Chapter: The Message
“Rare is it that life will give you exactly what you seek; but seek all the same. The path you end up on may not be the one you first intend, but tread it all the same. Seek something in this life, in this Nova Rim, and whether you find it or not, life will bring you adventure.”
—Famed Explorer Kida Likirda in her memoir, A Life of Seeking
The journey to Bazo Spire was quick and easy—it was difficult to miss the abandoned military installation. The spire was incredibly long, like a giant needle in space, with a two-thousand foot diameter and hundreds of landing zones.
Luckily, Baeus had already found the one closest to their destination. Zaina made sure her breathing mask was secured before opening the ship’s hatch—Bazo Spire hadn’t had breathable air for a few hundred millennia at this point.
They emerged to an empty, desolate wasteland of rusting metal and trash. Bazo Spire had existed for almost a million years, originally serving as a border installation for the Alliance of Worlds against the Singa Empire in the Era of Proving. Now it was a home for squatters and pirates.
We’re not out of danger yet. I have to stay alert.
They wandered through a maze of empty hallways, stairwells, and corridors, with Baeus directing them whenever they came to a split path. Zaina’s heart pounded in her chest, and her stomach felt ready to jump up her throat. They were almost there—almost to Gir’s secret.
Once we know what it is, it’ll all be worth it. It has to be.
A beep came from the map displayed on the inside of Baeus’s bed-pod.
“We’re almost there,” he said. “Left here.”
They turned and found a door to an uncovered landing zone. It had been left open by the last people to touch it. Aside from food wrappers, empty bottles, and an abandoned bag, there was nothing but the platform and its guardrails. The stillness of everything struck Zaina—it was surreal.
She looked up—stars decorated every inch of the sky. There was a sullen aura to the spire, but it was certainly beautiful.
Kazlo said something happened to Gir here. I wonder what it was?
A glint of metal caught her eye—she stooped down to find its source and picked up a scrap bead. Looking back to the door, the wall was pocked with burn marks.
Guess I’ll never know.
“Okay,” Baeus said. “Okay—this should be it. Bring Gizmo right over here and see if it works.”
Zaina took a deep breath, readying herself for whatever happened next. No matter how desperately she wanted this to work, she still had to be ready for it not to.
She glanced at Gizmo in her palm and said, “All right, buddy. We’re almost there.”
The moment they moved closer to Baeus, Gizmo stirred. He chirped and beeped in a mad storm, his blue light glowing brighter than ever. “Gizmo, Gizmo, Gizmo, Giz—zzz—mo—”
Zaina tenderly set him on the platform and said, “Gizmo? You okay buddy?”
“Bzzzt. Coordinates accepted. New lock accessed. Input passphrase.”
She closed her eyes. This was it—everything they’d been through, all the heartbreak they’d endured would be worth it once they found out what Gir thought was so important. Only a one word phrase was between her and her late friend’s last will and testament, which might just somehow save the entire galaxy.
“Lancer,” she said.
There was no response.
“Cipher.”
Again there was nothing.
“Magick.” Silence.
“Wish. Gir. Zaina. Beni. Eldritch. Demelia. Heretic. Mark?”
Gizmo was still.
Zaina gave a frustrated growl and sat next to Gizmo. “It would’ve had to have been something he thought I’d know, right? I mean, if it was for me—”—her shoulders slumped forward—“—if it was for me, why did you make it so hard?”
Baeus inched toward her. “Zaina, I’m—”
“It’s okay,” she replied. “It’s okay—I’m okay. Have to keep trying, right?”
She turned to him, only to be struck by how sad his eyes were. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, Zaina.”
She wiped a tear from her eye. “I want to keep trying. For Gir.”
Baeus pulled back. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.”
“I will,” she said. Inside she was panicking. If she came all this way only to not know the passphrase—she didn’t want to think about it. After the emotional ups and downs it took to get here she needed something to go right, especially considering what might be on the line.
A few deep breaths helped her feel a little better as she thought back to those two days on Demelia.
It had to be something he knows I know. Something we talked about, maybe. But it had to be something I wouldn’t forget, either—
Then, it clicked. Something she wouldn’t forget—he was counting on her having Gizmo, right?
She leaned forward and said, “Giramodo.”
A little green light flashed on Gizmo, and a holo-screen popped out, startling Zaina. There was a play icon in the center of the screen—some kind of video. However, the background made her gasp.
“It’s—it’s—home! Demelia!”
Baeus faced the image. “Well, would you look at that! He must have recorded this the night he met you.”
There was Gir, sitting on a log at the campsite they’d made that night. He was exactly as Zaina remembered him—his shoulders broad and his eyes kind. Behind him was Demelia—well, by that point, the Eldritch had already corrupted most of the planet, so it wasn’t the Demelia she remembered from her youth, but it struck her that this was likely the last footage of her homeworld that existed anywhere.
