Howard jolted awake, immediately coming face to face with the library engulfed in flames. He unsteadily climbed to his feet, filled with confusion and dread. He felt foggy, unable to focus. The room was quickly filling with smoke and rising in temperature, making it hard to breathe or even see that far in front of him. He called out to his father, but there was no reply. His eyes were smarting from the smoke to discern if he was in the same room or not. He tried to recall what had just happened, but his head hurt something horrible, making it hard to think.
Coughing smoke out his lungs, he fumbled his way to the door, tripping over a stack of his books that he’d forgotten to put away weeks ago. He scrambled to his feet and continued to the edge of the room, navigating by touch alone. He could feel the fire growing behind him as it engulfed all his precious books, the flames wanting to claim him in its rapid growth.
He managed to find the doorknob, which had already become incredibly hot, but that he latched onto and turned anyway, crying out in pain as his just healed hands were once more burned. He spilled out into the hallway, the smoke flooding out behind him, and fresh oxygen rushing into the room past, stocking the fire even more. He coughed out more soot and smoke, deeply inhaling the cleaner air, but he could not sit still for long. The flames were already at the door. He raced down the stairs, colliding with Miss Berkshire who’d been sprinting up in the opposite direction, her skirt hiked up to run quicker.
“Young Master!” She exclaimed with worry. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine!” Howard shouted. “Have you seen my Father?”
“No sir, I thought he was with you.” She seemed worried, staring at the blood all over his face. Howard shook his head, and turned Miss Berkshire around so they could keep going downstairs.
“Where are my mother and sister?” He asked as they descended.
“They’re already outside!”
“Then let’s join them!” They made a beeline to the front door together, spilling out onto the front lawn. They nearly crashed into Howard’s mother and Julia, whom Howard was relieved to see. But when he tried to reach out to them, Julia recoiled, pulling their mother away from him.
“Monster!” She screamed, terror in her eyes.
“What?” Howard asked hurriedly. “Julia, what’s wrong?”
“You ate him! It was horrific! I saw it!”
“Julia you’re hysterical,” Miss Berkshrike tried to calm her. “Let’s move further away from the house-”
“Stay away mother!” Julia shrieked, pulling her away.
“Calm down Miss Julia!” She pleaded with the young woman.
“He killed my father!” She struck Miss Berkshire across the face, leaving a deep scratch from her perfectly manicured nails. Howard, already full of adrenaline, reached out and grabbed his sister's wrist and squeezed it hard, locking it in place.
“She’s done nothing wrong!” Howard shouted in her defense as Miss Berkshire recoiled. “How dare you strike her!”
“Unhand me!” Julia shrieked and attempted to strike him too, but finally their mother woke up and pulled her off of them.
“Both of you, stop this at once!” She begged. “Julia, you’re hysterical, Howard would never do such a thing-”
“Be quiet!” Julia snapped at her. “You don’t know a damn thing about him! He’s a monster in disguise, hell bent on destroying this family.” Howard was appalled at her words, but she was not done. “He’s never cared about us, he’s squandered everything you’ve given, that Father gave him, and now he has enacted his ultimate betrayal, he’s killed your husband!”
“No!” Howard pleaded with them.
“I saw it, mother! With my own eyes I saw it!” Howard watched his mother’s gaze begin to shift. With each passing second she began to look at Howard with growing fear, and distrust
“Mother…I didn’t,” he started to say, but she turned away. Howard became angry, raising his voice. “He tried to kill me!” He shrieked. “He was strangling me, he was burning all my books, that's why the house is on fire! This isn’t my fault, it's all his fault! If he’d just let me be, none of this would have happened!” He put his head in his hands, and realized only a moment later what he said had likely meant to them. When he looked up, his mother had fully rejected him, hiding behind Julia, whose own face was one full of a twisted satisfaction. She’d seized a golden opportunity.
“He admits it!” She pointed at him accusingly.
“That’s not what I meant!” Howard stepped forward, but flinched when they recoiled. “No. Please…”
“Leave. Never return. Get lost in the deep dark of space for all I care. Just never show your face again.”
