<<Prev | First | Next>>

Teliko and Yalogalil learn about the Sytis and their planet while Leph reacts to Leena's postulation. Cain gets information out of Polos regarding Polos' knowledge of the other side.

It is time to reflect upon your "ego-self".
Nowhere to hide when the walls echo the you that we all see.
Ah, the smiles dissolve! The pulse begins to race; the face a flush of fear so plainly painted.
The Mirror World - the Mirror Maze: Confrontation...

---

“Anger…?”
Teliko nodded quickly. “Y-yeah… you know, the feeling you get when someone wrongs you?”
Czyak held his claws close to his body and stepped back, away from the tree. “I… If someone were to wrong me I would not tell them that. That… what you spoke to me… I-it was bad…”
“I’m sorry… I didn’t know.”
Czyak turned and took a step towards Teliko. She stepped back. “Do not be afraid. I am myself.”
“I-I might set you off again…”
Czyak stopped. “I have not wronged you.”
“No, I’ve wronged you, Czyak…”
Teliko could only hear concern and slight fear coming from Czyak. He was not angry at her. He didn’t seem to feel anything hostile towards her, even if she did just transform him into a monster. “I’m sor-”
“There is no need. I understand.”
Teliko nodded. “I know now. Okay…”
Czyak sat back down and closed his eyes. “This anger… Why do you need it? What is its purpose?”
Teliko sat cross legged, still a few meters away from Czyak. “Um… that’s kind of a difficult question.”
“Your kind have lived with only spoken language. You must have come up with a way to describe it.”
“Well… I suppose it’s like a burning inside you.”
“Yes. That is what it was like. But why was it like that? I do not understand.”
Teliko could sense a rising apprehension in Czyak as he tried to grasp the concept. Teliko stood. “Tell you what… I brought along some of my things, including my poetry…”
“Yes. Perhaps that would help.”
Teliko rummaged in her pocket until she found her S-Com. “Lemme just find it on here…

Yalogalil gazed at the sky as he and Blansh strolled through the garden. “There are many plants in this place.”
“Yes. Our planet is covered in plants. Most of the land is… swampish. Very moist and fertile.”
“And this is what you eat? Plant?”
Blansh stopped to tend to another velmi flower. “It is. What else would we eat?”
“Meat?”
“Meat!? No. We cannot metabolize meat.”
“So you are then… herbivores?”
“...Yes.”
Yalogalil frowned. “Then… why such big canines? It seems like a meat eating teeth.”
Blansh turned and spent a moment formulating her thoughts. “Interesting question… I am not evolution scientist… Ah! I will show you why we need these teeth.”
Blansh lumbered off quickly, little wings on her back unfolding and flapping excitedly. Yalogalil hurried to follow. He had to keep up a brisk pace to keep up with the much taller Sytis. “Where is it we are going?”
“I have cultivated a number of farlask. They are our main source of food.”
They arrived at a fenced off grove. A few short, thick, green stalks were growing from the ground. Blansh unlocked the gate and carefully stepped inside. “You must remain outside.”
“Why?”
The nearest farlask to Blansh suddenly began to grow. Yalogalil pressed himself against the fence and marveled at the process. “These plants may be quite tasty…”
With a whip and a crack that caused Yalogalil to flinch, the farlask sprang from the ground and wrapped itself around Blansh’s leg. “But they can be quite dangerous.”
Blansh kicked, and the plant recoiled back into the ground. “That one is strong. It might be able to break a few bones of yours. We have thick skin and strong bones.”
She walked slowly by the other farlask, approaching a pot with a more mature looking farlask. Yalogalil caned his neck as the farlask reacted to Blansh’s presence. “That looks as though it could harm even Sytis.”
“Indeed it can.”
As if on cue, the plant snaked out of its pot, making a beeline for Blansh’s neck. Blansh was faster. She quickly slashed with her claws, severing the farlask from its base. It went lip without pause, and Blansh set down the pot. “It will grow back soon.”
Without further ado, she plopped it in her mouth and bit down. Her sharp teeth made short work of the fleshy vine. She strolled back, swallowing contently. “Wild farlask can grow quite large.” she explained. “It reaches into the sky and is as thick as a Sytis. Many of our kind hunt it for sport.”
“I understand this. Many thanks.”
The Sytis remained motionless for a moment, then spoke. “It was an excuse to eat young farlask.”
Yalogalil chuckled. “Yes, indeed.”
He yawned, and rubbed his eyes. “Excuse me, Blansh, but my lids are falling heavy and I think I want to sleep. Will you be here tomorrow?”
“I will.”
“I may come visit again.”
“I look forward to it.”
Yalogalil strolled back towards the main building, a strange feeling rising in his chest.

