• • Sunset: Heroes of the Milky Way
• August 17, 2024

Sunset: Heroes of the Milky Way (Chapter 7)

Alloya Ra’non

What Plan?

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Rega screwed me over.

‘You’re not that hard to manipulate. All it took was a little push.’ Her voice seems out of breath. She should be repelled by Womby’s presence, yet she isn’t. 

“You almost killed him!” Womby yells at me.

“Um, yeah, I don’t have a defense for that,” I admit to him. 

We are out in front of the pretty city’s dull capitol building, where Womby is understandably angry after stopping an almost-accidental murder, by me. Then there are the Riverti Rivertans standing behind him, looking at us judgingly.

Womby sighs, and facepalms. “What are you doing here anyway?” 

“Team Sunset needs you back. We’re all here and-” 

Womby interrupts me, “Need me back?! I just got back two weeks ago!” 

Shit. 

“What new threat have you concocted in two weeks? I’ve only just reconnected with my family, and here you are trying to pull me back into another excuse for us to all go hit something. It’s like that’s all you guys know how to do!”

Well, I didn’t suspect this. What, does he think I enjoy fighting? 

I mean, I do, a little, but that’s not the point. 

“Excuse me? I hate to break it to you, but I don’t just pull out the threat of galactic mayhem and destruction out of my ass! You think you’re the only one who’s life is interrupted by what goes on? I have a damn daughter, you think I wouldn’t rather be doing something fun with her instead of having to fix everyone’s problems?!” 

Now he looks at me really confused. “You have a daughter?” 

Oh wait, I haven’t explained that yet.

“Yeah, and that fact ties into all the shit that’s surrounding us right now. Maybe you would know if you didn’t interrupt-”

I am interrupted again, this time by one of the Rivertans. I hate when this happens.

“Why doesn’t everyone just calm down, please? People are getting scared and there’s no need for that.” He’s an older Rivertan I believe because of his skinnier frame and somewhat wrinkled face. 

Then he reaches out his hand to me, which due to the current uncomfortable circumstances, makes him appear pretty brave. 

I take it.

 “I’m Prime Minister Lamberine of the Rivertan Powers, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Captain Alloya.” 

Prime Minister?

“You’re the Prime Minister? What happened to Terrine?” She had been the Prime Minister in charge when I last came to the planet years ago, and I mean years for Riverteria too, because I didn’t like visiting the planet myself. I liked Prime Minister Terrine, mainly because she was trying to kickstart a reform of the social system. 

Who’s this new guy?

“Yes, we haven’t met. Prime Minister Terrine fell ill and passed away a few months back, or at least a few months back for us.” 

He knows.

“She was a good leader, and we mourned her loss. I was next in line and will be leading the Rivertan Powers for the foreseeable future.” 

Oh, he killed her, no doubt.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” Let me now plan how I’m going to make the same thing happen to you. “When you said, ‘a few months back for us’ what do you mean by that?”

“We are aware of the time displacement,” Lambine confirms my suspicions.

Womby’s head turns on a swivel, his seaweed-like hair almost slapping me in the face. “Huh?” 

Lamberine turns his head back to Womby and places a hand on his arm. “That’s what we were going to talk about, son, before this… distraction.” Then he places his other hand on my arm. “Why don’t we all go inside and talk about the important issues at hand? This incident,” he says while pointing to the young teenager still recollecting himself, “can be forgiven and forgotten, a moment of weakness obviously,” and offers me a hand, gesturing out to me.

I bow my head slightly in shame. This incident was a mixture of my own overreaction and Rega’s pushing. This could have, and understandably so, ruined relations in accordance to my plans. If I want there to be a peaceful way to uplift the Watree in time for war, I can’t risk any more outbursts like that.

“Come inside,” Lamberine offers as he gestures us onward, “let us not fight, you two were once Captain and shipmate, a special reunion.” I start moving forward, as does Womby, but not before Womby shoots me an angry glance. 

I guess I’m gonna have to work to make up for that, as I’m sure he probably isn’t going to apologize for anything anytime soon. I can be the bigger person.

As we follow Lamberine into and through the capitol building, I find myself gathering what I know of this new Prime Minister. He acts precisely and politely. He was quick to move on a peaceful resolution, but something was just… off. How would he know a thing about the time distortion? Through the Waverites? Then have they kept this a secret too?

