“You’re thinking of asking the entire city to join us?” Danstu questioned his uncle.
“It’s not a half-bad idea,” Terman said.
Sedom sat back in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest. “Okay, someone please tell me why the three most recent members of this group are doing all the talking? And who the hell are you again?” She pointed to Terman.
“We meant no offense, Chadon,” Danstu bowed his head in respect as he spoke. “This is my old friend, Terman. You met him in the tunnels when you rescued us. I have him in charge of social development.”
Lolum tapped his finger on the dark cherry-wood like desk, gaining the group’s attention. “And to answer your question, Chadon, it’s because they know more about running a city than we do,” he answered Sedom.
“Social development? Seriously? Look around! This is a military base. I haven’t seen one decent fighter walk down these streets,” Sedom pointed out. Zion started to rise. “I take that back, there’s three of us. We have nearly a million Marisheio warriors heading our way and no one here know how to stop them. The three of us sure in the hell can’t.” Her words caused all in the room to grow quiet. “Our top priority is to build an army. Once we’ve managed to create some kind of protection around here then we can talk teachers, and doctors, and other staffing issues, and… tech toys.” She looked at everyone around the table. “Anything further?” she asked.
“No, Chadon,” Danstu replied at the same time as Lolum.
“Very well, you all seem to know what you’re all doing,” she spoke within a disgruntled sigh. “I’ll leave you to it.” Without saying anything else, Sedom stood and walked out of the room.
Lolum slowly stood, chuckling as he rose. “That went better than I thought.”
“Honestly, me too,” Danstu admitted.
Zion grunted amused. “I figured one of us was going to lose some blood,” he mentioned.
“No, just a door,” Cidele pointed out, causing everyone left in the room to chuckle.
“She conducted herself like a leader… more so than I thought she could. I’m proud of her. We had a chat the other day that I think really sunk in,” Lolum said.
“Maybe she’s finally growing up and understanding this isn’t a game?” Noral mentioned as he rose from his seat.
“A game? That’s exactly what it is, Dr. Noral. It’s just a very… dangerous one. Now, who here has any military connections?” Danstu asked his uncle then Lolum.
“Connections? Sadly, not anymore,” Lolum returned.
Dranuim raised his shaky hand. “I do. I spent nine years with the Underground. I still may know a few people.”
“I have some experience with them too. Let’s talk,” Danstu told Dranium.
Sedom rushed back into the room, causing everyone to stand once again. “You, you, you, and you, follow me,” She demanded, pointing to Zion, Lolum, Danstu, and Nokinil. The four men followed Sedom outside where Garric stood, waiting for Sedom to emerge.
“Sortec, I need to speak with you about…” Garric started.
“Later, follow,” she demanded Garric to follow as well. The group continued to follow her into the ship bay.
The ship bay was housed in a massive cave, beneath a raging waterfall. Lengthwise it reached nearly a thousand yards long. Ten rows of fighter ships, six rows across with plenty of room to maneuver.
Sedom turned to the group, seeing all of their jaws gaping. Even Lolum stood staring at the ships, his sparkling ruby eyes in awe of what he saw.
“This, gentlemen, is what I’m talking about. Gathow has six more levels exactly like this one. That means I have three-hundred and sixty ships that all need pilots. You find me pilots and I’ll address all of your other concerns. Hell, find me fifty pilots and I’d be happy.”
“For awhile,” Zion smirked. He waited for Sedom to say return with a snappy response, but something had caught her eye.
Sedom walked over to a gleaming pearl white ship. The outside hall was like opaque glass, icy to the touch yet burned hot against her small hands. The thrusters jetted out in both sides, both top and bottom as if its creators had made a statement; this ship was built for speed. The front of the ship was what enticed her most, slick, unadulterated curves leading to a precise point at the nose. The window of the cockpit melted into that very point as if the metal that created the outer hall and the clear shield were made from the very same sheet.
“She has that gleam in her eye,” Garric quipped, nervously shuffling back and forth behind Lolum and Nokinil.
