The Chronicles of X E-Book

J. H. Lipson

• Herausgeber: WS
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Serie: The Chronicles of X
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 680

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

The year is 870 AP, according to the Calendar of Aeon Power.

In a universe where one can travel to any planet all over the universe, the Prime Humans manage an uneasy peace. Yet even with this uneasy peace crime has only increased across the universe, with outlaws known as Galactic Runners running across millions of star systems. Out of all these Galactic Runners, the most infamous of them are known as the X-Thieves.

Yet, these legendary outlaws have been arrested by the Prime Human government! Their sentence is to perform dangerous suicide missions until they drop.

Clarice, the captain assigned to watch over the thieves finds herself thrown directly into the fire alongside these criminals. All in the name of her family, she will stop at nothing to become a legend and etch herself into history itself.

Leseprobe

THE CHRONICLES OF X

IMPERIAL CLOAK AND DAGGER

J. H. LIPSON

withBEN CHERNIN

The Chronicles of X©

-

Imperial Cloak and Dagger

Written By: J.H. Lipson

Edited By: Samuel Presser Maislin

Story By: J.H. Lipson and Ben Chernin

Artwork By: Ram Sandoval

Created with Vellum

Copyright © 2021 by Joshua Lipson

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic device or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotation in a book review.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The Chronicles of X would not be possible without those that have supported us.

We wanted to thank our test readers: Alessandro Dare, Charlotte Mercier, Azad for your thoughts and time in the development of this novel.

The story of this merry band of thieves would not be possible without you.

“DON’T THINK TWICE.”

CONTENTS

The Age

1. “So-called Intergalactic Thief”

2. The Interviews

3. Judgment

4. The Tour

5. Practice

6. Benny and Jimmy

7. Clarice Lamar

8. The First Mission

9. The Winning Bid

10. Solomon

11. Movie Night

12. The Freedom Fighter

13. Initium Temporis

14. Timearon

15. Liquid Time

16. A New Public Enemy

17. Dynamics

18. Board Game Night

19. Atlus

20. What was once Dust

21. Jimmy’s Dream

22. The Sun Devourer

23. Ea’s Warrior

24. Failure

25. There was Once a Girl Named Beatrice

26. Reynold and Romulus

27. To Assassinate a God

28. The Demon Lord of Bael Fire

29. The T-Squad

30. Curtain Call

31. The X-Thieves

32. The Plan

33. A Night for Thieves

34. The Ferix

35. The Cost of Loyalty

36. The Heist

37. The Right to Power

38. X and Clarice

39. Blue Crytorium

40. Recess

41. For a Friend

42. Declaration

43. The Age of Fate

The Stranger

Benny’s Journal - As of 870 AP

870 AP – According to the Calendar of Aeon Power.

1

“SO-CALLED INTERGALACTIC THIEF”

Focus. Focus. Focus.

Clarice’s eyes did not waver. Her stance never shifted. The sweat that beat from her forehead did not budge. Her grasp on the twin axes remained firm and steady. Twenty feet ahead of her was the target. It mocked her. She was so close this time to beating her record. All she needed was two more bullseyes.

Soldiers gathered around her, careful not to enter her perimeter. She could feel the general’s eyes amongst the crowd of recruits and privates, each of their hushed voices blending into one for her. The cold steel room did not stop her from sweating. She had to do this, prove her superiority. If she could do this, she would be one step closer to her dream.

She listened to her own breathing, taking a moment for herself. Clarice let her arms go numb, oxygen filled her body, her heart slowing to a crawl. She closed her eyes, not looking at the big red target across from her. She paid close attention to the crowd, trying to locate the general’s breathing. By this point she could tell it was definitely him just from the sound of his raspiness whenever he inhaled. She wanted him to see.

Her sharp red eyes opened, and with that Clarice threw her first hand-axe, shortly followed by the second. The two weapons swirled almost simultaneously. In that moment time slowed, Clarice could see the two axes spin and spin, until the first one hit its mark. She felt her heart sink, it looked like her first axe was going to block the second, however…

The two axes both hit bullseye, just by the tip of their sharp edges.

A cheer echoed throughout the tiny steel room, and Clarice was jumped on by recruits and other soldiers.

Breath returned to her lungs and with that came strength. She effortlessly pushed the other soldiers off of her, seeing one person from the crowd look at her, their arms crossed with satisfaction. He smiled with his perfect teeth and nodded to her as an equal. Clarice smiled, this time unafraid of her own face and its deformity, the small freckles which went from ear to ear. Luckily, it was not enough to take away her title as a Prime Human.

“Alright, Alright!” she declared defiantly. The soldiers went silent, trying to copy her demeanour. Clarice quickly calmed herself and turned to those of lower rank, the general right by her side. “We all must get back to our posts. Training is over for now, alright!” Captain Clarice ordered, doing her best to make her voice stern and harsh, the recruits and soldiers nodded in agreement, appearing like a mishmash of different colours to her. The dark green uniforms they all wore symbolized their determination to be weapons for the military, for the Prime Human government, while the stars on their shoulders commanded their rank. Some held no stars at all, meaning they were recruits, while the majority had a single star, which determined they were soldiers.

“Yes ma’am!” the soldiers replied, running pass her and the general.

Clarice nodded while watching the lower ranks run off. When they were finally gone it gave Clarice a chance to breathe. The captain rummaged through her bag which was kept to the right of the cube-like room. There she found two silver bracelets, one with a purple rock embedded in it, while the other had a blue rock melded to it. Clarice slipped the purple one on her left wrist and the blue one on her right.

“You certainly increased morale with that upset,” the general said, his voice gruff enough to shave off metal.

“Thank you, sir,” she replied, staring at the two axes that she had hit the bullseye with. She looked directly at the purple and blue rocks that had been inserted into their rubber handles and opened her hand. Clarice’s purple bracelet lit up, and in a small burst of violet light, the two axes appeared in her left hand, teleporting to her.

“How long has it taken you to get used to those weapons?” the general asked.

“Since I joined the military… so I want to say eight years.”

