by Michael Kan
The door, however, would not open. Instead, it blew apart, the shards exploding from the entrance. The two guards, hit by the impact, fell to the ground, debris dropping over their bodies.
Julian crawled back in fear.
The lights in the room had gone dim, an emergency siren having gone off. “Security threat warning. All personnel evacuate section B,” a voice said over the comm.
In the gloom, Julian could see a shadow walking through the destroyed entrance. The steps were light, the figure moving past the downed guards on the floor.
He feared that the Ouryans had attacked. That the station had been infiltrated. Looking for a weapon, Julian realized he was defenseless. His life at the whim of whatever approached.
“Who’s there?” he yelled, with nothing else to say or do.
What emerged was a lone woman, the remaining light glowing across her silver armor.
“Are you hurt?” she said, unfazed.
Shaking his head, Julian looked at her incredulously.
“Arendi?” he asked. “What the hell?”
She came closer, her black bangs nearly covering the whites of her eyes. Kneeling down in front of him, she then held out her metallic hand.
“Come, we’re leaving here now.”
Chapter 40
Upon leaving the brig, Julian saw the entirety of the destruction Arendi had unleashed
A crowd of attack droids was spread across the floor. All had been destroyed, either physically crushed or split in half. A massacre it was, the smell of chemical fire in the air.
“Did you do this?”
Arendi said nothing, her attention devoted to escape. Unblemished she was, not a hint of damage or soot on her polished mechanical gear.
“We have to move,” she finally said. “Follow me.”
They then walked alone through the vacant hallways, the emergency alarm and the windowed view of space their only company.
Arendi led the way, her back turned against Julian, as he trailed behind.
“The nearest hanger bay is only 500 meters away from our present position,” she explained, her unwavering gaze fixated on the long passage to their destination.
“But there’s bound to be resistance,” he said. “We can’t just go in there.”
“Leave that to me,” she said.
“But we’re unarmed, and—“
“Trust me.”
He could tell she was not interested in talk, the tone in her voice detached and indifferent to his concerns. Julian, however, had to speak.
“I’m sorry for what happened,” he said. “I thought we were safe here. But I was wrong. I never thought this would happen.”
She continued to walk on, seemingly unconcerned.
“The Ouryans, they intercepted the communications, and knew we were coming,” he continued. “They told SpaceCore they’d destroy this station if they didn’t have you. They felt they had no choice.”
Still, she remained silent.
“Are you even listening to me?”
Again, he was ignored, the distance between them growing.
“Why did you even save me?” he shouted.
Arendi then stopped.
Walking toward her, Julian assumed she would respond. But slowly from behind, she could see that her body was shaking. She clenched her chest, and fell to the ground on one knee.
He ran toward her, kneeling down by her side. In her face, Julian could see the pain; it was flush with anguish.
“Are you injured?”
She bit her lip, shaking her head with shut eyes.
“What happened?”
“It’s none of your concern. We just have to keep moving.”
Although she was an android, Arendi began to breathe, one long exhale after another, clearly fatigued.
Moving close to her side, he put her heavy arm around his shoulders, and raised her from the floor. Together, they walked, Julian trying to keep her steady.
He looked at her again, the long black hair covering one side of her face. Even he could sense that she had been damaged somehow, the sight of her pain hidden, but felt.
In front of them, he could see the transparent door at the end of the hallway. It was firmly clamped into the floor, no doubt by their captors, trying to contain their position.
“How are we going to break through?” he asked.
She pushed away from him, her face masked behind the cowl of her long and tangled hair. Trying to stand by herself, Arendi then fell to the floor once more, clenching her hands.
“Stay away,” she yelled.
“But you’re hurt.”
“Just stay away,” she pleaded. “Please.”
Arendi closed her eyes again, trying to suppress the growing wound. Clenching her chest, she tried to bear it, wanting to somehow tame the energies that burned within.
Desperately, Arendi wished she was elsewhere. Away from this carnage, and the futility that seemed to be everywhere. To find that respite that could stave off this misery.
But as she opened her eyes, all she could see was a blinding light. Julian yelled.
“Stay down!” he shouted.
Along the hallway’s long glass window, the intense light came, flooding into the hallway. Julian huddled next to her, one of his arms wrapping around her back.
“It has to be a ship,” he said. “But what the hell is it doing?”
The light continued to move within the hallway, its intensity waxing and waning. It was some kind of scan, the beam wanting to focus in on its target.
“We have to get out of here,” Julian said.
Yet as he stepped away from her, and toward the shut door ahead, Julian could feel the tremor in the floor. Next to him, the glass window started to crack, lines now weaving in and out of its surface.
The attack had begun. The hull breach emptying out the hallway.
It came within only a second’s time, the cold hand of space reaching in. Air and structure were both uprooted, the entryway around them crumbling piece by piece.
Julian tried to grab a hold of something, but already he had left the ground, washed away in the torrent of escaping air. Beside him, he could see the broken remains of the hallway wall spinning into nothingness, his body subsumed in the void of the stars.
