He smiled as he thought about it.
It was quite convenient that his son had used his money to finance a small army, well, convenient for him anyway.
If this failed, the patriarch would get involved, and that meant the Council.
He would face a considerable amount of shame himself over the events that he had concealed. Protect the family name, then yourself, actual family members be damned.
The important thing was that the other great families not see weakness,
for they would pounce upon your house and tear it apart.
That brought a smile to his face yet again.
He had personally advanced the family’s holdings through this method at least a dozen times.
This would not happen to his own,
not on his watch.
For if the Patriarch saw weakness, he would have him killed before the other families could move in against him.
Druzenz’s personal communicator started beeping.
There was only one reason why;
the Patriarch had found out something and was sniffing for more.
He took a deep breath, and answered,
“Hello father. What can I do for you today?”
He heard the raspy breathing on the other end. Sometimes he dreamed about the old man dying. That would solve so many problems in his life, but of course, that would be too easy.
He would probably live 100 more cycles,
still sounding like he was on the brink of death the Patriarch replied.
“Hello son, I have heard some concerning rumors regarding you and your house,”
his father snidely oozed over the phone causing Druzenz to wrinkle what passed for a nose at it.
He never liked the way the man spoke; it always sounded vile, or maybe that is just how Druzenz heard it.
His father had to have some good political skills to keep the seat and to further the family goals on the council,
but damned if he could see it, he thought,
waiting for his father to continue.
That damn breathing sounded so labored.
Why can’t he just die, Druzenz thought again.
He considered how easy his life would be if the man would just fulfill his son’s wish.
“What rumors have you heard, Father? I assure you they are quite probably the furthest thing from the truth,”
Druzenz said putting false concern into his voice. Damn if he was going to let the old man take this over.
“Rumors about a box and a ship, my son. If I find out that they are true, then there could be…repercussions to our house, and that would greatly sadden me,”
said the Patriarch with mock concern in his voice.
Druzenz closed his eyes and counted down from ten.
When he was sure that he had his anger under control, he spoke into the communicator.
“I don’t know what you have heard, father, but I assure you, should any such rumors be true, we would have the situation under control and not need the intercession of anyone higher up.
We would be taking every precaution to ensure that said object was returned and that no mark would be put upon the family for its loss,”
he said, adding a hint of a smile to enforce how unconcerned he was on the subject.
There was quiet, and he could hear the old man’s heavy breathing as he weighed what he was going to say next.
“Good, my son, because there are other parties, important parties, who have an interest in this as well. These are not people you want to disappoint. They would make the wrath of the council look like the whining of a whelp. Do I make myself clear, my son?”
Druzenz found the use of “other parties” to be interesting.
He had not heard of this and would have to consider it further,
but the meaning was clear:
Clean up the mess, or I will. If I must, then heads will roll, and one of the first ones will be yours.
He knew the message well, as he had given it to his own children several times.
But, aside from the possibility of having to kill Craylor,
he hadn’t had to execute any of them in some time. It was always good to set an example occasionally. It kept the others on their toes.
“Yes, father, I understand,”
he said and clicked the communicator off.
He picked up the authorization for Selcarm, added another zero to it, and placed a call.
When Selcarm picked up, Druzenz didn’t even give him time to talk.
“Just listen. I have given you enough credits to find out where they are, and I don’t care if you must throw an army at them.
Get me that ship, that box, and any bodies of the captain or crew that are left.
Anyone who knows of this is to be silenced.
This cannot get out!
If it does,
it will be your head that adorns my mantle.
Is this clear?”
Selcarm stayed silent for a beat then spoke as softly as always,
“Yes, sir. I already have a lead. This will be done.” Druzenz disconnected and tapped the communicator against his lips thoughtfully.
If all were well, he would have the box and the ship soon without anyone,
including his son, finding out.
Then, he would get to the bottom of this mystery. With that on his mind,
he placed a call to a few information brokers he knew to put the word out that there were
“other parties” involved in Council business, and from the sound of it, they were in a position of power.
He wanted everything they could get on them and would pay handsomely.
As he walked the corridor of his stately home, Druzenz reflected on the pictures of past patriarchs of the family.
He knew one day his picture would adorn that wall. He would not give his father the excuse to terminate him over something as foolish as this.
CHAPTER
SIXTEEN
SIXTEEN
Enlightenment
Xera sat in the transit lobby while she waited on another passenger liner.
She had a fist full of tickets to catalog her transfers from one-liner to another since her departure from the temple. Shifting slightly on the hard bench,
she stared at her console while the animated face of Craylor laid out the reward for the Nismel and her captain.
