“Of Earth, I know not,” Ocha said. “Escape you may, if you are fortunate. If you find a place to hide.”

  “I don’t want to hide,” Alyssa said. “I want to go home.”

  “Do you know which planet belongs to the Warden?” Ben asked. “Which one is his homeworld?”

  “All worlds belong to the Warden,” Ocha answered.

  “But is there one that he returns to, when he isn’t flying around in his ship forcing people to do drugs?” Tyler questioned.

  “The Warden has no ships.”

  “Sure he does. Didn’t you hear Ben earlier? We were attacked by one of them.”

  “Of ships, there are none. There is only the Warden.”

  “I think he’s saying the Warden is the ship,” Alyssa said.

  “That would explain the clones,” Matt added. “And his control over the Prall.”

  “A ship that makes its own crew?” I said. “Or do they only exist to recruit new servants?”

  “How do you know the Warden is the ship,” Ben asked Ocha, “instead of commanding the ship?”

  Ocha didn’t answer. He didn’t seem to understand the question. “Maybe it’s all the same to him,” I said.

  “It pretty much is all the same,” Alyssa agreed. “Who cares if the ship is a god or the god lives on the ship? He’s still a malevolent asshole.”

  “We don’t know that he’s malevolent,” Tyler said.

  “What?” Ally screeched. “Are you not paying attention? The Warden destroyed the planet we’re standing on. He also made the Oron kill one another. What if he can make us kill people? Or each other!”

  “How does anyone force an entire civilization to eat itself?” Tyler said. “No way. I don’t buy it. And we have no proof the Warden was responsible for Goldhaven either.”

  “So you’re calling Ocha a liar?”

  “No. Warexia is a big universe. He can’t possibly know everything about it, and no offense, but the Oron don’t seem like the most advanced society. I’m saying what he believes is true might not be.”

  “We can’t rule it out,” Matt agreed.

  “Ocha, what do you know about chaos energy?” Ben asked, forging ahead with his questions instead of engaging in arguments that could just as easily happen back on Head Case.

  “Legend only. Before the Warden, much Chaos. After the Warden, none.”

  “Not none,” Ben corrected. “But very little. Do you believe the Warden stole it?”

  “Perhaps Chaos belongs to the Warden. Perhaps the Warden is Chaos.”

  I could tell by Ben’s face he wasn’t sure what to make of the statement. Me either. Based on Ocha’s replies, I believed the Warden had done something to the chaos energy. If that was true, then as of right now there was only one way home.

  Through the Warden.

  We needed another way.

  “You will go,” Ocha decided suddenly. “You are no longer welcome.”

  “I have more questions,” Ben said.

  “You will go.”

  The Oron behind Ocha stepped forward and banged the end of his spear into the dirt to emphasize Ocha’s request.

  “Please, two more questions,” Ben begged.

  Ocha’s concealed face shifted slightly beneath his drysuit as he considered the request. I suddenly realized why he hadn’t removed the cowl of the suit now that we were out of the elements.

  “Two questions. No more,” Ocha agreed.

  “One, can you recommend a planet where we can learn more about the Warden and Warexia without attracting his attention? A place with a data store or archive, a library, or similar?”

  It seemed to me like a much too advanced question for the simple alien. And when Ocha didn’t answer right away, I was certain he didn’t understand. Until he started to speak.

  “Once, the Oron begged for aid. The Oron received aid from the Gemmen. The world of the Gemmen is Nocturne. Seek out the Gemmen, yet understand. Everywhere you go, the Warden will be. Nocturne is no different. You will be quick. And you will be cautious.”

  Ben nodded. “Thank you. That’s more than I hoped for. I don’t have another question.”

  “I do,” Matt said. “You’re trying so hard to hide out here. What’s with the lights? We saw them from space. That’s why we came to the surface.”

  “When the Warden knows, when the Warden comes, the Warden will see not lights. The Warden will see only the Oron. The lights are for the lost. A memory of home. A pleading for forgiveness. A beacon to Ora Kai, so that one day, the Oron will be truly free.”

