The Light Blue Jumper Read online

  Except it seemed that my room was no longer where I had left it. I walked and walked, yet I did not get to my room and neither did I come across anyone else. The ship was eerily silent. I turned back a couple of times, thinking I had missed an exit somewhere, but whichever direction I walked in, however far I walked, I arrived right back at the same storage area. I was hopelessly lost and everyone on the ship had chosen that precise moment to step out somewhere. I looked up towards the bridge for the condescending patrol officer but even he seemed to be off-duty. There was simply no one around.

  17. Lieutenant Salaar

  I made my way back to Zaaro’s room. I didn’t have time to formulate a plan; neither did the Universe for that matter. We needed to start our work together immediately if we were to have any chance of success.

  It was not much of a walk as I had housed him two doors away from my quarters, on the right. This time I decided to knock and make amends for my earlier imposition. I knocked loudly and waited for a response but my efforts were met by silence. He was obviously annoyed and understandably so. I knocked again, still nothing.

  I was debating whether to walk in and risk his wrath when someone tapped my shoulder. I spun around to come face to face with The Good Doctor.

  “What brings you to this neck of the wormholes, Lieutenant?” he smiled convivially.

  “Funny, I was about to ask you the same question, Doctor,” I replied.

  “I have matters of great import to discuss with Zaaro, of a secret and highly confidential nature.” Before I could say anything, he carried on after a momentary pause. “And if you really must have it out of me, he is fully aware of all his powers and I have decided to accept his request to take him in hand and train him myself.”

  I couldn’t help but smile at that. I was formulating a polite yet firm response to the Doctor’s flight of fancy when a voice like a shard of glass cut through the air. “He has no idea of his powers! He made a request, did he? Was that in writing? Would you be so good as to file a copy with the ship’s administrative committee so we could all vote on it at the next meeting?” I choked down a laugh. The next meeting was three moon’s turn away. Madam was truly formidable.

  My mirth was short-lived as she turned to glare at me, “What are you smirking at, Lieutenant? Did you bring a gun this time or are bad manners still your weapon of choice?”

  I uttered a sheepish apology and attempted to explain. “Quite to the contrary Madam, I came to discuss a training schedule with Zaaro.”

  “Training with whom?” Madam’s tone was glacial.

  “I was going to, that is, of course with his concurrence, and of course with your permission, offer to take him under my wing, so to speak,” I mumbled.

  “So that he can jump out at the IPF from dark corners and yell boo? Or perhaps stab their drones to death? Or maybe,” she really seemed to be enjoying this conversation, “or maybe with your help he can be so rude as to horrify them into conceding defeat? Maybe the IPF will decide that an appalling lack of manners is enough to render the Zaaronians unworthy of oppression and subjugation.”

  “All right then, whom would you suggest?” I asked with some trepidation.

  “There is only one person on this ship who is equipped for the task,” she said with finality.

  “You absolutely cannot be thinking about Commander Lethalwulf.” I cringed.

  “The thought had not even crossed my mind,” she said and pulled herself up to her full height, at least I assumed that was her intention, the effect was negligible due to her rather circular form. “I will be handling the training personally,” she announced magisterially as she moved to knock on the door.

  I could have sworn I heard a tiny high-pitched giggle as she knocked. I immediately frowned at The Good Doctor to register my disapproval. He was becoming completely inappropriate in his old age.

  18. Madam X

  “Mr Nian, may I come in?” I asked as politely as I could. One had to lead by example after all. There was no response. I tried calling out again, a little louder this time; still to no avail. “Mr Nian, I am going to call out a third and final time, if you do not respond, I will enter the room,” I warned; still nothing. “All right then, I am coming in, I hope you’re decent!” I said, stifling another giggle as I opened the door. I glanced back quickly to see if anyone had heard, apparently not. All I saw was Lieutenant Salaar looking at The Good Doctor with some degree of annoyance.

