The Jewels of the Stars

Taking Flight

The door slid shut as a hostess from Dlixeria began the safety instructions that nobody really paid attention to. Khalon reclined back in his seat. The sapphire coloured cushion was soft against his back. An android with amber eyes walked down the aisle, serving cocktails to the passengers. His voice continually declared that he was Exo, “here and happy to help” as he predicted everyone’s taste. Khalon took a glass of bixana from the android. He sipped it from the tall glass, enjoying the succulent taste of the bitter nikor berries against the sweet roniro that exploded on his tongue, fire and ice at the same time.

Nikte babbled like a brook, chattering about a series of adventures to far flung places across the galaxy. He was an adventurer of some sort, an explorer by the sound of it. Khalon listened for a while, captivated by the stories that were both amazing and humorous at the same time. He let the hum of engines and the chatter of Nikte lull him into slumber. With a soft purr, the holo-ship set off, soaring through the stars as Khalon dreamt of treasure beyond his wildest dreams.

A jolt woke Khalon from his sleep. Screams echoed. They were falling

Crashed

           Blue feathers were scattered over the floor from where Nikte had fallen awkwardly. Khalon helped his new friend, extricating the man from under the seat. One of his wings had been wedged between the floor and the chair. With a grumble and shove, Nikte was soon free. Clambering forward, they made their way out, passing bodies that littered the ship like leaves. Khalon pitied them, lost souls stuck forever far from home. Outside the ship, they found only a few had survived: Prince Liorna, Volker, Cuireann, the android Exo and a woman from Kryatiska named Zita.

          The holo-ship had landed on a wide beach of saffron sand that sparkled in the moonlight. Nikte began chattering again, his voice breaking the silence. He was fascinated with this new world, the explorer’s heart in him wanting to discover more. He hurried off to a short distance, examining something on the sand.

          Khalon nodded. It was a different world alright. Perhaps even a different galaxy, from the looks of the strange constellation in the sky, a swirling pattern like nothing he had ever seen before. It made him dizzy just looking at it, as if it was some kind of monster with an endless tail. 

          A bulbous blue moon dominated the sky, casting an eerie shadow over the holo-ship. Its jungle green colour looked ghostly in the moonlight, the ship as dead as its engines. He shuddered at the sight. There was something about this place that made his skin crawl.

The Sea

           Khalon turned around, taking his gaze off the moon. He shivered, as a cold eastern wind blew from across the sea. Khalon gazed at the sight in front of him; it was incredible, like nothing he’d ever seen before. Instead of the bright blue waters most planets had, this world’s ocean was a blinding pink colour. He frowned. It didn’t look like water. It was too beautiful for that. Khalon stepped a bit closer, trying to see it clearer. He stared in mesmerised wonder as he realised - they were jewels: kunzite, morganite, spinel, pearl, opal and coral gemstones filled the ocean, glistening as they moved. The jewels cracked and crunched as they drifted downstream, the sound echoing like laserbullets in the silence. Ice trickled over the waves, cooling the liquid crystals as they undulated like waves.

         The vivid pink stones glimmered, dazzling him with their beauty. His head reeled as he tried to count how many gems the ocean held. It must be thousand. Millions, maybe. His mouth watered. He’d never seen such a large treasure hoard. Each one was most likely worth thousands of owcrists. If he could just steal one, he’d be a millionaire. He had always worked so hard to get what he wanted, conjuring plans and schemes to steal the wonders of the universe. But here, the grand prize was just sitting here, lying on a beach, for anyone to take. There were so many. The people who lived here wouldn’t mind if he just took the one.

         But he couldn’t. Not here. Not now. There were too many people around. And besides, that guard was still scrutinising him. Khalon could feel the man’s extendable eye stalks on his back. In all the years, he had never been caught. He wasn’t about to break that record now. He sighed. He hated playing the long game. But for all that treasure, it would be worth it.

          He heard footsteps approaching. He slapped his wandering fingers, forcing himself to resist. He breathed a shaky sigh of relief. Just in time. It was Nikte. Then Liorna, Volker and Cuireann joined him to admire the world in front of them. For a while, they stood in silence, too awed to speak. Liorna’s purple skin shimmered under the blue moon as if he was a ghost, pale and translucent even under thick woollen furs. The light seemed to seep through him, illuminating bones and organs encased in the sheen of amethyst jewels like treasures secured in glass cases in museums. Khalon enjoyed the quietude for a while, lost in his own thoughts.

New Friends

  As the silence went on, he could see Nikte struggling to keep his thoughts to himself. Soon it was like a dam bursting, his chatter filling the quiet like a waterfall. His voice swirled over the waves as he compared some of the lands he had visited to this one. Khalon instantly warmed to the man, liking his inquisitive and joyful nature even more than he had done on the ship. There was something about the man that drew him in.

