Wisdom in the Dark

Chapter 19 - Myra

Myra woke with a start. How long had she been asleep?

Still dressed in her dirty, ripped and bloodied clothes from the day before Myra threw off her blankets and leapt out of bed. Her leg and back screamed at her, and Myra almost collapsed with the pain. My people need me, she told herself. Righting herself, Myra tore out of her small dwelling into the village proper.

Callisto drifted from the dark side of Jupiter, and the red giant began its domination of the Callistan sky. Reds, oranges, purples and tans swirled and roiled in the gas giant as it slid further into view. Myra could see Ganymede, Europa and Io as they traveled their paths across Jupiter’s face.

Soon the pain in her leg and back slowed Myra’s progress and she began to hobble through the thoroughfares of Pyc Village. According to Myra’s watch it was the wake period – which wake period, she didn’t know – however Pyc Village was silent except for the whistle and howl of wind blowing into the dome. Myra noticed the shattered reinforced dome glass from the Sylph explosion had mostly been cleaned up, a testament to the resilience of her people.

As she continued on through the village Myra passed the crater where the two Sylphs had impacted and exploded. Blackened Callistan soil was at the center of the crater. Myra could see where some buildings used to stand, their foundations all that remained. Further out from the epicenter of the explosion buildings were burned and damaged. Fortunately, the fires were put out before they rampaged through the whole village.

Finally, Myra reached the open entrance of the dome and the charred, black ruins of the traffic control center. It was clear debris had been disturbed and removed. Apparently, the Pyc Villagers had found what remained of the dead traffic controllers in order to give them a proper burial.

It was like walking past a line of her failures. The dome, their village, the traffic control center. It’s all my fault, Myra stewed as she continued on. I should have found some way to prevent it. But would the Kotik have listened to any reason had Myra tried a different tact?

Myra pondered this as she approached the sub-space communications array. At the base of the large dish stood Jak, Oguz, and two older boys that looked about a cycle and a half old. The men turned as Myra approached, her hobble worse than before.

“What are you doing up?” Jak asked as he rushed to support Myra.

“How long was I asleep?” Myra asked as she allowed Jak to help her and leaned her weight on him.

“Almost the full wake period,” Jak replied. “I’m surprised you woke so soon with as exhausted and beat up as you were.”

“The Pyc Family needs their Matriarch,” Myra said through gritted teeth, sweat dripping down her forehead. She attempted to sound strong and resolved, but her voice came out soft and weak.

Jak helped Myra over to where Oguz, Durko and the two boys stood around a knee-high device connected to the sub-space communications relay, a Sylph pilot’s helmet attached by a cable to the device.

“We’ve rigged Jak’s Sylph pilot helmet to the communications relay,” Oguz explained. “It should work for Jak to communicate with Wodniki Village, especially as it’s so close in its orbit to Callisto.”

“Will Jak’s pilot helmet still work after this?” Myra asked.

“One challenge at a time, Matriarch,” Oguz replied before he squatted down to make a few adjustments. The two boys moved as if to help, but halted, clearly unsure of what to do. “Damn kids, you need to make sure the connections are tight and secure,” Oguz growled, and the two boys took a step away from the seasoned technician.

Oguz needs to learn to calm down when teaching others, Myra thought, otherwise he’ll never pass on his skills.

Tired of standing and hurting, Myra decided to sit with Jak’s help. After everything that happened Jak seemed to be more attentive to her needs. The memory of Jak’s attitude and disregard for her before the Kotik attack bubbled up to the top of Myra’s mind as Jak walked over to the Sylph helmet connected to the communications array. Part of her thought she should let it go – Jak had been stressed, and he had just saved her life and defended the entire Pyc Village. Another part of Myra knew it was a festering wound in their relationship that needed to be addressed or it would just get work. I’ll talk to him later, she promised herself.

Myra watched as Jak picked up the Sylph helmet, pushing the thick cable connecting it to the relay pulled out of the Sylph’s cockpit, and slid it on his head.

“Ready,” Jak said.

“Here goes nothing,” Oguz said with a grumble. “Access communications like you would in the Sylph. The sub-space communications array should show up. The Wodniki Village comms array address is already uploaded. All you should have to do is call.”

Though Myra couldn’t see what Jak was doing, having been a Sylph pilot herself she had a good idea. The helmet would track Jak’s eyes for commands. As Jak looked and single- and double-blinked at specific commands the helmet would respond within a nanosecond. Sure enough, a moment later Myra heard the uplink tone. She waited, along with Oguz, Durko and the two boys as Jak stood silent.

Suddenly, Jak stiffened and Myra heard a muffled, “Hello? This is Wodniki Village.”

“This is Jak Wodniki of Pyc Village,” Jak replied, his voice filled with relief. “I need to speak with my father, Jan, immediately.”

There was silence for a moment, then the man on the other side of the communication asked, “Everything alright?”

“No,” Jak replied. “It’s urgent. I need to speak with my father immediately.”

More silence. Myra was on pins and needles as she waited to hear from Wodniki Village’s Patriarch.

“Jak?” came Jan’s voice.

Jak’s body visibly relaxed when he heard his father’s voice. “It’s good hear from you.” Myra heard the stress bleed from Jak’s voice as he spoke.

“I was told it’s urgent,” Jan said. “What’s wrong?”

“Pyc Village was attacked,” Jak said. “Forty-three people are dead and we’re down a Sylph. A large portion of Pyc Village is damaged or destroyed. We really need help, Father.”

“Of course, we’ll put together a team of Sylphs and a shuttle.” The sound of commotion filled the comm channel. Myra assumed this was due to Wodniki traffic controllers suddenly rushing to notify Wodniki Village and relay Jan’s orders. “Are you and Myra alright?”

“We’re fine. Mytla’s dead. . .” Jak’s voice trailed off.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Jan replied, his voice solemn. “Why did they attack Jak? Do you know?”

Jak hesitated for a moment before replying. “Mytla tried to talk to them about the Lost Factory. They attacked to get the Lost Factory’s location.”

Silence filled the air.

“Mytla said she told you and Mom about it.”

“Yes,” Jan said. “Though we don’t know any more than the Kotik did.”

“What did Mytla tell you, Father?” Jak asked. “Where is the Lost Factory?”

Myra leaned in to listen, anticipation filling her.

“In deep darkness, between god and mortal, find new life, a heavenly portal.”