Books  

Brooker tied off the last piece of rope and stood back to admire their work. 'What do you think Denz?' 

'I think you're about to lose a bet.' 

'Give us a leg up then.' Denz heaved Brooker up with his shoulder and watched as Brooker scrambled off up the frame and climbed into the plastic seat on top. 

'What exactly are you two up to?' Doctor Grace Holland put her book down on her knees, peered over her sunglasses and kicked her feet in the paddling pool Beal had set up for her. 

'One tenth gravity here Grace. I know you know that because you've hardly been off the weighing scales since we got here. Can't believe it eh? I'm sorry to disappoint you but you can't bottle it and take it home.' Brooker sat back, pulled a cigar out of the pocket of his sweat stained shirt and lit it. 

'My interest in my weight Brooker is purely scientific.' Grace tugged her sun hat down and splashed the water a bit before watching the silvered water run through her toes. 'What exactly is that contraption?' 

'It's a trebuchet. A catapult. Denz and I are going to see who we can fire furthest. Winner gets off the cooking rota for the next week.' 

Denz grinned and nodded. 'He's got no chance, the fat old walrus.' 

'Sounds silly to me, and dangerous.' Grace got up and hopped over the hot sand to stand on Denz's beach towel. 'Can't you help Beal get the drilling equipment set up? He's been over two days at it now and this heat's killing him. In fact it's killing me as well.' She held her hand up to block the sun out of her eyes and surveyed the mirrored steel sky horizon that hung over the vast flat expanse of red sand, the flickering heat mirages and vapid twisting dust devils. 

'I'm the Captain, you're the geologist and Beal's the mechanic. We each have our jobs Grace. Remind me what you do Denz.' 

'Drilling.'  

'And cooking when were done here Denz.' Brooker pointed over to the barbeque.' What is it you're reading Grace? You've had your nose stuck in that book since we've arrived.' 

'It's an HG Wells novel.' She waved it in the air at Brooker 

'Romance eh? Its' it a little risky bringing a book out here, shouldn't it be in a museum or a safe somewhere?' 

'I like to read my books Brooker, so I've bought my whole HG Wells collection with me so I can read it while we're here. Which given the quality of the conversation is understandable. I trust you're not going to do anything reckless that might damage them?' 

'Whew Grace, you're a brave one bringing those out here. Besides which you know I'm far too sensible to take any risks.' Brooker stubbed his cigar out on the chair arm and sat back. 'You wouldn't mind kicking off the release mechanism would you? I'm not sure I trust Denz given what we've got riding on this.' 

'Which one is it?' sighed Grace. 

    **** 

'Hot saddle bags!' said Denz as they watched Brooker flung out of his seat and rapidly sail away from them through the sky. 'I didn't think he'd go that far.' 

Grace watched as the little figure of Brooker fell to earth. A plume of sand erupted lazily into the air. 

They waited. Beal had stopped his work on the drill and emerged from under his makeshift canopy and lent against the crates to watch them. They looked across. He waved his arms, turned and went back to work. 

'Do you think he's hurt?' asked Denz as they plodded off toward Brooker's landing point. 

'Stupid game,' muttered Grace. 

*** 

They looked down the hole at Brooker sitting in a pile of sand smoking his cigar. 

'What are you doing down there Brooker? You look like an overweight walrus that's been washed up on a beach.' Denz shouted down whilst warily working his way round the edge of the hole.  

'When I landed the ground collapsed under me. There's a labyrinth of caves down here.' Brooker waved his cigar in the air and pointed up to the sky. 'You'll need to get a rope quick, we've got a visitor.' 

'Eh?' Denz looked up and drew a deep breath. 'Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that a Valkaerin War Eagle. Shit we're in trouble.' 

'How are we in trouble?' Covering her eyes Grace focused on the arched wings of the black ship hanging silently in the sky high above them. 'We're in our territory aren't we? It's black and white. They shouldn't be here.' 

'Well, we're a little bit grey on that one Grace.' Brooker stood up, slid down the pile of sand and stamped his boots out on the rock floor. 