This had been the eighth time she had seen this message pop up in a local planet net.
How many have seen this and how many are actively looking? She wondered.
Craylor had covered the system with this message very thoroughly, and now there was no place where the ship could hide.
As soon as they entered a populated system, someone would make a call,
or worse yet, try to take the ship by force.
Xera yawned and rubbed at her eyes.
She was exhausted and hadn’t slept for more than a couple of hours since she’d started this trip.
Xera noticed a message from an unknown sender on her data-pad.
She clicked on the alert, and a small message stated, ‘Nismel beacon online. Coordinates show originating location.’
The message was followed by astrogation coordinates.
Xera stared at it for a few moments.
If the message had come from the temple,
it wouldn’t have been marked unknown.
The more Xera thought about it, the more questions swirled around in her mind.
After a moment, she shook her head and set to work. Closing the message in frustration,
Xera focused on the star charts she had saved on her data-pad.
She mapped a point from approximately where the unknown quadrant would be, based on the coordinates she had just received.
Then, tracing lines to various systems trying to figure out where the ship would go once it entered Empire space.
She had to get to them before someone else did! The Nismel’s new crew had no idea what was waiting f
or them.
I hope the box can adequately prepare them for what they are about to encounter, she thought.
Xera had some ideas, but nothing concrete.
She needed more information,
and she needed a hacker to get it for her.
She needed to see Kree.
The beacon had been activated so they would need to shut it down. The Empire could not find the ship and learn the real purpose of the box, for if they did, all was lost.
The Empire would expand over the entirety of known space and beyond, enslaving planets and draining resources along the way.
They would be unstoppable. Xera traced another route from the ship’s originating location to the station where Kree made his home.
It was a good place, but not a straight line.
Would the crew know where to go, or would the box guide them to hide first?
She needed to communicate with the ship,
but the tachyon communicator was shut off.
She was sure this was on purpose,
for if the beacon were active,
it would send out the signal to those looking for the Nismel and the box she was bonded to.
Xera had not been told everything,
but she knew enough to frighten her.
She feared for her brothers and sisters of the temple and the galaxy at large.
She studied the known system, a few binary stars, and some habitable systems,
and began searching for anomalies.
She narrowed her eyes as she read the information on the network and zoomed in.
Of course, she thought
looking at a massive black hole,
If I needed a place to hide where a signal could be distorted, it would be there.
Xera marked the system on her map and began pushing out from there. She started highlighting systems known for black market operations. Wouldn’t you know it,
smack dab in the middle was the station Kree called home. If they ended up there,
they would be looking for someone like Kree,
and if they didn’t, then Kree would know who to talk to.
She reached into her pack and touched the Calibri staff, the other item that The Ancients had trusted to the members of the temple.
It was half as long as her forearm and covered in runes. She wasn’t sure what it did, but apparently, it was important.
For every box, there was a correlating staff, and all were counted, cataloged, and kept.
This was the staff that was paired with the box aboard the Nismel.
She had been given it in case the box had some need of it. As she held the staff, she thought she could feel some of the power that flowed through it, and it calmed her thoughts.
If they were going to shut off the beacon, their best bet was Drazari.
The problem was as soon as they entered the system, and someone scanned their ship, the Empire would be notified.
Drazari was not known for its hospitality.
It was a black-market station, hosting the likes of slavers, mercenaries, and all sorts of scum from distant parts of the galaxy.
If one of them smelled a payday,
the ship would be in danger.
Flipping her arm over Xera hit the communications function on her data-pad.
After a moment, the communicator synced with the satellite, then piggybacked onto the tachyon network.
After a few rings, a small furry creature answered. “What?” it said sleepily.
“Kree, its Xera. Are you alone?” she asked in a whisper.
The furry creature rubbed its eyes.
“Oh. Hey, beautiful. No need to worry, baby, you know you’re the only one for me,” he responded with a lopsided grin.
Xera rolled her eyes.
“Kree, I need to know if you have been receiving the message that went out last night, the one from the Empire.”
Kree shot her a confused look.
“You mean the one from that Craylor dick? About the mega reward? Yeah, me and everyone else on the damn station,” he said.
“What’s up?” The small furry alien asked, now interested with the thought of money.
“Guess who might show up at your door,” she looked around to make sure no one else had heard. Kree blinked a few times, and then it dawned on him.
“Oh shit, no way! This is not good, Xera. They’ll be slaughtered if they show up here. We’ve had mercenary groups coming in with every freaking transport!” he exclaimed.
