StarFlight: The Prism Baronies (Beyond the Outer Rim Book 2)

by Reiter

  “And what is the first rede of that order?”

  “With our strength, we will build!”

  “And what have you built… Mother?!”

  Goldie winced in sympathetic pain. From his estimation, Wraayna had called down a fate worse than the one he had intended for her. “This is what happens when you know just enough to get yourself into trouble,” he thought. “Ah, well… she’s not the first… she won’t be the last!”

  Wraayna stammered, looking around and casting her begging eyes at Goldie who shook his head ‘no’, then to Vrolpaz who was awaiting a response, and then back at the floor where she saw what she was in his eyes… in the perspective of her people’s law.

  “You have built much!” Vrolpaz stated. “Everything you have constructed rests on souls weaker than yours, less fortunate than yours… much how your soul is to me. So then – what, upon you, will I build?!”

  “A house of agony,” Goldie suggested, “… a place where she must dwell one year for every soul she has used and abused. In that you will sustain the law your son took to your children.”

  “That would be thousands of years,” Vrolpaz replied. “A harsh sentence, though not nearly as great as what others have suffered under her will.”

  “My god, I beg of you no!”

  “It is decided,” Vrolpaz said, waving his hand over her head. Wraayna fell into the glass floor where she was received by her reflected image. Despite how it looked, it was stronger than Wraayna, and dragged the woman away as she cursed Goldie and Vrolpaz. “You hide yourself from me.”

  “Don’t take it personally,” Goldie returned, “I hide myself from all. I find it makes things simpler.”

  “A matter of perspective that has little significance,” Vrolpaz concluded. “So many of my kind use their girth and abuse the power given to them. I cannot see your form, but the means you use to mask yourself betrays the small Terran form before me.

  Vrolpaz started to fade. He ushered Goldie to a doorway that was coming up through the floor. “I may not know your form, but I do know what you carry, swordsman. Not even those of my ilk can carry such a burden for long. I wish you hasty relief.”

  “Too late,” Goldie muttered, walking through the door and back onto the street in front of the salon.

  “Right, the seven of you,” he said, cracking his knuckles. “Where are we on the fealty thing?”

  ** b *** t *** o *** r **

  Eleda walked into the mansion just behind her new master and closed the door. She turned to see Amosse walk into the large living room with his hands on his hips, shaking his head. Confusion was quickly becoming fear inside the man and she could feel it. Without saying a word she walked over and turned him around.

  “Hard or soft,” she said.

  “What?”

  “Hard… or soft.”

  “Soft.”

  Eleda reached up and removed her mask. Thick, long, shiny-black hair fell around her face and her rich purple eyes gazed deeply into Amosse’s. She could see that what the young man saw pleased him, but she would say nothing to that. Dropping her helm, Eleda took hold of Amosse’s shoulders and pulled him close. Their lips touched, and though Amosse put his hand to her shoulders to push her back, they continued to kiss until his protest was abandoned. Only when he started kissing her back did Eleda bring things to a slow close. Their lips parted and Amosse slowly opened his eyes. He looked at her, thought for a moment, and then decided to speak.

  “Without showing me, what would you have done if I had said ‘hard’?”

  “I would have struck you,” Eleda replied. “You have a number of things going through your mind, my Master. Most do not belong there. You needed a distraction; I saw fit to give you one.”

  “I’m glad I said ‘soft’,” Amosse sighed in relief.

  “You should trust your instincts more.”

  “If I did that, I’d still be aboard the Xara-Mansura,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

  “Then perhaps that is your failing, Master,” Eleda returned, her eyes remaining locked on his. Amosse opened his mouth, but he could find no words to say. His Castigator shook her head in slight disgust. “Men!” she sighed. “Say, ‘I’m sorry’ to me. Just let the words fall from your lips.”

  “I’m sorry,” Amosse said in a pressed matter-of fact tone. Eleda released her hold of him and took a step back.

