Josh. Violet asked.
Josh was asleep on her hull, in native shorts and a t-shirt. He had even bought some sunscreen. Yes dear?
Will I ever be able to fly again?
They had been here several weeks now. Violet was almost completely submerged in her new home. Of course you will.
I don’t think so. Violet’s discomfort was leaking into their conversation. She had been trying very hard to repress it.
Joshua didn’t know what to say, staring out at the dying field they were sitting on.
We’ll run out of places to go to soon. Violet said. And then I’ll starve to death.
This is a big planet.
But a lot of it is buildings.
Then we’ll crush the buildings!
I can’t do that… I’m just a Puritan.
You’re more than just anything, Violet.
The nodescape is gone. Beemspace is dead. This is the reckoning Ghost warned about in the scriptures. Violet said, remembering the Book of the Black Nova.
That’s nothing but religion, for the lower class, not for us Captains and starships, Violet.
But it’s true. This is it. We’re all being punished for the Nova’s sins.
Violet…
If I’m going to die. I want you to do it, before I starve to death!
What?
I want you to take a gun to my neural plexus. Kill me before I feel the pain of starvation. I don’t want to wither away!
There’s no way I’m doing that. Joshua said.
Please!
Joshua couldn’t believe what he was hearing. She must have been losing her mind. You’re not going to die. We’ve got months of nutrition left.
The nodescape is gone! Planets won’t get supplies, they’ll descend into chaos. It’s over…
Violet! Joshua was getting annoyed. Get a hold of yourself.
I’m trapped in dirt! Tons of dirt! If you won’t do it I’ll make you do it.
Violet took a hold of Joshua’s body.
–
–
“Well there they come again.” Fawkes said, Nyx beside him.
Are those tanks? Flames asked. His ocular strips were beneath the dirt now. All he had was the withering link with Fawkes.
Possibly. “Are you ready?”
“Yes.” Nyx said, running a diagnostic on her exosuit.
“There’s a lot of them…” Fawkes warned.
“We’ll be fine.” Nyx said with a smile, hiding all of her fear and uncertainty.
“Oh Nyx…” Fawkes embraced her with his paws and wings, kissing her profusely. “You don’t care, do you?”
“We’ve already been through hell and back, Fawkes.” Nyx cooed.
A kinetic shell bounced off Flames’ electrostatic shield. The entire system went down. Sorry about that.
It’s alright, Flames. Everything’s alright.
–
–
“Here we are.” Landlow panted.
There was nowhere left to go. They were at the very top of the mountain, and the skies had cleared.
“That was quite the walk. What now?” Hannah asked, looking around. “There isn’t anything here.”
Red scanned the peak of the mountain. It was only a few hundred meters in width. “Where’s the Glowing One?”
She ran to the other side, panicked. “Where’s Allonsi?”
Landlow came up beside her, putting a hand over her shoulder. She brought her wing over his. “Where’s Lentil?”
“I don’t know, Red.” Landlow exhaled. “Let’s set up the machine in case the wind kicks in. We can head back down next morn’.”
“No… this can’t be it.” she walked over to the edge of the peak. “There was supposed to be something here. This was the whole point! How could it be empty!”
Landlow didn’t say anything, beckoning for Hannah to help him with the machine.
Red took another step, peering down the edge. There was absolutely no wind, the clouds had cleared completely. The weather was perfect. The sky was blue. “When did the sky become blue?”
“Dunno, it does that sometimes, Red. When the planets aren’t in the way of the star.” Landlow said, setting the machine up in the center of the peak. “There.”
She flapped her wings, testing the thickness of the air. At this altitude she should plummet, but it felt like she was at sea level. It didn’t make sense.
“Don’t even think about it, Red. It’s just a high pressure ridge we’re sitting on. You get through it and you’ll fall to your death.”
“I feel like we’re on the ground.” Red replied.
“We’re up over ten thousand feet, Red.”
“What do I look like to you, Landlow?” Red asked.
“Like a Vorchan.” Landlow replied.
“Do I glow?” she asked, remembering what Lentil had said.
“Aye, a lil’. Now that ya mention it. I thought it was the light playin’ tricks.” Landlow walked over to her. “Why?”
“I don’t know. Something should be happening, but nothing is.”
“Well have patience, Red. We’ll wait till morn’ and then we’ll panic, alright?”
“Fine…”
–
Floating in a sea of red.
“Seleene?” she called, reaching out with her thoughts.
“You made it, dear.” Seleene crooned.
“Where?”
The apparition said nothing, coiling around her like a serpentine mist. “How you’ve grown…”
“Red!”
“What is it?” she asked the glaze, trying to make sense of this world.
“Red!”
The shower of vermillion receded, revealing a grey sky with thunderbolts and rain. The wagon was shimmering a bright blue, the only light source in the pitch black.
“What’s happening?” Red asked.
“Wagon’s failing, Red.” Landlow replied.
“What?”
“We’ve got a few minutes. This wind’ll rip us clear off the mountain!” Landlow said.
Red jumped at the sound of the thunderclaps, and walked over to the edge of the force field, staring at the rain.
“Do something, Red!” Hannah cried, clutching the spikes on her back.
“The rain.” Red saw it falling upwards. “You mentioned a high pressure ridge?”
“A what?” Landlow yelled back. The storm was getting worse. The whine of the wagon was drowning out all conversation as its generator started to fail.
“When that thing blows we’re looking at a—“
“Koveran containment failure… I know.” Red said. “Get on.” They crawled up onto her back. “Now I have no idea if this will work, but we’ve run out of choices.”
“Fly, Red!”
Red poked her snout out of the force field, feeling the rain fill her nostrils. She tucked her face back in, shaking the water from her ears.
“Jump! Red! We’ve – a few – seconds—“ the whining was getting worse.
Red stole a glance back at the contraption before jumping. She could see someone standing there next to the machine. “Is that—“
“Jump alread—” The wagon exploded in an aura of red, and she jumped, the strain on her wings horrendous as the wind lifted her up into the sky.
–
“Where the hell are we?” Hannah asked.
They were in a red expanse. The place of her dreams.
“Hello there!” Ignatio exclaimed. “I remember you! How did you make it this far? Relentless aren’t you?”
“Why?” Red asked sorrowfully.
“Thanks for getting us out of the bind Seleene left us in. Always knew you’d fall for Mart’s father! Almost got you up with Lentil, pity you didn’t have the right koveran level. You know he doesn’t excite you the way you think he does. Maybe ‘cus he’s dead, who knows.”
“You created all of this to break free?” Red asked.
“Not created, just manipulated. Well, that’s enough of you, now. I’ll be seeing you.”
And with that, Red found herself back on Allonsi’s bridge.
What the hell just happened? Allonsi transmitted, the decks flowing with adrexin.
–
–
They were all gathered in Flames lounge, talking about how they had survived the galactic brownout.
“We were lucky to have Emerald.” Darnell said, looking down at the poor pockmarked planet.
“Violet and I had it tough for a bit, but pulled through.” Joshua said.
“We got into another war down there.” Fawkes said.
“Yeah, it was getting tough.” Nyx added with a nuzzle.
“I’m just glad I’m home.” Red said, curling up beside Fawkes. “I think I’ll stay here for a while.”
Red didn’t understand what the point of all that happened was. All that torture and pain and fear… but in the end she figured that if the point of all the stress and anxiety was uncovered. Well, then it would also immediately vanquish that same point… Then she saw The Reaper out by the lounge window, forgot everything she’d just realized, and bolted for the shuttle bay.