We follow Prime Minister Lamberine as I wondered how I would be able to get any progress on taking on the Regnorian Regime. It’s only been two weeks for what’s been 20 years for me! We can’t spend any time here without the world passing us by. 

As the Waverites continue dying out, the Regnorian Regime will progress that much farther. Our current objective is going to have to change to find a way to fix the time distortion, at least for Team Sunset if possible.

It then seems necessary to ask how much they know. “Prime Minister, if I may, how much do you know about the time distortion?” 

He dismissively replies, “We’ll talk about that once we get to my office.”

“I’m sorry sir with all due respect, but finding out that you’ve only progressed two weeks since the explosion near the Dion, means I can’t spend any large amount of time here,” I inform him.

“And you can explain why in my office,” the Prime Minister dismisses again. Do all world leaders think the galaxy runs by their watch? 

“Where is that?” I ask.

“A ten minute walk,” he informs me.

Oh, he’s gotta be kidding me. I do my best to hide my groan, but not well enough because Womby shoots me a dirty look. 

The whole way there as I walk among these now noticeably shorter Rivertans, none of them make eye contact or speak a word to me. It doesn’t seem like they are afraid, I know what that looks like. This seems like indifference.

Even without powers I could swat them around like small children, bold of them to be indifferent.

The capitol building itself is strange too. All of the walkways and rooms are very high, and the corridors are wide and expansive. It’s like the Riverti Rivertans were compensating for their small size even before they found out other sentient species existed.

The architectural design isn’t all that interesting either. The building is made of stone, one that takes a long time to erode by water, which leads to white and gray columns and arches. 

How the building is decorated is much more intriguing. While I can easily see that the wall is a combination of white and gray, spectacled with the blues and greens of sea rock,  much of it is covered by paintings and photographs of famous Riverti people. 

I don’t recognize any of them, they can be anything from politicians to athletes for all I know. Paintings portray most people simply posing while the photographs catch people completing athletic achievements and partying. 

There is one painting of a battle between Riverti and Watree. While the craftsmanship is obviously better than anything I can do in my dreams, the content… bothers me.

The Watree look monstrous if they appear strong, with claws no Rivertan has had that I can see, and their hair is always black, and crunched up. The others are small hiding in the shadows of their large monstrous counterparts, or clutching at the knees of Riverti with skin that shines so bright, it makes them almost looke a completely different shade of blue.

I wonder if Regamorphs were ever like this. We’ve been one people, or one race for centuries. We had to be to garner the resources to cross the stars. Then again, I haven’t asked an important question a day in my life before Team Sunset was disbanded. 

What could I possibly know.

“Would you open the door for me, Wombinal?” the Prime Minister asks politely.

“Sure thing,” Womby answers dutifully. He opens this large, double-sided, wooden door and I wait for the others to enter.

“Maybe this meeting should stay small?” the Prime Minister recommends. “My friends, the Guardians and I have much to discuss.” The other Riverti nod in acknowledgment and begin to  leave.

It only just struck me, but I haven’t seen one guard. The Prime Minister of a nation operates out of what’s basically town hall, and not one bodyguard? Even the most liked of leaders on Reganora had guards in eyesight.

Everything about the office we’re in, only amplifies this fact. It feels like a doctor’s office. Sure, it’s pretty large yet plain like everywhere else. There is a desk with some nice but small chairs, one of which sits a Waverite twiddling his thumbs.

“Who are you?” I ask the Waverite.

He looks up at me nervously at first, but then quickly composes himself. “I’m Rizun EdiDi Ren-Den Wonton, here to represent my people stranded here.” Waverites have some pretty complicated names. 

“Stranded is an adjective we’d like to change soon, but first I must say I appreciate you coming Rizun,” the Prime Minister interjects. “Hopefully you can return with me to the capital, Ramone, so we can figure out together how to relocate your people. The caves are for my people to live and thrive off of, but that does not mean we cannot find somewhere else on Riverteria for your people to do the same. We are not blind nor cruel to the plight your species has been dealt.”

Temporary or not, this is no place for a Prime Minister, no matter how diplomatic he may be today.

Rizun quickly bows his head and thanks the Prime Minister, “That is all I could have hoped for and more. My million thanks and gratitude. And yes, I can accompany you to the capital.”

