She opened her eyes. Even Josmere’s impossibly green gaze wasn’t enough to push back the darkness that waited impatiently at the edge of her mind.
Waited to consume her.
Layela reached out and grabbed Josmere’s hands. The green eyes widened and reflected her horror as the darkness washed over them both.
Avienne watched the small government team make its way into the tall bay of the Destiny. She smiled and approached them, her hair loose around her shoulders. In her hand, she firmly grasped a bottle from Lang’s supply, which she had recently found in the bay.
Her other hand held two narrow glasses. She remembered drinking from them, back when the crew of the Destiny had still believed in gatherings.
At the head of the party was a short man with white hair, followed by a tall, lanky youth with freckles. How young did they commission in their armies? The third man was further behind, so she concentrated on her immediate targets.
“Welcome!” Avienne smiled widely. “Can I offer you some fine Solarian wine? I purchased it two years ago and I’ve been waiting for the right occasion to open it. We so infrequently get visitors here!”
The inspector hesitated for a moment, taken aback by the reception. She was certain most smuggling ships did not look as clean and empty, and didn’t have a cute, peppy receptionist.
“We believe you have illegal passengers aboard, a human woman by the name of Layela Delamores and a Berganda known as Josmere.” Avienne let her arms and smile drop just a little bit. “Ah, no thank you, but kind of you to offer,” the inspector added, seeing her confused disappointment.
Why are all men so quick to assume that a cute girl can’t be smart, too? And why do I keep taking advantage of that?
Avienne let a kinder smile grace her lips. “Of course, you’re on duty. You’ll have to forgive me, my enthusiasm gets the better of me at times. Now, who did you say you were looking for?”
“Two escaped refugees, a human and a Berganda, as you know full well.” The third man joined them, his voice smooth but laced with poison. She turned to him and her smile vanished.
A colonel. A colonel of the Solarian army was onboard the Destiny.
“We’ll begin this way,” he said, brushing past her. The inspector and youth smiled apologetically as they followed. The colonel headed straight for the elevator, and Avienne sighed in relief.
“I’m afraid our elevators are offline,” she said to the colonel’s back. “With few legal contracts around, we’ve had to cut back our power while we wait for our next job,” she finished sweetly.
The colonel turned, his eyes narrowing. “You don’t fool me, girl.” Although he stood a few meters away, she could feel his warm breath on her. “Your ship is a smuggling ship with an incompetent crew, and you’re smuggling very wanted fugitives. You will cooperate or I will gas you.” He took a step closer. “And every sorry soul on board this ship.”
He stood right in front of her, tall and imposing, and her hand itched to feel the hilt of her knife. She kept her features as neutral as she could, but she doubted they hid her hatred.
“Now, where are the stairs?”
She forced a smile. “That way.” She pointed to the access panel, seeing little choice. He nodded and took the rungs easily, without hesitation or pause. He got off at the second floor.
Avienne swallowed hard and followed, just in time to see him turning down the hallway towards the girls’ room. The only lit hallway. Not hard to pick up that trail! She cursed herself for making it so easy.
The colonel methodically opened each door and flashed his light inside, analyzing every shadow before moving on. She frantically searched for ways to distract or stop him. If she attacked him, Solari would come down on them. He was too focused to be distracted, every movement calculated to maximize his search. And if she handed Layela and Josmere over, which she was considering, she had little doubt that the Destiny and all those onboard would forfeit their lives. That, and her brother would never forgive her.
Think!
Two more doors and he would be at the girls’ room.
Two more doors and there was nothing she could do.
She took a deep breath and debated breaking the bottle of champagne on his head, or just drinking it. The first option would prove painful, the second painless. And yet, she’d still probably choose the first option.
Better to go down fighting than drinking.
She clenched her teeth and prepared to attack.
Layela’s mind exploded with light over and over again, without pause. She gripped Josmere’s hands tighter and wished she could close her eyes against the light. The world spun and hurled her forward, her queasy stomach trying to break away. She crossed a thousand galaxies, round and round, colliding into stars, being absorbed by black holes, losing herself in the thick, inky darkness.
She flew for an eternity, until the circles lessened and she realized she had come to the centre of the worlds she had been shown. It was a star, old and worn, its light and energies cold and almost spent. As if seeing her, it sighed, and in its exhaled breath it unleashed a terrible darkness that ripped through the world around her. Even in the vast vacuum of space, the screams still echoed.
The star was old and broken and it now climbed the horizon before her, its light too weak to warm her skin. Layela smiled as she felt a familiar presence by her side.
Yoma, she thought. Her sister smiled back at her, her eyes not the deep greens of Josmere’s, but the light green of daylight striking the ocean. Layela felt safe and filled with confidence.
The two walked in unison. She looked down and saw that they were on a bridge, a high sturdy bridge, and before her spread a temple, its old stones gleaming as if bleached by sunlight. The symbol above the temple caught her eyes, an intricate flower hugging a sun. Her awakened mind tugged at her.
You know this.
