I woke up to someone screaming. The building was shaking. I didn’t know what was happening. I heard an explosion and more screaming. The building shook again. I got out of bed and put some clothes on and ran to find my parents.
As I approached their room, I called in to them.
“Mommy, daddy,” I cried. “Let’s get out of here.”
There was no response from them. I wasn’t sure if I knew their fate, but I had to open the door regardless. I pushed the door open and heard nothing. As I stepped inside, I looked to their bed. The ceiling had caved in on them, crushing them while they slept. I could see their motionless bodies underneath. Blood spilled from the sides of the bed and I didn’t want to go any closer. My eyes filled with tears, but before I could commit to crying, I turned and ran downstairs.
More explosions came from around my house. More screams outside. I didn’t know where to go, but I knew that I didn’t want to be inside anymore.
I slowly opened the front door and looked outside. Fires were erupting and people were running everywhere. As I stepped further into the street, I saw a friend of mine exiting her house with her parents. Just then, a red laser came out of the sky and hit her house. As it exploded, my friend and her parents were thrown to where I was standing. I looked down at my friend and knelt down, hoping to revive her. She coughed up blood and was unable to say anything. I held her hand until her last breath and her hand let go on its own.
More explosions entered my ears and I realized that I had to get out of the way as soon as possible. I stood again, resigned to the fact that I needed to find a way to escape this hell that I was standing in.
Adrenaline filled me and I felt my feet start to run away from where the lasers were destroying everything that I had grown up with. As I ran, I heard people screaming. Things like, “why is this happening?” “Where are the planetary defenses?” “Who is doing this?” But there were no answers. No answers to questions that weren’t even being heard.
I approached the center of my city. My Telaya. My home for all of my 11 years. Except the first four months, which were on a starship. I saw several hundred people gathering in front of the Governor’s Office. Several were bleeding and some of the doctors were treating as many as they could. I tunneled my way through the legs of the adults and made my way toward the front of the crowd. I got there just in time, because the Governor was about to say something. The people grew quiet.
“My friends. The Commander of the ship that is causing this destruction has just contacted me. He is seeking a criminal. He chooses to flush this criminal out by destroying our homes and businesses in case we are in league with him. However, I have worked out a cease-fire for the moment in hopes that we may find this criminal.”
The crowd began to mumble and I heard people yell to the Governor, “Where is this criminal, that we may offer him to the Commander?” “What gives them the right to destroy us for one man?”
“People, people,” the Governor started. “I have only gained us one hour. The Commander will be here in one hour to verify the identity of this criminal. If we do not have him here, at the steps of my office, our city will be completely destroyed and its people will be taken as slaves of the Empire.”
All of a sudden, I felt the people begin to move. I’m little for my age, so I’m not seen very easily, therefore, people started to trample me as they began running for the buildings looking for this criminal. I am sure that they don’t want to become slaves of the Empire.
The Governor noticed that I was being knocked over and came to my rescue. “Khiani,” he said as he took me toward the steps of his office. “Where are your parents, child?”
I looked him in the eyes. I wanted to tell him the truth. He was a friend of the family, and he had the right to know, but I didn’t tell him. “They’re helping some of our neighbors,” He should believe that, they’re doctors. “They sent me to you to find some information.”
He looked at me and smiled. “Hopefully, they can stop working soon.” He patted me on the head in a patronizing way and began to wander back into his office.
“Sir,” I said to him. “Who is this criminal? And why does the Empire think they can kill in order to get him back.”
The Governor stopped. I don’t think he liked my questions. “Well, Khiani, the criminal is actually a Rebel spy. And, according to the Commander of the ship up there, this criminal has killed several key members of the Empire. They followed him to our planet and he crashed here. That’s why they are trying to destroy everything, before he can get help or get away.”
I didn’t say anything, but I just lowered my head. The Governor looked back at me. “You’d better get back to your parents, dear. They’ll be worried.” I nodded knowing full well that my parents were not worrying about me any longer.
I turned away from the Governor’s office and made my way toward my house, giving the Governor a chance to see me heading home, even though I wasn’t. I turned down one alley and noticed some people standing around a body. I stepped up to them and tried to avoid their eyes. I listened as the people started talking.
“He doesn’t look familiar,” one person said.
“He’s a stranger. This must be the criminal they are looking for,” said another.
The man on the ground was unconscious. I looked carefully and noticed that he had a head wound. It looked bad, probably a concussion too (What do you expect, I am the daughter of two doctors).
The mob began to pick up the man and carry him toward the Governor’s office. I didn’t know who the man was, but I felt that I didn’t want these people to turn him over to the Empire. I don’t know if it was the fact that I didn’t have a family anymore and I was looking for one, or if I was just being stupid. Either way, I spoke up and really got into some trouble.
“Wait!” I screamed. The mob stopped and looked down at me. “He’s not a stranger. I mean,” I started to stumble on my words. “I mean, he’s a stranger to Telaya, but that’s because he’s from Trayna, in the North. He’s my uncle.”
The mob looked at me and disregarded anything that I said. Someone looked over to me. “Do you have any proof? Where are your parents?”
This time, I didn’t stop myself from crying, although it was more pretend than real tears. “My parents died a little while ago. They were helping some people and an explosion killed them. My uncle is all I have left. We were running to the spaceport. He was going to take me back to Trayna. We got separated when he went to save a family from being crushed by a toppling building.” I hope they believe me. “If nothing else, he needs to be seen by a doctor.”
The crowd took the man again and carried him to the Governor. They didn’t believe me. How could I think that they would? Who am I for them to listen to? Just a child. And not a very big child as it is. As the group formed on the Governor’s office, a man exited the building followed by the Governor. The crowd dropped the man at the edge of the steps and the Governor and other man stood, looking over him. Then the man spotted me.
“Governor,” the man spoke. “This girl says that this man is her uncle from Trayna. You know her family well, does she speak the truth?”
The Governor looked at me and I looked at him, then the unconscious man. I turned my eyes upward in a way to get a response of sympathy from the Governor. He didn’t say anything for several minutes. Then, speaking to the group. “This man needs medical attention. I do not have any doctors available, but I know that this child has basic medical training.” The Governor motioned for me to come forward and then called his guards. “Take this man inside to one of the waiting areas. The child is to stay with him, for now. I will be in momentarily.” The guards took the man and escorted me inside. As I entered the building, I heard the beginning of the Governor’s speech to the people.
“This man is the criminal we are looking for …”
I wanted to listen to the rest of the speech. I knew that the Governor knew who the man was. He knew that my parents had no other family on this planet. That he was not my uncle. But why did he allow me to stay with the man if he knew he was a criminal against the Empire.
The guards stopped in one of the waiting areas and placed the man on one of the seats. I stood next to him and tried to stop the bleeding from his forehead. The guards exited the room and stood in front of the door.
I thought of what to do next. I mean, I was in a room with a man that I didn’t know, about to face the Governor of Telaya, and I had to find a way to convince him to let this man go.
A while later, the man’s eyes began to open. Slowly at first, but eventually he was able to open them all the way.
“Where am I?” he whispered.
“You are in the Governor’s Office, in a waiting area. If I’m not mistaken, the Imperials will be here soon. I have to get you out of here.”
“Wait,” he started with a cough. “If I can find someone, they can help.”
“I know most everyone in Telaya. Who are you looking for?”
“I don’t know. I just know his code name. He’s a Rebel sympathizer. He’s offered help before. I just have to hope that the bombardment hasn’t killed him.”
“Can you contact him? Do you know where he is?” I heard someone outside.
The man pulled a small transmitter out of his pocket. Before he could press it, the door opened and the Governor stepped inside. I pushed the transmitter out of sight so that the Governor wouldn’t take it. Before I did, the man was able to press the distress signal button.
A noise began to come from the transmitter. The beeping was constant and began to get louder. I tried to hide the transmitter, but the Governor was able to pull it from my hands.
“So it’s true,” he started. “You are a Rebel spy.”
The man had very little strength and did not respond to the Governor’s statement.
“Then I have no choice.” The Governor looked down at me. “You should not have lied for this man. He is a criminal.”
“But he doesn’t have to die!” I pleaded as I grabbed the Governor’s robes.
One of the guards pulled me away from the Governor and held my arms tight.
“He will not die, Khiani. So long as we act fast.”
The guard let go of me and stepped to the Rebel. He began to take his clothes own clothes off and trade them with the man.
“What is going on? What are you doing to him?”
The Governor did not even look at me, but at the Rebel. Do not be afraid. I am Desert Guardian. Where is the information you were able to retrieve?”
The Rebel reached for his boot and pulled a small datapad out. He didn’t have enough strength to raise his hand, so the Governor took it out of his hand.
Standing up, the Governor turned to one of his aides. “Make a copy of this, quick.” The aide stepped to a computer and began to make an exact copy of the datapad. The Governor received the original and placed it back into the Rebel’s boot and took the copy and gave it to guard that was completely dressed in the Rebel’s outfit.
I was really confused now. Why was one of the Governor’s guards wearing the outfit that the Rebel was wearing? And what was the datapad full of that made it important to give the original back and a copy to the guard?
The Governor could see that I was confused and not understanding anything. He knelt down and looked at me. “I am a rebel sympathizer. That is why I allowed you to stay with this man. I didn’t want the mob to harm you. My guard will take this man’s place,” I looked at the guard and started to speak. “Yes, he knows that his life is more than likely over, but he feels that it is worth it to get information to the Rebellion. That is why we had to copy the information. The Imperials were looking for something so specific, we had to make a copy in order for them to think they had caught their culprit.” I looked at the Governor with a face of confusion.
“Now, Khiani,” the Governor said as he stood. “The Imperials will be landing soon. I want you to take the Rebel to the hangar. One of the guards will take you to Trayna. Another guard will fly you to the nearest Rebel Base. Go, now, child. And remember that life is worth sacrificing for the greater good.”
He patted me on the head like the child that I was and left the room. The guards took the Rebel and carried him to the hangar. As they prepared for departure to Trayna, there was an explosion. Most of the guards ran back to the main building to see what was happening, but one stayed with the transport. He began to guide the small shuttle out of the hangar.
I looked out the window and noticed that the Imperial commander fired a weapon, killing the governor. The commander then waved his hands, probably giving an order and the stormtroopers started shooting people in the crowd. People started running away as fast as possible. The shuttle exited the hangar and the Imperial troopers began firing upon it.
The shuttle maneuvered as much as possible, but was unable to avoid all the shots. The ship was hit and began to descend. It hit the ground hard and I was thrown out of my seat. The pilot was ejected through the window and lay dead outside of the wreckage. The rebel was dead as well. There was only one thing to do now. I took the datapad from the Rebel’s boot and exited the shuttle a few minutes before the Imperials arrived.
I was hiding in the bushes as the Imperial Commander approached the shuttle. “No survivors. Only guards. But what were they guarding?” The commander looked around. “Fan out! There may be a survivor after all.”
I have to stay low to the ground. I don’t think I’ll move for a while; at least not unless they get close. Let’s hope they don’t. I don’t think I could outrun Imperial troops.
They are looking around the shuttle. Did I leave tracks? Did I leave something in the shuttle to give them a clue to who I am or which way I went? I hope not.
They keep looking around. So far, the stormtroopers haven’t moved my way. That’s good. Hopefully, they’ll leave soon. I’m getting tired. I want to sleep, but I don’t think I could, knowing that those Imperials are standing over me.
The sun is coming up. It’s starting to get lighter. I hear the Imperial Commander. “There’s no one left in this town. No one that will talk anyway. We got what we came for. Back to the shuttle.”
The Imperials walked away from the crashed shuttle. I waited until I couldn’t see them anymore and then slowly stood up. I scanned the horizon to make sure that I didn’t see any Imperial forces. Not seeing any, I started running. I don’t know why I was running. I guess I didn’t think really. I just wanted to be away from the remnants of my city. Plus, I had forgotten that Trayna was over 9 kilometers away. As I started to tire, I slowed down. I kept walking with a general sense of direction. I had been to Trayna, but only by shuttle. I had never walked. There were a lot of hills. I was tired. But something inside me made me continue on.
A few hours later, I arrived at Trayna. It was a city just as big as Telaya, but the difference was that it had a starport. I was very tired from walking all that way. I just wanted to sit down, but I knew that I had to find the Governor’s guard.
I stepped into the starport and looked around. There’s a monitor that has information. Maybe it shows where the Royal Hangar is. I don’t see it. Maybe I’ll just ask around. There’s an Information Droid.
“Excuse me, do you know where the Royal Shuttle is?”
The droid turned and looked down at me and piped up. “There is no Royal Shuttle in dock here. You must be mistaken.”
“Sorry,” I said and stepped away. I continued to walk around the spaceport, every now and then looking at ships to see if I could see anyone. I was really tired and all I wanted to do was sleep. I knew if I could just find the shuttle, I could sleep on my way to the base. Maybe that wasn’t a possibility any longer.
Before I decided to take a nap, I chose to look into one more area. As I looked, I saw a man dressed just like the Governor’s guards. I opened the hatch and walked in. He looked at me and then approached very carefully.
“Who are you?” he said. “What are you doing here? This area is restricted.”
“I have information…” I started slowly. “For the Rebels…” Please take me to the nearest base…” I passed out. I’m not really sure what happened next, but the guard must have believed me because I woke up almost a day later and the guard told me that I was on a shuttle to a secret Rebel Base.
I was only 11 standard years, but I felt like I had aged several years in the past few days. I will deliver this information to the Rebellion and then honor my family and my city by joining the Rebels to defeat the Empire.
Friday, July 22, 2005
Monday, July 18, 2005
Sample Post (From Kovar Colony Application - no longer active)
The sun was setting over the Golden Gate Bridge. Ian and Sasha were watching the sunset with their daughters. The little girls were asleep. There were no words spoken. Just the sound of life passing around them. Ian was holding his wife tight when he heard on odd sound. As he tried to focus on what it was, he was jostled from sleep by the shock of an explosion.
"Red Alert," sounded the CO. "Red Alert. All crew to battle stations."
Ian wanted so much to stay in his dream. His wife had only been dead for a month and he wanted to keep holding her, but his duty was to the Archer. He quickly got up from the floor and put his uniform on. Making sure that he looked decent enough for 0400 hours, he stepped out into the hallway.
Crew members were scrambling from their quarters and on their way to the various turbolifts. Obviously, they wanted to stay in their dreams as well. Ian headed for the nearest turbolift that was empty and ordered it to the bridge. As he arrived, the ship was jolted by a second explosion.
"Captain," Ian shouted over the alarms. "What's going on?"
"There is a rogue Romulan warbird out there," the captain said pointing to the screen. "There was no warning. They uncloaked and caught us off guard. Our warp drive is offline after the first hit, so we're on impulse only."
Ian nodded and went to his station. He began to look at the damage report from the first couple of hits. Noting that the damage was more in the engineering section, he contacted the chief.
"Bridge to Engineering!"
"Lagallien, here, sir."
"Rachel, I've noticed several cracks in the hull in Main Engineering. Secure your people. Keep only a handful down there until we get out of this mess. Your first priority is getting warp drive back online."
"Aye, sir," responded the Chief Engineer.
Without even expecting a response, Ian yelled once more to the chief. "And get more power to the shields.
Ian was shaken by another explosion, this one causing the tactical station to fray and send the young ensign to the floor. Ian ran to the ensign to check his condition, but it was too late. Ian stood up and took control of Tactical.
Ian looked at the console and noticed that computer targeting had been damaged. "Sir, we're going to have to fire from the hip. Targeting control is damaged."
"Do it. We don't have a lot of time."
Ian brought up the short-range sensors on a second panel and began making calculations. Setting the weapons to manual control, he began to apply his knowledge of weapons systems and tactical training to pinpoint where he might be able to fire his next shot.
Another shot from the Romulans rattled the ship. "Torpedo room, load all launchers!" Ian yelled. Another explosion on the bridge, this time taking out the conn officer. The captain helped the ensign to the captain's chair and took her place at the conn.
"Captain, change course to 326 by 382," Ian called out. The captain maneuvered his fingers across the conn panel and the ship began to change direction. As the ship made its change, Ian fired the four torpedos toward where the chasing Romulans should have been.
The viewscreen had been watching the Romulan ship and Ian saw as two of his four missiles hit the warbird. "It's a start," Ian thought to himself. "Mr. Franklin," Ian yelled to the OPS officer. "Status of the warbird's shields?"
The young officer looked at his screen and then back to Ian. "78 percent, sir. And just for the record, ours are at 70 percent."
"Thanks for the update, Mr. Franklin," Ian said with a curse under his breath. He was going to have to aim a lot better if he wanted to stop that warbird from chasing them any longer.
The ship was jolted again. The captain was maneuvering as best he could with the size of the ship he was flying, but the warbird was starting to gain speed.
The warbird fired again and the ship was rocked again. "Damage report!"
"There has been a hull breach in Main Engineering. Structural fields holding. Casualty report has not arrived yet. Shields at 60 percent and dropping."
"Bridge to Engineering," Ian said. "Rachel, is everyone okay?"
A male voice responded this time. "Lieutenant Reckard, here, sir. Commander Lagallien has been injured. She is being taken to sick bay now. We are still working on the warp drive, but with the hits that we are taking, it is harder for us to keep the systems together."
"Copy that, Lieutenant. Don't worry about the warp drive. Try to maintain shield integrity for a little while longer. I need them to stabilize."
"Aye sir," said the voice in the air,
Ian looked back down at his panel and noticed that the shields on the warbird were starting to fail as well. "Maybe we hit them harder than I thought," he said to himself. "Okay, captain. Here we go again." Ian checked the numbers and cross checked them again to make sure that he could get a solid hit this time. "Captain change course to 300 by 380."
The captain did as he was told once more. "You'd better have a good clean shot this time, Ian or I'll demote you."
Ian knew that the captain was trying to bring levity to the bridge in the time of crisis, so he helped along the joke. "Well, if I don't have a good shot, I think you should be demoted for your lack of piloting skills." Ian smiled and without being able to see the captain's face, knew that he was smiling too.
The ship began its maneuver and Ian lined up the warbird in the targeting reticle. Launching four more torpedos and a barrage of phasers, Ian could do nothing but pray.
As the torpedos hit the warbird's shields, small explosions could be seen against the hull. Ian looked over at Mr. Franklin for an accurate reading.
"Sir, the Romulan's shields have dropped to 20 percent and they have taken some hull damage." There was movement from the warbird. It began to turn around. "It appears to be retreating, sir." The OPS officer was about to give another report when one more torpedo was launched from the warbird before it cloaked. "Incoming torpedo!"
The captain began the evasive action, but the torpedo had been locked. The missile it the shields and rocked the ship. The captain was tossed from his chair and was knocked unconscious. Ian jumped to the lower level of the bridge from his station and pressed his comm badge. "Medical emergency on the bridge. The captain is wounded. Send a team as soon as possible."
Ian looked around at the bridge. It had several damaged areas and had small fires popping up in different places. Ian stood and made his way to the front of the bridge. "Mr. Franklin, is the warbird still out there?"
"I'm not sure, sir. It seems to have cloaked."
