The Admiral's office, perched atop a monumental tower, offered a breathtaking view of the city's expanse. Siirus, the mother planet of the Galaxy, held authority over all others. Originally, the Academy had been created for exploration and the discovery of new worlds. However, over the centuries, things have evolved. Affiliated Captains retained their role as explorers, but they also wielded authority over the most distant planets and sectors, thus conveying Siirus' message.
The Admiral saw himself as an equal to others, even though he held control over the Captains and the Academy, placing himself in a superior position by extension. Resisting the temptation of power required considerable mental strength. He stood there, unwavering in his determination, observing the world below, ready to face a new day full of uncertainties. He settled at his desk, facing an immense computer. Hundreds of messages reached him every day, but only the Captains could call him directly. Responding to each message promptly was also part of his role as an Admiral, always present for those in need.
"Computer, how many messages today?" he inquired.
"There are already about a hundred," the robotic voice of the AI replied.
"You know the drill, prioritize them."
The Computer complied, scrolling through and reorganizing the messages in front of the Admiral's eyes. It was a well-established routine, and he knew the procedures. A few moments later, he stopped at a particular message, highlighted in red.
"Why this one?" the Admiral asked.
"There are files attached, and I detected the keywords: Captain, slave, and call for help."
"Good, open it."
The message appeared on the large screen, revealing a figure he interpreted as feminine. She had tousled black hair, a dress of dazzling whiteness, and an enigmatic gleam in her eyes. Intrigued, the Admiral sat up straight, ready to listen.
"Hello. My name is Skylar Hogan, I am a human..." the message began.
During the following minute, he listened attentively. In the end, he was stunned by the revelations. Some Captains were involved in illicit activities, he knew that, but not Sarek. He was one of his best Captains. But he had to set aside his prejudices. Skylar seemed to have lived through hell because of one of his own, and it had to be resolved.
The message started over and gave way to the attached files. Hundreds of documents detailing the names of the Captains and Intermediaries involved in the trafficking of living beings from the Finas De Gla. How had Skylar managed to gather such evidence?
"Computer, what am I looking at?" asked the Admiral, uncertain of the reality.
"All the evidence necessary to put an end to the activities of the Finas De Gla, as the Academy and Siirus require," replied the computer.
"It's incredible... how... A human did this?"
"Yes, Admiral."
"It's a new species, she's not even supposed to know that she's not alone in the Universe."
A silence fell.
"Do we have her coordinates?" he continued.
"Yes, they correspond to the planet Emere."
"Emere? Are you kidding?"
"No."
"It's the neighboring sector!"
"And the first planet that the Finas De Gla acquired because of its proximity to Siirus, precisely."
The Admiral ran a hand over his head, feeling the weight of the responsibility that rested on his shoulders. The urgency to act was pressing. With all the evidence in hand to arrest the Finas, the Captains, and the Intermediaries, it was time to put an end to their Empire. Fortunately, Siirus had a police force and intervention army deployed everywhere, independent of the Captains. The Admiral contacted them, and a team was ready within the hour. It was high time to put an end to this oppressive reign.
Meanwhile, Skylar began to doubt the intervention she hoped for. Atalaya's words seemed to echo in her mind, casting doubt on the possibility that no one would come to her rescue. In that case, she would remain stranded in space, with no means of escape. Mistress Kayla would not return here, knowing she risked arrest. On one hand, the Academy was obligated to come to this planet if they wanted to arrest Master Acef, but Skylar was still in shock.
Since her former companions had left, she had remained motionless on the steps. She had observed the cycle of day and night, perhaps several times. The dried blood on her hands and face was starting to create an unpleasant sensation, but she didn't care. The smell of decomposing corpses didn't even bother her anymore. Paralyzed by everything that had just happened, she sat there, her eyes lost in a daze. She felt neither hunger, nor thirst, nor cold. It was shock, not acceptance. The weapon she had been holding since the events had not left her hands, as she hadn't dared to put it down. A feeling of emptiness filled her, and she eventually wished she could be with them. The Academy would not come, and Atalaya had been right.
At the dawn of the third morning, four ships pulled her out of her strange trance, one of which strangely resembled the Krœnos. Skylar watched them land, unsure if it wasn't just a hallucination. It was only when she saw Sarek and the rest of the crew hurriedly emerge from the ship identical to the Krœnos that she realized it wasn't a dream. A commanding figure, bald and dressed in a military uniform, accompanied by a strong army, emerged from the other three ships, weapons at the ready. Without hesitation, they aimed their weapons at Sarek and his crew, on the orders of the imposing figure.
"Admiral?!" exclaimed Sarek, surprised. "What are you doing?!"
"You put them under arrest, we'll have an explanation later," ordered the Admiral.
