Chapter
One
Red sunlight
scattered across the rocky terrain of Mora as Jackson Trammel trudged his last
few steps, a Galactic soldier pressing a plasma rifle to his head. The tip of the gun felt cold and hard against
Jackson’s neck, and he shivered. His
eyes caught sight of a dozen or so prisoners all standing in line, mixtures of
fear and sadness on their faces.
“Get in line,”
barked the soldier holding Jackson as he shoved his prisoner into place.
Jackson
obeyed. His hands were bound, and twenty
plasma rifles were pointed at him. What
choice did he have?
He tried not to
think of the brother and sister he would leave behind. They would surely get the news of his
death. The Galactics always liked to
scare Earthian rebels into submission with news of an execution.
Heart pounding,
Jackson put on a courageous face as he stared down the barrels of the
executioners’ rifles. One quick shot to
the head, and it would all be over. One
quick shot…
But then he saw
them. A group of hooded figures. One man raised a finger and pointed it at the
executioners. A brilliant blue light
burst forth, filling Jackson’s surroundings.
Screams of terror and pain echoed through the area. He closed his eyes and waited for the
brightness to fade. When it finally did,
he looked up to see an old man with a long white beard stepping toward
him. The Galactic soldiers lay dead upon
the rocky slope.
“W-what
happened?” stammered Jackson. “Who are
you?”
A smile crossed
the man’s face. “My name is Marius
Allen. And you, I believe, are Jackson
Trammel.”
Jackson shook
his head furiously. “What! How did you know my name?”
“Let’s just say
it’s my place to know things like that.”
“I don’t
understand,” said Jackson warily. He
looked around at his fellow prisoners, all of whom appeared to share his
nervousness. “You still haven’t told me
who you are.”
“I am the
leader of a group known as the Order of Mora,” explained Marius, stroking his
beard. “And we have taken an interest in
you.”
Jackson shook
his head. “In me? Why?” He
glanced at his comrades. “What about the
rest of us?”
A peculiar
expression formed on Marius’s face.
“Well, they are most fortunate to be standing beside you. It is you we need. Not them.”
He paused for a moment. “Though I
must say we should help them too, now that we’ve already taken sides.”
He looked down
at the bands binding Jackson’s hands, and they suddenly loosened. Jackson pulled his hands free. “How did you do that?”
“The same way
we killed the Galactic soldiers,” said Marius calmly. “With magic.”
Jackson
frowned. “Magic? But magic doesn’t exist.”
“Oh yes it
does,” said Marius, a strange smile on his face. “How else do you think they support Meniga
City?”
“I’ve never
actually been to Meniga City. You kind
of try to avoid the Galactic capital when you’re an Earthian rebel.”
The old man
chuckled. “True. Very true.”
His eyes
swiveled from Jackson to the other prisoners.
All their restraints suddenly loosened, and they were able to free their
hands. The former prisoners muttered their
thanks to the old man, though they all still seemed a little wary.
Jackson’s eyes
met the old man’s. “You still haven’t
told us why you saved us.”
“Because of
you,” said Marius. “Because of your
brother.”
Jackson’s mouth
dropped open in shock. He shook his
head. “What? Are you saying Nathan has something to do
with this?”
The old man
nodded. “Yes, Nathan has everything to
do with this. You will come to
understand in time.”
“No. I want some answers now.”
“I’m afraid now
would not be the proper time to tell you.”
He looked from Jackson to the other hooded strangers, the red sun rays
illuminating his ancient face. “Now, why
don’t you and your friends come with us?”
“Not until you
tell me what’s really going on,” said Jackson defiantly, edging toward Marius.
“Do you want us
to provide you shelter, or not?”
“Well, yes,”
admitted Jackson reluctantly. “But why
can’t you tell me what Nathan has to do with this?”
“Later,” said
Marius dismissively. “For now, follow
us.”
The old man
turned to face the other hooded men. He
gestured for Jackson to follow him, and Jackson acquiesced. After all, this old man had saved him from
certain death. If that didn’t inspire
trust, nothing would.
Marius was
surprisingly nimble for his age. The
rocky terrain of Mora was more than a challenge, even for the hardiest of
soldiers, yet this old man was managing the descent easily. At times, he almost appeared to be
floating. Jackson rubbed his eyes, but
that didn’t change what he was seeing.
The old man’s robes glided smoothly as ever across the uneven rocks.
As Jackson
walked, he stole the occasional glance at his fellow soldiers. Their faces appeared relieved yet uneasy at
the same time. One of the soldiers
stepped forward from the rest of the group, joining Jackson right behind the
old man.
