Omnigalactic

  “Shen'roth,” Glennsworth corrected. He patted his mouth and goatee clean of food debris with a napkin. “We did not kill him.”

  “Huh? Don't mess with my head, guys. It wasn't a pleasant experience the first time; believe me.”

  I let out a satisfying burp and sat up. “What Glennsworth means to say is that Shen'roth was unkillable. He came up with the crazy idea of using that magic book of his to banish Shen'roth back to Interspace.”

  “Banish?” Jord's cybernetic eye zoomed in on me. “I don't get it. Are you saying it came from Interspace? As in… it lives there?”

  “I'll tell you when we fly out of here tomorrow morning,” I said. “We're going to need something to do on the trip.”

  The three of us sat there for awhile. I closed my eyes and felt the ocean breeze against my face. Tell you what — being on the verge of death twice in one week really made me appreciate being alive.

  I listened to Jord hum a song for a few minutes, pausing between verses to take a drink. It was good to have the big guy back.

  I opened my eyes and looked at Glennsworth, who was staring out at the waves. I tapped him on the shoulder. “Say, Glennsworth, what are your plans after this?”

  “I'm sorry?” he asked. “How do you mean?”

  “Well, you planning on laying low for awhile? Working on some new spells?”

  Glennsworth gave a deep, annoyed sigh. “For the last time, they aren't ‘spells’ or ‘magic tricks’ or ‘the dark arts’. They’re—”

  “Yeah, yeah, you know what I meant.” I cut him off before he could go on another tangent about his type of magic.

  “I suppose…” He looked down at his mug of beer. “I might wait here for the next supply ship to arrive. I may help Doctor Rupert in the infirmary until then. Tend to the sick. Regardless, my work remains unfinished, and I must return to it in due time.”

  I studied his face. A part of me thought he wasn't being completely honest (once again). I leaned closer to him and took another sip. “You know, I was thinking about something the other day. Down there, when we were fighting Shen'roth, and all those people were dying, we held him off for quite some time.”

  “Well, if it were not for my abilities, we would have all died.”

  “That's true; I'll give you that,” I said and pointed at him with my mug. “But when you think about it, we were a pretty good team down there, don't you think?”

  “What are you trying to say?” he asked.

  I looked over at Jord. The subtle furrow of his brow made me think he was either interested in or skeptical about what I was about to propose. I would have thought that, with his decades of experience, he had a good eye for talent. Although his mouth stayed still, his slight nod gave me the impression that he approved.

  I looked back at Glennsworth. “I have a proposal for you. What would you say if I told you that Omnigalactic was accepting applications?”

  Glennsworth squinted, and his eyes darted between me and Jord. “Are you offering me a job?”

  “Yes,” I answered.

  “What kind of job did you have in mind?”

  “Uh, well, its an entry-level position,” I scrambled. I didn't know what to say, only that I wanted Glennsworth on the team. “So, that means you'll be doing field work with us, possibly interfacing with clients, some janitorial work from time to time, and really just helping maintain the ship as we go. How's that sound?”

  Glennsworth squinted. “That sounds absolutely dreadful. I do not scrub latrines.”

  I smirked. “Well, I did say it was entry-level. However, there's a ton of opportunities to grow as an employee.”

  “I'll require a stipend, of course,” he said, seeming more interested.

  “Stipend?” I asked.

  “How much are you offering to pay me?”

  “How does five percent of every contract sound?”

  “There's three of us,” Glennsworth countered. “Naturally, I deserve a third of the cut.”

  Jord finished chugging his beer and joined in the salary negotiations. “Hey, smartass, we don't even make thirty-three percent a piece. By the time we pay overhead and resupply, we'll be lucky if we make thirty-three percent to split between us. Five percent is fair.”

  “Ten percent,” Glennsworth said. “It is clear you two are in need of assistance.”

  I held my hand out in front of Glennsworth. “Seven-percent cut, and the company will supply your lodging and food. Final offer.”

  Glennsworth took one last swig of his beer, set the mug down, and shook my hand firmly. He grinned and shook Jord's hand, too. “It will be a pleasure working with you two gentlemen!”

  I couldn't help but grin along with him. “Welcome aboard.”

  “Now, who is interested in another round to celebrate?”

  ****

  The next day was the most gorgeous we’d seen since we arrived. The morning sun was bright and high in the sky. A steady, lukewarm ocean breeze graced the settlement. Birds left their jungle nests, soaring and diving like bullets into the sea for their breakfast, then landing on the beach to preen. It left me with a tangible sense of conclusion. An evil had tainted the peace of this little island, and I had been the one who’d destroyed it.

