The Elephant Season 3: Eight Directions
The Elephant Ep3.3: Centripetal Motions

The barren landscape spread out in every direction around him. Not a single sound could be heard in the early morning hours. Of course, Kahaynu assumed it was early morning. The past day’s events had clouded his senses. “Moya.” Saying her name only brought on more bitterness. He missed his daughter already. A part of her had always been inside him. Now that space was empty. He looked up at the white barrier above and breathed a sigh of relief for small miracles. The brown behemoths had backed away from his planet. They had risen. “Why do I doubt that this will be our last meeting?” There was no one around to answer his question.

<<<<>>>>

The space above held a much less tranquil vision. Darkness was littered with chunks of burnt metal and wasted life. Scarren, Peacekeeper, and Regulator parts alike floated about aimlessly. The conflict had been short but complete. There seemed to be no movement among the ruins. But appearances can be deceiving. At the center of this memorial of death, The Velorion sat quietly. Its outer walls gave no sign of survivors or further defense. As it should be. Deep within, thousands of Sebaceans were scurrying about. Trying to figure out what had happened. Trying to put the pieces back together again.

Down one of the endless service tunnels, a room stood dark and empty save for three bodies. Two alive and one still. Someone was moving towards that room. His boots crunched softly on the rubble under him. He sneered at the unfortunate disorder and continued forward. If what Lyle had heard was correct, his destiny awaited behind the door ahead. “High Counselor Lyle. I very much like the sound of that.” He smiled and raised his pulse rifle upwards. There was no need for it now. Lyle slipped it into its holster.

Security Officer Yates and his companion Ern sat quietly in the darkened room. Neither had even attempted to leave the place since the attack outside halted. They had agreed to guard the body that sat before them on the floor. Her still form cast off a commanding presence even in death. The two soldiers swore silently to themselves. This was very bad. Trouble always came about when new High Counselors were chosen. Yates shook his head. “I’d rather fend off a hoard of Scarrens than deal with this sorry mess.” Ern could tell by the look in his eyes that he meant it. “Well, we’re both stuck here. Get over-.” His words were interrupted by a noise by the door.

Lyle pushed the door open with the most delicate of gestures and stepped into the room. If he noticed the two security officers, he made no move to speak to them. “There you are my dear Madam Counselor.” He smiled as the words left his mouth. This was the moment he had been waiting for. Kneeling beside her body, Lyle scanned her it with his eyes. A metal pin with the Peacekeeper symbol on it sat haphazardly on her chest. The general moved gingerly to pick it up. Making sure not to disturb the remains. As his fingers touched the cool metal, a pulse rifle charged behind him.

“Step away from that sir.” Yates had spoken without signaling his partner. The other security officer was caught completely by surprise. They were both on edge now. Lyle could sense this. “I am General Lyle, in charge of this ship and its mission. Stand down officer.” His steely words did little to lighten the atmosphere. Neither of the two soldiers lowered their guns. There was a protocol to follow. “You can’t take the pin, General sir.” Ern was raising his gun now as well.

Lyle couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “I am your commanding officer. I say again, stand down.” The other two peacekeepers did not even flinch. There was a prolonged silence in which neither side of the argument said a word. Then Yates broke the barrier. “High Counselor Raynor passed it on sir. It belongs to someone else.” He shot a glance at Ern as he spoke. The other man seemed to support his words. Lyle growled. “Well, she obviously refused it. We are talking about the girl?” Yates nodded.

The situation was getting a bit awkward now. Lyle saw his hopes being crushed by two idiot guards with no capacity for intelligence. His patience was wearing thin. “I’ll give you one more chance to stand down.” His arrogance clouded his judgements. They were Peacekeepers. Standing down was not an option. “Don’t do anything rash sir.” Ern was getting nervous. The general then made his mistake. Without thinking, he reached for the rifle on his belt. A single shot rang out and was followed by dead silence. Lyle slumped to the floor and landed in a heap. Blood trickled from his open mouth.

“What the frell did you do that for!?” Ern stared in shock at what his partner had done. He still couldn’t process the image correctly. Yates’s mouth dropped open and he shrugged. “I saw him reach for the gun. We had no choice.” This didn’t sit well with the other soldier. “What do mean we? You did this.” Another knock at the door made them both freeze. If someone walked in and found them like this, they were frelled for sure. The door slid open. A man dressed in black entered. He wasn’t a Peacekeeper. This they could tell immediately.

