Star Chaser- The Traveler

by Reiter

  “I’ll be damned!” Beta-Nexeous said, slowly standing up. He could feel the dimensional breach and he even knew to what Realm that breach led. “He’s a sweet kid my ass!”

  “Infernon!” Dungias shouted as his body started to shake. The absorption had aided him immensely, but the sheer weight of what he was doing pulled at Dungias’ mind. “Can you feel them, my friend?” Dungias asked, following along behind the Keffkyn surge to link all of the Savanté on the Ulti-Mind Network. Danatra anticipated the aims of her Vu-Prin and linked the entity at the breach with the line Dungias had made through the network. Infernon was enticed by the burning rage he felt and all of the mounting fear.

  “I feel them, Star Chaser!”

  “Then bring your fire to the feast!” Dungias shouted angrily. Danatra severed their connection with the Ulti-Mind and fell back into the powerful arms of Beta-Chiaro who managed to catch both her and Dungias. Infernon roared, infusing his Living Fire with the fury of the passing Keffkyn. The Ulti-Mind carried the lashing throughout its network literally setting minds ablaze with a fire that could not be extinguished by conventional means. Beta Arrjeeh used one of his crystals to afford his fellow Beta Forms a view of what was happening throughout the systems and ships of the Mal-Vin. Wherever there was a Savanté, there was Infernon trailing behind the rage of Keffkyn. The Beta Form discontinued the view when Infernon then started to feed and amplify the rage of the dying Savanté.

  The Star Chaser was the first to fall unconscious, but his Vi-Prin was not far behind. Beta-Chiaro was quick to tell Beta-Nexeous and Beta-Red Bear that he was sure more ships were coming. The Martial Artist and Stone Keeper were carried off by from the power of the Light Priest and landed on a Vinthur cruiser that had just arrived. As the commander of the vessel awaited instructions on where to fire his weapons, the Dragon awakened in the belly of his ship. Its fang and fire destroyed the vessel before one escape-craft could be launched. Beta-Red Bear then lifted and hurled The Dragon to the next ship, a Malgovi Carrier. Only six of its fighters actually managed to get away from the flight deck, but each was claimed by the pistol of a Soul Fighter as the Dragon took its second wave of launched fighters as he plunged into the heart of the large warship.

  Nine more ships arrived as the carrier burned. Beta-Red Bear created a colossal red energy version of himself. He grabbed two of the approaching warships and crushed one into the other. A flaming dragon burst from the hull of the carrier, tearing into the lower decks of an approaching battle cruiser. Bursts of black and white light danced all around three ships as Beta-Red Bear grasped yet another ship, quickly twisting it apart. The other three ships were allowed to retreat!

  Beta-Chiaro held one Z’Gunok in either arm, trying to ease the great pain he knew they would be feeling for some time. Nugar stood over the Light Priest and came to an understanding of what the Stars were seeking. The aged Vinthur wondered if Dungias was ever truly his student, or was the old Master Traveler simply a port in this vessel’s trek of the Stars.

  “Please let that be the last time you question yourself,” Beta-Zeu Rex said as he walked over. “You were right to say it is not up to the parent or teacher to claim that they are truly either one of those titles. All they can ever be are the one who have endeavored to parent and teach.” Pointing at the unconscious Dungias, Beta-Zeu Rex decided to pose an interesting question. “He calls you his Kwinsoah. Do you want to argue the point with him?” Nugar laughed, shook his head, and walked over to Laejem to bring the poor lad out of his stupor. He had only recently learned of these incredibly powerful creatures that had just been obliterated. He was going to need some time to himself.

  “So that’s a Star Chaser?” Beta-Zeu Rex asked, taking a moment to look at BJ who was smiling and nodding. “Definitely worth the wait!”

  A brother is a friend given by Nature.

  Jean Baptiste Legouve

  The stillness of the room was interrupted by the sound of a heavy liquid falling to a flat surface, but it was not the sort of interruption that caught much notice.

