In the dark, isolated part of the galaxy that held a shared border of territories between the Hiigarans and the Vaygr in the past, lied Tandall Gate. Once hidden from sensors and visuals by a Progenitor distortion field, its recent discovery added to the slowly expanding web of possible galactic destinations.
As with the central hub of the network, The Eye Of Aarran, as well as the gate closest to the Equestrian homeworld, Kyre Gate, Tandall Gate appeared identical; a long, tall hallway, with neither roof nor ceiling, ending with a relatively minuscule hole in the adjoining wall. No surface remained bare on the structure, riddled with alien markings, scratches, scars, and random protrusions and pylons. Despite its imperfections, the device remained relatively pristine, given its estimated age to be in the five-digit values.
Off in the distance, the Er Khar Lamaat emerged from hyperspace. Though fully functional thanks to its repair drones, the sites of former damage were still visible, lacking paint to conceal the field repairs.
On the bridge, Lightning announced their arrival. “Jump complete. We’ve arrived at Tandall Gate.” After a scan of her passive sensors, she detected only one contact; the gate itself. “Setting course for the gate. Should be there in half an hour.”
With the Lamaat oriented toward the gate, its three engines steadily increased to full power. As the vessel headed for its next destination, Obsidian sat at the forefront of the bridge, frowning as his head occasionally swivelled between the left and right observation windows. After a few minutes, he raised his voice, urgency and concern apparent in his tone. “Glare, something’s not right.”
The other Infiltrators stopped and stared at Obsidian, waiting for an explanation. Moving away from Lightning’s side, Glare approached the changeling. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m sensing … I don’t know. That can’t be right.” Turning to their pilot, Obsidian asked, “Lightning, are there any contacts on sensors?”
Double-checking sensors, the pegasus shook her head. “Other than the gate itself, no. Why?”
“I thought I was imagining things, but the closer we get to that gate, the more I’m feeling the presence of ponies. But that doesn’t make sense. If it’s just the gate on sensors and nothing else—… Stealth destroyer,” Obsidian concluded, looking out into the empty voice once more. When the realisation hit, he whipped his head back around again. “Lightning! Evasive manoeuvres! Now!”
Lightning pulled the sluggish vessel into a ninety degree turn, maintaining full thrust on the engines. “Amarok?” she enquired, stabilising their new heading.
“No. None of the presences are familiar. It’s the Basilisk.”
“Get us to that gate, but keep changing course at random,” Glare ordered. “Their torpedoes can’t track us, but their blast radius is enough to take us out from a distance.”
“Safest option is to fly tangent to the gate while firing manoeuvring thrusters toward it,” Lightning stated. “I can continue with the hard turns while maintaining the tangent.”
“Whatever you think is best.”
A bright flash of blue streaked across the Lamaat’s path, narrowly missing the ship by metres. Stunned, Glare had no response.
“What the buck was that?” Lightning spoke first. “Looked like a pulsar blast, but those are supposed to be short-range. That was much further.” Looking to one of her screens, an audible notification caught her attention. “Incoming message. On speaker.”
A female’s voice spoke, “Surprised, Infiltrators? Basilisk has a little upgrade Amarok lacks. Now, I suggest you power down your drives and surrender, or we will be forced to destroy your ship.”
Lightning ceased evasive manoeuvres and turned to the one in charge. “Glare? Your call.”
Falling onto her haunches, Glare let out a defeated sigh. “I hadn’t considered this. We were so close, too. I’m so sorry, Khamari.”
Khamari knelt down to the unicorn’s level. “There is nothing to be sorry for. Your actions have given the Gaalsien hope that one day, others may show us the same kindness. I just wish you didn’t have to go through this for nothing.”
Swift stepped forward. “Seriously, Glare? After everything we’ve done, you’re just giving up? You’re a unicorn! Bring up a shield! We can make it!”
Glare shook her head. “I don’t know the spell well enough to bet our lives on it. The only shield I can make is my glyph spell, and I can’t make it large enough to protect this ship.”
“Glare, don’t mean to push you, but Basilisk won’t wait around all day for a response,” Lightning pointed out.
“Come on, Glare!” Shift joined in. “Now’s not the time to give up!”
Glare stomped a hoof. “What do you want from me? If we stay on course, they’ll destroy us. I don’t want to be responsible for that. Lightning, bring us to a stop.”
“Fine.”
