“The little I know of Chase, I only get a good vibe from his intentions. He’s the one who rescued me, after all.”
“These beings, these Furies: I can’t understand them. While I begin to understand humans, Furies are another thing altogether, and they scare me.”
“It’s normal to be scared of things we don’t understand.”
“My instinct tells me I should destroy them if they ever come back here, both of them.”
“Argos perhaps. Chase is no threat to you, I guarantee that.”
“Why do you human beings do that?”
“Do what?”
“Assume things you have no certainty about.”
“What do you mean?”
“You can’t guarantee that Chase won’t be a threat. Not one hundred percent. You don’t know what he is like when he’s angry. I saw it. He can’t control himself and possesses power that defies anything I thought possible.”
“I don’t know. Call it instinct or a gut feeling. But let me rephrase it: I feel that Chase wouldn’t be a threat. In fact, I feel he would lay down his life to protect you and anyone on Earth. He did put his life in mortal danger to save this world, not only once but twice.”
“I have logs of him fighting in orbit that confirms what you’re telling me.”
“See. Argos, however, is another story.”
“But Chase is compromised now. Argos could force him to destroy me.”
“If that was his plan then they wouldn’t have left. They would have destroyed you and us in the process.”
“What you say makes sense. I am still afraid of Furies.”
“So am I. But may I propose we work together to defend ourselves from Argos?”
“Explain.”
“I would like us to reconstruct the satellites that were lost in the last battle, and also devise a full, planetary shield to protect against any Zarlack ship that wants to blow itself up on the surface of the planet. Now that we know they can do this, there could already be more ships on their way to do just that.”
“WHAT!”
Crap. Spiros cursed himself.
“I don’t think that’s the case, but what I propose will nullify their advantage. We make an impenetrable shield around the Earth. To protect not only ourselves but you as well. How does that sound?”
“I like this idea.”
“Good. So how does this work? You let us construct what we need?”
“No, I will make the shield, and I alone will control it.”
Spiros knew what that meant: that the entity would be able to decide when to use it, and could very well let humans die first in the next attack, and then raise the shields. She could also separate the planet from the ships in orbit by having the shield on all the time.
“Do we have a deal?” Gaia insisted.
“Yes. I propose you use some of my research. I can be of great help.”
“I know. Here is what I propose, based on your research and some modifications of my own.”
The entity projected holographic schematics, very detailed ones, of a planetary shield for Earth. Spiros looked at them and was amazed how advanced the design seemed. Highly redundant, too.
“Wow, this is good.”
“I learned from the best.”
“Did you just pay me a compliment?”
“I guess I did.”
“Well thanks. But you’re selling yourself short. This is way more advanced than anything I had in mind initially.”
“Perhaps there is something good to come out of our new partnership.”
“Yes, so it would seem. How should we proceed?”
“I will build it. There are enough resources, enough drones. I already have control of them so I will leave fifty percent of the workforce for the rescue and rebuilding efforts. The rest I will use to build a larger workforce and start building this shield.”
“What about the satellites?”
“I’ve already uploaded another set of schematics onto your personal computer. I will let you assemble this particular shield and give you control of it. That way you can prove to me that you intend to protect me when the time comes. And if you fail to do so, I will protect Earth with the other shield.”
“Sounds fair. Thanks.”
“There is a warning attached, though.”
“Alright . . . Which is?”
The sky turned red and dark clouds covered it almost instantly.
“If you betray me, if you try to attack me, or if you fail in showing your good will to protect this world, I will destroy you all.”
Spiros didn’t really know if it was the threat itself or the total calm with which these words were uttered that scared him the most. But he believed the entity one hundred percent, and that terrified him. He did the best he could to hide his fear.
“I understand.”
“I’m glad. You are right to fear me.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Now go. I’ll summon you if we need to communicate more.”
“Alright. Thank you for trying this partnership.”
The communication ended abruptly and Spiros felt a sharp pain in his right temple. He stepped down from the platform and went back to the lab.
“How did it go?” asked Cedric.
“We really need to get ahead of this, and fast, but I think I bought us some more time.”
The Valken approached the Destiny and was hailed.
“This is Commodore Saroudis.”
“Hi, Commodore, we’re coming aboard for the debrief slash dinner.”
“Right. You’re clear to land. See you soon.”
“See you soon. Tharraleos out.”
“Do we really have time for dinner? Sure, I haven’t eaten anything good in a while, but can we really afford the time?” asked Keera.
“We’re not going to dinner.”
“So why are we landing on the Destiny?”
“To steal as much quadrinium as we need for the jump back.”
“Won’t that get you in trouble?”
“No more than we’re already in. It’s not like we have any choice.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Just stay with the ship. I’ll go with Tar’Lock to get the quadrinium and we’ll be on our way within minutes.”
“If all goes well.”
“It will. I know exactly what to do.”
“Alright. Good luck.”
