TREDD LED JILL, Berossus, and Sarthon past white Shuttler-shop branded crafts. Jill and Sarthon wore the red and black FIST leadership uniform. Tredd wore his comfy multipurpose pants and a black shipcoat, because he could: as a level one in FIST he was excused from wearing a uniform. Berossus wasn’t into uniforms either, but contrary to the usual red T-shirt, he wore a black one with long sleeves.
They entered the dimly lit hacker’s den.
Gus sat in a slumped position in front of a big screen, his back to the door. Upon hearing them enter, he turned and straightened his back, or at least tried to sit taller.
‘Hi, mate,’ Gus said, eyeing Jill and Sarthon. ‘What trouble brings you here this time?’
‘No trouble, mate. How’ve you been?’
Gus stood up and cleared his throat, which once again turned into a chesty coughing spell. His face turned red, but he recovered. ‘Could be worse,’ he said, wiping his brow. ‘Which one of your square friends is in trouble?’
Tredd smiled. While Gus’s health had taken a turn for the worse, he still had his humour. ‘This is Jill Faith, Berossus Dengo, and Sarthon Exxoc,’ he said, nodding to each as he went.
Gus raised an eyebrow. ‘That Jill Faith?’
‘Yes, that Jill Faith,’ Tredd said, and exchanged glances with Jill.
‘Pleased to finally meet you,’ Gus said, squinting his eyes at her. ‘Is he any trouble?’
‘No, he’s all right,’ Jill said, beaming. ‘I’m pleased to meet you too. I wanted to come by to say thank you for all you have done.’
Gus raised an eyebrow. ‘What have I done?’
‘This is also why we brought Sarthon—’
‘Oh, I know who he is,’ Gus said.
‘Mate,’ Sarthon said, ‘it’s been a while… I suggest we put the past behind us.’
Gus grunted and took a step back. ‘I’m not your mate, buddy.’ He coughed again.
Sarthon continued, ‘I know we’ve had our share of issues, and I understand my organisation is not the easiest deal with, but know this: Tredd Bounty is my new commander. If he tells me you must be in the team, you are in the team. You will not be hassled by FIST anymore. Instead we offer you our resources—’
‘I’m good,’ Gus snapped, and turned his back to them.
‘Gus,’ Tredd said, ‘they’ve got full access to Skeletech parts, including full exoskeletons…’ Even though he would not use one himself, Gus’s body was failing and he wanted to help. ‘Please at least consider; it might do wonders.’
Gus sat down on his chair and grunted. ‘Sorry, mate. I know you mean well and I appreciate it, but I would rather have my body wither than install any of those Skeletech parts. You should know what they have in them. Goodbye, privacy!’
Of course, Gus was a hacker. Tredd realised networked Skeletech parts would compromise him – in a way they would compromise him too. ‘I see…’
Berossus stepped forward and lifted up his sleeve. He grabbed his arm above the elbow, pressed and turned, and then pulled the arm off. ‘I guess these are no use to you either?’ he asked, dangling the semi-integrated prosthetic in front of him. FIST had offered him a fully networked Skeletech arm – better than a real one – but to Sarthon’s surprise Berossus had declined. He told Tredd that any connections in his body would be broken when he turned.
Gus stared at the big man and pursed his lips. ‘Do I look like I’m missing a limb, buddy?’
‘No, you don’t. I’m sorry, sir,’ Berossus said, and clamped his arm back on.
‘It’s all right,’ Tredd said, and tapped him on the shoulder. ‘Gus, mate, there must be something, anything…’
Gus pressed his palms together in front of him and grinned. ‘There might, indeed.’
‘Tell me.’
‘Well, you’d make me a happy chap with just two kilos…’ Gus trailed off.
‘Two kilos of…?’
Gus coughed. ‘Unobtanium.’
Tredd was unsure if he had heard right. ‘Two kilos of unobtanium?’ he repeated.
Gus nodded.
