From this vantage point, in the dim light of Xronis Trey's long afternoon, the isolated planet's sun Pepsicus appeared as a sad-eyed red ball sinking slowly into the south. It barely generated enough heat to keep itself going, never mind the three rocks that orbited it. One of those planets, Zinc & Tin, could also be seen from here. It hung about fifty degrees above the horizon, just to the left of the dying red star. It was a heavily cratered ball of dirty orange and musty green, the color of rust from a half million miles away.
One of the UPF space shuttles now sat atop the mesa. Erx and Berx were behind its controls: Zarex and Pater Tomm were out of the shuttle and standing close to the edge of the butte. Hunter was with them, looking out over the precipice as well. He was still in his flight suit, an oxygen supply tank on his back. He was not hooked up to his bubble-top space helmet, though. At the moment, he was breathing just fine, if a little anxiously.
In his hand he held the one last surviving mind ring, the one they found on Captain Kyx. It was marked simply: "Last Time Here." They had no idea what the title meant or what the ring contained or even if it contained anything at all. Mind rings could be strange things. They weren't always uniform and sometimes presented characteristics that could only be described as moody. The technology emerged around the year 3000 a.d., creators unknown, and had managed hang on through many galactic upheavals and at least three Dark Ages. While closer in toward the Ball, mind rings were considered ancient by now — thought drops had replaced them centuries before — billions of trillions of them were still floating around the fringes of the Milky Way.
This one was a solo ring, the kind created by individuals of their own accord, to keep personal recollections or to pass them on to others as a way of correspondence. That's really the only thing they knew about it.
"One last time, brother," Zarex asked Hunter now, surveying the rather bleak surroundings. "Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, one ring out of hundreds of thousands? There is no telling what it might hold."
"It must contain something unusual," Hunter replied. "There has to be a reason why Kyx held it so close to him. We have to take the chance that it might hold some information valuable to us. Even if it is just one clue — something that would make all our efforts just a little worthwhile at least."
"But are you sure this is where you want to be?" Zarex pressed him. "I've always thought mind ring manipulation should be done in a controlled environment."
Hunter just shook his head.
"Brother, for me this is a controlled environment," he said. "Empty. Lifeless. Not much to interfere with my other senses. My gut tells me I'll get a better reading if I do it this way. Out here and alone for a while."
Zarex just shrugged, and so did Tomm. That Hunter possessed a highly advanced form of extrasensory perception was a given to them now. They knew whenever their friend got a feeling in his gut — or in his head — it was best that they all just go along for the ride. His instincts were never wrong. Or at least not so far.
"There is a beauty to this place, I suppose," Tomm said with a sigh. "Being a long way from nowhere sometimes has its advantages."
"I guess we'll soon find out." Hunter said.
Tomm and Zarex shook his hand and then climbed back aboard the bulked-up shuttle.
"We will return for you in exactly one hour's time, my brother," Berx yelled from behind the controls. "Not a second more."
"But should you need us before that, just whistle," Erx added. "And we'll be here immediately."
Hunter saluted them and stood back as the shuttle's engines kicked in. The vehicle went straight up, very quickly, leaving a small storm of dust and pebbles behind. It turned 180 degrees about 500 feet up, then was gone in a flash.
Hunter looked around. The dull red sun, the dirty orange and green planet, a few stars, and the empty desert were all that was before him. He really was alone now.
He sat down on a flattened rock about ten feet from the edge and took out his quadtrol. "At least I think this is how it should be done," he mumbled to himself.
He took off his helmet and placed the ring on top of his head. It fell briefly to his nose before adapting to its most efficient size, about an inch above his ears. Hunter took a gulp of the thin air and then tapped the ring twice. This was the universal activation signal for mind rings.
He sat back against the rock and concentrated on the red ball of Pepsicus, hanging just above the far horizon. When he'd worn the mind ring inside the vault on Moon 39, the "trip" had begun right away. But more than a minute later, Hunter was still staring at the dying red star and feeling no effects at all.
What was wrong? Maybe the ring wasn't as good in quality as the one he'd used on Moon 39. Or maybe it, too, had lost its ion charge. Or its magic.
Or maybe it was just a little slow….
Hunter felt his eyes begin to water as he became mesmerized by the curious red sun. Did it seem a bit brighter all of a sudden? And maybe a little bigger? Was that a bit of warmth he was feeling on his face, carried there by a sudden breeze?
He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again.
Flash!
What was once a stark desert before him had suddenly turned into a lush river valley, with miles of emerald grass flowing like waves on an ocean. The sky above him was now cobalt blue. The ragged planet of Zinc & Tin, still visible, now shimmered like a rose-colored gemstone. The whole landscape of Xronis Trey had changed. Life seemed to be everywhere, basking in light from the rejuvenated sun.
Hunter breathed in. The air was thick and sweet.
Wow…
The mind ring had kicked in.
He studied his immediate surroundings. He was in the same place, sitting atop the same butte, leaning against the same rock. He was dressed differently, though. He'd embarked on the mind ring trip wearing his flight suit; now he was dressed in a bright orange tunic, wide green pants, high white boots, and a helmet with a little circular antenna sticking out of it. It was a military uniform of some sort, but not one designed for combat. Though he was carrying a puny ray gun in a side holster, Hunter guessed he was supposed to be a worker, a drone. He quickly inspected every part of his new outfit but could find no badges, emblems, or insignias that might tell him exactly what army he was in. No matter, it was an outfit that would have looked ridiculous in any time or dimension.
He activated his quadtrol, the handheld device that just about everyone in the Galaxy carried. It could analyze anything, anytime, anywhere. He asked it what year he was in. The answer came back: approximately 3237 a.d.
Hunter just stared at the readout screen. He couldn't believe it. This was the same year the deportation of Earth had taken place. It was exactly where he wanted to be.
He checked with the quadtrol again, even though the devices were never wrong. What year was he in? The answer bounced back the same: 3237 a.d.
He almost didn't want to believe it, almost didn't want to be this lucky, because he knew astonishing luck could run in both directions. Maybe this meant something. Maybe the cosmos was doing him a huge favor here. Or maybe it was making him the butt of some huge cosmic joke. The question was, how soon would it be before he could tell?
A sudden deep roar filled his ears, breaking through his thoughts. He looked up to see an enormous spaceship passing overhead. It was moving very slowly and was so big, it blotted out all light from the crimson sun.
This vessel was more than a mile long, with a blunt snout, a bulbous midsection, and a slightly tapered tail holding four ridiculously small fins. The ship was painted bright green. It looked old and new at the same time.