The Token by Kevin Bird (the little red hen ebook .TXT) 📖

now they were full of meat and also carrying some clasped to their chests in their front claws. Even with our powerful hind legs the extra weight made it a more precarious jump, and two or three of the youngsters had to take a second leap to get over.

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From behind the tree they had just witnessed one of Blake’s blues disappear before their very eyes. They were in a state of near shock. Jacob, however, was not paralyzed by it and began running without thinking. He screamed and rushed towards one of the smaller black things.
One thing that he couldn’t get out of his mind, he would tell the others later, was the sound all around him of a spine jarring scratching noise. He realized later, when he was safe at home and could give it due consideration, that the noise had been coming from the creature’s claws as they tried to get purchase on the slick rock surfaces. He imagined that normally these beasts would move much more carefully. But obviously he had frightened them as much as he and Blake had been, and they were trying to get away as quickly as possible without regard for stealth. It was an eerie sound and it would live in his head for a long time to come, waking him at night sometimes.
The beast had jumped over the fence, stumbling on its landing since the ground was very rocky and uneven and its arms, if that’s what they were, were full of blue meat. Later, he would tell Bella that it must have been the image of Bettine, being pressed by the Collectors because of these creatures, that set him off so. He was not a very aggressive man by nature; none of the non-techs were. All he had was a pitchfork, but, none-the-less, he ran at the horror before him.

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One of our youngsters slipped to black-plated knees on the slick rocks and on rising, ready to leap towards the mountains and home, a strange loud shadow sped out from the nearest tree. An image was immediately sent to the youngster showing what was coming, and our comrade turned as the running shadow became an enemy, a killer! We recognized it from the times it had hurt and killed us from great distances with the loud things that flashed light. We knew to be afraid and to leave as quickly as we could, but the killer threw a long stick at the youngster just as it was leaping up the hill towards safety. An image of pain and fear from the youngster burst into our minds followed by the message that the injury was not too severe and we could all return to the caves safely.
We realized this event would once again spell a change for us. We had clearly woken from our sleep only to find our world was still a dangerous place to us. There seemed to be no escaping these two-legged creatures that had come here so recently in our history and had caused so much death and grief. Maybe this time would be the end for us since we were so few.

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Jacob screamed with anger and frustration as he saw the creature about to leap after the others. He wasn’t going to let this one escape unscathed. He threw the pitchfork as if it was a javelin and he had the satisfaction of seeing the points of the tines sink into the black flesh. The animals head rose in pain, but no sound came from its lips….it didn’t have any lips! In fact now the animal’s head was pointing upwards and the faint glow of the moon shone through the clouds behind it creating a silhouette, Jacob could see that there were no lips because there wasn’t even a mouth! He fell to his knees in shock and emotional exhaustion as the last of the creatures disappeared into the dark towards the mountains of the east. He heard a small sound from behind and on turning he saw it was Blake coming towards him, pitchfork held out ready for anything so it seemed.
“What were they?” Blake whispered, his voice betraying his fear of speaking out loud in case the things would hear and come back; Jacob felt the same way. “Did you see their heads? No mouths! What were they?” he repeated. He fell to his knees next to his friend, his eyes peering into the darkness apparently searching for answers.