  The answer left us in momentarily stunned silence. Ben moved first, pushing himself to his feet. We quickly joined him. “Thank you again, Ocha,” he said. “We’ll never forget your hospitality in spite of the risk to yourself and your community.”

  “Hear this,” Ocha replied. “Should the servant ignore the Warden, pain will follow. Should the servant please the Warden, great reward awaits. Until it awaits no longer. Now, you will go.”

  Ben glanced at Matt, nodding his agreement with Ocha’s edict before leading us from the meeting place. We walked at a brisk pace, an understood agreement among us to remain silent until we returned to Head Case.

  My body shivered in response to all that Ocha had said, my mind still not fully able to come to terms with the kind of trouble we had fallen into. Remembering what Ben had said about the rift only chilled me even more. None of this was an accident. Someone had delivered us to Warexia.

  To the Warden.

  But who ? And why?

  We might as well have tied a big red bow around Head Case that said: HERE WE ARE. COME AND GET US!

  Halfway back to the ship, something in Ben’s pocket buzzed. His brow crinkled, and he reached for the source of the noise, pulling out what I imagined had to be the RFD. The screen was already active.

  The Warden’s face filled the frame.

  CHAPTER 35

  “Ah, there you are,” the Warden said, his eyes alight with malevolent mirth. His Cheshire Cat grin sent a shiver down my spine. “I’ve been looking all over for you. Kudos on making it surprisingly more challenging than I expected. You aren’t letting me down so far.”

  “So glad to hear it,” Ben replied flatly.

  “Let me see here,” the Warden said, glancing down as if checking notes. “Goldhaven. Interesting. Out of all the planets on the map that I provided, why Goldhaven?”

  “I think the question is, why not Goldhaven?” Tyler remarked.

  The Warden laughed. “Indeed. Why not Goldhaven.” His smile vanished instantly. “But really, how did you come to choose it? I’m sure, in part because it allowed you to spend two weeks in FTL, which you rightly assumed would buy you time to repair your ship and avoid my admiring gaze for a short while. But there are plenty of other more populated planets that fit the bill.”

  “I liked the name,” Tyler said. “Simple as that.”

  The Warden cracked up at that. “I love it. Simple. Straightforward. How are the Oron faring these days?”

  I could see Ben attempt to hide his surprise. Ocha had claimed the Warden didn’t know they were on the planet. Had he always known, or had us discovering them here revealed them? “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he lied, turning the RFD in a manner that suggested he was showing the Warden the landscape. “There’s nothing here.”

  “So you landed your ship on a deserted planet? Why?”

  “We weren’t confident it was deserted.”

  “You’re a terrible liar,” the Warden said. I had to agree with him. Ben had the worst poker face in the universe. “Don’t get yourself all worked up. I’m sure you spoke to Ocha, and I’m sure he told you that I don’t know the Oron are there. But I do know. I’ve always known. There’s a lesson for you and your crew here.” He paused dramatically, his voice dropping a few octaves and becoming monstrously threatening. “I know everything.” He cracked up again.

  Ben gave up trying to cover the truth. “If you knew they were here the whole time, why haven’t you destroyed them? Ocha is convinced you will.”

  “Have you looked around? Goldhaven is in the throes of its own demise, a victim of the end of its star’s life. The atmosphere is on the verge of collapse. Its ocean’s drying up. What could I possibly do to them that could be worse than a slow, agonizing extinction? To send a ship to blast them all to ash and dust would be a boon, not a curse.”

  “How can you be so cruel?” Alyssa asked.

  “My dear, I have no idea what you mean.”

  “Seriously? You forced the Oron into a civil war. You destroyed most of their civilization. You did the same to Goldhaven.”

  “Did you see the number of planets on the star map?”

  “Yes, so.”

  “So, I’m responsible for every inch of Warexia. Thousands of planets. Hundreds of intelligent life forms. Who are you to tell me that I’m cruel? How do you know that the destruction of these two populations didn’t save a hundred more?”