"We'll just have to hope for the best, then." Ian moved toward the captain's chair, turned around and faced the viewscreen.
"Computer, make a note in the log. Until further notice, I, Commander Ian McIntyre, am in command of this ship." The computer beeped its acknowledgment.
A medical team arrived and began to treat the captain as well as the conn officer. Ian sat down in the captain's chair and looked the OPS officer. "Mr. Franklin. I want crew members to search every deck of this ship looking for problems. Any kind of problem, I want it reported to you. Coordinate the repair efforts." He turned around to another officer. "Ensign Hardy, please take the conn." The ensign moved across the bridge and sat down in the empty chair. "Ensign. Set course for Starbase 1138. Maximum impulse. Engage."
"Bridge to Engineering. Lieutenant Reckard, now that we are no longer being shot at, I hope you can get the warp drive back online."
"Yes, sir. It should only take a couple of hours."
"Good. Inform me as soon as you have warp capabilities."
"Aye, sir. Reckard out."
Ian again looked at the bridge. There were only five people on it now, when normally there would be at least eight. Ian was worried about the loss of crew members. He didn't want to have to put the number of lives lost in his report. "Mr. Franklin," he started. "Please get a detailed report from all decks regarding casualties and losses." Ian stood up. He wanted to do something, but he chose to do nothing. He stepped toward the captain's ready room. "Mr. Franklin, you have the bridge. I will be in the captain's ready room. Please inform Starfleet of our situation and ask them to send an escort, if possible."
The young lieutenant stepped out from behind the OPS console and sat down in the captain's chair. The officer manning the science station moved over to OPS and continued to monitor the sensors.
Ian stepped into the captain's ready room and sat down in his chair. He opened a ship-wide channel to speak to the crew.
"Crew of the USS Archer. This is Commander Ian McIntyre. I wanted to let you all know that you did an amazing job and helped us survive an attack by a rogue Romulan warbird. Those of you that are injured, report to sick bay if possible. If you are unable, someone will come to you as soon as they can. Know that I am proud to be the First Officer aboard this ship and am just as proud to serve with this valiant crew. Though we are damaged and we have lost some lives, we will press on. Because that is what Starfleet does. We mourn the dead, but those who do not die, live on to carry their memory and to work toward a day when the violence will cease. That is all."
"Red Alert," sounded the CO. "Red Alert. All crew to battle stations."
Ian wanted so much to stay in his dream. His wife had only been dead for a month and he wanted to keep holding her, but his duty was to the Archer. He quickly got up from the floor and put his uniform on. Making sure that he looked decent enough for 0400 hours, he stepped out into the hallway.
Crew members were scrambling from their quarters and on their way to the various turbolifts. Obviously, they wanted to stay in their dreams as well. Ian headed for the nearest turbolift that was empty and ordered it to the bridge. As he arrived, the ship was jolted by a second explosion.
"Captain," Ian shouted over the alarms. "What's going on?"
"There is a rogue Romulan warbird out there," the captain said pointing to the screen. "There was no warning. They uncloaked and caught us off guard. Our warp drive is offline after the first hit, so we're on impulse only."
Ian nodded and went to his station. He began to look at the damage report from the first couple of hits. Noting that the damage was more in the engineering section, he contacted the chief.
"Bridge to Engineering!"
"Lagallien, here, sir."
"Rachel, I've noticed several cracks in the hull in Main Engineering. Secure your people. Keep only a handful down there until we get out of this mess. Your first priority is getting warp drive back online."
"Aye, sir," responded the Chief Engineer.
Without even expecting a response, Ian yelled once more to the chief. "And get more power to the shields.
Ian was shaken by another explosion, this one causing the tactical station to fray and send the young ensign to the floor. Ian ran to the ensign to check his condition, but it was too late. Ian stood up and took control of Tactical.
Ian looked at the console and noticed that computer targeting had been damaged. "Sir, we're going to have to fire from the hip. Targeting control is damaged."
"Do it. We don't have a lot of time."
Ian brought up the short-range sensors on a second panel and began making calculations. Setting the weapons to manual control, he began to apply his knowledge of weapons systems and tactical training to pinpoint where he might be able to fire his next shot.
Another shot from the Romulans rattled the ship. "Torpedo room, load all launchers!" Ian yelled. Another explosion on the bridge, this time taking out the conn officer. The captain helped the ensign to the captain's chair and took her place at the conn.
"Captain, change course to 326 by 382," Ian called out. The captain maneuvered his fingers across the conn panel and the ship began to change direction. As the ship made its change, Ian fired the four torpedos toward where the chasing Romulans should have been.
The viewscreen had been watching the Romulan ship and Ian saw as two of his four missiles hit the warbird. "It's a start," Ian thought to himself. "Mr. Franklin," Ian yelled to the OPS officer. "Status of the warbird's shields?"
The young officer looked at his screen and then back to Ian. "78 percent, sir. And just for the record, ours are at 70 percent."
"Thanks for the update, Mr. Franklin," Ian said with a curse under his breath. He was going to have to aim a lot better if he wanted to stop that warbird from chasing them any longer.
The ship was jolted again. The captain was maneuvering as best he could with the size of the ship he was flying, but the warbird was starting to gain speed.
The warbird fired again and the ship was rocked again. "Damage report!"
"There has been a hull breach in Main Engineering. Structural fields holding. Casualty report has not arrived yet. Shields at 60 percent and dropping."
"Bridge to Engineering," Ian said. "Rachel, is everyone okay?"
A male voice responded this time. "Lieutenant Reckard, here, sir. Commander Lagallien has been injured. She is being taken to sick bay now. We are still working on the warp drive, but with the hits that we are taking, it is harder for us to keep the systems together."
"Copy that, Lieutenant. Don't worry about the warp drive. Try to maintain shield integrity for a little while longer. I need them to stabilize."
"Aye sir," said the voice in the air,
Ian looked back down at his panel and noticed that the shields on the warbird were starting to fail as well. "Maybe we hit them harder than I thought," he said to himself. "Okay, captain. Here we go again." Ian checked the numbers and cross checked them again to make sure that he could get a solid hit this time. "Captain change course to 300 by 380."
The captain did as he was told once more. "You'd better have a good clean shot this time, Ian or I'll demote you."
Ian knew that the captain was trying to bring levity to the bridge in the time of crisis, so he helped along the joke. "Well, if I don't have a good shot, I think you should be demoted for your lack of piloting skills." Ian smiled and without being able to see the captain's face, knew that he was smiling too.
The ship began its maneuver and Ian lined up the warbird in the targeting reticle. Launching four more torpedos and a barrage of phasers, Ian could do nothing but pray.
As the torpedos hit the warbird's shields, small explosions could be seen against the hull. Ian looked over at Mr. Franklin for an accurate reading.
"Sir, the Romulan's shields have dropped to 20 percent and they have taken some hull damage." There was movement from the warbird. It began to turn around. "It appears to be retreating, sir." The OPS officer was about to give another report when one more torpedo was launched from the warbird before it cloaked. "Incoming torpedo!"
The captain began the evasive action, but the torpedo had been locked. The missile it the shields and rocked the ship. The captain was tossed from his chair and was knocked unconscious. Ian jumped to the lower level of the bridge from his station and pressed his comm badge. "Medical emergency on the bridge. The captain is wounded. Send a team as soon as possible."
Ian looked around at the bridge. It had several damaged areas and had small fires popping up in different places. Ian stood and made his way to the front of the bridge. "Mr. Franklin, is the warbird still out there?"
"I'm not sure, sir. It seems to have cloaked."
"We'll just have to hope for the best, then." Ian moved toward the captain's chair, turned around and faced the viewscreen.
"Computer, make a note in the log. Until further notice, I, Commander Ian McIntyre, am in command of this ship." The computer beeped its acknowledgment.
A medical team arrived and began to treat the captain as well as the conn officer. Ian sat down in the captain's chair and looked the OPS officer. "Mr. Franklin. I want crew members to search every deck of this ship looking for problems. Any kind of problem, I want it reported to you. Coordinate the repair efforts." He turned around to another officer. "Ensign Hardy, please take the conn." The ensign moved across the bridge and sat down in the empty chair. "Ensign. Set course for Starbase 1138. Maximum impulse. Engage."
"Bridge to Engineering. Lieutenant Reckard, now that we are no longer being shot at, I hope you can get the warp drive back online."
"Yes, sir. It should only take a couple of hours."
"Good. Inform me as soon as you have warp capabilities."
"Aye, sir. Reckard out."
Ian again looked at the bridge. There were only five people on it now, when normally there would be at least eight. Ian was worried about the loss of crew members. He didn't want to have to put the number of lives lost in his report. "Mr. Franklin," he started. "Please get a detailed report from all decks regarding casualties and losses." Ian stood up. He wanted to do something, but he chose to do nothing. He stepped toward the captain's ready room. "Mr. Franklin, you have the bridge. I will be in the captain's ready room. Please inform Starfleet of our situation and ask them to send an escort, if possible."
The young lieutenant stepped out from behind the OPS console and sat down in the captain's chair. The officer manning the science station moved over to OPS and continued to monitor the sensors.
Ian stepped into the captain's ready room and sat down in his chair. He opened a ship-wide channel to speak to the crew.
"Crew of the USS Archer. This is Commander Ian McIntyre. I wanted to let you all know that you did an amazing job and helped us survive an attack by a rogue Romulan warbird. Those of you that are injured, report to sick bay if possible. If you are unable, someone will come to you as soon as they can. Know that I am proud to be the First Officer aboard this ship and am just as proud to serve with this valiant crew. Though we are damaged and we have lost some lives, we will press on. Because that is what Starfleet does. We mourn the dead, but those who do not die, live on to carry their memory and to work toward a day when the violence will cease. That is all."
Another Fine Mess (From Star Wars: Tales From Across the Stars)
“Another Fine Mess”
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
Melina Asketi (SC)
The ship exploded and the Ulgar’s Fury sped through the wreckage. “That’s the last of them,” a voice shouted. “You can come down from the turret.”
A young lady appeared in the cockpit and sat in the pilot’s chair. The co-pilot, a second young woman began checking systems for damage.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad, was it, Melina?”
The co-pilot kept looking at her screens, but answered. “Not bad?” she retorted. “Have you seen the ship?” The girl pointed to the damaged areas, of which there were several. “It’s going to take a couple of weeks to fix this stuff. And as it is, you just ruined our chances with one of our best clients.”
Nyja Asketi, a proven smuggler and criminal for several years looked at her younger sister and weighed her response. “Well there was no way I was going to start giving him forty-five percent of my earnings just as a privilege of working for him.” The girl punched the console hard enough to hurt her hand. “Besides,” she started again. “There’s plenty of other suckers out there that we can get work with.”
Melina turned to look at her older sister and stared for a moment. “But did you have to toss the concussion grenade onto his table?”
Nyja laughed and though she didn’t want to, Melina began to laugh as well. “I thought it was a dud, I have several. It was only meant to scare him and change his mind.”
“He changed his mind alright,” Melina said. “Enough to send his fighters after us. I’m sure we have a bounty out on us by now.”
“There’s always one way to find out,” Nyja countered. “Set course for Tatooine. Best speed.”
“You’re lucky we even have hyperdrive capability,” Melina said as she began programming the navicomputer.
“And you’re lucky that we’re alive, the way you fly!”
Melina became offended and stopped her work. “The way I fly?” she shouted. “You should talk; you’re the one that taught me!” The girl went back to programming. “Besides, if you had just a little better aim. . .” she let her words trail off.
“That’s it!” yelled Nyja. She took her hands out and started to close her fingers into a fist. The other girl began to gasp for air. She was being strangled by the Force. Nyja knew what she was doing and Melina knew what she was getting into by getting into a shouting match with Nyja. Suddenly, Melina passed out. At this, Nyja became aware of what she had done. Her face snapped back into focus and she immediately moved to Melina’s side.
The girl was not moving and it didn’t seem as if she was breathing. Nyja reached down and began trying to breath life into her. “Come on, dammit!” she screamed in between breaths. “You can’t die! I’m not through being mad at you!”
The younger girl began to cough and Nyja turned her onto her side. Without saying anything else, Nyja cradled the girl in her arms. After a few minutes of silence, with the girl gaining her strength back, Nyja finally spoke, quietly. “I’m sorry, Mel,” Nyja whispered. “I don’t know my own strength. I just lost control and took it out on you.”
The girl sat up a little more on her own and looked at Nyja. “Don’t worry. But remember, you swore you would never kill again in anger. I’m going to do everything I can to keep you to that.” Melina moved forward to hug her sister and Nyja approached as well.
“I’m sorry again. And thank you for being so understanding.”
The two girls stood and returned to their seats in the cockpit. Melina started to re-calculate their trajectory to Tatooine. “The coordinates are set, Nyja.”
Nyja looked at her sister whose face was still gaining color. “Engage hyperdrive.” Melina pulled the hyperdrive throttle back and the ship disappeared into the stars.
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
Melina Asketi (SC)
The ship exploded and the Ulgar’s Fury sped through the wreckage. “That’s the last of them,” a voice shouted. “You can come down from the turret.”
A young lady appeared in the cockpit and sat in the pilot’s chair. The co-pilot, a second young woman began checking systems for damage.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad, was it, Melina?”
The co-pilot kept looking at her screens, but answered. “Not bad?” she retorted. “Have you seen the ship?” The girl pointed to the damaged areas, of which there were several. “It’s going to take a couple of weeks to fix this stuff. And as it is, you just ruined our chances with one of our best clients.”
Nyja Asketi, a proven smuggler and criminal for several years looked at her younger sister and weighed her response. “Well there was no way I was going to start giving him forty-five percent of my earnings just as a privilege of working for him.” The girl punched the console hard enough to hurt her hand. “Besides,” she started again. “There’s plenty of other suckers out there that we can get work with.”
Melina turned to look at her older sister and stared for a moment. “But did you have to toss the concussion grenade onto his table?”
Nyja laughed and though she didn’t want to, Melina began to laugh as well. “I thought it was a dud, I have several. It was only meant to scare him and change his mind.”
“He changed his mind alright,” Melina said. “Enough to send his fighters after us. I’m sure we have a bounty out on us by now.”
“There’s always one way to find out,” Nyja countered. “Set course for Tatooine. Best speed.”
“You’re lucky we even have hyperdrive capability,” Melina said as she began programming the navicomputer.
“And you’re lucky that we’re alive, the way you fly!”
Melina became offended and stopped her work. “The way I fly?” she shouted. “You should talk; you’re the one that taught me!” The girl went back to programming. “Besides, if you had just a little better aim. . .” she let her words trail off.
“That’s it!” yelled Nyja. She took her hands out and started to close her fingers into a fist. The other girl began to gasp for air. She was being strangled by the Force. Nyja knew what she was doing and Melina knew what she was getting into by getting into a shouting match with Nyja. Suddenly, Melina passed out. At this, Nyja became aware of what she had done. Her face snapped back into focus and she immediately moved to Melina’s side.
The girl was not moving and it didn’t seem as if she was breathing. Nyja reached down and began trying to breath life into her. “Come on, dammit!” she screamed in between breaths. “You can’t die! I’m not through being mad at you!”
The younger girl began to cough and Nyja turned her onto her side. Without saying anything else, Nyja cradled the girl in her arms. After a few minutes of silence, with the girl gaining her strength back, Nyja finally spoke, quietly. “I’m sorry, Mel,” Nyja whispered. “I don’t know my own strength. I just lost control and took it out on you.”
The girl sat up a little more on her own and looked at Nyja. “Don’t worry. But remember, you swore you would never kill again in anger. I’m going to do everything I can to keep you to that.” Melina moved forward to hug her sister and Nyja approached as well.
“I’m sorry again. And thank you for being so understanding.”
The two girls stood and returned to their seats in the cockpit. Melina started to re-calculate their trajectory to Tatooine. “The coordinates are set, Nyja.”
Nyja looked at her sister whose face was still gaining color. “Engage hyperdrive.” Melina pulled the hyperdrive throttle back and the ship disappeared into the stars.
"Introduction" (From Vampire Slayers - closed)
Charlie applied the fake tattoo and pulled the backing off. "There," she said, fanning it with her hand. "At least I got it in the right place this time."
The hotel room that Charlie had rented for the night was not much bigger than the twin bed that posed as any other type of furniture for the room also. Having just arrived in Lincoln Falls, Charlie didn't have a chance to go looking for an apartment.
Charlie stood and pulled up her pants so the tattoo could finish drying. She made two steps to the bathroom to wash her face and get ready for bed. As she finished, she thought she should make a list of things to do tomorrow.
She spoke out loud as she wrote because she was too scared of the silence the building contained. "One, find a place to live," she started. She then proceeded to scratch that out. "I suppose one should be find a job, then find a place to live." She started to write more things down, but then went back to the beginning. "No, you need to have a place to live before you can get a job." She looked at the piece of paper that had several scratches across it. She crumpled it up and started over. "One, find a place to live. Two, find a job. Three, find the bad guys. Four, kill some bad guys. Five, find someplace to eat."
Charlie thought for a moment and crumpled that piece of paper up also. "This is impossible," she whined. "I can't do this."
Charlie pulled her wallet out and retrieved her calling card. She began dialing numbers on the motel provided phone. After a few minutes, a person on the other end answered.
"I was wondering when you would call," the voice said.
"I'm sorry," Charlie started. "I thought I could do this myself, but I can't"
"Yes, you can, Charlie," he responded. "You are a great Slayer. You are very skilled and you have power that you can't even begin to imagine."
"Some Slayer I am. I don't even want to go looking. Besides, you said that there were several Slayers called to this place. Why did you send me?"
Arthur Searcy, Charlie's former Watcher, did not answer right away. Charlie prodded him again. "Charlie," he started slowly. "You are a Slayer. It is your destiny to follow evil and destroy it. If you choose not to, then that could cause an imbalance in the world."
"But what about the fact that there are already Slayers here? Doesn't that cause an imbalance?"
"Charlene Christine Grey!" he yelled. It caused Charlie to stop whining. "As your Watcher, I was notified of a distress in that area. I sent you there to aid other Slayers and Watchers that are already there because you have a gift. A gift that needs to be used for good. If you don't do anything, then we're all doomed, not just the town of Lincoln Falls."
Charlie didn't speak for a moment. "Fine. Tomorrow, I'll look for a place to live and a job. Know anyplace that needs an archeologist?"
"No, Charlie, I don't. But there is a mall there with several stores. I'm sure plenty of jobs would be available."
"Ooh, yippee," she said dryly. "That's why I went to college, to work in a mall. You know I'm not a people person. That's why I chose Archeology as a major. I wouldn't have to deal with many people."
"Charlie," Arthur said sternly. "Remember, you are there for a higher reason. Find a job to sustain yourself. Do your real job. Please."
"Thanks, Arthur. This means a lot that you would talk to me."
"Don't make it a habit. I'm not your Watcher anymore. I can give you moral support only so long. You have to find others to be your support system now."
"I'll see what I can do. Thanks, again. Good night."
"Good night, Charlie. Sleep well and good luck."
