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Episode 91: Keepers, Three
"Six days!" Alex slammed his fist down on the coffee table in the lobby. "And we're no closer to getting out of here than we were before," the elder Wildstar propped his elbows on his knees and held his head in his hands.
"Maybe we're missing something," Feria laid a thoughtful finger on her lips and stared at the archway looming behind Alex.
"Of course we are," Derek sat next to Feria and leaned over the coffee table. "We just have to figure out what it is."
A piercing shriek tore through the air, sending all three crewmembers shooting to their feet.
"What on earth?!" Feria clapped her hands over her ears and winced.
"Royster," Homer's voice echoed down the stairs. "Get ahold of yourself."
"No! No, I saw it looking at me!" Royster screeched.
"Neville!" Feria bellowed as she marched up the stairs. "You're disturbing everyone! We're all on edge enough without you adding to it." She found the scientist staring at a blank section of wall halfway down the second floor hallway. "Keep it together, Royster. We're getting out of here, but it's going to take longer with you flipping out over everything." Feria looked around, "What painting are you talking about anyway? I don't see one."
"Th – th – th –" Royster stuttered, pointing behind Feria. She looked over her shoulder and froze when the image of a white-haired, pale skinned woman dressed in black gazed back at her.
"Whoa! It really does look like it's staring at you," she scooted away from the painting.
Homer staggered back toward his room door, wide-eyed. "That wasn't there a second ago," he pointed at the picture.
"Yes, it was!" Royster insisted.
"Enough," Feria raised a silencing palm toward both men. "I don't care if it was there or not. We're all anxious, and sometimes people see things when they get stressed. Just…" she rubbed her tired eyes. "Just keep looking for something that might help us get out of here."
"Yeah," Homer muttered and slipped back into his room.
"Neville?" Feria folded her arms and stared at Royster.
"Okay. Okay," he scurried off down the hall toward the dark end of the hotel.
"What was that about?" Derek appeared behind her.
"That," Feria pointed at the wall without looking. "Royster says it appeared out of nowhere. Homer says he didn't see it before I came up here."
"Didn't see what?" Derek asked.
Feria looked up. "Uh…" she furrowed her brow. "There was a painting there just a second ago."
"You sure you're not seeing things?" Derek examined the wall.
"I'm sure," she joined Derek at the wall and ran a hand over the smooth paint. "I know I saw it…" She took a step back, scanning the long hall.
"Get some rest. It's late," Derek offered. "We'll pick up where we left off in the morning."
"Okay…" Feria sighed. "We can't go on like this forever. The water runs, but the cupboards are bare. It's all I can do to keep Royster from flipping his lid at every shadow. Homer tries to calm him down sometimes, but I don't know how much longer either of them can take the stress." She lowered her voice, "And the Gamilons being here isn't helping. That woman – Neredia – she came into my room the first night we were here. She just wanted to talk, but it was… disconcerting."
Derek raised an eyebrow. "She came into your room?"
"Yeah, while I was sleeping. She woke me up. I'm sure I locked the door before I went to bed."
"What did she want to talk about?"
"I don't really know," Feria leaned against the wall. "She told me a story she knew from when she was a kid – something about a girl who could control dark matter. It was in a book on my nightstand, but as soon as she set it down, I couldn't find it. I looked for it the next morning, but it wasn't there."
"Kind of odd for a kid's story," Derek mused.
"Well, some of our fairytales are pretty off-the-wall too if you think about it,' Feria countered.
"I guess so… but it's still strange."
Feria started toward her door, "Maybe tomorrow will be better."
"I hope so," Derek waved as he headed back toward the lobby.
Feria started awake.
"Melia! Melia, no!" the lament bled through her door.
"What…?" she listened hard. The call came again.
Feria slipped out of bed and crept over to her door. She didn't bother to grab her shoes as she left her room and stole across the dark hall. The cold floor made her feet tingle.
A groan leaked through the nearest door. Concerned, she turned the knob. The door clicked open. She peeked in. "Hello…?" She let the door close softly behind her and swallowed the fear balled in her throat. "Hello? Are you alright?"