“Glare, you were the one who put us here, because you believed so strongly in Khamari,” Obsidian joined in. “We can’t roll over just like that. And after what you said about the technology coming out of that research base, I have a vested interest in keeping our planet safe.”
Glare eyed the changeling suspiciously. “Obsidian, I know that tone. You’re thinking of doing something none of us will approve of, aren’t you?”
“Give me a reason not to. Basilisk is going to board us. When they do, I intend to take hostages. That way, we’re guaranteed safe passage. The rest of you can either help me defend the ship, or stay out of my way.”
“You can’t be serious! They’re our Navy!”
“I suggest you use the time between now and boarding to come up with a better plan,” Obsidian called out over his shoulder, as he made for the exit. “I’ll be near the top decks.”
Watching the argument, Shadow stepped forward to intervene. She barely had time to open her mouth, when she was cut off.
“Wait!” Glare cried. “What if … What if we say some of us are the hostages?”
Obsidian stopped. “Go on.”
“Aside from myself, you are the only other Infiltrator who communicated with the Hiigaran crew after we subdued them, right? There’s no proof anyone else was involved in the hijack.”
“What about the rest of us?” Shadow queried, her interest piquing at the possible plan. “We did knock the crew out. They’d know we were with them.”
“True, but did any of them see more than one of us when we went to our posts?”
Obsidian started to understand Glare’s suggestion. “We can blame that on the big bad changeling taking your forms.”
Glare nodded. “Exactly! It’s absolution for the rest of you.”
One inconsistency in Glare’s plan was made apparent, as Obsidian glanced at Lightning. “What about her?”
“I honestly don’t care,” the pegasus droned, waving her hoof in dismissal.
“Subterfuge and deceit are as valuable to Infiltrators, as combat proficiency, but you’re not going to get anywhere without the skills of a professional liar. We need to get our stories straight for this to be convincing. I say we call you an accomplice, along with myself, and Glare.”
Swift and Shift were confused. “You just said you and Glare were the only ones that communicated with them. Why drag Lightning into it?”
“A member of the Equestrian Navy disappears from Hiigara on the same day one of their ships gets hijacked by six others from the Navy. Anyone assigned to diffuse this situation will not believe that is a coincidence,” Obsidian explained. “Plus, Lightning has a motive, likely seen as a need for revenge by others, due to her history with Raiders. Glare’s motivation diversifies it even further. It’s no secret she tried to convince many people on Hiigara to heed Khamari’s warnings. She’d be seen as taking matters into her own hooves.”
“So what’s your motivation?” Glare asked.
Obsidian shrugged. “Pick a cliché. Am I the evil changeling? Or perhaps I have an inferiority complex and have something to prove by trying to be a one-‘ling army? Lightning, open comms. Everyone else, stay quiet.”
The pegasus pressed a few keys on her nearest screen, and looked back at Obsidian. “Comms are open.”
“My name is Obsidian, an Infiltrator of Amarok. Together with my squad-mate Glare, and the fighter pilot Lightning, we have commandeered this vessel and taken the rest of the Infiltrators hostage. Interfere with our operations, and they die.”
The female from Basilisk’s initial communications replied instantly. “I am Commander Bon Bon, Captain of the Basilisk. What are your demands?”
Shadow perked up, and immediately muted the comms. “I know that name. Obsidian, confirm she is an earth pony with three candies as her cutie mark. Act casual about it.”
Nodding, Obsidian waited for Shadow restore comms. “Bon Bon, huh? That the earth pony? Cutie mark with three candies?”
“Have we met?”
Obsidian muted the comms again. “Sounds like a yes to me. Why do we care?”
“She’s a former Nightcaster. Used to go by the code-name Sweetie Drops. Not sure what her original name is, but now she goes by Bon Bon.”
“Can she help us?”
“Not officially. Neither of us can give each other away on unsecured comms. Come up with a reply where you use the words ‘facet’, ‘garrulous’ and ‘adroit’ in the same sentence. I’ll explain later.”
The changeling took a moment to think of an appropriate sentence, before returning to the comms. “This may sound garrulous, but as an adroit changeling, I am familiar with every facet of your face.” Finishing, he muted once more.
Shadow hummed. “Not bad. Every Nightcaster was given three uncommon words to be used as a way to communicate secretly in plain sight, or to verify one’s identity. Each soldier had a unique set, and we’d remember everyone else’s.”