Charlie hung up the phone and turned off the light in her room. Though she was still in her regular clothes, she got into the bed and stared at the ceiling. "I can't do this," she said quietly, as she wiped a tear from her eye.
"Yes, you can," a voice responded inside her mind. It was the voice of her first Watcher, Dr. Dresdin. He had passed away before she started college and had always seemed to come to her when she needed him most. "You are strong and you can succeed."
Charlie fell asleep and waited for what the new day would bring her.
The hotel room that Charlie had rented for the night was not much bigger than the twin bed that posed as any other type of furniture for the room also. Having just arrived in Lincoln Falls, Charlie didn't have a chance to go looking for an apartment.
Charlie stood and pulled up her pants so the tattoo could finish drying. She made two steps to the bathroom to wash her face and get ready for bed. As she finished, she thought she should make a list of things to do tomorrow.
She spoke out loud as she wrote because she was too scared of the silence the building contained. "One, find a place to live," she started. She then proceeded to scratch that out. "I suppose one should be find a job, then find a place to live." She started to write more things down, but then went back to the beginning. "No, you need to have a place to live before you can get a job." She looked at the piece of paper that had several scratches across it. She crumpled it up and started over. "One, find a place to live. Two, find a job. Three, find the bad guys. Four, kill some bad guys. Five, find someplace to eat."
Charlie thought for a moment and crumpled that piece of paper up also. "This is impossible," she whined. "I can't do this."
Charlie pulled her wallet out and retrieved her calling card. She began dialing numbers on the motel provided phone. After a few minutes, a person on the other end answered.
"I was wondering when you would call," the voice said.
"I'm sorry," Charlie started. "I thought I could do this myself, but I can't"
"Yes, you can, Charlie," he responded. "You are a great Slayer. You are very skilled and you have power that you can't even begin to imagine."
"Some Slayer I am. I don't even want to go looking. Besides, you said that there were several Slayers called to this place. Why did you send me?"
Arthur Searcy, Charlie's former Watcher, did not answer right away. Charlie prodded him again. "Charlie," he started slowly. "You are a Slayer. It is your destiny to follow evil and destroy it. If you choose not to, then that could cause an imbalance in the world."
"But what about the fact that there are already Slayers here? Doesn't that cause an imbalance?"
"Charlene Christine Grey!" he yelled. It caused Charlie to stop whining. "As your Watcher, I was notified of a distress in that area. I sent you there to aid other Slayers and Watchers that are already there because you have a gift. A gift that needs to be used for good. If you don't do anything, then we're all doomed, not just the town of Lincoln Falls."
Charlie didn't speak for a moment. "Fine. Tomorrow, I'll look for a place to live and a job. Know anyplace that needs an archeologist?"
"No, Charlie, I don't. But there is a mall there with several stores. I'm sure plenty of jobs would be available."
"Ooh, yippee," she said dryly. "That's why I went to college, to work in a mall. You know I'm not a people person. That's why I chose Archeology as a major. I wouldn't have to deal with many people."
"Charlie," Arthur said sternly. "Remember, you are there for a higher reason. Find a job to sustain yourself. Do your real job. Please."
"Thanks, Arthur. This means a lot that you would talk to me."
"Don't make it a habit. I'm not your Watcher anymore. I can give you moral support only so long. You have to find others to be your support system now."
"I'll see what I can do. Thanks, again. Good night."
"Good night, Charlie. Sleep well and good luck."
Charlie hung up the phone and turned off the light in her room. Though she was still in her regular clothes, she got into the bed and stared at the ceiling. "I can't do this," she said quietly, as she wiped a tear from her eye.
"Yes, you can," a voice responded inside her mind. It was the voice of her first Watcher, Dr. Dresdin. He had passed away before she started college and had always seemed to come to her when she needed him most. "You are strong and you can succeed."
Charlie fell asleep and waited for what the new day would bring her.
Intro to this Blog
Ok - I know this is a little odd...but I never placed a commentary about this blog when I created it. I just went right ahead and started posting stories. Well, here it is: What you've all been waiting for! The explanation of the Blog!!!
Really, this blog is just a place for me to post some of my stories that I have written while being part of several PBEMs (Play By Email RPGs). I have had a lot of fun over the past few years getting to know a lot of people in the world just by writing with them.
Some of the posts come from current PBEMS that I am part of. Those will be linked on the left hand side to the main website, in case your interested. There will be some, however, that are from older PBEMS that I am no longer a part of. While I will still post these story entries, there will not be a corresponding link to them on the page. Sorry.
Well, I guess that's enough of an explanation. Feel free to write comments. I appreciate anything you have to offer.
Until then, remember:
We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams.
Really, this blog is just a place for me to post some of my stories that I have written while being part of several PBEMs (Play By Email RPGs). I have had a lot of fun over the past few years getting to know a lot of people in the world just by writing with them.
Some of the posts come from current PBEMS that I am part of. Those will be linked on the left hand side to the main website, in case your interested. There will be some, however, that are from older PBEMS that I am no longer a part of. While I will still post these story entries, there will not be a corresponding link to them on the page. Sorry.
Well, I guess that's enough of an explanation. Feel free to write comments. I appreciate anything you have to offer.
Until then, remember:
We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams.
"One Girl's Thoughts" (From X Men Awakenings)
"One Girl's Thoughts"
Day: 11.17.04
Time: 12:30
Location: Nat's Room, and Gymnasium, Academy X,
Atlanta GA
Natalie was feeling a little better since Markus had
healed her. She was still a little woozy, but
nonetheless was feeling better than she was a little
while ago. She had made it though the rest of the
CompleX along with the others looking for any more of
the drink that caused the problem to begin with.
As she was finished for the moment, she went back to
her room and sent her friend an email, warning her of
the dangers of the drink. ~If it was bad for mutants,
it could be worse for humans~ she thought.
Natalie took a moment to breathe and knew that she
needed to get some of her nervous energy out, so she
chose to go to the gym.
When she arrived, Natalie started on the treadmill and
started running. She was surprised that her body was
running well considering what had recently happened.
Her body was in fact running faster and she was not
losing stamina or breath.
Natalie ran for almost thirty minutes and was just
showing signs of slowing down. She slowed herself
down and stepped off the treadmill. She moved from
the treadmill to the weights and set them for 100
pounds. Natalie lay down and started to bench press
the 100 pounds 10 times. She repeated again, this
time doing 20 reps. Natalie stopped and started to
think about what had happened earlier in the day. Had
she been on the street and taken a drink of that
stuff, she probably would have died considering no one
out there would have known she was a mutant, even
Natalie herself. As she continued to lay on the
bench, a small tear started to fall from her left eye.
She wiped it away quickly so no one would see her
weakness. She was not weak, she told herself. She
was strong and stronger now because of her abilities.
Natalie stood up from the bench and headed into the
shower. As she rinsed herself off, she started to
think about the consequences that the drink could
cause to the public, both human and mutant. She
finished her shower and got dressed again, this time
moving with a purpose.
Natalie went back upstairs to the Residential Area and
started looking for the others. Her mind was racing.
She wanted to get rid of the people that caused this
harm to her. She wanted to get rid of them for good.
Natalie knew that she should talk to Travis about the
next course of action, but she didn't want to talk
about action. She wanted to perform action. She
wanted to find out who was behind the drink and make
them stop manufacturing the product.
OFF
A Post by
Natalie Rice
Pissed off Mutant
Day: 11.17.04
Time: 12:30
Location: Nat's Room, and Gymnasium, Academy X,
Atlanta GA
Natalie was feeling a little better since Markus had
healed her. She was still a little woozy, but
nonetheless was feeling better than she was a little
while ago. She had made it though the rest of the
CompleX along with the others looking for any more of
the drink that caused the problem to begin with.
As she was finished for the moment, she went back to
her room and sent her friend an email, warning her of
the dangers of the drink. ~If it was bad for mutants,
it could be worse for humans~ she thought.
Natalie took a moment to breathe and knew that she
needed to get some of her nervous energy out, so she
chose to go to the gym.
When she arrived, Natalie started on the treadmill and
started running. She was surprised that her body was
running well considering what had recently happened.
Her body was in fact running faster and she was not
losing stamina or breath.
Natalie ran for almost thirty minutes and was just
showing signs of slowing down. She slowed herself
down and stepped off the treadmill. She moved from
the treadmill to the weights and set them for 100
pounds. Natalie lay down and started to bench press
the 100 pounds 10 times. She repeated again, this
time doing 20 reps. Natalie stopped and started to
think about what had happened earlier in the day. Had
she been on the street and taken a drink of that
stuff, she probably would have died considering no one
out there would have known she was a mutant, even
Natalie herself. As she continued to lay on the
bench, a small tear started to fall from her left eye.
She wiped it away quickly so no one would see her
weakness. She was not weak, she told herself. She
was strong and stronger now because of her abilities.
Natalie stood up from the bench and headed into the
shower. As she rinsed herself off, she started to
think about the consequences that the drink could
cause to the public, both human and mutant. She
finished her shower and got dressed again, this time
moving with a purpose.
Natalie went back upstairs to the Residential Area and
started looking for the others. Her mind was racing.
She wanted to get rid of the people that caused this
harm to her. She wanted to get rid of them for good.
Natalie knew that she should talk to Travis about the
next course of action, but she didn't want to talk
about action. She wanted to perform action. She
wanted to find out who was behind the drink and make
them stop manufacturing the product.
OFF
A Post by
Natalie Rice
Pissed off Mutant
Thursday, July 14, 2005
Introduction (From Harry Potter: Past the Point of No Return)
Professor Dashiell Charles entered the Main Gate to Hogwart's in a small carriage. This was the first time that he had returned to his old school since he finished, many years ago. Upon arriving at the Main Entrance, he was greeted by a man in a small bowler hat. Dash knew that this was Cornelius Fudge, current Headmaster of the school. The only Headmaster Dash had known was Professor Dumbledore. Dash had heard several things about the new Headmaster, but chose to reserve his opinion until he had spoken more in depth to the man.
The carriage stopped and the door was opened by the older gentleman. Dash exited the carriage and extended his hand to the other man.
"Good morning, Headmaster," Dash said. "I'm Dashiell Charles."
"Welcome, Professor Charles," Fudge said. "I am pleased you accepted the position for our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. It has been a difficult search."
Dash waved his wand toward the back of the carriage. His bags suddenly started to float and follow behind him as Fudge led him into the castle. As they walked, Dash spoke up. "Headmaster," he said. "I understand that you have requested to view my curriculum before I begin teaching. May I ask why?"
Fudge twiddled his thumbs nervously. "I only want to make sure that the students are receiving the proper training for their year." He paused, hoping he could think of something else. "And . . ." he said quietly. "The new Minister of Magic has new rules and policies about the teaching of this particular class."
"Very well," Dash said, inwardly disappointed. "I will bring you a copy of the materials later this afternoon, after I've gotten settled." In his mind, Dash started to think of all the things he would need to change so that the Headmaster would have no reason to sack him before he had even started teaching.
As Dash finished his statement, Fudge stopped at a room on the first floor. "Professor," he offered. "This is your classroom. And your personal belongings can be placed in the office area, just inside and up the stairs."
"Thank you, Headmaster," Dashiell said and opened the door. Walking into the room, Dash towed his things behind, floating, of course. He stepped in and looked around. The room was decorated plainly with desks in perfect rows with an aisle down the middle. "This will do just nicely," he said, half to himself and half aloud.
Fudge, who had been standing behind Dash's trunks coughed slightly to get his attention. Dash turned back to face the Headmaster.
"Professor Charles, I wish to see your curriculum by three this afternoon. the students will arrive at six and the Sorting Ceremony will start at seven thirty."
"Yes, sir," Dash responded.
Fudge nodded, twirled on his heels and walked away. Dash started moving toward his office area with his trunks trailing behind. "This is going to be the start of a good year," Dash thought to himself as he climbed the stairs and into the office.
The carriage stopped and the door was opened by the older gentleman. Dash exited the carriage and extended his hand to the other man.
"Good morning, Headmaster," Dash said. "I'm Dashiell Charles."
"Welcome, Professor Charles," Fudge said. "I am pleased you accepted the position for our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. It has been a difficult search."
Dash waved his wand toward the back of the carriage. His bags suddenly started to float and follow behind him as Fudge led him into the castle. As they walked, Dash spoke up. "Headmaster," he said. "I understand that you have requested to view my curriculum before I begin teaching. May I ask why?"
Fudge twiddled his thumbs nervously. "I only want to make sure that the students are receiving the proper training for their year." He paused, hoping he could think of something else. "And . . ." he said quietly. "The new Minister of Magic has new rules and policies about the teaching of this particular class."
"Very well," Dash said, inwardly disappointed. "I will bring you a copy of the materials later this afternoon, after I've gotten settled." In his mind, Dash started to think of all the things he would need to change so that the Headmaster would have no reason to sack him before he had even started teaching.
As Dash finished his statement, Fudge stopped at a room on the first floor. "Professor," he offered. "This is your classroom. And your personal belongings can be placed in the office area, just inside and up the stairs."
"Thank you, Headmaster," Dashiell said and opened the door. Walking into the room, Dash towed his things behind, floating, of course. He stepped in and looked around. The room was decorated plainly with desks in perfect rows with an aisle down the middle. "This will do just nicely," he said, half to himself and half aloud.
Fudge, who had been standing behind Dash's trunks coughed slightly to get his attention. Dash turned back to face the Headmaster.
"Professor Charles, I wish to see your curriculum by three this afternoon. the students will arrive at six and the Sorting Ceremony will start at seven thirty."
"Yes, sir," Dash responded.
Fudge nodded, twirled on his heels and walked away. Dash started moving toward his office area with his trunks trailing behind. "This is going to be the start of a good year," Dash thought to himself as he climbed the stairs and into the office.
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
"Just A Quick Drink" (From Star Wars: Tales From Across the Stars)
"Just A Quick Drink"
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
& Melina Asketi (SC)
Falcon's Nest Bartender (NPC)
Location: Outer Rim, Eriadu, Falcon's Nest
Date: Rha 5th, 2005 G.C.
Nyja exited the spaceport. Melina was right.
Everything had changed. Nyja had only been gone for
eight years and yet it looked as if the city had been
demolished by war. The streets were in disarray and a
lot of the buildings showed wear and tear.
Nyja made her way down the street to the Falcon's
Nest. She had never heard of it while she lived here,
but she also knew that business establishments popped
up and disappeared very quickly.
The outside of the building was not that spectacular.
In fact, if it wasn't for a small sign with the name,
no one would know that it was even there. Nyja
attempted to open the door and found it locked. A
small opening appeared in the middle of the door and a
pair of eyes looked out.
"What do you want?"
Nyja didn't realize that she needed to let someone
else know her reasons for being somewhere. "I just
need to get in," she said. "I need to see Refton."
There wasn't a response. The eyes blinked. There was
a snort and then something closed over the eyes.
The door eventually opened and Nyja entered the
building. Looking around, she noticed the large
animal that was covering the door. She didn't know
its species, but was sure that it was strong enough to
stop a fight if need be.
Nyja passed the animal and entered the Falcon's Nest
proper and looked around. As she saw the various
patrons, she noticed that they were the same that she
had seen in bars across the galaxy.
Nyja stepped up to the bar as the bartender looked her
up and down. “Not from around here, are you?’ the man
asked.
“No comment,” she replied coolly. “I need Refton.”
“He’s not here,” the bartender said as he served a
drink to another customer. “Hasn’t been here for a
month.”
Nyja didn’t want the man to see the fear in her eyes.
If Refton wasn’t there, she would never be able to
find what she is looking for. “Fine,” she finally
started. “I’ll have a Corellian whiskey.” She tossed
some credits on the bar – 200 credits more than the
normal cost of whiskey. “Keep the change,” she said,
taking the whiskey and gulping it.
The bartender quickly took the creds and pocketed
them. He then leaned over to Nyja and whispered, “He
doesn’t want to be found. Bounty Hunters are on his
trail.”
Nyja didn’t ask any questions, but requested a refill
and placed 200 more credits on the bar. The man again
pocketed the creds and spoke again.
“You can find him in the South of Eriadu City. Near
the edge of town. There is an abandoned building
there. You’ll know it when you see it.
Nyja stood up and placed 200 more credits on the
counter. “You had better be right, or I’m coming back
for my money.” As Nyja turned, she made sure to let
the bartender glance her lightsaber, knowing full well
that he would be intimidated by it.
Nyja left the bar and pulled her transmitter from her
belt. “Mel, I need to go to the South end of Eriadu
City. What’s the damage and repair time?”
“Well, the damage to the hyperdrive isn’t as bad as I
thought, but there is some other minor hull damage.
It should take about three days maybe four.”
“Okay, I’ll keep in touch.”
“Good. Oh and whatever you said to the dockmaster, it
worked. He’s out here every hour making sure I have
everything I need. He even brought me some food.”
Nyja had to smile at herself. She knew that
threatening innocent people was not her way any
longer, but she still prided in the fact that she
still had the gift to do so.
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
& Melina Asketi (SC)
Falcon's Nest Bartender (NPC)
Location: Outer Rim, Eriadu, Falcon's Nest
Date: Rha 5th, 2005 G.C.
Nyja exited the spaceport. Melina was right.
Everything had changed. Nyja had only been gone for
eight years and yet it looked as if the city had been
demolished by war. The streets were in disarray and a
lot of the buildings showed wear and tear.
Nyja made her way down the street to the Falcon's
Nest. She had never heard of it while she lived here,
but she also knew that business establishments popped
up and disappeared very quickly.
The outside of the building was not that spectacular.
In fact, if it wasn't for a small sign with the name,
no one would know that it was even there. Nyja
attempted to open the door and found it locked. A
small opening appeared in the middle of the door and a
pair of eyes looked out.
"What do you want?"
Nyja didn't realize that she needed to let someone
else know her reasons for being somewhere. "I just
need to get in," she said. "I need to see Refton."
There wasn't a response. The eyes blinked. There was
a snort and then something closed over the eyes.
The door eventually opened and Nyja entered the
building. Looking around, she noticed the large
animal that was covering the door. She didn't know
its species, but was sure that it was strong enough to
stop a fight if need be.
Nyja passed the animal and entered the Falcon's Nest
proper and looked around. As she saw the various
patrons, she noticed that they were the same that she
had seen in bars across the galaxy.
Nyja stepped up to the bar as the bartender looked her
up and down. “Not from around here, are you?’ the man
asked.
“No comment,” she replied coolly. “I need Refton.”
“He’s not here,” the bartender said as he served a
drink to another customer. “Hasn’t been here for a
month.”
Nyja didn’t want the man to see the fear in her eyes.
If Refton wasn’t there, she would never be able to
find what she is looking for. “Fine,” she finally
started. “I’ll have a Corellian whiskey.” She tossed
some credits on the bar – 200 credits more than the
normal cost of whiskey. “Keep the change,” she said,
taking the whiskey and gulping it.
The bartender quickly took the creds and pocketed
them. He then leaned over to Nyja and whispered, “He
doesn’t want to be found. Bounty Hunters are on his
trail.”