Howard couldn’t believe it, he just couldn’t. He hadn’t been happy, but his entire foundation of his life was crumbling before his very eyes. This was all happening too fast. What had even happened in the library? Where was his father? He felt Miss Berkshire’s hand on his shoulder, who gripped him tightly. “This doesn't make any sense…”
“Young master…” she whispered over the roaring flames behind them.” Howard turned to her, tears welling in his eyes. Her face was covered in soot, her figure cloaked in the dancing shadows cast from the burning estate. “You must act quickly.” She squeezed him again, centering his spiraling emotions.
He wasn’t sure what had happened, but Julia had already taken control of the situation. It didn’t matter what he said anymore. He could try and fight her accusations, but he knew she was the superior when it came to matters of persuasion. Besides, she’d already convinced their mother he was behind everything. He was getting cut out.
“Okay,” he surrendered defeatedly.
“Miss Berkshire, take my card and get Howard a ticket going anywhere. Now.”
Howard watched in a trance as Miss Berkshire grabbed the card then grabbed him by the shoulders and steered him away the moment he was done. He looked over his shoulder as they hurried away. His mother stared at the burning blaze of their estate, while Juila watched them like a hawk until they were no longer in sight.
As Howard and Miss Berkshire raced down the hill to head into town, they passed the local fire fighting brigade heading the opposite direction in their hovercraft, shouting with great urgency. Onlookers were already coming out of their houses and gazing up the hill, watching their patriarch's estate burn in the night. Howard tried to remember what had happened, but everything was a blur in his mind, and he had a throbbing headache, so he focused on
They stopped only when they had made it to the spaceport at the outskirts of town, a small landing strip with a tiny building that housed all its logistics and guest services. The pair burst inside and rushed to the ticket counter, where Miss Berkshire bought Howard a ticket and shoved it into his hands.
“Come with me,” Howard whispered desperately. “You can use her card, we can disappear.”
Miss Berkshire flinched at his plea, her answer already in her eyes.
She held his face in her hands. “I can’t.”
“Why not?” He choked, grabbing her and holding on for dear life.
“Where else can I go, a woman of my age? Where else could I work?”
“We’ll disappear, we can hide!”
“Howard,” she smiled, her eyes misty. “I can’t go where you’re going.”
“I don’t even know where I’m going,” he whispered.
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“Don’t you see? You’re free now.”
Howard stopped crying, her words dawning on him. He looked up to the woman who raised him, his heart aching with pain.
“The Journey Sector?” he breathed, his voice unsteady.
“Your dream,” she ran a hand through his hair. “You can finally chase after it.”
There was a spark of hope behind the sea of sadness swimming around in his head. Even in his darkest moment, she could help him see the light, a stoic old lighthouse that’d always been there to show the way.
“I love you,” he smiled, and embraced her for the last time.
She finally broke and began crying herself, and wrapped him up in her arms, not taking for granted a second of their final moments together.
“I love you too, Howard.” she whispered, holding him like he was still the eager little child who ran around the library. They stood there, wrapped in each other's arms for what felt like far too little time before the sound of the attendant calling for final boarding broke their embrace, and Howard took a big step back, clutching the ticket in his hands. He wiped his tears away with his sleeve, revealing a smile of radiant joy underneath. He nodded bravely for her, grinning from ear to ear.
“I’ll do it!” He declared confidently. “I can do it!”
“I know!” Miss Berkshire pushed him toward the ship, “Now go before they leave!” Howard turned and raced toward the boarding gate. The attendant had watched their embrace and even though he didn’t have to, he let Howard board late, moved by their moment together. Howard was quickly escorted to his seat on the ship and loaded into his seat. He went to look out the window to see her one last time, but the viewing ports were sealed as the ship was loaded into the interplanetary catapult. The countdown from one minute began, and Howard held onto the edges of his seat, not knowing what to expect.
