WHITE AS LUNAR LIGHT

 

White as Lunar light

Moonshine birds fly lonely skies

Where echoes can’t be heard

The Tornado Sojourns (4) – Chapter 04 – Crime Wave

 

While Bagg, Wisma, Parse and Merri went to the Prefects office to report the loss of her bracelet the remainder of the group were sitting at a table in a restaurant called the Golgothan Orchid and had finished eating by the time they returned.

“You’ve been a long time” Trebreh said to his brother

“It was very busy” he replied

“Were they any help?” Xandra asked

“None whatsoever” Merri retorted curtly

“Other than pointing out that it was more likely to have been stolen than lost because there have been numerous thefts and robberies” Parse explained “But without knowing where it was taken there isn’t much, they can do about it”

 

Pulsat Rad sat very quietly while the others spoke as he had an idea as to where the bracelet may have been stolen, this was unusual as it was normally his friend Vanzyl who had the ideas and Pulsat who relayed them to the others, because he could understand every tone and toot that Vanzyl uttered, as if it were in his own tongue, whereas no one else could.

But he was Prinsloovian and it was common place for his species, and there were very few races he had met on his travels that he couldn’t understand, although he couldn’t speak back to most of them in their language, but he nonetheless understood every word that they spoke, and when he was in crowded places all he could hear was other people’s small talk, which he found quite annoying after a while, but while he had been on Marikya he had noticed a theme and actually tuned in to the chatter when he heard similar tales, and they were all in regard to thefts, but now Wisma had been robbed his eavesdropping had taken on a new significance.

 

Pulsat turned to his friend and spoke quietly to him of what he suspected and Vanzyl responded noisily in clicks, whirls and whistles, and everyone turned towards the engineers in response and fell silent, and Pulsat looked at the expectant faces, and then clicks and whirls began to emanate from Vanzyl which were clearly directed at Pulsat.

“Ok I say it” he said, and more clicks and whirls followed

“I say, I say” Pulsat retorted and to the assemble group he said

“I know where”

“Vanzyl knows where the robbery happened?” Merri asked and more clicks.

“He not know” Pulsat replied and her shoulders slumped then he added

“I know where”

Merri straightened up in response and Pulsat explained, in his stuttering style, and in detail, what he had heard,

 

The Prefects had confirmed that a large number of people had had either their pockets picked, or had valuables stolen while visiting the Holy Town.

But with the snippets of conversation that Pulsat had overheard, he had internally collated certain information, such as the location the theft was discovered, places visited prior to the discovery and the place where they were 100 percent sure they still had the stolen item, and with that information he had managed to isolate the crime to a certain area of the town, and the fact that they had all visited the Sisters of Saint Agatha, who were faith healers.

“That can’t be” Bagg said “it can be nothing more than an anomaly”

“I agree” his brother Trebreh added

“That’s where the evidence points” Merri pointed out

“Well, I’ve always thought them to be charlatans” Terrel said “but not thieves”

While they were deliberating the likelihood of their involvement an elderly man and woman entered the restaurant and the latter was in tears.

“Is everything alright?” Xandra asked in a comforting tone as she took hold of the woman’s hand who then stopped crying and then a moment later she smiled.

 

The woman was completely relaxed by Xandra’s empathetic persona and was soon relating the cause of her former distress.

She had decided to visit the Sisters of St Agatha as she had been suffering of late with a touch of arthritis in her wrists.

She had paid her money and taken her turn in the queue and when she entered St Agatha’s chamber she felt immediately at peace.

Then one of the Sisters took her by the hands and began chanting and then she was surrounded by another five who were feverishly praying, and then all of a sudden, she was pain free and she was led out where she was met by her husband and within minutes of leaving the Sisters she noticed her bag was missing.

 

“So, if she wasn’t lying….”  Parse began after the couple had left

“She definitely wasn’t lying” Shiyne said

“Did you scan her then?” Lyris asked

“I did and every word she said was true” she replied “Apart from the arthritis, her aliment is much more severe than that and she hasn’t told her husband”

Bagg was cross with himself for dismissing the Sisters, Pulsat’s analysis had indicated St Agatha’s chamber was significant, but he had hoped it was just an anomaly, but he was wrong.

