“We’re taking him to the Whenvern.”
“Sure. Lead the way.”
Arksi was about to argue, before realising that Veekay wasn’t going to argue back.
“No, we’re takin- wait… You’re agreeing with me?”
“Yeah.”
“… Why?”
The four Time Drake siblings were all really confused, none of them understanding why their Stasisborn brother was agreeing with them. Their fatherless sibling Elkay didn’t understand either, but he didn’t understand anything lately.
“I suppose because Stasis is a dick?” Thitaksi suggested. “We all know how much of a dick he can be…”
“Exactly!” Veekay grinned. “Stasis is a dick. I hate him and I hate the fact I’m related to him. Plus his plan was to basically either disintegrate Arkay or throw him out of some sort of ‘universal airlock’ and essentially kick him out of the universe. Which doesn’t help anyone!”
“Well… it might help Arkay…” Psiksi muttered.
Everyone turned and stared at Psiksi.
“I mean, from what he was saying yesterday, it sounded like he wanted to die… He hates what he’s become. Maybe handing him over to Stasis so he can be killed would be better?”
Arksi tutted. “I can’t believe you just said that. He’s going to the Whenvern and that’s it. No backsies. No returns. No excuses.”
“Plus,” Veekay added, “Stasis is way more likely to try and use the Thantophor to aid his own plans, rather than actually, you know, saving the universe and stuff. We take him to the Whenvern, we all formulate a plan together and then we stop all this death and destruction. As a team.”
“But first can we get something to eat? I am fucking starving…” Elkay butted in. “We are at a space station, after all. Must be something edible around here somewhere.”
Arksi tutted, then disappeared off into a back room, only to reappear with what looked like meat wrapped in bread, wrapped in foil. He shoved the bundle into Elkay’s hands and headed to the pilot’s seat.
“Sit down. We’re taking off in a second… Thitaksi, help me go through launch procedures.”
The other siblings all did as they were told, sitting down and strapping themselves in. Veekay had considered following them in his personal ship, but he couldn’t be bothered. Since it was a Deitic ship, it would just go home on its own. Really though, he wanted to keep an eye on things. He may have had more faith in the Whenvern and his Time Drakes than he had in Stasis, but that didn’t mean he trusted them.
With everything sorted, Arksi and Thitaksi sat down, putting on their seat belts. Arksi pressed the big, red ON button and…
“I thought the engine was supposed to turn on?” Elkay asked.
Arksi growled, then turned to Psiksi. “Go to the storage bay. See if our brother is trying to escape or something.”
Psiksi nodded, then silently undid his seat belt and walked off.
The back of the ship was dark and quiet. Mainly because they didn’t need lights. But also because the lights were automatic and turned on whenever someone approached.
In the middle of the storage bay, among the various weapons and equipment the four Time Drakes has brought, was a black box, chained up in a hundred different ways to secure it in place. A quiet, sooth sound echoed around the room. Inside the Void Cage, the Thantophor was humming away to himself, keeping himself occupied.
“Arkay?”
The humming immediately stopped.
“You haven’t taken off yet.”
“Yeah…” Psiksi shuddered. “Are you… interfering with things?”
“No.”
“You sure?”
“I can’t do anything in here. Kinisis though…” The Thantophor sighed, his voice almost whistling with exhaustion and strain. “You should have listened to me, Psiksi. She won’t have me any more, but who needs a washed up former mortal when she has the likes of you?”
Psiksi blinked. Did everything shine purple for a moment? He swore he also heard one of his brothers shout.
“Should have left me alone.”
Again, everything went purple. Psiksi closed his eyes, not sure what to do. He could definitely hear shouting now. But there was some other, underlying sound. A chant. Something saying… that he should just relax?
“Don’t listen to her.”
The chanting was getting louder.
Psiksi finally opened his eyes. The Void Cage was gone. In fact, the whole ship was gone. He was standing in some sort of pink field, next to a lilac river. Behind him, his siblings were just as dazed as he was. But before he could work out what was going on, something hit him on the back of the head, knocking him out.
Back on the ship, the Thantophor simply sighed, unable to do anything, still trapped within the Void Cage.
“You should have listened. Now you’ve doomed us all…”