Chapter 75: Mysteries in Space (Lost in Space – Part 2)
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Security Report – Designated Confidential – Recipient: Dominion Security Bureau
Honored Superiors,
Patrol ships have recovered the supply freighter that was stolen from the Lyme research station. The ship was found abandoned on the outskirts of the Jarl system, just drifting in space, all systems shut down and secured. The freighter is undamaged. No life forms were aboard, no escape pods were missing. Of the perpetrators, there was no trace to be found.
An analysis of the freighter's navigational systems shows that the ship travelled directly from Lyme to Jarl with no stops on the way. It is this operative's opinion that the Jarl system was selected as a destination due to the fourth planet's status as a free commerce planet just outside the Dominions' borders. How the perpetrators managed to leave the freighter without landing on the planet or using its escape pods is a mystery for now, but this operative will continue the investigation on Jarl 4.
Always your Inferior.
Kara-El's Research Notes, Subject "Sandy"
With two days to kill while making our way through hyperspace towards the planet Jarl 4, where we will hopefully find further transportation or a way to contact our allies, I have taken the time to look further into the mystery of our unintentional travelling companion Sandy.
Talking to Sandy about the battle on the planet confirmed that she disabled the two Parademons by exposing them to her own energy field. Sandy theorized (and sounded remarkably like me when she did so) that the Mother Box was destroyed when her own energy field caused a catastrophic disruption in its power source. Thus, if the Parademons' gear utilized the same base technology, it should also be vulnerable to her energy. Turns out, she was right, as just a brief exposure caused their powered armors, their weapons, and every other piece of gear they had on their bodies to short-circuit.
I have never been able to figure out the Mother Box' power source, my best theory being that it utilizes some form of zero point energy. Considering that Sandy's energy field is from an entirely different dimensional plane, it is definitely possible that the two energies are utterly incompatible and thus prone to disruptive interference. Sadly, there were no pieces of technology to recover from the Parademons and the two women leading them for further research.
As for Sandy herself, I still have trouble wrapping my mind around her. I know WHAT she is. A sentient energy being from another dimension, somehow imprinted with my DNA and personality, who uses an amazing ability to transmute matter to give herself a physical shape. None of that tells me WHO she is, though. Or whether her intentions are as innocent as she claims.
Talking to her is eerily like talking to myself. She uses the same speech patterns, the same phrases, even the same facial expressions. Even so, there are notable differences. So far, Sandy does not display much in terms of emotional range. At times, she reminds me more of someone watching a fascinating movie rather than someone actively involved in events. It is a constant reminder that, no matter how similar to me she might appear, she is something completely alien.
If there is one positive aspect to being stranded in deep space, far away from home, it might be that it gives me time to figure out what to do with her once we get back. Because so far I have absolutely no idea.
Kona's Super Space Diary – Day 4
We arrived on the commerce planet Jarl 4 as planned, ditched the Dominator ship in the outer system, and flew to the planet under our own power. We briefly worried about Sandy being able to make the trip, but she simply rearranged her own body to be vacuum-proof for the duration of the journey. Handy talent.
Jarl 4 is a pretty fascinating place. I have never seen so many different alien species together in one place. Ships of all shapes and sizes are coming and going constantly and the entire planet (or at least the place we touched down) is a maze of warehouses, docks, habitation modules, shops, and restaurants. The fact that the planet is sitting right on the edge of a fascist space empire doesn't seem to matter much to the people here, at least not as long as there is money to be made.
Speaking of money, we don't have any, which is kind of a problem. Sure, we could use force to get ourselves a ride, but that's not really our style. Thankfully, Jarl is the kind of place where you can find all sorts of work, too. We're trying to keep a low profile, so no feats of super strength or such, but brain beats brawn anytime. Within a day of arriving mom managed to find us work in a shipyard, where we help fix up ships that are due for an overhaul. It's hard work, but we can do that. Jarl's sun being yellow helps a lot, too. Mom figures we will either earn enough credits to book ourselves a passage or we might find a ship looking for some handy new crewmembers. Either way, hopefully that will – at the very least – take us closer to home than we are right now.
Speaking of home, we finally found some decent star charts (the ones on the Dominator ship didn't really show much of anything beyond the Dominion's borders). Earth isn't on any of them, naturally, as they don't bother marking worlds that have never done any interstellar travel. But knowing where we are right now tells us that we have roughly 15,000 light years to go until we're back home.
I fear this will take some time yet.
Jarl 4 Daily News – Flying Aliens Save the Day!
Yesterday evening a freighter entering the atmosphere of Jarl 4 suffered a catastrophic failure of its anti-gravity engine. The ship, a 500,000-ton bulk transport from the planet Puzxag, went into free fall directly over the Aeris spaceport. Emergency carriers were scrambled immediately in order to attempt to stabilize the falling ship before it could crash, but by all accounts, they would have been too few and too late.
