Heaven Saga 3: Sojourn Into Despair (6 page)

“I
couldn’t sleep if I wanted to right now,” Meldi said before following him to
the bridge.

Brian
and Meldi entered the elevator. Once the door closed she averted her eyes.

“What
horrifies me is that I knew when I looked upon that place what had happened,”
Meldi said. “I can’t accept it.”

“I
don’t think anyone can.” Brian put his hand on her shoulder. “We think we’re
hardened to such things, but there are things outside our comfort zone. You and
those who went with you saw something that should never happen. It’s something
that shouldn’t exist; therefore we believe it can’t exist. But as much as we
would like to deny it the evidence is there for all to see.”

“What
do you think happened?” she asked.

“They
were scientists on the edge of space. All they wanted was to know more, go
farther and fly free,” Brian said. “But something crushed their dreams, crushed
their hopes, and destroyed their home. I have a suspicion on what happened and
that’s why Zae’s reviewing the inner planets again.”

The
door opened to the bridge.

“Zae,
have you found anything?” Brian asked before going to the captain’s chair.
Meldi stood at the back of the bridge silently.

“After
scanning, we’ve found that there are three smaller planets,” Zae said. She put
their images on the monitor. “But none of them could support life with their
current atmospheric composition.”

“Are
any of them in the life zone?” Brian asked.

“This
one,” Zae said. She zoomed on the image of the second planet. The image showed
a lifeless and bleak surface. “Strange,” she said before zooming in further.
Although there was no water present the planet appeared to have ocean floors
and continents. “The planet also has a large moon that would serve as a polar
stabilizer.”

“Can
we see anything else?” Brian asked.

“Not
unless we get much closer to the planet,” Baed said. “Do you want me to fly the
Avoni there after the repairs are finished?”

“That
would be perfect Baed,” he said.

Baed
stood up to join them. “By the way, what did you find?” she asked while looking
to Meldi.

“Can
I tell her?” Meldi asked.

“Yes,”
he answered. “But please, don’t show her the pictures right now.”

“Of
course,” Meldi said.

Brian
turned to Zae. “Would you join me in the conference room?”

“Yes,
let’s do that,” Zae said. She followed Brian into the next room. He connected
the devices to the monitor. “What do you want to talk about?”

“I
want you to see this with me Zae,” he said. He was ready to turn the video on.

“What
is it?” she asked.

“Have
you ever wondered what hell looked like Zae?”

“Not
really. Wait, what do you mean by that?”

“What
our subordinates saw was the aftermath of something awful.” He turned on the
video from the orbital station. The screams and growls Myli heard for but a moment
played for a lot longer before Zae turned it off.

“What
was that?” she asked. Her cool demeanor was gone. “Is that the reason you asked
me to check the inner planets?”

“Yes.”

“Their
home was destroyed,” Zae said as she called up the image of the second planet.
“But how is it possible? If it was global heating it would take much longer for
the runaway greenhouse effect to take effect.” She stared at the image
intently. “No, that couldn‘t be because this planet has no atmosphere on it.”

“The
Confederation needs to know about this incident,” Brian said. “From what I’m
seeing, the Greys terminated the homeworld of this species by removing their
atmosphere.” He stopped, barring his fists. “They didn’t even have the decency
to finish off the survivors.”

“They
just left them to die like this?”

“Of
course,” he said. “Without a home to return or supplies they weren’t a threat
any longer. That’s why we must see their homeworld. If there’s any evidence of
life left a closer inspection will prove it.”

“Could
it be an atmospheric weapon?” she asked. “Such a weapon would be unimaginably
powerful. As much as I want to I can‘t deny the possibility of it.”

“If
we survive this journey we must show this tragedy and its cause to those in the
Confederation,” he said. “It’s not a matter of getting home any longer.”

“I
agree,” Zae said. The door opened behind them. Baed and Meldi entered with the
usual cheery look on Baed’s face gone.

“Is
all of this true?” Baed asked. Meldi pulled out something from her pilot
uniform.

“This
disc was in the pocket of what we suspect was the last living creature on that
lunar base,” Meldi said before handing it to Brian. “Please, let all of us
watch it.”

“You’re
right,” Brian said. He activated the ship’s broadcast system. “It’s time all of
us see what the Greys have done.”

