Stargazer

by Melanie Matthews

  “Can you contact Loren?”

  Zeke shook his head as he sat down on a wobbly chair and propped his feet up on a table. “Can’t see anyone--Medusa’s sending out a signal to block visual transmission from the dome to my receiver.”

  “What about audio?”

  “That’s not great either. There’s been these series of beeps coming out of the dome. I don’t know what Medusa’s saying but it’s nonsense to me.”

  “Did you record them?”

  Zeke nodded. “Of course; I got nothing better to do.” He pushed a few buttons on a large black machine made up of Stargazer and human-engineered equipment. “Don’t get too excited. It’s just beeps.”

  The beeps started and instantly I knew what they were.

  “That’s Morse code!” I grinned at Selwyn. “That’s Morse code!”

  “What’s that?” asked Zeke.

  “It’s ancient Earth communication,” said Selwyn. “Former Commander Goode and his daddy knew about it. And that doctor son of his.”

  I nodded, excited. “That’s John! But oh, I wonder what happened to Loren?!”

  I suddenly became nauseous, thinking Loren had been executed for being a rebel spy, but from the beeps, John didn’t mention that. Maybe he was alive or maybe John was sparing me the pain of knowing Loren had died.

  “There’s no telling with Pallas,” said Selwyn, in response to Loren’s fate. “So, what’s John saying?”

  The beeps had stopped. I told Zeke to play it again and I closed my eyes, letting each word sink in. When the recording stopped, I said, “This is going to be difficult.”

  “How?” asked Selwyn.

  “Pallas has a quadrant, Alpha, where he’s built an android army. Even if we make it through the dome, we’ll have to contend with a superior force.”

  “Robots?” said Selwyn. “Hell, that man’s been busy.”

  “They’re tough,” I said. “I only battled one. I’m strong but it was strong too.”

  “What happened?”

  “Well, I basically crushed his armor, his circuits—his everything…what really finished him off was the fall from the top of Quadrant Delta. He crashed on the ground. I would have too if I wasn’t teleported aboard the ship in space.”

  “Why can’t we do that?” asked Zeke. “Why can’t the Stargazers just teleport us inside?”

  I sighed. “We could but Medusa’s defensives are superior to our technology. That’s why I was hoping you could help us.”

  “I know how to manipulate Medusa, but I can’t do nothing without someone on the inside helping me. Someone has to be in Central Command, at the terminal--that’s where Medusa is.”

  “Who’s allowed access to Medusa?”

  Zeke counted on his fingers. He only raised one. “Pallas; she would only allow Pallas in…not even the Madam Secretary.”

  I sat down on another wobbly chair and sighed. “Loren said he could manipulate Medusa. He’s done it before, but I don’t think from Central Command.” I turned to Zeke. “Can you do something out here? Tap into Medusa, confuse her, make her admit Loren or John or someone on our side?”

  Zeke shook his head. “It has to by someone on the inside first. There’s not a damn thing I can do until then.”

  “What about those beeps?” Selwyn lightly touched my shoulder. “Can you beep back at John? Tell him we need him or Loren to get into Central Command?”

  I looked at the gutted Stargazer equipment. “I could put something together.” I turned to Zeke. “You can still transmit inside the dome, right?”

  He smiled. “Oh, I can transmit and Medusa can pick it right up.”

  “So, how would I pinpoint a location? I need John or Loren to hear me—not the whole of Sanctuary.”

  Zeke sighed. “I could try something—something I’ve never tried before.”

  “What is it?”

  “Turn myself in.”

  My eyes went wide.

  “What?” Selwyn asked for me.

  Zeke held up his hand, telling us to calm down. “Look, I’ve been thinking about it. I go to the dome—hold up my hands—tell Medusa I want to turn myself in—she sends out a Retrieval Squad—bam!—I’m in the dome.” He got up abruptly and picked up a black vest. “I made this. I got some neat materials while scavenging a Stargazer vessel awhile back. I was able to mold the garment to a sort of electrical charge.”

