Simia

by Paris Singer

  ***

  “We have reached the boundary of Morex scans, Iris,” said Ava.

  “Thank you, Ava,” said Iris, stopping the ship. The Morex ship Many was operating crawled to a halt beside us.

  “Ava, please enhance the view screen to show the Morex fleet.”

  “Gladly, Iris.”

  In a flash, the long narrow view screen zoomed ahead until displayed in front of us was the monstrous Morex fleet.

  At first glance they could have been mistaken for sharp, black rocks risen from the depths of some dark iron sea, ominously adrift in space. From within each of the many cavities that distorted their shape, glowing blue lights pulsated like heartbeats. Prominent long thorn-like spikes jutted out of the front and lower ends. As on the Morex themselves, mossy growths dotted each ship like barnacles. Sizes ranged from the enormous to the gargantuan with no apparent distinction of function for each ship. Hard as I looked, I was unable identify which of the many was the research vessel I had for years been captive aboard. There appeared to be a hierarchical framework between them where the hundreds of smaller attack ships flew in and out of greater warships. These were around three to four times their size and dotted the perimeter. Other, even larger ones than those occupied an inner circumference, closest to the center. Among these, I supposed, we would find the research vessel. And in the center of the fleet was the mastership: a black craft so colossal it could eclipse an entire moon. With its multiple towers and turrets it resembled some terrible citadel, capable of razing the biggest of armies. With its many pointed peaks and razor-sharp, crystal-like edges, the mastership appeared the most menacing of them all.

  “That’s the mastership,” said Alana, pointing to it.

  “I’d heard about its size, but I had no idea it’d be that big.”

  “The statistical probability of reaching our intended target without being detected is thirty-three percent,” said Scrap.

  “Finding your sibling will be even less likely,” said Tagasi.

  “If you follow the coordinates I have given you, you should be fine,” said Alana. Then, turning to face me, in a softer tone she added, “I can’t be certain of where One may be, Seven. They may be keeping him in any number of places. But we’ll find him, okay. We won’t leave without him.”

  Alana’s words comforted me a little, though the sheer size of the mastership made it seem like we’d be searching for a specific grain of sand in a vast ocean. I nodded furtively at her and smiled.

  “You sure you both want to look for him alone? Some of Many’s clones could go with you, I’m sure he’s got some to spare.”

  Many clicked and whistled once.

  “It’ll be hard enough to find him in there,” I said. “It’d be harder if we advertised it to the entire ship by there being too many of us.”

  “Seven’s right,” said Alana. “We have to be as covert as possible in our task. You will probably run into some Morex soldiers along the way, given where you need to go.”

  Iris looked back at us and frowned before turning back round. “If you’re sure. Okay, no point rambling on. Let’s get this thing going. Ava, I’m going to bring the ship ninety degrees south of our current position. Display Morex scan periphery so I can keep us outside it. Please.”

  “Happy to oblige, Iris.”

  A green three-dimensional grid appeared around the fleet like an enormous sphere.

  “Many, tell your clone to stay put, okay?”

  Many clicked twice.

  Iris maneuvered forward around the outside of the grid at great speed. It wasn’t long before the fleet was in sight. My heart raced. One was ahead, somewhere on the mastership. I could see Simia to my right, and the attack ships that in their hundreds swarmed to and from my native planet. Amid the exhilaration I felt at realizing what I had sought to do, dread crept into my gut. Never had I seen such colossal vessels that with every passing moment appeared to increase in size. Was this a fool’s mission? Had I been too impetuous in my insistence to rescue One, my friends, and Simia? I glanced over at Alana for reassurance. She returned my look with a furtive one of her own, as if she had read my mind, and was encouraging me to be brave, that it would all work out well. A surge of endorphins spread from my chest, dispelling my fears.

  Soon, we reached the southernmost point of the grid. Iris rotated the ship ninety degrees toward the fleet. “Okay, the mastership should be dead ahead,” she said. “Many, you know what to do, right?”

  Many whistled a few times.

