Seven Planets
Massimo Longo E Maria Grazia Gullo
Seven Planets: in a parallel solar system, the people from seven different planets engage in a race against time that will decide their fate. The main characters’ destinies are intertwined with hatred, love and ambition, in an attempt to either govern or free the people of the KIC solar system. Imaginary and unique planets, races and cultures will get together in fantastic adventures in order to fight against their charming enemy's thirst for power.
Maria Grazia Gullo - Massimo Longo
Seven Planets
The exoskeleton and Parius's object
Translated by Laura Jurinic
Copyright © 2019 M.G. Gullo – M. Longo
The cover image and the graphics were created and edited by Massimo Longo
All rights reserved
ISBN:
ISBN-13:
Table of Contents
First Chapter
The Sea of Silence
General Ruegra was staring at the space through the large porthole of his cabin. It was fascinating to see the entire planetary system of KIC 8462852 and its seven planets in orbit. In that occasion he could only see five of them: Carimea, his own homeland, had already a grey atmosphere, which meant that it was destined for a leadership position; the blue and enchanting Medusa, which was as magnetic and dangerous as its dwellers; Oria, which was small and barren like the Moon, and white because of the reflection of the light of our Sun. Not too far from Oria, there was the bright green Sixth Planet, which was the most socially and technologically advanced among the planets; and Eumenide, with its pinky atmosphere, which was as fascinating as its dreadful inhabitants.
All this was soon going to be property of the Anic population, and he was going to be appointed Supreme Leader. He only had to be patient and complete his plan: with the parchment in his hands everything and everyone was going to bend to his will.
General Ruegra was staring at the space through the huge porthole of his cabin and he could feel his hunger for power grow inside him. It was the year 7692 since the foundation of the Anic civilization.
Ruegra was abruptly woken up from his dreams of glory. The spaceship had hit something: they were crossing the Bonobo's rings. It would have been better for him to proceed towards the control deck. Although landing on the planet was a standard procedure, it could still have some surprises in store.
As soon as he entered the control deck, he was greeted with deference by his subordinates.
The procedure was not going as smoothly as previously planned: something had hit the ship, as he feared.
"Damage in area 8, General. A rock hit us." the Captain reported immediately.
"Isolate the area immediately and proceed with expulsion."
The captain ordered to initiate the evacuation procedure in the designated area:
"Immediate evacuation of the area...
Isolate it! Do not waste any time!"
The official immediately executed the order. Nobody dared making Ruegra notice that this move was going to cost the lives of many soldiers in vain.
The bulkheads that were separating the area from the rest of the spaceship were shut down. Only a couple of soldiers were quick enough to jump under the closing bulkheads in order not to be swept away. Unfortunately, they were not spared from witnessing their companions, with whom they had shared their existence up until a few moments before, desperately hit on the bulkheads and then disappear into the void.
The detachment was completed, and the area was abandoned.
All the Carimea's ships were war spaceships and were shaped like an enormous trilobite. They were characterised by a pronounced segmentation in order to quickly expel any damaged areas. In this way, the crew would optimise their performance during battles. Both middle section and tail, which was shaped like an oyster shell, could be expelled. Only the control cabin, composed of a big plate with a semi-elliptical profile that would become polygonal in some other sections and the "spine" of the ship, could not be expelled.
They were surrounded by the infinite stretch created by the enormous grey rings that were enclosing the planet Bonobo. They were composed of big debris of the black death of an asteroid that had got too close to KIC 8462852.
Bonobo, the second farthest planet from the dwarf, also consisted of a big mass that had attracted toward itself a great amount of debris. In this way, it had spared the smaller Enas and had created one of the most enchanting sights of the entire galaxy.
The planet was located right at the centre of the rings. It was so wonderfully rich and diverse that it was used as the Anic imperial reserve for hunting, slaves and supplies. Its anthropomorphic population was stuck at the beginning of civilization. Bonobians walked upright, had grasping feet and were largely covered in body hair.
They were as big as gorillas but were as naive and accommodating as children. They would quickly procreate and were strong, which would make them perfect.
Bonobo was the only conquest made by the Anics that had stayed under their control. And it was only because the two planets would describe similar and simultaneous orbits around KIC 8462852.
Carimea had managed to conquer other planets too, but they would constantly lose control because of the uprisings fuelled by the Coalition of the Four Planets, whose aim was eased by their closeness to the orbits.
The spaceship landed in perfect timing. At the headquarters the supplies had already been prepared for the allocation. Ruegra stepped on land only to talk to Mastigo, the local Governor. The General did not like that particular Evic, but his way with the local population was effective. He belonged to one of the leading tribes of Carimea.
The Evics were big, grey-green reptiles that could walk on their chunky and strong hind feet. They were slightly smaller than the Anics and except for their faces, were entirely covered in scales. Their faces, which were half shaped like an ellipse, would stretch out from the ears and take the form of half a bell. They did not have any cheekbones and their snake-like noses were barely visible. Being aggressive, yet not particularly brilliant, they were the only ethnic group that could compete with the Anics for power by number and strength. They would wear a long, silk waistcoat that would cover their knees and that was buttoned up on the chest with a couple of buttons. In order to have their support, Ruegra had appointed one of them as Governor of Bonobo.