“Yes… I remember, you were just a recruit back then… my, my, where has the time gone? Well, I am happy to see that you were appointed to help me lead this base,” the general said.

“Me too, sir,” she said, giving a smile before placing her weapons into her bag.

“Will you come for a walk with me, Captain Clarice?” he asked.

“Yes sir,” she replied while getting up to see the general walk out of the shadow. His face was perfect, with no scars to speak of, an ideal Prime Human specimen. He kept a clean bald head, and his other features were similar to that of a wall. The general was easily twice Clarice’s size, his chest, arms and legs all being massive in proportion, even his face looked like it was professionally sculpted. His cleft chin was iconic to Clarice, and his small beady black eyes were always cold. He was a man that had conquered all of his fears, something she couldn’t help but admire. The general’s voice was always gruff and cold, he only ever shouted for demands and orders, but otherwise she had never seen him lose his cool, even after years of knowing the man. He used to go by Phine Atlus, but most knew him now only as General Atlus.

In comparison, she had a long way to go. Not only did the deformity of freckles on her face mean that she was a lower quality as a human, but she was also not as calm as the general, something she couldn’t help but be annoyed by ironically. Clarice’s brown hair grew like a weed, meaning she had to get it cut to neck length every couple of weeks. Then there were her somewhat muscular arms, which were never quite enough in the pure upper-body area. The only thing she had going for her were her red eyes she had inherited from her family. She had practised her gazes in the mirror many times, managing to make faces that placed fear into the heart of both friend and foe, something she was incredibly proud of.

The two went for a walk, leaving the metal room and stepping out to the moon-like planet. The military base they had set up was massive, being one of the largest training areas for the Prime Human military in the entire universe. It had been founded on Earth-43, which was once an inhospitable planet for humans. Yet with gravity and oxygen creators embedded into the dead planet, life was possible for each soldier. Gates were created around the large perimeter to keep any creatures from the planet from entering, or any soldiers from deserting. Aeon cannons were placed along the corners of the base, so as to shoot down any ship that may try to take a strike at them. Tents were lined up in an organized fashion, going for kilometres and kilometres, while four separate nursing stations were scattered along the base. Every few kilometres stood polls, these were meant to show the bodies of any deserters that were unsuccessful in their attempts, just the justice they deserved. Water and food was brought to them via monthly shipments from colonized planets, which meant it was either very good or spoiled rotten.

Still, it was all something Clarice had gotten used to by now. She had been stationed on the planet for over a year. So as she walked by the infirmaries, restrooms, training domiciles, soldier’s tents, she couldn’t help but smile. The whole base was a sign of human strength, being as big as an entire city.

The general led Clarice to the cabins where the higher-ranking officials slept and conducted meetings. The rectangular building led to two separate parts, the private rooms on the left side, and on the right was the war room where they discussed military matters. General Atlus opened the door into the war room, the lights had been darkened and at the centre of the large circular wooden table was a bottle of champagne.

“Congratulations,” the general said, walking over to the champagne and picking it up.

“For what?” Clarice asked.

“Beating your record. Fifty consecutive bullseyes, and now it’s fifty-one!” he replied.

“Oh—right…” she said quickly, brushing the side of the glass door, not knowing what to do in this situation.

“I said this when I first met you as a recruit, and I’ll say this again, I believe that you have the ability to become T-Squad someday!” General Atlus declared. His voice was filled with ambition, the first time Clarice had ever heard his tone shift.

“Thank you… general… that means a lot to me,” she muttered, not able to look him in the eye. She heard his footsteps approach, her black boots shifting toward the exit. “I will achieve that goal, sir.”

“Oh, I know you will…” he muttered, his voice becoming low.

The lights in the room flickered, causing both the general and captain to stop dead in their tracks.

“What was that?” they said simultaneously.

“WARNING! WARNING!” a distorted voice screamed from the walls of the room—no—from the entire base. “INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT!” The lights in the building turned bright red, and with that came Clarice’s focus. The captain opened her left hand, the twin axes teleporting to her in a bright flash of purple light.

“Who would dare intrude a Prime Human military base?” the general asked. Clarice turned to her superior and opened the door, ready for a fight.

“Easy, it’s probably a Galactic Runner!” Clarice said. “They are either incredibly stupid, or incredibly dangerous! We have to round up the troops!”

“Agreed! Captain Clarice, I order you to eliminate or capture the threat! I leave the decision up to you!” Clarice nodded in agreement and stepped out of the war room, running back out onto the base.

She saw that everything had erupted into chaos, fire spreading on the roof of the tents while random blasts of electricity shot at soldiers who looked around aimlessly for wherever the threat was coming from. Clarice opened her stance and got ready to throw her axes at the first sight of an enemy. Yet she couldn’t see anything, not a single person, except for the soldiers who had been stunned by some invisible force… a Visos-user! she thought. Someone must be using a Visos to remain hidden in plain sight! We’re dealing with some kind of thief if that’s the case!

Clarice went into a dash, heading straight for the paralyzed soldiers and dropping the twin axes behind her. She picked one of the recruits up, their eyes moving to look at her. This soldier has been shot by a imobilizing shot. They should be back up in about five minutes. Maybe they could tell me if they saw the perpetrator.

“Look at me soldier! Look at me!” Clarice ordered. “Tell me, did you see the intruder?”

“I-I-I…” they could barely speak, the paralyzation was too fresh. Clarice grit her teeth in anger, feeling the barrel of an Aeon blaster touch the back of her head.

“Looks like I gotcha,” a cool voice said from behind.

Clarice smiled and looked at her purple bracelet.

“Not very likely,” she replied. Clarice was absorbed by purple light, suddenly appearing in front of the axes that she had left on the ground. She paid close attention to the sound of footsteps, hearing the intruder try to catch up with her. Clarice threw her axe at the invisible force, seeing blood spurt out of thin air.

A strange grey contraption hit the ground as her axe embedded itself into the intruder’s shoulder. First, she looked at the Visos on the ground, and how it was fastened by a pink strap as to stay onto its owner. She saw the core of it, a grey swirl shaped like a small plate, recognizing it as an older model that had to be about a decade old.

