Equilibrium of Terror: Part 1 (Splintered Galaxy Book 3)

by Eddie R. Hicks

  “What, what did you do?” she asked him.

  “Nothing boss!”

  They walked alongside the computer stations, watching a trove of ancient wisdom load. Some words were spoken by the computer, though none of them understood it.

  “Stunning,” she said. “And the drone is not here to record it all.”

  “Can’t your data pad do it?”

  “It’s limited to video only, and light surface scans. That drone had the power to provide deep scans of objects and the like, not to mention provide a much more aesthetically pleasing aerial shot, people on the knowledge network love that.”

  A white holographic sphere appeared in the middle of the room. Eicelea stepped over and gazed at it curiously. She reached out and touched it, an enormous and life like hologram of space loaded. It was so large stars were almost the size of Vynei as the projection of them swung past him. It almost felt like they were floating in space.

  “It’s a map,” he said.

  “Of course it is, but...” she looked closer at the projection and pointed. Every time she did, it zoomed in to provide a closer look at the area. There were three planetary systems that had a flashing icon above them. “…that is the Linl home star system.” She pointed to the next star with an icon. “This is the human star system.” Another projection appeared as she pointed once again. “This must be us, though its location seems off. Then again the proper motion of this entire star system is the highest in this section of the galaxy.”

  “And that means?”

  “The star system we are currently in travels through the galaxy faster than any other system. This goes to show the incredible age of this star map, it was created during a time when this system, this world was in another location in the galaxy.”

  “This system seems to have a label as well.” Vynei pointed to the last star system with an icon above it.

  The projection that appeared from what she could see, was a binary star system with a massive blue white main sequence star and a small white dwarf. She studied it for a few seconds. It was a system that was unexplored by Radiance and the Hashmedai.

  “That’s… well Radiance has not named that system yet,” she said. “The humans however, call it Sirius.”

  Location of another Lyonria outpost perhaps? Eicelea tried to interact with the hologram to see if more details could load, but only text in the Lyonria language appeared about that system.

  “I have no idea what any of this means, boss.”

  “I can only infer that the Lyonria had taken interest in humans, Linl and Sirius.”

  “If only we can read this, we might be sitting on the biggest discovery in the galaxy.”

  A linguist would be able to shed some light on this, maybe even figure out an algorithm for data pads to automatically translate Lyonria text. Then it hit her. Eicelea remembered Alisha talking about her work on Rasi, and that there was a scholar that worked in a nearby lab, an expert at languages.

  She keyed in a search in her data pad, a listing of all the people stationed at the camp displayed. Her fingers then typed in the name of the scholar in question on the touch screen to see if she was here along with all the other great minds in the system.

  Ary Odelea.

  Odelea’s profile loaded.

  “I think I have someone in mind.”

  She put her pad away to address the next situation at hand. Leaving. She walked toward the alcove and noticed something different about it now that room was fully powered. A holo screen showed images of a dark room. To her delight, the screen lowered to her short height. I wish more screens would do that. She raised her hand to touch the hologram which rippled and waved like someone throwing a stone in a lake. A new projection loaded, displaying the contents of another empty and dark room. She repeated the process, concluding that the image that loaded was letting the user know which room they were going to be teleported to. Eventually she found the hallway they were in last.

  “I do believe I have mastered how to use this device.”

  … … …

  Eicelea and Vynei made their way back to the camp site outside of the ancient city after a lengthy and paranoid trip through the ancient city streets. There was a part of Eicelea that wondered if they had been followed the entire time they entered the restricted area. The housing containing Odelea was unusual. It was surrounded by scores of armed guards, Eicelea was about to give up until she noticed that people were allowed to enter and leave. The guards weren’t barring anyone from entering, they were just standing on patrol for whatever reason. Security was understandable, but for only one of the four buildings?

  They passed through the airlocks, and were able to remove their restricting helmets and proceed further in. Eicelea saw a number of monks on the inside, a puzzling thought. There was no need for them to be here, the main hub further west had a small city and temples for those that wished to pray. This camp was nothing more than a place for everyone to have easy access to the ruins for the time being.

  Three floors and five corridors later, they found Odelea’s room, like outside, two rangers stood next to the entrance. They wouldn’t allow Eicelea or Vynei to use the door chime, instead they insisted on summoning Odelea. At last the doors slid open, and the young and timid Aryile girl stood before them.

  “Ah you must be scholar Odelea,” Eicelea said.

  “Yes.”

  “I am Eicelea and this is my bodyguard, Vynei. May we speak in private?”

  Odelea nodded to the guards and allowed them to enter. The room was small, more like a closet with a bed and computer. Eicelea produced her data pad and showed Odelea the contents of it while explaining to her the discoveries they made.

  “You know the admin of this world aren’t going to be pleased?” Odelea said.

  “I am Eicelea, famed explorer of Lyonria ruins in Morutrin. They won’t punish me for what I did, it was only right that I be the first to venture that far!”

  Odelea watched the video play back of their discovery of the hologram showing the star map and most importantly the Lyonria text. “It will take some time to study this language. It would help if I were to hear it spoken as well to figure out a way to translate it.”

