Star Guild Episodes 10 - 18 (Star Guild Saga)

by Brandon Ellis

  “How do you know all of this? I —”

  Brigger raised his hand for her to stop. “This cycle on Starbase Matrona has ended—and successfully, I might add. These humans are free from the shackles that bound them. Now, I must leave to help other humans across the Universe that your race has enslaved. Before I go, I must advise you to let the humans harness their incredible abilities and let them wake up in their own time. They are of the bloodline that will carry the real Star Guild and the Knights Templar across the galaxies. Starship Tranquil, Starship Swift, and Starship Ascension must never be in the hands of the Nankuani again, not even in the hands of Kien. The humans are to operate and navigate across the stars and seed the Universe, and teach their ways, because it is their way, their incredible positive emotions, that will pave a way to a bright, new existence. You will teach them, on board and off board their ships, that when humans are given freedom, the rest of the Universe shines. Although, it is rare in their history that they have ever been truly free, thanks to the Nankuani and other self serving Beings.”

  “Are you human?”

  “I'm of Divine nature and guidance.”

  “Aren't we all?” asked Shanraing.

  “Of Divine nature, yes. Of Divine guidance, no...because many don’t listen but to their own minds, to their own ego. True guidance comes from the heart, and the heart never steers wrong.” He bowed. “May I go, Ma'am?”

  “Yes.”

  He nodded. “Good luck to you always and in all ways.”

  “Thank you.”

  He put his hands together, like a prayer, then turned and faded, completely disappearing before her very eyes.

  Shanraing gasped with surprise and rushed to Zim's doorway. She peered down the long hallway, expecting to see Brigger there as he exited the Capital Building. He wasn't there. The door didn't jingle, indicating he had left. He had simply vanished.

  “Who in Star Guild is that guy?”

  ∞

  Lien-L sat at his desk, listening intently to the audio and video playing on his HDC, then paused it. He glanced at his assistant and rose from his seat, all 9 feet of him. “I've got to get some sleep,” he said, rubbing his eyes. He pointed at his HDC, raising his brow at his assistant. “What do you think?”

  “Admiral McCoy is a traitor. That's what I think.” The large assistant, about the same height and girth as Lien-L, looked up with slight trepidation, hoping he hadn't said anything wrong.

  “No,” replied Lien-L, “that's what you know from what we've just seen and what you've just heard. She won't go along with our plan. So, what do you think?”

  “Is the weapon ready?”

  Lien-L grinned. “That's what I was hoping you'd think.”

  “Can we use it soon?”

  Lien-L sat down again, elbows on his desk and leaning forward. He scratched his chin, glaring at his assistant. “Get the weapon on wheels. We move it in position by evening to target Starship Sirona. I want to watch how this thing works.”

  “Yes, Sir. That gives us two hours and twelve minutes. The problem —”

  Lien-L put his hand up. “The only problem is that it hasn't been tested. This will be the test. Get it as close to the starship as possible, but out of blaster range. Just in case.”

  “So, their sensor's won't pick it up?”

  Lien-L waved his hand in the air. “Sleuth has patched a loop into their system. He claims that it is hack-proof and, if they do find out about the weapon, it will be too late.”

  The assistant bowed and turned to walk out of the room.

  “And,” added Lien-L, “prepare for a fight. The Dwarves are on their way.”

  ∞

  Nyx patted her holstered weapon. “I'd be happy to be the one.” She winked at Eden.

  Thomas placed his hand on Nyx's, and without a word, Nyx relaxed.

  “No. I'll be the one,” said Thomas.

  Nyx sighed. “Oh, alright.” Her head swiveled from side to side as she tried to get her bearings. “There are so many damn hallways on this ship, how do we even get to her quarters?”

  Jantu nodded in agreement with her question. His blue fur was incandescent, or so it seemed to Eden, changing from light blue to indigo to turquoise, depending on the angle.

  My fur causes light waves to combine with one another in a way that the crests and troughs line up to reinforce each other, increasing the vibrancy of the reflected color. A phenomenon known as ‘constructive interference’.