Then she saw who the intruder was…

She had seen him on the news, he was infamous for his stunts and recognized as one of the most dangerous Galactic Runners in the entire universe.

The black jacket he wore had to have held countless items made for stealing and combat. Meanwhile, the Aeon blaster in his right hand was old and worn down, but managed to function. Guess he doesn’t mind having old gear? He was a tall figure, but not altogether too muscular, in fact, he was skinnier than she thought he would be. He had spiky black hair, another identifying trait of the legendary outlaw that Clarice had heard of. His pants were dark and baggy, his boots an exact copy of her own, no doubt he had stolen them. Clarice could identify them as black-laced military boots made for harsh weather environments on thousands of different planets. Then there were his piercing blue eyes. A part of her thought she was staring at the devil himself with how devious they were. Finally, there was the most identifying feature of all, the scar on his right eye that kept this thief from being a Prime Human, yet according to rumour, gave him his name.

“So, you—you must be X?” Clarice asked, watching the thief smile even while he had an axe embedded in his shoulder.

“Yup! That’s me!” he yelled, opening his arms and giving her a devilish smirk. “I’m X! The Intergalactic Thief, at your service!”

“Well, so-called Intergalactic Thief, your head is wanted by four of the five major factions in the universe!” Clarice responded, pointing her second axe at him.

“You don’t have to go on telling me that, sister!” X said like he was bragging. “By the way, what kind of weapon is this? I’ve never seen someone teleport with axes?”

“Like I would tell you how my weapons work.”

“Whatever, I’ll just ask Benny later. I’ve been in worse jams.”

“You’re not getting away from us. Whatever you stole or plan to steal, we’ll stop you!”

“My, my, which book did you get that line from?” he said mockingly. Clarice watched for the slightest twitch from the thief, his facial expressions giving her no indication of what he’d do next. She watched his wrist move a millimetre and activated her blue bracelet. The axe embedded in X pulled the thief toward Clarice, creating a reaction of surprise on his face. The captain gripped her weapon and kicked the thief in his stomach while taking out the axe.

The thief fell face first into the dirt, meeting Clarice’s boot as she kept him there for another couple precious seconds. She saw him reach inside his jacket and by instinct Clarice jumped backward, seeing him take out what looked to be a tiny metal tennis ball. She knew better though, he held some kind of grenade or bomb. Clarice had heard stories of the Intergalactic Thief, how he always had a small arsenal on him. He often wins fights and gets away because people underestimate him.

“X! YOU IDIOT!” a voice shouted, causing Clarice to turn.

Time slowed once again, the captain able to see silver strings appear from thin air. She sensed danger, a primal fear pouncing from her heart, but the strings were too quick, there was no way she could outrun them.

The silver wire wrapped around Clarice like a snake about to eat its prey. Before it could swallow her whole Clarice dropped one of her axes and kicked it as far as she could. Still, the strings restrained her, binding her legs and arms. She tried to fight it, but the wire itself was sharp enough to pierce her skin with the slightest amount of force, Crytorium, she thought, knowing to relax her body rather than fight it. She needed to gather information for a moment, so she had to act helpless.

Clarice followed the source of the threads and saw a woman at the head of them, another infamous Runner, one who was renowned for her skill with Crytorium strings. Her hair was a bright shade of red and her eyes a menacingly glass-like green. Clarice could not help but create a fist at this woman’s dominating stature. She wore blue jeans, high boots, a yellow rubber jacket, a white top and a bright green tie that matched her eyes. Most keen of all though were her metal arms that had been spray painted red. Clarice could see these arms were the source of the metal strings, this Runner having small holes in their robotic fingertips that allowed for her to shoot out Crytorium wire and manipulate it. Just from the sight of the Runner, Clarice knew her name, Sara, the Puppet Master. “Don’t kill her!” X said, his voice now filled with pain.

Sara rushed over to the other intruder, allowing him to lean on her.

“You got hurt bad, X, you need to be more careful!” the redhead ordered.

“Yeah, yeah, like I’d ever do that. Look, I got the stuff, call Benny,” X said.

“You got the documents?” Sara asked, causing Clarice to smile.

The captain looked at her axe, how far it was, knowing at any moment she could teleport and blind side both of them. But she wanted to hear what they were doing there, maybe they would talk about who hired them?

“Yes, right here!” X declared, opening his jacket to reveal a blue file in one of his many pockets.

Sara nodded and took out a small compass-like device and placed it to her ear. It took Clarice a moment, but she could only imagine it was some kind of black-market communicator. She couldn’t remember the name of it though…

“Okay, I called Benny, X you have to paralyze that last soldier so I can let go of my wire,” Sara said.

“Right!” X replied, aiming his weapon at Clarice.

Oh shit! The captain quickly encompassed herself in a flash of purple light. The energy from the teleportation clashed with the Crytorium wire, creating a reaction akin to an explosion. The force from the energy around Clarice blew the strings right off her body while not harming her, Ea’s Protection shielding her from the resulting Aeon Power. Clarice then appeared in front of her weapons once more and stared down both of the thieves.

“Oh right, this one here can teleport with those weapons.”

“Would have been nice to know that before she got out!” Sara replied. Clarice twisted the weapons in her hands and took a second to breathe. The Intergalactic Thief was damaged but the redhead was perfectly fine and ready for a fight. I don’t stand a chance against the Puppet Master, but Ican definitely take down that X guy… I need backup!

“Captain Clarice!” a gruff voice shouted from her backside.

General Atlus walked into the fray, Aeon shotgun in hand and an audio transference device clipped to his ear so he could speak to intelligence. He was one of the only Prime Humans who could use an Aeon shotgun, a destructive weapon that could break the bones of its user. It appeared to be just like a normal shotgun that used metal for ammunition, but instead it fired waves of electricity, and or blasts of Aeon Power, which could instantly kill any non-Prime Human. The general pointed his massive weapon at the thieves, ready to pull the trigger. “I have this weapon set to kill! Now step-down X-Thieves, or I will be forced to fire!”