  “What good is that going to do?” asked Selwyn.

  Zeke put it around his chest. He was so thin, malnourished. “Well, I get captured, right, and the moment I get through the dome, I set it off—the pulses shock Medusa—she’s stunned.”

  “And what then?” I asked.

  “Well, she’ll fix herself as soon as she can, but until then, she’s working overtime, confused, and unaware of everything.”

  “And that’s when Loren or John can use his rebel tech and infiltrate Central Command,” I surmised.

  Zeke nodded. “You got it! They shut down Medusa—the dome falls—the cannons are deactivated—and it’s party time!”

  It sounded like a good plan, except for the android army, and the guards with their weapons that turned people’s brains to mush.

  “What about this vest?” I asked. “Will it hurt you?”

  “Well…it was designed for Stargazer anatomy. I mean, all those electrical volts could kill me, but…”

  “Wait, wait!” I jumped up. “There’s no way you’re going to do that! You’re not going to risk your life!”

  “You’re going to go, aren’t you?” asked Selwyn in a soft voice.

  “It’s the best option.”

  He shook his head. “We’ll find another way.”

  “No, time is running out. It has to be me—now.”

  “But what about John and Loren? What if…what if they’re dead? Who’s going to shut down Medusa?”

  I sighed. It was a very real possibility John and Loren were dead. I turned to Zeke. “Can you shut Medusa down?”

  “Sure—if I can get into Central Command.”

  “They’d have to capture you both, then,” Selwyn realized.

  I didn’t like it. Zeke could be crushed by an android by the time he made it to Medusa, and if Julius was smart, he’d have a whole legion of androids protecting her.

  “There has to be another way.”

  “No, this is it!” said Zeke. “I’m going. I’m tired of sitting around here and doing nothing. I want to be a hero.”

  “You’ll end up dying, you little fool!” Selwyn barked.

  “If I get the dome down, so what? Why should my death be more tragic than anyone else’s?” He turned to me with pleading, young eyes. “Please! Let me do it! Let me come with you!”

  Selwyn pulled me aside. “Ava, please! He’s just a kid.”

  I sighed. “I know Selwyn…but he can put an end to all of this. He can save the world.”

  “You don’t know that. A million things could go wrong.”

  “They could or everything could go right. It’s time, Selwyn. It’s time to stand up for what’s right, even if that means dying for the cause.”

  Selwyn stepped away from me, frustrated. “If this goes south, there won’t be any scrap of us left once Pallas sees to our end.”

  “That was always a possibility. He’s never going to let you live in peace. Would you rather die, knowing you did something or live, looking over your shoulder, wondering, waiting when the axe is going to drop on you?”

  “She’s right,” said Zeke.

  “I know she’s right, dammit!”

  I took a chance and gave Selwyn a lingering kiss on his cheek. “Thank you.”

  He caught my hand and squeezed. “When we make it out of this, when we’re free, I want a real kiss.”

  “You’ll get it.”

  The three of us walked silently back to the others. I had the black vest over my white shirt. Willa narrowed her eyes, always suspicious.

  “Let’s get back to Cory,” I told her, halting any quest
ions she was about to ask. Willa nodded and stayed silent. I turned to Selwyn. “Inform everyone of the plan.”

  “I want to come with you.”

  I shook my head. “You’re their commander. You need to stay here—command them.”

  Gina approached. “The rest of the Resistance is on their way.” She nodded to a newcomer in the group—a young girl with a bandaged hand.

  “Good,” I said with a nod. I turned to Selwyn. “You’re going to have a lot of people depending on you. Lead them. Let them know what they’re fighting for. Give them courage. This is their time. Make it an event to be remembered.”

  “I can’t wait!”

  He rushed forward, grabbed me, and kissed me roughly. I caught Willa’s hand before she snapped Selwyn’s neck.

  “It’s okay,” I told her. “It’s okay.”

  Selwyn smiled. “Even if she had killed me, it was worth it.”

