“Loss and love share a strange

  relation: they bring people

  together.”

  - Unknown

  Chapter 14: Seeds of Tragedy

  “Penny, stop using the intercom for useless chatter. We’ll talk when we get back home,” Zenny scolded.

  “But I’m bored!”

  “We’re just a few clicks out,” Maria replied, lowering the ship’s altitude. “If you’re getting bored on just a little test flight, we might have to find something else for you to do long term.”

  “No! I mean *ahem* no. This will be fine, thank you,” Penny countered, trying to keep her new job. Maria smiled, communicating back to her over the comms.

  “Okay, then. Why don’t we practice shooting at some of the rocks along the shore line over to your left. There aren’t any life forms there, so you should be clear,” Maria suggested, coming in closer to the shore. “Zenny, why don’t you man the adjacent gun and practice with her.”

  Zenny, who was currently familiarizing herself with the ship’s engine room, answered back.

  “Aye, aye, Captain,” her tone serious.

  “Yo-ho! And a bottle of rum!” Penny interjected, again using the intercom to say nonsense and mock her counterpart. Maria could nearly sense Zenny’s angst, but was surprised when she remained silent.

  A few seconds passed, with nothing being said over the comms. Then, Penny’s familiar voice resounded once again, using her pirate jargon and accent once more.

  “Look over yonder thare... sea flirtles!”

  “Penny!” Zenny yelled, her well of patience going empty. Forgetting to switch off her mic, Maria and Zenny could hear the young blonde giggling.

  “We’re ready, you two. Light them up!” Maria commanded.

  From her starboard side, laser fire rained down onto the rocks. A few seconds later, Zenny joined her in firing down onto the rocks. From this distance, it was hard to miss, but Maria wanted to be sure the two were familiar with the turrets before they tried anything more complicated.

  She let them fire for a while, slowly pulling the ship back as she did so. The islands around Rosari, as well as Rosari itself, were beautiful. When she was not concentrating on her tasks, she enjoyed looking around and taking in the view. She peered out onto the auburn horizon, appreciating its radiant glory. If only James was there with her to enjoy it, too.

  As she continued to stare, she noticed black dots off in the distance. They appeared to be getting closer. Using her holo computer, she magnified what she was seeing.

  “Lima,” she whispered, realizing that he, Gar, and their entourage were back.

  “Alright girls, we’re heading back to base. Stay on the guns until we land.”

  She had witnessed Gar and his small army arrive on Rosari. She was not sure what to make of Gar, other than he was much gruffer and blunt than his half brother. She hoped he had been able to help in their mission to save the Blight and the others held captive at the prison.

  It was time to head back to the airfield. Upon turning about and heading home, she landed the ship formerly known as The Skullbreaker. Maria and her compatriots then made their way towards the other landing field, after confirming the landing zone they would be arriving at.

  “Do you know what happened? Seems like a lot less craft than before,” Zenny inquired, referring to Lima and Gar’s forces.

  “No idea. Command didn’t share any details,” Maria admitted.

  As usual, the hustle and bustle of people working and toiling away on the fields never seemed to end. Many flocked to head in the same direction the trio were. Whatever had happened, Response and Recovery teams were on high alert.

  Close to a hundred transports and fifty fighters had landed on the field, with a few destroyers still heading that way off in the distance. As they began to unload, Maria noticed that hundreds of rag covered prisoners were flooding the landing zone. Many of them were Paradignian P.O.W.s, but there was a potential some could not be. Given that a few prisoners were being kept under guard, Maria had guessed they had picked up a few rotten eggs along the way.

  “Excuse me, Lieutenant. Is Matai Lima with you all? I don’t see his ship,” Maria asked, catching one of the officers as she made her way through the crowds of people.

  “He’ll be arriving soon, ma’am. He was delayed,” the Lieutenant replied, answering her question as he scooted on by, trying to accomplish another task.

  Maria, Zenny, and Penny continued on down the field, looking through zone after zone for any sign of the Matai’s ship.

  “I don’t see it anywhere,” Penny yelled, making her voice heard over the noise of the crowds and ships.

  “I don’t either,” Zenny replied.

  Maria began to wonder if she should have waited until the chaos had died down. Suddenly, the roar of an engine could be heard above them. Everyone began looking up to see a black ship coming in for a landing. It looked to be Koorian.

