The Plasma Master

by Brian Rushton

  Chapter 3

  Ned Simmons awoke from a dreamless sleep in a room he did not recognize. He felt well, but his memory of the events immediately preceding his period of unconsciousness was only beginning to return. He raised himself onto his elbows and looked around. He was lying on one of several beds in a large room filled with equipment that he guessed was medical; the room had the feel of a hospital. “He’s awake,” Ned heard someone say, and then his family came into view through an open doorway near one end of the room. Suddenly Ned was bombarded by exclamations from his concerned family. They wanted to know how he felt and what he knew about what had happened, but it was all too overwhelming, and Ned just sat there, trying to figure things out. He remembered now; he had tried to use his power to protect his family, but it had not been enough at first, so he had called forth the power again and again until the exertion of it became all he could think about. When the alien had finally fallen, Ned had ceased his attack, but the power had still dominated every part of his conscious mind. Then he had felt something touch him, something he had not recognized, and he had … Jared! Ned leaped out of bed, startling everyone with his sudden movement. But then he saw Jared sitting on an empty bed nearby. There were no visible injuries. Ned sighed with relief.

  “Ned, are you okay?” his father asked again. Ned began to respond, but he was interrupted by the sound of footsteps from behind him. He turned and saw Smardwurst Varlon, still wearing his protective suit. Ned found himself wondering why. Was this atmosphere harmful to him? Was it possible that this was not a suit at all, but that Smardwurst was a robot? In any case Ned did not think it would be wise to ask, at least not now.

  Cheerfully, Smardwurst said, “Well, I see you’re all right, Nedward. Good. Now, let’s all eat, and then we will attempt to determine what has happened, and what we should do about it.”

  “I’m all right,” Ned assured his family as they walked to the dining room or mess hall or whatever these aliens called it. During the meal, which appeared to be Earth food, Ned wanted desperately to say something, to understand and to have everyone else understand what was going on, but no one else said anything, so Ned was obliged to remain silent as well. When they were done and someone came and carried their dishes away, Smardwurst spoke.

  “Only a day has passed, and we are again faced with a set of rather strange events. Again, I believe I can clear a few things up, and then, Mr. Simmons,” indicating Ned with a nod, “I believe you can, as well.

  “As far as we have been able to determine, this is what happened: Some of the Yendarians ejected from their craft before they were destroyed and tracked our shuttle to your home. Perhaps they planned to steal your stone, or perhaps they merely wanted to cause more destruction before being captured, which they surely would have been eventually. I had stationed several guards around your home, but had I suspected that there were surviving Yendarians on this planet I would not have even returned you to the surface. They are trained in battle from their early childhood, and my guards were barely able to keep them from doing more damage than they did. As you know, one eventually did make it to your house, although one of my people had already destroyed its weapon, which is extremely fortunate. My people contacted me as soon as the fighting started and it took only a few minutes for me to get close enough to be of any help, and by then it was all over. From what I have heard, the story is probably more interesting from your side. Nedward?”

  “I suppose it is,” Ned said. When I saw that alien, I panicked, and all I could think about was protecting my family. I knew that the stone’s power had some use as a weapon; I told you about how I destroyed small objects with it. I used it on the alien, but it wasn’t enough, so I just kept using it, each time trying to call forth more power. After a short time it was all I could think about, and the exertion of the power became the only important thing to me. Then the alien stopped moving and there was nothing to attack, but I still couldn’t let the power go. It was like asking myself to quit breathing. So I just sat there, the power surging through me but not doing anything, but I wanted it to, and then I felt something touch me and I let it go …” Ned trailed off, and his eyes dropped to the table in front of him. He did not want to meet anyone’s gaze. “I didn’t realize until I woke up that it was you, Jared. I’m sorry.”

  “It’s all right,” Jared said reassuringly. “These guys fixed me up, and I feel fine.”

  “Let’s just go home and forget about this whole thing,” prompted Ned’s mother. “Mr. Varlon can make sure there aren’t any more of those aliens and we can go back to our normal lives.”

