The Theron Residency (Brides of Theron Book 4) (15 page)

Zirlo walked around Zeb and Avery’s home tree. Many changes had occurred since he had left the planet. After it was decided that Lars would be sent to the Caverns, the Council had asked him to resume his seat and he did not know how to tell his son that he was seriously considering it. Would Zeb be angry with him if he took the top spot? Yasa and Avery were making lunch. He could hear the laughter coming from the kitchen. He looked all around him and thought of the gifts that the Gods gave those that remained. He would have never imagined trees adjusting themselves to make homes for the exiled Theron’s. Yasa swore that her bedroom was a bit larger when she returned home with Zirlo.

How could a tree know there would be another inhabitant? He walked around until he found himself in his room. On the bed were several boxes that weren’t there just a moment ago. Zeb must have returned from his errand and brought these things into his room. He opened the flap of the box nearest to him. Inside the box was clothing that he had not seen in many years. He pulled out the thick scarlet cloth that belonged to the crew of his ship, his former ship that is. When he held it up to his chest, it seemed like it would swallow him up. He used to have a barrel chest full of muscles, arms massive with bulging biceps. Looking in the mirror, he started to feel like less the man he once was.

“Hey dad, I went to the storage facility on the base to get some of your things,” he put the last box on the bed. “Mom didn’t want to let any of it go. She always knew you’d be back. It is nice to finally empty the locker out.”

“Zeb, we need to talk.” He said to his son’s reflection in the mirror.

“Okay. What’s on your mind?” Zeb took a seat on the corner of the bed with his hands on his knees.

“The council approached me today. They asked me to take my former position as the lead commander.” Zirlo was afraid that his son would be angry with him. He braced himself for the answer.

“Actually Dad, I am the one that suggested it. I think it only fitting that you should be the one to lead the people in freeing the prisoners on Drylon. You should be the one to end Gatton’s reign. It is only right after what he has taken from you. I only hope that Ceran is not that disappointed that I am getting my ship back. They are giving you the newest ship, the Eternity.” Zeb smiled. “Ceran will be assigned as your number two. He is thoroughly knowledgeable of all ship systems and upgrades. He will be a great help to you.”

“No. I can’t take your ship.” Zirlo said sadly. “I would feel much better taking the Pyxis. It is my old ship, after all. You have earned the Eternity, and you should take her.”

“Are you sure dad? I am more than happy to take the old ship. The Eternity is incredible, it can virtually fly itself.”

“I insist. My decision is final. The Pyxis will be my ship. Zeb, I want you to know that I am so proud of you. You are very wise for your years. Here, I was so afraid to tell you that the council wanted me to take my seat back because I would be taking everything that you have worked so hard for while I was gone. I have read commentary on your leadership. You are a much better commander than I ever was. Not even a mark against you or any disciplinary actions. Gods, I don’t know how I got to be a commander. My file was really thick.” He motioned with his hands about 5 inches apart.

“Between you and me, I won’t say I follow all the rules. On the way back to Theron from Earth, I must have broken a dozen rules to make it easier for Avery to leave her home. I just had a brilliant engineer to cover my tracks. So, you see, I am definitely not perfect. One thing is sure, it helps to have friends like Brylon and Zane.”

“That’s true. It’s good to have friends. By the way, Avery is a delight. Yasa really loves her and I am sure I will love her, too.” He opened the next box and found an assortment of wooden and metal brain teaser puzzles. He loved these kinds of puzzles, especially when he was under pressure or facing a hard decision. He picked up a well-worn cube that was his favorite. “It took me two weeks to figure out how this one worked.” He twisted the cube and it separated into five distinctive parts. “You see, it was always the first piece that was tricky.” He placed it just on top of another and started to rebuild the cube. “Once you put that first piece in it all came together.” He shook his head, “I can’t believe that she kept all of this.” He handed the finished cube to his son to inspect.

