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New Start
They were locked in the containment pen for the short ride back to the bioship, where they were greeted by Elric's stern looking family as well as an ensemble of what looked like officials.
"The Supreme Chancellor," Elric whispered to her, as they looked at a tall Lezarus woman in the center of the grouping. "Not a good sign."
"I hear you decided to free the harvest," she said, after they had been brought before her.
"Yes, Chancellor."
Mallory could feel her anxiety skyrocketing. Elric stayed calm. He gripped her fingers and she squeezed back. They appeared as a united front. They were not going to let their hard work so far be in vain. Elric stood taller and Mallory was proud of him.
The Chancellor looked them both up and down, assessing them. She sneered through clenched teeth. "I hear you freed humans. We were only able to pick up an insignificant amount compared to what we had for our almighty bioship. Do you think you can get away with this? I'm interested to know."
"No, Chancellor. I do not."
"Oh, yes you can."
Elric looked up astonished, and asked, "What?"
"You will get away with this. As a Lezarus you have the privilege of living another day. We do not keep our own in captivity or jail them. You should know that of our culture by now, no matter how much you seem to despise it."
"I do not, Chancellor."
"Hush," she said. "But, as for your companion, an example will be made."
"A what?" he asked, incredulously.
"I want to make sure everyone knows just how severe a threat humans like this one are."
Mallory was aghast and spoke up, "You can’t do this!"
"You will not be a martyr for some cause, but an example for all of the Lezarus to see what happens when the natural flow is disrupted."
"Then show me where to go," Mallory said, steadfast in her decision. "I would rather go with dignity than kicking and screaming."
"Let us, then." The Chancellor turned to the audience in the hangar. "Let us go to the feeding arena."
They were escorted there in cuffs and stood inside a large circular arena with seats on all sides for the Lezarus, and a funnel in the center, presumably where the people would be served.
The Chancellor stepped onto a podium near the funnel and stated, "This is the one thousand seventieth time we get to celebrate our majestic bioship. Through celebration, we nourish the ship and continue our ineffable tie to it. Without the bioship we would have nothing. No home. No energy. Because of it, we have all of those things. This woman who has defied the bioship's needs will be offered."
When she finished, the arena erupted in booing and angry hissing. Mallory kept her head held high, but was planning any move she could make. She was strong, she knew that. If she could get close enough to engage the Chancellor, she thought she could overtake her.
Luckily for Mallory, the woman came forward and raised Mallory's cuffed hands.
She then escorted her to the brim of the funnel and shouted, "For the ship, we do this!"
Mallory butted her in the head and lowered her cuffed hands to the woman's temple. She pushed with all of her might and the Chancellor did, in fact, fall into the funnel. Mallory was smiling as she was tackled by a guard. The guard and her plummeted down the funnel and into an abyss. It was dark and dingy and the landing was wet and moist. The Chancellor's screams reverberated within it.
"No!" she screamed. "Not me. No way is this possible! I'm Lezarus, not me!"
"Now you know how humans feel!" Mallory yelled, before being hit in the head.
She woke several minutes later to Elric's face, etched in concern.
His eyes pierced into hers. "How you doing?" he asked.
"Elric?" She reached up and rubbed her head. There was no lump but she was still dazed.
"I jumped in after you. I would never let you go through this alone."
She smiled groggily at him.
"You two," screamed the Chancellor, "are done for! Guard!"
But the guard had no time to react as there was a great movement and the four of them were not able to see more clearly. The mouth of the whale-like space creature opened and the four of them could see an approaching moon. The whale skimmed the surface and all four of them were forced to tumble out of its mouth onto the ashy white ground. They looked around and saw homes, and crops, and trees. It looked more like a planet than a moon.
"But we didn't go through its atmosphere," said the guard. "How are we here?"
A person ran up to them and said, "Hey!"
Elric turned to the man. "Who are you?"
"We've never seen Lezarus on Kirble. You must have accidentally fallen in."
"Precisely, but who are you?"
"A tribute of yours. You had me given to the space whale years ago and I've been living on Kirble, this habitable moon, ever since."
"How?"
"It has its own small atmosphere."
"But how is this possible?" Elric asked.
The man replied, "Well, everybody that the whale is given gets dropped off here, it seems. It doesn't eat anybody."
"What a waste of resources!" said the Chancellor.
The man nodded, "You're telling me."
"But, if you're here," Elric said, "that means that the space whale eats something else."
"Tiny molecules of burnt up star dust, we figure. It doesn't like big stuff like humans."
"I see," Elric said. "I was right."
"Then I'll never get back to Earth?" Mallory asked.
"Not true. Some people get back every few months by way of the stellar community. This is a trading post for noni fruit from the-"
Mallory cut him off, "Island of Maui."
"Exactly. Someone had one in their pocket and we were able to start a harvest of our own, Madame Chancellor."
"So you can leave as soon as a spacecraft comes through our parts. Should be a month or two from now."
"That is insane. Living here among humans. I will not do it!"
The guard told her, "It looks like we have no choice."
"It looks like we do!" she said, then grabbed his arm and strutted away from the encampments and noni orchards they were near.
Mallory and Elric watched them go.
"You're not like other Lezarus, are you?" asked the man.
"No, I'm Elric."
"Rob," said the man, then looked to Mallory.
She held out her hand. "Mallory, nice to meet you."
"And you," he said to her. "Let me show you to an extra bedroom or two."
They looked at one another and smiled, saying together, "One, please."