Legira: The Secrets Unfold

By E. E. Tanner

Ever since childhood, Alisa Lark has always felt like an outsider among humans. Her sense of alienation dissipates when she encounters Dhona, an extraterrestrial from the planet Tuvranii and Earth’s appointed guardian.

Dhona unveils to Alisa the hidden truths of the world, exposing the many secrets shielded from humankind. Through Dhona’s revelations, Alisa glimpses the lives and origins of the mystical beings inhabiting a concealed world.

Alisa’s unique bloodline presents her with an opportunity to embark on a transformative journey. She learns to harness ancient elemental forces and awaken the dormant power within her. By accepting this path, Alisa stands to become the thirty-eighth Legira.

But what is the Legira? This title represents the judge and executioner of the hidden world, a role entwined with immense responsibility. The Legira’s duty extends to maintaining peace among mystical creatures, safeguarding humans, and protecting the myriad secrets that shroud our planet. Alisa’s journey towards this pivotal role is fraught with challenges and revelations, reshaping her understanding of both herself and the universe.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: Apr 26, 2024
• ISBN: 9781035839162

E. E. Tanner

How can an ordinary person write about an unknown, yet familiar world? By daring to dream big. E. E. Tanner wasn’t born a bookworm, nor was she initially interested in reading or imagining fictional stories. In order for this to happen, she needed a certain fantasy crime novel that drew her in completely. Ever since then, reading has remained one of Tanner’s favourite activities. She never went to university, nor did she study creative writing. She simply had a story, occupying her mind for years, so she finally decided to put it on paper, to share the world she sees with others. She might have a simple life and an ordinary job, but if there is one unique thing about her, that’s her courage to believe and take action to make her dream come true.

Book preview

Prologue

My story began many years ago. I am not the one to ruminate over the past, but what I am about to do makes it unavoidable.

In order to make the right decision, I have to recall every detail, every step of my transformation, my strengths and my weaknesses. I need to remember how I became who I am now, and the person I was before. Sitting on the ground, in the middle of the room, I close my eyes and let my mind fall back in time.

How did it all begin…?

Encounter

As I stepped outside my door expecting a pleasant spring breeze, I was greeted instead by a harsh gust of icy wind right into my face, as if to wake me up, since I had run out of coffee due to my forgetfulness.

The clicking of my boots echoed down the rain-swept street, as I strode briskly towards the 24-hour takeaway.

I wouldn’t deem thirty-six degrees Fahrenheit quite normal at the end of March.

I let out a silent grumble as I tightened the belt of my jacket.

I couldn’t wait to get a delicious cappuccino to warm myself up, when I was suddenly overcome by a familiar sensation.

I am being watched again.

My gut had been telling me for days that someone was following me, and by that time I became certain about it. The unknown man had kept lurking in the background, but whenever I would start toward him, he would vanish into thin air.

I couldn’t wrap my head around how he was able to disappear in the blink of an eye. He was one annoying bloke, for sure. Not only did he follow me, he also got on my nerves by playing Houdini.

I looked around as much as the bone-chilling gust let me, but the stranger was nowhere to be seen.

I couldn’t recall his face, but I was certain that I had seen the same person again and again the day before. Strangest of all, I wasn’t scared or panicking. Nothing of the sort that would be expected if one was being spied on for days.

Who could it be? Maybe someone from my past?

I pondered in my head and decided that next time I saw him, I would yell at him to throw him off his game, then I would walk up to him, slap him across the face and ask, ‘What’s up?’

I knew that he would show up again soon. I had no doubt about it.

And I didn’t have to wait for long. After finishing up the life-saving beverage, I headed back to my flat with a second helping in my hand. A cool breeze totally messed up my hair. I was trying to tuck my loose strands behind my ears, when I saw the man again, from the corner of my eye.

Enough is enough! I thought to myself. I turned back and yelled at him.

‘Don’t you move!’ I pointed at him. ‘I know you’re following me.’

I stormed up to him.

He did not fret, nor tried to hide or go unnoticed. There was not a trace of nervousness about him. He simply waited until I reached him.

I stood in front of him and asked, ‘Who are you?’ assertively. ‘How dare you follow me around? What do you want from me? You thought I wouldn’t notice?’ I scolded him.

