The sounds of the city filled the air, as trains flew by on tracks above the men, spilling out large clouds of steam as they passed by. The smell of grease and metal from railway tracks permeated the surrounding environment as the prisoners remained stunned in amazement at the sight of large ships taking off and arriving from the star filled sky above in the distance. The full grandeur of the city of Avus, with all its lights and glory could be seen stretching out into the darkness of space. Issa’s blue star could be seen rising over the planet's horizon far below, displaying the planet in a way not seen by any of its inhabitants.
Recognize anything?” Said Ettimis.
The five men sat complete silence as they stared at Issa through thick faded glass, the only thing separating them and the vacuum of space. Completely overcome by both fear and confusion, Atta did not notice one of the guards approaching him. As he the other men remained dazed, still processing the realisation they were off world. Feeling the guard tip his chair back from behind, Atta began to struggle as he was dragged to a small door imbedded in one of the large metal ribs that held up glass the partitions. After winding a series of gears and pulling a level next the door, the guard quickly walked away, leaving Atta alone in front of the door. The cogs on the door slowly rotated, as the sound of the locking mechanism inside tumbled and echoed before coming to a sudden stop, leaving only a soft orange light flashing in silence above its frame.
“You can’t do this.” Screamed Atta, as he violently struggled in his chair, realizing there was nothing on the other side of the door except the cold emptiness of space.
Staying completely silent, the other men watched in fear as the light on the door continued to flash its warning. Oret looked to Ettimis with both fear and disgust, as Ettimis simply stared with complete apathy at the men. A torrent of wind came rushing by as the airlock door spang open, leaving the captive men to gasp and struggle for breath in the rapidly moving current of air. After staying open for only few seconds, the gears on the door quickly began to spin forcing the door shut. Leaving Atta forever trapped on the other side, drifting into the ether.
The flashing light above the door faded to a stale green as the surrounding air became still again allowing the sounds of steam engines and rumbling machinery to return. The men watched as Atta fading into the distance towards their planet, highlighting the extreme reality of the situation the remaining men now found themselves in.
“Hear me, citizens of Issa, I will only ask this one time, before my patients wanes... And we all now understand what happens when I don’t find what I'm looking for. Where is the aillinium.” Said Ettimis. the faces of the remaining four captives ghost white as Ettimis’s cold words were translated into words the men could understand, each hearing the device speak a different language of Issa.
Following Ettimis’s statement, Oret pulled a small brass orb from his waist coat. Holding the sphere in his hand, he pressed in the top of the device causing it to twist and unfold into a half sphere, as lights projected from the device formed into holographic images. Moving from one end of the seated men to the other, Oret paced back and forth repeatedly as the holograms shifted between various forms of aillinium. Images of the chemical structure of aillinium, faded to microscopic images of crystals. Then to images of the material in its raw form, looking no different than common sand. Finally, the images projected by the device moved to a more refined form aillinium, a fine purple powder, closely resembling sugar.
“Times up.” Said Ettimis, his voice projected through the translation device.
Again, approaching the seated men, the guard grabbed another chair and dragged it screeching across the hard ground towards the airlock. With the man seated in the chair begging and pleading for mercy along the way. Winding the mechanism of the door before pulling the lever, the guard repeated the process of preparing the door to open before again walking away. A deafeningly loud torrent of air rushed by, and in an instant the second man joined Atta, descending towards Issa through the vacuum of space. Oret again paced in front of the men showing the holographic images. Again, not one of the men responded. With a deep expression of anger evident on his face, Ettimis gave a slow nod, signalling to the guard to prepare another man to be executed.
“Wait!” yelled a stocky man, his words instantly being translated for his captors. “Wait, there is a military installation built into the mountains near a small town in the northern region... There is a material buried there. I think it could be the one you are looking for... But, it’s a toxic by-product of mining... I don’t understand why you would want it.” Continued the man, with a confused look on his face.
“Thank you for your concern... Now show me where it is!” Said Ettimis, as he grabbed the hologram generator from Oret, quickly changing the imagine to a map of Issa as he aggressively approached the man.
Gesturing towards the man's bonds, Ettimis signalled the guard to cut the rope allowing the man's hands to freely move. Pointing towards a northern region of Issa on the hologram, the man quickly withdrew his hand as the image began zooming in at the site the man pointed. Seeing the searing look in Ettimis’s eyes, the man again pointed at the hologram of Issa, causing it to continue to magnify further every time the