Zion shook his head slowly in a slight panic. “Great! If she sinks her teeth into that we won’t see her for days.”
An uneasy grimace appeared behind Lolum’s white beard. “Sedom, we have no time...” he called out, but before he could finish his sentence, the ship’s cockpit was already sliding back, inviting Sedom to enter. “Sedom Sortec!” Lolum called up to the ship. She ignored him, her eyes wide, too preoccupied with the excitement of something new.
“Go after her!” Nokinil demanded Garric.
Garric tugged at his slave collar. “Sortec? Right,” he returned, his words elongated to show his amusement. He smirked as if Nokinil were insane. “It’s a new toy to play with. She’ll be back. Give her time.”
Inside the ship, Sedom’s hands felt over the many controls with great fascination. Every button had a purpose and she had to see what that purpose was. She had seen the diagrams of the ships in her quarters, but to actually control one fascinated her to no end. When she was younger, she desperately wanted to fly, but because of her station no one would ever allow it. She was the Chidi and Chidi’s simply didn’t travel off the planet without a good reason, and they never piloted their own ships.
“Does she know how to fly?” Nokinil asked, too paralyze with the fear that if she hit one button the ship would explode.
“Hell if I know what that girl is capable of. I learn more about her every day,” Lolum answered honestly yet his voice told the group just how irate he was with the situation. The pulsing of the veins in Lolum’s hands caused Nokinil to back away, first from Lolum, then slowly away from the ship. But when Sedom engaged the main engine, Nokinil moved a bit quicker, taking Lolum with him. Danstu, though, remained exactly where he stood, watching as Sedom maneuvered the ship out of the bay.
Inside the cockpit, Sedom had no clue what she was doing. She only knew that somehow she felt the controls call to her as if her flying was as natural as eating.
The ship levitated, sending a wave of dust over her friends. She could feel the power the ship’s engines held just from her firm grip on the guidance control stick. But how did she get out of the cave? As the ship raised so did an area in the far corner of the roof, revealing the outside and the waterfall beyond. The automatic guidance system engaged and the ship sped off outside and towards the stars.
“Now what?” Nokinil asked. The wind of the ship’s engines nearly blew the men to their knees. He held onto Garric, trying to keep his balance. Lolum’s long beard blew across Nokinil’s pudgy face, forcing him to step away from the man.
“Wait until she comes…” Garric started to scream over the noise of the engines, “…back,” he continued more subdued after the ship was out of sight and the wind had died down.
Among the stars the ship floated weightlessly. For the first time since visiting Juvin-que two years prior, Sedom was able to see the moon and other planets. She wasn’t certain if they held any life. She couldn’t remember nor did she care. At that very moment, she finally felt free. She could fly anywhere or everywhere she wanted to go. And fly she did, across her entire section of space, past moons and near the sun she woke to every morning.
She slowed her ship to a dead stop when she noticed another ship looming near one of Matrador’s moons. It hung there in space, much like a deadly vine in the forest, waiting to snatch and eat any unsuspecting victim.
The ship was the size of a large city, possibly able to hold nearly a thousand men.
And there it was, drifting ever to close to her own beloved world. She could feel the ship, knew it from its’ harsh exterior. It could belong to no one else except the… “Marisheio,” she gulped, her hands shaking as they crossed the controls of her ship.
She was only beginning to learn her ship and was in no way ready for battle. Remaining out of sight, hidden by the shield of her mother’s moon, she sat and watched the battleship creep ever closer to Matrador. All she could think of was how to get home, back to Gathow, to warn Lolum and the rest. But there she remained, helpless to watch Matrador’s impending doom. Perhaps freedom was a farce after all?
“I want an army,” she mouthed to herself, certain that the Marisheio could hear even her faintest sigh. Her breaths as soft as the fine fuzz on the back of her neck, which she only began to realize was standing on end.
***
Terman strolled into the ship bay, pausing when he noticed Danstu standing by one of the computer terminals. He whistled his amusement, gaining Danstu’s attention.