Six

“Here they come!” a voice from the crowd shouted as several people pointed fingers skywards. Several thousand of the planet’s inhabitants had gathered at the designated place and the Collector ships had shown up on time; they always did. There was a feeling of excitement in the air as it was clear that everyone had fulfilled their Token and that the Collectors would be pleased. However, as mandated by Supplier law, they were there with their children just in case anyone had been unable to produce the required amount.
For the last three years they had toiled away in their factories producing a range of finished goods that would be at the front, and helping the war effort within the next three or four cycles. The main product coming out of this world was a type of cross-linked polymer used in the canopies and cockpits of both off and on-world fighter craft. These polymers were put through stretching and cross-linking that dramatically increased tensile strength and elasticity in the end result. When in battle a soldier or pilot whose windows, ports or canopy were made of this could expect a level of protection from enemy firepower far beyond any found in other materials traditionally available. This was a much-needed product.
The large fleet of transports stayed in orbit with their fighter escorts while several cargo containers were sent into the atmospheres of many planets in this system and down to their surfaces. The landing area had been designed for maximum efficiency in the loading process, there were to be no delays allowed at any stage of re-supplying the front.
The factories had packaged all of the products expected by the Collectors, and had shipped everything by rail to an underground storage area awaiting pick-up. As the first container landed its down-blast created a huge swirl of dust and noise forcing the gathered throng to squint, and to turn away despite their interest in the activities unfolding before them. As the dust began to settle and the noxious fuel smells dissipated, everyone could see how large and utilitarian the vessel was. It was really just a larger version of the very containers they had each filled and shipped to this storage area over the last couple of cycles. Basically just a rectangular boxy thing with a powerful engine designed only to thrust it and its cargo out of an atmosphere up to its waiting mother ship.
As the craft’s legs splayed out in preparation for the increased weight they were soon to bear, there appeared a large opening in the ground below. A large series of plates were shifting back from a central point revealing a man-made shaft heading down out of sight. At the same time a correspondingly large opening showed in the belly of the container ship. From the shaft in the ground a smooth whirring noise could be heard by those on the surface and then a series of platforms rose into view. First, the raw material shipped from mining worlds was off-loaded. Massive quantities in numerous huge containers were moved into underground storage facilities using the platforms. Second, each platform was then used to carry the Tokens from the manufacturing planet’s inhabitants up to the surface.
Once the containers reached the surface a man walked over to them, a small device in his hand. This man was a Collector, and the people had been so intent on watching their goods rise from the earth that they had missed him being lowered to the ground on the vessel’s platform. At the first stack of finished products he pointed a small electronic machine at a code built into the metal crates before him and pressed a few buttons. Those close enough could actually see colored lights flashing on and off and even hear a couple of electronic beeps before he seemed satisfied and made a sign to someone above. The platform was lowered down to slide under the crates standing up on legs. The whole thing, platform and cargo, was then raised back up to disappear from sight within the massive hulk.
At the moment he had made the sign to the platform controller above him a squeal of joy was heard somewhere in the crowd and everyone turned. A woman was hugging two small children to her breast as a man, her husband, did the same with a young boy maybe only fourteen years of age. As a group they turned and left with maybe sixty other people equally happy. Clearly their factory had correctly and fully provided their Token to the Collectors, and they were now free of concerns over pressing for at least another three years. As the day wore on more and more Tokens were loaded onto the container, and more and more people left to go back to their homes celebrating another lease on life. They had survived, and so long as they continued to work hard the lives of their children would not be forfeit.
The Collector thanked and congratulated those in overall control of the manufacturing planet and told them to stand ready for their next delivery date in three years time. These men deserved the offered thanks since they made sure that everyone always produced their Token by working more as a communal venture than as a group of individual manufacturers. It benefited the planet as a whole since the Suppliers were easier on them than on others because of their reliability. They had learned the hard way, as other planets had done also, that to miss a Token was traumatic to everyone even though it might only affect but a few families directly. Those planets that had not advanced and followed through on this philosophy of mutual aid often found the Collectors pressing their children and then suffered the anger, loss and pain that followed.
The Collector then rose on the platform, the ship closing behind him leaving a solid wall of gray. The engine gases began to escape vents along the container’s sides creating a loud hissing that got progressively louder. Those few people remaining ran to areas designated safe from the blast to watch as the huge storage container strained into the air with a shriek of engine noise. In only a few seconds it was a smoking speck high in the sky, and a few more after that it was gone from the atmosphere, soon to rendezvous with a Collector storage ship.

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“Clayton, report,” a heavily uniformed officer shouted.
“Both transports are in their respective bays, Sir,” the young Lieutenant said loudly over the buzz of noise on the flight deck. His instrument panels were flashing colored lights and text messages that he translated to his superior. “Outer hatches now sealed and we’re ready to leave orbit and shift on your command, Sir.”
“Are the fighters and other vessels also ready to shift?” the Captain asked.
“Yes Sir. All transports report the complete collection of all Tokens for this system, and all show green lights for the next shift, Sir,” his clipped tone and professional manner had alerted his superiors to his abilities, and his promotion track was ahead of schedule.
“Have you transmitted the co-ordinates to all ships?”
“Yes sir, co-ordinates sent and receipt confirmed.”
“Very good. Quiet on the deck!” shouted the Captain and immediate silence fell. “Put me