"What are you doing in here?!"
Feria shrank back, startled, "I'm sorry – I thought something was wrong."
The lamp clicked on.
Fomto, one of the Gamilon captains sat in the bed glaring at Feria. "I have nothing against Galerans, but you have no business being in here," he growled, rubbing his scar.
"O… kay…" she held up her hands, "Good night." Feria reached for the doorknob.
"I'm – I'm sorry," Fomto began.
"It's alright. I understand," she pulled the door open.
"Wait."
Feria heard rustling and then felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around and looked up into the Gamilon's face. The door clicked shut again.
"Sometimes… I remember," the Gamilon whispered as his eyes misted. "It was the worst day of my life…" he let go of her shoulder and sat down in a nearby chair. He motioned for her to sit across from him.
Feria sat.
Fomto held his face in his hands for a long time, staring at the floor. Feria heard the faint sound of something dripping onto the hardwood.
"Hey…" she knelt down in front of the distraught man. "I've lost people too." She looked up at him.
Fomto let his hands drop to his lap. "She used to sit just like that," he nodded to Feria. "Every time we lost a friend to those barbarians she would tell me, 'Fomto, tomorrow is a new day.'" He sucked in a shaky breath. "Then I lost her." He swiped at the tears running down his face and in a fierce whisper hissed, "Gatlantis…nest of devils!"
"I'm… so sorry…" Feria fought off tears of her own. "I lost my fiancée last year. He… was a pilot too. He gave me this just before he died," she held up the carmine crystal she always wore on a cord around her neck. "Red was his favorite color."
"It was Melia's too," Fomto smiled sadly.
Feria tucked the crystal away again and stood. "Maybe we can sleep in our own beds tomorrow night."
Fomto nodded, "That would be a welcome relief."
"They've been gone for over five hours," Sandor sat down by Captain Avatar's bed. "We're still getting a faint signal from the Stork."
"Some things can't be rushed." Avatar replied. "If we're to get out of here, we must give Wildstar the time he needs to find our answers."
Sandor nodded, "I just hope there isn't anything else lurking in here with us in the meantime…"
Derek yawned and rubbed his eyes. His back ached. He got a drink from the tap in the bathroom and sat back down on his bed. His empty stomach grumbled.
The door was closed, but he could still hear Alex's footsteps thudding up and down the hall outside. Both of them woke in the middle of the night to someone screaming, but the noise soon abated. After that, Alex tossed and turned for an hour, then told Derek he was going to stand watch outside.
Something in the air felt different today.
He clicked on the bedside lamp and almost jumped out of his skin. On the far wall, a painting of a woman with white hair stared at him. Remembering Feria's words from the day before, Derek slowly approached the picture, careful not to take his eyes off of it. He was afraid to blink, lest the apparition fade.
The painting smelled fresh, and the frame was an elegant maple. He held up a hand in front of the picture and slowly waved. Nothing happened.
He reached out to touch the image.
"Derek!" Alex burst through the door. "The kid's missing."
Derek jerked his hand away. "Melhi?"
"Yeah, the old guy says he can't find him anywhere."
"Let me put on my shoes and I'll help look. He has to be here." Derek turned back to the wall. The painting was gone. He backed away from the wall, keeping an eye on it as he grabbed his shoes and left.
He hurried down to the lobby where he found everyone else already gathered.
"He's got to be close," Feria said as Derek joined the group. "When was the last time anyone saw him?"
"Last night when he went to his room." Baren shook his head, "he was angry about being stuck here and I was concerned, so I went to check on him this morning. When I looked in his room, he was gone. I checked all over the hotel."
"What about… in there…?" Derek pointed toward the dark hall.
Baren shivered, "No. I didn't go in there. Every time I think about going down that hall –" He swallowed hard, "I feel like something's crawling up my spine."
"Wait," Feria turned a full circle, "Where's Neville?"
"Homer, where's Royster?" Derek turned to the comm officer.
"Uh… I thought he was out here. He wasn't in the room last night."
Feria groaned, "He went to the other side of the hotel before everyone went to bed…" She got Homer's attention, "Remember when he said something about that picture? You went to your room and Neville headed off down the hall."