Nyja didn’t ask any questions, but requested a refill
and placed 200 more credits on the bar. The man again
pocketed the creds and spoke again.
“You can find him in the South of Eriadu City. Near
the edge of town. There is an abandoned building
there. You’ll know it when you see it.
Nyja stood up and placed 200 more credits on the
counter. “You had better be right, or I’m coming back
for my money.” As Nyja turned, she made sure to let
the bartender glance her lightsaber, knowing full well
that he would be intimidated by it.
Nyja left the bar and pulled her transmitter from her
belt. “Mel, I need to go to the South end of Eriadu
City. What’s the damage and repair time?”
“Well, the damage to the hyperdrive isn’t as bad as I
thought, but there is some other minor hull damage.
It should take about three days maybe four.”
“Okay, I’ll keep in touch.”
“Good. Oh and whatever you said to the dockmaster, it
worked. He’s out here every hour making sure I have
everything I need. He even brought me some food.”
Nyja had to smile at herself. She knew that
threatening innocent people was not her way any
longer, but she still prided in the fact that she
still had the gift to do so.
"Meeting New Friends" (From Star Wars: Tales From Across the Stars)
"Meeting New Friends"
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
& Melina Asketi (SC)
Eriadu Dock Master (NPC)
Location: Outer Rim, Eriadu, Hangar
Date: Rha 5th, 2005 G.C.
Nyja and Melina stepped out of the starship. Melina
wandered to the rear of the ship to check the outer
hyperdrive unit. Both began to cough as the foul air
entered their lungs.
"We've got to work hard on the repairs. You start. I
have to speak to the dock master."
Melina was looking at the hyperdrive and opened a
storage hatch to remove a tool kit. Opening up an
access hatch, she started to scan for a problem.
While Melina started repairs on the hyperdrive, Nyja
stepped into the dock master's office. She looked
around and noticed that a gruff-looking human was
asleep with his head on his desk.
"Excuse me," Nyja said loudly hoping to wake the man.
The man stirred slightly and changed positions. Nyja
stepped up to him and jostled him. "Excuse me," she
said again. The man this time woke with a start and
began to grumble.
"I do not wish to be bothered. Come back later."
Nyja pushed her face into the manÃs and smelled the
alcohol on his breath. "I need information." She
paused. "I need information now!" she screamed and
pulled his shirt into a fist.
The man responded to the aggressiveness. "Okay,
okay," he said. "I'm sorry."
"Fine," Nyja said and let go of the manÃs shirt. "I'm
looking for Captain Emille Greyson."
"Captain Greyson? He hasnÃt been around for years. I
think he's dead."
"He's not dead. I know he's not. And I know you have
ways to find out where he is." With her last words,
she waved her hand subtly in hopes her Jedi Mind Trick
would work.
The man didn't miss a step. He didn't blink. He just
answered the question. "I don't know where he his. I
haven't seen him in years.
The trick did not work. Nyja would have to keep
working on that, she thought. "Fine. Is his ship
still in the hangar?"
"I don't have to tell you anything!" the man retorted.
In response to that, Nyja pulled her sidearm from her
holster and pointed it at the dock master. "I will
ask you one more time. Is his ship still in the
hangar?"
"You can't do this! I'll call the police!"
"Don't bother. I have been given permission by the
local government to make these inquiries and make any
demands as necessary." Nyja stepped up and held the
pistol to the dock master's head. Even though she
knew she wouldn't shoot him, she made every gesture to
force the dock master's hand and get him to talk.
"Please!" he begged. "I'm just a dock master. I
don't know anything more than I've already told you."
Nyja shoved the man down into his seat. "Fine!" she
yelled again pointing the blaster in the man's face.
She started having conflicting emotions. She wanted
to kill him for being stubborn and her mind was
fighting those instincts. Her finger wavered on the
trigger. After a few minutes, she lowered the
blaster. The man let out an elongated breath.
"My associate is repairing our ship. See to it
personally that she receives what she needs no matter
the cost."
The man stared at Nyja as she exited the room. He
started to reach for a blaster that was hidden under
his desk. Nyja felt the disturbance and turned
quickly, taking and igniting her lightsaber. She
stood tall, for a short person, and was menacing with
the red glow from the saber filling the room.
The dock master dropped the blaster and cowered in the
corner. "Okay, okay," he said. "Go to the Falcon's
Nest, a bar down the street. Someone there can help
you. Ask for Refton, he may know more information
that you seek."
Nyja disengaged the blade and walked out. She didn't
let the dock master see, but she started to cry. As
she approached the ship, she wiped the tears away with
her fingertips. Melina's feet were hanging outside of
the ship as she made her way through the inner
workings of the hull.
"Melina," Nyja called. "I'm headed to a local bar to
find some more information. Stay and keep repairing
the ship. Talk to the dock master. He'll get you
anything you need. Don't worry about the cost."
Melina pulled herself out of the ship and wiped some
of the oil off of her face. "Okay, but be careful.
You haven't been here in several years. It's probably
a lot different than you remember."
"I will. Just get the ship fixed. I want to be gone
in a few days."
Nyja looked at her sister and friend and nodded.
"I'll check in later." With that, Nyja turned back
around and started walking out of the hangar.
On her way, she stopped and stared into the window of
the dock master. "Anything she needs, you get!" Nyja
said and pointed to Melina. She then walked to the
hangar door and exited heading into a world she used
to know and didn't recognize any longer.
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
& Melina Asketi (SC)
Eriadu Dock Master (NPC)
Location: Outer Rim, Eriadu, Hangar
Date: Rha 5th, 2005 G.C.
Nyja and Melina stepped out of the starship. Melina
wandered to the rear of the ship to check the outer
hyperdrive unit. Both began to cough as the foul air
entered their lungs.
"We've got to work hard on the repairs. You start. I
have to speak to the dock master."
Melina was looking at the hyperdrive and opened a
storage hatch to remove a tool kit. Opening up an
access hatch, she started to scan for a problem.
While Melina started repairs on the hyperdrive, Nyja
stepped into the dock master's office. She looked
around and noticed that a gruff-looking human was
asleep with his head on his desk.
"Excuse me," Nyja said loudly hoping to wake the man.
The man stirred slightly and changed positions. Nyja
stepped up to him and jostled him. "Excuse me," she
said again. The man this time woke with a start and
began to grumble.
"I do not wish to be bothered. Come back later."
Nyja pushed her face into the manÃs and smelled the
alcohol on his breath. "I need information." She
paused. "I need information now!" she screamed and
pulled his shirt into a fist.
The man responded to the aggressiveness. "Okay,
okay," he said. "I'm sorry."
"Fine," Nyja said and let go of the manÃs shirt. "I'm
looking for Captain Emille Greyson."
"Captain Greyson? He hasnÃt been around for years. I
think he's dead."
"He's not dead. I know he's not. And I know you have
ways to find out where he is." With her last words,
she waved her hand subtly in hopes her Jedi Mind Trick
would work.
The man didn't miss a step. He didn't blink. He just
answered the question. "I don't know where he his. I
haven't seen him in years.
The trick did not work. Nyja would have to keep
working on that, she thought. "Fine. Is his ship
still in the hangar?"
"I don't have to tell you anything!" the man retorted.
In response to that, Nyja pulled her sidearm from her
holster and pointed it at the dock master. "I will
ask you one more time. Is his ship still in the
hangar?"
"You can't do this! I'll call the police!"
"Don't bother. I have been given permission by the
local government to make these inquiries and make any
demands as necessary." Nyja stepped up and held the
pistol to the dock master's head. Even though she
knew she wouldn't shoot him, she made every gesture to
force the dock master's hand and get him to talk.
"Please!" he begged. "I'm just a dock master. I
don't know anything more than I've already told you."
Nyja shoved the man down into his seat. "Fine!" she
yelled again pointing the blaster in the man's face.
She started having conflicting emotions. She wanted
to kill him for being stubborn and her mind was
fighting those instincts. Her finger wavered on the
trigger. After a few minutes, she lowered the
blaster. The man let out an elongated breath.
"My associate is repairing our ship. See to it
personally that she receives what she needs no matter
the cost."
The man stared at Nyja as she exited the room. He
started to reach for a blaster that was hidden under
his desk. Nyja felt the disturbance and turned
quickly, taking and igniting her lightsaber. She
stood tall, for a short person, and was menacing with
the red glow from the saber filling the room.
The dock master dropped the blaster and cowered in the
corner. "Okay, okay," he said. "Go to the Falcon's
Nest, a bar down the street. Someone there can help
you. Ask for Refton, he may know more information
that you seek."
Nyja disengaged the blade and walked out. She didn't
let the dock master see, but she started to cry. As
she approached the ship, she wiped the tears away with
her fingertips. Melina's feet were hanging outside of
the ship as she made her way through the inner
workings of the hull.
"Melina," Nyja called. "I'm headed to a local bar to
find some more information. Stay and keep repairing
the ship. Talk to the dock master. He'll get you
anything you need. Don't worry about the cost."
Melina pulled herself out of the ship and wiped some
of the oil off of her face. "Okay, but be careful.
You haven't been here in several years. It's probably
a lot different than you remember."
"I will. Just get the ship fixed. I want to be gone
in a few days."
Nyja looked at her sister and friend and nodded.
"I'll check in later." With that, Nyja turned back
around and started walking out of the hangar.
On her way, she stopped and stared into the window of
the dock master. "Anything she needs, you get!" Nyja
said and pointed to Melina. She then walked to the
hangar door and exited heading into a world she used
to know and didn't recognize any longer.
Friday, July 08, 2005
"To Be or Not To Be A Mutant, That Is the Question" (From X-Men Awakenings)
MD: 11/2/04
Time: 21:45
Location: Local Park, Atlanta Georgia; TTI Building, Atlanta, Georgia
ON:
The rain started to fall lightly, but Natalie didn't worry about
it.
In fact, she chose to start wandering the streets. Not to go looking
for someone to talk to, but because she just didn't want to sit
at the
hovel any longer.
Natalie wandered the downtown area and kept looking for a place to go.
Being later in the evening, there were not a lot of places a young
girl could go by herself. Also, the fact that she didn't look
like
anything but a homeless girl, it was even harder.
Natalie walked into a small park and sat on a bench. She looked
around, but had not seen anyone in the general area for a while. She
sat on the bench, again looking at the healed finger.
"What is going on?" she wondered aloud. "And who can I
talk to?"
"I'd be happy to talk to you about it," a man said as he
sat down next
to her. There hadn't been anyone there a moment ago, nobody
anywhere
close minutes ago as she approached the bench. He was well-dressed and
wore a white satin cravat under a navy-blue pinstripe suit. His silver
hair was held back with a silver coil of strange design and tumbled
down to mid-back. He carried a silver-headed cane with strange sigils
on it made of some dark wood and capped in silver. "I'm
Travis and
you're Natalie, right?" he smiled and his posh British accent
lent him
an air of friendly kindness.
Natalie was surprised to hear a voice from beside her. She was even
more surprised when a gentleman sat down next to her. She listened to
the voice and noted its more sophisticated accent. British, if she
thought correctly. Natalie suddenly realized that this person knew
her name. She moved down to the other end of the bench, wary of the
fact that no one was around and a stranger had started talking to her.
"How do you know me?" she asked, subtly trying to stand and
run. "And
where did you come from?"
"Calm down Natalie, if I'd wanted to hurt you I could have
done so
already right?" he asked, shrugging and is something like that was
beyond him. "I teleported in, at least that's what most
people would
call it and I know your name because I see the future and you just
appeared in it as a mutant."
Natalie realized that what he said about hurting her was true. She
had learned over the years on the street that people that are angry
with the world and want to hurt you will. And those that are somewhat
genuine will be kind to start. But Natalie was still wary of this
stranger.
She then listened to his explanation of where he came from.
"I'm a
mutant?" she thought to herself. "You must be mistaken,"
her mind's
voice responded. She finally said something to the gentleman.
"You
can see the future?"
"Yes, as part of my gift I can see possible futures and you just
appeared in most of them as a publicly recognized mutant," he
replied
with a slight frown. "Your abilities are quite unique. The only
mutant
to display similar abilities are quite powerful and a well-known Xman.
Her name is Rogue."
"Rogue? X men? I don't know if I really understand what you
are
talking about."
In her head, Natalie could understand what the guy was saying, but she
didn't want to admit it. Not to him and, most importantly, not to
herself. She was unsure if she was ready for that kind of rude
awakening – to realize that she was a mutant. The events with the
mutant the previous day still haunted her mind. If that was how
people treated mutants, Natalie was not ready to be one.
"So, Mr. Future," she started cynically. "How can you be
sure that
I'm a mutant? How can you be sure that I won't turn you in
to the
government for money? What makes you think that I even want to listen
to you?"
Natalie stood up and started to walk away from Travis.
"Because you started healing faster, you're more perceptive
than you
were, stronger, faster," He replied, ticking them off of his
fingers.
"When the old mutant died you absorbed his abilities, his
strength,
everything." He sighed and raised his voice, "Because I know
you want
off the streets and you're fiercely independent, because
you're not
the kind of person that takes advantage of people and you're
afraid
that you really are a mutant, and what it means after what you've
seen." He paused when she did, "I'm right aren't
I?"
Natalie stopped. He did know her. Somehow, he knew her. Maybe he
had seen the future. Maybe even her past. Somehow seen the years of
solitude and loneliness, but also seen the times of true happiness.
Natalie wasn't sure what to do. Her head was racing with a lot of
thoughts. Some good, some bad. She just didn't know which was
which.
She turned around and he spoke again.
"Because in a possible future you and I are great friends,"
he replied
softly, a faraway look in his eyes. "We're like family and
you mean
the world to me. That's a future I would prefer to see you in
than the
alternatives."
Natalie heard his words and suddenly broke down crying. She slumped
to the ground and covered her face. "Family," she thought.
Memories
of friends that were like family appeared in her mind. She sobbed for
several minutes, unaware of Travis or anything that he was doing. Was
he pitying her for being scared? Was he going to scold her for not
paying proper attention to him? She didn't know. All she knew
was
that Travis was right – about everything. She did want off the
streets. She was afraid. And she didn't know if she could trust
Travis with her life.
She looked up to him. "What can you do for me?"
He was already there, crouching, offering her a handkerchief of
silvery gray silk and nearly sitting in the dirt. His eyes were sad
with her pain and he looked like he wanted to hug her, shield her from
whatever was going on inside but knew he couldn't. "I can
help you
find out what it is you do. I can help you train it so nothing happens
by accident and I can provide you with an environment where other
young people who are just discovering themselves will be
training." He
offered her his hand.
"I can offer you safety and freedom, friendship and if you'll
have
them, a lot of other people that need family as well."
Natalie took the handkerchief from his hands. She wiped her eyes and
looked back at Travis. "I don't know what to say," she
started,
sniffing. "I haven't had a home in a long time. I've
been living on
the street for just as long." She stood up. "Thank you,
Travis," she
said and stared up at him. "I need to think about it. But I
think
you may need to prove some things to me also." Natalie walked
back to
the bench.
"I'm not sure if I trust you, but I haven't run away yet,
so it's a
start. It's a baby step. A big step for me actually."
Natalie started to fold the handkerchief and handed it back to
Travis.
"Its that very nature of yours that whatever your gift, you remain
able to adapt and to try to be positive," Travis told her with a
proud
smile. "Do you want to see the Academy and the others?"
Natalie hesitate for a moment. Like she said, she hadn't run
away,
yet. This was a big risk that she was taking. "Okay," she
said
quietly. "Let's see what you've got."
"Try not to be startled when I teleport and if you wish, close
your
eyes," he told her seriously, pausing for her response.
Natalie had only heard of teleportation in Sci-Fi books and movies.
She had never seen it. She wondered if all mutants could teleport and
she just hadn't figured that part out. She closed her eyes
instinctively, not wanting to see the world fly past her at such a
fast rate of speed.
"Ready, steady-," and the air quality changed, in a blink the
sounds
of the park and the distant sounds of people disappeared to be
replaced by the hum of air conditioning and distant electronics. Where
it was chilly it was now warm but not uncomfortably so and distantly
she heard animated conversation and laughing.
Natalie felt a rush of wind and then calm. She did not know where she
was, yet was still afraid to open her eyes. Slowly, she opened one
eye – to see where she was. Seeing that she was now in a
building,
with Travis next to her, she opened the other eye.
They stood in what appeared to be a recreation room of some sort, with
back commercial carpeting with a huge gold section crossing it. A
glass and steel snack bar stood at one end with an espresso maker,
commercial blender, microwave/convection oven, a small fryer a cook
top, commercial sink and a small collection of cooking pans and
serving platters, a huge double-sided glass faced commercial
refrigerator chocked full of packages and food. A plasma-screen TV
about five feet across hung on one wall surrounded by interactive play
systems, stereo equipment, DVD/VHS players and surround sound speakers
were mounted all around the huge room. Beanbags, chairs, sofas and
table in bright deco colors dotted the room as well as tons of floor
pillows and mats. And behind them, the entire wall was glass and
looked out on the back of the high museum/colony square from twenty
stories up.
Natalie was aghast at the complexity of the room. It seemed cavernous
and yet small. She turned around and noticed everything in the room
individually. She had never seen so many playthings or a television
that large.
Natalie caught her breath and spoke. "Is this my room?" she
asked
innocently. "Because I could get used to this."
Travis chuckled a little, "No this is a common
`play-area' the
students share. There's another one just like it through those
doors,"
he pointed with his cane to a set of double doors on the wall with the
TV. "Dorm rooms are down each of these doors, "he pointed to
each end
of the room left and right, "with another set on the other side
of the
building too. Let's go this way," he indicated to the left and
gestured for him to precede her, "and I'll show you your
rooms."
Natalie was a little surprised when Travis said "her room".
Natalie
looked up at Travis as he led her down the hallway. "You mean I
get
my own room?" Natalie had never had her own room. During her
time in
the orphanage, she shared a room with nineteen other girls.
As they continued down the hallway, Natalie noticed that each room had
a name on it. Some of the doors were empty, but several others did
have a nameplate. Then they stopped at a door that was labeled,
Natalie.
Her rooms were next to someone named "Brier", the wooden door
with the
institutional handle and no lock but some sort of label.
"There's a
switch on the side that changes this to show `privacy'. We
don't have
locks on the doors, we use mutual respect to assure privacy compliance
and for some of us, our powers mean respect is the only way to assure
privacy." He opened the door for her showing the wood-clad floor,
the
high ceilings, the far wall enshrouded in heavy curtains but showing
floor to ceiling glass windows. A queen-sized bed on the left of the
room dominated the space, set on a red cedar platform with built-in
headboard and side stands with brushed chrome lamps and an alarm
clock. A Lucite and brushed chrome desk stood on the right wall, next
to a small bookshelf and covered with slots for DVD and CD cases. A
Sony VAIO docking station and laptop sat on the desk, the screen
displaying "TOUCH ME".
To the immediate right a doorway led to a walk-in closet large enough
for her to sleep in easily and further down on the glass wall, another
doorway led to a slate-tiled bathroom. With a glassed in standing
shower with a built in bench large enough for four people, a pedestal
sink, a frosted-glass screened toilet and shelving with towels and a
terry-cloth bathrobe on a peg; it was larger than the closet.
