Free Dark Phase by Jonathan Davison

sandy mass that had been windswept up to the tiny building. Stepping aside on to firmer ground, he dabbed the toe of his foot into the soft sand and then dug it in a little deeper, kicking up a little as if digging inefficiently. The more earth Sarazen kicked up, the softer it seemed to become as if it were just enough to cover a concealed underground entrance. Remembering the tiny organic and its earthy lair and with his curiosity briefly consuming his will to enter the city before the advent of the dark phase, Sarazen could not help but continue to dig large lumps of soil from the sandy pit. After he realised that his feet were inefficient in their design for such a job, he sat back on his haunches and began to cup his hands, burrowing deeper and deeper into the ever expanding pit. Suddenly, Sarazen felt a strange sensation of movement beneath his feet and the soil began to subside without his influence. Sarazen began to fall forward into the hole he had dug and even a flailing grasp of thin air could not stop his momentum increasing till he fell head first into the pit. The ground swallowed him up into a black abyss and for a moment, Sarazen thought it was to be his end and cursed himself for even contemplating digging the wretched hole. The fall was thankfully not a long one and as his body came though the orifice, so did several tons of earth and rock which threatened to coat him from head to foot.
    Sarazen lay on his back on an uncomfortable hard and ridged surface. Looking up, he saw the entrance of the gaping hole in the landscape, the light and the rain pouring through. Turning his head, there was a great deal of darkness all around him. His visual sensors took a few moments to adjust to the new lighting conditions. They were not designed for use in such low light levels and thus his vision did not have its usual clarity. His first instinct was to move away from the darkness and into the swathe of light that beamed down from overcast sky. The hole was not out of reach. He felt satisfied that if required he could climb out, which gave him cause to relax a little and not to overheat his core by panicking unduly. The breach of light lit only the first few footsteps into the subterranean construction and then all that could be easily discerned was a flight of stairs leading down into the darkness. Odd, Sarazen thought, the silicants did not construct subterranean structures, to do so would be illogical considering their need for the light of the Star to perpetuate their functionality. The immediacy of his plight, however was more concerning at this point despite the intriguing nature of his find. Perhaps he had found a little fortune in this place? As long as he remained within the fall of light from outside the hole, he might find this location a pertinent place to stay for the impending dark phase. It was unlikely that even from the air this concealed entrance would be detectable, in fact like the spindly organic’s abode, this was a perfect place to stop, rest and consolidate the data obtained in this cycle. Sarazen could not entertain a suggestion to what may lie beyond the shadowy staircase in the depths; it did not concern him unduly at present. There would be time to explore the possibilities during the next light phase. As the light faded, Sarazen sat gazing upon the presence of the dark Star, its round luminescence offering an intriguing comfort as his power cells gradually gave up the last of their energy reserves and Sarazen fell into a cold, empty sleep.
    When Sarazen awoke, he was still sat with his head cupped in his hands looking up at the sky. The dark Star had long gone and its larger, fiercer cousin now ruled once again. The sky was very blue and the new warmth was comforting after the cold dark phase. Sarazen’s core temperature was very low, it was the first dark phase he had spent away from his home and perhaps he had misjudged how bitterly cold the outside world could become. Still well within