  “That was pathetic!” she judged.

  “It doesn’t matter!” he replied, throwing his hands up and walking away from her. “I betrayed them, Eleda! All of them! My friends, the man who saved our lives, his Captain, her crew. I betrayed them all!”

  “So apologize,” Eleda suggested.

  “One doesn’t just apologize to JoJo Starblazer!” he exclaimed. “Especially after her First Mate has written you off! I may not be a font of piratical knowledge, but I know that’s not going to happen!”

  “Then don’t just apologize!” Eleda pressed, and her tone kept Amosse from going off into a tirade. “You said you had friends there. Did you truly?”

  Reflecting for a moment, Amosse thought of Bantar and Teela… and how they had remained close even though they knew, in part, about who and what he was. “Until we found the MannA Keys.”

  “So, you’re a selfish man,” Eleda concluded.

  “Is that supposed to be helpful?!” he snapped.

  “Not if I am the only one who can see that. I swore myself to you, Amosse. Don’t nit-pick the reasons why; accept it for what it is. Because at the end of the day, the only thing that keeps Eleda’s word is Eleda! Task me, and only question my loyalty when I fail to perform.”

  “And if I order you to my bed?”

  “Then when you go to your bed you will find me there,” she returned more quickly than Amosse had dared to expect. There was also strength to her words that made him look away from her eyes. He started to walk further away, but she took hold of his arm. “I will say it once more, Master. You were on your knees, feeling the touch of Death herself, and you dared her to embrace you! I cannot speak to what is in your mind. You’re a man, so there is a good chance you do not know either. But I know a strong heart when I witness one. Those are the words Mother said to me when she pulled me from where she found me. And before you ask, I would rather keep that information to myself.”

  “Then I will not ask,” Amosse said in a soft tone. He reached up and placed his hand on the side of her face, giving it a gentle caress. “I will not command you to my bed, Eleda. But I will ask that you stop calling me Master.”

  “Dare to be my Master, and earn the words!” she returned. “I do not know why we are here, but here it is we stand. You have a mighty quest ahead of you, but you also have the means to triumph. I will guard you as well as I can. And if you like, I will train you, but that will only prepare your body for what awaits you. Master, you must prepare your mind and your heart! If you have wronged people for whom you hold feelings, you must forgive yourself and then work to earn their forgiveness.”

  “And not just double down on my desires,” Amosse added.

  Eleda stepped back and picked up her helmet. “I don’t know what these Keys can do, but for some reason Fate has had you and the Keys intersect. You wanted them for power.”

  “But I am a man, so there’s a good chance I had it wrong?” Amosse remarked. Eleda smiled and took hold of his hand.

  “Only someone who can question themselves will ever find answers in the abyss,” she stated. “If you walk into wonder knowing everything, you must eventually admit that either you are wrong, or there is no wonder to walk into!”

  “And just how did you come into the service of Mother?”

  “I told you, I was in Hell. She pulled me out. She had me trained on how to fight, and she told me that if I was to serve anyone I must also serve myself. So, when I wasn’t training, I was reading. I learned what it meant to be strong outside of what the body can deliver. I also came to know that until I find a purpose, I must serve a purpose. Until
tonight, that purpose was protecting the woman who had saved me.”

  “And now?”

  “Now I am an explorer,” Eleda replied, donning her helmet. “Take a man, a self-proclaimed traitor and selfish power-monger... what makes that man able to dare Death?”

  “Indeed,” Amosse said as he took in everything that was happening. “That is an interesting answer you seek.”

  “It is not the answer I am looking for,” Eleda said as she started to leave the room.

  “Then what is it?”

  “Might I request there are two things we not discuss, Master?” Amosse was disappointed, but found it impossible to be angry with her. He sighed, nodded his head ‘yes’ and waved Eleda off.

  “At least, Eleda. At least. If you will excuse me, there is work I need to be about,” Amosse said as he started for the office.

  “Work? Work on what?”