The General was greeted with grandeur in the glass hall in the government building, from which a wonderful tropical landscape could be admired. It was a marvellous night and the sky was ignited by the reflection of the rings.
Ruegra was looking through the glass that was reflecting his own image.
The complexion of his strong body, which was covered in slough, would change based on the colour of the surroundings. His figure could barely be noticed among the trees of the outdoor. A stiff crown made out of keratin slough and 30-Kidus tall (or 11 inches) was adorning his figure, starting from the head. The crown would open up in case of danger and would become an armour that the Anics used to employ at the beginning of the civilization to intimidate the enemy. Once opened on the arm, it was going to be using a shield.
By his oval face, the slough would shrink and become somehow uniform in colour. Below his high forehead, the eyebrows and the blue keratin eyelashes would make his big, green eyes and his high, softly coloured cheekbones stand out. His big and slightly deformed nose, like one of a boxer, clashed with his other features. His mouth was well proportioned: his green lips were big and plump.
The Anics were the biggest in terms of height among all the people in the solar system and for that reason they had always been on top of the predatory pyramid.
Just like all the Anics, Ruegra would usually wear a skirt with two side slits that would show the slough around his body. On his shoulders he would wear a cape, meant to indicate his caste and role. His was gold, which indicated a position of command and was decorated with smoky-grey profiles and an embroidery of the same colour that portrayed an Atrex bird of prey.
"I salute the most invincible amongst the Carimeanis. You are always welcome in our land, my General. How did the journey go?" Mastigo greeted him with a slight bow.
"It went well. The mission is evolving in the right way." lied Ruegra. "I only need to rest. The rings always make the spaceship dance a little." he said in order to get rid of his speaker.
Mastigo served him a local fruit cup so that he could refresh up after the long, interplanetary journey. It was better for the General to sit down as he had to report an unusual occurrence.
"I have a weird occurrence that needs to be submitted to you." Mastigo began telling. "Two Bonobian days ago a commercial spaceship was intercepted as it was entering our territory without permission. The guards were not able to stop it in time. Hence, it dived into the Sea of Silence before we could assess its actual dangers.
We have done some research and we found out that the owner has allegedly sold to an Eumenide woman. I have sent out some soldiers on patrol to examine the alleged landing area. But as you know, it is impossible to receive any sort of communications from the Sea of Silence. Therefore, all we have to do is wait."
Ruegra was annoyed by the Governor's persistence on such an irrelevant fact and asked:
"What is so strange about that? I do not understand..."
"Look where it was heading..." said Mastigo pointing at the map of Sea of Silence.
"That is where the Bonobian old sacred fortress is located..." whispered Ruegra.
"That is why I took the liberty to report such a trivial occurrence. I have sent a team to examine the area. It could just be a coincidence, but better safe than sorry. That place is full of mysteries. It would make the ideal headquarters to start an uprising, considering the lack of communications and radar signals. It's like a black hole.
"You could be right. Keep me updated, Mastigo. Now it's better if I take some rest. Tomorrow we leave at dawn."
That night Ruegra had other things to think about. After he had retreated to his chamber, he sat down on the soft sofa and poured himself a drink of Sidibé, a spirit obtained by local cacti. He was staring into space whilst his thoughts were chasing one another like clouds before a storm.
The journey he had just finished had been a total disaster, contrary to what he had just stated to his trusted ally.
He had been to the Moon of Enas, more precisely to the mining colony of Stoneblack, an outpost famous for its marble. The general was meant to meet a man that his very own father respected very much: an old enemy of Carimea.
The colony was governed by the Trik tribe. They were people of Carimea, like the Anics, but they had secondary influences on the command of the planet.
They were servile, yet untrustworthy. They had always proved themselves to be traitor as soon as the wind changed direction. Even his own friends might have been able to plot against him on that Moon. Hence, he had to make that inspection look like a surprise visit with the intention of bringing back some Lunar Amber to his brother upon his return.
Ruegra walked right in front of the officials. He brought his elbow next to his shoulder and with his hand parallel to the floor and next to his mouth, he greeted them. That gesture indicated silence in front of his command as well as complete obedience. They were still and holding their breath in his presence.
The mining colony employed as criminals charged with forced labour and war prisoners as cheap labour. The guards would keep an eye on one slave in particular...It was Ruegra's man. Not only was he the highest-ranking slave, but he also had gained the respect of his fellow slaves and had managed to represent them.
The General, flanked by the Captain and followed by some soldiers, was put in the command relax room, which was reserved to the official.
The Captain did the honours and asked if he could offer him something.
Ruegra did not waste any time. He declined the offer and ordered:
"I want to verify the conditions of the political prisoners that were taken in during the war against the Sixth Planet. Let me talk with the highest in rank."
"General Wof?"
"Yes, precisely. Bring him to me."
"Yes, sir."
The commander nodded at the guards and a few minutes later they came back to the room accompanied by a middle-aged man. He looked tired and physically exhausted, but he still had the proud and fearless look of a warrior.
"Leave us alone." ordered Ruegra.
He was alone with his enemy with the sharpest mind. He remembered that during the battles he had managed to change the odds that had predicted his death thanks to his strategic thinking and despite having only a few Sixthians under his command.
