Heaven Saga 3: Sojourn Into Despair (17 page)

Brian
waited in the meeting room off the bridge and stared at the planet below. Zae
walked in and saw he was deep in thought.

“Am
I doing the right thing?” Brian asked.

“Yes,”
Zae answered. “I know it violates protocol but we’ve decided to do the right
thing.” She stood next him. “Never doubt this decision.”

“Our
chances are slim.”

“That’s
why we can only do what we can,” Zae said. “I know there’s a good chance of
failure. The whole crew knows it as well, along with Grigon. Doing the right
thing isn’t always the easiest.”

“No,
doing the right thing can also lead to even worse outcomes,” he said. “But
ignoring the situation would be the greater evil. The Braiden deserve better.
Their race is one to be admired. What other possibilities can you see?”

“I
can see a few realistic options,” she said. “The first is for them to dig into their
planet and create an artificial environment underground. Because of their
present population levels, that’s the most feasible option. The second option
is to build colony sized transports and leave. Although this is relatively
feasible it will only save a small amount of their population. The third I can
envision is to build an orbital defense system powerful enough to hold the Greys
off. If the prize isn’t worth the price the Greys may move on. But the third
option is the least likely to work out. What were you thinking about?”

“Those
are the same three conclusions I came to,” he answered. “I’m going to encourage
Lumiar and her people to purse the first two options at the same time.”

“Are
you planning on giving them access to our technology?”

“Jesela
and Grigon are preparing the appropriate blueprints as we speak.”

“How
long do you plan to stay here?” she asked.

“A
few months seem to be the right amount of time,” he said. “Once we’re satisfied
with the progress they’ve made we can give our best wishes and leave.”

“All
of this is contingent on the Greys not making a move anytime soon,” Zae said. “That’s
a dangerous assumption.”

“I
know, but what else can we do?”

“Nothing
but pray to Kali.”

“Of
course,” he said before turning to leave. “I need to speak with Lumiar on the
surface now. Take care of the Avoni while I’m gone. If anything happens contact
me immediately.”

“I
will Brian, you can count on that,” she said.

* * *

Lumiar
stood on the beach of a small island far south of the main continents. Around her
was a small contingent of elite guards, armed with automatic rifles in full
body armor. She wore body armor and a semiautomatic pistol on her side. The
captain of the guards stood next to her.

“All
of our forces are in position my lady,” the captain said. “But to be honest I
doubt our air forces could stand against such enemies.”

“No,
these people come peacefully,” Lumiar said. “Lieutenant Commander Peterson said
he and a few of his associates would come down on a cloaked vessel.”

The
captain listened to a message from their observatories. “Something large is
entering the atmosphere just above our position,” he reported.

Lumiar
and all of the soldiers looked into the sky and saw the form of something
breaking though the atmosphere. As it cooled it completely disappeared.

“How
are they able to physically cloak their ship?” the captain asked.

“We’re
here to learn answers,” Lumiar said with a smile.

A
few seconds later a large depression appeared on the beach. A number of the
trees nearby snapped under the weight of the cloaked ship. Her guards readied
their rifles and took aim at the invisible Mjolnir. From inside Brian turned to
Celi and the four guards with them.

“It’s
time to meet the Braiden,” he said as he turned to the other four guards, led
by ensign Seli. “Keep an eye on things in here Seli. I don’t want to show force
so I’ll be going unarmed.” Brian removed the
rakna
from his belt and
left it on the floor.

“Alright,”
Seli said. “If you need us we’ll be here.”

“Glad
to hear it,” Brian said. Celi checked her medical bag once more. “Is everything
alright?”

“I’m
ready to go,” Celi said.

Although
invisible, the Mjolnir was presently in ship form. The front hatched opened
onto the beach under the front part of the ship, shielded from the sun. Both
Brian and Celi blinked as they walked into the sunlit world. A few yards away
Lumiar stood with a half a dozen armed soldiers.

“The
sun is so bright,” Celi said before taking a deep breath.

“The
fresh air is great,” Brian said.

He
wore his exoskeleton with the cape fluttering in the wind. As the pair moved
within a few yards the soldiers aimed their weapons at them. Lumiar stepped
forward and paced around the Terran and Kalaidian. She went to Brian and took
his armored hand.

“Are
you real?” she asked.

“As
real as anyone you know Lumiar,” Brian answered. He grasped her hand in
friendship. “On behalf of the crew of the Avoni I greet you High Priestess.”

“Greetings
to you Brian Peterson, on behalf of the people of Braiden, I welcome you to
this planet,” Lumiar said. She moved to Celi and took her hand. “I sense a
gentle soul within you Celi. I welcome you and all the others with you to our
planet.”

“Thank
you,” Celi said.