Borell looked the two men over and tried to put on a calm face. He didn’t feel like getting shot up again. “Who the frell are you?” Ern was the one who spoke but both were pointing their weapons. The man in black smiled. “Someone who can get you out of trouble.” They seemed suspicious. Finally, Ern nodded his head slightly. “Go on then, talk.” Borell nodded his head and pointed towards the door.

Never moving his eyes from the two men, Borell stepped forward and picked up the pin. He stepped over to Yates and deposited it in his hands. “Do exactly what you’re supposed to. Take the woman and get back to High Command. Tell them a replacement has been chosen.” The two men nodded in unison. Following protocol seemed like the best thing to do now. “Find the girl.” Borell led them, along with the body on a stretcher, out the door. They never questioned where he had come from. It was better not to think about it.

<<<<>>>>

The confused officer shook his head in frustration and groaned. “What the frell’s the matter with you?” He looked up and made eye contact with the Angry lieutenant seated across the hall. She was giving him a look that would kill most ordinary men. “I’m sorry Lt. It’s just that I’m not trained for this.” The woman stood and walked over to his console. The screen was flickering back and forth between wavy lines and a picture of outer space. “What are you doing here then?” The officer frowned. “Short on communications workers. Most of em are fixing the main antennas.” She seemed to accept this explanation. They both turned back to the screen.

“Did you see that?” The officer almost jumped out of his chair. Something blue had appeared on the monitor. It even cut through the distortion. The Lt. nodded. “It’s a frelling wormhole.” She rushed off down the corridor. Watching her go, the soldier just missed a small craft leaving the Velorion. It disappeared off the radar in less than half a microt. “Wormhole?”

The giant blue vortex faded as a tiny brown ship erupted from its center. Every Regulator vessel in the area picked it up immediately. Their other wayward son had returned. Aboard, two unlikely traveling companions surveyed the damage. “Would you look at that. It seems like death’s waiting for us everywhere we go.” Zelaya managed a thin smile and turned away from the porthole. Her words registered no effect on Tom’s face. He sat quietly on the floor with his eyes in slits. “Don’t you want to-.” The Ferrian was cut off in mid-sentence. The small transmitter in her temple had gone off like a gun. Signals were pouring in.

“What’s wrong?” Tom had noticed her change in behavior. He looked up at a strange sight. Zelaya was clutching her head and gagging. “Nothing, It’ll pass.” The human seemed to understand at that moment. “Does it hurt?” Zelaya growled at him. “Of course it hurts.” She glanced back out the window and frowned. The voice coming through had a single question for her. They didn’t care where she had been. There were more pressing matters to think about. “That Peacekeeper ship’s still here. What do think?”

Tom stirred slightly but didn’t get angry. The black monster he had taken Meryl from was sitting in the space outside. His first instinct was to demand its destruction. “I don’t care.” He closed his eyes and slumped back. It didn’t matter anyway. It wouldn’t change anything. Zelaya shrugged and touched a finger to her forehead. If it was up to her, then why not? Bright flashes erupted from the Regulator ships outside. The Velorion exploded in a massive fireball that shook even their tiny ship. “Two down.” It didn’t make her feel any better.

<<<<>>>>(2 weeks later)

She was frelling doing it again. Days and nights had passed in abundance since they left the Builder’s planet and Aeryn still couldn’t get the feeling off of her skin. She’d tried cleaning her face with that cleanser that Zhaan made. It hadn’t made a difference. Aeryn could feel the warm specks of blood even though they were no longer there. She couldn’t sleep very well either. This night was no different. “John, I’m going to-.” He was asleep. Crichton was asleep beside her in the bed. His face seemed peaceful. Aeryn longed for that. The Sebacean turned and spotted her pulse pistol on the table.

It was just sitting there. The dim lights from above reflected on its cold surface and danced across the wall. Aeryn frowned. This was getting her nowhere. She reached forward and lifted the weapon off the table. It slipped comfortably into her grip. “You belong there don’t you?” John stirred behind her. He opened one eye slowly and looked at her. Aeryn’s hair was down and reached past her shoulders. She hadn’t cut it in a while. “Hey baby. What’s going on?” She narrowed her eyes at him. “Go back to sleep John.” He followed orders.

Aeryn slipped on the black long-sleeve shirt she had gotten at the last commerce planet and stood to leave the room. Its soft feel contrasted sharply with the touch of leather against her skin. It had taken some getting used to. She placed the pulse pistol in its holster and walked out the door. “Pilot, are they still there?” Her comm didn’t take very long to go off. Pilot’s worried voice filled the silent hallway. “Yes. At the extreme of Moya’s senses. Are you alright Aeryn?” She smiled and shook her head. “Worry about Moya Pilot. I’m fine.”

