The Fringe Worlds (16 page)

A guard appeared at the door and summoned them all to the pilothouse.

“Take your seats,” Riyad demanded of Kaylor and Jym. “We’re at Nimor. Take us to the Klin ship.”

Kaylor seemed to be fighting the urge to say something, and then he finally did. “The Ministry and the Juireans are probably going to be looking for us here. We haven’t been gone very long,” he said nervously.

“That’s why we can’t waste any more time. Just get us in and out as fast as possible.”

Kaylor and Jym got very quiet and very serious. Through the open port, Adam could see the planet sweep into view, still impressed by the sight of another planet from space. But then he noticed the aliens begin to frantically work their controls and repeatedly check the view screens.

Riyad noticed this, too. “What’s wrong”

“The Klin ship.It’s not there.” There was panic in Kaylor’s voice.

Riyad moved closer, until he was looking over Kaylor’s shoulder. “What do you mean it’s not there”

“These are the coordinates. It’s where we left it in orbit by direction from the Ministry.” He was near hysterics. “Honest! This is where we left it!”

Riyad straightened up and stared out the viewport. “The Juireans have taken the ship away,” he stated flatly.

Adam spoke up, “Where did they take it”

“To Melfora Lum,” Riyad answered without turning around. “That’s the Juirean headquarters for The Fringe.” Adam could tell that the terrorist was working multiple scenarios through in his head, as was Adam. They had the core, but it was no good without the Klin ship. And now the ship was headed for the Juirean stronghold. How difficult would it be getting in and out of there Adam was the rookie here; he had no idea.

Finally, Riyad turned to one of his guards. “Have the core transferred to my ship.” Then he turned to Adam: “I don’t like you and I don’t trust you, but I’m not going to leave you here either. You’re coming with me.”

“What about us” Jym asked a little too loudly.

Riyad glared at him with a look that caused Jym to shrink back into his chair. “You two are the reason I’m in this mess. I’m afraid I don’t have very good news for-“

Just then, a brilliant blue light filled the pilothouse and everyone turned toward the viewport. Three spacecraft had appeared in front of them and a massive blue bolt of energy was deflecting off one of their hulls. An elongated craft sweep into view from behind the FS-475 and cut across the bow of Kaylor’s ship, just as another bolt of energy erupted from a point just above its pointed tip, targeted at the three approaching warcraft.

Almost simultaneously, three return bolts shot out from the attackers, striking the side of the elongated ship. Adam could see two of the bolts slide off the hull, while one of them scorched a path across the forward third of the ship.

Riyad turned to Kaylor. “Do you have any weapons on this tub”

At first Kaylor didn’t understand the question, but soon it dawned on him. “Nothing but a 45-ML launcher. It cannot puncture a battle hull.”

Adam knew the fourth ship was Riyad’s ride, and he also knew the ship was doomed. It had sped off to the right and was still barely visible when the three attackers changed course toward it and let loose another barrage of fire. This time all three bolts penetrated the hull and the ship exploded in a ball of yellow and green fire. Adam was astonished by the sudden evaporation of the explosion, as the fire flared briefly then vanished, as if sucked up by a vacuum. Yet he could still see, even at this distance, pieces of the ship flying off in all directions.

Riyad stood stoically watching the scene unfold, while the three guards in the room appeared visibly shaken. Adam reasoned this was their ship, and now all of their shipmates were dead.

The three attackers changed course again and Adam could see bright flashes from their sterns as they maneuvered closer to Kaylor’s ship. It was apparent from their approach that they did not intend to fire.

A buzz sounded in the pilothouse and Kaylor reached forward on his console and threw a switch.

“This is the Nimorian Ministry Forces. You will prepare to be boarded.”

All eyes turned to Riyad. “Do as they say.”

“What about the core” Adam asked. “Are you going to let the Juireans have it”

There was a mischievous look on the pirate’s face. “Don’t worry. We’ll take this fight to another venue,” he said as the corners of his mouth curved upward slightly.

The FS-475 was soon flooded with a myriad of aliens who placed Riyad and his pirates in one of the extra staterooms under guard, while sequestering Adam, Kaylor and Jym in Kaylor’s stateroom, also under guard.

