NOTE: The following story is technically a prequel to my book Next Star Over. That said, I did my best to structure this story in a way where it can be read without needing to also read the book that follows it.
THE SECRET ABOVE
Henry N. Silva
Year 8999 A.V.
Cliff Ion’s first day as a Star-Drifter is about to begin…
Nervously, the young man stands tall, his cape matching the red forest surrounding him. With a deep inhale, he removes his driftcard from his pocket, running his thumb over the small, black jewel located on the edge of the gold-plated card. Suddenly, a holographic projection of planets and moons appear all around him, each accompanied with a piece of text. Instantly, his eyes catch one message in particular;
Need help saving a child.
With another inhale, he lifts a finger towards the message, touching it ever-so-slightly. Immediately, the holograms vanish, and Cliff fastens his driftcard away. He then resumes standing still. A dozen or so minutes pass, until a small, two-man starship descends from the clouds, landing just a few feet before him. To his surprise, a rusted, humanoid android stumbles out;
“Are you the one who answered my call?”
Cliff nods, “I am.”
“Very well, then,” the robot nods. “Let’s get going.”
***
Cliff Ion watches, as stars all around him pass through at lightspeed…
Quietly, he sits behind his robotic customer, piloting the small starship with ease.
“So,” the android begins, “What made you decide to become a Star-Drifter?”
Instantly, Cliff flashes back to the horrors of his homeworld, in the days when he wanted to get as far away from it as possible, and explore the galaxy at large. As clear as day, he sees the “goblins” attacking him and his people, their skin pitch black and wirey, their eyes piercing and evil…
We have to fight back, he recalls his father telling him.
What’s the point?, he remembers answering back.
“…Well?” The android asks again.
“Sorry,” the young man sighs. “I don’t wanna talk about it.”
***
Cliff Ion finds himself in a world of green stone…
The terrain is mostly flat, with the occasional mountain scattered about.
The broken android points to the mountain closest to them, “The child is stuck at the summit.”
Cliff turns to him, “So that’s all you need me to do? Climb a mountain? With all due respect, you couldn’t do that yourself?”
The robot points to his own, broken body, “Have you not seen the condition I am in?”
“Oh.” Cliff gives him an understanding nod, “Fair enough.”
With that, the Drifter makes his way towards the small, mountainous structure, ascending with relative ease. At its summit, he finds an entrance to a cave, and proceeds to make his way in slowly, switching on a flashlight from his utility belt, to guide him on his way…
Carefully, he walks for several dozens steps, with silence all around… And then, seemingly from nowhere, a screech fills the air. Soon after, a figure steps into view. A monster, of some sort, not dissimilar from the goblins Cliff knows all too well…
The Drifter recoils, “Get back! I said get back, you piece of trash!” Quickly, he removes a ray-gun from his belt, aiming it directly at the beast, preparing to fire… Until, suddenly, the creature looks upward, its eyes meeting Cliff’s gaze. He expects to see evil, but instead, he sees innocence. This thing, whatever it is, is afraid. It’s no monster. In fact, it’s a child…
With a sigh of acceptance, Cliff lowers his weapon, reaching out a helping hand in its place…
***
Cliff Ion makes his way back down the mountain, the child following right behind him…
The Star-Drifter walks slowly, constantly turning his head back, ensuring the creature’s safety… Efficiently, the pair arrive at the smooth surface below, the android there to greet them both.
“Well done!” He hands Cliff a small sack of coin.
“Where’s the rest of the family anyways?” The young man can’t help but ask.
The robotic caretaker points a finger to a sinkhole nearby, “I was programmed long ago to take care of them all.”
Overcome with curiosity, Clifford descends to the underground below, only to find an entire community of the same alien he rescued, some taller than others. A mixture of children and adults, no doubt.
Like before, he recoils, worried that the adults may be more threatening than their younger counterparts.
Swiftly, they all look over. Cliff takes a careful look at all of their eyes, seeing only innocence once again…
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