“Kree I need you to scan incoming traffic.”
She requested attempting to rub away the headache that was stabbing her between the eyes.
“If they get to you before I do, then I need you to warn them. I am on my way and should be there in a week. This is a paid job, Kree. You’ll get a handsome fee if you assist. The Empire cannot get their hands on that ship!” Xera said emphatically
“Alright Xera,” he said,
“but only because it’s you. I have a bad feeling about this though… a terrible feeling.” Kree answered, the worry evident on his face.
“Thank you, Kree. I didn’t have anyone else to turn to.” Xera said gently to the little creature.
Kree’s furry body puffed up with pride.
“No problem. You know you can always count on me, gorgeous.”
He winked and ended the communication.
Xera shut off the datapad's communicator function, brought up the passenger liner app,
and bought a non-stop ticket to Drazari.
She closed the app and rested her head in her hands.
If Craylor was going through this much trouble and expense to put out the message,
he was sure to have dozens of mercenaries dedicated to looking for the ship,
not to mention anyone else wanting to cash in on the reward.
If they showed up,
Drazari would turn into a war zone.
Xera felt overwhelmed.
She prayed that the crew could take care of themselves or this was going to be the shortest rescue in history.
While she waited for her transport, she tried to rest but kept having visions of the possible death and destruction that awaited her.
She didn’t get much sleep.
CHAPTER
SEVENTEEN
SEVENTEEN
The Plan
A few days later,
the Nismel slipped back into real space with a flash of energy.
Its sensors began to populate the data on the system.
Shira sat in the pilot’s chair,
watching as the data started to draw a picture of the system on her view screen, illuminating the planets, asteroids, and anything else it could reach out and see.
“Not a damn thing,” she said,
visibly relaxing. She punched in a set of coordinates Morgan had given her and set the Nismel to fly them there.
When they were ready, this would take them to their exit point out of this system and to the staging area for the freighters.
She wasn’t sure why they had to leave in a different area; apparently, it had something to with space lanes or gravity.
She made a mental note to ask Morgan later.
She stood up and stretched, raising her head to look at the bridge screen.
Eyes wide, she almost fell over as her legs buckled beneath her.
A stellar class black hole with clouds reaching out at least half of the size of the system in length filled most of the view-screen.
Not clouds, she thought,
space dust and debris.
She watched as the debris seemed to slowly swirl as if they were being pulled by invisible tendrils of gravity snaking out to eat up everything in this system as it moved circularly towards the center. As it got closer to that massive monstrosity,
the debris seemed to condense with a ghostly glow before disappearing into the giant black maw of darkness.
Shira slumped into the pilot’s chair,
giving in t
o her body’s need to sit.
She could not tear her eyes away from the screen.
Never in her life had she seen such an impressive sight!
Part of her mind irrationally worried about being pulled through the screen into the black hole,
and she found herself gripping the edge of the console tightly.
Closing her eyes and forcing herself to relax,
she breathed deeply and then opened them again. Without turning away,
she flipped the com switch.
“Umm, you guys might want to come up to the bridge and see this,” she said.
“Shira, what you are seeing is the accretion disk,” said Morgan.
“It’s the debris that gets caught into the gravitational force of the black hole, then makes its way to the center like a tidal pool. If you notice, the dark center is the effect of the immense gravitational forces bending light to give the appearance of a solid object.”
“It’s amazing,” Shira whispered.
She still could not wrap her mind around what she was seeing.
She understood the basics of what a black hole was, at least in theory, and now she was the first human to lay eyes on one.
Davi and Blake entered the bridge at the same time. Blake looked like he had been on a bender the night before, and Davi was still pulling on his shirt.
Both stopped in the doorway and stared at the screen.
Blake grabbed the edge of the doorway as his legs began to go weak.
Davi, still holding his shirt,
used it to throw up in.
He looked apologetically at Shira,
but then his eyes drifted to the screen again,
and he continued to evacuate what was left of his breakfast into his shirt.
Blake’s face was a slightly tinged shade of green, yet he maintained a look of complete awe.
If it weren’t for the incredible view on the screen, their reactions would have been hysterical. “Morgan, can you shut the screen off?”
Shira asked.
The main view screen immediately dimmed and shut off.
It took the guys a few moments to recover, then Davi left the bridge to get a new shirt.
“That was fucking incredible!” Blake said.
The awe was evident in his voice,
but he was now at least able to stand without hanging onto anything.
“I know. It blew my mind when I looked up at the screen,” said Shira.
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