»What’s out there? Is this luminous gas? In open space?« she asked perplexed.
»If I evaluate the visual information, it appears like it,« confirmed Gamze Acun. »I can’t explain this blue light. Without knowing what it consists off, I can only speculate. Also, this gas is not evenly distributed across the area ahead. It looks as if it swirls in long swaths through this undefined space.«
»Undefined space?« Rouven asked while exchanging some quick glances with Gamze Acun.
»Undefined because we can’t make precise measurements,« she replied. »Our scanners don’t detect anything. To them, this space doesn’t exist. One thing is sure, we’re definitely no longer in standard space.«
»Am I the only one who’s making this nervous?« Dorothea asked sarcastically. »How do we get out of it again?«
»Maybe we went into the event horizon of a microscopic black hole, then this would be gas plasma,« Gamze tried an explanation, but was interrupted by Fosset.
He uneasily pulled up his shoulders. Although it had been getting warmer in the command central, he began to shiver.
»No wild theories, please! Is the Solar Pride still maneuverable?«
»Without a reference point or the Solar Positioning System, I can’t determine it with certainty. I can’t even determine our current speed,« Rouven admitted grudgingly.
»There’s is no standstill in the Universe!« Gamze Acun challenged him. »Either we drift with our immersion speed through this space or these gas particles or clouds drift past us.«
She marked two distinctly visible clouds on the holo and observed their movements.
»We know the length of our ship and can assess how long it takes for the clouds to pass us.«
»30 kilometers per second,« Rouven calculated. »This is about the same as our former speed.«
»There we go!« Fosset applauded. »We’re still flying. The only question is, where to?«
»This bluish space seems endless,« Gamze murmured nervously. »I can’t make out a beginning or an end. I can’t see any stars or planets, not even comet cores as they should frequently occur in this sector. The rear area looks the same as the one ahead of us.
We’re trapped. She doesn’t say it, but her thoughts are evident. I trust Arkroid’s message. He certainly didn’t send us here to be caught until the end of our days, thought Fosset.
The defector
»My protective field deactivated already seven minutes ago,« Chambers remarked, looking at his chronometer. »The temperature is rising again. We’re currently a tat above zero degrees Celsius.«
»Such temperature variations are completely normal on Zerbit,« said Kokrint. His skin showed strong yellow ocher with gentle gradients in the green spectrum.
»Is Zerbit larger than Earth?« Chambers asked while he paced the hallway, cautiously opening various maintenance access hatches. Quietly, almost in a whisper, he said, »Sparks, come out, we’ll find you anyway in the end …«
»Larger than Earth, but there’s little water in comparison,« confirmed Kokrint, skeptically eyeing the holes in his outfit. »Shmork Quality!«
Chambers smiled and pointed to Kokrint’s perforated work suit.
»See it this way, without your spines, a Frigonan would now probably sit inside your brain. Good that your people have developed such an effective defense mechanism. The evolutionary processes seem to have been really creative on Zerbit.«
Kokrint was trembling all over. Just the thought of being attacked by a Frigonan was apparently more than unpleasant for him.
»You could visit me on my home-world,« Kokrint suggested quickly. »Zerbites are very welcoming. Together, we could take part in a wanzar safari in the icy wastes of Zerbite’s night side or gather black desert snail shells on the hot dayside, hoping to find a few black pearls in the dried meat.«
»That sounds very tempting, if it weren’t for these bitewarps,« joked Chambers, opened the door to another room and squinted. The room was dim, only a few active holo-terminals were throwing a pale light. In one corner, directly between two humming machine blocks, Chambers saw the missing technician. The man crouched on the floor, looking at Chambers with dull and fluttering eyes.
