Far From Home: The Complete Series

by Tony Healey

  The light coalesced to show the surface of a planet. Thick jungle cut by little streams and minor rivers.

  “Our world. A million years ago,” Overseer Oblix said.

  Two bright suns burned in the sky, and then Jessica noticed one of them became momentarily eclipsed by something passing across its face. She watched as an opaque pyramid shape descended through the light cloud layer and came to settle in the jungle. As it hit the ground, flocks of birds took flight. The trees rocked back and forth.

  “This recording was from the pyramid itself. We breached the inside about a thousand years ago. Much of our society’s technology is derived from those first discoveries,” the Overseer said.

  “You still have access to it now?” Jessica asked him.

  “Well, this is where it gets interesting,” Praror said.

  “This recording is from remote sensors placed around the pyramid. It happened fifty years ago,” the Overseer said.

  The light changed around them to show the black mountain from farther away. Jessica watched for what seemed an age. Nothing happened.

  “I don’t see -” she started to say and then the pyramid simply vanished. It stirred the jungle, like a pocket of air closing.

  “We have worshipped this structure since the dawn of time. The sudden loss of it shook our society to its very core. The people were assured that every effort would be made to locate the pyramid, and to understand how and why it disappeared,” Oblix said. “However we are no further ahead in our investigations. It is perhaps the greatest mystery of our people.”

  “I can understand that,” she said. “So it just vanished into thin air. Did it exhibit the same sort of behaviour as the one I described?”

  “Yes. It nurtured our people. Allowed them to advance. And then it left us,” Praror said.

  “Well perhaps the data on board Defiant will help you shed some light on it. I have two crew members in particular who may be able to help,” King said.

  “And you say you left a member of your crew behind to study the other pyramid?” Oblix asked.

  Jessica nodded. “Yes. Well, she volunteered. We haven’t made contact with her yet though.”

  They started to file back out of the room. “We use these Halls of Knowing to reflect on the deepest mysteries of our universe. And to learn. Again, the technology and concept has its basis in what we have learned from the black mountain,” Praror said.

  Not for the first time she wondered what kind of intelligence would build such things, then leave them on different planets. They were obviously capable of immense power. And to simply vanish into thin air like that. It was hard to fathom the intentions of the pyramids’ builders’.

  They got back into the shuttle. “Where are we off to now?” she whispered Praror.

  “The Overseer would like to show you the rest of the station. He’s quite proud of it, you know,” Praror whispered back.

  “Ah,” Jessica said with a smile. Still her thoughts were on what she’d seen.

  It infuriated her how the secret of the black pyramid kept presenting itself, and yet for every question raised there were no answers. She hoped that by having Rayne and Chang work together with the Krinuans they might get some answers.

  But it was only a slim hope.

  “Off to the hydroponics level,” Oblix said with visible relish.

  Jessica looked at Praror. The Krinuan Captain just rolled his deep purple eyes.

  8.

  By the following afternoon the engineering section was a hive of activity. Krinuans buzzed back and forth, assisting the crew of the Defiant with every repair.

  Soon she’ll look newer than new, Gunn thought.

  Praror showed the Chief a holographic schematic. “This is what I propose. It’s the closest thing we have to a compatible power source.”

  Gunn looked it over. “It can work. What does it run on?”

  “I can give you the composition for it later. We don’t share your species’ habit of naming everything. It is what it is.”

  The Chief chuckled. “Okay, so what is it?”

  “An ore particular to our planet. It is renewable.”

  “Renewable? How?” Gunn asked.

  “Easily. My people will explain the process to you. Besides, we will provide enough spare stock you will never run out anyway.”

  Gunn turned back to the plans. “Don’t know, the old girl does a lot of miles.”

  * * *

  “Ah, you’re a life saver.”

  Captain King took the cup of coffee and sniffed it.

  “Don’t ask me where I got it from. Just make the most of it. There’s not much more,” Commander Greene said.

