“Holding position here,” Una added.
A small, milky-white nebula floated like a wispy cloud in a black sky.
“That’s new,” Mencari said.
“Readings show it’s directly over the disturbance region,” Maro said, examining additional displays.
“I don’t see any rifts,” Speru said, disappointed.
“And here I was, lookin’ forward to meetin’ your family,” Naijen snarked.
Naijen’s attempt at humor backfired. Mencari could see the pained look in Speru’s eyes. From what he recalled, Speru’s parents were both dead. His friends Siana, Jeyla, Raitr, and D’abar, were his only family. He imagined the retort Seigie would have wielded, or possibly some biting sarcasm about visiting a grave.
“Wait,” Maro said. “There’s something else out there. Trying to isolate it.” Holographic crosshairs narrowed on an object floating in the milky mass. “There! There’s too much interference to get a good scan on it.”
Mencari looked closely at the projection. “Enhance.”
“Please?” Minea’s voice echoed around him.
He huffed. “Please.” The image zoomed in. The pixilation refined in layers of sharpening fidelity. It appeared to be a humanoid body slowly rotating in space.
“A person?” Minea said in disbelief. “There’s a faint golden glow around whoever that is.”
“Glow? Let me see.” Speru nearly shoved Mencari out of the way. His body began to shake. “D’abar?”
Mencari looked closer.
“D’abar!” he yelled again, running toward the airlock.
“Kid, wait! What are you doing?” Naijen bellowed.
“I have to go get him.”
“We don’t know if it’s safe to go near,” Maro said.
“I don’t care!” Speru ran into the airlock.
“I’m going with ’im!” Naijen said, disappearing.
“If they make it to this D’abar guy, is it safe to bring him aboard, Rhysus?” Maro said.
The hiss of the opening airlock rang through the room.
“Minea, use every scan you can as they get closer,” Mencari said. “Look for any hazardous readings. Please.”
“Will do.”
“So who is this D’abar guy?” Maro asked.
Mencari thought. “Kind of Speru’s adoptive father.”
“And now he’s spaced-out here?” she asked, confused.
What did D’gorra do to D’abar? Mencari explained, “D’abar had a rival that accused him of treason. He seemed on the losing end of a power struggle going on. D’abar was the one who unlocked Speru’s abilities, and who told me to take him away—that Speru’s life was in danger from this rival. My guess is, things didn’t go well for D’abar after we left.”
“They’re nearly to the body,” Maro said.
“Anything unusual from your scans?”
“Nothing I can see,” Maro said.
“Or that I can detect,” Minea concurred.
“Una, how are you doing?” Mencari asked.
“Fine so far. The ship isn’t experiencing any power drains either.”
“Good. I want to know at the first sign of anything. Understood?”
A resounding “Yes” came from the three.
“Minea, open a channel to Eyani, please,” he added.
A ring of light appeared, and swirled. His eyes stayed locked on Speru and Naijen as he waited. Finally the light-ring tipped over, and a familiar face appeared. Eyani didn’t have hair; instead, bony plates overlapped and peaked at the top. Small lavender scales ran across her skin. Then his gaze met her striking purple eyes. She was as capable and brilliant as she was beautiful, like most of her kind, the Vella. He remembered the young alien he first met claiming to be a simple representative for data-gatherers on the Be’Inaxi station called the Trading Post. Of course, she was an up-and-coming lieutenant in the Be’Inaxi xenointelligence agency called Eden that operated within the Trading Post. When the Nukari destroyed it, and Colonel Tenrl perished, she took over the operations and led the reconstruction. All these years later, that innocent alien was now Captain Eyani Wayrena of New Eden, and a household name. She was also his friend, and a critical ally.
“Rhysus,” she greeted him with her sophisticated, clipped accent.
“Is Doctor Xbtoth able to care for special patients?”
Mencari knew the doctor had a strange fascination for those with D’mok abilities. As far as Mencari knew, Xbtoth was the only person allowed to date to conduct research on them. If D’abar needed medical help, Doctor Xbtoth would be the best bet.
