Keryn fired the last maneuvering rocket then cut the engines as her ship drifted into the hangar bay of the Revolution. Sitting next to her, Alcent looked uncomfortable as they landed. She understood his discomfort. Alcent was used to avoiding both the Terrans and the Alliance as he managed an encompassing smuggling operation. To willingly fly into the flagship of the Alliance Fleet set him on edge.
When the hangar was once again filled with breathable air, Keryn opened the back hatch and stepped out of the ship, her boots clinking on the hard floor. Being on board, Keryn felt her own nervousness growing. She knew a lot of work needed to be done before engaging the second half of the Terran Fleet, and she wasn’t sure they had enough time. If they lost their next battle, then the research she had gained on the Deplitoxide would be a waste and those stranded on the frozen planets would surely die. Keryn wished Adam was by her side, standing stoically as her pillar of strength. Unfortunately, he had remained on board the Ballistae as the Captain in absentia. Whatever evils she and Alcent would face on the flagship, they would face alone.
As Alcent took his place at her side, the door to the hangar opened and a welcoming entourage entered. They flooded toward the Terran personnel carrier, which stood starkly out of place amidst the Alliance fighters. The ships flat body and large wingspan, painted in the royal Empire colors, became a beacon around which the welcoming party huddled. Keryn shook hands with numerous dignitaries, the names of which she instantly forgot. Scanning the crowd, she recognized no one, which just deepened her disinterest in the formal greetings.
Halfway through one of the many introductions, Keryn held up her hand, stopping the unknown woman in mid sentence. “I am really in a hurry,” Keryn said calmly, though her frustration was causing internal turmoil. “I have important information that must be passed on to the other Captains. Can you please lead me to the conference?”
Though appearing dejected, the woman nodded and gestured for the pair to follow. As they walked, Alcent fell into step beside Keryn.
“I almost didn’t recognize you there,” he said, jokingly. “I’m used to the woman screaming on the battlefield and shooting people with deadly accuracy. That, in the hangar, was almost diplomatic.”
“Shut it, Alcent,” Keryn sneered, “or I’ll shoot you in the face.”
“Ah,” Alcent replied, smiling. “There’s the Keryn I’ve come to know and love.”
As they were led through a myriad of passages and lifts, they walked in relative silence. Both newcomers spent their walk alternating between being lost in thought and scanning the faces of the Crewmen they passed. For Keryn, she yearned to find a familiar face, but found only strangers staring back. The approach to the War Room was punctuated by raucous laughter and loud voices climbing over one another in an attempt to be heard. They paused at the door as their guide went in ahead to announce them. Alcent stole a glance and reached out, gently squeezing Keryn’s arm.
“You’re looking awfully pale,” he whispered.
“That’s because we don’t belong here,” Keryn replied, her voice raspy and dry. “These are high ranking officers who clawed their way up through the ranks. They know politics and how to play the diplomatic games. What are we?”
“Murderers, smugglers, and thieves,” Alcent replied. “That makes us ten times better people and one hundred times a better crew. They will stab you in the back, but we’ll always have the decency to stab you in your face.”
“You’re joking, but I’m not,” she said.
“I never said I was joking,” Alcent responded. “I would rather fly with our crew any day of the year than serve under the stiff-necked, thin-lipped, tight-asses that lead the Alliance.”
As their guide announced the co-Captains of the Ballistae, Alcent’s words stuck in Keryn’s mind. She had been away from the Alliance for a long time, serving with her special operations crew. Their attitudes had always been relaxed and casual, avoiding any reference to rank. Just identifying herself as Magistrate Riddell had made the words feel thick in her mouth and hard to pronounce. Now, being onboard an Alliance Cruiser, the changes she had experienced were never more apparent. All around her, soldiers walked by in high-necked uniforms, immaculately pressed and glistening with cleanliness. She and Alcent, in contrast, wore the loose fitting clothing they had worn upon their escape from Othus: leather pants with loose fitting shirts and long jackets. Keryn was glad that they had parted ways with the more traditional methods of issuing demerits and extra work hours to those who did not keep either themselves or their work areas clean by the appropriate governing regulations. While she had gladly bought into the idea when she was a pilot in the Alliance, she now found the system antiquated and overly cumbersome.