“Alright there partner, let’s settle down,” X laughed and looked to the sky.

“Why are you looking at the sk—”

Clarice stopped speaking when she saw a blue ship appear into the atmosphere, flying over the entire base. It was rather small, sure, but Clarice had heard stories of the X-Thieves’ ship. It was the Blue Jay, the fastest—most complex of all known spaceships in the universe, a real accomplishment on their part.

“‘Cause our reinforcements is here, bitches!” X proclaimed, pointing with his good shoulder at the tiny spaceship. Clarice watched as the doors to this ship opened and from the sky above came this strange, large and looming figure. The captain and general watched the figure fall right in front of them, unfazed by the over one-hundred story drop. He was easily eight-feet tall, a beast figure with orange and black fur, large legs and even bigger arms. He wore a dark cloak around his small, yet beefy neck, and ripped jeans. His claws were still as sharp as his legendary time during the war effort, but his face told a different story. The most infamous of all the thieves and wanted in every major faction, his yellow predatorial right eye was known the universe over. Clarice stared down Vladimir, the Mad Mutant.

General Atlus fired his weapon with zero remorse at the sound of the monster’s growl, blowing the Mutant backward and burning his chest, but amazingly, not turning him to dust! “How did that not kill him!?” Clarice asked the general who was starting to catch a cold sweat.

She had heard stories of the Mad Mutant—no, of all these infamous criminals, but to see them in the flesh, it was like something out of a hazy dream.

“The shotgun was made to kill non-Prime Humans, I don’t understand why it has not done its job!” General Atlus grunted.

“It’s going to take more than that,” the tiger growled, getting back up, even though there was smoke rising from his fur. X then threw a grenade at the two military officials, catching them off-guard. Clarice’s eyes burned from the sight of a bright light. A light grenade? He’s not trying to kill us? the captain thought.

She listened for their footsteps; it was easy to tell where the giant moved. She heard the tiger run toward her, probably gearing up to knock her out. Clarice felt pushed to the side, feeling Vladimir’s fur brush her face. She placed one of her axes into his arm and tried to cut it off, only to get punched in the ribs by another force, a much smaller one. She rolled on the ground and felt her vision return, seeing that X was the one who stood in front of her. You’re the one who threw the punch? she thought, curious as to why she was able to see again so quickly. Soldiers hastily began to swarm the area, encircling the thieves. Vladimir picked up the general by his neck, ready to twist it in front of all the other humans.

“Allow for us to leave in peace and we will do so!” the giant yelled, gaining the attention of everyone in the base. Clarice watched as life was slowly leaving the general, she had to act quick, give the soldiers an order or else their leader and the documents the thieves stole would both be gone!

General Atlus placed his hand up, ordering everyone to stop. The soldiers put their guns down to their hips, and watched as the general placed his hand to the microchip he had clipped onto his ear. They all looked at him confused as he barely made out the word:

“Shoot.” There was a moment of silence and then the entire base shook when a blast from defensive cannons went straight for the thieves’ spaceship. Before Clarice could even blink, she saw a huge hole go through the thieves’ blue ship as it began to fall from the sky.

“THE BLUE JAY!” Vladimir, X, and Sara cried.

Clarice looked at the Intergalactic Thief and saw her moment, rushing at him. He was too focused on the ship that he didn’t see the attack coming, allowing for Clarice to jump on top of him and place his neck in-between her axes. The general acted quickly and aimed his weapon at the two other thieves. He set the shotgun to “stun” and shot at the remaining Runners with electricity this time. Both Vladimir the Mad Mutant and Sara the Puppet Master fell.

Clarice sighed and smiled at X, the thief unable to squirm out of this one. He looked like a child that needed a punishment, which caused her to laugh and say,

“Ha! Looks like I gotcha.”

2

THE INTERVIEWS

The recruit made a mad dash throughout the barren military base. Everything had gotten so quiet since the attack, the fires finally turning into nothing more than ash and smoke. Jimmy ran through it all, his heart pounding, if what he heard was true, he had to see them in person!

After ten minutes of running toward the base’s jail for intruders, he finally saw the wreckage of what was supposed to be the intruders’ ship. His eyes widened at the sight of the crater, destroying a few tents in the process, all because the general made a dangerous decision. Jimmy looked at the destruction with his ruby-like red eyes, seeing how the legendary Blue Jay was torn in two with wires and massive pieces of metal stuck out of its hull. He saw its blue sheen of spray paint had been partially scrapped away by the crash. Meanwhile, soldiers roamed around the ship, attempting to clean up the scene. His eyes glimmered when he saw the words that had been painted on the arrow-shaped ship, “Blue Jay,” written with purple so as to stand out from the rest of the blue tint. Yet he was surprised to see that the ship was a simpler design. It was nothing more than a long hull shaped like a tube, an arrowhead for a head and two large rusty wings. He expected a far grander design. This was apparently the same spaceship that could reach lightspeed within milliseconds and it was helmed by a great pilot. If the stories were true, it should have been impossible for the Blue Jay to get shot down by an old defensive cannon at all. I guess the rumours of this ship’s design were exaggerated, he thought, biting his lip in disappointment.

Jimmy placed his hands in his baggy green pants’ pockets and turned away, he needed to see the thieves’ themselves. The brown-haired boy walked toward the jail which was not too far from him.

He strolled past the wounded soldiers who were tended to by the medical team, and others who rested on the ground with nothing more than a blanket. The smell of blood and ash still hung in the air. The attack came quickly, and if General Atlus hadn’t acted as he did then the whole base could have been compromised. He understood the decision, even if he didn’t completely agree with it.

The skinny recruit walked toward the stone staircase which led to the circular building in front of him, the jail where they would hold intruders. He had never seen it so packed though; other soldiers clung onto the metal doors, trying to pry them open to get inside. He was not surprised to see how the number of soldiers wanting to get into the jail only increased. They demanded answers, and they wanted to see the intruders. Jimmy was no different, he just knew how to get what he wanted.

