The Star Plume

by Kae Bell

  He looked back at the approaching mass of Heat Leeches, which took their place by the Time Fiend. The stars shifted uneasily, not knowing the true danger they faced. The sky was filled with blue light.

  “What rumor did you hear?”

  “That a Night Prism has been found and the Dark Spectrum has come to claim it.”

  Princess Cressida knew about prisms. She had several herself. She used them to measure out colors. But a Night Prism? That was new.

  “What’s that?” she asked.

  Wrangler Zav said, “The way I understand it, darkness has wavelengths, like light.” He nodded at the bag of colors Princess Cressida carried. “When darkness passes through the Night Prism, the Prism breaks the bonds of darkness forged to keep the universe in balance. The Night Prisms were locked away long ago to prevent this.”

  Wrangler Zav stopped to watch the Heat Leeches. All around them, one by one, stars went dim, as the Heat Leeches bled them of light.

  Zav turned to Princess Cressida. “These Heat Leeches will take these stars hostage. They can be recharged but only by an internal infusion. There is nothing we can do to help right now. We must try to find the Night Prism before the Dark Spectrum does.”

  “If the Dark Spectrum finds it first, it will break the darkness into wavelengths. “

  “What will happen then?” asked the Princess

  “It’s only on the longest wavelength of darkness that true evil can travel. If the bonds of darkness are broken, the Dark Spectrum will come. And if that happens, the universe will have no chance.”

  Chapter Three

  The three traveled toward the realm of the Dark Spectrum. They rode the Star Plume for what seemed like hours. It was dizzying, the speed at which Blaise could gallop. Cressida clung to the cow’s rough coat.

  It was quiet on the Star Plume, no other travelers. Princess Cressida had never known such silence. It grew colder the deeper they went into the pitch. Princess Cressida gladly took the heavy silver coat Wrangler Zav offered to her.

  As Princess Cressida peered into the darkness zooming by, looking for something, anything, she felt vaguely ill. Her sun, the sun that warmed her home planet, was nowhere to be seen. Strange rocks whizzed by them, some dangerously close. There was no starlight and no star song. The only light was from a sickly lantern worn around Blaise’s sturdy neck. As the lantern rocked with movement, it cast a pale light ahead, barely illuminating the Plume ahead.

  On they rode. In the darkness, it felt like they were climbing a steep hill. Princess Cressida could hear Blaise’s labored breath. Then, a small faint light appeared some distance ahead, like a flashlight shining in the night. Blaise galloped toward the light. Eventually the light grew larger and brighter. When they went around a sharp curve on the Star Plume, the light disappeared. Princess Cressida felt despair. Somehow the light had buoyed her hope on this journey.

  Around the dark bend Blaise galloped and then there the light reappeared, almost directly in front of them. Princess Cressida saw that it was a lamplight, serving as the beacon for a massive stone boulder, two stories high, in front of which stood a tall sign: “Igneous”.

  Blaise slowed her pace and Wrangler Zav spoke quietly: “We’re here.”

  Several saddled animals waited outside the boulder, grazing on tall sea grass growing in a shallow moat at the rock’s base. There, by the unfamiliar creatures, Blaise stopped. Wrangler Zav hopped down.

  Princess Cressida turned to face him as he hopped off of Blaise. “Where is ‘here’? This looks like the end of nowhere.”

  Wrangler Zav smirked. “Nope. Just the opposite. It’s the beginning.”

  “The beginning of what?”

  “Of nowhere.”

  “That makes no sense.”

  “I agree.” With that, Wrangler Zav helped Cressida from the saddle to her feet. He surveyed the waiting animals, nodding at one creature that blinked rapidly on seeing him. Wrangler Zav approached the open doorway, through which yelling and smoke spilled. He turned back to the Princess.

  “They don’t much mind their manners in there, Ma’am. It’s a rough place.” Zav scratched his chin, his nose and his forehead in succession. “It’s not a place for ladies, is what I’m trying to say.” He tipped his hat at Princess Cressida out of respect.

  Princess Cressida sniffed in displeasure. “I’m sure I can take care of myself. Remember I run a Kingdom of my own. I’ve had troubles to sort out.” She sniffed again. She didn’t care for being told to wait in the wings.