“I almost forgot, I brought you something for tomorrow’s meeting with the council.” Zeb left Zirlo to continue to peruse the boxes and returned a few minutes later with a new uniform on a hanger. “I found this today. It has your ship’s colors and I am sure will fit you. I also had these communicator badges made.” Zirlo fingered the emblem on the communicator that pictured a red heart engulfed in flames with an infinity symbol on top of it. “It symbolizes this: The fire that consumed Theron burns in our hearts forever.”

“That could be the ending of a great speech, son,” Zirlo said as he took the uniform and hung it in the closet.

“Why don’t we get you unpacked and then we can join the girls in the kitchen?” Zeb said as he started emptying the boxes. They went to work and before they knew it, they were done. They broke down the boxes together and brought them outside for recycling.

“I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but I want to thank you for letting your mother and I stay here. Once everything is settled, I will find a place for us to live. I don’t want to get in the way of you, Avery, and the baby. I am sure that you would prefer your home to be your own.” Zirlo put the boxes he held in the recycling bin.

“Don’t be ridiculous dad. You and Mom are always welcome to stay here.” Zeb put the remaining cardboard boxes in after his father. “Mom has been living with me since I moved here. Besides, I couldn’t imagine having it any other way. I am sure that the baby will benefit from it. Having you and mom so close will be a blessing and help to Avery for sure.”

“Can I ask you something?” Zirlo asked after a moment of silence.

“Sure dad, anything.”

“What happened to the cities? Why aren’t we living in them anymore? Haven’t they been rebuilt?”

“It might seem like an easy thing to do, but it wasn’t. Our population was decimated by the attacks. In the last ten years, we have depended on foreign labor more than at any time in our history. Most of the laborers we employ are working to rebuild our fleet. Right now, our markets contain shopkeepers from many allied planets that have sought refuge here. Unfortunately, the Theron Warrior race is a minority on this planet today. We are starting to see a population of Theron born children increase. Still, we have had to take drastic measures to bring this to fruition. We’ve explored many planets looking for suitable mates only finding a few that held those that we are compatible with. We just don’t have enough people to populate the areas outside the forests as of yet. Maybe, when we return with our warriors from the prison camps, we will. Theron might then be able to resume its former glory.”

“A minority? Then, Gatton was pretty successful at nearly exterminating our race then.”

Zeb considered this question carefully, “Yes, Dad, he was.”



After lunch, Zeb thought it was time for Zirlo to tour the city where they once lived. It was hard enough for Zeb to venture into the ruins of his hometown to see the devastation, and he rarely did unless he was ordered to by the council. When he looked at every broken monument or building, it was like opening a wound and covering it with salt. It would be even worse for him today to watch his father see the remains of the great city he once called home for the first time since his abduction.

Thankfully, Yaza and Avery decided to stay home. He didn’t want to see his mother or his mate distressed. After kissing Avery goodbye and telling them that they would be home soon, they got into the hovercraft. Zeb typed in the coordinates and they were off. Zirlo had only been discharged from the hospital several hours ago and had hardly said a word since they had left the house. Learning all that had happened to Theron since he’d been gone must be taking an enormous toll on him. Zeb looked over to see that Zirlo was scanning his surroundings as if trying to figure out where on Theron he was.

Before the war, most Theron Warriors lived in the great cities. He grew up in a large house that was on the Academy grounds because his father oversaw the education of the future Theron workforce. He had spent most of his life on campus. His parents reluctantly let him move into the dorms when he argued that he wanted to be with his friends. He guessed that they finally came to the realization that he should experience dorm life like any other cadet. Living in the dorms were some of the best years of his life. All the camaraderie and the sticky situations he would find himself getting into built up his character and reputation. He and his friends were often brought to Zirlo’s desk to be disciplined. He was allowed to grow up on his own terms and appreciated his dad for giving him that time of independence.

They had since moved the Academy into the forest with a much smaller student population. For Zeb, the most heartbreaking sight to see was the ruins of the great library just after the attack. He wasn’t ready or prepared to imagine how his father would take seeing it for himself. It was a small consolation that every book stored on the thousands of shelves in the library were digitized long before the attack. They no longer needed the leather bound volumes as everything was accessible via tablet. Still, there was something about holding a well-worn book whose pages may have been dog-eared at some point in time by some careless cadet marking where he had left off. Just the smells of the leather and glue, as well as the weight, in his hands, made it feel more genuine than a digital copy. Books in abundance were just one of many things that he missed.

