In A Universe Without Stars 1: Skyeater

by J Alex McCarthy

  “Great answer, Glepre. Do any of the other judges anything else to add?” the announcer asks.

  “I do,” Head says.

  Head is a famous producer, he made his fame through the people he scouted but he made his infamy for all his scandals. Multiple partners, male and female, in relationships and out, his drug binges and famously losing a fight against Leif, who he drunkenly challenged to a fight. Out of all those things, that’s the only thing he regretted.

  “We’ve all seen it before, the snow, the sparkles, the impending downfall. Sharif is continuing to do that same shit,” Head says. Glepre and Wors scoff at him.

  “Strong accusations by Head. On that note, let’s move on to New York’s attack.”

  The camera zooms into the New York City panel and zooms into Ulbe being interviewed. “Ulbe Ves, what made you want to use the forsaken in your invasion?”

  The forsaken, the angels.

  “I used what was available, and that was the best available option,” he says. The interviewer waits for him to continue. But Ulbe just stands there, staring at her. He’s done.

  “Sadly, Ulbe was killed in action during his invasion of Washington. His rewards and prizes if he wins will go to his surviving family members,” the announcer says as the camera pans off the panel and onto the judges.

  “Ha! That’s why I like Ulbe, so humble. I think he became a Damon just so he can have an excuse to act the way he did,” Head says.

  The panel replays the events of New York. The angels, the forsaken, rising from the streets, the humans getting on their knees to pray, the angels spitting out hellfire, setting humans aflame.

  All is captured from impossible angles. Only the producers know how the cameras captured such impossible things.

  “This has everything, sure Sherif’s was spectacular and ‘magical’ but it lacked substance. Ulbe was hard hitting, terrifying, and spectacular all at once. That was something London didn’t have,” Head says.

  “What I really liked was his infusion of religion. New York was a majorly Christian city, so is most of the United States. To incorporate it at that base level and getting the reaction he did, it takes perfect planning and execution,” Strea says. Strea is a hugely famous pop star, but it was her business skills that got her where she is now.

  “Other religious attacks haven’t been as effective. Places like Jakarta and Cairo didn’t have as strong of a mental impact as New York’s forsaken attacks. I don’t know why but the others didn’t seem as exciting,” Strea continues.

  “It’s because with no images of Muhammad and no prophet for the Jews, the others just feared death and did not question if their god were abandoning them. They just ran away from some statues of some random men. I feel that Ulbe’s use of the forsaken was the perfect ingredient to a perfect invasion. Spectacular, soul crushing and perfect,” Head says.

  “Alright let’s move on to Los Angeles,” the announcer says. The camera zooms into Los Angeles panel. Kabus stands in front of the interviewer with a confident grin on his face.

  “So Kabus what made you chose the most normal method of invasion in comparison to the others?” she asks.

  “When I was younger I always liked Hester’s The Act of War,” Kabus says.

  The panel shows the Los Angeles invasion. The grunts absolutely wreck Los Angeles and are having fun while they’re it.

  “I liked how brutal and simple it was. Sometimes people want that, instead of all the flashiness and effects. All of those things just covers up for the lack of substance in the others invasions,” Kabus says with a toothy grin. “It’s the original style of war, people are tired of that fake bullshit of the other battles. This is the way we used to do it. This is our old style, so this invasion is a throwback to the classic style of battle.” The camera zooms out of the panel.

  “Classic style. Pfft. That’s just an excuse for his lack of originality and classic style of thinking. I mean he was freaking killed in battle and the only reason he’s still alive is because he’s an ascended. To die as a general in your own battlefield when you’re winning is an offense that should be punishable by death,” Head says.

  “Really despicable,” Glepre says. “It was a clusterfuck of an ordeal.”

  “His arrogance got the better of him, it was a spectacle in the worst imaginable way. I’m surprised Noke even voted for him,” Wor says.

  Noke raises his head, he was letting them just ramble on but they just called him out.

  “You are surprised? All of you people are fools, fools who’ve been deceived and deluded like retards by the pretty lights and imagery. You’re simpletons, this is a war. Not this crap you call spectacular. We judge our invasions based on the fear impacted on the imposing race. That is our game. I don’t even know why I agreed to judge this crap,” he says.

  Nobody replies to him. He’s one of the smartest Serephin and Alpha’s around. He’s the one who designed the Skyeater and many of their other ships and technologies. He’s a very prestige figure. When he speaks, they listen.

  “Imagine this, what would you fear. A giant man on a cross whose chained up and can barely move that you can easily hide from, a bunch of toxic snow which you can easily escape from by going underground, or an animalistic beast which can track you down and force you out of whatever little rat hole you crawled in. It’s an easy answer.”

  The others don’t reply, because they know he’s right. “Damn, he shut us up,” Head says, breaking the tension. The rest of the judges laugh.

  Thora’s body presses against the glass as she stares intently at the television.

  They’re mocking their deaths.

  Humans.

  “Crazy isn’t it,” Punit says walking up to her. “This is a fucking game to them. Our lives are a fucking game to them!” He steps close.

  Awkwardly close, she can feel the heat from his body. She tries to move away but she can only press herself so far away. He looks at her trying to gauge her reaction. She doesn’t respond.

