The Acolytes of Crane (Theodore Crane, #1)(70)

The sharp pressure was painful and rattled the center of my stomach where my solar plexus lay, leaving me gasping for air. I was flying so fast that the blood in my body pooled in my outer regions, causing me serious circulatory discomfort.

The Cliff of Divinity, astounding in its majestic beauty, loomed straight ahead. A deadly black hole pulsated strongly at the edge of the cliff. My ship was still on auto pilot, and it was hurtling straight toward this black hole.

Little did I know that the very center of the black hole was like the eye of a hurricane. It was the only calm oasis in that monstrosity. Any wrong move into the swirling, pulverizing eddies around that black hole—any ship would be smashed into a billion pieces.

I screamed as my ship got sucked in, and my life flashed before my eyes. A reverberating, grinding, rumbling noise shook my ship to its core, and I prayed.


The fearsome ride on The Death Shredder roller coaster at Minneapolis’ most enormous amusement park was nothing compared to that drop I had just experienced. As soon as my ship hit the edge of the cliff, I felt like I left my stomach behind. We went down, and into the hole. There was nothing like it.

The star and debris trail slowed, and I dropped onto the grated floor, exhausted. Blinking, I realized the truth: I was still alive! I rose from my knees to my feet quick, and strapped myself into the leather-like captain’s chair. There were panels flickering the words “Damage Report,” and an audio warning repeating itself. Among the madness, I heard a voice that I knew I would always recognize.

‘Destroy Theodore now!’

It was Zane. I looked back, still in view of the black hole that had sucked me in. Five of Zane’s destroyers were making a move to the Cliff of Divinity, as if barricading a gateway. No one could go after me without passing through this gateway first. Zane gave the order to these Urilian destroyers to enter the black hole, which I thought was most foolish.

As I watched in horror, one after the other, four Urilian destroyers skirted the vortex, whining mightily against the black hole, but to no effect. Immediately, there was a series of four explosions in space, against the dark chilling backdrop of the all-powerful black hole. Each destroyer was utterly and totally obliterated.

I then remembered Zane’s apparent about-face, and cheered the wanton destruction of my newfound enemy.

But it was a little too soon to celebrate. The fifth, and lone remaining Urilian destroyer steered perfectly into the center of the black hole, well positioned to chase after my vessel.

Just as the Urilian destroyer was about to crest the Divine Cliff, a Dacturon destroyer aimed its deadly fire upon it from behind. Apparently the two enemies were not going to cooperate.

The portside bow of the doomed remaining Urilian destroyer exploded outward into the black hole from which I had escaped. Shrapnel from the explosion, as well as micrometeorite particles struck my ship, and continued to shift my trajectory. As the enemy ship continued to break up, I saw on the starboard side a vessel escaping the explosion. It was a small ship, similar in size to mine. It must have been a type of escape pod too.

It was time for me to go—to escape as far as possible, away from the Urilians and the Dacturons, as they could still attempt to track me. When I pressed the propulsion controls, the ship remained limp and unmoving. Gnashing my teeth, I started to cry and to panic. My ship floated helplessly, rather than fly as it should. I was officially stuck. I glanced around the cockpit to figure out the ship. I sat upon my chair and began to erratically press every button in sight.

From the chair, I saw through the observation shield nearly a hundred scattered meteoroids lurking around. Three hit my vessel, but none of them had the size to do damage. My knuckles grew white as I realize I might not survive my newest predicament.

There were meteoroids ranging in size from a basketball to a tour bus. I was in a maze of floating space rocks, and as my eyes scanned my surroundings, I perceived two clear paths leading out the minefield—a fork in the road. I had no clue which way to go.

I kept struggling to figure out the unfamiliar equipment. Exasperated, I settled on a purple lever. Grabbing it, I pulled it all the way. A door in the wall behind me miraculously opened, revealing a cubby space about two feet tall and about one foot wide.

A warm orange light emitted from the dark grey innards of the cabinet behind of me. I heard gears clicking. Something was about to come out. Unnerved, I unstrapped myself from the chair and tumbled to the floor, trying to evade whatever was moving from the opening. I peeked from the captain’s chair saw a mid-size robot.

‘What the heck? Don’t come any closer!’ I hissed, grabbing the handle of my gun-blade Wrath and flexing its blade straight at the alien creature. I said, ‘Don’t come near me, or you’ll turn into a pile of scrap metal!’

The figure walked closer, as I was about to unload Wrath onto the tin-man, he said, ‘Hello, I hear you speak English, a language that is common on one of the heritage planets, Earth.’

‘You are a robot? You can understand me?’ I asked, still not certain if Zane was now giving it instructions to terminate me.

‘I am a robot. I am named Ed. I am knowledgeable as to the operation of this ship. I was placed here in the event my passenger ever needed assistance. You seem like you definitely need my help. You are so . . . emotional,’ he said. If a robot could peer like a human, he was definitely doing so.

‘Okay, okay. Ed, I need you to take this ship on a course toward one of these—exits. Do you know where they lead to?’