  “I…I don’t,” Alyssa admitted. “Did it?”

  The Warden shrugged. “Who knows?” He again cracked himself up, proving he had no intention of giving us any hint of where the truth might lie. Somewhere in between his and Ocha’s perspectives, if Dad’s wisdom was anything to go by. “I’m sure Ocha painted me as a monster. You can’t tend a garden without pruning.”

  “You sent the Achai to attack us purely for entertainment value,” I reminded him. “That doesn’t spell benevolent god to me.”

  “Ah, you again,” the Warden said. “Noah, whatever will I do with you?” He sighed. “I never claimed to be benevolent or malevolent. If I had to choose a word, I would say indifferent. But I don’t have to choose a word. I am what I am. My motivations are mine alone and no concern of yours. I provided you with the necessary path to survive in Warexia. The only question is whether you’ll follow it. Which is my purpose for contacting you now. While you’ve entertained me with your efforts to escape my attention, if only for a short while, I want to see more from you. You’ve had two weeks to prepare your ship, and you’re clearly comfortable making contact with other races. It’s time for your first task.”

  “How can you be bored with us already?” Tyler complained.

  “Let’s call it a preemptive strike. I don’t want you prancing off into FTL for another two weeks and leaving me behind.”

  By Matt’s expression, I had a sense that’s exactly what he’d hoped we would have a chance to do.

  “You never said we had to stay out of hyperspace,” Ben said.

  “That’s because it’s all so much more fun when you think for yourselves. But every action has a reaction. Cause and effect. You reap what you sow. And so, your first task. I want you to deliver a message. The planet and contact are accessible through your ship’s log.”

  “You have an entire universe at your disposal, and you need us to play messenger?” Tyler asked. “What gives?”

  “I don’t need you to play messenger. I could deliver it myself. I choose not to. As I said, everything you need is in your ship’s log.”

  “Is there a time limit on this delivery?” I asked.

  “An excellent question, but I suppose I should have expected as much. Yes, Noah. There is a time limit. And if you fail to deliver the message within the allotted time, there will be consequences.”

  “I have an unrelated question,” Ben said.

  “Then I’ll give you an unrelated answer,” the Warden replied. “Go on.”

  “Ocha believes your arrival coincided with the drought of chaos energy in this galaxy. Is that true?”

  “If you ever find yourself on Vislsiv, beware the spotted cughra. You have your task. Bye-bye for now.”

  The RFD’s screen went blank.

  “What the heck kind of answer was that?” Tyler moaned.

  “An unrelated one,” I replied, amused by the Warden’s response despite myself. “He warned us.”

  “I hate that guy,” Alyssa said.

  “So, what do we do now?” I asked.

  “Get back to Head Case,” Ben answered. “Leave Goldhaven before the Warden can tell the Oron he knows they’re hiding here and to kill us if they want to stay alive.”

  “Can the Warden be that predictable?” Tyler asked, glancing back at them over his shoulder.

  “Who knows.” Motion from the far end of the settlement drew my attention. A single Oron had emerged from his hole in the rubble. He stood motionless, watching us closely, as if Ben’s premonition were already coming true.

  “Let’s move,” Matt said, breaking into a jog toward the ship. Thankfully, we weren’t that far away.

  “Leo,” Ben said. “I want us off the ground as soon as we’re all on board.”

  “Aye, Captain,” Leo replied.

  A few more Oron spilled into the open. All of them held spears.

  “Maybe they’re just making sure we leave,” Ally guessed.

  “I don’t think so. Leo, let’s go,” Ben said, the Oron right behind us as we ran up the ramp leading into Head Case’s hangar bay. Remaining just outside the door while the rest of us boarded, Matt opened fire as I crossed the threshold. A quick glance behind me revealed his plasma bolts kicking up the parched earth just in front of the approaching aliens.

  “Hold on!” Leo warned us.

  Anti-gravity systems vibrated the deck. Matt squeezed off a few more rounds as the ramp started coming up. A spear hit it just before it closed, revealing both the weapon’s sharpness and the strength of the thrower when it sank all the way through the metal.

