Chapter 36: Painful Stars

RING! RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING! RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!!

The unfortunate young man, probably more dead than he was alive, tumbled in his shredded bed as the annoying sound of an alarm clock buzzed in his sleepy ears. With crusty, bloodshot eyes, he examined the clock, yawned once, and feebly reached under his pillow for a gun. In the darkness of the morning, his numb fingers found the weapon, and lazily pulled it out to attack the offending alarm clock. With a nerve-shattering explosion, the bullet smashed the alarm clock into smithereens, and the ringing abruptly died.

“ ... I really, really, really hate that thing,” moaned poor Gregory as he gazed at the spot his clock formerly occupied. Now, of course, there was nothing left except for useless debris, smoke, and a tiny black spot that had been charred on his reading desk. He moaned in a weak victory, then slumped down on his pillow again to try and recover his sleepy mood.

Suddenly, the door to Gregory’s room opened, and a tall and slender woman slipped inside. She had been wise enough to leave the hall light off; otherwise, the gun beneath his pillow would have been used again--and again. This woman, dressed only in a silky negligee, slinked inside the room and gazed down at the half-awake young man.

“Morning, honey,” she whispered huskily. “Did you enjoy last night? I know I did...” Gregory moaned, and rubbed his weary eyes as he adjusted to the morning.

“ ... Do I know you from somewhere?” he asked. The woman scoffed and clicked her tongue in irritation. The way she stood and crossed her arms indicated irritation from her part.

“Ugh, morning yourself,” she muttered. Gregory’s face grew bright, reasonably enough (considering the hour was so early that not even the morning paper had arrived), and he smiled as he recognized the voice.

“Oh, Dana, it’s just you,” he sighed, slumping back to his pillow. “I thought I was being attacked by a succubus again.”

“Hmph,” she snorted, “you would have been better off if you did. Admit it, Shifty, you’re glad to see me.”

“As glad as a lobster is when he sees melted butter,” mumbled the tired young man. Dana let out a halfway-bitter chuckle, and bent down to shake her partner awake.

“C’mon, Shifty, you can’t stay in bed all day!”

“Why not?” he mumbled. Dana pouted and shook him harder.

“Because adventure’s calling, that’s why!”

“So let the answering machine get it,” he mumbled. The two of them paused, looked into each other’s eyes, and let out a hearty laughter. Greg groaned and did eventually get up out of bed, and gave Dana a smile as he stretched out.

“I thought I was feeling a bit of déjà vu, “ he grunted. Dana smiled, put her hand on her hip, and guided him out of his bedroom. They both traveled to the kitchen, where Cattia, Jerwon, and Tania were there waiting for breakfast to be served. Jerwon and Cattia exchanged knowing glances as they saw their friends emerge all scruffy-looking and weary.

“Uh-oh,” said the Leduadian, “looks like you two had a rough night. You weren’t doing anything peculiar, I assume?”

“Buzz off,” groaned Greg as he sat down and poured himself a bowl of cereal. “Jeez, you all are so annoying. I don’t even know why we let you stay here with us anymore. I mean, it’s not like any of you have contributed in the past few days.”

“I think the lack of sleep has finally gotten to your brain,” muttered Dana as she placed her hands on his shoulders and squeezed them. “It’s you who hasn’t given us anything. Cat’s been out there doing a lot of good stuff with me--I mean, I can vouch for her! And Tania’s great with repairs, and Jerwon...” Dana trailed off, and gave her slightly-older friend a questionable gaze. Jerwon, in the middle of slurping up cereal with a spoon, gave her a slightly cold stare.

“I’d rather you not finish that sentence, unless you can say something positive,” he grumbled. Dana shrugged and offered a lame smile.

“Then I guess I’ll just be quiet. Anybody got the paper?”

“Here it is,” offered Tania. Dana grabbed it, and with a sigh, she sat down at the table and joined her friends for yet another weary morning meal.

Two months had passed since the end of the Galactic Maximus Tournament of Champions.

It had been an ordinary period of time that passed. Life in general seemed to settle back down once the excitement of the tournament faded away. People went back to their old lives and their old adventures, parting ways with friends old and new. However, some people, like Melena, never ceased their pursuits even sixty days after the Tournament’s end. She was still chasing Atman, though not quite with the same amount of fervor as she did before. In the meantime, the pretty and sprightly woman kept in contact with her friends, mainly Jerwon (because she figured that he would know about Stone the best), but was not seen around much after that.