“So I essentially told her that I’m with you? Why would she trust you, after what we’ve done?”
“Let’s put it this way; suppose I was still a Nightcaster, and I found another about to throw my foal off the side of Canterlot’s mountain. If that other Nightcaster said he or she had a good reason and said nothing more, I would accept that answer unquestioningly and do nothing.”
Glare wore a mortified expression. “That’s … not something you’ve actually done, right?”
The zebra shook her head. “It was just an extreme example. Purely hypothetical. Plus, I’m certain I’ve mentioned in the past that I never had foals. Point is, we don’t just trust each other with our lives. We trust each other with everything we’d hold dear.”
Obsidian remained sceptical. “So you think this Bon Bon will trust you unquestioningly?”
“I’d bet my life on it.”
“And ours too, by the sound of it.” Swift remarked.
“Yes, well, whether she can actually do anything to help us might be another thing entirely.”
“Let’s hope she does,” said Obsidian. “She’s taking her sweet time replying, though.”
With perfect timing, Bon Bon’s voice returned. “I’d like to negotiate face to face. May I come aboard?”
Keeping comms muted, Obsidian turned back to Shadow. “If an officer of her rank comes aboard, you know she won’t be alone. They’ll likely send Basilisk’s Infiltrators with her.”
“Let them.”
“Alright, but at the first sign of trouble, all bets are off.” Releasing the mute button, the changeling replied, “Very well. Assuming you’re arriving via the infiltration tunnel, you can meet me on the top deck. We’ll hold position here.”
Obsidian stood ahead of Glare and Lightning, as the insertion beam materialised in the top deck’s ceiling. Dropping through and landing with a heavy thud was a large griffon, wearing a standard GCU, a tartan waistband of white, blue, and black, and a Lieutenant Commander’s insignia. All the while, a pulsar rifle remained fixed on Obsidian.
As her eyes jumped from the changeling to the other two, both of whom had weapons of their own pointed at her, she clicked her beak once. Satisfied none of the three would attack, she opened her comms. “Three armed in th’ area. Sure ye want to board? Alright, when yer ready.”
Landing beside the griffon was the Captain herself, if the uniform indicated anything. Eyeing the three, the beige-coated mare remained silent for a few seconds. “Are we going to stand around all day pointing weapons at each other, or can we get down to business?” she finally spoke. “Gail. Stand down.”
“Aye.”
Obsidian lowered his weapon next, and the other two followed. Bon Bon approached, her face devoid of emotion. “I’m Commander Bon Bon. You must be Obsidian. I wish to discuss your demands in private. No weapons. Is that acceptable?”
The changeling glanced at the other two, and nodded, leaving his pulsar with Glare. “My associates will keep an eye on your griffon. Follow me.”
Obsidian led the way down the decks, toward the galley. Allowing Bon Bon to enter first, he closed the door behind him and took a seat at the nearest table. When the pony seated herself opposite to him, he opened his mouth, only to be silenced when the mare spoke first.
“Repeat the words.”
“What wo—you mean over the comms? Facet, garrulous and adroit.”
Bon Bon’s expression softened, and some measure of emotion made its way to her face. “That really was Shadow. Only way you’d have gotten those words out of her was if she was desperate,” she mused. “What does she ask of me?”
“She thinks you might be able to help us. In what capacity, I don’t know. You’d better ask her.”
“I plan to. Now, since I gather this isn’t an actual hostage situation, do you mind if I speak with her now?”
Obsidian nodded, and spoke into his comms. “Shadow, need you in the galley.”
An uneasy silence followed, though this time it was Obsidian who felt unease. Knowing full well what Shadow’s capabilities are, the changeling wondered what hidden talents this pony might possess, as an unassuming earth pony. He did not have time to linger on those thoughts, when the galley door opened.
Locking eyes, Bon Bon rose from her seat. “I’m glad to see you’re still in one piece after all these years, Shadow.”
The zebra closed the distance, hugging the pony. “And I you. Captain of the Basilisk? That’s quite a career change.”
“I’m getting old, my friend. Though dull at times, command from a chair suits me just fine. Anyway, let’s get down to business. How can I help?”
“We need you to let us pass through that gate.”
Bon Bon bowed her head without hesitation. “I’ll see what I can—wait, back up. Pass through what gate? Surely you don’t mean that hyperspace gate?”
