Star Guild
Episodes 10 - 18
by
Brandon Ellis
First Edition, August 2016
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Episode 10
The Device
Shadows stretched across Starship Sirona's back as the sun descended toward the horizon. It was dusk, but here on Lumus nightfall never occurred. Wind was just as rare. So when Sleuth—small and skinny and wearing unnecessarily large wire-framed glasses—felt the vibration coming from his HDC telling him that a motion detector had been tripped a few miles away, he knew the motion was not from the wind. Their guests were arriving early.
This wasn't good.
It had been his idea to place the detectors in specific spots around the canyon in locations that were out of reach for Sirona's malfunctioning radar system. He and Admiral Diana McCoy were the only people who knew of these detectors, and for good reason.
Sleuth stood back from his desk and did a quick scan around Tech Quarters, making sure no one had seen his HDC vibrate. There were only two Techies on shift at this time, both working on software repair to help lift this big ship off the ground, so Sleuth wasn't too worried. Especially since Hank was one of the Techies, and Sleuth considered Hank one of his laziest workers. But no matter how hard they worked, there was no way Sleuth was going to allow this ship to fly. At least, not yet.
Sleuth typed in a command on his HDC, looping still shots on all vid screens connected to Sirona's outside cameras, so others couldn't see any possible outside occurrences. Then he turned off all of Sirona's alert systems, overriding backup systems as well.
He called over his shoulder. “Gentlemen!”
Hank crossed his arms. “Sleuth!”
Hank had several ways of getting under people's skin, and mimicking the tones and commands of his superior officers was one of them.
Sleuth ignored the taunt and calmly nudged his large framed glasses up the ridge of his nose. “It's quiet out there. No Drags have been detected so I'm going on a break. Give me 30 minutes.”
“Then I get my 30 minutes next,” Hank asserted.
“You've already had a half a dozen breaks, Hank. No more.”
Hank wiped his nose with his hand. “Eh! You're no help.” He went back to work, dismissing Sleuth with a wave of his hand.
Sleuth walked out of Tech Quarters and headed toward the Admiral's Quarters, hoping Diana was there. She hadn't been sleeping much lately. Instead, she'd been pacing the hallways and going over whatever game plan she and Sleuth came up with on a day-to-day basis, all of them focused on how they could survive this mess.
As Sleuth quickened his pace he unconsciously bit his fingernails, thinking how his survival depended entirely on the right timing of events—and had done since they'd arrived on this planet.
The guests’ timing was off.
∞
The Admiral's Quarters were pitch black. Outside ebb armor was drawn closed over the windows to protect the quarters and Admiral Diana McCoy from any further laser impulse fire. In fact, all the windows on Starship Sirona were protected in the same way.
The quarter's door slid open vertically, splashing light over Diana's desk, bed, and the transcendent art hanging on the walls.
Diana walked in and the door shut behind her.
She had been pacing in the hallways again, running through the thousands of thoughts streaking across her mind. It was a tiring habit but she felt some relief after her pacing and thinking.
“Lights on,” she commanded.
The room illuminated and she glanced at the panel beside the door. Pressing a few numbers there she then instructed, “Door lock and unlock on my command only.” A quiet beep confirmed her order.
She sat at her desk and carefully pulled a key out from her pocket. A glimmer of reflected light shone from it as she slid the key into a lock on the lowest desk drawer, turned it, and pulled the drawer open.
Inside was a single item—a book full of Robert Rose's art, put together by Robert Rose himself. It was Diana's most prized possession. Not because of the beauty held within it, but because of what she believed was its purpose.
She placed the book carefully on her desk and flipped the pages, stopping when she saw a painting of a gorgeous blue planet with Starbase Matrona orbiting it. Turning the page she paused, enjoying another painting of Matrona—this time, flying through a vast solar system that Diana had never seen. After several minutes of enjoying the intricate nature of the work of art she turned the pages until she came to page 54—a rendering of a vast ridge. At the base of the ridge was an erupting star, looking much like a tiny supernova.
She pressed her thumb against her teeth. How can a star explode on a planet? Is it even a star?
Experts had interpreted all of Robert’s art, where they spoke mostly of their credibility to decode the author's mind rather than what they thought the author meant by each piece. It didn't matter to Diana, because none of them saw what she had always seen. There was a pattern to Robert's work, as if he was telling everyone what had happened in the past and the possibilities of future outcomes—a history book combined with a book of prophecy.
She flipped the page, then quickly flipped back. She couldn't help it, no matter how many times she told herself that it was just a piece of art, this painting had to be Lumus and the ridge was where she and her ship were currently located.
The exploding star has to be Sirona. She scratched her chin, figuring that they may truly be on course for Robert's prediction.
She turned to the prior page. This image was baffling and had held her attention for months. It was a knight holding a sword. Her fingers lightly brushed over the knight’s face, and she murmured, “Knights Templar.” She reverently touched the sword, noting that it was imbued with a bluish tinge.
A brisk rap on her door gave her a start.