  Eden gave him an odd look. “I've...never heard of that.”

  In simpler words, I have layers of fur. Light reflected from the top layer collides with the light reflected from the bottom layers to cause interference. It tricks the eye, seeming to change color at different angles. You've probably seen it in nature somewhere, perhaps in your starbase biosphere. It's common throughout the Universe.

  Eden didn't understand much of what he said and had never been taught such things in Star Guild Academy.

  Thomas grinned. “Light travels in waves and patterns, and sometimes in patterns of waves. Many times the waves will rise and fall, and since many colors found throughout the Universe are produced by pigmentation, we observe pigments absorbing certain wavelengths of light, while reflecting others.”

  “Alright. School's over. Can I arrest Admiral McCoy or not?” questioned Nyx.

  “I thought we weren't supposed to interfere or show anyone on Starship Sirona that we know there are traitors on board,” said Eden.

  Nyx stood eye to eye with Eden. “We interfere only when asked and Hank and Jerrod, more or less, gave you a direct order to arrest Sleuth and the admiral. Did they not?”

  “They did.”

  “Then I go. You all stay here,” demanded Nyx.

  “We all go. I lead,” countered Thomas.

  Nyx tightened her jaw and kept her mouth shut. Eden could see that Nyx wanted some action, and badly.

  The light in the hallway suddenly dimmed, then flickered for a moment. The sound of a phaser blast and a thud reverberated. Thomas paused and glanced around, making sure everyone was okay.

  Eden and Nyx sprang toward the door, ready to find the source of the blast. Thomas placed his finger to his lips telling them to be quiet, and most importantly, to be calm.

  Then he glanced around the corner, seeing that the hallway was clear. He unlocked his holster and slowly pulled out his phaser.

  Eden crept behind Nyx, with Jantu picking up the rear and walking backwards, his long rifle-like weapon pointing down an empty hallway. If anyone snuck up from the rear he'd be the first to know and the first to pull the trigger—if needed.

  I sense the Sirona Guard coming. They must have heard the weapon fire, said Jantu.

  “Pick up the pace,” responded Thomas.

  They moved at double speed, winding through hallways, passing the empty cafeteria, and finding their way into another set of passageways.

  Rounding another corner Thomas raised his hand. “Weapons down.”

  Nyx lowered her weapon, then saw what Thomas was looking at. “What's this?”

  Eden turned the corner, gasping. “Admiral?” She moved to assist the admiral, but noticed something and abruptly jumped to the side. Sleuth was on the floor, unconscious, blood trickling out of his mouth. Eden bent down and placed her finger on his neck, feeling for a pulse. “He's —”

  “He's as dead as he is pale,” said Nyx.

  “Why did this happen?” lamented Eden.

  Thomas looked grim, but his voice was unemotional. “It looks as if both of the traitors betrayed each other.” He gestured to Jantu. “Help me get —”

  Admiral Diana McCoy grunted and moved. She gripped her phaser, her arm trembling with weakness, but still managing to lift it she pointed it directly at Thomas.

  Thomas whispered something under his breath as he held out his hand. Diana's hand instantly dropped the phaser and the gun slid across the floor to Thomas's foot. He picked up the weapon, then clicked the safety on. He tucked it in
his empty holster, then flashed compassionate eyes at Diana. “You're safe with us.”

  “Don't...touch...” Diana's voice dribbled off and her eyelids started fluttering.

  Eden picked up Sleuth's weapon to holster it, following Thomas’ lead. As she flipped the safety on she saw that his phaser wasn’t set to kill. “His phaser’s on stun,” she said with surprise. “Do you think he only meant to stun her?”

  “I don't know,” replied Thomas. “Let's get Diana onto her bed. She's going to be out for a few hours.”

  “Don't touch...me.” Diana mumbled. “I...stay...”

  Commotion pounded down the hallway.

  They are coming closer, alerted Jantu.

  “Everyone do as I do.” Thomas placed his weapons on the ground and put his hands up. “We show them no resistance or aggression.”

  “What?” complained Nyx. “How are we going to defend ourselves?”

