Heaven Saga 3: Sojourn Into Despair

by Marcus Johnson

  “And take care of the old man,” Celestia said. “He hasn’t been around much of late.”

  “As you wish,” Seles said. She waved as the cockpit closed before turning to Myden. “She worries too much.”

  “Far more than you suspect,” he said. “Every time you leave she can’t sleep for a week. I can’t imagine what she’ll be like with me gone as well.”

  The mobile suit headed for space. “Is it true you don’t leave very often?”

  “It depends on what you mean by leaving,” Myden answered cryptically. “By the way, could you dim the lights?”

  “Lights dim to fifty percent,” Seles said. The lights dimmed as much a moment later. Myden flipped his hood back and blinked his large black eyes. Seles looked at him closely. “I can see why people find your species so creepy.”

  “In the old days mine would say the same for your kind Seles,” Myden chuckled. “We look creepy because no one sees us ever.” He coughed. “Sorry, I haven’t spoken vocally so much in years.”

  “You have been rather talkative in the last few days,” Seles said. “I like it though. In a way you’re like the father I never had.”

  Myden chuckled again. “I’m old enough to be the great grandfather of the Teacher. But still, I accept your compliment graciously. I regret to admit before I fled my world I never bore any children.”

  “What were they like?” Seles asked.

  “Very much like yours,” he said. “Naerendi don’t manifest their telepathic powers until they reach puberty. Things get awkward after that.”

  “I know how it feels,” Seles said.

  * * *

  Valis arrived at the Raulno on a shuttle. There, she met with Kivi, Mira, and Daes. Dreka came running out of the back of the ship.

  “Everything’s ready for departure!” he shouted. “I’ll show you all around.”

  Dreka motioned for them to follow. The inside of the ship looked remarkably similar to the Avoni. The exception was the number of launching bays and gravity drives for charging mobile suits. As they toured each launching bay most of the mobile suits onboard were Phase Raknas, but Dreka also had a force of twenty Talons in two bays. After reviewing everything the group headed for the bridge.

  “I noticed the launching bays were only about a quarter full,” Seles said.

  “The cost of making Raknas and Talons is high, so we built what we could afford,” Dreka explained. “The fifty mobile suits we have should suffice for the mission.”

  The group came to the bridge and found it looked like the Avoni’s. Kivi placed one of her raknas in a slot next to the captain’s chair to activate the ship’s systems.

  “Interesting little feature you have there,” Valis said before taking seat in the commander’s chair.

  Dreka took position at the forward console to the right. Seles took the console on the left. Daes took the spot the lead science officer would at the top of the bridge with Mira standing opposite of her.

  “We’ll depart tomorrow morning,” Kivi announced. “All of you have crew quarters as of now. Until we return from this mission I trust you’ll act as my officers.”

  “Of course captain,” each said.

  Valis nodded. “You don’t mind?”

  “No Valis, I don’t,” Kivi said. “On this ship we have the same rank until the Avoni is found.”

  “But I can’t do anything unless I have one of those,” Valis said. She pointed at the rakna blade.

  “I’ll leave it in there until further notice,” Kivi said.

  “This feels really weird,” Seles said as she stared at the console. “I really underestimated how much work Baed had to do as the helmswoman.”

  “I know the feeling,” Dreka said. He switched the console over to Malcovin language settings. “I’m used to standing where Daes is at.”

  “I know the two of you are out of your comfort zones, but it’s necessary for now,” Kivi said. “To be honest I’m feeling a bit nervous about things as they stand.”

  Myden walked onto the bridge with his hood up before pacing about the room. Dreka turned and noticed the old Grey looking his way.

  “I know you don’t trust me Dreka, but know I want to save Brian above everything else,” Myden said telepathically.

  “Alright,” Dreka said before turning back to his work. Myden turned to face everyone else.