Her heart raced as a wave of adrenaline swept through her. She drew the book into her chest and then calmed herself with a slow, deep breath.
It’s just a knock, she told herself.
She quickly put the book back in her drawer and locked it. Sliding the key into her pocket, she said, “Who is it?”
“Sleuth.”
She looked at her HDC, seeing him standing just outside her door.
“Open.”
Sleuth stood anxiously at the entrance, his large glasses making him appear wide-eyed with unhappy surprise.
“Yes, Sleuth?”
“Crystal left with Daf twenty minutes ago,” Sleuth intoned, folding his hands to keep them still.
“Wrench didn't convince her to stay?” Then Diana grinned widely. “Excellent. Thank you, Sleuth.” Seeing that Sleuth still seemed agitated Diana added, “Is something wrong?”
“I'm sorry, Admiral. But it's time to go.”
Nerves shivered through her body. “They're here already?”
Sleuth rubbed the back of his neck. “Almost here.”
“Wait outside my office. I need a moment.” When the office door closed, Diana pulled the key from her pocket and bent over, unlocking the drawer again. She placed the book back on her desk and leaned over it, paging th
rough until she came to the supernova. She stared at it for several minutes, as if her gaze might will the answers to leap from the page.
Diana let out an uneasy breath, then flipped the page. A palace on the shore of a lake. Again, another place she knew nothing of, but she wondered if that would change this very evening.
Near the middle of the lake were two small islands. Both islands had tall buildings rising into the air, like spikes thrusting upward from the crust.
She put the book back in its place, locked the drawer, then patted her Admiral's uniform. She was ready to finally meet the man behind the orders and communications she'd been receiving for the past two years. Hopefully, she thought, our deal is still on.
∞
Naveya stood in Starbase Matrona's biosphere and under the shade of a tree, encircled by brush that concealed her well. Her Chihuahua, MiMi, sat patiently next to her, peering through gaps in the foliage. Her tail wagged wildly as they both observed Payson and his men moving along the perimeter of the infirmary, hiding behind boulder, brush, tree, and whatever cover they could find. They were elusive and quick, but more importantly, they were quiet and efficient with each step.
How did they escape from their infirmary? wondered Naveya.
She gestured for MiMi to stay put and silently stepped out from the bushes, making sure each footstep was soft, but also keeping an eye on Payson and his crew. They were gaining distance from her, most likely heading toward Sphere 6—Savanna Leven's stomping grounds.
Are they going after Savanna?
A twinge plucked at her heart. She had momentarily forgotten that Savanna was already dead, killed at gunpoint. For a moment she mourned the brave woman, then shook the grief away. This wasn't the time.
Payson rushed toward a small hill.
It must be Zim they are after.
Prime Director Zim Nocki would be their next target. He had turned against Lien-L, spilling the truth for all eyes to see. Naveya smirked, knowing how pissed off Lien-L must have been when he heard the news. And now another plan implemented by Lien-L was in place. The plan was to kill all humans—one way or another. If Payson was in pursuit of Zim, he wouldn’t stand a chance. Payson was an elite super soldier, as were the rest of his men, and they were just as intuitive as they were deadly. Naveya wondered what sinister plan they had in mind for killing the rest of the humans.
Naveya spun around to get some help from the Brigantia and Taranis Guards inside the infirmary, but changed her mind a moment later. Admiral Byrd, Captain Louise Stripe, and all the rest wouldn't have a chance against such elite soldiers either. She would never forgive herself if she asked them to help and it led to their death; she had to do this alone.
She patted the side of her leg, a signal for MiMi to follow her, but not too closely. MiMi leapt from the brush and sniffed, then took a couple of steps forward, stopping when she was the exact distance she needed to be from Naveya.
Good girl, thought Naveya.
Naveya sprinted to a wide tree and hid behind it, then peeked around the tree's girth to see Payson leading his men into a river.
Ducking down and crawling to a rock ten yards away, she peered over it and was wowed by how fast and effortlessly Payson and his team swam. Dripping from head to toe they climbed out of the water onto the shoreline, taking off their boots and spilling water out of them while hardly breaking their stride. Boots back on, they hurried down an embankment and out of Naveya's sight.
It didn't matter though. She knew that in about ten minutes they would reach a door that led into Sphere 6—the Sphere where Zim had been addressing the entire population over the holovid channels. She had to catch up to Payson and stop them—somehow. Naveya wasn't wearing slick, water resistant military suits like the men she was chasing so the water would slow her down. She had to bypass the river.
Knowing a bridge was about five minutes away at a quick run, she ran as fast as her legs could go, so fast that they were just a blur to the naked eye. MiMi was close behind.
Cresting over a small grassy hill and then down the other side she could hear the rush of the river growing louder, letting her know the bridge was very near. Running to the top of another small hill she was happy to see the bridge was at the bottom of it. Moving fast, Naveya crossed the bridge and looked over her shoulder to see MiMi lagging behind, her tongue hanging out as if she were smiling. There's my super dog.
