by Lesa Corryn
“I told you, we are all different in the Union. I come from a planet of white light. I see a very small portion of the light spectrum.”
“Oh, I beg apologies.” He gave me a slight bow, his antennas just short from brushing my face. “Well, the furred ones have those light goggles, or at least that's what we assume they are. We have not gotten our hands on their technology. They prove to be a rather troublesome adversary.” He grabbed my hand and guided it along the wall until it met a ledge. It was a large, spherical indentation, from the other Metrite ball I conjectured.
“Now I'll climb up first and I'll pull you up from there.” He stepped forward again and anchored his hands on the ledge.
“Hold on,” I muttered. Something about what he just said bothered me. Everything he's said has been slightly off. That this was his home world. That the Union comprised only of Bendalurians. That the Bendalurians had technology, that they were a difficult opponent. Nothing lined up. I backed away from the wall and distanced myself from him.
“What is the matter, Jek Thurman?” He eased down from the ledge and gestured to me with open hands.
“How can I trust you? Your words don't make sense and you were the one who attacked us.” I seemed to have forgotten that last point. So wrapped up in administering to his wound, I forgot that it was their fire that got us here in the first place.
“Fair enough, Jek Thurman.” He lowered his hands and kept his distance.
“Stop calling me that. Just call me Jek.” Enemy or not, I didn't much care for formalities.
“Jek, I cannot prove to you I'm trustworthy. But know your words do not add up either. We have lived under this belt for millennia. We just recently developed ships fast enough to make it through the field. We do not know of the outside world, only what has found us here. We did not know of your kind. We did not come to hurt you, only those who take our land.”
“Take your land. The Bendalurians are simple peasants. Colonists lost and forgotten by the Union and their home world.”
“Why do you say that?” He cocked his head, his spindly neck bent to a point that I worried it would snap beneath the weight of his head.
“Their technology is too underdeveloped. If they were recent colonists they would have Union technology.”
“See, Jek, this is where I am the one who is not sure I can trust you. But you work to save me and for that I owe you a debt. So I will trust your words as something you believe, whether they have merit or not.” He again turned to the ledge and began to brace himself for the lift.
“Wait, what does that even mean? Nothing has been proven here except our own confusions. How am I to trust that you won't pull me up, just to shoot me down?”
“Because I can shoot you here.”
“I mean figuratively.” Although his point did hit.
“What has been proven is that neither of us intend to kill the other and that both of us are caught in a web of lies. For us to pull each other out, we must observe the threads for ourselves and plan from there.”
“I don't understand.”
“The best way to clear things is to prove to each other that the other is right. My words are not enough. To say, the furred ones have technology, will do nothing. They are just words. For me to show you technology, that is more.” He lifted himself up and crouched down on the ledge. With care, he rose, his body tense and legs ready to spring. Nothing appeared to be over the rim because he turned around in a swift motion and laid down on his chest to lift me up. He lowered his hands and his large round eyes met mine, but he didn't say anything else. He waited, not urging, not accusing, just patient.
The crack in the wall, the young Bendalurian attendant's miraculous gift of a Galactic tongue, the two colored fruit. Did they all point to this creature's knowledge of the truth? I didn't know. But I saw his hand holding my wadded shirt tight against his abdomen and his gun holstered on his belt. He could have shot me long ago. He took that cannon hit and took a severe wound for my safety. Where the truth laid I didn't know, but I was certain that this man meant no harm to me.
I stepped forward and grabbed his arms. They were sleek like metal and cool to the touch. His muscles must have flexed as he lifted me but I could not feel it beneath his protective shell. Kicking along the wall, I urged my body up and soon found myself belly down on the ledge.
“Beyond, the furred ones pick up the pieces of their lost. We are of no concern to them right now.” He began to step out into the open, when I grabbed his leg.
“I have one question for you,” I asked, pulling myself up to stand before him.
“Yes, Jek.”
“What is your name?”
“You cannot speak it in your tongue, but we take names after the elements, after the gifts of the terra. So my name is associated with your word, Edelweiss. I was born amongst such flowers and so my parents felt it proper.” I laughed to myself. Edelweiss. My home in Austria had Edelweiss flowers. They were shaped like the stars I saw in the sky and at night the moon would shine bright against their white petals. I would run through the field, soaring through space, dancing amongst the stars. It was also in the Edelweiss atrium, that I first met Allouette.
It was the same day all recruits, excluding those bound for Hera, had been deployed. It was shortly after the L-47 incident. The ship still had repairs to be done and many members of the crew were hanging on to life by a thread in the medical bay.
“Why aren't you working on Hera?” Allouette had asked.
At first it didn't register that the question had been asked of me. “Corporal,” she continued, “I asked you a question.”
Again I did not pay much notice, not quite used to my new rank, but I did bother to look around. All I saw was a dark figure in the far side of the atrium. Realizing the question had been addressed to me, I straightened myself out and stood up in attention. “Sorry, ma'am, I didn't realize you were speaking to me.”