When the countdown hit zero, the blood rushed to Howard’s feet as the ship blasted upwards, zipping into sky by the space elevator they were attached to, being pulled by the massive counter weight that rested out at the very edge of the atmosphere. His vision darked, he struggled to keep his eyes open, but the G forces were too much. He passed out, and when he awoke they were slowing down. With a dull roar, the ship's engines activated and the protholes were unsealed, revealing the darkness of space on the other side. He was on his way to Shangri-La.
***
The first few hours of the ride had been quiet, as it was so late when the transport ship departed. For his part, Howard was restless, the events of the night tumbling over in his mind. But as the journey went on, and the rest of the passengers started to wake, he distracted himself by eavesdropping on their many conversations, no matter how mundane they were. He listened to one woman speak in a not so quiet voice to her friend about someone they were trying to court over social media for a good ten minutes or so. Howard didn’t know the first thing about courtship, but he at least took away that if he ever wanted a woman to be interested in him, he needed to make sure he was liking their status updates. Whatever that meant.
Howard busied himself listening to the lives of those around him, dying to ask questions of the strangers around him but not finding the courage to speak up. They seemed so engaged in their own worlds, their own conversations, that it felt rude of him to disturb their reality by trying to insert himself. Though he didn’t simply listen either, it was already a joy to be among the people. When he wasn’t eavesdropping on those around him, his face was glued to the viewport that peered out into the infinite black of space. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected exactly, having only ever seen pictures online, but seeing out there with his own eyes, it was terrifyingly beautiful. Devoid of intelligent life, of influence from other forces. Space was simply…well, space. An absence of something itself, and yet the thing that enveloped everything else.
After a while, even Howard could not maintain the distance of his nose to the reinforced glass, and settled into his chair. He tapped his hands against his knees absentmindedly, searching for something busy with his idling mind. He’d left in such a rush he hadn’t much time to pack anything after all. At first, this wasn’t much of a problem. He simply just did nothing, and that was alright. But after what felt like several hours, which was only perhaps 40 minutes of standard galactic time, he found sitting incredibly hard. He hadn’t realized it until just now, but he’d been stimulated his entire life, and wasn’t sure how to deal with this new sensation, boredom.
At first, he tried to recall his favorite books, but that only made him annoyed after a brief spell due to not having one on hand. Next, he tried messing with the entertainment center that was built into every seat. Not being entirely familiar with the technology, he pressed a few buttons, and accidentally summoned a transportation experience specialist, who gave Howard a pleasant but slightly annoyed glance when he quickly explained he must have hit the wrong button. Out of options, he glanced nervously at the man sitting next to him a near dozen times, trying to find the courage to ask a probing question. But what to ask? How is your day? No, certainly not, too bland. Why are you going to Shangri-La? Too invasive. How are you? Why would the man even care to explain, perhaps he shouldn’t bother, it all seemed so troublesome-
“You uh, good?” The man asked, giving him a side glance. Howard flinched in his seat.
“Ah! Y-yes. I’m fine.” Howard smiled awkwardly.
“Then why the fuck do you keep looking at me?” The man asked in a crossed tone.
“I…” Howard was caught off guard. Profanity was almost illegal in his household. “I suppose I’m just bored, and was trying to find a way to start a conversation.” The man turned around in his seat so he could look at Howard better. His face was weathered, like he’d seen his fair share of days exposed to solar radiation. He was almost frog-like, his neck short and disappearing into his fathead. A man of humble origin, Howard guessed.
“You wanna talk to me?” He asked suspiciously.
“Yes, very much so.” Howard nodded. The man sat back in thought, then shrugged.
“What do you wanna know?
“Well, why are you going to Shangri-La?”
“Work. It's the cold season back home, so I’m going to get some short term work.”
“Oh I see. Where’s home?”
“Some little rock a few days from here, real small colony. Basically just a fuel station.”
“Is it nice? Your home.”
“Nice? It’s alright, I guess. It’s not exactly a luxury resort or anything, but it's home.”
“So you don’t like it?”
“‘Course I like it. I just want it to be better. That’s why I’m looking for work.”
“Well what’s wrong with your home?”
