“If one of our targets is not dead by this time tomorrow,” Veloshira replied.
“Relax we’ll get this done,” Jazz reassured. “I don’t know what’s up with this sudden change of mood in you.”
“My family is being taken care of by the empire,” Veloshira said as she spun her chair around toward Jazz. “If we fail, what do you think will happen to them? With our high standing?”
“Y’lin wouldn’t have your family killed for us failing.”
“She’s had people killed for much less.” Veloshira returned toward the control console and her fingers reached out to interact with it. “Never take risks with a ruler who lost her mate and son to war.”
Jazz said nothing more out of fear that an argument was going to erupt; he was certainly ready for one. But, with Destiny and Eupiar here, better to swallow one’s own pride and walk away. Everyone needed to trust one another in the next few hours, Destiny and Eupiar suspecting that Veloshira fully well intended to kill them all if they failed was a good way to make them walk away from this entirely.
Jazz moved away from Veloshira, and proceed to walk toward his quarters. Nothing was going on that needed his attention, and he sure as hell couldn’t remember the last time he got a full night’s rest. He was two steps away from the sliding doors when Eupiar shouted. “Guys…you’re going to want to see this.”
Can you just tell me from there? he thought and backtracked into the cockpit.
Both Destiny and Eupiar were huddled around the holographic screen of her laptop, there were multiple windows open, each one with pictures, diagrams, and UNE reports by the looks of it. “What’s up? You hacked in already?” Jazz asked.
“No, but…” Eupiar had waved toward Jazz, triggering a small hologram to manifest in front of him; it was a projection of Hannah in handcuffs. “Hannah, she’s alive and being held by the EISS.”
He looked at the blue projection of Hannah being escorted off a transport ship by armed UNE soldiers into some building in the distance. The sight brought back memories of the invasion, when all he wanted to do was escape Earth with her and Alisha. “I failed to save her during the invasion,” he said. “I ain’t gonna do that again. We need to get her out of there.”
“The EISS main HQ is in Geneva, the capital of the UNE,” Destiny said.
“And quite possibly where the president is,” Jazz concluded. An idea began to take shape in his mind.
“No, she’s been away, according to these news reports,” Eupiar said.
Hitting the president was one thing, saving Hannah at the same time? Once the Silver Raven took off, their window for action would begin to close. No matter what happened, they would have to leave Earth after tonight and return to the empire, as the entire UNE fleet would be on the lookout for them. “Then let’s find a way to make her come back,” Jazz said. “We can’t hit two targets once we’re in the air; gotta make this one big strike. All or nothin’.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Eupiar said and returned to her laptop, still resting in the lounge.
“All we need is bait placed in Geneva for the president to take,” Jazz said. And then an escape route for our twenty-one-year trip back to the empire.
… … …
►► ESV John F. Kennedy, Asteroid Belt
► Sol System
The glow of the ESV John F. Kennedy’s engines dimmed as it came to a full stop within the asteroid belt to complete its search-and-rescue operations. Hammer’s escape pod was recovered first and then later Hijinks’s damaged fighter, as Orbital was given clearance to dock minutes later.
Inside, the three were reunited, and then they shared a long sigh of relief, while the flight deck crew of the John F. Kennedy assessed the damage done to Hijinks’s fighter among the comfort of zero-g.
“Don’t look all so grim,” Orbital said. “My singing couldn’t have been that bad.”
“I’ll be content if I never hear country music ever again,” Hijinks said with a laugh. “Correction, country music sung off key.”
Orbital rolled his eyes while Hammer offered him a pat on his shoulders shortly before being escorted out and up toward the habitat ring for a medical examination and rest. The layout of the interior of the ship was almost identical to that of the Winston Churchill. Only a few minor cosmetic differences really, outside of performance since the Winston Churchill was newer. The biggest difference, however, was the inclusion of a Radiance chapel in the habitat ring, as some members of the human crew had converted to the Radiance religion and requested a place for them to worship the three gods.