“Come girl, come!” yelled Naveya, not worried who heard. In fact, she wanted to distract Payson and his team, hoping to slow them down.
“Payson!” Naveya yelled, heading down an embankment.
She screamed again, “Payson!”
Not hearing a reply or feeling a change in the energy around her, which would indicate that Payson had heard her voice, she ran along a path through a wooded area and to a clearing. Across the clearing was a door to the entrance of Sphere 6. The door was closed.
Crossing the clearing she reached into her pocket. It was empty.
Where is it?
Suddenly, she remembered and slumped to the ground. “No, no, no! How could I forget?”
Savanna's ID card was now in Chase's possession and there was no way to get through the door and out of the biosphere. She could smash a window and crawl through it, but these windows were made of ebb. The only thing that shatters ebb is a large and loud concussion blast. Naveya didn't have any explosives on her. Now what?
Looking around for anything useful she saw glass on the ground. Aha! A window had already been broken somewhere.
She scanned all the windows built into the wall. Looking up to the second floor she eyed a window frame that was clearly windowless, with glass hanging from the frame and looking rather like shark’s teeth. How could she get up there?
A sensation shivered up her spine. A warning. Someone was lurking close by and the closer the person came, the more the feeling oscillated up and down her back. Acting as if she hadn't noticed, she nonchalantly moved several paces, eying the second floor, then bolted back toward the woods she had just come from.
A laser impulse whizzed by her, singeing the grass near her feet. Diving into the wooded area Naveya ducked behind a wide tree. Another laser impulse went by, burning a thick hole in the bark of a tree next to her.
A man grunted loudly, his pained voice echoing through the clearing. Naveya slowly turned and scanned the area. She almost laughed when she saw MiMi biting the midsection of one of Payson's soldiers. MiMi must have hit the mark because the man dropped his sidearm and grabbed his crotch, falling to the ground.
Naveya rushed toward him, snatched his sidearm off the ground where he dropped it, then pinned her knee against the soldier's chest. She pointed the laser impulse weapon at his temple.
“MiMi, off!” she ordered. MiMi leaped aside, panting. Naveya kept her eyes fixed on the soldier. “You move an inch and I'll put a laser between your eyes. Got it?”
The man nodded, his eyes piercing her with a depth of hatred she hadn't seen in a long time. Whatever Lien-L's people had brainwashed this man with, they did it well. He'd kill anything just to feed the anger in his heart. If the man understood life's truth, he'd realize that anger needs to be healed by finding the root cause, and soothed, not fed with more anger and hatred, thought Naveya.
With a lightning quick movement, the man landed both hands hard against the side of her knee, causing Naveya to stumble to the ground. Naveya rolled with the fall and leapt to her feet. Turning, she saw the man wield a knife and swipe sharply at her throat. She blocked it with her weapon, then pounded a knee into his stomach. He crumpled to the ground, grabbing for a phaser strapped to his leg.
One shot into the man's forehead dropped him like a sack of potatoes. Naveya shook her head with disappointment. Although sometimes necessary, taking another life was never easy. It was always the last resort, and always only in self-defense.
She quickly frisked his pockets and found an ID card. How did he get that?
“MiMi,” said Naveya, “time fo
r us to stop Payson.”
Naveya swiped the card on the panel next to Sphere 6's door. A beep sounded and the door slid open vertically.
Naveya patted the side of her leg. “Let's go, MiMi!”
∞
“Where's Manning?” Devon asked. A Taranis Guard towered in front of him, making Devon feel like a child by comparison. The guy was huge, not Zim Nocki huge, but at least 6 inches taller than Devon with biceps thicker than Devon's head.
“I don't know.” The big guy pointed to an older man wearing a Brigantia Guard jacket. The older man had brown hair flecked with gray and a beard to match. “He might know. I saw he and Manning talking earlier.” The man he pointed to was watching Zim on the vid monitor, standing alongside many of his brothers-at-arms in the infirmary lobby. It was a strange sight. Never in Devon's wildest dreams would he think that a bunch of military men would look so wild-eyed and breathless. They were supposed to be tough—so tough that nothing got to them.
He was wrong.
Walking over to the older man Devon leaned in, saying, “Excuse me, Sir.”
The man drew back stiffly, caught off guard and obviously not accustomed to being interrupted. “What is it?” the man growled with obvious disdain. He glanced at the vid screen, then back at Devon, as if saying he was in the middle of something.
“Sorry, Sir. I'm looking for Manning.”
“What for?”
Devon really didn't know. There was something itching at him to brainstorm. This had happened to him before, especially when he had the urge to paint. He never knew what he would paint, but always figured that it was a good time when his intuition was acting up. And he always had amazing intellectual and emotional discoveries when he followed that urge. Maybe Manning at least would know where he could find a paper and pencil…?
Devon crossed his arms, feigning confidence. “I need his assistance, Sir.”
Star Guild Episodes 10 - 18 (Star Guild Saga) Page 1
