“The technology here is vastly different from anything we are used to, it could be that it’s linked to mind access,” Ogun offered.
“Could be. In fact, I’m sure Jezai mentioned their technology was designed around their mental abilities rather than physical stuff.”
“I see. That may well be our answer, though applied in a more direct manner.”
“Ogun, seriously! None of your fucking riddles today. I’m stressed out enough without cracking the bloody enigma code,” I said, probably pushing it a bit with our Fystr ally.
Thankfully, he just laughed. “I was thinking perhaps we could use telekinesis to open the doors. If you, Mick, Gus and I can work together.”
I put my head in my hands. “Of course, I was that caught up with our not having any weapons, I overlooked the ones we have with us. That's the sort of thing I’d wind Shaun up about.”
“It is easy to fall victim to habits, shall we try?”
The answer was obviously yes. The four of us lined up in front of the immense doors. “Let’s do this then,” I said. As one, we all pushed with our minds against the doors. After a minute of intense pushing, we achieved a grand total of fuck all. They were locked solid.
“It was worth a try; it seems we are not intended to pass through these doors,” Ogun said.
“Not to cause offence, but you still haven’t exhausted all of your options,” Calegg said, coming up to my side.
“What are you on about, Calegg?” I asked, as Koparr came up alongside me too. They both raised one hand, flames springing from them.
“Ah!” I said as I cottoned on. “You think you're hot enough?”
Neither replied, but I watched as the flames in their hands began condensing. We all just stood, watching in awe as the orange flames quickly became tiny white flames, though heat was still pouring off them. They moved forward and together slowly drew a door shape in the metal. When they met at the top, their flames extinguished and they both stepped back, exhausted, and pale. Calegg looked over to me, slightly out of breath. “Quickly! Use your telekinesis now to push through. The door is incredibly thick, and if you allow the cuts to cool, it will become solid again.”
Not needing to be told twice, we threw all our mental strength against the glowing rectangle. It moved backwards easily under our combined powers, leaving molten metal dripping around the opening.
“Yup, might wanna give it a minute before we go through there,” I joked, for a short moment forgetting our predicament.
Beyond the opening was pitch blackness. The door itself looked to be around four feet thick, and I couldn’t believe the two Torax were able to cut all the way through it. We’d been together quite a while now, how had I not known they could do this?
“That was remarkable, Calegg, Koparr. I can see how the Torax still terrify the Galactic empire to this day,” Ogun said.
“You could kill anyone with that as a weapon,” I added.
Koparr shook his head, looking recovered already. “As a weapon it is useless for the most part. It takes time to condense the heat, and we must be close for it to be effective. Our people use it mainly for mining Suldr.”
“Ah, gotcha. That is kinda useless as a weapon under those circumstances. Once it's safe to go through, are either of you up to providing light? I can see that took a lot out of you.”
“It was just a very thick door,” Calegg answered. “We wouldn’t normally have our heat condensed for such long periods of time. However, I’m almost fully recovered now and I’m sure Koparr is fine too, so in answer to your question, yes, we can provide light.”
It only took a few minutes, for the metal to cool enough to pass through. Koparr and Calegg went first, their full bodies coated with flames, to provide light in the dark tunnel beyond. Their illumination didn’t extend indefinitely, and we ended up continually heading towards a black circle, which left me feeling like we had walked for hours. At several points we considered turning back but the desire to know what the Apochros were hiding in the rest of the station was just a little stronger. Eventually the tunnel did open up into what looked like it could be a massive space, but with limited light, it was impossible to tell.
“Okay, guys, let’s have a quick look around, see if there’s anything worth seeing,” I said, ready to march off once more until Elyek offered a voice of reason.
“If there are more tunnels, and we move too far away from this one, we may lose our bearings and lose which one we came from.”
“You make an excellent point, Elyek. Even perfect recall wouldn’t help in this light, especially if the station has a symmetrical design,” Ogun said.
“Maybe mark the opening?” I suggested.
“I can scorch it up a bit,” Calegg offered, shooting a fireball into the floor at the opening of the tunnel we’d just left.
“That would still mean we have to search in the relative dark for the marking,” Ogun said.
“Shit. Why is this so bloody difficult?” I said as my mind raced for solutions. “How about Koparr or Calegg stay here, while we move around just enough to remain in sight of their light?”
“I’m fine with that,” Calegg said, looking uncomfortable, “but I wouldn't mind some company. It’s pretty freaky and we don’t know for sure that there’s no one else here.”
“Scared of the dark, old friend? Is that why you ran away from home, so you didn’t have to work in the dark mines?” Koparr laughed and slapped him on the back, then looked at me with a smile on his face. “I’ll stay here as the guide torch. You can all go and look around.”
“Calegg makes a good point. You shouldn’t wait alone. Anything could happen,” I replied.
“I’ll stay,” Mick offered. “I’ll be the least useful if we find anything other than enemies.”
“Thanks, Mick, we won't be long,” I said, before beckoning everyone to move off into the cavernous darkness.
To say our search was anticlimactic was an understatement. The whole damn place was empty. And while we could see tunnels leading away from the expansive room, I had no inclination to travel them at the minute.
