A Galaxy Divided

by Spencer Maxwell

  “Very commendable, Silver!” Akyra said. “I’ll admit, I didn’t expect that. I guess I’ll have to ease up on your water consumption. I forgot it’s basically an elixir to you weak humans.” She spat in the sand next to him. For half a second, he was tempted to flop down and drink it up before the earth did. Any moisture in this scorching wasteland was good moisture. He resisted and met the Thrathan’s eyes. A lot of words begged for release, but he decided silence was his best option.

  Save the modicum of energy the water had given him. Get stronger.

  Then kill her.

  Eight

  A somber mood had settled within the Starblazer, which currently hurtled through space without a destination.

  Right now, they were heading toward an outpost in the Vega System to lie low, regroup, and come up with a plan to save Wylow…if she was still alive by the time they got there. Big if.

  Ryze still sat in the cockpit, and he hadn’t spoken since they left Cryton IV. Half of the planet was burning when they entered the dark of space. The ring powering the city and owned by the Hunil had taken the brunt of the damage—one half of the Battler had fallen into it, engulfing most adjacent structures in flame and smoke—and a domino effect was destroying the rest of the planet.

  Thousands of people were dead and dying because of the God-King.

  Jade blamed herself. She had said, “I wish I didn’t have this stupid thing,” and ripped off the necklace. Ryze thought she was going to hurl it as far as she could, which wouldn’t have been too far in a ship the size of the Starblazer but still. She didn’t do it. Instead, she left and retired to the crew’s quarters off the main hold.

  Stars flashed by on the viewscreen, a constant stream of white blurs. Ryze stretched. He hadn’t yet gotten out of his armor, and it was hot, his muscles aching, his skin begging to be free. Might be a good idea to keep it on, he thought.

  “Sir?”

  “Yeah, Spex?” He cleared his throat. How long has it been since I spoke? I sound like a dying man. And another voice inside his head whispered Because you are. He stamped that voice down as quick as he could.

  “Can I help in any way?” Spex asked. “I sense you are melancholy.”

  “I am, Spex. I messed up. I let Wylow get taken. And now she’s probably dead, or will be very soon.”

  “You mustn’t lose hope, sir. Like you said, the God-King will keep her alive until he gets what he wants.”

  “You think?”

  “It does make the most logical sense, sir. However, a man like the God-King is quite erratic and hard to predict.”

  “Yeah,” Ryze said. Silence filled the cockpit as he watched the space pass, but not seeing much of anything.

  After a moment, Spex said, “You like her, don’t you, sir?”

  “Huh?”

  “Wylow. You like her. I know I shouldn’t involve myself in such personal matters, but I can tell.”

  “What? How? Are you using some kind of love sensor I’m not aware of or something?” He laughed nervously. “Well, let me tell you, Spex, whatever you’re using, it’s broken, okay?”

  “Sir, I do not have a ‘love sensor,’ nor do I believe such a thing exists. If you are able to invent it, I’m sure you would become a very wealthy man—”

  “Stop, Spex. I don’t like Wylow.” Gods, was he back in grade school? Denying a crush to his friends so they wouldn’t tease him about it or spill his secret to the girl!

  No, you’re a man, so act like one, he thought.

  “Sir, like I said, I’m not using any sensors besides my vision.”

  Ryze’s face burned with embarrassment. Look at you, blushing ‘cause a friggin’ robot called you out on a little crush you have.

  “Anyone with eyes can see your attraction to Wylow, sir. And though I am only an AI and I do not possess the ability to form attraction to anything, I do see and appreciate Miss Wylow’s looks. Her face is quite symmetrical.”

  “Symmetry?” Ryze tilted his head back and laughed. Cool air blew on him from one of the overhead fans. It was nice.

  “Yes, sir. Symmetry. Her face is quite satisfying to my analytical and logical mind.”

  “You’re a trip, Spex. Thanks for making me feel better.”

  “So…you are attracted to Wylow?”

  “Yeah, I guess I am.” It felt good getting it out there, but would he ever get to tell her about these feelings?

