Chapter 31: Chapter 31

AMY

After speaking with Izzy, Amy decided to go for a walk. She needed to clear her head after everything she’d heard.

Now, she sat in a room with 360-degree windows and a breathtaking view of the stars. Inside the large empty room stood only a bench, but this room didn’t need anything more than the view.

The endless sea of stars twinkled in every direction. An oval-shaped galaxy hung peacefully in the sky at what seemed like only a few feet away.

She felt calm here, at peace looking at the endless nothingness of space around her.

Amy wasn’t sure how long she admired the stars when Prime said, “Amy, Silian is looking for you. Shall I tell him where you are?”

She smiled to herself. “Yes, please, Prime,” she said and waited for him to find her. The door to the round lift in the center of the room slid open, and his heavy boots echoed on the metal floor.

Without turning to look at him, Amy followed the sound of his movements. He stopped behind her and waited. She arched her head back to look up at him and smiled.

“Hi,” she said.

He smiled. “Hello.” He swung one leg over the bench and faced her, his eyes glowing blue in the darkness.

“You were looking for me?” she asked when he didn’t say anything.

“Yes.”

“Was there a particular reason?” she asked, turning to face him.

He sat quietly for a moment and watched her before he said, “Yes. I wanted to see how you are doing.”

Amy pulled in a deep breath and looked out the window.

“I haven’t changed my mind about us, if that’s what you’re asking. But I’m not going to lie to you, what I heard in Izzy’s room…it’s madness.

“How can people with so much power to do good, end up being so bad? It’s scary, to be honest,” she said.

“It’s my life. The reality of everyone living in the Realm. It is all anyone has ever known. Change is something every man, woman, and child hopes for, but it is not something they expect.

“Do you now understand how important Izzy is to us? And as for being afraid, I will not let anything happen to you,” he said.

“I do understand, Silian, but look at it from her point of view. She has an unimaginable task ahead of her, and as tough as she likes everyone to think she is, she struggles when it comes to people hurting.

“That is why she’s a paramedic. It’s in her bones to help people in need. What if this is all too much for her?” Amy said, looking back out the window.

Silian moved closer to her, but didn’t touch her. “Amy, Izzy is stronger than you think. She has a fire in her soul that will serve her well in the coming difficulties, but she also has you.

“She has her sons, and she has people that would lay down their lives for her. These are not things that should be so easily disregarded. Having people to turn to can make all the difference.”

She turned back to him, “And what about us? What will happen to me when we get to the Realm? To you?” she asked, placing her hand on his leg.

He looked down at it, then quickly scanned the room with a swift look before taking her hand into his.

“No one will hurt you. I won’t let them.”

“What if I get caught? What if the powers that be find out I’m here, and that I should be dead?”

“Amy, despite what was discussed in Izzy’s quarters, I am a capable man. I know what I must do to keep you safe.”

“The way I understand it is that you and me and the whole crew of this ship would be in big trouble if anyone found out about us. About what we did, and what we mean to each other.”

“No one will find out. As soon as we deliver Izzy to the Black Palace, I will take you far away from the Realm. We can wait for the laws to change there.”

“You can’t do that. Can you?” she asked.

“I will do whatever I have to, to protect you.”

“Silian, you can’t put your own life at risk just because of me. I won’t let you do that.”

“You won’t have a choice. I will not let the only thing in my life that I care about be put in danger. Not like that. And if I die protecting you, then I will die fighting for something I truly love.”

Amy hated how morbid he got, but she understood the reality of his world more now. What he said to her, she believed.

“What if I went back to Earth? That way, I won’t be in danger and you won’t do anything stupid.”

“It makes no difference where you are. We found Izzy, did we not? Finding you will not be hard now that Prime has your DNA. Zaftar can hunt you down no matter where you are.

“On Earth, I cannot protect you. But if you are with me, we have a far greater chance of waiting it out safely.”

“Does Izzy know what Zaftar is truly capable of?”

“Mikhlas has spoken to her. I am sure he’s warned her of Zaftar.”

“She’s going to be all alone with her boys. Who’s going to watch her back?” Amy said, standing up. “Her heart is too good to see the darkness in people sometimes.”

“Do not fear for Izzy. The Sentinels will watch over her and the princes. The Royal Guard is not to be disregarded, either. They are the best fighters in the Realm. They stand at her side, always.”

“What about Mikhlas? Is he going to be in as much trouble as you and me?”

“No, his worries are far greater than ours. If the court finds out what he did the first day we met Izzy, they will hang him.”

“What? You’re kidding,” Amy said in surprise.

“No. Sadly not. But he has been nominated as the Dakiro. They cannot do anything to him until the trial is over. And by then it will make no difference.”

“Why?”

“When the Sentinels take you in to be assessed, and you are not chosen, coming back out kills you.

“Right now, Captain Mikhlas has only two options. He can submit to the trial and come out as King, or every other path leads to his death.”

“Again, does Izzy know all of this?” Amy asked.

“Yes, I believe so, but it is too late now. She has already declared her choice in front of a Sentinel.”

Amy frowned at that. “When did she do that?”

“When she asked him, yesterday.”

“Here? On the ship? There is a Sentinel on this ship?”

Silian let out a small laugh.

“Yes. She is on every ship. She is everywhere,” Silian said, and the stumped look on Amy’s face must have made it clear that she had no idea who he was talking about.

“Prime,” he said.

