Hallowed Nebula

by Eddie R. Hicks

Jainuzei looked away. There was a hint of sorrow in his eyes. “I had unwanted help, Marrea . . .”

  Foster cut in at that point while Jainuzei was emotionally distracted. She did say she was going to ask questions first.

  “You were trying to lure the Draconians to the refinery,” Foster asked. “How did you know the ethereal fissures could connect with the maelstrom?”

  “Odelea figured that out after the dragons show up,” Armuzei said. “She never followed up on it. Souyila did since they own the refineries.”

  And from there, someone leaked the intel to the Soldiers of Marduk. “We know you were planning to build a vortex key of your own,” she asked. “How did you get Saressea’s files?”

  “Foster,” Jainuzei said to her slowly. “How do you know this?”

  She ignored him and pressed on with the interrogation. “Where were you planning to go with it? And who was going to operate it for you?”

  “Divine Expanse, and the Hallowed Nebula in it,” Armuzei shifted his face, looking at Jainuzei standing next to her. “You could have asked Jainuzei, he knew that. He also would have told you we had the Nephilim, the last objective in our quest.”

  Foster glanced at the other end of sickbay, where the girl they brought aboard from the refinery with Armuzei recovered. “All righty, pal don’t leave us hangin’, go on, tell us more. I promise not to tell the Gods on y’all.”

  “The Gods,” Armuzei snorted. “They don’t listen to prayers. If I’m going to pray to silent Gods, it will be Marduk. At least there’s proof he existed, and when we done, he’s gonna come back from dead, fuck you up good, Foster.”

  She rolled her eyes, folding her arms across her chest. “Right, buddy.”

  “If you smart, you’ll let me go, eh?” Armuzei said. “Like it or not, Marduk or Tiamat will see their return soon. Get me and Nephilim to Kur and we prevent Tiamat’s return. Maybe I put in good word to Marduk. Spare you when he returns. Keep me here, and Tiamat will fuck us all.”

  A dreadful silence fell on everyone, while the heart monitors, medical equipment, and air recyclers continued on as if no unbelievable information had been revealed.

  “And that girl resting in the corner there is the key to it all?” Foster asked.

  “That Nephilim? Yes,” Armuzei said. “You want to save lives? Make sure Draconians never capture her alive.”

  “What about the ruins on the Javnis homeworld?” Odelea asked. Foster was glad for that, as she had completely forgotten about it.

  “That’s where all Muodiry were created. I going to be one too when I get there.”

  “Why would you want to do that?”

  “A gift for Marduk when he returns,” Armuzei said with a smirk, looking up at the ceiling. “He’ll need a new body. Me going to offer mine to him.”

  Jainuzei sighed, shaking his head, and moved away. “This is nonsense, I have nothing more to say.”

  “That’s a shame, Jainuzei,” Armuzei said. “You could have told her who was going to use the vortex key.”

  Foster looked back at Jainuzei. “How would he know?”

  “Because he one of us!”

  Jainuzei cursed again in the Aryile language, with balled up fists. “Your lies bore me, Javnis.”

  “This man joined our cause when he discovered the Marduk Poniga tribes like the rest of us,” Armuzei said.

  Jainuzei crossed his arms and gazed at the smooth walls of sickbay and asked, “If I was a member of the SOM, then why would I slay your members and leaders and rescue the council?”

  “That’s a good question,” Armuzei said, grimacing. “You were the first to join us. And the first to turn your back on us.”

  The agitation in Jainuzei’s voice was of a guilty man that got called out, stumbled, and fell in his own complex web of lies. The story also perfectly matched Bailey’s story and the one Karklosea told. Finally, everything made sense. Jainuzei was a former member of the group. Something happened, and now he was seeking revenge. The data crystal, and refinery, Jainuzei must have been worried that someone mentioned his name, revealed that he was once a member of the Celestial Order turned SOM fighter, before splitting with all groups and went rogue.

  Jainuzei was either a useful weapon to defeat the group or a ticking time bomb that would end the Kepler.