As far as Tredd knew, unobtanium was dark matter gathered via gravitational harvesting, purified via thousands of star throwbacks and compressed in a deep gravity well to something that resembled a black diamond. ‘You know it’s called unobtanium for a reason?’
‘Well, you said anything…’
‘Supposing there would even be two kilos of the stuff, and I were to find it… What would you do with it?’
Gus shrugged. ‘I’d be more comfortable meeting my god then.’
That made no sense to Tredd. ‘Never knew you were religious.’
‘With two kilos of unobtanium I would be.’
Tredd enjoyed these exchanges with Gus, but had to put on a serious face. ‘I know you’re not well. I want to help you.’
Gus grunted and mirrored Tredd’s solemn expression. ‘I’m very well, thank you – even if my old body’s not – and I’m not going to take up any of that bugged Skeletech junk. It has to be clean. You want to help me, get me that unobtanium.’
Tredd chuckled. Gus had always known what to do and, by the sound of it, he had a plan for old age too. ‘All right, mate, I’ll see what I can do. Regardless, you’re under my wing with FIST now. If you have any trouble from my organisation, or anyone else in this city, just let me know.’
‘Will do,’ Gus said, coughing. ‘Thanks.’
Gus had always been there for Tredd, and this was the least he could do. He wanted to get him his unobtanium too.
They left Gus to his business. Walking back between the white shuttles, he felt uneasy. ‘I should’ve known better,’ he said, and shook his head.
‘You meant well,’ Jill said, and took hold of his arm. ‘I could see he appreciated what you did.’
The knowledge of having made a difference made him feel better. It was like the rush of adrenalin he felt on the chase, and the release of killing. It was better though, as it lacked the metallic tinge of regret. Instead of eating through his soul, it built it anew, and he needed more. He was going to get him the unobtanium, no matter what it took.
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
A FEW WEEKS had passed since they had met Aalto. Evie stood by the window of her FIST condo and looked up at the red planet over the dark city, listening to the sounds of a sentimental rock song.
The events that had happened after she hitched a ride on Tredd’s Rutger had completely changed her view of the universe. Even though she was back in Spit City as a wanted fugitive, what had started as a feeble escape was turning into something of a journey, and she felt it was still just the beginning.
The wound on her shoulder had almost completely healed. You could not see it from the outside, but whenever Evie moved her body, she felt a dull ache rustle inside her chest. Irreparable nerve damage – it might stay with her as long as she lived.
She never thought she would be level one in FIST, but now she had access to everything they had. Henning and Sarthon had explained that while FIST was a massive business operation, it served as a façade to the physical operations of Aalto in this realm.
She had always thought of the Shades as a myth, a children’s story. Now, she had met two of them – Aalto and Warrigal – and was set to seek the rest: Efia, Nenetl, and Shinzaburo.
The five races faced a new threat, and the Dawn Alliance was oblivious to it; they could not see across the realms like the Shades could. The threat was Remola, a race of multi-dimensional beings who were strong where the five races were weak: the spirit realm. In the physical realm that the Dawn Alliance ruled, Remola had always been a little blimp on the radar, a race tagged as mostly harmless. What became known as the E-110x incident – a cluster of seven stable stars on the fringe forming a new black hole – was the first strange occurrence. It had taken only a few days for other systems in the area to do the same. The scientists were baffled, but Evie knew: the Remola were coming across, packing time and matter as they went.
Evie had read
all about the Remola, first on the public network, which was not much, and then on the highly classified FIST database, which hypothesised Remola’s otherworldly existence. The content lacked substance, but Evie learned that, contrary to the five races, the bulk of Remola existed in the spirit realm, where they already inhabited the majority of the universe.
Now the Remola had punched a hole between the realms. Humanity needed its Shades to stand up to them, but the Shades were scattered, torn apart by dissent aeons old.
Evie was going to help FIST find the Shades.
She found it mind-boggling, but at the same time awesome. It was more epic than the main storyline of Momentum 6, and she was going to play a major part in it, defending the five races against the Remola. She had no idea how it was going to happen – she was just a level-ten hacker on the fringe – but it did not matter. She wanted to be part of it. It was her destiny.