Nikte’s words streamed like a river, questions tumbling out of his mouth like rocks down a mountainside. Khalon shrugged, not knowing the answers. But Liorna did. The Prince said nothing for a while, staring out at sea. Khalon could see the man’s marvellous mind at work. He seemed to be thinking hard about something, considering Nikte’s questions.

Eventually the Prince answered Nikte, describing the science behind the cooling of the jewels. Intrigued, Khalon paid attention, ignoring thoughts of treasure. It sounded fascinating, as Liorna made the awesome wonders of this world easy to understand. Nikte listened too, eager to learn. His enthusiasm was infectious, bringing Khalon and Liorna out in laughter as he tried to understand it all with strange mnemonics and odd analogies. Tears streamed down Liorna’s face like comets as he tried to explain things to Nikte. Khalon couldn’t remember the last time he had laughed so hard. It bubbled out of him, dancing in the mouth like the fizzing candies he had tried once on Ghista 173. He could never get enough of those sweets. And he couldn’t get enough of this feeling. He wished it could last.

After a while, Liorna walked back to the ship, eager to inspect the damage. Nikte and the rest followed suit. Khalon stood to one side and waited anxiously. He didn’t like being stuck somewhere with no way out. The twisted metal seemed to laugh at him, as Liorna inspected them and tried to mend them.

Damaged Ship

“Well?” Khalon asked hopefully. Liorna shook his head.

“Even if I had the tools to mend this, it could take weeks to repair” he said gloomily. “We’re stuck here” he admitted.

“Well not to worry” Nikte said cheerily. Khalon frowned, wondering if the man was mad. They were stuck on an unknown planet, far from home, with a ship that was damaged. And he said not to worry?

“I’ve been in worse places than this.” He said boldly, seeing Khalon’s dumbstruck look. “We still have each other.” He continued. “Besides, this place might be inhabited. Maybe the people who live here will help us. It never hurts to ask” he finished with a shrug.

“I’ll scan the area and investigate” Cuireann said gruffly. He rummaged in his pocket for something. After a moment, he withdrew a Jirito sensor. With a bleep, it breathed to life. His fingers flew as he scrolled through screens and pressed buttons. The minutes seemed to turn to centuries as they waited.

Signs of Life?

Khalon began to get impatient. Whatever Cuireann was doing, it was taking too long. He was so cold. He wished he had a thicker jacket. But the brochure had said they were headed to places full of beaches and sunshine, and he had packed light, to avoid suspicion. A few snowflakes began to fall, a light flurry descending from the skies.

“Anything?” Khalon asked, his voice snapping the silence like a bone breaking.

“Nothing. No life forms” Cuireann said, not even looking up from the screen.

Khalon frowned. That doesn’t sound right, he thought. Every place has some sort of life. There were people all across the galaxy. And where nobody lived, there was always birds or reptiles or even bacteria of some kind living in the sea. There couldn’t just be nothing.

“None?” Khalon asked in disbelief.

“None at all.” Cuireann repeated.

“Well that can’t be right. The brochure said this new galaxy was full of life and wonder. It can’t just be empty.” Nikte said, confused.

“Well obviously that information was incorrect. Unless the sensors are faulty, of course” Zita said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“The sensors are working perfectly fine.” Cuireann retorted, his sharp spikes bristling.

          Liorna crouched down, pressing a pointed ear to the ground. With closed eyes, he searched and sensed the empty world for a grain of life.

          “There was something. I heard it.” Liorna insisted. “It was faint, but it was there. It was like a chuckle, a soft laugh. Perhaps whatever life form it may be is just not on your sensor. Science doesn’t know everything,” Liorna remarked. He stood up, a frown making the crystals forehead crunch and crack as he pondered what the sound had been.

Nothing Here but the Jewels

          Turning to Cuireann, Khalon asked “Are you quite sure the sensors indicate no life presence?”

“I’m quite sure. Even if what Prince Liorna says is true, the temperature readings from the scan indicate this world is one of the coldest, at least -65 on the Ghardis scale. Not much could survive here. Perhaps a simple life form, a slug or insect of some sort. That is probably what Prince Liorna heard” Cuireann remarked.

“If you’re still uncertain, see for yourself. There is nothing here but the jewels” Cuireann said, handing him the sensor. Khalon tapped the screen, scanning for himself. The tapping was the only sound in the quiet. The silence unnerved Khalon, sending a small shiver up his tail. He imagined the quiet had once been serene, peaceful. But he didn’t like it. Silence was only a good thing if you were sneaking up on a hidden treasure hoard or a trap. Or for an ambush, he thought, glancing nervously around. He couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched. He ignored it as best he could, concentrating on the task at hand. Cuireann was right. There were no life signs. There was nothing here but the jewels.