  “The votes are in.” The show returns from a commercial break. Thora stares back at the television, she doesn’t like how close he is.

  On the television, the announcer pulls out an envelope out of her suit coat pocket. Music plays in the background, loud taps of a drum.

  “And the winner is…” The judges are on the edges of their seats. Even Thora wants to know who won. Caer sits at the edge of his couch, elbows on his knees, staring way too intently at the screen.

  “Ulbe wins with the invasion of New York City!!” she announces.

  Caer jumps up. “Yes! I just won one hundred quid.”

  Thora tries to look at the screen but Caer blocks it. “It was really close, he only won by ninety-seven votes.” The television echoes. Caer falls to his couch with a grin on his face. “But the battle isn’t over yet.”

  Cole’s picture shows up.

  “Tomorrow is the final battle for humanity. Cole the first ever human ascended vs Numenwolfe, our lord and savior. Will Cole be able to defeat the Numenwolfe and save humanity or will he lose and Earth be lost forever? Tune in tomorrow to find out!” she announcer says. A versus poster shows up. Cole vs The Numenwolfe.

  Thora’s eyes widen with shock; the rest of the announcer’s words fly past her as she continues.

  Cole is alive? He’s ascended? She’s not alone, he didn’t leave her.

  “Cole!” Thora shouts at the top of her lungs. Her voice echoes through the enclosure.

  “Cole?” Punit asks.

  “It’s—it’s my husband!” she says frantically. He’s alive, she can’t believe it.

  “That’s means I won’t have to be with you anymore! If he wins we can escape!” she says excitedly. Punit looks at her, with the exact opposite expression.

  Something glimmers in his eyes.

  “And what about me?” he asks darkly.

  “If he wins, he can save all of us, which includes you,” she says, she calms down, noticing his darker expression.

&nbs
p; “Do you really think he can save us? You’re fucking stupid. This is our life and you are my woman now.”

  “I’m not your woman, I’m nobody’s woman, just because I was placed here doesn’t mean that I’m yours.”

  She stepped back slightly. He approaches her.

  “There’s nobody coming to save you or me. You’re the only thing I have left and I’m not going to let you go.”

  “Please don’t do what you’re thinking about doing,” she mutters. He’s scaring her. He jumps toward her. “No!” she screams.

  “Don’t—Don’t! Stop!”

  He forces her onto the ground. Her left arm snaps, a sharp pain shoots up her body.

  “Please, nononono,” She pleads with him. He grabs her arms forcefully and climbs on her.

  She’s pinned.

  In the trees surrounding them, red eyes peek out. The others, watching from the safety of the trees.

  Either ignorant of the pain of another and of humans mating habits or just cowards, broken by the Serephins.

  Thora’s screams yell out of the enclosure. Caer still sits on the couch. He turns up the volume on the television, clearly annoyed by her voice drowning out the sound.

  He shifts in his seat and then he finally rolls his eyes.

  He gets up and walks over to the Enclosure. He looks in and sees what’s happening.

  “God, shut up!” he says, he presses on the glass and a dome closes over the enclosure.

  He sits back on the couch and flips through the channels. Thora’s cries becoming only a slight annoyance. Caer watches the night away.

  …

  Bermea sits at the top of the hill, Kelly lies on him and he strokes her hair. The place is closed. Nothing too eventful happened except for the little Serephin kids tapping on the glass and making faces.

  Janitors and other workers walk by. He can see everybody except for Axe, seems like the big burly guy has escaped.

  Maybe he was right. Maybe Bermea was a fool, believing in a being that killed his people. He looks around some more. Everybody is getting along and it’s peaceful. But he doesn’t mind staying here, if what Sherif said was true. That nothing will happen to them and that their safe.

  Bermea has been around long enough to know he shouldn’t trust a soul, but that guy had a trustworthy air to him. But not seeing Axe worries him, maybe he should’ve at least helped them, even if he didn’t want to leave himself.

  The whole place dings. Kelly jumps up and nearly falls down the hill. Still half asleep and delusional. Bermea still sits.

  “What was that?” she says sleepily. She wipes the sleep from her eyes.

  “I don’t know.” He gets to his feet.

  Everybody is crowding around a large black monolith like box. Bermea and Kelly run down the hill and into the crowd. They push themselves to the front.

  It’s a docking bay for tablets. There are twenty tablets in the hole in the middle of the black box.

  “This is a present for a first day well done,” a prerecorded message from Sherif says. “I have presents to give tenants from time to time, to suppress boredom and for being a great exhibit. This is for both. Have fun.”

  Bermea grabs one, it’s a thirteen-inch tablet. Inside of the bay is a charging station. He turns it on, Kelly watches it from his side.

  It loads up like a computer and the words Starserver show up. “Welcome to the Starserver, the server for all your entertainment needs,” the device states. A list shows up. Programming, Individual shows and movies, games, music, and info box are all categories on the list.

  “The Starserver have prowled all of your planets video and audio entertainment recordings and uploaded them. We have every show, movie, music, and game from your planet. And when you bore of your own species we have many many others including Serephin and the SE6 galaxies productions translated into your language. Courtesy of Sherif and the Skyeater broadcaster company,” The device states.

