by A. K. DuBoff
“I’m glad my life-altering predicaments are offering you such amusement.”
“Oh, best entertainment in months!” She turned serious. “Stars know I need a distraction right now.”
“Kira…”
The other woman shook her head. “You don’t need to say it. I know we’ll find him.”
I meet someone just as the person she loves most goes missing… What do you say to that? Lexi swallowed. “Yeah, we will. We’re in this together.”
“In the meantime, enjoy your new lover-boy.”
“I have every intention of doing just that.”
— — —
Jason rubbed his weary eyes, realizing that he’d been up for more than a full day. On top of the mission debrief, he’d had his normal responsibilities to take care of, and he’d lost track of time.
Going back to his quarters to rest sounded amazing. However, that now came with the complicating factor of Lexi being there. The thought was both exciting and reassuring in a way he hadn’t expected.
He palmed open the door, and Lexi rose from the couch to greet him. His heart warmed at the sight of her. I could get used to this.
She stepped toward him and then pulled him into her arms the moment the door was closed. Her lips found his and she pressed against him. Everything else vanished in her presence.
When they parted, he was breathless and still wanted more. She was intoxicating.
“I know it’s only been a few hours, but stars, I missed you,” she whispered in his ear as she held him.
“Me too.”
Lexi pulled back and stared into his eyes at arms’ length. “I’ve had a lot of time to think about it today, and I want you to know that I’m all in with giving us a chance.”
The alternative had never been a viable option in his mind. “I feel the same way. Now that I know you exist, I can’t imagine not seeing this through.”
She smiled up at him. “Please try to be patient, because being open and vulnerable is a new thing for me.”
“I will.” Jason took her hand and led her to the couch. They sat down, angled with their knees touching. “Though we still need to get acquainted properly, I look forward to much more with you.” He looked over her perfect figure but managed to keep his focus. “I want to set us up for the best life together that we can have, so before we take any next steps, there are some things we should talk about.”
“Yes. Get to know each other.”
“Exactly. And, specifically, I need to confess that having you here in my quarters is great and also a little bittersweet.”
She held his hands. “It’s okay. You can tell me anything.”
He searched for the right words, glancing at the picture of Tiff on his desk. “I was in a relationship for a long time. You could call it ‘friends with benefits’, but it was more than that. After nine years, it had run its course and it was time to move on. She took a post at the Alkeer Station days before it was destroyed in the Erebus attack.”
“Shite! Was she…?”
He nodded.
“Oh, Jason, I’m so sorry.”
“It is what it is. Even though the nature of our relationship had changed by then, and it was never romantic love, it was still a huge blow.”
“Yeah, I can only imagine.”
“Worse, I was there on the Conquest with my dad when it happened. I was in the middle of a remote telepathic conversation with her, and then…” He faded out, unable to say it. That sensation of sudden emptiness came over him again with the memory of that awful day.
“Fok… wow.” She bowed her head. “That wasn’t that long ago.”
“Yeah, seven months. I’ve come to terms with it, but there are moments, you know? And since most of our time together was spent in here…”
To his surprise, Lexi didn’t appear uncomfortable with the thought. Instead, she squeezed his hands and nodded with understanding. “I’m not in any rush.”
“I appreciate that. And to be clear, what I had with Tiff wasn’t anything like the start of what we have.”
“You don’t need to explain. I feel it, too.”
He brought one hand up to stroke the side of her face. “You’re absolutely incredible.”
“Being around you makes me want to be a better person. Historically, I’ve actually been kind of a bitch.”
Jason laughed. “I find that hard to believe.”
“I’ve had the kind of life that makes a person cynical.”
“I want to hear all about it, whenever you’re ready to share.”
“I’m getting there. Maybe that’s a Day Two conversation.”
They both laughed.
“Stars, this really has progressed quickly.” He shook his head.
“It has, but I can’t imagine anything else.”
“Me either.”
She leaned in and kissed him tenderly. “Thank you for telling me about your friend.”
“I wish you could have met her. She would have loved you.”
“I’m glad.” Lexi paused. “Are you sure you’re okay with me staying here?”
“Yes, if you are. Tiff spent time here, but it was always my place, not ‘ours’. I hope, though, with us that could be different.”
“As long as you’re here, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
Chapter 17
“This is incredible,” Raena told Trevor as she reviewed the latest field report of the findings on Earth. The initial ship hull had indeed been the first of many extraordinary discoveries, and this latest find looked like it would make all of their efforts worthwhile.
Raena had always thought that the technology on Earth was advanced while she was growing up, but the Taran Empire had given her access to so much more. In particular, visualization technology was significantly more sophisticated, especially when it came to looking through solid objects. A long history of space exploration and mining had given Tarans a suite of imaging and materials analysis tools, which were perfect for the current investigation on Earth.
The team had been analyzing areas of interest to determine the places that were worth excavating. What they were now finding underground, buried for tens of thousands of years or more, was nothing short of revolutionary for the understanding of both human and Taran history. Now, with the top sites identified, it was even more impressive to see those ancient treasures unearthed.
