ALTERNATE
TALES OF THE STAR FORCE
STAR BLAZERS—RADNAR’S
GAME
Being the sixth part of THE
NEW COMET--- BY: Frederick P. Kopetz
This Act is being completed with the
Cooperation and Assistance of Derek A.C. Wakefield (as usual)---Freddo
Note: This chapter
contains a bizarre scene on R’Khell with detail some may find a bit disturbing.
Just wanted to give a heads-up.
ACT TWO: ABOMINATIONS
I.
ROUTINE BUSINESS (and not-so-routine visions)
Space
Battleship
The
Vicinity of Sirius
March
1, 2207
1032
Hours: Earthtime
Deke
Only, now, there was a difference.
Due to attrition in the ranks of the Sun Tigers in a battle they
had fought earlier this morning, Deke Wakefield had been promoted to Squadron
Leader of the Third Squadron of the Sun Tigers, and Brew had been chosen as his
squadron executive officer and the flight leader of the second flight of their
new squadron.
Right now, they were flying in combat again on their first mission
as a Cometine carrier had launched a number of fighters and boats against the
EDF Base at Sirius.
So far, it was their lot to fight the enemy planes as the
“Okay, Third Squadron!” barked Deke as he swung the squadron around
to engage a spread of Cometine heavy fighters. “We got those Scorpion boats,
now we have to catch up with those fighters before they can strafe the base.
We’re clear on what we’re doing?”
Lots
of “
Before long, the Cometines began to succumb to their first attack
as only two planes broke off, not knowing what was
hitting them.
Enemy planes began to blow apart like flowers of fire as the Third
Squadron worked very efficiently to blow apart their enemy tormentors.
Deke gave himself a thumbs-up, and then grinned at Brew as, not
far away, his bud and his flight shot up a number of planes.
However, one of the enemy planes then swung around and jumped one
of his own pilots from his second section.
“This is Ensign Ross!” yelled a Sun Tiger pilot. “One of them is
right on my six, I need backup guys, I….ARRRRRGGGHH!”
Before Deke, or anyone else, could react, Ross’ plane was blown to
bits by the Cometine pilot.
“Okay,
guys!” yelled Brew. “Ross was a good guy, but now it’s
payback time!” He thumbed his mike and said, “Second Flight, get that bandit!”
Brew’s planes wheeled around, chasing the enemy pilot as he tried
to high-tail it out of there. Finally, one of Brew’s men lined up a missile on
the enemy pilot’s engine and fired.
The Cometine pilot soon blew apart into oblivion, following
several of his flight-mates there.
Deke nodded, knowing he and his planes would have more work to do
to stop the other four remaining Cometine planes.
This
day isn’t over yet, he thought.
Later on, back on the
“Not bad, splashing twenty fighters the first day,” said Cory
Conroy. “How’d you motivate your guys and gals,
“Simple; I told them I didn’t want my first day as squadron leader
screwed up.”
They laughed at Deke’s honesty. But,
The same day, on Earth, in the late hours of the evening, Sasha
“Petrovsky” sat in her mostly darkened dorm room after dinner, sighing to
herself at her computer as she read the latest letter that Deke had sent. She
was alone. Her roommate was away somewhere at a conference in
“So,
Sasha…they made me a squadron leader this morning. I just flew my first mission
as a squadron commander today. We had losses, but just one. I came back, and we
won.
But
why do I feel so hollow?
I
think I figured out why; it’s because I haven’t seen you in months. I wish you
were here to share this with me.
I
wish you had graduated early, Sasha, and I wish you would be assigned to this
ship, so we could spend more than a few minutes together. But when will that
happen?
God
only knows, Sasha…God only knows….”
Sasha sat in concentration for a long while, trying to pierce the
psychic veil that had been around her lately.
She could pull up images of her future, but they were confused and
very disturbing.
She did know…or thought she knew…that Aunt Nova would survive,
because one of her visions was one of her and Derek on a train together with
her father somewhere on Earth. But then, the vision broke down into a vision of
someone who looked a bit like Nova screaming at her with a dagger in her hand.
She didn’t know what it meant, but it was very disturbing.
Other
thoughts ran through her mind as she sat in the dim light in her room.
An image of herself in
battle at the Argo’s radar wearing
her midshipman’s blues.
An image of herself in a dark cell
somewhere, crying.
