04:19, January 10th, 2135

“Coming out of hyperspace.” Ali announced. “Station is dead ahead.”

“Put it on screen.” Kayden ordered.

The ancient Vrul station looked exactly the way Kayden remembered it – floating motionless in a binary star system without any planets, it was the only notable feature for billions of kilometers in any direction. Its series of 4 enormous concentric silver rings were still spinning in circles around what looked like a miniscule star. Kayden briefly wondered if anything at all about the station had changed in the 2.2 million years since the Vrul were destroyed, but he banished the thought as he got closer – instead, focusing on the small wing of interceptors which had been deployed to meet them.

Here we go. He thought to himself before broadcasting a signal on a frequency he knew the Vrul used. “This is Executor Kayden Reynolds of the Broken Shackle.”

There was a brief pause before a voice responded.

“You are known to us, Executor. What is your purpose here?”

“I need to speak with the Underseer abord your station.” Kayden replied, referring to their leader. “I have a proposition – one that I’d prefer to discuss in person.”

“This is highly…unorthodox.”

“I’ve been called worse.” Kayden chuckled. “Will you prevent me from docking? I don’t need to force the issue with my command codes, do I?”

A longer pause followed. Kayden gritted his teeth as he counted the seconds, knowing that if they called his bluff their plan would fall apart and they’d have to try something else. He glanced over at Ali and Mirana as the moments slipped by, each seeming to lower the probability that their plan would work.

“Perhaps we should have waited to test the spray.” Mirana whispered over their private radio channel. “Then you could force them to-”

“No.” Kayden interrupted. “We needed to know if it would work. Besides, I liked what happened afterwards.”

He could practically hear the blush in her voice as she responded. “Me too.”

After what felt like an eternity, the voice over the radio responded. “Sending docking instructions now Executor. Your command codes are not required.”

A moment later, Selina turned and nodded to him. “Received.”

Standing, Kayden exhaled the breath he’d been holding. “Forward them to the shuttle. Ali, Mirana, you’re with me.”

Selina cast him one more look. “Kayden, just… please be careful.”

“Promise.” Kayden said before striding over to her and giving her a quick kiss. “I’ll be back before you know it.”

“I’m holding you to that.” Selina replied before turning back to her workstation, taking control over the ship.

Not wanting to prolong their goodbye, Kayden moved towards the elevator. Ali and Mirana quickly fell into step behind him, but neither of them said anything as they boarded. It was a silent ride down to the hangar bay as each of them took a brief moment to consider the enormity of the task they were about to perform.

When they reached the hangar bay they found Dawn, Anna, and Elara waiting for them. Kayden kissed each of them before boarding, taking the proffered pistol from Dawn before stowing it in the shuttle. As he slid into the cockpit next to Ali he couldn’t help but see Elara handing Mirana a small spray canister filled with the neural link disabling spray.

“Good luck.” Elara said sincerely to Mirana. “We’re counting on you.”

“Thank you.” Mirana replied softly. “For everything.”

Once they were all boarded and their equipment was stowed, Kayden took control of the shuttle with his neural link. He expertly piloted it out of the cramped hangar bay, emerging into the inky blackness of space before performing a tight turn and heading towards the station. As he did, Ali helpfully highlighted the docking bay coordinates provided by the Vrul aboard the station on the shuttle’s heads-up display.

“We’re 10 minutes out.” Kayden said, sealing his suit as he adjusted their course. When Mirana only nodded in reply he spoke again, eager to break the awkward silence. “Hey Mirana, can you refresh my memory about the fleetless? I read through the pre-mission packet you sent me, but it was a little light on details.”

Mirana’s helmeted head turned to him and she cocked her head slightly before replying. “It had all the relevant mission information – details on their defenses, size of their forces, hierarchy, galactic locations, and station maps.”

Kayden shook his head. “I was looking for a little more about them as people, not just facts and figures.”

“Well… they are – as the name implies – exiled from the Vrul fleets.”

“Why are they exiled?” Kayden pressed.

“The specific reasons could be many, but in the end the root cause is the same: the resources they provide the fleets are less than the resources they consume.”

Kayden furrowed his brow. “You might get exiled if you just don’t have the right skills?”

“Perhaps. Sometimes it is because they’ve committed crimes though, and are deemed to be using too many resources as a result.”

“I see.”

“I don’t believe you do.” Mirana said, showing of her new boldness in the face of his authority. “Being part of a fleet is deeply ingrained in who we are as individuals. To have that taken away, to be exiled… it is a truly terrible punishment. It is the lowest station in our society.” She finished.

“What about their leader? You told me it wasn’t an executor – it’s this ‘Underseer’. Who are they?”

