by Luna Hunter
I hear Turnon’s low voice before I see him.
“Please, tell me, Maker. Where do I really come from? I thought the world you showed me was no more, yet Ava, my human mate, has arrived in a giant box with other sleeping humans, and she didn’t seem surprised to see me… am I not the last of my kind?”
I feel two things at once. Happy that he calls me ‘his human mate’, and guilty for listening in on him like this. My arrival has sent the silent warrior into an existential crisis, and now I’m listening in on him praying to his gods for guidance.
The guilt feels like a heavy brick in the pit of my stomach. I contemplate heading back down, but my curiosity gets the best of me. I’ve already broken his trust, so I might as well take a peek, right?
To my surprise, there is a giant crater on top of this hill, like an asteroid hit it. The ground is covered with grass and flowers, like a pocket version of paradise. Turnon’s voice is rising up from the depth. I kneel down and take a peek.
What I see makes my breath falter.
Turnon is kneeling in front what is unmistakably a Zoran cruiser, a spaceship. The colors, the aerodynamic design, the symbol on its side — there is no mistaking it.
That is a freaking spaceship!
I feel relieved and angry at the same time. Why didn’t he tell me?! Or did he not know? If it’s still functional, we could get off this rock! Or at the very least, send out a distress call!
I’m no historian, but judging by the ship’s design it has to be a pre-war model — before the Tyk’ix War left the Zoran homeworld of Exon Prime frozen and barren. However, that was decades ago…
The ship seems to talk to Turnon, but I can’t hear whatever it is saying. Its voice isn’t as low as the Zoran’s, so it doesn’t carry as far.
“I see,” he growls.
I can hear the anger and resentment in his voice. Whatever the ship has told him, he doesn’t seem happy with it. He stands up resolutely and strides off, each step taken with purpose.
He’s heading back down the hill. I have to make a split-second decision, and I go with my gut. I hide in the grass and wait for Turnon to walk on by before climbing my way down the crater.
I simply can’t pass up this opportunity. I understand that the ship is holy to Turnon, but I can’t let that stop me. This might be my only shot of reaching out to the Federation. To my parents. To Sarah.
My alien mate might not understand — it’s a gamble I have to take.
From up close I can see that the ship is in worse condition than I thought. There’s no way she’ll be able to fly. However, her lights are still flashing and her engine is humming, so that’s good news.
When I approach, the ship whirs to life and points its two oversized cannons directly at me.
“Intruder detected,” a mechanical voice says. “Commencing destruction in 5…4…”
“Whoa, no commencing! No destruction! Wait!” I stammer. “I am Ava! Ava Payne! Human survivor! Friend of Turnon! Stop!”
The ship seems to hesitate.
“Voice analysis complete. Humanoid identified. Ally of Zoran Empire. Powering down weapons.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. Damn thing nearly turned me to dust! I feel the side of the ship for a button to open it up. Vines are growing up the side of the vessel, covering most of the ship in leaves, but after a few minutes I find a button. A metal door slowly rises open.
Inside it’s like a time capsule. It’s filled with Zoran artifacts and items, all decades old. A small crib stands in the corner, a mobile of brightly-colored planets hanging right above it.
Time to get to the bottom of this.
I plop myself down in the pilot’s chair and access the ship’s internal database. Unfortunately, the information is all scrambled. After some quick sleuthing, I realize that the ship has been infected with a Tyk’ix virus — the same one that caused havoc on Earth and set us back decades technology wise. Luckily, we have since then cracked the virus’s code, and it only takes me a few minutes to remove the illegitimate software from the ship’s database.
With the virus gone, I can see that the hard drive is stuffed full with video-logs, dating right back to the Tyk’ix War itself.
It dawns on me that Turnon may have never even seen these before…
“Ship, play first log,” I say with my voice shaking.
The ship’s engine whirs to life, and moments later the holographic image of a Zoran male and human female fills the entire room.
The male is as purple as Turnon is. He’s the spitting image of him: same height, same bulging muscles, same honey-colored eyes. The only difference is that this man has a giant scar running down the side of his face, and he’s slightly older than Turnon, in a distinguished way.
The Zoran is wearing a colorful robe, bearing the symbols of the Zoran Empire. The human woman is a brunette, dressed in a slim-fitting dress that makes her look regal and beautiful.
My heart skips a beat when I realize I’m looking at Turnon’s parents. I recognize them from my history classes. The man is Koryn, High Vizier and confident of King Vinz, and the woman, his wife, is no one other than Kelly Graham. She was among the first humans to meet the Zorans, before the exodus, the war, before it all started.
They’re alien royalty.
“Karri,” Koryn says, frowning into the camera. His voice is just like Turnon’s. Commanding, authoritative, but also smooth and pleasant. “I am your father, Koryn. This is your mother, Kelly. By the time you see this, you will be on the other side of the galaxy. We have sent you to Earth, where we hope you will be safe. The Tyk’ix are advancing towards Exon as we speak. We’d like to travel with you, trust me, your mother and I would like nothing more, but our duty is here. We have to defend our homeworld to the last man and woman.”
Kelly bursts into tears and Koryn wraps one arm around her.