He hesitated a couple of seconds before talking. He had already thought about several strategies during his journey. He knew that it was very unlikely that he was going to catch his enemy off guard. It was time to pick one and begin the confrontation.
He decided to go with the adulation, hoping that his old age and his tiredness had made him more vane.
"I salute you, Wof. I can state that you do not look bad despite you were not granted an ideal treatment. However, I have ordered that books and knowledge are given to you."
"Long time no seeing." said Wof, staring at the General with his deep, black eyes. "What brought you to this place forgotten by the light, where darkness is sovereign?"
"I came here to talk to you about my father. I remember that as a kid he would fantasize about a parchment you knew all the secrets about. Now that I am getting old I sometimes think about him and I wonder whether there is some truth in that story."
Wof tried to conceal his surprise by caressing the white locks that were contouring his ebony coloured face.
"Your father was telling the truth, but apparently he did not think that you were trustworthy enough to know all the details. He also knew all the secrets that you are talking about." Ruegra was stunned. His father had often mentioned that mystery, but he never had the urge to dig into it.
"What is wrong, General? Are you wondering why he had never told you more about it?"
"Maybe my young age and my impulsivity made me a bad listener."
"I would rather say that your features are passion for power and conquest."
"Power is necessary to maintain the order and the stability." underlined the General, after he had stood up irritated.
"You have faith in the order, employed at the service of a single person and in the stability of a single tribe." replied Wof.
Ruegra began walking nervously. He had already lost his patience, but he knew well enough that no torture or extortion were going to work on the man who was sitting in front of him. His only hope was gaining the man's trust.
He played his last card and lied:
"You know, I truly respected my father. When I was a kid you used to say that I looked just like him... At that time, I saw you like a master...."
"What makes you think that I will reveal how to find the parchment? That pureness you had as a child disappeared quickly, Ruegra, and the will to prove yourself was taken over by the thirst of power."
"I am not the Anic that you remember during the war. I would know how to manage power equally. My father did a mistake by not telling me everything." the General burst out in anger.
"If you had to come to me, that means you were not worthy of your father's trust. What kind a father hides knowledge from his son? There is such misery in that gesture of his. Who better than him knew you and who am I to reveal everything to you and completely ignore his evaluation? As you can see I cannot do anything but respecting his will by honouring his memory." stated Wof. Then he got up and said goodbye to his hangman.
That scene could not leave the General's mind, who kept staring into space with a glass still in his hand in that Bonobo warm night.
The following morning, Ruegra personally examined the work that had been completed to substitute the broken area of the spaceship.
Mastigo had perfectly followed-up and his mechanics had delivered an excellent job, as per usual. They took off at the appointed time and sailed back home.
The days were passing by and Ruegra was in a hurry to go back home. He was scared of plots, even though his brother, who had taken the lead in his absence, would provide the General with regular reports on the situation. There was nothing to worry about. Carimea was a mixture of races. Different tribes were fighting against the Anics for command, but the latter had eliminated a conspicuous number of opposers during their long domination. It had been founded by several groups of the different solar systems, the majority of them were adventurers, fortune seekers or former prisoners that were looking for a land where to have a fresh start. Only a small section among them came from the planet. In fact, the local populations had been barbarically subjugated and isolated.
On the way back, whilst he was sitting on the command chair in the dashboard, Ruegra was thinking of Wof's words. That "My father knew" kept resounding in his mind.
Then all of a sudden, he thought of all the times his father would leave during hunting season and before all the wars. His favourite destination was indeed the Bonobian land, especially the Sea of Silence.
While those thoughts were navigating his mind, he had an epiphany and thought:" How have I not thought about this before?" Something or someone there might have given him more information on the parchment.
He linked his intuition to Mastigo's report on the commercial spaceship. Maybe someone was ahead of him.
He ordered to immediately change route. They were going back to Bonobo.
Mastigo, who was surprised at seeing them come back, ran towards the ship.
"I salute the most invincible amongst the Carimeanis. General, why this sudden return?"
"I have reflected upon the landing of that spaceship, which convinced me to come back and personally deal with the situation."
"Once again you chose wisely. My informers did not come back to Bonobo. Hence, I decided to visit the land in person. I found out that they had been eliminated by the strangers."
Ruegra was hoping that his Governor had not destroyed all the possibilities of gaining information as he knew his ways.
"Nothing is left there." reported Mastigo straight away, who looked as satisfied as a said child that has tortured his little preys.
Ruegra constrained himself from attacking his speaker and asked him where the crew had gone to.
Mastigo took a deep breath, knowing that it was not going to be good news.
"We could not find it. They must have fled."
"Not only did you destroy all the evidence, but you also let the crew flee! You were such an incompetent! Lead me there!"
Then, on a second thought he realised that it would not have been a good idea to let Mastigo know about his plans.
"Set a crew for me. I'll leave without you."
Second Chapter
A stone sword was hanging over their heads
"Shall we get ready? We might not be welcomed upon our arrival!" exclaimed Oalif, the wittiest of the group.
The crew was formed of four members of the planets that were fighting against Carimea's rule. They had been chosen because of their personal history as well as their physical and mental abilities. Together they would form a team that was able to go on any mission, both physically and strategically. Their duty was guaranteeing peace and it did not just imply military actions, but also intelligence-linked activities and coordination among the different populations.