“The pictures don’t do it justice,” Trevor said as he flipped the feed on their vidcall to a visual recording.
The holoprojector above Raena’s desk rendered an immersive scene of a lush jungle with such vivid detail that she could almost smell the damp earth and feel mosquitos buzzing around her head. At the center, a perfectly round section of the jungle landscape had been raised upward on an antigrav platform, supporting a collection of small pyramids that had long since been reclaimed by trees and vines. That portion of the ground encompassing the monuments was now floating eighty meters in the air, the antigravity drives casting an eerie blue glow on the underside of the support disk.
Raena smiled. “How are ticket sales for the floating city tour?”
Trevor chuckled. “Line out the door—figuratively speaking. If only they knew what we were working on behind the stealth shield.” He began playing the holovideo recording.
Raena braced herself as the camera operator stepped underneath the platform. Though she knew the technology was reliable—and she herself was nowhere near it, only observing—there was something disconcerting about a former city being suspended overhead.
At the threshold, there was a silvery shimmer as the camera passed through to the inside of the worksite, hidden within a camouflaged shield. To an outside observer, the platform was suspended in the air above a patch of empty ground. In reality, a large-scale excavation operation was underway, and the exterior appearance was effectively a massive work tent cloak. Select government officials knew what was really going on inside, but they didn’t need casual tourist observers taking pictures
that would undoubtedly lead to rampant rumors.
The exposed ground where the jungle floor had been uprooted had been stripped back in tiers surrounding a hole that disappeared into the depths. Various retaining walls and other support structures kept everything in place.
“We didn’t make that central hole,” Trevor revealed. “It aligned with one of the pyramids. Some sort of access point, though it was invisible from the outside.”
“Where does it lead?”
“To crazy town.”
The video fast-forwarded to the camera operator standing at the precipice of the hole, which was now ringed in scaffolding. The opening was approximately fifteen meters in diameter and it was at least four times that deep.
“The scaffolding is ours, but the walls are original,” Trevor explained.
The video zoomed in on the shaft’s surface, which appeared to be a sort of shimmering stone Raena didn’t recognize. It was carved with branching grooves filled with copper or a similar metal, giving the appearance of a circuit board.
Raena gaped at it, aware she had lost her dynastic heiress poise. “What?”
Trevor shook his head. “As I said, my lady, we weren’t expecting to find anything like this.”
The video quickly advanced again through the descent of the spiraling scaffold. At the bottom, it resumed normal playback speed as the camera approached a crystal sphere resting on a pedestal at the center of the shaft. The sphere was a meter in width, and its vertical support was covered in the same circuitry-like carvings.
“We don’t know what it does yet,” Trevor said. “It’s clearly some kind of device.”
“Age estimates?”
“Many tens of thousands of years.”
What in the stars went on here? Raena stared at the bizarre scene, not sure what to make of it. Clearly, Tarans had left behind all of their technology when they settled on Earth. This could be anything from a weapon, to a shield, to an information repository.
“Capture as much data about it as you can and send it to TSS Headquarters,” Raena instructed. If anyone could make sense of the strange device, it was her dad.
“Yes, my lady.”
Raena’s desk flashed with an incoming call from her grandfather.
“Hey, Trevor, is that it for now?”
“Yes, the rest is in my report.”
“Great. Thank you for the update. Talk soon.” She ended the vidcall with Trevor and switched over to the incoming feed from her grandfather. “Hi, sorry for the delay. I was in the middle of something.”
Cris smiled back at her from the viewscreen on the wall. “No need to apologize. I hope all is well.”
“Stars! You won’t believe what we just found on Earth.” She filled him in on the latest discovery.
He took in the explanation without much outward expression. When she finished, he nodded thoughtfully. “Hmm. I wouldn’t have expected that.”
“It sounds like there’s a lot more Taran history on the planet than we’d realized.”
“Are you sure it’s Taran?” he asked.
That prospect hadn’t occurred to her. “No, actually. They haven’t done much testing yet.”
“The device reminds me a bit of the images I saw of the Gatekeeper sphere, but that might be a coincidence.”
“Or, perhaps the races once worked together,” Raena said.
“Also a possibility. The Erebus were a threat to them both, so maybe they collaborated after the ancient war.”
“I’m curious to hear what Dad thinks about it.”
“Me too,” Cris said. His expression darkened. “Unfortunately, we have considerations closer to home right now.”
She wasn’t used to seeing him look worried. “What’s going on?”
“Those coordinated attacks in the Outer Colonies have been getting a lot of media attention, understandably. That messaging is working its way through the Middle and Central Worlds. They’re scrutinizing Tararian leadership, and specifically our long-term operational plans to continue supporting the ever-expanding Empire.”
Raena frowned. “What’s the issue? Business is good. Financially, we’re in great shape.”