Dunkat was not fooled by the redheaded girl. Layela dwelt somewhere on this ship, or it held other secrets, and he was willing to bet he was near them. The girl’s posture was becoming tenser with each door he opened and, although he made a good show of exploring each shadow, he was really watching her.
She still held that bottle in her hands, had a gun strapped to her waist, and he had caught sight of a few knives littered about her body. Enough to show him she was dangerous and to suggest that she intended to deal with him before he found her ship’s secrets. He fought the urge to smile. He was growing impatient with the girl’s lack of speed.
The second she tried something, he would take her out, arrest her, clamp the ship down, and question the crew at his leisure until he found Layela. All he needed was for her to move first, so that he could justify it later to Noro. With the destruction of that flower shop still hanging over his head, he feared pushing too far. Noro still watched him closely, and an unjustified act would provoke a very unpleasant response.
He reached out toward the next door and the girl stiffened visibly beside him. She was about to strike, he knew. The door was locked.
“Open it,” he said, looking her straight in the eyes. She relaxed immediately. He wondered if she had seen in his eyes that he understood her intentions. He hoped not.
“I don’t have the combination,” she said lightly, leaning on the wall as though chatting with an old friend. Dunkat suddenly understood. The girl was getting ready to attack, releasing the tension from her muscles. Good.
He lowered his gaze and analyzed the panel, the keys outlined by a symbol of some sort, no doubt one of the ship.
He examined it more closely. It was a flower, and it was wrapping something...Dunkat felt his heart freeze. He knew this symbol. It was one that had been seared into his memory. He remembered it more clearly than his own mother’s face, even though he had last seen them at the same time.
The girl still hadn’t moved, and Dunkat’s patience was gone. He didn’t need her to act anymore. He had much more precious proof to act upon.
He stood to face the girl. Her e
yes slit as she looked up at him, her face framed by red hair. “I’ve seen enough.” He smiled and walked away, past the inspection team that still lingered behind him, down the ladder and off the ship.
He waited outside for two minutes, until the girl had closed the bay doors and the inspector puffed beside him.
“Lock her down,” he said to the man. The inspector’s eyes grew wide, but he obeyed without question.
Great clamps rose seconds later, creaking with disuse. They clanged against the obsidian of the ship. He wished he could see the whole ship from where he stood. Not that it mattered now.
He would see her, piece by piece, as they tore her apart and revealed her deepest secrets.
“Blood and bones, we’re locked down!” Ardin exclaimed seconds after the crash sounded across the Destiny.
“Any luck, Jaru?” Cailan asked.
“Nothing under Yoma, nothing under Delamores.” Destiny’s forty-something network technologist chugged coffee from a large cup between answers. “No Delamores on any ship in dock — well, except here, and we’re not advertising.”
“Layela might know of another name we can search under,” Zortan offered from the side. Ardin turned to look at him, studying the strange man.
Cailan considered for a moment, then hit a sequence on the terminal by his chair. “Avienne, bring Ms. Delamores up here, if you please.”
“Oh sure, no problem.” The reply came from the ladder; Avienne must have been only a few rungs from the deck. Ardin turned back to his station and hid a smile as he heard his sister’s string of swear words descend with her again.
“Travan, can you break us out of this little snare?”
The ship’s engineer turned his head, an insulted look on his features. “The day I can’t break a Solarian trap is the day I retire.”
“Whether or not you can break us out,” Cailan replied, looking sternly at his oldest friend, “I’d never let you retire.”
The corners of Travan’s eyes crinkled, the only sign that the engineer was laughing. Ardin felt some relief. If they were still joking, then they still felt they had some measure of control. “On to serious matters.” The engineer’s hoarse voice betrayed none of his amusement. “Jaru, can you get me access to the dock’s network, please?”
“Oh sure, just let me see...Oh, look, they upped the security here, how nice! That’s a neat trick with that bypass...Hang on Travan, access incoming…Oh, that was too easy. Oh well, there you go, Travan, you’re in! The dock’s network is your playground!”
“I’m going to set us free,” Travan said after a few moments of silence. “But the clamps will automatically go back up after five seconds. We’ll have to get out fast.”
Ardin strapped himself into his seat. The rest of the crew on the bridge followed suit, including Zortan, who took a seat near Jaru.
Five seconds. Five seconds to fire the engines, which he had only left idling, and pull the heavy ship away. In space, he would need only two seconds, but on a planet, five was cutting it close. Especially considering their confined space.
“This is Colonel Dunkat Groosh,” the radio came alive and both Zortan and Cailan sat up a bit in response to the name. “You have one minute to abandon your ship and surrender yourselves to Solarian authorities.”
The line went dead. A second passed.
“I do hate to disappoint a man of such standing,” Cailan said. “Take us out of here, gentlemen.”
“I’m ready.” Ardin took a deep breath.
“Unlocking!” Travan shouted from his station. Ardin pulled back hard on the controls. The engines spouted angry flames as the ship tried to gain altitude quickly in the oxygen-riddled air.
“Four, three, two...” Ardin gritted his teeth and pulled harder. Destiny groaned and jerked upward.
“One!” The clamps closed back up, hitting the bottom of the ship but failing to hold her. Ardin kept pulling, sparks flying as Destiny’s side slid against other docked ships.