  Head Case lurched skyward, hopping back and away like a jackrabbit from a coyote. I activated my magboots just in time to stay on my feet. A couple more spears thunked into the hull before we made enough distance to escape their range. Or perhaps Leo had activated the shields. The main thrusters ignited, rattling the ship even more. Even with dampening and my magboots locked to the deck, the sudden acceleration dumped me on my butt.. Matt grabbed my arm, pulling me up as we climbed up and away from Goldhaven.

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “Anytime.”

  “Let’s head up to the flight deck and see where we’re supposed to go next,” Ben suggested once the inertia flattened, our escape assured.

  “So that’s it?” Tyler said. “The Warden says jump, and we jump? No questions asked?”

  “I’m not too keen on defying a god,” Alyssa replied.

  “He’s not a god.”

  “Then what is he?”

  “I don’t know. I just know he’s not a god.”

  “You heard Ocha,” I said. “Ignore the Warden, suffer the consequences. Do as he says, reap the rewards.”

  “You reap what you sow,” Ally agreed, paraphrasing the Warden.

  “Until the Warden gets bored with you,” Tyler said. “Ocha said that, too. Discarded like an old toy. I bet it’s like a video game. Each task gets a little harder until it becomes damn near impossible. Never mind what we do at the end.”

  “Any video game is beatable,” I said.

  “Yeah, with save games and retries. I don’t think we have that luxury here.”

  “So you want to defy the Warden to do what? Close your eyes and point at our next destination?”

  “No. We should go to Nocturne. Visit the Gemmen. Ocha said they could help.”

  “Yeah, he also said they helped the Oron escape the Warden, which they obviously haven’t. Their usefulness seems limited.”

  Tyler opened his mouth to continue arguing, but Ben shut him down. “Enough. Both of you. Let’s just go see what we’re looking at. We don’t have enough information about anything yet to make any decisions.”

  Tyler glowered but remained silent as we followed Ben into and off the elevator. “Leo, I have the flight deck,” he said as we took our seats.

  “Aye, Captain. You have the flight deck.”

  “This gets crazier by the minute, doesn’t it?” Meg said.

  “Understatement of the year,” Tyler mumbled.

  “We’ve dealt with worse,” Ben answered.

  “Have we?” Matt questioned. “I’m not so sure about that, bro.”

  “Levi, the Warden said he left some data for us.”

  “I don’t know who the Warden is,” Levi replied. “There is no new data within our storage units.”

  “Of course not,” Tyler grumbled.

  “We already picked apart the PCS,” Meg said. “Both the hardware and the OS. We didn’t come across any malicious code, corrupted memory, or unexplained code execution.”

  “And the hardware showed no signs of tampering,” Leo added.

  “If Levi is compromised, we don’t know how,” Meg continued. “And if we can’t see it, then Levi can’t, either.”

  “The Warden’s seized control of the ship’s systems twice already, and you have no idea how?” I asked.

  “No,” Meg replied. “Believe me, we’re not happy about it. We’re still trying to figure it out.”

  “However he’s doing it, he said he left us the data we need,” Alyssa said. “But Levi just said she doesn’t have it.”

  “Let’s assume the Warden told us the truth,” Ben said. “The data is there, but in such a way that it isn’t obvious to the PCS’ algorithms.”

  “He would have needed to provide a who, what, and where,” I said, working the problem from the top down. “Person, place, and message.”

  “Bingo!” Ben agreed. “The only piece we need right now is place. Levi, bring up the star map.”

  The map projected at the front of the flight deck, centered on our position.

  “Considering the Warden didn’t want us disappearing into hyperspace for another two weeks, I think it’s relatively safe to assume our destination is within an area of that size or smaller,” Ben continued.

  “That’s still a big area,” Meg said.

  “Yeah, I’m sure we can narrow it down. Levi, reduce the view to two weeks of hyperspace travel.”

  The map zoomed in, still leaving us with hundreds of potential destinations including our point of origin, which Levi also highlighted at the edge of the projection.