Chapter Eleven #2
I'd received confirmation that Tydalos hadn't lied. Volardi technology didn't flow freely. Sure, Earth got a few upgrades. A fusion generator here, and some medical advancements there, but the trickle was so painfully slow it wouldn't make a life-changing dent for decades.
It's almost as if they want us to need them.
My nights were restless, and my days were spent trying not to lose my mind while thinking of Earth. I'd taken Alen's surfboard. Useless here, but a nice reminder. My old guitar made it too, with strings slightly loose from the journey.
On a windy night, I sat on a stone platform's edge outside the palace with Sudo's double moons casting faint shadows over the alien landscape. My fingers plucked away, and a haunting melody filled the air. The song wasn't anything I'd planned, just a raw, aching tune that poured out.
In the distance, tiny shadows gathered as I played.
Small, spindly creatures with shells crept closer, their glowing eyes staring in curiosity.
They moved in jerky motions, like they weren't quite used to this sound.
One chirped, tilting its head like it was trying to understand the music.
Its head bopped up and down to the rhythm.
I smiled, with the first real smile I managed since I arrived.
A 'Vrrrr' sound came, and energy cannons roared to life.
Bright red beams sliced into the night, burning anything they hit.
Override commands via my implant did nothing, and flaming bodies crumpled into the sand, lifeless and smoking.
A larger one, a muscular bipedal creature that looked like a brown reptilian monkey with large eyes, twitched violently.
"No!" My guitar clattered to the ground, breaking at the neck joint. The cannons silenced, and the air stank of scorched chitin, like melted plastic and rotting leaves. I gagged, trying to cough out the taste in my mouth.
A looming shadow grew over me as the wind continued, fanning the fires higher.
"Why? They weren't doing anything. They just listened."
Zephyron's deep voice cut through. "They were a threat, attracted by your melody."
I spun around, anger boiling in my chest. "They were harmless! They were just animals, for God's sake!"
He approached with slow, deliberate movements. The moonlight draped across his eyes. "You see only what is in front of you, not the danger associated. Zerlites multiply quickly because it is what they were bred to do. What you call 'innocent' could overrun this territory in hours."
My fists clenched. "Kill anything which could hurt your perfect little world? That's the Volardi way? Wipe out everything? Just in case?"
Zephyron's jaw tightened, and his voice lowered. "Do not presume to understand what is necessary for survival on Sudo. That is not your role."
"Yes, let's talk about that. I'm here because the situation forced it, and I wanted to keep my father alive.
I'm sorry about what happened and I said I'd pay the price, but you won't even touch me, even though I've already changed.
We've had more than enough time for the 'medical procedure,' so I can take your sperm. "
It's not like I was in a hurry to get knocked up, but still...
A familiar cough broke through the tension.
I whipped around to see Parker standing a few feet away. A small red hover camera—chrome-trimmed and shaped vaguely like a retro muscle car—buzzed around him like an overzealous cicada.
His casual grin faltered as he took in the scene, his eyes darting between Zephyron and me. "Yikes! Should I come back? Or is nighttime desert drama barbecue your thing now?"
Zephyron's gaze shifted to the floating camera. "This intrusion was not authorized!"
His drone generated a silver holobadge, with edges glinting in the dual moonlight. "Technically, it was. Westmore signed off. Said the world deserves to know what's happening on Sudo. Transparency and all that." He then pointed to me. "Besides, Thomas said it was okay, didn't you?"
Zephyron glared at me.
"I told you he was coming, but you don't listen when I talk."
"He is a complication."
Parker raised his hands defensively. "I'm just here to document history or, you know, whatever this is."
I groaned and gathered up my broken guitar pieces. "Parker, you couldn't have picked a worse time."
"Well," he smirked slightly, "judging by the shouting match I walked into, I figured as much. But hey, the lens loves drama."
Zephyron took a step forward, his towering frame casting a long shadow over Parker. "Leave."
"Okay, alright!" Parker backed up. "But we need to talk, Thomas. Later. Preferably when your, uh, Soturi-Alpha isn't glaring at me like he's about to rip my head off." His smile disappeared. "That was a joke. Okay! I'll go find my room."
The red and chrome hover camera zipped toward me for a moment, capturing my flustered expression, before following Parker as he approached the two white Sims who took him to the palace.
"We're not done," I said, my voice shaking.
He crossed his arms. "Perhaps we are. I cannot bond with someone who disrupts Sudo's order."
***