“Do you have
any idea what’s happening?” asked the soldier, casting a surreptitious glance
at the robed men in front of them.
“No, Andy, I
don’t.”
“This is really
weird. You know, I think I’d heard of
these guys before, this Order of Mora.
They’re some kind of monks, I think.
Never thought they existed, though.”
Jackson
smiled. “Well, it looks like they do.”
The red sun of
Mora sank low against the horizon, bathing their surroundings in ominous
shadows, as they continued their march silently. The monks of Mora kept a quick pace, and the
soldiers, fatigued as they were from battle, struggled to keep up. They wound their way around the mountain,
through narrow crevices and low defiles, across craggy outcroppings. The heat of the day vanished with the setting
sun, and the tiny droplets of sweat now felt cold upon Jackson’s neck.
An enormous
valley bathed in dark red hues stretched out below them. Broken war machinery and dropped plasma
rifles lay among the dead scattered here and there about the battlefield. There had been no cover in the valley. As soon as Jackson and the Earthian forces
had landed on Mora, the Galactics had held the advantage, sniping at their
opponents from the safety of the mountains.
Jackson shook
his head as he thought about this miscalculation. They were lucky to have survived. Without the intervention of the Order of
Mora, they wouldn’t have. Jackson
shuddered.
Half an hour
later, as the sun finally sunk below the horizon, Jackson spotted a cave nestled
against the side of the mountain. It
appeared as a slightly darker spot against the dark backdrop of Mora. The darkness didn’t remain long, though, for
a sudden blue light suddenly illuminated their surroundings. The monks of Mora held their hands out in
front of them, and perched atop their hands were tiny blue flames.
With the aid of
this light, the monks led the soldiers to the cave. As they ducked inside, they pressed their
hands to torches, and the whole cave suddenly glowed in the same ghostly blue
hues. Jackson shuffled in slowly at
first, staring curiously at the magical flames.
He shook his head and continued on.
The group wound
their way along a narrow passage, following its many twists and turns. When the passage finally opened up, Jackson
stood at the opening of a cavernous chamber.
The ceiling seemed almost nonexistent above. Pale blue light cast its mysterious glow upon
the room.
Marius motioned
to some chairs. “Please, sit down.”
Jackson
obeyed. The other soldiers followed
quickly behind him. Once they took their
seats, the monks of Mora lowered themselves into a group of chairs across from
them. The soldiers looked curiously at
the monks. The monks gazed back with
their own pensive expressions. At last,
after nearly a minute of silence, Marius spoke.
“I wish to
speak to Jackson alone,” he said, stroking his long white beard. “As for the rest of you, please feel free to
make yourselves at home. I daresay we
don’t have the greatest accommodations, but seeing as we saved you from certain
death…” His voice trailed off, and a
faint smile crossed his face. It quickly
vanished, though, as he motioned for Jackson to follow him.
Jackson’s feet
carried him along without thought, following the steps of the old man. His mind drifted back to the carnage of the
battle. He remembered the green plasma
beams passing over his head, the dreadful screams of his fallen comrades. It had been chaos. Pure chaos.
His thoughts then traveled to the execution, to the fear that had
coursed through his veins, the horrible feeling that it would all end. Yet here he stood now, alive.
Marius led
Jackson into a small room and motioned for him to take a seat. Jackson obeyed quickly, then looked over at
the old man. Marius lowered himself
slowly into the seat and gazed intently at Jackson.
“You wish to
know the truth?” he said. “You wish to
know what this has to do with your brother?”
Jackson
nodded. “Yes, I do.”
“We need your
brother,” said the old man matter-of-factly.
“And we need you to bring him to us.”
“I don’t
understand.”
“Our magic has
its limitations,” explained Marius. “We
lack the ability to send a message to your brother over such a great
distance. However, because of your close
connection to him, we believe you can serve as a conduit for our message.”
“And what is
this message exactly?”
“Nathan is to
make his way here to Mora. Once he gets
here, we will explain everything.”
Jackson glared
at the old man. “No. This is my brother we’re talking about. He’s sixteen years old. How’s he supposed to get to Mora?”
“That is up to
him.”
“If I’m going
to help you with this message, I’d like a little more in the way of concrete
details.”
“You will send
him this message,” said Marius, a quiet anger burning behind his eyes. “We saved you. You owe us.”
“My brother
doesn’t owe you anything.”
Marius shook
his head. “That is not your decision to
make.”
Jackson let out
a deep sigh. “I can see there’s no way
around this.”
“Finally, you
are seeing sense.”