That image was replaced by an image of herself
walking slowly down a beach in what she saw was a white wedding dress. Her
father was at one side, and Nova was at the other side of her. She was the
bride, and it was on a warm beach on Iscandar. Sasha recognized the smell of
the sea, the warmth of the sun, and even the feel of the fine sand of a sacred
beach, forbidden to outsiders, under her bare feet. But, she could not see who
she was going to be marrying.
She saw only a shadow.
A shadow that scared her.
And she had no idea when this would happen.
The last image scared her most of all, somehow.
She was looking at herself nude by a full-length mirror,
somewhere. She was studying her own profile.
The most disturbing thing, other than her nakedness, was the shape
of her stomach.
In this vision, Sasha knew she was pregnant.
And she had no idea who the father of her baby was.
I
know something, Sasha thought. I know it’s not going to be long until you get home. But, every time I
dream of you lately, there is some shadow between us. Why? What is it? I spoke
with Astra at the Embassy the other day, after she told me how brave Aunt Nova
was, that is, and I wish I could figure out what it was. Or what it is.
Deke…when will we be together? When will things work out for us?
At that, Sasha just put her head down on her desk, and she cried…
With utter frustration.
And utter confusion…
II.
INVIDIA PLOTS AGAIN
The
Eritz Gatlantis
Approaching
the Great Magellenic Cloud
March
1, 2207
2332
Hours: Earthtime
Princess
Invidia was happy when she heard about how the latest attacks on Earth, Sirius,
Procyon, and Pogi had bloodied their enemies by downing some planes and
damaging their bases.
“And how goes the war with Radnar?” said a smiling Invidia as she
spoke with Gernitz on her commphone.
“Princess, my dreadnought Devastation
succeeded in destroying a battleship squadron under Radnar’s allegiance near
the Magna Star Cluster. House Kolog had the nerve to send us a Notice of
Complaint, reminding us that we are traitors awaiting their punishment.”
“I am glad to hear that. In maybe one or two months, we can
re-ignite the Comet Field and accelerate towards the Great Magellenic Cloud.
Iscandar and Gamilon will be our next targets.”
“Is that biting off more than we can chew?” said Gernitz.
“Never, not if I destroy
Gamilon and then conquer Iscandar. The Earthlings have a
special spot in their hearts for the Iscandarians. I am sure they may consider a surrender when we threaten to behead their friend Queen
Starsha in public. If not, what does it matter? We can conquer them before they
build up too many of their forces-even with what we have now. It will be easier
once my Comet is burning across the skies again.”
Gernitz and Invidia laughed at that together.
Dyre came in and saluted.
“Princess,” he said. “I have more good news.”
“Yes?”
“The R’Khells have agreed to aid us with
a special assassination squad. Commodore Derek Wildstar is due back on Earth
shortly according to our intelligence. We can hurt the Star Force by having him
assassinated.”
Invidia smiled at that. “Then we stop striking Earth for a short
time to lull them to sleep so we can concentrate on bringing Radnar to his end.
When we have Radnar sent to Arishna, if she even exists, then we can work on
our strategy for taking Earth at last. They will be our next target after we
neutralize Gamilon and Radnar.”
“I also wonder where Yvona is,” said Dyre. “I heard rumors she has
gone soft.”
“Our spies on R’Khelleva tell me she is pregnant.”
“Pregnant?” said Dyre.
“Yes,” said Invidia. “With Ekogaru’s child!”
“But he is dead and possessing that Terran idiot?” said Dyre.
“Imagine him coming up from the afterlife to impregnate a woman,”
laughed Invidia. “And I thought only the dumb Earthlings were stupid enough to
believe in Immaculate Conception with their Messiah or ruler or whoever that
dead Terran was.”
“Ekogaru, back from the dead and making women pregnant,” laughed
Dyre. “What deluded idiots the R’Khells are!”
At that, all of them laughed.
The Cometines thought this was incredibly funny.
III.
A SUDDEN, UNEXPECTED SUMMONS
Space
Battleship Argo
March
4, 2207
1318
Hours: Earthtime
As
Commodore Derek Wildstar and the first bridge crew of the Argo looked up at the Commander’s image on their main video panel,
they could scarcely believe what they were hearing.
“Sir?” said Wildstar. “We’re relieved from our patrol here at
Procyon?”
“Yes, temporarily,” said General Singleton. “You will meet the
carrier Courageous later today at
1900 hours before you brief them. You are to be on your way to your new
assignment at 2000 Hours. It is very important that you are on your way to your
new assignment by then. You are to call me when you are to make your first
warp. And, you are to have the ship ready for continuous warp conditions,
possibly pushing the Argo harder than
you ever have before. For the sake of the
“I am sure we can do it, sir. But where are we going?”