The Council of the Four Planets Coalition had appointed them "Tetramirs", which meant that they could benefit by the Government from special authorities and jobs until the completion of their mission.
The small commercial spaceship was crossing Bonobo's big, grey rings and was proceeding towards the Sea of Silence.
That sort of spaceship was designed for the transport of goods. They were shaped like a parallelepiped with blunted edges on the front in order to provide aerodynamic movement. On top of that, they had placed small, releasable wings that were used when crossing the atmosphere. At the rear, there was a big hold door that would open in three sections like the crown of a flower and was used during loading and unloading. These spaceships were slow and bulky. They would take off and land in parallel with the ground without any room for manoeuvre, just like all the other spaceships.
"Declare yourself." a metallic voice came from the radio.
"We're merchants, sir." replied Oalif.
"We can see it. But who and what is on board? Do you have a license?"
"Settimo from Oria, sir."
"License number, now!" insisted on the guard.
"34876."
"You are not in our list. Change route immediately. You do not have any permission to land in this area."
"The signal is weak, sir. I cannot hear you. License number 34876." said Oalif for a second time, pretending not to hear what the guard was saying.
"Permission to land denied!"
"We can't copy you, sir." insisted the Bonobian and then he addressed his crew members saying:" We're in, folks! We're crossing the fog in the Sea of Silence!"
Oalif was an experienced pilot, and being a Bonobian, he was a world-class connoisseur of his native planet. However, he did not fit in with the simple and mild traits that were usually to ascribed that ethnicity. His tribe had never given into the Anics, and for that reason it had paid an enormous price. During the last war, after that they had lost control of their own planet, they had been exiled and hosted by the Coalition of planets, who were plotting a domestic uprising. Their aim was regaining control of the planet.
Oalif's body was covered in dark body hair that would barely show his fair skin. Only the area surrounding his green eyes and his cheekbones was hairless. He had a thick, pointed bear, long up to his chest, and would wear his long hair in a ponytail at the back of his neck.
Oalif was the perfect man for that mission, but unfortunately, he would have had to stay on board in order to avoid prying eyes. As a matter of fact, he was wanted: his face was well known, and they did not know whom or what they were going to meet.
The spaceship landed in a green, sunny clearing crossed by a wide river with shallow and crystal-clear waters that would show the river floor. The latter was covered in a great variety of colourful stones, just like in an impressionist picture.
"The best way to hide something, is doing that out in the open. Oalif, switch on the camouflage panels as soon as we disembark. And thank you, you've been great." Ulica , the Eumenide complimented him,.
"This place is incredible. Once you venture inside, the surrounding fog disappears and the KIC 8462852 rays begin warming up the atmosphere as if it was summer." noticed Zàira from Oria as soon as she landed.
"Hurry up. We have little time to find a shelter before twilight. Mastigo will not leave us with a lot of time to find the monastery" ordered Xam from the Sixth Planet, who was the fourth member of the group.
"Let's venture along the river." suggested Zàira." The forest that surrounds it will cover us while we pick the most convenient route."
They ventured into the forest. Xam and Zàira were leading the way whilst Ulica was finding the right route in order to reach a Bonobian village. There they were planning to rest and find more information on the Nativ monastery, their main target.
Xam, the warrior from the Sixth Planet, was a human who had stood out during the war for his bravery and humanity.
He was a tall, chiselled young man. He had fair skin and short, curly, black hair. His full lips were hidden by a thick, curly beard. On top of his skinny trousers, he was wearing a highly technological multifunction belt that was designed by his people in order to get the best in life or death situations. The rest of his body was covered in a gel used by Sixthians to maintain a stable body temperature in any weather condition.
Zàira, who was his peer, came from Oria, the planet with the minimised atmosphere. A dark, natural armour covered her body, starting from the top of her forehead and stretching out along her back up to her tail: it was the trait of the ethnicity. A short and thick fuzz covered the rest of her body, except her human-like face in which two wonderful grey-green eyes stood out. On her forehead, to the sides of the armour she had two long locks of white hair that she would usually tie up in a braid up to the shoulders.
Ulica, the youngest among the four, was a high-level science and a mathematician from Eumenide. She was as classy and elegant like a butterfly. Her body was covered in a transparent aquamarine natural veil that looked like wings of a butterfly.
By opening up her arms, her wings would spread wide open and let her glide. They were curled up and eased down on the back of her hands. They almost looked like a henna tattoo: fine, silky strips that would stretch out and be used either as a lasso or a whip.
The quest lasted longer than usual because of the malfunction of the tracking device caused by some odd effects that were happening in the instrumentation in the Sea of Silence. That unexpected event made them get away from the right route along the lake and caused a few days delay in their plan.
After they had realised the problem, they found themselves retracing their steps and ran along the stream until they saw a clearing. Their eyes perceived a series of small huts arranged in circles. At the centre there was a perch used to cook wild game. The walls were built out of giant, bamboo trunks that had been tied together and sealed with mud and shredded grass. The roofs were made out of palm leaves weaved together. At the tip there was a hole that was used like a fireplace, which was covered by a further cone-shaped structure.
With their great surprise they realised that the village was closer to the landing spot than expected.
Upon seeing the strangers, all the inhabitants fled, hiding themselves in their huts. They almost looked like pool balls being hit by a cue ball at the beginning of the game.
