2199 Extinction

The people whisper amongst themselves, they must be as curious as I am as to what the announcement is.

“Alright everyone, let’s calm down.” Malum pauses until the crowd is quiet again. “I’m sure you all noticed the little boy with me earlier.”

He looks to his left and waves a female Talfarian over. She is holding a small toddler in her arms. She must be the Machin, the one who takes care of my little brother. She hands the child over to Malum, and the toddler wraps his little arms around his neck. “I know you are all worried about the death of the Queen and who will assume the throne.” he continues. “I want to assure you that the bloodline did not end with her. This little boy, here, this is the continuation of the Royal Line. All is not lost. This is her son. Her only child.”

I’m suddenly hit with another memory. It comes on strong that I almost fall over backward.

******************************

“Why do I have to learn all of this anyway?” my nine-year-old self, asks.

“Because it’s important. Because you are the future queen. Because part of being the Queen is understanding our traditions.” My mother says.

I roll my eyes but remain silent.

“Listen, tradition dictates that the oldest female child, of the Queen, takes on the position of ruler. That would be you.”

“What if I don’t want to be queen?” I ask.

“Don’t want to be queen? Why would you not want to be queen?”

“Because maybe I’m no good at it. Because maybe, I’m tired of learning all of this stuff.”

“Well then, the entire system would fall apart. The royal bloodline would end with me. There would be chaos, every Talfarian for himself. Is that what you want?” my mother asks.

“No. But. What if.”

“Are we playing what if, again?”

“I’m serious. What if you have another girl? Couldn’t she take over, instead of me?”

“I guess that’s a yes. She could take over if I had more girls. But let me ask you something. What if all I ever have is boys?”

I think for a moment. “Is that even possible?”

“Sure, it is. It’s perfectly possible. I have a friend that has twelve children, all boys. And she’s too old to have any more children.”

“What would happen if you only had boys? What if I had been a boy instead of a girl?” I ask.

“Well, we could have made it work. There would, initially, be panic, but once the oldest married and produced a daughter, all would be forgiven.”

“But why does everything depend on the girls and not the boys?”

“Because us girls carry life within us. The bloodlines begin and end with the life-givers, which is us. Without us, the Talfarian race would die out. That is why girls are so important. Now, close your eyes and go to sleep. I know you are just trying to delay bedtime.” Mother says leaning down and kissing my forehead.

******************************

I’m back in the present, in time to hear the panicked whispers of the people. The bloodlines can be preserved but not until my brother is old enough to marry. And law dictates that he cannot do that until he is twenty-one. That is nineteen years of uncertainty, if anything happens to him before he produces an heir, our people would fall apart. Become nomads roaming the stars. Chaos. The breakdown of everything we know and hold dear.

Malum calms the people, again, then continues. “That’s not the only piece of news I have for you. The Queen was murdered.” He pauses a moment before continuing. “I had the royal doctors confirm it before she was prepared for The Burning. I have a source that tells me the Queen was meeting with a Copaie on the day of her murder. This source also tells me that the last one visiting with her was that Copaie. But that’s not all, Astra, the former adoptive daughter of the queen, threatened to destroy both me and my son. She threatened to end the Royal Line. She escaped before anyone could lay their hands on her. My sources tell me she escaped to Saltu, to gather an army to attack and kill us all.” Malum is interrupted by the cries of horror coming from the crowd.

“But, as of two days ago, the entirety of the planet Saltu has been destroyed, as was every other planet owned by that demon race. The menace known as the Copaie has been wiped out. A very deadly virus, made to attack the DNA of the Copaie only, was released in the air. There are a few stragglers here and there, but not to worry, they too will be rounded up and all of their kind shall soon be extinct. After all, I am offering a twenty-five thousand credit reward to anyone who brings me a Copaie, dead or alive.”

Saltu, gone? My birthplace? The planet of my inheritance? But that’s impossible! I was going to go there. I was going to learn about my people! My head starts to feel funny, and everything seems to be spinning. I grab the rock in front of me for balance.

