Book II The Order of light series

This work is preceded by Ifria Fallen.

All characters, and themes contained within this book are independent of reality, and intellectual property of Clay Overton. Enjoy

Xarie

Xarie sat in the polished rosewood arm chair her mother had often sat in when she was still alive. She had made certain, after the prior incident, that no one would summon her from her chambers in the night. Because of her strict instruction, she was concerned. They wouldn't defy her for something small. She thought of the young man whom she had kicked out of her bed, and smiled a little. He was just a means to satisfy a fleeting need, and soon faded from her mind. Her thoughts returned to the condition of the chair.

The fabric was worn, but the wood was cared for by the finest craftsman the kingdom had ever known. The King never cared for antiquated furniture, and ruled as if his title had been a novelty. He had the furnishings in the palace placed there by the decree of his wife, and was fond of reminding everyone that she was the real leader of the kingdom. He would say that his station was only to act as her instrument.

Xarie caressed the wood, and wondered if anyone else was aware how accurate the king's jest had been. Her mother had driven him to the brink of insanity before the attack on Ifria, and then poisoned herself when she received word of his demise. Xarie inherited the thrown after her mother; Queen Josephine held the position for less than a season.

In the aftermath of the main fight against the Croans, Xarie had been briefed by her royal advisor on the status of the Kingdom. It was made known to her that the Order of Light, that she had grown up hearing stories about, was in fact real. Not only was the Order real, but working with the Kingdom. She became the ruler of a kingdom that had painfully absorbed a neighboring nation, and desperately needed a face to blame.

She sat in shock for hours after her empowering ceremony was completed. She had become the youngest Queen to ever lead her nation in a millennium. The shock eventually had worn off, and she was making real progress bringing the newly acquired territories under her Greatian banner. The Order had a close group of incredibly brave leaders, and an extraordinary network of spies.

She had grown fond of Commander Alva during the campaign, and attended her sons independence ceremony. Her wandering thoughts were interrupted by the security panel just across the long table. It blinked a series of colors, and then returned to standby.

The royal Advisor Rothford shambled quickly into the room, tossing a small projection device onto the table.

"This had better be worth my time Rothford" She warned the him with a stern glare. He nodded in assurance, as the small device projected a map, with icons, and data scrolling across the sides, and top.

"I know this looks like madness right now, Highness, but it will be made clear presently" He assured her.

The door to the incident management chamber snapped open, and two sleepy eyed technicians hurriedly walked into the room. Xarie sat up, suddenly aware of the intensity in the room. She was becoming familiar with the face of tragedy, and they all three wore it.

"I command you to tell me now." She demanded from the younger looking technician in the room. "I want to know what is going on."

"The Technician folded his arms, assuming the customary posture for addressing royalty. Xarie waved a hand in his face making a motion for him to hurry.

"The Order is.... is under attack," He stuttered, as he hastily configured the display being projected in over the table.

"Rothford" Queen Xarie demanded, snapping her fingers as she returned her attention to the Advisor. "Is this true?" She asked.

"Yes highness" He responded "The display should be up in a second, so you can see the situation unfolding. Also, we have a link set up to the Commander on the ground. She has been in constant contact with our General."

"Set it up" She commanded, leaning forward to await the display. As it flickered into life, the scene became cluttered with icons, representing The Order's facilities, and the Croan attackers.

"The Order relied so heavily on their anonymity; they never considered anyone would attack them at their own base." Rothford said. He had voiced his concerns about their methods almost constantly over the course of their campaign.

Xarie dropped her gaze to the display below, where Commander Wren blinked into view. She was running until she came to an anti-craft assault position. The gunner was only half present behind the weapon. The Commander kicked the lower half of the man from the seat, and climbed in.

"Commander Wren" Xarie said attempting to make contact. The commander responded with a friendly wave toward the display, and continued firing at the enemy.

"The Order has been overrun highness. The Croans have....." Commander Wren started to inform her. The signal was unclear, and began to fade in and out. "We've intercepted.... location of the Croan.....world." She continued.

"Say again Alva" Xarie interrupted to no avail. "The transmission is bad"

"...real home world... sending the location to our son Thomas..." Commander Wren said over the broken transmission, and heavy weapon fire. Xarie started to speak, when the transmission failed completely. The failure was in synchronization to an intense bombardment of the Order's compound.

Advisor Rothford turned to Xarie, and shook his head. "Reports of a total loss on the ground are coming in. We are pulling back our people Highness." He said, looking back at his communicator.

"No" Xarie exclaimed "I want those monsters wiped out, and every inch of that facility sorted through."

"As you wish Highness" He said with a tremble in his voice. "We will lose ... many soldiers in this fight. They have sent an unprecedented force against us."

"We will not allow them one victory Rothford. Not One" She responded. "And someone get eyes on the young Mr. Grey.

Thomas

Slowly blinked his eyes. He frequently felt like he was lost upon waking in his ship. Space stretched out before him with no end, and he stared into it with endless curiosity. As reality settled in, and his motivations returned to the forefront of his thoughts, an excitement urged his body to move.

The last year of his life was spent maneuvering his duties within the order to get him close to the preserve. The planet he wanted to visit was designated as a no travel zone. The Ifrians had an observation station orbiting, with no one aboard, and the civilization on the surface had no idea there was more than what they could see with their eyes.

Thomas loved to study other cultures, but his parents tried their best to deter his every effort to become a researcher. They frequently reminded him how a life on the surface of a world was more rewarding, and safe. To him they both sounded hypocritical. The scars and souvenirs they carried with them told a story they tried to hide from him.

He had been born just after the turning point in the Croan war, and before he was grown the enemy was all but wiped out. Traveling around with the Order, and searching worlds for Croan activity set a spark in him, that grew into a burning desire to discover.

He set the small delivery craft to stealth, as he approached the planet. He couldn't wait to locate a civilization center, and begin observing their interactions. He saved all his pay for the long range observation kit installed in the small ship. With it he could see, and document the actions of lifeforms on the surface, and cross-analyze it against other cultures.

As he waited for the ship to reach a stable orbit, he imagined what it would be like when the Order turned off the Anti-Croan jump signal. He could have jumped instantly to the Preserve planet with it. The whole idea of an open ended jump technology had been covered up by the Greatian royal guard, and the Order.

His entry shields snapped into place, jarring him into the present. They were only supposed to deploy upon entering an atmosphere. He checked his piloting program. It showed him closing in on stable orbit. As the glow of atmosphere making contact with his shields grew, the piloting program shut off.

The ship was falling, caught by the planet's gravity. He was far closer than his instruments had suggested, and now his ship was flying blind. He grabbed the controls; his heart hammered the inside of his chest.

"We're going down?" Corey asked from the co-pilot capsule, where he'd been silent, and unmoving for the entire trip. His tone was bland, and to Thomas it sounded like a question asked out of interest rather than fear. The immortal blade wielder was becoming detached from the world. He followed Thomas only because the blade had promised him something.

Thomas overheard him talking to it about a deal that was made, and an obligation Corey had to finish the job. It all gave him a shiver, but his parents would only let him out of sight if Corey was there. They told him Corey predicted his birth, and always assured them he had a great destiny.

The atmospheric drag slowed the ship enough that the manual controls were responding, but they were erratic, every maneuver he tried was quickly counteracted by turbulence, and malfunction. As the forest came into view, he slid back the partition between the two capsules.

"Any last words" Thomas yelled at the statue that was his oldest companion. "To say to me' I mean" he clarified, insinuating that he would be dead, and unable to hear in the near future.

Corey stared back at him, not moving more than a statue. Even the rotation of the ship seemed to have less effect on him. Thomas shoved the controls away, and folded his arms. He looked at Corey with disgust, and turned to watch the ground, as it raced to meet them.

The instruments flickered into operation, as the ship was barreling toward a mountain face. Thomas grabbed the controls, and pulled them up. The ship responded, maneuvering against its momentum, and subjecting them to multiplied units of standard gravitational effect. The ship overcame the gravity as Thomas was beginning to black out.

They slammed into the tip of a secondary mountain peak, and the controls were out again. They made contact with the tree tops, decapitating hundreds of them, before they reached the clearing. The ride wasn't over as they crested a hill, and returned to the air, only to plummet back to the ground with a crash.

All the on-board safety features were deployed, and everything felt muffled from within the foam filled capsule. Finally the ship ground to a sudden stop. The capsules opened, and the foam began to disintegrate. After a moment it was mostly gone, and Thomas stared up at a clear blue sky.

Corey leaned over him, and watched for a moment to be sure that he was alive. He quickly disappeared out of view.

"Our navigation equipment will not work on this planet." Corey said from the ground, his back to the ship, ready to leave it behind without hesitation.

"It's against royal decree to interfere with an under developed civilization, so no..." Thomas answered with a sour sarcastic tone, "...nothing that relies on data transmission will work here."

Corey opened a panel on the ship, and started feeling around inside it. He retracted his empty hand, and moved to another panel.

"What are you doing?" Thomas asked as he sat up from his capsule to see the extent of the damage.

"This is likely the only ship that will exist on this planet for ten of your lifespans Thomas... It is the only way back for you" Corey said staring up at the sky. The sky was blue, and the air cool, but from the look of the forest covered mountains surrounding them, Thomas suspected they were in a cold climate zone.

"I don't think it is going to stay this clear for long." He told Corey as he climbed down to the ground. The ship had skidded to a halt, and finally reached the edge of the plain. The forest was broken up by outcrops of shale, as it stretched up the rocky incline, into the foothills.

