The Fire Eternal (Confederation Reborn Book 6)

by Bernard Schaffer

  "He is," Saris said, holding a shaking hand up to point at the gurney. "He has made it this far…been strong enough to endure…and I will suffer with him. Just…get us there. As quickly as you can. For me."

  Kirn looked at the Valkar, feeling utterly hopeless. He lowered his head as he walked past Dr. Kelley, avoiding his stare of disbelief, and put his finger on the intercom button. "Kirn to Engineering."

  "Go ahead, Captain," Chief Doone said.

  "I want our speed doubled. Whatever it takes."

  "But sir, we're already redlining the engines."

  "Find me more power, that's an order, do you understand, Mister Doone?"

  A pause, and then a sigh, "Aye, sir. Doone out."

  Kirn slowly approached Saris, showing him that his hands were empty and he meant no interference. The Valkar's entire body shuddered, and it was all he could do to keep his lips pressed together to keep them from emitting his screams. Above the gurney, Hunter's diagnostic readings had nearly reached the middle of the chart, looking better than they had in days. Hunter was no longer shrieking, but his arms and legs constricted in agony.

  "I can't let you do this any longer," Kirn said softly to Saris. "I can't risk losing you."

  "My touch…the connection is…diffusing…the pain. Must…keep…trying, Captain. I can endure more than any human…on this ship. I must…endure."

  Kirn kneeled down beside the gurney. He took a deep breath and said, "And so you shall. But not alone."

  With that, he clamped his hand down on Saris's shoulder and doubled over, the blood in his body suddenly turning to acid. He gritted his teeth and latched on even tighter to Saris, determined not to let go.

  "Damn you both to hell," he heard someone say from across the room. "The two of you sons of bitches and the crazy messes you drag me into. Hang on. I'm coming."

  Kirn felt Dr. Kelley's hands wrap around his arm, and the doctor cursed and spat a hundred invectives as the pain washed through Kirn and struck the doctor, full on. Sweat stung Kirn's eyes as he turned his head and saw more and more crewmembers pouring in through the door to Sickbay. A sea of uniforms swarmed them, each man and woman reaching forward and laying their hands flat against the Captain's back, and arms, and even his head. He did not care. He nodded at them to grab on to the Doctor and Saris as well.

  "Keep going!" Saris called out. "I can feel his pain draining away!"

  They piled on top of the three of them, and when they couldn't fit any more in the front, they began grabbing on to one another, forming a human chain that filed back out into the corridor. The pain reduced to a dull, aching throb and Kirn lifted his head and looked back at the engineers and botanists and nurses and other assorted members of his ship.

  "When this is over, remind me to reprimand every single one of you for having a party instead of being at your post," he said, beaming at them.

  They laughed and Kirn wiped the beads of sweat from his brow onto his sleeve as he turned back, only to see Captain Kenny Hunter sitting upright in bed, staring down at him. His eyes were wide and unblinking. "Who are you? We do not know this one," Hunter said.

  Kirn looked up at him in surprise, "It's me, Bill Kirn. Don't you remember me, Kenny? You're aboard the Endeavor. You transferred command of her to me, just a few months ago."

  Saris shook his head slightly and said, "Captain, I do not believe this is Captain Hunter we are speaking with."

  Hunter's head turned toward the Valkar, and he said, "You are the one called Saris."

  "That is correct. Was it you who spoke to me, who told me to bring Captain Hunter to you?"

  Hunter nodded stiffly. "We are the Priests of Kazar V. The one called Hunter has suffered a grievous injury, an indecency caused by one trained in our ways."

  "This is your people's fault?" Doctor Kelley snapped.

  "Doctor, please," Kirn muttered. He turned to Hunter, "Whoever you are, we have done what you asked. We've violated our own rules and oaths to come here. Now, you must cure whatever was done to Captain Hunter."

  "No," the being controlling Hunter replied. "What's been done to him cannot be undone."

  "Then what the hell did we risk our necks coming all this way for?" Kelley snapped.

  Saris interrupted, "You led me to believe that you could provide relief for this man if we came to you. That was our entire purpose."