Thankfully, the crash was prevented at the very last minute, as the freighter inexplicably stabilized and came in for a soft landing. It was only after viewing the footage of security cameras and interviewing numerous eye witnesses that the truth of what happened came out.
"As incredible as it may sound," said the landing field supervisor, "the freighter was apparently caught mid-crash by three flying aliens and lowered safely to the ground."
The available camera footage, while certainly spectacular, is not of sufficient quality to identify the species of the mysterious saviors, but eyewitnesses who were on the landing field at the time of the near crash have given their own accounts.
"They were Khunds, I am sure of it," said one witness. "They had the same pinkish skin. Though I have never seen flying Khunds before."
"Khunds? No way", another eyewitness disagreed. "I saw them when they sat the freighter down. Two of them had bright yellow hair. I've never seen a Khund with yellow hair. I'd say they came from Almerac. I've heard the Royal Family of that planet has all sorts of weird abilities."
"They came from Valeron, I'm certain," a third witness said. "I once saw a picture of Vartox, champion of Valeron, and the male alien could well be his offspring."
The one thing the many eye witnesses do agree on is that the three aliens all wore what appeared to be some kind of symbol on their chests. So far, we have been unable to identify it from the descriptions, but a sketch of it is published on our news site. If anyone has any information on these three mysterious saviors, please contact us.
Personal log, Captain Xakvin Xorzi, commanding officer of the freighter Razwut
Maybe it's finally time for me to retire. The Great Maker knows that I have used up more than a lifetime's worth of luck in the last few days. I knew that the Razwut was due for an overhaul and I had already scheduled one on Jarl, but of course the thrice-damned anti-gravity engine gives out just a few minutes too soon.
Thankfully, the Great Maker has seen fit to grant my crew and me a second chance. No, more than that. A miracle, for what else could one call it. Three aliens who just happened to be in the right place at the right time and with the power to catch my falling ship with their bare hands. It boggles the mind. No, the Great Maker's hand was at work on this day, I am certain of it.
When the three aliens entered my ship, I do admit I was scared for a brief moment, but they merely inquired about the well-being of my crew. Such fascinating creatures. I have no idea what species they are, I admit, but from their behavior, it was clear that they were a family unit. The elder female was clearly very protective of her two hatchlings and seemed somewhat uncomfortable with the praise she received from my crew. How can someone so powerful be so humble?
When I, too, thanked them for their aid and inquired if there was anything I could do to return the favor, the elder female (called 'Kara', apparently) simply asked where our next flight was headed. Apparently, she and her hatchlings are stranded far from home and are looking for passage back. As the Great Maker would have it, we are heading in the right direction.
So once we have replaced the damaged anti-gravity engine and loaded our cargo, we will be heading back towards Primésse with four aliens among our crew. Apparently, there is another member to Kara's family, a hatchling called Sandy.
The Great Maker surely moves in mysterious ways.
Security Report – Designated Confidential – Recipient: Dominion Security Bureau
Honored Superiors,
This operative has followed the trail of the ship thieves, recently identified as belonging to the Kryptonian species (previously believed to be extinct), to the commerce planet Jarl 4. Due to the planet's lack of a centralized authority and security service, it proved to be difficult to follow the trace of the perpetrators, as they disappeared among the undisciplined mass of aliens on the planet.
A media report finally enabled this operative to find them again, though plans to apprehend them were discarded almost at the same time. Included is a copy of the relevant media report, which shows that the Kryptonians display truly astounding abilities. Given this display, this operative has concluded that overwhelming force will be required to overcome the Kryptonians.
This operative humbly requests reinforcement from the military in order to fulfil the mission.
Always your Inferior.
Addendum to report:
It appears the Kryptonians have left the planet Jarl 4 on board the freighter they prevented from crashing. This operative will inquire as to the freighter's destination and transmit the coordinates as soon as possible.
Kona's Super Space Diary – Day 15
Travelling with Xorzi and his crew was great fun. Okay, it was a bit awkward the first day or two, as they kept thanking us for saving their lives over and over again, but after a while they mellowed and the rest of the trip went really well. Well, except the food. But hey, beggars can't be choosers. Would have been a bit much to expect aliens that resemble huge humanoid chickens to serve cheeseburgers.
By the way, Clark was a bit put out that they kept calling us 'hatchlings'. Apparently, Xorzi's species are egg layers and they can't really wrap their minds around the fact that we didn't hatch from eggs. The idea is fun, though. Note to self: draw a picture of baby Clark hatching from an egg! Will make a great birthday present for him.
Mom spent most of the trip with the chief engineer, a fellow named Rutfec, discussing ways to make the hyper drive more efficient. Sadly the Razwut doesn't have the range to bring us all the way home, even with mom pimping the drive (with a little help from Yours Truly, too), but we did manage to make it go a bit faster.
