The Acolytes of Crane "Updated Edition" (27 page)

‘Ed, can you get a . . . virus,
like me?’ I asked. Then I remembered what Migalt said about allowing Odion into
my mind. The whole idea of it made me nauseated. Thankfully, Ed had removed the
virus. I was now safe too. The thought made me more relieved than I could ever
imagine. Zane could no longer access my mind.

‘I think you are referring to the
software patch as a virus. The nanocom that you had, allowed all thoughts to be
extracted and processed by a central authority. Horrible things, really. Such
viruses are capable of causing serious damage to a CPU in a robot. I made it a
point to avoid contact with yours while you still had it,’ he said.

‘Ed, I really appreciate what you
did for me. I feel like myself again.’ I sighed with relief.

‘Anytime, Master Ted.’

‘Ed who made you?’ I took a seat
in the captain’s chair.

‘I was developed by Rangiers,’ he
said.

‘What are Rangiers?’ I asked,
butchering the word he had previously said. In a heartbeat, I recalled the
Rangier Cliguire dragons. Were they developed by Rangiers?

 ‘Rangiers are known specifically
for their ability to construct languages and cultures for newly founded or
colonized planets. Rangiers live in a solar system near where you are
from—Earth, I presume. Their home planet is known to my database as Foita.’ I
nodded my head, ‘They live under the surface of Foita. They do so because the
weather on Foita is extremely volatile and they cannot survive in it without
heading underground. Are you processing, Theodore?’

‘Do you mean understanding? And
yes—I guess,’ I said.

‘Yes. The original home planet of
the Rangiers was destroyed in a supernova explosion thousands of years ago. Fortunately,
before then, they had the technological know-how to locate a new planet
suitable for what they needed. The Rangiers colonized this planet and named it
Foita, which means:
heart within
. They are responsible for the creation
of the Mecca Dietonical database, called Eppa. Are you familiar with Eppa?’ Ed
asked.

‘No one told me about Eppa. I am
in overload anyway. The last several days have been too overwhelming for me.
How do you know so much about everything?’

‘It is part of my programming
complex. I was given this information by my creators.’

‘I am going to walk around the
ship. I know there is not much to see, but…’ I stood up. I really needed some
exercise, even on a ship this small.

‘Please, don’t touch anything,
master. I am afraid you are not capable of handling the responsibility of this
ship,’ he said.

I fought off the impulse to get
annoyed with him. Even if he was right, I didn’t need to be reminded of my
helplessness. Walking around, I decided that I would henceforth be my own man.
Zane brought me into this fight for his end purpose, but now that would change.
I had to be as unpredictable as my enemies were. I was free.

Before I grabbed some shut-eye on
the cockpit floor, I proudly stroked my sword, Wrath. This sword had made me
ferociously dangerous. I proved that by defeating the Ophanims and one of the
Uriel’s formidable Sepheran Guards.

As well, my bracers made my hands
indestructible. My rolesk afforded me limited control over all Dietons that
were within my range. My mechanical kicks, enclosing my ankles, well, they made
me highly unpredictable, with the ability to fly, move faster, and make myself
invisible.

True, all my adversaries were
equipped with some variation of my gear. However, Zane saw something in me, and
the Dacturons wanted me dead. I felt immensely contented with how much I had
accomplished.

I stared at the planet ahead. I
was going to finish my mission, without Zane’s help.

I no longer was Theodore Crane,
the scrawny platinum-haired jerk. I was Theodore Crane, born-again vigilante,
and my desire was to destroy Odion. If Travis stepped into my path, well, he
was going to have to answer for what he did to my peace.

“Guard
thirty-four, to command center—request to engage prisoner eight-six-seven-six.”

“Go
ahead, thirty-four—guns are hot—over.”

“Opening
view box to deliver the message—over. Prisoner! You know the drill! Restraints
now!”

Another
goon is at my cell’s entrance, with orders from the warden. I place my arms
into these derogatory wall restraints, to alleviate the paranoid worries of the
frightened guard behind the vault.

“Audible
message from the warden is as follows: ‘If I am correct, you and your rogue
human crew were separated from Theodore Crane at some point. If possible, I
want an account of your separation, and the events leading up to the battle of
Tritillia. These are your orders. Comply and you will have your request
granted.’ Message finished. Disengagement of prisoner eight-six-seven-six
complete. Request temperature sweep of room and disarmament of wall
restraints—over.”

“Fine!
I hope you can hear me! Because if you don’t terminate me, I will terminate
you, warden! You hear me! I will end you! There is no prison that can hold me,”
I shout.

The
wall restraints release me, and I fall upon the floor. There is no greater urge
than to show hate for the warden. Where was I in my story? Let’s see—after our
savior left us.

I
narrow down my database search to a couple of files within my processing unit,
and start with the first.

“After
this, I’m done! I will not give any more information until I am guaranteed
termination!”

“Before
Karshiz, it was a tough time for us. After all, Theodore went rogue, to escape
the clutches of Zane. Yeah—Mariah was knocking on the door, and my best friend
was marooned in space. We were stuck in a sick joke. I left Earth for this?”