"Oh no… Do you think… something happened?" Homer blanched.
"No one jump to any conclusions." Alex stepped into the middle of the messy circle. "Let's just go down there and see if we can find either of them."
"I concur." Fomto stepped up beside Alex. "Perhaps they wandered off and fell asleep before they were able to return to their rooms. Stress can be quite taxing, and… they are both a bit… high-strung."
"Can't argue with that," Derek heard Feria mutter.
"Someone should remain here, in case either of them returns before we conclude our search," Raphan offered.
"I'll stay," Baren volunteered.
"Let's get going." Derek started off toward the dark archway then stopped. "We should split up. Half of us should go in through the upstairs hall."
Raphan, Neredia, Alex and Homer headed for the second floor.
"See you on the other side," Alex called to Derek as the four cleared the landing and started down the second-floor hall, opening and closing all the room doors along the way.
Derek took a deep breath and led Fomto and Feria past the check-in desk and into the darkness. He pulled out his flashlight. Its beam cut through the shadows. Dust flew everywhere and prints littered the floor.
"Someone's been in here fairly recently." Derek pointed at the prints then shone his light farther ahead.
"Those could be Neville's." Feria eyed the strange markings in the dust.
"They could be Melhi's too," Fomto said.
"They're pretty mixed up." Derek followed the trail into the dark room beyond. The candle still burned atop its perch. "Royster?" he called into the gloom.
"Melhi? Are you in here?" Fomto's words echoed off the walls.
No one replied.
Derek circled the candelabrum, shining his flashlight into the two near corners.
"Neville…?" Feria clicked on her light and backtracked toward the archway. "Neville!" she yelped.
Derek spun around, swinging his light toward Feria.
"He's –" Feria hauled a limp Royster up from the corner near the door. The science officer's blank eyes hung open.
"Melhi." Derek heard Fomto drag the boy out from the opposite corner. The young Gamilon's face wore the same expression as Royster's.
"What's going on?" Alex called out to his brother from across the room. Footsteps thundered on the stairs as the rest of the group rushed down to meet Wildstar.
"I don't know," Derek replied. "We need to get them back to the lobby."
Alex took Royster from Feria and dashed back into the lit room. He laid Neville down on one of the couches. Fomto placed Melhi on the other one as Baren ran to see what was going on.
"How did this happen?" The old man laid a hand on Melhi's chest and bowed his head. "At least he's still alive."
Derek checked Royster's neck for a pulse. A faint rhythm hummed under his fingers. "Royster's alive too, but what could have –" Derek heard a familiar click. He spun around, snapping his weapon out.
On the other side of the couch stood Fomto, weapon pointed at Neredia. Derek's brow furrowed.
"Perhaps you should ask her what happened." The Gamilon captain gave the woman a withering stare.
Derek lowered his gun, but didn't holster it. "Hold on now." Derek eased back a few steps. "What makes you think she did this?"
"She isn't Neredia." Fomto's finger tightened on the trigger.
"Come again?" Alex asked.
"She would never have worn her sister's clothes – especially not that dress," Fomto growled. "And the real Neredia never called me 'Berger.' Not to mention she had to ask you how her ship got here."
"Wait!" Neredia threw up her hands. "Let me speak."
Fomto didn't lower his weapon, but he did relax his grip on the gun. "You have ten seconds to convince me not to shoot you."
Neredia sighed and nodded. "I understand your frustration." As she spoke, the woman's blue skin and red dress melted away, revealing a familiar face.
"You're the woman in the painting!" Feria exclaimed.
"My name is Lorelai Loer, of Shambleau." She bowed to the group. Her pointed ears twitched. "You are the first group of such mixed heritage to grace us with your presence. We found it worthwhile to detain you to see if the family could be united once again."
Alex, looking even more confused held up a hand. "Okay, stop the car for just one second. What on earth is going on here?"
"I am unfamiliar with the phrase, 'stop the car,'" Lorelai replied.