When the door opened, Natalie could not believe her eyes. "This
is a
castle," she whispered, as if in a museum. "How many people
do I
share this with?"
"It's just for you," he told her, "each student gets
their own room
when they first come. Some have more dangerous gifts than others and
need specific things to be safe."
Natalie wondered about what sort of dangerous gifts these people had.
She wanted to ask Travis, but she thought against it.
Natalie could not believe her ears. A room all to herself. She
wandered into the bathroom and noticed the shower. It looked larger
than some of the hovels that Natalie had slept in since she ran away.
Natalie walked back to the closet and looked inside. It was empty,
but for some hangers. Natalie didn't make a comment about there
not
being any clothes for fear that she might not get any.
Natalie stepped out of the closet and walked to the bed. She climbed
onto it and lay down. As she lay there, she thought about everything
that had happened over the past hour. She had found a new life with
the help of someone that said would be an eventual close friend. She
had been given more gifts from just a door opening than she had ever
received in fourteen years of Christmas and birthdays. Natalie closed
her eyes and started to fall asleep.
"Natalie," Travis called softly, "I know that's a
comfortable bed but
let's get you cleaned up, fed and some new clothes and I promise
you
sixteen hours of uninterrupted sleep."
Natalie didn't want to get out of the bed. It had been so long
since
she had slept in a real bed. But the thought of sixteen hours of
sleep did appeal to her. She slowly got up and plopped back down on
the floor. She walked over to the bathroom and started to close the
door.
"Excuse me," she said before it closed. "You said
something about new
clothes. If I take a shower now, will they be waiting for me when
I'm
done? Or should we get the new clothes first and then I'll take
a shower?
"Let's do a snack first, then some shopping and then a shower
for you
and another snack and some bed?" he asked her waiting for her
response.
Natalie stepped back into the main room. She walked with Travis back
to the recreation room, silently anticipating food.
The "snack" that was waiting in the rec room was a sandwich
cut
crosswise with meat and cheese and a small bowl of broccoli with
cheese and a helping of macaroni and cheese. A tall glass of milk sat
next to it and Travis waited patiently for her to finish it, urging
her not to rush.
When Natalie saw the food in front of her, she started to eat fast.
Travis then reminded her not to rush, but to take her time. Natalie
slowed down and continued to eat the sandwich. She then took a large
gulp of milk and then looked at the mac and cheese. Taking her fork,
she dug into the meal and ate quietly. When it came to the broccoli,
she felt that she should let Travis know that she didn't care for
broccoli, but she didn't want him to be mad for not eating the
whole
meal. She started to eat the broccoli and winced a few times at the
taste. However, the cheese seemed to make it a little better.
Eventually, she had finished her milk and her meal and looked up at
Travis. "What sort of shopping are we going to do?" she
asked, wiping
her face.
"Clothes, shoes, coats, swimming suits, underclothes, personal
hygiene
and some personal effects to make this `your room'," he
replied with a
grin, looking at the elegant and empty space.
"Am I going to be able to get whatever I want?" Natalie
wondered. Not
that she wanted, let alone needed, much.
"Within reason," he replied and reassured her, "though
what I mean by
that is balanced between `need' and `want' and
`quality'. You'll have
an allowance for personal effects for the room and you can decide what
you want." He reached into his jacket and pulled out a silver
credit
card-looking thing with her name on it and the TTI logo in white.
"Might as well get you used to using this now."
"What is it?" Natalie said as she took it from his hands.
"Cell phone, access card, debit account and such," Travis
shrugged.
"All TTI employees have some version of this but students have the
more-enabled version."
Natalie looked at the card carefully. "This thing can do all
that?
Some card."
Natalie thought about all the things she needed, clothes wise. She
could always use more jeans and maybe a couple pairs of nice pants.
More sweaters, though she wanted to keep the one she was wearing,
maybe just launder it. She also thought about getting some movies,
but she wasn't sure if that was something on the list. She knew
she
had to get all new hygiene products and under garments. Then Natalie
thought about the "personal affects" that Travis spoke of.
She
thought for a long time and could not think of anything really that
she could purchase that would help her feel at home. Perhaps she
would be able to find something as they were shopping.
"Okay," she
said to Travis. "I'm ready to go shopping."
A Joint Post By
Natalie Rice
&
Travis
Time: 21:45
Location: Local Park, Atlanta Georgia; TTI Building, Atlanta, Georgia
ON:
The rain started to fall lightly, but Natalie didn't worry about
it.
In fact, she chose to start wandering the streets. Not to go looking
for someone to talk to, but because she just didn't want to sit
at the
hovel any longer.
Natalie wandered the downtown area and kept looking for a place to go.
Being later in the evening, there were not a lot of places a young
girl could go by herself. Also, the fact that she didn't look
like
anything but a homeless girl, it was even harder.
Natalie walked into a small park and sat on a bench. She looked
around, but had not seen anyone in the general area for a while. She
sat on the bench, again looking at the healed finger.
"What is going on?" she wondered aloud. "And who can I
talk to?"
"I'd be happy to talk to you about it," a man said as he
sat down next
to her. There hadn't been anyone there a moment ago, nobody
anywhere
close minutes ago as she approached the bench. He was well-dressed and
wore a white satin cravat under a navy-blue pinstripe suit. His silver
hair was held back with a silver coil of strange design and tumbled
down to mid-back. He carried a silver-headed cane with strange sigils
on it made of some dark wood and capped in silver. "I'm
Travis and
you're Natalie, right?" he smiled and his posh British accent
lent him
an air of friendly kindness.
Natalie was surprised to hear a voice from beside her. She was even
more surprised when a gentleman sat down next to her. She listened to
the voice and noted its more sophisticated accent. British, if she
thought correctly. Natalie suddenly realized that this person knew
her name. She moved down to the other end of the bench, wary of the
fact that no one was around and a stranger had started talking to her.
"How do you know me?" she asked, subtly trying to stand and
run. "And
where did you come from?"
"Calm down Natalie, if I'd wanted to hurt you I could have
done so
already right?" he asked, shrugging and is something like that was
beyond him. "I teleported in, at least that's what most
people would
call it and I know your name because I see the future and you just
appeared in it as a mutant."
Natalie realized that what he said about hurting her was true. She
had learned over the years on the street that people that are angry
with the world and want to hurt you will. And those that are somewhat
genuine will be kind to start. But Natalie was still wary of this
stranger.
She then listened to his explanation of where he came from.
"I'm a
mutant?" she thought to herself. "You must be mistaken,"
her mind's
voice responded. She finally said something to the gentleman.
"You
can see the future?"
"Yes, as part of my gift I can see possible futures and you just
appeared in most of them as a publicly recognized mutant," he
replied
with a slight frown. "Your abilities are quite unique. The only
mutant
to display similar abilities are quite powerful and a well-known Xman.
Her name is Rogue."
"Rogue? X men? I don't know if I really understand what you
are
talking about."
In her head, Natalie could understand what the guy was saying, but she
didn't want to admit it. Not to him and, most importantly, not to
herself. She was unsure if she was ready for that kind of rude
awakening – to realize that she was a mutant. The events with the
mutant the previous day still haunted her mind. If that was how
people treated mutants, Natalie was not ready to be one.
"So, Mr. Future," she started cynically. "How can you be
sure that
I'm a mutant? How can you be sure that I won't turn you in
to the
government for money? What makes you think that I even want to listen
to you?"
Natalie stood up and started to walk away from Travis.
"Because you started healing faster, you're more perceptive
than you
were, stronger, faster," He replied, ticking them off of his
fingers.
"When the old mutant died you absorbed his abilities, his
strength,
everything." He sighed and raised his voice, "Because I know
you want
off the streets and you're fiercely independent, because
you're not
the kind of person that takes advantage of people and you're
afraid
that you really are a mutant, and what it means after what you've
seen." He paused when she did, "I'm right aren't
I?"
Natalie stopped. He did know her. Somehow, he knew her. Maybe he
had seen the future. Maybe even her past. Somehow seen the years of
solitude and loneliness, but also seen the times of true happiness.
Natalie wasn't sure what to do. Her head was racing with a lot of
thoughts. Some good, some bad. She just didn't know which was
which.
She turned around and he spoke again.
"Because in a possible future you and I are great friends,"
he replied
softly, a faraway look in his eyes. "We're like family and
you mean
the world to me. That's a future I would prefer to see you in
than the
alternatives."
Natalie heard his words and suddenly broke down crying. She slumped
to the ground and covered her face. "Family," she thought.
Memories
of friends that were like family appeared in her mind. She sobbed for
several minutes, unaware of Travis or anything that he was doing. Was
he pitying her for being scared? Was he going to scold her for not
paying proper attention to him? She didn't know. All she knew
was
that Travis was right – about everything. She did want off the
streets. She was afraid. And she didn't know if she could trust
Travis with her life.
She looked up to him. "What can you do for me?"
He was already there, crouching, offering her a handkerchief of
silvery gray silk and nearly sitting in the dirt. His eyes were sad
with her pain and he looked like he wanted to hug her, shield her from
whatever was going on inside but knew he couldn't. "I can
help you
find out what it is you do. I can help you train it so nothing happens
by accident and I can provide you with an environment where other
young people who are just discovering themselves will be
training." He
offered her his hand.
"I can offer you safety and freedom, friendship and if you'll
have
them, a lot of other people that need family as well."
Natalie took the handkerchief from his hands. She wiped her eyes and
looked back at Travis. "I don't know what to say," she
started,
sniffing. "I haven't had a home in a long time. I've
been living on
the street for just as long." She stood up. "Thank you,
Travis," she
said and stared up at him. "I need to think about it. But I
think
you may need to prove some things to me also." Natalie walked
back to
the bench.
"I'm not sure if I trust you, but I haven't run away yet,
so it's a
start. It's a baby step. A big step for me actually."
Natalie started to fold the handkerchief and handed it back to
Travis.
"Its that very nature of yours that whatever your gift, you remain
able to adapt and to try to be positive," Travis told her with a
proud
smile. "Do you want to see the Academy and the others?"
Natalie hesitate for a moment. Like she said, she hadn't run
away,
yet. This was a big risk that she was taking. "Okay," she
said
quietly. "Let's see what you've got."
"Try not to be startled when I teleport and if you wish, close
your
eyes," he told her seriously, pausing for her response.
Natalie had only heard of teleportation in Sci-Fi books and movies.
She had never seen it. She wondered if all mutants could teleport and
she just hadn't figured that part out. She closed her eyes
instinctively, not wanting to see the world fly past her at such a
fast rate of speed.
"Ready, steady-," and the air quality changed, in a blink the
sounds
of the park and the distant sounds of people disappeared to be
replaced by the hum of air conditioning and distant electronics. Where
it was chilly it was now warm but not uncomfortably so and distantly
she heard animated conversation and laughing.
Natalie felt a rush of wind and then calm. She did not know where she
was, yet was still afraid to open her eyes. Slowly, she opened one
eye – to see where she was. Seeing that she was now in a
building,
with Travis next to her, she opened the other eye.
They stood in what appeared to be a recreation room of some sort, with
back commercial carpeting with a huge gold section crossing it. A
glass and steel snack bar stood at one end with an espresso maker,
commercial blender, microwave/convection oven, a small fryer a cook
top, commercial sink and a small collection of cooking pans and
serving platters, a huge double-sided glass faced commercial
refrigerator chocked full of packages and food. A plasma-screen TV
about five feet across hung on one wall surrounded by interactive play
systems, stereo equipment, DVD/VHS players and surround sound speakers
were mounted all around the huge room. Beanbags, chairs, sofas and
table in bright deco colors dotted the room as well as tons of floor
pillows and mats. And behind them, the entire wall was glass and
looked out on the back of the high museum/colony square from twenty
stories up.
Natalie was aghast at the complexity of the room. It seemed cavernous
and yet small. She turned around and noticed everything in the room
individually. She had never seen so many playthings or a television
that large.
Natalie caught her breath and spoke. "Is this my room?" she
asked
innocently. "Because I could get used to this."
Travis chuckled a little, "No this is a common
`play-area' the
students share. There's another one just like it through those
doors,"
he pointed with his cane to a set of double doors on the wall with the
TV. "Dorm rooms are down each of these doors, "he pointed to
each end
of the room left and right, "with another set on the other side
of the
building too. Let's go this way," he indicated to the left and
gestured for him to precede her, "and I'll show you your
rooms."
Natalie was a little surprised when Travis said "her room".
Natalie
looked up at Travis as he led her down the hallway. "You mean I
get
my own room?" Natalie had never had her own room. During her
time in
the orphanage, she shared a room with nineteen other girls.
As they continued down the hallway, Natalie noticed that each room had
a name on it. Some of the doors were empty, but several others did
have a nameplate. Then they stopped at a door that was labeled,
Natalie.
Her rooms were next to someone named "Brier", the wooden door
with the
institutional handle and no lock but some sort of label.
"There's a
switch on the side that changes this to show `privacy'. We
don't have
locks on the doors, we use mutual respect to assure privacy compliance
and for some of us, our powers mean respect is the only way to assure
privacy." He opened the door for her showing the wood-clad floor,
the
high ceilings, the far wall enshrouded in heavy curtains but showing
floor to ceiling glass windows. A queen-sized bed on the left of the
room dominated the space, set on a red cedar platform with built-in
headboard and side stands with brushed chrome lamps and an alarm
clock. A Lucite and brushed chrome desk stood on the right wall, next
to a small bookshelf and covered with slots for DVD and CD cases. A
Sony VAIO docking station and laptop sat on the desk, the screen
displaying "TOUCH ME".
To the immediate right a doorway led to a walk-in closet large enough
for her to sleep in easily and further down on the glass wall, another
doorway led to a slate-tiled bathroom. With a glassed in standing
shower with a built in bench large enough for four people, a pedestal
sink, a frosted-glass screened toilet and shelving with towels and a
terry-cloth bathrobe on a peg; it was larger than the closet.
When the door opened, Natalie could not believe her eyes. "This
is a
castle," she whispered, as if in a museum. "How many people
do I
share this with?"
"It's just for you," he told her, "each student gets
their own room
when they first come. Some have more dangerous gifts than others and
need specific things to be safe."
Natalie wondered about what sort of dangerous gifts these people had.
She wanted to ask Travis, but she thought against it.
Natalie could not believe her ears. A room all to herself. She
wandered into the bathroom and noticed the shower. It looked larger
than some of the hovels that Natalie had slept in since she ran away.
Natalie walked back to the closet and looked inside. It was empty,
but for some hangers. Natalie didn't make a comment about there
not
being any clothes for fear that she might not get any.
Natalie stepped out of the closet and walked to the bed. She climbed
onto it and lay down. As she lay there, she thought about everything
that had happened over the past hour. She had found a new life with
the help of someone that said would be an eventual close friend. She
had been given more gifts from just a door opening than she had ever
received in fourteen years of Christmas and birthdays. Natalie closed
her eyes and started to fall asleep.
"Natalie," Travis called softly, "I know that's a
comfortable bed but
let's get you cleaned up, fed and some new clothes and I promise
you
sixteen hours of uninterrupted sleep."
Natalie didn't want to get out of the bed. It had been so long
since
she had slept in a real bed. But the thought of sixteen hours of
sleep did appeal to her. She slowly got up and plopped back down on
the floor. She walked over to the bathroom and started to close the
door.
"Excuse me," she said before it closed. "You said
something about new
clothes. If I take a shower now, will they be waiting for me when
I'm
done? Or should we get the new clothes first and then I'll take
a shower?
"Let's do a snack first, then some shopping and then a shower
for you
and another snack and some bed?" he asked her waiting for her
response.
Natalie stepped back into the main room. She walked with Travis back
to the recreation room, silently anticipating food.
The "snack" that was waiting in the rec room was a sandwich
cut
crosswise with meat and cheese and a small bowl of broccoli with
cheese and a helping of macaroni and cheese. A tall glass of milk sat
next to it and Travis waited patiently for her to finish it, urging
her not to rush.
When Natalie saw the food in front of her, she started to eat fast.
Travis then reminded her not to rush, but to take her time. Natalie
slowed down and continued to eat the sandwich. She then took a large
gulp of milk and then looked at the mac and cheese. Taking her fork,
she dug into the meal and ate quietly. When it came to the broccoli,
she felt that she should let Travis know that she didn't care for
broccoli, but she didn't want him to be mad for not eating the
whole
meal. She started to eat the broccoli and winced a few times at the
taste. However, the cheese seemed to make it a little better.
Eventually, she had finished her milk and her meal and looked up at
Travis. "What sort of shopping are we going to do?" she
asked, wiping
her face.
"Clothes, shoes, coats, swimming suits, underclothes, personal
hygiene
and some personal effects to make this `your room'," he
replied with a
grin, looking at the elegant and empty space.
"Am I going to be able to get whatever I want?" Natalie
wondered. Not
that she wanted, let alone needed, much.
"Within reason," he replied and reassured her, "though
what I mean by
that is balanced between `need' and `want' and
`quality'. You'll have
an allowance for personal effects for the room and you can decide what
you want." He reached into his jacket and pulled out a silver
credit
card-looking thing with her name on it and the TTI logo in white.
"Might as well get you used to using this now."
"What is it?" Natalie said as she took it from his hands.
"Cell phone, access card, debit account and such," Travis
shrugged.
"All TTI employees have some version of this but students have the
more-enabled version."
Natalie looked at the card carefully. "This thing can do all
that?
Some card."
Natalie thought about all the things she needed, clothes wise. She
could always use more jeans and maybe a couple pairs of nice pants.
More sweaters, though she wanted to keep the one she was wearing,
maybe just launder it. She also thought about getting some movies,
but she wasn't sure if that was something on the list. She knew
she
had to get all new hygiene products and under garments. Then Natalie
thought about the "personal affects" that Travis spoke of.
She
thought for a long time and could not think of anything really that
she could purchase that would help her feel at home. Perhaps she
would be able to find something as they were shopping.
"Okay," she
said to Travis. "I'm ready to go shopping."
A Joint Post By
Natalie Rice
&
Travis
"The Circle of Life" (From X-Men Awakenings)
MD: N/A
Time: 1622 hours
Location: MLK Drive and I 85, Atlanta, Georgia
It was still early, but Natalie didn't want to leave the mutant
alone.
In case he did wake up, she wanted to be able to tend to his wounds.
She chose, instead, to pull her notebook out of her bag and start
writing.
As the sky grew darker, there was still no movement from the mutant.
He was still breathing, barely, but still. Natalie would check on him
every ten minutes between writing in her journal about the day's
events. About the men that shot the mutant, about the mutant himself,
about his shelter, about her trouble at the Boy's and Girl's
Club.
She didn't want to write about that last one, but she knew that in
order to better herself, she had to write down the good and the bad
experiences so that she could learn from them.
Natalie's stomach began to grumble and Natalie realized that she
had
not eaten since breakfast. She looked around the makeshift home and
found a small Tupperware box with some raw meat in it. Looking
around, she also found a metal cooking plate to place over the fire.