Still, she had no idea what it would mean in practice, and why Aalto had chosen her. She was just a little Jindalar girl. She couldn’t stop time like Tredd, shoot lightning bolts like Jill, move stars like Aino, or… well, Eddie’s thing looked like blacking out, but apparently it was much more than just that; the only other contactable Shade, Warrigal, was apparently teaching him to use his powers to cross the realms.
There was a lot to digest. The universe had just doubled. Shades were real, and had created people with superhuman powers. And to top it all off, humanity was on the verge of doom.
It all felt overwhelming, but whatever happened, she knew she was going to be someone special.
She smiled at the spiky, dark cityscape and turned around. On her walls ran an endless stream of visual rock ballads. I could get used to this, she tried to tell herself. Of course, it was a lie. She had been on the move her whole life; it was part of her being. Settling in with all the comforts felt good, but only for a moment. In a month she had already started to feel restless.
She was still a fugitive, running from a murder. For her, Spit City was a haven from the Dawn Alliance law, and her FIST colleagues never mentioned her status. Either they didn’t know, or they didn’t care. Perhaps Gus had hidden it well enough that it didn’t pop up as the first thing about her. Even so, memories of Ash continued to haunt her dreams. She had yet to make amends, but she didn’t know how.
Now she was only trying to fill her time. It was still unclear to her how they would engage the Remola and when they would head out.
Suddenly a chime interrupted the cheesy rock ballad, and the wall screen indicated an incoming private message – a rare occasion.
Evie opened the message on screen. There was no name of the sender or link to the database – the message should not have come through, certainly the sender was not on her whitelist.
The message itself was brief: ‘The package I promised. Grow smart, not old.’
She remembered. Gus, the master hacker, had promised her a package. Would this be it? She felt her pulse quicken. However, there were no links in the message, nor were there attachments.
Where was the package?
Her excitement turned into confusion.
She stepped across the room, staring at the simple text message on the wall. She remembered what Gus had told her: ‘Tough challenge, but a rewarding one.’
She did not want to trip on the first step. ‘Start by finding the X,’ he had said. She read the message again, but there was no X.
She sat down on a black leather recliner and raised her feet up. Still staring at the message, she thought about what he might have meant, and reconfirmed there was nothing attached.
Perhaps he forgot, she thought. Sadly, she could not even reply. Blast… She could only wait for him to realise his mistake, if he ever did.
‘Computer,’ Evie said with defeat. ‘Close the message.’
‘Closing…’ the computer started, but before it could finish, its voice crumbled down. The lights in the room went out and the screens went black.
Evie gasped.
Soon a number of white squares started to appear on the walls all around her, forming something that looked like a scattered chessboard. One of the squares was marked with a red X. She smiled.
No more waiting.
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
EDDIE LOOKED UP TO WARRIGAL. Dark brown, almost black skin covered his tall and slender body, protected only by a loincloth and decorative bands on his biceps. Long hair, black and grey, fell down the sides of his face, and his beard reached to his scar-streaked chest. Warrigal was one of the Shades; as Eddie’s master, he had introduced him to controlled travel between the realms. In this session they would further explore the spirit realm.
FIST had appointed them a small dojo, deep within their Pentafol building in Spit City. The dojo had bare matt green walls broken by an alcove with a lush flower arrangement, a painting of a snowy mountain and a tatami floor with a red circle on it. A bare room without distractions, they had said.
‘The room you go to – today we will open a door,’ Warrigal said.
Eddie nodded. He had told a medium about his experiences during his blackouts, and pretty much his whole life story. She had then communicated every bit to Warrigal.
Eddie had spent a lot of time home in Bella after the meeting with Aalto. It had been difficult to explain everything to Cassandra, but eventually she had understood. While Eddie had been terrified of confronting her, coming clean about everything – his blackouts, gambling, what they had done with Tredd, and their history – it had only made his relationship with Cassandra stronger.