The front entrance was so obviously shut tight, and the higher-ups didn’t want anyone else getting involved. He wasn’t going to let that stop him though…

Jimmy went straight for the back entrance. It was meant as a fire escape and only the captain and general had the key… luckily, he stole one of them off of Clarice a couple days back. He had waited for a moment like today, he couldn’t just let it slip. Jimmy opened the door with the metal key and let himself in, quickly locking the exit so that no one else had a similar idea.

He walked through the dimly lit metal hallway, brushing his hand along the steel walls that led to the place where the assailants were supposed to be held.

Eventually, he made it to a metal door and opened it, smiling when he saw captain Clarice and General Atlus standing behind a one-way window. He saw how both of them held a cup of coffee and Atlus put down his shotgun, while Clarice’s axes lay on the seat with wheels. That didn’t matter though, Jimmy noticed how she still wore those bracelets, which meant she hadn’t yet let down her guard.

With a squeak of his rubber boot the two higher-ups turned away from the window and looked at the recruit, the axes already in Clarice’s hands. Jimmy put his hands up defeatedly and smiled.

“Sorry about that, captain, general—it’s just, when I heard who the intruders were, I rushed straight here,” Jimmy said jokingly.

“Only higher-ups are supposed to be here, recruit,” Clarice nodded, going as far as to not say his name.

“Yes, but come on, no one knows more about these guys than I do.”

“Well, we already have full documentation of their major crimes,” Clarice replied.

“Maybe, but I know who they are. Come on captain, can’t I at least see what they look like through the window?” he asked kindly, his voice turning into a high-pitch screech. “Let the recruit see if you want him to,” the general rasped. Clarice nodded in agreement and said,

“Fine recruit, tell us what you know about them.” She gestured for him to come closer. Jimmy tried his best to contain his excitement, but he was not a master at controlling his emotions yet, not like his elder siblings. The recruit took a step forward and looked through the window to see the four of them, in the flesh.

X’s jacket had been removed from him, so had all of his weapons, and his boots. He was chained to a metal chair and bound to a corner of the room, much like the rest of his allies. All he wore was a simple black t-shirt and shorts that were property of the military. I’ve heard stories of how anything the Intergalactic Thief touches becomes a lockpick, so I get the precautions.

Sara the Puppet Master’s arms had been taken away; her feet strapped together by cuffs… I’ve heard how the Puppet Master is an excellent combatant even without her strings! She’s probably even more dangerous than the group’s leader!

Vladimir the Mad Mutant’s arms were kept under strict lock and key, held together by sturdy Crytorium handcuffs that no mortal creature could break out of with sheer force. The same was true for his feet, even his mouth was bound with a Crytorium muzzle so he wouldn’t bite anyone. Unlike the two humans—X and Sara—he wasn’t even given a seat, which Jimmy thought was a bit much.

“We found this one in the wreckage of their ship. We were surprised that it survived the fall,” General Atlus said gruffly.

Jimmy smiled at the sight of him, a Mutant he admired from afar. The recruit heard stories of this “blob,” but never knew if they were quite true. He appeared just like the news described him, a mass of green goo. This was none other than Benny the Blob, inventor of the Blue Jay and apparently a great mind in the field of science. Now yes, his form was nothing but green slime that could be mistaken for mint jelly, but there was so much more to this being. With nothing more than a torso, two arms that could split into tentacles and a bright red eyeball at the head of his being, Benny was an anomaly. To Jimmy, the blob was huge, almost as large as Vladimir, yet there was no way to contain him due to his form. He’s probably not trying to escape because the others would be killed if he tried anything… Jimmy thought. There was also the fact that Aeon Power could kill blobs quite easily, the same power humans had in abundance…

Each of these thieves kept to their own corner of the room, each looking directly at the window which was supposed to be one-way for the interrogators. Vladimir and Sara’s gaze was a powerful one filled with anger, yet X smiled, looking happy to have been caught.

“So… when are we gonna start with the interrogating already? I mean come on, I’ve got places to be you know,” X cried at the window.

Clarice moved over to the mic they had stationed in the room and said,

“Please be quiet.”

“Make me,” X said while sticking out his tongue.

“Okay, recruit,” Atlus muttered sharp enough to catch Jimmy’s attention.

“Yes sir?” Jimmy replied.

“What do you know about these intruders that we don’t?” the general asked. Jimmy sighed and nodded, taking a moment to think about how he was going to explain it…

“Well… okay, I guess you’ve figured out that the one with the X-scar is the titular lead, X,” he explained.

“Yes. He’s stolen from countless star systems and is responsible for the theft of the Red Revolver,” the general replied.

“Yes, his head is worth around eighty-thousand Prime Dollars. Then there’s the pilot of the group, Benny the Blob. Bet you didn’t know that it was reportedly Benny who built the Blue Jay, which rumour said was the fastest ship in the universe.”

“Too bad for it,” Clarice said with a chuckle. “That thing just turned out to be a bucket of bolts.”

“Yeah… I guess so,” Jimmy agreed dismissively. “Then there’s Sara the Puppet Master. She’s an infamous Galactic Runner now but used to be a soldier for the Prime Human government over a decade ago.”

“No way?”

“So, she turned traitor?” Atlus rasped, staring at the redhead with an intensity flaring in his eyes.

“Yes, but it is valuable information, right? Finally, there’s Vladimir the Mad Mutant, what more do I have to say about that terrorist?”

“Agreed…” the general nodded. “Vladimir was once thought to be one of the greatest threats to our government, now look at him. He’s become nothing more than an old animal, needing to be put out of its misery… still. We must find out why they wanted those private documents and more importantly, who hired them. Clarice, I want you to be the one to question them. Start with the leader and then the blob, followed by the traitor and terrorist. Understand?”

“Yes sir!” Clarice exclaimed, saluting her superior without skipping a beat.

As usual, she never loses conviction, Jimmy thought, watching her move toward the door to speak with them.