“You weren’t joking. There must be a thousand ships here,” he said in awe as he glanced around the ship bay. “Who would have ever thought?”
“We have twenty-one hundred and sixty ships here in Gathow, so I’ve just been informed by the Chadon,” Danstu began, waving back to the ships, but his attention was on his computer pad. He glanced to Terman. “Not to mention a cloaked starship, parked somewhere in the Nevet system, with enough firepower to level a planet,” he added. “Only rumors… of course.” His eyes turned back to his computer. “And I have yet to learn what else the Narkoy stored around here. Looks like level four and nine have technology warehouses that I’m very interested in learning more about,” he mentioned.
Terman released a loud guffaw from his lips. “I can only imagine. With all of this at their disposal, I have no idea why the Narkoy didn’t fight back,” he pointed out.
A grimace appeared on Danstu’s lips. “Yes, well, the religious faction fled here and locked out the more militaristic Narkoy. Those who remained claimed to be peaceful and wanted nothing to do with all this,” he said, frustration clouding his words.
“And left behind one heck of a buried treasure,” Terman mentioned. “Wow, having all this just inches from your fingertips must be driving you crazy.”
Danstu momentarily looked up from his computer. “That isn’t the half of it. I also have a very frustrated Chadon, who just took off on a ship and we have no way to contact her. There’s a warship docked off of Nogoana and she just flew right into its path,” he grumbled.
“Do you need me to suit up?” Terman asked concerned.
Danstu waved away his concern. “Not yet. I think she needs a bit of a reality check. Having a warship pointed at her might shock her enough to make her realize what we’re up against.”
“Danstu, this is our Chadon, not to mention a child,” Terman pointed out.
Danstu’s attention turned back to his computer. “They haven’t seen her yet or they’d have open fire,” he mentioned, pointing to the computer in his hand. “She needs to blow off some steam. I know she wants a body for every one of these ships, but she’s asking for the impossible right now. In a few months… maybe.”
“This is what you live for, right?” Terman joked. Danstu glared at him. “If it helps, I have a lead on ten pilots, a nav expert and six artillerymen and one woman who could shake me down any day if you know what I mean?”
“Yeah, I get it. What you do in your off time is your business,” Danstu grumbled back. “Where are you finding these people?”
“Our old pal Roski. His team is pinned down in the forest somewhere and they can’t get a ship to them. I told them we’d come get them,” he returned with a grunt.
“The Underground? I haven’t contacted them. I’ve been meaning to, I just haven’t found the time yet,” Danstu returned, a mental note made mainly for himself.
“You might want to give them a call. They’re desperate for ships and supplies. The Marisheio kicked their asses pretty good not long ago. They’re having difficulty recovering,” Terman mentioned. “They need an alley with strong ships and by the looks of it,” he paused to wave his hand across the docks, “I think we have that covered.”
The sound of a ship’s engines rumbled through the bay. “Looks like she’s back,” Danstu scowled.
“Well then, put together a team so we can go rescue these rejects. I’ll catch up with you at sundown near the tunnels, once you’ve gained the Chadon’s permission. On that note, good luck,” Terman joked back. He hurried out of the ship bay just as Sedom’s ship pulled into its designated space.
The cockpit shield slid back without her request. Instantly she noticed Danstu waiting for her. The wind of the ship had little effect on him or his rock-hard emotionless face. He stood, with arms crossed, waiting for her to climb down. And as she descended from the cockpit an uptight, an almost pleased smirk appeared on his pink lips.
“You really pissed off the old men,” he stated. He reached behind taking a helmet off the wall and handed it to her. “Might want to try this next time. Has a transmitter. We could have told you there was a starship off the Nogoana moon.”
Sedom grabbed the helmet, tossing it into the cockpit. It would have certainly come in handy, but she wasn’t about to let the nephew of Nokinil know. She breezed past Danstu, paying him little mind on her way to Lolum’s office. For some odd reason the man followed her, not close enough to be a threat, but still followed.
She paused, he paused, she turned, and he remained firm. “Who are you, Garric?”
