Omega Tales: the Tyrant King

Chapter I

Their cold sleep through the stars had already lasted for millennia the day they entered the Omega, yet they weren't aware of this. Frozen in cryostasis, they had no account of time: they didn't know where they were, they didn't know what they were there for, and most importantly they didn't know that they were about to enter the atmosphere of the planet of Itavor at unimaginable speed. Enveloped in fire, the ship rocketed towards the ground: parts of the hull detached, the engine broke and onboard systems started to fail.

Death seemed certain, yet the computer intelligence that had governed the ship for all those years wasn't about to fail its human crew so easily and at the last possible moment ejected the two cryostasis chambers, which landed more or less gracefully, unlike the rest of the ship.

That old design had many fail-safe measures.

The cryo-chambers started their emergency opening procedures and after a few hours, the doors opened, awakening the two unfit passengers. The oxygen levels allowed them to breathe without the use of their masks, and their bionic retinas quickly calibrated themselves to the light of that alien world. James was the first to wake up: his eyelids timidly opened, and he stood up, helping himself by leaning on the structure of the chamber. He looked around and all he could see was sand, a limitless desert extending in every direction. Before his newly awakened mind could formulate any meaningful thought, his peaceful scouting was interrupted by a coughing fit, and as he looked to his right, he saw Astrid struggling on the ground. He swiftly moved towards her to help, but before he could reach her, something else did.

A bolt of energy, its source unknown, hit the woman, stunning her. Shocked, James shouted and looked to his left, just to be hit as well. It was darkness again.

A scouting party of the owners of the planet heard the explosion from the crash and rushed to the location. There they patiently waited for the chambers to open and then ambushed their crew.

When James regained consciousness he was in chains, being dragged towards what looked like a wooden platform. Astrid was just in front of him, both of them standing in a long line of similarly held prisoners. The line was moving slowly, pushed only by a few guards, heavily clothed to mask their features and protect them from the desert's winds, holding an old-looking rifle in their hands. The two travelers had terrible luck: they landed on a slaver world, something James understood once he noticed the twisted auction that was being held there.

Countless prisoners were dragged on the platform, described, and showed off to the audience.

The show kept going and, like a sick parade of exotic goods, numerous people were sold off. Still confused after the stunning shot, James realized that they would soon be up there too, with the line slowly but surely moving. Astrid was still half-unconscious, dragging her feet forward while her head dangled between her tired shoulders. Their journey seemed doomed before it had even started.

Yet as it is often said, change comes with the wind. An unusual breeze started blowing from the East and the guards seemed uneasy. One of them, who stood next to Astrid, walked up to his superior and spoke to him.

"What is happening?"

He asked him in a worried tone

James tried to look in their direction, but he was greeted with eye contact from the superior, who briefly locked his vision onto him before answering.

"Nothing, keep them-"

"They're coming!"

Someone shouted while running towards them

A fatigued slaver stopped in his tracks to recover his breath

Both guards and prisoners immediately turned their gaze toward him