Star Guild Episodes 10 - 18 (Star Guild Saga)

by Brandon Ellis

  “And me?” asked Daf.

  “Yes,” said Shan. “We are going to try negotiations first. If they don't agree to let you out of this cell on their own accord and without retribution, then we will be forced to free you in a less civilized way.”

  “Thun,” murmured Crystal, “if you can convince your father that I will teach you all to fly, will he let us out?”

  “We have just finished our tunnel to Lumus II. We are directly under the capital building where their headquarters are located.”

  Crystal stared at Thun, waiting for an explanation. When there was no more said, she sheathed her sword. “Is that something that will get us out of jail?”

  “It can,” remarked Thun. “Our first wave will commence in two days. If I can convince my father that you two will fight with us, then he may let you go.”

  “And if he doesn't agree?” asked Crystal.

  “Then, I don't know. You're of the bloodline, so I don't imagine he will keep you here forever.” Thun shrugged. “Maybe a couple years?”

  “Guild, no!” cried Daf, wanting to charge through the bars.

  Crystal grabbed her swords hilt and tightened her grip. “You know, I could easily slash through these bars.”

  Thun opened his mouth to speak, then closed it. Instead of speaking he gestured for her to try.

  “Now?” mouthed Crystal. Oh well, here we go. She took a step back and with both hands, unsheathed Soul's Eye and gave one ferocious whack. Shan lurched back, but Thun held his ground, not budging.

  Crystal's fingers stung from the vibration of the strike and she dropped Soul's Eye, hearing the steel shaft of the sword clamber against the ground. She hopped up and down, shaking her hands. The bars, however, didn't break. She picked up her sword and held it up, examining the blade. To her surprise, there wasn't even a scratch.

  Thun was proud. “We are very good at what we do. That isn't just ebb that you're looking at.” He pointed to the bars. “It's melted ebb and diamond, dried together to last a lifetime and to withstand just about anything. I wasn't sure if Soul's Eye could penetrate it, but now that I know for certain, I'm even more admiring of my race's creation.”

  Shan bowed to Thun. “Do you have the team formed and ready?”

  Thun awkwardly bowed in return. “I do.”

  “A team?” asked Crystal.

  “If my father doesn't allow you to leave here, then we will let you out on our own and escort you to Starship Tranquil.”

  “Who are we?” questioned Daf.

  “I've asked Thun to gather a crew for Starship Tranquil and to do so in secret.” He put his hands together, nodding at Crystal. “The starship will be under your command, of course.”

  “Then why didn't you just say that in the beginning?” said Daf.

  “I strayed off course,” replied Shan. “My intention was to let you know sooner.”

  “So, they really wouldn't keep us in here for several years or cut off our legs?” asked Daf.

  “Maybe.” Thun thought for several seconds. “Yeah, they probably would, but which one I don't know.”

  Shan placed a foot on Thun's and leaned all of his weight on the Dwarf's foot.

  “Owww,” cried Thun, pushing Shan's leg aside. “Okay, okay. My father won't cut your legs off. He might keep you here for as long as he can though.”

  “But if they choose to listen to Thun and me, then we will have you out of here very soon. If they don't, then we will get you out and onto Starship Tranquil, where you will meet your crew and help attack Lumus II,” added Shan.

  Oh, Guild, Crystal thought. “Alright. Now we attack Lumus II?”

  “Yes, and blow it smithereens,” said Thun.

  “Then what?” asked Crystal.

  “Then all of our troubles are over and we can get back to Gaia.”

  Shan grinned. “Troubles don't cease. They are part of life. You can let trouble slide off you—or stick—depending on your perception of your defined trouble.”

  Thun grunted, then tilted his head as if he thought through Shan's statement and agreed with him. Then he shook his head. “Nope. We fight.” He kicked one of the bars on the cell and ambled off.

  Shan bowed. “These Dwarves can be moody. Still, I will get you two out of here.”

  “Thank you, Shan,” replied Crystal. “I know you will.”

  Shan followed after Thun.

  Daf turned to Crystal. “So, we are going to blow some stuff up?”