With a tug on her sleeve, Alcent stepped into the War Room with Keryn close behind. The dark uniforms of the Captains hung burdened with gleaming metal decorations on their chests. Conversations had died as the unlikely duo entered the room. More than a couple Captains, people under whom Keryn had once served as a pilot, looked disapprovingly over their attire. One person, however, did not share their disdain. From the far end of the table, Yen watched the pair enter.
His heart beat loudly in his chest as Keryn entered the room. Though Yen always remembered her as the pilot wearing her grey flight uniform, he found her new look exotic and enchanting. Her long hair flowed freely over her shoulders and framed her tan face. Keryn’s violet eyes sparkled with an inner confidence that he didn’t remember from before.
“Captain Riddell and Captain Alcent,” Yen called from across the room. “We have reserved a pair of seats next to me for the two of you. You are, after all, the heroes who freed Othus and commandeered a Terran Destroyer for your own. Please, come and join me at the head of the table.”
As the pair came around the table, Yen yearned to make eye contact with Keryn. But, instead, she continued to scan the room, nodding politely to a number of the other Captains. When they reached their seats, they both sat with mumbled words of appreciation.
Yen let his eyes linger a moment longer on the profile of Keryn’s face before he began speaking. “I called you all together because, with a change of leadership at the top level of this Fleet, I felt it necessary to meet face to face with each of you. I know that, were the decision yours, you would have placed yourselves in charge of the flagship instead of the Revolution’s second in command. Unfortunately for all of you, the decision was made by military protocol, which leaves me in command of the Fleet. I expect your full support as we continue with our mission.
“I wish I could say that I knew what Captain Hodge had planned for this meeting before her untimely death. Unfortunately, she left nothing behind that could be used as a baseline. So, instead, the heavy weight of preparing you all for what’s to come falls squarely on my shoulders.”
Yen glanced around at the assortment of races sitting before him. “The fight ahead is not weighed heavily in our favor. Twelve of our ships were completely destroyed during the last battle, making the number of ships on each side nearly even. Unfortunately, aside from the Ballistae,” Yen nodded to Keryn and Alcent, “there isn’t a ship in the Fleet that isn’t damaged in some way. The Terrans have also fired little of their ammunition, whereas all of our ships are already halfway through their stores. What I’m saying is that we need ideas, and we need them fast.
“Over the next week, we’ll be flying as fast as our physiologies will allow in order to reach Arcendor before the Terrans have a chance to destroy it. We’ll be coming into the battle tired and damaged, but it doesn’t change the fact that we are fighting to preserve the capital of the Alliance. It’s more than a city, it’s a symbol of the strength of the Alliance. If we let Arcendor fall, there will be chaos amongst the races.”
Yen remained stoic, but applauded quietly to himself. Though he had only been a Captain a few hours, he felt that this meeting was, thus far, sounding very much like one of Captain Hodge’s motivational speeches. He cleared his throat before the other Captains could begin side conversations.
“I don’t expect an answer from you all now. I wouldn’t expect you all, after such a difficult battle, to be able to make intricate tactical decisions. However, our timeline is short. Within the next couple days, I need each of you to submit tactical courses of action for the defense of Arcendor.”
Yen let his eyes fall back to Keryn, who still stared into oblivion, hardly seeming to listen to his speech. He felt a touch of annoyance at her blase attitude, but continued to stare in her direction.
“There is still one bit of information that we need to discuss before we separate.” Yen gestured to Alcent, offering him the floor. “Captain Alcent of the Ballistae has information that will prove invaluable to our future fight. Captain?”
“Thank you,” Alcent said with a barely discernable nod to Yen. His attention remained focused on the other Captains. Eyes burning passionately, Alcent spoke to each of them with an edge to his words as though daring them to speak out against him. “Our fight to get to this point has been as brutal, if not worse, than your own. For those not aware, Keryn…” Alcent shook his head, struggling with the change. “Captain Riddell was on a mission from High Council to find the source of Deplitoxide and, if possible, a counteragent. I am proud to announce that her mission, and by proxy our mission, was a complete success. We have both the Deplitoxide and the scientific formulas necessary to counter the blackness that has engulfed all of our suns.”
