by Hao Yang
Klaycon and his friends soon found Didian’s crystal. They stood in front of it quietly.
After a while, Klaycon said, “Rest well, Didian. We all love you.”
“You know, I used to think he wasn’t a good fighter. Slow. Clumsy. But he saved us in his last fight.” Zier said emotionally.
“I never thought he would be the one to sacrifice for us.” Carila said.
“I thought…” Klaycon stopped to answer the ringing badge.
“Klaycon, I figure you want to know we have finished the treatment and Gloria is waking up.” Kalisa said.
“Great! Great! How is she?” Klaycon asked excitedly.
“She should be alright. We are running some tests now.”
“I will be right there. Thank you.” Klaycon said hastily as he motioned his friends to get back to the vessel.
“Now, we know who you really care.” Carila said as she rolled her eyes at Klaycon.
“Shut up!” Klaycon shouted.
Carila casted her eyes down and ran to the vessel.
An hour later, Klaycon walked into Gloria’s ward. Kalisa and other three doctors were taking readings from different instruments. Gloria still looked sleepy. Klaycon walked to Gloria and asked, “How do you feel?”
“Tired.” Gloria said listlessly.
“It’s OK. It will take one or two days to regain your strength. You are fine.” A doctor said kindly.
“You have no idea how happy I am right now.” Klaycon sighed.
“Thank you.”
“You are very welcome.”
“Did he call?” Gloria asked quietly.
Klaycon thought for a second and said, “No, not yet.”
“Can I have my badge back?”
“You want to call him?”
“Yes, isn’t that obvious?” Gloria smiled kindly.
“Sure.” Klaycon hesitated for several seconds. Then he took out Gloria’s badge and handed it to her.
Kalisa walked to Klaycon and said, “Sorry to interrupt you guys. Klaycon, can I talk to you for a second?”
“Of course.” Klaycon said and walked out with Kalisa.
They soon arrived at Kalisa’s office. Kalisa locked the door behind her and said, “There is something about Gloria.”
“OK. I am listening.” Klaycon said nervously.
“Gloria is pregnant.”
Klaycon paused for several seconds and said, “Come again?”
“Gloria is pregnant.” Kalisa sighed.
“What do you mean she is pregnant? She wasn’t pregnant before the treatment and after the treatment she is pregnant?”
“I know you didn’t expect this and I didn’t expect this either.” Kalisa said helplessly.
“You are damn right. Who is the father?” Klaycon asked angrily.
“That is the interesting part. I have run some tests and found out the child somehow has Human DNA.”
“I don’t understand. That is impossible.”
“One theory could be Gloria had sex with a Human male and conceived the baby.”
“Are you kidding me? Glycans are extremely differently from Human in every way. We grow from crystal.” Klaycon said angrily.
“It might have something to do with the treatment. As you know, the treatment revitalizes the body. I think the Human might left his sperm in her body and the treatment somehow triggered some kind of reaction.”
Klaycon let out a long sigh and asked, “When the baby will be due?”
“Probably after a year.”
“Does she know?”
“No.”
Klaycon strolled back and forth several times and then asked, “Can you remove the baby?”
“If we do it right now, it will run the risk of killing the mother. Besides, that is not the point.”
“What do you mean?”
“Whatever Gloria have done is a direct violation of our general principles. I need to report this to the selection committee.” Kalisa said seriously.
“You don’t even know what really happened.”
“I am quite sure the committee will find out what happened. It can’t be good.”
“If you reported this, they will kill Gloria.”
“You want to hide it? You think you can hide something like this. After several months everyone will know it. Then we will be in huge trouble. You need to understand the seriousness of this matter, Klaycon.”
“I love her.” Klaycon said decisively.
“I can tell that. But this is not about you.”
Klaycon looked at Kalisa in her eyes and he knew Kalisa had make up her mind. He tread slowly to Kalisa and said, “I agree. Who else knows this?”
“Right now, just you and me. That is why I tell you first.”
“I appreciate that.” Klaycon said gratefully as he walked to the door. He listened carefully and it was quiet outside.
“I know it’s hard for you. I can understand your feeling.” Kalisa said in an understanding voice.
“No, you can’t.” Klaycon said as he stabbed a dagger into Kalisa’s belly.
“Ah, aaaaah.” Kalisa screamed in pain.
Klaycon covered her mouth with the other hand and stabbed her again and again. Then she went quiet and slumped on the ground, lifeless.
Chapter 175
Jason would rather die trying instead of living like this on this planet. In the past several days, he checked the fighter jet he hid in the forest. After sitting in a humid environment more than a month, the jet had a thick layer of mold on the top and the belly was covered by water stain. The cockpit smelled like a rotten fish. Jason did some simple cleanup and mainly checked the reactor at the back of the jet.
