Chapter 1 – Untimely End
Everyone heard the blood-curdling scream; however, it was Sylvia who moved first. When the others made to follow, she told them “I’ll go” and she sprinted down the hallway to her friend’s cabin.
Pounding on the door, she yelled, “Egg, let me in.” Not waiting for a reply, she opened it and saw her friend, bent at the waist, vomiting and coughing. She hurried over and pulled the girl’s hair away from her mouth. She couldn’t imagine what Benny had said to affect her friend in such a manner . . . unless it was Ezra. Maybe he had taken a turn for the worse.
The vomiting eventually morphed into the dry heaves. But the girl’s tears and running nose attested to her extreme level of distress. Syl said nothing . . . letting her friend have the time to regain her composure.
After a while, Egg was able to mutter “B . . . B . . . Benny.” That was as far as she got before the crying and hyperventilating began again.
There was a gentle knock on the door and Syl turned to see Jax’x and Bree standing there . . . faces white, eyes wet.
“What’s wrong?”
“We just finished talking to Meggy. She told us what happened. Egg, we’re so, so sorry,” whispered Bree.
Egg didn’t acknowledge her sisters . . . unable to stop the crying. It was Syl who asked, “What happened?”
Bree looked at Jax’x who shrugged. “Benny’s spaceship . . . it was destroyed by the Ephemeral. Crew members made it to the escape pods and were picked up by the enemy.”
“And Benny?” Now Syl was turning white.
Bree just shook her head no.
“Oh dear god.”
*****
Ten minutes later, Serenity returned to the bridge to be with the others. “I gave her a sedative. She’s asleep.”
“Thank you,” said Sylvia.
“Now what?” asked Bl’azzz.
“Meggy wanted us to call her back. I think we should do it now while Egg’s resting.”
“Serenity’s right,” added Jax’x. “Let’s find out what the situation is and how we can help.” No one objected so she placed the call.
It took a good twenty minutes for someone to acknowledge the communications. To everyone’s surprise, it was Soo.
“Hi, guys,” she said in a quiet, very un-Soo-like voice.
“Soo, I’m Jax’x. I’m sorry we had to meet under these circumstances.”
“Hi, Jax’x. You’re right but it’s still great to meet a new sister.”
“Soo, what’s going on?” asked Bree.
“The easier question is ‘what’s not going on’. Dazzle and Meggy are locked away somewhere so they can cry in private. Lord Z’kkk is trying to hide his tears but his eyes are bright red. He’s meeting with his advisors as well as their counterparts in the Federation. K’ssss and Sassi are on their way over. Spirit is trying to make arrangements to fly in from Paradox. Aeri’elle is on her way home from Spell ‘Bound. I just finished talking to Egg’s sister Ashley. As you would expect she wants to come to Aerianna to be with Egg. However, she was going to talk to the other members of the family and convinced them to stay home for now. And, um . . . that’s all I got. How’s Egg holding up?”
“She’s not,” answered Syl. “We sedated her about a half hour ago. Tell Meggy that we’ll head home.”
Leave it to Serenity to ask the logical question. “Have they actually confirmed Benny’s death?” That elicited a room full of shocked gasps. “It’s a valid question,” replied the girl defending herself.
“If you’re asking if they found his body, the answer is no. But we have scans of the debris field consistent with the ship exploding so there’s nothing to recover.”
Every one of the girls lowered their heads . . . each lost in her own thoughts. Some thinking of Egg, others trying to assess how they would feel if it were their loved one.
Breaking the silence, I’za said to the serpent, “Soo, I am I’za from the Ark of Forever. Please tell your Queen that I feel personally responsible for these tragic events. I was a member of the Guardians responsible for the safety of the Ark. We failed at our job. More importantly, I failed at my job. If there is anything that I can do, I am at her disposal.”
The serpent looked at the girl for a full minute. Her response was totally unexpected. “I’za, you would make a great Hameggattic Sister.” To the others, she said, “We’ll talk later,” and the serpent’s face faded away.