Daniel nodded and jumped out of his chair and entered the next room. “Tar’Lock, you’re with me.”
“What’s going on, Daniel? Why haven’t we jumped yet,” asked Ryonna.
“We need quadrinium. We’re landing on the Destiny now. Let’s go steal some.”
“Wow, when did this escalate to piracy?” asked Fillio.
“Look, we only need a little, and if we ask nicely the commodore will know we’re up to something.”
“He’s not going to like this, and I can tell you it will be our asses when we get back. Saroudis might be an understanding commanding officer, but Admiral Thassos runs a tight fleet. We’re toast.”
“You can still stay on board Destiny and keep your wings. In fact, all of you can decide not to follow my lead on this one. I won’t think less of you.”
“Chase is my friend as well, so I’m in. Bye bye, Earth Alliance.”
“And I owe Chase my life and the life of my son. I’m coming.” Ryonna didn’t hesitate.
“That’s nice of you, but depending on how all of this goes, he might be branded a traitor’s son. So not sure how good this will be for his career in the Droxian military.”
“The actions of the parents bear no consequences in our culture.”
“As you wish.”
“What about you, Daniel?” inquired Ryonna. “Are you willing to sacrifice your position as wing commander for this?”
“For Chase? Absolutely.”
“He might not need our help. We’re nothing but bugs compared to his own powers,” said Ryonna, feeling uneasy ad
mitting this.
“Just the same. He may or may not need our help, but I’m not letting him walk into danger alone. Not this time.”
Tar’Lock took a step forward. “What’s the plan, Daniel?”
“Let’s play a little game of misdirection, shall we?”
Daniel explained his plan and soon they were on their way.
Chase went to the mess hall for something to eat. He hadn’t eaten any of his favorite dishes for a long time. He synthesized a double pepperoni pizza. His taste buds relished the almost forgotten sensation.
“Boy, I could live on pizza.”
You know this is trouble, don’t you? he heard in his mind.
“Hello, Ares.”
“Chase, it’s not too late to change your mind.”
“There’s no way to change it now, and I think you know exactly what I feel.”
“Be that as it may, have you stopped to think what it is that Argos could get his hands on?”
“Do you know what it is?”
“No, but I can only surmise it will give him an advantage to win this war.”
“I won’t let him.”
“That arrogance again. Blinded by your emotions. When it’s not rage or hatred, it’s love. I don’t know which is worse.”
“Always the cynic.”
“I’m not being cynical and you know it. You have no idea whether by helping your evil brother you might not doom every other life in the universe.”
“I have thought of it.”
“And yet you accept this as a possibility.”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“I do understand. I love Aphroditis, and I gave my life for hers.”
“And I’m willing to give mine for Sarah’s. How is that different?”
“It wouldn’t be, except you’re not just placing your own fate in the balance here, but the entire universe.”
“Remember that I’m the one supposed to protect it? I haven’t forgotten what your sister told me at the beginning of all of this. Perhaps this is how things must play out. Perhaps that’s the plan.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“Well, we’ll know soon enough. But look at it this way, my friend: if I don’t do this and let Sarah die, I will no longer be able to protect anyone. I will probably just want to crawl into the deepest hole and die. How does that help anyone exactly?”
“Difficult to argue with that logic, I’ll grant you that. Did you just call me friend?”
“I guess I did,” said Chase, taking another huge bite of pizza with a big smirk on his face.
“Hungry, are we?”
“Famished. This last fight took a lot out of me, but I’m already regaining my powers. I can feel it.”
“Good. I’ll be along for the ride, in case you need my help.”
“Thanks, but shouldn’t you just go through the Styx?”
“Should, yes; but right now I must see how this plays out.”
“Alright. Glad you’re with us, Ares.”
“Chase!” Ares sounded alarmed.
“What?”
“I sense something wrong with Aphroditis. Please go to her side at once!”
Chase discarded the pizza slice in his hand, jumped out of his chair and ran.
While she was sleeping, Aphroditis entered a trance and started levitating above the sofa in the captain’s ready room.
She floated in a large, round arena with very tall, dark walls made from massive blocks of stones. The place looked ancient. Some runes in four different colors glowed on the walls, and while she thought they looked Olympian, they were too blurry for her to read. Blue, red, green and white, each above altars with matching colors; and hovering above those, glowing spheres of energy.
Then she heard a growl. It froze her blood. The growl was so powerful, so intense, it made everything tremble. And soon the ground shook. It felt like footsteps, but she could only see a shadow walking, with red, glowing eyes. The creature was almost as tall as the impossibly high walls.
She felt a sense of dread and great danger.
As the creature advanced towards her it blackened the faint sunlight and engulfed the arena in darkness. Only the runes and energy spheres provided faint lighting.
Then everything changed. She was sucked into space and saw stars and entire systems pass by at such velocity it made her sick to the stomach. When she finally stopped she stood in an empty part of space, though she could see dual stars shining far away.
