by Craig Gaydas
“Well,” Wraith brushed himself off before continuing. “Apparently one of them had been standing a little too close to the door.” He smiled and for a moment I thought Embeth was going punch him.
Embeth's scowl was priceless. He bit his lip so hard that blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. He clenched his fists and I could see that he was resisting the temptation to strike him.
“EMBETH!” Lianne shouted.
Calypso appeared, flanked by several Lumagom soldiers. Behind them were the bodies of the Defense Fleet soldiers. My eyes fell on Klax, who stared accusingly at me through lifeless eyes.
Embeth saw what I did and roared with such fury that my blood turned to ice. “NO!” He screamed and leapt at Calypso. His sudden fury caught the Lumagom soldiers off guard, leaving them no time to react. He crashed into Calypso, sending them both tumbling into the room. Lianne fired her neutralizer at the two closest guards, dropping them. Satou, too close to fire his neutralizer, grabbed the closest guard's head and twisted. The crack sounded like a gunshot and I felt sick to my stomach.
Wraith and Lianne neutralized the remaining humans while Embeth and Calypso wrestled on the floor. Embeth threw Calypso into a nearby desk and smashed an elbow into his face. I heard a shot and Embeth's shoulder exploded in a spray of blood. Natronix appeared with a rifle in his hand.
My instincts kicked in and I fired the neutralizer, striking him in the shoulder. He didn't fall, but instead pulled the needle out and ducked through a side door. Calypso squirmed from Embeth's grasp and charged Lianne, who stood between him and the doorway. He picked up a broken chair and heaved it toward Wraith, knocking him out of the room. Satou lunged, but Calypso was able to reach a nearby rifle and crack Satou in the face with it.
Somehow I ended up in the path of Calypso. With a cry of rage I raised the neutralizer and fired. Several darts struck him in the chest. Before I could celebrate my victory, he looked at them and laughed. He brushed them aside and the darts fell uselessly to the floor.
“What the hell?” I blurted.
“Energy armor,” he beamed.
I lowered the weapon. “So what now?”
Calypso edged toward the door. Before he walked through it, he fixed me with a look filled with sadness. “I wish it didn't have to be like this, Nathan. I know you don't believe me, but in time you will understand why.”
“So why don't you explain it to me.”
Calypso hesitated before going through the door. “I guess the short answer is I have no other choice.”
I clenched my fists. “I know your planet isn't really dying!”
He chuckled dryly. “No, I suppose it's not.”
“Where is the Universal Map?”
“Safe.”
“That's not good enough,” I replied. “I want it back. I can't let you travel back in time. We have too much at stake. One small change could screw up the entire time line.”
In a gesture that surprised me, he brayed laughter.
“What the hell is so funny?”
A tear formed at the corner of his eye and he wiped at it with the back of his hand. “Oh Nathan, you are so naive.”
“No more games,” I demanded. “Where is the map?”
“I promise it is safe,” he assured. “You can rest easy. I promise to leave the past alone.”
Frustration took over. I grew tired of the cat and mouse games and desired straight answers, not more riddles. Picking up a nearby rifle, I moved toward him but he stuck a finger out and wagged it, mocking me. “I have the feeling we will meet again, Cartographer.”
His taunts only served to enrage me further but he slipped through the door before I could pull the trigger. I ran to the door but stopped when Embeth started groaning behind me. Relief washed over me and I rushed to his side. Blood streamed from his left shoulder as he struggled to sit upright. “Are you alright?”
He nodded. “Check the others,” he croaked.
There really was no need. Lianne and Wraith appeared okay as they helped Satou to his feet.
“I heard what Calypso said.” Embeth propped himself against the wall and reached for his communicator. “Something isn't right about his story. We must stop him and get the map back.”
“What's wrong?” Lianne strolled over, fastening her sword to her belt.
Embeth ignored the question. “Gard, get the shuttle ready for launch, we are heading back.”
“Sir, I detect a ship departing the area. I believe it is the Cirrus.”