  Dungias rested in his deepest slumber with Saru, in a deep sleep all her own, on his chest. The two had only recently been transferred from the regenerators to the bed. After a brief kiss, the two had elected to go right back to sleep in the comfort of each other’s touch. Saru had not been as beleaguered as her mate, but the softness of his touch was intoxicating and alluring. It had not been long after she was sure Dungias had closed his eyes that she closed her own.

  This was not a time for kisses, though it did not seem that there would be a greater display of love as a body labored against the touch of the Final Light, the passing to another trek. Breaths were short and getting shorter. The same could be said for the strides of the failing body.

  The doors opened and Dungias entered the bright chamber, dressed in light, white robes. As the doors slid closed behind him, he closed his eyes to the aroma that danced on a light, sustained breeze. Soft and sweet was the scent, mixed in with an earthiness that only added to the overall massage of the mind this room gave him.

  “I am dreaming,” he said, looking around at all of the vegetation. The various reds, whites, golds, and greens, interrupted here and there with brown wood and purple vines, bloomed from the vines and trees planted throughout the domed chamber. “I am definitely dreaming.”

  “Well, of course you are,” her voice responded, and he knew it at once.

  “Saru?” Dungias called out.

  “Ahead and to your right, nyaka,” she directed. Dungias strode quickly to her directions and used his hand to part the hanging vines. The arrangement of the plants had created something of a cave made purely of foliage. Saru stood at a work table that was covered with vines. “You must still be falling in love with me.”

  “Admittedly, deeper and deeper,” Dungias confessed. “But what makes you say such things?”

  “You moved quickly to my call,” she smiled.

  “It is my hope that this fall is perpetual,” Dungias said, drawing closer to his mate. “Where are we?”

  “This?” Saru asked, looking around. “This is my dream haven.”

  “An arboretum?”

  “It is more than that, nyaka,” Saru said, barely containing herself. She looked up at the bright light and cleared her throat. “End Iro-Induction Cycle,” she commanded. The bright light from overhead dimmed to the point where Dungias could see that the dome was made of glass and beyond the glass he could see the Void. “It is an arboretum on our ship! You are a Traveler and you need to trek. I am a Healer, and I only need my herbs and my lab; both you build for me on your ship.”

  “And this… Iro-Induction Cycle?” Dungias questioned.

  “You made the glass of the dome so that my plants would always have light,” Saru explained. “I do not know the exact material, but it took you three star-terms to make it and adjust the emitter plating so that I could use the shields to produce enough light for my haven.”

  “You clearly have a very capable man on your hands,” Dungias joked. He chuckled only until he felt Saru’s hand on his face. She turned him to receive a kiss. Even in this dream haven her passion stirred him.

  “This much I know,” Saru said after their lips parted.

  “How is it that we can share the same dream?” Dungias inquired as he looked around. “I do not feel the workings of ThoughtWill.”

  “Must everything have an answer?” Saru smiled as she kissed his hand.

  “Everything does, nyaka,” Dungias answered.

  “Then know that I am the answer to this inquiry,” Saru said softly before passionately kissing her man.

  “You are incredible,” Dungias said before taking another look around. Saru waved her hands and the surrounding plants moved so that Dungias could see the rest of the arboretum. He laughed before taking hold of his wife. “I have a better idea!” With a slight push against the ground, they were gliding on the wind. Saru gasped as her feet left the floor and she clung tightly onto Dungias.
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br />   “When did you learn how to fly?!” she asked.

  “I did not,” he quickly replied. “But this is a dream, nyaka! Where else should we fly, if not here?”

  Looking around as they flew, Dungias glazed down on Saru’s dream haven. He could not remove the smile from his face, gazing down on all the colors and the breadth of her botanical knowledge.

  “While I would prefer to add birds, this is nothing short of magnificent,” Dungias thought as he looked at Saru.

  “What does the rest of the ship look like?” he asked.

  “I was waiting for you to tell me that,” Saru replied as she looked over the arboretum. Dungias was right, it was simply beautiful.