"Admiral, wait!"
But the Admiral paid no attention, and a part of his army began to arrest the Captain and his crew. He slowly approached Skylar, a veteran of several wars, capable of recognizing when someone was in a state of shock. He ordered the others to secure the area, while he knelt in front of the human as best he could.
He had observed her, and she looked nothing like the young creature who had called for help three days earlier. Her dress was no longer immaculate, her face showed signs of fatigue, strained by the wait. But the blood, the corpses around her, and the weapon in her hand revealed that she had not waited for their help. What was certain was that it was not her blood. The Admiral gently took the weapon from Skylar's hands and handed it to another person, who immediately sealed it. An investigation would be conducted, it was the procedure. The blood seemed to have been dry for a long time already. The Admiral took off his jacket and placed it on Skylar's shoulders, whose hands were frozen.
"Skylar Hogan?" he finally said to her. "Admiral Chennai. I received your message."
He had indeed received her message. Atalaya had been wrong; they had come for her.
"Sarek..." she murmured with difficulty. "How..."
"Everything is fine, we will take care of that later. How long have you been sitting here?" he asked.
"I-I saw two sunrises..." she replied still in a whisper.
"We will take care of you now, you are not alone anymore."
A few moments later, someone came back to them. They had searched the whole house but had found only one corpse.
"There is no one else in the house, only the corpse of a male, it's Acef Finas de Gla's," he reported.
"Cause of death?" the Admiral asked.
"Gunshot to the chest."
"Okay... You know what to do."
And the person went back into the house.
"Come, we need to find you something to drink and eat."
The Admiral tried to help her up as gently as possible, but Skylar could no longer stand. Her whole body was numb after sitting for so long. He supported her as best as he could and they went back into the house. Gradually, the human began to regain her sensations. She pointed towards the direction of the great hall, where they could talk.
He helped her sit on a sofa once they reached the great hall. He sat beside her and asked for something to drink and eat. After five Earth minutes, someone arrived with everything. He asked for a doctor to come, but the human categorically refused.
"I know it's going to be difficult for you, but you'll have to tell me everything that happened to you," he said.
Skylar looked him in the eyes. The procedures. Everywhere the same. They were surely starting an investigation. She coughed and began to recount everything, from her encounter with Sarek to the present. The Admiral had previously taken out some kind of recorder to keep a record of it all.
He had asked her questions to obtain as many details as possible, but beyond that, he had listened to her seriously. He realized that the whole story had deeply traumatized her. No one becomes a killer without suffering from the consequences.
"What will happen now? Sarek, the crew?" asked Skylar calmly.
"They were involved in a trafficking of living beings. According to the laws established by Siirus and the Academy, they will have to stand trial. An investigation is already underway thanks to your message. Depending on what they say, either the Krœnos will be sealed, or a new Captain will be appointed."
"Good."
He had just understood. That glint in her eyes that he had seen in the message and still saw now, it was hatred towards those who had made her suffer.
"And for me?" she continued, finishing her drink.
"For you, the situation is... complicated."
"How so complicated?" she said, sitting up, more alert.
"Officially, you agreed to be part of Sarek's crew. You are bound by honor to him and the crew."
"So what does that mean? That I can't go back home?"
"Given the exceptional situation we are facing, a waiver may be signed. In truth, Sarek should never have come to a planet like yours."
"A waiver? Decided by whom?"
Skylar was visibly furious. Sarek had trapped her, and she still had to stay in space.
"Don't worry," the Admiral tried to calm the situation.
"Don't worry, Admiral?" replied Skylar, taking off the Admiral's jacket with a gesture and standing up. "Officially, I only said yes, I didn't sign anything, no document stating that I am part of this... damn crew."
The Admiral stood up in turn. She was not afraid of him. She was angry. He had also just realized that humans were among the species entirely governed by rules and conventions.
"Listen, I will do everything possible to get you back to your planet, okay? But first, you need to rest, you are exhausted. Let one of the doctors examine you. We will not leave Emere until the investigation is completed here."
"No. I want to talk to Sarek. And the others. I want to see them and talk to them. Now."
"I don't think that's a good idea."
"They owe you explanations, don't they?"
"Yes, but..."
"I want to be there when you question them," she cut in as seriously as possible.
The Admiral was not sure if it was a good idea, but perhaps they would be more inclined to talk if she was there during the interrogation.
A silence, and finally, he agreed. They would go and question them now. He ordered through his communicator that they be brought here, to the grand hall.
A few minutes passed, and finally, a few armed members arrived with the crew, fists clenched and handcuffed. They looked almost pathetic, Skylar thought as she saw them, as if they had hardly slept either. She looked at each of them, and suddenly, she had the feeling that they really regretted selling her.