The room erupted into surprised conversation as the Captains discussed amongst one another the implications. While many of the Captains expressed relief at the discovery, the dominant conversation quickly turned into political jockeying between the different ships.
“The whole crew of the Defiant thanks you for your contribution,” an Avalon Captain said, standing to be recognized. “I would like to volunteer our ship as a research vessel for your continuing experiments.”
“The hell you will, Nitella!” a gruff Oterian Captain roared, clambering to his feet. “The Phalanx will be the research ship, if anyone will!”
Other Captains jumped from their chairs to add their arguments and cite reasons for their selection as the research vessel. The conversation, however, quickly degraded from argument to thinly veiled insults toward one another. Yen felt his irritation rise as the pettiness of the other Captains, and saw his feelings mirrored on the faces of both Keryn and Alcent.
“Ladies and Gentlemen,” Yen yelled, trying to get their attention. His voice, however, was lost in the dull roar of conversation. Few of the Captains paid him any mind, noticing his attempts only briefly before returning to the arguments at hand.
Yen was startled, though, when Keryn pulled a pistol from beneath her jacket, loaded a magazine, and slammed the weapon down on the table. Its echo rolled across the room, drawing the attention of nearly half the Captains, who responded with sheer disbelief that one of the newcomers had drawn a loaded weapon. They slowly took their seats, as though moving in a dream, and nudged the Captain next to them. Word was passed down the table and the Captains quieted, until only two remained arguing at the end of the table, oblivious to Keryn’s threat. Reaching down, she turned the barrel of the gun until it was facing the pair, then loudly cleared her throat. Irritated, they both turned. Their faces dropped as they noticed the loaded pistol pointed their direction, and they both quickly sat down. Yen, though awed by her straightforward techniques, frowned at the confident Wyndgaart sitting next to him. This was not the woman he remembered. Something had happened; something had changed her.
“You’re bickering amongst yourself like children deprived of your parents’ affection,” Keryn growled. “Grow up, every one of you, and get over yourselves! At the end of this war, I don’t care which one of you is promoted to Fleet Commander or Minister of whatever house. What I care about is that the sacrifices that have already been made by so many Alliance citizens are not in vain because we’re too busy arguing between ourselves to focus on the bigger issue.”
Keryn leaned forward, casting dark shadows around her face. The desired effect was instantaneous as the other Captains leaned away from her. “All we have is a few rockets with Deplitoxide and some scientific data that we still don’t know whether or not will work. I’m not about to entrust so important a task with people who are more interested in personal gain and less interested in the good of the Alliance. The bottom line is that you can argue amongst yourself all you want, but the Deplitoxide and the counteragent data stay with the Ballistae.”
She raised her hand, stopping any complaints. “Before any of you open your mouths to tell me why you don’t like my idea, realize that I will only harbor questions that are spoken with a significant level of respect. Whether Alcent and I look like Captains or not, we have done more for the Alliance than you will ever comprehend. If anyone has any issues with that…” She left the sentence hanging as she tapped her hand on the pistol that still sat on the table. “Now, let’s discuss why you think you’re better than me.”
This was not the romantic reunion Yen had imagined for so long. Yen had envisioned the return of the same affectionate lover who had left him months ago. He had imagined stolen glances while discussing tactics, leading to a quiet dinner alone, and passionate love making that night. So far, Keryn hadn’t stolen a single glance his direction. She was distant and cold, completely professional and seemingly unapproachable. Something had happened in the months away, something that changed her drastically. Yen wondered, not for the first time since she arrived on board, if Keryn was thinking about him at all.
“What do you offer in the way of scientific research?” one of the Captains asked from further down the table. “Why should you be granted all the research to keep.”