  Through the cockpit, Maria caught a glimpse of what looked like Lima. Placing her hand over her brow, she squinted to get a better look. Her eyes had not deceived her.

  “Lima?”

  “What’s he doing on that ship?” Zenny asked, just as confused.

  Maria suspected the worst. Something must have gone wrong. Along with a group of others, including Losefa, Lima’s son, Maria approached the ship.

  The ramp opened, as Lima, alongside Gar, walked out first. Their faces were sullen and sunken. Behind them came Naf, who now had what looked to be a new set of legs, a Bison Taur, a man with a goatee, an assassin droid, and a woman wearing Sashyrian garb. Lima ran to embrace his son.

  “Losefa!”

  “Father! Are you alright?”

  “Yes, my son. But there is a man aboard who needs medical attention. He’s in the medical bay.”

  “I’ll get a team in to help him right away,” Losefa replied, looking to Gar, and then behind his father at the strangers.

  “Uncle, good to see you’re alright,” Losefa confessed.

  “Same to you, nephew,” Gar said, his tone carrying a deep sadness to it as he feigned a smile. Losefa kept looking around.

  “Where’s Koga?” Losefa whispered, Maria barely hearing what he had said.

  Lima looked into his son’s eyes, intently.

  “He’s gone.”

  Losefa took a step back.

  “What? No... no....”

  “He is, Losefa,” Gar confirmed, his eyes becoming tear filled. “He was killed. Koga gave his life to save us.”

  Losefa looked shocked. Everyone standing present who had just heard the news was shocked as well. Were they referring to the Blight?

  “Surely you don’t mean…” Maria began, looking to Lima. He noticed her, his face telling her all she needed to know.

  “How? Who could have killed him?” Maria asked, denying such a thing could have occurred.

  She could scarcely wrap her mind around such a thought. The faces behind the Matai and Gar hung low, clearly not dealing with the facts very well either. A moment of silence ensued as the news took its full effect on those present.

  Gar cleared his throat, pursing his lips as he cleared his throat. Preparing to speak up, he looked towards his brother. All eyes fastened themselves on the man.

  “We’ve lost a lot of good men today. I for one don’t want their deaths to be in vain,” Gar began. He placed his hand on Lima’s shoulder.

  “We need to make a plan.”

  An older man covered in prison rags emerged from the crowd.

  “Perhaps I can help with that,” the man spoke up.

  Lima appeared to recognize him. His head tilted right as looked the man up and down. Maria looked between the two men.

  “Pragnus?” Lima asked, walking towards him. The two then embraced like brothers.

  “I thought you were dead.”

  “Is that what’s going around the rumor mill? I’m like a bad blister, Lima: I just keep coming back,” Pragnus replied, smiling.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Pragnus? As in Grand General Pragnus?” Gar said, a look of recognition appearing on his face as well.

  “In the flesh,” he replied.

  “I barely recognized you with that beard. We’d heard you were killed in the raid at Runner’s ridge,” Gar continued.

  “You can’t believe all that you hear,” the old man retorted.

  *

  Maria found it hard to believe that the Blight, or Koga, as she now knew him to be, was gone. For the next few hours, she worked to help the survivors. Like in times past, she worked through the pain. To think the man that had saved her life was gone, without even having the chance to thank him, was heartbreaking. Deep down, she hoped the information she received was incorrect, but she would never know for sure at this rate. For now, all she could do now was work to honor his memory.

  After helping the survivors, the group initially present, along with the other important leaders, met in a place called, The Big Fale. The Big Fale was the oldest building on the islands, and was where the patriarchs of the major native families, the group representatives, such as Maria, and other important leaders met to make decisions. The people who were at the prison, who Maria soon knew to be Red, R.U.D.E., Checotah, Pickett, and Magnus, were also summoned to meet there. Naf, who was still quite distraught, decided to go visit his master’s old ship. Penny and Zenny chose to accompany him.

  “I suppose the first thing we need to address is what our course of action will be,” Lima began, presiding over the meeting. Magnus, who had apparently insisted on being there, despite his apparent injuries, spoke up first. Maria sat between Red and Magnus at the circular table.

  “I know I might be stepping out of turn here, but is there even a decision to be made? We need to go get those that were left behind,” he stated, his voice being weak due to his injuries.

