Chapter 28
Findings
After Goolith showed her to a small lavatory, Kelen was helped to the Bridge where D’har Stek was seated. Colonel Pfeiffer was already on the main viewscreen when she arrived. The man’s face revealed his shock when he saw her.
“Lieutenant Chambliss, are you well?”
She gave a nod. “I am doing better, thank you.”
The colonel narrowed his eyes at the D’har. “Very well, D’har Stek. You have proven that she is well enough to be transferred back to the outpost. I will instruct my men—”
“They took Kyber away!” she yelled at the screen. “I have the right as his Confirmed to be with him, but they sent him off to Seneecia and left me here! They separated us, and that is not allowed under Seneecian la—”
A large furred arm came around her and a hand closed over her mouth. Kelen didn’t think twice about her next reaction, and sank her teeth in the ball of the man’s thumb. The guard yelped as he jerked his hand away. In the next instant, he slammed his injured hand down on her shoulder. Kelen heard a snap as bright agony knifed through her body and she crumpled onto the floor.
She was aware of yelling, but her mind wouldn’t focus on the words. All she was aware of was the unrelenting pain lancing through her, and the fact that she couldn’t move, or else the torment increased.
Ambrun Goolith arrived and squatted in front of her, calling to her until she was able to look up at him.
“It looks like your collarbone is shattered. There could be more damage, internal damage, perhaps bleeding, but I will not know until I get you back to medical to have you examined.” He held up what appeared to be a portable injector, similar to the kind Sandow used. “I am going to give you a shot to put you under so we can transport you.”
“No.” Her voice croaked. Her breathing was reduced to short gasps because it hurt too damn much to draw air. She tried to turn her head, but the amplified pain stopped her. But at least she could see Colonel Pfeiffer’s reddened face. His concern and anger reflected in his eyes. “Please, Colonel. I want to be with my husband. I demand to go to Seneecia to be at the side of my Confirmed.” This last was directed to Stek, even though she wasn’t able to look directly at the man. “Send me to Seneecia.”
“Lieutenant…” Pfeiffer started to say more, when he locked his gaze on the D’har. “Enough of this, D’har Stek. I’m tired of playing these little games with you. The life of my lieutenant and those of my crew are at stake, and that means all of these petty little rules you’ve been imposing on me and my command are coming to an end now.
“Two weeks ago the survivors of the Ist Umberu and Manta, along with a strong military presence, took off for the neverwylde planet your people have been trying to keep secret. We have already received several communications back from them.”
Kelen was surprised to see a malicious grin came over the officer’s face. Watching it spread gave her a wicked sense of gratification.
“Those communiques have been forwarded to our Central Command, as well as to the Bakkite Grand Council, the Galactic League of Planets, and to your Seneecian Triumvirate. Now that we are aware of the extent of what you’ve been hiding, there are a lot of questions your Triumvirate is going to have to answer to. In addition, I am sending this conversation and your unprovoked attack on Lieutenant Chambliss to all concerned. I’m sure you will be hearing from your people soon after they view it.”
Kelen wished she could turn her head to glance up at the D’har and hopefully get an idea of what was going through his mind, but she found herself unable to do so.
“And while I still have your undivided attention…”
“This conversation is over,” Stek announced and raised a hand to cut the transmission, when Pfeiffer also raised a hand.
“If you don’t hear me out, your career is over!” the colonel flatly told him. Gone was the grin. Gone was the diplomacy. This was the side of the man that had earned him his rank.
Stek paused, and Pfeiffer used it to press his issue.
“This next is directed specifically to Lieutenant Chambliss because she is directly affected by these discoveries. Corporal, run the transmission.”
The viewscreen blanked out for a moment, until a familiar visage came into view. It was Jules. And from what she could see in the background, she knew where the navigator was.
“This is Lieutenant Derric Jules, former navigator on the Manta, currently on special assignment on board the Egaragutu. I and several of my fellow shipmates from the Manta are investigating a phenomenon referred to in Seneecian lore as a neverwylde. By Seneecian definition, a neverwylde is a planet that has undergone a cataclysmic event, yet continues to be able to maintain a breathable atmosphere, including native lifeforms. Therefore, throughout this investigation, we are calling this planet Neverwylde.