They found themselves in front of one of the last Bonobian tribes that had not given into the Anics by finding shelter in such a hostile place.
The four did not manage, however, to go unnoticed. After a few seconds warriors armed with spears showed up in front of them.
"We come in peace." Xam said quickly.
"We also want peace." stated the most pot-bellied warrior, who looked like the boss.
"For this reason, we want you to leave!"
"We're not looking for trouble. But we need your help. Oalif talked about your courage."
"Oalif left us many years ago. Why have you come here?"
"We 're looking for the Nativ monastery."
"Why?"
"We're on a peace mission that involves all people."
"Many have come here with the pretext of peace, but then they only ended up causing wars."
"But as you can see, we are not Anics. I am Xam of Tetramir. You must have heard of us...
"Xam from the Sixth Planet?"
Xam nodded.
"Go and call the wiseman." ordered the pot-bellied warrior.
Xam did not expect to see an old companion of his come out of the hut. He called him by his name:
"Xeri! There you are! I thought they had eliminated you."
"Xam? What are you doing here, my friend? The fighter inside me has died: I have seen too many friends die.
"I am happy to see you." exclaimed Xam, hugging his old friend.
"Me too. What brought you here? Where is Oalif?"
"If he had known that you were here we wouldn't have been able to keep him inside the ship. We're looking for the Nativ Monastery."
"Then you won't have to go too far. Just look up. It's on the floating island."
The Tetramirs looked up and noticed that right above their heads a gigantic rock sword was hanging over them. The tip of the sword was covered in trees that would dissimulate the interior of the island.
"How do we get there?"
"It's not as close as it seems. Do not be misled. No one has ever reached it. Many have tried." Xeri kept on talking. "The distance between you and the island won't change despite all the miles you're going to walk. It's as if it were located in another dimension. Look around. It does not project any shadows to the ground.
They did not even have the time to look back down: that hiss caught their attention. They saw Xeri fall to the ground. Xam ran towards him to help him out but understood that it was too late.
"Everybody take cover." he yelled.
"To the weapons." yelled the commander warrior.
The people were again scattered all around like pool balls, but this time they were seeking shelter in holes they had dug in the jungle undergrowth.
The battle was raging. Mastigo soldiers had reached them sooner than expected. Some kids stayed in the middle of the village, frozen by the fear.
"We gotta do something." said Xam but did not even have the time to finish his sentence that Oria warrior had already plummeted to protect them with her shield.
Xam covered her by setting the surroundings on fire, whilst Ulica, who had quickly climbed on a tree thanks to her silky wings, plummeted silently on Mastigo's soldiers, who had been hiding in the bushes. And she hit them to death, like a falcon hits its prey.
Soon after that, the women ran to catch their children that had been sheltered by Zàira's hug, who was lying on the ground wounded. Xam and Ulica rushed towards her.
The square was empty, and a strong wind began blowing like a whirl proceeding to the centre of the village, yet without destroying its path. Zàira, Xam and Ulica felt their bodies become stiff. As per magic, something was holding them back preventing them to run away. They spun around for several seconds before being dropped off on the edge of the floating island.
For a second Ulica felt as if she was floating in the air. Her head was still spinning like when she was a kid and she would play ring around the rosie with her friends. She quickly came to her senses and went looking for her companions.
Xam had already found Zàira, who had fainted and was kneeled down next to her: his dark eyes were full of sadness and were showing his weakness for that Orian girl that had always accompanied him in his adventures.
Ulica walked toward them and being rational as always, she began checking on Zàira. She checked her pulse and said:
"Her pulse is low, but nothing too serious. Her body is trying to reduce the effort, so that she can recover.
She carefully turned over to identify where she had been wounded. She gently took off the backless dress down to her waist that she had tied behind her neck and allowed her to move freely.
"She's got a wound on her left hip on her back. Luckily it is just a graze. The armour protected her."
She had not lost a lot of blood as the laser had cauterized the superficial wound.
"It doesn't look like vital organs were damaged, otherwise she would already be dead." Ulica continued.
Xam was astonishingly staring at her. That untamed man that during a battle would not feel any fear or compassion for his enemies, that man that was used to the horrors and the blood of the battlefield, could not utter a word.
He nodded as sign of approval.
"We have to find a place where to cure the wound." suggested Ulica.
Xam had already picked Zàira up and was proceeding towards what looked like a temple on the top of a green, luxuriant hill.
Its proximity and its smell reminded him of that time during childhood when Zàira took him out of the Crystal Canyon on Oria. It had happened in one of the few moments where he had left the academy, which was his only known family.
During school holidays, most of his friends would go back home to their families. However, not all kids were lucky enough: some of them were orphans like Xam, some others would stay to the academy because their parents were too busy climbing up the career ladder; some others would really come to families that were actually loaded with work. Usually a summer camp was organized and very often the destination was Oria.
On that planet, the air was rarefied because of its small dimensions that caused a low gravitational force. All those who did not come from Oria had to carry along a small air compensator in order to guarantee an optimal oxygenation. Without it, they would have felt out of breath as if on top of a mountain.
The summer camp stay in Oria was articulated in a series of tasks, but at the end of the daily activities, Xam would find himself causing trouble around the campus. Nearby there was a farm: it belonged to Zàira's father and that is how he met her.