"If you don't mind," she spoke to the unconscious mutant.
"I was
wondering if you'd allow me to cook some of your meat."
Naturally,
there was no reply.
Natalie stood up and moved to the pile of firewood. Taking a few more
pieces and some blank pieces of paper from her notebook, she started
the fire going again. Natalie placed the metal plate over the fire
and allowed it to heat up. She took a few pieces of the raw meat from
the Tupperware and started to cook it.
Now, Natalie was not a natural cook, but she knew the difference
between cooked food and raw food. Of course, she also didn't
understand the concept of not burning the food. The three pieces of
meat were burnt, but when Natalie looked at the inside of them, having
used her Swiss Army Knife to cut it, it looked edible.
Natalie ate the meat quietly, checking on the beast every now and
then. It had not moved. Natalie figured that he was dead, but the
slow breaths contradicted her. The darkness enveloped the night and
the lights of Atlanta got brighter. The noise above the highway was
noisy for a few hours and Natalie wondered if she should attempt to
talk to someone about what had happened to her today and that the
mutant needed help. She kept standing as if to move toward the sound
of the people, but then, she would look at the mutant, lying there on
the ground and sit back down.
It was getting late. Natalie wasn't sure what time it was, but
she
figured she might as well sleep. She placed one of the sleeping bags
over the mutant to keep him warm overnight. She tucked herself into
the other sleeping bag and fell asleep.
**
Natalie began to dream. She dreamed of a place far away from Atlanta.
She wanted to go away. Get away from the city that had ruined her
life. She dreamed of California. It's beautiful sky and
openness for
dreams to come true. She dreamed of going to the beach and playing in
the water and then building sand castles. She dreamed of being a
child again.
As if Natalie's mind was working against her, her dreams started
to
crumble and turn to nightmares. The child that she was grew to an
adult and was pounced on by a creature of unknown origin.
Natalie's
subconscious self ran away in hopes of getting to a past that could no
longer be reached; the past where she could be a child and not worry
about the real world. But Natalie couldn't run away. She had
run as
much as she could and her legs felt like they would fall off. And
yet, she kept running because the creature continued after her.
She ran until she reached a cliff. She could go not further. She was
unsure what to do. The creature approached her bearing its large
teeth. She didn't want the creature to get her, so she jumped
off of
the cliff. As she fell, she screamed with all of her might.
**
Natalie's eyes opened quickly, but she did not get up at first.
She
noticed that day had broken and that the early morning traffic had
started. "She slowly sat up, but didn't feel any effects of
just
having a nightmare.
"That's weird," she thought to herself. "Usually, I
feel a lot more
tired and I'm breathing heavily after a nightmare." She
pondered her
condition for a moment and then realized that she needed to check on
the mutant.
Natalie turned around and saw that the sleeping bag was tossed aside
and the mutant's clothes were lying on the ground. Natalie
thought
for a moment that perhaps he had gone somewhere to clean himself up.
However, as she looked closer at the clothes, she noticed that his
shoes were with them also. "No one would leave their shoes. Not
in
this weather." Natalie looked down at the ground and realized
that
the mutant must have died and somehow disappeared. Natalie tried not
to think about another person in her life that was gone because it
brought too many memories back.
"Well," she said aloud. "I guess this place is mine,
now." Natalie
stood and started looking through the supplies that were in the area.
Time: 1622 hours
Location: MLK Drive and I 85, Atlanta, Georgia
It was still early, but Natalie didn't want to leave the mutant
alone.
In case he did wake up, she wanted to be able to tend to his wounds.
She chose, instead, to pull her notebook out of her bag and start
writing.
As the sky grew darker, there was still no movement from the mutant.
He was still breathing, barely, but still. Natalie would check on him
every ten minutes between writing in her journal about the day's
events. About the men that shot the mutant, about the mutant himself,
about his shelter, about her trouble at the Boy's and Girl's
Club.
She didn't want to write about that last one, but she knew that in
order to better herself, she had to write down the good and the bad
experiences so that she could learn from them.
Natalie's stomach began to grumble and Natalie realized that she
had
not eaten since breakfast. She looked around the makeshift home and
found a small Tupperware box with some raw meat in it. Looking
around, she also found a metal cooking plate to place over the fire.
"If you don't mind," she spoke to the unconscious mutant.
"I was
wondering if you'd allow me to cook some of your meat."
Naturally,
there was no reply.
Natalie stood up and moved to the pile of firewood. Taking a few more
pieces and some blank pieces of paper from her notebook, she started
the fire going again. Natalie placed the metal plate over the fire
and allowed it to heat up. She took a few pieces of the raw meat from
the Tupperware and started to cook it.
Now, Natalie was not a natural cook, but she knew the difference
between cooked food and raw food. Of course, she also didn't
understand the concept of not burning the food. The three pieces of
meat were burnt, but when Natalie looked at the inside of them, having
used her Swiss Army Knife to cut it, it looked edible.
Natalie ate the meat quietly, checking on the beast every now and
then. It had not moved. Natalie figured that he was dead, but the
slow breaths contradicted her. The darkness enveloped the night and
the lights of Atlanta got brighter. The noise above the highway was
noisy for a few hours and Natalie wondered if she should attempt to
talk to someone about what had happened to her today and that the
mutant needed help. She kept standing as if to move toward the sound
of the people, but then, she would look at the mutant, lying there on
the ground and sit back down.
It was getting late. Natalie wasn't sure what time it was, but
she
figured she might as well sleep. She placed one of the sleeping bags
over the mutant to keep him warm overnight. She tucked herself into
the other sleeping bag and fell asleep.
**
Natalie began to dream. She dreamed of a place far away from Atlanta.
She wanted to go away. Get away from the city that had ruined her
life. She dreamed of California. It's beautiful sky and
openness for
dreams to come true. She dreamed of going to the beach and playing in
the water and then building sand castles. She dreamed of being a
child again.
As if Natalie's mind was working against her, her dreams started
to
crumble and turn to nightmares. The child that she was grew to an
adult and was pounced on by a creature of unknown origin.
Natalie's
subconscious self ran away in hopes of getting to a past that could no
longer be reached; the past where she could be a child and not worry
about the real world. But Natalie couldn't run away. She had
run as
much as she could and her legs felt like they would fall off. And
yet, she kept running because the creature continued after her.
She ran until she reached a cliff. She could go not further. She was
unsure what to do. The creature approached her bearing its large
teeth. She didn't want the creature to get her, so she jumped
off of
the cliff. As she fell, she screamed with all of her might.
**
Natalie's eyes opened quickly, but she did not get up at first.
She
noticed that day had broken and that the early morning traffic had
started. "She slowly sat up, but didn't feel any effects of
just
having a nightmare.
"That's weird," she thought to herself. "Usually, I
feel a lot more
tired and I'm breathing heavily after a nightmare." She
pondered her
condition for a moment and then realized that she needed to check on
the mutant.
Natalie turned around and saw that the sleeping bag was tossed aside
and the mutant's clothes were lying on the ground. Natalie
thought
for a moment that perhaps he had gone somewhere to clean himself up.
However, as she looked closer at the clothes, she noticed that his
shoes were with them also. "No one would leave their shoes. Not
in
this weather." Natalie looked down at the ground and realized
that
the mutant must have died and somehow disappeared. Natalie tried not
to think about another person in her life that was gone because it
brought too many memories back.
"Well," she said aloud. "I guess this place is mine,
now." Natalie
stood and started looking through the supplies that were in the area.
"Beauty and the Beast" (From X-Men Awakenings)
MD: N/A
Time: 1204 hours
Location: MLK Jr. Highway near I 85, Atlanta, Georgia
As Natalie approached the library, she changed her mind and started to
walk behind it again, into the alley where she saw the mutant. This
second time behind here allowed Natalie to see things that she
hadn't
seen when she was too scared out of her mind to be paying attention.
She noticed that there was a small blood trail dripping that led away
from the scene. As she followed them, she also noticed that there
were times when the blood would disappear, but it would reappear after
several steps.
The trail led her away from downtown and toward the highway. Natalie
wasn't sure why she had chosen to follow the trail. Perhaps it
was
because she felt sorry for the mutant because he was defenseless
against those men that shot him. She also wondered about his
condition. Being shot is not a good thing, even for mutants.
As Natalie looked around the bushes and then heard a small noise. At
first, it sounded as if it were a small kitten, but as Natalie began
to investigate, she started to hear groans. Natalie walked down the
embankment and smelled smoke. Not enough to worry about a fire, but
more of a smoldering one.
Natalie approached the source of the smoke and noticed the mutant. He
was turned around and Natalie could see the large head wound on the
back of his head. It had been covered by skin, but Natalie could tell
that it hadn't healed properly. Natalie was trying to be quiet,
but
she happened to step on a twig that startled the mutant and forced his
gaze to her.
"Mmmnph," the creature grunted.
Natalie didn't say anything at first. In fact, she stepped back a
little bit.
The beast motioned its hands as a way to invite Natalie toward him.
He also made some sounds as if her were speaking, but no words were
escaping his lips.
Natalie saw that the beast had built a small shelter in this area.
She noticed the smoldering fire and noticed that wood had not been
placed on it in a while. As the temperature was still rather cold,
Natlaie moved toward the wood and placed a few pieces onto the fire.
Stoking the ash and wood for a couple of minutes, Natalie managed to
get the fire going again. The beast groaned, but said nothing still.
Natalie sat in quiet with the beast looking at her. She didn't
know
how to respond, or how to act. She had never met a mutant before and
yet it didn't seem that this "monster" would be any
threat to her,
especially because it seemed that it was mortally wounded.
Natalie saw two sleeping bags, and though it was only early afternoon,
she thought that it might do her good to take a nap. She unrolled one
of the sleeping bags and laid down. The beast watched with very
little behind his eyes.
When Natalie woke, the beast was still in the same spot. The fire had
died and it appeared that the man had soiled himself. He grunted in
sorrow, but did nothing to fix his situation.
Natalie looked at her watch and saw that it was four in the afternoon.
She had been asleep for more than four hours.
"Has he been sitting there this whole time?" she thought to
herself.
Natalie got up from the ground and moved toward the beast. She placed
a hand on his shoulder and comforted him. "It's alright.
They can't
hurt you now." It didn't respond, but just turned aside.
The beast lost its balance and fell to the ground. Natalie moved over
to him to make sure that he was still alive. The mutant's
breathing
was barely noticeable. Natalie didn't know what to do or who to
call.
Rather than get the mutant or herself into any more trouble than she
needed, she chose to stay with the mutant until it woke up, or died.
Time: 1204 hours
Location: MLK Jr. Highway near I 85, Atlanta, Georgia
As Natalie approached the library, she changed her mind and started to
walk behind it again, into the alley where she saw the mutant. This
second time behind here allowed Natalie to see things that she
hadn't
seen when she was too scared out of her mind to be paying attention.
She noticed that there was a small blood trail dripping that led away
from the scene. As she followed them, she also noticed that there
were times when the blood would disappear, but it would reappear after
several steps.
The trail led her away from downtown and toward the highway. Natalie
wasn't sure why she had chosen to follow the trail. Perhaps it
was
because she felt sorry for the mutant because he was defenseless
against those men that shot him. She also wondered about his
condition. Being shot is not a good thing, even for mutants.
As Natalie looked around the bushes and then heard a small noise. At
first, it sounded as if it were a small kitten, but as Natalie began
to investigate, she started to hear groans. Natalie walked down the
embankment and smelled smoke. Not enough to worry about a fire, but
more of a smoldering one.
Natalie approached the source of the smoke and noticed the mutant. He
was turned around and Natalie could see the large head wound on the
back of his head. It had been covered by skin, but Natalie could tell
that it hadn't healed properly. Natalie was trying to be quiet,
but
she happened to step on a twig that startled the mutant and forced his
gaze to her.
"Mmmnph," the creature grunted.
Natalie didn't say anything at first. In fact, she stepped back a
little bit.
The beast motioned its hands as a way to invite Natalie toward him.
He also made some sounds as if her were speaking, but no words were
escaping his lips.
Natalie saw that the beast had built a small shelter in this area.
She noticed the smoldering fire and noticed that wood had not been
placed on it in a while. As the temperature was still rather cold,
Natlaie moved toward the wood and placed a few pieces onto the fire.
Stoking the ash and wood for a couple of minutes, Natalie managed to
get the fire going again. The beast groaned, but said nothing still.
Natalie sat in quiet with the beast looking at her. She didn't
know
how to respond, or how to act. She had never met a mutant before and
yet it didn't seem that this "monster" would be any
threat to her,
especially because it seemed that it was mortally wounded.
Natalie saw two sleeping bags, and though it was only early afternoon,
she thought that it might do her good to take a nap. She unrolled one
of the sleeping bags and laid down. The beast watched with very
little behind his eyes.
When Natalie woke, the beast was still in the same spot. The fire had
died and it appeared that the man had soiled himself. He grunted in
sorrow, but did nothing to fix his situation.
Natalie looked at her watch and saw that it was four in the afternoon.
She had been asleep for more than four hours.
"Has he been sitting there this whole time?" she thought to
herself.
Natalie got up from the ground and moved toward the beast. She placed
a hand on his shoulder and comforted him. "It's alright.
They can't
hurt you now." It didn't respond, but just turned aside.
The beast lost its balance and fell to the ground. Natalie moved over
to him to make sure that he was still alive. The mutant's
breathing
was barely noticeable. Natalie didn't know what to do or who to
call.
Rather than get the mutant or herself into any more trouble than she
needed, she chose to stay with the mutant until it woke up, or died.
"Life on the Streets" (From X-Men Awakenings)
MD: N/A
Time: 0830 hours
Location: Summerhill Community, Atlanta, Georgia
Natalie was waiting outside the Boys and Girl's Club when the door
opened. She immediately entered the building. The young man that had
opened the door recognized the girl and stopped her.
"Natalie? What are you doing here?"
Natalie was a little surprised by the question, but answered anyway.
"I was wondering if I could check my email."
The young man looked at Natalie and then noticed that her jacket had
some holes in it and that she was shivering.
"Natalie, how long have you been waiting for the doors to
open?"
"About three hours," she said, lowering her head.
"And you've been out in the cold?"
"Yes," she said bluntly. "But there was no where else
for me to go!"
"Why didn't you go to school?"
Natalie didn't want to tell him that she was not a student
currently.
"Because I didn't do my homework and I had a test today and
I just
didn't feel well."
"So rather than stay home to get better, or do your homework, or
study
for your test, you chose to come here?"
Natalie knew she had been caught in her own lies. She bowed her head
and started to cry. "I'm sorry, Henry," she said between
tears. "I
don't have a place to live. I don't go to school. I just
survive on
my own."
The young man now felt sheepish about his questions. "I'm
sorry, Nat,
I didn't know.' He gave her a hug and then led her into his
office.
He sat down on the couch and motioned for her to do the same.
"Have you gone to any of the shelters? Or an orphanage?"
That word made her cringe. She hated the orphanage. That was why she
had escaped when she did; she could no longer live under the tyranny
that was within those walls. But she wasn't going to tell Henry
that.
"The shelters were full last night," she finally replied.
There was a long pause and Henry spoke up. "And the
orphanage?"
"I don't want to go back there. I wasn't happy. I'm
happy how I am now!"
"Living on the streets? You're happy doing that?"
"I'm not a bum, Henry!" she yelled. "I work for the
shelter sometimes and they pay me. I have a very small bank account
that the shelter helped me open. It has less than a hundred dollars,
but it's mine and I earned it!"
Natalie started to walk out of the office and Henry grabbed her by the
arm. "Wait! I'm not done talking to you."
Natalie pulled her arm from his grip and opened the door. "Well
I'm done talking to you!" She walked out of the office,
tears flowing
down her eyes, and left the building.
Natalie walked down the street, her hands in her pocket, hugging
herself trying to keep warm. She walked for a mile before stopping.
She had to get out of the cold. She stepped into a restaurant. She
could smell the breakfast cooking and wondered if she had any money in
her pockets. Looking through them, she realized that she had a hole
in her jacket pocket that must have allowed the money to escape
sometime on her walk. "Probably wouldn't have had enough
anyway," she
thought to herself as she exited the restaurant.
Braving the cold again, Natalie continued walking, sometimes stopping
on a corner to beg for some money. No one offered, however, and she
felt more despondent. She had already lost her connection to the Boys
and Girls club. She was sure that Henry had already contacted the
authorities to keep an eye out for a runaway. Natalie made sure to
avoid donut shops and the police stations.
Natalie figured she could go to the library in hopes of checking her
email. Making sure to avoid the high traffic areas, Natalie was going
to enter the library from a back door she had found in the alleyway.
However, as she entered the alleyway, she saw four men attacking
another young man. Natalie wasn't sure what to do. She
didn't want
to get into a fight, but she didn't think it fair for four men to
attack one. She stayed hidden for a moment trying to listen to what
they were saying.
"Don't bother coming around here again!" one of the men
said.
"Yeah, if you do, we're going to kill you!" another
yelled.
The man that seemed to be the leader stopped the men.
"That's enough He's learned his lesson." The man
knelt down to look
into the eyes of the wounded man. "Some mutant you are," he
said.
This made Natalie's eyes spark. "You didn't even fight
back."
Natalie could see that the man wanted to get up, but the others were
standing on his hands, forcing him to stay down. The leader stood up
and started to walk away. As the mutant started to get up, the leader
turned around and fired a bullet into his head. The mutant slumped
down onto the pavement. Natalie was scared by the gunshot and knocked
over a trashcan. The leader and his men heard the noise and one of
the thugs went to investigate. Natalie was sure they would find her,
so she did her best to hide.
One of the thugs ran behind the pile of trash holding a pistol,
wishing to find someone sitting there. Instead, he found only a rat.
"It's okay, boss," the thug yelled. "It's just
a rat. Must've been
spooked by the gunshot." The man started back to where his boss
was and left the alleyway.
Natalie lifted the small cover on the trashcan she had hidden in.
"This is disgusting," she whispered. She waited for almost
ten
minutes before pulling herself out of the garbage can. She wiped the
various slimes off her jacket and looked at herself. "Well, I
guess I won't be going to the library today." She walked
over to
where the mutant had been shot, but to her surprise, the body was no
longer there. There was a blood trail, but Natalie wasn't sure
if she
should follow it. "Maybe a shower first," she conceded.
Natalie left the alleyway and crossed the street. She wandered a few
blocks to the women's shelter that she frequented. The
coordinator
saw her clothes and smelled the stench. "I won't ask,"
the woman
said. "There's a shower available. I'll see if there
are any extra
clothes."
The woman walked away and Natalie made her way to the
back to the shelter to community shower area. She stepped into one of
the shower stalls and started it up. She only used hot water, she was
still cold. She removed her clothes and left them on the floor. She
placed her head under the water and couldn't help but think of the
mutant she saw get shot dead and then how she didn't find his
body. And then of the people that shot the mutant. Who were they and
why did they want to kill mutants? This was too much for Natalie to
take in. She closed her eyes and concentrated on staying warm and
getting the smell of trash out of her hair.