The draws were littered at uneven intervals by log jams. The arrangement of the features helped solidify his concerns about the weather. The landscape wore the scars of erosion caused by heavy or constant rainy weather. Thomas was thankful they had crashed on a particularly mild day.

"We have been intentionally marooned here young Mr. Grey" Corey informed him with a slight hint of amusement. He held a small device in his hand. His arm outstretched to display the culprit.

"Any clue as to who might have wanted us dead, or would have even had access to our ship?" He asked Corey, immediately regretting it. The blank look that Corey gave him revealed nothing, but he knew the last person who had access to their ship. He had commissioned the work himself in secret, and with enough advanced notice to the mechanic for anyone to have paid him off.

The only thing he could not figure out was why anyone would have wanted him dead. As far as anyone knew he was just a delivery boy from a small communications company. Even the mechanic who had done the modifications had been told the ship was for delivering communicators to vendors who sold them.

"This device can lead us to its origin, if we can get this ship off the ground." Corey said closely inspecting the horizon. "With this no longer sabotaging the ship, it would fly in this condition." He added.

"What do you mean would?" Thomas asked, as he shook the feeling he was being watched from inside the forest.

"If only this was whole" He answered with a laugh. He held up a piece of bent metal for Thomas to inspect that looked like it could have been anything. He sometimes wished Corey would stay detached from reality. When he was cold, and disinterested it was less chilling, than when he laughed at things that threatened their future.

Thomas sometimes forgot the man was an immortal, and a walking killer with unnatural abilities. Expecting standard emotions went out the window when dealing with a monster.

"Let us hope that the inhabitants of this rock have developed primitive metal manipulation, and don't simply eat whatever looks unusual to them." Corey stated again cold and detached.

"If we can access a manufacturing facility without making contact with the locals we may have a chance." Thomas responded more for his own amusement than anything else.

"We need to reach a high point in the landscape to establish a direction of travel" Corey said detaching the travel bags from the ship.

"What will we look for?" Thomas asked.

"Water is usually fundamental to any settlement. It can be found in almost any place, but a significant population requires large quantities." Corey informed him. "Most primitive civilizations rely heavily on fire, some even worship it." He added.

Thomas considered the points, and agreed. "Wait.... what do you know about primitive civilizations?" he asked.

Corey was caught off guard by the question, and for a minute he seemed to remember something fondly. He looked almost as alive as he had when Thomas was a child. Any time he had a recognizable emotion, it just added to the contrast of his typical statuesque demeanor.

Every time Corey died protecting Thomas or another member of the Order, he seemed to come back less man, and more monsters. Thomas asked him where he went after his death, and the only answer he ever got was a cold stare.

The travel bags they strapped to their backs had enough nutrient packs, and hydration-nutrient combination packs to last them a long time. They both customized the empty side of their own bag to fit their own requirements. Corey carried an unusual amount of climbing, and survival gear. Thomas had always questioned his choice in travel amenities.

He supposed all the things would come in handy covering ground in the terrain they were surrounded by. Thomas's bag was packed with recording equipment, and hygiene kits. He was prepared to document his findings about the developing civilization. He attached a docking station to the shoulder of his s-suit, and deployed the small drone that would document his waking moments from that point forward.

The bags were fitted to their bodies and designed for easy handling. Corey checked the condition of his blade, and that reminded Thomas of his rifle. The rifle had been a gift from his father on the day he finished his standard education. It was a high powered close range assault weapon. The optic could be zoomed far beyond the capabilities of the rifle itself.

He slung the rifle so that it hung across his chest, and they began their ascent.

Natalie

The Queen was still breathing heavily. The young man exited the royal chamber from a balcony. The taxi was a drone. The hardest part of no longer allowing the Croans to jump around the galaxy killing everyone, was sacrificing their own significant ranged jump capability.

The kingdoms top engineers had only managed to transport a small inanimate structure a short distance before it failed to arrive on the other end. The kingdom was suffering from teleportation withdrawals syndrome. Everywhere that was once easily accessible, had become a distant journey, and places which could only be reached by long term space flight were cutoff from the kingdom.

The young man stepped off the balcony, and the inclement weather field that protected him from the heavy summer rain became slightly visible. It deflected the rain around him in a perfect sphere, and deactivated as he entered the taxi.

Natalie moved back into the palace to observe her most recent obsession. The Queen had only been a princess when Natalie found her. She found the life of the young royal enthralling. She had become mesmerized by the events at the palace, and knew more about the state of the kingdom than anyone.

After her accident Natalie quickly became aware that she had become disembodied, and she spent a short period following her former commander. The small group of warriors, and friends had become too familiar, and she decided to get a larger scope of the inner workings of reality.

She realized the universe had become easily accessible, and she could move through it with ease, unaffected by speed, or any physical boundary. After traveling through stars, and to the edge of a neighboring galaxy, she decided to discover the secrets of all the people and places that she had always been curious about.

As they waited for the Advisor to set up a communication link with the Commander of the Order, she tried to focus her will on some papers. The struggle to be part of the world was going nowhere, but she always tried during lulls in the action. The only time she ever felt a twinge of disappointment, or any familiar emotion, had come and gone in an instant.

One morning the Queen turned toward her, and looked frightened. For one moment she felt connected to someone, almost like she was anchored after being tossed around by the universe. She remained still, as the Queens expression changed to a smile. Clearly she had been lost thought.

The disappointment was immense, but then the Queen looked at her again. Her eyes searched the air for something, and she called out, "Is... Someone there?" She said.

Natalie tried to scream and reach out to the Queen but she was completely detached from the physical world. She saw without eyes, and heard without ears, but had not been able to generate a disturbance in reality. After the almost being actualized moment, she had adopted a habit of trying to make contact with the Queen.

She moved out of the room, and came to rest before the great mirror in the welcoming hall. Any reason the mirror would help was beyond her grasp, but she had been in front of one the first time someone had almost noticed her. She searched the identical room in the glass for anything as she passed before it.

She could imagine all the parties, and important figures that must have been witnessed by the mirror. The palace was a magnificent structure, with many secrets. She knew them all better than anyone after roaming through the walls at night. One of the advantages she enjoyed most about not having a physical form did not need to sustain it. She hadn't slept in so long, she couldn't remember the feeling.

Her separation from the physical world was also causing her to become detached. She first noticed that she didn't experience time as a person would while watching the Queen sleep. The night had passed entirely before she even looked away. In the weeks following the event that separated her from her physical body, she would pause to watch something, and unknown amounts of time would pass. She had to return to the palace to find out by eavesdropping, where the Queen had gone. Sometimes the Queen would have traveled all the way to a neighboring region while Natalie observed a flower blooming.

Her fear was that she would lose all connection to the world she had become separated from, and then all of eternity would pass before she took notice of it. It happened as she stared at the mirror again. The entire meeting had taken place, and the Queen was once again in her chamber.

Natalie watched as she undressed for bed. She was so envious of the princess when she first saw her. Now she watched the young Greatian undress. She was unsure if it was because she had no body, or she had never been as fit. She knew some of it was cosmetic engineering. The royals wanted a feminine princess, and not a woman built like a warrior the way the former queen had been.

The Queen worked some scheduling items around on her communicator to allow her enough rest, and she closed her eyes. The display automatically timed out, and the room was dark. Natalie drifted in close to her only friend, and listened to the rhythm of her heart.

When she woke up she would go to the mirror to see herself, and Natalie would try again to reach out to her.

1

The situation was becoming increasingly complex. The Croans were fighting desperately, but losing. Xarie was growing tired of communications delay, and being fed tailored information. She summoned her royal traveling party, and scheduled a meeting with the head engineer. She was hoping the engineer would have good news. The Anti-jump signal was proving to be a crippling handicap.

She geared up in her travel gear. The top of the line protective gear purchased for the royal family had all the newest weapons, and gadgets. Her father mandated that she be educated in martial arts, and survival techniques. After three attempts to kidnap her, she started to take the training serious. As she waited for her travel companion, and pilot, she practiced with the energy staff that she favored.

Her travel companion was named Marcus Vrands, she had been required to train with him as a child in case she needed a personal guard to accompany her anywhere. He was a master at combat, and served with the Greatian Army while awaiting orders from the royal family.

Xarie hadn't seen him in years, and had developed feelings for him as a young woman. She wondered if he would look the same, or if she would look the same to him. Her destination was the Order of Lights headquarters. She was going to manage the situation personally, and find out if any of her allies survived the attack.

She stopped her practice with the staff, and breathed deeply to satiate her need for air. She would work on her fitness on the journey. The trip would take many times what it used to. The Engineers were close to finding a way to jump again, and she was anxious to get her kingdom back to full speed.

The intercom buzzed, signifying that she had a visitor. The door monitoring system projected the face of the Engineer, and another, taller gentleman. The Royal Guard assigned to entry control answered the door, and evaluated the identifications presented.

Xarie sat, and tried to put her plans in order. Her thoughts drifted the way they had been doing all day. She knew something was watching her. At first she brushed the feeling away, but in recent years, she was becoming more, and more aware of a presence that was almost always around. She considered bringing in an occult specialist or an energy analyst to evaluate the frequencies in the room.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the guard opening the door to the conference room she was in, but she could still feel the presence. It was in the room, somewhere to her right.

"Your travel companion is here highness..." The guard announced, "...as well as the Engineer."

"Thank you, and send them both in." She answered.

The door opened, and the two men came in. The engineer was Mr. Jan. He was a small old Ifrian, and had ties to every secret organization in the kingdom. The King had him arrested, but found his services too valuable to have him locked away.

Marcus stood a head taller than the Engineer, and slightly taller than Xarie. He had grown into a handsome man in the years she had not seen him. Her stomach fluttered as he caught her eye contact, and smiled. She nodded politely, and returned her attention to her task.