She opened it and walked calmly toward X who sat in his chair, completely docile. “Walls up!” she commanded as the floor shifted and suddenly the room was split into four parts via metal walls that came down from the ceiling.

General Atlus had a keyboard in his hands, one that was hooked up to the interrogation room. He pressed a couple of buttons, dulling the sound in the parts of the room, all except for the one with X and Clarice. A light shined on the thief from the ceiling, like he was the sole perpetrator of the crime. Clarice kept her eyes fixed on the thief, not willing to flinch in front of him for even a second. She was a master of finding cracks in even the slightest twitch from her enemies.

The body is just another tool of communication, she thought while looking at X.

“You know what I’m going to ask you about, don’t you thief?” she said coldly, looking down at the Runner with disgust.

X continued to smile and gazed up at the captain, ignoring the fresh wound in his shoulder that had only been partially patched up.

No normal human would even be conscious after getting an axe to the shoulder. What is he?

“Please, go ahead, ask away!” X replied, giving off a small cackle.

“Who hired you?” she asked.

“If I told you no one, would you even believe me?”

“Not even a little. The documents you stole were of private information—classified information for the government. So why don’t you tell me who hired you and maybe I can get you a lighter sentence, maybe even parole. Whatever the judge—or the president decides to do with you, I will do my best to make sure that you and your team do not receive the death penalty… even if that may be tough to do for the Mad Mutant.”

“Wow!” X said, his voice sounding genuinely shocked. “Now that I did not expect. You almost sound like an honest person there.”

“That’s because I am.”

“Nah. Honest people don’t exist. Trust me. But there are fleeting moments where losers like you tell the truth,” he said, laughing to himself.

“What are you talking about? I am an honest person,” Clarice said, her voice no longer cold and rigid, replaced by a tone of sass.

“Captain.” the general’s voice cut through to her, blaring through the corners of the room and into her ears, pulling her back to centre. She noticed how she made a fist with her right hand. She needed a moment. The walls came down and Clarice walked back to the other side of the interrogation room where Atlus and Jimmy waited.

“What is it sir?” she asked.

“The recruit has some information to tell you,” the general explained, nodding forward to the young man.

“There’s a member of the crew missing,” Jimmy exclaimed, the sound of concern echoing through his voice.

“What do you mean there’s a member of the crew missing?”

“I mean there’s a member of the crew missing Clarice! I mean captain-ma’am. Look…” Jimmy reached for his tele-communicator , a small device with a black screen that acted like a mini computer. Jimmy pressed a few buttons on its digital keyboard, lighting up the communicator’s screen with an image. “Look!” The young man showed his superiors an image of a young woman, one with blonde hair so fair that it could be mistaken for white and eyes crystal blue. It took a moment for it to click in Clarice’s head, but she had seen this person before.

“That’s—Nancy de Bloom,” Clarice said, stunned. “She used to be a journalist for Prime News, until she turned out to be a traitor to the government. What does she have to do with the X-Thieves?”

“Nancy de Bloom was last reportedly seen at a casino with the X-Thieves a few years ago. Some think she even joined their crew but it’s not something we had completely confirmed. But still, it is very likely that she is connected with these four and we should probably be on the lookout for her. We can’t assume they didn’t come here with a back-up plan.”

“That is understandable,” General Atlus muttered. “Nancy de Bloom was going to leak critical information to other factions of the universe, that’s how she got on our wanted list. It could be that this is a similar situation or that they are using miss de Bloom as a communicator with the real boss. No thieves would want that information unless they were paid to get it.”

“Nancy de Bloom or not…” Clarice said. “We need to continue with the interrogation. And then, with what I can figure out we’ll take action. When will we proceed with the meeting for their court hearing?”

“There won’t be a court hearing,” Atlus replied swiftly. “This goes to the very top. Vladimir and X are highly valued targets, their fates will be left up to the President of the Prime Human government.”

“Whoa!” Jimmy said.

“You’re serious?” Clarice asked. “He’s coming here?” “No. He’s much too busy. He’ll be calling us, informing us as to what to do with them, legally speaking of course. Until tomorrow, we’ll continue to interrogate them.”

“Very well, sir,” Clarice agreed. She turned to the door and let herself back into the room. She walked up to X and asked for the walls to come back up, leaving only her and the thief. She looked at the one-way window from his point of view, only seeing a mirror. Her eyes then focused on the thief. She saw him let out a scoff and smiled.

“Where is Nancy de Bloom?” she asked.

“Who? My ex? Oh, she’s somewhere out there. When we broke up, she went off to do her own thing,” X replied in a bragging manner.

“Wait? You dated one of the most famous journalists for Prime News?”

“Well, when I met her, she was already technically an outlaw, but yeah, pretty much. Boy! She was smoking.”

Clarice wanted to punch him in his smug face.

“What does she have to do with the attempt at stealing our documents?” Clarice prodded.

“Nothing-nothing!” X said, gesturing with his hands even while in handcuffs. “You want to know why we stole those documents; I’ll tells ya! My pals are gonna tell you the same thing! Any classified docs you guys got are worth a mint on the black market! Crime syndicates, other factions, the works! We’d never have to pull another job again.”

“You’re telling me that one of the most infamous Runner groups in history came into a state-of-the-art military bases without a plan?”

“Dude, relax! We never have a plan; this was no different!” X laughed, trying to slap himself on the knee, even though his cuffs kept him locked to his chair. “Even for our greatest heists!” Clarice pulled back, amazed. Was—was she really speaking to such an idiot? No—she could not allow for him to trick her!

“Speaking of the Red Revolver, where is it? You stole one of the most precious items from the Prime Human government, now we would like it returned!”

“I don’t have it on me, dude. Nah, I sold it like four years ago, we really needed the cash, ya see?”

“You sold the Red Revolver? The Weapon that can Kill a God? To who?”

“I don’t know, some guy.”

“Some guy!”

“Yeah. Some guy. Look, is this interview over yet? I’m starting to get hungry! I’m sure Benny’s famished also. So could ya just let us go, and we’ll chalk this up to a misunderstanding?”