None of them had really had time to observe the human when they arrived on Emere. The Admiral had ordered them to be arrested as soon as they landed. And now that they saw her, something seemed to break inside them. Her white dress was red with blood, as was her face and hands. But it wasn't her blood. What could have happened here? They all looked questioningly at Sarek. If Skylar had known each of their species better, she might have guessed what that meant. But at the moment, she didn't care, she wanted explanations.
Six chairs were brought for the six crew members. Six guards forced them to sit and remained behind them. Skylar and the Admiral took their seats opposite them, with a small table in the middle and the recorder in the center of it.
"Skylar..." try Sarek.
"Silence," interrupted the Admiral. "You are not authorized to speak without being invited to do so."
A silence.
"Very well," he continued, starting the recording. "Admiral Chennai for the interrogation of Captain Sarek and his crew. They are accused of manipulation and use of others, as well as aiding and participating in the trafficking of living beings on behalf of the Finas De Gla. Please state your name, if any, first name, and rank," he said, this time addressing the members of the Krœnos.
Sarek and the others complied one by one. The interrogation could begin.
"Captain Sarek, you and your crew have just been informed of the charges against you. The laws established by Siirus and the Academy prohibit the trafficking of living beings. Depending on how this interrogation unfolds, you may be removed from your post and placed under arrest, and as for the Krœnos, it will be sealed or placed under the command of a new Captain. Do you understand this clearly?"
"Yes..."
"Good. Let's begin. Did you, yes or no, travel to Terra?
"Yes, but...
"Did you, yes or no, choose to recruit the human present here, named Skylar Hogan?"
"Yes, but..."
"Did you then proceed to the Market to conclude the sale of the human to the Finas De Gla?
"Admiral!"
"Answer the question, Sarek."
A silence. Even though Skylar wanted to see them in prison, she was somewhat shocked by the Admiral's attitude. He didn't give the members of Krœnos any chance to explain themselves. Skylar glanced at him uncertainly, unsure of what was happening.
"Yes...," Sarek stammered.
"So you confirm that you participated in trafficking living beings."
"Admiral, wait...," Vahrak interjected.
"So you will be arrested and..."
"Admiral!" Skylar exclaimed.
Surprisingly, he fell silent. Everyone looked at her; she had that spark in her eyes again, but this time it was directed at the Admiral. It wasn't an interrogation he was conducting.
"You're not conducting an interrogation, but rather manipulating the facts for your own pleasure."
"Listen..."
"No, you listen to me. You brought them here to speak, so you will let them speak."
A silence. Sarek and the others were intensely observing Skylar, who was fixed on the Admiral. It was almost frightening. No one had spoken to her like this in a long time. But she was defending them, which was perfect for them.
Humans, surprising day by day. The Admiral seemed to grimace or smile, whatever it was, he was heading in her direction.
"Alright, alright. Captain Sarek, you may speak freely."
"My crew and I have indeed reached Earth," began Sarek, taking a deep breath, "our primary goal was to recruit a human. We indeed had the intention of selling him to the Finas De Gla, not to enrich ourselves, but to put an end to this trafficking!"
"Yet you took the money."
"We are not interested in the money, Admiral, you can have it back. The fact is that we were aware of everything the Finas were doing, we knew that Academy Captains were involved, but without evidence, nothing could be done. So we contacted them through the Intermediaries. They wanted a human, so we provided one. But the goal was to then track them down and retrieve all the evidence to put an end to all of this! Skylar, I am sorry."
Skylar looked him in the eyes. A tear rolled down her cheek. So, they had simply used her? Sure, it was for a good cause, but still...
"So, I was just a means to an end..."
"It's more complicated than that, Skylar."
"Not from my point of view, no."
"Is that why you're here? Have you found the whereabouts of your crew member to gather all the evidence of this trafficking? Is this some kind of... rescue mission?" asked the Admiral.
"Exactly."
"But how did you manage to get here?" Vahrak asked, realizing something. "Why are you here?"
"Thanks to the human Hogan."
A silence fell.
"She managed to send me a message three days ago," he continued. "All the evidence of this trafficking over the past 10 years was attached to it."
"What? How..."
"Master Acef," Skylar interjected. "Easily manipulated. Give him your flesh and he'll look away. Take away his weapon and he'll obey you."
"Everyone watched her in silence, gradually understanding what she must have done to survive. She didn't need to be rescued, she had managed on her own. Sarek was right, humans were good at surviving.
"Where is he now?" asked Grige Khen, who knew the answer very well.
"Dead."
No sound was perceptible. They barely dared to breathe.
"Admiral," said Sarek, breaking the heavy silence, "I know we acted very badly, the protocols were not respected, but if you had been informed of this plan, you would have refused and nothing would have been done."