“You have to arrive at your destination in six days. The Earth
Defense Council has ordered you to make port on Planet Iscandar on March the 10th.
Can you get the Argo there in six
days under radio silence after you warp away from here? The Gamilons and
Iscandarians already know that you will be coming.”
“Iscandar, sir?
By the 10th?” said Wildstar.
“Yes. I estimate you will have to warp 24666.66 lightyears every
day to accomplish that. It is possible for the Argo to do so under continuous warp conditions, but we have never
attempted so many successive warps before. Can she do it?”
Wildstar looked at his crew, who nodded. “We can do it, sir. Or
die trying.”
“I will send you your sealed orders when you arrive in
Mothertown,” said Singleton with a smile. “Godspeed, Commodore.”
At that, the Argo’s main
screen went dark.
“All right, people,” said Commodore Wildstar. “We have to put our
heads together, and fast. Sandor, Yamanami, make certain the wave engine is ready
for this new journey.”
“Yessir,” said Sandor and Derek’s chief engineer together.
“Kitano, you and Miss Forrester are to work together on a course.
I will not tolerate any mistakes.”
“Yessir,” said Tetsu and Allison together.
“Homer, connect us with the Courageous.
Tell them that it is important they make our rendezvous on time.”
“Aye, sir.”
“Everyone else…you know your jobs.” Commodore Wildstar got up and
saluted. “Get us there. We have our orders.”
Klaxons went off a few minutes later on the Argo as, while they shared their lunch, Hardy and Dawn dropped
their spoons when they heard Wildstar’s announcement.
“All hands, now hear this!
We are coming off station at 2000 Hours, and we are leaving Procyon under
extended warp conditions. Our next port of call, within six days, will be
Planet Iscandar in the Great Magellenic Cloud. I am not at liberty to tell you
why we are being dispatched to Iscandar, but it is important that we get there.
We will reach Planet Balan in three days and Iscandar in six days. We are under
a communications blackout from the time we leave until we arrive at Mothertown.
The Gamilons and Iscandarians have been forewarned of our arrival. All
communication units will be shut down at 2000 Hours. The Cometines cannot
discover our mission. It is urgent. Prepare the ship to head off. That will be
all.”
Wildstar cut off and Dawn said, “Did I hear that right? We’re
going to Iscandar? In six days?”
Hardy nodded. “We can do it, I just hope the
ship’ll make it. We’re pretty badly beat-up from this deployment.”
“Why are we going?” said Dawn fearfully as she held Jeff’s hand.
She hadn’t expected to be leaving the solar system. Now, she was going off to
another galaxy altogether.
“We go,” said Hardy. “Because we’re the Star
Force. There is no one else to do our job.”
At that, Dawn just nodded.
A few hours later, the Argo
had finished her rendezvous with the Courageous.
The Courageous drifted
into the system as the Argo headed
away from Procyon VI at full sublight speed.
“Captain,” said Homer. “The Earth commander on the base and the
Gamilon commander send us their best wishes for our journey.”
“Send our thanks, and make it fast. We have to call the Commander
at 2000,” said Wildstar.
“Yessir,” said Homer as he typed out the message.
Kitano
saluted and brought up their course on the screen. “Our first warp is taking us
past the edge of our galaxy to the Hakrandis System. Then, we will scan space
carefully to see what awaits us at our next warp target, 26,000 lightyears away
from that. We warp at 2000 Hours each day until we get to Iscandar.”
Wildstar nodded and said, “Homer, is the
message sent?”
“Sent,” said Homer.
“Send a message to the Commander. Then, we warp on schedule a minute
later.”
“Yessir!” said the whole bridge crew at once.
A moment later, the Argo’s
engines came up, and the mighty ship made her first space warp.
Destination: Iscandar.
SIX
DAYS LATER…..
Those
on the Argo who had never before seen
Iscandar were stunned by the beauty of the blue ocean and the bright sun of the
Sanzar System as the Argo came out of
a cloudbank on Iscandar with the Great Continent and Mothertown spread out
below them like glittering toys.
Everyone made ready for landing, with what they would be doing
next hush-hush as the ship hit the ocean in a spectacular spashdown and then
cruised towards the city of
It did not take long for the Argo
to arrive and drop anchor and lower the gangplank. But, no one was allowed off
the ship yet. It was clear that there was to be no shore leave…yet…
And no one knew what was happening; but, the Scuttlebutt Express
filled the gap later that day as the crew ate dinner at 1900 Hours on March 10th.