Chapter
Two
Nathan Trammel
sat in the back of the class, his electronic reader propped up against the edge
of the desk. The teacher was going on
about quantum physics, but Nathan couldn’t have cared less. He was engrossed in an old book from the
twenty-first century. Nathan was
fascinated by books. He wanted to write
one himself. Not one of those boring
technical books about physics. No. He wanted to write a novel.
Sandra Dawkins,
the girl who sat next to him, suddenly elbowed him in the side.
“Oww! What was that for?”
“Mr. Roberts
called on you,” she whispered.
“Nice to see
you’re finally joining us, Mr. Trammel,” said Mr. Roberts, with a slight
sneer. “Now, what is the electron
configuration for Tarium? Why don’t you
come up to the front and draw it for us on the computer board?”
“Um…I don’t
think that would be such a good idea.”
“And why would
that be, Mr. Trammel?”
“Because I have
no idea what you’re even talking about.”
Mr. Roberts
shot him a venomous glare. “Well, maybe
if you would stop reading silly novels in the back of class, you’d actually
learn something.”
Nathan felt the
insane urge to hurl a retort at Mr. Roberts, but he decided against it. He was already in enough trouble as it
was. After placing his electronic reader
back on his desk, he shuffled slowly to the front of the classroom. The eyes of his classmates bore into him as
he made the long journey.
Mr. Roberts
leered at him unpleasantly while he walked.
When he finally reached the front of the room, he grabbed one of the
pens for the computer board and began drawing.
He couldn’t remember the electron configuration for Tarium, but he gave
it his best shot. Mr. Roberts looked as
if he was biting back a dozen or so snide remarks. When Nathan finished, the teacher walked over
and immediately began pointing out all the mistakes Nathan had made.
Nathan tuned
him out as he made his way back to his desk.
Without hesitation, he propped his electronic reader against the side of
the desk and started reading again. He
glanced up every minute or so to see what Mr. Roberts was writing on the board,
but he really couldn’t have cared less.
Physics was boring.
Halfway through
class, Nathan finished the book he had been reading. He thought about starting another one but
decided against it. Instead, he closed
his eyes and allowed his thoughts to wander.
He started to think of ideas for novels, of fantastic adventures
throughout the galaxy. Anything but
physics.
As he sat there
with his eyes closed, he drifted off to sleep.
The blackness of his eyelids was quickly replaced by a sight he hadn’t
expected. He saw his brother
Jackson. The room around Jackson shone
with a strange bluish glow, but there was no doubt it was Jackson. It seemed so real.
“You need to
come to Mora,” said Jackson. “You need
to come to Mora as quickly as possible.
Drop everything and come here. I
need your help.”
Nathan felt a
sharp jab in the side.
“Wake up,” said
Sandra Dawkins. “Class is over.”
“Oh…right.” Nathan felt as if he had been denied
something very important. He wanted to
see his brother again.
Feeling rather
depressed, Nathan went through the rest of his school day. During calculus and chemistry, he sat in the
back of the room, electronic reader propped up against the desk. His day concluded with English, which was
easily his favorite class. Though he
tried to pay attention, his mind kept drifting off to the strange dream he had
experienced during physics. Before he
knew it, his eyes closed, and he was off in his dream world again.
“Please,
Nathan,” said Jackson, blue torches glowing behind him. “You need to come to Mora. You might think this is just some dream, but
it isn’t. I can assure you of that.”
Nathan turned
to look at his brother. “I don’t
understand. Why do I need to come to
Mora?”
But Jackson
didn’t say anything. Instead, Nathan was
disturbed by a gentle prodding in the side.
He looked over to see the face of Trent Adams, a classmate of his.
“You okay? You were talking to yourself in your
sleep. Said something about Mora.”
“Yeah, I’m
fine,” said Nathan dismissively. “It was
just a dream.”
At last, the
final bell rang, and Nathan made his way to the shuttle train that would take
him home. On the train, he spotted his
sister Arianna. Her face shone radiantly
beneath light blonde hair. She was
reading something on her electronic reader and didn’t notice Nathan for a few
seconds.
Finally, she
looked up. “Oh…I didn’t see you.”
Nathan
chuckled. “Someone could come and take
all your things from right in front of you, and you wouldn’t notice a thing.”
Arianna laughed
nervously and buried her face in her reading again. Nathan did the same. By the time the shuttle train reached their
stop, he was three chapters into the book.
In fact, he had become so engrossed that Arianna had to nudge him in the
side to make him realize the train had stopped.
Nathan slipped
his electronic reader inside his jacket and walked toward the large building in
front of which they had stopped. Its
metallic surface shone brightly in the late afternoon sun. A sign above the door read: “St. Louis Orphanage.”