“What—what kind of situation do you think you’re in?” Clarice asked, her voice shaking with a strange mix of rage, confusion and more rage.

“The kind where I hand you some cash and you look the other way.”

“You’re an enemy of the government and three other major factions. Humans, Clockworks, Muges and Mutants want your head!”

“Yeah, you don’t have to tell me I’m popular, miss?”

“Cla—” she stopped herself. I can’t let him be the onewho asks the questions here. It’s best if I just switch out.

Clarice walked out again, ashamed she couldn’t get more out of him. The general turned in his chair, stone-faced as ever.

“We’ve got some information out of him, but I doubt any of it is true,” the general said. “I will ask questions toward the rest of the crew. It seems we will be here for a while. Recruit, make yourself useful and fetch me and the captain some more coffee. The other captains should be here by tomorrow for the president’s verdict.”

“We can’t leave them alone for even a second,” Clarice said, looking directly through the window at X, watching him itch his chin by rubbing it against his chest, like some kind of joker.

“I do not like this predicament,” the general said as he got up to do his round of questions.

3

JUDGMENT

Cups of coffee laid still and cold as Clarice’s eyes began to waver while she watched the convicts. She and the general had been at it for hours, trying to pry any new information from the thieves. Yet each of them had the same stories—all except for the Mad Mutant Vladimir, only because he refused to speak. They had taken turns, yes, but it did not matter. The good cop, bad cop routine was worthless. Meanwhile, the leader X became more annoying to Clarice by the second. It was that shit eating grin, like he couldn’t make any other facial expression.

She watched General Atlus walk out of the interrogation room, his face as machine-like as ever, all except for the dark circles around his eyes, only now starting to show.

“They’re either telling the truth, or they simply refuse to talk… we’ll have to pull off more draconian methods at this rate…” the general rasped.

Clarice sighed in defeat and sunk into her chair.

“Sit up straight, captain,” Atlus reminded her, causing a shock through her system.

Clarice followed his command and sat in an upright position, even as her focus continued to slip.

The captain heard the sound of the door opening and instantly opened her hand, ready to bring her axes right to her, only to see the recruit Jimmy walk through the door looking startled.

“Captain—general! The other captains are here!” the young soldier proclaimed, his face sweating bullets.

“Keep calm, recruit,” Atlus said. “It does not bode well for a Prime Human to sweat with fear.”

“Yes—sir!” he replied instantly. Clarice couldn’t agree with the statement more. A Prime Human must appear to be perfect at all times… I thought you would have known this by now, Jimmy? she thought to herself.

“Captain Clarice, it appears our attention is needed. Recruit, you will send for the lieutenants to cover for security here, understood?” the general ordered.

“Sir, yes sir!” Jimmy replied perfectly, placing his right hand to his forehead as a sign of respect.

The captain and general waited patiently in silence until the two lieutenants arrived with Jimmy. Clarice remembered their faces, one of them she knew well.

Lieutenant Mac was liked by all. He was a large man, being seven-feet tall and filled with muscle, but had a heart of gold according to Jimmy. She recalled a particular instance where he went through the trouble of rescuing slaves from a Muge planet. Yet his emotionality always kept him from the rank of captain. He had blonde hair and green eyes and there was the burn on his right shoulder meaning that he was exempt from the privileges of a Prime Human. Thankfully this was covered up by the green uniform, a lieutenant’s version which held two stars on it.

Then there was Richard. It was always difficult for Clarice to look him in the eye. He was not the best fighter or strategist, but his charisma was perfect for his rank. Yet, much like Mac, he often let his emotions get the better of him. Yes, Clarice could remember the time he asked her out on one of the dance nights. It wasn’t that she didn’t find him attractive or funny. On the contrary, he was six-foot, with brown hair and chestnut eyes, he led the workout sessions four times a week and even did a comedy night routine. She just didn’t like the feeling in her body when she was around him.

“Captain,” Richard said, nodding toward her. Clarice pulled back on a smile she felt creep up her face and nodded in return.

“Lieutenants,” the general said. “Make sure that these thieves do not try anything to escape. In fact, make sure they don’t even move. According to the recruit,” Atlus explained, pointing to Jimmy, “they do not need tools or weapons to be dangerous.”

“Yes sir!” Mac and Richard replied simultaneously, saluting their superior.

“Captain,” Atlus said, gesturing for Clarice to follow him. “Yes sir, let’s go,” she agreed, walking behind General Atlus.

Clarice and the general made their way to the war room, the lights brightening the room enough for Clarice to see the six others in her rank. The six captains wore the exact same uniform as her, and each had a dead stare to them. The general walked past Clarice and toward his large chair at the end of the round wooden table. Clarice strolled to her seat at the opposite end of the table, waiting for the general to take a seat.

As Atlus sat down, the seven captains followed, each taking a seat simultaneously. The eight of them stared at the middle of the table where a small circular mirror laid, it was a hologram machine.

“The president must be running late,” one of the captains muttered.

“And so, we shall wait for him,” Atlus declared. “The President of the Prime Human race is the busiest man in the universe. We cannot always expect for him to be on time.”

“Yet we’re dealing with a chaotic situation. The X- Thieves are here, on this base,” another voice said, cutting through the silence.

“Each military base must have a general,” Atlus said. “Seven captains to lead lieutenants. The lieutenants lead the soldiers, the soldiers inspire our recruits in the hope that they can add to this army, to our government. Soldiers follow their orders blindly because they know better. The same is true of captains who must follow my command, blindly. I then follow orders from the T-Squad blindly, and they do the exact same thing when they are given an order by the president. So then, follow my order or be demoted all the way to recruit status, understood?”

“With all due respect,” an older captain at the table said. “The X-Thieves are not a normal problem. They must be dealt with quickly. We must execute them here and now. I am sure that the president would agree.”

“No!” another voice said. “We must bring them back to the capital if we are to execute them!”

“You’re both wrong, imprisonment is the only way we can sustain ourselves! We are beyond such barbarity!”