The alien girl stood there – staring at a blank screen. And, for reasons she couldn’t explain to anyone, herself included, she began to cry.
*****
Egg might have been sedated, but her body was twisting and turning as if in an exorcism. Her subconscious was raging out of control with a million thoughts and a trillion images fighting to be heard or seen.
Oddly enough, the one that finally got her attention was a scene from her very first adventure. She was nine years old again walking in the Never ‘glade – with J’azzz-min of all people. Well, technically she was a cat and not a person.
“J’azzz-min, what are you doing here?”
“Walking, you mendacious melodious malcontent.”
“Be nice.”
“Nope. You’re not my mother.”
“Then get out of my dream.”
“Maybe you’re in my dream – ever think of that girlie?”
“Cats don’t dream. Everyone knows that.”
“I’ve told you this before, so pay attention this time – I’m not your everyday, garden variety feline. I’m special.”
“Ha. The only thing special about you is that you walk on two legs.”
“That’s hurtful but I’ll ignore your rancorous rudeness. I have a preposterous proposition for you.”
“What kind of proposition?”
“I’ll trade you something I have for something that you have.”
“Like what?”
“My hat would make you look so much less awful. By hiding your hideously hilarious face, men won’t be able to resist you.”
“Hey, I’m not awful looking. I’m cute as a button.”
“Do you see a lot of men kissing buttons?”
“Oh. I guess not.”
“Is it a deal?”
“You didn’t tell me what I have to give you.”
“I’ve always wanted a goose bump.”
“That’s just stupid.”
“You have so many; all I’m asking for is one.”
“Well . . . okay, I guess.” Looking down at her arms, Egg didn’t see any. “Sorry, I don’t have any goose bumps.”
“Hmmm . . . you’re right. No goose bumps.”
“That’s what I said.”
“Say it again.”
“No goose bumps.”
“And again.”
“No goose bumps.”
“One more time, Gracie.”
“No goose bumps. No goose bumps. No goose bumps. No goose bumps.”
“Time to wake up, girlie.”
“Why?”
“Geez, Louise. Stop being a hard-boiled Egg. I’ll say it one last time - because you don’t have any goose bumps.”
“Oh. Oh my gosh.”
*****
Egg woke with a start. She was drenched in sweat, hair disheveled and mind disoriented. She had no idea why she was in bed. Sitting up, she scrunched her face trying to remember something . . . something terribly important. It had to do with a hat. Why would a hat be important? Her mind refused to cooperate. “Think, you stupid girl,” she mumbled. What was it about a hat? Could it be the cat in the hat? No, that didn’t seem right. Then in her mind’s eye, she saw who was wearing it. “J’AZZZ-MIN” she yelled. “It’s her hat.”
But she still couldn’t remember what that meant. Lost in thought, Egg didn’t hear the recirculating pump start up. As luck would have it (I know, I know. She’s always getting lucky. Deal with it) the cool air washed against her sweaty skin. And, you guessed it, her goose bumps popped out. She rubbed her arms to get
warm . . . then she looked down and her eyes grew large. “NO GOOSE BUMPS. NO GOOSE BUMPS.” She got up, almost made it out the door when she decide to at least splash a little water on her face and rinse her mouth. Then she all but flew down the hall to the command center.
She hit the door so hard that it gave off a groaning sound as it flew open. The other girls nearly jumped out of their collective skin at the unexpected intrusion.
“NO GOOSE BUMPS,” she screamed. “I didn’t get any goose bumps.” She smiled at her sisters who weren’t as excited by the news as she thought they should be.
Sylvia hurried to her friend. “Come over here and sit. Bree, can you bring her a glass of water.”
“Of course.”
“Syl, don’t you get it. No goose bumps,” and she smiled again . . . a reaction that seemed terribly out of place considering the events of the last hour.
“Here you go,” and Bree offered the girl a glass.
“No. No, thank you. You people – don’t you understand? When Benny told me his ship was doomed, I didn’t get any goose bumps.” She waited for their joyful understanding.