“Good,” Lamberine says with a smile. “Now onto more pressing matters now. Captain, I believe that now is the time to explain the more scientific problem we face in the galaxy, as these two,” Womby and Rizun he means, “need to become privy such information. You probably know more than I do in regards to how everyone else is faring.”

I guess I should have expected that I would have to share my knowledge first. “Sure, I guess the best place to start is to say that ever since the explosion near the Dion and its expansion, time zones have formed around the galaxy. All of the species and colonies are now moving at drastically different rates of time. Team Sunset and MineralCO have only recently become knowledgeable of this and have no explanation or solution as of yet.”

The Prime Minister makes a face of concern and points out the one thing I hoped wouldn’t be noticed. “You didn’t mention anything about the Regamorphs. The Regnorian Republic must know, how else would you.”

It’s hard not to sigh when put on the spot.

“The majority of Regnorian territory is within one time zone, which at the moment, is where time moves the fastest. As I wanted to say before to Womby, that is how I’ve managed go through 20 years, and you only two weeks. This is also means that Riverteria is in one of, if not the slowest time zone.”

Rizun becomes nervously curious and asks a couple questions, “Does anyone know a pattern into how time works now? No wait, first tell us how much time has passed with the other species. How long has it been for Acoustica?” 

I quickly inform him, “There is no pattern we can determine, especially not with distance. The farthest planet and the closest planets to the Dion is where time has passed the slowest. Acoustica has passed by 3 years, Earth three months, and-”

Interrupting me is becoming a habit for everyone. No one can just wait their turn to speak.

“You didn’t explain how much the Regamorphs know, Alloya,” Womby challenges, “I want to know, now.”

I move my eyes to match his gaze with a stern look of my own. “The Regnorian government seems to have known of the issues for some time and have kept the time displacement secret from the people of all worlds, hence why I only found out after these past few days.”

Prime Minister Lamberine sits back in his chair and moves his hand to his chin. “If they kept it a secret it’s because they’re taking advantage of their ability to progress and advance themselves faster than the rest of us.” He isn’t slow on the uptake, he realized immediately the suspicious activity that has been going on with the Regamorphs.

And here I am, a Regamorph standing in the room trying to claim innocence. The actions of the conniving government aren’t my fault but I doubt anyone in here is going to recognize that.

“So your people have been secretly working to get ahead of everyone,” Womby mutters.

Well, that was accusatory and inaccurate. “My people, have been in the dark as much as you. We cannot stop a shadow government-”

“Which you yourself are a part of!” Womby interjects to point out. He is not up to date on his information.

“That’s hasn’t been true for 20 years.” 

“This,” Lamberine adds calmly, “is a lot to take in, Captain,” he focuses on me. “Alloya, I think it’s time you left and dealt with your own people.”

No, I can’t let this relationship fade away just yet. “Prime Minister, I can’t just deal with my government, not my people, all myself. Yes I have a team of Guardians, but we can’t stop or control a galaxy wide empire.”

“And neither can I,” Lamberine counters. “What do you expect from us? We have remained isolationists, and in doing so we have our own peace. The Regnorian empire, or republic, or whatever it wants to be, have left us alone. Allying with you would probably change that, so leave.”

“But, Prime Minister-”

“Leave,” he commands coldly and with finality. When I turn to Womby I open my mouth to ask him to leave with me, but he holds up his hand. 

Then he moves to show me the door.

I look between the Rivertan Guardian and leader, looking for some way out of this situation, but the trust between us is non-existent.

I then look at Rizun, who seems distraught. I ask simply and quickly, “For the Waverite Guardian, before I go, can I know how many are left on this planet?”

Rizun moves his head in my direction, and opens his mouth to speak but the Prime Minister does for him. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to make her privy to important information. Think of who she could take it too.”

“I would take it to Hideo,” I argue.

“Then Hideo can come and ask himself,” Womby challenges me again. 

“Huh.” Putting my old friend’s face through the wall seems like a might attractive prospect by now. 

This person in front of me is really pushing my buttons. I could squash them, I should—

No, Rega must be trying to push me again. An outburst would destroy any chance to make up in the future.

I start moving out of the room before self-control becomes lost to me. When I move out of the door, Womby comes to close it. Before he does so, he comments, “Don’t attack anyone on your way out.” 

What I would like to do to that kid.