CHAPTER 1

It was cold, colder than it was yesterday, the temperature gauge on the wall regulating the heat kept the environment at a consistent 25 degrees but outside it was a different story. Yulia knew this, she could feel it in her bones. Titra the name of the star at the center of their solar system was dying, it was in its final stages when the Vali arrived four thousand years ago to colonize the smattering of planets that surrounded it. The situation was made worse two decades ago when the science division of the Vali council conducted an experiment to extend the life of Titra. A giant emitter attached to the underside of a military cruiser was sent out and fired a continuous beam of energy into the star. Initial results looked promising until a super massive solar flare blew out of the stars side enveloping the nearby world of Prolax 3. The death toll was catastrophic with 14 million people wiped out in the initial blast nearly two thirds of the worlds population gone. Those that survived were evacuated to the outer worlds putting additional pressure on a civilization already low on resources.

Clank clank.. the noise shook Yulia from her thoughts, it was the sound of the locker door opening. It was metal like just about everything else in the room, reaching in she lifted out a MP-15d a standard issue military rifle. Laying the weapon down on a nearby table Yulia began her daily ritual, no, she thought to herself, not today, today would be different. Twenty one years in the Vali defense force had hardened her inside and out, her short black hair swept back revealed sharp angular features making her appear almost gaunt, her lithe body wrapped in taut muscles showed little sign of the slacking that comes with age. Working her way up the ranks she had seen plenty of horrors in her years of service, but nothing came close to that fateful day 20 years ago when she was stationed aboard the Kelvin, a medium class cruiser filled mainly with first year cadets, all young, boisterous and keen. They had been the first to arrive at Prolax 3 following the “incident”. The bodies charred beyond recognition weren’t so bad, it was the ones who had lingered on a little longer that kept you up at night, melted bodies that had managed to crawl over to try and shelter some loved one who’s eye balls had split open, groups of children huddled together their faces melted into each other, men, women the old and young the fiery maelstrom did not discern between them, all were treated equal in the unfeeling wave of destruction. There were the survivors too of course, if you could call them that, some with lips missing the skin bubbled around their swollen faces, limbs twisted into grotesque forms with hands outstretched imploring mercy. The ground troops of the Kelvin delivered them their mercy all right, straight down the barrel of a gun, wave after wave the killing of the maimed continued for weeks. Those deemed fit enough were herded into camps waiting to be air lifted off the planet with dull expressions and listless eyes, they looked more dead than the corpses that surrounded them. It was three days into the clean up when the jokes started, Katan was the first after coming across the scorched remains of a young couple still holding hands. “Mmm.. That must have been one hot date.” There was a moment of silence before the squad broke into sporadic laughter, at that moment Yulia felt all her rage well up inside her and turned on Katan ready to let rip with a vicious reprimand.. and then she saw it, past the stupid lopsided grin and careless swagger to a man broken into so many pieces that he would never recover. Men dealing with an obscene horror in the only way they could, with bravado and jokes, what else was there to do it was either that or watch them break down in tears and then they’d be useless and no good to anyone. No, it was better this way the suffering needed to be put out of their misery while those that could needed to be brought to safety.

The memory didn’t diminish with time. Each moment of that six month tour of duty was etched into her brain, twenty years ago now and it still felt like yesterday. Turning the weapon over Yulia began to calibrate the rate of fire and strength of impact, it was always a fine balancing act and depending on the situation it could mean the difference between life and death, with one final click she finished her work and gave the rifle a last inspection before holstering it over her shoulder. There was just one task left before heading outside, crossing the room she made her way to a small alcove and bashed three times with an open palm against the metal door that stood there. An exasperated sigh from behind the door was followed by a reluctant “come in” Yulia allowed herself a small inward smile before entering the room, for a moment her son had sounded like an ordinary teenager but only for a moment.

