The Second Galaxy

Chapter 2

        Asher double tapped the control pad with his index finger. The touch activated control hologram popped up. The control hologram consisted of commands such as ship speed, fighting mode, radar, and communications. Asher tapped communications with his finger. 

        The hologram display changed, now showing commands including inter ship communications, planetary communications, and single ship communications. Asher chose single ship communications. The different sections of the ships were now displayed on the hologram.

        Asher chose prisoner cell. The hologram now displayed Zilla, facing away from the hologram, and toward the two Pyravex prisoners. "How are they holding up", Asher said lightly to the hologram.

        Zilla turned around to face the hologram of Asher at the top of the wall in the prisoner cell. "They're doing fine", Zilla said, "they haven't woke up yet, but they are showing signs of still being alive". "Okay", Asher said.

        Asher studied the hologram of the prisoner cell. The Pyravex were definently alive, as Zilla had said. He studied them for the next few minutes. They were an interesting species, Asher thought.

        There natural skin had adapted to the point where the fire on the there planet, Pyrascade, ceased to harm them. With the broad image of the prisoner cell, Asher couldn't tell much about them, though. He put his hand up to the hologram of them, fingers together, and quickly moved them apart.

        The image being displayed on the hologram zoomed in onto the Pyravex. They were shorter than humans, with pale red skin. Their bodies' shape was similar to humans, as they had two legs, two arms, and similar heads.

        Their heads' had slight differences though. They had no hair, and no noses. Also, something Asher had just realized, no mouth. 

        This led Asher to wonder how they consumed food. Very little parts of their outer body led to their insides. In addition, Asher thought, he hadn't noticed anywhere they would have gotten food from. Their hole planet was barren, excluding ever burning fire.

        Then it became obvious to Asher. They got all of their natural energy from the fire that was always burning at their feet. Adaptation had allowed them to survive on the most reliable source of energy on their planet, fire.

        "Zilla", Asher yelled urgently, "get them some fire". Zilla looked back at the hologram of him, confused. "Why, may I ask", she said back to him. 

        "I don't have much time to explain, but it is highly possible that they survive on fire. They don't rely on food for energy, they have adapted to there environment. The only reliable source of energy for them, is fire", Asher explained.

        Zilla looked at him skeptically. "That is a very convenient adaptation, but there is no way of knowing. It also seems unlikely that they could convert fire into energy for their bodies.

        "I know it is unlikely", Asher said to her, "but it is also possible. You saw how fire doesn't harm them, we have nothing to lose sticking some fire in there". Zilla's skeptical expression turned into an annoyed one. "Okay", she said, "but how am I going to give them the fire". 

        Asher thought about it for a moment, then responded with, "throw some paper in there, then spray it with flourine". "Zilla's annoyed expression turned into a more annoyed one. "We don't have fluorine, Ash", she said, "why would we have fluorine?".

        "Their is a canister of it made for the under wrist attachment", Asher responded. Zilla, no longer confused, said, "okay", and ran out of the prisoner cell.

        She ran through the living quarters, which consisted of three small bedrooms, and a micro kitchen, and into the armoury. She raced toward the wrist attachments rack, picked up the wrist attachment, and an ellipsoid shaped canister of fluorine. 

        She strapped the the under and over wrist attachment combination to her right arm. Heavy magnets on each of them tightened the attachment to her wrist. Needled on the top and bottom pierced her skin and entered her veins. 

        Seconds later, she felt the presence of the wrist attachment, as it became a part of her consciousness. This didn't work with anyone, Asher and Zilla were special. 

        She ran back through the living quarters, sticking the canister of fluorine into the bottom of the wrist attachment as she did. When she reached Asher's room, she ran inside and toward his bookshelf. 

        Books had become obsolete, with electronic books taking over. But, Asher had a collection of old books from the planet earth, before it was destroyed by solar flares. She picked up a random one, and ran back to the prisoner cell.

        She opened the book and tossed it through the electricity bars of the cage the Pyravex were being held in. Then, she mentally sprayed fluorine from the wrist attachment on the opened book. The book immediatly caught on fire. 

        The fire began expanding, and eventually reached the Pyravex. They started to show more signs of concioucness, and were soon awake. They looked around their cage, as this was their first time being awake since they were taken. 

        From the control pod, Asher said, "Hmmmm, seems like I was right", into the hologram. Zilla looked back at him. Before she could say anything, he asked, "what book was it that you burned". "The title was Sherlock Holmes". 

        Asher looked at her in horror. "That was the last one", he said, "and I was reading that". Zilla didn't seem concerned. "I don't understand why you care so much about those primitive books", she said. 

        He looked at her with an expression that said you don't understand, reached his hand over to the right side of the hologram, and brought it to the left. The hologram flew across the room, and eventually reached Cade, where it stopped.  

        "You take take the hologram back, Asher Jett, why do you al...", Zilla started, before Cade brought his hand to the hologram and pulled it back, turning it off, not taking his eyes off the the space in front of the ship. 

        That sat there silently for a second, before Asher brought the control hologram back up. He went to communications, as he had before, and chose planetary communications. 

        Then, he tapped Oron's name. He waited for about five minutes before Oron answered. Oron's face appeared on the hologram. He had light purple skin, circular eyes, and a short trunk for a nose, along with a mouth full of razor sharp teeth. 

        "Did you get them", he asked Asher with his deep, menacing voice. Asher responded with, "yes". Oron looked at him, not at all happy. "Are you bringing them to me", Oron asked him. "Yes", Asher said again. 

        They sat there staring at each other for a few seconds, until Cade interrupted with, "Ash, we've got a problem". Asher looked around the hologram, and saw a huge asteroid field. He looked back at Oron, and said, "I've got to go". Oron nodded angrily before Asher shut off the hologram. 

        Cade grabbed the control wheel, hands sweating. "This shouldn't be to hard", he said. His assumption changed as four, small space ships began flying toward them. "Oh no", Cade said as he switched the ship to weapons mode.

        

        

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