It was an odd sight for the three as they walked past it, though not an uncommon one in certain communities on Earth and Mars. Radiance missionaries spent a considerately amount of time trying to convent humans to the teachings of their gods.
“Freedom of religion at work,” Hijinks said to the two when they were out of hearing range of the rest of the John F. Kennedy’s crew.
“Ironic, considering there is no such freedoms within Radiance; you worship their gods or get exiled,” Hammer said.
“Unless you’re part of the order,” added Orbital. “Then you just butt fuck anyone who doesn’t follow you.”
… … …
►► Location unknown
► Sol System
Kasidey remained standing from where she had been knocked down in the warehouse, thanks to Michei’s betrayal. She looked and scanned with her eyes the newly acquired information populating the screen of her data pad. A hacked dossier listing various Whisper agents loaded a listing of their assessments, last known location, and partners, hacked during her time with Ken. Michei’s profile came up, and with that, Kasidey’s eyebrow cocked.
“Looks like I was right,” Kasidey said to Fiesei. “Michei was a double agent.”
“Well that is rather…unexpected,” Fiesei said adjusting his fedora and stepping toward her.
“He’s going to expose us,” she said.
“No, he won’t; he is one man with no proof with a soldier who’s been relieved of command.” He looked at the pad in her hands and pointed toward the bottom of the screen. “And…scroll down more.” Her finger slid across the sides of the touch screen and stopped when he said, “Yes, him.”
It was a dossier of a Rabuabin man, much older than Michei. “A partner?”
“I’m certain of it; look at how many times they’ve been on the same assignments,” Fiesei said. “Have your associates find him and kill him. Michei is on the run and will continue to be as long as the EISS and UNE still trust Deep Throat and his tips. If we dispose of Michei now—”
“His partner will go into hiding.”
“And alert the Whisper agents who are still loyal to the union when he comes out of it,” Fiesei concluded and then began walking away from her. “Computer, end simulation.”
The holographic warehouse vanished and unveiled their true location. A ship of unknown origin, even to Fiesei. The walls were smooth and white, while the floor was a shiny and clean, jet black, so shiny their reflections shot back. Both Kasidey and Whigli followed behind Fiesei down an eerie but decently lit corridor shaped like a triangle.
Chapter 26
►► Crimson Arrow, Jupiter Orbit
► Sol System
A pocket of space several thousand kilometers above the North Pole of Jupiter began to distort. The fabric of space and time was bent, causing a rift to form, a wormhole that led toward Paryo flashed with bright white light as it opened. The task used very little of Noylarlie psionic mind at all, as she piloted the Crimson Arrow toward it. All she did was imagine a wormhole leading to Paryo in her head, and then it formed within seconds.
She could see Paryo off in the distance through the wormhole—the white gleaming snow coverage globe—it had been a while. And if it weren’t for those human battleships to unexpectedly leave, the Crimson Arrow would still be floating in the sea of clouds within Jupiter. Both Parcisei and Danyal were pulled out of cryo sometime later
and strapped into their seats. Noylarlie wanted them to witness her newfound power, the red gem that floated next to her chest emitting random bursts of light with each passing second.
She caught Parcisei looking at the gem while constantly reaching into his pockets, searching for something that clearly wasn’t there. As she recalled, he was given an object that looked quite similar to this. Leave it to him to lose something valuable. She shrugged as it wasn’t her problem.
The Crimson Arrow propelled toward the wormhole at sublight speeds, during which Noylarlie’s mind scanned the space around her. One second they were in the human system, the next, they were in the Hashmedai system. Behind the Crimson Arrow, was the wormhole they had just traversed. Noylarlie could still sense the gravitational pull of Jupiter bleeding through the wormhole as well as sunlight from the star that Earth orbited.