“At ease Corporal, you aren't under my command yet, at least I assume you are boarding the Hera.” Her voice reduced to a softer, but still assertive tone. That's when I heard the youthfulness in her voice. It seemed like the voice could sound like honey had it not currently been laced with vinegar.
I relaxed and sat back down, my gaze focusing on the stranger. She was shadowed by thick oak branches, but the silhouette revealed a small lean woman. Her athletic legs peeking from the shade were dressed in burgundy pants and polished black space boots.
“Yes, ma'am, I am to board the Hera.”
“So the puzzle continues, why are you not on her now, repairing her?” Her legs crossed and her foot bounced with impatience. “A cadet that goes straight to Corporal should be most useful, are you AWOL?”
“No, ma'am,” I said quickly. “It's just I've been wounded by a recent accident...”
“Why are you still serving then?” she cut me off.
“Because my life is the military's, I should make the most of it.” Those were her words, though I did not know it at the time. It was from the speech she gave, the one that raised me up and sent me forth to continue as a soldier.
“Is that so?” The question didn't really seem addressed to me and I felt it wise not to respond. “What is your name Corporal?”
“Thurman, ma'am. Jek Thurman.”
“Well, Corporal Thurman, whatever your injury is, make sure it does not endanger the crew. Do you understand?” She rose.
“Yes, ma'am. Of course, I would do everything in my power to...”
“That's enough Corporal, I expect that that sense of patriotism doesn't fade.” She gave a small sort of bow, barely noticeable in the shadow of the tree. I didn't expect it was out of any respect to me but merely a formality. She edged her way out from the atrium.
“Pardon me,” I said, rising to my feet. “But may I know which officer has been addressing me?”
“Lieutenant Pierce.” With that she left, giving me just a glimpse of her bushy brown hair and her long statuesque face.
For the rest of the day, I sat staring at the edelweiss flowers. Again I was a child running through my mountain valley home. The tall grass whipping against my legs and the night air crisp against my face. My arms flung out, strong and sturdy as I flew through the air.
Chapter 23
Translation
“Was I not correct in my translation?” said Edel.
“Huh, no. Why do you say that?”
“You, uh, chuckled, I suppose. Does that not mean I have done something humorous?” He scratched his head with one of his arms, just above his left eye, his antenna clicking.
“Oh, no. I did chuckle. It was just because that word brought up some memories, that's all.” I looked around. The street was pock marked with cannon blasts, bodies scattered, scraps of buildings sprinkled over their bloody carcasses. Those that could move, walked with a weight on their shoulders, pushing them down, slow and somber. I assumed the survivors were searching the bodies, but only out of mechanical necessity. Their bodies moved, but their minds, well, they’re somewhere lost in the dust.
“Good memories, I hope,” he said. Again, I did not know his dialect, the inflections could be completely different from standard Galactic, but the carnage around him did not seem to faze or register. That seemed somehow more disturbing than the scene around me.
“Edel, how did you know about that flower?” I tried to steer my mind away from the Bendalurian torso just two paces away from me.
“What do you mean?”
“You said, that you did not know about other races, yet you know of a flower.” The question began as a curiosity, but as my mouth worded it, I began to realize the insinuations behind it. The blood scattered along the street and the limbs of Bendalurians shattered before their homes were a disturbing reminder of what Edel’s true nature may be. Could I trust him?
“We have not had many resources. We intercept the transmissions of the furred ones and scavenge their bases, so we may learn more of their plot. We discover weapons with insignia. Much research took to decipher it, but when cross referencing with data pads, it appears to be the mark of what we learned to be the Union. That’s how we knew of your organization. The data pads only contained general governances and codes. Not specific details. Those of furred one’s insignia, speaks more of their interests.” So perhaps this is not a Union matter. Most citizens of the Union had a data pad they kept with them for everyday tasks like taking notes, viewing vids, com links. Included on all standard data pads are the Union's Constitution and by laws. The Union has an open book policy. Everyone was to know the rules, their rights should be known to them. But I would have expected a listing of Union nations to be a part of it.
“Did you not find a list of races in the documents you found?”
“Sure, but we did not know they were distinctly different races. We thought all were from the family of the furred ones. Just different colonies. We learn about some colonies, but very little. We found a science base about a half cycle ago. They were studying our land. They listed plant life native to here. That was where I learned of the Edelweiss. It grows abundantly in our mountains.”
His story seemed reasonable but my concerns could not be cooled so easily. But for now, I had no reason to doubt his motives, something told me he truly believed the Bendalurians were trying to take his homeland. Doubts aside, he might be the only way to find Allouette.
“My comrades,” I muttered. Not only Allouette, but what of Flik, Gin, and Teshe. I hadn't seen them since the battle broke out. For all I knew, their bodies littered the street of the village.
“There are more like you?” he asked.
“Yes, three others. A fourth was taken by your people.”
“Hm, perhaps they wished to speak with your people because we do not recognize your race.” Perhaps, but the reception Allouette got was nothing like the way Edel has been treating me. She was greeted with the end of a pistol. “Well, I will take you to my village and we can look for the taken there. We do not kill prisoners of war. It is against our code. They will be safe. For now shall we find your friends?”