Chambers drew a deep breath, pulled his filleting knife and whispered to the man, »There you are Sparks!«
Sparks raised both arms slowly and defensively stretched them toward Chambers. Behind Chambers, strange noises could be heard. It sounded as if someone was tearing apart fabric material. In expectation of a new threat, Kokrint, consciously or unconsciously, formed new spines. Chambers didn’t look back. He was only rolling his eyes slightly. His attention was directed at Sparks, but this man seemed anything but dangerous. The technician looked beaten. There were smeared blood stains on the ground, and the man’s suit was torn in several places. There was no doubt, Sparks had also been attacked by a Frigonan.
»Sit quietly, then nobody gets hurt,« warned Chambers.
Sparks nodded quickly and looked around nervously. He was perspiring profusely. His tangled hair was wet. Light blue colored thick beads of sweat streamed down his face and neck.
»Why is it so hot here?« Sparks said with a trembling and hoarse voice. Nervously, he drove his bloodied hand through his hair. »I can’t stand it!«
»We have five degrees above zero,« Chambers said quietly while raising his knife threateningly. »I wouldn’t call it hot, but it’ll get much hotter when we wait a few more minutes!«
»I urgently need cooling!« pleaded Sparks and vomited violently. »This temperature is poison …«
»Chambers drew a disgusted face.
»Who am I talking to? Is this Sparks or the parasite inside him?«
»I’m controlling this body. My host is still alive,« the hoarse voice replied hastily. Sparks was panting with his blue tarnished tongue as if this would provide additional cooling. The sight was surreal.
»We will verify that Frigonan!« Chambers said harshly.
Because of the loud spoken words, Kokrint felt compelled to raise his sharp spines even farther.
»If Sparks suffered lasting harm by your acquisition, then I’ll personally take care of you and throw you into space … alive!« threatened Chambers even louder. »How many of you are still on the ship?«
»We just wanted to stay alive and not float through space forever inside the dead body,« the Frigonan tried to explain. »Our battleship was destroyed, and the powerful Demon from the Continuum killed all of us. Only those who were able to cling to the dead body escaped.«
Chambers took two quick steps toward Sparks, grabbed him by the chest and jerked him upward.
»How many, I asked?« he hissed into Spark’s face.
»We are six, including the Primary,« the Frigonan explained hastily. »Only six.«
»What demon are you talking about?« asked Kokrint and rustled demonstratively with his spines. »What’s that for a demon and what has really happened there?«
»I will only speak with your commander, and only then if you give me cooling!« The Frigonan replied fast and demanding.
As Chambers raised his filleting knife again, which was still wet with the fluorescent blood of the recently killed Frigonan, the being’s resistance faded.
»I have a subordinate status, and no female has ever been given to me as a present. If you let me live, then I’m willing to cooperate. Please, give me cooling.«
Chambers nodded satisfied.
»One more attack and our willingness to help will end at once!«
»I have information for you,« the Frigonan pleaded. »Important information!«
Spark’s grimace turned into a grin. Apparently, the Frigonan controlled the man, trying to underline his statement by changing the facial expressions of his host body. »You need me. Do not forget it! My information for some cooling. Is this too much to ask for?«
Chambers looked at Sparks.
»You mean information about that demon?«
Sparks laughed. Blue slime splashed out of
his mouth. After a short time, the Frigonan calmed down and replied croaking, »You don’t even begin to understand what you’re dealing with.«
The Arm of the Demon
»There’s a certain flow in the chaos out there,« Welf Rouven noted stunned. »My scanners still don’t work, but it seems that, inside this gas bubble, there’s somewhere a sort of gravitational center.«
Gamze Acun blinked startled and turned to Rouven’s holo-terminal. After a brief vector and flow study, she admitted, »The gas or plasma is actually subject to drift. I agree with Welf. There must be an attractor out there.«
»You mean that something is attracting the gas molecules?« Fosset wondered and reverently leaned back in his seat.
»If it is gas, yes,« Gamze reiterated. »Unfortunately, I have no data about this blue medium, I can’t make a sound statement about the attractor or its size. But something is out there.«
»Welf, fly the ship into this current! We follow this gravity vector and look what it is, Fosset commanded.