When he was a boy back on Mars his grandfather used to read old classic stories to him and one of his favourite’s was Conan Doyle, and as he sat in the restaurant, he recalled there was an old Sherlock Holmes axiom which went

“When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth”

But he had allowed himself to be blinded by his inherent faith in human nature. 

“So, it must be one or more of the Sisters” Bagg surmised, and everyone agreed.

“Well, it looks like you were right Pulsat” Merri said, and everyone congratulated him.

“Well done, Pulsat” Bagg said and Vanzyl uttered a soft whistle like a plaintive flute and patted his friend on the back proudly.

 

“So, what do we do now?” Bagg asked

“We should tell the Prefects all we know” Xandra suggested

“They won’t act on it” Parse Sacrod pointed out “they’re stretched too thin”

“So, it’s down to us then” Asti mused “but what do we do?”

“Planning is Merri’s thing” Lyris said

“Ok then let’s put our heads together and plan another adventurous little diversion” she said

 

ALL-TIME CLASSIC MOVIE FAVOURITES – STARMAN (1984)

 

“Starman” is a Sci-Fi Romance, written by Bruce A. Evans, and Raynold Gideon and Directed by John Carpenter.

 

After learning about humanity from the space probe Voyager 2 an Alien race send a ship to investigate but he crash lands on Earth and the Starman (Jeff Bridges) assumes the identity of the dead husband of Jenny Hayden (Karen Allen).

Having never really come to terms with his death Jenny freaks out when she wakes up and sees him but is confused by his calm and emotionless behaviour and reluctantly goes with him and he makes her drive him across the country because he has a deadline to meet while the government tries to stop them in the form of Mark Shermin (Charles Martin Smith).

 

The Tornado Sojourns (4) – Chapter 03 – Among the Pilgrims

 

The Eastertide festival on Marikya lasted for five days with the greatest emphasise on the Holy Days but there were also a variety of entertainments to distract the pilgrims, and merchants aplenty hoping to profit from the pilgrims by tempting them to part with some of their money in exchange for some memento of their trip.

The other group that turned a healthy profit at Festival times were the Inn Keepers, Lodge Owners and Hoteliers who charged premium rates, but despite the profiteering on accommodation there was never anywhere to stay, unless you were a Visitor of high esteem such as Bagg’s brother Trebreh and then you were invited to stay at the Visitor’s Presbytery Enclave, where the clergy could stay along with “suitable” guests, and there was always space.

When not housing Pilgrims for the Festival it was a retreat for weary, ailing or retired Clergy.

So Trebreh, his wife Xandra and her brother Ale, Bagg and Wisma along with Duff Tarver and his wife Chani would be staying in the enclave, while the rest of the Tornado crew would return to the Tornado each night, as they were all taking it in turns to man the ship anyway, which was only fair.

 

Merionwen took the first watch, though she was more intent on watching her Gouveian lover Parse Sacrod, who she called Beefy, as he was huge in stature, standing 6 foot 8 high, broad and powerfully built, with short curly hair the colour of burnished steel, ivory skin and mercury coloured eyes, he was a former Legionnaire of the Royal Guard of Gouveia and she loved every inch of him.

For her part she was in her early thirties and best described as statuesque, tall, straight backed, proud and was blessed with an abundance of red hair that trailed behind her like a mane and penetrating green eyes to stare you down with, and overall she cut a striking figure and along with her appearance went her forthright, volatile and feisty personality.

She was owner and Captain of the Tornado, which technically belonged to the Garangon mining company, but as they went out of business when they inadvertently destroyed the moon they were mining, Merionwen’s father Ben kept the Tornado in lieu of payment and it passed to her on his death.

 

Merri and Parse had become inseparable, and always spent the long watches on the flight deck together, but that was normally about as close as they got to be alone, so to have the ship all to themselves was something of a novelty, so they made sure that they made the best use of their “alone time”.