“Be strong,” he says, “for our baby boy.”
“I can’t,” she sobs through tears. “I don’t want to send him away.”
“He’s safer this way,” Koryn insists. “Trust me.”
She nods, but I can see in her eyes that this is the most difficult decision of her life.
Tears are streaming down my face as I watch Turnon’s parents — or Karri, as they have named him — say goodbye to their son. They lift him from his crib and give him one final kiss. He’s the cutest baby I’ve ever seen, and my heart just falls apart as the image fades into nothingness.
I’m left all alone in this ancient, silent shuttle as I cry for Turnon, and his parents. It’s not fair. They had a perfect family, and somehow Turnon ended up here, growing up all alone, never knowing where he came from.
He has to know.
I scroll through the rest of the database, piecing the information together. It seems that not long after lift-off, the shuttle was hit by a Tyk’ix bug — a small metal fragment the size of a pebble, but containing an extremely dangerous computer virus. It corrupted the ship’s internal system and sent it off-course. It completely missed Earth, and crash-landed right here.
I discover the ship has video-logged everything, but I can’t bear to watch any of the footage. I already feel I’ve violated Turnon’s privacy more than enough.
I nearly storm out of the ship to call my alien mate when I realize why I came here in the first place — to call for help. I’m glad to find the ship’s com system is still working. The signal is very weak, but it’s there.
With a few button presses I send out a distress call.
Now, to find Turnon and turn his world upside down…
16
TURNON
DAMN THE MAKER.
She talks nothing but gibberish. Strange symbols, cryptic images. Gone are the days in which she made sense. I was a fool to think she could help me now.
It’s been many dark nights since I found comfort in her embrace.
I just hoped that things might be different now. With Ava arriving, the grey box, her talk of slaving aliens… I needed somet
hing to hold on to. Something that could give me guidance, to tell me what to do.
Ava looks up to me, and I don’t want to disappoint her. I don’t want her to know that I’m as clueless as she is — if not more. I never expected her arrival. The Maker has shown me images, long ago, of a world filled with Zorans and humans… but I thought those were of days long gone.
In my heart, I thought I was alone in the universe.
Coming to grips with this new reality is difficult. I love Ava — I love her scent, her taste, the feel of her body wrapped around mine, the magical, wonderful things she can do to my body… but I find it hard to open up to her.
There are so many things I want to ask her. To tell her. To show her. But there’s something that’s holding me back, some fear I have never experienced before.
I’m afraid she’ll be disappointed when she sees I’m not infallible. I’m addicted to the admiration in her eyes when I do something as simple as hunt an animal or prepare dinner. I don’t want to break that spell.
Deep down I know I’ll have to, sooner or later.
The twin suns are setting, painting the sky different hues of orange and pink. Dark peaks in the distance stand up like jagged teeth, stopping the immense, sprawling forest. My eyes travel down towards the small, still lake, where Ava ought to be waiting for me.
I don’t see a sign of her.
Strange.
I pick up my pace as I descend, my mind working in overdrive. Did she wonder off? Did a Taku grab her? They never venture so close to the hill, but they could have followed our scent, waited for me to leave…
My heart is racing as I rush down. I’ve been a fool! Leaving my mate alone, unguarded! The wonderful feeling she gives have lulled me into a false sense of security.
I stop dead in my tracks when I pick up her scent — right here, on the hill. She came this way recently, for her smell is still fresh. Did she ignore my command and follow me?
I whirl around and follow her tracks, confused and angry. Before I reach the top, I hear her voice calling out my name.
“Turnon! Turnon!”
There’s an urgency in her voice I haven’t heard before. I rush up, twigs breaking under my feet, grabbing my knife from its pouch. Did she disturb the Maker?! I’ve seen her mouths turn Taku to dust and obliterate a pack of Panit in the blink of an eye.
I told her to stay away!
If she angered the Maker there is nothing I can do. She will be dead long before I even get close.
Yet I have to try.
I use every bit of strength I have as I dash up the hill, twigs whipping against me, kicking up dirt with every forceful step. When I reach the top of the hill I see Ava trying to climb her way out of the crater. I jump in with both feet and rush towards her.
“What’s wrong?!” I growl as my eyes dart around — but there’s nothing there. No predators. The Maker’s mouth is not spitting fire either.
She falls into my arms, laughing.
“Nothing’s wrong,” she laughs. “The opposite, in fact! I have such good news!”
I frown, my knife held up high.
“What do you mean?!” I growl, adrenaline still coursing through my veins. “Why did you cry out for me? Why are you here, in fact? I told you to wait! You could have died!”
Ava has a big smile plastered on her face. It now dawns on me that her cry wasn’t one of fear or desperation — it was one of joy.
“You’re right, and I’m sorry, but you’re going to be glad I didn’t listen, trust me!”
She’s talking so fast I can barely follow her.
“Slow down.” I slip my knife back into the pouch “You nearly gave me a heart attack.”
“Then you better sit down before I blow your mind,” Ava laughs. “Go on, sit.”
I don’t like the feeling of being completely in the dark. I follow her instructions and rest my back against the slope of the crater.