  Ned had noticed that his whole family had avoided talking to the aliens as much as they could. “Back to our normal lives...” They must still think that’s possible, Ned thought. “I need to think for a moment.”

  “About what?” asked his father.

  “He is right,” Smardwurst said, starting to leave and motioning for the others to follow him. He has been through quite a bit – more than any of us realize. We should leave him alone for a while.”

  Ned’s family reluctantly followed Smardwurst after wishing Ned luck. Ned could tell by the looks on their faces that they were afraid. He did not blame them. “Smardwurst,” Ned suddenly called out, “can you come here a moment?” Smardwurst turned, hesitated, and walked over to where Ned was sitting. They heard the door close as Ned’s family left the room; Ned did not even want to consider what they were thinking about his request for Smardwurst to stay but for them to leave. Smardwurst sat down in the chair next to Ned, and Ned looked up into the other’s opaque helmet visor. He could see his own tense face reflected in it. He took a moment to gather his thoughts and then began.

  “First of all, I’d like to thank you for everything you’ve done for us. There’s no telling what would have happened if you hadn’t been here. I’ve thought a lot about what you said yesterday, but I’d like to ask you a few questions first.” Smardwurst nodded, and Ned continued. “First of all – please don’t take offense at this – why do you wear that space suit everywhere? I mean, no one else on this ship does. Is our air toxic to you?”

  Smardwurst was silent for a moment, and Ned wished he could see his face. “That is a good question, one which I would have had to answer soon, anyway, but I am glad you asked. No, your air is not toxic. In fact, it would be considered ideal on nearly every world I have been to or heard of that has intelligent life. It is difficult to know how to explain this without frightening you… Nedward Simmons, as I am sure you can imagine, there are many different forms of life in the galaxy, even among sentient races. Most look like you, but not all. I am one of the latter.” Ned continued to fix his gaze at Smardwurst’s visor, but his eyes widened as Smardwurst spoke, and his heart rate quickened. This was not entirely unexpected, but Ned could not hold back his feelings of excitement and fear. What did Smardwurst look like? Would Ned be able to live in close contact with him? How should Ned react if this alien was so hideously ugly that even looking at him was impossible? “I kept this suit on in your presence so that I would not frighten you, but if you are to make an educated decision as to whether or not you should follow me into space that is totally unknown to you, I suppose you should see what I look like. Do you agree?” Ned nodded.

  Smardwurst tapped a panel at his right wrist and then pulled the glove off of that hand, then removed his other glove in the same way. Ned could not help staring. He had tentatively assumed that Smardwurst’s features looked larger because of the width of his suit, but apparently this was not the case; his hands were half again as large as any Ned had seen. But this was not what shocked Ned. Smardwurst’s hands were colored a dark shade of green, and they had a bumpy, leathery texture, much like Ned imagined a dinosaur’s skin would have been like. Other than that, though, they seemed rather normal, and Ned’s shock lasted only a moment. At least they were not dripping with slime or covered with spikes. Ned looked back up into Smardwurst’s visor, but still could not think of anything appropriate t
o say. Smardwurst tapped another panel on his arm and then reached up to his helmet. Slowly, he lifted it off.

  Despite the fact that Smardwurst’s face looked totally alien to him, Ned smiled. Smardwurst’s face had the same color and texture as his hands, and he had the same basic facial features familiar to Earth, but similarity stopped there. Smardwurst’s enormous eyes protruded from the top of his head like those of a frog. His mouth stuck forward in a bulge that occupied most of his face, and rows of sharp teeth smiled out at Ned. Smardwurst’s nostrils were mere holes in his face; no nose was visible. His ears also lacked external organs beyond holes on the sides of his head.

  “Well, you appear to still be conscious,” Smardwurst said pleasantly. Perhaps Ned had seen so many movie special effects that this experience did not seem as unusual to him as it might have, but he was not at all intimidated by Smardwurst’s unusual appearance. Despite his strange face, Ned could easily make out familiar expressions as Smardwurst spoke. Smardwurst’s bulging eyes blinked back at Ned with all of the friendliness and compassion that had been previously conveyed by his voice alone. Ned arose from his chair and extended his hand.