"It just means – just slow down and tell us what's happening. For starters, why are we here?" Alex reached over and pushed Fomto's gun hand down so the weapon pointed at the floor instead of Lorelai's head.
"You are here as a test," Lorelai replied. "Your people seem to be such bitter enemies. We wished to know if you could surpass your fear and hate and show compassion."
"Enemies?" Fomto looked around the group. "We have no quarrel with Galera."
Lorelai stared at Fomto.
The Gamilon's face fell, "You –" he pointed at Derek wide-eyed. "You're… Eratites…"
"Yes, we are." Derek's hand tightened on his weapon.
Anger flared in Fomto's eyes. "You deceived me!"
"We never said we were Galerans. You assumed who we were," Alex countered, hands held up defensively.
"We should have killed you," Fomto hissed, swinging his gun around to point it at Wildstar. "You murdered the rest of our fleet! Keshet is a bloody grave because of you!"
"The only reason we fought back was to defend ourselves." Feria stepped between Fomto and Derek; the Gamilon's weapon hovered two inches from her throat. "If we could have avoided the battle, we would. We all lost a lot of friends there… Haven't we earned at least a little piece of your trust?"
Fomto stepped back and lowered his weapon.
"We're the same, you and I." She bowed her head and clasped her hands, "We both know what it is to have our hearts torn in two by death. We know the pain of long nights and hard memories. That must count for something…"
Fomto holstered his gun with a soft click. He nodded and said with sad eyes, "I suppose you're right."
"Even though we were born on different worlds that doesn't mean we can't understand each other." Feria gripped the man's shoulder. "We're both people – Eratite, or Gamilon – and that means we're more alike than we know."
Derek stared at Feria and Fomto as something he didn't understand passed between them.
"You have passed the test." Lorelai raised her hands. "Let it begin."
The hotel around them disappeared, replaced by a chamber whose ceiling soared thirty feet into the air. At the center of the chamber, a vibrant circle glowed.
"Those look like the markings from inside the Aquarius Gate control center." Derek pointed at the floor as light streaked from the center circle out into the rest of the room, creating an ethereal web of light. Off to one side, a short pedestal rose from the floor. Atop it rested a basin.
Derek approached the curiosity and reached out to touch it. The instant his skin made contact with it, the contents of the basin began to glow. The liquid light rose up from its bowl and circled Derek's head for a few seconds before zipping away. It did the same thing to Alex, then to Homer. When it came to Feria, the liquid circled her, then flashed a brilliant green.
"Ah! Hadassah is adequately represented," Lorelai bowed to Feria and motioned for her to stand on a pulsing green circle nearby.
"Ahhh!" Royster's scrambled to his feet as his startled shriek tore through the chamber. "What's going on? Where are we?! We're all gonna –"
"Neville!" Feria scolded.
Derek breathed a sigh of relief. Melhi stood a second later, also unharmed.
"What happened back there…?" the young Gamilon rubbed the back of his head. "Me and him found a hole in the wall and were going to try to dig through it, but as soon as we touched it –" The boy blinked hard. "I think we got stunned."
"You did indeed," Lorelai confirmed. "Neither of you were intended to see what was truly behind that wall before now. We had to stop you."
"Who are you?" Melhi pointed at Lorelai.
"A… friend," she smiled.
"Got a funny way of showing it." Melhi rolled his eyes and folded his arms.
"I apologize. We couldn't think of another way to ensure your safety, yet keep you from discovering us prematurely."
"I just want to get back home." The boy looked away.
"You will, young Melhi," Lorelai assured.
The light continued its journey around the room, circling Baren, then Raphan and Melhi. When it came to Berger, it pulsed a vibrant blue.
"Ibrahim is represented." Lorelai indicated a blue circle next to Feria.
The light made one final sweep, swirling around Lorelai as it glowed crimson.
"And Seda… is represented…" Lorelai's face fell as she stepped into the red circle, her black dress trailing behind her.
The three chosen stood in a tight triangle, facing each other. Spheres of light appeared above each person. Feria's sphere glowed white, Berger's red and Lorelai's black.
They waited.
Silence fell over the room as the liquid light floated back to its resting place. Derek left the pedestal and approached the trio.