“Acknowledged.” Embeth grimaced and balled a rag against the wound in an effort to slow the blood flowing from his shoulder. Satou approached and he turned to him. “I have a feeling the time hole doesn't travel to the past as we originally suspected.”
Intrigued, Satou cocked his head. “What do you mean?”
Embeth ripped the shirt off a nearby soldier and tied it around his shoulder. “I think it comes from the future.”
“You can't be serious,” Satou gasped.
Embeth winced as he fumbled with the shirt. “I just hope I'm wrong.”
Solomon Corvus
“You have to stop toying with him, Calypso.”
His back faced Calypso and he tried to hide the frustration in his words. A burgundy hood covered most of his head, shielding his face. Calypso had a knack for reading a person's expression, feeding off their emotion and anticipating responses. Corvus guarded himself well around him.
“Toying? I call it positioning,” he replied.
Corvus sighed and turned. His lavender eyes reflected the overhead fluorescent lights, as he focused them on Calypso. “Positioning, you say?” he mocked.
Calypso shuffled uncomfortably under the stare. “I admit I have a soft spot for the boy.” He paused before adding, “He reminds me of my son.”
Corvus' eyes darkened. “More the reason to distance yourself and follow my instructions. Or have you forgotten what I told you?”
“No I haven't forgotten,” Calypso muttered. “I found it hard to believe at first, but it's not hard to forget.”
Corvus turned toward the window. A bright orb in the sky greeted him, backdropped by the dark wilderness of space. The Cirrus began its descent toward the moon. Time was short and they needed to move ahead with the next phase of their plan. He had no more time for Calypso's games.
“Your son is dead,” Corvus stated calmly. He glanced at the former Council of Five member. “It's up to us to avenge his demise, not mourn it. If we fail then the universe…” The words died on his lips. When he turned to Calypso he had fire in his eyes and his hands were clenched at his sides.
“Don't you think I know?” he growled.
His features softened and he turned back to the window. He remembered the day he found Calypso. It was during his second trip through the Richat Structure portal. Calypso rarely traveled to Earth during routine maintenance missions but Corvus spent years studying seized Explorer's League archives and timed it perfectly to coincide with one such visit. After Corvus “persuaded” a private pilot to secure a flight to the United States, he landed in New Mexico the night before the scheduled mission. At first it was difficult to convince Calypso that he was more than some random hiker in the park. He knew secrets of the Consortium, however. Impossible things that no ordinary human could possibly know. Although reluctant to join Corvus at first, it took just under an hour to explain what had been planned for the future—including the fate of his son. After the tale was told Calypso practically begged to join.
“Meta sent him to war. Despite everything I had done for the Explorer's League, they sent him off without telling me,” Calypso stated, as if reading Corvus' mind. He had an uncanny knack of doing it, which always made Corvus wary.
“They will send a lot of children to war, Calypso,” he explained. “Unless we stop them.”
“There will be no Explorer's League,” Calypso's voice faded as he reminisced about the future. “No Science League…no Medical Society…nothing. There was no point in serving the lie
anymore.”
Corvus decided to let him ramble. He learned this after their first meeting. Over time the random musings helped him learn a lot of the Consortium's tactics not contained within the archives. The compilations will assist him in devising a plan to defeat the Consortium.
“Eternal war.” Calypso continued staring blankly at the stars. “That's our future.” He folded his arms across his chest and looked down. “With the entire technological might of the Consortium focused on warfare instead of exploration and science, nothing could stop them, not even you humans.”
“Humans?” Corvus' eyes flared. “You know who I really am. We ceased being the sheep of the Consortium.”
Calypso closed his eyes and placed the palms of his hands on the window ledge. “I'm sorry, not even the Ascended could stop them.”
“Can we put the history lesson aside and get on with things?” A gruff voice asked behind them.
They turned to see Natronix standing in the doorway rubbing his eyes.
“About time you woke up,” Calypso mused.