“Go on,” I growl. “What are you talking about?”
“That thing,” she says as she points towards the Maker. “That is the Maker, right?”
“Correct,” I growl, already feeling offended she referred to my life-giver as a thing.
“It’s more than that. It’s a spaceship!”
“What do you mean?”
“You remember the shuttle I arrived in?”
“The grey box.”
“Yes! It was part of a ship. The Maker is a spaceship as well — a Zoran one. You crash-landed here onboard of her, when you were still a baby!”
My frown deepens. I place my hand on her forehead to check her temperature — sounds like Iilaki fever talking.
“Did you eat the yellow flower?” I ask.
She slaps my hand away, still grinning.
“I know I sound crazy to you, but it’s true, trust me!”
“Impossible!” I growl. “The Maker is nothing like that grey box! The box was empty, barren, grey, cold! The Maker is nothing like that!”
“That’s because it’s a Zoran ship, instead of a Nezdek one,” Ava says. “And overtime the Zoran ship has become overgrown with vines and plants, but trust me, there’s a spaceship underneath all of that.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I entered her,” she says with a bright smile.
“You WHAT?!”
My heart-rate is jacked up instantly. The holiest place imaginable — and she strides in without a care in the world. The Maker has closed herself off to me years ago, and I interpreted it as a sign I had to mature. Become a man. I set out and carved out an existence, relying on nothing else but my own two fists and the tools I could create with them.
And this human just strides right in?!
“How could you?!” I say, losing my temper. “I told you to stay!”
“Calm down,” Ava says, “I’m not done!”
“Oh, you are done!” I say, rising to my feet. “We are done.”
That wide smile finally disappears from her face, and the sad look in her hazelnut brown eyes makes my heart break.
“W-what?”
“You ignored my very explicit commands. You went behind my back, and now you’re telling me you know the Maker better than I do? “
As the words leave my mouth I already know my arguments are weak. I’m seething with rage… because I feel weak. Powerless. The human knows more than I do, even when it comes to the Maker.
I’m useless.
17
AVA
THIS IS NOT GOING as planned.
Turnon’s words still resonate in my ears, like a bomb has just gone off.
“We are done.”
He said the words with barely controlled anger. I knew it would be a shock to him, but I’ve barely scratched the surface of the revelations and he’s already stormed off towards the ship.
I stand there, dazed and hurt for a few seconds before I’m jolted back into action.
“Wait!” I yell as I try to catch up with him — but he walks way too quickly for that. “You don’t understand!”
“I understand perfectly,” he growls. “You think I’m weak!”
Is that what this is all about? Did I hurt his ego?
“Not at all!” I say. “You’re the strongest man I know! You kill beasts with your bare hands! You’ve saved my life — twice already! Any human would starve or be eaten here, yet you survive like it’s a second nature!”
He stops in his tracks and turns around. I run up to him and place my hands on his naked, broad chest. The hurt look in his eyes is killing me.
“If I was so strong, I would know my past. I would know the Maker. I do not. Yet you show up, and you know her inside out? How am I not weak?”
His eyes dart to the ground.
“I have failed as a warrior.”
I cradle his cheeks in my hands, stand on the very tips of my toes and give him a quick kiss.
“It’s not your fault,” I say. “None of this is your fault, Turnon. Please let me explain.”
&nbs
p; “What is there to explain?”
“More than I can say in a few words. Perhaps it’s best if you see for yourself.”
I grab his hand and pull him towards the ship. He reluctantly follows. I find the entry button underneath the vines, and he roars with anger.
“It’s that simple?!”
“I’m afraid so — but again, please just let me explain. Come. Sit down.”
After all the convincing in the world I finally get the angry Zoran to sit down. His eyes are wide as they dart across the room — he said he hasn’t been inside here for ages.
Once again I feel incredibly guilty for invading what is obviously a very private place for him, but I hope he forgives me after he sees the message.
It’s either that or he’ll be so angry he won’t want to talk to me again.
“Are you ready?”
“For what?” Turnon growls.
I take a deep breath and hit play.
The holographic images of my mate’s parents fill the room. His orange eyes grow wide, and he grips the side of his chair tightly.
“Karri,” the dominant male voice says. “I am your father. This is your mother, Kelly…”
He watches the message play out breathlessly. I stare down at the floor, feeling like I’m intruding on this very personal moment, but at the same time, I want to let Turnon know I’m there for him.
When the message cuts out and the room is dark once gain I reach out and grab his hand, squeezing it.
“I know this is a lot to take in, but I think you should hear it. Please allow me to explain. What you just saw was a message from your parents. There was a war on your homeworld, and they sent you in this ship to safety… only there was a problem. Your ship was targeted by the enemy, and it drifted off course, corrupting the video-files within. That’s why it crashed here.”
Turnon’s eyes are filled with shock as he listens to my every word.
“It’s a miracle you survived, and prospered for as long as you have. I’m sorry for intruding here, I really am. I can’t imagine how tough this is for you. I want to stress that it’s not your fault you don’t understand the ship and how it works — the Tyk’ix stripped your parents away from you. It’s their fault, and theirs alone.”