“No! Wait! I object!” Kelen jumped to
her feet, in shock at the revelation. “Objection overruled,” Pfeiffer
stated in a bored voice. His eyes remained focused on the table’s
surface. “You can’t do that!” she persisted.
“You can’t arbitrarily condemn us without a fair hearing!” The colonel rolled his eyes up at
her. “You were tried in absentia, which is duly allowable under the
law, Lieutenant.” “But you don’t know the facts.” She
tried to calm herself, but her instincts were telling her time was
of the essence. These men weren’t concerned about learning the
truth. All they cared about was getting rid of Kyber and the other
Seneecians as soon as they could without causing any diplomatic
mayhem. And because of the warning Duruk had sent out, they had the
perfect out by notifying him of their location. “How can you make
any decision when you haven’t been told the truth?” One of the officers, a lieutenant
colonel, sat up straighter in his chair. After giving her a
quizzical look, he turned to Pfeiffer. “Excuse me, Colonel. I’m
curious to hear what she has to say.” Pfeiffer raised an eyebrow at the
man. After a second of consideration, he gestured for the lieutenant
colonel to continue. “Go right ahead. You may begin the
interrogation.” Giving the colonel a quick nod of
thanks, the man addressed her directly. “Let’s begin with you
stating your name, rank, and assignment.” Kelen curled her fingers into fists and pressed them against her thighs. Taking a deep breath, she gathered her wits about her, ready to do verbal battle if it came down to that.
“Lieutenant Kelen
Chambliss, former pilot of the
Manta.” “Former pilot?”
“Yes, sir. The
Manta
crashed landed on the neverwylde planet we came to know as Ganj.” The man pursed his lips, glanced at
Pfeiffer, then back at her. “And, pray tell, what is a neverwylde
planet?” “It’s what the Seneecians refer to as
a planet that has been through a cataclysmic event, yet still
maintains the ability to support life.” “And this planet you crashed onto,
how was it a neverwylde?” “Half of the planet was gone.” She
held up her hands, cupping her fingers into a ball, and made a
slicing motion through the middle of it. “The planet appears to have
been divided in two, right down through the core. We’ve stood on a
precipice overlooking that division. All you can see is space, sir.
It’s quite an incredible sight.” The lieutenant colonel appeared
surprised. “The planet has a vast chasm through its center?” “No, sir. I’m saying one entire half
of that world is gone. Like it was cleaved in two.” Another officer scoffed at the
description. “There are no such worlds.” “Pardon the lieutenant’s remark, but
there is.” It was an effort to keep her tone civil. “Our ship and
the Seneecians’ lifepods crashed on it, and we remained there for
several weeks until another Seneecian warship latched onto our
distress signal and came to rescue us.” Pfeiffer leaned forward, placing his
hands on the table. “Lieutenant, there is no record of such a planet
in existence.” “Then where do you think we’ve been
all this time?” Making another disparaging sound, the
third officer commented, “That’s what we all would like to know.” “I’m not lying to you.” The lieutenant colonel crossed his
legs and rested an arm on the back of his chair. “Lieutenant
Chambliss, why don’t you give us a brief rendition of how you
arrived on this so-called half of a planet?” She gave them the same version she’d
given the Seneecian Triumvirate, adding, “Without the joint
cooperation between us and the Seneecians, we would not have
survived as long as we did.” “How so?” the third officer
questioned. “With one exception, everything we
encountered on that world was dangerous. The creatures, especially.” “Are you saying there were lifeforms
on that planet?” “There were many. Some large and
monstrous, and some as small as your hand.” “Were any of them sentient?” “Yes, sir. Two, as far as we know.” “How were you able to maintain a
breathable atmosphere?” a fourth man asked. Kelen turned to him. “The planet had
its own atmosphere, but don’t ask me how. That is beyond my
knowledge. It also had water and indigenous plant life, which we
were able to eat.” The third officer chuckled. “So, let
me get this straight. You want us to believe that your ship chased
the Seneecians through a wormhole, where you all crash landed on
this fictitious half planet, and made a pact with each other in
order to protect yourselves against the lifeforms that existed
there? Do you realize how fantastical that sounds, Lieutenant?” “It is the truth,” Kelen repeated. The man bent over the table.
“Lieutenant, there...is...no...such...planet. Now, there may be a
wormhole, which could explain why your ship disappeared without a
trace twelve weeks ago. And why no one was able to raise you on the
comm. But inasmuch, the rest is all circumspect.” She frowned at him. “How so...sir?” “What concerns us more is this
alliance you claim to have formed with one of our deadliest
enemies.” Kelen turned around to check the
worried expressions on her fellow crewmembers’ faces. The
Seneecians, however, appeared resigned. She addressed the officers
again. “So what you’re telling us is that, because we became allies
in order to survive, that’s made us criminals and traitors?” “No. It’s lying to us that’s
condemned you,” Pfeiffer answered. “How have I lied?” The third officer snorted. “First
off, your fanciful story about a half planet. Secondly, the fact
that you were found aboard a stolen Seneecian shuttle.” “We’ve never denied we stole the
shuttle,” she confirmed. “But we had to. The Seneecians were about
to put us into lifepods and eject us into space, to let us die out
there.” The lieutenant colonel pointed in
Kyber’s direction. “Those Seneecians?” “No. My brother,” Kyber responded. The officers paused to stare at him.
Taking the opportunity, Kyber rose to his feet. “The D’har of my ship also survived
the crash. He detested the alliance we had made with the Terrans,
and tried to kill them outright. I challenged him according to the
laws of our people, and I bested him, but he continued to cause
havoc. “Before we were drawn through the
wormhole, our ship sent out a distress signal. That signal was
picked up by my people, and my brother, D’har Duruk, was assigned to
the rescue mission.” Kyber pointed at Dox. “Dox was able to rig up
another distress signal, which Duruk was able to trace through the
wormhole. He and his men landed on the neverwylde planet, and tried
to leave Kelen and the other Terrans behind, but I intervened. He
reluctantly took us all aboard his ship, but on our return to
Seneecia, he planned to have the Terrans, and me and my men,
dispatched before reaching it.” “Why?” Pfeiffer questioned. Kyber gave a slight shrug. “That is
what we have been asking ourselves ever since we managed to elude
Duruk. My brother wants us dead, which leads me to only one
conclusion.” “Which is?” “Either it is the planet itself, or
there is something on that planet my superiors do not want anyone
else to know about. And they are willing to kill anyone who
threatens to reveal its existence and location, including those of
their own kind.” |