“I’m not asking anything be ‘granted’ to me,” Keryn replied. “I already own the research and the Deplitoxide. However, I also have some of the most talented scientists in the Fleet on board the Ballistae.”
“I find that hard to believe,” another Captain guffawed.
“Our crew managed to hack the Terran defensive network on Othus, hardwired a Terran Destroyer, stole the counteragent plans from a dilapidated facility on a forgotten world, and faked the Terran Fleet codes so that we could safely approach and destroy the Terran flagship,” Alcent added to the conversation. “I think that makes us more than capable of handling this little research project.”
The conversation droned on as both sides made counterarguments, but Yen was hardly paying attention anymore. He yearned to know what Keryn was thinking and if any of her thoughts strayed to their time together. Memories of their shared love haunted Yen; he found it impossible to believe that Keryn had so casually and callously pushed those thoughts aside. Though Yen hated the idea of invading her privacy, he couldn’t resist the temptation of stealing a glance at her thoughts.
Narrowing his vision, Yen reached out with his mind, trying to not just read her thoughts but also actually see her memories. Slowly, the first vision began to appear in his mind. The room melted to a pure white landscape. Straining to see as far as he could, Yen was unable to differentiate between the end of the white land and the beginning of the white sky. Looking all around, Yen saw that the horizonless landscape stretched on for eternity in all direction. Pushing the vision aside, he searched for the next memory but, instead, found himself back in the white landscape. Releasing himself from the visions, Yen was startled to realize that he had seen nothing. The white land had been an extension of a mental block within Keryn’s mind. Somehow, she had stopped his psychic probe. From her continued conversation, Yen assumed that she was blissfully unaware of his intrusion.
Now angry at her disinterest, Yen focused harder on penetrating her thoughts. Crowning around her head, a soft white halo appeared in his vision moments before he plummeted back into the white landscape. Startled, Yen leapt to his feet in the white world, searching wildly for something on which to take out his frustration. Feeling irritated at his inability to break into her memory, Yen close his eyes and released his probe. Opening his eyes again, he was stunned to find himself still trapped within the white realm.
“How?” Yen asked, unable to formulate the questions he really wanted to ask.
Yen shook with anger. He now knew the answer that had eluded him before. Something had happened while Keryn was gone: some other entity was in Keryn’s mind. It was not unheard of with exploration into the unknown space. Parasites existed that could share a person’s body and subtly alter their moods and interactions with others. Her behavior changes and seemingly distant attitude toward him now made more sense. It was now Yen’s mission to free Keryn of whatever entity had taken possession of her. In order to set her free, however, he needed to get free himself. That meant confronting whatever now shared her mind.
Manifesting his powers, Yen searched the ground and air for exits from his prison. The white world, however, held against his intrusions. Throwing his hands skyward, Yen yelled into the oblivion. “How are you keeping me here? Who is doing this to me?”
“I am,” came a familiar feminine voice.
The white landscape in front of Yen began to ripple as first a tanned leg, then a tanned arm, emerged from the nothing. The rest of her body quickly followed, pulling itself free from the ether. With a final shake, the white landscape reasserted itself. Before Yen, a personification of Keryn stood naked, her silver hair flowing freely over her shoulders. Yen’s eyes drifted over her body, which stood in sharp distinction to the white background. He quickly pulled his eyes away before he fell into the trap of thinking the figure before him was truly his lost love.
“You’re not Keryn,” he stated, matter-of-factly.
“Keryn is…,” she replied, pausing as she sought the right words, “unavailable right now.”
“What are you?” he asked threateningly. “Are you a parasite? An insect?”
“No, no,” she answered, shaking her head. “I’m very much a part of the whole. Consider me a vizier for Keryn’s decision making process.”
Yen turned away from her, not wanting the temptation of looking at her. “You’re talking in riddles!” he yelled. “You’re playing with my mind, showing me her body. I don’t even want to look at you.”
After a pause, she spoke. “Is this better?” she asked coyly. When Yen still refused to turn, she continued. “I promise I’m not naked anymore.”
Yen turned and, true to her word, she was no longer naked. A white robe clung to her body now, revealing only the plunging neckline, face, and hands. “Why do you keep me prisoner here? Why can’t I leave?”