With a sigh,
Nathan pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Arianna followed close behind him, her eyes still glued to her
reader. Inside, they passed a desk. The woman sitting there waved happily at
them.
“Good
afternoon, Mrs. Thompson,” Nathan said automatically as he passed the
desk.
To the right
was a set of stairs leading to the boys’ wing.
Nathan took these stairs while Arianna stepped off to the left and up
the stairs to the girls’ wing. Nathan’s
rom was on the third floor, so he climbed two flights of steps and then made
his way to the room. He waved his
keycard in front of the door, and it opened.
Inside the door
was a small room. Various papers were
strewn about the floor where he had left them that morning. His desk was covered in books. Actual books.
Not the electronic kind. He had
saved up all his money to buy them, which was tough. Credits weren’t exactly easy to come by.
Situated behind
the books was a panel that would open to reveal his computer, and sitting below
that panel was a photograph that Nathan cherished more than anything. A dark-haired man and light-haired woman
stared at him from the frame, smiles on their faces. His parents had been dead now for five years,
but he sometimes felt like they were still alive when he looked at this
picture.
They had died
in the war. Nathan remembered the day
the Earthian officer had appeared at the door to tell them their parents’ ship
had been destroyed by a Galactic warship.
He also remembered how he had wanted to go along with his parents that
fateful day. Though he knew there was no
point in survivor’s guilt, he still wished he had been with them. Some part of him liked to pretend it wouldn’t
have happened had he been there.
Shaking his
head, Nathan collapsed onto his bed. He
felt completely worn out, as he always did after a long day of school. And it wasn’t that the lessons were
demanding. A day of being around all
those people simply left him drained.
As he lay on
the bed, his eyes closed, and he drifted off to sleep. The image of his brother quickly appeared in
his mind again.
“Please come to
Mora,” said Jackson. “Please come. I need your help.”
“I don’t
understand.”
“This is not a
dream, Nathan. I really do need your
help.”
“Can you even
hear me?”
“Please come to
Mora,” repeated Jackson. “Leave as soon
as you can.”
When Nathan
woke from his dream, he felt slightly sick to his stomach. He had never been one to believe in extra
sensory perception, but something about this dream told him it was real. His brother really did need his help.
Just to be
sure, Nathan grabbed his electronic reader from the stand by his bed. He pressed a few buttons, and the reader
brought up a page detailing the events of the war. After a minute or two of looking through the
page, Nathan spotted the news he wanted.
His heart sank as he read it.
According to the report, Jackson and his contingent had indeed been
dispatched to Mora, and from the looks of it, they had not fared well in the
battle. Their status: most likely
executed.
Nathan sat
upright in bed and thought for a few moments.
He had no idea how he was supposed to get to Mora, but he’d give it a
try. Besides, he had spent the last five
years looking for an excuse to leave school and go explore the galaxy. Even with the ongoing civil war, he wanted to
see other worlds, maybe even see the war firsthand.
All of a
sudden, the solution to his problem struck him: Ben Young. Ben Young was a friend of Nathan’s, two years
older. He was working as a cargo handler
at the St. Louis Spaceport. If anyone
could get Nathan on a ship to Mora, Ben Young was the man.
Nathan leaned
back against the wall and pulled his phone from his pocket. He liked cellphones. They were one of the few things that hadn’t
changed all that much in the past three hundred years.
Nathan quickly
opened up his list of contacts and found Ben’s number. He pressed the button to dial it and waited a
few moments before Ben answered.
“Hey,
Nathan. What’s going on?”
“The same
mostly,” replied Nathan. “I was wondering
something, though.” He hesitated for a
moment, hardly daring to believe the words about to come out of his mouth. “What would you say if I told you I wanted to
go to Mora?”
Ben
laughed. “Is this some kind of joke?”
“No, I’m
serious.”
“I’d say you
were crazy.”
Nathan
sighed. “That’s what I thought you’d
say.”
“Are you
seriously thinking about doing this?” asked Ben. “You do know Mora’s right in the middle of
the war zone, right?”
Nathan
shrugged. “Yeah, I know. But I have my reasons for wanting to go. You have to trust me.”
“Sure, man,”
said Ben. “I trust you. You’re crazy, but I trust you.”
Nathan chuckled
softly. “Thanks, Ben.”
“So, you want
me to get you on a ship then?”
“Yeah, that’s
the idea.”
“I could
probably get you into the cargo hold of a freighter bound for Meniga. From there, you might be able to find another
ship to Mora.”
Nathan leaned
forward in his bed. “There’s nothing
that goes straight from here to there?”
“Nope.”
“Fine,” said
Nathan, with a heavy sigh. “If that’s
the best there is.”