It was right before the dawn. Jason took a last look at the small wooden tent he built more than a month ago. He wondered in the future whether someone would consider this as the first sign of Human colonization. He laughed at himself and picked up a stack of dried fishes. The water on the ground started to ebb. Then the first light of the dawn hit the forest, casting through trunks and branches. Showered in the morning light, he took a deep breath. All of a sudden, he felt his body filled with strength and energy. He jumped on the muddy and wet ground, heading to the fighter jet.
Jason checked the jet for the last time and then climbed into the cockpit. The smell of the rotten fish was still there. He let out a long sigh and hit on the engine initiation button. As the engines started to hum, the screen came to life. Then Jason smelled something burning. He sniffed around a bit. The burning smell was getting stronger and stronger.
“Boom!” One of the engines exploded and the flame engulfed the whole jet. The cockpit was like an oven and Jason felt like his skin was melting.
“Boom!” Another engine exploded.
Jason reached out to the handler to open the cockpit, but only got his hands burned. The fire and smoke flushed in. Jason felt pain all over the body. He held his breath and searched for the button for emergency ejection in the black smoke. Fire quickly swallowed his body. Jason knew the final explosion was coming in a second.
At the last moment, he found the button. The burning cockpit blasted off from the jet right before the jet broke into pieces in another explosion. Inside the cockpit, Jason struggled to put out the fire. There was not much room for him to move around.
“Ah, aaaaah” Jason screamed in pain and kicked on the roof. The glass was cracking. Jason kept kicking it as the cockpit slowly descended.
“Crank! Crank! Crank! Crash!” The roof was broken.
Jason jumped out before the cockpit landed on the ground. As he was falling, the wind blew off the fire on his body. He plunged into a swamp and felt the unbearable pain on his chest. Then he passed out.
When Jason opened his eyes again, he saw a wooden roof with red leaves. Bright light casted through the skylight and landed on a trunk-made chair. Everything was so peaceful. It was like in a dream world, but the pain on his body reminded him that what he was seeing was real. He looked at his hands. They w
ere covered by mud like paste and so was his body. He slowly touched his face. It felt like pitted bark.
“You are awake, finally. I was wondering whether you can make it or not.” A low and husky voice struck Jason.
Jason slowly turned his head to the door direction and saw an old Glycan walking in. He sat next to Jason and asked, “You hungry?”
Jason slowly got up on the bed and now he could see that almost all his body was covered by the mud like green paste.
“It’s OK. Just stay down.”
“What is this thing on my skin?” Jason asked listlessly.
“You are badly burned. You skin are pretty much gone. I use those paste so that you won’t get an infection.” The old Glycan said kindly as he handed Jason a bow filled with creamy thing. He had a small built, his square face full of wrinkles, his eyes round and sharp, his hands rough and ragged.
“Thank you.” Jason said gratefully.
“You may not like it. It tasted like Wipoeq.”
“If it’s just vinegar, I can handle it.” Jason said as he spooned the creamy thing.
“You know what Wipoeq is?”
“Yes.”
“How come?”
“Well, my girlfriend gave me some before.” Jason said sadly.
“Then you must have a Glycan girlfriend.” The old Glycan said in surprise.
“I do.”
“So after UWII, they are all the same? I mean different species.”
Jason smiled reluctantly and said, “You have been here for a long time. Am I right?”
“More than 80 years. I got there before UWII was over. I am Nisasen by the way.”
“I am Jason. I thought I was the only one on this planet.”
“Far from that. On the other side of the planet, some Oireitans were drilling for something.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“Well, it’s hard to find a place without being touched.” Nisasen said in a relaxed tone.
“How did you find me?”
“The black smoke led me to the location of the explosion. Then I searched the surrounding area and found you. You were lying in the swamp. I didn’t expect you were still alive back then. But sometimes you just don’t know, right?” Nisasen said in a cheerful mood.
“Yea.” Jason nodded. He then noticed his legs were very stiff. He couldn’t even lift them up to the edge of the bed.
“Take it easy. There are fractures in both your legs. I fixed them.”
“I don’t know how to thank you.” Jason said emotionally.
“Don’t worry about that.” Nisasen chuckled.
“How long have I slept?”
“About eight days. Looks like you planned to go somewhere?”
“Yea, to see my girlfriend.” Jason said directly.
“Well, well, well. History does like to repeat itself.” Nisasen sighed.
“What do you mean?”
“Get some rest. If you wanted to see your Glycan girlfriend, you will need it.” Nisasen said and headed out.
Later Jason finished the bow and went to sleep.
Chapter 176
Several days after the treatment, Gloria quickly regained her strength. Before she left the hospital, she took her time to thank the doctors who treated her. She also learned that her main physician Kalisa died in an accident several days ago.
After left the hospital, Gloria went home to see her parents. They were all very happy and excited to see their daughter. Gloria were happy as well, but her mind was somewhere else. She was dying to see Jason. But she had no idea where he was, so she called Titainein and they decided to talk in person in the training center.
Later, Gloria, Titainein, Erikon and Lucis met in the theater in second class species area.
“Where is Jason?” Gloria asked nervously.
“Gloria, calm down first. You are not going to be happy about this.” Titainein said calmly.
