Captive

-continued from yesterday-

The Sani Sabik brought me to their habitat compound and put me in a holding cell. I was expecting a long and painful interrogation, but they were too busy with an emergency to deal with me. From my  brief chats with the guards I found out that they think they are on Gammel IX's surface, and that the year was 21389 - almost two thousand years before our time. And I also learned that they were facing an imminent attack from an unknown alien invasion force. 

After several hours wondering how I will extract myself from this situation and get back to the exit filament, explosions occurred that rocked the compound where I was held. There was the sound of laser cannons and rifles, Sabik weapons. They answered by much more powerful weaponry, some sort of mortar fire in combination with ground troops advancing on the compound. 

One wall collapsed, nearly crushing me, but I was able to go out of my prison. Everywhere around me was chaos - the Sabik seemed to have retreated from the habitat compound to their science compound. I tried to hide among the rubble, careful not to electrocute myself from the sparkling wires that explosions had laid bare. From my hiding spot I could see clearly the invaders. It is a race we have not seen around in a while: they were Jove.

They were focusing their attention on the science compound, which was being fiercely defended by the Sani Sabik - even with their inferior weaponry they put up a good fight. The Jove could have flattened that building but clearly they did not want to, they were trying to fight their way in. Was this perhaps a rescue mission?

The ground rumbled, and my eyesight vibrated - as if the world around me had become a flowing liquid. Then a bright red sphere grew out of the building, at first slow but then accelerating. I was happy that I had made a medical clone before coming in here, and wondered how they would know they should activate it. I did not have much time to think it over - the sphere soon engulfed me.

The next instant, I found myself back on the slope of the mountain, on the spot where I first arrived with my entry filament.

-to be continued-