  “Guild, I hope not.” She brought her eyes to the floor. “The Dwarves don't understand destruction and terror like we do and I don't want to see it anymore. However, there is no ship that I have ever been on that is anything like Starship Tranquil. I'd love to take him out on a spin again.”

  “Why do you keep calling it him?”

  Crystal looked vacantly past the bars that imprisoned her, remembering the voice. “He sounds like a young, healthy man when he talks to me. That's why.”

  ∞

  Eden yawned and stretched her arms wide. It was morning and she was cramped in her bed, but comfortable. The clock on the wall next to the door read 11:26 AM.

  Flipping the covers off, she jumped out of bed.

  “I'm late.”

  She dashed to her closet only to find it empty.

  “Where are my clothes?”

  Glancing down she realized she had slept in her Star Guild uniform.

  Why am I still wearing my clothes? And, this isn't my usual quarters. Where am I?

  She paused, looking around the small sleeping quarters, then put her palm against her head, swiping her hair back and holding it.

  She wasn't late for anything. All that she had known in her previous life, no more than two weeks ago, had changed in a blink of an eye. The attack, her imminent death as she plunged her starfighter head on into a photon torpedo, and then waking up on Aurora where she met the Knights Templars and Thomas Berard. Now, she was on Starship Sirona without any protocols to obey or schedules to meet.

  Eden felt rested and ready to go.

  She went to a dainty sink and took a swig of water straight out of the tap, then splashed her face with the cool water. She hurried out of her room and down an empty hallway that was lined with numbered doors as far as the eye could see. These were the sleeping quarters and there were a lot of them, something she was familiar with from living on Starship Brigantia for so many years.

  Where do I go?

  Starship Sirona was laid out differently from Starship Brigantia: she didn't know where she was half the time and, unlike Brigantia, there weren't any signs that pointed to the bridge or to the launch bay or to the cafeteria, or to any other place for that matter. Starships are like small cities, and no matter how long you've lived on one, you need those signs to find your way around.

  She put her hands in her pocket and wandered down the hall, feeling the dragon crystal in her pocket. She patted it like a pet.

  Her thoughts suddenly went to Thomas and her stomach filled with nerves. He had somehow captured her heart and he didn't even know it. She had never been in love and wondered if this feeling was what others felt when their heart found another’s. She thought about him all the time, and about that tingly feeling inside she felt when he was near her. Falling in love wasn't something she was looking for in life; her life was always work and no play, yet love somehow had drifted to her and caught her by surprise.

  Love. She touched her heart, caressing it, letting out a breathy moan.

  Rounding a corner she came to a massive intersection of hallways. It was congested with people going this way and that, and there was a long line of people that snaked out of the cafeteria. Eden stepped around several people and saw the cafeteria door slightly open as it rested on the hip of someone waiting in line. She confidently pulled open the door, saying, “Excuse me.”

  The cafeteria was noisy with rows and rows of tables full of people scraping utensils against plates brimming with food. Conversations weren't like they usually were back o
n Brigantia; the voices were soft and anxious. Eden stopped scanning the room when she came upon a man sitting at a table and staring at her. He was no doubt a Techie, a large, overweight Techie. His belly hung out of his shirt when he lifted his meaty arm and waved her over. She nodded to him and walked over.

  He grabbed a sandwich from his plate and bit into it, saying, “What's your name?”

  “I'm Eden of Starship Brigantia, Starfighter Division. Didn't I see you outside the Admiral's Quarters earlier?”

  He practically dropped his sandwich, his face stone cold. Should she have not said Admiral's Quarters?

  “Eden?” He shook his head, gargling a laugh, accidentally spitting out a few pieces of bread. “No, seriously. You're of the Knights Templar with all of those furry aliens, right? And, yeah, I think we saw each other at the Admiral's Quarters.” He looked her up and down with a lustful eye.

  “I am with Knights Templar now, but I used to be with Brigantia. Admiral Byrd was my admiral. Louise Stripe was my captain.” She became somber for a moment. “Well,” she continued, “I was with Starship Brigantia, but I don't think they made it.” Hoping for some good news, she looked at him optimistically, but the overweight man was shaking his head.