  It piqued my curiosity, though. I started to ponder the possibilities of the company's future. It could have been an isolated incident of daemon activity, but with the existence of Glennsworth's secret organization, what if there were more? That book had an incredible amount of creatures in it. What if there were a bunch of them out there, terrorizing other parts of the galaxy? With Glennsworth on our payroll, it could be a service we provided - daemon control. Sure, I almost died trying to get rid of Shen'roth. But, the incredible feeling I’d gotten from saving the place was like a drug. I wanted more. Was that what the ancient warrior, Ritan, felt when he’d killed all those super-predators and saved the Anuran race from extinction? Surely, he’d had a run-in with death a few times.

  With fifty thousand bitcreds in the company's coffers, and Melville now relatively back to its former operating norm, the three of us removed our things from the Brick and stowed them away on the Lady Luna. I double-checked that we had everything one last time, then headed for the landing pad.

  I heard Doctor Rupert shout my name as I walked up the boarding ramp. I turned to her.

  “Sai!” she called as she jogged toward me. “Wait!”

  “What's up?” I asked. “Don't tell me Shen'roth is back.”

  She smiled and swept golden locks of hair from her face. “No, thank goodness. I just wanted to say goodbye before you left.”

  I looked up at her and struggled to say something that didn't sound stupid. “Oh, that's nice of you.” Yep, that was stupid.

  “Look, about the… you know… the kiss,” she stuttered. “With everything crazy happening, and the storm, I wasn't thinking straight.”

  I waved it away. “Bah, don't worry about it. We were all a little crazy that day. Look at me; I walked into certain death like a maniac.”

  “That's what I wanted to talk about,” she said. Her hair and lab coat blew in the gentle breeze. “What you did was an act of bravery. You could have left. It wasn't your problem, but you stayed to help.”

  I blushed. “Well, that's the Omnigalactic guarantee: We finish the job, or your money back.”

  “I know you didn't do it just for the money. I could see it in your eyes.”

  “People were in danger,” I said. “And, I couldn't let that bastard get away with what he did. Not in good conscience. How would I sleep at night?”

  “There need to be more people like you.”

  “C'mon, you're a doctor. You help those in need more than I do. More than I could ever do.”

  She knelt to my eye level and hugged me hard. She smelled of hospital sanitation supplies and saltwater. “Thank you, Sai. For everything.”

  When she let go of me, I asked, “What are you going to
do now? What's next for Melville?”

  She sighed. “I have to submit a report to the university. I think I'll leave out the whole Shen'roth part, though. Otherwise, they'll want to pull funding, and everything we've discovered here will be lost. Animal, daemon, whatever that thing was — they'll deem this place too much of a risk. But if I tell them it was just the storm, then perhaps, they'll build us the proper storm protection we need. I dunno, I'll figure it out somehow.”

  “You're a smart lady,” I said. “You will.”

  Jord called from inside the Lady Luna, “Let's go, Sai!”

  I smirked. “Well, I’d better get going. I wish you luck, Doctor Rupert.”

  “Drop the professionalism,” she said. “We're friends now. Call me Ellen.”

  “Okay. I wish you luck, Ellen.”

  She smiled and nudged me in the arm. “Keep in touch, Sai. Don't be a stranger.”

  I nodded. “If you guys ever need us for anything, Omnigalactic will provide that service.”

  I turned and trotted up the boarding ramp. I looked back at her and waved one last time as the ramp hissed closed.

  Jord followed me into the cockpit. I plopped myself down in the captain's chair and readied the ship for take-off. Through my peripheral vision, I saw Jord staring at me with a shit-eating grin. I ignored him, but he wouldn't stop.

  “What?” I finally asked.

  “I saw you two hugging and smiling at each other,” he said, still grinning. “What'd she say?”

  “She was just saying ‘bye’ and ‘thank you’ and whatnot,” I answered.

  “That's it?”

  “That's it.”

  Jord pretended to be satisfied with my response. “If you say so. Loverboy.”

  “Don't act like you didn't hit on her as soon as we got here, Jord-o,” I said. “What was it you said to me again? ‘Not bad for the science-y type’?”

  Jord held up his hands in defense. “Hey, I'm not denying she's a good-looking gal. I'm just pointing out that you two like each other.”

  “Yeah, well, it's just a friendly, business relationship. So, you can shoot that idea right out of the airlock.”

  Jord grinned sinisterly again. “Glennsworth told me you two kissed.”

  “That son-of-a—” I said. Jord laughed and slapped me on the shoulder. “It wasn't on the lips, you know. Just on the cheek.”

  He continued to laugh, but harder this time, clutching his guts. Between breaths, he said, “On the cheek! Right!”

  “Just get your ass ready for take-off.”

  Jord walked out of the cockpit, laughing all the way down the corridor. Despite his asinine behavior, I was glad he was back to his old self. After everything that had happened, I wouldn't have had it any other way.

  I engaged the prograde thrusters and pulled up on the flightstick, then blasted us into the atmosphere.