“Neutralizer darts are not a joke,” he grumbled. “They are more potent than I remembered.” His face became serious when an alert rang out from the communication station. He moved to a nearby communication panel and brought up an image on the main screen.
“Well hello, Shai,” Corvus purred. “I was beginning to think you wouldn't show.”
Shai curled his lip. “A mercenary makes sure to finish the job he is paid for.”
Colonel Noz, the former warden of the prison planet Carcer-4, stepped into the picture. A bright red scar stretched from an eye patch down his cheek. “He will finish it thanks to me.”
Corvus knew that Calypso had made arrangements to release the leader of the Scarlet Moon. He knew of Noz and judging by the scar the prison break did not go as smoothly as planned. When he saw him, however, it caught him off guard.
“You're human,” Corvus said, mildly surprised.
The colonel's face soured. “Was,” he growled.
“I'm afraid I don't understand,” Corvus admitted.
“Colonel Noz had been found by the Erudites drifting near Neptune in a Russian space capsule,” Calypso chimed in. “They mistook him for a member of the Lumagom and transported him to the prison planet. Eventually the administrators of Carcer-4 learned he was human and offered their apologies and compensation for the inconvenience.”
“I chose to stay,” Noz said. “They made me one of the administrators and over time I eventually became the warden.”
“Noz is a strange name for a human,” Corvus said with a hint of suspicion.
The colonel chuckled dryly. “Well my real name is Ivan Nozchevsky but in order to prevent the constant butchering of my name I just shortened it.”
“Judging by your scenery, I assume you are at the rendezvous point?” Corvus smiled.
Rocky outcroppings split the stretched barren landscape that provided the backdrop to their conversation. Shai shrugged. “Yeah I guess you can say that,” he groaned. “Quite a dump you have here.”
Corvus ignored the barb. “Are your men in place?”
Shai looked annoyed. “Yeah, yeah. We got it covered over here.”
His insolent tone grated his nerves. He clenched his teeth and bit back the rage. “Good we will be landing soon.”
Corvus cut the connection and the screen went dark. Calypso shifted his feet restlessly and mumbled, “He is rough around the edges but will do what we need of him.”
He is a loose cannon that must be dealt with when the mission is complete. He kept the thought to himself. Calypso considered him an ally and Corvus needed to measure how deep his loyalties rested with the mercenary.
“Do we have a shuttle ready?” Corvus asked.
“Um, yeah.” The question surprised Calypso. “Can I ask why?”
“Because we are abandoning the Cirrus.”
Natronix stepped forward, his cheeks flushed red with anger. “This is my ship! What the hell do you mean, you're abandoning it?”
Corvus ignored the question. “I suggest you prepare yourselves and join me on the shuttle.”
It was Calypso's turn to flush. His face darkened and he placed a hand on Corvus' shoulder, stopping him at the door. “This ship can be a valuable asset in the upcoming battles against the Consortium.”
“An exploration vessel against the mighty defense fleet,” he scoffed. “What was I thinking, perhaps we should attack Caelum directly!”
Calypso backed down underneath his glare. “I just thought—,”
Corvus folded his arms impatiently. “That's your problem, Calypso. Perhaps I should do the thinking around here.” He headed to the door but turned before walking through. “Oh before I forget, make sure to leave the Universal Map on the ship.” He exited before Calypso could respond. The door slid shut and he chuckled. He caught the look of shock and confusion on both their faces and was pleased. He didn't want Calypso using any of his mind tricks to anticipate his moves. If he gained any type of advantage he will snatch it in an instant, tipping the scales in his favor. Corvus preferred setting up confusion among them. Confusion was good. It kept them in check.
Right where he wanted them.
The Curse From the Future
We were about to exit the building when a voice stopped us.
“Stop right there!”
The President of the United States stood between us, surrounded by a contingent of men in black suits. There was something strange about their eyes. Their irises were red and swollen, as if afflicted by a bad case of allergies. I noticed the same phenomena earlier, but assumed it had been the way the light hit them through the view screen, similar to a camera. Up front and in person, however, it seemed their ocular distress was something more sinister.