  "The fire eternal will continue to burn throughout the one called Hunter, for the remainder of his natural life. However, the Priesthood possesses ways to affect his mind, to place him in a state of peace, from which he will never awake. He will never suffer again. That is our offer to you."

  "And what about this little monster you've created," Kelley demanded. "How do we stop him from running around the galaxy, doing this to more people?"

  Hunter's head turned toward the doctor and he said, "The traitor has been dealt with." He looked back at Saris, whose hands were still wrapped around his wrist, and said, "You may release this one now."

  Saris hesitantly let go of Hunter's wrist, and let out a deep breath of relief when the pain broke.

  Hunter folded his hands on his lap and said, "For the remainder of your journey, the Priesthood will absorb the pain of the one you call Hunter. When you arrive at Kazar V, you must shuttle him down to the planet's surface. We do not allow temporal distortions on our sacred ground."

  Hunter closed his eyes and laid back on the gurney, resting peacefully.

  Doctor Kelley groaned as he got up from his knees and said, "Would've been nice if they'd offered to do that in first place, don't you think?"

  The nebula trembled around them, filling the horizon with electrostatic bolts of lightning that rocked the small lifeboat side to side. Their forward display lit up with multiple bursts of extreme brilliance. Kirn covered his eyes and said, "Computer, adjust for exterior forces. Stabilize."

  The computer responded with nothing but static. Kirn looked at Saris, "Can you get any reading on the planet?"

  Saris frowned at the computer console and said, "No better than I could on the Endeavor, Captain. According to our readings, there is no planet in this vicinity."

  Kirn tightened his grip on the controls, trying to steer them through a sudden wave of purple and red dust clouds. "Check our heading. We don't want to get turned around in this."

  "According to my calculations, we are directly on course, as instructed by the Priest who spoke to me. I suppose there is a chance I misunderstood, or that I am simply wrong."

  "I find that highly unlikely, Mr. Saris. Maintain course." He turned in his seat to look back at the rear of the lifeboat. Walt Bryant was bent over the gurney, holding it down to keep the body of Captain Hunter steady. "What's his condition, Commander?"

  "Same as before," Bryant said. "Whoever's controlling his mind, they're still with him."

  "There, Captain," Saris announced, "Visual confirmation, directly ahead." He leaned forward in his seat and was pointing at the small, dark planet miles ahead of them on the display screen, revealed by the nebula's passing waves of dust. "Kazar V, I presume."

  Saris activated the lifeboat's scanning system, stared at the results, then recalibrated the entire system. He folded his hands and waited patiently for the computer to finish. The new findings were no better. "Interesting," he said.

  A bolt of lightning struck them directly on the nose, knocking the lifeboat momentarily off-line. Both of them rapidly keyed in the emergency controls to get the ship's computers back, and Kirn sighed when the control display blinked back on. "Please, by all means, tell me what's so interesting," Kirn grumbled.

  "According to our scans, there is no life upon the surface of Kazar V. I am detecting no plant, organism, or mineral material of any kind. Nor will there ever be."

  "How so?" Kirn said.

  Saris cocked an eyebrow at the readings, "It would appear that Kazar V is a gas giant."

  "Well," Bryant called out, "That's going to make for an interesting landing, don't you think?"

 
Saris looked at Kirn and said, "It does lend to several questions about what the Priests lead us to believe."

  "This whole thing stinks to high heaven," Bryant said. "It's a trap. It has to be. There isn't anything on that planet, we're out here in the middle of nowhere, and this whole thing is their fault."

  Saris turned in his seat, "Commander, so far the inhabitants of Kazar V have done everything they said. I see no reason for your sudden distrust."

  "Think about it, Saris. What do we really know about what they did to Hunter? For all we know, it could be some kind of biological weapon, and they can't risk Confederation finding out about it. So what do they do? They lure the evidence, this poor bastard, out in to the middle of nowhere, where they can quietly dispose of us! It makes perfect sense. We're being set up," Bryant said. "Captain, as Chief of Security, I'm advising you to turn this ship around and get us the hell out of here."