  Thomas cocked his head to the side. “Since when do we need weapons? You can handle yourself just fine without them.”

  “Says you.” Nyx put her weapon on the ground, along with Jantu. Eden on the other hand, held her weapon tightly and walked over to the admiral, squatting next to her with her phaser raised at the oncoming Sirona Guard.

  “Drop your weapon, Eden,” ordered Thomas.

  “No. We need to get Diana into her quarters.”

  Several men came around the corner, halting the moment they saw Eden with her weapon drawn. They had their guns pointed at her and instinctively moved back a couple of steps. There were five in all and the lead held his free hand up to halt his team. “We are Sirona Guard. Drop your weapon.”

  Eden slowly shook her head. “This isn't necessary. We heard the weapons fire and I'm here to protect the admiral.”

  “I believe you, but just in case I'm wrong, I'm going to have to ask you to drop your weapon.”

  “I can't comply, Sir.”

  The lead Guard gestured to his companions and fiercely stared at Eden. “Take them into custody. I'll deal with her.”

  Eden returned his stare. “I'm not leaving the admiral.”

  Diana moaned, then struggled to keep her head up. “Stand...d-down.”

  The lead Guard motioned for his team to stay put. “We follow the Admiral's orders.”

  Diana pulled herself to a seated position, continuing to moan, and leaned against the hallway wall. She lifted her hand and motioned for the lead Guard, who carefully approached her, circling wide around Sleuth's lifeless body.

  “Take me...my office...” Her words slurred as if she were drunk. “On bed.”

  The lead Guard nodded and lifted her, carrying her through her quarter's entryway and onto her bed.

  Diana spoke into the lead Guard's ear. “Tell them all...to stay...here. Even guests.”

  The lead Guard pointed at two of his men. “You two station yourselves in the hallway at the door until further orders.” He looked at the other two guards. “And you two are to be stationed in the office.”

  “You Sirona Guards could have gotten yourselves killed,” chided Nyx. “You have no idea.”

  The lead Guard frowned. “Diana wants you to stay.”

  “Where?” Eden asked. “Stay in her quarters?”

  “Yes'm.”

  Eden moved toward Diana's side, then suddenly changed course and leaned her ear up against the ebb armored windows. The skin between her eyes crinkled and she motioned for everyone to keep everyone quiet. “Shh! Do you hear that?”

  Jantu nodded. It's coming from outside.

  “Something doesn't feel right,” agreed Nyx.

  “I feel it too,” confirmed Thomas.

  Nyx joined Eden and gazed through the tiny slits in the ebb exterior armor. The slits were too thin to see through.

  “Can someone open these?” barked Nyx.

  “On it.”

  Eden turned toward the voice and saw Hank, his face both pale and sweaty. He was bent over, as if he was about to vomit.

  Hank held up a finger. “Hold on a second.” He hesitated for a moment. “Is Sleuth dead?”

  “We don't have a second,” snapped Nyx.

  Hank leaned on his knees. “Fine. Just so you know, I ran all the way here.” He took a few more wobbly steps and collapsed into a chair in front of Diana's HDC and flicked it on. He pressed a few buttons, but nothing happened.

  “Uh,” he said, looking quizzically at the admiral. “Why isn't your HDC cooperating?”

  “What do you mean?” asked Thomas.

  “I put in the command, but the admiral’s HDC isn't responding to commands.” He typed in some code. “Yes, nothing is happening. Is it connected to the mainframe net?”

  Nyx walked forward, flustered. “I don't —”

  “Stay put, doll.” Hank gave her a stern look. “Don't interrupt the HDC guru while I'm figuring stuff out.”

  He quickly hacked out of the network to find a way around the mainframe. “For some reason the admiral has been locked out of all functions of this starship.” He nodded, as if proud he was on showcase in front of everyone. “In fact, I see we are all locked out, except...” Hank slowly spun in a circle, waving his hand in the air. “Except Sleuth. That's easy to fix. You just need some Hank lovin' and then whamo.” He pressed several buttons, like a maestro on a piano. “You hack into Sleuth's HDC, change the code, put in a new code.” He continued typing and talking at the same time. “And now you have all systems unlocked and bam!” The armored slits opened. “And just to let you all know, we have to get off this ship.”