  “Ugh!” moaned Zeke. “Are we going to save the world or are we going to kiss?”

  “Don’t make me choose,” said Selwyn with a wicked grin.

  I sighed and said, “C’mon Zeke. C’mon Willa. Let’s get going.”

  The three of us made it to the Stargazer ship as Cory was opening the door. He rushed out and fell to my feet. “I was so worried! You have been away for so long.” He grabbed my hand and kissed it.

  “What is it with men going crazy over women?” asked Zeke, shaking his head.

  “I don’t understand either,” agreed Willa. “There are far more important tasks to accomplish.”

  I motioned for Cory to stand up. “Go back in the ship with Willa.”

  “I’m to stay back, again?” she said, trying to contain her fury.

  “Yes. You and Cory will communicate with Calumny. Zeke and I are going to the dome. Once we’re past, Zeke is going to take out Medusa in Central Command. I want you to express to Jax that when the cannons go down, that is not a sign for attack. Sanctuary will be left unharmed. The Resistance will move in and take over.”

  “Can they be trusted with such a mission?”

  “You bet your alien ass,” said Zeke, proud.

  Willa furrowed her brow, confused by his remark. I ignored his rudeness. I needed his help and besides, being out in the wild, I’d probably be crude too.

  “The Resistance needs to be involved,” I told her. “They’re humans and this is their planet.”

  “What about us? Are we to help them and then move on?”

  “I don’t know what’s out there. I want to us to stay here. That’s why I don’t want to exclude the humans. We’re on their land. When all this is over, it’s up to them whether or not we stay. And I hope by what I’m about to do, I can endear them to us.”

  “Well, you know Selwyn’s in love with you,” said Zeke.

  And others, I wanted to say—John and Loren. I hoped they were alive, but I also feared their torture, their imprisonment in Quadrant Echo. After we had taken over Sanctuary, I’d have to locate them immediately. And Henrietta; I worried about her allegiance to Julius. How many others in Sanctuary were devoted to him? Would we have to fight them too?

  “Cory, Willa, get inside the ship,” I ordered, distracting myself from what may or may not come. “Zeke and I are headed to the dome.”

  Willa hesitated, but then bowed, and entered the ship. Cory kissed me again on my hand and then entered behind Willa.

  “I don’t get it,” said Zeke, as we were walking in the direction of the dome. “Why do all these guys go crazy over you?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve been told I’m beautiful.”

  He looked at me as we walked. “You’re pretty, I grant that, but you’ve got them under some kind of spell or something.”

  I chuckled. “Me? A spell? I’m not doing anything.”

  “Well, there’s something special about you.”

  I halted.

  “What?” he asked, as he stopped next to me.

  I snapped my fingers. “That’s it!”

  “That’s what?” he groaned.

  “I am special!”

  “Well, someone’s full of herself.”

  “No, I am. I have this ability.”

  “What kind of ability?”

  “Well, when I get mad, I can get very destructive.”

  “How so?”

  “It’s just this power I have. The wind blows wild; trees uproot; water rises to scaling heights; I can cause storms too and earthquakes.”

  “Wow! I’d like to see that.”

  “But it’s dangerous. I could kill people.”

  “Can you bring down the dome?”

  “Probably but I don’t know the repercussions.”

  “Well, why don’t we go through with our plan, and then when I’m making a run for Central Command, you explode in a rage, knocking out all those androids and guards, and then I’m home free!”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know, Zeke. If I don’t stop in time, I could destroy the whole planet.”

  He clenched my hand. “I trust you, Ava. You can do it.”

  I almost started to cry. “Thanks, Zeke.”

  We walked on in silence. I wasn’t entirely convinced I could stop my destructive force in time though. Back with Julius, in Quadrant Delta, I would have taken down the whole tower—the whole planet—if that android hadn’t distracted me. I was filled with so much rage, learning who Julius really was—the acts he had committed—his lack of remorse.

