War for Orion: Ghosts from the Past

by Conner Walworth

  "This is your home," she replied. "You'll miss it as I miss Orion."

  "No," he corrected her. "It is our prison. Orion is our true home, just like it is yours. Just because we have never lived there ourselves, doesn't mean that it is not our home. Our ancestors called it home, therefore, we call it home."

  "You're right," Jahdiel nodded. "I am sorry if I offended you. I didn't think you thought of Orion as home"

  "You did not offend me," He smiled, putting a hand on her shoulder. "We don't know what we're going to face when we return, so I want everything I have available ready to go. I promise you, we'll never return to this Galaxy willingly."

  "The Queen is a peaceful woman, I am sure that she will let you stay," Jahdiel assured him.

  "Yet she outcast you to what she thought was a sure death. I wouldn't call that a peaceful women."

  "She thought I was trying to kill her and was only looking out for herself. She should've looked deeper into it, but honestly, I don't know if I can blame her too much."

  "What will stop her from thinking the same about us when we show up out of a Black Hole? We were once outcast from Orion, wrongly and unjustly like yourself, which will surely lead the Queen to think we're there to kill her," Merikh said. "I don't want to prepare to confront a peaceful Queen, only to get there to be annihilated on first sight. If she attacks, we will be ready to attack back."

  "I understand completely," she nodded. "But she has never been one to opt for war. She will try her hardest to make peace from my experience with her. You may be strange to her, but bloodshed and unnecessary deaths are not in her nature."

  "Then all the better for us," Merikh grinned. "Let her try to make peace. We will hear it out, but I don't count on her being peaceful."

  A crew member came up from behind them and interrupted. "The entire fleet is here and ready to leave at your order sir."

  "How many survived the rebel attacks?" Merikh asked.

  "We will have a total of four fully manned fleets. All have one Colchian and a mix of bombers, fighters, and commanding ships," he informed Merikh.

  "Excellent," Merikh looked to Jahdiel. "Do you think that is enough to defend ourselves from the Queen, if it comes down to that?"

  Jahdiel thought for a moment before answering. "I believe it is. Our technology is superior to anything the Queen has ever seen. I doubt that they have even come close to discovering the technology you possess in my absence."

  "They have not discovered it," he agreed. "We only discovered it from being outcast to this Galaxy. There are no planets in Orion that produce the minerals necessary to make our weapons and ships. I urge your Queen attack us instead of make peace. I assure you she will die for it," Merikh looked down to the crew. "Fire up the Warp Reversal!"

  The crew scrambled below deck to get everything ready for travel back through the Black Hole. Merikh had ordered scientists to confirm the Warp Reversal before he sent fleets through, but it had been on small unmanned objects. Only reports of success had come back, but they also hadn't sent four fully armed fleets through with living crews.

  He trusted them and was willing to risk his life, along with his entire race, to get back to Orion. They had all heard of the stories growing up, passed down from generation to generation, and now they had a chance to travel back to their true home Galaxy.

  "The Warp Reversal is ready!" The lead officer shouted to Merikh as he sat.

  "Are all fleets ready and in position?" he asked the officer.

  The officer got on the comline and checked with all of the other fleets. When he had confirmed that they were all ready, he looked back up to Merikh and gave a thumbs up.

  "All fleets are in position and are ready to pass through the Warp Reversal!"

  "Then activate the Warp Reversal!" Merikh ordered.

  The crew sat in their seats on the deck below and worked quickly on computers in front of them. The stars slowly started to disappear around them and were replaced by complete darkness. The ship felt like it was spinning, and for a moment, Jahdiel thought she may have made a mistake. She shook the thought from her mind and looked to Merikh.

  "We are about to go home."

  The ship continued to spin uncontrollably in the endless expanse of darkness while Merikh and Jahdiel stared straight ahead, ready for whatever was next, whether it be death or Orion.

  Chapter 21

  Anlon jumped to the doorbell ringing and looked out the study window to see who was there. A tall, built, man was waiting patiently for him. He ran downstairs opened the door to invite Moran in.

  "I have some things I need to show you," Moran pushed his way in.

  "Hi to you too," Anlon shut the door. "What do you have to show me?"

  "You remember those weapons I talked about?"

  Anlon nodded. "Are you finally going to show me where they're at?"

  "Yes. I'm about to show you where they're at."

  "What are you waiting for, let's go," Anlon walked to the door.

  Moran grabbed him by the shoulder. "They're here. They've been in your house the entire time."

  "In my house? That's impossible!"

  "You didn't think your father would hide them far, did you?" he laughed. "He kept them hidden here, right under your nose in case he ever needed to get to them quickly."

  "Where are they? There's nowhere to hide them where I wouldn't have found them already."

  "I wouldn't be so sure about that," Moran winked. "He kept two hidden caches here that no one but him would be able to find. The first one is actually up in his office."

  "His office? There's nothing up there!" Anlon swore. "There's no way I wouldn't have found them."

  "Follow me," Moran motioned. "I'll show you right where they're hidden."

  Anlon followed Moran up to his dad's office, still not believing that there was a hidden cache of weapons stashed up there. When they arrived at the office, Moran walked over to one of the bookshelves and started closely examining it.