“So, you’re
really going to do this? Why?”
Nathan bit his
lower lip nervously. “Um, this is going
to sound really strange. Just bear with
me. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“I’ve been
having these dreams recently,” Nathan told him.
“My brother’s in them, and he keeps telling me I have to come to Mora
and help him. Now, I know what you’re
going to say. They’re just dreams. That’s what I thought at first too. But I don’t know…it’s the same dream every
time. I almost feel like it has to mean
something.”
Nathan heard
silence over the line for few seconds before Ben spoke. “Those dreams do sound kind of weird,
man. Maybe they do mean something. I’ve heard the scholars in Meniga are
studying all kinds of things we used to consider magic.”
“Thanks for not
thinking I’m crazy,” said Nathan.
“Well, I never
said you weren’t crazy. But, hey, you’ve
wanted to get off Earth for quite a while now.
Maybe it’s your subconscious telling you to get a move on.”
“Yeah…maybe.” He paused for a moment, smiling. “Look, I’m really grateful for your help in
this.”
“So, when do
you want to leave?”
“As soon as
possible.”
“Well, if you
get down here quickly,” said Ben, “I can probably get you on the freighter that
leaves for Meniga at eight. How’s that
sound?”
“Thanks, I’ll
get down there as fast as I can. See you
then. Bye.”
Nathan ended
the call, placed his feet on the floor, and sat there at the edge of the bed,
shaking with excitement. He looked
around the room and spotted a few things he wanted to bring with him. With a few quick strides, he shoved them into
a bag and slung the bag over his shoulders.
It was six fifteen when he left his room.
Before leaving,
Nathan decided he’d have to tell Arianna.
He made his way to the girls’ wing, scaled the staircase quickly, and
knocked on her door. It opened a few
seconds later, and she stared at him with a dreamy, vacant expression.
“What brings
you over here?” she asked.
“I’m leaving.”
Arianna
frowned. “Where are you going?”
“This is going
to sound crazy,” said Nathan quietly.
“But I’m going to Mora.”
“Why?”
“I’ve been
having these strange dreams today,” explained Nathan. “Jackson has been in them. And for some reason, he wants me to go to
Mora. He says he needs help.”
“Then I’m
coming too,” said Arianna suddenly.
“No, you’re
not. It’s too dangerous.”
“He’s my
brother too.”
“I know,” said
Nathan. “But you’re only thirteen years
old. Mora’s right in the middle of the
war zone.”
“I don’t
care. I’m coming.”
From the look
on her face, Nathan knew there was no point in arguing the subject
further. He sighed. “Fine, you can come. But you need to stick close to me. Okay?
I don’t want to lose you anywhere.”
“Don’t worry,”
said Arianna with a strange smile. “I’ll
stay close.”
Chapter
Three
The shuttle
train passed swiftly and smoothly along the tracks. Buildings aglow with electronic billboards
zoomed by out the window. All Nathan saw
were flashes of light, maybe the occasional word here or there. He never paid much attention to billboards
anyway.
Nathan looked over
at Arianna. She had buried her face in
her electronic reader again. He still
didn’t understand why she had chosen to come with him, and the more he thought
about it, the more he wished he had left without telling her a thing.
He turned to
his sister. “You know, you don’t have to
come with me.”
Arianna looked
up. “What?”
“I said you
don’t have to come with me.”
“Yes, I do,”
said Arianna. “You’re my brother. Jackson is my brother. Families should stick together.”
“You do realize
this isn’t going to be fun, right?”
Arianna
nodded. “Of course I do.”
“It won’t be
comfortable either.”
“I know.”
“It might even
be dangerous,” added Nathan.
“I know.”
She turned her
gaze back to her electronic reader and began humming softly to herself as she
read. With a heavy sigh, Nathan looked
around the shuttle train. It was packed
with people, most of them older than Nathan and his sister. Like Arianna, everyone appeared to be busy
with something, their faces looking down at the electronic gadgets in their
hands. The shuttle train was always like
this. No one ever stopped to talk
anymore.
A few minutes
later, the shuttle train eased to a stop, and Nathan looked up to see the St.
Louis Spaceport. He prodded Arianna on
the arm to get her attention. She put
her electronic reader away, then followed him off the train. Nearly half the people in the crowded shuttle
car disembarked along with them.
Nathan pulled
out his phone and pressed the button to call Ben. He held the phone to his ear for a few
seconds, waiting for an answer.
“Hey, man,”
answered Ben. “You at the spaceport?”
“Yeah, just got
here.”
“And you’re
sure you want to go through this?”
“Yes,” said
Nathan. “There’s been a complication,
though.”
