“It was spectacular,” Gus said, laughing even harder.
Astrid looked puzzled, but a small smile lit her face, “To be honest, Ogun told me there was something special about the two of you, and though I liked you both, I just couldn’t see it. I felt like he had put you above me in all but name. Turns out, he was right about you, and now here I am, putting you above me!”
“It’s not like that, Astrid,” said Ember. “But we want to build a fleet. You’ll need to continue looking after the Thoth. Shaun will basically just guide our overall plan, as we actually have one. The only difference is, now you don’t have to worry about supplies. It’ll give you some breathing space to think. You're one of us. Don’t worry, he’s not going to start lording it over you, or I'll kick his ass,” she laughed.
“I thank you for your kind words. You haven't even met Rufus, the Captain of the Seshat, yet. He’s a good guy. I hope you’ll make the same allowances for him as you would for me. I’m sure he’ll be happy to join once he knows that I’ve agreed. He also is aware of the high regard that Ogun held you both in, and will probably respect that more than I do.”
“Before Ogun left, he told us both that he'd made a huge mistake leaving you. He believed that you in particular, Shaun, could have been the difference in our war. I just thought you should know that.”
“It doesn’t matter anymore. Ogun has gone. And honestly, I'm just buzzing to have you on board. The Uprising grows stronger.”
“We're glad to be on board. You’ve no idea how stressed and depressed everyone is here.”
“Quick question,” Ember asked, “How did the Thoth pay for things?”
“We’ve a sort of ship's bank. Computerized of course. We wouldn’t want to be carrying thousands of coins about, Fystr or Galactic,” Gus interjected.
“So, when you buy things, you do it through transfers, rather than currency?”
“Exactly. Why do you ask?” Gus replied.
“Gus. I need you to talk to Elyek and arrange a transfer of funds. We’ll transfer some senlar over, just so you’ll be okay in case anything were to happen to us, or we got separated. Just keep it in the account. We’ll cover any expenses going forward,” Ember said, then pressed her personal comm and asked Elyek to come to our room.
Astrid grinned, “Sorry, who’s in charge?”
“Ember,” I said, returning the smile.
“Shaun, but he forgets things. A lot,” Ember replied smugly at almost the same time.
“Not anymore, I don’t, Ember. You may remember I’m ahead of you in Mental Clarity, now.”
“Well, whoop-dee-doo for you! Would you like some help carrying that massive fucking head of yours around, instead? Perhaps I’d be better suited helping with that job?”
“Ha, ha, ha,” I drawled. Luckily, I was saved from going any deeper down this rabbit hole by Elyek’s arrival.
“Hey, Ember. How can I help?”
“Once we’ve finished this call, could you talk to Gus here about transferring some funds between us and the Thoth?” Gus nodded. Elyek smiled and waved at him. Ember continued, “Say 100,000 senlar to be shared between the two ships? They’re part of the Uprising now.”
“Oh, that’s great news. Of course I’ll do that, Ember,” Elyek turned to Gus, “Hi, Gus. I look forward to working out the details with you.”
“Hey, Elyek. Me too,” he said, sheepishly; his quiet, unconfident demeanor returning at the arrival of a stranger.
“Good. I'm glad that’s covered. Now, Shaun. Why don’t you tell Astrid and the boys our plan?”
She had my head spinning. “Right. Yeah… We’re, er, we’re going to a planet,”
“Moon,” Elyek corrected, “The moon of Tanath. It is named Arus.”
“Yeah. What they said,” I indicated Elyek with my thumb, “We’re hoping to pick up more Veiletians. They’re the race of people that Elyek here is from. They’re really fucking intelligent, if Elyek is anything to go by. And they’ve got the ability to go invisible. Apparently, there’s not many of their kind left, but I’d imagine that would be hard to gauge, right?” I laughed. Though I’d clearly misjudged my audience, since my laughter was a solo endeavor. “Anyways, they’re highly prized as slaves, which is why they’re secreted away around the galaxy. Another injustice I wouldn’t mind sorting out in the fullness of time.
“For now though, if we can get them on board with us, we’re going to be so much stronger. We’ve just gained 30 Torax, and trust me when I say that those fuckers are tough! They’re laser-resistant and can turn into balls of fire. But even they are pretty much kept as slaves on their own planet. Which is something else we hope to address as we develop.
“First, we need to focus on strength. If we can get a decent military contract, we hope to mop up a few mercenary groups who aren’t part of the big two,” I finished.
Astrid responded immediately, “I don’t know what you mean by the big two. But you seem to have a plan, and money, so that’s good enough for me.”
“Cool, then. We’ll leave Gus and Elyek to sort out the finances,” I said, making ready to leave.
“Not so fast!” Astrid shouted, taking us all aback, “Before you go, I want to know how the hell you’re here… like this?” she gestured with her arms. It didn't make any sense, but I knew what she meant.
“I’d like to know that too!” Mick added.
“Me three!” cried Gus.
I shrugged and set about telling them the whole story. Occasionally, Ember stepped in when she thought I'd got something wrong. Even Elyek added some choice details and perspectives on occasion. The three humans on screen sat dumbfounded at the tale we