But she was disappointed.
Syl asked, “Are you suggesting that he’s still alive? That he survived his ship exploding?”
And again Egg smiled. “Yup.”
The girls looked from one to another . . . worry for their sister evident on their faces. They didn’t know how to proceed. To encourage Egg in this delusion seemed unfair. Convincing her of the absurdity of it seemed cruel.
Jax’x, the most empathetic of the sisters, tried her hand. “Egg, are you sure you would have gotten goose bumps in this situation?”
“Of course.”
“Is it possible that you did but because of what was happening, you didn’t notice?”
Egg opened her mouth but closed it again. “Um, maybe.”
“Does it seem logical to you that he could survive such an event?”
“Um . . .,” but she didn’t finish because tears were beginning to well up in her eyes.
“Egg, where was Benny when he called you?” asked Serenity with some urgency.
“What? I’m not sure.”
“Think.”
“He didn’t say exactly. He said the ship was his command and he wouldn’t leave. He said he ordered his crew to the life rafts – whatever you call them.”
“Then, I think you’re right. He would have been on the bridge to monitor their escape.”
Everyone turned to stare at the girl in the chair. It was Jax’x who asked, “Help us understand how,” she said softly.
“I designed these ships. One of the many clever features that I included is the ability for this command center – this bridge – to be able to withstand all sorts of catastrophes. It’s conceivable that when the ship exploded, his module was ejected. BUT . . .” and she raised her hand to stop Egg in particular from rejoicing. “But, if he hadn’t engaged the emergency inertial dampening system, he would be tossed around violently. He may be alive, but he’s probably injured – maybe severely.”
“Then we’re wasting time. We need to find him. Lay in a course. Full speed ahead.”
“Egg, the Ephemeral may already have him. Even if they don’t, we would be entering their new territory without an invitation. They’ll attack us like they did Benny.”
“What are you suggesting? That I just leave him to die?”
“No, of course not. First, we need to figure a way to defeat the bad guys. Then we go rescue him.”
*****
Egg stood there, hands on hips, looking every inch the leader of these women.
By the intense focus on her face, you could tell she was evaluating possible strategies trying to decide which would be the most effective.
To everyone’s shock, she suddenly fell to her knees – head in hand. Her body was shaking and her face had turned chalk white. Again, it was Syl who was the first to reach her. “Egg, are you okay? What’s wrong?”
The girl took a few deep breaths before answering. “Syl, he’s alive,” she said softly. “I thought I had lost him. But, he’s alive and now I’m going to get him back.”
“What about the Ephemeral?”
Egg suddenly smiled. Purposely misquoting a Fandango Sally verse she said, “No one messes with my Mister, Sister. No one.”
Syl smiled at her friend’s sense of humor considering the situation. Bl’azzz actually eeked a laugh. “Good one, Egg-o.” To the others she explained, “It actually goes ‘no one messes with my sister, mister’. Get it?”
“Yeah, yeah. We get it,” snarked Sparky. “Cute and clever. Kudos.”
Jax’x whacked the back of the girl’s head. “Be nice or I’m going to send you outside to play.”
“Everyone’s a comedian.”
“See, there you go. Thank you.”
“That wasn’t a compliment, you creepy catnip.”
Whack.
Bree walked between the two to stop their antics and asked Egg, “Shouldn’t you contact Benny’s family? They need to know there’s a chance that their son is still alive.”
“He is alive. We just have to get him back,” she snapped. That was immediately followed by, “Sorry, I’m just an emotional wreck and I shouldn’t take it out on you.”
“I phrased it poorly. The fault is mine.”
“You’re right though. The problem is that Dazzle and Lord Z’kkk won’t understand about the goose bumps. Even Meggy will have a problem.”
“When we called her, it was Soo who answered. She would understand, don’t you think?”
“Absolutely. Go ahead and send the message.”
“Last time it took her almost twenty minutes to respond.”