“What? Is he alright? What happened? Tell me. Tell me now!” Gloria said hastily.
Titainein, Erikon and Lucis looked at each other.
“Tell me what happened!” Gloria shouted in a shaking voice.
Titainein winked at Erikon and Lucis, but the two acted like they didn’t see her, so she said, “Gloria, we don’t know where Jason is right now.”
“But he is fine right?”
“The last time we saw him was on a carrier of Human Second fleet. But recently none of us heard from him. The Second fleet has returned and we asked around. All we know right now are just rumors.” Erikon said sadly.
“What rumors?”
“It seemed that Jason ran off the carrier while some Glycans tried to catch him.” Erikon said.
“I thought he was hiding somewhere because of the prison break thing.” Gloria said in confusion.
“Speaking of that, your friend Klaycon almost killed Jason.” Lucis said angrily.
“That is another story, but it’s not important now. Gloria, we tried to contact you for more than two months. But we can’t reach you.” Titainein said.
“We wanted to ask you for help to get Jason off the carrier.” Lucis added.
“I was undergoing a treatment for about two months. I called the badge I gave you right after I recovered. But the call didn’t even go through.” Gloria said.
“I gave the badge to Jason last time I saw him on the carrier.” Titainein said in a worried tone.
Gloria and Titainein fell into silence. Gloria knew Jason wouldn’t lose it unless something very bad happened.
“There is one more thing. That is the reason why we have to talk to you in person.” Lucis said as he winked at Erikon.
Erikon took off his watch and pressed the side button. Several beams of light formed an image showing a common greeting passage.
“I received this message several days ago. I don’t know who sent it.” Erikon said.
“It seems just like other hello messages, but if you read carefully, those repeated words look like some kind of coding.” Titainein said confidently.
“Jason’s father used to send me messages like this and asked me to relay the message to Jason.” Erikon said.
“But you just said you don’t know who sent it.” Gloria said.
“No, I don’t know who sent this one.” Erikon said as he shook his head.
“I think it is possible that Jason also received this message.” Titainein said.
“Anyway, we have been working on decrypting it, but we still don’t get it.” Lucis said.
“Anything else except this message?” Gloria asked.
“You probably heard the rumor that Hylocan reserve was attacked and all Hylocans were gone. I don’t know whether it has anything to do with Jason.” Lucis said.
“I didn’t know that until now. Lisania and Jason. I hope not.” Gloria sighed.
“So what is your plan?” Titainein asked.
“I will decode this message first. It might tell Jason to go somewhere or others things.” Gloria said tiredly.
Chapter 177
A week after Jason woke up, he was able to walk around a bit. Nisasen seemed busy all this time and they didn’t really talk much. Jason could understand that. It required a lot of work to keep two guys alive.
Now Jason didn’t feel pain but itchy all over the body. Today he could finally remove all those paste. He couldn’t wait any longer. He first rinsed the green paste off his legs. The view shocked him. There was no skin left and his legs now looked like burned logs, black and coarse. He could see muscles movements on his legs.
“No. Noooo!” Jason screamed.
It took him a long while to get himself together. He continued to wash the paste off. Then he touched his face in panic. It was like touching a rough and pleated cloth.
“No.” Jason sighed as he slowly put on the clothes Nisasen prepared for him. Then he walked around the room to find a mirror. But he couldn’t find one.
When it was close to the noon time, Nisasen came back with some fresh-caught rabb
it like animals.
“Got these in the traps I set up yesterday. You want to help me cook them?” Nisasen said happily.
“Do you have a mirror?” Jason asked slowly, trying to hide his sadness.
Nisasen glanced over at Jason and said, “I don’t have a mirror, but…”
“It’s ugly, right?” Jason interrupted Nisasen.
“That doesn’t bother me at all.” Nisasen said easily.
“I just want to see how I look. I can handle it.” Jason said firmly.
“I don’t have a mirror, but I have a big knife.” Nisasen said as he hauled a knife from his pocket.
The knife had a shining blade that gave a good reflection. Jason took over the knife, held the blade right in front of his eyes and stared at his face. It looked like his leg. Half of his nose was gone and one cheek was much shallower than the other one.
Jason dropped the knife and casted his eyes down. He wanted to scream but couldn’t make a sound. He stood there still for a long while. He knew even if he stood right in front of Gloria, she wouldn’t even recognize him. He would scare her and all his friends away.
Nisasen picked up the knife from the ground and said, “Come and help me cook.”
Jason hesitated for several seconds and then joined Nisasen. They cleaned up those rabbits and made a fire. They didn’t talk much and quickly finished cooking. Now they were sitting near a table and eating their lunch.
“You have any plan?” Nisasen asked quietly.
“Before I saw myself, I planned to see my girlfriend. Now I just wanted to leave.” Jason said listlessly.
“How do you plan to do that?”
“Except walk away, do you have any better idea?”
“I have something for you.” Nisasen said as he motioned Jason to follow him.