  “Some of the computers did talk to us for, but only for a few seconds. I’d imagine a race as advanced as the Lyonria probably had some audio recordings stored on them.”

  “Send me a copy of your files,” Odelea said. “Give me a few hours to study them so I can get a better understanding.”

  “Of course,” Eicelea said then ejected a data crystal out from the side of her data pad, handing it over to Odelea.

  “We can all head back there to study it in detail,” Odelea said, putting the data crystal away.

  Eicelea and Vynei stood to leave, before they neared the door, she turned to face Odelea and said. “This must be our secret scholar.”

  Odelea nodded in a nervous manner. “I won’t tell anyone.”

  … … …

  ►► Courelia lower levels, Rasi,

  ► Barnard’s Star system

  Alisha and Jainuzei sat at an elegant styled Aryile restaurant several blocks away from where she lived. The dining room was an outdoor patio, or at least what outdoor counted for in a city built inside of an arcology. The patio along with the restaurant was located four stories up, and delivered a breathtaking view of the artificial waterfalls from the forested section of the city.

  The table cloths had her fascinated the moment she sat down. She wasn’t quite sure what it was made of, but it was able to change its appearance via a small holographic display off to the side. One could change the color of it, or make it display moving imagery. A patron on the other side of the patio had their table cloth to appear as the surface of an ocean on some obscure planet. Another couple had their cloth to display what was underneath, giving the illusion that their table was invisible.

  Alisha opted for a plain white appearance, just like one would expect in a fine dining establishment on E
arth. Male and female Aryile provided table side service, offering menus, drinks, and of course requested meals, all based on Aryile cuisine. An entirely plant based diet.

  “Thanks for taking me out today,” she said with an alluring smile.

  “My pleasure.”

  “So, do your superiors know you’re here as well?”

  “I’m tasked with conducting a search in this area,” he said. “I’m on a lunch break as far as they are concerned. Being of high rank does have its advantages.”

  The server came to take their order, then returned promptly ten minutes later with their requested dishes. With no protein to cook, it didn’t take long for the cooks and chefs to prepare one’s meal. Alisha ordered a salad dish consisting of emerald green leaves, tossed in a white dressing made of pureed fruits and vegetables from the Aryile home world. Red colored fruits resembling strawberries garnished the top along with thinly orange cut strips on another vegetable she knew nothing of.

  “I envy your species,” Jainuzei said to her in his deep voice.

  “Why is that?”

  “You are an omnivore race, you can choose between a plant based meal or meat, I however, cannot, the shape of the teeth in my mouth alone is unable to tear and chew meat.”

  “Well I’ve been doing the vegetarian thing for a while now.”

  “Ah so, you are not making a compromise by dining here?”

  “Absolutely not, out of all the places to dine I would prefer an Aryile restaurant like this, everything is so vegan. It’s very interesting to see a menu based around thousands of years of cooking techniques all revolving around natural plant based food.”

  Alisha was interested to know what dessert was going to be like upon finishing her plate of food. The video that played on the data pad menu displayed something that looked like kiwis tossed in a savory light blue jam with sugar sprinkled on top.

  “So, how much time do you think you have until you have to leave?” he asked.

  “Until the project is finished. Needless to say, I’m taking my sweet time with it.” The server came up to clear the empty plates. She took the time to order the dessert in question. “I admit, the more I think about it the more depressing it is. Losing contact with my husband and daughter now losing this opportunity. I even started reading about your gods.”

  “Really?”

  “It was more just to keep my mind clear,” she said. “It’s very interesting about how they arrived at your home world and helped save your people and lay down the foundation to the union.”

  “If you’re still interested, I can take you to the temple. Dalhakei is still there, he can... help answer any questions you may have.”

  “Depends,” she said as her hands lightly stroked the scales on his large hands. “If you’re still interested in taking me?”

  A smile grew on his face, no doubt because of the contact she just made with him. “Of course,” he said.

  Alisha’s dessert arrived, served in an oval shaped bowl. A spoon full of it gave her taste buds an experience quite possibly no human has ever experienced before.

  “I used to eat this a lot when I was a child in the polar regions of my home world,” he said as she took several more bites of her dish. “How do they say it on your world? Bon appétit?”

  “That’s one of many ways, we humans have many different languages.”

  “Indeed, I’ve been studying some of them in my spare time with the language learning tools.”

  Jainuzei went from Aryile speaking the Radiance language, to an Aryile speaking French as he said. “I believe this one is called French?”

  Alisha said, also speaking French. “English and Chinese are the two main languages most aliens try to learn first to my knowledge.”

  “Yes, but as I recall the region you lived in did speak this?”

  She was impressed at how well he spoke French. “Well yes, Quebec was mostly French speaking, though Québécois French was slightly different than French from France.”

  Upon finishing her dessert, she gazed at him with dreamy eyes, while the palms of her hands help up her head. “So, after your mission, back when you went after the Hashmedai emperor, what happened?” she asked.

  “It’s a long story. I’ll have much more free time tomorrow to tell you if you’d like.”

