Chapter 30 The Elusive Truth

“He is not a hostage. I’m talking about the Koms that were taken by the Blisps. This is why the war started again. You knew it. But instead of attempting to free them, you just bombed the whole country. Why? We’re going to Komkaran now to tell everything to Kallitris. See how he will like you destroying his motherland when the situation could have been resolved peacefully!”

“I don’t think it matters anymore… Can I interrupt you for a second?” Salix approaches us quietly.

Pieris frees himself from my angry grasp and walks away to a relatively safe distance.

“I have been trying to tell you ever since you’ve arrived, but apparently you could not hear my message. While you were on Blisperada, Kallitris was discovered and seized by Leot’s forces. He was taken to Andromeda to await his execution.”

“What?” My whole body goes limp, and I collapse on the floor.

“Frankly, we’re not very upset. You’re his only heir. Ashtarma will accept you as their new god. Please be merciful. So, when you get the chance I’ll show you how to interface with the base ship so you can take possession of all of us. Live long Tensartis, our God.”

Before I know it, more erahis walk up to us, and everyone kneels in front of me, including Pieris, who seems to be very happy at that.

Asmadis is the only one, who is crying inconsolably. I get up, my head is still dizzy and unclear from the horrible news. I walk up to him, and hug him with as much love as I can show at this moment. He shudders at my touch.

“This is it. Blisperada is done for. Just kill us all. They will make you do it anyway.” He whispers and then sobs loudly, no longer scared or ashamed of his feelings.

“Get up, you fools! We’re going to fly to Andromeda and break Kallitris out!” I say to everyone, maybe more angrily than needed.

Salix looks at me in a doubtful way so I know I said something really stupid. He then motions for everyone to get up.

“Isn’t there another chapter to this?” I shake Asmadis and he turns away. I know he is on my side, it’s just he also thinks that I’m acting in a stupid way. “Why am I called Tensartis? We’re skipping a couple of rounds in this time loop! ”

“You are called Tensartis because it is the first thing you saw when you woke up on my native planet of Almaz after you and Kallitris died. You were rebuilt by Leot. Then you liked our mystic moon with many magnificent rings and you took its name.” Salix cuddles up to me as a big cat made of wooden sticks.

“Is there an outcome where Kallitris does not die?!” I get progressively frustrated with the conversation where everyone treats me as a child, and a child with amnesia at that.

“No.” Asmadis chimes in softly.

Darn.

“Fine. Let’s see if I can create one. Let’s go to the bridge. I will interface with the ship, so we can go to Andromeda.” I pick up Salix by his frail hand, and almost drag him down the hall. “You all, stop acting like idiots, Asmadis, you stop whimpering, Pieris, if I catch a transmission of you ordering the bombing of Blisps, you will be a very sorry little creature. First order of the day is saving Kallitris.”

We come to the bridge of the ship, and the screens around the walls are frozen in a frame showing a huge intergalactic craft that I immediately recognize as one of Leot’s ‘A” class models. It’s weird to think this massive piece of metal with its advanced technologies is controlled by a limp invertebrate slightly bigger than my head.

The picture of Leot’s ship is serene in its beauty. He came to pick up a well-known convict to carry out justice. It is not his body he is strong with. His mind is all-penetrating and all-bending to his will. His psychic abilities is far greater than any of us can imagine.

The Universe is empowered in its knowledge that Leot will take care of everyting. Well, almost everything. There is a rogue offspring of his that is not going to abide. Of course, everyone things I’m stupid for that. But I want my man back. I love Kallitris. That’s all I know.

“Put your hand in here” Salix shows me an imprint of a human hand on the panel right under the screen in front of us. “He installed it for you.”

I gently lay my hand into the imprint, and feel the ship enter my mind. Here I stand, becoming one with something built by Kallitris, while mesmerized by the view of something built by Leot, stuck between the two, my lover and my father. One is about to execute the other. I’m sure for a good reason. But I’m not going to let that happen until we write ALL the chapters in the story of my weird, enigmatic and painful life.

“You realize that this ship is shamefully inferior to anything Leot has? As soon as we enter the outskirts of Andromeda, we will be immediately detected and apprehended. Besides, you can’t go against your creator’s programming…” Salix says, hating to deliver the last blow to my hopes of saving Kallitris.

“I don’t care. I’ll still do it.” I answer stubbornly, going through the ship’s mind, getting to know the new extension of me.

“Why do you want to save him? You know that no one likes him, but you.” Erahi climbs on me, and hugs me by my neck. “It’s a mystery to us as to why you love him so much. He kidnapped you twenty years ago, he messed with your defense mechanism to take the Faith Star, he… I mean apart from the fact that he is a good lay…”

“Tensartis has a Faith Star?!” Both Asmadis and Pieris say it at the same time and they look shocked and awed.

Allright, that does it. Everyone is overjoyed to see Kallitris gone. No one is helping me. The ship tells me the same thing as Salix – it can’t find a way to fly into Leot’s realm without being detected right away.

I touch the screen and the picture of Leot’s craft disappears. It was making me tense. I love him too, but I feel rejected. He is elusive and ever-present at the same time. His power is vast. So he came and took what is mine. I might be stupid and childish, but I still have intelligent friends.

“Immaul, I need you to bring me my ship.” I think, knowing that he is always in tune with me.

The screen now shows the zoomed-in picture of Komkaran – a field of anti-missile defense “flowers”.

Salix climbed off me, and is doing something else, obviously happy to get rid of Kallitris.

The silence gets unbearable. Immaul then appears in person, big, menacing, with his wings spread wide.

Asmadis and Pieris scuttle away together, screaming “The Cronicler is here!” It is funny to watch them actually doing things together, albeit something cowardly.

“Let it be known, that I’m not going to aid a convicted criminal. Is that clear, Domiarn?”

“I appreciate your remarkable dedication to the law. I understand how silly my plans are. Let’s abandon them and go fishing instead!” I smile and add in my thoughts: “Now that you’ve made your politically correct statement, can we talk? Can you get my ship?”

“I already did.” His voice sounds in my head, while his eyes are full of pain, and fear for me. “I hate that scum, but you love him. The destiny calls.”

Suddenly I can no longer hear Immaul’s voice. I’m standing in the middle of a field. There are big slabs of black glossy stone scattered around. I get the information about a cruel battle that took place here. It is somehow connected to Kallitris.

The stones emanate danger, but I walk to one of them nevertheless, and touch it. The stone gives out a moan, almost human. It stops abruptly, and the eerie field sinks into silence. It makes me shiver, but I do not run. I look closer at the stone. First, all I see is darkness and my own reflection. But as I look closer, I scream, take several steps back, and fall.

“Are you allright?” Salix looks at me with a concerned expression.

“Yes.” I say shortly, looking around. I’m back on the base ship. Oh, my. I had a vision, and it was scary. “I must go now. Make sure the ceasefire stays until I come back. Tell everyone it’s the order of their god Tensartis.”

‘What if you don’t come back?” Salix wraps his arms around me. He is about to start crying.

“Then how do I end up on your planet of Almaz?” I kiss him and leave with Immaul.