“To
all crew members of the Avoni, this is Lieutenant Commander Peterson speaking.
As you already know our situation is quite dire. I’ve sent a text report to
each of you and plan to hold a ship wide meeting tomorrow to discuss the
situation further. But a vital piece of information has been recovered by some
of your crew, something I believe all of you should see. The images may be
graphic and horrible to watch, so if you wish turn it off. I’m showing this
because those already exposed to it will not be able to hide it from their
shipmates. I don’t know exactly what’s on this video, but I’m sure it’s
something we all should see.”

* * *

On
each monitor on the Avoni the image of a strange, emaciated creature appeared.
He was about the size of a human with bloodshot red eyes. He looked into the
recording device with lights on in the small room.

“If
anyone ever watches this video I know that you’re likely from a different
world. The place in which you found this disc has become hell. That of course,
is something I have no doubt you’ve figured out by looking around. My name is
Nardin Tracker and my species refers to itself as the Mardok. We’re a proud
race that had finally achieved the technology to begin exploration of our own
solar system. As you can see that dream was short lived. It was nearly two
years ago when the homeworld was destroyed. The Old Ones came without warning
and fired a powerful energy beam into the southern pole. It burned off the
atmosphere in a matter of a few minutes. With the same efficiency they left
without a word. They left behind survivors on ships and bases all across our
solar system. The real tragedy is not the loss of our homeworld, but the fact
that none of the bases or ships had the ability to produce food on their own.
If they had waited another few years this horrible result wouldn’t have happened.
We began by rationing the supplies we had, but after a year and a half it was
exhausted. That was when the hunger began striking all the bases and ships. Our
species evolved from a carnivore. With the development of our brain we’ve
achieved reason, the power that marks all intelligent species as different from
the rest. But as starvation began taking hold many of us began going mad. Their
baser instincts took hold and now what you have found is reality. I haven’t had
anything to eat in almost four months. The oxygen supply is low because the
filter system is beginning to fail. Even the heating systems are going. At this
moment I might be the last rational Mardok left alive. The few of my brethren
still alive on this base have been hunting me for days. I dare not close my
eyes for sleep because I know I’ll not see light once more afterwards. I’ll
take the remaining weapons I have and escape to the other side of the base. At
least there I can die properly. I will do it myself, so I don’t lose myself to
the hunger. To those who have received this disc I leave behind all the collected
data of my people I could obtain in these last few months. The Mardok are dead,
I know that now. But we must be remembered. I ask that you take what’s on here
and please show everyone we existed. Language, culture, history, religious
practices, and scientific discoveries, all of it’s here. All that we once were
I leave behind for other intelligent species to see. I hope one day justice is
served. The Old Ones came and destroyed us, for what reason I can’t surmise.
But they’ve violated a fundamental right of all living creatures, the right to
exist. Please avenge us. That’s all I can ask of you.”

A
loud banging sound began off screen. Nardin cocked his pistol and aimed it at a
door off camera. Screams of a malignant nature came from behind the door. He
fired three gunshots at the snarling creature banging against the door. Before
the camera went black the banging stopped.

* * *

After
the video ended Brian sat down in a chair in deep thought. The other three in
the conference room did likewise.

“Knowing
it was him we found makes me feel a little better,” Meldi said.

“I
wish we could’ve appeared at a time when we could have saved them,” Brian said.
Jesela entered the room with a strange smile on her face.

“You
guys really need to lighten up,” she said before sighing heavily. “What’s done
is done, that’s all there is to it.”

“How
can you be so flippant about this?” Zae asked.

“Because
pouting and feeling sad won’t get us anywhere,” Jesela said. “If we don’t hurry
up and fix the Avoni we may have the same scene here in a few months.”

“Jesela’s
right,” Brian said. He stood and looked out the window. “The Mardok are dead
and there’s nothing we can do about it. What we can do is record everything we
can and get back to the Confederation. If their stance on the Greys isn’t clear
now, let’s force them to choose one.”

“Agreed,”
Zae said. She turned to Jesela. “What’s your report?”

“Our
main drive is out and has lost most of its particles,” Jesela said. “The
secondary drive is solely for recharging the Raknas, so I don’t really want to
use it. The Avoni has no offense or defense against the Greys other than our
mobile suits, so the default answer is the Mjolnir’s drive.”

“But
it wasn’t meant to transport or power a ship of this size,” Baed said.

“No,”
Jesela answered. “But we can hook it to the Avoni’s systems for now. It’s not
the best method, but it’s better than the alternative. At our current pace it’ll
take us two years to reach home. That’s if we don’t find some Aldenite. The
good news is we can get home, it’s just a matter of when.”

“Start
preparations immediately,” Brian ordered. “Also, make sure to install a Q-Drive
into the Mjolnir. I know I’ll be commanding from the bridge, but I want every
available resource at my disposal should we need it.”