  “Is that before or after a visit to this legendary temple?”

  … … …

  ►► Courelia upper levels, Rasi

  ► Barnard’s Star system

  The next day as promised Jainuzei traveled with Alisha to the upper levels of the city toward the large temple. It was now opened to the public as the damage done to it as well as the blood stains had all been cleaned up. Order members had all dispersed to deal with their assigned duties. Perfect timing as well, Jainuzei would rather not have Alisha see everything that was left behind after Jazz’s attack.

  After a quick tour, showing Alisha all the old books and old statues, Dalhakei arrived with his staff in hand. “Ah, your eminence,” Jainuzei said taking a bow.

  “Greetings, my child,” Dalhakei said.

  “This is Alisha, the scientist human working with Radiance R&D.”

  “It is an honor,” Dalhakei said stepping toward her. “We seldom have humans set foot inside here.”

  “Wait, humans have been here before me?”

  Dalhakei laughed at the comment then said. “So, I sense you have a great many questions?”

  “A few, yes,” she said.

  Dalhakei lifted his staff in the air with both hands. His eyes shut while the orb at the top of his staff started to shine brightly. The temple along with Dalhakei all vanished, replaced with nothing but white as far as the eye could see with Jainuzei and Alisha standing together side by side.

  “Whoa,” was all she had to say.

  “No need to worry,” Jainuzei said. “The gods, they wish to speak to us.”

  “Does this normally happen?”

  “It’s rare, and even when it does happen, it’s between one person and them, never two.” He paused as his head pivoted around. “This is quite odd.”

  Hannah appeared in front of them, she was floating a few inches off the ground as if she was a psionic. Alisha’s reaction to the appearance of Hannah was unexpected. She stood there, looking at her up and down. She raised her hand to cover her mouth, to hold in all the emotion that was about to seep out.

  “Oh, my,” Alisha said, her hands trembling visibly.

  “It’s Hannah,” Jainuzei said. Everyone high up in the Celestial Order knew of the great seer, Hannah.

  “That’s my daughter!”

  My gods. “Hannah is your daughter?”

  “You know her?” Alisha looked again at Hannah, walking circles around the vision of her. “Wow, she’s all grown up, so lovely.”

  … … …

  “Hannah is alive and will return to you if you keep your mind open to us,” said a female voice in Alisha’s head.

  “Did you hear that?” she asked.

  Jainuzei shook his head. “I heard nothing.”

  Hannah and the white setting vanished, and were replaced with a Hashmedai ship. Outside of the ship was Earth burning. This was twenty-two years ago during the Hashmedai invasion.

  “I’m sorry!” Alisha heard a voice yell in the distance. The person spoke English. “It was a mistake. I didn’t know all this would happen!”

  Alisha and Jainuzei ran down the halls of the Hashmedai ship, unaffected by the weightless environment. She recognized the voice that was pleading for help. It was her husband Jason. Turning the corner, she saw Jake pushing a button next to an airlock entrance then the sound of a door unlocking.

  “Help! Somebody, help me! Help me, help me!” Jason screamed. Alisha ran next to Jake and looked through the window of the airlock door. Jason was inside. He was terrified. Meanwhile Jake was furious, neither one of them seemed to be aware of Alisha or Jainuzei’s presence. Of course not, this was a vision... a vision of what though? What h
appened in the past? “Look, Alisha will never forgive you for this!”

  “Jason!” Alisha cried out, banging on the airlock. “Jason, Jason!”

  “You’re assuming she’s gonna find out,” Jake said, then hit another button, the airlock door blew open and Jason’s body was yanked away into space, his face crystallizing in the process. “Try not to scream. Ain’t nobody gonna hear ya.”

  Alisha fell to the floor, tears streamed down her face, while Jainuzei lowered himself to embrace and comfort her. The devastating truth was unveiled and it was painful. Jake her ex-husband killed Jason, probably in a jealous rage. Jake never did get over the end of their marriage. She knew that by the way he looked at her and the fact he never met anyone else.

  “Jason... he’s...” she said whimpering. “Jake... why...”

  “Look at him,” said Jainuzei. “He sided with the Hashmedai, the ones who do not accept the word of the gods.”

  “He killed him!”

  “Look closer.” He pointed at Jake.

  A female Hashmedai assassin with pale blue skin and long black with white highlights appeared. Jake and the Hashmedai spoke in a friendly tone. As she floated away down the darkened corridor, she gazed back at him with smile, and a lustful desire in her glowing eyes.

  “That assassin,” Jainuzei said. “She was going to finish Jason off if he didn’t go ahead with it. I’m sorry you lost him, but he was not going to make it off that ship regardless if he spared him or not.”

  “Jake wanted us to travel from Earth with them too.” She slammed her fists on the side of the airlock door as her sadness transformed into rage. “Arg! I hate them, I hate them!”

  “Hate is a strong word,” Jainuzei said. “The Hashmedai race may be evil, but there are those that ally with the Celestial Order. Those who follow the teaching of the gods like us, ones that wish to purge the evil from their souls and follow the one true path and teachings.”