Everyone else slipped into mediocrity, and the only event that marked any sort of occasion was the return of Dana Withers. Her mother’s leg had fully healed during the days of the Tournament and the aftermath, and the White Doves came once again under the control of their beloved Marshal. Once Dana returned, she was greeted rather warmly, even by Gregory (who claimed that “I guess there might’ve been one or two of us who missed you”), and told them of her exploits in space.

Having a position of command in the fleet was nothing new to her--after all, she had the rank of Lieutenant, and had studied under her mother since young childhood. However, after showing remarkable leadership skills at the skirmish over her home planet, as well as skills she used while her mother was healing, she had been officially ranked as a Commander. Once her duties were done, she bade her adoptive home a reluctant farewell, especially her mother, but did eventually return to the second Space Station over Saturn to haunt the place again.

As for everyone else, they more or less settled down. Dustin and Woolyford headed to Earth after they parted peacefully with Minerva (the peace would not last), Seraph Stone refreshed his search for Seraph Jewel, Sahn traveled to Earth with Dustin, Ilyich Brokolov vanished without a trace, and Cattia, Greg, Jerwon, and Tania went back to their old home to live out their lives freely once again. It was a peaceful moment, but the moment would not last long...

“Found anything?” asked Greg, who was reading the comics. He didn’t find any of the strips very funny, except for one or two that had biting satirical wit. Dana replied with a negative.

“No, nothing. The bounty section is almost completely deserted. This star system has way too many bounty hunters in it, and most of them are humans.”

“Well, most of the galaxy’s human population can be traced back to here,” noted Greg. “And you know that humans, more than any other species, have a sense of adventure and challenge. No offense there, bud.” He poked Jerwon gently, who shrugged and slurped down more cereal. True to Diana’s word, Jerwon had gotten used to Greg calling him “kid” and “short stuff” and “buddy”, and no longer minded. The Leduadian had gotten drastically attached to his four friends, more so than usual at least, and could not remember a group of people he liked so much, except for maybe his circus or that group of pirates that had adopted him...

“Not all Leduadians are like me anyway,” he admitted. “I’m one of the less common ones that can’t stand to be cooped up in the same hovel. I guess I just wanna see the whole universe.”

“Good luck,” snorted Tania as she drank her usual morning black coffee. “If you keep hangin’ onto people like you always do, you’ll never get to see anything! That circus you were in might’ve been the best chance!!” Jerwom mutely clamped his mouth shut and grumbled, but remained silent as he ate his cereal. Cattia yawned, seemingly content to play with her food.

“I am so frickin’ bored that I’m gonna go outta my mind if something doesn’t happen!” she moaned. “Say, Shifty, you’ve lived on this Space Station longer than any of us. Isn’t there something that we could do so that we’re not stuck home all day?”

“Believe me, I’ve tried,” he shrugged. “When I’m bored, I usually just visit my mom. The lady never seems to have a dull day in her life. You can do that if you wanna; you know the way there, right?” Cattia nodded her head, but it didn’t seem as if she really wanted to go visit Joellen. Of course, everyone there knew that Cattia liked the older woman, as it was almost impossible not to, but she just wasn’t in the mood on that day.

“We need another adventure to go on,” she moped. “A Space Cat will grow fat and flabby if she stays home all day sleeping and eating. I’ve gotta have my life in danger every once in awhile or else I’ll go bonkers!!”

“I can attest to that,” piped Tania. “I’ve seen Cat when she’s had nothing to do for long periods of time. Believe me, it ain’t pretty!” She smiled weakly, but the activity around the breakfast table was almost nonexistent. Tania sighed, and asked to see the comics once Greg was done. In turn, he asked to see the classified ads once Dana was done.

Greg mulled over the ads with disinterest. None of them seemed to reach out to him, as usual, and the list of people with bounties on their heads was even shorter. Dana’s symbiotic snake Naja, a relic of her home world, could sense nothing in the atmosphere either, and not even the Space Cat, who had a knack for getting into (and out of) trouble, had anything to contribute.

But just as he was about to give up, a familiar name caught his eye. At first, Greg thought that it had been his imagination, and that it couldn’t possibly be who he thought it was. But Greg saw the name again, and literally froze in place as he read the clip. No denial in the world could dismiss its presence ... nor could it dismiss Greg’s terror.

“Wanted: Jacob Jonathan Ginotti, for the crime of theft, robbery, misuse of social security funds, fraud, and smuggling illegal products. Location: South American district, planet Earth. Considered dangerous, possibly armed. Bounty paid will be 56,000 Units if kept alive, nothing if dead.”