“Quiet!” the general declared with a slam of his hand on to the wooden table, his voice and face still unflinching. The captains shut their mouths and sat back in their seats. They waited five minutes until the circular mirror began to brighten up with blue light.

A figure appeared in the middle of the table, standing on top of the rest of the soldiers. Clarice had seen this man once before. He had given her the rank of captain personally. The head of it all, the perfect human being, President of the Prime Human race, Solomon Damon.

He wore a white suit, tightly laced and devoid of even a spec of dust. His face was clean shaven, his skin untouched by the countless battles he had seen. Even as president his body was the peak of human potential, not too large, not too small, he was fast and strong. His brown hair was slick back, and his eyes were a deep sea like green. Then there was the item he wore ever since his success at the War for the Heart of the Universe, the blue metal ring on his wedding finger, to signify his allegiance to humanity.

General Atlus sat up in his chair and waited patiently for the president to say something. The hologram had fully materialized. To Clarice, it looked like president Damon was actually in the room.

“Good day to all of you,” he said, his voice calm like the brush of a warm breeze.

“Good day, mister president,” they all replied simultaneously.

“I heard of the incident that happened. So, the X-Thieves attacked this military base?” he questioned.

“Yes, sir,” the general replied.

“And you managed to capture them?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. You live up to the rank I gave you, General Atlus.”

“Yes, sir, this includes the Mad Mutant Vladimir. What should we do with them?” the general asked.

The president placed his hand to his chin and smiled.

“Well, that is the question. The X-Thieves are one of the greatest Galactic Runner groups out there. They are not organized like the syndicates and often take jobs from anyone. They have been a thorn in our side and even stole my weapon, the Red Revolver. There is no question, that the X- Thieves are indeed a threat, but I do not believe they should be at the top of our list.”

“What do you mean to say, mister president?” one of the other captains asked.

“The X-Thieves are an incredibly active group. They are loud and the target of the news for this reason. However, they are still only thieves. From what I understand you do not even have the full group, Nancy de Bloom, one of the most dangerous of them is missing. Without her and her knowledge of our government they are a nuisance in the grand scheme of things. Besides, there are other threats. The Hero in Blue is still out there, attacking our planets and other stations that hold our embassies. I believe he is public enemy number one.” Solomon placed his hand to his chin and closed his eyes, deep in thought.

Clarice’s hands began to sweat, wondering where the president’s mind had gone. “Then there are the other factions…” He began to speak out loud. “The Titans are advancing their weaponry again. I have information that they may intend to start another war. After all, their king is the mass murderer, Pyro Fusion. The Mutant Federation has returned to its full power after we cut that deal with them, meaning they are a threat to our era of peace once again, if they so choose to be. While we have tried to ease tensions, I would not put it passed them to attack us at the best opportunity. The Muges can never be trusted, their reliance on the slave trade means they see us as lesser life forms even when the opposite is true, not to mention their ability to fly and create as well as control fire means they will forever be able to fight. Finally, there are the Clockworks and their leader, the mysterious Dessaray, who’s allegiances are difficult to comprehend.” Solomon finished his monologue. “Forgive me my friends, you all know this, but it does me well to speak my thoughts in order to reach to the best outcome. All of this to say, I do not trust the other major factions in the slightest… they are our real threats, not thieves looking for quick cash.”

“But mister president!” the old captain at the table yelled. “Captain!” Atlus rasped.

“No general,” the president said, putting up his hand to stop Atlus. “I want all of my soldiers to speak freely. I would be blind without their guidance.”

“What about the Mad Mutant Vladimir?” the old man asked.

“Vladimir is now nothing but a has-been, an old war hero that has lost his luster. He was only a public enemy due to the terrorist group he used to lead. That is no longer a factor.”

“Then may I ask, president…” General Atlus placed his head down, his eyes going dark. “Are you not concerned about these thieves because… there will be yet another war?” The table went silent, even Clarice began to sweat. She was not in the military during the War for the Heart of the Universe, but she had heard stories.

Decades ago, there was a battle between all five factions for the power of God herself, Ea, for her protection. The war lasted many years but culminated in the Last Battle, where the very fabric of life was shaken. In the end, the Prime Human government was victorious and forced Ea to give them her protection. Aeon Power, the source of eighty percent of weapons and military might throughout the universe was useless against those who were one-hundred percent human. Meaning, that as long as one did not have prosthetics or missing limbs, they were resistant to Aeon Power and could not be killed via the rays of the suns. This ended the war and ushered an era of unparalleled peace.

“I understand why each of you would like for the X-Thieves to be executed,” the president said. “When they stole the Red Revolver, we have been seen as a weaker force. This is why we are witnessing more signs of resistance with each passing day of the calendar. More and more Galactic Runners are appearing, following in the footsteps of the X-Thieves. Titans and Muges refuse to pay their taxes toward us, breaching the terms of surrender from the war. Now I can promise all of you, just like I did the people, I will do all I can to avoid another war. Yet… I cannot swear it will not happen. That is why I choose to see your capturing of the X-Thieves as a great opportunity for all of us…”

“With all due respect sir,” General Atlus said. “How is this an opportunity?”

“Well, it’s actually quite simple. These Runners are skilled, each of them. Our enemies have been using them against us, paying them to get what they need. We must do the same now.” With a simple statement, the war room’s entire mood shifted to that of confusion.

“Use a bunch of criminals? Aren’t we beyond such things?” a captain asked.

“Yes… but our enemies have shown otherwise. We didn’t win the war by being honourable, captain,” the president said. “To keep them in line we can use simple shock bracelets. They are not Gods or Superheroes, so they should be easy to control. Operation on their brains is out of the question because they would likely lose their skills, which is what we need. I believe we can use these thieves to end an incoming war before it even begins.” The captains and General Atlus began to lift their heads, coming around to the proposition.

“Sir…” Clarice said, trying to push through the fear of speaking to one of her heroes. She tried to meet his eye line, look defiantly, look proud in front of him. “With all due respect, I do not believe we can actually control them. Especially that leader of theirs. X, seems to be rowdy, like a wild animal.”