Understanding why he had blackouts was also a great relief. He was not going to die. Instead of a disability, it was a gift, and it could be controlled. He just needed to learn how, and Warrigal was to be his guide. It was as if a heavy veil that had covered his mind was lifted. He felt ten years younger.
Looking forward though, it was not going to be just good times with the family. Eddie was going to face the Remola on their territory – the spirit realm – and he had to prepare.
Warrigal smiled. ‘Perhaps you should lie down.’
Eddie looked around, but there was no bed or sofa in the room. ‘On the floor?’
‘So you don’t break your teeth upon waking up.’
Eddie dropped down on the floor and lay on his back, looking up to the lights in the ceiling. Warrigal lay down beside him. ‘Close your eyes.’
Eddie did.
‘Now open your eyes again.’
Eddie opened his eyes, and saw a black roof. He pushed himself up to sitting position. Around him were four black walls: doors on two of them, window on one, a clock opposite the window, black floor and black ceiling, and some white light bleeding in from between the corners. He was in his blackout room.
Warrigal rose up too. His appearance had changed; he looked like a ghost, but also young. The beard was gone and his muscles were fuller under his smooth dark skin. He had become a young man. He pointed at both doors. ‘Pick one.’
Eddie raised his brow at Warrigal. ‘I always check the number one first,’ he said, and nodded towards the door.
‘Very well.’
Eddie stepped up to the door. He reached out to the knob, but hesitated. He had tried it so many times. His palm touched the cold metal and his fingers wrapped around the knob. He took a deep breath, and then turned his hand clockwise.
For the first time, the knob turned, and the door came loose. He pulled it open.
So many times had he stood before this door, trying to open it, but nothing could have prepared him to what was behind it. In front of him opened a vast cityscape – buildings as far as the eye could see, and six-legged creatures flying around it in swarms.
‘This is Remola,’ said Warrigal.
No mortal human had seen it before; it was horrible, and inevitable.
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
TREDD SAT IN A FINE RESTAURANT, Jill in front of him, and a candle and a matching white flower between them on a white tablecloth. The lights were down l
ow, the ambience just right. The candle’s living light made Jill shine, her lush blonde hair resting upon her bare shoulders. Her calm face was pretty, but when she laughed a few lines appeared, adding to her radiance.
They stayed at Jill’s childhood home, where her parents still lived. Tredd had never spent a night in that house, though only now did he know why Jill had pushed him away.
They had just finished the main course, and reminisced about old times. Jill had laughed when Tredd had reminded her of their plans; how he had said he would take her to faraway places as a hover-bike rider. Visiting Aalto sure had been far, but it was not exactly what Tredd had meant.
‘Do you ever think about what happened?’ Jill said.
Tredd raised an eyebrow.
‘What happened to the wonder of our childhood? The world was once a magical place, full of exciting possibilities. Even now, in this vast universe, we are nothing more than children, understanding but a tiny slice of what really is.’
‘Perhaps the wonder is still there,’ Tredd said, nodding. ‘Perhaps it has never gone away, but has been shoved under the rug. However…’
Jill raised her eyebrows.
Tredd raised a crystal glass to his lips and took a sip of red wine. ‘I have stuff under my rug I’d rather never see again.’
Jill also took a sip of the wine. She set the glass on the table and patted her lips. ‘I know what you mean… But, you know, they really exist only as long as you let them. When you lift up the rug, you only find the things you expect, nothing else, nothing more.’
‘Perhaps. I know they say there’s only the present moment… Everything else we’re just fooling ourselves about.’ He remembered what Evie had told him: the future was his to make. ‘But it feels so real.’
‘It’s not fooling yourself; it’s part of who you are,’ Jill said, and touched his arm over the table. Her hand felt warm.
She might be right. The present moment felt good, almost unreal. However, it was the past that made it so. The past created meaning, and turned the mundane into something extraordinary. Tredd had never thought he might be together with Jill like this, not after she had disappeared from his world. And yet, here she was.
Starcrasher (Shades Space Opera Book 1) Page 43