  “And get more men captured? Not smart,” Gar replied.

  “Koga may even be alive. We need to try, no matter the cost. It’s the right thing to do,” Magnus retorted, keeping his tone respectful while making his case.

  “All of us want those boys back here, but if we go back now just to get captured or killed, then their sacrifice would have been in vain, including Koga’s,” Gar countered.

  The one called Pickett rose from his chair to speak.

  “Like our young friend here said, I’m probably speaking out of turn as well, but if what you said on The Horizon about this Koga fellow is true, then we need him back here more than you’re letting on,” he said, first motioning to Magnus, and then looking to Gar.

  “What I said doesn’t matter right now. What we need to focus on now is how these people are going to retaliate,” Gar replied, trying to direct the conversation towards another topic.

  “I’m confused, what did you all talk about on the ride home?” Maria asked.

  “It’s-”

  “He told us who Koga was. He is the lost Prince of Kenza. If we get him back, we can throw Dagon off the throne and end this war once and for all!” Pickett interrupted, refusing to let his point be thrown to the side.

  Maria’s mind reeled with more questions, but the opportunity to ask them did not come up. Whispers erupted around the table, as Lima slammed his gavel down, calling the room to order. Standing to his feet, he addressed the room.

  “Unfortunately, Gar is right. Everyone here wants those men back, most of all me. They’re my men. But at our current strength, we’d lose more than we’d save. We can’t go save them. Not yet, anyway. Now, we understand that Tulius was working on a special project? Do we know what?”

  “It’s my understanding, from what my men have reported to me, that their research had to do with some type of teleportation technology,” Pragnus answered.

  “Teleportation tech? Do we know what kind?” Lima continued. Pragnus shook his head.

  “I doubt it is for human teleportation. Their operations were too big down there. The machinery is too large,” Pickett added. Pragnus looked at him, as though trying to place where he had seen him. Upon seeing Pragnus’ eyes upon him, he sat down, clearing his throat.

  “Another question that needs to be asked is how this all went south?” Gar wondered.

  “It is clear the Triumvirate has infiltrated the Paradignian government as we feared. The mission Desparo sent us on was a trap,” Lima answered, shaking his head. “I should have seen this coming.”

  “They definitely have,” Magnus stated. “Dunmar squad was working with Tulius to capture Koga, but when he stayed on my ship to save me, we all got separated, messing up their original plan. That’s why they sent all those Sashyrian riders after us.”

  “The question now is, what do we do about it? For all we know, Tulius and his forces could be on their way here right now,” Gar reasoned.

  “And how would they know to come here?” Maria asked.

  “A good deal of our men were captured when we made our escape. It’s only a matter of time,” Magnus stated.

  “My men would never talk,” Lima said, defending them.

  “Respectfully,” Red interjected, speaking up, “they will. They have Remembraxine there, and no will can resist it for long.”

  “Remembraxine? That drug is a myth… right?”

  “It isn’t, Matai. I was under its effect. It’s very real,” Magnus confirmed. “I’m not sure how much longer I could have gone without revealing what I knew. The drug made me… not myself.”

  “Then we’re screwed. We need to evacuate the islands. Go underground. Full scorched earth with the place,” Gar suggested.

  “With Grand General Pragnus’ forces, we’ll have enough men to defend the island,” Losefa said, nodding towards Pragnus. “Our home will not fall. The Rosarian guard has defended it with honor for hundreds of years!”

  “You’ll have the full support of my men and I, my friend,” Pragnus confirmed.

  “But we don’t know how many are coming. With Desparo and Tulius in league with the Triumvirate, we could have well over ten million troops heading this way as we speak!” Gar warned.

  The meeting continued on like this for hours. After Pickett and Magnus had supplied all the information they had to give, they were dismissed, along with Checotah. Red, along with her droid, left before that, seemingly not wanting to be there anyway. Maria stayed throughout the meeting, but after certain conclusions had been reached, she had hoped to retire for the evening. Thankfully, the meeting adjourned to resume the next day.

  Lima felt it important that the fallen should be honored, and so a ceremony was held on the beachside. Until a more permanent memorial could be put in place, the list of names who had fallen were read aloud publicly. The patriarchs of the major houses gave gifts to those houses who had lost family members. The service was heart wrenching, and not many dry eyes were present among the crowds that had gathered.