  Amosse did not stop walking. He held up his finger denoting realization. “One does not simply say I’m sorry to JoJo Starblazer, but one might be able to show they’re sorry.”

  “And how does one do that?”

  “JoJo is a very simple woman,” Amosse said, stopping while still thinking, putting things together in his mind. “If she finds you and recruits you, the proof of being worthy is on you. But if you take the initiative and perform a selfless act, you can basically write your own ticket with her.”

  “It sounds as if you’re scheming duplicity,” Eleda commented.

  “Oh, I think we both know I’ve got miles to go before I even know what a selfless act is!” Amosse admitted before shaking his head. “That came out wrong. I know what they are… I’ve seen them done over and over again among the crew! What I don’t know is why they’re done. Man’s gotta start somewhere.” Eleda’s head tilted to the side and Amosse could no longer see her face with the helm on. “… or did I miss the whole boat on that one too?”

  “Master, you’re on a plate of rock, floating in the middle of a river of lava. You are too weak from the heat to save yourself. A man comes along. What do you want him to do?

  “Don’t answer the question,” she said quickly, holding up her hand. “Just be ready to enact your answer when you come to the river and see someone collapsed on a plate of rock.” Eleda saw Amosse slowly fall into a pondering state. She backed away quietly and started to leave. She had a mansion to inspect and memorize. Furthermore, she needed a place to cry. She could feel it, or more to the truth of it, she could no longer feel Wraayna Doroson – and that was a first she had hoped would never happen. She sent a message to her sister, ordering her to report to the estate directly from where she was. There was no sense in chancing that whatever had struck Mother would also deprive Eleda of her beloved sister.

  “I take it that while you were in Mother’s service, you were not able to always enact the answer.”

  “No,” she answered, covering the trembling in her voice. “When I was with Mother, I served her purpose in the same measure she had served mine.”

  “And what amount was that?!”

  “Measure what your life is worth to you, Master.”

  “You mean, immeasurably.”

  “Perhaps there is hope for that man’s mind and heart after all.”

  A person who deserves my loyalty receives it.

  Joyce Maynard

  (X)

  (Rims Time: XII-4203.26)

  Waking up, post procedure. After so many times, he was of the mind that he should be better at it. Each time seemed to be brand new, different enough to make each event singular in his mind… save for one trying matter that never seemed to change.

  “Why do the eyes always burn?” Virgil asked, squinting at the dim light.

  “I guess that’s part of the package,” Austin replied. “Right there with tears and way too much sensitivity, burning must be an eye thing.”

  “I don’t have to ask if you’re in a good mood,” Virgil commented. Austin smiled, placing his hand over the eyes of his assistant. A cooling sensation passed through Virgil’s body and every muscle in his body relaxed. “I love it when you do that! If we could bottle that we’d make a fortune!”

  “You mean another fortune,” Austin replied. “Why don’t you sit up and tell me how you feel.”

  Taking a moment to breathe in deeply, Virgil lifted his head from the bed and exhaled slowly as he closed his eyes. He took inventory of his mind and body, stopping his rhythmic breathing and frowning. He opened his eyes and looked down at his hands. He had taken a hold of the side of the table and he noticed that the metal was giving to his grip.

  “You made me stronger?!” Virgil asked as he warped the side of the table even more.

  “Given the most recent list of guests, I thought it a wise precaution to take.”

  “Fair enough,” Virgil said, pushing off the table. He sailed over Austin’s head, landing on the floor near the door of the recovery room. He smiled as he hopped in place, getting a feel for the added strength in his legs. “Did you make me stronger than you?”

  Austin nodded, folding his arms. “About a three hundred percent increase, actually.”

  “Are you expecting more rude godlings?”

  “Not so much, no.” Austin looked at his data pad and Virgil smiled, touched by the concern. What Xaythra had done to Virgil during her visit to their pantheon had never sat well with Austin. He had taken steps to ensure that it would be measurably more difficult for anyone else to duplicate that incident.