  46 Saressea

  Tribunal Halls

  Vinpavis, Talsyk, Avalon System

  July 19, 2119, 03:30 SST (Sol Standard Time)

  The Radiance justice system was always mocked by humans. Funny considering few humans mocked the Imperial ways, where you were guilty until your beheading. At least in Radiance, there was still a system to determine if one should be set free or punished. Saressea was about to experience the system humans laughed about.

  She stood in the center of the tribunal room, wearing the same Radiance prisoner jumpsuit, with hands and legs bound. The layout wasn’t different from the one she stood in back on Aervounis for her pre-tribunal, only this time, the stakes were real. Whatever judgment came from this would be final.

  Radiance tribunals were in some way popularity contests. Her advocate and high-ranking enforcer presented their evidence first. Both sides created elaborate holograms to help illustrate the arguments they made, telling a dramatic reenactment how both sides thought things happened and to show evidence. The public was invited to watch in the audience, like it was a theater, especially for big cases like Saressea. Drone cameras floated overhead recording everything, broadcasting it throughout the planet and system for those that couldn’t attend.

  As the advocate and enforcer bickered and argued, flaunting their holographic recreations, two judicators oversaw the tribunal. One judicator represented the highest rank of the Templars, and another who spoke for the Radiance religion authority, to ensure what happened during the tribunal would not upset the Gods.

  The crowd in the audience was free to cheer or boo. Those watching the broadcast were free to transmit, via HNI, their approval or disapproval in what they saw. The audience played a major role in determining one’s fate. Red-handed criminals were known to be set free or given lighter sentences because the crowd cheered them, regardless of the evidence brought against them. No need to spark public outrage or riots because a person was sent to prison when the public believed they were set up or the criminal acts they committed were justified.

  Saressea’s fate was about to be placed in the hands of the judicators and the public watching. Radiance tribunals system was a popularity contest. The Earth justice system was not. The Hashmedai had no system. Humans laughed at the Radiance system because they had a system to be laughed at.

  The enforcer stepped forward silencing the crowd with their hands raised. The tribunal was in session. Everyone wanted to hear the story of Saressea, the careless former liaison officer of the Kepler that took command of the ship to kill humans not allied with the Terran Legion during the battle at Taxah.

  He made his case when the room darkened, giving better contrast to the holographic reenactment his HNI displayed. It felt like being an invisible third party, standing on the bridge of the Kepler during the moment when Saressea had been in command, and then back to the city of Vinpavis where she grew up, and various other jobs, ships, and bases Saressea worked on in her youth as the hologram changed.

  The holograms painted her as a rebellious woman that had sex with her teachers to get passing grades and was not qualified to be in command of the Kepler during a combat situation when faced with human targets. The transmission Foster made with her wrist terminal when she was held captive on the Marcus Antonius, the lead Terran flagship that was leading the attack at Taxah played. Foster ordered Saressea to withdraw. She didn’t listen.

  By the time the enforcer’s projection was over, Saressea was portrayed as a stubborn hot-headed woman that disobeyed orders to show off her abilities, taking the Kepler into a deadly combat situation. Adding to that, it was brought up that Foster in the end, with the aid of EDF and a Maraschino hacker, m
anaged to end the conflict without the need of Saressea to storm in.

  The only thing the Kepler needed to do was relay data and then get close enough for Foster and her team to teleport aboard safely, which was what ended up happening. The assault against the UNE fighters was pointless and had the potential to draw Radiance into a conflict as predicted by the council.

  The crowd booed furiously at the projection to Saressea’s surprise. The boos weren’t aimed at her, they were at the enforcer. The crowd hated the negative way Saressea was portrayed. It gave her hope.

  She looked back at the crowd that had her back, while her advocate stepped up to play their holograms and make their arguments. She saw Michei stand within the crowd, watching. His augmented arms were behind his back and his facial expression neutral. She had a feeling Michei wasn’t there to watch and be entertained like everyone else. He was a member of the Whisper, Radiance intelligence, and had a secret sit down with her prior to the tribunal. Michei was up to something. What that something was, Saressea couldn’t figure out, not while her future was in the process of being decided.