Looking back, Julian could see the outer hull of the station, the roof of the hallway gone and exposed to space. There was no turning back from this, he thought. He would die soon, the oxygen wanting to burst from his lungs.
But as quickly as Julian was pulled away into space, a new force had arrived to take him back. He did not feel it, but could see his body rapidly returning to the station hallway from where he once came. Space had receded, and the manmade structure had come to. Down below, he saw Arendi standing on what remained of the floor, completely unaffected by the vacuum.
He called out to her as he landed, but said nothing, the air in the vicinity gone. Arendi raised a hand in front of him, the palm open, the fingers stretched.
In that moment, the mysterious force reappeared, pulling him from the exposed floor and pushing him into the sealed off entryway at the hallway’s end. Unable to control his movements, Julian realized he was about to crash into the door’s surface. Strangely, there was no impact, and no sensation of pain. Somehow, he had reemerged on the other side of the doorway, fresh air and warmth at his side.
Julian turned behind him, and saw that the door was still closed, its transparent glass completely intact. Peering through it, he could see Arendi on the other end, kneeling on the ground, as open space loomed behind her.
He shouted her name, banging a fist on the door’s surface. But Julian realized it was utterly pointless, his own life saved by powers he had yet to fathom.
Witnessing this was the attacker in their midst. Rising next to the open hallway was a ship, just as Julian had guessed. What rose was something of foreign design, its giant maw now bearing down upon Arendi.
“The Ouryan,” Julian said, recognizing the shi
p’s structure. “He wanted to suck her out into space.”
He looked at Arendi, her frail frame kneeling on the ground. Without warning, red targeting lasers appeared all over her face and gear.
“Get out of there!” he yelled. “Get up!”
But Arendi did not move. Hovering ever closer, the Ouryan vessel prepared to fire.
The tractor beam struck in a flash, immersing the exposed hallway in a stream of energized particles. At its center was Arendi, her body now awash in blue light.
Julian could see the debris around her begin to rise, all the matter in its path lifted by the radiating energies. Shards of metal, and broken glass gravitated forward, falling into the belly of the Ouryan vessel.
The intensity of the beam climbed, the station’s floor and surrounding bulkhead beginning to buckle. Wider, the cavity of the Ouryan ship opened, yearning to consume its target.
Arendi remained unaffected. Even as the tractor beam reached its apex. Not even the bangs of her hair were pulled by its energies. She seemed entirely resistant to its effects, as she lay crouched against the enemy ship. Staring ever closer, Julian could see why. Only inches away from her body lay the semblance of a barrier, the invisible shield pushing back against the Ouryan and its power.
Secure in her own position, Arendi finally rose to her feet.
Ahead of her, she stared down the Ouryan vessel, the blue light enclosing her vision. Switching lenses, Arendi performed a scan, the enemy ship so large it covered her entire field of view. She then realized she had no other choice — the fallout expected to be immense, but perhaps it could still be contained.
The barrier at her fore swelled in scope, becoming more than just a shield, but an expanding wall. It spawned from space itself, encompassing the whole of the hallway, and then more, growing to the point it reached out and surrounded all of what made the Ouryan ship. Very soon, the entire vessel found itself imprisoned by the invisible barrier. But then, it was no more, the goliath structure bursting into energy.
Julian could not comprehend the sight. The explosion was so bright, he had to look away, closing his eyes amid the burning light. But as he came to, he heard the thud next to his side, the sound of metal spilling onto the floor.
“Arendi,” he said. Miraculously, she had appeared, her body having passed through the sealed door. As the light died down, Julian looked out into space. He searched, but saw no sign of the Ouryan vessel, only a fading glow where it once had ominously hovered.
“What did you do?” he asked, trying to pull Arendi from the floor. “What happened?”
Arendi, biting her lip, quietly moaned.
“Crushed,” she said. “I crushed it.”
Chapter 41
Facing the long hallway, Julian staggered along, the weight of Arendi nearly dragging on the floor. In each step, metallic mass hugged against his body, his back and legs aching under the stress.
“You’re really heavy for a girl, you know that?” he said, holding her arm over his shoulder.
The only reply Arendi gave was her breath, each exhale desperate. Julian could feel the air against his neck, the agony almost infectious.
“It’s my power core…,” she said, her words barely a whisper. “The reason why my body is malfunctioning.”
“Is it damaged?” he asked, sweat on his hands and face.
“It’s becoming unstable. My systems are trying to force a shutdown. But I couldn’t let that happen. Not now…”
“Your power source. Is that the reason? Why you were able to do those things?”
He replayed the scenes in his mind; a tractor beam deflected, bodies passing through solid doors, an entire ship destroyed with what seemed like a thought.
“Yes,” she said. “It’s the same power behind the Endervars…The ability to control space.”
She sighed, her head slumping down in exhaustion.