The stranger did not even quiver when I walked up to him. Not even when I told him that I knew what he was doing. He acted as if encounters like this were perfectly natural, just another day in life.

He straightened himself up, if it was even physically possible, since he had already been standing with a straight and upright back in front of me. He slightly nodded, then reached out with his hand and said in a pleasant voice.

‘Let me introduce myself. My name is Dhonahdofoyara, but you can call me Dhona.’

He was a tall, slender, quite handsome man around forty years of age. He had medium length, dark-brown hair, a pointed nose, narrow forehead, strong jawline and a clean-shaven face.

He was wearing a long, grey coat, dark slacks, a black hat with a black, knitted scarf and leather gloves. Under normal circumstances, he would have made a good impression on me.

I wasn’t scared of him. I had never for a moment felt fear or anything like that since I noticed him. But rather, I felt surprised, curious, anxious and annoyed, all at the same time.

All my life I had handled awkward, embarrassing or even nerve-racking situations with composure.

Therefore, I calmed my voice down and also introduced myself.

‘My name is Alisa Lark, although you already know that, I assume,’ I introduced myself and shook his outstretched hand with much more strength than was necessary.

‘Ms. Lark.’

‘Just call me Alisa, this is the least you can do, since you even know when I’m using the bathroom,’ I said reproachfully.

I looked deep into the man’s grey eyes and stepped closer, leaving just an almost uncomfortable space between us.

‘Now, tell me what you want! Stop toying around, because I don’t like games. There must be a reason you follow and watch me from a distance,’ I challenged him.

‘I would like to offer you a job, a vocation to be more precise,’ he said casually.

My eyebrows jumped to my hairline in surprise. I turned my head left and right, looking for a hidden camera or anything else that would suggest this was some kind of a practical joke where a film crew was hiding somewhere giggling at me, waiting for the big reveal.

I remained blinking for a while, then closed my eyes, took a deep breath and started gathering the most creative set of profanities to tell him to bug off. But instead, I slowly exhaled.

‘A vocation? Are you serious? You followed me, because you wanted to fix me up with a job!’ I was rolling my eyes in astonishment. I could think of a number of possible reasons, but I would have never guessed such a thing.

‘You don’t know yet what my duty is,’ he started, ‘but I would like to outline that to you as well. I have knowledge of things which at first might sound unbelievable to you,’ he continued in familiar tones.

‘Over the last week I was watching you around the clock and I am confident that you are the right person. I know your most inner thoughts and feelings. This is why I would be delighted if you agreed to come with me and listen to my story. If you ask the right questions, I will offer you a job opportunity at the end of our conversation, one that will change your entire life.’

A profound wave of astonishment came over me.

I was blinking in surprise.

He was watching me for a week, he knows my most inner thoughts and feelings…

My temples started pounding.

A normal person with a sound mind would have run and called the police. On the other hand, although I had now recovered, there had been a time in my life when I had been getting treatment and prescribed medication for months, which didn’t exactly put me in the sound-minded category. Thus, I had an excuse for my unhinged behaviour, my fascination and curiosity towards this man.

No matter how angry I was at him, there was something alluring about Dhona. It was inexplicable even for me, but I felt it nonetheless. I wanted to know what he had to say. I wanted to know what this was all about.

‘You do understand how ridiculous this all sounds, right? Such a self-important thing to say. Have you heard of a telephone?’

‘Yes, I have,’ he answered casually. ‘However, our customs are different. We are somewhat extraordinary. I wanted to see your day-to-day life, how you behave, your body language, how you treat other people, what is noteworthy to you, what you are interested in and whether you notice things that may not seem relevant to other people, but in reality, very much are.’

‘That is what you were looking for?’

‘Among others, yes. I mostly watched how you interact with the world around you. And if you perceive things other people are not unaware of.’

‘I see…However, if you were paying that close attention, you should know that I’m not going anywhere. You really think I’m stupid enough to follow you and listen to your nonsense?’

‘I don’t think you are stupid at all, in fact, quite the opposite. However, we are still talking. You could’ve left already, but you decided not to. You want to hear what I have to say. You are drawn to me. Not in a physical way, but rather on a mysterious, metaphysical level.’

