“That is precisely what I am telling you.” Irane smiled. He was pleased that Theo had managed to at least grasp the concepts. “This ship is able to rip into a dimension of subspace in order to travel via wormhole in the dimension of space, and the dimension of time. This type of manipulation is beyond the galaxy’s current technological abilities. The theory exists, but technological application at this magnitude, and accuracy, is currently beyond the capabilities of scientists and engineers.”
“How can that be though?” Theo’s head was already hurting. “If that were true, then the ship wouldn’t exist at all.” He was almost entirely convinced that the rest of the crew was hiding somewhere, watching his reactions as part of a weird joke.
Irane only smiled kindly, like an adult who was explaining something to a child. “The ship is not from this time, Theo. It is here now, but only because the advances of the future made it so.”
“How did it get here? How do you have it?” Theo’s questions kept piling up.
“Everything will start to make more sense if you will just come with me.” Irane opened the door to the ship.
Theo climbed in hesitantly. He allowed himself to entertain the thought of the ship being legitimate. That only opened up more questions. How had a young member of the Carbonari ended up with such a ship? If Irane was telling the truth, there were so many possibilities that could be opened up with such transport. The ability to manipulate time and space made Relissarium seem like a small splinter in the grand scheme of things. It was an important advancement, sure but being able to travel in time, to change things, that was an even more impressive development. Theo sat down in the co-pilot’s seat, choosing to at least humor the boy. He reached over to secure his harness in place. The worst that could happen was they would just go on a small joy ride, and then get back to real business. The click of the door closing behind Irane made Theo’s stomach suddenly knot up. It sounded so final, like everything was about to change. The whine of the engine—a note that pulsed, unlike the others he’d heard—made him uneasy.
Theo glanced ahead of them. “The docking bay doors aren’t open.”
“Hold on. The first time can be a bit disorienting.” Irane flipped a few switches. The hum of the engine swelled to a higher pitch.
“You need to open the doors! What are you doing?” Theo panicked and struggled against his harness. Maybe the boy had gone insane. All that talk of time travel could have been hokum spun from an addled brain. “We’re going to crash!” He tried to jerk himself free, to bail out of the ship before they were crushed inside of the cockpit. There was no use. The straps held him firmly in place. Theo clenched his eyes shut, bracing for the impact that would probably end his life.
A few moments passed, but there was no crash. Theo opened his eyes. The space around them seemed to ripple. Light streaked by. Colors trickled into one another like sunlight on a pool of oil. He was caught up in the beauty of it. Leaning forward, Theo rested his hands on the ship’s interior. The metal felt familiar. Realization dawned on him.
“This ship is made out of Relissarium!” Theo looked at Irane with wide eyes. “How is that possible?”
“We are in a very tumultuous moment in history. The discovery of Relissarium has the ability to fuel many technological advancements, but in the wrong hands, those same developments can be catastrophic.” Irane focused on steering the ship. The walls of the wormhole threatened to pull them into different timestreams. Irane piled on the power to resist the added pull.
While Theo tried to comprehend everything that was happening, the ship seemed to speed up way beyond the engines’ acceleration. Colors streamed by so fast they almost blended into one. Was this what falling into a black hole felt like?
A destination loomed ahead of them, and then in a brief moment, they were there. The warped tunnel of light they were in only a second ago was gone, replaced by a grand tableau of stars, the splendid band of the galaxy, and… something that almost made Theo’s heart stop. Before them was none other than Relisse—green and verdant. Before its destruction.
Four
“Why would you bring me here?” Theo’s voice was a whisper. He was afraid that if he spoke too loudly, it would all vanish.
Irane took them closer to the planet, and began to descend. “There are a few things I want to show you.”
The ship entered the atmosphere. Theo could make out the pattern of fields below them. Fence rows seemed to stich them together like one of the patchwork quilts that Mari used to make. Mari. Theo held his breath. If Relisse was still here, could she still be alive? He reached up to touch his wedding medallion, but his hand closed over nothingness. He had removed it what seemed like a lifetime ago. Guilt washed over him like a wave.
Irane guided them towards a farm in the distance. Theo would have recognized it anywhere. The color of the grass, the bored bleating of the sheep, the crooked way the farmhouse roof leaned to the left. It was his farm. The ship hovered high enough to not draw attention, but Theo wanted more.
Peering out of the window, Theo could see people down below. “Can’t we go down any closer?”
Irane shook his head. “I can’t get you any closer, but there’s something else I can do.” With a few presses of buttons, and a turn of a dial, the windshield switched from being clear to showing what was happening down below.
Theo couldn’t tear his eyes away from the screen. “How can we see this?”
“Just a second, and we can hear it, too. Time and space travel comes with the risk of ending up embedded inside of an existing structure that happens to be at your precise destination point. In order to circumnavigate that, the ship can project the space and time on the screen to allow the pilot to make sure the path is clear before making the jump. It works better if you’re closer, and sometimes the audio feature doesn’t work unless you are in the same moment of time. Most pilots prefer to take a series of short jumps, instead of one big one, to help with accuracy.” Irane fiddled with a few more dials, and then sound matched up with the images they were seeing.