  “I didn’t say you’re dumb. Yeah, it is simple enough. Just try to keep your clone alive long enough for us to get on the ship, okay?”

  Many clicked twice.

  “Good. Wait for my signal.”

  “I never thought we’d meet again, much less like this,” said Alana.

  Iris didn’t respond, almost as if she hadn’t heard her. Then she said, “Do you remember how much time we spent playing on the Equinox?”

  Alana smiled to herself and raised her eyebrows. “I loved that thing; it was so much fun.”

  Iris chuckled.

  “I remember Pi and I trying to get your attention while you were playing—literally impossible.”

  “Hey, hey,” grinned Iris, pressing a series of dials on the console in front of her, “be fair: most of your conversations were about boring stuff, how else was I meant to have fun?”

  “Wow, that’s so mean,” said Alana, as Iris chuckled.

  “I don’t wish to be rude, Commander,” interjected Scrap, “but perhaps idle chatter could be saved for after we conclude our mission?”

  Iris grinned and said, “Don’t worry, Scrap, I know what I’m doing. We were just doing a little reminiscing, isn’t that right, Alana?”

  Alana’s smile seemed to span years of guilt, regret, and finally vindication and relief. As if a rush of emotions were filling her mind, she managed to say nothing more than, “Yes.”

  Iris turned and with a playful frown grinned and nodded at her before turning back round. “Many. Tell your clone to fly top speed, and weave around above the warships for as long as he can: the longer, the better.”

  Many clicked and whistled.

  “I have him on my radar. He’s entered the grid. Wow, that ship’s fast. Morex attack ships are being deployed. He’s at least… three times faster than they are. And check out those maneuvers—they can’t keep up. Good, it’ll buy us the time we need. Hope you’re all ready for this, boys and girls. Everyone know what they’re doing?”

  We all confirmed.

  “As soon as he’s made enough of a nuisance of himself, we’ll head directly for the mastership ahead at full speed. As long as we all stick to the plan, we should be fine. Warships are firing. He’s evading. The Morex are focused on him. I’m switching to stealth. It’s time.”

  CHAPTER SIXTY THREE

  “Now.” Like a torpedo slicing through water, the ship exploded up toward the mastership. All around, glowing blue orbs served as a dark reminder of the near imperceptible colossi they were housed within. As the ship drew nearer to its target, all light turned to dark under the sheer magnitude of the mastership.

  “So far so good,” said Iris. “Ava, scan for a console or something like it around the base, please.”

  “Scanning. Coordinates are on screen, Iris.”

  “Got ‘em.” Iris angled the ship toward the destination Ava had given her. A moment later we were right underneath the great vessel. “There. It’s right above us. Altering magnetic composition. Scrap, you’re on.”

  Scrap stood up, glanced at the shimmering ceiling, and lifted his hand up through it as far as his forearm. “I am attempting to access the ship’s systems, Commander.”

  “Please be as fast as you can,” said Iris. “It’s starting to not looking great for Many’s clone. Somehow the Morex are surrounding him.”

  “I have gained access. It is a very intricate system.”

  We all gazed at Scrap in silence.

  “Access
gained to security systems. I cannot initiate a ship-wide shutdown, Commander, but I can do so in a small area west of our position in the hull. It can be accessed through a disposal chute beneath it.”

  “Do it.”

  “Security system disabled. Disposal chute opening.”

  “Ava, coordinates, please.”

  “With pleasure, Iris.”

  Scrap sat back down on a box, and the ceiling stopped shimmering.

  “Okay, let’s find this chute,” said Iris, turning the ship and moving it forward at great speed. “Many. How’s your clone doing?”

  Many whistled, clicked, and whistled again.

  “Damn. Just hold on a little longer. That’s all we need. I know you can do it.”

  Many clicked.

  “Just a little further. There.” The ship stopped abruptly. “It’s right above us. Let’s go.” Iris input commands on the ship’s console, stood up and stepped into the back of the ship as the brackets that had secured Alana and me in place released us.

  “How are we going to get up there?” I asked.