"Mr. Jan" She said smiling, and welcoming the old man to a seat. "Won't you please update me with your latest progress?"

"Certainly!" The old man exclaimed, pointing a finger to the sky in a gesture of commencement." We've done it!!" He shouted.

Xarie always liked Mr. Jan, and his exciting way of expressing ideas. She couldn't help but laugh just a little. "What do you mean?" She asked, "You jumped something?"

"No highness", he answered, "we have jumped someone!"

Xarie stepped back; the smile on her face was replaced with intensity.

"Why haven't I been informed of this yet?" She asked angrily. The urge to inflict physical pain on the old man had to be restrained.

"It happened this morning highness" He responded.

"Where?" She asked leaning toward the old man to emphasize her sincerity.

"Here in the royal city" He stated leaning slightly away from her glare. "There was a small..."

"To where?" She asked anxious to gauge the reach of the newest technology. Mr. Jan flipped down the spectacles, that he used to access his communicator, and many other devices he used regularly.

"We don't know" He said shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "We are hopeful that he will show up soon" He added changing his tone to an excited level. "It's a very different type of travel highness..."

"I don't care about the formula, and hardware, and what have you Mr. Jan..." She snapped interrupting him again." Please go make it work, so we can start shipping them to the furthest colonies. Some of them are in need of assistance that can't be sent at current travel capacity."

"Yes Highness" He said gathering his things, and scrambling from the room. Xarie sat, and placed her hand over a sensor on the table. A small vial of liquid protruded through a seamless opening in the wood surface. She cracked the seal, and inhaled the gas content deeply. The drug took effect immediately, releasing synthetic endorphins deep beyond the blood brain barrier.

She opened her eyes, and exhaled the breath she was holding. The stress of ruling a kingdom was going to make an old woman out of her prematurely. It always ruined the women who were burdened with it, even after genetic manipulation, and state of the art medical care, a Greatian royal had a considerably shorter life expectancy.

She tossed her vial at the wall, disgusted that she continued to show her weakness through relying on a chemical crutch, even after ruling for many seasons. Her mood was somewhat lightened, and she managed a smile. Marcus stood ready to receive instruction. She gestured to the seat across from her, where the Engineer sat a moment before.

"Relax Mark we are going to be traveling together, and I'm not going to dictate your every waking decision. Mostly because I'm too busy making my own." She instructed, as he slid the chair back from the table, and sat.

"It's good to see you Xarie" He said with a smile, still looking unnerved. "They took my bags to your ship, so I assume we are traveling"

"We are, and it's going to be a pretty long and dangerous trip." She answered shifting in her seat, and bringing up the flight plan her travel manager created. "I'll be changing a lot of the route, but this is the basic idea." The motion of her hand signaled the communicator to clone the display, and show it above the table. She selected the area between them, and the Itinerary was broadcast for him to see.

"Hopefully before we reach our destination, that old man will finish his work, and a runner can bring the first operational jump ring to us." He said, as he read the data. "What's the parameter of this campaign?" He asked, adding, "I've seen the list of weaponry, and personnel."

"It's simple Marcus..." She said grinning, and leaning forward across the table "...If we can wipe them out, we can return prosperity, and peace to our great kingdom."

"So... we personally are going to wipe out the Croans, and bring a great era of peace?" he asked with a hint of sarcasm, and disbelief.

"I know of an order of extraordinary warriors, and they may have the key to ending this thing for good... if any of them are still alive"

"Well, let's get moving then Highness" He said, standing with a smile, and a deep bow."

"There is a boy named Thomas Grey" She said.

2

The predictions Thomas made about the climate proved accurate. The mild hiking weather they enjoyed in the beginning seemed a distant memory as they trudged through the rocky climb. The rain was light like a fine mist, but it fell heavy where it gathered on the limbs of alpines, and firs. The wet air dropped several degrees in temperature, and the sun was beginning to set.

Thomas looked at his communicator for the hundredth time, once again being reminded that his location services were useless on the reserve. "Can we start building a camp?" He asked his weary looking partner.

"No" Corey responded. "We will have a better chance of surviving if we find a civilization."

"Well, I hope it hasn't vanished before dawn." Thomas replied

Corey stopped, and turned toward Thomas with a slight wince he said "If we don't find shelter and men with weapons before long.... it will likely be us that vanishes."

The thought of an immortal being concerned with anything caused a shiver down Thomas's spine. It was just one of many with all the cold droplets hitting his exposed skin. He thought for a second, and then cursed himself for being so stupid. He hadn't thought of activating his visor.

He touched the small sensor on his collar, and the barrier snapped in front of his face. It adjusted to the light, and his visual readouts began showing up. Many things he'd been walking past, and probably missed were highlighted by the computer in his advanced recon visor. Small game trails, possible food/water sources, and threats were all highlighted.

As he looked around, activating the areas of interest, Corey turned, and continued his ascent. "Now do you see the reason we have to keep moving?" Corey asked.

Thomas looked around, and filtered his display content down to possible threats, and environmental disturbances. The path they were following had minor signs of having been traveled in the past, but was heavily flanked by tracks. The tracks were heavy enough in the kind of weather they were experiencing that they had to have been created recently.

He knelt beside a set of highlighted tracks, and his visor scanned the imprint. The species was added to the computers database as a number, because it was unknown. The data that it collected, and added from analyzing the track was frightening.

From the layout of the appendages, and the weight distribution, the computer deduced the creatures to be possibly canine, and roughly Thomas's weight. The stride was laid out more in the manner of a mountain dwelling cat, than that of a forest dwelling wolf.

Thomas stood, and expanded his search area. The tracks were heavy in a few directions, but faint on their path. He thought about it, and decided it must be coincidence. He couldn't make himself believe Corey had noticed the tracks, determined them to be hostile, and chose a path that avoided heavily traveled areas.

Corey spoke at that moment startling Thomas a little. "They are predators, and we are just inside their prey range. If we were twice our size, I think, we may not have to worry." He said never turning to look at Thomas. He snapped his own visor on at that point, and pointed toward a rocky draw.

"The way forward will be treacherous, but I feel that there will be significantly less foot traffic this way, and we need to reach that point before full darkness sets in." He said his voice now a digital reproduction in Thomas's helmet.

Thomas looked up the incline, and he could see the line where the sun was still touching the trees. He leaned forward, and began a slow climb. In a short time, he reached an opening where they could easily see across the plains, and some of the lower peaks. He sat, and looked out over the landscape.

The visor adjusted, and began to read the topography. A road was highlighted winding down the side of a lower peak. He looked into the distance, and the mountains that denoted an end of the plain that was actually a large valley, were barely visible. A river ran the length of the plains. Thomas thought about how the river would probably be dammed in the future flooding the valley to harvest the potential of the water source.

He sighed, because there seemed to be no sign of civilization in the direction he was searching. Corey was almost out of sight, and gaining speed. Thomas turned, and began a fast scramble to catch up. The short stop had greatly reduced his mental fatigue, but his body was ready to sit much longer.

As they topped the peak, the sun was completely set, and the night sky was fully ablaze with the galaxy. Thomas stumbled on a loose rock, and grabbed for a small tree. The small branch was frozen from the cold wind whipping through the peaks. It snapped without even offering false security, and he began his descent.

The tumble was short, and Thomas let out a breath he instinctively held. He laughed a little at his own pain, and sat up. Corey was a few paces away, staring intensely at something. Thomas returned to the ground, and looked in the direction Corey was staring.

The world that was inverted to him was almost a mirror image. Stars in the sky, and lights on the ground. He rolled over, and the scene was righted. The lights were candles, torches, and fires. Smoke rose from many chimneys, pits, and stoves.

The village was carved into the mountains, and stretched down to a great fortress. A river cut its way through the mountain cascading down, and the Fortress was built around it. The water entered from the side Thomas and Corey were observing. Where it exited they could not see. Corey stepped off the rock he was perched on.

"The descent will likely be more painful than the climb" He stated, before heading toward the lights. They came upon the first signs of life in the form of a short stone wall, and some quadruped livestock. The first two heavily constructed wood and stone cabins were sealed tight.

Corey held up his arm, blocking the path, and alerting Thomas to a line in the dirt. It was a hand deep. And about half that wide. Someone carved it around the entire perimeter. Corey reached across the line, and withdrew his hand. He looked over to Thomas, and shrugged in an expression of bewilderment.

Thomas stepped across the line, and turned around. He shrugged, mimicking Corey's expression, and offered, "Irrigation?" as an explanation. They were just out of the wood line, and Thomas was feeling exposed. He gestured for Corey to follow him, and Corey gestured for him to lead. They moved along the perimeter of the settlement, and continued downhill.

"We need to find shelter for the night, and somewhere we can observe the inhabitants here in the day." Corey suggested. Thomas agreed, but the thought brought his attention to just how secure all the structures were. Every opening was barricaded, and no one seemed to be moving along the path between homes.

They came to another grouping of buildings, and Thomas noticed one of them seemed to have an open second level. He pointed to it, and Corey nodded. They started to move toward the open building when a high pitched scream echoed through the hills, and off the cabins. Corey turned to look toward the source of the scream.

He held still for a moment when another scream erupted faintly in the distance. The second scream was accompanied by a chilling guttural growl. Thomas and Corey both set out for the open structure in a hurry. They were just below a running pace, and both had drawn weapons.

The structure appeared to be a stable, or feeding station for animals. All the stalls that lined the solitary hall were solid boxes, with heavy locking mechanisms. Corey looked at the locks, and then to Thomas. It took Thomas a moment to realize what his partner was looking at. He realized the lock was crafted with metal, and that required a skilled craftsman, that could make a linkage for their ship.