“It can’t be...” Greg barely whispered out a final denial, but as he read over the ad again and again, not even his denial could save him. It was that name, all right, the same name that...

“You find something?” asked Dana. Greg, however, did not hear her. Slowly, angrily, he crumpled the newspaper up into a ball, and numbly ripped it apart. He stood out of his chair, nearly knocking it to the floor, and with eyes full of dread and numb fire, he walked back up to his room. Everyone watched him leave with questionable faces, and wondered what the spectacle had been about. Dana decided to check the paper, or what had not been ripped apart, but couldn’t see any names that would make her partner act like that. She decided to find out, once and for all, and went up to his room.

Numbly, mechanically, Gregory threw several weapons into a backpack he had with him, including rifles, handguns, knuckles, knives, at least one explosive, and several strangulation tools. He bitterly tossed in a change of clothes, and paused just slightly as he caught sight of his father’s ring that had been put on his finger. He stared at it fondly but sadly, and stroked it like it had been an old family pet. With a sigh, he finally calmed down, and began to put things into his bag with more thought and rationale. Dana arrived in his room just as he was putting in a second shirt, and stood in the doorway watching him for a long time.

“So, what was that all about down there?” she asked, interrupting him. Greg stopped throwing stuff into his pack, sighed, and looked up at his partner and friend. There was no bitterness or annoyance in his eyes, just a helpless, pleading look that begged for her to listen, or to comfort him, or to at least understand.

“Dana...” His voice barely squeaked out. “I think it’s high time I finally told you about my past. There was ... a name in that paper that I recognized--you’d never be able to notice it cuz’ it doesn’t have anything to do with you. But ... I noticed it, and...” He never finished the sentence. Instead, he sighed and slumped down on his bed with more weariness than anyone could think possible. Dana did not always have a fondness for her partner, but her heart went out to him then and she sat down next to him.

“So what’s the problem?” she asked gently as she put her arm around his shoulder. He ran his hand through his brownish hair, sighed, and began his tale.

“I envy the way you grew up more than anything else. Your childhood was great and wonderful. You had two parents who obviously doted on you more than once, and you had more money than any machine could count. There was no want and need, and you were always on some kind of adventure.”

“That’s not entirely--”

“Please let me continue,” he sighed. She apologized. “Okay, so maybe my assumptions aren’t correct, but that’s what I gathered in a nutshell. Overall, you had a pretty good life. Well, mine was not so cool. For the first few years, me and my parents were living very happily on Earth, if you can believe anybody would be happy on that planet. We actually lived in the South American region, which was a pretty clean place compared to ... say, the North American or European regions. That’s where my family name comes from, or so I was told.

“As you know, my father Jerad was a demi-human, but he was the most amazing guy I’ve ever known. He was my role model, and I’ve idolized him since I was old enough to crawl. My mother loved him to death too, and although we weren’t rich by a long shot, we sure were happy. But later, there was this really big war in South America--I forget what it was about. My father was of able body, so he was enlisted. My mother usually took me into the factories where she would work to support the war effort, and to support the family with dad gone.

“Anyway, pop became kind of a hero, because he saved his battalion one day by flushing the enemy out of the area with a secret strike. But ... well, as with all mortals, pop passed on after he was killed about midway into the battle. Mom and I were just devastated, but at least he got a hero’s burial, and we were pretty well-compensated. But my mother lost her spirit that day, and only recently has she gotten it back, though I don’t think it’s ever going to be the same.

“Anyway, we tried to live on, but my mother looked worse and worse as the days went on. She stayed in the factory until the war ended, and I helped out whenever I could. Mom met another man while working there, and I guess they hit it off or something, cuz’ they got married about six or eight months later. But that was a big mistake. The guy turned out to be a total jerk--I mean, he was even worse than Ilyich! That guy was just a bully, but this guy--I will never call him my stepfather--he got drunk, and he started to fight, and he beat mom almost all the time, and he even beat me!

“Do you understand, Dana?! I was just a little kid back then, on a planet that wasn’t exactly the most law-abiding this side of the sun. Nobody cared if some slum drunk was abusing his wife and stepchild! Those were the most miserable years of my life! Every day was a nightmare for me, because I didn’t know if he’d hit mom or me or both! I tried to fight back several times, and I began to seriously study martial arts when I was ten so that I could fight back, but ... still...”

Greg paused for a moment, but didn’t allow Dana to absorb what he had said. Slowly, he removed his shirt, and turned around so that his partner could see his bare back. She hissed in pain as she saw a very long scar running down his backside, and dared to touch it gently with her fingers.