  "No way," Anlon said in disbelief. "They're behind the bookshelf?"

  "Hold on. Let me find it," Moran replied. "Just pay attention to what I do right now so you can do it later."

  Moran took four family photo albums off of the bookshelf, immediately causing an unlocking noise from somewhere within the room. He then walked over to Armino's desk and pulled out the top drawer from the desk, flipping it over to reveal a concealed button. After pressing it, the bookshelf hissed out to the side, revealing an eye and hand scanner.

  "That's all I can do," Moran told him. "The rest, only family members can do."

  "What do I have to do to open the door?" Anlon asked, moving towards it.

  Moran pointed to a small sensor. "Let it scan your eyes, then place your right hand on that pad," He instructed like he had done it before himself. "After you have done those, in that exact order, state your name."

  Anlon followed Moran's instructions exactly, and to his surprise, the door hissed open, revealing what had been hidden from Anlon his entire life. A small room stockpiled with weapons and gadgets lay in front of him. Not once in his entire life had he expected to find any of this here, yet here it was looking directly back at him.

  "He wanted to have some weapons close, in case he couldn't get to his other cache time." Moran said from behind him. "Obviously they weren't close enough, but even he didn't expect Donnchadh to come after him."

  "Some?" Anlon's jaw dropped. "This is enough for a small army."

  "Wait until you see the other cache," Moran grinned. "This is just a small little closet compared to the next one."

  Anlon walked around the room and picked up the different weapons to get a closer look. Moran came up from behind him and put his hand on Anlon's shoulder.

  "You can look at these later. The next cache is outside," He walked to the door. "We need to be quick about this."

  "Wait for me!" Anlon put the weapons down. "Where outside did he hide the next secret cache?"

  "In the shed," Moran kept wa
lking. "Where else do you think he'd hide it?"

  "The shed? The shed is smaller than his office!"

  Moran opened the back door to go outside. "The cache is in there, I've seen it with my own two eyes."

  Anlon followed him out to the yard, trying to keep up. "What's in this cache that he couldn't keep in the other one? There was more than enough stuff in that one!"

  "You'll see soon enough, just be patient," He reached the shed and opened the door to a small cramped area.

  Equipment that his dad had stopped using years ago was crammed in all corners with broken gadgets scattering the floor. Anlon didn't know how anything could possibly be hidden in this mess, but he knew Moran wouldn't be mistaken. Moran reached up to find the switch and turned the lights on.

  Anlon observed as Moran rummaged through the shed trying to find something, but he wasn't sure what exactly Moran was searching for as he tossed around junk for several minutes.

  "What are you looking for?"

  "A family picture," He replied from a corner of the shed. "He said it'd be hidden in here somewhere, but didn't say exactly where. I figure it's buries somewhere under all this junk."

  Anlon walked over to Armino's workbench and pulled open the drawer. "This one?" Anlon asked, holding the picture frame up.

  Moran quickly moved towards Anlon and snatched the picture frame. "This might be just what I'm looking for," Moran opened the picture frame, revealing a small bug on the back of the picture. "Touch that black bug."

  Anlon did as he said. "Ow!" He yelped as the bug pricked his finger. "What is that thing?"

  "Blood test," Moran replied, waiting for something else. "Now hold on one more second."

  After finishing the sentence, a monitor raised from the ground with a pad and scanner next to it.

  "Welcome, Anlon Valens," the computer greeted him. "Please place you hand on the pad and state your name."

  Anlon did as the computer asked, and watched as it receded back into the ground.

  "What was all that about?" Anlon turned to Moran.

  "Just security measures. There's some really cool stuff in here."

  Anlon stepped back after seeing Moran do the same, unsure why he had moved until a rectangular opening revealing itself in the floor. Anlon looked down and saw stairs that led to a dimly lit hallway and began walking down them without as much as a glance to Moran.

  Upon reaching the end of the steps, there was another pad, and he instinctively placed his hand on it followed by his name. The door made and unlocking noise and hissed open, showing him an enormous bay expanding further than he could see. Everything in the underground bunker seemed to be organized in specific sections such as rifles, blades, pistols, gadgets, and even more. He walked over to a section that had cannon launchers and picked one of them up, tossing it over his shoulder.

  Anlon turned to Moran. "How much stuff is here? It looks like it goes on forever."

  Moran shrugged. "More than you'll ever need, but it's here if you do happen to need it. Cruisers and gliders are that way," he pointed.

  Anlon looked to where he was pointing and put the cannon launcher down. "How do I get the cruisers out of here if I want to use one?"

  "Take them down there," He pointed to a circular door. "Go through that door and there is an exit somewhere on your property, though I'm not quite sure where."

  "Why does he have so much stuff hidden down here?"

  "A lot of this stuff is from past missions your father went on. The Queen allows us to keep all of our old equipment. That's where I got all of my stuff in my apartment."

  "Where's the ship you were talking about?" Anlon started walking to another end of the bunker, admiring the different types of gadgets.

  "We'll have to go to Hermes for that," he replied. "It's a little too big to sneak in this bunker."