“There’s no other gate around here, Bon. Beyond that gate is a planetary base researching terrible weapons. Technology that can bypass our planetary defences and strip the surface of atmosphere, or worse. To get to the base, we need the gate. To activate the gate, we had to free the Gaalsien prisoner we caught from Silicon Oasis. To free him, we needed to hijack this vessel.”
“That explains why Command wanted us to hunt you down,” the Captain concluded. “Oh, Shadow. You’ve bitten off more than you could chew, haven’t you?”
“More than you know.” The very air surrounding Shadow seemed to change. “Don’t be surprised if this is a one-way trip for us.”
“In all my years serving under you, I think there was only one time you ever said that would be a likely possibility. I’m glad you were wrong, but I know you wouldn’t have uttered those words lightly. Those words have the same weight now as they did back then,” Bon Bon commented. She fell silent for a moment, as thoughts brewed in her mind. “Alright, I’m coming with you.”
“I can’t ask that of you.”
“Fortunately for you, it’s my call. And technically, I outrank you now.”
“What about your position aboard Basilisk?”
“Leave that to me. I’ll sort everything out.”
“If you’re absolutely sure about this, then I have two additional requests.”
“Name them.”
“First, we’ll need supplies. There’s nine of us, including you. Three anti-matter charges, plus three grenades each. For weapons, we’ll need six LR-48 carbines, three LR-68 rifles, three LR-98 rifles, and two HS-J8 launchers, and enough ammunition for a large assault. We’ll also need pressure suits, including one for a diamond dog, and provisions for … let’s say one week.”
Bon Bon pulled a notepad out of a pocket and made a list. “You’ll have it. And your second request?”
“Exposure. We’re in this mess because no one believed us. One of Khamari’s claims is that he can open the hyperspace gate; something the Raiders figured out. Hiigara didn’t believe that claim either. Focus Basilisk’s cameras on us and the gate, and deliver footage of our departure to Hiigara and our Navy. I’m hoping that would lend credibility to the rest of Khamari’s claims.”
“If it’s convincing enough for them, any chance of reinforcements?”
“Probably better to proceed under the assumption that there won’t be, but just in case”—Shadow took Bon Bon’s pen and notepad, scribbling numbers down—“a fleet led by Aurora to these coordinates would be nice.”
Bon Bon eyed the zebra, after reading the coordinates. “No wonder the Hiigarans refused to believe your prisoner. This is the last planet they’d believe a base would be located. Alright, I’ll let my crew know.”
Bon Bon returned to the top deck with Obsidian, wearing her unreadable face once more. Moving past Glare and Lightning, she positioned herself below the infiltration beam. “Gail. We’re finished here. Let’s go.”
“Aye, Captain.”
The pair floated up through the ceiling and disappeared, though the beam persisted. Returning to Basilisk, Bon Bon ordered Gail to stand guard by the tunnel and await further instructions, before heading for the supply compartment.
Entering, the Captain’s eyes landed on the first unicorn she could find behind the reinforced window. “Specialist,” she barked at the white pony.
The unicorn jumped out of her seat, snapping to attention and saluting. “Yes, Captain?”
“I need access.”
“Yes, ma’am.” The unicorn’s horn flashed, and Bon Bon appeared by her side. “How may I assist?”
“I’ve got this. All I need from you is to ignore standard operating procedures. I can only say that the situation is delicate. Do you understand?”
Confused for a moment, the unicorn nodded. “Yes, ma’am. You were never here.”
“Good. Purge the security feeds while I’m busy.” Searching for an empty crate, Bon Bon found an oblong container with caster wheels and five cubic metres of capacity. Perusing the vast array of shelves and stowages as one would at a grocery store, she retrieved cases of firearms, ammunition, demolitions, pressure suits, field rations, and medical supplies, stuffing the crate to the brim. After several attempts at rearranging the contents, she finally managed to organise everything such that the lid could close and snap shut.
The Captain pushed the container back to the unicorn. “Specialist. I’m finished.”
Without a word, the unicorn teleported Bon Bon and the crate to the other side. Bon Bon wheeled the crate out past the pressure doors, and back to the infiltration tunnel. Locking the wheels, she opened a comms channel to her command centre. “This is the Captain. Due to the situation aboard the Lamaat, we are to fully comply with the hijackers’ requests. We are to release the vessel and allow them to continue with whatever their plan may be.”