Leph and Serleah were speechless for a moment. “Don’t apply…?”
Leena nodded. “Yes… Some very small cosmological constants are different here. Enough to make FTL travel impossible. I shutter to think of what might happen if we tried to engage our hyperdrive here.”
Serleah shook her head. “How is that possible? This is only another galaxy; the laws of physics should be the same! … Right?”
Zach nodded. “Right. So my theory is that we weren’t catapulted into another galaxy. We were catapulted into another universe.”
Leph turned and walked a short distance away, clasping his chin. “What was going on…”
“Leph?”
“Think about it! We were tasked with bringing secret weapons to a secret government run test site… then we end up getting hijacked and sucked into another dimension!”
“Universe.”
“Whatever! This whole thing stinks…”
Leena walked over and out her paw on Leph’s shoulder. “Whatever role we had before… it’s clear what we need to do now.”
“What?”
“We need to find Feldoh and Teri. After that we can worry about getting home.”
Serleah took a step forward, wanting to comfort Leph. It was another situation he couldn’t control, and he knew how he was feeling. Leph took Leena’s paw, and Serleah stepped back. Leph nodded. “You’re right, of course…”
Leena squeezed Leph’s paw, and all the tension in his body seemed to dissipate. “We should try and get some rest before Makron makes her decision.”
Leph nodded. “That’s a good idea… yeah…”
Serleah gave a small sigh and clapped her paws together. “Ok… well, goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Serleah.” Leena said.
Serleah left the room before Leph said anything. Zach looked back at the data. “I’m gonna stay up a bit longer. You guys have sweet dreams.”
“Thanks.”
Leph and Leena walked out. Zach turned back to the data and frowned. “A new universe…”
Leph knew that Leena’s brain was working overtime thanks to the prospect of a whole new universe to explore. “This must be very exciting for you.”
“Oh, it is. Though, I can’t help feeling scared…”
“We can’t escape, can we?”
Leena looked down. “…No. We can’t. At least… I don’t know how we can. Someone obviously built a device to bring us here. Maybe they got sucked through too?”
“Maybe they’ve been killed or captured by those pirates.”
“Leph.”
“Sorry… Let’s not think about it now.”
They entered their room to see Cyan still asleep on the floor. Leena dropped her arms. “I thought Teliko would be back by now.”
Leph turned. “Let’s go look for her. I hope she’s not with that Sytis…”
They headed for the exterior of the building. “Why not? From what I understand they are telepathically linked.”
“That’s why. I don’t want what happened to me to happen to her.”
She sighed. “No one was more scared than me when you were going through that, Leph. But… When we came out of that portal… She was healed. I would have agreed with you a few hours ago, but now… I think exploring her ability is a good idea.”
“I was healed too, Peach. Remember? I was dead for minutes.”
“I know… a-and I keep thinking back to what you said to me. We have no control over it, so we shouldn’t worry too much about it.”
“I will always worry about that girl…”
“Me too, Leph…”
He nodded after a moment of thought. “I’ll count our blessings, then. I don’t know how this happened… but I will try and accept it. Hell, we’re in another universe. Who knows? Maybe this only happens here.”
Leena nodded. “Yeah. Hopefully.”