Theo watched his final goodbye with his family. Mari’s voice came over the speakers. The sound made him cry. “Do you think you’ll be home for dinner?”
The version of himself on the ground answered her with a sigh. “I’ll try. I told Remi I would help him with an extra job.”
“You know I don’t like you being involved with him like that.” Her hands were on her hips, like they always were when she was passive aggressively upset with him.
“Well, we already spent the money on shoes for the kids. I can’t back out now.”
Mari bit her lip. The kids were always her weakness. “Just, be careful, please. That off-worlder wife of his is going to get him killed one day. I don’t want you caught up in that.”
It had been so long since Theo had thought of Cierra as his brother’s off-worlder wife. Hearing the words now made him embarrassed that he had ever thought of her like that. Before he had been able to respond that day, his two sons had run out of the house. The youngest clung to Mari’s skirts. A smudge of dirt was still on his cheek from playing outside. The eldest had decided that he was too grown up for that. He had been trying to prove that he was old enough to be considered a man. Theo’s heart ached knowing that neither of his children would ever get that chance now.
The littlest one piped up, clinging to Mari’s dress. “Dad, do you think you could bring me back some candy?”
“Candy?” Theo squatted down to ruffle his hair. “Benji, what do you need candy for? Your momma is sweet enough, you shouldn’t need any candy.” He glanced up at Mari who blushed.
“Stop that. You’re embarrassing me.” She straightened her apron, and tried to stay busy.
“Is that so?” Theo stood up. “Then you’re really going to hate this.” He placed one hand on each side of Mari’s face, and planted a kiss on her lips.
“Eww!” Both boys groaned together.
Mari pulled away. “Say goodbye to your fath
er, kids.
“Bye!” Benji threw his arms around Theo’s knees. His head landed square in Theo’s groin.
“Ow! Man, I can’t wait for you to hit that growth spurt. Be good for your momma.”
“I will.”
“Father.” The eldest boy reached out his hand instead of moving for a hug.
“Henrik.” Theo tried to keep a straight face as he shook his son’s hand, but he couldn’t help but smile. Henrik tried to act all grown up, but Theo knew it was still just an act. The boy was trying to grow up too fast.
“Please, please, be careful.” Mari locked eyes with him, one more time, before he turned to go.
“I will. You worry too much.” Theo shook his head, and headed towards the rental ship.
In the ship with Irane, Theo reached out to touch the screen. As soon as his fingertips grazed the surface, the windshield turned transparent again.
It was an overwhelming moment. He had been given the gift of seeing his loved ones again. At the same time, it reopened a wound that had never fully closed. Silent tears were still streaming down his cheeks.
Theo turned to face Irane. He grabbed the boy by the shirt. “They’re right there! They’re still alive! We can save them. They don’t have to burn! Take this ship down there, right now!”
The young man calmly took Theo’s hands and pried them away from him shirt. His super strength was too much for Theo to resist, but somehow Irane still managed to be gentle. “That’s not why I brought you here.”
“Then, why? Why bring me here? Why show me this if there is nothing I can do to fix it?”
“I brought you here for you. You can let it go now, Theo.” Irane’s voice was understanding and reassuring. “This is your closure, your chance to heal.”
The ripping ache inside of him dulled as he gave in to the sorrow. Theo closed his eyes. The loss he felt still hurt. But, could he begin to let go? Though it still felt like he was betraying Mari, perhaps he could. The darkness in his heart eased a little. He felt the bruises on his arms slowly begin to heal.
Theo looked over at Irane. Just who was this young man? He could fly a ship that shouldn’t even exist in their time, with total precision. He was super strong. He spoke little and listened much, but when he did speak, he exuded total calm and brought peace to the situation. There was clearly more to him than met the eyes.
Irane allowed himself a small smile, at the thought of Theo beginning to heal. He throttled up the engine again, pushing them back in their seats, and prepared to open a new rift. They still had more places to go. There was still so much that Theo needed to see. Punching in the new coordinates, he flew forward into another subspace wormhole.
With another sudden burst of propulsion, the two of them found themselves orbiting over Carristoux. Irane pulled up an image on the screen. Theo could make out himself and Karl—at the time he had still thought the man was called Garth—making their way to where their ships were parked near the souk. They had a straight shot to Karl’s cargo ship. On the ground, Theo was trying to keep up, but he was still lagging behind Karl’s quick strides.
In the ship, Theo winced, as he knew what was going to happen. He watched as Karl’s forcefield threw his body several feet into the air and tossed him behind another ship. Karl never stopped walking. The cargo ship rose from the lot and headed into orbit.
Irane fiddled with the knobs and dials until the interior of Karl’s ship appeared. They could hear him radioing someone. “Imperial Craft Fifty-Three-B, do you read me?” Karl drummed his fingers impatiently on the steering stick of his ship.
An imperial soldier manning the coms of a nearby ship answered his call. “Fifty-Three-B here. What can we do for you?”
“Do you still have contact with the old codger running the militia post on Carristoux?”
“Yes, we do.”
Karl smiled. “Good. I want you to get a message to him for me.”