“We? Perhaps I should find my comrades. I would not suggest roaming around this place after such a massacre.” The ghostly figures of the searching survivors wasted away in the dust, but should their attacker appear before them, I did not doubt they would attack without hesitation.
“You can't see well. Should a comrade...” He paused and turned away, his hand rapping against his pincers. “Should a comrade have fallen, it would be difficult to find in your condition.” He was unfortunately right. Figures only a yard or two away appeared a hazy silhouette against a gray fog. Should any be lying at the bottom of a pit, I would not know it.
“Fine, but what if someone attacks you?” He stood for a moment, his long fingers still rapping against his sleek set of pincers. Then he reached into the holster that hung loosely at his waist.
“Here take my gun, point it at my abdomen, we lack protection there. It should give an illusion of captivity.” In his hand was the gun I had handled earlier with the three button trigger and the etched scene along the barrel. My fingers stroked the gun, following the detailed carvings. I grasped the handle of the gun and pointed it near the Metrite wound.
“There, now we can search. Should anyone approach, say I am your prisoner. You are of the Union correct? They will listen to you.”
“No, they don't speak...” I stopped, the words caught in my throat. I forgot. The idea of Bendalurians being part of the Union was so natural to my mind I forgot the circumstances we were in. He had spoken honey to my ears and I believed him, but I forgot my own reasons for questioning. Was it not just a moment ago we argued as to the rightful owners of this planet. But he spoke so confidently about the Edelweiss and how should he know about them, if not for finding documents. But his kind could have been watching us for a long time and are just pretending to only know the Bendalurians. But then why focus on them. My mind whirred and spun out of control. Who should I believe?
“What do you say Jek?” asked Edel, pulling me back, planting my feet on the ground.
“That they do not speak Galactic.”
“They must or I could not talk to you now.” My head spun more.
“Yes, okay, let's just go.” I felt sick to my stomach, the ground moved beneath my feet and the hazy ghosts before me lured me into a dark world. They were like the ghosts of the L-47 incident. Their lights going out one by one, the med techs behind the frosty glass gliding from one hopeless case to another. Edel's kind brought those ghosts, he brought these, yet I follow his words and question my own.
Chapter 24
The Room
Looking out over the street, my heart sank. Whatever my resolution with Edel was, I'd have to find Flik and the others, but amid the aftermath of the battle I was at a loss of where to begin. I scanned the townscape and rested on the building of the Bunchankar. If there was any logical starting point it would be where I last saw them. The smoke still rose from the building from the Metrite blast that sent me out into the street. However, the fire seemed to have extinguished and many of the survivors gathered along the tattered porch.
We too, moved towards the building, stepping our way past the broken bodies and weaving around the Metrite holes. Edel was right, no one seemed to notice he was there. None even glanced to look. Those that we passed, had their faces buried in the wet fur of their brethren. Sobbing in heaving breaths, cursing those who took away their friend. My hand gripped the gun tighter, Edel just clicked his antenna.
As we approached, the building took form behind the smoky haze. My eyes were adjusting but the world still appeared a dull monochrome. The once three story building, lost it's upper tier to the fire. The second and first looked to have been pierced down the center. Only the middle third of both floors appeared to have suffered the hit. The walls on the second were gone, but the floor appeared intact.
“That's a very strange Metrite burn,” I couldn't help but mutter.
“Perhaps your answers lie there,” said Edel. I turned. His head cocked down and his antenna clicking. His soft mouth hid behind the hard shell, if the corners of his lips raised in a smirk or frowned in sadness, I could not tell.
I didn't respond, instead I pushed past the thickening crowd of Bendalurians. The Bunchankar must be here. He's their leader. Where he is, his people will rally. I needed some answers, I needed to find Allouette. At first the Bendalurians pushed back, not willing to give up their spot amongst the mass, but once one turned and saw Edel with me, they all spread apart making a path for my captive and me.
Stepping forward, curses arose like the rising heat of the building's cinders. I didn't understand what they said, my linguistics failing me, but sometimes a Galactic word fell on my ear. Perhaps they picked it up from us, I thought. Perhaps.
Reaching the end of the crowd, and stepping up onto the porch and through the hole where the door once sat, I discovered why everyone gathered. The Bunchankar, as far as I could tell was no where to be seen, so the only other reason all these people would have gathered would be for medical aid. Teshe, with Flik by his side, administered to the ailing Bendalurians.
“Flik,” I called. I directed Edel past the hole in the floor from the Metrite and towards the rather flimsy remains of the waiting room. He looked awkward stepping into the room. He was just short enough to not have to crouch inside the building, but his antenna did bend at a sharp angle, as his head just barely missed touching the ceiling.
“Jek, you okay.” He scanned the person he was working on to make sure everything was in place before springing towards me. “I so worried.” Flik's eyes were the first thing, other than cinders, that I've seen glow beneath the violet sun.
“I, too, am glad to find you are well,” I said. “And even assisting Teshe.” I looked over at Teshe. He was only a yard or two away, but he paid no mind to my presence.
“Who?” muttered Flik. His eyes glanced over my shoulder and up at Edel.