A slow realization dawned over Amy. She remembered when Prime told them all what she was. She didn’t understand it then, but now the pieces were falling into place.

~She is a self-conscious extension of the Alpha Primordial Sentinel Being. A small part of a very big whole.~

“What about the other Sentinels?” she asked, sitting back down next to him.

“The others do not live well in space. Aquaria, the Sentinel of water, needs the energy created by free-flowing water to sustain her consciousness. The ship does not have large enough water reserves for her to live in.

“Infernia, the Sentinel of fire…” Silian paused with a smile.

“She has a temper and even the smallest flame can give her enough power to destroy a ship. She is not one to ask questions, but rather destroy first then wonder why.

“Garia, the Sentinel of life, lives in the earth, the creatures, and the trees. In essence she is in all of us, but she does not show herself often.

“Too many times she has been taken advantage of, so now she remains hidden.

“Morkai has not had cause to come to the ship, thankfully. He is the Sentinel of death. He is there where life ends,” Silian explained.

“So how does Prime fit in?”

“The Alpha Primordial is the youngest of the Sentinels. She is the keeper of all knowledge. She is also the only Sentinel created by other beings, millennia ago.

“She has watched countless civilizations rise and fall, all across the Universe. She watches,” Silian said, looking around, “and learns from every minute action.

“However, her central consciousness is rarely seen. Only her extensions. Like here, on the ship. A little piece that connects to a very big whole.”

“So, they are like gods?”

“More like caretakers. They are the ones that ensure there is balance in the Universe. Where there is life, there must be death. Where there is water, there is life, and in life there is death.

“We Homeworlders do not worship them like gods anymore, but we do not disrespect them, either.”

“Disrespect them how?” ~This is good to know. I wouldn’t want to do anything that would piss off supernatural beings of such power~.

“To poison the rivers and the oceans is to disrespect Aquaria. To disrespect Morkai is to try to cheat death. To hunt and kill beyond our needs is to disrespect Garia. As long as the balance is upheld, they watch over us.”

Amy looked back out at the night sky and thought about what the human race did to Earth.

~The amount of pollution in the oceans and rivers. The tearing down of the Amazon jungle. It’s not disrespect, it’s a slap in the face.~

Silian shifted closer to her. “They are fair. Anything that has been done can be undone and forgiven. It’s the will to change and do better that is held in the highest accord with them,” he said, following her gaze to the window.

“That’s why it doesn’t matter where I am. Prime already knows everything about me, about us,” she said.

“Yes, but Prime is different. She follows her own rules. When on a ship, she obeys the commands of the Captain and crew, like any other crew member would.

“Although she sees and hears everything, she does not always feel the need to report certain things,” Silian said with a smile.

“Right,” Amy said, still lost in thought.

“Amy, of all the things to fear in the Realm, the Sentinels are not one of them,” he said.

Amy turned to him. “Silian, I—”

“Silian, you are needed on the bridge,” Prime called out in the room.

He stood, and reached his hand out to her. “Join me?”

She looked at it, then at him. “I thought we couldn’t do this anymore?”

He smiled. “We still have nine hours, forty-seven minutes, and—” He looked up at the ceiling.

“Thirteen seconds,” Prime answered for him.

Amy laughed. “Who’s counting, right?”

Silian turned back to her, gently taking her face in his hands, and leaned down to her, looking her deep into her eyes, his smile gone. “I am.”

MIKHLAS

Mikhlas sat on the bridge, his head resting on the back of his seat, and his eyes closed, thinking about what Isabelle said in her room. He never thought of himself as a slave, but now the idea consumed him.

“Captain.” Iry broke his thoughts. “We are receiving an emergency beacon 6,500 light-years behind us. Prime reads it as an old transport ship, but I’m not sure how that’s possible, sir. Those ships were retired a long time ago.”

He lifted his head and looked at her. Once what she said registered, he sat up straight and focused.

“Scan for life,” he called out.

“I have, sir. There are three cryopod signatures emanating from outside the wreckage, but no life onboard. I am also reading a massive energy surge in the area,” Iry said.

“Is there any ID on the pods?”

“Nothing that makes sense, Captain. It says the pods are from the Raqtrem family.”

Mikhlas sat up straighter, his mind back on task. “That cannot be. That family died over fifty years ago,”

“Yes, Captain, I know, but it’s their pods, sir.”

“How long until the FTL drive is fully charged?”

“Another four hours, Captain,” a man behind Iry answered.

“How long will it take us to get to the wreckage?”

“If we use only the sub-light drives, one hour. We can make the next jump from there and still be on course,” Prime said.

“Very well. Prime, continue to scan the area, see if you can figure out what happened. Iry, prepare weapons just in case we are greeted by whatever did this. Silian, return to the bridge.

“All crew at your stations. Set alert status throughout the ship,” he commanded to the room.

~I need to tell Isabelle about this.~ He pulled in a deep breath and walked. When he got to her door, he knocked, and when the door slid open, he stepped in, his head dipped low.

“Isabelle, forgive me for bothering you, but there is a situation on the bridge that needs your attention,” he said and looked up at her.

“I thought maybe you’d come to talk to me,” she said with a sigh. “What’s going on?”

“A distress call, not far from here, has just turned on. There are no survivors on the ship, but three cryopods are sending out close-range tracking beacons.

These beacons belong to a noble family that died out a long time ago.”

“Ok. Should we go to the bridge?”

“Yes. This will be best dealt with there.”

“Let’s go.”