“That scar is about three years old,” said Greg. He put his shirt back on after a period, and resumed his tale. “When I was fifteen, the guy came home from doing whatever he did during the day ... I’m sure it wasn’t work ... he came home more hammered than a nail, and just ... went... berserk on us. My mother screamed louder that day than any other day, and I tried to defend her and all, but I got that scar for my efforts. It was then that I knew I would have to leave the Earth with my mother, and so I began to collect all the money I had saved over the years, most of which had come from the factory.

“Mom and I usually spent our days with Sayrah or Fatsy if we felt that that man would come home angry, which was pretty much every other day. Fatsy was a gentle and loveable old man who pretty much raised me in his casino, and Sayrah ... well ... you know about her. I think that my mother would have lost her sanity before she lost her life, if Sayrah wasn’t so kind and loving to her and me. We were very safe there in that forest, but we couldn’t live there forever, unfortunately...

“Anyway, around the time that I was sixteen, I had saved enough money to rent a ship, and mom and I flew as far away as we could afford. We ended up here, on the second space station around Saturn, which was heavenly compared to where we had been last. About two years have passed since, and my mother’s got her spirit back and I’ve begun to forget about my life on Earth. But ... it’s cruel how sometimes the past can come back to haunt you.”

For a long while, Dana Withers could say nothing. She had formed several theories over the months about her partner’s secretive past, but none of them were quite as terrible as the one he told. Dana had experienced sadness and grief in her life, but never in the large amounts that her partner did. She had never expected him to have such a past, and now that she knew, she understood why he had kept it under wraps until that point. She looked into his eyes sadly and gently, and rubbed his shoulders with her free hand.

“Shift ... I ... I don’t know ... what to say...”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to say anything,” he murmured. “I guess all I needed was somebody that would really listen to me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier ... I guess I was just trying to forget about it myself.”

“No, I understand,” she replied softly. “But Shift ... Gregory ... why are you telling me this now?” Greg glanced over at the shredded paper that Dana was still holding, and clasped onto a few pieces. He found the name that had caused all this, and pointed it out to her.

“That man’s name is Jacob J. Ginotti, and he has a bounty on his head. Do you know what this means, Dana? Do you??” She slowly turned her head, and looked deep into his brown eyes with her stormy ones. Dana could be very gentle and compassionate, if she really tried, but this time it came easy.

“You’re going to go after him ... and pay him back for what he did to you.” Greg nodded his head. “Right ... I understand. Shift ... I know it’s no consolation, but I want to say that I’m stricken by what you told me. I feel really bad for you, and if there’s anything I can do for you...”

“No, I don’t think so,” he sighed. “Thanks, but I’ve gotta do this on my own. If anybody else asks, just tell them that I found a job and I wanna do it by myself--and hope that they understand.”

“But Shift... !” Gregory had already begun to leave, and carried his backpack down to the main floor and out the door. Jerwon and the Prepells sisters watched him leave in confusion, and were about to call out for him when Dana ran past them. She quickly poked her head back into the room after leaving, and hastily told them what was going on.

“He’s found a job and he’s going out on it alone.”

“But--”

“She’s long gone!” stated Tania once Dana vanished again. The youngest among them shrugged, and finished her breakfast. “Oh well. Let them do whatever they want. Those two have always been a little too chummy with each other to constitute as being merely friends, if you ask me.”

“I didn’t,” muttered Cattia calmly. Tania frowned and gave her sister a gentle push.

“I know you’re jealous, sis, but I’m not quite sure who you’re jealous over. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that you--”

“Why don’t you teach me how to fix the ship, Tania?!” blurted Jerwon suddenly. The young android looked at him in confusion, and he gave her a fake grin in hopes of luring her away. She shrugged and accepted his request, and left the room to find the garage. Cattia gave Jerwon a thankful smile, and whispered to him that she owed him one for distracting her sister.

“She’s annoying, but other than my father, she’s the only family I’ve got. Huh ... ironic, though, since she isn’t even my real sister...”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Nothing,” murmured Cattia quietly as she drank her coffee. “Go on. I’ll just watch TV until things start looking interesting.” Jerwon stayed behind for a little while, shrugged, and went off to find his young friend.

“Shift! Shift!” Dana Withers pursued Gregory as he made his way to the hangar where the ships were, and called out to him several times. She marched after him, but he was adamant. He continued walking onwards, even as she barked out to him.

