Free In A Universe Without Stars 1: Skyeater by J Alex McCarthy Page A

day.
These guys have some serious technology.
    The
room looks like it’s a perfect circle, the drab gray walls seem to absorb
light. The wall and window merge seamlessly at the half way point.
    Cole
stays on his knees, he needs time to recollect what happened, to calm the rage
he felt. What was he thinking, how can he be so stupid?
    “To
rip god from his heaven?” He lets out a pitiful laugh. It was stupid of him to
think he could stop them. Not like this, he’s done. He’s done caring about
everything.
    He
stands when the door opens sideways with a hiss. The alien that took Thora
walks in.
    “Hello,
Cole,” he says. Cole moves fast, he swings and shoots a projectile at him. The
alien lifts his hand and the projectile stops in midair.
    “Stop,
Cole,” the alien closes his fist.
    The
projectile collapses in itself, letting out a small blue poof.
    ”We’re
on your side,” he says slowly approaching.
    His
stilt-like legs somehow move with the grace of a swan. Cole hesitates, he wants
to attack but he actually believes this thing. He must be the one who gave Cole
his power. How easily he stopped the attack. He also has Thora.
    “Who
are you?”
    “My
name is Jahum and I’m the leader of the Astrons and I’m the one who gave you
your powers.” 
    His
mouth doesn’t move when he talks. It’s as if the air around them speaks, it
must be telepathy.
    “Cole!”
Julio runs in and bear hugs Cole.
    “Holy
crap, you’re alive!” Cole mutters. Julio lets go.
    “How
in the hell did you get here?!”
    “This
thing saved me, so I just went with it when he said he was on our side.”
    That’s
just like Julio, to just go with it. Oddly enough, he doesn’t have a
mark on him.
    Julio
pulls back and looks at Cole. “Why in the hell are you covered in blood?”
     “Where
is everybody?” Julio asks when Cole doesn’t answer. Cole’s face loses its
color. Julio wasn’t there when it happened, he doesn’t know.
    “Erin
is dead and Arnold is missing.” Cole looks at the ground.
    Their
deaths were his mistakes.
    It
won’t happen again.
    Julio’s
smile disappears.
    “No,”
Julio mutters. “God dammit!” He steps back and slams his fist into the wall.
“I’ve should’ve been with you guys, I was so fucking stupid to run the other
way.”
    Julio
looks down at his feet. Cole places his hand on Julio’s shoulder.
    “It’s
not your fault, you couldn’t have stopped what happened.”
    Julio
calms down. “You’re right. Here I am just mourning when we have bigger things
to worry about.” Julio looks at Jahum. “And I don’t mean that in a sarcastic
manner. We can hold a funeral and mourn after this war is over.” Julio
straightens back up.
    He
recovers quickly. It surprises Cole, but other than comment on it he decides to
just nod, he really doesn’t want that to bring him down now.
    There
is always later.
     “I’m
guessing Thora is fine?” Julio asks in a whisper. Jahum just observes them with
his lustrous eyes.
    “Where
is she?” Cole states.
    “In
a safe place.”
    “Where!?”
Cole yells. Cole’s tone doesn’t falter Jahum.
    “In
the District of Columbia. Your companions Arnold and Neil are with her.”
    Cole
wavers.
    Thousands
of miles away all the way across the country? How? Cole knew they were
thousands of years ahead of them but how advanced are they really?
    “Washington,
D.C.? How?” Julio asks.
    “By
teleportation. The same way we brought you two here.”
    Cole
almost forgot, he takes a good hard look at Julio, does he have the power too?
Why else would Jahum save him? Julio’s body is just a little dirty, a few marks
of dirt here and there but there’s no bruises on his body.
    “You
said you’re going to give me some answers when Cole gets here so I want them
now,” Julio demands. Jahum approaches them a little closer.
    “I’m
the leader of the Astrons, The Starmakers . We are an
ancient race. Some of us have been in existence since the earliest
manifestations of this