“Ah’ve ‘eard all sorts of things,” said Bryan Hartcliffe as he
occupied a table with Angie next to him. Tatiana Lubyanska sat at their table,
with Diane Henson making up the fourth member of their party.
Not far away, Dawn Westland and Jefferson Hardy sat listening as
Hartcliffe continued with, “I ‘eard Alex Wildstar’s on board the ship.”
“Alex Wildstar?” said Henson. “I met him once, he…”
“What’s he like?” piped up Dawn.
“Weird,” said Bryan Hartcliffe. “It’s like ‘e’s a real sad and
grim and gloomy sort. Hardly ever talks to anyone. Thinks
‘e’s an Iscandarian or somethin’ now. Damn high and mighty attitude.”
“You know that’s wrong,” said Hardy. “You know the Prince
Consort’s got a lot on his mind.”
“Oh?” said Hartcliffe.
“Please,
“Queen Starsha?” cried Dawn. “Is she coming with us to Earth? Is
it that bad that they’re evacuating Iscandar?”
“No,” said Hardy. “I heard they were in the VIP Lounge on the
ship.”
“Can we ask them what is up?” said Dawn.
“Yes,” said Hardy. “If you care to get past two
Space Marines with fixed bayonets.”
“Oh,” said Dawn.
IV. A HORRID NIGHT
Planet R’Khelleva
The
Wednesday, March 10,
2207
2000 Hours: Earthtime
The
clone of Yvona was screaming in horror and pain.
She
was in labor at last…in a place that resembled what she pictured one of the
rooms of Hell as being like.
She
had not seen Major Ginis for two days now, and she had new guards.
Her
guards were cruel. They had come down to her cell one day at the bequest of a
weird, twisted, bent little ancient poison dwarf of a woman named Aga.
Aga, it
turned out, was the prison midwife. She was an ugly hag with bulging eyes and
buck teeth who wore dirty clothes, smoked a cigar, and smelled like she was
drunk.
Yvona
had memories from her prior existence of having given birth to her son Samuel,
years ago in a Catholic hospital. Although it had been a hard labor, and she
remembered wearing only a dirty hospital gown, and then had gone naked towards
the end of her labor, the doctors and nurses and midwife had tried to make it
as pleasant for her as possible in the labor suite she had lain in.
This
time, when Aga felt her and muttered, “it is your time”, the dirty sackcloth
serape she had again been reduced to had been unceremoniously torn off, and she
had been handcuffed and marched barefoot and stark naked down to the filthiest
part of the prison dungeons, illuminated only by torches and by the hot sun
that came through an open, barred window. Yvona swore that invisible Things
with glowing red eyes drifted outside the cell, leering and her and laughing at
her.
Or
was she finally being driven mad by the conditions here on the polluted,
withered, dying planet of R’Khelleva? This was a planet where even the air
stank on some days.
Then,
as she had struggled, her gorilla-like guards had handcuffed Yvona’s clone to a
cot where the springs were covered only by a filthy mattress that stank with
unspeakable smells and was horribly stained. And, worst of all, she was given
absolutely no covering, not even a sheet over her desperately sweaty body.
Yvona
had nothing to push against with her bare feet but the filthy, dirt-covered
floor. The two gorilla-like R’Khell guards laughed at her and denied her food
and water, and Aga was the only “doctor”, feeling her every now and then with
dirty, claw-like hands as Yvona looked at the sick surroundings. Torches. Hot sun coming through the window
during the day, cold winds at night.
And,
skeletons were lying in a heap on the floor.
There
were three of them; Yvona guessed they had belonged to other “patients” who had
suffered in this house of lamentation and never came out. One of the skeletons
was obviously that of a baby. Roaches and worms crawled among the bones.
And,
roaches crawled even on Yvona’s body, which alternated between sweats and
uncontrollable shivering as her labor pains came and intensified in this weird
house of pain. Luckily, part of Yvona’s power was currently working overtime to
repel the micro-organisms that would otherwise have given her a fatal
infefction or puerpural fever in this place and thus lead to her death in
childbirth, which Ekogaru seemed to be aiming for. You never appreciate antispepsis until you go through something like
this in a barbaric place where they do not seem to klnow of the concept,
thought Yvona.
Yvona
also coughed a great deal, because Aga insisted upon smoking smelly cigars as
she worked on the laboring mother.