Teliko and Czyak once again sat together under the tree. Teliko was just finishing the third poem as Czyak looked into the distance pensively. The sun was setting. Teliko looked up at him. “Well…?”
Czyak grunted. “You know what I say about this.”
Teliko nodded. “I can feel how unimpressed you are.”
Czyak’s mood shifted. “That is not entirely true. I simply… I cannot…”
“You can’t relate to it.”
“Yes.”
“Ok… maybe I can explain. Let me choose the sad one.”
She brought up one of the previous poems. It was one she had wrote a few years ago when she was in boarding school, feeling homesick. “Ok so this one starts… ‘I am alone.’”
“Yes.”
“What does that statement make you feel?”
“Nothing. It is a statement of fact. It is not spoken… not felt within me.”
“Okay… but say you were alone for a very long time without seeing any of your loved ones? What would you feel?”
Teliko felt a sort of imagined loneliness eliminating from Czyak. I was not very strong. She nodded. “Okay. So… I guess words like sadness and love can make you feel things just by making you think of those emotions.”
“Just as some… feelings are spoken among Sytis that relate to objects or experiences. We speak and an understanding is achieved.”
“Yes! Like that!”
“So a single word can create such a response?”
Teliko tilted her head and looked down at her S-Com. “Well… no. That’s why our poetry takes time to weave a sort of web of emotions. It’s more powerful if you kind of… elaborate.”
“I think I understand now… It is very alien to me. But… what of anger? I still do not understand it.”
Teliko nodded slowly. “I’ve thought about that a bit. Tell me something. When a Sytis does something wrong, how does the law handle it?”
Czyak thought about that. “It is very rare for Sytis to act criminally. When it occurs a… counselor will be summoned to help heal the Sytis.”
“Heal?”
“Yes. Usually criminal behavior is a result of some sort of mental ailment. It is rare. Counselors can heal troubled minds. Usually it is a result of extreme… pressure.”
“Like stress? And panic?”
“Yes.”
“But… what do you feel inside when someone does something criminal?”
“We wish to help. We are… saddened.”
“What if a Sytis hurts you directly?”
“I do not see the difference. It would be the same.”
Teliko sighed. “Aren’t there any Sytis that… want to be criminal? Who want to hurt others and cause harm? Ones you can’t heal?”
Czyak was quiet for a long time. “There was. Once.”
“Oh? And what do you feel about that Sytis?”
“I am… ashamed. Is that the right word?”
Teliko did sense shame within Czyak. It went deeper than any she had felt from him before. Almost as though it was coming from all of the Sytis on the planet. “I-it is… Well… Where I come from, anger is usually the first response to being intentionally hurt, or even unintentionally hurt. It makes us want to lash out at the one that hurt us. I guess to… make things right.”
Czyak nodded. “I heard you speak that. It was irrational.”
“That’s true, Czyak. That’s true.”
They both heard a distant voice. “There she is!”
Teliko sighed. “That’s my parents… They probably want for something.”
Leph and Leena approached at a leisurely pace as Teliko stood and dusted herself off. “Czyak, th-”
He held up a claw. “I know.”
Teliko smiled. “Yeah.”
She didn’t speak, and for a moment, she felt a sort of organic exchange pass between her and Czyak. It was like muscle memory she didn’t know she had. It wasn’t like she was experiencing his feelings of farewell. She was, but her mind simply understood it as a goodbye. She smiled back at him without moving her mouth, then turned and walked towards her parents. After she was a good way away from Czyak she realized what had happened and turned slightly to look over. “Hey…”
He smiled.
“Teliko?” Leph put a paw on her shoulder, and she jumped.
“Ah! You startled me…”
He took his paw away. “Sorry… We’re going to try and get some rest. You should too.”
Leena leaned forward. “You’re getting black rings.”
She nodded. “I guess I could use some sleep… Hey, you guys?”
They began walking back. “You know these Sytis don’t feel anger?”
Leph chuckled. “Really?”
Leena nodded. “Fascinating. No wonder this seems like such a peaceful society! How did you find out?”
Teliko thought for a moment. “W-well… Czyak just couldn’t feel anger. I described the emotion to him and he didn’t understand.”
Leena petted Teliko’s head. “I envy you. It wish I could study a new alien species that closely…”
Leph nodded. “We have to keep our priorities straight, though. Getting everyone home safe comes first.”
They entered the building. “You guys can handle that. I’m just a kid! I… want to keep exploring until we can get home.” Teliko said, her voice taking on a preemptive pleading tone.
“Well… We might have to fly out into possibly hostile space with pirates lurking around so this is the safest place for you.”
Leena nodded. “You’ll have to tell me all about the Sytis when we do get home. Maybe we can co-write a paper!”
Teliko chuckled. “Maybe.”
Cyan’s snores filled the room when they all entered. Leena climbed into one of the beds, and Teliko the other. They were massive, easily able to hold five people lying side by side. Leph sat on the edge as Leena wriggled around in an attempt to get comfortable. She settled in a strange position. “It’s lumpy. Still pretty comfy.”