  It was time for her advocate to get rolling. She stood with anticipation, hoping for the best. The watching crowd gave a standing ovation when the advocate began to speak. It forced him to pause and smile for a brief moment, waiting for the claps, cheers, and roars to simmer down. When the crowd grew silent again, he began to speak and make his case.

  According to her advocate and the reenactment hologram that played, Saressea was portrayed as a brave woman that came under attack by the enemy, plain and simple. When in combat, you have to make a choice and stick with it. The lives of you and your crew depended on it. The holograms were quick to note that Saressea was in the captain’s chair, it was Chang who was piloting and manning the Kepler’s weapons. He was the one that pulled the trigger officially, not Saressea. Human lives were ended by another human, making it a human problem, not Radiance.

  With a wave of his hands, the hologram changed, replacing Saressea with Williams. It began to play, showing everyone what could have happened if Williams was in command. The same UNE fighters were shot down. Another wave of his hand replaced Williams with Foster, and the same result happened. It didn’t matter who was in command, the Kepler had to defend itself and that meant taking hostile actions against aggressive enemy targets. Other holographic scenarios played, showing what could have happened if the Kepler broke away and fled, they predicted Foster would have been killed. And for what? To make Radiance look good in the eyes of humans?

  The advocate wrapped up his argument, bringing up that Saressea should be praised for her actions as it saw Foster and her team rescued and an Imperial colony, which did get booed when mentioned, saved in the end. Had the Terrans won, there would have been a very good chance the new Empire that arose from the ashes would have broken the ceasefire with Radiance and resumed the war without end. Something the Union couldn’t afford thanks to the Draconians still being a threat and the SOM still running rampant in the Union.

  The crowd went wild. They really liked Saressea. The judicators had to let her off, she knew it. With that many cheers, there’d be riots for weeks.

  After a lengthy break, judgment came. She stood ready to hear it with a smile born of confidence and renewed vigor. Her tail wagged slowly left to right.

  “Za Saressea,” the judicator said. “Please step forward.”

  She took a step forward into the spotlight. With the exception of a dozen whispering voices behind, the crowd was silent, eagerly waiting for the verdict. She wondered how many people were gathering around their holo monitors in the system watching the broadcast live.

  “Both sides have presented an interesting case,” the judicator said. “It’s quite clear the people are in agreement with your defense.” Cheering and clapping from behind her confirmed his words. “If we were to exile her, how would you all feel about that?” The crowds’ reply was a loud and resounding boo. “I agree, but . . .”

  There it is, she thought. The ‘but.’

  “But . . . the council had voted for Saressea to be here and were the ones that aggressively pushed for this to happen,” he continued. “Furthermore, we cannot deny the fact that you were asked by Foster to stand down, and that in the end, it wasn’t necessary to engage the human ships. And so, we find you guilty—”

  There was outrage erupting from the crowd behind. How long and loud it was she wasn’t sure. The shock, devastation, and disappointment quickly drowned out all sounds from her thoughts, erasing the pride smile she had seconds earlier.

  When she came to and looked back at the furious crowd, she saw Michei shake his head and storm out. If he was planning something, it failed.

  The two judicators whispered back and forth to each other, nodding their heads. It took them two minutes to get the crowd to settle down for them to continue speaking. By the time they did, half the audience had made their exit.

  “But, but . . . it’s clear you people like Saressea, so she will not be executed.” The crowd that remained cheered. “She will not be exiled either—” More cheers, even louder than the previous. “She will be sent to a penal colony, low security until the humans have moved on from this. I will personally pester the council to mend the damage between us and the humans quick. After that, Saressea will be released.”

  Lukewarm response from the remaining crowd came afterward. The lack of boos or outrage meant there wasn’t going to be any rioting, to her disappointment. This meant she wasn’t getting out of the penal colony sentencing.

  Two Templars stood at her left and right, grabbing onto her arms and dragged her out. If her hands weren’t bound in chains, she’d wave goodbye to the holographic Kepler bridge that was still active.

  The ship she worked so hard on to test and help develop will have to move on without her.