  The room was empty. He was gone. We had been utter and total fools! We had simply assumed that Zaaro did not know of his powers and had no control over them; now he had jumped clean out of his room and our lives. I held my head in my hands. We were doomed. What if he was working for the IPF all along? What if he was a spy? The possibilities were endless. I could not bear to think of the consequences of our lack of judgement.

  I am not proud of what I did next, which was most unfortunately, nothing. Being of a superior species, it was really quite bad form and I certainly knew better. In times of crisis it is for us leaders to rally but I stayed head in hands until Lieutenant Salaar cleared his throat rather insistently and The Good Doctor launched himself into a coughing fit of sorts. I looked up reluctantly to see Zaaro looking rather bemused by the menagerie in his room.

  “Are you feeling all right, Madam?” he asked with genuine concern.

  “I am fine,” I snapped at him. “Where were you, Mr Nian?”

  “Funny you should ask that. I’ve been wondering the same thing myself. I normally have quite a decent sense of direction but this ship has no markers of any kind. One minute I was out looking for the Lieutenant’s room and the next minute I found myself stuck in some horrible nightmare where I was going round in circles and ended up right back at the storage area, which was empty, barring a few crates of miscellaneous items.”

  “How did you get back here Zaaro?” the Doctor enquired rather kindly.

  “I don’t have any idea, Doctor. One minute I was there and the next I was back here in my room.”

  “Mind if I ask what you were thinking at the time this happened?” the Doctor asked.

  “Well, I was exasperated of course. I was taking deep breaths, to calm myself, wondering how long it would take for someone to come searching for me and the next instant, I found myself here. I was hoping the Lieutenant and I could have a chat about that actually. Oh, and before I forget, the thermostat and the lights seemed to be broken, it was getting progressively hotter and brighter in the storage area.”

  Just then a new message beeped on the screen of my private data transmitter. ‘Explosion in STORAGE UNIT 5 - under control’.

  “Zaaro, were you near a storage unit marked five by any chance?” I asked, although I already knew the answer.

  “Don’t know, there was no number on the door,” he said, apologetically.

  I had been storing explosives away from prying eyes in a far-flung, forgotten corner of the ship, where the corridor looped over itself, in case we ever got into a situation where we came face to face with an IPF weapons carrier. I had secreted them away from everyone else on the team, as the less everyone knew about them, the less chance of information finding its way back to the IPF about our stash. I couldn’t trust anyone fully other than myself. Zaaro had somehow managed to lose his way and end up all the way out there. He had obviously tampered with one of the boxes, which led to a fire in the storage area. Luckily it had been controlled in time, a minute later and it would have destroyed the entire ship. I had the remaining crates moved and placed in a closet marked ‘CLEANING SUPPLIES’, secure in the knowledge that it would never be opened. I would fill in the report later citing electrical fault as the reason for the blaze.

  19. Zaaro Nian

  I was glad to be back in my room, and to finally run into Lieutenant Salaar. I wish he had dropped by earlier, it would have saved me from much exploration. I wondered what the others were doing here and why Madam seemed so distraught. Well, I could only focus on one mystery at a time and I stil
l had to enquire about the highly flammable miscellaneous items in the storage area. It was a good thing I had chanced by and stacked them up against the wall, out of harm’s way. I dread to think what could have happened had someone unknowingly disturbed them in some way. The whole ship could have gone KABOOM. I had, of course, been extremely careful throughout the exercise, other than a slight stumble towards the end.

  I waited for the others to leave before I sat down for a chat with the Lieutenant. Madam seemed committed to remaining distraught. She left the room muttering something about the number five into her data transmitter. The Good Doctor beamed at me and seemed genuinely happy to see me back. “I am genuinely happy to see you back,” he said as he left, confirming my initial reading of the situation. In the meanwhile, Lieutenant Salaar had settled himself down into a chair and also seemed to be waiting for the others to leave. “Lieutenant?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can we be honest with each other?”