A stallion’s voice replied, “What? We’re just going to let them escape? Who knows what they plan to do with that ship! We should at least pursue them while cloaked.”
“The lead hijacker is a changeling,” Bon Bon stated. “He sensed our presence the moment they arrived in this system. If we pursue, we risk the safety of the hostages … Which is why I have volunteered to become one.”
Several voices overlapped in protest.
“Are you nuts?”
“You can’t be serious!”
“What the hay?”
“Silence,” Bon Bon interrupted calmly. “If we are to resolve this, we need somepony on the inside to gather intel, and possibly assist in overthrowing the hijackers. I refuse to ask my crew to put their lives on the line for this, so until I return, or Command deems otherwise, the XO is in charge until further notice. Remain cloaked, hold position, and monitor the Lamaat until they leave. Report the situation to both Command, and the Hiigaran Navy.”
Without waiting for a reply Bon Bon closed comms, and released the crate’s brakes. With Gail’s assistance, the pair pushed the crate up the ramp and stopped short of the tunnel’s beam.
The giant griffon gave her Captain a worried look. “Ye sure this is th’ best option? Ye know ‘Lance an’ I would take yer place if asked.”
“I know, Gail. I know. There’s more to this than it seems, and I need to get to the bottom of it.” Tearing off the piece of paper Shadow had written on, Bon Bon passed it to Gail. “ Once you’ve severed the tunnel link, take this note to the command centre.”
“Aye, Captain.”
Descending the ramp, Gail moved to one of the nearby seats and stood ready by the controls. Bon Bon gave a final nod, before returning to the Lamaat with the crate. Landing on the ship’s top deck, she watched as the infiltration beam dissipated. Obsidian quickly caught her eye, waiting near by. “Where do you want your equipment?”
“Bridge. Easiest place to keep it for now.”
Obsidian assisted the mare with the crate. As they moved forward across the deck, he decided to pry some information from the Captain. “So. Two Nightcasters at our disposal. What secret abilities do you bring to the team?”
“If you’re asking me that question, then Shadow has rightfully told you nothing about me,” Bon Bon deduced.
“Your previous alias was Sweetie Drops.”
“Not a big secret. Nice try, though. I take it Shadow told you everything in our branch, barring our existence, is classified?”
“Yeah. It was worth a shot, though.”
Descending to the lower decks, the pair returned to the bridge, and neatly deposited the crate in one corner of the bridge. Looking around at the rest of the crew, Bon Bon asked Obsidian, “Is it safe to assume everyone has been updated on the situation?”
“Yes. Glare is in command. If you have any input, it should go through her.”
Glare stepped forward. “I appreciate your help. The more of us there are, the better our odds are. Are we cleared to proceed?”
Bon Bon raised an eyebrow at the one supposedly in command, when she sighted the Deckhoof’s uniform. Holding her tongue, she instead replied, “You are.”
“Lightning? Set a course for the gate.”
“Got it.”
The unicorn approached Khamari. “Alright, we’ve taken you this far. Perhaps now might be a good time to explain how you can open the gate.”
“Activating a gate requires a starting sequence, in the form of an encoded data stream,” Khamari started. “The encoding process uses several components. Origin and destination gate identifiers, for obvious reasons. A pass-code is also used, known only to Rancor and Vindicator Captains. Last is a Captain’s gene sequence. Once the data is put through a common hash function and transmitted, the gate runs a bio scan to ensure the sequence came from someone alive and present, before activating.”
“How did the Raiders discover the pass-code to the gate?” Bon Bon questioned the Gaalsien. “I thought that data was lost with the destruction of Sajuuk.”
“They didn’t. They were able to modify one of the gates to accept a new verification method, and each gate in the network updated their software to match.”
“They’re resourceful. I’ll give them that. Though from what I understand, the Raiders tried to assassinate you. Would they not have locked out your gene sequence to prevent you from using the gates against them?”
“The gates don’t update frequently. Even if they did lock me out, the update procedure takes several weeks.”
“Interesting limitation. What equipment do you need for the activation process?”
“Just a standard comms system. I took advantage of the free time we’ve had to get my gene sequence in the medical bay earlier on. Should be a simple matter of concatenating the positioning data, sequence, and pass-code, then transmitting the encrypted result.” Meeting Glare’s gaze, Khamari added, “I’m ready when you are.”