“What’s that?”
“Arianna
decided to come with me.”
Silence lingered
on the other side of the line for a few seconds. “I’m not sure she should be doing this. She’s a bit young.”
“That’s what I
tried to tell her.”
Ben let out a
deep sigh, which Nathan heard. “Well,
it’s your choice, I guess. It shouldn’t
be too hard to get both of you on a freighter.”
“Where are we
meeting?” asked Nathan.
“There’s a back
hallway in Concourse C,” Ben told him.
“I’ll be waiting for you there.”
“Thanks for
doing this for me, Ben.”
“What are
friends for?”
Nathan
smiled. “I’ll see you in a few minutes
then.”
He ended the
call and looked around the spaceport.
Crowds of people were moving every which direction, oblivious to the
people around them. Some had bags slung
over their shoulders. Others were
dragging suitcases along behind them.
Nearly everyone was on the phone or looking at an electronic device of
some sort.
Nathan grasped
Arianna’s hand and fought his way through the crowds. They were jostled about a few times, but
eventually they emerged near the sign that read: “Concourse C.” Nathan pointed at the sign, and Arianna
followed him in that direction.
At the
beginning of the concourse stood a security checkpoint. Nathan placed his bag on a conveyor belt, and
it passed through an advanced computer scanner.
Then, he and Arianna waited in the long security lines. After about five minutes of waiting, they
passed through the scanners. The
computer output quickly deemed them safe, and the security officers allowed
them through.
Nathan scanned
his surroundings for the back hallway Ben mentioned. The concourse was very large, though, so he
didn’t see anything at first. He
motioned Arianna to follow him while he continued to look for the hallway. The crowds were beginning to thin as people
walked to their gates to wait for their space planes. With this thinning, Nathan was able to get a
better look at his surroundings, and he quickly spotted Ben.
Ben greeted
them with a quick wave. He was standing
at the entrance to a long hallway, above which a sign read: “Authorized
Personnel Only.”
“Come on,
quick,” said Ben in a low voice. He was
wearing an orange safety vest, and there was a broad smile beneath his mop of
long brown hair.
Nathan ducked
inside the door, followed by Arianna. He
turned to Ben. “So, what’s the plan?”
“Stick close to
me, and everything should work out fine.”
He paused for a moment, then looked back at Nathan with a concerned
expression. “This is your last chance to
go back. Do you really want to go
through with this?”
Nathan nodded,
though he felt a little sick to his stomach.
“Well, let’s go
then.”
Ben led them
along the hallway, glancing back every few seconds to make sure no one was
watching. The dim lights of the hallway
cast eerie shadows upon the walls.
Nathan kept thinking someone was watching them, but when he turned his
head, he saw no one.
At the end of
the hallway was another door. Ben
motioned for Nathan and Arianna to stop.
Then he peeked out the door.
After a few moments, he motioned for them to follow him. Nathan looked around warily as he stepped
through the door Ben was holding open.
Arianna glided through it behind him.
Night had
fallen upon the loading field by the time they stepped through the door. The spaceport’s lights provided some
illumination. In the light, Nathan saw
workers hustling every which direction, intent upon their tasks. No one seemed to notice that Nathan and
Arianna didn’t belong there.
“Where are we
going?” whispered Nathan.
Ben pointed at
a spot in the distance. “You see that
ship over there?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s heading
to Meniga. I’m going to sneak you guys
into the cargo hold.”
They passed a
few workers on their way to the ship. A
couple of them cast suspicious glances at Nathan and Arianna, but they appeared
too busy to care. Nevertheless, Nathan
breathed a sigh of relief when they passed without saying anything.
The spaceport’s
lights cast Nathan’s shadow long and ominous on the tarmac. He glanced over at Ben to see a look of
concern on his friend’s face. “Is
something wrong?” he asked.
“Too many
people,” said Ben quietly. “This is
going to be more difficult than I thought.”
Nathan looked
over at the ship’s loading ramp. Workers
were pushing heavy boxes up the ramp, placing them in the cargo hold, then
coming back down for another round. This
cycle continued endlessly, providing no gaps in time during which Nathan and
Arianna could safely board the ship.
Ben paced back
and forth. “Okay. I’m going to have to rethink this plan.”
“What was your
plan in the first place?” inquired Nathan.
“I was going to
sneak you into one of the boxes,” whispered Ben. “But there’s no way I can manage that without
anyone seeing.” He continued
pacing. “What can work?” he mumbled to
himself. “How can I get you guys on
there?”
The shadowy
forms of the workers continued up and down the ramp at constant intervals. Another worker was driving a large vehicle
back and forth, supplying the cargo loaders with an endless supply of new
boxes.