“His facilities are still new, but yes. Why?”
“I’ll keep you posted, but we might need his assistance with someone from Speru’s world.”
“Alo? I thought the way there was closed?”
“It was. But one of them is out here now, with no apparent way back in. We’re not sure exactly what’s happened yet.”
A flash of light surprised him. An unsummoned and brilliant golden aura radiated from his body. He noticed the same effect from Maro. A glance out the window revealed a glowing sphere of silver light radiating around Naijen, Speru, and D’abar. Being the brightest, Speru appeared to be the source.
“Una, are you okay?” Mencari asked, concerned.
“I am fine.”
“Look at these scans. Energy’s pouring off Speru.”
“Whatever he’s doing out there, it charged our D’mok shields.…”
“Is everything okay?” Eyani asked.
“So far,” Una replied, “but I need to focus here.”
Eyani met Mencari’s eyes. “I’ll inform the doctor he might have a patient incoming.”
“Thank you, Eyani. I’ll keep you posted.”
As her projection dissolved, a streak of silver and gold returned to the ship’s side. In moments, Naijen and Speru were carefully carrying D’abar inside.
“There’s a gurney area in the rear,” Una said.
“I’ll get it,” Mencari said, scampering back and opening a panel. A sponge-like slab emerged, with short rails along the side. Speru and Naijen gently placed the lifeless body down.
“He tried talking. He said it was cold,” Speru said, tears in his eyes.
Mencari helped lay the old man back. He gasped, finally getting a good look. D’abar had appeared old when they first met. Now, the man looked gaunt, horribly malnourished, with wrinkles deeper than he remembered. What did they do to him?
“Did … they find … you?” The old man struggled to say more.
“Don’t talk. We’re going to get you help. Just rest,” Speru said.
Mencari looked up. “Una, get us to New Eden.”
A beam of light shot ahead of the ship, tearing open space. They moved forward into a vortex of light. In moments they were traveling inside a tunnel of swirling energy.
With all the remote assignments, and time at Osuto’s asteroid base, it had been a month already since he’d been at New Eden. Eyani mentioned the facility was fully operational now. The Be’Inaxi took no time replacing the Trading Post after the Nukari destroyed it. Building on the bones of the defunct science station once left dead from a radiation attack, the Be’Inaxi completed the refit in a fraction of the time it would have taken to construct a new station from scratch.
While the concept was sound, Mencari couldn’t get the sights and smells of what he found as the first responder inside its original incarnation after the Nukari had irradiated everything to death. Bodies had littered the corridors, and the stench—the putrid and assaulting smell—he’d never forget it. Instinct told him never again to set foot in the place. He didn’t have that option.
“One minute until normal space. I have priority clearance to dock,” Una said.
He looked down at D’abar, thinking he seemed a shell of the man that helped him back on Alo. Would he make it? What was this going to do to Speru? Things just got more complicated.
The ship jostled as it passed thr
ough and exited the tunnel of energy back into space. A dense red nebula stretched out before them. Each time he saw it, it looked to him like hot jets of lava bursting from a volcano. The station floated like a small black dot on the outer edge of the astral body.
Closing on their destination, he could see the full, menacing, nearly arachnid-like structure of the alien station. Its resemblance to the original Trading Post was uncanny. Three massive leg-like appendages stretched down from a cone-shaped body. A great crystalline dome sat atop the body, while a new collar-like structure ran around its base.
Swarms of small ships moved about the station’s main body, most likely a combination of construction vehicles and security. A constant river of spaceships large and small entered and exited from the tops of the large leg-like structures.
On final approach he noticed more structural enhancements over the original station. Like scales, thick, overlapping sections of armor covered the hull. An angry orange light beamed between the gaps. At first blush, it conjured images of the Nukari ships that killed so many. New Eden’s technologists clearly harvested the defensive plating from the stolen Nukari data stores. Ironic to create defenses using designs from the very enemy that nearly destroyed them.