  ** b *** t *** o *** r **

  Even in the green-shaded view, she was beautiful! Laejem walked, or at least he tried to… his hand had not moved since his body had been slowed. It clutched at his side, but it could not prevent the passing of the green fluid that carried his life. The same substance fell from the wound on the top of his head. The blood had found its way to his eyes, but he would not wipe it away. His other hand was needed to keep hold of his Osamu and his body upright. It hurt to breathe; it hurt to move; and Laejem forced himself to do both.

  One moment, he had been celebrating, drinking with the Beta Forms when Beta-Zeu Rex looked away from the festivities. He had reached for his sword, calling for his brethren to ready themselves, but they all faded from sight before the tip of the blade could clear the scabbard.

  Nugar had been the first to react, showing why he was a Master Traveler. He had drawn his energy pistol and aimed while drawing his Osamu out of its sleeve. He had fired as a form appeared in the wake of the disappearing Beta Forms. It had been an armoured combat suit, covered with weapons and crackling with massive amounts of energy. Nugar’s shot struck the face plate just under the eye slot. The suit had quickly turned and released a volley of six photons. A swipe from Nugar’s Osamu had produced a wave of energy that struck the photons, forcing them to deliver their deadly payloads well before they reached their target. The blast had floored everyone not wearing an armoured suit. A cutting laser fired from the right side of the suit’s helm. The beam had stopped and spread wide as it struck the Osamu.

  “Scatter Pattern Three,” Nugar had called out, firing for the faceplate of the suit again. His second shot struck true and shattered the glass of the eye slot. “Get to Dungias and tell him it’s unmanned. Send!” A flash of white light had blinded Laejem and he had found himself in a long corridor where alarm lights were flashing.

  “What is that?” Laejem had said as he rose to his feet. He could hear voices speaking in a language he could not understand, but it had not sounded friendly. They had been coming from the direction he had to take to get to the Gamma Chamber.

  “Gemnur,” he had thought. “I had never seen him move like that. So fast and so precise! But will it be enough?!” Taking one half-dazed step forward, Laejem had looked ahead and he could not only hear footfalls, but he could see shadows of burly creatures approaching him. Laejem had known he had little time and even fewer options. “You taught me never to attack blindly, gemnur,” Laejem had thought as he looked in both directions. “But you also taught me to follow my instincts!”

  His hand had moved quickly to his belt and he drew his throwing spike. Laejem had taken a tight grasp of the weapon as he drew in a deep breath. Before the bodies turned on to his corridor, Laejem had thrown his spike, singing out a song of two notes: the one that would make his spike fly faster and the one which would make one end flatten. Striking the side wall, the spike had ricocheted down the corridor when Laejem changed one of his notes and his spike suddenly had two sharp ends, though only one would be necessary. He had heard the tearing of flesh and the choked cry of his target as he ran to collect his spike. Laejem had charged the wall and jumped toward it, following the path of his weapon. His jump took him out of the way of a shot made from his rear and it had traveled down the length of the corridor, eventually hitting the far wall.

  Laejem had pushed off from the wall and landed on the choking figure, a green-skinned reptilian hominoid that possessed a very impressive musculature and bone structure. Laejem ripped his spike from its neck as he had taken hold of the creature’s energy rifle. He had landed in a very low squat, ducking under the swing of a jagged blade that had cleaved a few of his longer hairs. Laejem had jumped up, driving his head into the face of the creature that had attacked. He heard teeth break and a grunt come from the creature as he had been pushed back into the third raider. Laejem had run forward, firing into the two fallen creatures and readying his spike for another throw. He fired to his back just to make it difficult for those coming up behind him to get a clean shot at him. Laejem had turned off the corridor as energy bolts just missed his dodging form. He had run into two more of the raiders, but one of them was black-skinned. He had been larger than the others Laejem had seen, and once again the young Vinthur had followed his instincts. He had thrown for another ricochet, but the black-skinned mammoth had blocked the spike on the first pass and Laejem had sung a much different note. The spike had curved in its path, scraped off the wall, and arched back to Laejem’s hand as he fired at the second raider. While catching the spike, Laejem had pulled the trigger of his weapon three times, but his weapon fired only one shot, hitting the forehead of the raider.