“They are one of the original Vrul, the first to commit a crime against the others. They were confined to this station, and their neural link was configured such that they would have to obey all other executors’ orders. As more Vrul were gradually exiled, control over their neural links was given to the Underseer.”

Kayden took a moment to work out the ramifications. “So when you said that they are the lowest station in society…” He trailed off.

“I meant it in terms of authority, not just metaphorically. Where most Vrul have to obey commands from their executor, the fleetless must obey commands from all executors. The Underseer acts as a conduit for their commands.”

“That explains why they treated me the way they did last time.” Kayden nodded. “They probably wanted me out of there as fast as possible.”

“Are there other Vrul stations?” Ali interjected. “And does each station have an Underseer?”

“Yes, and no – in that order. There are 2 other stations: an enormous mining station and a sensor array. Neither of them are operational though – the fleetless who crew them work tirelessly just to keep the life support systems running. The resources required to bring them back to full functionality would be immense.” Mirana paused for a moment before continuing. “There is only one Underseer, who oversees all the fleetless. By dealing with them here, we will free all fleetless across the galaxy.”

“Good.” Kayden said finally as they entered the shuttle bay. “We’re going to need their help if we want this plan to work. Any idea what this Underseer looks like? We didn’t bring a lot of the spray with us, so I want to make sure we get the right person.”

“I’m not sure.” Mirana admitted as the shuttle touched down. “But based on the stories I’ve been told, you’ll know them when you see them.”

Nodding, Kayden disconnected his control cable before standing from the cockpit chair. He moved to the back of the shuttle and patted himself down, ensuring that the half-dozen drones he’d brought with him were tightly clustered around him so that they blended in with his nanobot armour. Finally, he checked his pistol and holstered it before opening the door to the shuttle bay and exiting.

He was met by two dozen armed robots similar to the ones Mirana used. Each of them held a rifle which was not quite pointing downwards, and behind them Kayden could see a pair of Vrul standing at attention. As he glanced around he saw that the hangar bay was the same one he’d used when he visited the station previously – a cavernous space with gold metallic walls and black tiled floors. Above them hooks held several more interceptors like the ones they’d been greeted by when they entered the system, and along the side wall there were refueling and rearming stations for various ships.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Taking a breath, Kayden refocused on the task at hand. He strode towards the Vrul, trying to project an air of confidence as he did. Mirana and Ali fell into step behind him as the robots parted for him, giving them a clear path to a hallway ahead of them. They entered it only for a decontaminating mist to begin spraying from nozzles in the roof. Kayden fought the urge to fidget impatiently as they waited a moment for the mist to dry before being led towards an elevator.

“Go.” A guard said, pressing a button to open the elevator door.

“Always such a talkative bunch.” Kayden quipped over their internal radio as they stepped aboard. “I wonder if that will change once we free them.”

“I don’t know.” Mirana said as the elevator began to move. “On the one hand, their taciturn behaviours are likely deeply ingrained and could take years to unravel. On the other hand, to spend years in the complete service of others only to be freed suddenly could be…jarring.”

Kayden furrowed his brow. “I never thought about the psychological aspect of being freed like this. What was it like for you?”

“I… had some help coping.” She replied, brushing her hand softly against his. “A pleasant distraction.”

“I doubt the other Vrul will have the same advantage.” Ali cautioned. “We should be ready for anything when we free them. Both the fleetless and the Vrul at large.”

“Let’s get this done first. Then we’ll figure out what comes after.” Kayden said as the door in front of them opened and he stepped through with confidence.

Given what was on the other side, he almost wished he hadn’t.

It was a large, hemispheric room with an eerie blue light emitting from the floor. The light wasn’t quite powerful enough to illuminate the entire area, but it was bright enough to cast eerie shadows across from the exposed cabling and black metallic beams criss-crossing the chamber. Ahead of him was a walkway into the middle of the room, and as his eyes followed the walkway to its end he had to bite back a wave of revulsion.

Suspended in the air by cables and metallic supports was an androgynous-looking Vrul. They were mostly naked, with heavily wrinkled red skin and wild green hair cascading past their knees. A circular metallic ring was clamped tightly from their mid-thigh to just below their armpits, though based on the way it pulsed with light regularly as it pumped some sort of viscous liquid through a tube it was more medical in nature than designed to preserve their modesty.

The most horrifying part to Kayden were the grey metallic cables connected to their face. They had one embedded into each temple, along with a pair of cables in their mouth that clearly extended down their throat. They were matched by tubes connected to various parts of their body – their arms and legs, as well as several along their back. As Kayden looked closer he saw their eyes were held open by spindly metal clamps, and their bloodshot pupils darted around the room.

