The Misguided Stargazer
In a universe that is infinite there are literally billions of opportunities. There are billions of chances to prove yourself, to become what you have always dreamed of being. There are billions of ways to improve your life and that of your kin. At every moment there are a billion beings reaching out and striving to make more of themselves, to make a better future for their offspring. In some star systems entire races struggle to release themselves from servitude, led by beings of vision and courage, whose selfless efforts may some day bring prosperity to their impoverished worlds. These remarkable hero’s and their exploits fill the vast distances of space with hope and the belief that there can be more.
But this is not a story about those places.
This is a story about the vast dark places, whole systems which could swallow a rebellious army and its’ Homeric leaders. Worlds where there is almost no chance for change, where not even a glimmer of hope can be seen from the planet-wide cesspools which grow to cover continents and oceans alike. In these worlds it is the strong and greedy, the wicked and ambitious who rule. On these planets it is not enough to watch out for yourself, there is no benevolent government established to provide for the common good. There is only your own vibro-blade or blaster to protect you. It is not what you can give to others but what you can take from them that will allow you live through the seemingly interminable nights. In these places ruthlessness is a virtue which is taught on a daily basis, by instructors whose own sadism makes them as perfectly adapted to their environment as the wraith-like star people who float across the surfaces of a million suns; unable to ever leave their worlds but entirely unchallenged by outsiders who could never survive in the unforgiving habitats which they call home.
Of course, in an infinite universe, there is always an exception. Some one or something for which the rules are bent. A being of such fortitude that it is able to travel from system to system learning from those it meets and growing through these encounters to become even greater than it already was. Like the mighty Asterites, massive living rock formations who are pushed along by the gravity wells of the solar systems they coast through. Never stopping their travels through the cosmos, never ceasing their journey from star to star, the goal of their search as inscrutable as their motivations, these behemoths continue on, increasing their understanding of all forms of life and all types of intelligence. For a lucky few the universe is a constant source of wonder and adventure. Filled with amazing and terrifying worlds. Populated by beings which must be met to be understood, beings that can teach even the most jaded traveler about themselves and their place within the universe. But sometimes, you knew exactly where you stood within this infinite universe, both your place within, and your relation to the rest of everything. Right now, Eva knew she was up to her neck in shit, and it was just getting deeper.
Walking through the corridor leading to the grand gaming room Eva could smell the excretions of beings communicating with the bartenders from the gaming tables. Placing drink orders through pheromones, these beings never needed to leave their tables, and that’s just how the Overboss wants it. Gepos Shuuz, over-boss of The Misguided Stargazer Casino. Known as the ‘Gazer it was another of the thousands of casinos which covered the planet, the only difference was that this one was Gepos’. Many beings have tried to draw him into wagers to take the ‘Gazer from him, all have failed. Save one…
“Eva, I always knew that you would come crawling back into my casino,” squaked Gepos thru speakers mounted in chest-pieces of the two monstrous guards at the casino’s entrance.
“This doesn't feel like crawling to me, Shuuz.” Snorted Eva as she breezed past the guards.
The squeaking voice emanating from the chestboxes seemed to laugh, or at least a rough, grating version of laughter. A sound that has meant death for dozens of creatures unfortunate enough to hear it faded behind Eva as she walked away from the huge guards left stunned in her wake.
As Eva walked past the gaming tables and over excreted puddles of ooze towards the lifts which led to Shuuz’ private office two more guards stepped forward to block her path.
“What, glorious Eva, has brought you to my fabulous gaming palace today? What has made you foolish enough to venture back into my clutches?” squeaked Shuuz’ voice.
“Eh, a devil-may-care attitude, this sweet pair of boots, and an overwhelming desire to talk to beings who disgust me.”
Again the grating noise erupted for the guards’ chests, “I see you have not developed a sense of self-preservation during your travels. You shall see that I have not developed patience during your absence.”
“You probably haven’t gotten any prettier either. Now open the doors and get your goons out of my way before they get hurt.”
The two monstrous hulks in front of Eva grunted and began to instinctively fill themselves with battle hormones, turning their mottled skin a yellowish color and hardening into a protective shell, preparing for a fight that they should win with ease. They flexed their massive paws and with straining tendons and popping joints they began to close on the comparatively tiny space captain. Towering over Eva they moved cautiously towards her, surrounding her in the foyer of the lone elevator leading to Shuuz’ private office.
“…And I was afraid that this was gonna be boring…” said Eva quietly as she ran her hands through her flame red hair.
The guard on Eva’s left lunged for her, swinging its enormous paw at her midsection. She placed a hand on its forearm and swiftly cart wheeled over the arm, delicately removing its right eye as she passed it. Landing silently in a crouched position, she whirled around with the grace of a dancer, squinted one eye, and threw the guard’s borrowed eye directly into the face of the second attacking guard. Momentarily blinded, it presented little resistance to Eva’s swift and very public vivisection. She drew a vibro-blade from her boot and sliced the hapless monster from its third leg joint to its lower mouth-hole, spilling organs and intestines in a thick ropy soup onto the casino floor. She then pivoted on her heel in time to catch the first guard charging forward, bellowing with rage, she slid effortlessly sideways in the mass of guts as the guard lost its footing and crashed into the wall next to the elevator. Before it had fully hit the floor, Eva swiftly, and almost gently, inserted the ‘blade into its brain-pod and removed the back of its head, spilling it's noxious brain fluid.
Stepping from the spreading gelatinous pool, Eva placed the ‘blade back into her boot and turned to the camera over the elevator.
“You owe me a pair of boots now, Shuuz. Open the door or I’m cutting them out of your leathery ass.”