»That’s quite dangerous,« Welf Rouven interjected. »I want to remind you of Gamze’s theory about the little black hole. If we fly into such an object, then there’s no salvation!«
»We’re supposed to find this object; I have no doubt about it. I’m sure it will be an incredible discovery!« Fosset exclaimed enthusiastically.
»Says who?« Gamze asked tetchily.
She’s gravely concerned about the ship, Fosset thought appreciatively.
»Probably Toiber Arkroid,« Rouven said with slight sarcasm in his voice, but Fosset just shook his head.
»This time, you’re wrong. Arkroid didn’t go that far. It’s rather my interpretation.«
»Well then, everybody in the lifeboats!« Dorothea DaDiva exclaimed loudly.
»You should have more confidence in the ship officers,« Fosset grumbled disappointedly.
»Women and children first!« Dorothea replied instead without further comment and earned a critical look from Fosset.
»At least, the ship responds to my steering impulses,« Rouven noticed satisfied. »So, I’ll fly into this current. Somewhere ahead, we’ll find the answers to our questions.«
Fosset looked at the outside holo-image for a minute. Now and then he thought to see some sort of a structure in the blue, boiling streams of gasses, but his eyes were playing him a trick.
Arkroid selected me to make this discovery. He didn’t tell the Union Government or the Fleet. He had chosen me! What does he have in mind? Is it just about the discovery of this undefined space, or does he think on a larger scale?
A rumbling noise startled Fosset and interrupted his train of thoughts. The central airlock doors were violently moved aside. In the open doors was Kokrint whose body was covered with dense spines. Chambers, who kept the apparently weak Sparks at bay with his knives, nodded at Fosset seriously.
»What in the world ...,« Fosset said in shock but swallowed the rest of the sentence. His gaze wandered between Kokrint and Sparks back and forth.
»We’ve made a prisoner,« Chambers said huskily. »The Frigonan inside of Sparks has something to tell us.«
Gamze jumped out of her seat as if bitten by a tarantula and clutched her weapon which was dangling from her belt. »Why are you taking such a risk and bring that creature into the command central?«
»I got him under control. I made a deal with him,« Chambers said coolly. »We should not forget that Spark’s live is at stake here. The Frigonan has promised me to withdraw from Sparks when I stick to the deal. Sparks will survive it, provided, we remain level-headed.«
»You made a deal with the parasite?« Fosset asked.
»That’s right,« Chambers replied emphatically. »An ice-cold protection zone for the Frigonan, which allows him to survive, for an open dialogue in return. That’s what he wants.«
Before Fosset could answer, Chambers added, »When Sparks and the Frigonan don’t get into a refrigerator very soon then the parasite and the host will die. The Frigonan knows that the fridge or cooler would also be his prison cell.«
Fosset rubbed his chin and seemed to be thinking.
»What does he have to tell us,« Dorothea asked worriedly. »Can I perform a medical exam on Sparks to make sure that he’s okay under these circumstances?«
»That was one of my conditions,« Chambers explained. »But first, let’s all hear what the Frigonan has to say. You’ll hear it through Spark’s mouth, but don’t be fooled, the Frigonan controls our man.«
Sparks had to be supported by Chambers in order not to break down. The man’s work suit was soaked with sweat. An unpleasant smell spread through the command central. The man’s natural body odor had changed to a stench due to the parasite’s intrusion.
»Talk!« Fosset urged the Frigonan.
All people present were unsettled. It was unusual not to see the man, but the Frigonan who had taken root inside Sparks’ body, controlling his gestures and facial expressions.
Just the thought to be trapped in your own body, not being able to articulate yourself and being subjected to the parasite’s will, lacks any imagination. That’s incredibly awful, thought Fosset affected.
»I need a cool place,« Sparks stammered with a raspy voice.
Fosset felt a cold shiver down the spine as he heard Sparks speak.
»Remember what we talked about,« Chambers warned the Frigonan.
A jolt went through Spark’s body. His eyelids fluttered, and blue tears ran down his cheeks.
