THE KEEPERS RISE

Chapter 9 - Lesser of Two - Part 2

*Remember to click the play button to listen to the soundtrack as you read!*

They teleported back to the spaceport and were greeted by the admiral in the lobby of the teleportation building, who was wearing brown silken tarrephaene clothing with extra armor on his shoulders and assorted unrecognizable gadgets on and near a belt around his waist. He nodded to them all formally but was visibly uncomfortable being around so many non-tarrephaenes. He finally said, "Will'ym, nice to see you."

Will'ym smiled. "I suppose we'll just be taking Churen," he observed. "They're best for agility. That'd be useful if you end up making a blockade."

Perryn laughed gruffly. "You know your ships, just like your mother, but I was planning on flying out a few Vichlin in case there's any trouble." Perryn glanced at the Keepers again, who were listening to the conversation with confusion.

"A Churen is our sleekest starship, mainly used for transport," Will'ym described. "They'll show the Dark ship that we don't mean to attack. Vichlin, on the other hand, are plenty battle worthy." He looked back at Perryn contemplatively. "It would be best to keep the Vichlin cloaked unless they become necessary. There's no need to escalate things."

"I agree."

"The Stargazer can easily keep up with tarrephaene vessels," Will'ym asserted, "So we'll take our own ship, if you don't mind."

"Not at all, as long as a few of my officers come with you. You may need to get away quickly if things go south, though I doubt that'll happen. One oversized Council ship won't even attempt to be a match for our fleet," Perryn scoffed.

Will'ym nodded and Perryn led the Keepers out of the building. Outside, the spaceport was bustling with activity. Tarrephaene were scuttling in all directions, and the ceiling which had looked so solid previously was now sliding away, revealing the deep blue sky of the morning. It was still cold, and a thin wind circled the Keepers as they walked back to the Stargazer, poking under Velda's clothes. It made her miss her fur again. Cha, Velda thought suddenly, Are you sure this is a good idea?

You and all the Keepers need to get out in the universe and see things for yourselves. This is a fine opportunity.

As they walked, they passed a few groups of tarrephaene wearing uniforms similar to Perryn's, and the admiral tapped out a few of them from their conversations, ordering them to come with him. Admiral Perryn told the Keepers, "These are Ensigns Cheniya, Makeno, and Tres'min," then got to business with all of them. "I'm going to get into communication with the Dark ship as soon as I can, once we arrive at the Border. Your only job is to stay at a distance from us, keep a video connection to my ship, and keep watch for danger. I trust you three to keep the Keepers safe."

"Yes, sir," the ensigns said, nearly in unison.

"But, that's it?" Titus asked skeptically.

Perryn eyed Titus for a moment, then said, "That's it. We are bringing Vichlin, but there's a very low chance that we'll need them."

Along the way, Will'ym pointed out a group of seven Churen with their pilots busily checking them over. The Churen were smaller than the Stargazer, but not by much. On each Churen, two short, folded back wings glowed underneath with energy, keeping the ship slightly above the ground. The bodies of the Churen were black with two large blue stripes and shaped almost exactly like huge arrowheads.

A Vichlin landed next to the Stargazer just as they were approaching it, and several tarrephaene in uniform ran up to meet it. The ship was much smaller and less streamlined than a Churen, but it still had the same approximate shape. Unlike the Churen, however, it was solid black and had several guns attached to its front. "That color helps them hide in the darkness of space," Will'ym said to Velda. "But they can change colors too."