  King offered him a seat in her quarters. She sat back down herself. She’d been taking a quiet lunch. “Do you want half of this sandwich?”

  “Yeah, don’t mind if I do.”

  Greene took a bite straight away.

  “We’re doing well,” King said. She sipped her coffee.

  Greene swallowed. “Yeah. We’ve landed on our feet, that’s for sure.”

  “What’s this I hear about an energy shield?” King asked.

  “Well, apparently this Praror’s chatting about the new energy source with the Chief, and he happens to mention an energy shield. So of course, you know what she’s like. The Chief jumps in on it,” Greene explained. “She reckons with his help she can have it up and running in five days.”

  “God knows we could do with it,” Jessica said. “The amount of action we’ve seen lately.”

  “There was one condition …” Greene said.

  “Oh?”

  “Praror wants to fly one of our fighters. He spotted them on the tour we gave him.”

  “Well, I’m not sure we can let him just take one out for a test run, Del …” Jessica said with a chuckle.

  “I know, I know. I asked Hawk if he’d take him out later today. He said he’d be more than happy to,” Greene said.

  “And where are we on the re-supply?” she asked.

  “It’s going well. Chef’s gonna have to be inventive with some of it, but it beats starving.”

  “True. Listen, I was thinking of throwing some kind of dinner or something, you know, just to say thanks,” Jessica said.

  “We could do that. When were you thinking?”

  “Tomorrow night. The Overseer, Praror, and whoever else they want to bring,” she said.

  Greene nodded. “Good idea.”

  Jessica sipped her coffee. She looked away out the view port. “You know, we just run from one conflict to another. I thought we were over the worst of it …”

  “We’re in a good place now,” Greene said. “I’m thankful for that much.”

  “But what about afterward? We only have a partial star chart of the surrounding space. Admittedly our new friends have helped broaden our database somewhat. But facts are facts. We’re a long way from home, Del. And we’ve got no direction.”

  The Commander sat forward. “When I was a kid, my Dad would take me camping. Right out in the woods. He’d never use a compass or anything. I asked him one day how he knew what direction to take. You know what he said?”

  Jessica shrugged. “Go on.”

  “He said, ‘Sometimes you just know’. And I believe that. I believe we’ll know where we’re going when we get there,” Greene said.

  “So you’re saying we should just … keep heading straight and hope something comes up?” King asked.

  Greene smirked. “Something like that.”

  “Hmm …” she said. Then she thought, If only it were that easy.

  * * *

  Rayne and Chang headed back to the Defiant, carrying their cases and equipment. In their hours spent with the Krinuans they’d learned a lot. But not enough to give them firm answers as to why the pyramids existed in the first place, where they came from, where the pyramid from the surface of Krinu had gone to. Or why.

  “Long day,” Chang said.

  “Yeah,” Rayne said. She wr
estled with the shoulder strap of a particularly heavy case as they stepped into the airlock to their own ship. “And I don’t really feel like we got anywhere either.”

  They waited for the decontamination jets to wash over them.

  “We won’t know until we go through all the data,” Chang yelled over the scream of the jets.

  “True.”

  The Defiant was quiet. After dropping off their things at the science lab they decided to call it a night. Chang walked Rayne to her quarters.

  “Tomorrow morning?” Olivia asked.

  “Bright and early,” Chang said with a smile.

  “It’s nice to get off the ship once in a while,” Rayne said.

  Chang looked down, her hands in her pockets. Then she looked back up, her eyes catching Olivia’s. “And with good company too.”

  Olivia blushed. “Good night Lisa.”

  “Night,” Chang said and waited for Rayne to go into her quarters. Then she walked to her own. They’d started to connect in their time spent together. First on different tasks and projects. Now working together again with Krinuans. Some playful flirting from her in Olivia’s direction had been reciprocated, something that had surprised her. As far as she’d known, Olivia wasn’t attracted to women. But apparently she was.