“Look at their eyes,” I whispered to Satou. “Do they seem off to you?”
He squinted and stroked his beard of tentacles. “They do,” he agreed.
The surprising appearance of these people caught us off-guard. After dispatching the security we incorrectly concluded there would be no further resistance. Our weapons were holstered. Lianne and Wraith were further hindered by the weight of Embeth as they helped him. We found ourselves outnumbered and outgunned.
“All of you are under arrest,” the lead Secret Service agent commanded. “Drop your weapons and place your hands behind your back.”
Lianne and Wraith gently let go of Embeth and he dropped to one knee. Defensively Lianne's hand dropped to her sword but hovered there, as if she was torn between self-defense and taking the lives of innocents. Her decision was halted when a Secret Service agent slapped handcuffs on her. Another agent tried to handcuff Satou but his thick wrists and odd shaped hands made it impossible.
“What the hell?” the agent muttered. He had to use a set of disposable plastic cuffs. Satou stared silently at the floor, dejected.
Another agent approached me, handcuffs in hand. “Hands behind your back, son.”
I looked over at Embeth. He shook his head slowly. I clenched my fists and turned around, disappointed. I felt the cold metal touch my wrists, but the agent never had a chance to close them. An explosion rocked the building. I fell into a desk, hitting my head awkwardly against the corner. Wraith used the ensuing chaos to his advantage. He snatched his neutralizer and took out the three closest agents. Before the remaining agent had a chance to react he looked down to see three darts protruding from his chest. That left only one person remaining—the President.
“No wait,” he held his hands to show us they were empty. “I surrender.”
I used the distraction to my advantage. I grabbed the handcuff key from the nearest agent and unlocked Lianne and Satou. Embeth struggled to his feet and moved toward the President. There was another explosion, but unlike the first this one was much further away.
“What the hell is going on?” the President asked, his eyes wide with fear.
Embeth retrieved his neutralizer and shot the Presid
ent. He fell unconscious at Satou's feet. “Grab him.” Embeth gestured to Satou. “They have been infected with something. We need to get him to the lab.”
Satou nodded and hoisted the President over his shoulder. “What about the rest?”
“We will have to come back for them,” Embeth replied.
“What the hell is going on out there?” I hurried to the exit and held the door open for Satou.
“Gard, what the hell is going on out there?” Embeth repeated into his communicator.
“Sir, the Defense Fleet is attacking. They have locked onto the Cirrus and are attempting to bring it down.”
“Their aim is terrible. They are going to destroy the city,” Lianne shouted. “And us in the process.”
“We have to get out of here.” Embeth agreed. On our way we were greeted by Kedge who had several unconscious security officers lying around him.
“Have some trouble?” Embeth grumbled. Still weak from his wound, he slipped and Wraith had to grab him to keep him steady.
“Nothing I couldn't handle,” Kedge countered.
“Do you know what the situation is out there?” Embeth asked.
“It looks like your friends ran out of patience,” Kedge said with a wry smile.
We hurried aboard the shuttle and strapped ourselves in. Satou shoved the President into a chair and buckled him in before jumping into the pilot's chair.
“Sir, it appears the Cirrus has escaped. The Defense Fleet is in pursuit. I suggest we leave. It appears the United States government has dispatched fighter jets to intercept.”
“Great, they probably think it's another 9/11.” I frowned. “I guarantee the entire military is on its way to New York City.”
“So much for discretion,” Lianne growled. “What the hell was Meta thinking?”
“Set course for the Argus, Gard.” Satou ordered before glancing at Embeth. “How are you holding up?”
Embeth grimaced. “I've been better.”
Wraith retrieved a kit from a nearby cabinet and removed a clear jar filled with a green viscous substance. He took a handful and spread it across the wound which started to smoke. It sizzled like bacon on a hot frying pan. Watching the wound billow smoke made me nauseous. Embeth closed his eyes, grit his teeth and let out a grunt before settling in the chair.