  Gar and his people, who seemed to be mostly Kenzanites, strangely enough, went to their submersible mega-destroyer after the ceremony. They, too, had lost comrades, and intended to honor them in private amongst themselves. Despite his tough exterior, Maria could tell that the loss of Koga Kane had affected him more than he let on.

  As was customary, large fires were made around the various islands. Typically, people congregated around them to socialize. Tonight, however, very few people did.

  Maria, intending to know more about what happened at Deathlock, made her way towards the fire which the new arrivals sat around. Penny, Zenny, and Naf were already there. Naf was no less downtrodden than he was before.

  “Good evening,” she said, addressing the group as she walked up to the fire. Pickett stood to his feet, as did Checotah. Magnus would have, but was still too weak to do so.

  “Evening, se?ora,” Pickett replied, picking up on her accent.

  Red, wearing a burgundy, leather trench coat and light armor underneath, scoffed.

  “Still pretending to be a gentleman, Pickett?” she asked.

  “I don’t think I know what you mean.”

  Red shook her head.

  “I think you do. I looked you up on the holo-net,” she retorted.

  “Really? All good things I hope,” he jested.

  “You think leading a bunch of people to their death is funny?” she poignantly asked, glaring at him. Pickett’s jovial nature turned sullen. Worse, it turned to anger. Flipping a strand of hair from his face, he fired back.

  “Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘the pot calling the kettle black?’ I’ve heard the horror stories about Pendulum Palace. I know its mark when I see one,” Pickett replied, pointing to the small mark on the tip of Red’s pinky.

  “I don’t pretend to be something I’m not,” she fired back.

  “Pardon me, Ms. Red, but you don’t know me. Besides, it might do you some good trying to be a little better than your past, wouldn’t you say?” he remarked.

  Red got up, flustered and angry. She stormed away, her droid lumbering behind her. Her departure ushered in an awkward silence.

  After a few moments, Magnus cleared his throat and turned to Maria.

  “Don’t mind all that. Tempers are high, and we’ve all had a rough day. Won’t you sit down?”

  She nodded in acknowledgement. Taking a seat beside him, she looked around at everyone. Before she could speak up, Magnus directed a question towards her.

  “What brings you to this island, Ms-”

  “Mrs.,” she replied, gently correcting him. He drooped a little in his seat. Maria did not pick up what his body language could mean, however.

  “My village was attacked. Our mutual friend came and saved me, and Lima and his people gave me shelter here.”

  “Our mutual friend?” Magnus asked.

  “Koga Kane.”

  Magnus frowned slightly, taking on a more solemn demeanor.

  “Saved you too, did he?”

  “He saved all of us,” Pickett interjected, “And no one is at fault for that.”

  Magnus sighed.

  “It’s hard not to feel responsible somehow,” Magnus admitted.

  “From what I understand, you saved his life first,” Pickett said, trying to cheer him.

  “Actually, he saved mine twice before that. He’s two up on me. Guess I’ll never get to repay that debt,” Magnus admitted.

  “Do you think he’s really dead? Seeing what he could do, it’s just hard to imagine...” Maria began, trailing off.

  “I saw the recording Red picked up on her rear cams. The guy he faced... I’ve never seen anyone with that type of power. At best, he’s captured. But, given how badly they tortured me to find out where he is, I doubt they intend to keep him alive. At least not for long.”

  They all sat in silence, staring into the fire. It was hard for her to imagine he was gone. For someone who they all knew so little about, it was odd to have such a feeling of loss. Maria supposed everyone around this campfire owed him in a major way. It would have been better had he demanded something in return, but he never had.

  “I should’ve died on that mission,” Magnus expressed. “I pretty much abandoned my mom to join the Air Force. I left her all alone while I went out to go fight.”

  He let out a half hearted snicker before continuing.

  “I used to lie to myself, saying I did it to avenge my father. To fight for what he fought for. To fight for my country. I only did it for myself. Someone had to die to get me back here alive. I don’t deserve to be here. I don’t deserve to be alive,” he continued remorsefully.

  “If you weren’t there, he would’ve died much earlier,” Maria said, consoling him. “And you’re not the first person to fall victim to revenge.”

  “It's just that...”

  “Much... not fault,” Naf said, speaking up for the first time since he had gotten back to the island. “Master much give, to much save. So no shame. No guilt. Much live... for others. Like, live to give. Much understand, yes?”