“You’re here because you need to know the truth,” she answered. “No, more importantly, you need to accept the truth.”
“What would a succubus know about the truth?” he sneered.
“I know what lies in Keryn’s heart,” she said softly, before her voice took a hard edge, “and you’re no longer in it. You’ve been replaced.”
“I don’t believe you,” Yen said, stepping dangerously toward her. “What do you want from me? Answer me, damn you!”
“I want you to accept the fact that she has moved on with her life,” she said, not backing away from his threat. “It’s time you moved on with yours.”
“The only reason she would keep me from her heart is if you told her to forget about me. That’s what parasites do!”
“You silly, little man,” she said, tilting her head back as she laughed. “I didn’t tell her that she didn’t love you. She told me. And I could no sooner remove myself from her than I could remove her lungs. I’m very much a part of her.”
Yen lost the words of his sharp retort as the realization dawned on him. “You’re her Voice,” he said, dumbfounded. He had been so very wrong about Keryn. It wasn’t that something had invaded Keryn’s mind; Keryn had invaded her own mind.
“I don’t know what she ever saw in you, honestly,” the Voice replied. “You’re arrogant and conceited and, as we just witnessed, not very bright.”
“Don’t threaten me, woman,” Yen growled, feeling his power bristling along his spines. “It would not be a very wise move to upset me.” From his back, dozens of small, sharp tendrils protruded, floating in the air above his head.
“You don’t threaten me, child!” the Voice yelled. Wind began whipping her hair and robe as she grew angry.
“I do whatever I want, witch,” Yen replied calmly before sending all his small blades toward her chest. With little effort, the Voice raised her hand, facing her palm toward the oncoming blades. Instantly, they all stopped in mid air, frozen by her powers. Yen strained to drive them forward, but to no avail. The Voice had them under her control.
“You made a poor decision there, Yen,” she explained. “We’re not in the real world. Your powers are simply a personification of your own mind here. But this is Keryn’s mindscape and, in turn, my realm. My powers are absolute here. And, though this may not be the first time you’ve heard this comment, I’ve left you impotent.”
Yen howled in rage, feeling helpless against her mental control. “Let go of me at once!”
“Only after I’m sure that you understand that if you ever return, I’ll destroy your mind once and for all. It’s a point I’d really like to…” she paused as she twisted her wrist, turning the blades away from her and pointing them at Yen, “drive home.”
Flicking her fingers at him, the blades drove back toward Yen. He threw up his arms defensively, but the blades pierced through his skin. Pain lanced through his body as dozens of blades slipped into his body. He screamed as the white world slowly melted away.
Lowering his arms, he looked around at the now silent and surprised Captains, all of who watched him curiously from their seats. Tentatively, he touched his chest and was relieved to find that he was not injured.
“Sorry,” he mumbled to the gathered Captains, “my mind was elsewhere. What were we discussing?”
Keryn turned toward him, a fire burning behind her violet eyes. “I was just explaining that the Ballistae was going to conduct the research on the Deplitoxide. I just informed the Captains that you would support my decision one hundred percent. Isn’t that true, Captain Xiao?”
Yen locked eyes with her and knew immediately that he spoke to the Voice once more. A nervous spasm rolled up his back.
“Yes, I support their decision,” Yen added, struggling with the words. He was not used to being on the defensive. “The Ballistae will conduct the research while we’re in transit to Arcendor.”
Before any responses could be mustered, Yen quickly added, “If there are no other issues, I would like to bid you all adieu and good luck. This meeting is adjourned.”
Perplexed, the other Captains were slow to rise as they made their way out of the room. Keryn and Alcent stood and left without a word, which Yen considered a small consolation. When everyone was gone, Yen sat alone in the relative darkness of the War Room and fumed about the turn of events. She no longer loved him. He had trouble accepting the truth, but knew that the Voice wouldn’t blatantly lie to him. The Voice was merely an extension of Keryn’s own mind. Still, she had said something he couldn’t forget:
You’ve been replaced.