It was a cramped room with a narrow bunk welded to one side of the wall and a small desk welded to the other, the small space in between was occupied by Jarod, a young man of 15 years. The tranquil sound of long forgotten musical instruments trickled from unseen speakers as he slowly moved his body in time to the music with quiet precision. Realizing he was not going to be able to finish uninterrupted he barked an order to the computer requesting the music to cease. Straightening up he turned around and gave his whole attention to his mother. The mousy brown hair curling around his face was nothing remarkable but those eyes Yulia thought, deep blue and bright like cut glass, if the eyes were the window to the soul then she knew nothing of this man who was her son. Rustling back through the pages of time Yulia briefly wondered who the father was again, it could have been one of a handful of men, such was the nature of her life flicking from one assignment to another across the planetary systems, what did it matter if she chose to share her nights for brief moments of comfort, in her own bed there were only the ghosts of the dead that came to haunt her in those hollow hours, still she should have been a little more careful. The morning she discovered she was with child was not her most cherished memory but there were always options. One, terminate the pregnancy, simple enough in theory. Two, bring the child full term and hand it over to social services. Three, keep the child. The plan had been option two until after giving birth she visited the holding bay where her child had been taken, cradled in a perspex container were two deep blue eyes bright like cut glass gazing out at her (Jarod’s eyes had never changed color) and then the tiny body wriggled in vulnerability, it was too much, so after signing a bunch of papers she scooped him up and took him home, besides the thought that society would have to bear the burden of her weakness didn’t sit well.

Everything changed, well almost. Having worked her way up the ranks in the military had its privileges but not only that, she was good at her job and the powers that be knew it, so allowances were made. It was difficult juggling home and work but she had coped, excelled even, her professionalism gaining her insights into the inner workings of the Vali council.. and thats where it all started, it took a lot of digging and she had to be careful.. very careful but there could be no mistake, it was a lie, everything was a lie.

Jarod quietly stood at attention waiting, he would stand there for an eternity without complaint Yulia mused, sometimes she was tempted to test him to see how long it would take before his patience snapped and he would demand to know what she wanted, but not today there was too much to do. Drawing breath she issued her instructions. “At 1600 hours you will be at Sub Station 2 platform C. Pack one bag with essentials only, there is an east gate marked J8-b4 it will be locked, you will wait for me there.” She waited for him to protest or to question but it never came, instead he kept his eyes fixed on her and calmly spoke in a measured tone “Yes Mother.” It was what she needed, strict unwavering obedience without question. Not that he was incapable of argument, far from it, Jarod had his own ideals, thoughts and moral code, it was just that he could discern her requirements and was able to construct a response that would best support her, he always did this, always putting her first, but would he kill to protect her or more importantly would he kill to protect himself? And here lay the problem, Jarod spent all his spare time researching the Vali historical database looking for things no one thought to look for and finding things that no one now cared about, this dance or whatever it was, was a good example it was also his latest discovery. He’d spent hours perfecting the moves copied from an ancient data block that must have been over three thousand years old, at least it wasn’t as messy as his last venture that involved applying paint with a little brush to create pictures. The heart he said could not reveal itself through words alone and that the separation and loneliness we felt was an illusion. There were mediums that existed through which we might be able to connect with each other, a common thread that could weave us all together. Yulia was damned if she could make any sense in what he was saying and blatantly told him that thats what sex was for, it was the first and only time she saw him blush.

No, Jarod would not kill to protect himself, she knew that now and it made the decision she had to make today all the more necessary. Once she walked out that door she was committed and there would be no turning back, she hoped Jarod knew that she loved him, such sentiments never came easy to her but suddenly all at once she wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him how much she cared and that everything was going to be ok. It didn’t happen, she stood there a moment stoney faced, gave him a sharp nod then turned and left.

Jarod watched as his mother opened the main door, a cold blast of air rushed into the room and she was gone. Whatever was happening it was big, this latest announcement didn’t surprise him, his mother had been acting peculiar for the past few months and if she choose not to tell him what was going on then there would be a good reason for it. Calculating his time Jarod realized there was still a good few hours left to perfect his dance, cueing the music he began once again to move his body in graceful precision. He might not let it show but inside Jarod was deeply troubled and fearful of what the future may hold.

Chapter 2

On a distant planet on the far side of the universe Oona watched as another star died in an explosion of white hot stella fury. It made her melancholy. There were so few stars left now, not like it was at the beginning when the universe was young, back then the sky shone bright with both light and life, billions upon billions of galaxies containing billions upon billions of stars, the cosmos seemed like an endless sea of possibility. But to know life was to know decay and the universe itself was no different, soon the arrow of time would catch up and the universe would become a mass of nothingness with no change to mark one moment from the next, time itself would stop and the universe would end.

