SHADOW STAR

by Patrick Rees

  I was deep in thought while we sped through my local solar system. I gave only little notice to the incredible speed we were traveling. My mind was on our destination now. I did remember to look around. Deep space is a beautiful thing. I know now why when man first went into space it was the Earth they photographed the most. Earth is a wonderful blue sphere from space and the solar system from deep space looks just like those old childhood displays I had hung in my room. An artist imagination does not do our solar system justice.

  Then we were in the void of deep space. I had been out here before but this time I felt a chill go down my back as if a cold wind went through me. This was real. Venessa led on for what seemed hours. I did not know the stars anymore. Several systems went by. She played tour guide telling me their names but I confess I can not remember any of them. I was waiting for her to slow down and tell me we were there. I resisted the childish urge to ask if we were ‘there yet’.

  As I was laughing to myself about long vacation car rides and my father being frustrated by his sons not so quietly wondering when he would stop for the night; Venessa did start to slow her constant march across the universe. I thought to myself, at last. She approached a large planet from its night time side.

  As I wondered if this was our final destination, she simple said ‘We are here’. There were lights on the night side just like photos taken of Earth at night. I could not if there were any large bodies of water. There were groups of lights and areas of darkness so to me anything could be solid or everything could be water. She sensed my confusion and told me there were large oceans here but much more land mass than earth had. Instead of the 3:1 ratio of water to land on earth this foreign planet was closer to 1:1. I would have to see the daylight side to get the picture for myself. Venessa said we were approaching the planet from the night side for security reasons.

  The war came back to mind front and center. I followed her into a lighted area and landed in a clearing. There were large structures but I would not be doing them justice by calling them buildings. They looked more natural than buildings on earth. This ancient culture had learned to live in harmony with its surroundings. All the entrances faced the same direction. There were other openings which would have been windows on earth. All the very large structures were orderly arranged, all facing a direction which would see a large ‘sunrise’ in a short time by my estimate. We very quickly and quietly entered the nearest ‘building’.

  Star People in their uniforms draws a lot of attention, even in this strange place which is familiar with the order. We changed into more customary clothing for the planet. Clothes were not fitted the same here. I felt and looked more like a Greek philosopher but in darker tones. The robe like toga (best description I can give) was two-tone brown. Venessa appeared in something similar but in lighter colors.

  These, to my best estimation, were their equivalent of business attire like suits on earth.

  Time was short and the high elder was waiting. He was alone in a large office looking space but could be used for meetings of considerable size. I noted to myself many empty but large chairs in the space I will call his office. My mind was whirling about all the possibilities.

  “Greetings Shadow Star!”, he said in a low but very steady voice. He was the last of the ancients but only looked to be the age of healthy great-grandfather.

  “Greetings Sir.”, I could not think of what else to call him.

  “We came as fast as we could. Our time here is short. Do you want me to leave?”, Venessa told him in a respectful voice.

  “You may stay. Some of what I have to say applies to you.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “The whole council of the elders will want to see you in the morning. I wanted to talk to you as soon as you arrived. No doubt you have heard about the prophecy concerning the last of the Star People. We knew as soon as your selection was made the Dark Side would try to find out if the prophecy had any merit. The Three Year War has begun. That part may be a bit of self-fulfilling; however, you need to hear the rest which will completely depend on how events in the near future unfold.

  “I am sorry your selection has triggered these events. You can not know how your choices could affect the outcome of the war. I am also regret very much you have to bear this burden. It was none of your choosing I know.

  “There was a balance of power in a strange sort of way before you were chosen. The boundary was closely watched but not really armed or defended in a manner you may understand. They are much like us. In fact they are led by an elder who left the council long ago with a group of his followers. He betrayed our long held beliefs and shattered a harmony we held for ages.

  “He was educated but could not have known all I know for I trained him. His name is Crass. He leads the Dark Side today. We must return order to the universe. As long as Crass lives that is not possible. I am sorry but your selection means his downfall in the prophecy. He would have liked you to stay on earth, far removed from the Home Sectors.

  “We hold dear the power of love here. I am aware of your relationship with Venessa. It is most important you be careful not to take risks which are not acceptable. We will try to capture Crass and return him for trial and most likely execution. He will never get caught if he can help it. I predict he will have to be killed in this war to end the war. Venessa and you should not travel together if you can help it. The other side also knows of your relationship and how she can assist you if necessary. If either one of you is eliminated the balance of power very much swings back in their favor.”