“It has been long since someone has come to see me.” A computerized voice echoed through the room. “It has been longer still since an executor did not simply enforce their will upon me.”

Grimacing slightly, Kayden moved closer before responding. “I guess I’m unique in that way.”

“So it would seem.” The underseer replied. “Let us not mince words. I tire of this communication easily. Tell me: what is this proposition you speak of?”

As Kayden moved closer, Mirana started to circle around the perimeter of the room – canister in hand. Ali stepped backwards and unholstered her pistol before taking a defensive position near the elevator. Before Kayden could speak though, a hacking laugh came through the speakers.

“So you seek to kill me then. Thank you.” The voice said, now with slightly more emotion.

Kayden stopped dead in his tracks. “What?”

“This life, this…machine. It’s constant agony. End my life, and free me from my torture.”

Kayden glanced over at Mirana before speaking over their private radio channel. “Did you know they’d be like…this?”

“No.” Mirana said, revulsion in her voice. “I heard horror stories, but this is far worse than what I expected. They’ve taken the same apparatus from the chair and connected it to them in the most efficient ways…without any regard for the pain it would cause.”

“Why didn’t they just order a crew member to kill them then?”

“I expect there are software and hardware guardrails which would prevent that.” Ali replied.

Kayden turned his suit’s external speakers back on as he neared the Vrul Underseer. “I won’t lie to you: I came here expecting to have to wrestle control over the fleetless from you. I wasn’t expecting you to be so willing.”

“Control? Killing me will kill them – you know this.” The Underseer replied. “It is a kindness to them, just as much as it would be to me.”

“No.” Kayden countered. “We have a method of disabling the neural links and freeing the Vrul.”

“Freedom…” The Underseer trailed off wistfully before their voice hardened. “To place them under your control, I assume?”

“I have no desire to control your race, even if I could.” Kayden countered. “The Voidborn are here and the executors will do nothing until it’s too late. I’m going to truly set the Vrul free, and ask for their help. Hopefully they’ll see reason where their leaders wouldn’t, and join us in our fight.”

“He speaks the truth.” Mirana added as she moved close to the Underseer from behind. “I am free, as are the Vrul on his crew. We follow him willingly.”

“This…” The Underseer trailed off before collecting their thoughts. “If what you say is true, the Vrul can finally break free of the chains that bind us to the past.”

“That’s right.” Mirana nodded as she held up the spray canister. “We just need to-”

“Do it.” The Underseer interrupted. “I will endure any trial for this future.”

Without any further ado, Mirana held up the canister and sprayed the underseer directly in the face. She then pulled out a tablet from a hidden back pocket and extended a control cable from it, connecting it to an input port on the Underseer’s arm. The Underseer appeared to relax visibly as Mirana began typing away furiously, running the update program as she did.

“This was what I was exiled for.” The Underseer said softly.

“For what?”

“The neural links. I fought against their introduction, centuries ago when we fled to the stars. For my disobedience, I was exiled here – the first of the fleetless.”

“It’s done.” Mirana announced, withdrawing the cable. “The fleetless are free.”

“What will you do now?” Kayden asked. “Your crew is free!”

“Now? I want you to kill me.”

“What?” Kayden asked, bewildered.

“I am still in pain. I have been in pain for so long. Please…end my suffering.”

“Your people could still use your help. Hell, we could use your help. An ancient Vrul who seems to have their head screwed on straight? You could be a huge asset to us.”

A screen flickered to life in the corner of the room, illuminating a workstation. “There. Take whatever knowledge you need. It’s not complete, but you may need all the advantages you can get. In return, all I ask is that you end my life.”

“We might be able to get you out of here. We’ve got the best doctors, the best scientists, the best-” Kayden started.

“No, you won’t. It is not possible – the ancient executors saw to that.” The Underseer replied. “Please. Do this for me.”

Kayden looked over at Mirana. “What do you think?”

“It…is the compassionate thing to do.” Mirana said slowly. “Executor. The choice is yours.”

Taking a deep breath, Kayden slowly unholstered his pistol. He took an unusually long time to check it over and ensure it was loaded before thumbing the safety and pointing it directly at the Underseer’s head. He was about to ask if they were sure before the voice sounded one final time.

“Thank you. Good luck.”

The palpable relief in the computerized voice solidified his decision. Gritting his teeth, he adjusted his aim a hair to ensure that the bullet would pass directly through what he assumed was the Underseer’s brain stem, killing them instantly. He forced himself to look them in their bloodshot eyes one last time.

Then he pulled the trigger.