Starship Vengeance

Chapter 28

I vividly recalled the excitement and anticipation I felt as a kid every time I discovered a new creature to bring home as a pet. I felt much the same way as we made our way back to Dunamis. Only this time I was bringing an entire alien civilization. The Tuleeriri had located a suitable planet and were already in the process of terraforming it.

It has been forty three days since we embarked on this crazy mission. The prospects of going home had the crew in a very jovial mood. The excitement was infectious. It felt good to have the crew in such high spirits. The only problem with our journey home was the slow pace we were forced to take. The Nyth'La'Kell's ships were hastily built and couldn't make the journey as quickly as I would have liked.

Day two into our trek home we finally were able to see the Nyth'La'Kell's weapon in action. It was the stuff of nightmares. The initial explosion was a hundred times more powerful that our backwater method of detonating Galactum. What made the weapon truly frightening was what happened after the explosion. All matter within a certain radius simply collapsed into a single point. It strongly resembled a miniature supernova. The true test of the weapon would have to wait until we found a Zrynt Lord.

At last, the seven day journey was over and we arrived at Narrisal. Shahae had all her things packed and ready to go when we arrived. I could tell she was anxious to go home. "Try not to get into too much trouble Jack," she said as she finished stowing the last of her belongings.

"Trouble seems to be attracted to me," I joked. "Besides, I'm sure you'll be seeing me all too soon." She then surprised me by giving me a tight hug before entering her ship. Shahae's absence was immediately felt. The ship felt empty without her.

We made the final jump and found ourselves home at last. Things had drastically changed during our short absence. The once empty space around the planet was crowded with traffic. The area closest to the sun was full of ships in varying degrees of completion. One in particular stood out. The new ship dwarfed the Unity, which is saying something. There could only be one purpose for a ship this menacing: war. "Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Vengeance," I announced.

We carefully made our way through the traffic and parked the ship in the location we had been directed to. "Lt. Young, inform the crew that all those not assigned to stay on board may make their way to the hangers." A small cheer went up as people excitedly made their way out of the room. The Unity was going to be running on a skeleton crew with new crew rotating in every two days. I wasn't sure how long our break would last, so I had told everyone to make the most of it. Once I was convinced everything was running smoothly, I went to my office to collect a few things. Soon I was piloting a shuttle down to the surface.

I was once again astonished at how much things had changed. As I descended, I could see sprawling cities with buildings that were impossibly tall. Once I was closer to the surface, more details emerged. The cities were choked with traffic, both on the ground and in the air. Businesses had sprung up everywhere, over stimulating the senses with their obnoxious advertisements. All in all, it appeared that humanity had adapted quite well and things were returning to normal.

The landing pad I was directed to was nestled inside a sprawling estate on the edge of a large city. I landed in what could only be described as a massive flower garden and powered down the shuttle. As I exited, I saw three figures making their way towards me. A flash of bright red hair made it obvious who was approaching.

"Jack!" Lisa said as she threw her arms around me. One the ladies behind her cleared her throat and Lisa quickly pulled away and composed herself.

"How are things Lisa?" I asked, trying to regain my composure myself. I saw the two women flanking her cringe at my informal greeting."