  Kirn's hands tightened around the controls, and he looked at Saris.

  "Captain," Saris said, "I believe what Commander Bryant is doing is known in your culture as wild speculation. We have no evidence that this is a subterfuge of any kind. I ask you not to give in to any irrational fears."

  "Fear is what has kept our species alive for a long, long time, Saris," Bryant snapped. "Because when you go with your worst suspicions about people, you're rarely disappointed."

  Kirn looked back at Bryant, and at the body of Captain Hunter, collecting his thoughts. The other two knew better than to interrupt him. Finally, he turned back in his seat and said, "Mr. Saris, plot a course for Kazar V. We came this far, I see no sense in turning back."

  "Aye, sir," Saris said. His fingers moved over the navigational controls, but the screen did not respond. The ship, however, did. The lifeboat corrected its course on its own, turning upwards and heading for the dark planet.

  "There you go," Kirn said, watching Kazar V expand in size before them. "Maintain speed."

  "Captain, we are not advancing under my control any longer," Saris said.

  Kirn grabbed the emergency maneuvering sidestick and toggled it back and forth, with no result. "I don't have controls either."

  Saris leaned back in his chair and folded his fingers under his chin, "Then it would appear, we have little choice but to sit back and wait."

  The lifeboat descended down through swirling black gas, picking up speed as they dropped through the planet's upper atmosphere. The gas thinned to reveal a red world below, filled with long stretches of rust-colored sand and flat-topped mountains in the distance. As the lifeboat dropped lower, they swept past several monuments erected from hardened clay, surrounded by tall statues of hooded figures of various species.

  "A gas giant, you say?" Kirn said, looking at Saris with a half-grin.

  Kirn saw the flicker of torches below, held by a group of dark, hooded figures, and the lifeboat turned in the air and began to lower toward the ground. Some of them were human, or at least humanoid, from what Kirn could tell. The hoods of their robes hung down over their faces, covering their features. Others, were not. Kirn could see various skin colors and types, some shimmering, some scaly. He noted several hands with webbed fingers holding their torches, and others with insectoid claws. None of the figures moved as the lifeboat's hydraulic thrusters hissed and the vessel's bay door slid quietly open.

  The Valkar remained impassive and said, "Apparently, our scans were incorrect."

  Walter Bryant came forward in the ship and leaned between the two pilot's seats, looking out at the planet's bleak surroundings. "Well, I don't know about the two of you, but I think I would have preferred gas."

  Gusts of dusty wind rustled through the lifeboat's open door, and the torches held by the group were flickering. The monument behind them was unadorned with any decoration. It was large, and square shaped, but had no exterior markings or windows. There was an open door at the base of the monument, and several more figures assembled there.

  "Let us deliver Captain Hunter to them," Saris said. "They do not appear to be comfortable being outside of their temple."

  As Kirn and Saris moved to take hold of the gurney, Bryant went to the gun locker above their seats and entered in his code. The door dropped down and he pulled out one assault rifle and reached for two more. Saris looked at the Captain and said, "I do not believe that it wise."

  When Kirn hesitated, Bryant rolled his eyes and said, "Come on, Bill. You can't be serious."

  Kirn looked down at the gurney and said, "Saris and I can take this. You stay here, Walt. If there's any trouble, you'll still be in a good position to deal with it."

  Bryant smirked as he slung the rifle around his shoulder and said, "Like hell, I will."

  "That was not a request, Commander," Kirn said. "Lately I find your tone to be on the verge of insubordination. You will stay on this ship and maintain a security presence while Mr. Saris and I deliver Captain Hunter, is that understood?"

  Bryant did not respond. Instead he backed out of the way and turned one of the pilot seats around to sit down in it, laying the assault rifle across his lap. Saris entered a sequence into the gurney beneath Captain Hunter's head, and it automatically rose into the air, powered by an array of tiny jets. Saris guided the gurney toward the bay door, and both he and Kirn held it steady while they maneuvered it down the walkway, onto the planet's surface.