  “I know you may wonder why I decided to join you,” Myden said. “I came because you’ll need a guide should this search have to enter my people’s territory. Until then I’ll remain in my quarters. As agreed Captain Kivi, you have the choice of putting me under guard and surveillance.”

  “I will, just in case,” Kivi said.

  “As you wish,” Myden said before leaving the bridge.

  “He gives me the creeps,” Dreka said.

  “I’ve known him since I was a young child,” Seles said. “Myden has that way about him.”

  “Can we trust him?” Kivi asked.

  Seles turned around. “I trust Myden as much as I trust Brian,” she said.

  “That’s all I needed to hear,” Kivi said.

  Chapter 33 - The Visitor

  Lumiar held the pole in the Mjolnir’s cockpit with Celi to her side. Another cloaked Rakna flew by them with a number of Kalaidians to visit the surface and pick up supplies. She watched the planet below from the monitor.

  “So that’s what our planet looks like from space,” she said with awe.

  “You’ve seen pictures before, haven’t you?” Celi asked.

  “Of course, but it’s not the same as seeing it like this,” Lumiar said.

  Brian flew the Mjolnir into the Avoni’s launching bay. Grigon and Jesela were hard at work below.

  “Is that the bird person?” Lumiar asked excitedly.

  “That’s Grigon, also known as Grigon the Thunder from his days as a pilot,” Brian explained. “His ship, the Vomada, is about the same size as the Avoni. He’s the only living crew member.”

  “That’s right; he’s the one who uses a large number of intelligent droids,” Lumiar said. When the Mjolnir landed Brian opened the front hatch. He was the first down the elevator cord with Lumiar coming second. Because of her cloven feet it was a bit difficult for her to stand on the cord right.

  Brian pointed to the foot hold. “Sorry about that, I’ll have someone look at fixing for you.”

  “It’s alright,” she said while studying everything.

  Celi was last down the cord. Around them the engineers were busy working on the Phase Raknas.

  “I should get back to my duties,” Celi said. Brian nodded in response. She took Lumiar’s hand. “Thank you for allowing us to visit your beautiful world.”

  “And thank you for allowing me to come here,” Lumiar said as the two parted ways. Celi headed out the door to sickbay.

  “Where should we start?” Brian asked.

  Lumiar looked at the mobile suits. “So these are your fighting crafts?”

  “Yes,” he answered. “The Mjolnir is the prototype for all of these mobile suits. Grigon and Jesela over there know much more about their specifics than I do.”

  “I wouldn’t mind speaking to them,” Lumiar said. “But it looks like they’re working right now.”

  “Better to not disturb them?” he asked.

  “Yes, show me the basics of this ship Brian,” Lumiar said.

  “I’d be more than happy to.”

  * * *

  Jesela and Grigon watched as the pair left the launching bay.

  “What do you think of her people?” Jesela asked.

  “I think much of them,” Grigon said. “They’re far ahead of any race I know as far as maturity is concerned. Instead of warring over resources and energy they banded together and formed a unified world. Such a thing is sadly rare amongst even the most cultured of our species.”

  “Agreed,” Jesela said. She sent some schematics down to the Ministry of Technology. “The first colony class ship has been sent down.”
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  “You’re an amazing engineer,” Grigon said. “It would’ve taken most a few days to write up the basics for that type of ship. It took you only a few hours.”

  “I’m not that amazing,” she said with a smile. “When I was training as the Kein University I first looked into colony construction, that’s all.”

  “It’s still amazing considering the scope of the colony,” Grigon said.

  “The trickier thing is how we can get this mobile suit to manifest the shielding system you’ve specified,” Jesela said while stopping to look up at the Aegis. “Right now it’s just like the Raknas.”

  “The shielding system uses the gravity drive in a very precise manner,” he explained. “It’s going to take several more weeks of testing to get it tuned right.”

  “I have a bad feeling about this situation,” Jesela said before turning back to her work.

  “But what else can we do but try our best?” he asked.

