Episode 77, Myths
04 Jul 2024Xochitl Khae
Episode 77, Myths
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The one thing I didn’t like was the rumor mill. It existed everywhere anyone went, and there was nothing anyone could do to change that, but after what I had seen, this particular variety annoyed me more than most. There was no getting around the end results of the doctor’s science experiment, even though he had been coerced into doing it, without knowing the end results would be a complete departure from what he sought to accomplish.
My only concern was that the good doctor’s data existed nowhere else and that no one other than him was alive to recreate it.
What Ryuko did not know was that Tara had also downloaded the data…
The relative day after the settlement’s neutralization, I toured the hangar facility that was being used to house and supervise the survivors. The carrier was stocked with everything needed to ensure their physical recovery, but the look in their haunted and gaunt eyes told me they had seen far more than me. They were armed with hand weapons to keep those monstrous abominations at bay. My brief glimpse into the face of what inhabited those environmental suits was enough to shock me. I didn’t want to imagine what it was like to go hand-to-hand with one.
I longed for the recent past times of it being just me, Tara, and a ship. Having command of a capital asset was more of a curse than a blessing. This one singular affair placed me in a position I dreaded thinking about. I needed a human doctor on the ship, but I did not need one who so closely mirrored an archaic earthen horror novel, where a doctor created a monster from the parts of corpses.
Everything inside told me to dispose of him, but there was no way I could let him go, nor was there any way I could get rid of him either. What if he was wrong about no one else but him knowing? To whom could anyone turn, or who had the knowledge to create something, anything, that could tilt the scales in our favor, aside from breaching reactor cores and making any place they inhabited into a wasteland?
Damn all of them!
I went to the ship’s bar, finding a seat towards the back where I could be alone and drink myself into a proper stupor. The stars outside of the transparent armor viewing window did not look the same as they did a few days past. Picking up and examining the half-empty bottle, I studied its contents, debating on what my next moves would be, or should I dump everything into a zero-g toilet and go cyclic on the purging handle.
Halfway expecting Tara to find me, I was surprised as another feminine form dropped itself into the seat across from me. It was the Contessa, Svetlana. She sat with one leg draped over the other, with her hands folded into her lap.
“You cannot erase from the mind what the eyes have seen, but you can replace it with the knowledge that, unlike other monsters out there, you have fought and prevailed against yours.”
I could feel the effects of the burning alcohol, feeling woozy but no less clear.
“That’s a load of biowaste and you know it. Those things…”
Svetlana held up her hand. “Before you turn your bottled escape into another curse, let me tell you a story.”
Now that pissed me off, but I held my words, glaring at her.
“I too have seen monsters. The types that fly about in blossoming flowers of death. They took over the system, destroying everything. Then they turned on the exodus fleet, destroying all of those ships within it, including the transport I was on.”
“You’re talking about Thargoids,” I slurred, the alcohol’s effects becoming more pronounced.
“Yes,” Svetlana replied, nodding slowly. “I and several others were forced into the escape pods. I watched my monsters take aboard several of them, but they left mine. I looked closely into the face of their interceptor as it studied my pod before turning away. A week later, when I was rescued, I learned that everyone I knew was unaccounted for.”
My mouth began to open as she held up her hand again.
“You forget that each vehicle has its own camera system, recording all that takes place. Yours was active during your encounter. I have seen what you have, and yours was defeated. The ones that took everyone I knew, and the child inside of me that was less than a month in development, are still out there and are now being defeated. What you don’t see is me becoming something different than what I am.”
The liquor was fogging my mind, but damn if I didn’t lose my thoughts on how to reply to something like that.
The Contessa smiled, standing up with the grace of a swan, as she reached over with one hand, moving the bottle closer to me. “There is an old Earthen saying about when fighting monsters, you have to be careful not to become one yourself. Remember that while working off your coming hangover.”
She walked away before my deteriorating brain could think of anything to say. I watched her leave with a poise that almost appeared like she was floating. As she left, I turned my blurring vision to the bottle in front of me. With a deep sigh, I stood up, swaying slightly. The room spun around me, but I steadied myself against the table.
