The Celestial Way

Chapter 1 - Awakening Away

CHAPTER 1 – AWAKENING AWAY

"Open your eyes, and Awaken."

– The Mage's dictum

998 RE, deep-space cryoprison habitat "Trad-0", Supernova System

The blackness subsided so suddenly it made Airo gasp. He shuddered as something akin to actual feelings permeated his being for the first time since forever. Burning light seared him, the scouring sensation brutal and harsh, yet promising a long-awaited change.

It wasn't consciousness. It was merely transition from a dark, endless void into a much softer limbo resonating with the tonality of life. Still this transformation continued further, the nothingness becoming lighter and lighter, until Airo felt the spark of vitality igniting once again within him.

That spark never bloomed into a true flame.

Sharp, painful brightness pierced his sight. Deafening hum engulfed him, slowly tuning into comprehensible noise. He felt myriad of tiny pricks washing over, mellow, yet intense and insistent. A cold wave flared throughout his body, shocking, resolute, all-encompassing. An instant later, the world clicked, and Airo became aware.

"Reanimation procedure complete. Subject's vital signs within nominal parameters.

"Subject can be retrieved from cryostasis pod."

He opened his eyes. Light rays rammed into his retinas, snapping shut the eyelids on pure reflex. The pain made him moan and shudder. He was freezing so intensely it felt as if every fibre of his body was set on fire. He gasped again. Voices buzzed in incomprehensible murmur nearby, yet sounded distant and dampened.

Airo slowly tried to open his eyes again. Pain washed over him yet he gritted his teeth, and kept his eyes open this time. He saw only a world of swirling lights and shadows, blurred beyond recognizable shapes. He blinked several times, trying to clear his vision, and some of the shadows took on more defined outlines, but little else changed. He heard a voice again, gruff in demeanor and artificial in quality, then a swooshing noise.

Sudden agony flooded his arm as someone poured molten lava over it. He tried to cry out but managed only a feeble hiss that nearly choked him.

"Great Cosmos, this one is colder than the vacuum outside! Quick, prepare a medbay. Damn, how did they revive them back in the day?"

The pain receded swiftly. He was aware of something – someone – picking him up and carrying him a short distance. He was placed lying on his back. He began to shiver. Soft chimes sounded somewhere beside his head, and arcing lights danced before his vision.

"He should recover within a few minutes," said a melodious voice, again artificial in nature.

There was a conversation, which Airo followed only with distant awareness. His breathing became steadier, and he gradually stopped shivering. His vision finally began to clear up, and he was able to examine his surroundings. He lay naked in a medbay pod inside a small featureless room. The arc-bands of the medbay emitted rays in soothing viridian light, pulsing gently at various intervals. A terminal was placed next to the medbay, its hologram display glowing in muted hues.

Airo turned his head. Two robotic humanoids stood beside the medbay, their robust frames lacking any distinct facial features. Their visual sensors shone in soft, cyan light.

"He's coming to his senses," the humanoid with the gruff voice said. "Let's get on with it."

"Prisoner, stand up," the other commanded gently.