  “Of course.”

  “There is something I seem to have figured out that I have been meaning to discuss with you.” I thought I would jump right into it.

  “Jumping?” he asked straight away.

  “Ah, you know.” This was a good beginning, he was aware of his powers.

  “I do indeed know Zaaro, and I believe it is as I suspected all along, correct me if I am wrong, jumping occurs across space as a means of protection from imminent harm.”

  “Well put, Lieutenant, that is one important aspect of it.” He was quite remarkable, intelligent and strong. I was beginning to develop the first vestiges of respect for him.

  “Is there more?” He was keen to talk.

  “Certainly.” This was my moment to shine. “It can also occur over time, it is rare, but I have experienced it,” I informed him.

  “Is this a recent development?” He was completely taken aback. Exactly the effect I hoped to achieve.

  “Well, yes, it relates back to the stabbing incident from earlier,” I said delicately.

  “Zaaro, I’ve been meaning to apologise about that misunderstanding. I wasn’t really going to stab you. I feel terrible about it,” he said sincerely.

  “The stabbing? Think no more about it. It’s totally forgotten.” After waiting patiently for him to continue, I decided to guide him gently back to the real issue. “About that other thing, it would be nice to clear the slate, start afresh; nothing fancy, just a simple heartfelt apology will suffice.”

  He looked confused for a second, “Oh yes, I am truly contrite about the shouting. My sincerest apologies.” I may have seen a whisper of a smile but I couldn’t be sure.

  I continued with my explanation. “A time warp was generated at that time.”

  “Really?”

  “It happened twice, in exactly the same way, and the second time I was in the control room at the end of it,” I explained.

  “That is quite astonishing. I hadn’t realised that it was possible to manipulate time AND space.”

  I guess he wasn’t aware of the full extent of his powers after all. “How about we work together to explore and develop the different aspects of these powers and then document them?” I asked him. Along with being the Jump Master, I was thrilled to be the scientist engaged in recording this anomaly for posterity. Could there be more noble a pursuit?

  “Yes, that is exactly what I had in mind; except for a more noble pursuit.”

  I waited expectantly. “Zaaro, I would like to tell you a story. A story of treachery and deceit, lust for power and wealth,” he began.

  “Oh dear, I think I may have read this one already. The Game of Drones? No? It sounded just like it, lots of innocents dying in that. Carry on, I shall not interrupt again.”

  “Once upon a time,” he continued, “there were two great and powerful leaders, known in ancient star lore as Prince Killenheim and Lord Greediwulf. Bitter enemies, they fought each other since the beginning of time, keeping the Universe in balance. But then around the middle of time, they decided to join forces, which threw the Universe into turmoil. Together, they came to be known as the Puranas, lusting after and coveting the lands and riches of other peoples.

  At first, they set out to conquer and destroy but they soon realised that warfare led to gains only at great sacrifice and a lot of ill will. So they put their heads together and came up with a most devious and evil plan. They would fight wars, yet adversity would not touch their people. They would kill mercilessly, conquer foreign lands to amass great power and riches, yet they would be known as keepers of the peace.

  They would create division amongst a people and then arm the various factions and let them destroy each other. Once destruction was complete, the Puranas would colonise their lands and takeover their resources, all in the name of peace and reconstruction. The survivors would be cordoned off into makeshift settlements and harnessed as a workforce of slaves for production of weapons to expand the Puranas’ arsenal.

  They had achieved this end with great success in many solar systems, but it was not enough. Now they wanted more, they literally wanted it all. The entire Universe was to be colonised, so that the powerful lived till the end of time, in undisturbed ease and comfort, while the rest of the population lived in complete chaos, in burning ghettos. They would be too busy trying to survive to even think of upsetting the balance in any way. The beauty of it was that no one would suspect a thing. Everyone who survived would keep blaming each other while the Puranas and their people ruled the Universe from their positions of wealth and privilege.”