“Do
you want relief for the pain?” hissed Aga as she puffed on her cigar. “Or
should I cast a spell to help with this pain? Do you deserve relief, though?”
“I
have been down here how long and you gave me none?”
“You
have lain here in your sweat and filth for twenty-one hours, whore!” cackled
Aga.”Birth is hard. Ekogaru saith that all women in birth must suffer
humiliation and pain for daring to bring squirming lives into a sick world. We
make it harder in prison, witch! You suffer because it is the will of Ekogaru
you suffer!”
“Well,
where is he?” raged Yvona. “He made me like this, let him stand before me and
watch our son being born, God damn him!”
“You
be careful what you ask for!” yelled one of the guards
as he spat on her. “Otherwise, he will deliver it.”
“SHOW
UP HERE, EKOGARU!” raged Yvona as a bad labor pain hit her, and outside, a
stroke of lightning came as it began to rain. Over the thunder, Yvona yelled,
“EKOGARU, SHOW YOURSELF!”
The
midwife and guards laughed at her as a black cloud appeared at once in the room
and a wave of cold blew over Yvona’s exposed, filthy
form. There was no medication. No soothing hand. No one to
tenderly bathe her straining, sweaty, smelly body with a sponge. There
was also no one to massage the birth area with oil. Not even any water to drink
or ice to suck on.
Yvona
then hissed in hatred as a familiar face leered at her as Stovall’s body
appeared, glowing with red, demonic eyes as the Dark Lord had taken a very
dominant control of him.
“Greetings,
wife,” said Ekogaru. “How do you like your nursery?”
“I
HATE IT, AND I HATE YOU!” screamed Yvona as lightning and thunder went off
outside.
“Good,
good,” hissed Ekogaru. “Fill this room with your hate, and fill this child of ours with your hate!”
Another
labor pain came and Yvona screamed like an animal.
Ekogaru
just laughed at her. “I thought you’d be stronger than that, Yvona! Or has your
new God forsaken you? Where is the
heavenly host, Yvona? Tell me that!”
A
cold rain blew into the room and spattered all over Yvona’s body, cleansing her
a little of the sweat and dirt and insects as Ekogaru said, “Aga, give her the D’lakis now. She needs a stimulant and
relief from a little of that pain or she will die. I don’t know if I want her
dying quite yet. You may have taken this too far.”
“Let me withold it a little longer, Lord,” cackled
Aga. “Or give her a cigar to smoke.”
Ekogaru
struck the crone hard with a leg bone he picked up off the floor. “Do it, or I kill you!” roared Ekogaru.
“Yes,
yesss, masssster,” said Aga. “A little pain relief for the great precious one,
eh?” she said as she rooted through the bag she had brought. She pulled out two
skins, one of water, which she used to clean some ugly-looking metal
instruments, and then one skin that she threw to Ekogaru. “Give her that. The
little brat’s head will emerge. I will soon tear it out of her and end this
display of emotion. Why do the Earthers cry so much? She is not like us. She is
weak. Weak things like her should die and join the other bones on the floor of
sluts who did not survive their birth pangs.”
Ekogaru
forced Yvona to drink from the wineskin.
The
brew hit Yvona’s throat like liquid fire, and it burned all the way down as she
coughed and screamed while Aga coughed and laughed at her and rattled something
that looked like some mad shaman’s rattle. But, when she came out of the
near-swoon the sick brew had put her into, she felt stronger, more invigorated, and the lower half of her body felt semi-numb.
More
pains came a moment later as Yvona felt Aga cutting her, and then felt pulling
and agony as the old witch cackled and peeped and muttered and worked with
metal instruments that clinked and made horrid noises.
Ekogaru
looked at her birth area as a head, between silvery metal forceps, came out of
Yvona. Then, he screamed something in R’Khesh that not even Yvona could make
out, and weird cheers, hoarse singing, and the banging of gongs began to ring
through the prison as lightning flashed outside and thunder roared.
The
guards began to clap their hands and stamp their feet and sing something
primitive that sounded like “agaagahagahagahagahagaalgahaiiiiblaiiiii!”
The
stomping continued as Ekogaru screamed at her, “PUSH, WOMAN! PUSH AND LET MY
MASTERPIECE LIVE!”
Yvona
was slapped across the face by Ekogaru to help as she finally lost her reserve
and bit him. He only cuffed her about the head and laughed like a monster as a
naked baby boy came from her. A moment later, Yvona and the baby were baptized
with a bucket of icy cold water that a guard had brought in as the child began
to squall and scream.