‘Get lost!’ I stepped back.

‘If this is your wish, which I doubt, I will walk away. All I ask of you is to be honest with yourself.’

I remained silent. He was right. I didn’t know who he really was, but I was drawn to him. Every inch of my body told me to go with him and listen to his story.

‘You are not afraid of me,’ he continued with a gentle, collected voice, ‘although that might seem like a sensible feeling to have. But you don’t think like an ordinary person. You have always been different. And you’ve often thought of human behaviour as irrational.’

That is true. This is why I’ve never found my place.

I was staring at the stranger standing in front of me. He was charming, even handsome. His oval face had a fair complexion with full lips, a round nose and a few wrinkles here and there. His deep-set eyes were friendly and yet there was something reserved about them, which caused me not to be able to read him at all.

‘I have no intention of harming you. I just want to talk somewhere private, where I can share my story.’

‘All right. Let’s say I believe you. However, you made some pretty big claims. You said you would tell me unbelievable things. Oh, and don’t forget about knowing my most inner thoughts and feelings. If you know me that well, and we already established that I’m not scared of you, tell me, what is my biggest fear?’

I knew he wouldn’t be able to answer this question, but I was hoping to at least surprise him, possibly make him a bit nervous by shaking his ego and break his restrained gentleman façade.

But this was not the case. Dhona’s features remained undisturbed. He replied with an indifferent tone.

‘There isn’t anything you are really afraid of. Your biggest fear had already come true, when you lost your child.’

That was the right answer. I was dumbfounded. How did he…?

I suddenly felt light-headed, my face turned white, my ears were ringing and I started to sweat. I knew I had to recollect myself but that would take some time.

It was no practical joke after all and this strange man had all my attention now. He wasn’t simply watching me, he dug himself deep into my life. He knew things about me he wasn’t supposed to, he knew what kind of feelings I harboured. Now, I really wanted to learn who he really was and what he wanted to tell me.

I looked around the empty street. It was an early Sunday morning, when the sun hadn’t fully come out yet, and most people were still fast asleep in their beds.

Without uttering a word, I walked to a nearby bus stop and sat on the bench. Dhona followed suit and stepped in front of me.

‘Talk here.’

Dhona nodded in agreement and sat down next to me. He took a deep breath. This was the first human reaction I saw him make. All this time, he had been distant and emotionless, just like some kind of robot.

‘Alisa,’ he hesitated for a moment after saying my name and continued.

‘Alisa, it won’t be easy to listen to what I am about to say, but I’m asking you to wait until the end. I have no intention of hurting you. On the contrary, I need your help.’

He was waiting for some kind of answer from me, but my only reaction was a small nod.

‘This world you live in isn’t exactly what you think it is. I believe the easiest way is to first tell you who I am, and then who you are,’ he said while locking his hands.

‘You already witnessed that I know things about you, things you had no idea I could have known and you have no rational explanation of how I acquired this knowledge, like the fact that you have no real fears,’ he said with a serious expression on his face.

‘The reason why I am able to do this is because I have certain skills. You could even call them supernatural abilities. So, just to make it easier for you, without leaving you time to panic, I will just get to the point. As I learnt from my experience, the most effective method is to reveal myself to you.’

I started to not like the situation. What does he want to reveal? It wasn’t a good idea to listen to him after all…I was about to get up, when suddenly…

‘I am not a human being,’ he said with a calm, matter-of-fact tone. ‘I am from another planet.’

Before I could do or say anything, everything turned dark, as if we found ourselves in a room with no light or windows. I could not see anything besides Dhona. And that was only because he was surrounded by a silver coating, as if his aura was visible.

My body was filled with an unbelievable sensation of warmth as I was observing him. I knew I was safe. I couldn’t explain why I was so certain about it, and I didn’t want to think about it. I just gave into the sight.

Dhona looked at me with anticipation.

I started studying him more carefully. This is when it hit me: he wasn’t wearing any clothes, yet it didn’t feel like he was naked. His skin was translucent and lacking colour. Instead of muscles and veins, there were innumerable small, glitter-like substances vibrating under his skin.

The small particles were beaming light from his body, transmitting peace towards me.