  As the slits opened, all could easily see it was cresting late afternoon and the shadows stretched across the ebb rock outside. A few grasses leaned in the soft breeze and the sound grew louder.

  “Close the slits,” demanded Thomas.

  Hank pressed some more buttons and the slits closed. “Did you all hear me? We have to leave. Like now.”

  “The sound is getting louder,” said a guard stationed next to a now unconscious Diana.

  “It might be a supernova exploder thingy,” said Hank. “We gotta go.”

  No one knew what Hank was saying, but they could see the fear in his eyes.

  “Where did you get this information?” asked Thomas.

  “On my HDC. Someone by the name of 'S'.”

  Thomas and Nyx stiffened.

  “Did you say 'S'?” questioned Nyx.

  Hank nodded.“How much time did she say we had?” asked Thomas calmly.

  “I don't remember, but I know that S didn't really know either. It could be now or later.”

  “From the approaching sound it seems like now,” said Eden.

  Thomas gestured toward Diana. “Grab the admiral. We're getting off this ship.”

  The Lead Guard jumped in. “You aren't touching her.”

  Thomas bowed. “My good sir, this starship probably won't be around for much longer. We need to evacuate everyone.”

  “I only take orders from my admiral,” responded the man. The next thing he knew he was on the floor, foot on his chest, a phaser pointed at his head.

  “You will do what my friend says. He's not giving you a choice.” Nyx eyed her gun, then back at the guard, pressing her foot harder on his chest.

  “Well...Nyx...I thought I was giving him a choice,” said Thomas.

  Nyx shook her head. “Nah, you weren't.”

  “I'm pretty sure I was.”

  Nyx gave a sideways glance at an advancing Guard. “You don't want any piece of me. Trust me. I'd take less than three seconds to kill you and your friends.”

  The guard put his hands up and backed away.

  Thomas puffed out his chest and gave Nyx the stink-eye for going rogue. “Anyway, I gave a call out to Swift. She will be here any moment.”

  “Excellent,” replied Nyx.

  “Hank,” said Thomas, “can you let everyone on the starship know that it is evacuation time?”

  Hank brought up the HDC display. “Com link on. Patch me to all speakers on the
starship.” He looked at Thomas. “What do you want me to say, exactly?”

  Thomas nodded at Nyx who took her foot off the guard and walked over to the HDC. Jantu took her place.

  Reaching the HDC, and in a perfect voice impression and pitch as Diana, Nyx spoke. “Attention. This is not a drill. A weapon of massive implications is en route to our location. We are evacuating the ship. I repeat. We are evacuating the ship. You are to board another starship, landing here soon. Do not question anything until we are all safe. You question and you hold up the entire evacuation process. Out.”

  Hank gave a wicked smile. “I've always wanted to do this,” he said, pressing a yellow button on the HDC. Alarms abruptly blared throughout the ship. “Yep, I did that.”

  ∞

  “I'm not going out there,” said Devon, startled that Kalista would ask him.

  She tightened her hand, curling it into a fist—something she seemed to have made a habit of. “Say that again.”

  Devon looked at her fist, then at Kalista's cold expression. “Fine. Give me the water clothes, or whatever you call them.”

  “It's called a wet suit.” She pulled out a gigantic suit, almost twice the size of Devon.

  “Uh...I won't fit in that.”

  “I'm scared of water,” she said through gritted teeth, her curt lips barely moving. “I'm not going out there.”

  “Is the water warm enough for us to go out there without a wet suit?” asked Chase.

  “You're coming with me?” Devon smiled at the prospect.

  Chase gave a flat answer. “No. I'm staying here to make sure Kalista brings you back in safely.”

  That confused Devon. “Wha —”

  “Here,” Kalista shoved a metallic tool in Devon's hands. “Use this to dislodge the bomb.”

  Devon now held a wetsuit and some type of sharp, heavy tool. “I can't wear this—and this is too heavy.”