“Get us out of here, Ardin,” Cailan ordered.
“I’m on it,” Ardin replied. He found a turn big enough to bring the ship around and fired her main engines, the hull buckling with the speed. Ardin held on with both hands. The slightest shift in the tension in his muscles could send the ship veering into an all-too-close wall. Lang emerged on the bridge and waddled to his station to strap himself in.
“We’re being followed!” Jaru called from the back.
“Lang, find us the quickest course from the docks to the tunnels.”
“For some reason,” Lang replied, “I plotted that course the second we landed here.” Ardin heard Cailan chuckle, seconds before a small ship turned in front of them.
“Hang on!” Ardin pulled the Destiny up into another shaft to avoid the ship. Lang brought up the chart of the docks.
“This shaft has no exit!” Lang called. “All exits are currently closed by the Solarian forces!”
“Travan?” Cailan asked, his voice tense. The end of the corridor was looming before them, the thunder of the Destiny clapping around them as it resonated off the dead-end. Metal rose before them while ships gathered behind.
“Like I said,” the old engineer said as the end of the tunnel began opening. Twilight poured in to greet them, “the day I can’t get out of one of their traps, is the day I retire.”
“Gun it east out of the docks, then 142 north and all the way to the tunnels,” Lang told Ardin, who nodded and breathed in relief, his hands numb from clutching the rudder.
“And...doors closing before they can follow,” Travan ended, obviously pleased with himself.
Ardin set the course and guided the Destiny off Thalos IV. In a few minutes, they would be in the tunnels, safe from Solarian grasp.
“From where do I know you?” Layela whispered. She couldn’t hear her own voice. She and Yoma grabbed hands as they stepped together into the darkness of the temple. None of her other senses picked up anything: no light, no sound, no smell. There was only the feel of Yoma’s hand in her own, the heat pulsing steady and strong.
Warm liquid trickled onto their hands and the smell struck a second later. Blood! Blood was dripping onto both their hands, but they needed to keep going. She knew that above all else. But...whose blood!?
“Yoma!” She gasped, pulled roughly out of the vision. Josmere’s eyes flickered in annoyance as the door opened. Layela forced her breathing to calm, and her hands to stop shaking.
They needed to go further. Her mind reeled from the webs of the vision, but she knew that they had not yet walked into its heart. Whatever truly left her terrified each time she awakened, it had not yet been revealed to them.
“What do you want?” Josmere hissed toward the opened door. The Berganda regained her senses first. Of course, she had just been an observer.
Warm blood dripping onto our hands.
“The captain needs to see Layela,” Avienne said, and Layela looked at her questioningly. “Now,” she added, leaning back against the doorframe.
Layela swallowed hard and stood, the physical movement shedding the last threads. Still, she rubbed her hand, feeling the lingering echoes of the sensations from the vision.
“I’m coming too,” Josmere said, putting her gloves back on as she stood. Layela found the Berganda’s quick movements disorienting.
“He only asked for Layela,” Avienne said.
“We’re in this together,” Josmere hissed. To Layela’s horror, the Berganda took an aggressive step forward.
Avienne raised a graceful eyebrow and flashed a quick smile. “It would be interesting, fighting with you. But not this day. Come on.” Avienne pushed herself off the wall and started down the corridor.
Josmere looked down at Layela and squeezed her hand as they both followed, the leather rough where earlier had been only her soft, printless skin.
And still the darkness clung to Layela, more insistent than ever, whispering of blood and shadows.
19
Why are you looking for
my sister?” Layela asked. Names flickered by on the screen as Jaru scanned logs of ship after ship.
“Because they’ll be coming after her, too, and you both need protection,” Zortan answered, barely meeting her eyes.
“Who will be coming? And why?” Layela couldn’t keep the exasperation from her voice. The vision and its need to be fully seen called to her, sapping her of precious energy and commanding her attention. None of this mattered.
Zortan replied casually. “Solarian government, apparently. Some assassins. And probably others.”
“Nothing new and interesting? Why all the fuss, then?” Josmere quipped. She kept close to Layela.
“You know the legend of the First Star?” Zortan said, ignoring her tone. Layela saw Cailan tense in his chair. Josmere nodded.
“The First Star’s name is Mirial,” Zortan continued, “and it is from there that the Destiny originates.”
Josmere’s eyes flashed with victory. “And Layela and Yoma.”
“What do you mean?” Layela’s mind struggled to catch up. Granted, she had never known her parents or where she and her sister were from, but if they were from somewhere as mystical as the First Star — as Mirial — wouldn’t they somehow know it? It struck her like a blow and left her feeling dizzy. The ether. She had never met any other human with a connection to ether.
“There’s more,” Zortan continued, staring at Layela. His black eyes held hers prisoner. “Mirial is dying, and only you and your sister can save her.”
She saw in Zortan’s eyes the same fate she had seen countless times, and the same darkness lashing out. If he expected surprise, he did not get it.
“Darkness,” Layela whispered. Her words echoed through the silent bridge. “The darkness will spread and many will die.”
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