So one week and 4,000 light years later, Xorzi dropped us off at a planet called Primésse. Still quite a way to go until we're home, but it's a good deal closer. Xorzi gave us a farewell party the evening before we arrived and the crew seemed really sad to see us go. Who knows, maybe we'll meet them again someday. They're a fun bunch.
Anyway, Primésse is very different from Jarl. Where Jarl was all dirty alleys, grimy spaceports, and huge warehouses - at least the parts where we were - Primésse is more of a resort type planet. Just as stuffed, but shinier. Think Las Vegas in space. Which might be a problem, considering that we still don't really have anything in the way of money (credits from Jarl are no good here, apparently. Figures!) But I'm sure mom will think of something.
Kara-El's Research Notes, Subject "Sandy"
So far, Sandy has been very cooperative during this unplanned journey, doing her best to help where she can and staying out of the way otherwise. She still behaves more like an observer than an active participant most of the time.
Side note: Sandy seems to require neither sustenance nor rest. She has not eaten anything this entire time and I have yet to see her sleep.
On the one-week journey on board the Razwut, I had the chance to finally sit down for a lengthy talk with her. One of the topics we broached was her appearance, specifically her age. With her ability to rearrange matter and access to my DNA code, there is really no reason why she should appear as a young child instead of an adult. When asked about it, Sandy gave this reply:
"I do not feel comfortable appearing as an adult. While my previous state of existence was not subject to such concepts as age or development, in this world I am basically a newborn. I think my exterior should reflect that."
When asked whether she intended to age herself at a normal rate, Sandy merely shrugged and said, "We will see."
It is frustrating.
Memo sent by regional supervisor Hacir Faktap to Primésse corporate HQ, re: pirate incident
For the seventh time in the last 5-cycle-period, the top tier vacation district on Primésse's southern continent was raided by pirates commanded by the self-styled pirate king Dagon-Ra. Please note that I have requested additional security personnel and enhanced security systems no less than six times in that same period. The budget required for these measures was merely a tenth of the insurance, repair, and liability costs that have accumulated due to the last six raids.
Thankfully, the most recent raid was repulsed through outside assistance by visitors to Primésse. The sentients self-identified as the El family (Kara-El, Kal Jor-El, and Kona Kara-El, as well as their ward San-Dee) were on a layover at the regional commerce port when the pirate attack occurred. According to security footage, as well as eyewitness accounts from the local personnel, three of the four visitors immediately took action when the pirates began firing on the local security bureau and nearby buildings.
The enhanced abilities displayed by the three sentients were truly astounding and they easily overpowered the attack force sent by Dagon-Ra, all without any loss of life. All of the pirate's attack craft were captured nearly intact and the damage to the district was minimal. The pirates are in custody and will be handed over to the central authorities for trial at the earliest opportunity.
As recompense for their heroic actions, the El family was offered a lifetime membership in our level 4 vacation district. The family leader, Kara-El, refused the offer, though, and instead asked to take possession of one of the pirates' craft, a hyper-capable small attack vessel. I feel that this is a more than adequate exchange and have agreed to it.
Seeing as the El family has now left Primésse on board their newly acquired ship, I hereby renew my demand for additional security measures and security personnel. We cannot expect to be so lucky again.
Addendum:
I have received information that a small fleet of ships identified as belonging to the Dominion have been sighted passing through the outer system, but did not approach the planet. I reiterate, we need better security.
Security Report – Designated Confidential – Recipient: Dominion Security Bureau
Honored Superiors,
This operative has followed the trail of the Kryptonian criminals to the planet Primésse. Praise be to the wisdom of the High Caste for ordering a military force to accompany this humble Inferior. Unfortunately, by the time our forces arrived, the Kryptonians had already left the planet once more. Apparently, there was an incident with a local group of space pirates, during which the Kryptonians acquired a hyper-capable spacecraft.
At this moment, the trail of the Kryptonians appears to have grown cold, as there is no flight information on where they would head next. We have acquired a description of the ship in question, but seeing as it was a pirate craft, it carries neither a valid hull number nor a standardized ID transponder.
This operative humbly suggests that the description of the ship and the Kryptonians themselves be transmitted to all our outposts and operatives across the galaxy. This operative also humbly advises that all loyal servants of the Dominion should be advised to merely report any sightings of the fugitives, but should not try to apprehend them without sufficient military support.
Available footage of the incident with the pirates has been added to this report to emphasize the enormous physical attributes of the Kryptonians.
Lacking any current lead to follow, this operative humbly asks permission to return to the home world for the time being until new information on the Kryptonians becomes available.
Always your Inferior.