<<<<>>>>

They could still hear her chanting through the wall. The steady hum of Delvian prayers did little to calm their nerves. Chiana looked up from her seat on the floor and groaned. “I thought she wasn’t going to do that anymore.” The annoyance in her voice did not disguise itself. On the bed, D’Argo only shook his head and smiled. “It’s some sort of prayer for guidance. I think anyways.” The Nebari smiled at him and lifted herself up. Her eyes were solemn but a smile still managed to creep onto her face. “I know something we could do to pass the time.” D’Argo grunted. “That’s all you ever want to do.” Chiana shrugged. “Making up for lost time.”

The pair started to advance on each other when a knock came at the door. “Can’t one of you make her stop that infernal racket?” Rygel floated at the room’s entrance with a look of vehemence on his face. The little Hynerion wasn’t happy at all. “If you want Zhaan to stop, tell her yourself.” Chiana’s harsh words came floating back to him. Her Luxan companion didn’t look too thrilled either. “I’m not talking about Zhaan! It’s frelling Moya.” Just as he spoke the words, the chanting from down the hall stopped.

Zhaan stood up from her bed and rushed out into the hall. The feelings of fear and anxiousness were continuing to grow. Rygel’s words had startled her. “What do you mean Rygel? What is Moya doing?” The tiny Dominar looked up at her frantic face and moved back. He appeared ready for a blow. “There’s a noise coming through the air vents. It hurts my fragile ears.” The Delvian nodded her head and started off down the hall. She had hardly gotten a metra when her comm went off.

“No need to be alarmed Zhaan.” Pilot’s words froze her in place. His voice seemed extremely calm and rational. Yet she detected a slight air of nervousness underneath. Of course, this wasn’t odd for Pilot. “What is the noise then Pilot?” Her own speech came out labored. “I’m surprised you hadn’t noticed already. Moya is taking extra precautions to avoid detection.” Zhaan frowned. “What kind of precautions?”

<<<<>>>>

Aeryn walked into the den and caught Pilot in the middle of his conversation. “Precautions? What are you talking about Pilot?” The creature looked up and smiled as she stepped towards him. He missed that soft look in her eyes. “I was just telling Zhaan about Moya. She’s been taking some extra steps to keep our pursuers at bay.” Aeryn nodded as she came up beside his console. Her eyes passed over the controls. Pilot caught her glances and smiled. “It’s all she could think of.”

The Sebacean recognized Moya’s intentions immediately. As if reading her thoughts, Pilot brought up a holographic image from outside. Aeryn watched the leviathan’s rear spread and a blue spark of energy begin to appear. “Won’t this drain her energy?” The starburst energy stopped coalescing and floated off into space. Moya was leaving a trail for the Regulators to follow. “I wouldn’t think so. She’s willing to take the risk anyway.” Aeryn looked on as the process began again.

“Pilot! What are you doing?” Zhaan ran into the den with a frantic look on her face. In a rush, she failed to notice Aeryn or the image. The other two just stared at her in confusion. The usually calm Delvian seemed extremely distraught. “What’s wrong Zhaan? Moya’s just-.” Aeryn realized that her blue friend was ignoring her. It was an uncomfortable feeling. Zhaan walked past her and spoke to Pilot. “Tell me!” The creature appeared annoyed by her sudden outburst of concern. “I appreciate your concern Zhaan. Moya and I are perfectly capable of making decisions on our own.”

<<<<>>>>

John Crichton opened his eyes and smiled. His gaze moved up to the ceiling above him. Stars filled his field of vision. Thousands of them all around. The human didn’t seem to connect the fact that his room on Moya didn’t have a skylight. Something was clouding is mind. John started to see spots. Then something snapped deep inside him. As if a tiny voice was crying for him out of the darkness. “Aeryn? Is that you?” His words came out garbled and unintelligible. The message was getting louder. It definitely wasn’t Aeryn Sun. “Wake up!” The voice was shouting now.

Springing up out of bed, John felt his bare feet touch the ground. Its cold sting jogged his mind a little. “Who’s there? Come on, I’m not in the mood for games.” No one answered his calls now. He reached for his comm and tapped it. “Pilot, come in would you. I think there’s a problem in my-.” It was then that John realized his comm wasn’t working. There was no reply from Moya’s keeper. Something stirred above him. Crichton looked up and saw stars again. They disappeared after a moment. “What’s that smell?” He dropped right where he stood and smacked his head against the bedpost.