The speaker next to the elevator hissed, and after a moment of hesitation the doors slid silently open. Eva walked nonchalantly into the elevator leaving the cleaning droids to the odious task of cleaning the remains of the guards from the once polished casino floor.
Next... Mini-Steve madness!
But this is not a story about those places.
This is a story about the vast dark places, whole systems which could swallow a rebellious army and its’ Homeric leaders. Worlds where there is almost no chance for change, where not even a glimmer of hope can be seen from the planet-wide cesspools which grow to cover continents and oceans alike. In these worlds it is the strong and greedy, the wicked and ambitious who rule. On these planets it is not enough to watch out for yourself, there is no benevolent government established to provide for the common good. There is only your own vibro-blade or blaster to protect you. It is not what you can give to others but what you can take from them that will allow you live through the seemingly interminable nights. In these places ruthlessness is a virtue which is taught on a daily basis, by instructors whose own sadism makes them as perfectly adapted to their environment as the wraith-like star people who float across the surfaces of a million suns; unable to ever leave their worlds but entirely unchallenged by outsiders who could never survive in the unforgiving habitats which they call home.
Of course, in an infinite universe, there is always an exception. Some one or something for which the rules are bent. A being of such fortitude that it is able to travel from system to system learning from those it meets and growing through these encounters to become even greater than it already was. Like the mighty Asterites, massive living rock formations who are pushed along by the gravity wells of the solar systems they coast through. Never stopping their travels through the cosmos, never ceasing their journey from star to star, the goal of their search as inscrutable as their motivations, these behemoths continue on, increasing their understanding of all forms of life and all types of intelligence. For a lucky few the universe is a constant source of wonder and adventure. Filled with amazing and terrifying worlds. Populated by beings which must be met to be understood, beings that can teach even the most jaded traveler about themselves and their place within the universe. But sometimes, you knew exactly where you stood within this infinite universe, both your place within, and your relation to the rest of everything. Right now, Eva knew she was up to her neck in shit, and it was just getting deeper.
Walking through the corridor leading to the grand gaming room Eva could smell the excretions of beings communicating with the bartenders from the gaming tables. Placing drink orders through pheromones, these beings never needed to leave their tables, and that’s just how the Overboss wants it. Gepos Shuuz, over-boss of The Misguided Stargazer Casino. Known as the ‘Gazer it was another of the thousands of casinos which covered the planet, the only difference was that this one was Gepos’. Many beings have tried to draw him into wagers to take the ‘Gazer from him, all have failed. Save one…
“Eva, I always knew that you would come crawling back into my casino,” squaked Gepos thru speakers mounted in chest-pieces of the two monstrous guards at the casino’s entrance.
“This doesn't feel like crawling to me, Shuuz.” Snorted Eva as she breezed past the guards.
The squeaking voice emanating from the chestboxes seemed to laugh, or at least a rough, grating version of laughter. A sound that has meant death for dozens of creatures unfortunate enough to hear it faded behind Eva as she walked away from the huge guards left stunned in her wake.
As Eva walked past the gaming tables and over excreted puddles of ooze towards the lifts which led to Shuuz’ private office two more guards stepped forward to block her path.
“What, glorious Eva, has brought you to my fabulous gaming palace today? What has made you foolish enough to venture back into my clutches?” squeaked Shuuz’ voice.
“Eh, a devil-may-care attitude, this sweet pair of boots, and an overwhelming desire to talk to beings who disgust me.”
Again the grating noise erupted for the guards’ chests, “I see you have not developed a sense of self-preservation during your travels. You shall see that I have not developed patience during your absence.”
“You probably haven’t gotten any prettier either. Now open the doors and get your goons out of my way before they get hurt.”
The two monstrous hulks in front of Eva grunted and began to instinctively fill themselves with battle hormones, turning their mottled skin a yellowish color and hardening into a protective shell, preparing for a fight that they should win with ease. They flexed their massive paws and with straining tendons and popping joints they began to close on the comparatively tiny space captain. Towering over Eva they moved cautiously towards her, surrounding her in the foyer of the lone elevator leading to Shuuz’ private office.
“…And I was afraid that this was gonna be boring…” said Eva quietly as she ran her hands through her flame red hair.
The guard on Eva’s left lunged for her, swinging its enormous paw at her midsection. She placed a hand on its forearm and swiftly cart wheeled over the arm, delicately removing its right eye as she passed it. Landing silently in a crouched position, she whirled around with the grace of a dancer, squinted one eye, and threw the guard’s borrowed eye directly into the face of the second attacking guard. Momentarily blinded, it presented little resistance to Eva’s swift and very public vivisection. She drew a vibro-blade from her boot and sliced the hapless monster from its third leg joint to its lower mouth-hole, spilling organs and intestines in a thick ropy soup onto the casino floor. She then pivoted on her heel in time to catch the first guard charging forward, bellowing with rage, she slid effortlessly sideways in the mass of guts as the guard lost its footing and crashed into the wall next to the elevator. Before it had fully hit the floor, Eva swiftly, and almost gently, inserted the ‘blade into its brain-pod and removed the back of its head, spilling it's noxious brain fluid.
Stepping from the spreading gelatinous pool, Eva placed the ‘blade back into her boot and turned to the camera over the elevator.
“You owe me a pair of boots now, Shuuz. Open the door or I’m cutting them out of your leathery ass.”
The speaker next to the elevator hissed, and after a moment of hesitation the doors slid silently open. Eva walked nonchalantly into the elevator leaving the cleaning droids to the odious task of cleaning the remains of the guards from the once polished casino floor.
Next... Mini-Steve madness!
posted by futron3049 at 10:33 PM
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