Kona's Super Space Diary – Day 27
Traveling in a relatively tiny space ship for days on end isn't really much in the way of fun, but at least we get to make a lot of fun stops along the way. Mom and I have gone over our pirate ship's hyper drive and pimped it so it should hold out long enough to get us home. It will take a while, though, as the drive needs cool-down periods along the way. It wasn't really built for such long-range voyages.
In one such cool-down period, we visited an uninhabited planet in a star system with three suns. It doesn't have an official name, as nobody lives here, so I've decided to name it the Super System. Anyway, while the ship's engines cooled down, we went down to the planet's surface. It was a really great place. I've never seen so much plant life before, and most of it is gigantic. Apparently, the light of the three suns makes it a paradise for everyone who enjoys a good photosynthesis. Kryptonians like it, too, by the way, as the sunlight really gives us a boost.
We basically had a tropical vacation for three days with just one minor incident. There is an indigenous animal species that resembles giant apes and one of them attacked us. Well, he attacked Clark, though it took us a moment to figure that out. It didn't really have the strength to hurt any of us, but we didn't want it to hurt itself, either. At first mom thought that the ape was attacking the only other male present for some kind of territorial reason, but in the end it turned out to be much simpler.
Clark figured it out, I must admit. While mom and I were still dishing out increasingly complicated theories, Clark simply used pollen from one of the giant flowers to color his black hair a bright orange. A moment later, the ape thing stopped attacking him. It seemed confused, brushed its hands over Clark's hair, and then left, seemingly satisfied.
It was the color. This world has three suns and its rotation is such that most of it never experiences night. The color black does not exist on this planet and so the ape thing was either offended or frightened by Clark's black hair. Weird, I know, but that's how it went.
I just wish I had a camera here so I could snap a picture of Clark with his bright orange hair.
Kara-El's Research Notes, Subject "Sandy"
The good news is that we are getting closer and closer to home, but that also means that I have to make a decision regarding Sandy and what will happen with her once we reach Earth again. To be honest, I still have no idea.
After nearly a month, I am no further to figuring out how Sandy ticks – for lack of a better term – than I was before. She seems on the up and up, a new life form that is simply curious about the world it finds itself in, her initial actions merely a result of not understanding her environment. I would really like to believe that.
Still, Sandy remains so cold and aloof that I am uncertain how much of her behavior is genuine and how much is simply the influence of my memories on her. Is there even a difference? I do not think Sandy has any hostile intentions towards any of my family, but then again she did not see her attempt to replace me as hostile, either.
I do like to plan ahead, but right now I fear that the only thing I can do is play it by ear and see what happens. Besides, we are not home yet. So much could still happen.
Kara blinked awake. She was uncertain what exactly had happened. The last thing she remembered was their ship coming out of hyperspace and then... nothing. She attempted to sit up, but found herself restrained. Looking down, she saw that her entire body was encased in something that appeared to be webbing of some kind.
She attempted to flex her muscles and break the restraints, but found that her limbs refused to obey. Her entire body seemed to be paralyzed. How was this possible? She tried to activate her heat vision, but nothing happened. She was not out of power, she could feel the energy building up inside her, but the nerves responsible for actually triggering the energy release seemed to be paralyzed as well.
Looking around as best as she could, she felt panic begin to rise. She could see no trace of Clark or Kona. No trace of Sandy, either. Were they here, too? Had they escaped from whatever had taken her captive? Or were they... no, she would not even consider that notion until she had a better idea what was going on.
As if in response to her thoughts, a door on the far side of the room slid open and a giant being walked inside on no less than eight legs. It was clearly some kind of arachnid, but its many, many eyes shown with intelligence and it wore clothing, too. Something triggered in Kara's memory. An arachnid species, likes to imprison its captives in webbing.
"Welcome to your new home, Kryptonian," the giant spider said in barely comprehensible Interlac. "You will spend the remnant of your life as a prisoner of the Spider Guild." The spider chuckled. "Don't worry, it won't be a long life!"
End Chapter 75
Author's Note: Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter, but last week was insane at work, I barely had time to breathe. Hope you enjoyed our little romp through space as the Super Family gets closer to home. The planet Jarl 4 and most of the characters the Super Family encounters in this chapter are not canon, though there are a few exceptions. The Royal Family of Almerac is canon, for example, as is the pirate Dagon-Ra. Xorzi, captain of the Razwut, is based (appearance-wise, at least) on Captain Kidd of Galaxy Rangers fame. The interlude with Clark coloring is hair orange is based on an old Superman story I remember reading as a kid, but I didn't manage to find the exact issue.
As for the Spider Guild, they are among the lesser-known evil alien species in the DC Universe, but have been around for a while, too. They first appeared in 1983 as enemies of the Green Lantern Corps, but have had quite a few battles with the Omega Men, too.