  Wrangler Zav narrowed his eyes. “Alright, we’ll give it a whirl. I can’t leave you out here anyway. That Celestial wind might pick up and when it does, it blows everything away.”

  “What about the animals? What about Blaise?”

  “Blaise always finds her way home. She’d got one of those honey beacons in her head. Like a bird.”

  Princess Cressida looked at Wrangler Zav. “A honey Beacon?” Do you mean a homing beacon?”

  “That’s right. Works like a charm. Blaise ain’t never been lost more’n a year.” He bobbed his head several times, remembering. “Enough talk, let’s do this.”

  He led the way through the arched doorway into the cavernous bar, ducking his head, too tall for the doorway. Inside, the ceiling was so high, it seemed barely visible. Then Princess Cressida realized there was no roof. The bar opened directly onto the sky.

  The patrons sat on rough stone benches around the circular bar, talking. They stared and grumbled as Wrangler and Princess Cressida walked by.

  While she ignored the men’s stares, Princess took discrete note of the different galaxies at the bar. A clear man from Hedrion - Cressida had a distant cousin there, it was always off-putting to stare right through someone, with only the eyes, lips and heart opaque enough to see. A few Blues from Zarvis. The Grass Men, there were several, glared at her. On the edge of the bar, she saw the X-rays, from Xreesa.

  “An assorted crew out this way,” she said quietly to Wrangler Zav.

  “It’s a trading route and it’s always open. I’d say ‘24/7’ but that doesn’t mean much out here. No 24 and no 7.”

  As she walked the last seats on the bar, Princess Cressida sensed others. She looked at the bar stools but saw only half-empty glasses being lifted and set down. There must be either Infrareds or Gammas, she thought, but she wasn’t sure which. Always hard to tell until they spoke.

  No bartender manned the bar. People helped themselves by pushing a button. A glass descended from the ceiling and on its way down, was filled by the stream of liquid from a large central unit.

  Princess Cressida followed Wrangler to a square table in the back, with a clear view of the bar and the door. As Wrangler walked he glanced side to side at the seated patrons. He spoke quietly, with a nod of his head to the right. “There he is, the fella who told me the Night Prism rumor. I thought he was foolin’, tellin’ tales, like you do. I'm gonna find out where he heard those rumors.”

  Princess Cressida looked at the man. He looked average in most respects, human like she was. His eyes, which she could see from a distance, were ice blue and slightly too large for his face, like he was constantly surprised. Something was off. She looked again and saw he had no whites to his eyes. Just the blue. He looked familiar.

  A bosomy middle-aged waitress appeared at their table, all blond curls, long red nails, pink uniform, and chewing gum. Her nametag read, "Flo," in curly cue script.

  “What do you want, Wrangler?” she barked.

  “Hey Flo. Nice to see you too. It's been an age. How's the boss?”

  “You know Per, he's the same grumpy old goat.” Her voice dropped to a raspy whisper. “Only now he's older and grumpier.” Flo snapped her gum in protest. “So, come on. I got other customers, so whaddaya want?”

  “Two Solara punches.”

  “Coming up.” She waddled away to the bar, ignoring a Grass Man who pinched her ample bottom as she passed him.

  Wrangler Zav turned to Princess Cressida. �
��Have you got anything to trade? Any jewelry you can part with? A bangle? I’m going to talk to our rumor-mongerer over there but I’m running low on Celestial Coin. This fella drives a tough bargain and if he knows anything worth telling, I’ll have to pay for it.”

  Princess Cressida touched her gold earrings. “Well, I have these.” She looked at her simple skirt and shoes. She wasn’t much for flash. Then she had a thought. She put her hands on her burlap bag. “Of course, I have the colors, do you think he might like any of those?”

  She opened the burlap bag and rummaged around inside. “Here’s a bright blue.” The blue cloud billowed around her and Wrangler Zav before she got hold of both corners. Wrangler Zav shook his head ‘No’ and Cressida stuffed it back inside the bag.

  She rummaged deeper. “Or a dark red. He might like that.” Color billowed out around them as she pulled out a few more options. Wrangler Zav shook his head no each time. A heard trader had little need for colors.