“I’m ready.”
“Let him know that we have a tip that someone is planning to come for a special collection of mineral he has stashed in the CRM post.” Karl’s smile widened, mischievously.
“Would you like us to send a squad to the post for extra security?”
Chuckling, Karl shook his head. “No, I have a better idea. Tell him to write the order, and we’ll send a ship to pick it up and move it for him, just until the threat passes.”
The soldier paused for a second. “Which ship would you like us to mobilize for the pick-up?”
“There’s no need to send a special ship. I’ll handle this one personally.”
There was a click on the line, before the soldier came back with a response. “Sir, that is highly unorthodox. It is recommended that you allow us to send someone less important for the recovery of the mineral.”
The smile on Karl’s face was gone in an instant. “I didn’t ask for your opinion, nor did I ask for suggestions. I gave you an order. See that it’s followed.” Karl ended the conversation. His eye twitched with anger.
The screen faded back to transparency. Theo turned to look at Irane. “If you’ve had this technology the whole time, why haven’t we used it before? Don’t you realize how many people would still be alive if we had just used this thing to figure out the enemy’s plans?”
Irane was already opening another hole in the space and time stream. “Like I said earlier, we are in a very tumultuous time in history. Certain things have to happen. If they didn’t, this ship wouldn’t even be built in the future to travel back and exist now. The reason I’m showing you all of this now is to help you see the bigger picture of what’s happening. You are a key player in a game much larger than you know.”
The ship rushed into the hole, and popped out in front of Relisse again. They were quite far away from the planet, but they could see that it was still in place, unharmed. Irane brought up another image on the screen. It showed the CRM still on Carristoux after the Carbonari members had left with the smuggler. One of the soldiers toed Karl’s unconscious body with his boot.
Karl snarled, and sat up angrily. “Where are they? Where did they go?”
The soldier held a blaster pointed at Karl’s midsection. “Put your hands up where I can see them!”
“Do you know who I am?”
“You are a prisoner of the Carristoux Regional Militia.”
Karl grabbed the man’s gun in one lightning quick move, and used the butt of the blaster to bash him in the head. “I am the fifty-third in line for the throne, you shit-for-brains!” He pulled a royal, imperial seal from one of his pockets, and held it up for the others to see. The rest of the militia saluted instantly, and fell to one knee. “Now, someone get me a com!”
“Here, your highness!” A young soldier rushed forward, keeping his eyes averted.
Karl snatched the com from the boy, and planted his boot imto the kid’s chest, knocking him on his hind end. “Imperial Craft Fifty-Three-B!”
An imperial soldier answered the communications call. “Fifty-Three-B here.”
Karl’s face was red with anger. “Open a portal to Relisse! I want you to burn it all.”
“Burn it?” The telecommunications officer sounded surprised.
Karl was speaking so furiously that spit flew from his mouth. “If I have to repeat myself, I’ll fry your whole family! The mineral underneath the soil of that planet is worth more to me than your life, do you understand me?”
“Yes, Prince Karl.”
Karl dropped the com on the ground, and smashed it under his foot. He turned to look at the men who were still kneeling. “Now, it appears that some of you have heard something you shouldn’t have. I’m a stickler for loose ends.” As Karl started blasting and hacking the soldiers around him, the screen faded away from the bloody massacre.
Back in the ship, the windshield became transparent. Theo’s face went white. “He’s a prince? That sack of trash is the emperor’s son? And he gave the command to burn Relisse?” He stopped breathing for a minute, and merely b
linked as he tried to process the information.
Irane merely nodded. “Keep watching. You haven’t seen everything yet.”
Five
Cierra squatted in a patch of dense foliage close enough to scout the imperial garrison responsible for attacking the monasteries. She hissed at the others that were with her, trying to quiet them down. “Stop moving!”
Cherish slid her lasana blade out of the sheath in her arm. Her voice was a whisper. “It’s not us.”
Fabois and Makka were perfectly still. Both of their eyes were wide with fear. Cierra turned to look at Cherish. Just as she did so, Cierra was gripped from behind, and thrown over. She tried to kick and punch, anything to dislodge her attacker. Two hands held her arms pinned to her side, and another one was pressed firmly to her mouth. Cherish plunged her blade into the back of the assailant on top of Cierra.
“Gahh! That’s some welcome, you two!” Jaedo moved to slide himself off of Cherish’s sword. “Lucky for you my gift is body manipulation. It still hurts, though. A lot.”
He moved his hand away from Cierra’s mouth. She looked up at him in surprise, and then threw her arms around him. “Jaedo! What are you doing here?”
“Same thing you are, I would imagine. I managed to get out of the monastery alive before the imperials blew it up.” His wound healed while he spoke. “I found out this was the place responsible. I came to get some revenge.”
Cherish felt her heart leap into her throat. “Did may of the others make it? Were there a lot of survivors?” She was wondering about Makram, but she didn’t dare to say his name out loud. She was still dealing with her feelings for him, even after his betrayal. Part of her kept hoping that he was just playing a role, that he wasn’t really with the imperials.
The Relissarium Wars Omnibus Page 44