“Shift, where the devil do you think you’re going? You think you can really do this by yourself? Huh? Don’t you think that you should ask us for help! Shift, listen to me when I’m talking to you!”

“Shut up, Dana!” he called out as he marched ahead of her. “You won’t understand! I have to do this by myself! Why don’t you take on some other job with Cattia while I’m gone? Just leave me alone!”

“Stop!!” she snapped, grapping hold of his shoulders suddenly and turning him around. Dana’s stormy eyes were partially filled with anger, but they were more filled with concern. “Listen, Shift! I thought partners stuck together through the best and worst times! I thought that we were gonna watch each others’ backs from things like this! I thought you and I both had the same ideals when it came to doing the right thing. That’s why I hang around you so much, Shift--because we can easily see eye to eye! I know we’re not always getting along, but...”

“Look, just let me do this by myself,” he insisted firmly. “This is my matter now. It doesn’t concern you. I’ve already told you what you wanted to know; now just ... go away and let me do this.”

“You stubborn, stupid fool!” she snapped. “Doesn’t our relationship mean anything anymore? Don’t we help each other out? Didn’t we agree that we would be there for each other when times got bad? Or was all that just some lame excuse to get at some other goal?”

“ ... Dana...”

“You helped me that night on board the Merkava!” she stated, never giving him the chance to speak. “I know that you think it was nothing, and that it might not have meant a lot to you, but it did mean a lot to me. I was a confused wreck there, Shift, and you were kind enough to keep me company and straighten all that out. Shift... Gregory ... you really made me feel a lot better back then. That meant a lot to me, Shift, whether you know it or not, and I will always be grateful for that moment.

“But now I want to return the favor. Shift ... Gregory ... I know we don’t always get along, but I’d like to think of us as more than just partners. You’re my friend, Gregory, and although I don’t always act like it, I really enjoy your company. I’m not a snotty rich person’s kid; I’m a real person like anyone else. I really like you, and I don’t think I’d be able to get along without good people like you or Cat or Jerwon in my life. I know I’m babbling, and I know that all of this sounds weird, especially coming from me, but ... I just ... want to do something for you, to repay you for all those times you supported me. It’s my turn now, so please don’t deny me this.”

It was now Greg’s turn to say nothing. He took in a deep breath, and looked the slightly-older woman directly into her bluish-gray eyes. His heart genuinely melted after hearing her passionate words, and deep down inside, he desperately wanted to grant her request. Dana really was a good friend of his, and a good means of support when all other people seemed distant. He could always go to her--maybe as a last resort sometimes, but she was still reliable. Her intentions were pure and her motives were just, but there was still a bit of resistance on his part.

“Dana, you’ve always been good and true to me,” he said at last. “When I first met you, I never thought that we would end up being so reliable to each other. In a way, we’re each other’s opposites, and in a way, we’re very much alike. I really appreciate what you’ve done for me, and I don’t think I could be as well off without you. Yeah, I may get annoyed with you, but ... deep down inside, you’re a really great person. You could show a dog some lessons in reliability.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” she muttered wryly. He ignored it and continued.

“But I really want to do this job myself. This is the man that ruined my late childhood and destroyed my mother’s beautiful wild spirit. He made my life a literal Hell, and he hurt us in more ways than just physical. I’m the type of person that doesn’t believe in hating other people, but I think even I could make some exceptions. That man, Jacob J. Ginotti, has been the only other person I’ve really hated ... and that’s saying a lot from me.

“I know how much you’re concerned, and if this were any other mission, then I’d let you and the others tag along no problem. But ... this is my concern now; it’s my business now. Just like you had to go through your own trial back there in that terrorist situation, now I have to face my own tribulation. Dana ... I have to do this on my own. You have to let me do this on my own. Please ... for me...”

She sighed, and sadly looked into his eyes. To be truthful, Dana really did want to help, and would have trekked through Hell to repay her partner. But she also could see his point of view, and could respect his wishes. She didn’t want to let him go out on his own, but a part of her soul had honor in it, and it was this honor that let him go and do as he wished.

“All right,” she croaked weakly. She cleared her throat, and nodded her head. “All right. I’ll let you do this on your own. I trust you enough, Greg. Just please, please ... Please do me a favor.”

“What?” Her sadness turned into a smile, albeit a very forced one.

“Be careful, okay?” He smiled, winked, and turned away to face his dark past.

“That man hurt me before ... but I swear that I will not let it happen again.”

And with that, he flew away towards the Earth. Dana sighed, and wished her friend good luck.