Yvona
screamed when she saw her child’s face.
It
looked like an Earth child, save for two things.
The
child had been born with a pointed, single tooth in his mouth, and his eyes
glowed red.
Yvona
saw the guards and Aga roughly tie off the umbilical cord and then, Ekogaru cut
it with a dagger.
“My
son, ERUGAR!” screamed Ekogaru as he held the baby up. “Look at my demon of a
son! The Darkness has created unto me a great light! My boy! My beast! My false
prophet!”
The
guards laughed and Aga cackled as she made Yvona smoke the cigar that had just
been in her mouth.
“My son lives,” hissed Ekogaru. Then, he
turned to Aga and gave her his dagger. “Now kill the mother.”
“What?”
screamed Aga. “My Lord, every baby needs the milk and
arms of his mother. Even your son, Lordship!”
“Kill
her and give the little brat to a wet nurse. He will not need to be coddled for
long. And Yvona has shown that she has forfeited her right to further life. I
made her as a clone, and I can break her! I can someday make another clone of
her that will be more cruel and stronger than this rebellious soulless failure
that thinks it can think for itself.”
“YOU
WILL NEVER DO THAT!” screamed Yvona as the thunder roared outside. She had
delivered the afterbirth, and Aga was clothing her birth area with rags and
some kind of improvised loincloth to absorb the fluids and wastes.
Ekogaru
leered at Yvona and caressed her throat with a poisoned dagger. “One cut, and
that ends your stinking, miserable existence, Thing I made in a tank with no
soul, Thing that has outlived its usefulness unto me, Thing that I divorce, I
divorce, I DIVORCE at this moment. Die, former wife. Die, THING.”
Yvona,
in desperation, lashed out at Ekogaru with her mind as her eyes rolled up.
Ekogaru
himself screamed in pain and went down to his knees as he felt the onslaught of
Yvona’s psi-powers.
Yvona
then popped open the handcuffs with her mind and grabbed her son out of
Ekogaru’s arms. She put the Thing to her breast as it cried its unnatural deep
cries. The guards backed away as the baby then took a breath and snarled at
them.
“Good,
good,” purred Ekogaru. “You earned the right to live, wife. Now, take our son, bitch, and teach him how to fight! I
reverse the divorce. I think we shall make a happy family, the three of us. Guards, free her from prison and put them in Aganna House
within the hour. Carry her if she cannot walk.”
“My Abomination will be growing, and fast,” said Ekogaru as he
bowed mockingly to Yvona. “He will be exceptional, and you and he will work
together in the next few months with him. Your job….will be…to
kill together. Are we clear on this?”
“I
will teach him to fight, Ekogaru,” hissed Yvona as the guards lifted her and
the baby onto a stretcher and clothed their nakedness at last with a blanket in
bright red. “But, be wary. He could take your place.”
“Good!”
laughed Ekogaru. “LET HIM TRY!” he screamed as he disappeared in a puff of
sulfur.
“Take
her to Aganna House, residence of the Priests,” hissed Aga as she puffed at her
cigar. “She is now free from this prison. Make sure the keepers feed her and
help her care for the Thing. Although, maybe, he will not need our care for as
long as we think…”
The guards laughed at that, and Yvona
shivered, wondering what sort of evil they meant. The Child’s deep, guttural, almost growling
cries and the intensity of his gaze in his reddish-brown eyes even scared the
R’Khells, as they wondered what sort of Thing Yvona had given birth to.
Stovall returned to his ship a few minutes later, weirded out a
great deal by the sick scene as Ekogaru left him.
He leaned over the rail and looked out into the
A moment later, the Marine did the most natural thing a mere human
could do.
He threw up in the ocean.
What he had seen on R’Khell had been the sickest scene he had ever
seen in his life.
And, somewhere far away, he knew that Ekogaru was just laughing at
him.
V. A STRANGE CHILD
Planet R’Khelleva
Aganna House
Sunday, March 14, 2207
1300 Hours: Earthtime
“By all that is holy,” muttered Yvona four days later as she put
Erugar, clad in just a diaper, up to her naked breast for the last time in her
apartments in the priests’ house as she sat almost nude on a couch nursing him.
Her breasts hurt, and she was in pain all over, but part
of her loved her son, and feared him at the same time “You are a strange
child…”
“He grows quickly,” said Aga as she watched Yvona giving milk to
the child and then feeding him solid pureed baby food from a bowl, which he
took more eagerly. “In four days, he is now about more than one year old for a
normal baby.”
