"Now what do I do?"
Onestar looked out the portal of his quarters off into the void. He was supposed to be resting, preparing for their arrival at Omni tomorrow. Instead he stood, trying to decided what must come next.
Up until now, the samurai thought, I have had the luxury of time. I decide to just rush into here, risking my ship and my crew, leading them into gods-know-what. What has gotten into me? Now that I know I'm not going to die...for awhile anyway, have I gotten reckless?
Onestar's thoughts were interrupted by two arms wrapping around his midsection. Crystal rested her cheek against Onestar's massive back, feeling the warmth of the samurai's body. She snuggled against him closely.
"Come back to bed, love," she said quietly. Onestar closed his eyes and smiled slightly at the thought of it, but then his expression grew somber again.
"Go ahead and get some rest, Crystal," Onestar replied quietly. "I'll be along shortly."
"What's wrong?" Crystal asked, still holding on.
"Just a few things I've got to sort through, that's all."
"Anything you want to talk about?"
Onestar turned around, took Crystal in his arms and kissed her. Long, passionate moments passed before he let her go. "It's nothing. I'm just wondering what I'm doing here. I'm just trying to decide if this isn't a huge mistake coming here."
"You can't let Colicor succeed in destroying the sphere," Crystal replied. "You've got to try and stop him."
"Monitor says it's ordained that Omnispace must fall. We've already lost two good members of the crew on this mission already. What happens if we lose any more?"
"Onestar," Crystal purred, snuggling against his chest, "don't blame yourself for Li and Eloiela. Do you really want me to give you the usual speech about 'the dangers of wildspace' and 'they knew the risks'?"
Onestar laughed slightly. "No."
"Then quit blaming yourself. We are all here because we need to see justice done. We all want to see Omnispace freed and Colicor taken out of power. We are here because we believe in you. I love you, you know that, and so does the rest of the crew. Although," Crystal ran one finger up the samurai's chest, "I do get the best part of you."
"There are other things," Onestar said, "that worry me though. I am afraid that I might get too...reckless. I might take one chance too many. I'm not immortal, you know. I want to spend as much time as I can with you as possible."
Crystal sighed. "I know. It's the only problem with a human. You and your short lifespans. (Onestar smiled.) So, we have to make the best of it we can. And that means..." She guided Onestar back over to the bed.
Elsewhere, Armas Beloque silently entered the tiny room on the Eternal Wanderer that served as a shrine. In it was a basic, stone alter that could be used by a variety of religions. In one corner was a shrine of Celestian, while on the floor beside it was a chest containing various religious and spiritual relics and icons used by the various religions represented on the Eternal Wanderer.
One of them, a six inch platinum spear, a holy symbol of Odin, was currently on the altar. Ville Lavonius was sitting the floor looking at it, his skin bone white. Physically, he hadn't changed much since Colicor placed the curse on him. The changes seemed only cosmetic, but they were most akin to scars on his soul.
His hair was now longer, below his neck, and black as night. His eyes and lips were as red as rubies. His fingers longer, more like an Arcane's, and his nails extended to points two inches out. The most notable difference, however, was an oval-shaped crystal embedded in his forehead. Although clear, shades of red, blue and black flashed throughout its interior.
In his hand was a sword. The warrior never heard the priest enter the room. Ville withdrew a small scroll from his pocket and placed it beside the platinum spear. He then began to utter a prayer to Odin, as he prepared to drive the sword into his heart.
"Are you sure that will solve anything?" the priest asked quietly.
Ville dropped the sword and looked at Armas for a moment. The cleric's face was tired, still drained from the gas, probably due to his girth, but he was now prepared to practice a different kind of healing. The priest laboriously sat down on one side of the alter and looked a Ville. The other man sat quietly for several minutes before he finally spoke.
"Look at what I've done...at what I've become." Ville whispered. "Two members of the crew are dead. We might *all* be dead now because of them."
"But we're not," Armas said quietly. "You weren't in control of your actions, Colicor was. He caused us all this grief. He would have found a way to manipulate us no matter what."
"That's not the point," Ville said. He was on the verge of crying. "I was the one who betrayed the captain. It was my mistrust of everyone different from me that Colicor preyed upon... and look at what that mistrust has turned me into."
"Who are you feeling the most grief for, Ville?" the priest asked quietly. "The crew, or yourself?"
"Does it matter?"
"Yes. I know your kind, Ville."
"My kind?"
"You hail from the Tiengoth Peninsula of Eastern Orik on Oerth, correct?"
"The kingdom of Schnai, yes."
"People from your world tend to have a very unpleasant trait: they think they are the most advanced people in the universe."
"We are special people..."
"Yes! You are very special people! In all my travels I can honestly say that the people of Eastern Orik are perhaps the most industrious and definitely the most clever. They can adapt to changes. They can take advantage of difficult situations."
"What's wrong with that?"
"In itself, nothing. But this ability to overcome any obstacle has made your people... inward. They are reluctant to embrace ways different from their own. On your world, Illithids, Beholders, and Lizardkin are to be hated and feared. Elves, Dwarves, Gnomes, even Half-Elves, are viewed with suspicion. That isn't the way things are out here."
Ville took a very deep breath.
"Before I came into space," he said, "I was one of the greatest warriors on the Tiengoth, and my people were known throughout Oerth for being the greatest warriors. One day, some slavers rip me from my homeworld and suddenly I'm just one of a thousand nameless faces in a multi-colored sea. I became... nothing." Ville was beginning to tremble.
"So instead of adapting," Armas commented, "a trait your people are known for, you resisted, and held on to what you were. Instead of striving to be something more, you were content to stay within your past. Now, the actions of another has changed you again. You've got to look upon this change and make it work for you, son."
"You've got to change the way you look at space and at all things. You've looked at space as an abyss, a place where you would become forever lost. Look at it, instead, as an opportunity. The rules are different out here, and so are the rewards. The choice is still yours."
Ville paused again, then kicked the sword to the other side of the tiny room. He then put his face in the priest's lap and started to cry.