His face was also different than before. His lips narrowed, his eyes appeared sunken. His irises, which had been grey, were now glowing in beautiful shades of gold and dark-blue. The white of his eyes was now black, his face elongated and swollen. His ears completely blended into his skull; his hair disappeared.

Dhona slowly turned around so I could take a good look at him. He raised his hand which revealed that the upper part of his arms and his torso were conjoined by some sort of membrane.

There were no bones or cartilage in his limbs, which gave them a rubber-like appearance. There were small, less than an inch long extensions sticking out of his body, starting from the top of his head down to the bottom of his torso, almost like an outer spine.

I was staring in amazement. I knew what I was seeing, but I couldn’t fully comprehend it.

I had believed in extraterrestrial life from an early age. I always thought it rather arrogant to assume that we were alone in the universe. But now, even with one standing right in front of me, showing me his true likeness, it all felt unbelievable.

I tried to put my thoughts together, but I couldn’t think of anything rational. There was an alien right in front of my eyes. Others would have been scared and started screaming in panic, trying to escape. Or they might have started bombarding him with questions. But I was just staring, trying to comprehend what I was seeing.

The whole situation felt natural. I couldn’t think of anything else besides please, continue. I want to know everything.

‘Dhona, I…’ my voice broke. ‘I don’t know what to say, I have no words. All I have on my mind is that you are b-b-beautiful, that’s all. There is nothing else I can t-t-tell,’ I stuttered in confusion.

As suddenly as it appeared, the darkness dissolved. There he was sitting on the bench next to me again, in his human form.

Everything happened so quickly, I wondered whether it had really occurred or not.

‘The reason why you cannot think straight upon seeing me in my true body is because, although unwillingly, I suppress your mind, due to my energy. It is already surprising that you were able to speak in my presence, most humans cannot do that. This is something I will also explain to you later. But first, we need to start from the beginning, it’s going to be much easier for you to understand.’

Even then, I couldn’t say a thing. I was sitting in total bewilderment, trying to straighten things out.

There is an alien sitting beside me!

It was real, I felt it deep in my heart, but my mind did not want to accept it.

‘I came from a planet called Tuvranii in the Vallaminos Universe,’ he started. ‘The story I would like to share with you took place a long time ago, but I have to start from the very beginning, so you can understand how events escalated.’

He locked his fingers and continued.

‘The structure of space is totally different from the way your scientists currently understand it. There is a lot you need to learn until you can truly comprehend the cosmos in its entirety. Because of this, your multiverse theory is also incorrect. The collective of all existing universes is what we call Ghutezeum.’

‘Regardless of whether they are separate or interact with each other, identical or mirror to one another. I don’t want to dwell on this, as it has little connection to what I am about to tell you. But, just to make sure you understand me, I will use your terms and I will adjust my narrative to your current understanding.’

‘All right.’

‘The phenomenon you describe with your Big Bang theory was just one among numerous events of its kind, which created a multitude of different universes. Several of them were able to interact with each other, including yours. Most of these universes are uninhabitable for our group of species, which is called Espromor. This class includes organisms that are built similarly to us, have emotions and have developed through evolution. They are able to use energy, evolve and even transform.’

‘Creatures which breed, consume food and possess physical as well as spiritual bodies. There are plenty of different species inhabiting these universes, although many have become extinct, unfortunately. There are multiple manners in which extinction can occur. There were life forms that stopped evolving further, then started devolving. Some of them reached completion.’

‘Others had their planet destroyed due to external impact, or the inhabitants used up its resources internally. However, most of them have been eradicated in wars, which occurred in order to gain knowledge or territory. Those who are capable of advancing are also able to reach higher levels of existence.’

‘The more knowledge we absorb, the more receptive we are to understand the universes, their history and most importantly, we will be able to use their energy. Is this clear so far?’

‘Yes, so far, I understand it.’

‘As we observed the development of these species, we created a system made up of multiple stages, so we can later classify them more efficiently, according to their level of advancement. In this system, we distinguish thirteen stages, the top of which is completion itself. Coming from matter and returning to matter. This is the point when you are ready to let go of everything physical, material, and emotional, after which you become one with infinity.’

