Unified with the Stars - Written by Alex Johnson

Unified with the Stars


Part Six of a Six Part Series

Two metal Warships hung, latched together, in a void where all stars were distant. Though scarred and marked heavily with wear, the two vast Warships seemed resplendent with glory. They bore different markings, one red and one blue. These markings represented two opposing sides of a civil war.
Long ago, the human race had gone separate ways. These were the Synthetarians and the Biotarians. This civil war was waged even before space travel was made practical. The war escalated to the reaches of space, and even though people, generations into the war, didn’t have a love for what they were fighting for as much as they hated what they were fighting against, as that was how they were brought up. This blindness led to the near destruction of Humanity’s home planet. A bomb had killed almost all life on Earth, and scientists had declared the planet uninhabitable by humans for 500 years.
So the two sides went in their own directions from Earth. The Synthetarians lived on a planet called "Euphantis", while the Biotarians lived on a planet called "New Life". The two sides were happy this way for 400 years.
Then the Aliens came.
Nobody knew very much about the Aliens. They were silent and deadly. They held no ambition for politics, they only wanted to conquer.
Many people died. With the Human race divided in two separate places, the Aliens had an easy time gaining a foothold in the struggle. The two colonial planets were destroyed. For 100 years, the Aliens hunted and slaughtered all except for two Warships that had slipped their wrath.
Now, these two Warships, the containers of all remaining of humanity, were sitting together in a very isolated rendezvous. The two leaders of these ships were meeting to complete a unity, a bond to carry each other.
Captain Arises, leader of the remaining Biotarians, was an aging man. He was in his late sixties, and though he looked gaunt and hollow at times, he carried with him dignity and respect for all. Arises held a very strong resemblance to his ship. He was just as resplendent with glory and just as scarred by wear as his ship. And at the moment, he knew that he had just as much responsibility.
He was going to propose an idea to the representative of the Synthetarians, whoever they may send. He had uncovered clues as to the whereabouts of earth, and wanted to settle it. Arises got up and strode over to the conference room’s veiwport, and looked at the stars, wondering which one was Earth.
He scolded himself. He, Captain Arises? Distinguished war veteran, the man responsible for the survival of half of his race, stargazing like a child? Never! He frowned at himself. Maybe he should take up more of an optimistic stand if he planned to rediscover Earth.
His thought was interrupted by the winking of the intercom by the door, which was on the wall opposite of the veiwport at which he was standing. "Sir," came a clipped voice, "Captain Reedis is here to confer with you."
Arises drew a deep, preparatory breath, and turned back to the veiwport. "Send him in, Lieutenant."
"Yes, sir."
A second passed, and then the door slid silently open. Arises, facing the veiwport with his hands clasped behind his back, said, "Welcome to my ship, the Strength Of Life." He performed a smart about face and placed out his hand. "I am Captain Arises." Captain Reedis was a young man of medium height. He likewise thrust out his hand, nodded, then shook Arises’. "I am Captain Reedis of the Ark." Arises speculated that Reedis must have had forced promotions due to the deaths of his superiors, and had struggled up through the chain of command. He pushed these pointless thoughts out of his head, there was much more important business at hand.
Arises displayed a seat to Reedis. "Please, have a seat."
"Thank you."
They sat at the table. Arises decided to get straight to business. "Reedis, may I assume that we have achieved an agreement merely through ambition? Need we go through this unnecessary discussion?"
Reedis made no attempt to hide his surprise. "Well, I’m sure that would be permissible."
A grim smile came from Arises. "Good, then we can sign the treaty later. As of now, I have an important issue which I wish to address you."
He waited for a nod from Reedis before continuing and was rewarded.
"Our war with the Aliens clearly holds no merit nor good future for us. I believe we must, now having settled our differences, retreat to a new homeworld."
"But..... where?"
"I’ve got just the place." Arises smiled again. He laid the holoprojector he’d been fingering and switched it on, his eyes never leaving Reedis.
A planet sprouted up from the table and began to slowly rotate. "Earth? You must be crazy!" exclaimed Reedis, his eyes bugging out.
"No, I’ve found some information that may just lead us to it," he said, switching off the holoprojector. His grim smile was replaced by a scowl as the intercom winked. How dare they interrupt such an important meeting? Whatever it was, it must be important.
"Captain of human vessel!" barked a digital voice. The voice, whatever it was, wasn’t made to sound human, or to speak any human language. It was made of both a low, guttural sound and a high, screaming sound.
Both captains’ heads snapped toward each other. Reedis was white. Arises was solemn. He had been in this war enough years to drive any other man mad, and he had known something like this would happen.
"One of our people has infiltrated your engine room and planted a bomb. You have less than 1 ‘minute’ to live. The blast will incinerate both vessels. There is no escape." The intercom winked off.
Reedis’ eyes were wide. Arises got up and walked back to the veiwport. "Reedis, have you ever looked at the stars?" Reedis shook his head, unable to speak. "Pity, neither have I. I was born among the stars, I always took them for granted, and now I shall die among them, as I have always suspected. Right now, as I look out at infinity, in all it’s glory, I just wonder which one is home. And now I know that my home will always be right here, with the stars."




Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6
Written By Alex Johnson


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