  “Thank you, Austin,” he said softly.

  “You’re more than welcome,” Austin answered as he started for the door. “I want you to come and see what I’ve been up to while you were… improving.” Virgil skipped excitedly before walking behind Austin.

  The two made their way from their personal medical facility to one of the larger holding chambers. Halfway to the room, Virgil frowned again, smelling something strange on the air. He took another whiff to verify and then decided to speak.

  “What is that smell?” Virgil asked.

  “Power,” Austin replied with a very proud grin stretching across his face. “Power… and change!”

  “No, it smells like something needs to be changed!” Virgil argued.

  “So glad to see that your augmentation cycles haven’t hampered your sense of humor,” Austin commented. Austin stopped in front a pair of large double doors. Virgil recognized the make of the chamber immediately and knew whatever that waited for them inside, it required shielded walls. “But I will say it makes the Rims not such a foreboding place.”

  “I do what I can.”

  “That makes two of us,” Austin replied as the doors opened. Virgil knew they were on the upper deck of a four-story observation and holding chamber. He expected to see something gigantic, extremely ferocious, or a combination of the two.

  “Austin!” the man gasped, looking down on the creature in the chamber. “What have you done?”

  “You could say that I was inspired!” Austin said, folding his arms. He looked down into the lower area with a sense of pride, and for good reason. Thanks to the recent advancements in his research, he had unlocked the secrets of not only the Living Energies, but those who had mastered them and had become legend.

  “Does he have a name?” Virgil asked, looking down on the dull matte-black body, striped in blood red and shining bronze.

  “No, she does not,” Austin answered.

  “Does she know we’re here?” Virgil asked just ahead of jumping back from the railing of the observation deck. White hot fire spread wide in front of him, held in place a mysterious containment field. The fact that the fire had been stopped surprised the eager assistant. “I suppose I have my answer to that question.

  “But wait! You discovered how to block MannA without using MannA!” Virgil declared. He could not feel the field that had prevented the column of fire, but the raw fury within the flames certainly registered. But that was the least one expected from a dragon.

  “Well, I didn’t
discover it, as it was never lost,” Austin corrected. “But it was beyond me until I started reading through the collected memories of Xaythra.”

  “You did this from picking through Xaythra’s memories?!”

  “There. There. No need for you to reconsider your position on the creature,” Austin assured. “A number of that poor fool’s memories will never be found in her mind. Strangely enough, I do not think she is aware of some of the readings I have digested.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “The law of gravity, Virgil,” Austin stated. “Everything in the universe pulls on everything else. She is gravity incarnate and thusly, she is in touch with everything in the universe. Now, her manipulation of gravity makes some of the readings illegible, but I am not really interested in the things outside the Rims, and most of those readings are just fine.

  “Needless to say we are talking about a tremendous amount of data,” Austin continued, ushering Virgil out of the room and back into the corridor. “But once you limit the information to certain patterns, namely things that have stood against MannA, one does stand a chance at finding pure genius. In short, the answer came to me from outside the Rims, but there is a life-form called the Malgovi, and one of their devoted engineers has had his fill of Spell-Casting. He has designed shells that can shoot through constructed MajiK. I took his approach to making a bullet and energized it.”

  “And this Malgovi is how far from taking over the Empire?” Virgil partially quipped.

  Austin chuckled for a moment before shaking his head. “I do not think that is his ambition, but the readings were from a few years ago when he was testing the technology. I really wasn’t interested in any personal aspects.”

  “Well, you have the energy field, so I’d say you have another success on your hands. Speaking of successes…”

  “Yes, she is still here,” Austin explained. “The remapping of her mind is proving to be rather difficult. Filling up a year is more challenging for someone of her power level.” Austin took in a breath to continue to his explanation only to see Virgil out of the corner of his eye. His assistant stood with his arms folded, shaking his head in disappointment. “I missed something very simple, didn’t I?”