“Bob reports the medical team will meet us in the bay,” Una said, and Mencari returned to his priority: to save D’abar’s life if that was possible.
* * * * * *
Where am I?
It was hard to think. His mind confused, it felt like a child trying to run on ice; he couldn’t collect his thoughts. Looking around, everything appeared in a haze broken only by white halos circling the lights above.
“Greetings and salutations,” a jolting and unfamiliar voice said.
D’abar looked about but saw no one. Did he imagine the voice, or was something more sinister going on again? He attempted to sit up, but his atrophied muscles protested and failed.
“D’abar … please remain in your bed. Assistance is on the way!” There it was again. He could have sworn he heard clicks, and a wheeze too. The voice didn’t seem to come from any particular direction. His mind grew more alert, then filled with doubt. D’gorra and his underlings had used telepaths to breach his mind before. Could it be happening again?
My tells … I need to evaluate my tells, make sure this isn’t a mind trick—
A door on the far side of the room opened and a furry mop of an alien entered. Covered in long swaths of hair from top to bottom, D’abar couldn’t guess what the creature looked like underneath it all. Did it even have eyes, or a mouth? It certainly didn’t look like anything he’d seen before.
“I am Doctor Xbtoth, pleased to meet you.”
He found the voice squeaky, high-pitched, and suspiciously distorted.
He opened his mouth to respond, but only a dry rasp escaped.
“No need to speak. We found you near death, floating in space. I’ve been able to stabilize your vitals.”
Near death? His brow furrowed as he attempted to think. Even the concept of thought made his head hurt. Memories began to weep from his mind. Flashes of the past brought with them the sting of fear and anxiety.
His torment began after he broke the seal containing Speru’s abilities. He’d asked Rhysus Mencari to take Speru away from Alo, far from D’gorra’s malicious reach. His rival would have killed the boy or worse, had him dissected to study Speru’s boosting abilities.
A painful torrent of memories flooded his mind then. D’gorra was furious when Speru escaped, and took D’abar prisoner. He was paraded before the Aloan Counsel in High Dome and branded a traitor and usurper. D’gorra’s evidence, while limited, was damning.
Placed in a dark cell deep under High Dome, he lost all sense of time. Only the rhythm of interrogations gave him some semblance of schedule. Food became a luxury. For every fourth time his stomach ached, he finally received a bowl of scraps. It became that his system grew used to going without sustenance, growing ill when he actually ate.
He recalled the day they finally dragged him from the cell. His “day of reckoning” as D’gorra put it. A farcical trial was what he meant. The verdict was swift and merciless. Despite decades of service, not one of his allies came to his aid. D’gorra had done his job well. The sentence, banishment outside the pocket of space that concealed their world. That was the last thing he could remember.
The door opened behind the furry alien. A young man with silver-tinted skin and platinum hair styled in a reverse Mohawk entered. Had it not been for the hair, it would have taken time to recognize the youth. Speru? His face had filled out, he looked strong—like a warrior.
Can you hear me?
The words entered his mind, dizzying him. Speru’s voice? Had he mastered mind-speaking? A wave of guilt crashed upon him. The seal he placed on Speru when he was just a newborn prevented mind-speaking, and any other ability from manifesting. Despite that initial handicap he’s already mastered that skill. Hot tears streaked his face.
“Can you understand me?” Speru said, out loud.
D’abar nodded.
Xbtoth slowly backed toward the door. “I’m going to give you some time. I’ll be back later.” Quietly the furry alien slipped out.
You look well, D’abar told Speru with telepathy.
Speru’s sudden look of surprise told him his words had been received. The boy’s strong arms wrapped around him tightly. It felt warm and loving and wonderful. How he had missed such personal affections. He never realized just how much until this moment.
“I thought I lost you,” Speru said.
How long have I been out? he said back with telepathy, unwilling to attempt speech again.