That summer their friendship got even stronger. Like all teens, they loved getting into more and less serious trouble. That night Zàira, in fact, told Xam about an enchanted place to her. However, she kept a part of the story secret so that she did not ruin the surprise, but most of all, she omitted that grown-ups would forbid going there because of its dangers.
That is how she dragged her friend in their desert adventure. She asked Xam to wear his thickest boots and forbade him to bring along any friends: it was going to be their thing.
They walked for a long time and Xam could not understand Zàira had made him wear those damn boots in that scorching hot day.
Zàira had never been extremely talkative, so they walked a long way in silence until Xam, who was worn out, asked:
"How many miles before we get there?"
"Don't be a wuss. We're almost there." replied Zàira.
"I really hope it's worth it!"
"Yes, do not lose faith. All we need to do is climb up that hill."
"Let's see who gets there first." yelled Xam as he was beginning to run.
Zàira chased him, trying to stop him in any way, but Xam, who was caught up in the speed, did not hear her coming.
She managed to tackle him at the top of the hill.
Xam, who was lying face down and was amazed, turned toward her:
"Why did he jump on me?"
"Did you notice anything?" said Zàira, pointing at something over the hill with her finger. "Do you want to dive in?"
"Wow, you were right. It is amazing!"
An enchanted landscape was stretching in front of Xam's eyes: a big canyon before them.
It was not very wide, but they could see the bottom nonetheless. The sides were decorated with bright, horizontal shades. The colour was fair and golden the closer to the tip of the canyon, whilst it was redder the closer to the bottom. It was split into two parts: the first one, which was farther away from them, was covered in amethyst crystals that would reflect the colour of the rock. The second was full of huge, bell-shaped flowers in which two people could have easily been sitting down. The bells were tirelessly moving like a bellow. In this way they would allow the plant to store more oxygen and would initiate a scenographic choreography.
Weirdly, Xam felt that his body was lighter than usual. He was looking around amazed, and all that walking had made him hungry.
"Well, this is a real nice spot for a snack. I really hope that you brought some food in your backpack."
"You always think about food." smiled Zàira.
She pulled out of her backpack a rope. She took off her boots and tied it to some bushes. After that she got closer to the canyon.
Xam did not realise what his friend was up to.
He did not even have the time to ask that he saw Zàira jumping in the void. Fear got the very best of and they ran towards the edge to see where she had gone.
He overlooked the edge and saw Zàira laugh and float in the air.
In that instant he would have wanted to kill her considering how deep she had scared him, but at the same time he felt relieved and happy to see her.
Zàira quickly floated towards the edge and landed close to Xam.
"Are you insane? I thought you hit the rocks! You could've warned me!" he said angrily.
"And miss out on your face? You should've seen yourself." she said laughing very amused.
"Well done!" Xam replied ironically, who felt teased.
"Sorry, I did not mean to scare you." added Zàira realising that she maybe had gone over the top.
"Never mind. Instead, what are you doing with those air supplies?"
Asked Xam with a big smile on his face as he was thinking that he could not hold grudges with her.
They were usual supplies that were commonly used on Oria to clean out tractors radiators that would fill up with sand.
"They give the final push that I need to jump back in. The compressed air helped me accelerate and exceed the small increase in the gravitational pull by the edge."
"How are you flying?"
"It's magic..."
"Come on! Don't take the piss."
"Okay. Actually, right on this stop the combination between a low gravitational pull and the updraft created by the gigantic flowers is what allows us to fly. Come on. Take off your shoes and follow me."
"Are you insane?" he exclaimed, but he knew that he would not resist.
"Just stay away from the crystals." "You're not scared, are you?" Zàira teased him.
Xam sat down on the edge, took off his boots and tied them with together with Zàira's. Straight after that he realised that they were floating in the air and without them he was feeling even lighter. He could barely keep his feet on the ground.
"Keep this in the pocket." said the Orian while she was pulling out of her backpack two supplies. "The first time we'll dive in together."
They walked to the edge hand in hand and they dived into the void without hesitations, like only teens could.
They flew together for a while until Xam became more comfortable. Then Zàira releaved another surprise.
She dragged Xam by one of the flowers, which sucked them in. They fell onto a soft carpet of scented stamina. The flowers, which were deep blue on the outside, on the inside were either yellow or light pink with huge, orange stamina. Xam did not even have the time to get amazed that the both of them were delicately thrown out of the flower. The two friends began laughing non-stop.
Zàira tried to explain, among laughters, that the insides of the flowers would release a laughing liquid.
At that point, Xam was ready to fly on his own and he let go of Zàira, who up to the moment before was holding him tightly.
The fun had peaked and Xam kept going in and out of the flowers.
Zàira tried getting closer: she had forgotten not to overdose as the laughing liquid would end up making him lose touch with reality.
It was not long before that was going to happen. Xam had lost his mind and was getting dangerously close to the prohibited area.
Zàira thought she had to intervene before it was too late: the sharp crystal would kill him. Xam, however, was moving at the same speed as her. Hence, it would have been impossible to reach him. She pulled out from her pockets her air supplies and employed them to go faster. She reached her friend, who was laughing and had not realised about the imminent danger and dragged him away a second before he could hit the wall.