  “One of the greatest things I ever got my hands on came courtesy of the Orepharians,” said Iris. “The orbs at the base, and the upgrades Ruál installed on the ship, all came from them. And it is because of them we’re going to get aboard that Morex ship right now. Ava, suction link us to the chute, please.”

  Ava sighed, and said, “With pleasure, Iris,” in a flat tone denoting boredom.

  Suddenly, the ceiling shimmered again, but this time its center rose into a conical shape that expanded outward into a cylindrical tunnel. As it did a cascade of hot, white mist drifted inside the ship, evaporating as it reached the floor.

  “Pretty cool, right?” said Iris looking up at the tunnel.

  Alana did the same. “It’s quiet,” she said.

  “A good sign,” replied Iris. “Everyone grab what you need. Ava, some steps please.” Within the tunnel wall depressions appeared, one above the other, a few inches apart. “Let’s go,” said Iris, jumping to grab the first of the depressions. She pulled herself up, and Tagasi followed. Next went Scrap. Many just crawled up with ease.

  “Seven, listen,” began Alana. “Before we go in I have to speak with you.”

  “Speak with me? What about?” I fixed my mind on the Morex ship above, and on where One could be. The research vessel I’d escaped from had been enormous, but tiny compared to the mastership.

  “Just…” Alana looked to one side, as if she were feeling uncomfortable with what she wanted to tell me. Then, with a sudden look of determination, she gazed at me. “You’ve had to be strong before, but you might now have to be at your strongest. Up there,” she nodded upward, “may not be what you expect. It may not go the way you think it will. Okay?”

  “Okay,” I answered, not understanding what she was talking about.

  Alana frowned, as if unsure whether I understood her. “Okay,” she said. “Let’s go.”

  CHAPTER SIXTY FOUR

  I followed Alana up into the dark room of the mastership.

  “Alana, where are we?” asked Iris.

  “I can’t be sure, but it looks like one of the engine rooms.”

  I looked about me, feeling dwarfed by its sheer scale. Left and right of where we stood six black metal pipes—three on each side, one above the other, and several meters in diameter—ran the length of the room, and into the rocky black wall at the far end. Between them was a tall, narrow triangular archway. Behind me the pipes were fed into two rectangular machines almost as high as the ceiling itself. Dotted all around the lower half were blinking green lights that were reflected on the cold, hard steel floor underfoot. Hot vapor hissed out from the pipes, making whatever creatures on them scurry away out of sight.

  “We need to head upstairs,” said Alana. “Many of the Morex troops will be in the hangars on their way to Simia but we still need to be cautious: there are many guards still here.”

  Iris turned her attention to a slim device on her wrist. “Judging from the map you gave me, if we’re in one of the engine rooms, then we’re quite far away from where we need to be. Plenty of opportunity to be spotted.”

  “The route I’ve mapped out should get us there with relative ease, avoiding the high patrol zones. It’s the operations room where you’ll need to be careful.”

  Tagasi grunted. “It is they who will find the resistance. They who will need to be careful.”

  “He’s right,” said Iris. “We know how to take care of ourselves. Worry more about the both of you. You’re Sphere players, but if they get you, there’s no coming back, and no amount of heal spray will help.”

  “We’ll be careful,” I said. “I won’t fight them if I don’t have to.”

  “Nice to hear from a Sphere player,” said Iris before looking back down at the device on her wrist. “This says we need to go that way.” She nodded to the triangular archway on the other side of the long room.

  “We’ll find stairs that will lead us to the upper decks,” said Alana. “This place is easy to get lost in if you don’t know where you’re going.”

  I thought back to the research ship. If I hadn’t been with her, I’d never have been able to escape.

  Many clicked and whistled as he twitched.

  “Enough chatter,” said Iris. “Many’s drone was just shot down. All security will return to normal. Let’s go get this done.” Iris turned and led the way toward the triangular archway, with us in tow. The closer we got, the wider it appeared. Halfway up either side two likenesses of a Morex had been carved from the black rock. It wasn’t of Perusak, however. I pondered whether it might be of a Morex of equal or higher status than him.