  “Again, it’s nice to meet you, Smardwurst,” he said. Smardwurst also rose and grasped Ned’s hand. His green skin was warm and his grip was strong. He was a full foot taller than Ned, but notwithstanding the unfathomable differences between the two, Ned felt oddly comfortable around him.

  Ned looked away, realizing that he was going to have to make a decision soon. His heart raced and his palms tingled a bit as the weight of the decision he was making settled on him. In the end, he supposed that his decision was already made; it was just figuring out how to tell everyone that was the trouble. “There’s an alien power inside me,” he said solemnly, still looking away. “I don’t understand it, and apparently I can barely control it. It can protect me, but already it has drawn the attention of two armies, and it has hurt my family. I can’t leave it here where it can do more damage. Ned looked up into Smardwurst’s big, frog-like eyes. “I hope you’ve been thinking up some good uses for this stone. It looks like you’re going to be able to be able to use them after all.”

  “What is he doing in there?” Mrs. Simmons asked.

  “I don’t know,” her husband said, “but I’m worried.”

  “Do you think he’s going to go?” said Jared.

  “Certainly not!” his mother replied. She did not want to even entertain the idea of her son flying off into space.

  Several minutes passed in silence as the three tried unsuccessfully to contemplate the situation in a way that made it emotionally manageable. First the alien attack, then Ned’s bizarre blue light, then this business of him leaving, and then another attack, and now he had asked his family to leave the room while he discussed who-knew-what with a stranger. An alien! Ned’s family more than wanted the situation to be resolved and forgotten as much as possible. They needed it.

  The door hissed open suddenly, and the tall figure of Smardwurst Varlon stepped through, the door closing behind him. He was again wearing his full suit; neither he nor Ned felt it wise to give Ned’s family any more to worry about than was necessary. “Ned wants a few more minutes,” he said, “and then he wants you to go in.” Smardwurst then strode down the corridor, out of sight.

  Ned was deep in concentration, his eyes fixed on what was happening in front of him. A blue coil of light wrapped around a thick tube of the same light, and the two forms became one and formed into a pyramid. Balls of energy flew out of the corners of the room and struck it. The pyramid exploded into a sphere which was then ripped apart by first one and then another, faster wave of sizzling blue light. Then a blast of lightning ripped downward from the ceiling and wiped out all of the remaining debris. Ned let out a breath. He had been through exercises like this countless times, practicing his use of the blue light. Now, like before, he had felt that he was in complete control of the light and that, as far as formation was concerned, his ability to manipulate it was limited only by his imagination, although he had noticed that it was physically draining to use the light for very long. The point, though, was that he had not lost control. Ned had been running through this exercise in an attempt to determine exactly what had happened. He now believed that he would not be able to do that unless and until it happened again. If it did, though, Ned was fully determined to make sure it did not happen around his family.

  Ned fired a bolt of energy across the room and hit the panel that operated the door. It opened, and his family stepped through, still bewildered and frankly terrified. Before any of them could speak, Ned began to explain himself. “I have been over this again and again, and I still can’t figure out what happened last night. I can apologize all I want, but the fact remains that I don’t know as much about this power or have as much control over it as I thought. We already know that it’s useless for me to try to give up the stone. If I stay, there’s a good chance that I’ll lose control of myself again, and next time there won’t be an alien doctor around to help. I can’t take that risk. I have to go.”

  It did not take long for Ned’s words to sink in. “No!” everyone was suddenly shouting at him.

  “You don’t have to!”

  “It will be all right!”

  “Just come home!”

  Ned looked at them, wanting to believe them, suddenly wishing along with them that he had never found that cursed rock. He suddenly broke down in tears and fell into their arms. “Come home, Ned,” his mother whispered into his ear.