The momentary victory was interrupted with more screams. There were many the third time, and in more than two directions. The snarling and growls were also present. Corey pointed to a ladder at the end of the hall. Thomas jogged down, and looked up. There was a small opening to the second floor. He waved Corey to follow, and slung his weapon. Corey sheathed the Blade, and followed him up the ladder.

On the second level, the screams were more audible, as if the open ended structure was catching the sound, and funneling it to them. They huddled against the wall listening to the multitude of painful cries. After the chorus of suffering reached an apex, and finally died to only sporadic outbursts, Thomas removed his travel bag, and searched for his sleep module.

The sleep module was made of super light materials, and weighed almost nothing. It was just big enough for him to crawl inside, and had a small pocket to store things in while it was in use. The fibers woven into the fabric responded to energy current when he pushed the censor on the case. Slowly the case opened, and transformed into a small dwelling.

Thomas sat it in a corner beside a stack of dried plants. The tiny claws on the bottom of each contact point contracted, anchoring the module to the floor. "I'm going to get some sleep." He said, looking at Corey who was watching intently through the opening for danger. "We can search for an observation point, and a place to camp, tomorrow."

The day was catching up with him, and he knew Corey felt it too. The cruel joke about Corey's immortality was that he could die, and often had. The sword would bring him back, and he would be completely mortal again. Thomas watched Corey die fighting the Croans once, only to find him standing in the training room the next morning, practicing with his blade.

The sleep module was thermally neutral to an extreme point. If temperatures reached low enough to affect the inside of his sleep area, it wasn't likely anyone in the settlement would survive. He stretched out his sore legs, and strapped on a nutrient hydration combination pack. He stabbed a light narcotic painkiller into his thigh, and relaxed. He was so exhausted sleep reached him instantly.

As the night passed, Thomas dreamed of home and the seaside hills of his childhood. The boy's school taught him everything he could have needed to know to be successful, and he had genuinely enjoyed his time there. He dreamed of hiking through the forest there, and he was happy for a moment.

The sun that prompted him to shield his eyes was foreign, and brought all the unpleasantness of the present back to him. He lay still for a moment listening. Suddenly he was aware that he had overslept. The sun was high in the sky, and Corey had not woken him. He peered out through the opening in the small Module.

Corey was staring at him. His cold unmoving eyes were adorned with crystalline flakes. The moisture in his eyes had frozen in the night. That is when Thomas realized that Corey was dead. He must have died of natural causes in the night. From the layer of frost on everything, and the cold wind whipping through the opening, he guessed Corey had simply frozen to death.

The body began to shimmer, and faded away the way any mortal man would wish his body would after death. The pile of clothing left behind when Corey transmigrated, dampened the sound of the gear that dropped through the previously occupied space. The energy that floated into the air, shimmered, and sparkled. Then everything was quiet as if nothing had ever happened.

Thomas grabbed up the pile of belongings, and stuffed them into Corey's travel bag. He glanced around looking for a place to hide the extra gear. It wouldn't be long before Corey was reanimated, and he was almost certain the man was always returned close to where he entered rest.

He stuffed the bag behind a crate that appeared to have been sitting, unmolested for an age. He hoped this wouldn't be the last straw for Corey. Every time he was resurrected, he seemed to return less alive, and more deadly.

The rooftop visible through the opening in the loft was steaming. Either the sun was warming the frost, or a heat source inside the building was. He snapped down his visor, and looked again. The thermal was set to black hot, and started out blurred. After an auto calibration, his vision quickly cleared.

There was definitely a source of heat inside the building. A flu pipe was highlighted on the opposite side of the roof from where Thomas was looking. It must have been closed to keep cold air from entering during the night, because it opened, releasing smoke into the air. The smoke started out heavy, and then became light, and steady. As the smoke filled the air, the smell of food whipped around the area, adding a pleasing aroma to the morning.

Thomas grabbed his bag, and quickly stored his sleep module. He listened closely before moving down the latter. The lower level sounded clear. Thomas retrieved a scanner drone from his tool belt, and dropped it down into the first level. He linked his visor feed with it, and began maneuvering it around the stable.

The stalls were still locked, but a small door on each larger door had been unlocked, and left open. Just below each door hung a basket. Some of the creatures were indulging in the sustenance provided, and seemed unimpressed by the little drone humming by.

He spun the drone in a circle, and then aimed it at the entrance. He began his climb down the latter with the drone watching the entry point. He was nearly to the bottom, when something moved across the entrance. He hadn't caught a good glimpse, but whatever it had been appeared to have moved low to the ground, and quickly.

Stepping onto the Ground, and kneeling to better conceal his presence, he piloted the little drone toward the entrance. He kept it high, to avoid emerging at eye level with anything. As he maneuvered the drone around the corner, he was caught off guard by what he saw. Evolution, always varied by some degree, but he hadn't expected to see a quadruped woman.

She was tending to a handful of creatures like the ones he and Corey had encountered upon entering the village. Her features were distinctly feminine, but the exposed surface of her skin was piteous. The joints of her hind legs were arraigned like many four legged creatures, with an extra bend to help with mobility.

Thomas noticed her face was nearly hairless, except an abundantly pronounced set of brows. She appeared harmless enough, but he had no idea how the people communicated, and had no intention of causing any alarm. He withdrew the drone, and headed out the back entrance of the stable.

He headed into the closest patch of vegetation, and up onto a ridge. The ridge would have to serve as an observation point for him, until Corey was resurrected, again. The drone would need to charge in direct sunlight, so he would have to send it above the clouds to get a good stream of light.

On his way up to the low hanging cloud coverage, he snapped a heat map, and topographical scan of the settlement. The drone entered the clouds, and eventually penetrated the second layer. The wind was causing it to drift around, but the solar flashing was shaped into a wing that allowed the drone to drift on the wind, and save power.

He placed it in charge mode, and auto-pilot, and began to study the layout of the settlement. They were barely into the village that was connected by several winding, and rocky paths. He searched for a more suitable place to observe from. A rock jutted out over a ledge, creating a natural shelter from the elements. It also overlooked the village.

He only found one problem with the ledge, but he would have to seek guidance from his possibly still dead partner, before continuing his surveillance. He checked his surroundings again. The locals seemed to be waking up. He could hear strange shouting in the distance like a group of men were singing in cadence with a chorus of banging.

The image in his mind was a line of laborers mining for some precious stone. Despite being stranded, he felt more excited about studying the inhabitants, and there customs, than he thought he ought to. Switching the display to take a larger portion of his visor, he changed to the heat map.

The majority of signatures seemed to be cooking fires inside residential buildings. Nothing appeared industrious, until he scanned over the central section of the village. It appeared to be a market, and there were two large heat signatures. One of them could be a metal worker, he thought, or they could both be bakeries, and the closest metal worker could be in the next village. He would have to scout better with the drone to find out for sure.

A mist was starting to fall over the mountains, and Thomas felt it probably did more often than not. The drone fully charged above the second layer of clouds dropped out of the sky, surrendering to gravity. It reached the lowest clouds, and began its course correction. The drone pulled out of its fall, and navigated to Thomas's location.

He reached out to grab it, only to be unable to stand. A foot was planted firmly in his back. He turned the drone to see what his attacker looked like. It was his resurrected partner, in the nude, and soaking wet. Thomas wasn't unnerved by the man's nakedness, but the fact that Corey was smiling was putting him on edge.

He had hardly ever seen the man smile, and definitely hadn't expected another death to enlighten his mood. Corey retrieved the drone from the air, and stepped off Thomas's back. "Where is my gear?" He asked, clad in only the ever present blade, and sheath.

3

They finally cleared the travel lanes that dictated where a ship could maneuver, and the journey was under way. Marcus had taken up residence in the quarters across from Xarie. She never knew a time before jumping when the signal had been broadcast. She desperately needed her engineers to fix the Jump technology. She had given Mr. Jan instructions to call her immediately if any changes occurred in his research.

It was going to take ages for them to reach the front lines, where the Croans were fighting her troops, and attacking the order with cowardly maneuvers. She hoped the battle was over before they reached their destination.

The ship was outfitted with the latest in training, and athletic entertainment technology, after the anti-jump signal was established. The casualties from innocent jumpers not being aware of the situation were high, but the order had spread the word through their network to every transportation authority.

Xarie liked to dream of the day when jumping was reintegrated into society. She planned to travel the galaxy and Base jump from every peak in her kingdom. She had developed an addiction to free-falling from natural objects during her royal education. A requirement for graduation from her secondary education, she had to jump from a disabled ship while it was falling from the sky.

She'd gotten sick twice on the flight, and couldn't believe the pure adrenaline she experienced upon exiting the craft. On her descent, she suddenly felt at peace, and had taken up base jumping, and any other sport that involved flying through the sky. Her advisers thought it was dangerous, and made her seem too aggressive in the eyes of her people. She wanted her people to see her as she was, and feel however they wanted about it.

She was feeling cramped already in the small cabin she would be calling home, and decided to get some exercise. She agreed to make two stops along the way to their destination, to resupply, and make an appearance at worlds that hadn't been visited by a member of the royal family in ages. She had plenty of time to spend between their location, and the first stop.

She entered the recreation room, and searched through the programs available in the simulation area. She decided it would be best to do a functional workout instead of mindless movements. As she waited for her simulation to begin, she studied her posture, and practiced her striking in the mirror. She caught a glimpse of the spirit that was always with her shimmering for just an instant, and froze.