  “That’s Sef,” began Alana, nodding at one, as if she’d read my mind. “He was the leader before Perusak dethroned him. They must have missed these two when Perusak ordered they replace all statues.”

  “Why are the Morex doing all this? What do they want?” I asked.

  “They are a proud, violent race, Seven. They invade, they conquer, and when they have stripped a planet of all its resources, they move on to the next, stronger than they were before. Simia is just one more opportunity to them.”

  I stopped and looked at a statue. “I’ll get One back, then I’ll do everything I can to get the Morex out of Simia.”

  “That’s the spirit,” said Iris in a curt tone. “Now focus. You can’t help anyone if you’re dead.”

  I couldn’t help but smile as I nodded. That was the Iris I’d known, which filled me with a sudden sense of comfort I’d all but forgotten. We made our way through the short tunnel past the arch, and down a long corridor. Along the left side were two other triangular arches with similar rooms beyond them. Soon we came to a winding set of wide stairs illuminated only by the glow of small, clustered yellow orbs embedded within its walls at various heights. After a few moments we reached the top and were met with silence. Engulfed in a white mist, stacks of containers as high as towers of varying sizes stood all around with a maze of walkways separating them. The vast room reminded me of a city.

  “This is one of their many storage areas on this level,” said Iris, in a low tone. “We need to get to an exit that will lead to the upper deck. There should be a couple toward the back. There shouldn’t be any guards here, but I can’t be sure.”

  “Got it,” said Iris. “Everyone be on alert. Many, do your thing.”

  Many leapt up the side of one of the container towers and escalated it without making a sound. When he reached a spot near the top, he stopped and peered round. A few seconds later he crawled to the other side, and did the same. Soon after he made his way back down and gave a series of clicks.

  “He can’t see any guards,” said Iris. “Let’s still be cautious, just in case. Follow from up there, Many. You may still spot something.” As Many went back up, we all navigated through the many misty walkways of the cargo area. Soon I came to realize where the mist emanated from: pulsating mossy blobs attached to the sides of
containers puffed white smoke from their many orifices. They appeared to be the same I’d encountered aboard the Morex research ship. Despite them being the source of oxygen aboard, knowing how they did so, made me feel queasy. Somewhere behind me I heard a sudden series of crunches. I turned to see Tagasi eating something, three of its legs still twitching outside his mouth. As gross as the sight was, I was glad for the distraction it had provided. Tagasi raised his hand toward me, inside which was a squirming insect-like creature.

  “No, thanks,” I said, trying not to cringe. Tagasi shrugged his shoulders and threw the creature inside his own mouth.

  After what felt like an age, we crossed the maze of containers to the other side of the room. There, two smaller triangular doors stood next to each other.

  “Either one of those will take us upstairs,” said Alana. “From here on out we need to be as careful as possible.”

  “Piece of cake,” said Iris, grinning. “They won’t even realize we were here until it’s too late.”

  “There’s a chance we may give ourselves away when we open the door,” I said. “If they monitor their activation, we could be head-high in Morex soldiers.”

  “Doesn’t look like we have much of a choice, Seven,” said Iris. She hesitated then, turning to Alana, added, “Do we?”

  “No. This is the only way to gain access to the upper deck.”

  “No ventilation shafts we could slip inside of, or anything?”

  “I’m afraid not.”

  “No. Well, there it is,” said Iris. “If we’re caught, we’ll just have to deal with it like we always do. Right, Tagasi?”

  Tagasi nodded and grunted.

  “Scrap? Many?”

  “It is statistically improbable that, if we were to take on the entire mastership’s troops, we would succeed. However, it must be taken into account that in past instances we have prevailed where we should not have. So, perhaps, it would occur once again.”

  “Yes, thanks Scrap.”

  Many clicked twice.

  “Oh, that’s sweet of you to say, Many.”

  “The ramps beyond the doors will lead us up to a considerably larger area,” said Alana, “but as long as you follow the map, you’ll be fine and won’t get lost. I suggest we split up as soon as we get there. If for any reason they defeat one of our groups, at least the other could still succeed.”