“It’s been a few weeks. We think you were floating in space for at least a few hours before we got to you. Dr. Xbtoth worked a few miracles.”
Something inside still didn’t trust his eyes. He needed to make sure this wasn’t some fabricated illusion by one of D’gorra’s monstrous telepaths. He needed a tell, something a telepath wouldn’t know to recreate properly.
“I drew something while you were sleeping,” Speru said. He held up a picture. If his voice were stronger he would have gasped. It was a detailed illustration of him. The finessed strokes and careful shading were a leap from the sketches the boy once hung in his dorm room. With exact detail, Speru captured his likeness. Even the gauntness of his current appearance. A jolt of exhilaration shimmered through his body. A telepath wouldn’t know to create such a detailed illustration in one of their illusion worlds.
You really are here, he said to Speru’s mind.
“Yes, I’m right here.”
The world blurred as his eyes flooded. I thought I’d never see you again. The faces of three youths flashed through his mind. Did the others find you?
Before uttering a word, Speru’s look of confusion answered.
“What others?”
Months had passed since the three Aloan youths defied the council and sought Speru. They went as far as burrowing through the protective pocket around their world to go where only one Aloan had gone before.
Raitr, Siana, and Jeyla. They left to find you a while ago.
“No, there’s never even been a sign of …” Speru stopped. “How long ago?”
Shortly after you left with Rhysus.
“A few months ago we detected an anomaly. It was similar to the one that led us to you, just much smaller. Perhaps that’s when they came through? But they never found me, and I’ve never run into them.”
He heard the door to the room open.
They’re out there somewhere, most likely still looking for you.
“Then we’ll need to find them.”
“Find whom?” Mencari asked from the door to the room.
“Rhysus, Osuto,” Speru greeted them.
“We were told D’abar was up. We wanted to see how he was feeling.” Mencari motioned for permission to enter.
“Come in, we were just talking—mind-speaking anyway. Do you remember Jeyla and Sian
a from the coliseum, and Raitr from the training hall?”
“Of course I do. Did D’gorra do something to them too?”
“No. No. I think they were the first anomaly we detected a while back.”
“They’re on our side of space?” Mencari looked as dumbstruck.
“Perhaps we can use New Eden’s resources to find them?” Osuto’s tone was tired, yet wise. D’abar felt an uncomfortable chill wafting from him. Back on Alo, Mencari had said that Osuto was their leader and an ancient D’mok Warrior. While D’abar never met an ancient before, he’d also never felt such an odd sensation from another.
What’s wrong with Osuto?
Speru looked back to him, dumbfounded.
“Is there a problem?” Mencari asked.
“He wanted to know what was wrong with Osuto.”
Tact didn’t appear to be Speru’s strong suit.
“You can tell that?” Osuto said, embarrassed. “I used too much power at one time, and it left me.”
Osuto was wrong, D’abar knew. He was damaged, but his power was still there.
It slumbers within him. When I’m stronger we can awaken it.
To the awkward silence Mencari said, “Is something wrong?”
“Oh, D’abar says he could help heal Osuto—when he’s better himself.”
“I would welcome his assistance,” Osuto said.
A flurry of cherry blossoms swirled overhead. Light poured from the maelstrom, and coalesced into a radiant female form. A feline-humanoid appeared to take shape from the light. “Eyani said the facilities review will begin soon.”
Mencari nodded. “Please excuse us, we’ll return shortly.”
CHAPTER 4
New Eden
Kiyanna called down the corridor. “Sir, do you have a moment?”
Mencari and Osuto turned, stopping just outside the entryway to the New Eden tram center.
“What do you need, Commander?”
Kiyanna motioned for the two behind her to wait, then approached with a salute. While the action matched her usual formality, she was out of uniform. He’d never seen her breaking protocol, or in civilian attire. The black leather bomber jacket, gray shirt, blue jeans, and tan boots suited her. He assumed the two concealed bulges in the back were her favorite pistols.
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