  Though cautious to step into anything too fast, Lisa could feel the familiar stir in her gut that told her something was happening between them. And she could see in Olivia’s face that she felt that too.

  Time would tell.

  * * *

  “The Captain said yuh wanted to go for a spin?” Hawk said.

  “Yes. We have never built such small ships,” Praror told him. He ran his hand along the edges of Speedy.

  “Well, she may be small pal, but she’s got it where it counts,” Hawk quipped.

  “And fast?” the Krinuan’s eyes lit up.

  Hawk laughed. “Fast? Ain’t you heard of ‘Speedy’? Damn …” he said. “She’s the only ship that made the Kezzellian Run in less than two light hours! Fast? Sheesh …”

  Praror cocked his head to one side. “I don’t follow.”

  Hawk handed Praror a helmet with a chuckle. “Come on bud let’s take her out.”

  “Gladly,” the Krinuan grinned, eager to get on.

  They climbed in. Hawk threw switches and primed the engines. The ship rumbled to life beneath them. “Hold on tight, boss,” he said.

  9.

  “Quite a spread!” Greene said. He went to grab a vol-au-vent and Chef slapped his hand.

  “They are for guests,” he scolded.

  The Commander looked to Captain King. “You heard him, Del. They’re for our distinguished guests.”

  Greene rolled his eyes.

  She laid a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. We’ll all eat together the minute they get here. I wanted them to taste some of our favourites from home. There’s party food, chilli, Italian, all sorts. Even a couple from that colony on Lynaka VI.”

  “Ah yeah, I went there once. A whole community dedicated to fine cuisine …” Greene said, a dreamy look on his face.

  With all of her senior staff present, it felt like a real gathering. She’d even let the regular bridge crew have the night off and let their hair down. Hawk was in a corner, his arm around Selena Walker as he chatted with Lieutenant Banks. Chang and Rayne were laughing and joking. Ensign Boi seemed to be in deep conversation with Master-at-Arms Eisenhower about something or other.

  My family, Jessica thought.

  The doors to the reception hall opened and a crowd of Krinuans rolled in, all of them dressed in bright sparkly clothes that King took to be their formal attire. At the head of them were Overseer Oblix, and Captain Praror.

  “Welcome, Overseer,” King said. “And welcome fellow Krinuans.”

  “We’re honoured to attend this great feast,” Oblix said as he looked about.

  King laughed. “Well, we wouldn’t have done it without your supplies, Overseer, so it’s we who are honoured.”

  The Overseer bowed his head in thanks.

  “Drinks are served in the far corner. The bartender will fix you whatever you’d like to try. And of course, the foods on offer are a selection from our own culture.”

  The Overseer inhaled deeply. “Smells great, Captain!”

  The bartender came over, right on cue, carrying a large bottle of champagne.

  “Thank you,” Jessica said. She unwrapped the foil from the top. “This is from my own personal store. I was saving it for a special occasion. Right now might be the right time to open this I think. Here’s to us everyone.”

  She popped the cork, sending it flying through the air. The bubbly spewed up over her hand. And of course she took the customary first drink, straight from the bottle.

  Praror wandered over carrying an empty glass. “May I?”

  King nodded and poured him a drink. The Krinuan took a sip. His face wrinkled for a moment, then he smiled. “Much like something I tasted once at a wedding.”

  “We get through plenty of this when we get married,” she said.

  “Captain, I trust that your experience in the Hall of Knowing has not left you upset?” Praror asked her.

  She shrugged. “No. Perplexed, maybe. I have a lot of questions. We all do.”

  “Well, you have our data now, and we have yours. I’m confident we can get some answers,” Praror said, “together.”

  “Something I can toast to,” Jessica said and clinked her bottle against his glass.

  “In fact I had something to ask you,” Praror said.

  “Yes?” Jessica set the bottle down on a nearby table so that people could help themselves.