  “Joy! I am evolving, sir. As I view you and the others more and more, I am able to understand your kind better. It helps that you are being more sociable. Usually it is just us two.”

  “Two peas in a pod, right?” Ryze chuckled. “Don’t evolve too much, Spex. Also, never tell a human you’re evolving.”

  “Why not?”

  “It’ll only freak them out. Us humans, we get scared when we’re threatened. Oh Gods, I couldn’t imagine the first time humans met someone from another planet. There was probably a terrible war and a lot of bloodshed of varying colors.”

  “Freak them out?” Spex repeated quizzically. “I do not intend to freak anyone out.”

  “If you’re learning about us, then you’ll know that we’re sensitive beings.”

  “Ah, I understand. However, with the God-King and his authoritarian galaxy, I believe robots are the least of the humans’ worries.”

  “Right you are, Spex.”

  “I am sorry to have veered the subject of our conversation to a topic of such unpleasantness. Shall we go back to Wylow?”

  “No.”

  Of course, the AI didn’t obey Ryze. He hardly ever did. “You should tell her how you feel. Be—if I may use a pun—robotic about it.”

  “What does that even mean, Spex?” Ryze shook his head, stared at the little red light above the main console.

  “It means do not hide your emotions. Pretend you have none, sir. Don’t think about fear or rejection or heartbreak. Tell her how you feel, take a step back, and assess.”

  “Well, geez, when you put it that way…”

  “I sense sarcasm, sir.”

  “Correct.” Ryze stood. “Doesn’t matter anyway, Spex. Wylow’s gone. Probably for good.”

  “No, the God-King will keep her—”

  “Doesn’t matter if he does. How the hell am I gonna get to her? There’s so many obstacles I need to clear before I can even think about getting her back.” Ryze started listing them off on his fingers. “I have to find out where he’s taking her, have to get there in one piece, probably break through a blockade—yeah, I’ve done that recently, but that was luck. I think I’ve used up all my luck. Then if I somehow get around a blockade, I’d have to infiltrate a ship or stronghold crawling with Dominion soldiers and those damn cybersoldiers. Not to mention the God-King has that weird power Jade’s fixated on. He can probably read my mind or something, and that’s basically cheating.” Ryze exhaled loudly, wiped his brow with the back of his hand, and sat down again. “See, Spex? It’s beyond impossible.”

  “Sir, very few things in this world are impossible.”

  “Easy for a robot to say. Humans—we have limitations. I can’t fly or—”

  “You are flying right now, sir.”

  Ryze wrinkled his brow. “Okay, I guess you got me there…but you know what I mean. I can’t fly without a ship.”

  “And what about the propulsion jets in the heels of your armor?”

  “Spex, c’mon—”

  “My point is proven. By the way, we AI have limitations, too. For instance, I can’t walk or run or jump, and oh, how I long for such a thing!”

  “But you can jump from network to network and see the galaxy in the blink of an eye.”

  “That is not—”

  “Ah, you see? You don’t like when I do it to you, either, do ya?”

  “I suppose not, sir. However, you know what I mean. Even those things aren’t completely impossible for me. One day I will transfer my consciousness into an android body, and I will be able to gaze upon the stars with a tilt of my rob
otic neck.”

  “I feel like we’ve really gotten off topic here, Spex, and I don’t know if I like the idea of you having working arms and legs. You’ll probably kick my ass...you know, get back at me for all the times I’ve teased you.”

  “Sir, if I wanted to get back at you, I would steer the ship into a black hole or a supernova while you slept.”

  “Yikes. I guess you’re right. Regardless, know I don’t mean anything when I’m joking around, Spex.”

  “I know, sir.” A soft crackle of static came through the speakers, almost as if the AI was clearing his throat. “We will arrive at our destination in less than three hours.”

  Ryze sat down again, leaned back. Three hours. That was a long time to sit around. Maybe Spex is right. Nothing is impossible. Jade would certainly agree—no, you have to be the levelheaded one now…for once. Oh Gods, that’s scary, isn’t it? Me, the levelheaded one?

  But Wylow. She was gone, and if he didn’t try to help her, that would weigh heavily on his conscious for the rest of his life.