'When you say grey Brooker, what exactly do you mean?' Grace had the feeling she was about to require something very heavy to drop on Brooker. She looked around but there was only Denz or more accurately something one tenth the weight of Denz. 

'Like grey. As in we're in the Neutral Zone.' Brooker shrugged his shoulders. 'Hey, how was I to know they patrolled it. Strictly speaking they shouldn't be here any more than we should.' 

'Strictly speaking Brooker. You're an idiot!' 

'Denz get a rope and some supplies quick and set the homing beacon.' Brooker called up.' They'll send some raiders down to search for us but they won't hang around long, not in this heat and not if they suspect a one of our cruisers is on its way from Formona.' 

'What do you mean come down there?' Grace was bemused. 'They'll probably blow our ship up while were down here skulking around that hole.' 

'Nooo.Nooo, nooo,' yelled Brooker, 'then everyone would know they've been here. We need to hide down here and hope they don't find us before help comes. Quick, back to the ship. Rope and supplies. Chop, chop and don't forget Beal, he probably hasn't even noticed them yet.' 

    **** 

Brooker watched as the rope unfurled and dropped over the edge of the hole. Suddenly a box rocketed over the edge and slammed into the sand beside him. 'Careful, you could have hit me!' 

Graces face appeared over the edge. 'Really Brooker? I'm soooo sorry. Mind out, we're coming down.' 

'There's a scout ship on its way down Brooker. They'll be landing soon.' Denz slid down the sand dragging the box behind him. 

'Mmm,' Brooker flipped the lid of the box and checked the contents. 'Water, good. Food, radio. Excellent. What's in your evac bag Grace?' 

'It's my HG Wells collection Brooker. I'm not leaving it for some backward race of military morons to wipe their tiny green bottoms with.' 

'I told you if you ever did that with them Denz you'd get into trouble with Grace.' 

'Grace I never suggested that honest, but we need supplies Grace not books.'  

'No, no Denz.' Brooker, raised his hand. 'If Grace feels the need then so it must be. Remember Denz civilisation is only ever twenty four hours and two books away from barbarism.' 

'I think you'll find that was 'meals' Brooker but I appreciate the sentiment. I didn't know you were such a bibliophile?' Grace was impressed.  

'Not at all if we're stuck down here for a long time we can have a little potter through them and then like Denz suggests we can use them for toilet paper. What do you think Beal?' 

Beal shrugged his shoulders and sat on the box to contemplate his fingernails. 

'You're such a barbarian Brooker!' Grace slumped down on the sand then sat bolt upright, eyes wide open. Slowly she raised her arm and pointed. 

Denz and Beal turned opened mouthed. 

In the gloom sat a robed figure on stone seat surrounded by piles of books and parchments. His head round and smooth, devoid of eyes or mouth, glowed eerily in the thin light. 

'Brooker?' Grace nervously stepped back. 

'Oh don't mind him, he's the Librarian. Here, follow me. Come and look around.' Brooker chuckled through his moustache and disappeared like a white rabbit down a hole in the back of the cavern. 

Warily, watching the seated figure as they went they edged thier way over to where Brooker had disappeared and stood looking down the opening of a tight spiral staircase. 

'Come, on.' Brooker's voice echoed back at them. 'We haven't got all day.' 

They carefully made their way down the staircase and caught up with Brooker standing on a large circular platform. Around them lights flickered on. Far off they could discern the gentle hum of engines.  

'Nice going,' said Denz. 'Air-conditioning.'  

'It's not for you Denz, it's for this.' Brooker stood back. They were on a platform high above a great chasm, below them a labyrinth of book packed shelves radiated out as far as they could see. For a few moments they stood speechless. 

'This whole moon, it's a spaceship. It's a library!' gasped Grace. She excitedly ran down a wide stairwell into the first level running her fingers over the spines of the stacked shelves. 'This is just incredible. I can't read any if it but it must have come from so many races, so many planets, and so many civilizations. This must by the repository for every book in the universe.' 

'Perfect place to park your mobile library, 100,000 miles from the sun. Hot, dry, low humidity. Just be careful Grace.' Brooker watched her anxiously as she slipped a volume from the shelf. 'Don't want to hack off the Librarian. Do we?'  