Time: 0830 hours
Location: Summerhill Community, Atlanta, Georgia
Natalie was waiting outside the Boys and Girl's Club when the door
opened. She immediately entered the building. The young man that had
opened the door recognized the girl and stopped her.
"Natalie? What are you doing here?"
Natalie was a little surprised by the question, but answered anyway.
"I was wondering if I could check my email."
The young man looked at Natalie and then noticed that her jacket had
some holes in it and that she was shivering.
"Natalie, how long have you been waiting for the doors to
open?"
"About three hours," she said, lowering her head.
"And you've been out in the cold?"
"Yes," she said bluntly. "But there was no where else
for me to go!"
"Why didn't you go to school?"
Natalie didn't want to tell him that she was not a student
currently.
"Because I didn't do my homework and I had a test today and
I just
didn't feel well."
"So rather than stay home to get better, or do your homework, or
study
for your test, you chose to come here?"
Natalie knew she had been caught in her own lies. She bowed her head
and started to cry. "I'm sorry, Henry," she said between
tears. "I
don't have a place to live. I don't go to school. I just
survive on
my own."
The young man now felt sheepish about his questions. "I'm
sorry, Nat,
I didn't know.' He gave her a hug and then led her into his
office.
He sat down on the couch and motioned for her to do the same.
"Have you gone to any of the shelters? Or an orphanage?"
That word made her cringe. She hated the orphanage. That was why she
had escaped when she did; she could no longer live under the tyranny
that was within those walls. But she wasn't going to tell Henry
that.
"The shelters were full last night," she finally replied.
There was a long pause and Henry spoke up. "And the
orphanage?"
"I don't want to go back there. I wasn't happy. I'm
happy how I am now!"
"Living on the streets? You're happy doing that?"
"I'm not a bum, Henry!" she yelled. "I work for the
shelter sometimes and they pay me. I have a very small bank account
that the shelter helped me open. It has less than a hundred dollars,
but it's mine and I earned it!"
Natalie started to walk out of the office and Henry grabbed her by the
arm. "Wait! I'm not done talking to you."
Natalie pulled her arm from his grip and opened the door. "Well
I'm done talking to you!" She walked out of the office,
tears flowing
down her eyes, and left the building.
Natalie walked down the street, her hands in her pocket, hugging
herself trying to keep warm. She walked for a mile before stopping.
She had to get out of the cold. She stepped into a restaurant. She
could smell the breakfast cooking and wondered if she had any money in
her pockets. Looking through them, she realized that she had a hole
in her jacket pocket that must have allowed the money to escape
sometime on her walk. "Probably wouldn't have had enough
anyway," she
thought to herself as she exited the restaurant.
Braving the cold again, Natalie continued walking, sometimes stopping
on a corner to beg for some money. No one offered, however, and she
felt more despondent. She had already lost her connection to the Boys
and Girls club. She was sure that Henry had already contacted the
authorities to keep an eye out for a runaway. Natalie made sure to
avoid donut shops and the police stations.
Natalie figured she could go to the library in hopes of checking her
email. Making sure to avoid the high traffic areas, Natalie was going
to enter the library from a back door she had found in the alleyway.
However, as she entered the alleyway, she saw four men attacking
another young man. Natalie wasn't sure what to do. She
didn't want
to get into a fight, but she didn't think it fair for four men to
attack one. She stayed hidden for a moment trying to listen to what
they were saying.
"Don't bother coming around here again!" one of the men
said.
"Yeah, if you do, we're going to kill you!" another
yelled.
The man that seemed to be the leader stopped the men.
"That's enough He's learned his lesson." The man
knelt down to look
into the eyes of the wounded man. "Some mutant you are," he
said.
This made Natalie's eyes spark. "You didn't even fight
back."
Natalie could see that the man wanted to get up, but the others were
standing on his hands, forcing him to stay down. The leader stood up
and started to walk away. As the mutant started to get up, the leader
turned around and fired a bullet into his head. The mutant slumped
down onto the pavement. Natalie was scared by the gunshot and knocked
over a trashcan. The leader and his men heard the noise and one of
the thugs went to investigate. Natalie was sure they would find her,
so she did her best to hide.
One of the thugs ran behind the pile of trash holding a pistol,
wishing to find someone sitting there. Instead, he found only a rat.
"It's okay, boss," the thug yelled. "It's just
a rat. Must've been
spooked by the gunshot." The man started back to where his boss
was and left the alleyway.
Natalie lifted the small cover on the trashcan she had hidden in.
"This is disgusting," she whispered. She waited for almost
ten
minutes before pulling herself out of the garbage can. She wiped the
various slimes off her jacket and looked at herself. "Well, I
guess I won't be going to the library today." She walked
over to
where the mutant had been shot, but to her surprise, the body was no
longer there. There was a blood trail, but Natalie wasn't sure
if she
should follow it. "Maybe a shower first," she conceded.
Natalie left the alleyway and crossed the street. She wandered a few
blocks to the women's shelter that she frequented. The
coordinator
saw her clothes and smelled the stench. "I won't ask,"
the woman
said. "There's a shower available. I'll see if there
are any extra
clothes."
The woman walked away and Natalie made her way to the
back to the shelter to community shower area. She stepped into one of
the shower stalls and started it up. She only used hot water, she was
still cold. She removed her clothes and left them on the floor. She
placed her head under the water and couldn't help but think of the
mutant she saw get shot dead and then how she didn't find his
body. And then of the people that shot the mutant. Who were they and
why did they want to kill mutants? This was too much for Natalie to
take in. She closed her eyes and concentrated on staying warm and
getting the smell of trash out of her hair.
Brave New World, Part 6 (Final Chapter) (From Star Wars: Tales From Across the Stars)
"Brave New World, Part 6"
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
Melina Asketi (SC)
Grand Vizier Essten (NPC)
Jul Del Frek (NPC)
Secretary of the People, Jynsen (NPC)
Other minor NPCs
Location: Quilove Grand Palace and Hall of Laws
Date: TBA
A guard moved toward Grand Vizier Essten and whispered in his ear. “Sir,” the guard said quietly. “An alarm has been activated in the Palace. The other girl that was captured has escaped.”
Essten showed no emotion and did not move his head. He whispered back to the guard. “Find her and kill her. We don’t need her any longer.”
Essten looked down at Jul and Melina standing in front of the dais. The judges were contemplating what Jul had said and were taking it into consideration.
“Jul Del Frek,” Jynsen said. “It is the opinion of this court that you are a criminal, a terrorist and a threat to all of Quilove. We therefore sentence you to imprisonment for the rest of your natural life.”
Jul did not make a move. He face stoic, he didn’t even flinch at the words. Melina’s face, however, showed all the emotion that Jul was not willing to show. Tears began to well up in her eyes.
“Don’t cry, child,” Jul offered as he leaned down. “My life is not worth the tears. What matters is that you know the truth. The truth about who and what you are and where you came from. That was all I was trying to do.”
“Jul Del Frek,” Jynsen started again. “You will be taken from here and placed in a maximum security prison for the rest of your days.”
“What of the girl?” Essten yelled, causing Jul and Melina to look in his direction.
**
Nyja was sitting close to the ground and the wall. She was barely breathing. The guards were getting closer. There was no where to run. The guards were almost on top of her. A beep sounded from the leader’s comlink. The other two looked toward him.
“Very well,” the lead guard said. “We’ll deal with her.”
Nyja knew that the “her” that was mentioned was herself. She knew she had to do something. She gripped her lightsaber tight in her left hand and waited. She slowly stood and prepared herself for the worst.
The two guards noticed the movement and turned quickly to look.
**
Jynsen turned to the Grand Vizier. “What is it to you, Grand Vizier?”
“You question me, Prime Judge?”
“I only question your motive, sir. After all, it is my job.”
“Blast your job. She needs to be sentenced too.”
The judges huddled briefly and Jynsen moved forward again. “I am sorry, sir. But the council has decided that she is not a criminal as you have said. Therefore, we cannot reprimand her.”
“Outrage!” Essten yelled, rising to his feet. “She is a known smuggler. I am sure that she had weapons on her ship.”
“Be that as it may, Grand Vizier,” Jynsen said. “You know the law. If the judges do not see enough evidence for conviction, then the prisoner is set free.”
Mumbling began to encircle the Hall of Laws. Essten looked down at Jul and Melina in the center, then turned to one of his guards. “Has the other one been found?”
“No, sir. They are still looking.”
“Fine. Change the orders. Find the other one and bring her to me. Bring Melina to me when you find the other one. I will let them go, but that won’t be the end. I will take care of them.”
“Yes, sir.”
**
The guards looked at Nyja and raised their weapons. At the same time, Nyja ignited her lightsaber. As she prepared to lunge at the two guards, the lead guard yelled.
“Stop!” he yelled. “We have orders to take you to the Grand Vizier. Your friend is there. You are to be set free.”
Nyja kept the blade focused on the three guards. “How do I know that you speak the truth?”
The guard thought for a moment. “I have no way to prove to you that your friend will be there, but if you would like, I can tell my men to leave their weapons in this room and escort you to the Grand Vizier’s throne room.”
The three guards placed their weapons on the ground. At the sight of this, Nyja disengaged her weapon and clipped it to her belt.
“This way,” the lead guard said and motioned out the door.
“You first. All three of you. I give you my word that I won’t run.”
“Fine,” the guard said and motioned the others to the door, following close behind. He turned his head around and noticed that Nyja was following as she had promised.
**
Jul was standing in an anteroom with Melina next to him. Her shackles were off now and she was embracing him. “I don’t know what to do,” she sobbed.
“You must go,” he said, attempting to comfort her with his wrists in chains. “Be cautious of Essten. He was not happy that you were freed. Leave the planet, quick.”
“No! I don’t want to leave you.”
“You don’t know me, Melina. What they said . . . a lot of it was true. But it was to get people to notice that Essten was more evil than they possibly imagined. And it seems I have succeeded in a small way. Enough for him to lose his temper in front of his constituents.”
“But . . .”
“No more words, child. You are Melina Gan. That is your real name. Honor your father and mother. When you can, that is.” Jul noticed the guards coming into the anteroom. “It’s time for me to go. Good luck, Melina. And good bye.”
Melina fell to the ground sobbing. The Grand Vizier stepped into the anteroom. “Melina,” he said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“Get away from me!” she yelled, pulling away from him and standing.
“Your friend is waiting in my throne room.”
“What?”
“Your friend. The one you were with when you were taken. I have released her just the same as you have been released.” He moved toward her again, but she moved back. “Please, come with me. You will be reunited.”
~Be cautious of Essten~ her mind reminded. “How do I know you’re telling the truth?”
“Because I can tell you that she is just a few years older than you. That she is named Nyja Asketi. And that she carries a weapon normally carried by a Jedi, though I do not believe she is one.”
Melina thought of the words that he spoke. She knew that he could have just gotten the information from somewhere and was using it to get her to trust him. However, if it was a chance to see Nyja again, she had to take it. “Okay, I’ll go with you.”
Melina started to follow Essten out of the anteroom and to a small speeder. She got into the vehicle and it began to rise off the ground. Melina kept her gaze on Essten with hopes of discerning what he was planning inside that head of his. But she could not.
**
Nyja was standing in the throne room when Essten and Melina walked into the room. Nyja couldn’t control herself. She ran immediately and hugged her. Melina hugged in turn and they embraced for a moment.
Essten watched on and then interrupted. “Excuse me,” he said with a cough. “We have brought your ship to our starport. You are expected to leave at once.”
Melina looked at Essten. “We can leave?”
“Yes,” Essten said. “By law, I cannot condemn you, even if I wanted to.”
“Let’s not overstay our welcome,” Nyja started, looking at her sister. “I think we’re pretty close to doing that already.”
“Alright,” Melina said. “Let’s get out of here.”
**
Essten was standing in a dark room. There was a small light that cast a shadow against the wall. A man was sitting in the room.
“What’s the job?”
“Both girls. I want them out of the picture entirely.”
“They won’t be cheap. They’ll keep traveling. I’ll be chasing them across the galaxy. I’ll need a lot of money.”
“Don’t worry. House Yina will compensate you for your expenses.”
“Very well,” the man said. “Please see to it that the first million credits have been deposited. When I have confirmation, I will begin the search.”
“A million credits?!” the Grand Vizier shouted. “For that kind of money I could send the army after them.”
“Yes, but if you sent the army, you would have to explain the action. With me, there is no explanation. Just assumptions. And that’s all there needs to be.”
“Alright. I will head back to the palace and authorize the credits. You will see the confirmation within a few hours.”
“Thank you, Grand Vizier,” the man said as he stepped out of the light and exited the room. Before he shut the door, the man turned back to the Grand Vizier and smiled. “By the way . . . Jul is dead. Just as you requested. I’ll give you that one for free, since I would have wanted him dead anyway.”
**
Nyja and Melina were now in the upper atmosphere of Quilove with coordinates set for Dantooine. Melina hadn’t spoken since they arrived at the ship and Nyja was not going to press her into talking. Nyja noticed that Melina kept wiping away tears before they became constant on her face.
“Mel,” Nyja said. “I’m alright up here. Why not get some rest?”
The girl stood slowly and turned to look at her sister. She put her arms around her and gave a gentle hug. “Thanks,” she said and left the cockpit.
Once out of the orbit of Quilove and at the jump coordinates, Nyja engaged the hyperdrive and the ship disappeared into the stars.
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
Melina Asketi (SC)
Grand Vizier Essten (NPC)
Jul Del Frek (NPC)
Secretary of the People, Jynsen (NPC)
Other minor NPCs
Location: Quilove Grand Palace and Hall of Laws
Date: TBA
A guard moved toward Grand Vizier Essten and whispered in his ear. “Sir,” the guard said quietly. “An alarm has been activated in the Palace. The other girl that was captured has escaped.”
Essten showed no emotion and did not move his head. He whispered back to the guard. “Find her and kill her. We don’t need her any longer.”
Essten looked down at Jul and Melina standing in front of the dais. The judges were contemplating what Jul had said and were taking it into consideration.
“Jul Del Frek,” Jynsen said. “It is the opinion of this court that you are a criminal, a terrorist and a threat to all of Quilove. We therefore sentence you to imprisonment for the rest of your natural life.”
Jul did not make a move. He face stoic, he didn’t even flinch at the words. Melina’s face, however, showed all the emotion that Jul was not willing to show. Tears began to well up in her eyes.
“Don’t cry, child,” Jul offered as he leaned down. “My life is not worth the tears. What matters is that you know the truth. The truth about who and what you are and where you came from. That was all I was trying to do.”
“Jul Del Frek,” Jynsen started again. “You will be taken from here and placed in a maximum security prison for the rest of your days.”
“What of the girl?” Essten yelled, causing Jul and Melina to look in his direction.
**
Nyja was sitting close to the ground and the wall. She was barely breathing. The guards were getting closer. There was no where to run. The guards were almost on top of her. A beep sounded from the leader’s comlink. The other two looked toward him.
“Very well,” the lead guard said. “We’ll deal with her.”
Nyja knew that the “her” that was mentioned was herself. She knew she had to do something. She gripped her lightsaber tight in her left hand and waited. She slowly stood and prepared herself for the worst.
The two guards noticed the movement and turned quickly to look.
**
Jynsen turned to the Grand Vizier. “What is it to you, Grand Vizier?”
“You question me, Prime Judge?”
“I only question your motive, sir. After all, it is my job.”
“Blast your job. She needs to be sentenced too.”
The judges huddled briefly and Jynsen moved forward again. “I am sorry, sir. But the council has decided that she is not a criminal as you have said. Therefore, we cannot reprimand her.”
“Outrage!” Essten yelled, rising to his feet. “She is a known smuggler. I am sure that she had weapons on her ship.”
“Be that as it may, Grand Vizier,” Jynsen said. “You know the law. If the judges do not see enough evidence for conviction, then the prisoner is set free.”
Mumbling began to encircle the Hall of Laws. Essten looked down at Jul and Melina in the center, then turned to one of his guards. “Has the other one been found?”
“No, sir. They are still looking.”
“Fine. Change the orders. Find the other one and bring her to me. Bring Melina to me when you find the other one. I will let them go, but that won’t be the end. I will take care of them.”
“Yes, sir.”
**
The guards looked at Nyja and raised their weapons. At the same time, Nyja ignited her lightsaber. As she prepared to lunge at the two guards, the lead guard yelled.
“Stop!” he yelled. “We have orders to take you to the Grand Vizier. Your friend is there. You are to be set free.”
Nyja kept the blade focused on the three guards. “How do I know that you speak the truth?”
The guard thought for a moment. “I have no way to prove to you that your friend will be there, but if you would like, I can tell my men to leave their weapons in this room and escort you to the Grand Vizier’s throne room.”
The three guards placed their weapons on the ground. At the sight of this, Nyja disengaged her weapon and clipped it to her belt.
“This way,” the lead guard said and motioned out the door.
“You first. All three of you. I give you my word that I won’t run.”
“Fine,” the guard said and motioned the others to the door, following close behind. He turned his head around and noticed that Nyja was following as she had promised.
**
Jul was standing in an anteroom with Melina next to him. Her shackles were off now and she was embracing him. “I don’t know what to do,” she sobbed.
“You must go,” he said, attempting to comfort her with his wrists in chains. “Be cautious of Essten. He was not happy that you were freed. Leave the planet, quick.”
“No! I don’t want to leave you.”
“You don’t know me, Melina. What they said . . . a lot of it was true. But it was to get people to notice that Essten was more evil than they possibly imagined. And it seems I have succeeded in a small way. Enough for him to lose his temper in front of his constituents.”
“But . . .”
“No more words, child. You are Melina Gan. That is your real name. Honor your father and mother. When you can, that is.” Jul noticed the guards coming into the anteroom. “It’s time for me to go. Good luck, Melina. And good bye.”
Melina fell to the ground sobbing. The Grand Vizier stepped into the anteroom. “Melina,” he said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“Get away from me!” she yelled, pulling away from him and standing.
“Your friend is waiting in my throne room.”
“What?”
“Your friend. The one you were with when you were taken. I have released her just the same as you have been released.” He moved toward her again, but she moved back. “Please, come with me. You will be reunited.”
~Be cautious of Essten~ her mind reminded. “How do I know you’re telling the truth?”
“Because I can tell you that she is just a few years older than you. That she is named Nyja Asketi. And that she carries a weapon normally carried by a Jedi, though I do not believe she is one.”
Melina thought of the words that he spoke. She knew that he could have just gotten the information from somewhere and was using it to get her to trust him. However, if it was a chance to see Nyja again, she had to take it. “Okay, I’ll go with you.”
Melina started to follow Essten out of the anteroom and to a small speeder. She got into the vehicle and it began to rise off the ground. Melina kept her gaze on Essten with hopes of discerning what he was planning inside that head of his. But she could not.
**
Nyja was standing in the throne room when Essten and Melina walked into the room. Nyja couldn’t control herself. She ran immediately and hugged her. Melina hugged in turn and they embraced for a moment.
Essten watched on and then interrupted. “Excuse me,” he said with a cough. “We have brought your ship to our starport. You are expected to leave at once.”