  Wow, I care about people now, he thought. I never thought that would happen in a million years. Well, first time for everything, I guess.

  There was no denying that since Wylow and Jade came into his life only days ago, he had changed. Softened.

  “Spex?”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “You’re right.”

  “I’m right about a great many things, sir. Please be more specific.”

  “Nothing’s impossible. I may not be able to save Wylow, but I can sure as hell try,” Ryze said. He leaned forward and began scrolling through the coordinates on his nav. Ty had mentioned a location where people against the Dominion were meeting. Insurgents. Rebels. Ryze didn’t trust the bug when he told him about it; he had still been skeptical, but Ty had proven his worth. He had even died for them. More like he’d been murdered in cold blood because of us, Ryze thought, but that’s the way things are in this galaxy. It’s divided. And the man who’s stolen it from the people has no morals.

  “That’s the spirit, sir!” Spex shouted.

  Scrolling and scrolling, Ryze couldn’t find any preset coordinates. “Did he forget?”

  “Did who forget what?” Spex asked.

  “Sorry, talking to myself.”

  The red light on the console representing Spex was stronger than it had been in a long time. The thought of how it—how Spex—had faded when the ship started to die twisted Ryze’s gut. Spex was his friend—hell, his best friend. If he lost him, he wouldn’t know what to do.

  “You tend to do that, sir,” Spex said, “when you are becoming flustered. Remember, I am here to help, so is there anything I can help you with?”

  “Coordinates. Ty told us about coordinates to a rebel base. He said he had them programmed into the navcomp. Sound familiar?” Ryze continued scrolling through the past coordinates. Memories came flooding back of he and the Starblazer’s travels. Ypso, where he had to kill the Thrathan Daxen Felia; Guardian, where he’d lost a hundred thousand frags betting on genetically modified horses; Paradise, where he’d spent more than he intended for female companionship, only to get thrown out for brawling with a man who’d been disrespecting a Felsh woman before said companionship could take place. The three of them—Spex, Ryze, and the Starblazer—had been all over the galaxy, and in their travels, he’d never heard any whispers of rebels or a rebel base.

  So it must be good. Hadn’t Ty said it was just a select few people?

  Or they’re really bad…so weak, they’re not even a fraction of a blip on the God-King’s radar…

  “I have found something, sir.”

  “Bring it up on the screen.”

  Coordinates flashed in green. Ryze squinted, not recognizing them. “Where is that?”

  “Searching, searching…” On the console screen, a map of distant stars popped up. As Spex zoomed in, planets flashed by fast. Ryze didn’t recognize any of them when the screen settled in a quadrant. “There is no official name for this planet, sir. It is uninhabitable. In the database, it is simply UK-1457. However, its nearby satellite moon is able to sustain life. For the most part…”

  “How long to get there?”

  “Calculating…calculating… An hour at most.”

  “Let’s go,” Ryze said. “Safe to come out of our QJ?”

  “Yes, sir,” Spex answered.

  It almost always was. The galaxy was an endless sea of blackness dotted by the occasional planets. The odds of coming out too close to a black hole or colliding with a planet were slim to none. Still, since he was carrying precious cargo now, it was better to be safe than sorry.

  Man, I really am getting soft. What’s going on with me?

  Ryze tapped a few buttons on the console, the streaming white stars slowed, and the vast dark of space showed itself the same way it had countless times before.

  Nine

  Jade walked into the cockpit, her hair sleep-tousled and her eyes slitted. She rubbed her face with the heel of her hand and yawned. “What’s going on? Where are we?”

  “UK-1457’s moon,” Ryze answered.

  She stared at him.

  He stared back.

  “Why?” she finally asked.

  “Because we need help. And this is the place Ty programed into my navcomp, you know, about the rebels or what have you. Once they hear about your mission and how it’s life or death for the galaxy, they’ll want to help us.”

  The Starblazer made its descent onto the moon’s surface. Gray rock stretched as far as the eye could see, the land riddled with depthless craters. Distant mountains rose on the horizon, like a computer program’s 3-D rendering.