  “If what we’ve seen is true, nothing can stop the Greys.”

  “No, we can if we must,” Grigon cawed.

  “I hope you’re right,” Jesela said.

  * * *

  Celi resumed working when Zae stopped in.

  “Any luck at all?” Zae asked.

  Celi shook her head. “No, and it’s getting more and more hazy,” she said. “No matter what I attempt it always fails. It’s as if this plague shifted in some unexpected manner when Brian contracted it.”

  “Here’s a question for you Celi.”

  “Go ahead.”

  “You’ve been looking at this as the Grey plague that infected us, right?” Zae asked.

  “Yes,” Celi answered.

  “What if he didn’t contract it from us in the first place?”

  “If that’s true, then how could he have come across this type of illness?” Celi asked. “His people don’t even have nanomachine technology?” She looked at the readouts, “Wait,” she pressed a few buttons and changed how the scanners saw the illness. “So that’s it.”

  “Was I right?”

  “Yes!” Celi shouted excitedly. “This is the breakthrough I was looking for! Thank you Zae! I know I should be a genius when it comes to things like this but I must have been so focused I didn’t see it right in front of me. The plague is similar to ours, but based completely on the Terran DNA.”

  “Then how did he contract it?” Zae asked.

  “Perhaps because he was a regular abductee for the Greys they laid it into his system,” Celi said. “Even without the technology to take effect it would have acted as a sleeper disease.”

  “If that’s true, then how long until the entire Terran population is infected with this?” Zae asked.

  “Several centuries, perhaps sooner if they advance faster than anticipated,” Celi explained.

  “Then finding a cure is even more important,” Zae said.

  “Yes, and I’ll do everything I can to save him,” Celi said before turning back to her work. “And I’ll do everything I can to save his people.”

  * * *

  Brian and Lumiar entered the bridge. The only one there at the moment was Baed. As she did with Celi, Lumiar went and greeted her by taking her hands into her own.

  “Greetings, I’m Lumiar Wavecrest.”

  “I’m Baed Daevon,” Baed responded with a smile. “I’ve seen much of your people’s culture and have yet to see one bad thing about it.”

  “If you go back to the times before unification, there were many instances of war and terrible violence,” Lumiar said. “In those times the greed of few trampled on the majority of the population. That changed with the discovery of the Strangers taking residence on the fourth planet.”

  “We have detailed pictures of their planet if you wish to see them,” Brian said.

  “I’d like to see them then,” Lumiar said.

  “Please join us Baed,” Brian said.

  “Of course,” she said. “Since the Avoni isn’t moving anytime soon I have little to do.” The three headed into the planning room. There, Brian called up a holographic image of the fourth planet. Lumiar circled the table while gazing at the image closely.

  “How did they create an atmosphere out of nothing?” she asked.

  “If the planet had any amount of water and or carbon on it the process wouldn’t be very difficult,” Baed said. “Of course, most of the younger races of the Confederation are trying to make more planets livable in a similar manner. But the truth is it’ll take us centuries to do what the Greys are attempting here.”

  “Then do you live in colonies in star systems with no planets suitable for your species?” Lumiar asked.

  “Yes,” Brian said. “That’s why we brought you here. We wanted to show you what we can do to help rather than just tell you.”

  “There are many questions I have,” Lumiar said. “I hope you don’t mind me asking them.”

  “Ask away,” Brian said.

  “Anything we can do to help your people we’re willing to do,” Baed said.

  “I thank both of you and all your crew for this,” Lumiar said. She looked at the image of the fourth planet once more. “What is this?” She pointed at the ring encircling the planet.

  “A solar power generation system,” Baed explained. “Many of the homeworlds in the Confederation use such a system for nearly unlimited power generation for the people of their world.”

  “Our engineers have proposed such a system but didn’t think it was possible,” Lumiar said.

  “It takes almost a century to finish building them,” Brian said.