Leph lay back as everyone settled in. Despite how tired they all were, it was a while before they fell asleep.

~~~

Cain jerked up from the cot and glanced around wildly. Nai and Gray Fox were tinkering with a couple of salvaged computer terminals as Polos watched a couple of concierges working on the wall. He climbed out of the cot (which was also salvaged) and walked over to Nai. “Hey… how long have you been awake?”
“What? Oh, uh, I don’t know… an hour?”
Cain frowned and crossed his arms. Nai didn’t seem intimidated. He was too busy getting his paw stuck in the computer’s casing. “Why didn’t anyone wake me?”
“Eh… we don’t need your help.”
Cain grumbled. “Right.”
He left the two alone and approached Polos. “Polos.”
“What is it?”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“What? Is this about not waking you?”
“No. I was led to believe I would be running this mission, even if it’s gone to hell.”
Polos shrugged. “I don’t know what gave you that idea. I mean, sure you got me in touch with your boss, from prison I might add, and got this whole thing funded, but it was my team and my knowledge that made this job possible…”
Polos trailed off. Cain drew himself up to his full height. “Your knowledge? It’s pretty clear by now that you know as much as these big brain scientists do about whatever the hell sucked us in here. You admitted as much earlier.”
“You want me to explain it to you? It would take years.”
“No. I don’t care how we’re here. I just want to know why. I also want to know why you and my boss felt it was necessary to cut me out and tell me jack shit.”
Cain gritted his teeth menacingly as he spoke the final few words. Polos was slightly put off. “Well… I suppose we’re all in this now. There are only about… six people in the galaxy that know exactly what this… Oculus beam, as they call it, is. There may be more… in fact we’re sure of it… but those people stay well hidden. Your boss is one of those people, after you got me in touch with him.”
“Ok… that doesn’t answer my question.”
There was a loud clang as the two concierges moved away from the wall. It fell away, drifting off into space. A force field was apparently already in place, as they were all still alive. At the same time, a door on the other end of the bay opened, and more of the space station’s salvage was brought in. Polos regained his focus and continued. “Yes… well you heard what I said. It is theorized that this universe we’re in now is supposed to be pure energy. Apparently not.”
“So what? What you said on Atriea was true? There really was a potential for a weapon of mass destruction?”
“Not… exactly. We fingered out, based on the cargo, that the Atriean government was trying to use this universe as an energy source, not a weapon. When you told me about your boss, and I got in touch with him, he agreed with my theory that this universe could be used as a weapon. I told you the truth in a sense. Someone was going to use the Oculus beam as a weapon, I just told you it was the Atriean government when it was really your boss. So you wouldn’t ask too many questions. Now that I think about it, though, things just don’t add up.”
“Hey, don’t get all confused now… you’re supposed to explain all this to me.”
Polos took Cain’s arm and led him further away from Gray Fox and Nai. “Think about it. Their reason for this whole thing, apparently, is to harness the energy that was supposed to be here. I was too focused on getting the beam only, I didn’t think as much about the cargo on the Frontier fleet… The components themselves are all clearly made for energy collection.”
“So? What’s the problem then?”
“There was a lot more there than I expected. Guns, a ship and a few more devices I don’t recognize.”
Cain thought for a moment. “Guns? Maybe the Atriean government really was trying to build a weapon, and what you said was right and you didn’t even know it!”
Polos was silent for a long time. “You might be right. It doesn’t explain everything, but… I don’t know. We’ll have to keep our wits about us, Cain. And… have I answered your question?”
Cain shrugged. “Half of it. You’ve raised like eight more, though. What the hell was my boss gonna do with a weapon like that?”
Polos shrugged. “I didn’t care enough to ask. He was literally going to give me an entire planet and enough money to live the rest of my life in comfort in exchange for my research.”
“Shit, I was getting paid my regular fee. I guess that’s what you get for being in prison so long.”
“If we get out of this, Cain, I’ll give you an island on my planet.”
“I’ll hold you to that. You still didn’t tell me why I wasn’t told anything.”
Polos smiled. “Well… This is very sensitive information, you understand. But… Even so, I think you were chosen because the boss thought you could be trusted to do a good job.”
“Just not trusted to keep a secret.”
Polos shrugged. “I can’t speak to that.”
They both looked over at Nai and Gray Fox. “They’re hiding something.” Cain muttered.
Polos nodded. “Nai seemed at odds with Gray Fox. I wonder what he knows.”
Cain grinned. “I can tell you.”
“What? How?”
“I have spent a long time observing people. I have enhanced senses. Nai is suspicious, just like us, but I’m guessing Gray Fox knows the most.”
Cain narrowed his eyes at Gray Fox’s back. “That’s a problem, though. I can’t read him at all.”