"They come again," a deep voice rang out. "The ancient lines are once again united. With the clasping of hands, let the reunion begin."
Lorelai held out one hand to Fomto and the other to Feria. Feria took it and reached out to Fomto. The Gamilon stared warily at the grey-skinned woman and slowly took her offered hand. He accepted Feria's a little more readily.
Streams of light burst from the floor, shining all around the three in vibrant colors. The lights swirled into a cyclone, but Derek didn't feel air rushing around him.
"The journey begins, Children of the Promise. The scattered shall gather again, and the Earth shall see her sons and daughters returning to her gates. The world will be righted once more, and the promise will be fulfilled. As it was foretold by Shaddai: If any of thine that are dispersed be in the uttermost parts of heaven, from thence will Yahweh Adonai gather thee, and from thence will He fetch thee."
"What have we walked into…?" Derek whispered as the light storm swelled and the face of a man appeared in the midst of the whirlwind.
Episode 92: Barbarians
"A warp trail?" Dagarm sat up straight. "Follow it."
The executive officer protested, "But captain, the Prime Minister's order –"
"She can rot in the War-bringer's pit for all I care. I do not fear her threats; she is a little seductress," Dagarm growled. "Some of us earned our rank outside the Prince's bedchamber."
The XO grimaced.
"The trail is fresh, Sir – emitted within the past day," one of the techs on duty elaborated.
"Follow it," Dagarm repeated, glaring at his second-in-command. "I do not intend to be wandering space until I am an old man with no strength left to wield my blade."
Dagarm's second backed down.
The Megaluda changed course, focusing on the thin trail leading off into the void.
Six hours later, they dropped out of hyperspace.
"The trail ends here," the tech announced. "There's… something up ahead."
"Forward, one-eighth impulse," Dagarm narrowed his eyes at the front viewport.
The ship eased forward, slipping past the edge of the warp trail. Silence bathed the bridge as all eyes stared straight ahead.
Dagarm looked away for an instant.
"Captain! Captain, we're surrounded by mist!"
"Hm?" Dagarm's eyes shot to the front again. Just as the tech said, thick, purple mist clouded around the ship. He brought up the radar. Whatever was outside, it completely surrounded them. He growled. "Take us further in."
They sailed ahead, slipping through cloud banks and misty air.
Dagarm grabbed hold of his chair as the ship jerked to a halt. "What in the name of –!"
"It's a wall, Sir," another tech supplied.
Dagarm checked the radar. "Find a way around it."
The navigator turned the ship, sending it traveling along the barrier. Half an hour passed before they came to the end of the wall.
"Continue," Dagarm ordered.
The Megaluda swept past the barrier.
Dagarm stood and stared. Suspended just beyond a veil of mist hovered a planet, and stationed above the planet was a ship.
"Three hundred thousand mega-meters and closing!" Nova leaned against her station, staring intently at the holograms. "Our sensors don't recognize the ship class. Switching to the backup unit." She selected the Iscandari enhancement. Less than a second later, a warning sounded as the identity of the ship appeared. "It's… Cometine?" Nova eyed the information.
"What's that?" Sandor asked from his station.
"I don't know, but the rest of the readout says, 'Medarusa-class heavy battleship. Prime weapon: Firestorm Direct Strike Gun.'"
"So the Iscandarians knew about these guys," Eager grumbled, folding his arms. "Why didn't they tell us?"
"We barely had enough time to learn about the Cosmo DNA machine – much less get a full course on 'Bad Guys in Space and Why They Want to Kill You,'" Dash quipped from the opposite side of the bridge.
"My concern lies more with their prime weapon," Sandor took back the conversation. "Have we heard from the Stork yet?"
"Nothing," Vasquez pressed the headset to his ear and concentrated as he adjusted the comm unit. "As far as I can tell, they're still there, just not transmitting. I can't get a fix on any of their helmet units either. They're either broken, or disabled."
"We can't leave them behind," Nova pleaded, fear starting to grab at her heart.
"We won't," Sandor reassured her, "but we can't stay here. Mark, take us behind the planet."
