Starfang: Will of the Clan

By Joyce Chng

The sudden appearance of the enigmatic jukka adds another layer of intrigue and peril to Captain Francesca Ming Yue's already shaky game with the shishini. The threat of galactic war with a mysterious force looms. Will the clans gather? Francesca have to keep her wits about her, unite all the clans and fight. In this stunning conclusion of the trilogy, the fate of the wolf clans, shishini and jukkda will be decided in a final battle. Will the will of the clans prevail?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bryant Street Publishing
• Release date: Oct 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781094420813

Joyce Chng

Joyce Chng is a Chinese-Singaporean children's book author. Her work is regularly anthologized and she has a passion for steampunk, science fiction, and tales of transfiguration.

Book preview

Chapter One

I froze. A jukka ship?

The vessel appeared on the view-screen, displaying the saucer-shape associated with these enigmatic aliens. The ship was huge, dwarfing even Starfang which was by no means small. The size of it intimidated, as the jukka had for generations and generations of humanity. I stood taller, refusing to bow down to such demonstrations of might.

But why a jukka ship? Why now?

April had joined me on the bridge, her odour reminding me of what we had done. I was sure that the rest had noticed. We had broken Pack law. I glanced around the silent bridge, at faces illuminated by their console panels, faces that were now turned to the ship appearing inexorably on the view-screen. Faces showing consternation, fear and shock - and these emotions laced the air in a pungent cross-fire of vivid reds and oranges. Our misdeed paled in comparison. Secretly, selfishly, I was glad.

Ju Fan turned to look at me, her face calm. ‘The jukka ship is scanning us.’ There was a flash of light, the jukka ship had locked onto us with a beam of yellow energy. I felt the beam pass through Starfang slowly. My stomach clenched and my eyes throbbed. Next to me, April looked ill. It was not only some sort of energy, but a vibration too. It moved through the consoles, the deck officers and even the air. We all felt its path. One of the officers vomited. Then the light-energy-vibration abruptly stopped. I could breathe again.

‘Stay calm,’ I said, gritting my teeth. I ignored the sour-rank smell of regurgitated food.

‘Now it is hailing us, captain,’ Ju Fan’s voice was still calm, still unruffled. ‘On screen?’

I nodded, stifling the fatigue that seemed to seep through my bones.

For eons, we had speculated about the appearance of the jukka. Stories, biographies, tell-alls and many other accounts had all spoken about their large eyes, grey skin and slender limbs. They were the ‘Greys’ who had monitored old Earth, sometimes interfering in events, sometimes serving as benevolent bystanders. At a certain point in Earth’s history, the jukka simply left, departing to a place nobody knew. They had often adopted an air of mystery. No government seemed to have gotten through to them.

Now seeing one enlarged on the view-screen of my ship was at once startling and unnerving. It had the large white-less black eyes and bulbous head we all associated jukka with. A slit marked the place where we imagined the mouth should be. It had no discernible nose. Nothing. Not even gender. What made me more wary was the high collar around its neck. A jukka official? I tried to look past the jukka. I saw smaller jukka with similar features behind consoles. They had a bridge like ours. Would they be like us?

Wolf growled inside. Humanoid or not, jukka had never been human. They had never felt human emotions, thought in human thought patterns.

The slit did not seem to move. A voice, deep and rumbling like a thunderstorm, filled our bridge. It sounded male to my ears.

‘I extend my greetings to you, great captain of the star-travelling wolves,’ the jukka said.

I could understand it. Was it speaking the same Galactic Common? A glance at April and Ju Fan informed me that they too understood what the alien was saying. Perhaps it was doing some mind trick on us. I banished that thought. I was over-thinking. I forced my mind to be cold and sharp.

‘A situation has forced us to meet, a dire occurrence that affects my people. The galactic lines are converging as I speak, an ancient darkness awoken by an enemy we share. We have but one chance.’

It was speaking in an extravagant manner, but I heard ‘an enemy we share’. The words leapt out at me. My hair stood on end.

‘I welcome you to our galactic space,’ I said, remembering the lessons taught in school when it came to dealing with the jukka and other galactic races. They loved protocol. ‘I sympathise with your plight, but I need your clarification: who is our common enemy?’

The ends of the slit on the jukka’s face seemed to twitch upwards, as if it smiled. ‘Oh perceptive captain, you seek answers. The common enemy is a male individual of your kin, a scourge on our existence. There is not much time.’

It was talking about Yeung Leung. That bastard. Now he wanted a galactic war...

‘Our time is brief, captain of the star-travelling wolves,’ the jukka said. ‘I struggle to speak in truth. I am Tai E’lil, emissary of my people. I have to come to warn you about the danger.’

I fought the desire to shout at the jukka... emissary. ‘What do you propose we do, Tai E’lil?’ My tongue tripped over the words, but the jukka did not seem to show offence.

‘An alliance,’ Tai E’lil extended an elegant right hand. It had four fingers, all tapered to a fine point.

My head spun. Alliance with the shishini... and now the jukka. It was fast becoming a farce. A precarious, dangerous farce with my clan at stake.

April glanced sharply at me with her bright eyes. I felt the rest of the deck officers watching me. They wanted me to answer. They wanted an answer. The weight of their lives and of Lien’s settled on my shoulders, as heavy as Starfang and all the ships of the fleet combined.

‘What would this alliance bring for both of our peoples?’ I said quietly.

‘Peace,’ Tai E’lil replied. ‘Peace to our peoples and to the universe.’ It extended its left hand, just as tapered and sharp-looking as the right. With both hands raised, it seemed to show openness. See, I mean you no harm.

‘What if I disagree?’ I countered defiantly.

‘Woe and death to our peoples,’ Tai E’lil said with a tinge of sadness in its voice. ‘Woe and darkness.’

‘And if I agree, will my people be safe, Tai E’lil?’ I said. ‘I have enough of games.’

‘We will see that your kind will come to no harm,’ Tai E’lil bowed slightly. Without warning, the image of the jukka disappeared from the view-screen and was replaced by the jukka ship. Never had space looked so tranquil, so beautiful. So clean.

The jukka ship winked out of sight. One moment it was there, another it was gone. Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief. Only muted scents of consternation and anticipation lingered.

‘Looks like you said ‘yes’,’ April said.

‘Looks like I did,’ I nodded.

‘Should you inform them?’ April’s voice was gentler than before. She placed a hand on my arm. I shivered at the feel of her skin on mine. I wanted to hold her, to kiss her, to... Enough of my personal desires. She meant my parents, the pack leaders of our clan.

‘No,’ I said and sealed my own fate. ‘Not for now.’

Later, at shift’s end, I curled up on the bed, still redolent of our coupling. I slept fitfully, with chaotic dreams of war and my parents’ displeasure.

Chapter Two

We stayed in the sector for a while, scanning the area for our prey. Sharp Shard had not returned. I would never understand the shishini. My thoughts often cast back to the claw in the