1.72 - Exit Wounds
I probably won’t be coming back to Revrell territory again for a long time, if I ever do. I especially won’t be going as far as Tortuga. Edan thought it would be a good idea to visit the station’s museum and do some light shopping. Edan has never suggested going to a museum in his life, and I’m not much of a shopper. I think he just wanted us to have one last day together. He’s also been completely sober since the meeting with The Meteorins. I wouldn’t say it made him clingy, but it has him wanting to go down memory lane a lot. I’m the one who likes history and old stuff, but he seems to be the historian of our family. Sometimes it seems like he’s got every picture and photograph from our family’s entire history. For the longest time, I didn’t have any of our family. I guess I just wanted a clean break, but as I spent more time away, I thought about them more often. Edan made sure to give me access to his server so I could see the photos and leave comments.
Shopping was, interesting. Edan views himself as someone with great fashion sense so he picked out most of the clothing. I had to veto a lot of things he thought I should wear. But, it was still fun. I asked if we hould be getting the client’s kid back, but he assured me Velphi was taking care of that in his own personal way. I’m sure that involves a lot of Draconian styled beatings.
The museum is somewhat depressing. Being surrounded by history and unique trinkets is always a good time for me. The thing that brings down the atmosphere isn’t the history dedicated to Tortuga Station but the races that populate it. The Meteorians had a civilization that I can only compare to ancient Vikings of Earth, or North American Indiginous People, a hot planet with plentiful wildlife and vegetation. When The Draconian Empire couldn’t conquer them after years of trying, they triggered the explosion of a nearby star which caused damage that has yet to be undone.
The Staiv’al aren’t as bad as I thought. Their entire planet’s water supply was tainted with waste from Revrell experiments. It’s not that the Revrell did this on accident; they had the technology to purify it, they’re that smart. Instead, they wanted to see what would happen. They used to be completely covered in feathers but the waste robbed them of those. Generations later and they still haven’t fully returned. I thought they had massive beaks or shells, and they do have beaks, but the hard mask is religious and only worn by adults. Most aren’t like the criminals we’ve met but they were last to find a home on Tortuga so they are the most are impoverished. They turn to crime for the same reason any species does; it’s a way to survive.
There’s a few Revrell who fled The Revrell Republic because they didn’t like what was going on. They keep the station running, and have a minimum say in the politics. A few humans who have made their way here, like my brother; even fewer have called it home. Civilizations rise and fall, but the way the Revrell Republic and Draconian Empire have treated these people is downright disgusting. There‘s a species called The Acroit, or Acroits. I’ve seen several of them, I even saw one as I checked into the museum. I thought they were robots every time I saw them. The Revrell replaced most of their parts with technology, the way the Revrell treat their own bodies. They were looking to make The Acroits immortal servants. There are thousands of members of the species remaining, but there were once millions. They don’t have the ability to reproduce anymore and have accepted that when they die, the species will come to an end. They wear plain white masks that only have openings for the eyes. They don’t eat, they don’t sleep, and are said to live in constant pain. It’s a miserable existence. There are some hoping to bring back the species through DNA cloning or trying to find old samples of eggs and sperm or find ways to use the remaining portions of the reproductive systems they currently have left.
Glass shatters and people scream before the sound of a gunshot is heard. Instinctively, I rush behind the nearest display case and get down waiting for another shot to come; people shout, objects break and chaos surrounds us. I easily tune it out, and search for Edan. I spot him lying face up, mouth agape and unmoving beyond large shaky breaths. I don’t have a gun, but I don’t hesitate. I’m not losing another brother, espeically one I can save. It's a risky maneuver, and I don’t know if he has any spinal damage but I just need to get him somewhere safe. Sprinting at him full speed, I tuck my head and roll over him, lifting Edan onto my shoulders with a fireman’s carry in one swift movement. I keep running until we’re behind another wall.
“My hero,” Edan struggles to speak as I check him for wounds. “Concussive shot,” he struggles. “No wound,” another deep breath. “Just lost air, maybe broken rib.”
I peak around the wall; no more shots have come and people are finally starting to exit from all different levels of the museum. We can make an escape through the crowd. Edan is clearly the target but if we cover him up, we can go unnoticed. There seems to be one shooter and they’re not coming down.
“Janet, get the ship ready,” Edan speaks over his wrist comp. “Bounty hunters, get everyone on the ship.”
Edan takes my hand and braces himself against the wall to get to his feet. “I thought this place was a safe haven,” I ask.
“First time for everything I guess.”
I snatch a discarded jacket from the floor and toss it over Edan’s shoulder as we make it down the stairs towards the first floor. I’ve felt like an adrenaline junky lately, but my therapist once told me that a lot of anxiety symptoms can be caused by adrenaline. Sweaty palms, increased breathing rate, increased temperature. These are things I notice when I’m coming down after and adrenaline rush; this time they come with an uneasy stomach and sense of danger. Usually in a fight or flight situation, I want to fight. Right now, I just want to protect Edan and that means fighting but I have to flee. It goes against every tendency I have honed for the last two decades. If I find a gun to play with, I can end this. But I just need to keep walking forward right now.
Note: I made some videos about The Olympics on YouTube. They're cool.
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