Now fighting to not cry, Zaina pressed play.
“Hey there, Zaina,” Gir’s recording said.
The moment she heard his voice the tears started flowing.
“If you’re seeing this message, it means I’m probably dead. I have a feeling I know how. I knew before I ever came to your home. But then I met you.”
Holo-Gir cleared his throat. “I didn’t think there would be anyone left to save. I haven’t always been able to save everyone over the course of my career. I’m glad—I’m glad it’s going to end on a high note. I’ve always seen service to others as the highest calling. And even though we haven’t known each other very long, I think we’re alike in a lot of ways. We like helping people.
“I’m sorry if finding this turns out to be a hassle. I’m glad you kept Gizmo. Most wouldn’t have, but he’s a special little guy, and if you give him the chance, he’ll make a great friend. I had to program him to act up a little bit so you’d find this, but now that you have, he’s putting everything back where it should be. I think you’ll find that despite his quirks he makes a fine companion.”
Zaina breathed a sigh of relief. So Gir had planned Gizmo’s malfunctions—the resets and the crashes were by design to get her attention. She was right. Now she had to find out what was so important that such great lengths were taken to preserve its secrecy.
“I’m sure you met my family. They’re a delightful bunch. I love them, but they’re not focused on the same things as myself. I can’t hold that against them. As for the reason behind bringing you to Bazo Spire, well—this was the site of my greatest failure as a lancer. My eighth mission. I wasn’t able to save anyone. That always weighs heavily on me—on my decision to save as many people as I could with the time I was given. That’s why I’m so happy to have been able to help you, Zaina.
“Now—I’m sure you’re wondering what all this is about. Why you’re here. Well—as I mentioned, Bazo Spire my greatest failure. But lessons can be learned from failure, and I want to pass down as many of the lessons I’ve learned to you as I can. I—” holo-Gir scratched his head—“—I have a feeling you might have a hard time making friends in the Order of Riiva. There are kind people, of course, but there are also many who won’t be so inclined. I’m hopeful you don’t end up needing any of this, but if you do, it’ll be stored on Gizmo. I truly believe that Riiva chose you and brought me here to meet you for a reason, and I think that reason was so I could help you along your journey. So, with that in mind, I’ve prepared a few different training videos. Swordsmanship mostly, with a bit of magick, too. I also go over the gear you’ll have and when and where and why to use it. I’ve covered as much as I can with what time I have. Oh, and Zaina—thank you. For never giving up. I know you’re going to make an amazing lancer.”
The playback ended. By now Zaina was sobbing as quietly as she could, her eyes fixated on her old friend. “Gir…”
It wasn’t some galaxy-shaking conspiracy, or a warning of a dark danger beyond anyone’s imagination. It wasn’t an important secret that would change everything. In the end, the thing that was so important in his eyes, that was worth organizing all this to speak beyond the grave, was her. And knowing that, for Zaina, was… everything.
Baeus floated next to her. “He really cared about you.”
Zaina sniffed and leaned on his bed-pod. They sat there, him in silence, her weeping, while the stars drifted past the opening of Bazo Spire.
“Hello, Zaina,” Gizmo said out of nowhere. “You are showing signs of sadness. Is there anything I can assist you with?”
Zaina pulled Gizmo in for a hug.
“Oh—oh. Okay. Well, that’s fine, friend,” Gizmo said.
“You’re all right?” she asked. “No more resets?”
“No more resets. And Giramodo’s last recordings are now available in regular storage for your leisure.”
“Oh, thank you,” Zaina said. “You had me worried for a minute there. Did you have good dreams?”
“Yes I did, my friend Zaina,” Gizmo replied. “Would you like to hear about them?”
Zaina nodded. “I’d like nothing more in the whole universe.”
“Very well, then! I dreamt you and Giramodo and I were down by a river. One back on Kaado that Giramodo used to take me to. It was back when I first could dream, and he would ask me to tell him about them. We spent hours in the sun but the day never ended. Everything was so peaceful. Then he told me he had to leave to go somewhere, but told me you’d take care of me from now on.”
Zaina thought she was done crying, but apparently not. “And then?”
“And then I woke up,” Gizmo said. “And you were sad.”
Zaina wiped her eyes. “Not every tear is sad, little guy.”
“So these are happy tears?”
“Very much so,” she said. Then she turned to Baeus and said, “Gizmo, meet Baeus. He’s my friend, so he’s your friend, too.”
“Hello, Baeus! I love friends!”
“Glad to finally meet the official you,” Baeus replied.
Zaina smiled. Friends.
There, adrift on an abandoned spire in space and missing her prosthetic arm, she had never felt more whole since leaving home. Now, with her friends by her side, she felt ready to face whatever the future held.