“I’ll
get right on that,” Jesela said.

Brian
stood on the stage in the Avoni’s meeting hall. With him were Zae and Celi,
while Baed and Jesela stood to the side with Meldi and Myli. The hundred and
twenty two remaining crew quickly made their way to the front of the hall to
hear their commanders speak. Once everyone was assembled Zae waved for them to
quiet down.

“As
you know, our ship is now stranded far away from Confederation space,” Zae
said. “What we’re here to talk about today is the general situation and listen
to anything you may be concerned about. Before I go further, are there any
questions?”

An
ensign from the engineering crew raised her hand to speak. “How long will it
take us to reach home?”

“Two
years at our current speed,” Zae answered. “We can cut it down to six months if
we can obtain some particles for the main drive.”

“Do
we have enough supplies?” another ensign asked.

Celi
stepped forward. “At the current half ration we can last for over a year.
Fortunately for us we can grow some of our own food. It’s not a lot, but enough
to supplement ourselves for a while. As given to each of you in the written
statement we also plan to conserve energy by halving the use of crew quarters.
I know it’ll be cramped but it’ll keep the Avoni running efficiently. The
senior officers are under the same conditions.”

“What
was with that video you showed us yesterday?” another ensign asked. Many behind
her echoed the sentiment.

“I
made the decision to show the video to everyone,” Brian answered. “We took
refuge on this moon for repairs, but while doing so we uncovered something
horrible. A few of your crewmates have seen this first hand. Instead of keeping
it secret I decided to show it to all of you. What happened to the Mardok is
not something that just concerns us, but the Confederation as a whole.” He put
the image of the inner planet Zae showed him yesterday on the massive screen in
the back of the auditorium. “As you can see this rocky planet is orbited by a
large moon. It’s also within the life zone of this solar system’s star. If you
look closely you’ll notice wear and tear on the planet’s surface. This is proof
erosion has taken place. But now there’s no atmosphere. In the video all of you
watched yesterday Nardin mentioned a great catastrophe that burned off the
atmosphere of their home planet. If this is true then we must find proof it
really happened. That’s the reason why I want to check the planet before
leaving this system. We must know if the Greys such power. But, if the crew decides
we should leave immediately I’ll comply.”

The
crowd spoke amongst themselves quietly. After reaching a decision each stopped
and saluted to show their agreement with Brian’s plan.

“Good,”
Zae said. “We will now move onto specifics. Each of you can choose who you’re
going to bunk with. After this is done we’ll shut down all unused areas of the
ship.” She pointed to herself and Brian, then Celi. “As of now, Brian’s the acting
captain of the Avoni. I’ll serve as the first officer with Celi as the third in
command. We’ll be in charge of operations and the bridge of course.” She
pointed to Baed. “Lieutenant Baed will be in charge of the ship’s navigation
and power systems.” She then pointed to Jesela. “Lieutenant Jesela will be in
charge of the ships engineering systems as well as mainatence of the Avoni.”
Finally, she pointed to Meldi and Myli. “Lieutenants Meldi and Myli will be in
charge of the Raknas and security of the ship. I know all of this is
unsettling. Each of us will be asked of much more than we expected when we
signed on as the crew of the Avoni. Each of us may be put in a position we
never wanted or that may cost us our lives. But survival is the game we’re playing
now. No matter what happens we will reach home.” Zae ended her speech with
applause from the crew.

* * *

Brian
watched while the three officers in the sickbay spoke in high spirits from the
lab room. Celi was busy checking him over again.

“It
certainly looks like our meeting earlier helped,” Brian said.

“Morale
is important right now,” Celi said. “If we keep our wits about us we should be
able to survive. It really is a good thing most of us trained in the military.”

“You
have to admit the Avoni’s feel is much more casual,” he said.

“That’s
because of Valis,” Celi said. “She’s always been laid back. Too many rules and
regulations will ruin a crew. That’s what she’d say.” She checked her scans
three times. “Damn, I was right.”

“What’s
done is done,” Brian said before putting the exoskeleton back on.

“Are
you sure about keeping this secret?”

“For
now, it’s important for the crew to see me walking about,” he answered. “I’ll
tell Zae soon. If the worst happens I’ll inform the crew.” He looked at the
diseased nanomachines in his blood. “If the worst does happen promise me you’ll
make it back alive.”

“That’s
something you’d say to Seles.”

“She’s
not here right now,” he said. “I meant you Celi. Promise that even if I don’t
make it you will.”

