Free Starship Desolation by Tripp Ellis

through a whole day without having to fight for your life.
    With a stroke of luck, he found an entrance to a cave. Bailey rushed in, throwing caution to the wind.
    “Bailey!” Walker shouted at the impetuous dog. He gritted his teeth and stormed after him. He had already grown fond of the little guy, but he wasn’t about to admit it.
    Walker moved into the darkness of the cavern. “Sergeant. Get back here!”
    It took a moment for his eyes to adjust.
    “Bailey!” Walker’s voice echoed through the darkness. This was no small cave.
    Walker struck a flashlight. The beam pierced the darkness, finding the rocky walls of the cavern. He scanned the rugged cave—Bailey was nowhere in sight.
    “Bailey?”
    He could hear the dog moving somewhere in the farther recesses of the cavern. The cave funneled off into pitch blackness. Walker followed the passageway as it narrowed. At one point, he had to crawl on his hands and knees to get through a tiny tunnel. He emerged on the other side in a room full of stalactites and stalagmites. A wondrous domed structure. The crystalline ceiling reflected brilliant hues of color from the beam of his flashlight.
    In the center of the chamber, there was a crystal clear pond. Bailey was lapping from its surface. If it was good enough for Bailey, it was good enough for Walker. He knelt down beside the pond, cupped his hands, and scooped water towards his lips.
    It tasted perfect. Crisp and clean. No odor or aftertaste. Pure, spring fed goodness. A smile curled on Walker’s lips. They had an endless supply of water, shelter from the sun, and there were beasts to hunt. He felt like he could survive on this planet for as long as necessary. Years, if need be. It was like a huge weight was lifted.
    Walker and Bailey drank their fill. But there was something in the water that had plans of its own. A massive tentacle slipped quietly out of the water. Walker and Bailey were too preoccupied to notice. The tentacle slithered and coiled, then lunged for Walker. It wrapped around his forearm. Another snared his leg.
    The tentacles jerked him into the water with a splash, pulling him under. Water rushed into his lungs. He hacked and coughed, and that only let more water in. Walker struggled. Bubbles rushed to the surface amid the commotion. More tentacles restrained him, pulling him closer to the hideous amphibian. A giant, squid like creature with black eyes and a mouth like a meat grinder.
    Walker struggled, his lungs burning from lack of oxygen. The horrid leviathan pulled him deeper. He could hear the muffled barks of Bailey at the surface. He hoped the little guy would be smart and run. This creature had plenty of tentacles. Nothing near the surface of the water was safe.

18

The Decluvians
    “ Y ou cannot make me marry a Saarkturian,” the princess said. “I won’t do it.”
    She was like any other teenage girl, except she was blue and orange and had black spots. And her father was Emperor Tyvelon.
    The two argued on the terrace of her chamber in the Royal Palace. It overlooked the muggy swamp city of Bhodulaa. The sounds of the swamp insects filled the night air. It was as thick and tense as the conversation.
    “Kyva, you will do as I say.” Tyvelon’s face tensed. “You will sit upon the throne of Saarkturia, and ensure peace for our people.”
    “It’s repulsive that you would use me as something to bargain with. And don’t talk to me about peace when you intend to destroy the humans as part of the deal.”
    If Tyvelon had hair, he’d have pulled it out in frustration. He was ruler of the Decluvian Realm. He was feared and respected. No one dared to utter a contrary word. Except his daughter. She was the one person in the Realm he couldn’t control. “You get your politics from your mother.”
    “At least one of my parents has common sense.”
    “Watch your tongue, young lady. I’ve sent men to their death for less than that.”
    “It’s a good thing I’m not a man.”
    “You