All of a
sudden, Ben made a beeline for the loading vehicle. Nathan followed hesitantly, unsure if it was
a good idea. He grasped Arianna’s hand
and pulled her along with him. As they
moved closer, they heard the conversation between Ben and the driver.
“Look, I’ve got
some friends here who need to get on that ship,” said Ben, keeping his voice
low. “I was wondering if you could get
them in one of those boxes before it comes out to the loading ramp.”
“I don’t know,”
said the man, casting an inauspicious glance at Nathan and Arianna. “That goes against about a dozen
regulations.”
“They really need
to get on this ship,” Ben persisted, placing a hand on the door of the
vehicle. “Besides, you owe me.”
“What for?”
“Remember that
time you showed up to work drunk? I
covered for you.”
“Fine,”
grumbled the man. “I’ll do what you
ask. But if we get caught, I’m telling
them it’s all on you.”
“And I’ll
accept full responsibility,” said Ben.
“Alright, have
them meet me at the warehouse in five minutes.”
The man turned
the vehicle around and returned to the warehouse for another load. The cargo vehicle quickly became a shadowy
form in the distance, silhouetted against the horizon by the spaceport’s
lights.
“The warehouse
is over there,” said Ben, pointing to a large building in the distance. “Let’s get moving.”
They turned in
that direction and walked hastily to their destination. The man in the cargo vehicle passed them
going the other direction, his vehicle laden with boxes again. Another vehicle crossed their path, and Ben
held out an arm to keep Nathan and Arianna from being run over.
When they reached
the warehouse, they stopped at the door and stood awkwardly. Nathan’s heart was pounding in his
chest. And though it was winter, he felt
a bead of sweat trickling down his neck.
He turned to Linea and saw that her expression was as vague and dreamy
as usual. She had taken her electronic
reader from her pocket and was reading it while they waited.
A few minutes
later, the cargo loading vehicle returned.
Despite its immense size, its motor was nearly silent. Like everything these days, the cargo loader
operated on Tarium. The element abundant
to foreign worlds made space travel quick and possible. In small amounts, it powered nearly every
device, from electronic readers to cargo vehicles to buildings. Larger quantities allowed for travel through hyperspace. The energy created through the use of Tarium
created shortcuts through the fabric of space, allowing travelers to reach
distant star systems in the course of a few days.
The man looked
down from the driver’s seat. “Come
on. I haven’t got all day. You need to get yourselves into one of these
boxes.”
“Right,” said
Ben. He took a few steps to his right
and returned with a large metal tool.
With it, he pried the box open.
In the dim light, Nathan discerned the contents of the box. It was full of large sacks of food, probably
intended as rations for the flight.
Fortunately, the box was only half full.
Nathan and Arianna climbed atop the sacks and squeezed themselves into
the tight confines.
“Well, this is
comfortable,” said Nathan sarcastically.
Ben turned to
him. “I never said it would be
comfortable.”
“Enough
talking,” said the cargo vehicle operator.
“Get that box closed up so I can move it.”
Ben moved
swiftly. He lifted the open flap of the
large container and pushed it back into place.
Then he handed the large metal tool to Nathan. Finally, he grabbed a hammer and pounded a
couple of nails into the side of the box.
Normally, he would have sealed it more thoroughly, but he had to allow
Nathan and Arianna the opportunity to escape from the box.
As Nathan
looked around his tight confines, he was glad to see there were tiny slits in
the side of the box. At least he
wouldn’t have to worry about suffocating to death.
Once the box
was closed, it was loaded onto the truck.
Nathan heard the low sound of the vehicle’s motor roaring to life and
felt the box shift slightly. Once they
started moving at a decent rate of speed, he turned to Arianna.
“You doing
okay?” he asked.
“Oh, yes. I’m fine.
This is fun.”
Nathan
frowned. “I’m not sure that’s the word
I’d use to describe it.”
A short time
later, the cargo loading vehicle came to a stop. Nathan felt the box move again. His weight pressed against the side of the
box, and he felt Arianna’s weight push against him. The box slid up the ramp in a jerky motion for
nearly half a minute before the floor beneath it leveled out. Then, the box was pushed into place, and it
stopped moving.
Nathan checked
the time on his electronic reader and saw that it was a quarter to eight. Fifteen more minutes. The tight confines were beginning to get to
him. He could hardly move in the small
space between the sacks of food and the top of the box. Arianna seemed to take it okay, though. She was busily reading. In spite of Nathan’s love of reading, he
couldn’t imagine reading in such an uncomfortable position.