“But I can only maintain it for so long… at the cost of damaging my own systems…”
“Are you okay? We can stop if—”
“Just keep going. Please…”
He looked ahead, and he could see a series of doors at the end of the hallway. Holo-signage showed the main hangers bay to be down this route. What then? How far could they go before security forces intercepted them?
He glanced at Arendi, her body teetering on what seemed to be like death.
“Just hang in there. We can make it.”
It was a lie. But that was all he had.
“I had to…I had to…” she murmured.
“Stay with me Arendi,” he intoned. “We’re coming up at the next door.”
“I had to,” she repeated, now louder. “I had to. I had to!”
The words came stammering out, her voice locked in a computerized fit. Over and over she said it, as if a loop had taken over her systems.
Holding her armored body in his arms, Julian shook her.
“Look at me,” he said. “Focus!”
Mechanically, her body began to twitch, her hands opening and closing, Arendi’s neck stuttering up and down.
“We’re almost there. Stay with me.”
“Do you remember…Do you remember….” she said, the words an echo. “Do you remember…”
“Remember what? Tell me.”
More and more, her arms began to shake, a complete shutdown taking hold.
“You asked me…You asked me…You asked me…”
Clutching her tighter, Julian begged her to stop.
“Please, Arendi. Don’t do this.”
But it was in vain. Her voice turned into a high-pitched whine, an electronic scream spinning out, the words a complete chaos.
What was left of Arendi then pushed him violently away, her body now possessed.
“WHYYYY,” the machine bellowed. “WHYYYYYY.”
She was dying, the errors mounting, the shutdown calcifying. Faster and faster her body spun, control totally lost.
“WHYYYY,” she screeched, her hands now like claws quivering in the air. “WHYYYYYY.”
Helpless, Julian closed his eyes, wishing that it would just end. If only he could save her somehow.
The screeching continued, gibberish and computerized echoes bursting from Arendi’s crazed voice. She flailed her arms, and stumbled back and forth, the control giving way to mayhem.
“WHYYYYYYYYYY,” she bellowed ever louder. “WHHHHHYYYYYYY!!”
Finally, it stopped.
Opening his eyes, Julian saw that Arendi stood still and limp. The screaming had ended and gone were the errors claiming her body. She looked at him now, her face covered in hair, but composed. Even serene.
“Arendi, are you there?” he asked.
But the woman could not hear anymore. This was just a final courtesy, the last message her systems would leave.
“Do you remember?” she asked, in a sad eyed-grin. “You asked me, ‘Why did I save you?’”
Before Julian could answer, Arendi finished her thought.
“I was lucky to have you met you. But it’s over for me. Save yourself Julian. Just save yourself.”
With a twitch in her glance, she sealed her eyes, the shutdown final. Her body fell to the floor in a thud, the machine that she was losing power.
Julian ran to her, kneeling down at her side. Calling her name, he brushed back the hair over her face.
“Arendi, don’t do this,” he said, holding her gloved hands. “We’re so close.”
The intelligence within remained cold to his pleas. He tried pulling her up, all of his strength wanting to drag her body forward. Yet only inches did he move her, the weight so heavy it felt anchored to the ground.
Letting her go, Julian cursed. He slumped on the floor next to her, his drained face falling into his hands. What would he do now?
Just meters away, the doors at the hallway’s end opened, the large gates cranking up from the floor. A rumble of footsteps came marching forth.
The soldiers, encased in battle armor, quickly surrounded them. I
n their hands carried machine rifles, and disrupter canons, all aiming directly at Arendi’s downed body.
Behind them, a man walked forward, dressed in the customary officer’s uniform. Julian saw his face, noticing the cuts on his cheeks and lips.
“Julian Nverson,” Colonel Righton said in a sneer. “Why did you have to disobey orders?”
***
The guard shoved Julian to floor, grabbing his arms behind his back, and snapping the handcuffs at his wrists.
“Been watching you on surveillance for quite some time now,” Righton said, as the guard fastened the cuffs. “Looks like we came at the right moment.”
Behind the colonel, Julian spotted Arendi, her body down and motionless on the floor. At her side were two armored officers, each one holding scanning equipment in their hands.
“But I didn’t think that damn Ouryan would go ballistic,” Righton said, standing above him. “Nearly took out this whole section.”
The colonel reached for Julian, pulling him from the floor and onto his knees.
“As for you, well damn,” he said. “You’re bound to face a court martial. Mind-wipe, exile, or death, none of those choices are particularly good.”
The colonel sighed, folding his arms at his chest. Julian, however, couldn’t care less about his own fate.
“Her body’s damaged,” he muttered. “It’s serious—“
“Yeah, and I’m glad for it. That little android went on a rampage,” Righton said pointing to his face. “Ripped me right out of the observation deck with her powers.”
“What will happen to her?”
“Well, the Ouryan ship is gone, but I’m sure another will come soon. Maybe a whole fleet this time, just to make sure they can secure her.”
“Goddammit, Righton. Don’t let them take her.”
“You know I can’t do that.”
The two armored officers then finished their scan. “Confirmed, her systems are down,” one of them said.