“I need your permission to leave Gathow this evening,” he explained.
The very act of laughter halted her breathing for nearly a minute. “You, in the forest, alone?” It was as if she ate a foul piece of food. She couldn’t laugh, wouldn’t laugh in his presence, in any one’s presence. There was a persona to keep up, though it took every bit of her strength not to laugh. She managed to gulp the laugh away.
“Terman’s coming with me. A team from the Underground is lost and has agreed to join us if we come rescue them.”
“Rescue a team of military officers? They’re not starting out on the right foot, are they?” She turned away, hiding her amusement. She continued towards Lolum’s quarters.
Danstu followed close behind. “So, is it okay?” he called.
“Take Zion and Rosanheer.” She waved him on, giving him the okay to leave Gathow.
At Lolum’s office, she entered and closed the door before Danstu could have a chance to follow. Lolum was sitting in his robe in front of a holographic image of a fireplace on his wall, cutting his jagged toenails. Watching Lolum cutting his toenail disgusted Sedom more than pulling the entrails out from a Lombaust.
“The unruly child returns,” Lolum grumbled in his usually condescending tone to show he was not at all happy about her leaving. “Your luck will eventually run out one day. You know that?” He asked, pointing his nail clippers at her.
She moved his hand away, keeping the nail clippers far from her, and then sat next to him on the sofa. “We have a problem,” she began, gaining little enthusiasm from Lolum. The fact that he began filing his nail caused her to believe that he didn’t care. “While I was out, I saw a Marisheio starship docked just off the moon of Endradis.”
Lolum shrugged. “I see we can do very little about that.”
“How about fighting back? They are taking over Matrador!” She yelled, inflamed at the situation and Lolum’s lack of urgency.
Lolum calmly put down his clippers. “We have very few men capable of piloting a ship, let alone a Narkoy ship. And you’re the only one who knows how to fly those ships. How would you plan to attack the Marisheio? How many men are you willing to sacrifice considering you just saved them from the same fate?”
He was right. She hated when he was right. Sedom sunk her body into the sofa, almost to pout. “I want an army,” she huffed.
“Don’t think I don’t. I want those Ma
risheio demons dead as much as you. But the men are not available,” he explained. He took back his nail file and continued his task. “We have to wait.”
Wait? Sedom hated waiting. She rose, leaving directly for the door. Lolum didn’t bother calling to her. He knew better. Outside, Danstu still remained, waiting for her. All this waiting, she couldn’t bear it. Her hands clenched into fists. Her lips were so taught her bottom teeth were visible under the skin.
“Agh!” she cried out, irrational beyond even her recall.
Danstu calmly leaned against Lolum’s outside office wall, waiting for her little tantrum to end. When she had finally calmed down enough to hear him, he began, “Were you aware that a normal Marisheio battle cruiser houses approximately two-thousand able-bodied slaves on any given voyage? Many were pilots and ex-military taken prisoner in battle,” he mentioned as if it was a common fact.
The golden flecks in Sedom’s eyes still pulsated when she turned to Danstu. She stared at him with a firm look of irrational suffrage at first. Then she thought about what he said. Slaves? Her eyes cleared, her face softened. Able-bodied slaves? She nodded anxiously, her tongue crossing over her teeth as she thought. She walked away with the thought not fully developed in her mind. Sometimes, the act of walking helped an idea complete itself in her head.
She walked all the way to the main tunnel’s entrance before she realized she had to return to Lolum’s. Oddly enough, Danstu didn’t follow her this time. He was still waiting for her back at Lolum’s office. And when she arrived, he was still leaning against the same wall.
“Took you long enough,” he mocked.
Lolum was half-asleep on his sofa when she returned. “I want twenty men to meet me tomorrow at dawn in the docks. I’m going to teach them how to fly,” she decided, sure of her idea.
Lolum looked up at her out of one eye. “Twenty, hum? Think you can win a war with twenty men?” he asked.
“I think I can bring down a starship. I just need a distraction,” she stated overzealous.
The Last Narkoy: Gathow: Book 2 Page 18