  Then she remembered how she had gotten lost in the first place. She reached toward the bottom of the deep bag, pulling forth the silver color cloud she had wandered so far to collect.

  Now, freed from the burlap bag, the silvery cloud billowed like a sail in the dim bar, catching all the available light. It seemed to grow in size and shape, the cloud taking the shape of a castle, then a mountain, then a sun. It shimmered just as Princess Cressida remembered.

  Seeing the silvery cloud, Wrangler Zav gasped. He glanced at the bar and saw several heads turn in his direction, people jabbing elbows at each other as they caught sight of the metallic sheen. A few patrons stood up. The bar owner pushed his seat back from his table to head their way.

  “Put that away. Now,” Wrangler Zav hissed. His lips were set in a straight line, pressed against his teeth as if he might bite.

  “My goodness.” Princess Cressida eyes grew wide at Wrangler’s tone. She quickly gathered the filmy color together and pushed it back into the burlap bag. “I just thought, it was pretty, maybe he’d like it for trade…”

  “Oh, he’d like it alright…”

  Several patrons had jumped off their stools and were ambling toward them, blocking the way to the door. A few of them were pointing at Princess Cressida.

  A tall column of white light appeared in front of Wrangler Zav. Princess Cressida stepped back in surprise, shielding her eyes.

  “Looks like you've attracted some unwanted attention.” The light spoke to them. Princess looked more closely and saw the light had within it the semblance of a human form that blinked in and out of view, depending on the angle.

  Wrangler Zav sighed with evident relief. "You could say that. Your timing, Hyko, as usual, is darn near perfect.”

  Princess Cressida cleared her throat, with a pointed look at Wrangler.

  “Princess Cressida, this is Hyko. An old friend.”

  She looked sideways at the light and saw in the light a wide smile and kind eyes. She couldn’t hide her surprise when the light spoke to her.

  “Pleased to meet you Princess. Any friend of Wranglers…”

  “Pleasure.” Princess Cressida curtsied, unsure exactly where to look.

  “Sorry to interrupt these pleasantries but we could use some assistance right about now.” The approaching crowd was growing closer and louder, as the traders pushed towards Princess Cressida.

  Hyko smiled...or at least seemed to, from where the Princess stood. “Always happy to help you out, Wrangler. I’m getting pretty good at it, had a lot of practice. But hey, who’s complaining, ‘specially since you’ve got such pretty friends.” Princess Cressida blushed.

  “You know the drill,” Hyko explained. “Hang on to me. I’ll give them an exit they won’t soon forget.”

  “Just get us outta here.”

  Princess Cressida grabbed hold to the column of light, which had a strange feel, crinkly like paper but heavy like velvet. Wrangler Zav did the same, as Hyko lifted off the stone floor, through the open ceiling into the night sky, a lone shooting star in the darkest sky.

  As they both clung to Hyko as he sped through the night, leaving a sparkling trail in his wake, Wrangler Zav whispered to Princess Cressida, “Where did you get that silver cloud?”

  “It was caught in a net on the edge of my star field. It’s how I ended up so far from home. Why?”

  “Because that there cloud is the Night Prism. And now a bar full of traders has seen it. People know the rumors are true. It’s only a matter of time before the Dark Spectrum learns of this.”

  “This puff of color is the Night Prism? What was it doing in my world?”

  "I’ve no idea. But we’re going to find out. Most important, we’ve got to hide it - and ourselves - from the Dark Spectrum.”

  Chapter 4

  Per sat at the table watching the Igneous patrons gossip. That freak Hyko had created a massive scene; Flo had thrown a few of the rowdier patrons outside, along with ‘the rest of the animals’, she’d told them. Per reminded himself to give Flo a raise.

  Watching the lingering excitement ripple through the rough traders, Per sipped his whiskey and considered what he’d seen.

  The Night Prism. In his bar.

  There’d been rumors. He’d heard them, as had every one on the trading routes. There were always rumors about the Night Prism.

  However, this time, the rumors had been different. A message from the Dark Spectrum itself, that it would pay infinite Celestial Coin to the trader who brought him the Night Prism.