  “I doubt we have that long,” Lumiar said. “What can your people do to help us?”

  “Jesela’s sent the schematics for a colony class ship to the Ministry of Technology,” Brian answered. “The other thing I’m having her send down is schematics for pulse cannons. You may not have gravity drives to power them, but our estimates say that if you pull all the available energy from the power grid on your planet you should be able to operate several hundred of them.”

  “I was hoping for something more defensive then that,” Lumiar said. “I suppose a good offense is better than nothing though. Another question, how many can live on this colony class ship?”

  “About two hundred and fifty thousand,” Baed answered. “That’s assuming your people consume a like amount of food to Kalaidians.”

  “That number is much better than my people estimated,” Lumiar said. “I’ll make sure a lottery system is used to determine who will be put onboard first.”

  “Will you or any in the government go onboard?” Brian asked.

  “Only if we’re chosen via the same system as everyone else,” Lumiar answered. “The Braiden pride themselves on fairness and equality. I will only board this ship if I draw the lot to do so.”

  “That’s quite admirable for a leader such as you,” Baed said.

  “It’s my duty to see justice is served,” Lumiar said. “I serve the people first and foremost. Hopefully the Greys will grant us enough time to complete a number of these ships.”

  “We’re hoping for the same,” Brian said. “I give my word that we’ll do everything in our power to aid you.”

  “Again, I thank you and your crew from the bottom of my heart,” she said.

  Chapter 34 - Stirring the Hornet’s Nest

  “I’m glad we’ve had a chance to try these,” Baed said while eating a fruit resembling an apple. Zae smiled while working on something

  “The rations were getting pretty boring,” Zae said before sighing. “This is a lot of work.”

  “What are you working on?” Baed asked as she turned. “I’ve seen you, Brian, and Celi taking turns. This project must be big.”

  “Are you telling me the other two haven’t mentioned a thing?”

  “Pretty much,” Baed paused, “Although with Celi it looks like she’s stressed out and Brian, well…he’s getting worse. I can see he’s putting up a brave front. But deep inside his eyes I see something.”r />
  “Is it fear?”

  “No, resignation,” Baed answered. “I don’t think he’s afraid of dying. There’s something deeper eating away at him. He’s holding all of the pain inside, along with the knowledge he may die any day now.”

  “I’ve had the same feeling for a while now,” Zae said. “Brian’s strong, there’s no disputing that, but he’s also a loner. The only ones who know what he’s like under the guise are Seles, Mira, and possibly Valis. I wish he’d open up to us a little more.” Zae saw something behind Baed’s words. “You love him, don’t you?”

  Baed laughed with tears in her eyes. “Always,” she said as she touched the symbol of the maiden on her chest. “Maybe it’s the fate of all those who carry this mark to feel that way. For a long time I denied it, and for longer still I’ve carried those feelings without saying them to anyone.” She paused. “I feel the same kind of emotions towards you, but he and you are different.”

  “I’d hope so,” Zae said with sarcasm in her voice. “I’m a lady. If ever you feel the need to act on those feelings I won’t be jealous. If he’s only got a short time to live I’m betting he wants to savor every moment.” Zae went over and brushed Baed’s face. “And I’d think he wouldn’t pass up the chance to spend some time alone with a woman as beautiful as you.”

  “You’re just saying that because I look like Seles,” Baed said.

  “No, I don’t think Brian looks at you like that,” Zae said.

  Baed took her hand and then hugged her. “Thanks for hearing me out.”

  “Anytime,” Zae said.

  Something activated the automatic alert system. They returned to their consoles.

  “What is it?” Baed asked.

  “I was hoping we’d get more time than this,” she said while frantically working at her console to gather the information on everything detected. “Our long range sensors are picking up a large amount of activity occurring at the fourth planet.” Zae put the image on the screen. At the equator a fleet of ships was assembling.

  “Do you think we’ve been detected?” Baed asked.