The exterior temperature of the Crimson Arrow was slightly off, as it was being heating by the red dwarf star that Paryo orbited, while faint traces of heat from the human star beamed through the rift of the wormhole. There were now two sources of heat in the system because of this, which brought up another matter she didn’t consider. How does one close the wormhole? She tried to visualize the wormhole evaporating, but nothing happened. She couldn’t move it, either, or resize it. It was there and quite possibly could be their forever. Not good if humans decide to use it; they could launch a full-scale invasion of Paryo with ease.
One thing at a time, she thought to herself and then opened up a communication to the imperial palace when the Crimson Arrow was in range. “I am Archmage Noylarlie, returning with a gift for the empress.”
“Archmage, we did not detect your ship enter the system,” the operator responded.
“I’m full of surprises today,” she said “Now how much longer are you going to make me wait to see the empress?”
“I’m clearing you to land at this location.”
Data was then transmitted to the Crimson Arrow, listing the docking bay within the imperial palace she was given clearance to land at. She began to focus as her psionic mind and piloted the ship toward equator of the icy planet ahead. She was surprised to see the amount of space traffic in orbit and the construction of a second space bridge before they entered the atmosphere. There were no clouds to great their arrival while the Crimson Arrow sank toward the city and its towers arching up toward the cosmos.
As they neared, she took notice of some heavy damage done to the top of the center-most tower of the palace. There were burn marks from a fires and plasma as well as shattered windows in certain sections. A battle had taken place here, no questions asked.
… … …
►► Imperial Palace, Paryo
► Uemaesce System
Noylarlie instructed Parcisei to stay in the rear sections of the Crimson Arrow as they docked. Bring an Aryile to Paryo, let alone the imperial palace, was a good way to get an instant execution for the both of them. She hoped Danyal’s presence wouldn’t trigger such rash reactions; he was half-human, a race the empire wasn’t too fond of, according to the knowledge network.
She heard a few guards comment on Danyal while they stepped into the elevator, none of the comments were promising. She snorted as the doors slid shut, those guards will be signing a different song if Danyal becomes the emperor. Danyal said a few things in the human language during their ride up to the top, she shrugged. It was one of the few things she was able to communicate to him. She’ll have to get him some language learning devices; he’s going to have to learn how to speak their language if he’s to rule over them after all.
The elevator doors reopened once they arrived at their destination, Y’lin’s throne room. Noylarlie grinned as they stepped out, not much has changed about the layout, though Y’lin has clearly aged, her eyes now were now yellow, her skin starting to show slight signs of aging.
“Noylarlie, it has been ages,” Y’lin said, arising off her immaculate throne. “Where have you been this whole time?”
Noylarlie and Danyal walked closer to Y’lin across the bridge hovering over the small icy lake underneath it. “It’s a long story, Your Majesty.”
“Yes, what gift have you brought to me?”
Noylarlie’s hand waved toward Danyal. “This man,” she said.
Y’lin grimaced and she stepped closer to the hybrid who was Danyal. A quick head-to-toe look caused Y’lin to ask Noylarlie with fury, “Have you gone mad?”
“I don’t understand.”
“He is…human,” Y’lin interjected.
“Half-human, half-Hashmedai,” Noylarlie explained. “Your son, Akeia, fathered a child when he was on Earth. This is he.”
“This thing?” Y’lin pointed at Danyal while keeping her glance squarely focused on Noylarlie. “Is my grandchild?”
“Yes, I know it’s going to be different for a—”
“Get it out of here!” Y’lin shouted and hissed her fangs toward the two. Noylarlie hissed back, louder than she did.
“He is of imperial blood! And the line of succession to the throne isn’t looking impressive right now.”
“How dare you question me! Never speak of this moment again! Never speak of my son’s name ever again!”
“Don’t be stupid, if you and Kroshka were to die right now, he is all that will be left of your family’s line!” Noylarlie’s finger was aimed straight at Y’lin’s face with little to no regard of the consequences.
Another hiss came from Y’lin while her hand knock away Noylarlie’s finger. “I cannot believe the words you speak!”