“He is not normal,” said a trembling Major Ginis as he watched
Yvona withdraw the child from her breast and then cover herself (with relief)
with a short dress. For four days, Yvona had worn only a few rags around her
crotch because the Abomination had been at her breast so much, sucking what
seemed to be both milk and part of her life force from her. “By God, this child
is an Abomination.”
Erugar’s eyes had stopped glowing, but he now had a full head of
hair and a strange little crinkled face. He also followed his mother’s eyes
with an unusual intelligence and maliciousness.
Ginis asked, “Has his…father..been back?”
“Heavens, no,” said Yvona. “I am grateful for that. But I do not
know when he will stop growing at such a bizarre rate. He has fevers, he often
trembles, he looks at you strangely…”
“Strangely,” said Erugar in an unnaturally deep voice as he
smiled. That shocked everyone more. “I am a rather strange child,” he lisped.
“And killing me is not truly on your agenda.”
“I did not think,” said Aga.
“Do not worry. I can read thine thoughts,” said Erugar. “You meant
to kill me. It will not succeed. Father does not want it. And,
Mother, stop feeding me this accursed ground-up baby rot.”
“You don’t have all of your teeth in yet!” said Yvona.
“When they come in, I desire meat,” whispered Erugar. “Raw meat. As bloody as possible.”
Yvona, Aga, and Ginis looked at each other. What would the Child
do next?
At about the same time, a meeting was taking place on the Argo on Iscandar.
Commodore Derek Wildstar was sitting in the ship’s VIP Quarters at
a table across from his brother, Prince-Consort Alex Wildstar of Iscandar.
“I told you, Derek, about everything that has been going on here
on Iscandar. I showed you the latest place where they attacked us.”
“Yes,” said Derek in a quiet voice.
“That’s why I finally convinced Starsha, in February,
that we needed more military forces on Iscandar. I spent a few days on
Gamilon speaking with Desslok and the High Command, and they will send more
fighter planes and destroyers. Logic dictates that Earth needs protection for
its scientific colony on
“You’re heading home with us to ask the Earth Defense Council for
more fighter squadrons?”
“Yes, Derek. If all goes well, I anticipate being back home in a
few weeks, possibly with the Earth ship ferrying the planes here. How is Earth
set for ships?”
“The Defense Fleet has been undergoing a great expansion,” said
Derek. “After Melezart, it seems obvious that Invidia is going to attempt a
decisive battle somewhere. We have to be ready for that. And when I was on
Gamilon yesterday, Desslok saw it the same way.”
“Desslok has been a fine ally,” sighed Alex. “I never thought I’d
be saying that since my being taken prisoner by the Gamilons years ago led to
my being here, but…”
“Things change,” said Derek.
Alex looked at his wrist chrono. “I’m packed,” he said. “Starsha
will be aboard in a few minutes to wish me goodbye and good luck on my trip to
Earth. Earth. It will be strange seeing it again after
so many years. What is it like now, Derek?”
“Largely rebuilt, thanks to the Cosmo-DNA, although there are
still some spots in desolate areas where you can see the craters from the
planet bombs; being covered over by new plant growth. The Tokyo Megalopolis has
taken damage from the First Cometine War, the Rikashan War and this war we are
in now but the damage is repaired every time.
Alex nodded and smiled sadly.
“Alex?” said a soft voice as the hatch to the VIP Quarters whizzed
open.
“Starsha,” said Alex as he hugged his elegant wife, the Queen of
Iscandar. “I love you so much…”
“I know you do,” she said. “Derek, before you leave with Alex, we
need to see Nova. I have an answer to that request you had for me. I only want
us there to discuss it.”
Derek said, “Of course,” not knowing what Starsha would do.
A few minutes later, Derek and Alex Wildstar and Queen Starsha
were all looking at Nova, who continued to sleep in her pregnancy in her
long-term sleep tube.
“I considered your request, Derek, to see if we could revive Nova
early so I could heal her and the babies,” said Starsha in a sad, quiet voice.
“I have the power to do so, but, after much thought and meditation, I have to
refuse your request.”
“What?” said a grief-stricken Derek. “I…why?”
“She sleeps now, and she will soon awaken. I have already foreseen
that, if that helps you. She will also survive, and so will your children.