“Come on, people, there's nothing here that’s of any use to us today. We should head back and just focus on finding FSUs, and settling in the section that actually has power first. We can make more concerted efforts to map this place out once we have consolidated a base for ourselves.”
“Yes. I’m with you, Ember,” Elyek said in agreement. “If we consider the extent of Beler 3103, we’ll have seen less than a 100th of this station.”
“That's terrifying,” Calegg said. “There could actually be people on here somewhere and we’d never know.”
“Jezai said these places were unmanned, so it’s more than likely we’re completely alone. My hope is that there’s an evacuation ship somewhere that we can use to escape. Once we’re safe and settled, that should be our main objective.”
“It would be so cool if there was a way to fly this beast!” Calegg added. “Imagine if we could fill it with crew! We would be unstoppable.”
“Nice dream, Calegg,” I laughed. “Unless we fought the Apochros who, if I don’t miss my guess, have at least four thousand and eight of these things!”
“Maybe,” he answered, “but they don’t have them filled with the Uprising!”
“It is certainly something we could look into,” Elyek said, surprising me. “I mean, there must be some form of propulsion system somewhere. It may require a vast amount of energy and therefore not be feasible.”
“Worth checking out at some point,” I said, walking back over towards Koparr and Mick.
Ogun started laughing. “It’s a joy to be back amongst you. I see your new crew has developed a similar ethos to dealing with insurmountable odds as you and Shaun.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked.
“Your outlook on life,” he explained. “Your spirit that refuses to be beaten.”
I shrugged. “You're only beaten when you admit it, and that
won’t do any of us any good.” I was about to leave it at that, but realised Ogun could probably use the moral support, much like the rest of us fickle humans. Whether he showed it or not. “It’s good to have you back with us too, Ogun.”
“I’m grateful to still be welcome, by most anyway. Astrid appears to have felt my departure the most keenly as a betrayal.”
“She’ll come round, I’m sure,” I replied as we reached our tunnel.
“Anything?” Mick asked.
“Sweet fuck all. The whole damn room was empty from what we could see. We're just going to go back now.”
He nodded acceptance, and we set off again down the epic corridor. I walked alongside Ogun so I could speak with him some more. “Why do you stand back when there are situations between us to deal with? You did it a lot on the Thoth, and don’t give me the usual shit about how you want us to do it for ourselves. While that may be true to some extent, it's only a small part of it.”
He looked at me with a huge smile. “Can you not guess?”
“Not really, no.”
“Our race craves power above all else. If I assumed the role of leader over the role of teacher, it would only be a matter of time before I was little more than another Fystr despot and you would be in the same situation I tried to free you all from.”
“The Apochros seem to have managed to forego those tendencies,” I replied.
“Really?” he said, gesturing to our surroundings. “It seems they have just put a different title.”
“Well, all I know is that the fucking weasels better get in touch with us soon and tell us what the hell’s going on.”
By the time we made it back to the hall, six of the teams had returned. They had found a canteen and an area that had more developed living facilities than the rooms we had been stored in. I was eager to go to the areas they had found, but we would have to wait for everyone to return. Not having any kind of communication devices was very fucking irritating.
As the groups slowly came in, the pattern of news was clear. Corridors and domed halls like this one for a few miles, until they reached doors that were unpassable. The last team to return had found a docking bay, only it too was completely empty; no ships, no nothing. With no other options, we went to settle in the living quarters. The rest would have to wait.
Chapter 9
Astridoid
I found the quarters were typical of what we’d seen so far. Not as nice as the Thoth and Seshat’s, and even less again than the Uprising. Nonetheless it was a weight off to have a comfortable base and access to basics. Acclo organized everyone as best they could, although as they stood in front of me now, I could see not having a data pad to write and store information on was fraying their nerves far more than being stranded on a weird alien space station.
“We need to decide where to store the prisoners,” they said to me.
“Yes, we do. Can we lock any doors yet?” I asked.
“No. The systems still remain unresponsive.”
“We’ll need to find a workaround. I’d rather not keep them unconscious. Not to mention feeding them and the other bodily functions.”
“I’m confident we can find an alternative.”
“Thank you, Acclo. I don’t know where I’d be without you.”
“As always, it’s my pleasure. I have taken the liberty of placing the alpha team in rooms next to each other. I have counted Ogun among us, as I assumed that would be your wish.”
“Yeah, I think that’ll be for the best for now, Acclo. Thank you.”
With a nod of acceptance, they left to work on rooms for the prisoners. So I went to find Astrid. I’d been sensing tension from her already, and after what had unfolded with Rufus, it was time we had a talk. I found her sitting in our new canteen, talking quietly to a few other crew members from the Thoth. I went and stood near the table to catch her eye rather than interrupt. She looked up at me, waiting, then went back to talking, as if my presence wasn’t obvious. I’d always liked Astrid up until that point.
“Hey, Astrid. Could you spare a few minutes, please,” I asked, fighting my impulse to call her an ignorant bitch.
With a nod, she rose smoothly from the chair without speaking and I led her off to a quiet corner of the canteen and sat. She joined me, her expression unreadable.