The Map

Khalon tapped the screen again, making an atlas appear. It was too cold to stay on the beach. He looked through the map for somewhere to go. To the north of here was a large forest, connecting to what appeared as a small villagee. Further north were meadows and fields. To the south of the palace lay a frozen wasteland of bogs and marches, full of danger. A ridge of volcanoes lay to the east of here, spouting ash from its mouths even on the sensor, on the border of an empty land of fire and flame. Further north beyond the village lay a dark place that not even the sensor dared to go, a twisted forest full of strange temples and standing stones. After that, tall brooding mountains loomed over the world, a sea of teeth that never seemed to end, coated in snow.

          He kept searching. Those places all sounded wonderful, but probably provided little shelter from this biting cold. Besides, he doubted much treasure was stored in mountains. He smiled as he zoomed in on the lands nearby. A grand palace. Now that was more like it. If there was any treasure to be had, it would be there.

          “There seems to be a palace to the east of here, through some kind of forest. “he said slowly, thinking aloud. “Perhaps it is best to head there. Before we all freeze to death.”

“I agree” said Liorna, nodding in earnest. The poor man already had a thin layer of frost and snow coating his crystalline skin. Khalon really hoped the myth about Yexlakans exploding when they froze solid wasn’t true. It would be a bad day to find out.

The rest of group nodded and agreed. Cuireann investigated the map, seeing which way to go. He put the sensor back in his pocket and began to lead the way to the palace, setting off into the forest.

A Kingdom of Jewels

A rustle behind them echoed at every step, too heavy a sound to be the chime of the gems. Someone or something was following them. Behind him, Volker’s eyes swivelled round to check. But every time he did, the noise was gone. Khalon agreed with his tail. Something wasn’t right.

          The feeling crawled under his skin as they walked. But he put a smile on his face as Nikte and Liorna strolled beside him and chatted about this and that. Khalon joined in where he could. But he was distracted, mesmerised by the wonders around him. He had always loved the forests, ever since he was small. Growing up in the forest world of Namoya had inserted the love of forests deep within his bones. Their beauty always captivated him. But this forest was more beautiful than any he had ever seen.

Trees as tall as skyscrapers surrounded him, cutting the clouds above. A magical deep green light shimmered through the vast canopy of leaves. Khalon marvelled as they strolled through pines and elms covered with deep emeralds and shining jades where leaves should be. He gasped in wonder at towering oaks coated with shimmering amazonites that rippled up the tree trunks like scales. Even the dark malachite ferns and bushes seemed to glimmer in the moonlight. He could barely tear his eyes away. He wished he could stay in the beautiful forest forever. It was better than any treasure.

But Nikte tugged his arm, saying “the forest would still be here later.” Khalon smiled, following his new friend across a large bridge that ran over a vast river of rhodochrosites.

          Liorna rolled his eyes at Khalon’s daydreaming nature, even though the man had been dawdling himself. The others had already left the comforting shelter of the forest. The group quickened their pace, even though Khalon secretly wished they could have seen more of the forest. Zita just tutted, the suckers on her mouth flapping as she did. Exo kept walking ahead of her, excitedly documenting every tree and flower he saw. Together, the friends passed through the forest and on to the citadel beyond.

The path of jet stones they followed grew wider as it curved up the steep hill, lined with shops and cafés that advertised forgotten goods and neglected wares. Like arteries, a hundred such streets branched off the path, snaking through red brick houses. The houses and shops seemed to be the only things not covered in jewels. Instead, mould and ivy blossomed where once families had grown, dark green splotches spread over the walls like blisters. They passed through a silent park of blue grass, where once people had laughed and played together. Now it was deserted, inhabited only by silence.

The Grand Palace

Turning a corner and slipping round another, they were greeted by the grand palace. Khalon’s jaw dropped. It was like nothing he had ever seen before. He had experienced his fair share of palaces, but he had never stopped to look; always too busy mapping the entrances, and tunnels to steal their treasures or assessing the defences to avoid on his way out. He had never paused to appreciate. Now he could. He stopped and stared. It was wonderful. He could see that it had more splendour than all the palaces of this galaxy put together.

He could barely keep his eyes off it as they walked over the drawbridge of spinel stones that arched over a wide moat of morganiteṣ.

       Tall turrets of tourmaline soared up into the sky, their deep purple hue glimmering in the moonlight. Charoites choked the crenellations that were shaped like the missing teeth of some ancient skull. Their glossy surfaces ran round the tops of the walls of sugilite stone, the lavender shade deepening as it cascaded down the palace. An army of amethysts swallowed the keep that reared its mighty head to the sky, coating it in a sheen of shimmering stones. Slender arrow slits of pale purple iolite gleamed in the moonlight, the white iridescence making them almost invisible.

Locked Shut

A set of diamond doors greeted them, intricately decorated with onyx stones. A series of locks and bolts threaded the doors together, fastening the palace shut for eternity. Khalon wondered what they had been trying to keep out. The sound behind them echoed again, louder and closer than before. The locked doors begged to be opened, a temptation that was too hard to resist. The treasure lay inside, and he would do anything to get to it. A soft sweet chuckle whispered in his ear, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He looked round. But there was no one there.