‘Lincoln,
come on, let’s go. You take too long to do the simplest things,’ Mariah said,
as she tapped on my door with her petite hands. I peered through the window, and
saw Dan and Liam behind her.

Throughout
our travels, Mariah always seemed to be the one that was underestimated. Tiny
hands are no measure of strength when referring to the power of talent and
skill. A dainty finger can still pull a trigger. I don’t think we were in store
for what she was capable of doing.

I
was trying to figure out what to wear when she summoned me. Simple decisions
were difficult for me, because I always overthought them. My fears were that
the next choice I would make was going to be the last. These were my only
fears, until Theodore left us. It was two days after my best friend Ted stormed
the Garden of Odion to kill Zane, with his own sword—wild man.

We
were lost, like a bike with no wheel and a broken chain. Theodore was so good
to us, indeed, too good for us. I believe that Theodore wanted more for the
future of the multiverse than Zane could ever have the capacity to imagine.

Some
people die by courage, and live through fear, but Theodore—he feared nothing,
and anyone that planned to jump from a cliff to prove a point had courage—or
they were nuts. I had it in my head that it could not end with Ted dislocated
from his team. Not on my life.

‘One
sec, can you be patient?’ I asked at the door, with my friends eagerly behind
it.

I
knew what to do. Ted’s plan was to bring balance to the multiverse, but I could
not lead his crew. I was not the right person to be a leader. At least, not in
the way that he did. I was only capable of devising a plan. I never had the
guts to implement this plan before I met Theodore.

He
was passionate about the cause and yes, there were some dark days before he
knew his time was up. I knew him best, and he wasn’t a quitter. If he wanted
Zane dead, then Zane should have taken his last stroll through the Garden of
Odion that day.

‘Hey
guys, okay-okay, I’m done. What’s up?’ I asked.

‘We
are going to the debriefing or whatever. Let’s try to stay close to each other.
People have been somewhat upset about the thing with you-know-who,’ Mariah
said, she looked around to suggest people were watching, ‘People think we may
have been in on to it.’

Dan
jumped in, and it was obvious how he felt. He said, ‘Yeah, everyone is pissed.
Ted leaves us high and dry with a bunch of aliens that flippin’ hate us. Now we
are going to some bullshit debriefing. They are probably going to enslave us
with some more contraptions and turn us into robots. What a bummer.’

‘Okay,
everyone. We have to talk before we go,’ I said, with caution to the
possibility of eavesdroppers. I opened the door and everyone filed into my
room. ‘Something is wrong here. I don’t know what it is, because I don’t have
the facts. What I do know is this . . . pull in close so you can hear me.’ I
lowered my voice to a whisper and pulled everyone into a huddle, ‘We are going
to be viewed as traitors, and the only way we are going to survive is if we act
like we are totally clueless about what Ted did. Keep your eyes open and watch
for clues. There is something bigger going on here, and we have to figure it
out. Let’s go to the debriefing.’

‘Easy
for you to say. You sound like a Ted-groupie,’ Liam said, as he walked away
from me. I ignored him. I knew that enormous stress, coupled with unfamiliar
surroundings, could cause emotions to run high.

Everyone
strolled down the hallway when, through a doorway, I was grabbed.

‘What
the heck?’ I yelped.

It
was Tezmarine. ‘Lincoln, I don’t think Theodore was himself. He would never do
that,’ she pleaded. ‘He cares too much to do such a thing.’ It was tough to
watch the Karshiz Messiah cry. The sight of her bawling made me feel like we
had no hope.

‘Tez,
it is alright. I will find Theodore, and when I do, he is going to be just the
same,’ I said. ‘Trust me, there is something weird going on, and if anyone is
going to make all this right, it will be me.’

‘If
you find him, Lincoln, tell him to hold on,’ she said, and then she bolted
through the door.

I
combed my hair with my hands, and hurried to catch up to the others. My hair
was greasy and my teeth had a plaque carpet on them. In my family, it was
important to have good oral hygiene. Apparently space creatures from outside
Earth had never bothered to reflect upon the concept of the simple toothbrush
or the much-maligned dental floss.

My
dad was a dentist. He always complained about the dental assistants after work.
He hated that they threw empty cardboard boxes in the trash. He wanted them to
recycle, and they always ignored his demand to protect the environment.

I
could just see him in the dental office telling his minions to quit chatting
about the latest on-screen heartthrob and get back to work. He wanted me to be
a dentist from the day I left the womb.

We
didn’t shower for the entire month we had been on the Uriel. It was barbaric.
Eventually, we became okay with the dirt. I thought there would be some sonic
shower technology to scrub dirt and skin oils from our bodies in this future,
but there was nothing—yet. It was funny, really. They had this advanced,
top-notch technology to eradicate all disease within your body, but nothing, really,
for basic hygiene on your skin. It was baffling.

I
finally caught up, and we loitered outside for a moment before entering the
conference room, which was well-guarded by ornate, golden double doors. We were
reminiscing about life back home on Earth.

‘What
I miss most is my video games. I was on the second-to-last level of Call of
Duty,’ I said.