She carried him away from the flowers and did not let go of him until they were on the ground. As soon as they had reached the right updraft, she made him return the air supplies. She kept him tightly in her arms as she was taking him in shelter on the canyon edge.
They knew that they had almost risked their own life, but they could not stop laughing. They lied down on the ground, shoulder next to shoulder side by side, and happily waited for the effect of the laughter fluid to wear off before going back home.
Third Chapter
The creases on its skin were revealing the creature's eyes and mouth
Now it was Zàira who was in danger and the distance between them and the top of the hill seemed infinite. A white dome stood out against the landscape. It looked like a beehive covered in hexagonal mirrors that would reflect the blinding sunlight.
The closer they were getting to the monastery, the more peaceful they were feeling deep in their hearts.
Xam, who was utterly worn out by the weight of his friend, kept walking until they found themselves in front of an arch that led inside the temple.
As soon as they got inside, Zàira's body began floating away from Xam's arms, who did not oppose that force as he knew there was no danger.
She was being carried towards a long corridor until she disappeared.
Hundreds of thin columns were sustaining an immense transparent vault that was overlooking the entire Universe, as if the monastery were floating in the space. Ulica and Xam noticed a weird-shaped creature at the back of the aisle.
The cylindrical, grey-purple body was composed of a head and four other sections, each with two legs. What looked like a nose was shaped like a trumpet and took at least half of the face. It almost looked as if something and someone had pushed it outward. Finally, the creases on its skin were revealing the eyes and the mouth of the creature. The body was not taller than a bag full of flour.
"I can feel a positive energy. I apologise for dragging you in here, but what your companion did surprised me."
"What our companion did not surprise us. We are conscious of her generosity. We should have not involved those harmless creatures. We have wasted too much time wandering in the jungle, which allowed Mastigo to realise where we were headed. So, he led his guards to that mild and peaceful place. Such an unforgivable mistake of us." explained Ulica.
"It would have been impossible for the Tetramirs to get this far without dragging those poor creatures in a battle."
"How do you know who we are?"
Ulica Tried asking, but Xam stopped her abruptly as he instinctively reached for her forearm:
"Where is Zàira?" he asked to the monk, although he could feel that nothing bad was happening to his friend in that place.
"Do not worry. She's safe. She's recovering. She'll be reunited with us very soon."
That reply was vague, but he could still feel that feeling of peacefulness and well-being.
"How do you know who we are?" Ulica asked again, who wanted to understand who they were dealing with.
"My name is Rimei." uttered the creature, without even addressing the girl's question. "I'm here on a meditative retreat. Your souls and actions, even the beauty of the Eumenide whose name I don't recall." it looked as if it was chuckling being satisfied with its mischief. "have all have caught my attention, even after 300 years."
"Ulica." her sweet and delicate face was unimpressed with that compliment.
She was thin and tiny and was conscious of her looks and she did not hide it. The ethnicity to which she belonged was not inclined to courting, but they would not hide their opinions and emotions. They would reproduce like butterflies in a cocoon that carried the colour of the unborn child. Eumenides were in different colour, all in pastel shades.
Ulica belonged to one of the latest generations: they all been created genetically. On the planet an odd occurrence during that last big war had caused a change in the axis of the planet which resulted in environmental and magnetic imbalances, causing the extinction of the male population. Even the most expert geologist in the world could not find the reason behind this occurrence.
In order to avoid the extinction of the whole species, the Eumenides resorted to the multiplication in vitro of the male genes to be used for artificial fertilisation.
They would genetically create only the female embryos in order to prevent other males to born and therefore die. They were not willing to accept a defeat. They were searching in their DNA for the same gene that allowed them to survive and implant it in the male DNA. In this way it would be invulnerable to the new environmental traits.
"You have not told me yet how come you know who we are." insisted Ulica.
"Because I see many things. I have been waiting for your questions for a long time."
"What questions?" asked Xam, who looked confused as he was caressing his thick, black, curly beard.
"Your questions on the Kirvir." Ulica anticipated him. "What were you talking about before?" she asked to the monk. "What can you see?"
"I can see all that is happening on the planets, but unfortunately sometimes the information stays in me for a short amount of time.
"Define short."
"It depends. Sometimes they linger forever, some others fade away after a day or a couple of hours."
"What can you tell us about the Kirvir?" asked Xam.
"The Kirvir is everything: it surrounds us, it puts us together and sets us apart. If it is triggered, it turns into something else. It looks like it can be governed but the truth is that it is fleeing. It can be wise or extremely dangerous."
"You are not saying anything new to us." commented Ulica.
"There is nothing new to know. Everything is already surrounding us." replied the monk. "All you have to do is letting it carry you in the right direction."
"If you can actually see everything, then you already know our aim. Help us control it. It would restore the balance." stated Xam.
"It's obvious that it wants to help." underlined Ulica. "Or it would not have led us here. The issue here is how."
"Do not be hasty, dear. I have waited such a long time for this moment. It's been three hundred years since I talked to someone. Do not take this privilege away from me. Time is a dimension for all those creatures that do not belong to the Kirvir. After all, I gave this a lot of thought."
"But we live our time and we have a responsibility for those like us. The war is coming." claimed Xam.