Tomorrow, I cursed under my breath, weaving my way out of the bar, not giving a damn who was watching.
Tara watched in curiosity as a security team dragged Ryuko into his quarters, dumping him on the couch in the front room. By the time he made it to the elevator the rest of the alcohol in his system had weaved its spell, first removing his ability to stand up straight, then his ability to remain conscious.
***
News of the Ryuko’s binge spread through the ship faster than the bootlegged imagery from the encounter at the settlement. Reactions and opinions among the crew varied as widely as there were stars outside. A few were of the opinion that the doctor himself should have been left to perish with his experiment, with others defending him.
Captain Akio remained relaxed, leaning back in his chair, looking up with an amused calmness at Contessa Svetlana. His bridge wing office was dimly lit, the ambient light casting long shadows on the walls, while the hum of the ship's systems provided a constant backdrop.
“Looks like our commander spun himself around the fusion core. He's going to want to stick his head into one when he wakes.”
Svetlana remained poised, keeping her face emotionless as she studied Akio. She sat elegantly in the leather chair opposite his desk, her posture straight, hands resting lightly on her lap. The flicker of the holographic display in the corner of the room reflected off her eyes, giving her an almost ethereal look.
“It is not my place to speak on matters that do not concern my facility, but his breed is of a different sort than the norm,” she said, her voice calm and measured.
Akio chuckled softly, leaning forward slightly. The light caught the edge of his steepled fingers, creating a sharp contrast against the shadows. “You have met his type more than you know. They are better at concealing themselves within the camouflage of their business ventures. As you are familiar with, everything comes in different flavors. His variety being the more dangerous.”
Svetlana shifted subtly in her chair, crossing one leg over the other. The movement was fluid, almost hypnotic. Her eyes never left Akio's face. “He has an issue internalizing recent events,” she observed.
A playful smile appeared on Akio’s face as he looked at the ceiling, his expression thoughtful. “No, his trouble lies in the decision of what to do with both doctors and if what the more recent one knows has traveled any further than the glowing crater.”
Svetlana’s expression remained neutral. “As you are aware, news of what happened has already spread. I have already tasked my associates to tell a different version of those events.”
Akio’s smile widened slightly. “Yet, you have seen the footage I have classified. How long before one of your… associates says something more?”
Svetlana shook her head. “Myth and conspiracies have always been more palatable than truth,” she replied smoothly. The soft hum of the air conditioning was the only sound in the room as she continued. “The only evidence of something other than pirates taking over their system is what you now have encrypted and locked away. That the pirates chose to exploit the system and neglect its infrastructure is a sad tale sung often. The furthest research facility being a victim of that exploitation and neglect, which led to a fusion reactor’s safeties failing, is not new news.”
Akio’s gaze shifted to the large viewport behind Svetlana, where the distant stars shone brightly against the inky blackness of space. “Ryuko will want us to reposition soon. I will voice my opinion against that. Leaving so soon after events will be seen by conspiracy theorists as proof of others being involved.”
Svetlana uncrossed her legs, leaning slightly forward. The subtle scent of her perfume mixed with the sterile smell of the ship. “As you have said, he is of a different flavor. Now is the time for him to camouflage himself with his business ventures, where we can crush any talk with myth. It also makes good economic sense to stay near our clientele.”
Akio nodded slowly, his eyes returning to meet Svetlana’s. The room’s dim lighting softened the features of his face. “Let’s hope Ryuko sees the wisdom in that.”
Svetlana stood gracefully, her movements deliberate and composed. “He will. He’s more pragmatic than he lets on.”
Akio watched her as she turned to leave, the soft click of her magnetic heels the only sound as she walked towards the door. “Thank you, Contessa,” he said, his tone respectful.
Svetlana paused at the doorway, turning her head slightly. “Captain Akio, sometimes the greatest battles are fought not with weapons, but with words and patience.”
With that, she exited the room, leaving Akio to ponder the space outside, once again.