She spun, searching the area for a sign that she wasn't alone. The room was empty except for a young female guard, studying her own motions in another mirror. The guard noticed Xarie, and quickly snapped out of her concentrations.

"Is there anything I can do for you highness?" She asked, looking overly nervous.

Xarie noticed the look on her own face in the mirror, and quickly put on a smile to relax the guard. "No no... nothing, "She answered "...Please carry on." The guard nodded, and smiled, but didn't seem any more relaxed. Xarie nodded politely, and turned back to her simulation, which had paused after she failed to perform any recognizable motions.

She restarted the simulation, and made a mental note to absolutely get a spiritual specialist, and energy reading expert to find out what was always following her. Her training program began. Digitally rendered Croan warriors began appearing, as the room was transformed into the outer hull of a burning ship.

She fought the monsters the best she could, using all the techniques she could recall from her close-quarters-combat classes. She was finally overrun, and decided she had expended enough energy for a while. Sweat was absorbed instantly by the smart floor, but it was heavy on her skin. She knew one Croan in real life could take the entire beating she had put on the groups of digital monsters, but enjoyed her score anyway.

After fighting head first, and being pushed back, the Croans adopted new measures of defense, and combat. They were twice as formidable as the beasts that attacked Ifria. Xarie wiped her face with a super absorbent towel, and strapped on a new Hydra pack to combat dehydration. She was breathing heavy, and began to drift in thought about her friends in the Order.

Commander Wren said they had information about the Croans. She couldn't wait to find out what it was exactly. She was informed that her soldiers had just recently pushed the Croans off the planet where the Order had their Headquarters, and had begun a search for survivors. Her train of thought was interrupted by the goofy smile of her traveling companion.

Marcus was hanging from a set of pegs designed for body-weight exercises. He was sweating heavily also, causing Xarie to believe he had been in the room for some time. She suddenly felt the urge to hurt him, and grabbed a small disc-shaped weight from a shelf. She hurled it at his exposed core with precise aim.

Marcus turned his lower half as the disc approached, and used the momentum to turn completely around as it passed. His hands swapped holds and he was facing away from Xarie. He knew she wouldn't be done, so he pulled his legs up, and inverted as the disc weight thudded off the door to the recreation room. The room appeared upside down to him, but he could see what she was doing now.

She grabbed a lighter weight, and threw it harder, and toward his face. He released his hold on the pegs, and pushed off the wall where they were mounted with his feet. Launching him into the room, bringing his legs over his head. The disc passed beneath him, and he reached out, and touched it as it passed. He landed with his back to her, and turned to attack.

Xarie was already making a sweeping kick at his legs when he turned, and she caught him. With his feet swept to the side, the tall warrior slammed the ground. She laid her weight across him, to disrupt his breathing, and make an attempt for a dominant fighting position, but she weighed about half what he did, and he pushed her off easily.

She kicked him back, and they both stood in defensive fighting stances. They both noticed the young guard standing at the entrance to the room, and dropped their hands. Xarie recognized the guard from earlier when she had been unnerved by her.

Xarie wiped her face, and shook a finger at Marcus. "She saved you this time" She said with a threatening, yet playful smile on her face.

"Yes Highness" He said with an emphasis on the word that made it sound like a taunt.

The guard moved out of the way for Marcus, and he exited the room. They exchanged a polite smile as he passed her. She turned her attention back to Xarie. "Mr. Jan Highness... "She said holding her arm out to allow Xarie to see her communicator."...he says it is urgent."

Xarie had her communicator set to inactive while she worked off stress in the recreation room. She tapped the image of the Engineer, and a projection appeared just shoving the guards arm. It was a live transmission.

"Hello Jan, my friend." She cheered to the hologram. "Please tell me something good has happened."

"Something good has happened!" The Engineer cheered triumphantly. "A runner has departed with the first functional jump prototype." He continued. "When you arrive at Venga sol to make an appearance, the ring will be there, and we will announce that the kingdom will be reconnected."

"That's fantastic Jan, please tell me drones have been sent to the outer colonies." She said so excited her stomach was turning.

"Just as you requested." He replied. "We have dispatched the fastest crafts ever deployed to bring rings to them. Soon there will be commerce between worlds that haven't had contact science you were a child." He added.

"I'll start drafting my address for the appearance, but we must make our stop brief." She said speaking more for herself, than to Mr. Jan. The guards arm began to lower slowly due to fatigue. Xarie grabbed it, and supported its weight. She couldn't help but smile as the Guard released a sigh.

"We will keep you posted, and work to make sure all goes smoothly for you." Mr. Jan.

"Very good," She said, and then added, "You're a hero to our kingdom now."

"Anything for my Queen" He said smiling. He reached up, and the hologram disappeared. Xarie was so excited; she reached out, and hugged the stunned Guard. Finally her palace would be just a short walk from anywhere. She could leave her bedroom, and be free falling from the Venga sol plateau.

The applications were endless, and they were pouring into her mind. The Croans would surely fall to her forces, and she could begin a peaceful reign. She felt so happy a solitary tear fell onto her cheek, as she looked out through a viewing sphere at the frontier

4

Natalie hovered above the excitement in the lab. As soon as she heard the Jump technology was fixed, she moved back to observe it in action. She had a feeling that if there was a way back to the physical world, it was through the mechanism that caused her to be separated from it. The messages were going out to all the outposts, and headquarters. Soon the kingdom would be whole again.

She hoped that if there was a way back, she would be able to adjust, or at least not cease to exist without her physical body. She watched the first instructional video being made about how the new technology worked, and how to not use it. Apparently there is a certain calibration that has to be set for every distance jumped.

As a cautionary tale, the memorial image of the technician who never returned was displayed near the end of the video. Everyone pretended to be solemn at that point, but too much happiness was to be had over their accomplishments for any genuine grief to be experienced. She moved over to the central point of the lab.

The celebration was happening around the first functioning ring. They had successfully made a jump to a nearby research facility. Shortly after the first successful jump by a life form, a young woman volunteered to be jumped off world. When the jump was successful, numbers had been crunched, and theoretically there was no limit on the distance that could be traveled.

Mr. Jan dispatched a runner to many distant colonies before contacting Xarie. By the time Natalie had overheard the call between the Queen and Mr. Jan hundreds of jump rings had been sent out. She waited beside the ring for a jump to be made. Mr. Jan was explaining to a group of royal emissaries through a holographic video call, how to set up the rings.

From what Natalie gathered from the presentation, the new technology could be held open, creating a type of doorway between great distances. He theorized that between the two points being connected there was a type of fourth space, and that is where the young man he called Ray, had been lost.

He elaborated, explaining it as a doorway that if configured wrong became a hallway. In the theoretical hallway matter could not exist, and is most likely destroyed. He said that when the hallway is shortened to a doorway, matter can pass through safely. Everyone on the tiled display nodded, or agreed.

Natalie doubted they had any more clue than she did about how the gateways worked, but they all wanted the old man to get along with his presentation. The quicker he finished, the sooner they would know how to setup, and use the new technology.

She wondered if she was lost somewhere in the hallway where matter could not exist. When they activated the ring, she could feel an energy emanating from it. She had almost forgotten what feeling something was like. She reached through the ring, and felt a connection to the energy. There was a small gap between the two places that were connected.

She reached with her invisible hand, and touched the fourth space. She felt connected suddenly with many points of concentrated energy across great distances. She had traveled to the nearest galaxy to her own, and still had no reference large enough to put a scale to the vastness she felt when she touched the energy in the ring.

She searched through the endless void of energy, and suddenly she felt as if she was being watched. She hadn't felt like she had been seen in what felt like eternity, and she felt that she was being watched. Suddenly a fear grew within her. The feeling of being watched suddenly turned dark. She could feel something wanting for her, like she was food.

She pulled her hand back from the ring. It wasn't a way back, and whatever was in there was evil. She could still feel it watching her through whatever barrier separated them. It moved all around her searching for a way in. It moved to the ring, and tested the entrance.

She felt it recoil from the ring as if in pain. A surge of energy rippled through the lighting in the lab. Engineers scattered to their respective station checking gauges, and running diagnostics. Natalie was frozen. She was convinced that there was a way back until then. She had a small spark of hope that the jump technology could help her, and it had just been extinguished.

She finally accepted her fate as an external being separated from the physical. At that moment something protruded through the open jump ring, as if from nowhere. It was a young man wearing burnt garments. Most of his hair, and clothing was smoking. He coughed, and fell to his knees. Mr. Jan ran over to him, and scanned his retinas.

Everyone was suddenly silent, as the old man called to the smoking man. He was calling him Ray, and the screen that was synced to Mr. Jan's communicator was showing a picture of the young man who was lost in the first attempt to jump. Medical personnel were rushing in, and attaching wires, and tubes to him.

Everyone was in awe of what they were seeing, but Natalie was shocked by something none of them realized. He hadn't stopped staring at her since he'd appeared. As the medics strapped him to a board, and prepared to lift him, he reached up, and pointed. They grabbed his hand, and strapped it to the board.

Mr. Jan stopped them, and removed the apparatus they put over his mouth. He leaned in, and after a moment leaned away. He looked at the young man on the board with a sympathetic expression, and motioned for the medics to continue their work.

Natalie moved close to them, and listened. A middle aged woman in a lab uniform asked Mr. Jan what he had heard. He told her it was some nonsense about a girl reaching out, and saving him from the darkness. He said the man told him an angel watches us from above.

The lady told Mr. Jan it sounded like he was in shock. They both looked up to where the man had been pointing. Natalie felt a twinge of excitement over actual scientific minds searching for her presence. She couldn't be sure if he had been looking at her. She planned to revisit him when he was in a better medical condition.