Venture kicked the engine into a higher gear and sent the ship shooting around the rouge sphere.
"They're following us," Nova's eyes flitted from the display to the Medarusa info-file she still had up. "The ship is one hundred seventy two meters longer than the Argo."
"What?!" Eager squeaked. "That's huge!"
"Do they have a blind-spot?" Sandor appeared behind her and leaned over to study the file. He expanded the display and flipped through several specs. "Here," he pointed to a spot directly above the command tower. With the flick of a finger, he sent the information to Mark's terminal. "Venture, slow the ship and take us up."
"Shoot it down," Dagarm pointed at the foreign ship. "I'll not have some outlander getting in the way if this world proves valuable."
Streaks of laser fire shot toward the smaller ship.
"This planet could be a good token to appease the Prime Minister," the XO offered.
Dagarm glared at his second. The man took a step back and shut his mouth.
"Sabera and her fables are –" Dagarm cursed as the fired rounds skirted past the outlanders. "Fire again!" he slammed his fist into the armrest. "And I want those idiots manning the guns thrown in the brig!"
Another round raced towards the foreigners, but the smaller ship dodged the fire again, bobbing then pulling up into a sharp ascent so quickly the Megaluda couldn't match it.
"Where are they?!" Dagarm demanded when the ship zoomed out of sight.
"They're… gone…" the radar operator paled. "They disappeared."
"Then find them!" Dagarm bit back, "Or else get to the brig with the gunnery crew."
"Y-yes, Captain."
Mark held his breath as he pulled up hard, sending the ship into a climb. The computer recalculated the blind-spot coordinates as the enemy ship barreled toward them. It was everything he could do not to panic.
"Almost there," he muttered, "just a little bit farther." Mark sent the ship into a stern over bow tumble, bringing it into perfect position just over the Cometine command tower.
He let out a relieved breath and wiped the nervous sweat off his forehead.
"Stay with them," Sandor directed as he finally took the Captain's station at the back of the bridge. Mark nodded and shot a glance back toward the science officer. Sandor was already staring at multiple displays.
The navigator concentrated hard on his objective. He kept his eyes on the enemy as he programmed the autopilot to help him keep the ship on course.
The Cometine ship slowed beneath the Argo and Mark held his breath.
"Fighters," Nova said the last word Mark wanted to hear. "They're scattering. They'll spot us in a few seconds."
"Venture, get us out of here. Draw them away from the planet. If Wildstar comes back while we're engaged, he'll need time to plan a defense of his own."
"Where's a good place to head for, Nova?" Mark switched off the autopilot and sent the ship into a tight turn, heading back the way they'd come.
"Behind the stone cross," Nova supplied. "It's close by. If we can get the other ship behind that barrier, they won't see the search party if they come back soon."
"Heading for the cross," Mark throttled the engine as hard as he could. The whole ship thundered with the force of the acceleration.
"Don't tear 'er apart," Orion protested.
"Just make sure the engine stays online," Mark shot back.
The old man darted out of his chair and into the elevator. Mark could tell by the look on his face that he was heading straight for the engine room.
"We have them on radar again."
"Conniving little tricksters," Dagarm growled. "Swarm them." He brought up a feed from one of the fighters and watched as they approached the alien ship. It had strange markings – nothing like the Gamilons, or even the Bolars. Iscandar would never have made such an awkward beast, and the Dezarians… well, he hadn't seen one of them in ages.
"Aim for the command tower," Dagarm ordered. "Once the snake's head is off, we will dispatch the rest." As he watched, the fighters converged on the ship, peppering it with heavy fire and launching torpedo salvos one right after the other.
The ship dodged several heavy onslaughts, but one wave squarely caught the command tower, leaving a smoking hole just below the row of viewports.
Dagarm grinned and licked his yellowed teeth. He could smell victory.
The Argo jerked hard to port. Alarms blared.
"Activating the shield!" Sandor bellowed over the shrill wailing. He came up out of his seat as he punched in the command for the energy shield. It flickered on for an instant, then fizzled and died. He called the engine room just as he was able to switch off the sound on the alarms. "Orion, what's the status on the shield generator?"