“The purpose of this assignment is twofold. Our primary focus is to investigate the possibility that the location of Neverwylde is being kept secret by Seneecian authorities for as yet unknown reasons. And if that is the case, discover those reasons. Our secondary focus is purely scientific. How is this planet able to sustain life? What kind of life does it hold, and can any of these lifeforms be registered as sentient? If sentient life is confirmed, then by keeping this planet undocumented, the Seneecians are violating several laws as stipulated by the Galactic League of Planets.”
Jules grinned into the tablet that was recording his message. “This next part goes out exclusively to Lieutenant Kelen Chambliss, former pilot on the Manta, and D’har Kyber Nau, former Por D’har of the Seneecian ship Ist Umberu. Both Chambliss and Nau were survivors of the crash that brought me and my fellow crewmembers to Neverwylde. You can read the attached statements given by the other survivors of our fight for survival on Neverwylde during the weeks before our rescue. In the meantime, Kelen, Kyber, you guys are not going to believe what we’ve found so far! It’s incredible!”
He held up his hands, fingertips touching, as if holding a ball. “You know how the planet looked like it had been sliced into two pieces? Well, we weren’t too far off track. Somehow, as far as we can tell, there was a massive explosion at the core of the planet, cracking it in two like an eggshell.” His hands, still cupped, spread apart. “But the other half isn’t gone. It’s below the portion we landed on!” His right hand moved below his left. “The planet’s two halves are still somehow connected through a thin atmospheric blanket.”
Jules sighed. “We’ve been here three days, and already we’ve discovered stuff that goes beyond anything we could have imagined. I’ve uploaded all videos and reports from those days, including everything I recorded during our tenure after the crash. But without a doubt there is technology here that Dox promises could change and revolutionize warfare throughout the known galaxies.” He smiled again. “And wait’ll you hear this! Guess who we found on the planet still alive! Commander Dayall! He wasn’t dead, like D’har Plat told us he was. Which means Plat not only lied to us, but he caused us to leave this planet without him, and I don’t have to tell you how many laws were broken because of that. Dayall also told us it was he and Plat who destroyed those panels in the temple and all, to prevent us from using them.
“Oh, and one more thing before I end this transmission. You know those monitors we found in the pink room? The ones that showed everything that was going on in the other chambers? Dox found out that those monitors are also recording everything that comes across their sensors. It seems whenever one of us came into view, it tripped a motion detector of some sort. There are hundreds of millions of hours of stuff for us to sift through. God knows how many years, hell, eons have been recorded! It’s going to take our scientists decades to watch and evaluate and study all we’ve been downloading! We even got visual proof of the fight between Kyber and Plat, where Plat swears Kyber pulled a rifle on him. We got visual evidence showing Plat grabbing the rifle from Cooter during that Tooth and Nail fight and firing it at Kyber. And…and if we have that, then it’s only a matter of time before we find evidence of Plat refusing you and Kelen your right to finish your Confirmation.”
Jules flashed another grin, this one tired but jubilant. “This place is a gold mine of stuff that’s going to take longer than my lifetime to explore and study. Wish you guys were here with us. Oh, and Five says to tell you hello. Dox outfitted the little dude with an interpreter, like the kind Hoov wore. Now the little fella won’t shut up.” He laughed and gave a wave of his hand.
“This is Lieutenant Derric Jules, signing off for now. Talk to you later!”
The screen went dark for a second, then Colonel Pfeiffer’s face returned, his attention cemented on Stek.
“We have a saying in Terran military. It’s spelled F-U-B-A-R, which stands for Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition. D’har Stek, as of this moment, you and your fellow conspirators, including D’har Plat, are officially FUBARed, and I’m guessing I don’t have to elaborate any further on what that means for you in particular. There is a Wistenoff shuttle on its way to your ship. When it arrives, you are to release Lieutenant Chambliss immediately. By that time you should also be receiving a communique from Seneecia ordering you to return forthwith to your home planet to face punishment for your actions.”
The colonel looked down at where Kelen was still lying huddled on the floor. “We’ll get you to Kyber, one way or another. I promise. But you need to come back here first to heal.”
Somehow she managed to smile her thanks, then the viewscreen went black.