‘Only few reach this stage. Species right before transformation are the most powerful in the Ghutezeum, this, among other things is because they are able to suppress and influence the minds and energies of many different organisms from the same class. This is exactly what you just experienced. This immense power. Those species, which were born to conquer, would love to have such force.’

‘Fortunately, those who reach this level of existence are no longer possessive or power-hungry. That’s the reason why so many species are stuck at a certain stage.’

‘How should I imagine these stages?’

‘As I already mentioned, classification takes into account the advancement of the collective as a whole. Just like schools on Earth. As you grow older and smarter, you enter into a new stage—year one, year two, and so on. This is how you measure maturity. You gradually grow, both mentally and socially. Imagine these stages the same way; which planet is in which learning phase, or should I say, which school year the population is currently attending.’

‘For example, in the first stage we have the formation of the species and its separation into groups. You notice emotions surfacing. In the fourth stage, you have scientific discoveries and the exploration of matter. This is also the phase where selfishness rears its head. The seventh stage is characterised by a thirst for knowledge and advancement.’

‘The desire to explore the universe, the first steps towards the stars. Spiritual and mental growth, realising the importance of the abstract, spiritual energies. This is where you are right now.’

He glanced at me with a friendly smile.

‘While in the first eight stages, there is a strong sense of possessiveness and egocentric behaviour, it ceases in the ninth stage. From the following progrissus onwards, the main purpose in life is to help others.’

‘Progrissus? Almost like progress.’

‘Indeed. You took a great number of expressions from other species. Especially Latin, among other languages, borrowed many words from us and changed them a little bit.’

‘I understand. What about the rest of the stages?’

‘From the ninth stage, almost every species acquires a skill, thanks to which they are able to understand any speech spoken by all sentient beings. Later, it also enables telepathic communication. What follows is the unlocking of a higher mental capacity, one that allows each specimen to transform transcendental energies.’

‘In the second to last progrissus, the physical and spiritual bodies separate from each other completely, rendering the first unnecessary for living. The knowledge and usage of the energies from the universe expands, the species become capable of creation, they can transform and transmit energies. At the end, every member of the collective becomes interconnected and finally, transforms.’

Humanity was not even close to such abilities. As Dhona went on, it seemed impossible for us to ever reach such a level of wisdom.

‘You are in the twelfth stage,’ I said accidentally.

‘No, I’m in the last stage. I am already interconnected with my people.’

‘So why haven’t you reached completion yet?’ I looked at him curiously.

‘This is not the choice of an individual. It is true that we are the most ancient, most advanced species in the known universes, however, we still have duties here. This is another thing you will soon understand.’

‘Just how ancient?’

‘Measuring in your understanding of time, our species has existed for billions of years, but it is not an accurate comparison. Although you calculate time with a different method, using your measurements, I would be about eighteen thousand five hundred years old, plus minus a couple hundred years.’

‘Wow.’ Eighteen thousand five hundred. I was thinking of a high number, maybe three or four thousand, but I did not expect this…

Everything sounded unbelievable, yet it all came across as logical.

‘So, the next thing is…’ I encouraged him to continue his narrative.

‘We arrived at a point where I will tell you the story of how twenty-eight galaxies were destroyed in the Vallaminos Universe.’ He took a deep breath. There was a slightly noticeable sense of grief in this motion.

‘It is probably easier for you to understand if you see what happened with your own eyes,’ he said with a warm tone and within an instant, we were once again embraced by infinite darkness.

***

For long seconds, I couldn’t only see darkness, until something lit up in the distance. I stretched my neck to take a better look at it, but it was too far.

‘Fifteen thousand Earth years ago, a war had broken out in the Vallaminos Universe.’

As Dhona began to talk, everything came to life in front of my eyes, as if watching a movie on a big screen surrounding us in 360 degrees, narrated by him.

‘It had started in an isolated galaxy, called Noub.’

The small light was slowly approaching at first and then started shooting towards me. A marvellous view emerged in front of me. The galaxy was a spiral of countless stars sparking in red and purple lights.

As I sank deeper and deeper into the cluster of stars, a solar system arose from the rest. There were three smaller planets and a third, giant one orbiting around the enormous star. The biggest of the globes was gleaming in yellow, white and indigo blue colours. It was a breathtaking view.