But alas all good thing must come to an end, and in their case, it was when Lyris Skeet’s voice came over the comms to say that the Spider Hawk was preparing to dock.

 

There were two docking rings on the Tornado to facilitate transfers to and from the freighter while in space, one in the belly below the loading bay and the other was amidships above the cargo bays which was also the mooring point for shuttles or ancillary craft.

Merri had the Tornado holding in a stationary orbit so Lyris used his thrusters to steady the Spider Hawk as he maneuvered into position and locked on to the upper docking ring.

“There goes our “Alone time”” Merri said and gave Parse one last lingering kiss.

 

Apart from Merri, the only other survivors from her father’s crew were her co-pilot and navigator, Malena Endia and Shiyne, the latter being that rare commodity in any crew, someone who could and would perform any task required of them without question, but her real strength was in the role of negotiator and as an eternal optimist.

 

The next day it was the turn of Malena Endia and Zerrad Skeet to crew the Tornado, so they could have some private time which they had been looking forward to.

Similarly, the diminutive Princess Asti with her short platinum hair, ivory skin and silver eyes, would have preferred to keep her six-foot-tall, broad and muscular, black haired, dark eyed boyfriend, Lyris Skeet, all to herself, but it wasn’t their turn.

 

The following day would be Shiyne and Terrell Vorton, but they just wanted to be wherever the other was, such was the depth of their love, though they were an odd couple.

They were both the same height but that was the only thing they had in common, he was older than her by 6 years and was stoutly built, while she was slim, his skin was of chalk white and hers was cerise, his eyes were violet, Shiyne’s were purple and Terrell’s hair was midnight blue and she was bald, the other difference was that he was very quiet and she would often chatter incessantly.

 

Day four would be Pulsat Rad and Vanzyl, but they would spend their time doing routine maintenance and happily play with their engines and day 5 would be when Asti got to do some far from routine manoeuvres while she put Lyris through his paces.

 

So, Malena watched as the Spider Hawk headed towards the surface and then she kissed Zerrad passionately.

Physically he and his brother were very similar and only blonde hair and grey eyes differed from his older dark-haired brother, and his lover Malena was a tall slim brunette, with olive skin and hazel eyes, at least that was how she appeared, her true form was more mercurial, but Zerrad loved her in any form.

 

By day five everything was going well, on board the Tornado as Asti had finally got Lyris alone, and on the surface, everyone was enjoying the Festival and its associated entertainments but were nonetheless conscious that their holiday was almost over but were determined to enjoy it to the last minute.

But just as they were going to find somewhere to eat Wisma made a discovery that made her dissolve into tears.

It was not normal behaviour for her as she was made of harder stuff than that but reduced to tears she was, and it took Bagg a full ten minutes to calm her down and find out what had upset her so much.

When she had calmed down to such an extent that she could speak she told Bagg that her bracelet was gone and then she cried again.

 

The bracelet was made of Androsin Gold with an intricate design inlaid with platinum and was a gift from Bagg to mark their first year together as a couple, and losing it was devastating for her.     

“When do you remember having it last?” Bagg asked and she furrowed her brow as she thought about it and finally said

“No more than an hour ago”

So, they retraced their steps in the hope of finding it, but to no avail.

“I think we should report it to the Prefects” Parse said “In case it’s been handed in”

So Bagg, Wisma, Parse and Merri went to the Prefects office and the others went into the restaurant and secured a table.

 

ALL-TIME CLASSIC MOVIE FAVOURITES – ALIEN (1979)

 

“Alien” is a Sci-Fi Drama, Screenplay Written by Dan O'Bannon, from a story by Ronald Shusett and Dan O'Bannon and Directed by Ridley Scott

 

The commercial spaceship Nostromo is on the way home and the crew, Dallas (Tom Skerritt), Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), Lambert (Veronica Cartwright), Brett (Harry Dean Stanton), Kane (John Hurt), Ash (Ian Holm) and Parker (Yaphet Kotto), are in stasis when they pick up a distress call from a distant moon.