The two standing beside her started to chuckle, and Natalie followed their eyes to the ceiling. A statue of the Queen hung in the center of the room to serve as an inspiration to the team who worked there. Natalie gathered they thought the man had been seeing his Queen as a deity, especially with the horrible ordeal he'd been through.

Natalie moved out of the room. She wanted to be away from the ring. She wasn't sure if the darkness that she felt through the ring had gone anywhere, or was concealing its presence from her. She hadn't felt mortal fear in so long she had forgotten how powerful the drive to exist could be.

She hovered above the man who was stripped naked. He made no expression of pain as the team of medical personnel washed, and inspected his body. The released the molecular medi-bots into the air. The gel that would help direct their effort to heal him was applied to his wound. She wondered how the Queen was celebrating her most recent victory.

His eyes opened suddenly, and she knew he could see her. She had come to find a way back into the physical world, and had found the next best thing. Someone who could see into hers. If he could see her she could communicate with him, and through him. The spark of hope for a return to life re-lit inside her metaphorical heart.

5

Thomas and Corey laid silent against the cliff wall for the sixteenth night in a row. The nightly massacre was becoming too familiar for them both. They still had no idea where the creatures came from at dusk every day. The village was locked down tight an hour before dark and the nightly offering pinned along the edges of the village.

The drone had done more than excellent collecting words spoken by the locals, and compiling a database of their assumed meaning. With a little more recognizance, Thomas was sure he could set up a rough translating program.

Corey had an auxiliary connection installed in his skull that somehow survived his constant death, and rebirth. It was always there completely functional. Thomas thought for a moment about the amount of times Corey had been killed, and wondered if the man had become careless with his life, or if he was just destined to die a lot.

He shook the thought off concluding that it was a miracle he had survived long enough to gain whatever power the blade had given him, especially considering his affinity for fighting. Thomas was older than Corey was when he had been killed the first time. They looked the same age roughly, but Corey was almost three times his age.

They remained quiet behind the field generated by Thomas's drone. He charged it every day so they would have enough energy to keep up a barrier between them, and the predators roaming the mountains at night. The barrier appeared from the outside as a solid rock wall, and would feel similar to the touch.

When the night was over, Thomas had a tough decision to make. He had two devices with him to combat starvation, and both were a little risky. The side effect of having life sustaining synthetics dripped into his blood stream was dependency. His natural digestive system hadn't been used for most of his life.

He pulled the two devices out, and looked at them. The sun was peaking over a distant hill painting his hands the color of warmth. He had one Nutria-pack to keep him going until he decided how to proceed.

He wasn't fond of needles, but the alternative was far more invasive. If he injected his lower digestive tract with the live bacteria, he would be debilitated for a day, and completely dependent upon oral sustenance. If he decided to perform the alternative procedure, he would have several days of food that came with the device but he would be risking a serious infection, and possibly irreversible damage.

He looked at the instructions again, and finally made a decision. The idea of implanting a port into his abdomen for only a few days of convenient bodily maintenance wasn't worth the risk. He removed the cover from the syringe. It was equipped with a guidance camera. Once he inserted it into his abdomen just below his navel, it would guide him to the correct application area.

He held the syringe out in front of him, and knelt on the ground. As he pushed it into his body, he cringed. He knew the small discomfort he was feeling was nothing compared to the cramps, and discomfort he was going to experience. It was a painful process to convert a body to its natural state after such a long time supplementing.

The new bacteria would almost certainly make him sick. Before he recovered from the initial system shock, he would have to eat. He was going to be consuming undesirable amounts of a wide variety of plants, and proteins to get a full spectrum diet. The fluid entered his body cold, and slowly it began to burn. He felt the burning sensation spread.

Corey helped him remove the syringe, and stand. They walked over to their living area. The overhang was a solid rock ceiling, and hung out enough for them to put all of their gear, and their bodies beneath it. It provided shelter for them from the wind, and rain. Thomas leaned against the rock, and eased himself onto the ground.

"Why don't you fly your little spy machine, while I'll go find us some supplies?" Corey asked him in a tone that was more instructive than asking.

Thomas just waved him away. He couldn't concentrate on what he was saying, but he knew he was right at the same time. The drone needed to charge after the long night generating a shield around the camp. He piloted it to the edge of the overhang that made the ceiling of their little dwelling, and set it down.

The sky was blue for the first time since the day they had arrived, and the wind was warm. The drone would not have to fly above the clouds to charge, and would be ready to fly to the village quicker. He planned to fly it down to the market place, and see if he could identify the standard currency, and trade customs of the people there.

He also meant to find a new place for them to camp that was closer to the village center, and other food sources. The Drone was charging in the sun, and Thomas was recovering from the initial effects of reactivating his digestive system. The effects he was most dreading where natural elements of eating. He would likely have to adjust to the food, and that would mean relieving himself twice as often.

He envied his immortal companion at that point for keeping his own digestive equipment functional. Many people maintained a working system, but Thomas, and many of his generation were converting completely too synthetic feeding. In most cases it was safer, and all the nutrients were identical to naturally sourced ones, but he still regretted that decision a little at that moment.

Corey had already begun eating, and stocking up on stolen food products. Most of the food in the village was made from the child milk of mother animals, and bread made with grains being farmed on the plain. Thomas considered stealing one of the animals set out every night for the offering. He wondered how the village managed to keep enough of them to repopulate.

If the village was getting to a point where there wouldn't be enough food to sacrifice any, he wondered if they would starve, or fight back. He was suddenly aware that a civilization being plagued by monsters would have never advanced as far as the people they were observing had, and if the monsters hadn't always been raiding the village. Where he wondered, had they come from?

A small twig snapped drawing him out of his thoughts, and brought his eyes to the girl staring at him. She was holding a bundle of vines, and had another bundle slung on her back. She reached for a knife hanging on her belt. Thomas held up his hand, and she paused. He instructed the drone to move to him, and attach to the collar of his suit.

He set it to translate, and hoped he had cataloged enough words. He could only hope the system had accurately interpreted the meaning of the words it recorded while monitoring the conversations of the locals.

"Hello" Thomas said, "Don't be afraid of me" The drone played its best rendition of his voice for the girl, and it also displayed the dialogue that it was using. "Greeting", and "be easy of me", was the best it could translate his words.

The girl removed the small knife, and pointed it at him. She stepped toward Thomas, and stopped. She started to speak rapidly, and gestured to his hands, which were covered in gloves. The drone displayed what it could translate, which was only a little helpful. She wanted him to stop hiding something.

He quickly took his gloves off, and showed his empty hands. She studied them leaning closer, but didn't relax upon finishing her inspection. She stepped back, and put her blade back in its sheath. She spoke again, and the drone again failed to translate her meaning. It seemed she was asking something about him.

"Are you Drasos?" was the text displayed for Thomas.

"No...Yes, I don't know" He said quickly. "What is Drasos?" He asked

She stared at him for a moment after the drone finished the translation. She began to look around, and then pointed to an area of the ground. He strained to look, and then sat back. He piloted the Drone over to the area, and scanned it. The girl leaned far away from the drone, but studied it curiously.

In the center of the patch of ground she pointed to was a footprint left by one of the predators that plagued the town every night. Thomas pulled up an image the drone had snapped of one of them during their first night in the shelter of the small overhang. He projected it for the girl, who immediately squealed, and drew her knife again.

She stabbed at the image, distorting it, and causing Thomas to laugh a little. He closed the image, and snapped a picture of the girl. "I'm not a Drasos" He said. He projected the girls own face into the air. She gasped, and touched her real face. He closed the projection, and looked at her. She was still holding her blade, but seemed much less aggressive than before.

He studied her expression, and she studied him for a moment. She looked young, and he thought she could have even been called pretty, if not for the matted hair, and thickness of her brows. She gestured to his arm, where the lenses for his projector were. He assumed she wanted to see herself again, and he brought the image back. She looked at it for a second, and then tapped him on the arm.

He wasn't sure what the tap meant, so he just sat there. She said something with a frustrated look on her face, and tapped him more urgently. He looked through his catalog of captured images since they had arrived at the village. He came across a woman, who seemed to be very social when he observed the interactions of the villagers.

He projected the woman's face, and was rewarded with a shower of crumbs as the girl laughed. She was eating something, and had been caught off guard by the image. She was giggling, uncontrollably, and covered her mouth.

Thomas wiped his face, and they both realized how close she had been to allow her food to reach his face. She was completely under the shelter of the overhang, and scooted back a little. She pointed to the woman, and said "Akuna".

Thomas saved the name in his database of words. He pulled the image of the girls own face back up, and she gestured to herself. "Uri" She said smiling. Thomas sat up a little, and brought an image of his own face up.

"Thomas" He said, and held out his fist in an absentminded casual greeting. She looked at it for a moment, and slapped his hand away with a laugh. She pointed to him, and said, "tho...mass", and then pointed to her, and said "Uri". She reached into a pouch, and retrieved two small objects. She popped one into her mouth, and tossed him the other. "Cheri" She said.

"Thank you" Thomas said, and the drone must have deciphered that phrase from some interaction it had observed, as it quickly translated it. She just smiled, and tapped his arm again for a new image. She loosened the strap on her bundle of vines, and sat. Thomas sighed, glad she hadn't tried to fight him, or run off for help. He started pulling up images of the village, and pointing to objects in the projections.

He was becoming excited about having someone to help him learn the language. Several hours passed, and they went through every image of the village he had. Suddenly Uri leapt to her feet, hitting her head lightly on the ceiling. She grabbed her bundles, and turned to leave. She stopped, and tossed a small pouch containing the snacks she had been sharing with him.

