Wanderer Ch 9: The Ship That Holds The Future, Arrival At The Planet Gelmud

I sat in a small cell for what seemed like hours, not knowing if I was going to die or be probed. I was on an alien spaceship, and who knew what they were going to do to me?

I didn't dare get too close to the bars. They were thick and strong, glowing with an orange light as electricity cascaded up and down their steel-like surface.

"Dammit!" I muttered to myself, my hands fidgeting. I hated being by myself and having nothing to do. Yeah, that was torture for me.

I leaned back against the steel wall, my arms crossed as I looked up at the ceiling. "I wonder what they were saying," I said to myself, thinking back to the first time I met these alien creatures. They tried to speak to me, but I just couldn't understand their words.

"Huh." I sat up, hearing footsteps approaching. As they grew louder, two alien soldiers wearing bronze armor stood in front of my cell. Without wasting time, one of them began to open the door with a strange key that didn't look like a key at all.

As the door opened, I began to stand. The aliens didn't approach. Instead, they spoke in that same weird dialect I didn't understand. From their actions, I could tell they wanted me to leave the cell.

I walked cautiously out, making sure I didn't make any sudden moves that might make my alien captors want to shoot me. I would do what I had to do to get out of this alive.

The alien soldiers walked me through the corridor of the massive spaceship. I couldn't help but be in awe of the sci-fi-like inventions all around me. The walls hummed with a soft, pulsating light, and strange holographic displays floated in mid-air, showing star maps and alien symbols. This technology was light-years ahead of anything on my home planet, Terranis.

"Unbelievable," I thought to myself, marveling at the seamless blend of metal and energy. "This ship alone could revolutionize everything we know about science and engineering back home."

We passed through a section where robotic arms were repairing a damaged part of the ship. They moved with a precision and speed that made our best technology look primitive. I couldn't even begin to understand how half of these things worked.

Soon, we reached the main station of the ship. In the center of the room stood a small bronze throne, and sitting in it was the alien I remembered from before. I assumed he was the commander.

"You..." I said, pointing my finger, only for one of the aliens to punch me in the stomach, forcing me to fall to my knees, I could barely breath as it felt as if my lungs had exploded, and my ribs where just about to break.

The alien commander yelled something in his language, his voice filled with rage. The soldier who hit me stepped back immediately, bowing his head.

One of the soldiers handed me a small black device that floated towards my throat and wrapped around my neck like a collar.

"What is this!?" I yelled.

"Welcome," I heard a voice that was completely new to me. I looked up at the commander, who was smiling down at me.

"My name is Exe Borlag, the one who bears the title of Exe and as such am the commander of this ship. And you are?"

***

I flew as fast as I could through the roaring waves that crashed against my body, bathing me in warm rays as I traveled through hyperspace. A feat that would take the most experienced engineers to accomplish and the most powerful ships to even attempt, I could do alone with my own body.

The honest truth is, through my centuries of boredom, this was one of the most fun things for me to do. Especially, and trust me when I say I hate to admit this, when my big, powerful body crashes into a small ship or better yet a fleet of small ships that happen to be traveling through the same hyperspace route I'm taking. I loved how they would crash against my body. Oh, how it would tickle as they exploded against my flesh, and what fun it would be to watch them spin out of control from a single touch of my finger, only to be vaporized by the energy walls that made up this space.

It was too bad there were no small ships today. I really needed a little pick-me-up, especially right now.

"Are we there yet?" I heard an all-too-familiar voice behind me, causing my heart to ache with annoyance.

I turned my head to see big sister Eclipsa following behind, her arms crossed and a bored look etched across her face, which was never good. The thing about being a wanderer was that boredom would always be a part of one's life, boredom that would last for centuries without end, but big sister always seemed to be the exception among all of us. She would do anything if it meant evading the horrid enemy known as boredom.

"No, not yet," I said, looking straight ahead.

"Remind me again, where are we going?" Eclipsa asked.

I continued to look ahead but began to smirk. "Those silver ships," I said with a little excitement in my voice.

"Yeah, what about them?" Eclipsa asked, raising one eyebrow.

"I believe I know where their planet is," I said, turning back to glance at big sister.

"Ahhh..." she said, a small smile beginning to appear on her lips. "Now this is getting fun."

***

On the planet of Gelmud, the citizens went about their daily lives, blissfully unaware of the impending doom. The bustling marketplaces were filled with the sounds of haggling and laughter. Stalls overflowed with vibrant goods, from exotic fruits to shimmering fabrics. The silver cities sparkled under the light of their twin suns, and flying spacecrafts of blue and silver light zipped through the air like fireflies.

In the capital, towering skyscrapers gleamed, their surfaces reflecting the brilliance of the day. Children played in the parks, their laughter mingling with the hum of life in the city. Adults hurried to their jobs, engaged in conversations about politics, sports, and daily gossip. The scent of fresh-baked bread wafted through the streets, mingling with the aroma of street food vendors selling their delicacies.

Then, without warning, a shadow fell over the entire planet. The ground itself began to rumble and crack apart, and the winds, which had been calm for centuries, suddenly raged with a fury unseen in living memory. Panic spread like wildfire as people looked up, their eyes widening in disbelief.

Two figures loomed on the horizon, their titanic forms towering beyond the clouds themselves. They were colossal, so vast that their presence seemed to warp reality. The citizens of Gelmud stopped in their tracks, each having their own inner monologue as they beheld the unimaginable sight.

A merchant dropped his wares, his hands trembling. "What... what is that? Are the radiant ones real? Is this the end?"

A child clutched her mother's leg, her eyes wide with fear. "Mommy, who are they? Are they here to hurt us?"

An old man, who had seen many things in his lifetime, fell to his knees. "By the silver pillars, have mercy. We are but bargs (ants) before these radiants."

The whole world soon began to vibrate as a massive voice echoed through the land, shaking the very core of Gelmud. "SURRENDER OR DIE."

The declaration reverberated through every street and alley, sending waves of terror and awe rippling through the populace. All eyes turned upward, awaiting their fate, as the two titans stood, their presence alone spelling doom for the world of Gelmud.