  I guessed the only question that remained was: Where to next? We needed to resupply before we could even think about taking another job. We also needed to replace the weapons we’d lost in the fight with Shen'roth. And, I needed a new jacket. We could have gotten a deal with Jord's buddy, Marshall Suggs, and it might have been a good idea to make a goodwill payment to Valo. Therefore, Anura sounded like the best place to go.

  I engaged the Interspace beacon as we approached the Harland system's Wyn Gate. I looked at Harland through the aft cameras and hoped Doctor Rupert — er, Ellen — and the others would be all right. “So long, Melville.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  Hand It Over

  Before I could wipe the sweat off my face, the Lady Luna slammed to a halt. I jiggled the stick and thrusters around. No response. The ship still had power, though, so it wasn't the engines again, thank the Pantheon. What could it possibly have been now?

  I checked the aft cameras. Behind us was a small, boxy, V-shaped mining vessel. What was a mining vessel doing out there? The klaxon sounded on the control console. I accepted the transmission.

  “Well, well,” a female voice said. I'd heard it once before, but couldn't quite put a face to it. “Look who thought they could get away from us.”

  I cocked my head in confusion. “I'm sorry; who am I speaking to?”

  “Don't play us for fools,” she said. “We know Daniel is aboard your ship. Hand him and the Grimoire over to us, and we will disengage the beam tether.”

  Ah, crap. It was those wizard guys again. Glennsworth's old pals.

  “Glennsworth!” I called over the intercom. “Get up to the cockpit, now.”

  The clanking of boots signaled his arrival. “What is the problem?” he asked.

  I nodded at the aft cameras, keeping my gaze fixed on them. “Your friends found us. They want to talk to you.”

  “Hello, Headmistress,” he said in that uppity tone of his. “I'm so glad to see you again.”

  “Don't test my patience any further,” she said. “You've exhausted that resource. In exactly one minute, we will board your ship, and you will come with us.”

  “Why don't we just escape?” he asked me.

  “We're stuck,” I said. “They've got us tethered.”

  He cursed. “I can't go back with them. I'll never complete my quest. We have to do something.”

  “Maybe we can cut a deal with them? Just give them the stupid book in exchange for your freedom.”

  “I need the Grimoire. Without it, I'm as good as lost.”

  A swirly, grayish portal opened on the bulkhead behind us. Two pairs of boots stepped through. Uh-oh. The Human female and Celyrian from the Hub stepped into the cockpit, uncomfortably close to us. I felt like they were going to lash out at me any second. Or maybe, they'd turn me into a bug and squish me. I winced at the thought.

  The Human held out a gloved hand, her green robes glinting with silver pins. In a weird way, she pulled off the wizard look much better than my new employee did. Maybe it was the darkness in her eyes.

  “Let's end this ridiculous chase, Daniel,” she said. “Come with us.”

  “You're in serious trouble,” the Celyrian added, cracking the knuckles on all four of his hands.

  Glennsworth shook his head. “You will not stop me, Headmistress. Not while the answers are at my fingertips, and air is still in my lungs. The only chase, the only hunt, that will end is yours. Now, let us go.”

  She glared at him, then fixed her attention on me. “Anuran, you have no stake in this. This man is flirting with dark knowledge that will bring nothing but danger to you and your loved ones. Help us rid you of this burden.”

  Wow, she’d really laid it on thick there. If there was ever a time for second thoughts about Glennsworth joining the company, it was then. Was it really something I wanted to deal with? Battling ancient, daemonic forces whilst making a tidy profit?

  Absolutely.

  “No,” I said. “You're trespassing on private property, and you will leave my vessel, right now.”

  She scoffed. “Why do you continue to help him?”

  I glanced at Glennsworth, who looked me in the eyes. For a brief millisecond, in the fabric of space-time, we shared something - mutual respect for one another. We knew we needed each other in our own ways.

  I looked back at her. “Because he's one of the little guys. Just like me. And, I don't take kindly to people threatening my employees. So, you can walk right out of that cool portal behind you and leave us alone.”

  She whispered something under her breath, and her hands began to glow with a black-and-white aura. With blazing quickness, Glennsworth whipped his metal rod from underneath his robes. He swung at them but collided with her glowing hands. Static crackled in the air. I leapt from my captain's chair and landed a swift kick to the Celyrian's groin. He stumbled back as I crashed to the floor, sending shocks up my still-healing arm.

  A set of long arms appeared from behind them and wrapped around their necks. Jord locked his hands together and squeezed, strangling the both of th
em. With a raging grunt, he slung them around and tossed them through the portal. They landed back on their ship, and the portal flickered and disappeared.

  “Persistent, aren't they?” he said.

  “They've got us tethered!” I yelled. “Can you fix that?”

  “I have an idea or two,” he said and ran down the main corridor.

  I hopped back to the ship's controls. “Glennsworth, you might want to find something to hold onto.”

  A boom and a flash of blue streaked toward the mining vessel, striking its side. It shook and began to spin in a ball of fire and smoke, hurdling away from us. I slammed on the thrusters. We were free!