“I’ll
try, that’s all I can promise,” she said.

“That’s
all I wanted to hear.”

* * *

Ensign
Vae stood in front of her Rakna while checking its systems over once more.
Looking around she noticed the others talking and laughing, but the images she
recalled from her visit to the lunar base spoiled her thoughts. She took the
elevator cord up to the cockpit and began adjusting everything on the inside of
the mobile suit. After a few minutes she turned and saw Brian at the hatch.

“Ensign,
can we speak?” he asked.

She
looked surprised. “Of course commander,” she said with a nod.

“Looks
like you’re acclimated to this machine,” he said as he stepped inside.

“I’m
sorry I broke down before,” Vae said. “It won’t happen again.”

“There’s
nothing to be sorry about,” Brian said. “Your training as a soldier prepares
you for many things. What you and the others witnessed was something else.”

“Cannibalism
is one of the greatest taboos amongst all of the races of space,” she said.
“But the savagery in which it appeared on that base…it was unreal. I still get
the shakes thinking about it.”

He
put a hand on her shoulder to reassure her. “I was the one who ordered you into
that place so I’m the one at fault.”

“Many
of us are horrified by the images we recovered.” She looked at Brian. “My
question is why you seem so calm about it.”

“I’m
just as horrified, it just doesn’t show,” he answered. “Your people warred
little amongst themselves for the last thousand years. With that as your
reality the images of brutality once common were never recorded. But for humans
like me, we still live in that world. If I showed you some of the images of the
recent history amongst my people Vae, you’d be just as horrified. Kalaidians
are a peaceful people at heart. To you death in battle usually consists of
being vaporized rather than maimed.”

“Thank
you,” Vae said. “I’m glad we could talk about this.”

“I’m
doing this with everyone on the ship,” he said. “Valis interviews each of you
thoroughly and gets to know you individually. I’m just doing the same thing.”

“I
saw one of them,” she said as he was about to leave. “It was right before the
attack on the Avoni. I turned around in this cockpit and saw a Grey standing
there looking at me.”

“You’re
the third one today who’s said that,” Brian said, sighing afterwards.

“I’m
the third? Who were the others?”

“One
of them was a member of the medical staff, another was one of our engineers, and
the ship’s cook of all things,” he answered. “Of course I’m not counting myself
or Daes.”

“Were
they even real?” she asked.

“I’m
not sure myself,” Brian said. “Piece of advice, turn on the exterior cameras so
it doesn’t feel so cramped in here.”

“I’ll
do that. Thanks.”

* * *

Baed
stood up from her console on the bridge and stretched, sighing. Zae entered
with a pair of water bottles. Baed turned back and smiled.

“That’s
just what I needed,” she said.

Zae
handed the bottle to her. “We’ve been working nearly nonstop for days now. We
should get someone to relieve us once in a while.”

“You
know that won’t work,” Baed said. She drank some water. “Anyways, I don’t do
anything but this on the Avoni. And with all the responsibilities of Valis and
Kivi delegated to you and Brian my responsibilities have gone up with it.” She
sighed. “I must have gotten lazy over the years.”

“I
remember the first day Valis brought you in,” Zae said. “I thought as I watched
you train you’d never make it as a navigator.”

“Well
excuse my lack of knowledge at that time,” Baed said with sarcasm. “I was
originally trained as a politician and ambassador.”

“Can
you actually speak Ick-Tckt?” Zae asked.

Baed
cupped her hands around her lips to form a small cone. A moment later she
started to click and whistle a lot like an insect.

“What
did you say?”

Baed
buzzed her lips. “I always have to do that afterwards. Their language is quite
complex considering they’re insects.”

“What
did you say?” Zae asked. She stepped closer.

Baed
grinned. “Guess.”

Zae
stood face to face while narrowing her eyes. “You’re not going to tell me, are
you?”

Baed
continued grinning. “You could always order me to do so.”

“I’d
rather not resort to that,” Zae said while staring Baed down.

The
elevator door opened and Jesela emerged. She went over to her station and
continued her work. “Would you two just do something already?” she asked. The
two began blushing. “It’s really driving me crazy.”

Zae
gathered herself. “Are you implying something Jesela?”

Baed
took Zae’s hand. “There’s no point in hiding it from them any longer.”

Zae
sighed. “You’re right.”

“What
did you say Baed?” Jesela asked before looking up from her work.

“I
told her she was acting like a stuffy old mother hen,” Baed said with another grin.

“What?”
Zae asked.

Jesela
laughed. “You two were made for each other.”