Dhona’s voice pulled me back from my amazement.

‘Planet Huzguhan was in decay, as its sun was slowly dying. If the Huzguhs wanted to survive, they had to leave.’

A creature appeared in front of me. It had an odd physique with a broad, big, triangle-shaped torso and long arms. It stood with a straight, slender waist on its thick, stump-like legs. Its eyes were placed on the sides of its head, which cried red tears falling in the golden yellow dust, as it turned its back towards a planet they once called home; and disappeared into the spaceship.

‘The Huzguhs were intelligent enough to start exploring their star system, however they hadn’t crossed its edge yet. Their hearts were heavy with fear as they began their journey to explore other solar systems to find a new home.’

‘For a long time, their search was in vain, until they finally set foot on planet Yoogbboo and with that, found hope for survival. However, the planet was already occupied, by a kind species, living in harmony with the planet’s environment.’

A dark-green, seemingly endless ocean came into view. I turned around to see vegetation of all kinds, in different colours of the rainbow. There was a hollow green steam drifting between the plants and into the sky. I noticed orange creatures with elongated skulls and large, blue eyes from a distance. They had five limbs for legs coming from their snake-like body.

‘The Huzguhs approached peacefully, however, the indigenous people were afraid of the strangers. Being only in the second progrissus, the thousands of spacecrafts and the advanced technology scared them, therefore, the Yoogbboovians refused to make contact. As an act of desperation, the only solution the Huzguhs could think of was to eradicate them, so they could buy time for themselves.’

Everything happened in front of my eyes: thousands of Yoogbboovians screaming with dread on their faces as they tried to flee. Some of them sought refuge, others attempted to fight back, but they never had a ghost of a chance.

Using their advanced weaponry, the Huzguhs slaughtered each and every one of them, showing mercy to no one. Their weapons fired waves of steam and sound, which made the Yoogbboovians dissolve into nothingness, leaving no body behind, just a small light, illuminating for a moment, before fading away.

Witnessing the massacre caused a dreadful pain in my body, just like when I had lost my son. Both deaths were needless.

I was screaming Dhona, begging him to stop, saying I don’t want to see any more of this, but the killings continued.

The cruelty, the indiscriminate slaughter…and those sounds…the piercing screeches of terror.

I crouched down, then shot my eyes and covered my ears, so I couldn’t see or hear the bloodshed, but it didn’t help. I had to wait until it stopped.

When I heard Dhona’s voice again, I stood up trembling.

‘Planet Yoogbboo was smaller and more preserved compared to their home. It could not accommodate their entire species, but their king thought it was enough to ensure the survival of their race and there was enough space for a couple millions of their people on the surface. In the meantime, their scout ships kept searching through five other galaxies to find planets which could support life, but to no avail.’

‘Until one day, when the long-awaited news had finally arrived. They found a compatible planet, although life had already developed on it. The decision was soon made. They slaughtered the locals and took their planet, just like they had done last time.’

Dhona did not show me the destruction this time, so I didn’t have to watch the annihilation of yet another species. I was gazing at the globe from a distance. It was a wonderful planet, taking on shades of red and purple, floating in space with four little moons orbiting around it.

‘After invading the second planet, they started to settle down in their new home, when the last scout ship returned,’ I heard Dhona’s voice again, ‘the captain reported that there was a perfect planet for them. It was just like Huzguhan, had the same size, energy and suitable atmosphere.’

‘However, in the same vein as the previous globes, it was also occupied by a rudimentary, unarmed species. The king knew he was facing a hard decision. Their survival had already claimed so many lives, but still, if there was a planet where they could all live together, why would they choose to stay separated?’

‘And the other two planets could be used for all kinds of purposes, including a safety backup for the future. The king did not want to make this decision alone, so he let his people decide. And they got their message across. They wanted to stay together.’

Although he showed no sign of it, I knew that recollecting these memories was becoming more and more painful for him.

‘Around this time, one of our scout ships discovered that planet Yoogbboo had been taken over. We looked into it and our investigation led us to the trail of destruction committed by the Huzguhs. We assembled the Vallaminian Council, which consisted of the representatives sent by every species reaching the ninth progrissus, to discuss how we should intervene.’