  Rumors or not, messages from the Dark Spectrum were far and few between. It was difficult to get information across the Breach, in either direction. Per had tried once himself, when he was younger and braver. The attempt had cost him a chunk of his left hand and taught him not to mess with Time Fiends, which guarded the far side of the Breach.

  With his good hand, Per rubbed his stubbly chin. His watery blue eyes looked beyond the bar to the open doorway. An unfamiliar silhouette had stepped into the doorway. Per admired her curves as he wondered what else the night would bring.

  The woman in the doorway stepped inside. She was dressed in a tight jumpsuit the color of rust. It was flecked with dust from the Star Plume, as was her hair, as rusty red as her suit.

  Outside a loud whinny of complaint caught the woman’s attention and she called back, “Flyer, I’ll be right back.”

  She consulted a wide metal band on her forearm and looked around the bar, peering deep into the shadows. There, she spotted Per, seated at the farthest table from the entrance. She walked his way, throwing her long legs forward in a runway strut, for effect. The patrons watched her walk, one of them hissing low at her in approval.

  Per watched the woman approach. He stayed seated but he felt his heartbeat quicken, out of fear or desire, he was not sure. He knew one thing. This was his place. He didn’t know who this harpy was, marching toward him like a victor to the spoils. He downed his whiskey and shoved his chair back, tilting it upward on two back legs.

  When the woman reached Per’s table, they stared at each other for a single slow breath. She spoke.

  “Per Nickel? I’m Aglaje from Colum III. I’m seeking my sister Cressida. I understand she was here a short time ago.”

  Per shook his head slowly, eyeing the stranger. “No one tonight except the regulars. Had a little ruckus from a star freak, but nothing out of the ordinary this far out.”

  “You didn't see a beautiful young woman dressed in a low-cut brocaded gown and her silvery cowboy friend? Were you asleep?”

  Per regarded Aglaje, then removed his glasses and proceeded to clean each lens with a silk pocket square he always kept in his breast pocket. Among ruffians day in and day out, a man needed to maintain dignity or he might end up like the dregs. He inspected the glasses. Satisfied, he placed them again on the bridge of his shiny nose. He never hurried. And he never gave out information for free.

  “Ma'am, I've not any idea to whom you refer,” he said, lifting both hands, palms up, in his ignorance. He frow
ned to convey his disappointment in himself. “But please have a beverage on your way out. Compliments.”

  The woman’s eyes were bloodshot and angry. Per noticed she was attractive but well worn from hard living. Probably easy company on the Star Plume. Dark circles under her eyes suggested she hadn’t slept in days.

  Aglaje seethed, “There's a belted cow out there that says otherwise. She brought my sister and her cowboy all this way. I want to know where my sister is. And I think you know.”

  “Sorry, afraid I am unable to assist you. Please excuse me…”

  Per stood to leave but his waitress Flo interrupted him, blocking his exit. She shook her yellow waitress pencil at her boss.

  “Per, don't be a jerk. She's looking for her sister. You know that Princess lady was with Wrangler Zav. You SAW the commotion they caused. And holy crap, what an exit!”

  Aglaje turned to Flo. “You saw them. Did you speak with them?”

  Per scowled at Flo, but Flo nodded, smiled, and snapped her gum, always pleased to piss off Per.

  “I don’t usually have much time for chitchat you know, it gets busy in here and it’s only me on shift, since Per is too cheap to hire more help. You see, Wrangler Zav and me, we go way back, to our younger years, so I’m always happy when he stops in, he’s polite-like. So, yes, I did speak with them, but only briefly, to take their order. Afterward, I overheard them talking. Seems that Wrangler was looking for a particular trader. Then the next thing I knew they pulled out that Night Prism and the place just about near erupted into chaos. Some fool broke nearly every glass at my station in a rush to get over there and I got to cleaning up that mess. Next I looked, they were gone.”

  “Where?”

  “Honey, I don’t where they went, and I don’t care, as long as they paid their tab. But I sure know how they went. A star freak, one of those bright hybrids, took ‘em outta here in a flash.” Flo pointed up at the open roof, through which shone only darkness.