So, the ships computer, Mother (Helen Horton), wakes them early as they are under an obligation to investigate the source of the signal so a ship descends to the surface, where one of them is attacked by a strange creature which emerged from what appeared to be an egg.

 

Meanwhile the ship's computer deciphered the message to be a warning and not a call for help, but by the time the crew realizes that they are not alone on the spaceship they can only try to deal with the consequences. 

The Tornado Sojourns (4) – Chapter 02 – Marikya

 

Marikya was one of the moons of Eirkos and was largely Arboreal but also had extensive ranges of Sandstone Mountains in which the early settlers carved out rudimentary living areas but over the centuries their endeavor’s had become much grander and more sophisticated but their most noteworthy creation was the spectacular Temple to Christ Our Lord, sculpted from the highest peak in the southern range, which was so renowned and highly regarded that it attracted pilgrims from across Legion Space and was one of the most popular locations to celebrate Eastertide.

 

Visitors were a Christian sect who took to the stars with the first migrants to visit new worlds, spreading the word while seeking enlightenment, and they had established Visitor enclaves in every corner of the known universe, they even thrived in Mehreen space and they were the least spiritual beings to ever draw breath.

The difference between Visitors and the established Christian Church on earth was its spontaneity, they didn’t wait until Sunday to worship, they did it wherever and whenever it was desired, and it didn’t need to happen in a church, Visitors worshipped everywhere, but that didn’t prevent them from worshipping in Churches as well or have larger more organised events, they were still Christians and therefore there was still a Christian calendar to follow, and the major festivals were still marked with the same reverence and the one the Tornado was heading towards was the Eastertide Festival on Marikya, which had lost none of its significance to the Visitors in the centuries since they left earth.

 

It wasn’t a long trip from Eirkos to Marikya especially for the Tornado, which wasn’t a huge ship as freighters go, but pound for pound the Tempests had the highest freight to fuel ratio yield of their class.

The front section comprised of a sizable pressurized hold for large freight accessed via a front loading ramp, above which was the flight deck, living and sleeping quarters, mess facilities and bath rooms, at the rear was the main propulsion and amidships were the universal pod bays, which allowed for a mixed cargo option, which allowed for quick inspection and loading, although sometimes pods were sealed which meant it was either very valuable or very illegal, either way Merri didn’t mind and transporting sealed cargo paid much much better.

The Tornado always flew with at least one pod but then that was because it was where they stowed their gear and where the hidden compartments could be found, or not, which was where they hid the contraband, or even fugitives when necessary, but not so much in recent years. 

 

It had been more than three years since the Tornado, reached the Eikon Cluster with a full complement aboard, funds in the coffers and three pods of Thermalium mineral ore for delivery to Eikon Major, and they had prospered greatly in the system known as the Eikon Cluster, so called due to the high number of M class planets and moons in the Eikon solar system, and they quickly found an abundance of work with Golbolt Interstellar, based on the moon Soman.

The main reason for that was that the Operations Manager was Oshwin Lemik and he fought against the Legion in the Shaxson War with the Skeet brothers, they as pilots and Oshwin as Logistics Commander.

From the moment they were reacquainted, the Tornado got as much work as they wanted and regularly ran between Eikon Major and Minor, Eirkos and its moons, Soman, Rekar and Marikya, and neighbouring planet’s, Achrem and Zenden as well as Zenden’s moon, Linden, plus a host of other smaller moons and asteroids.

 

Since they had been in the Eikon Cluster they had familiarized themselves with the planets and moons they visited and had cultivated great friendships along the way, so whatever part of the system they were in they always knew where to go where they would be welcomed, and they could relax and enjoy their down time.

Also, in their time in the Cluster they had earned the respect and gratitude of Supreme Commander Emad Salmin of the Legion Aeronautica for the whole of the Eikon Cluster and those aboard the Tornado, and their friends and allies felt the weight of his gratitude, and they had made many friends, as well as a number of enemies.

But they weren’t expecting any adventures or dramas on that particular trip.