  “Wow, it’s like Netflix but better!” Bermea says. This is really the best place to be. Kelly grabs it from him and starts to rummage through it.

  “It really does have everything.”

  Someone screams behind him. A woman points to the hilltop. Axe is strung up by invincible strings over them. Entails hanging out from his stomach.

  Kelly drops the tablet and hurls on it.

  “Oh god,” she mutters with her hand over her mouth. Everybody stares up in shock.

  “This human, Axe, has attempted to escape,” a voice says from behind them. They all turn to see Sherif standing in front of their cage.

  “We aren’t savages, well, most of us aren’t. I provided for you, I gave you a home, I tried to keep you the happiest I can and yet you dare try and escape!” He shakes, he’s hurt.

  Bermea turns and walks toward the food area. What can they say to a being that can kill them instantly? It’s either sorry or nothing at all but they don’t know what he’s going to do to them.

  “Did you not think that I wouldn’t hear you planning to escape, you think you could live in the sewers like some rat, like animals! I thought you humans were much like us and wouldn’t want to live in filth, when you can live in a much greater place. You should know when you have a good thing!”

  Bermea returned with a few towels and helps Kelly clean herself up. He’s not going to plead for forgiveness, if Sherif was going to do something he would’ve done it already.

  Blood drips down Axe’s legs. Sharif stares at Axe for more than a couple of seconds. The awkward silence confuses the humans in the cage.

  “I’m sorry I scared you like this,” Sherif says. He puts his hands behind his back. He calms down.

  “To claim that I’m not a savage when I killed this man out of anger. Ha,” Sherif laughs. “We are not so different. It’s my fault for never fully briefing you on your situation. If I did then nobody would’ve been as foolish as to try to escape.”

  Sherif starts to pace. “Try to think as yourselves as method actors, you just do your normal human things and act good for the visitors and think of it as your pay for your rent to stay here. That’s all you have to do and I’ll do my best to provide for you all.”

  “Before I realized what I was doing he was already dead, before I calmed down I decided to use him as an example. How stupid of me. Even if you do try to escape again. I promise I won’t harm or impede you, just know that being in your enclosure is far better than being outside in the streets.” They all just watch him.

  “Now let me show you the greatest wonder in the universe.” He pushes the glass and a door opens.

  “Come on don’t be shy.” He motions them to follow him. They all exit the enclosure, the cold floor tingling on their feet.

  Bermea holds Kelly as they walk down the hallway. The other beasts are sleeping, and some are just watching them pass. They come up to a giant door. Above it are the words, The Greatest Wonder in the Universe.

  “Welcome to the greatest place in the universe.” Sherif motions toward the door. It opens and a great white light shines out. Bermea and Kelly stare into the doorway, light blinding their vision.

  Their eyes stare in awe.

  …

  It is a few hours later, Bermea lies in a thicket of trees on his sleeping pad. He stares up through the trees. The aquarium above projects a virtual night sky. Fake stars light up the night. Shooting stars fly through his vision.

  It really was the greatest thing he’s seen, he’s still in a loss of words. When they got back. Axe was gone and his mess was clean, but it’s going to be a while before he’s going to go back up on the hilltop.

  Someone walks into the trees.

  “Bermea,” Kelly whispers.

  “Yes.”

  She walks toward him, it’s too dark to see her face. “Can I sleep over here tonight?”

  He notices she doesn’t have her sleeping pad with her.

  “Sure.”

  She moves closer and he notices she’s been crying.

  “W
hat’s wrong?” She doesn’t answer.

  “Tell me,” he asks again.

  “It’s just…” She trails off. She suddenly clutches him and starts to cry.

  “He killed him.” She wails. “His body was…” She grabs harder.

  “It’s going to be okay. I think we can trust Sherif from now on.” If not then at least he’s just seen the greatest thing he’s ever imagined.

  “I’m so glad you’re here. If you weren’t I don’t know what I would do.”

  “I—“ His words are cut off as she kisses him on the lips. He pushes her off.

  “No. Not like this. You’re not thinking right.”

  “I’ve thought long about this and I’ve wanted this for a long time.” She moves back closer. “Seeing you here, I knew I was always supposed to be with you, I never forgot about you after college.”

  She kisses him again, this doesn’t feel right to him, but he doesn’t push her off. He’s always loved her, is this time actually right?

  He falls on the sleeping pad and kisses her back.

  …

  It’s an hour later, Kelly sleeps on top of him. They’re under a cover. This sleeping pad is an amazing piece of technology, more so than the other things. It expanded for two people and its rubbery material can stretch into a cotton-like cover while keeping the same kind of support and has inflatable pillows.

  He stares up into the sky and looks at the fake stars, he can still see the fish shadows swimming over them as the top of the dome slowly spins. It looks amazing.

  There’s a knocking voice in the back of his head that tells him that this is wrong. He ponders on it as he strokes Kelly’s hair. She sleeps soundly, drooling a little bit on him.

  Usually he would wake a girl up if she started doing that but this moment is too perfect, he’s too content and she looks too perfect to move.