However, the exact day of their birth is already foredestined. I have already
seen that your children, Derek Wildstar, will be heroes someday, like their
parents. They will do much to finally help you put an
end to the malice of Ekogaru, in their day.”
“Then, he…..”
“That is right, Derek. He lives. He has even tried to come here to
taunt me, to mock me, to try to whisper to me to surrender to Invidia. But, I
have refused him. Our civilization is older than he. Iscandar does not listen
to deranged upstarts who consort with powers and negative forces better left
alone. And much is at stake here. If we awaken Nova too early, and she has your
children early, victory against Invidia will not be assured. It will be hard,
but you will need her then in the coming days. When what I have foreseen comes
to pass…”
“Starsha?” said Alex. “What have you foreseen?”
“I cannot tell you,” said Starsha as she sadly cast her eyes
downward toward the deck. “But, great life will come from death. Hope will come
from pain. And, I cannot wait until I see you again!” said Starsha as she threw
her arms around Alex and wept. “Give our daughters our love on Earth, Alex.
And, remember, I am waiting for you.”
Alex kissed Queen Starsha, and then, she turned to go. “This will
be the last I see of both of you for a while. Good sailing back to Earth.”
Alex and Derek saluted the Queen as she turned to leave.
The
Argo left Iscandar a few hours later,
cruising on the surface of her ocean at dusk on Iscandar as she gathered speed
for takeoff, and, after liftoff, she was rapidly heading for the edge of the
Sanzar System, warping back home the way she had come.
Commodore Wildstar sat in a brooding silence as he watched the
stars sweeping past. Alex had sought permission to come to the
I
have not seen Earth in almost eight years, thought Alex. I wonder what it is really like now?
“All hands,” said Derek a moment later over the intercom. “Secure
for space warp. We are heading back to our station at Procyon VI. We will
report to the Commander later on today after our first space warp. Two minutes
to warp…”
Soon, the Argo blasted
into warp with a suddenness that impressed Alex. As they roared through
hyperspace, Alex Wildstar thought, This ship…is evidence
that Earh is really rebuilding. I’m sure that it will be a great world…and,
thanks to Starsha for making it that way…I am so grateful, and so are all of
us…
March
21, 2207…Planet R’Khelleva
On R’Khelleva, Erugar now wore a full set of clothes (not much,
just a shirt and torn shorts), and he walked around with a grin on his face as
he held his mother’s hand as she walked with him at the edge of a desert. The
sands were hot and rough; Yvona felt an uncomfortable heat coming through her
sandals; she was amazed at how this toddler went barefoot on this hot ground
without its appearing to bother him one bit.
“I have to go to the desert soon, Mother,” he said.
“Why?”
“Father says so,” said Erugar. “We talk a lot, Father and I.”
“I bet you do,” said Yvona.
Erugar just laughed like a monster. Then, he did something that
sickened even his mother.
The boy dropped his shorts, and urinated happily onto a dry bush
without a thought of exposing himself. He was able to control his natural
urges, but he just grinned as he made a display of his Call of Nature. He
whistled when he was done.
“What are you doing?”
“I had to make water, Mother,” hissed Erugar.
“You should not be so public about it. And put your damn pants
back on!”
Erugar just wriggled his toes, whistled, and made a show of
pulling up his shirt. He had decided to strip for a minute, but then he gave up
and let down his shirt and pulled on his shorts again.
“Damnit, I can find better things to do,” he said contemptuously.
“Although it will be nice to see how it all works when I get older. And when I can get a harem of my very own. And chemical weapons. Please let me loose in the military
labs, Mati! I want to torture little
furry animals.”
“You are two years old!” yelled Yvona. “No one can be that sick!”
Erugar smiled and made a rock float up into the air with a raised
hand. He made another one rise up, and then he put one rock on top of another.
“D’rakkh e’sneya, envaleta go, (I am
my father’s boy),” he said in R’Khesh, and then added in English, “That means I
am my father’s child, Mother. I’ll pick up Garumanic next. Just let me get at
some books.”
“You can read?”
“I started on R’Khesh pornography thanks to Aga, who thought it
was funny hearing me read it out loud, then I began reading the Terran Bible and the Iliad. I want to read my father’s Scriptures and a military torture
manual next. Torture is a nice way to learn math, by counting the digits one
cuts off of a victim.”
Then, he just laughed like a madman.
Yvona loved her strange son, but she was becoming frightened of
him and the forces that brought him to this unnatural growth.
Where
does it stop? Yvona thought. What sort of Abomination did Ekogaru and I let loose upon the universe?