  Then Ned regained control of himself, stood up, and looked her in the eye. “I will,” he said. “But not until I have mastered this power and I’m sure I’ll never lose control like that again. It might take a week, or it might take the rest of my life. But I’d be leaving soon, anyway – you know that. College starts in less than two months, and after that who knows where I’d go? And you don’t have to worry about me. You heard Smardwurst, and you saw those torpedo blasts. Nothing can hurt me! And who wouldn’t want to go into space and see alien civilizations? Besides, there are billions of people out there whose lives are being destroyed by an interstellar war, and there just might be something I can do about it. I’ll be okay. And I’ll come back when I’m done.”

  There was nothing anyone could say to contradict him. He had made up his mind to leave, and his reasoning was flawless. That was the hardest day in any of Ned’s family members’ lives, including his, up to that point, but now at least the course ahead seemed clearer.

  Ned’s family finally conceded, and Smardwurst dropped them off at home while he made contact with various world leaders and informed them in vague terms of what had happened. He refused the many petitions to at least leave behind some of his technology for Earth to use and learn about; he felt that, since Earth was still divided among so many nations and since so many of its people still harbored such strong hatred toward one another, new technology would be detrimental if not destructive. Besides, he reasoned, if the wrong side prevailed and StarBlazer someday made contact again, it might be devastating if Earth had developed into even more of a threat than Anacron was. This all took only the rest of the day. In the evening, Captain Varlon returned in his shuttle, alone this time, to pick up his new passenger.

  “I’ll be back!” Ned called to his family as he stepped onto the shuttle.

  “We love you!” They shouted back at him. “I love you, too,” he whispered as he watched his house grow smaller and smaller through the viewport. The window, Ned! he thought. It’s still okay to call it a window!

  Ned was unpacking some of his things in the room Smardwurst had assigned him. Smardwurst had told him that he wouldn’t be staying aboard that ship for long – Green Scorpion, it was called – but Ned still wanted to make himself as comfortable as possible. The door beeped, and Ned called for whoever it was to come in.

  “How are you?” Smardwurst asked as he entered the room.

  “All right, I guess. There’s a lot to think about.”
>
  Smardwurst nodded understandingly. “Come with me for a moment. We’ve reached orbit, and we’re about ready to leave.”

  Ned followed Smardwurst down a short series of light-grey corridors to a room with a large window. From it Ned could see the squadron of starfighters that had accompanied Smardwurst, and behind them the large ball of the Earth suspended in space.

  Smardwurst smiled and said, “I remember when I first saw my homeworld from space – Zalorus, it is called. I was only …”

  “I can feel it,” Ned said, not listening to Smardwurst at all. He was staring at Earth with wide eyes. “The whole planet is pulsating with power – tremendous power. I guess I couldn’t feel it down there because the power around me was pulsating with it. But now…” Ned trailed off for a moment, then continued. “People worry about the ozone layer deteriorating, rainforests being cut down, nuclear war. They worry that humans will destroy the Earth. But that won’t happen. I’ve never imagined such power. Nothing I’ve ever seen or heard of could ever destroy that planet.”

  Smardwurst listened as Ned spoke, curious but not understanding at all. When Ned finished, though, Smardwurst turned his head so Ned would not see his expression. “Nothing I’ve ever seen or heard of…” But Smardwurst knew of things that defied Ned’s imagination, let alone his knowledge.

  After a while Ned turned to Smardwurst. “Let’s go,” he said.

  Smardwurst spoke into the communicator on his wrist. “Varlon here. Take us back to the vortex.” Whoever was on the other end acknowledged, and Ned watched as Earth moved farther away until it looked no larger than a marble. Then, he guessed, the warp drive kicked in. There was a bright flash, Earth disappeared, and Ned began to be able to detect the movement of the stars in relation to Smardwurst’s ship and the accompanying starfighters, although of course the parallax movement was slow due to their huge distance. Then he turned again to Smardwurst. “Now, I believe there are a few things I need to learn.”

  Smardwurst smiled. “Yes, I suppose there are. The first is that in space you can’t rely on light and dark to tell you when to sleep. I think our discussion can wait for about eight hours.”