"That's for sure."
"I beg you if you have to dismiss someone, let it be me. My crew only obeyed my orders."
"No need to beg me, Captain. You and your crew are free. Remove their handcuffs," he ordered.
"Free?!" exclaimed Skylar, standing up so quickly that her chair fell over. "Is this a joke?!"
"No, I'm afraid not. They will have a fine for protocol violation and a reprimand. And obviously, as long as the investigation is not completed here, the Ship will not take off."
"I don't give a damn about your Ship, damn it!"
"I know it's incomprehensible to you, but his plan is worthy of a Captain," said the Admiral, standing up as well.
The six crew members had been released from their handcuffs and stood up in turn. They looked at Skylar, she was so angry. She stepped back a few paces and observed them, it was a joke, it had to be a joke. Free? with just a fine and a reprimand when they had manipulated, used, sold, betrayed her? Their world was incomprehensible.
"You are insane... Your Universe is insane!" she exclaimed as she stormed out of the room.
Sarek tried to follow her, but Vahrak stopped him with a hand. She needed to digest all this, it was too much for her. They would be held here in the meantime, as for Skylar, she was lost. She should have followed Atalaya, she knew that now... She wanted to go back home, but now that they were free, she knew she couldn't. She returned to her "room" where she had left her things. She sat on the bed, on the chair, her neatly folded clothes still there. She tried to calm her breathing. She looked at her hands still covered in the dried blood of Master Acef, she observed her dress and realized that it too was all red. All the memories of what had happened to her in the past few weeks seemed to pour into her head like a tsunami. She slid to the floor, held her head, cried, and screamed. There was nothing else she could do for now.
A good twenty Earth minutes passed before she finally calmed down. She was part of the crew. Okay, why not. She had wanted it after all. To see the Universe. She got up, grabbed her things, and left the room. She had had enough of being a victim in this whole affair. She didn't want them to walk all over her anymore. She knew humans inside out, now she needed to learn about the Universe.
Skylar left the Finas' residence, the two Guards' bodies had been covered with a white sheet. She observed them for a moment and then walked decisively towards the Krœnos. Part of the crew, part of the ship. They had wanted it.
Qidell and Ilki'thelae were sitting at the entrance and talking. When they saw her coming straight towards them, they stood up.
"Skylar..." Qidell began.
She didn't want to hear anything and boarded the Ship without a glance. She made her way easily to her quarters. Everything was as she had left it, it seemed like a very long time ago. She threw her belongings on her bed and left. She knew what she had to do: confront Sarek. Skylar went to the kitchen, but there was only Grige.
"Where is he?" she asked him without preamble.
"Who...?"
"You know very well who! Where is he?!"
"He... the Command post," he replied, taken aback. "Wait... Skylar!"
But she was already heading towards the Command post despite Grige's protests. He followed her with difficulty, she was surprisingly fast for someone who had just been through hell. On the way, they ran into Ilki and Qidell again, who also started following her. She burst into the Command post without being invited, the other three on her heels. Surprised, Sarek, Vahrak, and Craarrain, who were talking, turned at the same time. Fists clenched, sharp gaze, she seemed ready to pounce. In less than a second, she found herself in front of Sarek and punched him right in the cheek. Even though he was significantly taller than her, it didn't stop her.
"It's okay, everything is fine," said Sarek as the others wanted to intervene.
"You know the rules, you are not allowed to touch the Captain!" exclaimed Vahrak.
"Oh! don't talk to me about rules! my species is governed by rules! but when we are betrayed... oh may God help the one who betrayed us, because he will never be safe!! and you have betrayed me, every one of you," replied Skylar with hatred in her eyes.
"That's not what you think, Skylar..." tried Sarek.
"Yes, it is! you lied to me, you used me. You said you needed a human, you said it was because we were "useful to survive", but it was all a lie! you needed a human for your stupid mission! did it never occur to you to involve me in the plan?! did it never cross your mind, you bunch of idiots!"
"Because maybe you would have accepted to play the bait if we had told you?"
"YES! To help innocent people, yes!"
Confusion was visible on each of their faces.
"But instead of that, you played it for yourself, you betrayed my trust and used me like a mere pawn!"
"I'm sorry. That wasn't the intention, that's not what we wanted!" exclaimed Sarek, aware of the harm they had done to her.
"You don't even realize what I had to do... damn... I killed people because I thought I was alone and abandoned! because of you..." she said, her voice broken by emotion. "It will take more than a "sorry" to make amends."
She looked him in the eyes for a brief moment and then left. She had said what she had on her mind even though she would have liked to say more. What's done is done, she would have to learn to live with it now.
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