  Magnus gave him a small smile.

  “Yes. Much understand.”

  The idea that Koga would not have wanted them to live their lives with regret was a somewhat comforting thought. Maria resolved to continue on his mission of helping others in need. Of stopping the Triumvirate.

  After another moment of reserved silence, Pickett spoke up again.

  “Imagine you’re wondering what Red was referring to a moment ago. If anyone should feel guilt about anything here, it's me. I wasn’t always a privateer, you know. Used to be colonel in the Paradignian army, actually. Surprised Grand General Pragnus did not recognize me,” he began, presumably going somewhere with the conversation.

  “Back then, we were fighting the Kenzanites, as usual. They had taken a point we desperately needed. We tried to breach their defenses to take it, but no matter what we tried, we failed. My men and I had a bit of a reputation for charging things. Of getting things done. S’ppose it was our speciality. I was directed to charge my men into their lines, the idea being that a direct attack on the point would be enough to do the work air and armor support couldn’t.”

  Pickett took a deep breath, looking intently into the fire. His voice grew heavier. Sadness weighed heavily in his tone.

  “I knew it was a stupid plan. Knew it the minute I heard it. I rue the day I didn’t stand up and refuse the order. I argued until I was blue in the face with my commander, but he refused to listen. In the end, like a ‘good’ soldier, I obeyed him. Leading the charge myself...I... I led thousands of men to their deaths,” Pickett continued, tears now streaming down from his eyes.

  “Maybe... maybe it’s this night air or something that’s making me open up to you all about it. Maybe it’s the talk we’ve been having. Guess that’s not important. What is important is that I’m not going to let any more good men die because of me. If fate has been so cruel as to take their lives, but leave mine, then I’ll fight till the end to see history not repeat itself.”

  All contemplated his words. Maria felt pity for the man. She was sure she was not alone in the sentiment. Checotah put his large, furry hand on the man’s shoulder, reassuring him.

  “All the loss… the war… it’s all the Triumvirate’s fault. Maybe it’s time we did something about it,” Magnus said, finding the strength to stand to his feet. “Together.”

  Everyone looked around at each other, arguably quite awestruck by the moment. After some contemplation, Checotah was the first to stand. Balling his giant fist, he slammed it into his own chest. Pickett stood to his feet as well.

  “That means he’ll stand beside you. As will I.”

  Naf stood up on the log he had been sitting on.

  “Much kickem much butt with you all.”

  Maria, Penny, and Zenny took to their feet.

  “The crew of the...” Maria began, forgetting that they hadn’t yet named their new ship.

  “The crew of the Black Stench!” Penny yelled out.

  “What? No. That’s not what we’re calling it,” Maria replied.

  “What? That’s what it smells like...”

  “The crew of the...” Zenny began, trying to think of a creative name before being interrupted.

  “The Red Ditch!” Penny exclaimed.

  “No...” Maria stated.

  “Could we hurry this up? You’re kind of ruining the moment,” Magnus said, the males around the fire confused by the scene.

  “Fine! The... the...”

  “Penny, I think you ought to leave the name picking-” Maria began.

  “The Night Witch!” Penny exclaimed.

  Zenny scoffed.

  “That’s a terrible name.”

  “Actually, I kind of like it,” Maria said, stroking her chin.

  “It sounds good to me,” Magnus agreed.

  “I like it, too!” Penny exclaimed, jumping for joy.

  “You were the one that came up with it, idiot,” Zenny replied, rolling her eyes.

  “It’s settled, then,” Maria stated, giving Zenny a scolding gaze. “The crew of The Night Witch will stand by you,” Maria continued, triumphantly.

  Now, everyone was standing awkwardly in a circle, looking around at each other. Magnus scratched his head.

  “Soooo what do we do now?” Pickett asked.

  When no one answered, Naf spoke up.

  “Much go to bed,” waving his hands dismissively as he began to walk away. After an awkward goodbye, the others started to do the same.

  “Do droids even sleep?” Penny asked, holding Naf’s little hand as the walked away.

  “Oh, much yes. Much pull plug. Sleep, just like human. Much better, even.”

  “Wow!” Penny replied, astounded. “I wish I had a plug to pull so I could just go to sleep like that.”

  “I wish you did, too,” Zenny replied