“Perfect. That will give us a chance to come up with a rescue plan.”
“Egg-o, twenty minutes seems a bit optimistic,” said the dragon.
“We don’t have to have all the details – just enough to keep them from interfering.”
Bree looked confused. “I don’t understand.”
“This is our fight. I don’t want Meggy or her parents sending an armada. We can handle it. Besides, the bad guys hurt my man . . . and now I intend to make them pay.”
“Revenge?”
“Never,” said Egg with pretend innocence. “Think of it as Righteous Retribution. I’za, come over here and tell us everything you know about the Ephemeral.”
*****
“First, no one that I know of has ever seen an Ephemeral.”
“What? Why?”
“They are simply too dangerous to confront.”
The girls looked at one another. Jax’x asked the obvious question. “What makes them so dangerous?”
“They can distort a person’s perception of reality.”
“Like inducing a hallucination?” asked Sparky.
“More complex. If I had the power to induce a hallucination and wanted to frighten Egg, for example, I could make her see Waldo. I’m not sure why that frightens her, but it does.”
“Waldo is using the image of my archenemy Mobius. That’s a story for another day.”
“As you say. Anyway, I would make her see me as this Mobius. However, the Ephemeral could choose an emotion like fear and induce it on the entire crew of a ship. Each person would see or hear or smell whatever frightened them the most. The Ephemeral wouldn’t even know what each individual was seeing.”
“And you have no idea what they look like?” asked Bl’azzz.
“I can draw the commonly held belief as to their appearance. I just can’t vouch for its accuracy.”
Jax’x brought her a tablet and showed her the technology. “I am familiar, thank you.” For the next few minutes the alien sketched, erased then sketched again. “Here you go” and she handed the tablet to Egg.
“Cute,” then she passed it around.
When it reached Tee’ka, the girl said, “Egg, that’s ugly not cute.”
Suppressing a smile, Egg answered, “You’re right, Tee. Thank
you for correcting me.”
“That’s okay. Everyone makes mistakes.”
Chapter 2 – All that J’azzz
“Obviously, you’ve never entered the Ephemeral’s habitat.”
“No Guardian was allowed to visit. And all the visual recording devices that had been installed there were rendered inoperative.”
“There must have been some talk as to their nature.”
“Oh, yes. It was a staple of conversation for us. For instance, the Prime Hegemon Gan’gli is thought to be a title that is given to each ruler and not her actual name.”
That wasn’t particularly helpful. “What else?”
“It is also believed that they are extremely delicate physically. Their mental powers are the only thing that keeps them safe.”
“Now that is interesting . . . assuming it’s true.”
“Egg, if you look at I’za’s sketch, it seems fairly evident that unlike the Klat, brute force isn’t one of their gifts,” suggested Jax’x.
“Explain?”
“The limbs are very disproportionate in thickness to their overall length, for instance. Mass of the torso is also out of proportion. So too are their necks which look incredibly vulnerable to damage if they were ever in a fight.”
Sparky didn’t want to be outdone by her sister. “I’d also say it’s plausible by the fact of natural selection. This species would never survive if it had to fight by hand. Nature gave them their mental powers to compensate.”
“Now we’re getting somewhere. Keep going I’za.”
“There are two more facts – unproven but universally believed – about our friends. First, they are short lived. Their life span is said to be measured in a few decades. Second, their society is highly unusual. They have . . . how do I describe it . . . they have a hive mind.”
“What does that mean?”
“What one feels or learns is shared with every member of the collective. We’ve always assumed that it all funnels through the Hegemon in some fashion.”
“Wow,” exclaimed Sylvia. “That would mean that there’s no individuality . . . no one member can be unique because his or her experience becomes everyone’s experience. How very odd.”
“More importantly,” asked Egg rhetorically “is that a weakness that we can exploit? Or is it a strength that we need to overcome?”
Ark - Box Set #6, Part 1 of Ever After [an Egg and the Hameggattic Sisterhood novel] Page 20