Lumiar
stepped back and waved the soldiers off. “How did you master our language so
quickly?” she asked. “I can barely detect an accent to your speech.”

“The
races within the Confederation inject their young with nanomachines,” Celi
explained. “In addition to acting as universal translators they boost our
immune systems and physical abilities. They allow us to learn languages at a
much faster pace than traditional methods. Because your language is close to
Kalaidian we picked up on it quickly.”

“Your
medical technology must be far ahead of what we have,” Lumiar said.

“I’ll
show what I can while we’re on your planet,” Celi said.

“I
guess we should get down to business,” Lumiar said. “Be truthful with me, do my
people have a chance of survival?”

“Yes,
but its slim and with conditions,” Brian said. “I’ve discussed the issue with
my first officer as well as my chief engineer. We believe there are three options
before you.” Brian paused to catch his breath. “The first is to dig in. Build
massive bio domes deep within the planet’s crust and maybe those will survive.
The second is to build colony class ships capable of traveling through space
indefinitely. The third option is to create a planetary shield capable of
fending off the Greys.”

“Our
ministers proposed similar options,” Lumiar said. “In order to fulfill any of
those we’ll require technical aid from your people.”

“We’re
more than willing to help,” Brian said.

“We’ve
chosen to the first two options,” Lumiar said. “The third will only be possible
if we’re given the time to create it. At this point I pray we’re able to save
everyone.”

“That’s
why we’re here,” Brian said. “Our mission is to return home. But when we came
across your world’s call for help we couldn’t say no. Our conscious wouldn’t
allow us to coldly fly away like it wasn’t our problem. We’ll do everything in
our power to aid you. I promise you that.”

“And
thanks for the promise,” Lumiar said. “My government’s agreed to allow your
shipmates to visit this island in numbers of ten or less at a time. We’ll do
what we can about getting fresh food for them. Are your people vegetarian?”

“We
are,” Celi said. “But Brian doesn’t mind a little meat in his diet.

“We’re
omnivores ourselves,” Lumiar said. “But because the production of meat is so
expensive we only eat small amounts.”

“I
know the crew will be happy to see the sun once more and eat fresh produce,”
Brian said. “Also, please tell us where to send the information your people
need.”

“The
Ministry of Labor and Ministry of Technology will be the places to send any
information like that,” Lumiar answered. “Does your ship have the ability to
connect with our communications networks?”

“Yes,”
he answered. “If you wish I’d be more than willing to show you around.”

“Would
that be allowed?” Lumiar asked after turning to her captain.

He
nodded yes. “The Circles’ of nine and twenty seven give you permission to do
so.”

“In
that case, I’d be more than happy to join you,” Lumiar said.

“I’m
glad,” Brian said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath of ocean air.
“This planet is beautiful.”

“I’m
glad this will be ready to launch on schedule,” Kivi said before turning to
Dreka.

He
stood and admired the Raulno, a Kalaidian ship similar to the Avoni in length
and design but with a larger number of launching bays.

“This
will be the first carrier class ship for your people,” Dreka said.

“That’s
true, and I trust you’ll treat her as home,” Kivi said.

“That
it will be,” he said. “The ship will hold around two hundred mobile suits. I
was surprised I could build something to house all those things this small. But
we’re sacrificing mobility in the process. The Raulno can’t make the tight turns
as well as the Avoni can.”

“I
gave the okay for a reason,” Kivi said. “I don’t anticipate the Raulno will
have to make sharp turns in battle very often.”

“Agreed,”
Dreka said. “Well, I’d better stop admiring the ship and get to work. I’ll give
you the walk through once I’ve made my final inspection captain.” He made his
way to the main entrance at the back of the Raulno.

“Captain?”
she asked herself.

“You’re
still not used to the title, have you?” Mira asked as she joined her.

“No,
it’s going to take a while to get used to it,” Kivi said. “So, have you made a
decision?”

“I’m
going to have to decline,” Mira said. “It’s nothing personal; I just don’t feel
comfortable moving at the moment.”

“I’m
alright with it Mira, I understand,” she said. “I’ve had a number of chances to
leave over the years. It finally reached a point where I didn’t feel I was
needed there anymore.”

“I
do have a few people to recommend though,” Mira offered.

“You
can send the list over anytime,” Kivi said. She turned back to her new ship.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yes,”
Mira said.

“Are
you able to sense where he is?” Kivi asked.

“Yes,”
Mira said. “He’s in pain, as well as many onboard the Avoni at the moment.”

“I
pray what you say is true,” Kivi said. “Brian has a few things to teach me
before I can call myself a
Maigar
.” She tapped the
raknas
on her
belt.

“If
something should happen I’ll make sure you complete the training,” Mira said.

“Thanks
Mira.”

* * *

“Are
you sure about this?” Seles asked as Myden boarded the Zero. “You can always
take your own ship.”