“Yes, that’s not the concern. There is a matter of succession and the continuity of power.”
She was about to ask him to clarify when it struck her what he meant. Raena and Ryan were young and healthy, but they had no named scions to continue either Sietinen or Dainetris. “Ah.”
“I swore I would never become my parents and be concerned about such things, so please don’t take it as me trying to push you to speed up your timeline. I just mean it as a statement of fact about why people are making the sort of statements you’ve been seeing.”
“It makes sense,” she admitted. “I guess it’s been on the backburner with everything else going on. Honestly, Ryan and I haven’t talked about it.”
“And, under normal circumstances, a couple your age wouldn’t be in any sort of rush. Nor should you be now.”
“Except, most scions have an heir of their own by their mid-twenties.”
“Traditionally, yes. But your father was twenty-eight, so…”
Wow, it’s amazing my parents managed to see us through high school at their super-advanced age, she thought sarcastically. She had no doubt that her grandfather meant well and wasn’t trying to pressure her, but the statement got her thinking. A baby—or babies, more likely—hadn’t entered into her planning for the foreseeable future. However, she realized that it should be discussed with her husband sooner than later.
“Point taken,” she told her grandfather. “In the meantime, how do you suggest we proceed?”
“Your new discovery on Earth might actually be just what we need. A reminder about a shared history across the Taran worlds, that we’re in this together. I encourage you to expedite your plans to open up tours of Morningstar Isle and to begin rolling out promo packages about these new links with Earth.”
“As much as I want to share that work, I think we need to do more investigation before we post anything publicly,” she said. “These artifacts could be dangerous, or they might be part of a tool to use against the Erebus, and we wouldn’t want to tip them off.”
“That’s a good point.” He sat in quiet consideration for several moments. “Okay, then let’s proceed with the tours, and I’ll see if I can get our relief efforts in the Outer Colonies more screen time. DGE has done more than anyone else, but Makaris has spent the most time in the spotlight. Sure, food is necessary, but there wouldn’t have been half as many people evacuated yet if Ryan hadn’t sent those ships.”
“Some reporter has to be willing to take on that story,” Raena agreed.
“Be ready for interviews. I’d like to start getting you more face time.”
“Oh, joy.” She smiled at him. Really, she didn’t mind public relations, but it was best not to be overly enthusiastic or she might find herself doing nothing else.
“You’re well on your way to becoming a great leader, Raena. You’re exactly what the Empire needs.”
“I hope so. I feel like I’m constantly playing catchup, having been outside the culture when I was growing up.”
“That’s what makes you so perfectly suited for this role, though. I hated it when your parents took you away to Earth, but they saw it was for the best, and now I understand why. You approach everyone as equals. Find common ground. That’s what we need now more than anything.”
“I try.”
He smiled. “The media loves a modest leader. Keep this up and we’ll be just fine.”
— — —
Wil reviewed the latest information from his daughter on the holoprojector above his desk with Saera.
“A series of buried ships and underground structures, huh?” Saera shook her head incredulously. “And here I thought all those ancient aliens theorists on TV had done too many mind-altering drugs.”
Wil chuckled. “There must have been so much vindication the moment we revealed the existen
ce of the Taran Empire.”
“There were many multi-hour TV specials. I checked.” She flashed a playful smile.
“But all of this is strange.” Wil turned serious. “There have been touch-points with Earth throughout Taran history, it seems. First was perhaps millions of years ago, and then significantly more involvement over the past hundred thousand years or so.”
Saera shrugged. “Stewards for the planet.”
“Certainly, but why bury so much in inaccessible places?”
“Well, we lock away plenty of things for safekeeping. It seems they made a concerted effort to leave behind advanced technology, so everything would have been sealed away.”
Wil didn’t yet have enough information about the strange device in Belize to determine its purpose, but it was clearly designed to handle the flow of a large amount of power. That kind of signature would stand out from a distance, so it made sense its builders would use subterranean construction practices to take advantage of the natural insulating properties of the ground.
The design was intentionally hidden, definitely not a random thing that had been lost. It was preserved, sealed away…
The pieces began falling into place. “That’s it! Oh, my stars…” Wil sat up straight in his chair. “It was an ark.”
“Wait, what?” Saera looked at him with a mixture of intrigue and confusion.
“Earth was an ark. Think about the timeline. The location. The cultural diversity. Raena’s recent discoveries confirmed that colonists from various Taran worlds all settled on Earth, and it’s highly suspected that they genetically engineered aspects of life on the planet. What was never clear was why.
“Now, I can’t help but wonder if the reason they fled to Earth long ago was to form a settlement far away from Tararia, so that the Taran race might continue if anything happened to the Central Worlds. Given that technology is what had sparked the original conflict with the Erebus and the Gatekeepers, it makes sense that they would leave behind those temptations when founding this new world. The ancient Tarans brought with them elements of their cultures from their original homeworlds, but everything else was intentionally forgotten so that they could be a truly independent colony.”