“Eh, same stuff that’s wrong everywhere. Need better irrigation equipment, better synthesizers, could do with some extra protection for peace of mind in case some pirate comes knocking. You know, usual problems.”
“Of course, the usual problems.” Howard nodded as if he understood, when he in fact, had no real idea what the man was talking about, but it felt polite to agree. Howard asked a number of other probing questions and learned quite a bit about the stranger. For example, he learned that the man was a father to 5 children, all girls, whom he cared for deeply, and worried about constantly. He learned that the man was a career agricultural engineer, the person who oversaw much of the technology responsible for crops on frontier worlds. The more questions Howard asked, the more he was surprised by how much the man opened up. It was strangely satisfying learning about this stranger. He felt perhaps a certain joy in simply knowing that he was getting a glimpse into the reality of someone else. Eventually though, the man threw Howard a surprise twist, one that he should have anticipated.
“What about you?” Howard raised a finger to reply but froze. He certainly couldn’t tell the truth, if this stranger knew anything about his family name, there would be immediate questions. Best to lie, Howard thought.
“Oh, me?” He laughed nervously. Scrambling to come up with a lie that made sense. “I work as…an accountant.”
“Figures,” The man snorted.
Howard looked at him quizzically. The man simply pointed to Howard’s pale face, then his hands. “You look soft.”
“Soft?” Howard was confused. The man sat up a bit and grabbed at his hands without asking, examining them.
“Yep. Smooth. Not a groove on these things. These are privileged hands,” Howard pulled his hands back quickly. He looked at the man’s hands, which were large, and puffy.
“I suppose I never noticed,” he said after a minute. “They are quite soft.”
“Hey, I’m not really knocking ya. We just live different lives,” he said with a shrug. “Some people work for a living, and other people move papers around.” He glanced over at the young man to see his reaction. When Howard didn’t respond, he chuckled. “That’s a joke.”
Howard scratched his head and gave a chuckle of his own, feeling relieved he hadn’t somehow offended him. “Can you tell a lot about a person by their hands?” he asked after a moment.
“Course you can. You spend your entire life doing something, it’ll show on your body somewhere. You work with your hands, you get tough hands. You drink a lot? You get a fat nose,” he said with a tap to his own fattish nose. ”You wear your life and your choices on your sleeve, at least that’s what us humans do. Not sure how that works with the bug fellas.”
“The Skep?”
“Yeah, those ones.”
“Yeah. Maybe they get tough claws or something. I have no clue though. Might ask one when we land.” Their conversation fell into a sudden quiet, one that Howard wasn’t sure how to navigate. His father had always taught him that silence, or dead air, was a horrible thing for meetings, but he wasn’t sure how that applied here. So he simply sat there awkwardly, and after a minute or so passed, and the man next to him didn’t seem too disturbed, he sat back in his own chair and was quiet for a while longer. They’d talk a few more times throughout the journey, mostly about small topics. He was recommended a few places to stop by while at Shangri-La, most of them being bars. But the man did tell Howard that there was a delightful local attraction, the Shangri-La escape, a death race that attracted hardened thrill seekers from worlds away to compete for the title of Speed Demon. Howard took note immediately, scribbling down the starting location on a piece of paper and tucking it in his breast pocket.
Before he knew it, they were only mere minutes away from arrival. The ship blacked out the windows as it made its arrival, raising the heat shields for reentry. Once they were landed, everyone stood up at once, ignoring the tired voice over the ship's intercom to remain seated. They waited in a restless line and quickly filed out the ship. As Howard waited his turn, he suddenly realized something. He turned to the man who’d he’d spent so much time talking to and asked him a question.
“Pardon me.”
“Hmm?” The man looked at him tiredly, ready to get out of the tin can.
“What was your name?” Howard asked intently. The man chuckled.
“Doesn't matter, does it? Not like I’m ever gonna see you again.”
Howard blinked. It was such an odd answer to his question that he wasn’t really sure how to respond to it. Before he could press him further, the man was up from his seat and strolling down the aisle of the ship, and disappeared from sight.