***
Capital Planet of Homo-3s, Eklis, Government District
Two moons shone like two celestial pearls in a quiet, star-studded night. The brook murmured in a garden, not breaking the harmony of silence. Nocturnal birds chirped in the trees abutting the small, towering palace that took up the center of the magnificent garden.
A beautiful girl in a diaphanous robe sprinted up the marble stairs, finally bursting into the chambers of an influential official. “Sir! Sir! Please wake up!”
Ankis Har woke with a start, screaming as if his maid had told him the palace was on fire or war had broken out. He opened his eyes, suppressing his anger toward the maid, whom he favored.
“What happened?” Ankis asked his lovely servant, chuckling in surprise when the girl’s face flushed a deep crimson.
“Sir, you have the Admin call.”
Ankis Har climbed from his bed, making his way to the long-distance communication room in his pajamas.
His disheveled appearance, it seemed, pleased the Homo-1curator. “Ankis Har, you are hereby appointed head of The Superior Control and Safety Service. Funds have been transferred to your account. You may choose one planet from a predetermined list for your lifetime possession. We look forward to your good and efficient work in dealing with the solar system region and planet Earth. Good luck.” With that, the Homo-1 curator disconnected.
Ankis Har, who many called “Cyclone” behind his back, spent the next hour organizing active work. Clerks were sent on urgent errands. Thousands of holograms disseminated information at an alarming rate. Here and there, holograms of Phoenix’s data, activities, and crimes flashed across many visual receptors.
Ten department chiefs milled around the center of the room, muttering in confusion and fear, swallowing nervously and straightening their uniforms. The consensus was that they would face dismissal or punishment if they failed.
“I need more information about Earth and its inhabitants!” Ankis Har thundered, pacing back and forth.
“Prisoners of Onuga Haz, the guardian sectarians know about the ancients and their ancestral home,” one of the chiefs bleated.
Ankis grabbed the speaker’s shirt.
“Kledo, head of the Analytical Department,” the chief introduced himself.
“What do you know and what do you offer?”
“If my memory serves me, there are approximately ten thousand sectarians in the automatic special prison. All have been given life sentences. We can certainly get them here, but we estimate fifty percent of the prisoners will die. Some will not survive cryogenic transportation.”
Ankis roared, “I don’t care how many die! I authorize everything. All guardians from Onuga Haz must be brought in for interrogation!”
While the registrar sent the order to the required service, Ankis continued to deafen those present. “Department of Transport and Communications, step forward.”
A thin, aged woman and a stout man separated themselves from the group. They opened their mouths to introduce themselves, but were interrupted.
“Later,” Ankis said. “You are responsible for the delivery of prisoners. Take action!”
“Yes, sir!” they said in unison, running from the room.
“Attention, head operator,” Ankis said in a magically amplified voice. “Show me all data regarding the Hypern and Star Jumper spaceships. Permission is granted to make the classified brief public.” Ankis then gave the order to convene an emergency large Council of the Core Worlds.
Five hours later, the huge hall filled with delegates seeking an audience with the new head of the Superior Control and Safety Service. By tradition, the head took the floor.
Chapter 16. Onuga Haz
Onuga Haz was a terrible place, populated with the twisted skeletons of ships, rocks, ice, and oblivion. It was the only planetary system in the central worlds, avoided even by the Supreme officials of the Admins.
Centuries ago, a grandiose battle of the Supreme Admin fleets took place there, turning this once flourishing space into an unending field of rubble. In the middle of this wasteland stood Onuga Haz, the prison of Eternal Oblivion. It had earned its sinister reputation.
A special boat of the paramilitary Prison Service delivered the prisoner to the outskirts of Onuga Haz. There, on the spot, the verdict was read, after which the prisoner was stunned and relieved of his clothing. Then, they were placed in a marked black capsule and sent to the prison. Few people survived transportation, and no one ever returned from this ice prison.
And then, out of the blue, an order came to return more than ten thousand prisoners for further investigation. Nonsense! Unthinkable!
Obeying the order, the sirens howled in the prison for the first time in decades. Gigantic machines clanged everywhere.
Suddenly, the light flashed, illuminating thousands of corridors containing thousands of octagonal prisoner capsules in niches. For a brief time, everything fell quiet, and the lights dimmed. Then they blinked and shone even brighter.
A mechanical voice announced, “ARA-19 intruder’s return confirmed. Clearance defect, ability defect. ARA-35 intruder’s return confirmed. Clearance defect, ability defect. ARA-39 intruder’s return confirmed. Clearance defect, ability defect.”
A monstrous alien resembling a giant white mantis sprinted through the prison. It quickly removed out the desired capsules, perfectly orienting itself in numerous cells.
***
Ankis Har, the new head of the Superior Control and Safety Service, reclined in a comfortable chair in his office, deep in thought as he oversaw the work of his subordinates at headquarters.
“I have a report.” Kledo, head of the analytical department, walked over and stretched out in front of Ankis Har.
“I’m listening.”
“The first batch of prisoners has been delivered. So far, losses are less than three percent. Most importantly, we’ve managed to deliver the legendary guardian, Tonas Var the Interpreter. May I revive him?”
Ankis Har stood, flexing his shoulders like an athlete before a competition. “I want to oversee it personally. I will start the awakening process myself.”
The head of the analytical department bowed obediently. “Everything is prepared. I will escort you to the interrogator’s room, at number five hundred and forty.”
The multi-vector portal transported the