  “We have a ship leaving for a short cruise. Training purposes. But we’re shorthanded. Rather than pull crew from any vessel, I wondered if you’d like a couple of your own people to go along for the ride. It might help in getting to grips with the energy shield technology we’ve installed on the Defiant,” Praror offered.

  “That sounds exciting. I’m sure there’ll be takers,” King said.

  “Well, we have four spaces. If you could let me know in the next twelve hours …”

  She shook his hand. “It’s a deal, Captain,” she said.

  Praror left her to catch up with his own people. Jessica felt a bump against her back.

  “Ah, Del, just the man I was about to see …” she said.

  “Oh God, that always means trouble,” Greene said.

  She told him about Praror’s offer.

  “I intend for you to go. It’ll be good for you,” Jessica said. “I think Banks, Ensign Boi … and one other …”

  “The Chief?” Greene asked.

  King shook her head. “Nope. Not the Chief. She’s too essential. This old bucket of bolts would shake apart without her down in the engine room, holding her together.”

  “What about Salno? Security. He might learn from the Krinuans.”

  “Good choice,” King said. “So it’s settled. I won’t have to let him know till tomorrow. That’ll give you a chance to sober up.”

  Greene smirked. “What makes you think I’m drunk?”

  “You’re not, but you’re getting there,” King said. She crossed her arms.

  “Captain, it’s like the old saying, it’s not about the destination. It’s the journey. It’s all about what it took to get there,” Greene said with a hearty laugh at the end to punctuate it.

  “Well happy trucking, Del,” Jessica said.

  Everyone mingled. Plates of food were loaded, drinks flowed. Greene had roped in a couple of the crew to play some classic tunes from Earth history. The Krinuans were attempting to dance as far as everyone could tell.

  Jessica took a seat at the edge of the room and picked from some tapas on a plate. Hawk came and sat next to her.

  “How ya doin’?” he asked her.

  She noted the fresh glass of beer. “Sinking a few of those, aren’t you?”

  “Cap,” he said with mock surprise. “It’s only
my tenth!”

  She blew her hand in front of her face. “Phew, I can tell!”

  Hawk chuckled and looked around the room. “Great party. Nice to meet an alien race that don’t wanna shoot us to bits for a change.”

  “I hear you on that,” King said. “By the way, how did Praror like his little flying lesson?”

  Hawk took a long drink, then licked the foam from his top lip. “Exhilarating. That’s how he described it.”

  The tune changed to something they were all familiar with. An old dance number.

  “Care for a boogie, sir? I think I’ve worn Selena out …”

  Jessica’s face had become serious.

  “Jessica?” Hawk asked her, concerned.

  She looked up at him and managed a smile. “No, I’m good, Captain. Go on, enjoy yourself.”

  “Well if you’re sure …”

  She nodded. Forced out another smile. Hawk walked away, confused at her sudden change in attitude.

  The truth was she would’ve been more than happy to get up there and have a dance. But she only felt the weight of dread in her stomach, heavy as a stone.

  A bead of sweat trickled down the back of her neck.

  I don’t know how I’m going to get up, she thought in panic. I can’t feel my feet.

  * * *

  “You wanted to see me?” Dr. Clayton asked.

  Jessica looked up and down the corridor then ushered him inside.

  Clayton entered. “Why the skulduggery, Captain?”

  The door shut behind them. Jessica stood with her hands over her mouth, as she tried to find the words to say what she had to say.

  “It’s started.”

  Clayton’s eyes grew wide. “Tell me.”

  “Numbness in my feet. It started this evening at the party. All of a sudden, I couldn’t feel my feet,” she said, her voice trembling.

  “Jessica …” Clayton said. He stepped forward, perhaps to take the Captain in his arms. But she sat down, lost in her own fears.

  “I couldn’t stand. I was afraid I might fall down or something. Collapse in front of my crew,” she said. Her eyes were wet.

  “It’s okay. Really. I can give you something for this. It will alleviate the symptoms a bit,” Clayton reassured her. “What you’re experiencing is a minor thing.”