She felt as though she knew this place, but it was the first time she’d been here. An ominous humming overtook her senses. It felt as if the universe around her was in a state of flux, trembling, shaking. Something big was about to happen.
A planet started materializing in the void before her eyes. At first it appeared blurry and felt like an after vision, like a mirage. But as time passed it became clearer and clearer. The parts of it engulfed in the darkness revealed points of light in close proximity. There was life on this planet; many cities in fact.
Without warning the gravity of the newly appeared celestial body attracted her to the surface. She tried to fight the forces that brought her towards the planet at impossible velocity, but was powerless to do anything about it. She passed into the atmosphere and her body fell faster and faster. She couldn’t see anything. A red, foggy haze was all around her. Soon the vista changed, and she realized she had passed through a thick layer of red clouds. The ground came at her so fast she felt compelled to close her eyes right before impact.
But there was no boom, no crash, and no pain. She dared open her eyes and she was standing on the surface of this world. This planet that seemed not to exist just a minute ago. Strong winds sent dark, red sand into her face. It was so coarse, and the wind so wild, it produced hundreds of small cuts on the surface of her skin.
Two shadows argued in the distance, but she couldn’t hear what they were saying over the unpleasant and overbearing sound of the terrible winds. It sounded as if the entire planet was wailing in pain, the sound hurting Aphroditis’ ears and making her soul crawl into a deep, dark hole within herself, too afraid to face the agony, pain and fear the sound’s vibrations were emitting all around.
She tried blocking the sound by putting her hands on her ears, but it had no effect. It came from within and all around her at the same time. Her entire sensory system was overloaded.
Trying to figure out what the two shadows were saying, she took a few steps forward, but it required a tremendous amount of effort. The gravity was so intense—at least three times stronger than on her home planet of Olympus.
When she was about fifteen feet from the two arguing shadows she started to discern their vocal exchange. However, the wailing wind did not allow her to understand the words that were being said. Only the tone of the argument. It was very heated. One of the shadows had a familiar shape and when it glanced at her his eyes flashed red. Then it all went to hell. The shadows started fighting each other and everything around them was destroyed. The ground cracked, stones and sand flew everywhere and each blow they struck, whether successful or blocked, resulted in increasingly powerful shockwaves that pushed Aphroditis farther from the scene. She heard her voice being called in the distance, but barely.
“Aphroditis! Aphroditis!”
But then one of the shadows approached her at tremendous speed. He crashed next to where she was standing. At this point she couldn’t move. She felt as if she had been turned into a statue. Only her sight, sense of smell, touch and hearing remained. Her pain receptors didn’t work anymore; or her sensory input had been overloaded and numbed by the harsh conditions and cutting winds. The shadow struggled to his feet painfully, but not before spitting dark blood onto the sand-ridden ground.
He turned and looked straight into her eyes. His eyes flashed at her, emitting a crimson light that colored her entire vision and frightened her to the core.
“I’m coming for you next. You will pay for what you’ve done!”
He ma
de a fist and prepared to launch a terrible blow at her. A crimson red aura danced around him, with crackling, bright-red lightning bolts. The instant the shadow’s fist hit her face, everything changed.
Her view shattered, as if the images before her eyes were made of glass, and revealed an image of Chase, shaking her body. It took a little while to regain her bearings.
“Are you alright? What happened?”
“I’m not sure. A vision perhaps, but this one felt so different; so real and terrifying at the same time. I thought I was there.”
“Where? Where have you been?”
“I think on the same planet I saw in my previous vision. A horrible, barren and hostile world.”
“Do you know what planet this is?”
“No, I’ve never seen a world like this. It was like a pure nightmare.”
“Calm down, Aphroditis, it wasn’t real.”
“It felt real. Whatever we’re doing at the moment, I’m afraid it will bring us there.”
“Are you changing your mind?”
“No, I told you I would help you save Sarah and I keep my promises.”
“And I will keep mine.”
“I know, Chase. I just hope you’ll find the strength to fight what’s coming next. I feel . . . I have that deep, dark, black hole sensation in my stomach, as if all we’ve done until now was nothing. That the real trial, the real darkness, is yet to manifest itself.”
Chase pondered these words. If that was true, if Obsidian, Zarlacks and Argos were just the beginning and something even worse was on its way . . . The reality of this was simply too much to bear. Chase’s mind couldn’t comprehend it.
“I sure hope you’re exaggerating a little,” was all he could say in response.
She shook her head solemnly from side to side as an answer.
16
Fillio entered the bridge of the Destiny and went to see the commodore.
“Commander Steriopoulou, where’s the rest of the group?”
“They went to take a quick shower and dress for dinner. We’re still on, right?”
“Yeah. In fact, after the day I’ve had, I think we’ll go straight to it. We’ll debrief tomorrow.”
Universe in Flames – Ultimate 10 Book Box Set: An Epic Space Opera Adventure Page 108