17 Boettia

Five figures lay very still on the bare ground of a barren plateau overlooking a forest of trees without leaves. Behind them, the smouldering wreck of a small space shift sent a shaft of smoke high into the sky. The morning sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon revealing a bleak landscape with only sand, rocks and leave-less trees for miles in all directions.

In the middle of the plateau, a dark skinned man with white hair lay unconscious on the ground as his chest moved up and down with every laboured breath. Beside him, a middle aged woman with brown hair also lay unconscious. She was dressed in the grey flight suit of the United Nations of Earth star fleet. The stripes of her chest suggested that she was a high ranking officer and the text underneath the globe and wreath of the UN logo read: Science Corp. There were no visible signs of any injury on either of them.

A Quinian female fussed over her companions as she attempted to check them for vital signs. She stood over them with concern etched onto her delicate blue features.

"Can you walk?" She said absent mindedly to the only other conscious member of her group without looking directly at him. Her hands moved gracefully as she was waved a small portable device over the dark skinned man before moving on to the woman and doing the same.

"No. Unfortunately, the servos in my left arm and right leg were badly damaged from the crash," said a cyborg. "I won't get very far like this."

"So what do we do?" The Quinian female said. "We obviously can't wait here, we'll run out of food and water in half a day."

"Let's take it one step at a time," the cyborg replied. "What's the condition of the Colonel and our Marrakech travelling companion."

"It's strange, they don't seem to be injured," the Quinian said. "They just won't wake up. Do you have any idea why?"

"I think Colonel Lyn has been using stimulant injections to stay awake for several days," the cyborg replied. "She was about to pass out before that...thing attacked us on the ship. We would've been dead if the dark elf wasn't with us.

"That explains the uncontrolled shaking in her right hand but what about Taisen?" The Quinian asked. "As far as I can tell, he's in perfect physical condition. He just seems to be out of it…mentally. Could it be the planet that we are on? A toxin? Maybe the altitude or the air composition. Do you know where we are?"

"We're on Boettia," the cyborg replied solemnly. "The planet of misfortune."

The Quinian perked up with curiosity. She left her sleeping comrades and drew closer to the cyborg.

"Did you know that by checking the star charts? I hear a lot of sadness in your voice. I'm a good listener if you feel like sharing your burdens," the Quinian female replied. "What is the significance of this planet? Both to you and our dark skinned friend here? I'm curious to know more about him. He seems fascinating"

"I don't need a star chart to tell me that I'm on this God forsaken planet again but it is not my story to tell. If he decides to talk when he wakes up, that's up to him," the cyborg replied. "We should not have come here. Some ghosts are supposed to stay buried in the past where they belong."

"If you've been here before, why should I ask him?" The Quinian inquired. "Did you two know each other before?"

At that moment, they heard a sound like a hive of bees coming from a distance. It started as a group of small black dots and grew larger as they approached. They looked like flying jet skis. The Quinian female leapt into the air waving her hands wildly. "Over here!" she screamed.

"You may want to calm yourself," the cyborg replied. "Those are not rescue ships."

"Why? Do you think they're bad people?" she asked as she lowered her arms and touched the grip of her blaster.

"The blaster won't do you any good. You've probably never heard of the Pirates of Boettia," the cyborg said. "Just stay quiet and let me do the talking."

The flying jet skis circled the clearing. Two riders landed on the opposite side of the crew of the UNS Hermes and held their blaster rifles close to their chest as they disembarked. They had a frog like reptilian look complete with large eyes and a bulbous distended jaw that swoll like a balloon as they breathed.

"Greetings friends," the cyborg said. "I have come bearing gifts for Jorun Nak. Take me to him at once before he loses his temper with all of us."