  The black-skinned raider had smiled as he lunged forward. Laejem had met the movement with his own dash forward before collapsing to his knees and passing under the powerful swing of his opponent. The Vinthur Warrior had slid to a stop near the downed raider and reached for the drawn gun in its hands. Laejem had gasped as his body was shoved to the right by an invisible force. A spinning blade had flown by him, claiming only clothing. The grasp for the gun had been spoiled and Laejem had fallen and rolled. He had come to a stop on one foot and one knee, looking down at his side, seeing his Osamu flaring a bright light at him.

  “My thanks, kommis,” Laejem had whispered as he drew the rod from his side.

  The raider had roared as he ran to attack. He had drawn a pair of short swords and swung down for Laejem’s head with his left hand. The Vinthur had swung upward as he stood, smacking the descending arm and driving the blades wide of their intended target. Laejem had spun with the movement and ducked low. The second blade just missed Laejem’s neck. The Vinthur Warrior had advanced, slapping the inside of his opponent’s elbow while taking hold of his wrist. As his Osamu had burned the arm, Laejem used his weapon for leverage to fold the arm and drive the short sword into the stomach of his opponent. The black-skinned creature had roared in pain one moment, in defiance the next, as he swung his other blade into Laejem’s side.

  “Stars deliver me!” Laejem had thought as he gasped, trapping the offending arm. His opponent would not die fast enough to suit Laejem, and he had released his blade to pull his arm free of Laejem’s trap. His forehead bunt had bashed against Laejem’s face and his hand took firm hold of Laejem’s neck.

  Unable to breathe and shocked to see a stabbed creature fight with such strength, Laejem had watched as the raider slowly pulled the blade from his body. He took firm hold of the weapon and lifted it above his head. Panting for air and obviously wracked with pain, the raider had roared once more as he set his eyes on Laejem’s skull.

  “Harrrrr!” Danatra had cried as her blade passed through the forearm of the raider. Again the creature had screamed as Laejem fell to the floor. It swung for her head only to be blocked, disarmed, and then beheaded. Danatra had then dropped to one knee, taking hold of Laejem who jumped as a wave of energy bolts had seemed to fade away a mere tram before reaching them.

  “Timely force field,” Laejem had said.

  “Absorption field,” Danatra had corrected. “A trick I took from my Vu-Prin, though nowhere near as clean or efficient, and right now, I could use all of the power I can get a hold of!” Laejem had smiled as he touched the Osamu to Danatra’s body. Her eyes had closed as she shuddered from
the sensation of the feed. “That was almost as good as a kiss!” Danatra had said as she lifted Laejem from the floor. She had pressed her lips to his, applying her ThoughtWill to augment the healing process. The bleeding in his wound stopped and she turned away from Laejem, feeling the sense of approaching enemies. Facing one end of the corridor, Danatra lifted her hand. Flames burst from her palm filling the corridor. She had then turned to face the other direction and her head twitched to the left violently. Laejem had heard three creatures scream in pain before falling dead, clutching at their heads.

  “I see I have much to learn of kissing,” Laejem had remarked.

  “You will not hear that from my lips,” Danatra had replied before stepping in front of him, using his Osamu to absorb another blast. This one had come from an armoured power suit. Fanfaring the rod, Laejem had returned the blast, removing the head of the suit.

  “Down!” Danatra had screamed, leaping forward to tackle Laejem. He had heard the steel song of an edged weapon cutting through the air. Laejem had landed on his back, Danatra on her side. She took a firm grasp of Laejem and propelled the two of them down the corridor telekinetically, away from the headless suit as it received a spinning bladed weapon. When they stopped, she touched her lips to Laejem’s, giving him another jolt of energy which had helped him to stand.

  “The make of Dungias’ room works against us, Laejem. I can’t reach him telepathically. I suspect he also cannot hear that we have been breached! Go and get Dungias,” she had commanded. “I will hold them off!” Laejem had decided not to argue with the female Malgovi, though he wondered if he would ever be given the chance to speak of his feelings for her.