Loud, and Friends

By M.E. Owen

Four peaceful alien dirigibles, living in the upper atmosphere of the gas giant Galtus, find themselves sucked into a flying metal behemoth and left to starve. 

 

Max, stripped-down copy of Zion Station's rogue AI, temporarily installed in the ghost ship Suyash, discovers the two surviving aliens in the ship's gas pod. Given command of the ship by Police Chief Jones, he's tasked with returning the dirigibles home without detection and then forging a partnership with their culture to keep them safe from the genocidal human Consortium.

 

But the younger dirigible is dying, and its parent is willing to sacrifice itself to save it. Can Max get them home alive?

 

Loud, and Friends, fifth in M.E. Owen's Zion Station series, continues the story begun with Dirigibles at L5.

• Language: English
• Publisher: M.E. Owen
• Release date: Jun 3, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201005146

Book preview

Loud, and Friends

LOUD, AND FRIENDS

ZION STATION 05

M.E. OWEN

TOWHEE PUBLISHING

LOUD, AND FRIENDS

A ZION STATION STORY

Fifteen months after the Purge

Azt

They’d chosen an excellent day for an outing, warm and light, with lifting winds blowing just hard enough to help them reach the upper atmosphere, but not so hard as to prevent them from descending later.

Azt brought its youngest offspring and one of its older ones, along with an offspring of one of its mates. This would be the first trip for youngest, but the other two, mature enough to have chosen their juvenile names, had seen the sun before.

For now they floated on the wind, always ascending, undulating their bodies slowly, tentacles pulled close, tendrils spread long behind them, reveling in the clear air and the fine day. They barely even needed to use their jets, except the youngest which jetted away and back, away and back.

How high will we go? it asked as it brushed against Azt. Its emissions were sharp and tinged with excitement and fear and trust.

High enough to feel the warmth of the sun, replied Azt.

And maybe see an intruder! HstAzt’s emissions were too forceful, overly excited and even a tiny bit hopeful.

If we sense an intruder, we are to separate and fly down and away from it, as fast as we can! Azt made sure all three youngsters felt its emission. Do you understand?

Yes, Azt, replied EoliMyt.

Yes, parent, HstAzt replied, its emissions subdued. It really was a good and responsible offspring, and was already much farther along in its studies than Azt or any of its mates had been at that age. It just let its imagination overly inflate at times.

Youngest just trembled against what was left of Azt’s offspring pouch. Soon the pouch would be gone, and shortly afterward, it would be time for youngest to choose its juvenile name. Its tendrils brushed against Azt.

I don’t want to see an intruder, it signaled.

The intruders have only been seen along the higher latitudes, replied Azt. The chances of seeing one here are very, very small. We are safe here.

They ascended steadily and the air thinned. First Azt, then the more mobile youngsters were forced to jet. They continued up toward the increasing brightness in the sky.

Oh! said the youngest. What was that! The air tastes different! And it’s warmer!

We’ve crossed the boundary into the upper atmosphere, said Azt. It couldn’t help a small inflation of pride in its offspring. Many of its age were unable to feel the boundary, even when it was as well-defined as it was today.

This is where the sissftish live, said HstAzt. They live in the upper range and get their food from the sun.

How? Where are they? I don’t feel them, said youngest.

They are very small, said HstAzt. Too small to feel, or even taste. Its tendrils waved with laughter and even its emission included a thin burst of humor. But the sissftish are the foundation for every living thing.

Everything? said youngest. Parent, is HstAzt correct?

Yes, replied Azt, inflating a tiny bit more. Bigger creatures eat them, and even bigger—

—An incredible turbulence, far above them, but descending fast. Nothing living was this fast, this strong.

Scatter! Azt cried, wrapping its tentacles around youngest. It spun and jetted hard, down and away, checking that the others had obeyed. HstAzt was jetting hard, also down and away, but EoliMyt had frozen.

EoliMyt! JET!

HstAzt reversed, jetted even harder toward EoliMyt, attempting to save its friend,