The next
fifteen minutes passed so slowly it seemed as if time itself had slowed
down. Nathan listened to the pitter
patter of feet on the metal floor of the cargo bay, to the scraping of boxes
against one another. He felt the impact
as the workers pushed a box against the side of theirs. With that came a sudden surge of panic. What if they covered all the air pockets?
Nathan took a
few deep breaths to calm himself, though for all he knew, they could have been
the last deep breaths he’d ever take.
The sliding of boxes continued.
Nathan’s ears caught the low grunts of the workers pushing them into
place.
When at last
the shuffling of feet died down, he breathed a sigh of relief. He and Arianna could still breathe. Nathan peered through the darkness at his
sister. Her face was illuminated by the
light from her electronic reader. She
appeared completely unconcerned about what was happening around them. Deep down, he wished he could feel the same
way.
Nathan checked
his electronic reader. Eight
o’clock. A low rumble caught his
attention. The floor beneath him began
to vibrate as the ship’s engines roared to life. He felt a wave of relief wash over him. Once the ship took off, he would push his way
out of the box. His muscles were
beginning to cramp in the tight confines.
The purr of the
engines grew louder. Nathan felt the
ground beneath him move. His weight
pressed against the bottom of the box while the ship accelerated. They were off. He felt a sense of exhilaration. Finally, he was leaving Earth. His greatest wish was finally fulfilled. He smiled as he looked over at Arianna.
“You ready?” he
asked.
Arianna nodded.
Nathan held the
metal tool in his hands and pried at the side of the box. The nails gave way, allowing the flap of the
box to fall to the floor, and Nathan and Arianna crawled out of the tight space.
Chapter
Four
A day had
passed since Jackson Trammel evaded execution on Mora. He sat in a chair in the cavernous chamber,
watching the blue flames flicker and the shadows dance along the walls. His comrades conversed among themselves. No one wanted much to do with the monks of
Mora, even though those monks had saved their lives.
As Jackson sat
in his chair, his thoughts drifted to his brother Nathan. He had no idea if his message had reached its
recipient or if Nathan had decided to accept the message. The monks certainly seemed confident in
it. But Jackson didn’t completely trust
the monks just yet. They hadn’t told him
the reasoning behind any of their actions.
Jackson’s
friend Andy took a seat next to him.
“So, what’re you thinking about?”
“My brother,”
said Jackson. “The monks want him for
some reason.”
“Do you have
any idea what it is?”
“No. They’ve been incredibly vague.”
“Yes, we have.”
Jackson looked
up to see the old, wrinkled face of Marius Allen, the head monk. Marius’s hair was shrouded by his hood, but
Jackson could see a faint smile on his face.
“So, are you
going to tell me a bit more?” asked Jackson.
Marius nodded,
shadows dancing on his face. “Yes, there
are some things I feel I must tell you.
It is only fair.” He paused for a
moment and closed his eyes. “It all
begins with a man by the name of Cadmus King.”
“The Galactic
commander?” said Jackson disbelievingly.
“As in the guy who’s second in command to Emperor Armand?”
“The very
same.”
Jackson shook
his head. “I don’t understand. What does he have to do with rescuing
us? What does he have to do with my
brother?”
“Allow me to
finish,” said the old man, a hint of impatience in his voice. “It all begins with Cadmus King. He used to be a monk here on Mora. It was many years ago. In fact, it has been nearly twenty years
since we last saw him.”
“Then why is he
a problem?”
“It is because
of what he learned when he lived among us,” explained Marius. “As you have seen, we possess powers you
might refer to as magic. These powers
originate from the planet of Mora itself.
That is why the Galactics are so determined to claim the planet for their
own.”
Jackson
frowned. “I never knew that.”
“Like us,”
continued Marius, “Commander King possesses the abilities granted to him by
this planet. And ever since his
departure, we have sensed a growing evil in the world. It is our belief that Commander King is
behind this evil.”
“I still don’t
see what this has to do with my brother.”
A frown crossed
Marius’s face. “In time you will find
out. In time.”
******
The cargo bay
was stacked from floor to ceiling with countless boxes. To Nathan, it seemed like a massive
labyrinth. He and Arianna had taken some
food from the box in which they had hidden, but it was beginning to feel like
they’d never get out of the cargo bay.
Everywhere they turned, they saw boxes and boxes of food, as well as
other supplies.
“Are you sure
we should be wondering around like this?” asked Arianna, who was glancing in
awe at the towers of creates. “What if
somebody sees us?”
“Do you want to
hide in the box forever? I don’t know
about you, but it was a little too small for me.”
Arianna
shrugged. “I thought it was rather
cozy.”
“If you say
so,” Nathan mumbled.