  “Sir, there is seventy-seven of us. Why do we matter so much?”, I asked.

  “All other Star People have ordinary citizens for spouses. Combined you two are a formidable power. You do not have your suit on now. You can do nothing without it and the weapons associated with it. Stare at the far wall as hard as you can.”

  I did as requested and nothing happened. I thought about the first time I did this with the suit on in the cave with the Keeper.

  “Now your two hold hands. Shadow Star, please stare gently at the far wall now.”

  I did and immediately scorched a large black circle into his office wall. I let go of Venessa’s hand in quiet shock. The high elder laughed to himself and nodded. Venessa looked at her hand in amazement. It was clear the ramifications of our relationship were news to her also.

  “Now I know why you wanted to talk to him person.”, she said.

  “After the meeting with the council you should immediately return to earth and wait for further instructions.”

  “I understand sir.”

  “Do you think you can make your way back by yourself.”, asked Venessa in mild concern.

  “If you draw up a sort of map of the systems you told me about on our way here, I should be able to find earth.”

  “Good.”, the high elder said, “You two should go get some rest. We will send for you when we are ready for the meeting. Keep what I have told you to yourself. Never show how you can use your powers without your suits to anyone. Tell no one, not even another elder.”

  “Yes sir.”, we both said together.

  We left quietly. Venessa led me down a long corridor to two adjoining rooms. She pointed to a door, “That one is for you. You will find everything you need inside. You should be hungry. We provided food which should be agreeable to you. Get comfortable and sleep if you can. I am and will be in the next room if you need me. Please let me sleep if it is not urgent. I am exhausted.”

  “Goodnight”, I said even though it looked to be almost dawn outside. I went into my room. They had laid out earth like clothes for me. There was an attached bathroom with a shower. A hot shower and a change of clothes would feel great. They had studied college students. There was pizza and hamburgers on a table next to a device which I guessed worked like a microwave. After a quick shower and a snack, I went to bed. No dreams again, thank goodne
ss.

  Chapter 15

  There was a knock on the door and I was deep asleep. For the briefest moment I forget where I was. On the second knock I asked for them to give me a minute. There was a short but very polite young lady at the door.

  “Can you be ready for the meeting in one hour, sir?”, she asked.

  “Yes, yes, of course. How should I dress?”

  “The formal clothes you wore last night will do fine.”

  The clothes I had worn were cleaned and perfectly folded on a table. They had entered the room to get them and returned them folded while I was asleep. I had heard nothing.

  I was showered and dressed in half an hour. I left the room to knock on Venessa’s door. She was dressed also.

  “They left me some breakfast rolls. Do you want to share them with me?”

  “Certainly”

  “What a shock about last night. You did not know about what he told us either, right?”

  “Not a thing. I did not even suspect that was the important information he had to tell you. I thought he was going to give you some assignment.”

  “In a way he did. He told me to go home.”

  “True. It is the best thing really. This is not really your war. You just got stuck with it.”

  “Is the Keeper from this planet? I would like to see him again.”

  “Yes, he may have been invited to the meeting. We should be ready to go. They will come to get us any minute now.”

  True to form, shortly after we put the remains of the breakfast away, there was another knock at the door. The same young was there.

  “Please follow me.”, she said and led us down a different corridor than the night before. She brought us into a large meeting hall. It was round and had a sort of stage in the center. There was a balcony which went most the way around the ground floor of the meeting hall. A large screen was the only thing which kept that level from being a perfect circle also.

  Every chair on the first floor was occupied. They were older gentlemen with a few women in the mix. I did not have to be told this was the council of the elders. No one was on the balcony level. I was guessing this was a secret meeting.

  “Greetings.”, the high elder said from the center of the room. He sat alone on the small stage in the middle. He could turn in any direction to see anyone else in the room.

  The lady who was our escort, motioned for Venessa to seat near the door. She took me to the stage to a small chair a respectful distance from the high elder. She then left the room and closed the door behind her. The high elder waited until she was gone before he spoke again.

  “Shadow Star, we are glad and honored you are able to join us today. We need to talk to you and welcome you to the Star People. The Star People will have their chance to officially welcome you later.”

  “I understand.”, I said as loud as I dared to ensure they all heard me.” It was not necessary. The room was beautifully constructed. Anyone could be heard from any part of the room at a normal level. I cringed when my words echoed back to me. They knew I did not know and ignored it.

  “Please relax Shadow Star, this is not an inquest.” came from somewhere to my left.

