Hellworld (Deathstalker Prelude) by Simon R. Green Page A

that. There would be time for him to prove them wrong, later. There would be time for a lot of things, once the colonists finally arrived. It shouldn’t be too difficult for him to bribe the supply ships to bring him the kind of high tech he needed. And with so many warm bodies available for him to experiment on, in the guise of the kindly colony doctor, who knew what triumphs he might achieve … ?
    Captain Hunter looked distrustfully at Williams. The man was smiling again. He shook his head, and looked away. No doubt he’d find out eventually what was so damned amusing. He laid out his bedroll as far away from the doctor’s as practical, and lay down on it. It felt great just to be off his aching feet at last. He stared up at the darkening night sky. The stars were coming out in ones and twos. One particularly bright light was probably one of the small moons. He started to check with the pinnace’s computers, and then stopped himself. It wasn’t important enough to waste valuable energy over. Hunter stretched slowly. His body was finally beginning to relax after the strain of the long walk. The ground was hard and unyielding, but he’d slept on worse in his time. He didn’t expect to have any trouble about getting to sleep. Most of his body was halfway there already, and the screen and the mines would sound an alarm long before anything got close enough to the camp to be a problem.
    He lay quietly, pushing back the drowsiness a little so that he could savour it. All in all, it had been an interesting first day. First the forest, then the water hole, and now the statues. Never a dull moment on Wolf IV. He smiled slightly, and rubbed gently at his bruised ribs.
    He hadn’t come out of it too badly, all told. He sighed, and stretched comfortably. Looking back, he was puzzled at why he’d been so scared of sleeping out in the open. Now that he was here, it wasn’t that bad after all. Too much imagination, that was his trouble. He thought again about the huge standing stones looming over him, and frowned. Like most people, he’d had few actual contacts with aliens in his career, but still he couldn’t help feeling there was something … unnatural about the creatures the stones depicted. They disturbed him on some very deep, very basic level. Perhaps it was the combination of features and shapes that ought not to occur together on one creature. Perhaps it was simply the overpowering size. But either way, Hunter decided that when it came time to enter the alien city the next day, he’d do it with his gun in his hand.
    A yawn took him by surprise, and he closed his eyes the better to enjoy it. He quickly opened them again as he realised he’d forgotten all about the esper’s group. It was well past the time he’d decided to check up on them. He activated his comm implant, and a faint hiss of static filled his ears.
    “Esper DeChance, this is the Captain. Do you hear me?”
    “Aye, Captain.” The esper’s voice was calm and clear. “We’ve located a sheltered area, and are settling down for the night.”
    “Same here. It’s rather late in the evening, esper. I’d expected to hear from you earlier.”
    “Sorry, Captain, I just didn’t have anything to report. Have you encountered any problems?”
    “Nothing we couldn’t handle. But if you come across any water holes, stay well clear of them. They’re inhabited. Get a good night’s sleep, and I’ll contact you again in the morning.”
    “Aye, Captain. Good night.”
    “And DeChance … don’t be afraid to call for help if you need it. I’d rather answer a false alarm than find I’d got there too late.”
    “Understood, Captain. Good night.”
    “Good night, esper. Pleasant dreams.”
    He shut off his comm unit, and tiredness rolled over him in a soft grey wave. He could see Krystel sitting with her back to one of the statues, staring out over the plain. He frowned slightly. He hadn’t told her to stand guard…. Still, she was an Investigator,