  But as I thought about it, I felt more confident that I could do it. I wasn’t off guard. I wasn’t a lost girl who needed answers. I knew everything. I was the Overlord now. I had a battleship in space under my command, and with Selwyn, a human Resistance as my allies. I had little Zeke, who barely knew me, willing to die to bring down the dome. I was in amazement at this planet, at Earth, and at myself. I was such a brat back on Prominence. Now, I’m the catalyst for change—the bringer of freedom to an alien race. It was all so bizarre, but at the same time, expected. As if this was my destiny.

  We finally made it to the dome. I felt the vest, knowing it was there, but still making sure I had everything prepared.

  “Remember,” said Zeke, “don’t activate it until we’re almost through the dome. Before, after—won’t work. You’ve got to mess up her circuits that pulsate through the dome glass.”

  I nodded. “Got it.”

  I was supposed to merely swipe my hand against the vest. With my Stargazer DNA that activated the electrical current, pulsating out, connecting to Medusa’s circuits, interwoven in the glass dome, and then she was supposed to suffer from a freeze. That was when she was vulnerable and Zeke could make his way to Central Command. Once that happened, I had to deal with the guards and the androids and any indoctrinated humans in Sanctuary who wanted to stop me from hurting their beloved Pallas.

  I turned to Zeke. “Do you have that poison in your mouth like Gina?”

  He opened his mouth and showed me. “Yeah, it’s something we all did. We don’t want to be tortured.”

  I patted him lightly on his back. “Hopefully, neither of that will happen.”

  “It really is beautiful,” he said, nodding to the glittering white city of Sanctuary.

  I nodded. “It is.”

  All the buildings were white and clean. I could see all the windows; some black, closed, and others clear, opened. I wondered if anyone was looking out at us, but the city was far too large to notice me and Zeke. There were lively trees and grass, making it look like a paradise. Posters and statues of Julius were everywhere. I couldn’t help gazing upon him, admiring his beauty. He smiled in some; frowned in others. He was gorgeous in either pose.

  I was afraid of what was to come. Julius couldn’t be killed. I could only imprison him. But how long would that last? Who would look after him when I was dead and gone? It had been in my mind for a while—killing myself or letting myself be killed—hoping Julius, if he still loved me, would give up his immortality and join me in the afterlife—or at least depart thi
s world, staying in the ground all alone with no chance at redemption. I didn’t know what was in store for him; I had already forgiven him, but it wasn’t my forgiveness that would save his soul. I wasn’t that powerful.

  As if on cue, the android army began marching towards us. They were joined by humans—the Retrieval Squad—with their weapons, fixed on us.

  “Are you okay?” I asked Zeke, worried about him.

  He nodded. “I can do this. You trust me, right?”

  I smiled. “I do. Do you trust me not to kill everyone on the planet?”

  He smiled back. “I do.”

  I nodded towards a large white sphere in the center of the city. “Is that Central Command?”

  “Yeah, it’s easy to get to. All I have to do is take that red-bricked path, and it’s a straight shot. You take care of the bad guys and I’ll run like hell.”

  As the androids and humans marched towards us, my view was blocked by a flickering on the dome. A large black screen appeared on the glass.

  “It is good to see you again, Ava,” said Medusa.

  “It’s good to see you too.”

  I really had missed her, but I had to keep my emotions in check. I had a mission and that involved killing Medusa.

  “Do you wish to enter Sanctuary?”

  “I do.”

  “And your companion?”

  “Him too, so can you call off the army headed towards us?”

  “Do you come in peace?”

  “Yes; we’re turning ourselves in.”

  “I will notify President Pallas.”

  I watched her tilt her head around like usual. “Medusa, where is John and Loren? And Henrietta?”

  She stopped moving. “Dr. John Goode, Dr. Loren Valier, and Henrietta are imprisoned in Quadrant Echo.”

  I almost fainted. “But…they’re okay?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Are you monitoring their health?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are they hurt?”

  “They are not as well as they should be.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “They are malnourished.”

  “Are they on a food strike?”