‘You’re
thinking about a video game?’ Mariah rolled her eyes. ‘How about chocolate-chip
pancakes in the morning for breakfast, or the bumper cars at Fun Haven. That’s
what I miss. I also miss my mom and church,’ Mariah said, as she looked down at
her feet. ‘I just want them to put in a church service here.’

Liam
piped up.  ‘Preserving Sephera is a damn good cause worth fighting for, in my
opinion.’

Before
Dan could jump in the conversation, the double doors suddenly burst open. It
was Migalt. ‘You may enter now. The debriefing will begin shortly.’

We
sat down. With Theodore gone, the room was filled with a queasy phobia of the
unknown. We had lost our leader, the one who had brought us all here, and the
one who knew all the secrets of Zane and his empire. Now we were now lost
ourselves.

Migalt
and another fellow Bromel sat near the rear of the room opposite to the
entrance. They were perched atop two massive traditionally carved wooden
thrones, sitting like kings. Remember, the Bromels were twelve feet tall, so
the thrones were correspondingly huge. We felt like miniatures in a room for
giants, cowering before the might displayed before us. Migalt, his legs splayed
out, announced, ‘Projection recorded of the traitor, Theodore Daniel Crane, at
23:12:39 yesterday. Permission granted to view.’

As
we gazed on in fascination, desperate for answers, the hologram played right in
the middle of the spacious conference room, looking nearly as convincing as the
real thing. The present image was a playback of the video surveillance the day
of Theodore’s attempted assassination. I knew from watching it that Theodore
wasn’t—Theodore. Not the Theodore we knew.

His
eyes were distant—determined. There was no soul in his actions, only blank
anger. That was all I needed to know. In a strange way, I felt reassured. I
glanced at my teammates. I could tell they were thinking the same thing.

Migalt’s
voice boomed as he stared daggers at us, ‘This meeting begins now, as you are
aware, your
former
team leader—and let’s be perfectly clear, infiltrated
a wing of this ship that was forbidden. His actions took the digital life of
one Sepheran and destroyed two Ophanims that were each over two thousand years
old. All three of these soldiers were decorated in battle and have served Zane
in the highest tradition of honor, loyalty, and valor. Theodore is now a
rogue.’

His
eyes, brimming with outrage, locked into each of our own as he scanned the
room, daring us to defend Theodore. ‘He was last seen entering the Valeon
Galaxy. Upon his own initiative, his IPU was reformatted, and he is now
separated from our communication and surveillance, leaving him just as
dangerous as Travis. Your ultimate duty is to obey your true leader, Zane. The
role of Messiah has been stripped away from Theodore. Remember, there is no
Sephera without Zane, and Sephera must be defended at all costs. Does anyone
have any information that can help us in delivering Theodore to justice?’
Migalt asked.

We
all sat and looked at each other, but I knew what was going on there. Sometimes
adults think they are superior to kids and in most ways, they are. But not this
time.

Seeing
our stunned reactions, Migalt leaned over to his fellow Bromel and whispered to
him, ‘This is a lost cause.’

Migalt
badly misunderstood the concept of loyalty and friendship. Perhaps beyond
Earth, friendship was an archaic concept, an old relic to be tossed away.

No.
We
belonged
to Theodore. To discredit him was an assault on what we
stood for at the beginning.
Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno
. All for
one, and one for all.

This
maxim was at the root of our dissension, carefully concealed from Zane and his
followers. We didn’t follow Zane to the ends of Earth, let alone throughout the
continuity of space. We exalted Ted. He was leading us to the destruction of
Travis and the Odion, and that is what I was for—until the moment Migalt spoke
harshly of Ted.

‘Why
is it that you are not standing by Theodore now? He brought us here to fight
with you, side by side!’ Liam roared.

Migalt
slammed his enormous hand on the armrest and shouted, ‘You don’t understand!
Theodore is no longer Theodore. He has been compromised. His mind has been
accessed by evil, and he is now a perpetrator of treason. That makes him a
threat to the Urilian resistance and an obvious threat to Zane.’

He
raised his hands in frustration, and muttered to himself, ‘I can’t believe I am
reasoning with a bunch of teenagers.’

‘We
are no longer teenagers because of your brain-washing! We have become what you
wanted from us!’ Mariah stood up and asserted herself. She was trembling. I
looked at her in awe, mentally cheering her on.

Migalt
snarled at us. ‘You are failing to connect because of your inability to process.’

We
were shocked at his abject dismissal of our worth.

 ‘In
my eyes, you are insignificant.’ Perhaps attempting to bite his scurrilous
tongue, he softened his tone. ‘There are only two ways that this can end. We
destroy you now, or you go to Karshiz for training. There, you will be under
the guidance of King Trazuline. We will issue weaponry that suit your abilities
and you will train. Is it a deal?’

We
glanced at each other. We were pinned down by his ultimatum. If we decided to
oppose him, then we may have been deleted here and now. Theodore had told me
about how easy it was for Zane’s forces to make someone disappear.

I
weighed my options carefully.  There was one reasonable thing to do, and it was
to relieve the pressure on our group by swearing our allegiance to Zane’s
agenda.