It was early morning, the first rays of light spilled over the horizon and illuminated Oona’s face, her crown of golden hair cascaded down like the breath of a summers day before becoming swirling locks that fell past her shoulders. Her fine cheekbones and pale skin held the youthful appearance of spring while her eyes took on the hues of autumn and the cold of winter touched her lips. Oona was a creature of all seasons containing the many facets that made up existence, she was both young and immeasurably old, having the wisdom of age while still retaining the passion of youth. Today she was draped in a tapestry of deep green velvet and white linen that wrapped around her body in complex elegance. Hitching up the fabric Oona descended a handful of steps leaving behind the small marble pagoda where she had spent the night.

This is where it will end Oona knew, the star around which her planet orbited would be the last star, but not yet, there was still a little light left in the universe and also life. Some civilizations had shaken off the penchant for self destruction and had colonized the stars shifting from one star system to the next, but none of these civilizations were as great as the Vali. Oona felt the pang of sorrow again, the Vali had shown so much promise.. if only. Oona scolded herself, dwelling on such thoughts would only make it worse, it was not up to her to dictate how the universe conducted its affairs. Walking with purpose Oona made her way through the flower garden that stretched out in all directions towards a square stone temple on top of which stood an obelisk spewing a fountain of bluish energy that curled upwards in visible ribbons before dissipating into the atmosphere. Without command the door of the temple swung open inviting her inside, with quiet reverent footsteps she passed through the entrance way and into the darkness of temples inner chamber. A spark of excitement stirred within her, this was her sanctuary, this was where she could peer through the veil that separated her from the rest of the universe.

The only source of light came from the blue energy ribbon that sprung out from a golden plinth at the center of the room. Transfixed by the light Oona separated the fine tendrils of energy and began sifting through the shifting harmonics of space-time until she found the thread she was looking for. It wasn’t hard the thread shimmered with an unique energy all of its own, fragile and beautiful it was almost tangible to her.. so close. Following the thread to its source she found herself in a small metal room with the tranquil sound of music trickling from unseen speakers. Jarod was still trying to perfect his dance, it had been over a thousand years in linear terms since anyone had danced the Vali song of life and it was not a dance meant to be done alone. Oona took up her position and waited for the right moment then with graceful movements she counted Jarod’s steps, sometimes they moved in unison sometimes moving separately, such was the dance, such was life. Jarod couldn’t see her of course and from Oona’s perspective Jarod looked like a reflection in a pool of water but it was enough for Oona to lose herself for a moment in a culture that was once so rich and beautiful.

As the last notes of music played and the motion of the body stilled Oona realized she wasn’t alone. Releasing the delicate thread the image of Jarod and the room faded and she was once again enveloped in the familiar dark of the temple. She didn’t have to turn around to know who it was. “You are expected at the Chamber of Elder’s Oona, had you forgotten?” Velek’s voice was not harsh but neither was it kind. Oona kept her gaze forward, she could imagine the disapproving look on Velek’s face without seeing it, finally she justified herself and spoke “Another star died last night.. it saddened me.” Velek let out an exasperated sigh “Everything saddens you Summer Child.” Velek sometimes called her that, by the universes standards Oona was old but when compared to the other Elders on her planet she was very young. It was something Velek liked to remind her of from time to time, however Oona would not be chastised and finally turned to look at Velek, he was wearing his usual cream robe studded with sparkling jewels his dark hair swept back like a ravens wing. “I will not be attending today” she said “You can manage the quantum variables without me for once.” Velek quickly responded “Sulunar will not be pleased.” Sulunar was the eldest of them and although Oona had nothing against him she was feeling less than generous today. “Sulunar is never pleased.” she shot back, that made Velek smile, he bowed slightly to her and left the room. Oona sighed to herself she supposed she should feel a little guilty but couldn’t quite work up the required remorse. Alone in the darkened room she softly spoke to a man that would never hear her. “It seems you are not the only one to be interrupted Jarod Stark.”

To be continued…