“No!” I shout, coming out from behind the rocks. “Murderer!” I can hear gasps of surprise from the crowd, and someone calling my name. I think it might be Amlican but I’m not sure. I can’t think properly, my anger has gotten the best of me. “First you murder my mother, and then you murder my people! An entire race is dead and gone! You will pay for this! I’ll make you pay for it!” I say, pointing my finger at Malum and walking towards him.

Malum takes a few steps back. “You can all see for yourself what I mean about her. She is dangerous. She probably set the Queen up, sent that Copaie to kill her.”

“Why would I do that? I love my mother! I mean, loved my mother.”

“How would I know the reasoning behind anything that a Copaie does? Maybe you did it with the mistaken thought that you would be able to take the throne. But you are not one of us. You never have been. And you never will be.” Malum motions with his hands. I feel a pair of hands grab each arm.

“This isn’t over, Malum!” I shout as the guards start dragging me off, stretched out in between them. I struggle and try to pull away, but the Dolokki guards are too strong, even for me to fight. But that doesn’t prevent me from trying to pull away.

“Oh, but it is, my dear. It is. Because in two days, you will join the rest of your Copaie buddies, in death.”

I am drug back up the hill, towards the castle. I briefly catch the look of sadness in Amlican’s eyes before the darkness swallows us. Poor Amlican, maybe in another lifetime, we could have married and had children. Although I doubt it. Mixed-race babies are always looked on with disgust. Shame really, who’s to say they aren’t smarter than both races? I am drug through the main entranceway, still fighting the guards, down hall after hall, down the deep narrow stairway, and thrown into a cell. The clinking of metal against metal, as the door slams shut, takes all of the fight out of me. I slump down to the floor and just sit, looking around.

The cell is not big, fifty steps from wall to wall. It doesn’t hold much, a single cot and a hole in the ground for a toilet. High up on the wall, I’m leaning against, is a small window. A small shaft of moonlight trickles down but the darkness swallows it whole before it reaches the floor. The front wall of the cell is entirely made up of metal bars. Someone should consider upgrading this place. But I guess it doesn’t matter, it’s not meant for a long-term stay. The lights go out and I stumble through the heavy darkness, towards where I estimate the bed to be. My leg hits the cot and I collapse onto it, exhausted from the day.

****************************

“Astra. Wake up! You must not give up! You have to save me.” my mother’s voice calls out.

“But how can I? You are dead, the people have turned against me, and Malum has sentenced me to death.” I say.

“You have the answer. All you have to do is use it. Just think, Astra!”

****************************

I wake up in a cold sweat. That was a strange dream. I guess, even asleep, my brain is trying to find a way out of this situation. I sit up and swing my legs over the side of the bed. A heavy feeling settles into the pit of my stomach. There is no way out of this situation, I am fairly sure about that. I look around and notice that even with the small shaft of sunlight pouring in, visibility is still poor. I can see well enough, but the lighting makes it seem more like twilight, right before the sun fully disappears for the night.

I get up and walk around the cell, running my hands along the walls. I test the strength of the stones, pushing everywhere I can reach, but they are cold and unrelenting. The dungeon, like the rest of the castle, is made from stones, from the nearby mountains. That means the rocks are sturdy and will not be easily broken. I look up at the small window, and jump a few times, trying to reach it. The window is too high, I can’t even touch it with my fingertips, so that’s no good. I walk to the cell door.The metal that forms the bars has been coated with some kind of spray to prevent rust. I will not be able to break those bars. But I try, anyways, pulling and pushing on each bar. I know it’s a foolish task, but I can’t just give up and die. As a final desperate attempt, I try and squeeze through the bars, but the most I can do is get one arm, one shoulder, and one leg through.

I sigh and start pacing the cell. “There has to be a way out,” I mumble to myself.

“Psssst. Astra.” a voice says.