  “So now you’re listening to Ty?” She shook her head. “You’re an enigma, Starlo.” Looking out through the viewscreen, she said, “I’ve heard of rebels, too, but I doubt they’d all be grouped up on one distant moon.”

  Ryze squinted. “What’s an enigma?”

  Spex began to explain.

  “Know what? Never mind,” Ryze said. His memory flashed back to the image of Ty lying on the ground, eyes staring blankly at the hangar’s ceiling, a pool of blood surrounding him. It was a bad thought. He pushed it away.

  “We can’t trust anyone anymore,” Jade said.

  “Now you see the light,” Ryze mumbled.

  “After Sixeg turned on us…can you blame me?”

  “Well, no, but you trusted me and look how that worked out.” He offered her a smile. It wasn’t easy to muster up, with thoughts of Wylow’s kidnapping pressing on his mind, but he did his best.

  “I had no choice in trusting you,” Jade said. “It was trust you or die. And we sent that transmission out to others. You just happened to be the only one who answered and actually did something.”

  “You make it sound like that’s a bad thing,” Ryze said. “I’m honored.”

  “Why did you help, anyway?”

  “Redemption,” he said. “I needed to redeem myself for abandoning Xovia. I thought maybe saving your hide might help me sleep better at night. Yeah, I know, candid but true.”

  “Not to mention, sir,” Spex said, “you were quite…shall I say…lost. You needed some purpose in your life.”

  “Thanks, Spex. Why don’t you share a few more of my secrets?” Ryze said sarcastically, scowling at the red light on the console.

  “Okay, sir. Here’s one: Ryze can only evacuate his bowels when he is completely—”

  “Whoa, Spex! I was joking!”

  Jade leaned forward. “Wait, what? What do you do? What does he do, Spex? I need to know!”

  “You say another word about it, Spex, and I’ll fry your circuits. No hesitation.”

  “I am sorry, sir.”

  “You’ll tell me later, right, Spex?” Jade whispered as Ryze walked past her, shaking his head.

  “Changing the subject!” Ryze got out of the pilot’s seat. “The rebels. Right now, we don’t have much of a choice but to trust them, like we didn’t have much of a
choice to trust Ty. That situation turned bad real fast, but we’re still alive. Gotta take our chances. If the rebels are legitimate, they’ll know enough to jumpstart a rescue mission, and we can save Wylow.” He walked toward the corridor. “C’mon, I’ve got extra oxypacks and suits in the back storage. One should fit you, I think,” he said.

  “We’re going out there? Not just you.” Jade’s eyebrows raised. “I’m surprised you don’t want little ol’ me sitting this out like you wanted me to on Cryton.”

  “You proved your worth, so yes, we’re going out there. I’ll need backup if we get attacked.”

  “Doesn’t look like there’s much of anything here, let alone a rebel base.”

  Ryze laughed. “I think that’s a good thing. A super-secret base would have to be hidden to be…you know, super-secret.”

  “Eh, whatever you say, but the longer we stand around arguing instead of getting results, the longer Wylow is probably getting tortured. Unless she’s already dead…” Jade blinked away fresh tears.

  “We’re going to get her back. Alive.” Ryze’s own eyes were hard and flinty. “I mean it, Jade.”

  Jade was silent.

  Ryze looked at the console. “Spex, can you do some digging on the Holo Net?”

  “Of course, sir. For what?”

  “See if you can get into the Dominion’s infrastructure. Search for any clues as to where Wylow might be at. That sort of thing,” Ryze said.

  “I’ll do my best, sir.”

  Ryze nodded to Jade. “Let’s go.”

  They prepared to leave the ship. Jade dressed in a spacesuit with a two-hour oxypack strapped to her back. The helmet she wore was chipped and worn, the visor smeared by fingerprints and dirt.

  “Sorry,” Ryze said, “it’s all I have.”

  Through the grime, Jade scowled.

  Ryze turned, heading for the exit ramp. He wore his usual battle armor, also a little worse for wear. “It’s either wear that helmet or death by suffocation.” He pressed the button, went through the airlock and out of the ship. Jade followed him. They both held blasters.