Thomas caught the pouch, and thanked her. She said goodbye, and turned away. Thomas rolled onto his knees, to try and stand after sitting for so long. He was feeling much better after eating the snacks, and resting for a while. He managed to stand, and stretched his legs. He caught a glimpse of Uri standing outside the overhang, not moving.

He walked over to stand outside, and stretch his back when he noticed Corey. The immortal blade master had a bag over his shoulder in one hand, and his drawn weapon in the other. He wasn't moving until he saw Thomas standing beside her. He lowered his blade, and dropped his visor. He stepped to the side, and sheathed his weapon. Uri nodded nervously, and rushed past him into the forest.

Corey turned, and smiled at Thomas. "Making friends?" He asked with a grin.

6

Venga Sol was a grand spectacle from the queen's personal balcony. She laid her hands on the railing to keep them from fidgeting. The sky ports had begun to jam with the inflow of her subjects, and the media was covered with announcements of her imminent address.

The ring was set up at the center of the planets largest coliseum. It was a place where many sporting events and major addresses had been held throughout history. Over half of a million were expected to attend the live event, and virtually all the galaxy was going to be watching.

She had been advised by every image consultant her advisor could trick her into speaking with on how to appear before the people. She had no doubt that if there was any enemy left to spy on her that they would also be watching. She chose to wear her royal armor, to let the people know they could count on her to finish the fight for their safety.

She had it rendered the color of the Greatian royal seal for the event through a manipulation of the camouflaging program. The runner that took the ring to the coliseum for the event was on his way to her ship, and due to arrive at any moment. Her stomach was turning flips at the anticipation of unveiling the new jump technology.

They were going to have the address begin on a projection, and half way through she would step through onto the stage, unveiling the new jump technology. She wiped another tear from her face. The liner moved itself back into position around her eye the way it was programmed to when disturbed.

Her communicator lit up, and a message informed her that the ring was on-board. She replied by telling the advisor to give the guard acting as runner a paid holiday as a reward for his hasty service. The clock counting down to when she would be broadcast to the projection in the coliseum was getting close to showtime.

She sat on the bench in front of the drone that would record her address, and went over her speech one last time to make sure she remembered everything. She was made aware that a young performer from the planet had been kidnapped, and killed recently, and that it would look good if it appeared that she was aware of the situation.

She knew with all the planets under her rule that she couldn't get personally involved with every tragedy that befell one of her people, but she felt like she could be doing more. Her advisers filtered the information that reached her, to keep her from losing focus on the big issues, and she supposed that it was all for good reason.

Her mother had encouraged her father to be more involved with the events on a smaller scale, and he had managed to make great changes throughout the kingdom. Sadly the stress of being the keeper of nonillion souls overcame his mind. He had at one time had an external device attached to process, and store the names, and faces he encountered, and interacted with.

In the end he may have been able to manage a kingdom well if it had not plunged headlong into war. Xarie prided herself on her detachment from the individual persons of her kingdom. It was cold, and unfortunate, but she knew it was best to serve the entire nation's needs, and let the appointed representatives handle local affairs.

Her title held great power to overrule any other being in the kingdom, but she was only one woman, and was highly aware that she served as a mascot at times more than an executor. Only once had she ever seen the need to step in, and exert her authority directly, and it could have been handled by her advisor.

She found out quickly that sometimes, the problems people see in their lives are actually keeping them alive on a larger scale, and that many people in her kingdom would have to suffer for the ensured survival of the whole empire. In the end she decided to serve her people by being an image of hope, and directing their attention to the positive events her reign was having.

The countdown reached a single digit count, and she took a deep breath. A display flickered to life that showed her what the viewers, and attendees were seeing, and another showed her what she would see when she stepped out onto the stage.

Three guards stepped onto her balcony, and set the new jump ring up where it was designated to be in the rehearsal. The ring was just off display where it couldn't be seen. She looked at the image of her sitting on the bench in front of the false background, and straightened her posture.

The countdown reached zero, and she stood. The drone was tracking her face, and followed her movement. The crowd on the display erupted into a roars applause, and cheer. The sound was represented by a bar that increased in length as the noise in the coliseum grew.

Her volume was represented by another bar, so she would know when the people could hear her without having to hear the crowd. She continued to stand, and smile for them, as long as they wanted to cheer. Only when the decibel of the noise started to reduce did she raise a hand to calm the audience.

"Greatians of Venga sol" She announced rising both of her open hands, and bowing slightly. The noise reached a climax greater than the first, as denoted by a small line that stayed at the highest point that the sound measured at any given time.

She smiled, and bowed again slightly. The noise level dropped to a level where she could be heard again, but she knew it wouldn't stay low through her next statement. "Please join me in the Venga Sol world song," She shouted, only getting half the words out before her voice was over powered," as first sang by the First Squadron of the Third Armada, King's Exploration Forces on the day they claimed Venga Sol for the Greatian Kingdom."

The display that showed what the crowd saw transitioned from a waist up shot, to a shoulder up shot, and she sat down. The transition was used to mask the fact that she would not be singing the Vega Sol song live, but from a recording made earlier in the same uniform, and background.

She knew the words to the song because she had downloaded it from the national library, and uploaded it to her speech program. The same program she used to speak hundreds of languages allowed her to remember almost any length of dialogue.

She listened as the recording of her sang beautifully with the uproarious crowd. She never liked hearing her own voice, even when it was premastered, and she was assured that she sounded great. She stood on the spot marked with a red glowing circle, and held out her arms the way her final pose during the performance would look. The display that showed her what the crown saw was also on the floor just in front of her feet.

As the image transitioned from a close up to a half body shot, she raised her head, and smiled to the cheering people. The projection being shown for the audience transitioned to a flyby somewhere across the crowd. As the drone passed it was greeted with cheers, and celebration.

Xarie noticed a still person standing in the crowd for just an instant, and then the drone was disconnected, bringing the feed back to her. She would try to remember to scan through the recording, and find out why the person standing in the crowd looked so familiar, but she had to concentrate on her address.

The noise in the coliseum died down to a manageable level, and she took advantage of the lull to continue. She was beginning to perspire a little from the anxiety of such a grand audience. A drone in the room was programed to read the temperature, and moisture of her skin, and sent a message to her armor to ventilate. The ventilation ports in her armor opened, revealing a brilliant silver mesh. She felt the cool air reach her skin, and felt a little refreshed.

"It has been too long since the royal family has visited the home of its finest warriors." she announced. She was referring to the Royal Guard Academy of Flight and Battle that was situated in, and around the world, with its Off-world Training Center orbiting. The off world training center was the Greatian equivalent of the Former Ifrian Elite Fleet facility, which was destroyed during the initial invasion.

She continued her address, encouraging commerce, and faith in the crown. She did so while mentioning relevant events, and creating the illusion that she was aware of current events on the planet. Near the end of her address, she paused, and waited for the crowd to become quiet. An image of the young entertainer, who was still being grieved by her fans, was displayed.

"As many of you know, Ava One, of the Red Beach district of Venga's southern Sairn Islands, was taken from us" She said with a tone of sincerity. The image reminded her that she had met the girl once at her Crowning ceremony. She searched through her communicator database for the girl's name, and filtered the results to the Crowning ceremony.

The Image was from a gossip reporting agency, and showed the Young performer congratulating Xarie on her new title. The display transitioned back to Xarie, who deviated from the program, and showed the image of her, and Ava in the palace to the people.

She allowed everyone to see the image, and saved it to her Communicator to look at later. The image was retracted, and she continued. "I had the pleasure of meeting Ava once at a great and terrifying moment of my life, and I am glad to have been able to have shared it with her." She continued beginning to edge over toward the Jump ring.

"To her family, I would like to offer my deepest sympathies. I'm told they are present" She said as the display transitioned to a couple standing on the stage. The Coliseum was silent, as the guards signaled that the jump ring was ready.

Xarie was fully aware the girls' parents were in attendance, and had sent a ship for them. "There is another amazing, and monumental occasion I would like to share with you all, in her honor." She announced. She stepped over to the jump ring, and the drone followed her movement.

The box in the center of the stage opened, and the whole Galaxy had their eyes trained on it. "A short time ago, we were informed, that the technology to make leaps across space was re-engineered, and that the kingdom would soon be reconnected." She yelled over the unprecedented applause.

The people were in shock, and Xarie was about to bring them into a full blown outrage. The shields around the stage powered up, the energy was only slightly visible from the stage, and the crowd would have a clear view of the event. They were aware of the rows of Venga police drones that moved to line every path that led to the stage.

Xarie smiled, and gave the crowd a wave. She stepped out of the picture, and onto the stage. She no longer needed a noise meter to know the overpowering roar of the Greatian people would drown any sound she tried to make, even with the amplification of the coliseums' announcement system.

The parents of Ava One were allowed onto the stage, after one final scan from event security. Xarie waved them over, and walked toward them. She was suddenly aware that the Croans were now aware of the new technology, and would be even more desperate to hurt her people.

She glanced at the sky where the shields were most visible, and found them active to her relief. She reached out, and hugged the mother in an unusually personal display, that set her apart from most public figures. She whispered to the mother thanks for her attendance, and turned to the father.

She took his hand, and accepted a flower he offered to her. She wasn't sure if he brought it, or if one of the organizers had a hand in it, but it was a beautiful flower. She stood with an arm around the Mother, and the Father, and smiled for what she was confident would be the cover of every media outlet soon.