I turn towards the bars and there stands Amlican, looking sad. I walk over to him and lean my forehead against the bars. “What are you doing here?” I ask.

“I came to see you. Why did you do that? The plan was for you to stay hidden.” he says, grabbing my hands.

“I couldn’t help myself. Didn’t you hear the things he was saying? Didn’t you hear the lies? The man exterminated an entire race of people, just because he could. He killed my entire race, and now he is going to kill me as well.” I gently squeeze his hand.

“I’m sure there are some survivors out there, somewhere. Not all of the Copaie were on the home world. Your race will survive.” he says, letting go of my hand and placing his hands on my face.

“No,” I say, pulling my head back out of reach. “Did you completely miss the part of the bounty on the heads of all remaining Copaie? If any dares to show their face, they will be turned in and killed like all of the rest. Twenty-five thousand credits per Copaie is a lot of money. Bounty hunters around the galaxy will be lined up for a chance to earn that kind of currency.”

“I’m going to get you out of here,” he says.

“No! I will not let you put your own life in jeopardy just to save mine! It’s not worth it!” I say, leaning my head back against the bars.

“Astra! Seriously! Do you think I’m going to just sit back and watch the woman I love, get murdered? What kind of man would I be if I did that?”

“Look, I don’t need you rescuing me,” I say, pulling away from the bars.

“I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself.”

“Obviously,” he says. “Look, I just want to know if you checked for loose stones, weak bars, or any other way out.”

“Yes, I’ve checked for all of that. And no, nothing.” I say, annoyed.

“I think I may be able to get my hands on the keys. If I can, I need you to....” Amlican is cut off by the sound of someone coming down the stairs.

“Hurry! Go! Get out of here before you get caught! If Malum finds out you are here, he might just have you executed as well. He hates me that much.” I say, urgently.

“Hey! Whose down there?!” a voice shouts.

“I think it’s too late for that,” Amlican says.

“It’s just me,” I say. But my voice comes out high-pitched like it always does when I’m panicking. What to do? What to do? I’m on the verge of panicking when I look down at myself. The jacket! With everything that has happened, I had forgotten I had put it on. “It’s a long shot, Amlican, but I have an idea,” I whisper.

“What is it?” he whispers back.

“I thought I heard another voice, a male voice, I’m coming down!” the guard shouts.

“Do you remember that jacket, the old Copaie gave me? Remember how she said it’s capable of time travel?”

“I don’t see how that’s going to help, right now, unless that dress you are wearing has pockets.”

“Amlican, listen to me, I am wearing that jacket. For some unknown reason, it appears invisible when you put it on, to everyone but the person wearing it.” I quickly explain.

“But Astra, it’s illegal...” he starts.

“Right now, it doesn’t matter if it’s illegal or if it doesn’t even work. The point is, you are about to be caught and it’s our last hope.” I say double tapping on the left sleeve. A small door pops open and I’m staring at a minicomputer. How do I work this thing? There is a mini touch screen, that pulls up a keyboard when I tap it.

“If someone is down there with you, trying to help you to escape, they will face the same punishment as you.” the guard says, sounding closer.

“Hurry up,” Amlican says. I look closer and realize that it’s asking for coordinates, day, month, and year. Come on, think! What are those coordinates?

“Hey, I know you! You are friends with the traitor!” the guard says, appearing at the end of the hall. I quickly punch the information in and click send. Send? How appropriate. I snap the lid shut. Now how do I take Amlican with me?

“Amlican, grab my lower, left arm, now!” I shout. He grabs my arm, just as I start feeling a tingling sensation from that area. “I’m not sure if I got the coordinates right, there’s a good chance we are going to be dumped in the middle of space, to die.”

"If I stay here, I will die for sure, labeled as a traitor." he says.

The tingling sensation spreads up my arm, to my chest, and then throughout my body. The sensation intensifies until it feels as if my whole body is on fire. If I’m to die, I’m glad it’s with Amlican by my side and not at the hands of Malum. I look into Amlican’s eyes and then everything goes black.