  “Nope. I don't think they made it either.” He picked up his plate and shoveled sloppy corn into his mouth. “I'm Hank. And I know you're not Eden, so stop pulling my leg...gorgeous.”

  This guy must get slapped a lot, thought Eden. Ignoring his comment, she pointed to her chest, smiling. “I'm Eden. Why is that so hard to believe?”

  “Duh,” he said. “I saw Eden die on the vid screens. I saw it over and over again. We all did.” He gestured to all the Techies at his table who were wide-eyed and wondering what Hank was blathering about now. “Eden sacrificed her starfighter and her life to save hundreds of thousands of us.”

  “I did, but I didn't. Long story.” She eyed his plate, noting the massive amount of food piled on it. She looked at the rest of the tables and saw the same thing: excessive quantities of food on the plates.

  She frowned. “I gotta go.”

  She started to move away but Hank gently grabbed her elbow, silently mouthing, “I need your help.” If it weren't for the seriousness in his eyes emitting an urgent need, she would have thought he was making a terrible pass at her.

  “We all do.” A man sitting next to him turned and extended his hand. “I'm Jerrod.”

  Eden grabbed the handsome man's hand and shook it vigorously. “I'm Eden, and I'm sorry, but I have to go.”

  She moved away and headed toward the exit, but on second thought she twirled around and found herself tapping Hank's shoulder. “You're a Techie?”

  “Yeah, and Jerrod's a doctor.”

  “I need your help,” said Eden.

  Hank pushed his heavy frame up by planting both hands on the bench seat and pressing up to a standing position. That alone seemed to make him sweat. “Jerrod and I need to talk to you, too.”

  Jerrod almost shook his head, but nodded. “Alright, Hank. I'm ready. We can talk to her now.”

  Eden frowned again. What's up with these guys?

  She gestured for them to follow her. “Let's talk on our way to Tech Quarters.”

  They exited the cafeteria and Hank huffed and puffed as they made their way down a long corridor.

  “We need to know where you're getting your food,” Eden said bluntly.

  “What do you mean?” strained Hank. “We get them from the cooks who get them from kitchen and supplies.”

  “Unless you refueled with extra food reserves the day of the attack, you should have been out of food a week ago.”

  “We are on rations,” responded Jerrod, doing his best to keep up with Eden.

  “Stop!” yelled Hank, leaning over with his hands on his knees, panting. “It's right here. You walked right by it.” Hank pushed open the doors and disappeared into Tech Quarters.

  Entering Tech Quarters Eden saw Hank collapsed in a chair in front of an HDC. He had his head in his hands trying to catch his breath.

  “Oh, I see. So, today wasn't a ration day?” questioned Eden.

  “What you saw today were our normal rations,” said Jerrod.

  Eden's mouth dropped in disbelief. “Then we definitely need to know where your food is coming from. Because if those are your rations, then —”

  Hank yanked her hand and putting a finger to his lips, motioned for her to be quiet. He coughed and said something under his breath while pointing to a corner of the room, where Sleuth was working diligently on an HDC.

  “Oh,” whispered Eden, moving in closer to Hank, and sitting in the chair next to him.

  “Keep your voice down to this level and he won't hear you,” Hank advised.

  Jerrod stood between Sleuth and Eden, to block Sleuth’s view.

  Eden touched the HDC. “Pull up storables and supplies.” She turned to Hank and Jerrod, whispering, “Someone is supplying you with food outside of Starship Sirona and I want to know who.”

  “We also get food from the Warehouse next to this starship,” stated Jerrod.

  “You don't get that kind of food from a Warehouse, and if you did, you wouldn't have that much of it. Warehouses, when all Mech Pilots and crewmen and officers are there, hold maybe a hundred people or slightly more per warehouse. A week’s worth of food from a warehouse would last a half a day, if that, on a starship with thousands of personnel.”

  Jerrod nodded his head toward Sleuth. “He'd probably know.”

  “Good. I'll go ask him,” Eden responded.