  “You were chosen from your planet for a particular reason. You specifically were chosen because of your character.” , came from my right. It was the Keeper. I was very glad to see and smiled at him when I recognized him. He smiled back and sat down.

  The high elder began again, “We need to tell you what it means to be the final member of the Star People. You know about the war but you do not know you will be instrumental in its outcome. We will be sending you back home after the meeting but will call for you to return here later.”

  He continued, “Yes, the completion of the Star People started the war. The reason why is once the Star People were complete they would purge the universe of the evil within the Dark Side. This causes fear in them and they will resist to the utmost. We lived in harmony for ages. When Crass left us he disturbed the harmony and actual gave birth to the creation of the Dark Side. An ancient evil was awoken. The Dark Warriors are his answer to the Star People. He created them to be of equal number to the Star People. Our estimation is he is trying to achieve a balance so he can continue his reign of the Dark Side. He knows as we do once you were chosen his end was in sight.”

  “What did you think of your experiences with the Dark Warriors?”, again from another area of the room.

  “I never really saw them up close. They have dark eyes so it is hard to make out their faces. They are tough. I don’t think they are as well trained as us. I have Death Star to thank for me being here today. I was able to handle three of them. The fourth one would have killed me if Death Star had not taken him out when he did.”

  “We are indeed grateful to him.”, said the high elder.

  I thought about what he had told Venessa and me the night before. Death Star had done more than he could be told now.

  “We will be giving the Star People their orders soon. They will be instructed to end this war as soon as they can. They will have to capture or kill Crass to do that. Right now the war seems to amount to cross border raids. It will escalate rapidly when we invade the Dark Side to capture Crass.” A gentle old man up front finished explaining.

  “How can I help?”

  “You will be part of our reserves. If things don’t do as planned, we may have to send you across the border. More likely if we need you, you will be asked to help protect the home sectors.”

  “May I be told when you will invade?”

  “Soon”, said the high elder. “Do you have any other questions for us?”

  “Just one, does your prophecy say if I get killed in this war?”

  “No.” the high elder said gently.

  “I can not tell you how honored I am to be chosen and asked to visit you all like this.”

  There came a quite murmuring of approval. “We are honored to have you here Shadow Star. Thank you for coming. We know how strange all of this must be for you. Please know we all respect you for coming here without question.”

  I wanted to answer that statement but decided against it. The high elder waited a minute to see if I or anyone else had anything to say.

  “Venessa can you join us up here, please?”, he asked.

  “Or course”, she said and walked up and brought her small chair with her and sat down next to me.

  “In front of Shadow Star, I want to thank you for taking care of him after his encounter with the Dark Warriors.”

  She smiled but said nothing in response. The Keeper walked up to the stage and said to me, “Thank you Shadow Star. I would not be here if you had not fought so heroically. I am in your debt.”

  “Not at all sir; I could do nothing else but protect you and the ship. I am glad all got home safely.”

  I felt like giving him a big hug but knew it was not the time and place.

  “Well I think we are done”, said the high elder. “Venessa, will you guide Shadow Star out and give him what he needs to get home? Shadow Star, thank you again, we will be in touch with you soon enough. Please go about our normal life until then.”

  Venessa and I left quietly. It was apparent the council was not finished meeting yet. I left thinking they were sending the Star People over the border soon after I was sent home.

  “Remember the charm I gave you. You can call out to me with it any time. Something else, if I call out to you the charm will glow brightly. You will not be able to hear me but I will only do that if it is important.”

  “I will come running.”

  She laughed. “Here is the map you asked me to draw up. The names are in English so you can understand. You know I will miss you. Be safe. You also know I love you.”

  “Of course I do and you know how much I love you.”

  We hugged each other for what seemed a long time and then we went outside. I smiled and left carrying a b
ackpack like bag with my suit and other belongings. I looked down at her only once. I don’t know but I think she was crying. I could not stand it and left faster and did not look back again.

  It took the same several hours to get back to earth. It was late Saturday night when I got back. I went straight to bed thinking I still had to study for finals. Once again I had no dreams. But I did go to sleep thinking about the amazing place I had just seen. I had visited an alien planet and could tell no one, oh well.

  Chapter 16

  Had I really been in space all day and visited an alien planet? I slept in thinking about the last few days. I should go study for finals and finish up on work due for the semester. It was tough to focus with all the things going on. I called Sam to see if he was around.

  “Hello, Sam. How was your Thanksgiving?”

  “Ok, I stayed here since my family is so far away.”