"Hit pretty bad," Orion replied, concentrating on problems of his own. "And the core's threatenin' ta sputter. We're watchin' 'er as close as we can, Stephen. I haven't got anyone ta spare. The generator's not goin' ta be back up anytime soon."
Sandor gritted his teeth and hung up. "The generator's blown," he announced. "Dash, send word for the Black Tigers to launch as soon as they can."
Dash sent the XO a two-fingered salute and relayed the order.
In under a minute, the first Tiger zoomed out into space. Sandor turned on the external video feed and played it on the main viewscreen.
"Vasquez, keep the comm line open to the Tigers," Sandor ordered.
The comm officer nodded and left the channel open.
"Any word from Wildstar or the search party yet?"
Vasquez checked the line again, "Nothing – not a word."
The looming shadow of the cross outside shaded the bridge. "As soon as we hear from them, be ready to get out of here," Sandor sat back down and watched the dogfight outside, praying they would make it out of this strange prison alive.
Feria gazed up into an unfamiliar face. By his dark skin, Feria guessed him to be from somewhere in the Middle East or perhaps Africa.
"My name is Ïskender – I am the personification of a man long-dead."
Feria's eyes lit up at his name.
"My children have spread far and wide across the universe. By now, there are billions inhabiting far away stars, but I am not such a fool as to believe that they are all God-fearing and righteous. You three are here to receive a message. You are the instigators of change in this world. You must spread this message abroad, so that all may hear it and know that the time has come."
Feria glanced at Fomto. He stood open-mouthed, staring at the face.
Lorelai was intent, but not surprised by the spectacle.
"The message is simple," Ïskender continued. "'Come home, children of Earth. Let the Gathering begin.'"
The face disappeared, replaced by a flowering white rose. The flower faded and the wind picked up, swirling around them so fast Feria thought it would plough a path right into the floor. Her hair whipped around her face, obscuring her vision as the cyclone contracted and intensified. She was tempted to let go of Lorelai and Fomto, but she didn't know what would happen if she lost her grip. She gritted her teeth and leaned into the wind. She squeezed her eyes shut against the stinging strands of hair whipping at her eyes.
Just when Feria thought the wind would never die down, the whirlwind vanished. Feria's cheeks were numb and her face was hot. Her hands cramped as Fomto and Lorelai both let go.
"Who… was that?" Fomto asked.
"And who are Hadassah, Ibrahim and Seda?" Feria added.
Lorelai bowed her head and took a breath, "They are the beginning."
Feria arched an eyebrow.
"Ïskender was the patriarch of a line that stretches all the way back to the first space-farers. His children were Hadassah, Ibrahim and Seda. Though they were not his kin by blood, he cared for them as though they were. These three children went to the stars with hundreds of others, but they went for a purpose. Hadassah and Ibrahim sought out their wayward sister, Seda, who desired power above all else.
"Instead of letting her corrupt those under her control, her siblings pursued her and sought to bring her back from the darkness she was mired in. They succeeded, but not before a great evil was released upon the universe."
"What evil?" Feria asked.
"Perhaps you have encountered it, but I pray you have not," Lorelai clasped her hands together and looked away. "Seda was the mother of the festering wound in the world known as the Malha Guardiana."
Feria heard Fomto take a step back. She looked over at him and was shocked by the sheer terror in his eyes.
"What's wrong?" she asked the Gamilon. "I've never heard of this person. Surely they can't be that bad."
"You have no idea…" Fomto whispered as he fell to his knees. "You can't understand unless you've faced her armies… She is – she's the spawn of Hell."
Lorelai knelt beside Fomto and laid a hand on his shoulder, "I am so sorry... We had hoped the line was dead by now."
"It is," Fomto nodded, "except for the last Malha. She is still alive somewhere, but she is much too old to bear an heir."
"How do you know all this?" Feria asked, intrigued.
"I fought against her forces many years ago when our Leader was but a child. We went to the dead world – Jirel – to stop her, but she took our queen and gave her over to those who would kill her. It was… a day we all remember, and many of us still weep over it, just as we did while we watched our queen die."
