Chapter 29: Revolution Protocol — Part 1

Didi’s brow was covered in sweat. It ran between her breasts, down her back, and between her legs. She never imagined having to fly through such a dense asteroid field before, and because of the constant shifts in gravity and acceleration, the newly revamped Mercy was being pushed to its limits. The ship’s thermal displacers were taxed out, glowing red with the amount of heat they were radiating into space. Sweetsprings, a planet at the heart of the asteroids was only visible in patches through debris that cluttered its immediate space. Below and above those asteroids were thick clouds of moisture. The visibility was so bad that Didi had to rely completely on instruments. Shadow, calm and unhindered as usual, let Didi have full control of the Mercy’s entry into Sweetsprings’ Bizarre upper atmosphere. She crawled in at under a thousand miles an hour. The suggested deviation was only a few feet either way, and she wasn’t about to damage the Mercy and impart upon herself Shadow’s wrath. Shadow giggled, easing off some of the forward thrust as the Mercy fell into the influence of a larger asteroid.

“Careful, girl. Keep an eye on your gages.” Shadow warned.

“I think I’m getting a feel for it.” Didi said, not nearly as confident as she sounded.

“Maybe you are.” Shadow eased the port thruster’s output up a little.

“How the hell did Sweetsprings become an asteroid magnet, anyway?” Xeti asked, his fingers buried in the elbow rests set at either side of his crew seat.

As usual, Shadow had the answer. “About 450 million years ago, a degrading heavy particle, one very much like a black hole, fell under the influence of this solar system. It was only the size of a pinhead, and acting like a typical heavy particle, had set itself to spinning wildly as it decayed out of existence. It corkscrewed three times around Sweetsprings then committed suicide, extinguishing itself in a flash of pure energy. Fortunately, it deteriorated on the other side of the local star, or it would have destroyed the planet in its death throes.”

“Lucky for me.” Didi said sarcastically.

As they fell closer to a larger asteroid, Ferret, David, And Roxy all let out excited oohs and awes. Massive beasts and tiny wingers flew between asteroids that were literally infested with ancient trees. Plants and animals alike flowed between the asteroid field and the planet’s surface, having evolved immunity to the partial vacuum that existed in the spaces between. The world seemed one that had survived the worst, and flourished for it. Didi slowed her pace even more, not wanting to hit one of the more massive beasts on the wing. Such an impact, she was certain, would have devastating consequences for both the animal and herself.

“This place is blessed with life.” Ferret said.

“These asteroids are actually the original surface of the planet. What little life survived the cataclysm formed its own ecosystem high above Sweetsprings. As the new core of Sweetsprings cooled, animal and plant life migrated from above, and over the eons reclaimed the surface. Now both the upper and lower ecosystems are fully integrated.” Shadow made a few minor adjustments to the ship’s exterior flaps. “It makes for intense atmospheric conditions, honestly. And these animals live in an atmosphere that is, by human standards, almost breathable. Still, seeds and animals fly up and fall down with tremendous regularity, as if there is no preference for dense, moist air.”

Didi managed to crawl past the influence of the last major asteroid, and dropped down to Sweetsprings’ surface. She landed in one of three docking nests, the Mercy settling into the restraining hoists with a satisfactory click. Roxy brought up a map of the city of Sweetsprings. She shut the ship’s systems down, running the post-flight checkout. She had safely navigated to the surface, and now leaned back, appreciative of Shadow’s skill as a pilot.

“Tell me why we came to this place again.” Didi said, wiping the sweat from her eyes.

Shadow scowled for a moment. “I traced North’s ship to this system. Normally I’m not one for vengeance, but I also can’t let him get away with nearly killing us. After all, he might try to kill others. That would be unacceptable, if I were to let that happen while it was within my means to stop him.”

After everybody got dressed, Shadow dismissed them to the local pub. The city of Sweetsprings was small by galactic standards, and that was exactly the reason Shadow liked it. It had one street, one bar, and not much else. Right next to the bar was the Sheriff’s Office. Across the way was the Doctor’s Office, and next door to it was the Mayor’s Office. All the buildings looked like Hub architecture, organic and yet somehow refined. The Post Office was to the right of the Sheriff’s Office, which also doubled as a bank. The rest of Sweetsprings consisted of farms and mines spread out across the planet surface. By determination of the local consensus, the asteroids were completely off limits to all mining and farming. Though several of the larger ones were listed as park reserves, only the most skilled of pilots were granted permits to take a ship to the surface.