“Alright, go for it.”
While Khamari went to work, Lightning decided to make conversation. “Hey, Commander. What was that weapon you fired at us? Some sort of pulsar?”
“Pretty much. The research division on Aurora had an accidental discovery when trying to combine ion cannon and pulsar technology. Granted, they’re basically the same base tech, given they’re both particle accelerators, but with different characteristics. What they created ended up as a long-range pulsar blast with twice the range of an ion cannon.”
“A sniper rifle for ships?”
“You could call it that. Basilisk had to be modified, though. Engineers had to remove the rear torpedo tubes, so they could build an aft-facing, fixed cannon. Useful for fleeing, but also for taking out specific subsystems or components on targets.”
“Neat.” Making minor heading adjustments as the Lamaat drew closer to the hyperspace gate, Lightning spied many dark yellow spheres floating randomly along their path, down the wide passage, “Hey, those aren’t mines, are they?”
“No, they are harmless. Stay on course,” Khamari instructed. Finishing his work, he announced, “Sequence encoded. Transmitting data now.”
As the Lamaat moved down the megalithic structure’s hallway, no activity seemed apparent to anyone on the bridge. The gate at the end remained as still and dark as it had ever been. Approaching the first set of spherical objects, the crew saw several flickering with golden light, until they steadily glowed. Each subsequent sphere lit up as the ship moved close enough, and those that blocked the vessel’s path floated lazily out of the way.
“Gate activity,” Lightning observed, as several rows of partial rings started spinning, and a familiar shade of blue radiated from the gate’s circumference. The brightness intensified, and a leading patch of white light rotated once per second, causing her sensors began to detect significant energy readings. “Quantum waveform detected.”
Lightning barely managed to finish her sentence, when a linear shock-wave erupted from the gate. Lines of electric-blue raced out along the hall towards the ship, framing the gate and bathing the structure’s interior in a shade of blue. As the front raced past, the bridge lit up, as if those same lines had somehow scanned the compartment.
“Hyperspace gate online,” proclaimed Khamari. “Before we pass through, is this ship's hyperspace module charged? I have our last coordinates set, but we’ll need to jump as soon as we pass through the gate.”
Lightning glanced at the engineering data indicating hyperdrive charge levels. “No problems there. Drive’s ready to go.”
Closing the distance, the size of the gate was made apparent, easily fitting mothership-class vessels. The most curious part of the gate was that unlike a hyperspace window with its solid colour, the destination could be seen somewhat in the active gate. Lensing distortions intensified closer to the edges, and the visible stars within seemed to stretch into long, thin lines between the centre and circumference.
Watching her sensors, Lightning counted down as the numbers by the gate’s distance marker approached zero. “Entering gate in three … two … one …”
The feeds from the external cameras flickered for a split-second, yet no hyperspace transition occurred. No journey through flames of blue, and no stretched passage of celestial bodies. Confused, everyone faced Khamari.
“That’s it. Jump complete. We’ve arrived at Torri Gate, on the outskirts of the galaxy.”
Bon Bon seemed the most shocked. “What? You’re saying we’ve travelled the galaxy’s radius in an instant?”
“Closer to one and a third of the galaxy’s radius, but yes.”
“Nice.”
“Save the awe for later,” Lightning cut in. “We’ve got contacts. Raiders. Rancor and Daggers, long range. Thieves and Brigands closing fast. Khamari? We good to jump?”
“Do it. Preferably before their hyperspace inhibitors get in range.”
“Sure thing. Hyperspace initiated.”
Disappearing as quickly as they came, the Lamaat left the pursuing Raiders alone. In just under two hours, the ship emerged from hyperspace at its final destination, facing three large hulks of debris in close proximity. Blackened by destruction, with barely a hint of yellow paint on some extremities, many parts of the hulks were shrouded by smaller particles, or dust.
Up in geostationary orbit, Obsidian was the first to see the planet off the port side windows. A chill ran down his spine, while Swift and Shift gasped at the sight. Sparky, and Lightning joined in soon after. Most soon figured out what Glare, Shadow, Bon Bon, and Khamari already knew. Obsidian suddenly found his throat dry at the planet below, charred darker shades of black than his coat over most of the surface. Swallowing, a meek voice was all he could muster. “Khamari? Where are we?”
Khamari placed his hands behind his back and joined the others by the window. “The beginning, and the end.”