“What are you talking about?” Ana-Zhi asked.
Chiraine looked away, unable to meet Ana-Zhi’s gaze. “The Shima didn’t tell you why they wanted the Kryrk,” she said quietly.
“Sure they did,” I said. “It was part of the briefing. It’s a holy artifact. It has religious significance to the Shima.”
“Did your briefing include anything about Tanak the Elder?”
“Who?”
“He was a Shimese prophet. The Sword of Menahetho. Speaker of Flames. The Dreamrager.”
“They did mention a prophet,” I said. “But I didn’t get his name.”
“It was Tanak,” Chiraine said. “He’s a major figure in their history and religion.”
“Yeah, didn’t this guy Tanak find the Kryrk?”
“He didn’t just find it. It was bestowed upon him by Isennefre, the all-seeing goddess.”
“Okay.”
“And Tanak used the Kryrk to smite the Atlanene, who were the biggest threat to the Shima at that time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I said. “I remember all this. The prophet used the Kryrk to rain fire down on his enemies. No, wait. Wasn’t it an asteroid?”
“Yes, it was an asteroid. And it destroyed an entire continent and basically caused the Atlanene civilization to crumble.”
“Okay.” I wasn’t sure what she was getting at.
“It’s all real,” Chiraine said. “Documented.”
“What’s documented, the asteroid strike?” Ana-Zhi asked derisively. “There’s nothing mystical about an asteroid strike.”
“I agree,” Chiraine said. “But we’re not talking about a single asteroid strike. Over the 3,000 years the Kryrk was in the possession of the Shima, they used it hundreds of times against their enemies.”
“They only mentioned the one time to us,” I said.
“That’s because the Shima wanted you to believe that the Kryrk’s power was a myth. It’s not. It’s real. And I’ve seen the documentation. The Kryrk is a weapon. And whoever wields it can destroy entire planets.”
“How could it be a weapon?” Ana-Zhi scoffed. “It’s a golden crescent yea big.” She moved her hands a half meter apart.
“If we had recovered it, I would have been able to study it, and then maybe give you an answer.”
“I just don’t buy it.”
“Do you really think the Shima would be paying what they’re paying for a mere holy trinket? Think about it.”
16
No one said anything for a long time. We were all lost in thought. Or in shock. Or both.
Could it be true? Could the Kryrk be some sort of ancient planet killer? I shuddered to think of such a thing falling into the hands of the Mayir.
But the more I thought about the Kryrk and the Mayir, the more I realized that there wasn’t anything we could do to about it while we were stuck here on Bandala.
The thing I could do something about was saving my father.
A plan formed in my mind. I had to get the sled and get my dad. Bandala had to have some sort of medical facility for all the Yueldians who worked here. And from everything the archeobiologists knew, the Yueldians were not dramatically different from humans and they were actually fairly close to the Faiurae, biologically speaking.
But then a realization of despair hit me.
Even if I could revive my father, then what? Ana-Zhi was right. We were stuck here. For maybe fifteen years. We’d starve well before then. Or end up having to put ourselves in hibernation. Like my dad did.
That would be ironic.
The sound of Ana-Zhi Agrada’s voice snapped me out of my reverie.
“Here’s what we’re going to do.” She started to pace. “We’ll find that other landing deck. See if there is any sign that Yates went up there. Jannigan, you’re pretty good at tracking bootprints. We should be able to confirm whether or not he’s left Bandala.”
“And if he hasn’t?” Chiraine asked.
“I kick the shit out of him until he talks.”
I checked my Aura. “There’s not much time until the Fountain closes. I doubt Yates and the Mayir are hanging around. Especially since they got what they came for.”
“Agreed,” Ana-Zhi said. “But I want to make sure.”
“Then what?”
“Then we look for a comm station,” Ana-Zhi said. “A place like this would need to have a long-range communications array in order to stay in contact with Yueld. Especially during an armed conflict. We find the array and the princess here gets it running. Then we broadcast a distress call.”
“To whom?” I asked. “You said that the Rhya had disappeared.”
“I said I’m not sure what happened to them.”
“So what makes you think they’ll answer a distress call now?”
“I don’t know what was going on earlier, junior. Maybe the wardens finished up their work early and headed back home. But what I do know is that when three ships go into the Fountain and only one comes out, there’s going to be an investigation. The Rhya are going to hold open the gate for as long as they can and they will send a shitload of wardships in to make sure no one is trying to remain in here illegally and mess with the Obaswoon. We need to be ready for that. You understand?”
“Absolutely,” I said. “And I’m on board with everything. But first I am going to get my dad.”
“Of course, but we’re going to need to be careful. We know that zone’s defenses are active. We got lucky with the prowlers, but I have a feeling there’s something much worse just waiting for us.”
“If we can get to the LVX controller, I’ll shut the zone down,” Chiraine said.
“You know how to do that?” I asked.
She shrugged. “It’s an LVX. How hard can it be?”
We backtracked towards the depot and recovered the sled from where we had hidden it. As Chiraine set to work familiarizing herself with the LVX, Ana-Zhi and I assessed the other gear on the sled. It was just the basic stuff. No food or water. Some cutting tools, a magwinch, ammo boxes, thermal flares, and a few spare scanners. It didn’t look like Yates had removed anything.
“Got it,” Chiraine said. “I’m in.”
“You’re a lot quicker than Yates,” Ana-Zhi said.
“It’s a pretty primitive system. We just need to be careful to stay on it.
