knew Siren, but you, you are nothing to us, and demand everything..." said, the General Laruz, adding, "we shall test your strength perhaps; see if you are half the warrior your mother was, if indeed you are of Siren the Great! And we also known of Moiromma, the arctic planet by way of your mother, but that information can be given by simply visiting our enemy, where your grandmother had an affair with the king [Roliv, King of Nay; part of Rotma: SSARG's moon]. So you see, you could be an enemy, not our savior or Queen in the makings [and the middle aged general laughed, ha, ha, ah...].

Tangor spoke briefly, "Arallets, I have done as you've asked, I should be getting along, if you wish you can come with me."

"No, I will not be going with you, but you do owe me a double favor: I mean, you gave me a ride here, but you have not put your life at risk like my mother did for you, now I demand you do, and stay with me for month, to help me settle this, or help me find my father." Said Siren.

[Said Tangor with release of a deep breath, he was not young as he used to be and he knew it.] "Ok, I shall stay a week, no longer, and if it demands I stay longer on your behalf, I will not, I am too old to be stuck on this planet for the few days I've got left in life, at 165-years old, I perhaps will live another five or ten years left. I wish to visit more planets if I can. I was never quite like your mother, she knew it, I was a voyager in the universe, not a hunter, or seeker of royalties these are youthful wishes, I wish to live my days out in harmony."

"So be it," said Arallets, with a grin.

With finality, Laruz commented: "You are not of us, but of them, he enemy, and your friend, what he has to say may bring him death, he should go in peace now before it is too late, and you will be responsible for his death, he is too old, like our King Blaze II, to be on your crazy mission."

Nakluv, third in command, "You bring no glory to us, by telling us lies upon lies..." now the vipers started moving in, surrounding her as she stood on the ground, and Tangor in the doorway of the ship.

"Take them to Ral, to prison, if they try to escape, crush them with your mighty bodies."

Arallets grabbed a knife, from her side belt, and went to jump on one of the vipers, but another one saw her, and leaved on top of her, crushing to the ground, knocking the wind out of her. When she opened her eyes, the viper was simply waiting for her [it is against the rules of combat on SSSARG, to take such an advantage of your pray; it would only be a cowards victory]. Then Arallets, and the viper about to rip open her rib cage, heard a voice; it was Blaze's, the King Viper. All motion stepped, as this old, decrepit snake came into sight, Tangor, with a weapon in his hands.

"I know she is no enemy," said Blaze, "She looks just like her mother." Blaze was king, but he had to be careful, he was putting his two generals in the corner, and it is never wise to do that: he had learned, when one does such, they either come out fighting or become slaves, and in either case, they hold revenge.

Said Blaze with a smile at his generals, "But I shall test you like the Generals inferred, to see if I might be wrong, it is the best way, for my generals are wise and have learned from me not to trust any living thing not of our own kind; it is what your mother would demand child."

The generals smiled, and Arallets simply held her head up as if: bring it on, that being tested was not a big thing.

"Who shall I fight," said Arallets with a pitch toned a bit high. All the vipers were hissing now, perhaps hoping they'd be the to be able to fight to the death with Arallets. Arallets had not known, and had she known, she might not have been so stubborn or arrogant and shown a little more respect, her strength and powers were not equal, and her skill, not equal to her mother's; she had not known, her grandmother's voice, her residue had guided Siren along her many years on SSARG; matter-of-fact, the only ones that knew were the king and prince on SSARG's moon.

Said King Blaze II, "We are a kind and just race, but we are deadly all the same, as Siren would have said, and I shall has you go into the Dark Woodlands of SSARG, beyond our mound fortress, here is where the Rats live; they used to war with us, then Siren made them tame, now they war with us again. They are our enemies. You must do one of two things: bring back to us the head of my old enemy, The Rat King, II, or bring us peace. If you do not bring us either, we will destroy your ship, and wait for you." Tangor looked hopelessly at Arallets, it was not what he expected.

Said General Nakluv to Blaze "I gave my word to Tangor, he could leave in peace, should he wish to go now."

The king looked at Nakluv, it was his chance to settle the grave dispute that might have come about, had it been handled differently,

"Sure, he can leave in peace, if he leaves now."

Said Arallets with a voice somewhat let down, "What about those cave people, I want to find my father!"

Said Blaze [kindly] "We do not know anything about that, you are lucky you are still alive, bring them both to the edge of the Dark Woodlands"Now!

And so it was.

Chapter Three

To the Dark Woodlands

In a world where the sun is almost on top you, and the grass is so tall and thick one can hardly breath in it, here in the woodlands, a bleak change occurs to both Tangor and Arallets as they take their first steps into the dark, damp, world of the Woodlands.

"They will have a gathering concerning us," says Arallets of Moiromma, as they walk farther into the woods, "...my mother used to tell me about them." And how Blaze II can be sensitive, but is a great warrior. And when we meet the King Rat II, he will remember my mother, and then remember me, and make peace."

Tangor [Hesitantly] "You're forgetting something: first we do not know what happened during the time your mother left; second, the peace was brought on by force, and need, this does not exist anymore, perhaps the Rats, need food, and the snakes are food; how will you provide for them, if you take away their food. We are dealing with a whole different equation here."

Arallets listened, but didn't listen, she focused on ahead, what was ahead, and the path they were on; and as they got farther into the woods, the tunnel like light that guided them, was gone. At the same time, Tangor had taken his last look back at the edge of the forest, noticing several sentries, and ahead were eyes everywhere, as their eyes adjusted to the darkness.

They both stopped to rest, sat on a rope like vine [linna], and swung on it, got close to one another, youthful pride looking at old age, and its grandness; her heart started to beat faster, and Tangor's stomach felt quay, a canopy of green overhead: green, and eyes, and brown wooded branches, no snakes here, just eyes everywhere. She sat closer to Tangor,

"It would seem..." she started to say, [unsure: she shifted her statement now] "...I should not be happy in the face of death in this woods but I am..." she finished.

"Don't," said Tangor.

"But why," she commented.

"You are captured by the moment, and a brush with death, you are high off the escape, and we are in a deadly situation at this very instant!" Said Tangor.

Consequently, she moved away from him, and jumped off the vine and started walking down the path, that was becoming less of a path and more of an un-trotted trail.

The King Rat II