‘We came to the conclusion to contact their leader to investigate the reasoning behind his actions and we would determine whether they were necessary. We were to decide further actions based on their views, standpoints and rebuttals. Just before the departure of the council’s spaceship, we received the news about the invasion of a third planet.’

A moment later, I found myself in a hall. The walls were glowing red and the members of the council sat on snow-white, egg-shaped chairs. I could only see their faces dimly due to the blinding light, while the bodies belonging to them, I couldn’t make out at all. Opposite to them, there was an enormous window looking at spaceships, hovering as far as the eye could see.

To my surprise, the arriving Huzguh king and his entourage weren’t met with condescension and dismissal by the council, but rather they treated them as their equals.

‘We listened to their king, who shared their side of the events,’ Dhona continued, ‘And we gave our verdict. Although atrocious, the invasion of the first two planets was justifiable from the Huzguhs’ point of view. Unlike the third planet, where the reason behind the killings was not survival, but greed. Thus, we came to the conclusion that the Huzguhs were to return the first two planets to the couple hundred thousand remaining natives, whom they condemned to slavery.

‘They could keep the third planet, because they left no survivors there. We would take all of their weaponry, as well as their space fleet and they could not produce any more of them in the future. They would undergo regular surveillance, conducted by the Vallaminian Council.’

I watched as the Huzguhs stood with still expressions on their faces. They did not object, nor protest, they listened to the council’s verdict without interrupting once, and at the end, they left the hall with grace.

‘The king accepted our conditions,’ I heard Dhona’s voice again, ‘but he had no intention of abiding by them. He felt as if he were being stabbed in the back by a council, the existence of which wasn’t even known to him up until then, yet it started immediately sanctioning his people and ordering them around. He didn’t know what gave us the right to do this.’

‘Thus, as the council’s spacecraft left, the Huzguhs started a campaign, the first objective of which was to destroy the scout ships accompanying them. After that they annexed every celestial body coming across their way. The civilisations inhabiting them, unless they surrendered and joined the Huzguh forces, were to be obliterated.’

I found myself in the cosmos again. There was a sand-coloured globe in front of me, embraced by a pink ring glowing in the dark.

An armada of spherical space ships took off from the planet, forming a spiral battle line, ready to defend their home.

It wasn’t long before the enemy revealed itself. The colossal mothership let out millions of space shuttles that promptly began to attack.

‘The horde was clouded by invincibility, superiority and the power for hunger, that was only growing with each conquest. We made our move as fast as we could and the war began.’

I watched as hundreds of ships blew up, leaving just an obscure cloud of smoke remaining of them. I didn’t even want to think about how many innocent lives were lost.

I couldn’t deal with my feelings; all I could do was to watch and suffer because of my inability to help. To witness entire species, trillions of lives sacrificed on the altar of one selfish, meaningless purpose.

After a while, I had to turn my head again. I couldn’t face the fact that so many lives had been taken and what I saw was real. The pain and dread surrounding me were suffocating. I tried gasping for air, but I couldn’t breathe. Desperate for oxygen, I grabbed for my throat, but I was clutching at the void. I felt I was about to die, that I would dissolve into nothingness. With my remaining strength, I inhaled one last time…

Suddenly, I sat up in my bed, drenched in sweat.

I can breathe!

Nexus

I was swallowing huge gulps of air, while my entire body was trembling. I was happy to be alive, that what I had seen had not happened to me. However, although I was aware that I’d woken up from a dream, I knew that these horrors had really occurred.

I sat up in my bed and kept shaking for long minutes, trying to calm down my frantic soul. Unfortunately, I already had a routine for that. I had to steel myself at a very young age, otherwise my mother’s indifference towards me would have crumbled me.

For a long time, I hadn’t known what it was like to be loved and how to truly love someone else. Until I had met my husband and given birth to Dylan. But he had gone so soon…

Once the trembling subsided and my breathing slowed down, I peered at the door of my room. I was sure that Dhona was waiting for me on the other side, ready to continue. I couldn’t imagine what else might come, but I could tell it wasn’t near the end of his story.

I stood up. My legs slightly wavered, but I quickly regained my balance. I hurried to the dresser to change into a clean set of clothes.