  Hank lunged forward, snagging her pant leg, then letting go when he saw her face. “I'm sorry, but we don't trust him.” He touched the HDC and the screen changed. “We want to show you what we found.”

  Eden's eyes narrowed, doing her best to see what was on the HDC screen. “What do you have?”

  “A vid loop. And we know who placed it.” He nodded in Sleuth's direction. “Don't look.”

  Eden instead viewed the vid screen, which showed the terrain outside the craft. “Is the loop going on now?”

  “No, it goes on in the evening, more around bedtime. I saw it the other day.” Hank crossed his arms and leaned on his armrest. “I have night shift and I like to hack into Sleuth's HDC through my HDC when he goes on breaks. I was doing it so he could eventually find out. I like pissing him off.” Hank pressed a few holographic buttons on his HDC. “But I have changed my mind and in a hurry. I don't want him to know that I was hacking him.”

  Jerrod crossed his arms, doing his best to use his body as an audio buffer and whispering, “We think he's working for the other side.”

  “The enemy?” Eden wasn't as surprised as she looked, but in order to keep with Thomas Berard's orders, she needed to act shocked. Thomas didn't want anyone to know what they saw the other night, and now she was positive that the little man on top of Sirona who was helping the woman down the hatch was Sleuth.

  Hank pressed more holographic buttons, bringing up a vid recording. “Yeah, the enemy. Why else would he secure a loop? What's his angle?” On the vid, he pointed to a long grass blowing in the breeze—a rare breeze. It was one of the few grasses on all of planet Lumus. “He didn't even loop in a vid. He looped in a picture.” A second later, the grass became still, not budging an ounce, though it was leaning to the side. “It's not bent much and to the naked eye it doesn't look bent at all. But, you see here?” He used his finger to trace the stem. “It starts to bend right near the top and stays there. Nothing else moves around it. It's just a still pic.”

  “Are you sure? There's rarely wind on Lumus,” muttered Eden.

  “I'm positive.” Hank, pulled up a readout of the vid. “1:08 AM. Two nights ago.” He touched a holographic line of data below the time and date. “Keyed in by username: Flydog.”

  Eden's mouth glowered, not knowing who this Flydog could be. “Is that Sleuth's other name or something?”

  “No,” replied Hank. “It's his old gamer's name. We wer
e gamers together. In fact, we were in the same alliance for the popular game, Starship —” He stopped, knowing the name of the game wouldn't make a difference. “Never mind that. I'm the only one who knows his old game username—Flydog. His real name is Ted Bays, but we all call him Sleuth, which is also his Tech Quarters user name. He must have made a dummy account, using his authorization as head Tech to create the username Flydog, which would be the only way he could create a second account without actually having a new Techie present with him.”

  Jerrod tapped Hank's shoulder. “Show her the other vid.”

  Hank looked at Eden. “The most important vid. But here, pay close attention.” Hank typed in several strings of code and a vid of something popped up on Hank's HDC screen, then blipped off.

  “Uh...what was that?” asked Eden.

  “I'm going to pause it right where I need to.” Hank again typed in a string of code, but this time a little different. “Watch.” He turned on the vid, and just like taking a snapshot, the vid paused.

  Eden leaned forward and closer to the screen. “What am I looking at?”

  “It's a little blurry and fuzzy but I took this from Sleuth's HDC when I hacked it. He was a little sloppy and out of all that he erased and covered up, he fucked up on this one and this is a very important shot. Look.” Hank outlined an image on his screen. “That's a human face and that's a ship. But, when I do this...” he pressed on a few buttons and the still vid abruptly brightened and more things on the screen became apparent, “you see who that is and where she is standing?”

  Eden nodded, knowing this was the same scene she had watched a few days earlier when she and Thomas were observing from the ridge. “That's clearly Admiral Diana McCoy on the roof of Sirona, but who's that big guy with her?”

  “The bad guys, I think. We call them the Drags,” answered Hank.

  Jerrod leaned in. “So, that's why we need your help.”

  “What am I supposed to do?” asked Eden.

  Jerrod and Hank looked at each other knowingly and then Hank spoke. “We want you and your furry friends to arrest Sleuth and the admiral.”

  ∞