They entered the airspace just outside the city proper and he heard his father gasp. He looked over and saw his father’s eyes start tear up. He couldn’t help it when his eyes began to do the same. Just ahead, they entered the former campus and saw the broken statue of “The Great Warrior, Tormod” holding up his emblazoned sword. His stony armor couldn’t even protect him from damage. The head of the statue was half gone probably blown away by pieces of the nearby dormitory building that was now just a stack of stones. He pulled up to the shell of a house that he knew well as a child. After all, he was raised in it.

He opened the glass dome of the hovercraft and stepped out. The grass grew wildly and the barbs of some of the thorny weeds tugged at the hem of his pants. He went to the other side of the car and helped his father out of the vehicle. By now, his dad had a really hard time maintaining his composure. It was hard for Zeb to watch Zirlo take in the damage. It was one thing to tell his father about it. But, for him to see it for himself just made it all the more upsetting. The dome of the great library was sitting on top of a mountain of rocks and splintered, rotting wood. These tall shelves held books that could, in a number, be representative of every star in their galaxy.

Arden and Claya’s house was next to his family’s house and Bryon’s parents lived just off campus on the corner across the street. Zirlo climbed up onto the rubble that once was his house. It was one of the great honors bestowed on a commander to live on the Academy grounds. Arden taught at the medical school and had the same benefit at Zirlo’s request. Zirlo was about ten steps in when he stumbled over a rock and fell. Zeb went immediately to his side.

“Are you alright dad?” a look of concern crossed Zeb’s face as he bent over to brush the dust from his father’s pants. He always remembered his father as a fierce warrior who never backed down from a challenge, whose emotions never showed even when he was flustered. The man he remembered from the past was the epitome of what he strived to become. Every lesson he ever learned from observing this man in his youth was being altered to the extreme before his very eyes. What Zeb now saw before him was the visage of a broken man, and this realization seemed to counter every memory that he held of the man before this moment.

“No, I am not alright,” his dad answered honestly. “By Tormod, I will make Gatton pay for this. I can see clearly in my mind what this place used to be. Over there was where the quantum mechanics lab. And, just there, the medical school stood. My gods, the library is just a pile of rubble.” He pointed to each of the piles as he mentioned them. “There is nobody here!” he shouted. He turned to Zeb and said with determination, “When this is all over with, we will rebuild this city. People will return here to live again.”

“It’s like this everywhere. I wish I could say that even one city existed as you remembered it.” He kicked a stone with his boot. “We need to focus on getting our people back home. Then, we can rebuild this city and the others to their former glory.” He put his arm around his father’s shoulders, “Right now, it is safer in the trees. Enemy craft can’t find us under the branches. Besides, if our actions bring war back to this planet, those of us that remain will be safer in the forests.”

Taking one final look around Zirlo turned abruptly and said, “I have seen enough. Let’s go home son.” Zirlo returned to the hovercraft and stepped inside. Zeb got in and set the coordinates. The glass dome dropped and the hovercraft bounded up above the trees. “I know that you have heard from Kurtz. Who else will be attending or listening in on the meeting tomorrow?”

“I spoke with King Ruadh of Blacknor today. He has sent a representative who will arrive this evening. Kurtz has met with King Triton from Poseidon. They are willing to support this mission in whatever way possible. They have more riches than any other ally and could probably fund the whole operation. As you already know, the Uvites have had a representative on our council since they lost their planet to Gatton. King Og from Estormia was already in route to our sector of the universe to obtain some cavementon for a new fleet of ships. The Sanganese will be taking part by teleconference since their representative can’t get here in time. Our meeting will be broadcasted in the meeting hall of the intergalactic council in Corsica. I have heard talk that a larger faction of potential allies called the Interdimensional Federation will also take part. I have never heard of the Interdimensional Federation before now, but they are highly regarded by the intergalactic council. Nevertheless, this will be an event like none other in our history.”