"You will stay up here as long as it is necessary, if you do want answers to your questions. It is not up to me. It will be the Kirvir to assess how much time it needs to show you the way."
After a few minutes, or at least that is what the Tetramirs felt, they spotted Zàira appear from a long, illuminated corridor.
Xam quickly walked toward her, trying to hide his emotions.
"How are you feeling?" he asked her.
"What happened?" asked Zàira.
"You've been hurt. Don't you remember?" said Xam, giving her his arm as a support.
"I'm fine. Do not worry." assured the Orian, accepting his help. "Yes, I do remember. But where are we?"
"We're inside the monastery. On the floating island."
"How did we get up here?"
"Your gesture impressed the monk, who brought us here in a whirl."
"Then, Xam carried you up to the monastery." added Ulica.
"Thank you." replied Zàira staring right into Xam's eyes, who awkwardly looked away. "It seems as if it's been months since I got shot in my back."
"Exactly." Rimei intervened boldly. "You were fixed and cured in the time chamber so that we could accelerate the healing process. You will only feel a few months older than you actually you are."
"Thanks." said Zàira, who was always a woman of few words.
Ulica took the floor:
"Tell us more about the Kirvir, as in the energy that is triggered during planet alignments. We could play it into our hands to avoid conquest wars during alignments."
"Managing the Kirvir is not easy. But before talking about this, I have to talk to you about the wisemen." the monk began talking. "The wisemen that were seeking peace like you." They gathered here to understand its functioning. Each of them knew a particular secret and by joining their forces, they managed to rebuild the behaviour of all those phenomena through which the Kirvir arise. And they did that by writing them down on a parchment."
So Xam, who was surprised, asked:
"So, the parchment does not have any magic power?"
"Precisely". continued Rimei. "But it is essential to know how to guide the Kirvir and the creature that manages to use it. It's existed since the beginning of time. Its essence is mild and unaware. Nothing can destroy it. It can dissolve and reborn and it tends to rely on a keeper. It is known as Tersal. Furthermore, there are six more objects with which the creature can interact. The reason for which the Kirvir is so powerful during alignments is because of its proximity of all the elements to the Tersal.
The wisemen began their quest for these objects. They found themselves on the six planets of the solar system. Once they had them tracked down, the wisemen tried translating into reality what they had written on parchment, but they were stopped by one of the cruellest alignment wars of that time. Hence, after realising that a reunification would be impossible, each of them hid their own object in their own planet so that it would not fall into enemy hands. As you know, some or even all planets of our solar system, when completing their orbits, might cyclically end up on the same line. This causes partial or total alignments. The more planets involved, the stronger the Kirvir influence, the odder physical phenomena and the stronger the effects on the inhabitants’ emotional stability. Clearly, there is going to be a peak during total alignment. The proximity to the planets linked to these phenomena has stirred souls and triggered interracial wars. As the time was passing by, the integrity of many people had developed by creating the ideas of peace, stability and every race's right to grow up according to their own customs and traditions. That facilitated the creation of the Coalition that you represent. Only Carimea and Medusa have decided to stay out of it: the first one is inhabited by predators, the latter because is dominated by a greedy race that has founded its prosperity on blood and exploitment.
"Where is the parchment?" asked Ulica.
"I don't know where it is. But I can tell who was the last one who owned it. His name is Wof."
"Wof, the Sixth Planet hero?" asked Xam.
"Yes."
"Do you know him personally?" asked Ulica to Xam.
"He was my captain when I began fighting against the regime. He was captured during one of the most legendary battles. He managed to strategically hold back the Anics with just a couple of soldiers. This allowed our troops to redeploy and win a battle that already seemed to be lost."
"From our last information we know that he is held on the Enas Moon." said Ulica. "Hopefully he is still here. Ruegra makes sure he is transferred every once in a while, to prevent him from being freed. He is one of his worst enemies."
"Freeing him is not gonna be easy." commented Zàira.
"What can you tell us about the creature?" asked Ulica.
"I don't know where the Tersal is. It will reveal itself to you during your stay on the island as long as your hearts are pure. But I can give you more information on the objects. They are everyday objects. Inside each of them, there is a gem. These gems come from one bigger stone that used to represent the Kirvir in all its force. The gem was divided at the beginning of times in order to avoid that such concentration of power could fall into the hands of one single person. Each one of these objects was worshipped for a long time. The study on their real powers, however, was not deepened since they would change or even disappear based on the proximity or distance among planets, and they were forgotten over time. Anyway, they were looked after by those who were devoted to them.
"Can you not give us anything more precise?" asked Ulica.
"It's evening already. It's better if we all have some rest. Follow the points of lights, they will show you the way to your bedrooms."
Three points of light rose from the top of its upper limbs and placed themselves in front of each of them.
The three companions were led to separate rooms. They were the cells for the monks. The walls were entirely painted in white and furnished only with a bed and a small writing desk. At the top of the arched ceiling, a hexagonal window was bringing the light into the room.
Ulica sat at the desk and pulled out her laptop from her wrist. She switched it on and placed it on the desk. The keyboard was projected onto the surface of the desk and the screen on the wall. She began her research.
Xam plunged on the bed and fell asleep straight away as he was worn out, whilst Zàira prayed before going to bed.
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