  "What a terrifying and macabre vision! It reminds me of a lullaby my mother would lovingly sing me to sleep with every night…

  Sleep little Zaaro because the Puranas roam

  They will eat your happiness and eat your home

  They will eat your clothes and eat your shoes

  They will eat your friends and then eat you.

  This is why I love stories. They are so fantastic. Do you have another? Maybe something a little more upbeat, perhaps something comic?” I requested. “Accompanied by a snack? And I’ve been meaning to ask, would you happen to have any tikka masala powder in the ship’s stores?”

  “I haven’t finished yet Zaaro, allow me to continue. And, no, but we can pick some up the next time we dock. I’m afraid we’re down to our last reserves of space mushrooms at the moment. I didn’t know Zaaronians liked tikka. Is it part of your cuisine?”

  “No it isn’t, but I’ve developed quite a taste for it because of my wife’s cooking. That was one of the reasons she was chosen from the genetic compatibility pool, her skillset gave her an advantage over a lot of the visually and intellectually superior species. That, and her shorter life expectancy, of course, which is greatly attractive in any marriage proposal.” Salaar looked startled, I suppose a curry-eating Zaaronian was quite a shock to his system. His mouth hung slightly open at this point so I presumed he was getting ready to resume his story. I waited politely for a few moments and then cleared my throat a little loudly to recall him to the present.

  He shook his head to clear it and continued. “Where was I? Yes. Their plans were going wonderfully well, when one day, something unaccounted for occurred. A disease started to spread across the populations whose lands were ravaged. It was highly contagious, with no known cure, and war survivors began succumbing to it in the hundreds of thousands.

  Those infected developed tunnel vision, they saw only in black and white; their beliefs were white, everything else was black. Black was to be destroyed at any cost. Nobody knew how to combat it, but the Puranas saw in it yet another opportunity. They would harness the diseased populations and use them to make an army like no other, an army that knew no doubts, no fear. They would fight where needed and infect others where things were moving too slowly for their liking. The Puranas had in their hands a biological weapon so terrible, that it had the power to grow endlessly and devour anything that stood in its way,” the Lieutenant finished darkly.

  “I am wait
ing for the twist. There has to be one. It can’t all be win-win for the Puranas.” I didn’t like the way the story had evolved.

  “Yes there is a twist. I’m impressed you caught that. The biological weapons were a great and unexpected gift for the Puranas until some of them started turning on their masters. It was sporadic at first, an incident here, a killing there, quickly hushed up. But then it grew in volume and frequency, until one fateful day, the mutineers targeted the home planets of the Puranas. The edict was then issued to capture and kill all rogue biological weapons. Of course, by this point it was impossible to tell which ones were rogue and which were not. The problem was solved quietly and effectively by deleting the word rogue from the order. A mass extermination campaign was thus put into motion by the Puranas, which led to the creation of…” here Salaar paused and looked at me.

  “More biological weapons?” I burst out.

  “Precisely!” He seemed delighted by my answer.

  “What a brilliant premise! But there is one vital element missing from this story Lieutenant.”

  “Which is?”

  “We need a hero.”

  “I couldn’t agree more Zaaro. But whose side will he be on?”

  “Well, I can tell you whom he will be against. He will be against the greedy and murderous Puranas.” It was fairly obvious; in order to give hope to the Universe, there had to be someone in the story who would stand up to the awful Puranas.

  “And the diseased army?”

  “I’m not sure. Maybe they could be reclaimed?” I suggested uncertainly.

  “Maybe. Can you relate to this story in any way, Zaaro?”

  “There is just one thing that I keep thinking about. I had mentioned the first bombing on G-125 and the survivors climbing out of the rubble in our earlier discussion. It was nothing short of a miracle that the IPF ambulance shuttles arrived immediately to carry them away for medical treatment. In fact, if I didn’t know any better I could have sworn it was as if they had been waiting.”