<<<<>>>>

Rygel floated onto the terrace and looked around. He searched the space around Moya with steely determination. It was a terrible feeling to be hunted. The Dominar knew it only too well. “I can still smell you Ferrian.” Indeed he could. Her foreign scent still lingered in the room. It served to remind him of what had happened. Just the old group together now. “Pilot, do you see anything?” Rygel thought he spotted something off in the distance. “I’m sorry your eminence. Nothing appears to be coming within firing range. I will keep you informed.” Pilot’s voice sounded agitated. Other people were on his end too. Probably giving unnecessary advice.

At that moment, something flashed across Rygel’s field of vision. It was small, probably nothing important. “What are you?” He floated up towards the ceiling to get a better look. There was definitely something out there. The Hynerion didn’t understand why Moya hadn’t picked it up. “Pilot, check again.” This time he got an answer.

Pilot felt his courage drain away at the moment he got the sensor relays back. “Officer Sun, Zhaan. We have a problem.” The two women came up to the console. Punching keys as fast as he could, the creature brought up a display for them. It showed five brown specks moving through the darkness. “They’re getting closer?” Aeryn was the first to speak. Pilot could practically see the strategies running through her mind. Oddly though, the Sebacean said nothing more. “You must starburst Pilot!” Zhaan was not quite so passive.

The three of them watched the screen as a new sense of dread settled over them. “How long till they overtake us?” Zhaan’s hands were shaking. Pilot was about to answer grimly when something odd happened. The screen flickered for a moment. “They’re gone?” He couldn’t believe it. The five ships had disappeared off the screen. “Moya no longer detects any movement in her field of vision.” Out on the terrace, Rygel felt his three stomachs constrict.

<<<<>>>>

The commerce planet was alive with activity at this time of the day. Vendors from all walks of life lined the wide streets and peddled their goods to passing pedestrians. One of these, a young-looking Sebacean civilian, was standing at her fruit table quietly. Her spot had been devoid of customers for the past few days. Perhaps her food wasn’t fresh enough. Or maybe it was due to the Peacekeeper scum that had set up camp beside her spot. There were three of them now. Standing around, laughing and joking. “Animals.” One of them turned to look at her.

“What’s a nice lookin girl like you doing in this rotten place?” She ignored the grunt’s question and continued to place her stock. The soldier grinned hideously and walked around her table. “Go bother someone else. I’m not going to bite.” The look in her eyes was defiant. She wouldn’t be pushed around again. Her tormentor frowned and continued to advance. The Sebacean girl was suddenly very afraid. “That’s not very nice.” His ugly teeth grinned back at her now. “Someone help!”

A few paces from the fruit stall, a figure dressed in peacekeeper black perused the items for sale. Sil wore a heavy hood over her face. She didn’t feel like getting noticed in this of all places. “Help!” Hearing the cry, she ran down the street and came upon a most disturbing scene. Two soldiers stood by laughing as their third was moving in on a store girl. The vendor was older than Sil herself. She clutched the pulse pistol at her waist and stepped forward. Four sets of eyes turned to stare at her. The advancing Peacekeeper spoke first. “Who the frell are you?”

Something about the tone of voice made her snap. Before anyone else could move, Sil had her gun out and was firing. The blast of energy shot through the air and into the soldier’s chest. “Frelling woman!” He grabbed for the wound and then toppled to the ground. It was about then that Sil noticed the silence. Not a single word was being spoken on the street. Everyone had stopped to watch the scene play out. The other two soldiers pulled out their guns and aimed. Sil’s hood fell back.

Her hair had grown longer but was still uneven in most parts. Her eyes glanced out suspiciously at everyone nearby. The two soldiers lowered their guns slowly and stared at her. “She’s the one.” One appeared to be whispering to the other. The second soldier nodded slightly. “What do we do?” Sil wanted to say something. “I’m not who you think! Please just let me go.” It didn’t work. They dropped their guns and saluted.

“Just my frelling luck.” Sil cursed herself for getting involved in such a stupid thing. The wounded but not dead soldier on the ground wiped a smudge of blood off his eye. He raised his hand in a Peacekeeper salute. Sil put her gun away and took a step back. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. These idiots recognized her. “Um, sorry.” She turned and broke into a sprint. The soldiers never saw it coming. Her black form disappeared among the crowd. One of them reached for his radio. “Sir, we’ve found something.”