A man wearing an event staff uniform led the couple to their seats just to the side of the stage. Xarie paced the stage from one end to the other telling the people of her plan to reunite families separated by the loss of jump capabilities, and her intention to return to Venga Sol for some base jumping in the mountains.

Several celebrities had been easily persuaded to attend the event, and the Address became a show. Xarie introduced each performer, and each act was finished with a dedication to Ava One. She ended her address with a positive word, encouraging celebration, and bold character. She stepped through the ring, and the feed ended.

She walked over, and sat on the bench, reflecting on the amazing smells, and sounds of the event. She was suddenly tired, and barely aware of the guards who were removing the broadcast equipment. They deactivated the ring, so no one could use it to jump to the ship, and then everyone was gone.

The ship, which had never stopped at Venga Sol, was moving toward its next destination. She pulled up a menu of viable jump destinations. Not very many locations had been reached by the runners, and drones carrying rings yet, but there were some.

A drone could be accelerated at a rate that would be impossible for a biological life form, and therefore could reach distant places quickly. Many drones were nearing worlds that she wanted desperately to visit. Mr. Jan tried to explain how they were using rings that could be jumped through each other, and a ship used them to travel at impossible speeds, but she couldn't wrap her head around it.

A drone was making its way to the Order of Light Headquarters, so that she could jump there and back to her ship with evidence. She was keeping a close eye on the fight, and was receiving reports that the Croans were retreating, or defeated. She had every recon team available looking for members of the Order, and especially young Mr. Grey, but she had not received any word of their status.

She felt the adrenaline of the day wearing off, and leaned back against the wall. She starred out at the stars, and closed her eyes. She opened them again, and she was looking at the ceiling inside her room. She was being placed in her sleep chamber by Marcus.

"You could've just woke me" She said sleepily

"I tried," He replied "You swatted me away". He smiled as she climbed inside the cylinder.

"I need you to come with me when I wake up" She said, rolling over to get in position.

"Whatever you need Highness" He said turning away as the sleep module removed her armor. She rolled over, and the back half of her armor was removed. It would all be cleaned, and ready for the next time she needed it. She rolled onto her side, and the hygiene program began to clean her body.

"Hope you aren't afraid of heights" She whispered with a smile, and drifted to sleep.

7

The floor was too hard to sleep comfortably on. Commander Wren rolled onto her right side to find it just as bruised as her left. She winced as the bruise became painful reminder of her recent fight. The Croans found them, and came ready for a fight. She noticed their tactics had changed.

The war effort of the enemy had remained constant from day one. They had always rushed in headfirst attacking everyone with brute force, and never surrendered. When the Croans attacked the Order, they were particular about where they deployed, and even avoided some engagements.

At first she perceived their tactics as desperate acts by a losing force, because of the way they were fighting so hard to reach the surface. It looked like a final assault, or an elaborate distraction. Only in the cold and foreign enemy ship, did she have time to analyze their movements.

The warriors attacked the strongholds, and armored positions, but the Headquarters facility was disguised as a medical building. It actually functioned as a medical building, when it was needed. The group of warriors that attacked the Headquarters facility was too large to just be a killing force.

Just before she made it to the sprinter, she noticed a group of smaller, fully armored Croans being escorted through the fighting, toward the Headquarters building. It seemed irrelevant at the time. For a long time they had been aware that the Croans were separated into classes, and that each class had a specific purpose.

She made it to the sprinter ship, and collapsed. The impact from the enemy anti-armor round ejected her through a solid wall, destroying her communicator, and most of her armor. She wasn't sure the Queen had received the location of the Croan's origin, but she sure hoped they had Thomas.

Darren ran out of the Sprinter's drop gate, his artificial hand latched onto hers, and he pulled her to safety. The sprinter was fast, and the Queens fighters were brutalizing the enemy, but something about the way the Croan pilots were moving was unusual.

From the seat Rhea, and Darren strapped her in, she could see Ulrick piloting them through the chaos. The sky was more heavily populated with fighters, than the ground had ever been. They dodged, and weaved through the atmosphere. The final thrust that helped them overcome the planets gravity almost brought them into crossfire of two massive ships.

As Ulrick maneuvered around the fighting, a strange formation took shape. Enemy ships formed a tunnel around them, and faced outward, almost in a protective pattern. Ulrick slammed the accelerator lever. The Sprinter rocketed through the enemy formation.

Rhea noticed what was happening almost the same time she had, and they both stared silently, as the Croan battleship descended in their path. Ulrick shut off the propulsion, and fired full reverse thrusters. The Battleship was equipped with thousands of gunner stations, and many precision fire weapons.

The reverse thrusters were destroyed almost as soon as they fired, and the Sprinter was carried by its own momentum into a port. Once inside the port, a kinetic generator forced the Sprinter to the deck, and a machine started disassembling the Sprinter piece by piece.

The whole attack was part of a complex plan. The fighting force that attacked the Headquarters facility had to be large enough, and organized enough to force The Order to run. The smaller and more heavily armored Croans had to have been coordinating the efforts of the fighting force.

She sat up in the dimly lit cell, and punched the floor. They were extracted from the ship as if it were a routine maintenance procedure, and deposited in a room. A crate was dropped in shortly after their arrival, with plain black uniforms. All their gear, except their hydration and medical kits was taken from them.

She thought about refusing to wear the garments, but after a while, they all grew tired of being naked. It was quiet for a while, and Ulrick started searching the room they were in for a way out. A small spout sprayed warm water into the room for a few moments. Everyone watched it the first time, without moving.

The water drained into the center of the room, and out through a small hole. Ulrick and Darren checked even the tiny drain hole for an escape route. It was clear to them all, after sleeping in the cell for several long periods of time, that they were prisoners.

Rhea was the first to use the water that fell from the spout. She had the blood of several young fighters on her. They all died from their wounds before she stopped trying to save them. The blood dried, and crumbled in places, and it seemed to have finally bothered her enough to want it off.

They all knew when the next water would come because it was the only thing that happened in their prison. Darren was more resigned in their imprisonment than Ulrick, who still inspected everything for a weakness.

As she sat in the dim light the pain of her bruises faded, and she stretched. Her artificial hand was still destroyed, and stung a little where she punched the floor with it. A light startled her, starting a chain reaction throughout the room. Everyone shielded their eyes from the light. Everyone except Ulrick, who stood silhouetted by the open door.

The door closed, and Ulrick remained standing in silence. No one moved for a while, until Commander Wren stood. They all came over to stand near Ulrick. He was visibly shaking in the darkness. She had never seen him scared enough to seem broken, but he did at that moment.

"They're just tools...." He whispered. Darren laid his hand on Ulrick's shoulder, and Ulrick looked up. "They're just TOOLS!" He repeated, almost shouting. "Every last one of them..." He cried his voice breaking.

"Who?" Commander Wren asked, "The Croans?" The question was answered for her, as the door opened again, and she was snatched out of the cell, and into the light. Rhea reached for her, and then it was dark inside the room. For a second, they were all gone, locked behind an observation wall. From inside they couldn't see out, but from outside the room, everyone was outlined, and tracked with a display system.

Only Ulrick continued to look, knowing she could see into the room. She was being carried by two Croans, one on each arm. As they dragged her down the short hall, she noticed the walls weren't walls. The Croans were standing on each side of the path, shoulder to shoulder. They all stood motionless, and lifeless. Even the fire that was always present glowing beneath their skin was gone.

The two Croans holding her above the ground, passed through a doorway, and into a central chamber. A massive central station, with many displays, and controls was in front of her. It was elevated, and on it sat what looked like a Croan, but was around her size, with smooth grey skin. It lounged in an informal posture.

When the small Croan waved the two big ones away without even looking at them, they dropped her on the floor, and assumed the same condition as the ones in the hall. She recovered her balance, and stood.

"Do you know the amount of energy it requires to operate an army of these beasts?" The small Croan asked her in a clear and almost melodic voice. The shock she felt after hearing one of them speak wiped the question from her mind.

It moved down from the elevated platform, and came to stand in front of her. She realized thinking of it as a Small Croan was a mistake. Although smaller than the others, the monster was still broad, and possibly taller than the two at her side. It looked at her intently for a moment, and then began to circle.

She followed it uncomfortable with such a large and obviously dangerous enemy at her back.

"I was informed that the male was the leader of your outfit." It said stopping to read her expression. She maintained its gaze, even when the gold honeycomb inside its dark eyes was terrifying. "I quickly learned from him, that it was you, who I need to address." He continued.

"I am the Commander of the secret military organization known as the Order of Light" She said suddenly, clapping her hand over her mouth. Panic set in as she realized how helpless she was. She straightened her posture, and swallowed her fear. "What do... you want?" She asked.

"That is a simple and complex question" It said pausing, as though considering the weight of the question. "Ah!" It exclaimed raising a hand full of claws. "There is a simple way to answer, and ask many questions" It said reaching for a small box sitting on a ledge. "But first" It said pausing again," Introductions must be made." It waved a hand at her as it had the two Croans, and it looked deep into her eyes again with its terrible eyes. She heard herself speaking, without any voluntary action.

"My name is Alva Jaye Wren", she said with a tear trickling from her eye.

"Very good, and you can call me.... Seven" It said floating by without making any sound, or appearing to take steps at all. The small box popped open in its slender hands. It retrieved a small object from the box delicately, and placed it on her forehead.

"Try not to struggle" It said, and it attached an identical object to its own face. The room and everything she had ever known was swept away in a breeze. She stood on a bridge that reached into a great city. She suddenly became aware that it was standing beside her.

"Now, I can show you all the reasons why, and then you will tell me if you can help us end this war." It said looking at her with its terrible eyes. It started to smile.

8