“How are you doing?” I asked her.
“How you’d expect I’d imagine.”
“Tell me. I sense you’re not exactly happy.”
“I am confused, terrified, and tired. Tired of the constant tension and drama, ever since we came across you and Shaun again. We may have been struggling before, but in some ways, I think it was preferable to the horrendous rollercoaster we’ve been on since.” Despite her words, she spoke with surprising calm.
I was surprised by her outburst, but supposed it was better to clear the air. “I can understand that. I'd like to say things were only intense after we were abandoned on Xonico, but really my life has been one constant rollercoaster for as long as I can remember.”
“Maybe. It just feels like sometimes you and Shaun actively look for trouble.”
“We don’t, but you’re entitled to your view,” I said, more sharply than I intended.
“And then there’s the situation with Rufus. Despite his shortcomings, he has tried hard to please you both, yet you continue to ignore him and show so little respect. Now he finds himself unconscious, waiting to be put in a cell.” Her voice was starting to grow more heated. I was about to rebuke her, but she was on a roll.
“Then! You explicitly told us you wouldn’t have Ogun back in charge, and yet you instantly put him in a position above me and Rufus, without a second thought, despite the fact he deserted us all. What kind of message do you think that sends to both Rufus and I?”
“That just isn’t the case, Astrid. I wish you could see the whole thing from my perspective, but I see that’s too much to ask.”
“And I wish you could see the whole thing from my perspective, which is why I’m wasting my time trying to explain it to you now!” she snapped, losing much of her composure. “Even by voicing these thoughts, I’m putting my position in jeopardy. I am sure I will wind up in a cell too!”
“Bloody hell, Astrid. I actually thought we were friends. I’m gobsmacked to hear you like this. If you’re struggling so much, can I ask if you have any suggestions on how we move forward?” I asked. I suggest I kick you in your fucking teeth, I thought to myself.
“Release Rufus for a start and try to work through your differences. He’s not a bad man.”
“Okay. I’ll agree to speaking with him once we're all settled and see if we can come to some kind of arrangement.”
“You should release his men too. I’ve no doubt he’ll keep them in line.”
Laughing, I answered, “Absolutely no fucking way, Astrid. I’ll be drawing the line there. For a start Graeme attacked me, and I won’t allow the kind of shit he was spouting about different races to become acceptable. As if this situation isn’t bad enough already.”
“Oh, so you intend to control how the people of Uprising think now?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at me.
“That's a bit of a shitty way to look at it, Astrid. You know I'm just trying to make sure we survive this. There’s no way I’m not intervening when they’ve openly declared a dislike for our alien members, based solely on the fact that they’re aliens. It’s fucking stupid.”
“Only Graeme expressed those feelings. Should the others suffer based on his words?”
“Alright. No, they shouldn’t, and in the interests of peace and harmony, I’ll agree to speak with the other three prisoners.”
“Good. And I am happy to help guide you in future too, should you need help in navigating the more damaging aspects of your personality. You walk a slippery slope, Ember, be careful.”
“Me be careful?” I said in disbelief. “Astrid, like I said about Rufus, there’s no way you would be starting any of this shit if Shaun was still here. So why ar
e you trying to pull it with me? Have I got a handle on my head?”
“A handle?” she asked, confused.
“Yeah, because you’re treating me like a damn mug?”
“I most certainly am not. There would be no point in bringing any of this up with Shaun because he wouldn’t listen, but I’m hoping you will.”
I sat in silence for a moment and thought about it for a minute. I hated myself for again thinking, what would Shaun do? Nonetheless, I was glad that I had. Astrid was completely right. Shaun wouldn’t listen to a goddamn word of this shit. I almost laughed out loud when it hit me. “Astrid, I finally find myself agreeing with something you’ve said.” Her eyes lit up with some perceived victory, until I got up to walk away without saying another word.
“Where are you going?” she asked, shocked by my sudden move.
“Away from this dumbass conversation.”
“What do you mean? You said I was right?”
“Yeah, about Shaun not listening to this shit. We need to survive and thrive. He wouldn’t listen to anyone who wasn’t pulling in the same direction. I suppose for a minute I thought it was the sign of a good leader, and perhaps under different circumstances it would be. But not here and not now. Oh, and one last thing, Astrid, and you can decide what you want to do with it.
“I want us, the Uprising, to win, okay? I want us to be strong and not get screwed over like this ever again. There’s no doubt in my mind that Shaun wants the same thing, and that’s what we’re pushing towards. We’re stuck together for now, but once we’re safe again, if you want to go your own separate way, then by all means go with my blessing. Take the prisoners and Rufus, and anyone else who wants to go with you and just fuck off.” Turning on my heel, I marched off toward the room Acclo had assigned to me feeling equal parts terrible and elated, but sure I'd done the right thing.
The room had a double bed that I desperately threw myself onto. Burying my face into the cool pillows, it was blissful to be alone and just collect my thoughts. Unfortunately, it lasted all of five minutes before there was a knock on the door.
“Come in,” I growled, sitting up on the bed.
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