  47 Foster

  XSV Johannes Kepler

  Hallowed Nebula, Divine Expanse

  July 19, 2119, 04:25 SST (Sol Standard Time)

  Odelea left sickbay first, looking to fetch stims to keep her awake. Foster wished she had stuck around longer and translated the words that Jainuzei and Armuzei exchanged in the Radiance language. It was a long ramble using alien words she never bothered to learn. She tried to visualize subtitles appearing at the bottom of her view to amuse herself as if she was watching a movie recorded in a foreign language.

  Not much was spoken after Armuzei made what sounded like a snarky comment toward Jainuzei, stopping him in his tracks for a moment, before he returned and looked down at Foster. She had to look up to make eye contact, wondering what the hell he ate that made him so tall and muscular. Aryile were herbivores, vegans for lack of a better term. Odelea had the perfect body of a vegan, a petite skinny person. Jainuzei had the body of a man that killed lions with his bare hands and then ate them.

  “Captain,” Jainuzei said with his butter-melting voice. “May I have a moment alone with you?”

  “In a minute,” Foster groaned “If that’s all right with ya?”

  Jainuzei grimaced. “Very well . . .”

  Lisette came to sit at the edge of the medical bed she was on when Kostelecky lowered her scanner. Foster approached the two as Jainuzei left.

  “How’s she doing?” Foster asked.

  “Her pod was listed as Nephilim,” Kostelecky said. “Apart from her psionic abilities, she’s far away from being a fallen angel as you could get.”

  “So, Nephilim ain’t your name?” Foster said to her jokingly.

  “Oh, fuck no, my name is Lisette Bennett. I was a psionic student undergoing training on Titan,” she said, then looking down with saddened eyes she added. “I was vacationing with my girlfriend on Taxah when the Empire arrested me.”

  “Lisette,” Foster mumbled to herself. She remembered the story Phylarlie told her. The story of a Hashmedai psionic named Avearan and her human girlfriend Lisette that got into trouble with Imperial laws the two weren’t aware of. “Phylarlie mentioned something a
bout you when we were there.”

  Lisette’s face reacted quickly, looking at Foster. “You were at Taxah?” she asked excitedly.

  “Yeah, barely escaped with our lives.”

  “What happened?”

  “Terran Legion hijacked a bunch of UNE ships and tried to nuke the place,” Foster said. “We stopped ‘em, though.”

  Lisette leaped off the bed grabbing onto Foster’s arms, practically begging her to tell her more. “Please! Does the name Avearan mean anything to you by chance? She’s my girlfriend.”

  “Aye,” Miles chimed in from behind. “She’s the one that patched Williams, I think? Told us about that cybernetic doc that could help Chevallier too.”

  Lisette’s eyes widened with hope staring at the Marine standing guard. “Avearan’s alive then?”

  “When I last checked, yeah,” Miles said. “I had passed out after wrestling a dragon. She gave us the slip when I came to. Why did the Empire have you arrested anyway?”

  “Better question,” Foster cut in. “How did you end up on the refinery? That’s no Imperial prison barge—”

  “Svatý Kurva! Guys, this isn’t an EISS interrogation chamber,” Kostelecky bellowed. “You mind saving your questions for later? Whoever had her captive didn’t treat her very nice as you can see.”

  Lisette smiled up at Kostelecky. “It’s okay, Doc—”

  “Do not!” Kostelecky exclaimed.

  “Call her Doc,” Foster finished for her. “Ever.”

  Lisette looked confused at the fuming doctor and asked. “What’s the big deal about Doc?”

  Foster shrugged. “My guess is she ain’t a fan of Bugs Bunny.”

  “Anyways,” Lisette continued. “I was on an Imperial prison ship. It was attacked and everyone was killed, except me.” Her finger aimed at the gold-faced Javnis. “That man led the assault; they called me Nephilim then took me aboard their ship. Not sure what happened next, like the Hashmedai, I was their captured target. Arrived at the station, refinery, whatever the fuck it was, where they kept me locked in my quarters until we were attacked. He insisted we hid in the cryo pods.”