A mixture of purple and orange light shone through the window, the last rays of the sun departing to make room for the night. That was the most colourful sunset I had seen in weeks. One could feel that spring would soon arrive.

Before my anxiety could kick off again, I opened my bedroom door and rushed down the hallway. I didn’t even peek into the living room, I headed straight to the kitchen.

I need a drink!

I reached into the bottom of my cupboard to find a somewhat dusty bottle of whisky and I tore off the cup. I shamelessly poured myself a sizeable drink. I can’t say I was sipping it tastefully; I basically gulped my drink down in one swig and it felt amazing.

The alcohol flowed through my whole body and with it came a pleasant, tingling sensation. Just to make sure, I grabbed the edge of the cupboard and ascertained that everything was all right, then poured another drink of the same size. I took a second glass and poured a smaller amount of whisky into it. Holding the glasses in my hands, I headed to the room, where Dhona was waiting for me.

My living room wasn’t big, but the furniture fit in comfortably. All there was in the room were a TV set, a wardrobe, a sofa, a coffee table and an armchair.

Dhona was sitting on one side of the sofa in his human form, with crossed legs, leaning back in a relaxed position, as if he were an ordinary human being, but he wasn’t.

Once he noticed me, Dhona stood up and curiously looked at my hands.

‘It is very kind of you, dear Alisa, that you thought of me, but I don’t consume alcohol. In fact, I do not consume anything.’

I put one glass on the table and, while holding the other one in my hand, sat in the armchair.

‘I had a suspicion, but it looks better than having the whole bottle by my side.’

‘I understand,’ he said, as if slightly embarrassed.

‘How did we get to my place?’

‘You passed out after I had shown you the war. And since I knew where you lived, I thought bringing you home would be appropriate.’

‘I see. There’s no point in asking silly questions, huh?’ I smiled shyly, ‘I watched it all over again in my dream…I can’t fathom how…’

‘I heard it and I know. It is hard to comprehend for someone who didn’t live through it. However, you had to see it in order to understand how these events occurred and why we had to act the way we did and do now.’

I took a sip of my drink.

‘How did it end?’

‘It was a long and bloody war. What once was a struggle to survive became a berserk massacre. The Huzguhs eradicated one species after another, destroying their homes. A sizeable portion of the Vallaminos Universe became unliveable and turned into a sea of meteors. The war took place between seventy-nine species, more than half of which lost their planets and many were pushed to the verge of extinction.’

‘Some had only a couple hundred survivors remaining of their race, but there was a case where an entire species, except for the crew of a medical ship, had been wiped out.’

‘But how? How was one species able to bring that amount of destruction? You were in a much higher progrissus, you said it yourself. And the rest of the council? They were all past the ninth stage! What about your weapons? They must have been so much more powerful than theirs,’ I questioned him agitated.

‘You were so much stronger!!’

‘Our weaponry wasn’t significantly better than theirs. After the ninth level, species no longer spend much resources on developing weapons. Our main focus is the advancement of the individual. When we were watching the Huzguhs, there were no signs of such level of violence. As it turned out, the atmosphere on planet Yoogbboo might have been ideal for them, however the surface was covered by fumaroles.’

‘These are openings on the planet’s crust, emitting various steams and gases into the air. This substance proved to be toxic for them, more precisely, it had mind-altering effects on the Huzguhs. They planted crops in the poisonous ground and they later consumed the harvest. They continued to grow these crops and bring the harvest back to the ships throughout the war.’

‘They became addicted. The Huzguhs noticed the changes within themselves, they examined their systems, but decided to use the effects of the substance to their advantage. Their judgement was already impaired at that point. They were a once rational, advanced race that devolved and resorted to carnage.’

‘That’s it? The reason they became raging animals was that they got high?’

‘The consumption of the toxic vegetables distorted their minds.’

‘It’s unacceptable regardless! Why did you make me watch this, Dhona?’ I snapped at him.

‘You are right, it is unacceptable. But at least we understand why they regressed and acted as they did. As for the reason you had to see it, you will soon understand.’

I was never impetuous or hot-tempered, and was especially not hysterical. I much rather belonged to the reserved and easy-going type, spectating and