The volume was much lighter than it had looked. Inside Grace scrutinised the first page. Its strange otherworldly text shimmered and wavered almost lifting from surface. Instinctively she ran her fingers over the characters and closed her eyes. In a moment her hair flapped over her forehead and a cool breeze laden with heavenly scents fluttered across her face. She held her breath and listened to the wind blow. She was on a boat skimming across a grass filled plain, looking up the boat's iridescent sails fluttered in the blossom filled breeze. 

'Grace we've got to go.' Brooker lifted the book gently from her hands and carefully slipped it back onto the shelf. 

'But....' Grace torn from her vision looked at him imploringly. 

'No time Grace. Let's go.' Brooker pulled her hand and they all climbed up the staircase back into the sand cavern. 

The Librarian sat unmoved on his carved seat. 

'What about the Valkaerins?' asked Denz. 

'Don't worry about them,' assured Brooker. 'They won't be around for long. I had a chat to the Librarian while you were at the ship. He'd get the Valkaerin Eagle to leave and he'd get something in return from us.' 

'They've gone!' Denz looked up through the gaping hole to the sky beyond. 

'You made a deal with the Librarian?' asked Grace warily. 

'Yep certainly did Grace. In a roundabout way. Wouldn't want to spend the rest of our days stuck in a Valkaerin worm pit having our bits nibbled off would we?'  

'What exactly did you trade Brooker?' Grace put her hand on her hips. 

Brooker picked up Grace's evac bag and dropped it at the Librarian's feet, offered him a quick salute then ran across the floor and quickly shimmied up the rope calling over his shoulder. 'Bring the rest of the stuff back with you would you.'  

'Brooker!' Yelled Grace. She went to retrieve her bag then looking at the ghostly face of the Librarian decided against it. She scrambled up the rope and chased Brooker across the sand. 

'So where did they go? The Valkaerins.' She asked breathlessly 

'Where are they? I don't know. Wherever he sent them. Another dimension, back home. Who cares?' 

'I do.' Grace huffed. 'He's got my HG Wells collection now.' 

'Com'on Grace where else would you have wanted it go when you shuffled of this mortal merry go round? To a collector probably, who would never even read them, just lock them up in a vault in his bank.'  

They kicked up the hot sand as they made their way back to the ship. 

'So why does no one come to this place I wonder? It looked empty to me.' mused Grace. 

'This is no mans land Grace, this system. No one ever comes here, it's off limits. Has been for hundreds of years. That's why I'd thought it would be worth a poke around for ores. And books? Well who wants to read books anymore? Probably all those civilisations out there have all got X Readers and Quantum Mind fillers these days.' 

'I suppose you're right.' Grace removed her sun hat and scratched her head. 'Brooker he never uttered a word. He's blind and dumb how could you do a deal with him?' 

'Because when I fell down the hole he was standing there waiting for me and he gave me this.' Brooker pulled a rolled up parchment from his shirt and passed it to Grace. 

'I'm amazed looking at an ape like you he knew you could read.' Grace glanced over the parchment.' But this has got your name on it Brooker. Hold on this parchment describes everything that has happened since we landed on this planet, including the deal with my books!'

Brooker nodded. 'Yep, that's how I knew -it was all foreseen by the Librarian. You know I thought all Librarians were supposed to be foxy, but there we are. Better be packing up, the Librarian won't be too happy to see one of Beal's drills crunching though the ceiling of his library. He wants a bit of peace and quiet to catch up on his new reading material.' 

'Hey there's a bit of the bottom of this that's missing.' Grace held up the parchment to Brooker. 

'Come on Grace I'm not going to reveal the ending am I? Brooker patted his pocket and smiled. He stopped suddenly and looked up. 'I don't believe it.' 

'What?' 

'The Valkaerins. They've nicked our trebuchet!' 

Books, eh. I wonder if every civilisation produces them as they evolve and then they become redundant as the wonders of the electronic age hit them. Maybe one day they'll no longer be with us. 

Oh -almost forgot, if you've enjoyed this don't forget to vote. Thanks. TL.