»You will all die,« the Frigonan whispered softly, sparking anger in Fosset.
»Your leader has told us this nonsense too and threatened us with the takeover of my ship. Well, see for yourself how far you have come with this plan. If this is all you have to tell us, then the discussion is now finished!«
»I am not talking about us,« the Frigonan replied hastily and energetically. He lifted the man’s arm and pointed at the central display with his stretched finger. »You’re flying through his breath … he will find and destroy you. Your ship is primitive and unarmed. I have this information from the memory of my host.«
»This demon …,« Fosset asked confused, »… he had destroyed your battleships?«
»The full force of the Circle had not been able to muster anything against him. Even our proud Circle battleship was powerless against this opponent.«
»What energies and weapons are needed to destroy four Circles battleships at the same time?« Welf Rouven asked uncomfortably.
»The attacker only hesitated for a fraction of a second before he attacked,« replied the Frigonan. »A sign of weakness, the Circle Generals concluded. We took advantage of this moment to strike and destroyed ninety percent of the enemy ship. But even the remaining fragment had more mass than the four battleships. The severed arm was still powerful enough to sweep us from the universe with a single strike.«
»There was no contact?« asked Fosset stunned. »You didn’t communicate with the crew of the alien ship to defuse the situation? It must have been clear to you that Humanity didn’t have such mighty ships.«
»We took the attacker for your allies, like the powerful robot civilization that rushed to help you to thwart us off,« the Frigonan replied dryly.
»This alien ship, what did it look like?« Fosset asked.
»I need cooling,« wailed the Frigonan.
»How did it look like!« Fosset repeated his question a trace sharper.
»Commander! There’s something in front of us,« Welf Rouven shouted. »We have a strange object on the visual holo. Distance and size are difficult to determine without precise measurements, but I think it’s huge!«
Fosset whirled around, staring at the central display to which Rouven had transferred the object.
»What’s this?«
Gamze Acun seemed perplexed. She enlarged the visual image while frantically running her hand across her forehead. »Commander, we are dealing with a very strange object. That doesn’t look like a spaceship, at least, it’s not a spacecraft
as we know it.«
»The Arm of the Demon!« whispered the Frigonan hoarsely through Sparks’ mouth. »It is too late. You cannot escape it!«
Unknown technology
»The Arm of the Demon,« Fosset whispered reverently. »This is the reason why Arkroid sent us here.«
»We still can’t use our scanners. The blue gas or plasma that fills the space is probably to blame,« guessed Gamze. »As we can see on the holo, this blue medium is flowing out of the damaged bulge of the object. One can clearly see a blue flickering at the wrecked site. Either there’s an energy field that covers the damaged section, or we can look into the interior of the object which shows the energy that fills the vessel’s fragment. In the latter case, however, I’m at my wits’ end.«
»I tried to perform an optical range scan with the laser,« said Welf Rouven. »A primitive method that could give us, at least, a clue about the current distance and size of the object. Unfortunately, the plasma and the surface of this thing absorbed my laser beam completely. I could send a probe over to the object.«
»Ten kilometers!« Sparks stammered exhausted. »The arm is about ten kilometers long, according to your standards.«
Fosset couldn’t believe the Frigonan’s testimony.
»What else do you know about this object?«
»Will you give me relief then?« asked the Frigonan inside Sparks, wailing.
»It depends on how helpful you are,« replied Fosset hard.
»This body will die with me,« the Frigonan threatened again.
»Tell us what you know about the object and I’ll make sure you will be transferred to a cool place. We’re no longer in the Middle Ages and torture people!« intervened Dorothea energetically. Addressing Fosset, she added, »The Frigonan is an intelligent being, even though he has attacked Sparks. If the parasite comes to harm, then it will also be the end for Sparks!«
Fosset had to pull himself together.
»All right, you’re the doctor!«
All eyes turned to Sparks, whose blue bloodshot eyes looked around impassively.
NEBULAR Collection 7 - Guardians of the Continuum: Episodes 31 - 34 Page 20