“Yes,
that’s certainly true,” Myden said. “But to do so would draw attention from my
people. I feel much safer staying with you and the others on the Raulno.”

Celestia
called from outside in the courtyard. Seles leaned outside and saw her mother
waving.

“Take
care and bring that young man back to us!” Celestia shouted.

“I
will mother,” Seles said.

“And
take care of the old man,” Celestia said. “He hasn’t been around much of late.”

“As
you wish,” Seles said. She waved as the cockpit closed before turning to Myden.
“She worries too much.”

“Far
more than you suspect,” he said. “Every time you leave she can’t sleep for a
week. I can’t imagine what she’ll be like with me gone as well.”

The
mobile suit headed for space. “Is it true you don’t leave very often?”

“It
depends on what you mean by leaving,” Myden answered cryptically. “By the way,
could you dim the lights?”

“Lights
dim to fifty percent,” Seles said. The lights dimmed as much a moment later.
Myden flipped his hood back and blinked his large black eyes. Seles looked at
him closely. “I can see why people find your species so creepy.”

“In
the old days mine would say the same for your kind Seles,” Myden chuckled. “We
look creepy because no one sees us ever.” He coughed. “Sorry, I haven’t spoken
vocally so much in years.”

“You
have been rather talkative in the last few days,” Seles said. “I like it
though. In a way you’re like the father I never had.”

Myden
chuckled again. “I’m old enough to be the great grandfather of the Teacher. But
still, I accept your compliment graciously. I regret to admit before I fled my
world I never bore any children.”

“What
were they like?” Seles asked.

“Very
much like yours,” he said. “Naerendi don’t manifest their telepathic powers until
they reach puberty. Things get awkward after that.”

“I
know how it feels,” Seles said.

* * *

Valis
arrived at the Raulno on a shuttle. There, she met with Kivi, Mira, and Daes.
Dreka came running out of the back of the ship.

“Everything’s
ready for departure!” he shouted. “I’ll show you all around.”

Dreka
motioned for them to follow. The inside of the ship looked remarkably similar
to the Avoni. The exception was the number of launching bays and gravity drives
for charging mobile suits. As they toured each launching bay most of the mobile
suits onboard were Phase Raknas, but Dreka also had a force of twenty Talons in
two bays. After reviewing everything the group headed for the bridge.

“I
noticed the launching bays were only about a quarter full,” Seles said.

“The
cost of making Raknas and Talons is high, so we built what we could afford,”
Dreka explained. “The fifty mobile suits we have should suffice for the
mission.”

The
group came to the bridge and found it looked like the Avoni’s. Kivi placed one
of her
raknas
in a slot next to the captain’s chair to activate the
ship’s systems.

“Interesting
little feature you have there,” Valis said before taking seat in the commander’s
chair.

Dreka
took position at the forward console to the right. Seles took the console on
the left. Daes took the spot the lead science officer would at the top of the
bridge with Mira standing opposite of her.

“We’ll
depart tomorrow morning,” Kivi announced. “All of you have crew quarters as of
now. Until we return from this mission I trust you’ll act as my officers.”

“Of
course captain,” each said.

Valis
nodded. “You don’t mind?”

“No
Valis, I don’t,” Kivi said. “On this ship we have the same rank until the Avoni
is found.”

“But
I can’t do anything unless I have one of those,” Valis said. She pointed at the
rakna
blade.

“I’ll
leave it in there until further notice,” Kivi said.

“This
feels really weird,” Seles said as she stared at the console. “I really
underestimated how much work Baed had to do as the helmswoman.”

“I
know the feeling,” Dreka said. He switched the console over to Malcovin
language settings. “I’m used to standing where Daes is at.”

“I
know the two of you are out of your comfort zones, but it’s necessary for now,”
Kivi said. “To be honest I’m feeling a bit nervous about things as they stand.”

Myden
walked onto the bridge with his hood up before pacing about the room. Dreka turned
and noticed the old Grey looking his way.

“I
know you don’t trust me Dreka, but know I want to save Brian above everything
else,”
Myden said telepathically.

“Alright,”
Dreka said before turning back to his work. Myden turned to face everyone else.

“I
know you may wonder why I decided to join you,” Myden said. “I came because
you’ll need a guide should this search have to enter my people’s territory.
Until then I’ll remain in my quarters. As agreed Captain Kivi, you have the
choice of putting me under guard and surveillance.”

“I
will, just in case,” Kivi said.

“As
you wish,” Myden said before leaving the bridge.

“He
gives me the creeps,” Dreka said.

“I’ve
known him since I was a young child,” Seles said. “Myden has that way about
him.”

“Can
we trust him?” Kivi asked.

Seles
turned around. “I trust Myden as much as I trust Brian,” she said.

“That’s
all I needed to hear,” Kivi said.