Other pilots set the ship on a course for Melfora Lum, a trip which would take about two days. Then everyone settled into a tense routine. Food was brought and bathroom trips supervised. Adam and Riyad had no contact during the trip.

In Kaylor’s stateroom, Adam was able to remove their ankle bombs. What to do with them afterwards became the question. They had not seen the trigger device removed from Riyad, but that could have happened by now. If not, then the bombs could go off at anytime. So during one of the bathroom runs, Adam had hidden the bombs in a towel and deposited them in a trash can. Then asking for permission to dump the trash, Jym had jettisoned the bombs into the vastness of space.

Immediately, there was a profound change in the mood of Adam’s two alien companions, — at least up to the point they remembered that they were on their way to meet a Juirean Overlord!

The moment soon came when everyone was summoned to the airlock off the cargo bay and the four of them were transferred to a smaller shuttlecraft for the journey down to the surface of Melfora Lum.

Through the viewports, Adam could see a sprawling city with skyscrapers, paved roads and abundant traffic. This was more like it, a lot different from the Old West version of the Nimorian city of Gildemont.

They landed in a parade field next to a massive building, easily measuring a thousand meters on each side. It soared twenty stories tall and glowed a golden yellow as the glass walls reflected the setting sun. The prisoners were herded into the building under no fewer than 14 guards.

Speaking of guards, Adam had not seen the four pirates Riyad had with him on the FS-475. He had a passing curiosity, wondering what happened to them. Like extras in a disaster movie, they must have been expendable.

The large group entered an even larger elevator. Adam again marveled at the familiarity of it all. It was just a normal-looking elevator, yet he reasoned the mechanism for raising and lowering the car was probably a lot more high-tech than cables and pulleys. At least that’s the way Adam imagined it.

They entered an extremely large office, easily 30 meters square, lined with full-size statues of various alien creatures, all garbed in bright uniforms and holding a variety of weapons. Full-size plants were scattered around the room and they had to wind their way through some of them to come upon a massive desk, apparently carved from a single stone crystal. The desk was smooth along the front and back sides, but each of the other two sides had ornate carvings depicting various animals, all with savage, threatening expressions. The scene was clearly designed to intimidate.

And behind the desk was the Juirean Counselor Deslor Lin Jul. He wore a slightly amused expression as the four prisoners were placed in chairs before the desk. This time the guards remained in the room, their beady yellow eyes unblinking as they never took them off of the prisoners. Adam could tell these guards were of a different caliber than the ones on Nimor. Real pros.

As Adam sat there, he wondered when they would be meeting the Overlord. After all, Adam had already seen this movie.

Then the interview began.

The Juirean informed them that he had learned Riyad’s identity and had taken note that he was of the same race as Adam. This had piqued his curiosity.

“So I see we now have two of you, one a pirate captain and the other proclaiming ignorance as to how he came to be aboard the derelict ship. Does that seem inconsistent to either of you”

“Let’s cut the bullshit,” Adam said. “We all know it was a Klin ship I was on.”

The Juirean was sincerely taken aback. “So you know,” he seemed visibly upset. It was obvious someone back on Nimor must have leaked the information.

“And this makes it all the more infeasible that you are simply an innocent victim of an abduction with no knowledge of how or why you came to be aboard a Klin spacecraft.”

He turned to address Riyad. “And you, of the same race, are a pirate leader and apparently quite adapt at our way of life. So which is it Are you a primitive race, with no knowledge of the existence of the Expansion, or are you skilled warriors as evidenced by your position with the pirates and your escape from the Nimorian jail”

Neither Adam nor Riyad answered. Instead Riyad tilted his head toward Adam and said, “So this is a Juirean I’m not impressed.”

“That’s just what I thought!” Adam replied emphatically.

The Juirean bristled. “Play your games as you wish. But I should tell you, we have recovered the Klin computer core.”

Both Riyad and Adam were shocked. While thinking the Juireans still believed the pirates had the core, Riyad had hidden the core in Kaylor’s ship. If — and when — Riyad was able to escape - which he had every confidence that he could - he figured he’d have a chance of getting it back. In fact, he was quite ecstatic about getting both the core and the Klin ship back in close proximity to each other. But now.