  "Walt is a good man," Kirn called out over the harsh winds, using his hand to cover his eyes from the swirling dust. "Don't judge him too harshly. His emotions get the best of him sometimes."

  Saris nodded, "And yet, you admire his passion."

  "I do. Humans consider passion as a sign of commitment. It shows how much you care about something."

  "Interesting. Your kind are very different than mine, Captain. What you call passionate, I am afraid we would call immature."

  Kirn laughed and said, "Well, you'd probably be right as far as that goes. He's been that way ever since we were in the Academy. Loves to drink, chase women, get into fights. That's why he's a good head of security. He can relate to all the people I need him to deal with."

  Saris nodded, but his eyes were fixed on the group of men standing ahead of them. Each of them wore small blue crystals around their necks, the gems shimmering against their dark robes. Past the men, at the base of the monument, Saris saw an open door. It was dark within the building, save for the occasional glint of bright blue light that Saris realized was being caused by much larger samples of the same crystals. "Astonishing," Saris whispered.

  As they approached, one of the hooded figures standing closest to them held up his hand and said, "That is close enough."

  Kirn and Saris stopped, but the gurney continued moving without them, floating across the red clay toward the group. They moved aside as it passed them, filling in beside it to guide Captain Hunter into the monument. The Priest nearest them said, "Now you must return to your ship and never speak of this place. We have made an exception to our oldest rule to allow your presence, and we will never do so again."

  "Our superiors will know we came this far," Kirn said into the howling wind. "They will do everything they can to determine why. I have no way of altering the ship's navigational records."

  The Priest reached up and touched the blue stone around his neck, stroking it with his fingers softly for a moment before he spoke. "It seems the atmospheric interference from the storm you encountered has prevented your ship from processing its surroundings. In fact, once you exit the Demilitarized Zone, I am sure you will find that they reveal you never entered it at all."

  The hooded figure turned away from them and started down the path to the monument, following the rest of his brethren inside, and then closing the door. The winds continued to rise, pelting their faces with sand and small, stinging rocks. Kirn ducked his head and ran for the lifeboat, eager to get inside.

  Walt Bryant was standing by the bay door, rifle in hand, watching them run. "Come on," he shouted, barely able to see them. "The storms rising. We have to go!" H
e stuck his hand out to grab the Captain and hoist him inside, then offered it to Saris, pulling him up as well. Both men hurried for the pilot's chairs and quickly began entering in the launch commands.

  "I can't believe that worked," Bryant laughed. "I take it all back, Mr. Saris. You were right, and I apologize."

  "It is understandable," Saris said. He looked at Kirn and nodded slightly, "You were simply showing your commitment to your crew."

  The lifeboat's thrusters fired, and they rose steadily into the air, gathering speed until they were high enough to spin away from the monument and race higher than the swirling dust. "It gets better," Kirn said over his shoulder. "They are able to obscure our navigational computers and hide our location. If what that Priest said is true, Confederation will never even know we were out here. We might just make it out of this with our careers intact."

  "A fact, of which, I am sure the crewmembers of the Endeavor will be extremely gratified," Saris said.

  "I'm sure they will be, right, Captain?" Bryant said, patting Captain Kirn on the shoulder. "All except one"

  FIFTY YEARS LATER

  2.

  Mission Log, William Kirn - ICSS Endeavor

  0700 Hours

  The Endeavor is en route to the Demilitarized Zone for an emergency rescue operation. The Korgon Empire is on the warpath, and Confederation Command has authorized the use of any and all means necessary to teach those savages a definitive lesson.

  I've instructed Lieutenant Uthando to broadcast a message on all channels.

  Tell them I'm coming, Lieutenant.

  And I'm bringing all of hell with me.

  He chuckled slightly at the sound of the last part and said, "If I'd ever said that, they'd have really thought I was crazy." The dog raised its paw and pressed it against his chest, testing to see if he was awake. Kirn stayed very still, keeping his eyes closed. Birds sung in melodic unison from the branches outside, and sunlight streamed through the shutters of his windows, bathing his bedroom in soft golden hues.