Hot tears streamed down Feria's face, "What…? Doesn't this 'Malha' have a soul? How could she do something like that?"
Fomto snorted, "A soul – of course she has a soul, and it's blacker than the void. She's the host of a devil. Her servants can call upon spirits to do their will – to slaughter their enemies where they stand."
Feria's skin prickled, "Is that…" she sucked in a shaky breath, "Is that what happened to Gamilon? Did the Malha destroy your planet?"
"Yes," Fomto hissed, "her forces granted power to a usurper who unleashed a plague upon the world. It ate away the planet, leaving open sores in place of forests and lakes," he looked at the floor, "and then he unleashed it on Iscandar…"
Feria clamped her hand over her mouth to squelch a sob, "That's why they were all dead… all except one. And that's why you needed the Earth – you had to find somewhere else for your people to go."
"You've been to Iscandar?" Fomto's eyes snapped back to Feria.
"Yes. We went there to get a machine Queen Starsha promised us. We came so we can heal the Earth again. So many people are already dead," Feria choked.
"I see…" Fomto relaxed. "And I understand."
"The Earth must endure," Lorelai insisted. "You and your ship should return with haste." The woman rose and held out a hand toward Feria. The pilot took the offered help and stood up. Fomto rose unassisted. "I will return you all to your vessels so that you may be on your way." Lorelai addressed a stunned Wildstar, "I apologize. I was not aware of the situation. I knew your peoples were at odds, but I did not know why until now."
Derek nodded wordlessly.
"Go with the blessing of the remnant of Jirel, and the remaining populace of Shambleau," Lorelai bowed to Feria and Fomto and turned to go.
"Wait!" Fomto called out, "What remnant of Jirel?"
At his question, a line of men, women and children filed out of the far archway, lining the wall. They streamed in until the whole room was circled a dozen times.
"I was one of the first to come here," Lorelai supplied. "I was marked by Heilel's blade," she fingered one pointed ear, "and some of the rest bear the same shame, but thank Adonai the young ones will not suffer that ordeal."
"Heilel?" Feria took a step back.
"Some call him 'War-bringer,'" Lorelai offered, "He is the king of the fallen angels. You may know him by another name."
"Yes, we do…" Feria whispered.
"Whatever label he bears, he is the true enemy. Do not forget that," Lorelai ushered her people back out the door.
The room began to fade around Feria and she felt like she was falling. The last thing she remembered seeing was Fomto's stunned face as the Jirelians disappeared.
The next thing she knew, Feria was sitting in the pilot's seat back on board the Stork. Beside her, also awake, was Wildstar. In the back sat Alex, Royster, and Homer. The men stared at her.
"What?" she returned their stares.
"Was… that a dream?" Royster ventured.
"I don't… really know," Feria turned back around and stared out into the dense jungle around them. She reached toward the controls, but when she opened her hand something fell out of it, landing near Wildstar's foot. "Huh?"
Derek picked it up and studied it. The golden coating glinted in the afternoon light as he held it up. Feria saw that one side of the object was flat with no markings at all. Derek flipped the trinket over and went pale. He hurriedly stuffed the thing back into Feria's hand.
"What? What is it?" she asked, opening her hand. The flat side stared up at her, so she turned the little thing over. It looked like a coin. "That was not a dream, Neville…" she whispered as a white rose looked up at her.
She pocketed the emblem and revved up the Stork, a new fire burning in her soul. "Let's get out of here."
"What makes you think we can just leave?" Alex asked, indignant.
"Because Lorelai said we could," Feria countered.
"And you believe her? You just met an alien who broke into your room at night, posed as someone else for six days, and was the reason you ended up at the wrong end of a Gamilon's gun. You're just going to take her word for it that we can get out of this place?"
"Yeah, I am," Feria took the ship up. As they rose farther and farther above the planet, Feria noticed the huge tree they'd seen coming in. With the sun now behind them, instead of a rich green, the leaves glowed a pale grey. She looked at the tree a little harder. If she squinted just right, it almost looked like a big bouquet of white roses.