“That’s right,” the Juirean said smugly. “Your two captains were quite effective in convincing us that the pirates never did have the core in the first place. That only left you two,” he said, addressing Kaylor and Jym. “After that, we didn’t have too much difficulty finding the core aboard your ship during the trip here.”

Damn it! Now the fucking Juireans are going to learn the location of Earth! Adam thought. Where does that leave me

Almost on queue, the Juirean spoke, “All of you are to be transported to the Klin ship to meet the Overlord. He is quite anxious to meet the two of you,” he said to the two humans. He turned to Kaylor and Jym. “As for the two of you, I have no idea what plans he has for you.”

Adam saw Kaylor turn even paler than normal - and Jym fainted.

Two hours later, Adam was handcuffed and walking on a narrow metal plank in the umbilical corridor connecting the Counselor’s private ship to the Klin ship. At the end of the plank, the group entered an airlock and soon Adam was walking back down the same wide, curving corridor he had been in only six short days ago.

Technicians had reestablished gravity, atmosphere and temperature, and even the air smelled like it had been disinfected, countering the stench of the dead bodies left by the pirates.

As he passed the wide window to the hiberpods room, he felt slightly nostalgic. He noticed that all the pods were now empty and that the dead bodies had been removed from the floor.

They soon passed the wide stairway leading to the command dome and then continued beyond, entered a corridor that cut through the center of the ship under the command dome. There were numerous doors on either side of the corridor and Adam reasoned this must have been the living quarters for the crew.

A wide door slid open to his right and the guards hustled them through, following the Counselor in his flowing and colorful capes.

The room was large, more deep than wide, with a viewport at the opposite end. There was a living area off to the left, complete with a bed and working desk, partitioned off with half walls from the rest of the room. Along each wall were colorful and strangely brilliant pictures that appeared almost alive. They were 3-D or holograms and depicted landscapes of rolling hills, towering mountains and tranquil, azure blue seas. One picture was of a large obelisk surrounded by manicured grounds. Within the pictures were numerous beings, all the same tall silver creatures he’d seen when he’d first awakened on the ship. They were smiling and some were even holding children. These were scenes of home.

The Adam noticed someone standing near the photo of the obelisk, with his back to the group. A long, billowing crest of blue hair covered the head, and the creature wore a long purple cape.

Without turning, the Overlord spoke: “This is a vid of the Eternity Monument on Klin. It was destroyed nearly four thousand years ago, but still they remember.”

He turned and Adam was immediately struck by the impossibly deep blue color of his eyes. They were almost hypnotic. His face was similarly shaped as the Counselor, but it appeared to have fewer creases around the eyes. A young Juirean Adam wasn’t sure.

The Counselor had taken a seat off to the right of the simple desk that was set near the rear viewport. He sat there silently as he waited for the Overlord to guide the conversation.

The Overlord swept his arm around the room. “This is all Klin. We are all standing in a memory, an ancient memory that has now been brought back to life.” The Juirean’s voice was almost singsong, as he seemed enraptured by the moment. “This is living history. The Klin should not exist, but they do.”

He walked over to the group and stopped in front of Adam. “They not only exist, but they appear to be thriving.” The smell of the Juirean was of thick body odor and his breath was a little sour. Adam did his best not to winch - too much.

The Juirean continued. “I am Overlord Oplim Ra Unis. The four of you are all responsible, in one way or another, for this great moment in Juirean history. Because of your actions, I will be remembered forever in the annals of the Juirean legacy.”

He walked over to the desk and leaned against it, facing the group. From the tone of the conversation, Adam felt almost as if the Juirean wanted to thank them for what they’ve done! Was that even possible

He continued: “But do you know how close I came to not making this happen” His voice lowered. “Just having the Klin ship, without knowing the location of the Klin hiding place, would have caused more problems than it solved. It would simply have confirmed that the Klin still exist, and that they have advanced technology developed over four thousand years, completely hidden from the Expansion. There would be Klin sightings all across the galaxy and it would undermine the Members’ confidence in the Juirean Authority.”