 

Because it was a heavily forested landscape separated by Sandstone Mountains, there weren’t enough spaces on the landing field on the outskirts of the capital, Livingstone, where the festival was being held, for all of the pilgrims vessels, so it was necessary for the Tornado to remain in orbit and for Lyris Skeet to ferry everyone down to the surface in the Spider Hawk, which he managed to do in two trips.

With the ship in orbit Merionwen and Parse stayed aboard the Tornado to man it in the event of an emergency, for which they volunteered so they could enjoy a bit of “alone” time.

 

They would of course be relieved, but in her absence, Malena was in charge of the group while they were on the surface, and everyone knew to listen to her because she had pointed out that if they didn’t she would transform into an Askandian dragon dog, oozing deadly poisonous secretions, and deal with them.

 

They all knew she could transform, because Malena Endia

was from Obgaron Prime in the Alandis system, which was now deep in the heart of the Mehreen Empire, though she, like many of her species fled into Legion territory after their world was invaded, but many of her kind died after the invasion and she wasn’t sure exactly how many were left because they weren’t easily recognized as they were a race of shape shifters.

The Mehreen were a brutal regime who conquered world after world without warning, either for tactical and strategic reasons or for want of the planet’s resources, but in the case of Obgaron Prime there was no strategic value and it was poor in minerals and Orr, their destruction was for a very different reason altogether, fear.  

The mighty Mehreen Empress feared the Obgaron because of a long-held prophecy that the Empire would be brought down by beings who could transform themselves into Mehreen High Councillor’s and seize power unnoticed, so they thought those beings were shape shifters, and they slaughtered everyone they could lay their hands on, without mercy.

 

The Obgaron were a peaceful insular people who had had minimal exposure to the universe outside their own system so the majority of the inhabitants weren’t fearful of an impending invasion. 

Malena however was not among them and fled, stowing away on a deep space exploration vessel with a few of her like-minded people and slipped through the Mehreen net by transforming.

Though she could change form at will she could only transform into a being she had touched.

Only the briefest moment of contact was required and then it was in her memory banks and could be recalled whenever required.

But that need to touch a subject in order to shift cost many more lives during the invasion among the Obgaronian’s who had no suitable form to shift into to when the time came, in order to evade the Mehreen hordes.

The form Malena took was that of a 27-year-old human whom she met on a remote mining colony when she first entered Legion space, that was more than 20 years earlier and she still looked exactly the same.

It was on another mining planet 12 months later that she first met Merionwen’s father Ben Strong and joined his crew aboard the Tornado where she quickly proved herself to be invaluable, firstly as just one of the crew but she soon showed a natural gift for navigating and she also excelled as a nanny to 9-year-old Merri.   

 

Had her crew mates taken the time to consider her threat then it would have dawned on them that she couldn’t have transformed into an Askandian dragon dog, as she couldn’t have touched one without succumbing to the deadly oozing poisonous secretions, but of the group only Shiyne was aware of that fact, but then she was a Vann telepath, but the rest didn’t, so the threat was enough to get everyone to toe the line.

 

 

ALL-TIME CLASSIC MOVIE FAVOURITES – SILENT RUNNING (1972)

 

“Silent Running” is a Sci-Fi Drama, written by Deric Washburn, Michael Cimino and Steven Bochco and Directed by Douglas Trumbull.

 

The Valley Forge is one of several scientific vessels out in deep space carrying all the surviving flora and fauna rescued from the barren Earth housed in large greenhouse pods attached to the spacecraft.

Botanist Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern) loves his work and believes in the mission, but his crew mates John Keenan (Cliff Potts), Marty Barker (Ron Rifkin) and Andy Wolf (Jesse Vint) do not share his passion.

So, when the fleet is ordered to jettison the pods into space, detonate them and head for home, most of the crew of the Valley Forge rejoice at the prospect of going back to earth.

Lowell on the other hand loves the flora and fauna so much he cannot destroy them, so he kills his crew mates and takes the ship deep into space.

Alone on the craft with only three small robots as companions Lowell revels in the joys of nature and would have continued to do so, had the rest of the fleet not appeared to “rescue” him.

Not able or willing to go back Lowell knew he had only one option open to him.