“I can’t believe you’re being this fucking stupid, I brought you a gift, your first and only grandchild, the only thing that remains of Akeia. These are uncertain times and from what I heard from the guards on my way up, both you and Kroshka were nearly killed not long ago. I have a backup plan to save the empire, and you want to argue with me!”
“It was humans who took his life, opposed their punishment for their actions, allied themselves with Radiance, and then later came after me and my daughter!” Noylarlie was impressed that a woman her age was still able to raise her voice this loud. “Leave this palace with this…thing and never return. You are stripped of your title of Archmage.”
Kill her, burn her body to ashes right now! Were the only thoughts that raced through Noylarlie’s head. All that work within the psionic facility led to this? Stripped of her title and insulted.
“Leave! Or I will collect your head just I did with your mother.”
Reluctantly, she stepped away and bid her farewell with a one final hiss, Y’lin returned the gesture. Noylarlie could have killed her, and the guards who would have attacked her afterward, and then entire military. But eventually, she’ll be overwhelmed and her mother’s wishes will remain unfilled. It wasn’t worth it.
She lost count of how many times thoughts like this crossed her mind over the last few weeks.
… … …
►► Crimson Arrow, Paryo Orbit
► Uemaesce System
The Crimson Arrow returned to orbit around Paryo, relatively quickly as Y’lin ordered it to be destroyed if they did not comply and leave the palace at once. Inside Noylarlie unleashed a psychotic rampage that had both Danyal and Parcisei flee away from. Containers, eating utensils, Parcisei’s data pad, and spare parts were all tossed about in the weightless environment with her rage-fueled psionic mind.
Sparks began to fly out in every direction as she began to rip apart the walls with her thoughts. Metal bulkheads twisting and folding like a piece of paper being crumpled up by an invisible hand. “Whoa, whoa, you keep this up and you’ll blow us all into space!” Parcisei pleaded.
“Shut up!”
“There’s a way out of this,” he said while his reptilian eyes stared at the damage being done to the walls. “Join the Celestial Order. They’ll accept you and uh this guy here too.” He pointed to Danyal, who watched on from the cockpit in horror. “Give it a shot. According to one of my contacts, Fahia ar
rived here on Paryo not long ago.”
“Your contacts?” Her psionic activity stopped instantly at his statement. “When did you contact anyone?”
“While you were gone.” He ducked his floating body, narrowly avoiding the remains of a pipe that was telekinetically launched toward his face. It hit the side of the wall and spun aimlessly as it bounced off. “It was a secured channel!” Parcisei began to search for his data pad, one of the random objects tossed around during her rampage. She saw his hands tremble while he interacted with the cracked touch screen and badly damaged interface. “She’s located in an underground temple here,” he pointed toward what appeared to be a market place on the edge of the capital city. “We all can teleport in, with all the teleporting going on within the city I doubt anyone will notice us or care to look into it.”
… … …
►► Ancient Temple, Paryo
► Uemaesce System
Bright-blue light sent hordes of dedicated Hashmedai Celestial Order worshipers scattering away, unknowing if the people teleporting in were friend or foe. Out from the light emerged Noylarlie, Parcisei, and Danyal. The three looked around the darkened stone made chambers before pushing their way down the halls led by Parcisei. Noylarlie debated what her next move would be; offering Danyal to the empress didn’t work out as expected. Telling these people they’re worshipping the wrong deity no doubt was going to yield the same or similar results. Mother needs to be more specific next time she sends her on a journey such as this.
“Fahia! We have some guests,” a worshiper said, running into a small room.
“Send them in,” Fahia’s voice said from the room.
The worshiper returned, and led the three in. Fahia sat at a desk, with candles providing a minimal amount of lightning, causing her eyes along with everyone else sans Parcisei to glow their respective colors. There was a young couple wearing robes in the corner sitting, by the looks they were talking with Fahia before Noylarlie and her group’s unexpected arrival.
Uprising of the Exiled (Splintered Galaxy Book 2) Page 38