Melina looked at Essten. “We can leave?”
“Yes,” Essten said. “By law, I cannot condemn you, even if I wanted to.”
“Let’s not overstay our welcome,” Nyja started, looking at her sister. “I think we’re pretty close to doing that already.”
“Alright,” Melina said. “Let’s get out of here.”
**
Essten was standing in a dark room. There was a small light that cast a shadow against the wall. A man was sitting in the room.
“What’s the job?”
“Both girls. I want them out of the picture entirely.”
“They won’t be cheap. They’ll keep traveling. I’ll be chasing them across the galaxy. I’ll need a lot of money.”
“Don’t worry. House Yina will compensate you for your expenses.”
“Very well,” the man said. “Please see to it that the first million credits have been deposited. When I have confirmation, I will begin the search.”
“A million credits?!” the Grand Vizier shouted. “For that kind of money I could send the army after them.”
“Yes, but if you sent the army, you would have to explain the action. With me, there is no explanation. Just assumptions. And that’s all there needs to be.”
“Alright. I will head back to the palace and authorize the credits. You will see the confirmation within a few hours.”
“Thank you, Grand Vizier,” the man said as he stepped out of the light and exited the room. Before he shut the door, the man turned back to the Grand Vizier and smiled. “By the way . . . Jul is dead. Just as you requested. I’ll give you that one for free, since I would have wanted him dead anyway.”
**
Nyja and Melina were now in the upper atmosphere of Quilove with coordinates set for Dantooine. Melina hadn’t spoken since they arrived at the ship and Nyja was not going to press her into talking. Nyja noticed that Melina kept wiping away tears before they became constant on her face.
“Mel,” Nyja said. “I’m alright up here. Why not get some rest?”
The girl stood slowly and turned to look at her sister. She put her arms around her and gave a gentle hug. “Thanks,” she said and left the cockpit.
Once out of the orbit of Quilove and at the jump coordinates, Nyja engaged the hyperdrive and the ship disappeared into the stars.
Brave New World, Part 5 (From Star Wars: Tales From Across the Stars)
"Brave New World, Part 5"
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
Melina Asketi (SC)
Grand Vizier Essten (NPC)
Jul Del Frek (NPC)
Secretary of the People, Jynsen (NPC)
Priest of Tys (NPC)
Law Scholar Keela (NPC)
Other minor NPCs
Location: Quilove Grand Palace and Hall of Laws
Date: TBA
**
Nyja was led back to the palace and to the hidden
doorway. The priest pulled a hand held device from
his robe. He placed it against the wall and it
started to beep quietly. “The hallway is clear. Once
I open the wall, you will be on your own.” The wall
began to open gently and the priest took the device
from it. He handed the small device to Nyja. “Here,”
he said. “When you are escaping, return to this wall
and place the device on it. It will know what to do.”
Before the wall closed, the priest stopped Nyja one
last time. “You cannot be seen opening this wall. We
have held this secret entrance for over ten
generations of rulers and we do not wish it to become
known.”
“I understand,” Nyja said as the wall closed.
**
Grand Vizier Essten was sitting in the royal section
of the Hall of Laws. He was watching the trial of the
treasonous rebels.
“Quiet,” a booming voice came. It was that of Jynsen,
the Secretary of the People, and prime judge at the
trial. “This trial is to begin.” Jynsen motioned to
a guard on the side of the room. “Bring in the
accused, Melina Asketi and Jul Del Frek.” The guard
did as ordered and opened the door to allow other
guards to bring the two prisoners into the large room.
The crowd that was in attendance began to jeer them.
**
Nyja headed back down the hallway in an attempt to
find the room that had held her earlier that day.
After a while, she managed to find the room, but she
did not find her belt or her lightsaber. She cursed
to herself and moved on. She opened the next door and
checked the hallway to make sure that no one was
around. Not seeing anyone, she moved across the
hallway and opened another door. She stood outside to
room briefly to see if someone was in the room. This
door was near the makeshift prison that Nyja had been
held in. She hoped that there would be a console of
some sort that she could slice into.
As the door opened, one of the men in the room looked
up. Noticing that someone was at the door that should
not be there, he moved to investigate. Approaching
the door, he noticed a slight shadow on the floor and
realized that someone was outside. Moving slowly, he
tried to surprise the intruder. As he was about to
grab her from around the door, Nyja suddenly felt a
pulse from the Force and moved, toward the door,
surprisingly and opened fire, killing the guard. The
other guard in the room saw his partner drop to the
floor and Nyja lying on the floor. He quickly made a
move for the console to set off the alarm. Nyja tried
to shoot him before he made it but couldn’t. She
stood almost instantaneously and reached out with the
Force. He stopped just before the console and started
to stumble. She kept her hands outstretched toward
the guard until she could hear his neck snap. She
turned back to the door and pressed the lock button.
She didn’t want visitors just yet.
**
“This trial is to determine your guilt,” Jynsen said.
Melina looked up at the judge, high upon his dais.
“Isn’t there going to be a representative for us?” she
yelled.
“No,” a second judge responded. “As part of Quilove
law, any member of an opposing house cannot have a
representative from the ruling house. Nor can you
contact your own house for one, for that would just be
a way to avoid being found guilty. You must defend
yourselves.”
“But we’re not guilty!” Melina demanded.
“Don’t bother, child,” Jul said, leaning to speak into
her ear. “They’re not going to listen. Let’s just
see what they have to say and how they make us
criminals.” He stood tall. “And from now on . . .
let me do the talking.”
**
Nyja took the two bodies and moved them underneath the
desk in the room. Once she was done with that, she
moved to the small locker that was against the wall.
Nyja opened it up and was surprised to find her
lightsaber. She didn’t find any of her other
belongings, but at least she was more comfortable
knowing that she had the weapon back. Doing her best
to avoid kicking the bodies, she moved carefully to
the console. Lucky for her, the system was already
logged on and there was no need for a password.
As Nyja started looking through the computer, she came
across a screen that talked about Jul Del Frek.
Intrigued, Nyja started to read about the man that
called himself a “friend” of Melina’s father.
**
“Law Scholar Keela,” Jynsen spoke. “You may address
the court.”
“Thank you, prime judge,” a young woman said. “You!”
she said aloud pointing her finger at Jul. “Are a
dangerous man. You are a criminal and a terrorist and
you have no regard for the people of Quilove. Your
people.” The woman started walking in a circle around
Jul and Melina. “You may be of House Telayan, but
Quilove is made of one people in many houses. And
you, sir have chosen to live a life that attempts to
destroy the people and all that they have worked and
suffered for.”
The woman stepped back to a table and picked up a
datapad. “The information on this datapad is evidence
against the defendant, Jul Del Frek. It proves that
he has spent the last ten years organizing terrorist
attacks on House Yina citizens. Since House Yina is
the ruling party, this is considered an act of treason
against the throne. A crime punishable by death.”
Jul did not show emotion, but Melina’s face showed the
scared little girl that Nyja had found years earlier.
“Prime Judge,” the woman said, looking toward the
dais. “The case against Jul Del Frek is simple. He
is a criminal and he must be punished. If not, House
Yina and the rest of Quilove for that matter, will be
scared to venture out of their homes for fear that
they will be killed by this mad man.”
“Your thoughts are noted and documented, Law Scholar
Keela,” Jynsen said. “Now, in a brave attempt to save
his life, Jul Del Frek will be given time to offer a
defense against the charges.”
**
The records that contained the information on Jul were
highly classified; at least that is what they said at
the top of each one. As Nyja read through them, she
noticed that the documents all treated Jul as a
madman, a terrorist and a criminal. Nyja sensed none
of this animosity toward others when she had met him.
All she felt from his was animosity toward her –
mostly because she was not from Quilove. By this
point, Nyja wasn’t sure if she believed the documents
or the man himself. Nyja suddenly felt a disturbance
in the Force and exited the documents back to the main
screen to avoid being seen. She quickly moved away
from the door and behind a crate.
The door opened and three guards walked in. “No one
here,” the lead guard said. “That’s odd.” He pulled
a comlink from his belt. “Red 2, come in. Red 2, do
you copy?” There was a slight muffled echo from under
the desk. Nyja didn’t realize that the guards still
had comlinks on their person when she placed them
under the desk. “What’s that noise?” the lead guard
asked. The three moved toward the desk cautiously.
Upon looking under the desk and seeing the bodies, the
lead guard pressed the alarm button on the console.
“Double check the room. Make sure there’s no one else
here.”
~I’ve got a bad feeling about this~ Nyja thought as
she stayed as close to the crate and the wall as she
could.
The two remaining guards searched the room and Nyja
did her best to stay hidden as best she could, given
her surroundings. The lead guard got on the comlink,
but Nyja was unable to hear what he said and whom he
was talking to.
**
“Prime Judge,” Jul started. “I, Jul Del Frek, being
of sound mind and body, do hereby offer the following
statement in regards to my defense against the charges
brought against me.”
The judge looked down at him. “Thank you, Jul,” he
said, smiling. “Your knowledge of the legal customs
is extensive. Proceed.”
“Prime Judge,” he said. “It has come to my attention
that the people of House Yina believe me to be a
terrorist. That I have killed willingly citizens of
House Yina. That I disregard the people of Quilove
and especially the people of House Yina. Prime Judge,
I am here to tell you that it is not the people of
House Yina that I despise. No! It is in fact, one
person, Grand Vizier Essten that I despise.”
There was a quiet rumbling from the crowd. The judge
spoke up to quiet them down and Jul continued.
“Yes! I said Grand Vizier Essten. For it is that man
. . .” his hands pointing toward him. “That has
plunged Quilove into a planet of ambiguity. Quilove
does not know who it should be. The people of Quilove
have suffered long during the rule of Grand Vizier
Essten. But not House Yina. For why would a ruler
allow his own House to suffer? He does not. The
credits that normally should flow freely to all Houses
for exports and imports is only going to House Yina
and to the upkeep of the government. This is not
fair! Not to House Yina and not to Quilove.
“And if that is not enough . . . that man made sure
that the one candidate that could defeat him when he
was originally elected never made it home. Essten was
the one responsible for the death of Reggo Gan. You
want to call me murderer, criminal, terrorist?
Perhaps you should look at the one YOU elected. And
find out why he consorts with criminals that are known
across Quilove as such.
“Prime Judge, I regret to inform you that I am
innocent. I am unfortunately the victim of being
opinionated. And therefore, I request that the
charges be dropped, and I set free. Secondly, I wish
that the young lady not have to go through this same
process; that you trust my word when I say that she is
just an innocent bystander that got caught on camera
at the wrong time.
“Prime Judge, I await your decision. Thank you.”
**
By Nyja Asketi (PC)
Melina Asketi (SC)
Grand Vizier Essten (NPC)
Jul Del Frek (NPC)
Secretary of the People, Jynsen (NPC)
Priest of Tys (NPC)
Law Scholar Keela (NPC)
Other minor NPCs
Location: Quilove Grand Palace and Hall of Laws
Date: TBA
**
Nyja was led back to the palace and to the hidden
doorway. The priest pulled a hand held device from
his robe. He placed it against the wall and it
started to beep quietly. “The hallway is clear. Once
I open the wall, you will be on your own.” The wall
began to open gently and the priest took the device
from it. He handed the small device to Nyja. “Here,”
he said. “When you are escaping, return to this wall
and place the device on it. It will know what to do.”
Before the wall closed, the priest stopped Nyja one
last time. “You cannot be seen opening this wall. We
have held this secret entrance for over ten
generations of rulers and we do not wish it to become
known.”
“I understand,” Nyja said as the wall closed.
**
Grand Vizier Essten was sitting in the royal section
of the Hall of Laws. He was watching the trial of the
treasonous rebels.
“Quiet,” a booming voice came. It was that of Jynsen,
the Secretary of the People, and prime judge at the
trial. “This trial is to begin.” Jynsen motioned to
a guard on the side of the room. “Bring in the
accused, Melina Asketi and Jul Del Frek.” The guard
did as ordered and opened the door to allow other
guards to bring the two prisoners into the large room.
The crowd that was in attendance began to jeer them.
**
Nyja headed back down the hallway in an attempt to
find the room that had held her earlier that day.
After a while, she managed to find the room, but she
did not find her belt or her lightsaber. She cursed
to herself and moved on. She opened the next door and
checked the hallway to make sure that no one was
around. Not seeing anyone, she moved across the
hallway and opened another door. She stood outside to
room briefly to see if someone was in the room. This
door was near the makeshift prison that Nyja had been
held in. She hoped that there would be a console of
some sort that she could slice into.
As the door opened, one of the men in the room looked
up. Noticing that someone was at the door that should
not be there, he moved to investigate. Approaching
the door, he noticed a slight shadow on the floor and
realized that someone was outside. Moving slowly, he
tried to surprise the intruder. As he was about to
grab her from around the door, Nyja suddenly felt a
pulse from the Force and moved, toward the door,
surprisingly and opened fire, killing the guard. The
other guard in the room saw his partner drop to the
floor and Nyja lying on the floor. He quickly made a
move for the console to set off the alarm. Nyja tried
to shoot him before he made it but couldn’t. She
stood almost instantaneously and reached out with the
Force. He stopped just before the console and started
to stumble. She kept her hands outstretched toward
the guard until she could hear his neck snap. She
turned back to the door and pressed the lock button.
She didn’t want visitors just yet.
**
“This trial is to determine your guilt,” Jynsen said.
Melina looked up at the judge, high upon his dais.
“Isn’t there going to be a representative for us?” she
yelled.
“No,” a second judge responded. “As part of Quilove
law, any member of an opposing house cannot have a
representative from the ruling house. Nor can you
contact your own house for one, for that would just be
a way to avoid being found guilty. You must defend
yourselves.”
“But we’re not guilty!” Melina demanded.
“Don’t bother, child,” Jul said, leaning to speak into
her ear. “They’re not going to listen. Let’s just
see what they have to say and how they make us
criminals.” He stood tall. “And from now on . . .
let me do the talking.”
**
Nyja took the two bodies and moved them underneath the
desk in the room. Once she was done with that, she
moved to the small locker that was against the wall.
Nyja opened it up and was surprised to find her
lightsaber. She didn’t find any of her other
belongings, but at least she was more comfortable
knowing that she had the weapon back. Doing her best
to avoid kicking the bodies, she moved carefully to
the console. Lucky for her, the system was already
logged on and there was no need for a password.
As Nyja started looking through the computer, she came
across a screen that talked about Jul Del Frek.
Intrigued, Nyja started to read about the man that
called himself a “friend” of Melina’s father.
**
“Law Scholar Keela,” Jynsen spoke. “You may address
the court.”
“Thank you, prime judge,” a young woman said. “You!”
she said aloud pointing her finger at Jul. “Are a
dangerous man. You are a criminal and a terrorist and
you have no regard for the people of Quilove. Your
people.” The woman started walking in a circle around
Jul and Melina. “You may be of House Telayan, but
Quilove is made of one people in many houses. And
you, sir have chosen to live a life that attempts to
destroy the people and all that they have worked and
suffered for.”
The woman stepped back to a table and picked up a
datapad. “The information on this datapad is evidence
against the defendant, Jul Del Frek. It proves that
he has spent the last ten years organizing terrorist
attacks on House Yina citizens. Since House Yina is
the ruling party, this is considered an act of treason
against the throne. A crime punishable by death.”
Jul did not show emotion, but Melina’s face showed the
scared little girl that Nyja had found years earlier.
“Prime Judge,” the woman said, looking toward the
dais. “The case against Jul Del Frek is simple. He
is a criminal and he must be punished. If not, House
Yina and the rest of Quilove for that matter, will be
scared to venture out of their homes for fear that
they will be killed by this mad man.”
“Your thoughts are noted and documented, Law Scholar
Keela,” Jynsen said. “Now, in a brave attempt to save
his life, Jul Del Frek will be given time to offer a
defense against the charges.”
**
The records that contained the information on Jul were
highly classified; at least that is what they said at
the top of each one. As Nyja read through them, she
noticed that the documents all treated Jul as a
madman, a terrorist and a criminal. Nyja sensed none
of this animosity toward others when she had met him.
All she felt from his was animosity toward her –
mostly because she was not from Quilove. By this
point, Nyja wasn’t sure if she believed the documents
or the man himself. Nyja suddenly felt a disturbance
in the Force and exited the documents back to the main
screen to avoid being seen. She quickly moved away
from the door and behind a crate.
The door opened and three guards walked in. “No one
here,” the lead guard said. “That’s odd.” He pulled
a comlink from his belt. “Red 2, come in. Red 2, do
you copy?” There was a slight muffled echo from under
the desk. Nyja didn’t realize that the guards still
had comlinks on their person when she placed them
under the desk. “What’s that noise?” the lead guard
asked. The three moved toward the desk cautiously.
Upon looking under the desk and seeing the bodies, the
lead guard pressed the alarm button on the console.
“Double check the room. Make sure there’s no one else
here.”
~I’ve got a bad feeling about this~ Nyja thought as
she stayed as close to the crate and the wall as she
could.
The two remaining guards searched the room and Nyja
did her best to stay hidden as best she could, given
her surroundings. The lead guard got on the comlink,
but Nyja was unable to hear what he said and whom he
was talking to.
**
“Prime Judge,” Jul started. “I, Jul Del Frek, being
of sound mind and body, do hereby offer the following
statement in regards to my defense against the charges
brought against me.”
The judge looked down at him. “Thank you, Jul,” he
said, smiling. “Your knowledge of the legal customs
is extensive. Proceed.”
“Prime Judge,” he said. “It has come to my attention
that the people of House Yina believe me to be a
terrorist. That I have killed willingly citizens of
House Yina. That I disregard the people of Quilove
and especially the people of House Yina. Prime Judge,
I am here to tell you that it is not the people of
House Yina that I despise. No! It is in fact, one
person, Grand Vizier Essten that I despise.”
There was a quiet rumbling from the crowd. The judge
spoke up to quiet them down and Jul continued.
“Yes! I said Grand Vizier Essten. For it is that man
. . .” his hands pointing toward him. “That has
plunged Quilove into a planet of ambiguity. Quilove
does not know who it should be. The people of Quilove
have suffered long during the rule of Grand Vizier
Essten. But not House Yina. For why would a ruler
allow his own House to suffer? He does not. The
credits that normally should flow freely to all Houses
for exports and imports is only going to House Yina
and to the upkeep of the government. This is not
fair! Not to House Yina and not to Quilove.
“And if that is not enough . . . that man made sure
that the one candidate that could defeat him when he
was originally elected never made it home. Essten was
the one responsible for the death of Reggo Gan. You
want to call me murderer, criminal, terrorist?
Perhaps you should look at the one YOU elected. And
find out why he consorts with criminals that are known
across Quilove as such.
“Prime Judge, I regret to inform you that I am
innocent. I am unfortunately the victim of being
opinionated. And therefore, I request that the
charges be dropped, and I set free. Secondly, I wish
that the young lady not have to go through this same
process; that you trust my word when I say that she is
just an innocent bystander that got caught on camera
at the wrong time.
“Prime Judge, I await your decision. Thank you.”
**
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