  Anlon put down the watch that he had picked up. "Hermes? The ship is on Hermes?"

  "That's right," Moran nodded. "He hid the ship in plain sight."

  "When do I get to see it?"

  "I'll let you know later," Moran told him. "For now, pick out weapons and gadgets that you want to use for your mission. You obviously can't take everything, so pick the most important things. You can always come back later and get more if you need it."

  "I'm going to get Kanti and let her pick out what she'll need too."

  "So you're really bringing her along?" Moran chuckled. "I guess some help is better than no help. Who knows, maybe she'll save you from getting killed."

  "I have brought this Council together today to inform you all that my daughter has not been found," Adira announced. "The mission has been an utter failure."

  "I thought we wouldn't be called again until she was found," Reginold replied irritably.

  "I had second thoughts about holding this meeting, but I thought it best I keep you updated on the situation as it unfolds."

  "Then keep us updated, Queen," Alura smiled. "What news do you have for us?"

  "My daughter was not where I thought she originally was," the Queen started. "She was held there for the past twenty years, until recently, when she ran away from those protecting her."

  "She ran away?" Reginold asked. "Why would your daughter, the Princess, run away from the safety of her home? She should know better than that!"

  "She doesn't know she's my daughter," Adira revealed. "Only Mr. Waldmunt, Armino, and I knew of her existence and we kept her true identity from her. Maybe, if she had known she was the Princess she would've stayed, but it's too late for that now."

  "Do you have any idea where she may have gone?" Bertrade asked. "There must be leads of some sort."

  "We have no leads at the moment," Adira lied. "It seems to be a dead end and that's why I called this Council. Unfortunately, we may never find my daughter."

  "She is your only heir," Abdul pointed out. "Who will take your place if the enemy is successful?"

  She shrugged. "Whoever the enemy wants to take my place is who will take my place."

  Adira got up from her seat and left the room. Just enough information had been given to throw Kirill off track, for a time anyway. She wanted him to believe that the retrieval of her daughter had been a failure and finding her was hopeless in hopes of getting to her first. It was a long shot, but it may provide just enough time for her.

  "We will have your daughter very soon, Kirill," the blue figure informed him.

  "Why have you contacted me now, before you have possession of her?" Kirill demanded. "You're wasting my time and risking your cover being blown."

  "The Queen sent a man to Demeter, where he was told that she ran away," the figure said. "The Kaneen who was hiding her has no idea where she has gone. He only provided a name."

  "What is the name? I have a contact who can find her quicker than the Queen ever will."

  "Kanti Cordula."

  Kirill grinned. "I won't even need to use a database or my contact to find her. I know exactly where she is right now."

  "You do?" the figure grinned.

  "I do. I have heard the name mentioned several times with one of my contacts," Kirill nodded. "How much does the Queen know about where her daughter may be?"

  "I believe she knows nothing, but I can't be sure," the figure admitted. "She called the Council together, saying she knows nothing, but from the intercepted call, I know she was lying to throw us off."

  "No matter," Kirill waved his hand. "I will have her before the Queen can send someone to retrieve her."

  Camillus got on the elevator and overrode the access code to ascend up to the second floor of the prison. He had to get to Kanti Cordula before anybody else did, those were exactly his exact orders. Retrieving her was now his sole mission; his secret identity no longer mattered. His ultimate functions had been performed and now it was time to leave.

  Camillus exited the elevator as soon as the doors slid open and he took a left to Kanti's office. When he arrived at the door, he stopped and knocked.

  "Come in."

/>   Camillus opened the door and entered, not bothering to shut the door behind him. Kanti looked up from her monitor, surprised to see him standing before her.

  "Camillus? What are you doing out of the database?"

  "We need to leave Kanti," Camillus moved towards her.

  Kanti reflexively backed up. "Leave? What are you talking about Camillus? Why did you leave the database?"

  "I will tell you once we leave here," He grabbed her arm. "Right now, it's time to go."

  "Where are you leaving?" She pulled back. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

  "We have to go now!" Camillus ordered. "Get up and come with me!"

  "No. I'm not..."

  "You're in danger!" Camillus interrupted her.

  "Danger? What do you mean I'm in danger?"

  "It's too much to explain right now and it's not safe here anymore," Camillus spoke quickly. "I'll take you to Anlon first and you can talk to him, but we need to get out of here now!"

  "How do you know about me and Anlon?"

  "I've been keeping a close eye on him and I know that you both are up to something," he revealed. "Stop asking questions and just follow me."

  "We go to his house. Nowhere else."

  "Yes. We'll go straight to his house," Camillus nodded. "Whatever will get you to leave this place."

  Kanti got up from her desk and headed for the door. "Let's go then."

  Kanti followed Camillus, who was almost running, to the elevator where they descended down in silence. She led the way off and to the circular door and it hissed open, allowing both of them to exit, but not before Giustino came rushing towards them.

  "What are you doing out of the database Camillus?" he shouted.

  "I'm taking him in for repairs. He's malfunctioning and I had nothing else better to do," she lied.

  "I'll have someone else take him in, don't worry about it. I have your reassignment ready for you."

  "He really needs to go now," Kanti insisted. "He'll break without his repairs."