The Dealer's Hand

(Im going to start this chapter with a prose that I wrote. Its called A Rainbow Dream)

I slept, and as I did, my mind wandered the plains of existence. Seeking knowledge far and wide. I traveled the greatest depths and largest heights without fear or consequence. And it was then, after fulfilling my dream that I awoke.

My eyes opened slowly, and to my great surprise, there was somebody sharing my bed. She was no human, of that I was sure. Her coat was blue like the sky on the brightest day. Her long multi-colored mane ran down over her pillow, where her head had nestled next to me. The beautiful tail that would streak behind her as she flew was sticking out from the sheets, and once in a while, it would twitch ever so slightly.  The wings that she was so proud of where folded close to her body so as to not disturb me. Her eyes that are a deep red like that of a ruby, where closed as she lay sleeping soundly. I could hear the deep rhythmic breathing as she lay there so close to me. To see her was to know harmony, an angel from another world. To feel so lucky to have somebody like her by my side, it was a wonderful feeling.

As I reached to hug her, the image began to blur. Nothing was substantial anymore, and the dream that was not a dream had ended. My real awakening had startled me, I looked around the room for her, but she was not there. Was it a cruel joke, a subconscious bent on causing my pain in more than just physical?  Or maybe, just maybe, it was more than that. A glimpse into heaven perhaps. I should look at this not as something horrid, but a great experience. I had gotten closer to her than most people could even fantasize about. That one...she waited for me. I cannot wait to sleep again.

(START OF STORY)

Jack sat at his molecular device, crunching the number's as they went by on the small screen. A strange box sat on the pedestal inside a clear window of the device. It was no bigger than his head, but the crate must have weighed at least a good forty pounds or so. It was pitch black, and it seemed to feed off the light, absorbing it into the flat surfaces. There was a triangular pattern on one side, it appeared to be engraved into the container itself. The pattern was very hard to see and you had to look real close to see it. At the moment there was a single wire running from the center of the triangle into the machine, so it made it easier to see. Next to the engraving was a small blue monitor, it glowed with a faint illumination as it sat there. Jack looked at the crate, forgetting about reading the numbers.

He Had just finished it only two days ago, but it had taken a near month of designing and building to finally complete it. He had built it with light absorbing panels on all sides to keep the eternal battery charged, it was an old energy system but still very useful. He styled the crate to stay shut and locked even if it ran out of power, in case it had to be hidden for a long time. The inside used the same kind of system of containment that his brilliant CMCC used, nothing can get in or out without opening the hatch.  The panel was made to be able to open or close the box, one just had to put in the right code. The pattern itself was the opening,  but that was only one of two doors. There was an inner metal casing, made out of molecular compacted steel.The thing was nearly indestructible, it would take a near nuclear explosion to crack this nut. It was portable safe. All this, for the little piece of nebula inside.

The Scientists hadn't even let anybody else know about his discovery, not even Sandy, probably the only person on this ship that even came close to his intellect. She was still a far cry to match him though. there was two reason's to keep the box a secret. One he had to test the box to make sure that the equipment would be compatible with what he had started to call the Solar Ebon Container,or SEC for short. Secondly, and more importantly, he did not want to leave just yet. He wanted to continue to observe the nebula up close, it was much more fascinating here. If Jack decided to tell the crew about the SEC, then most likely two or three of the five man crew would want to go back immediately, especially that Captain Jared. Everybody knew that the man was no scientists and rather be in the middle of a battle, fighting in a great war like a some kind of hero. The Captain was only after glory and jack knew it, he also knew that he was getting desperate. No matter how calm he seemed on the outside, Jack could tell. That one might be trouble, better keep- he started to think, but he never got to finish his thought. At that moment the funny looking machine had given a small beep and a list of equations had popped up on the holoscreen inside the device. Jack stared for a moment at the confusing jumble, his mouth slightly open, brow furrowed in concentration. After a few seconds, a grin spread across his face. He had done it again, Spade had accomplished another feat of genius. The contained materials could be read without opening the box, it all worked like a charm, but that was nothing new when it came to Jack Spade.

He leaned back in his chair, clasping his hands behind the back of his head. His grin got bigger as he closed his eye's, seeing the looks of all the jealous faces he would see when he got back. He had made it one of his favorite pass times to see how angry they got, and there reactions where priceless.

"Oh, it's good to be me" he said to nobody in particular. He didnt have much time to gloat though. Suddenly the voice of Captain Jared cut through the silence of the ship.

"Attention," he said with all the authority he could muster "all hands to the Command Center. I repeat, all hands to the Command Center. Your Going to want to see this". In one split second Jack, who was leaning very far back in his sear, had become a jumbled heap of body part's and chair. Struggling with the vile thing for a moment, he got up in a panic. Oh hell, oh bloody hell is all he could think. Jack couldn't let anybody see the SEC, if the did they would definitely ask questions. The worst would be Sandy. She was already suspicious of him as it was with his late night excursions, and she wouldn't like this one either. It wasn't like he could help staying up, he was a bit of an insomniac after all. Some nights he couldn't sleep at all, so he had to spend his idle time doing something.

Calming himself, he thought for a second. That was all he needed to come up with a plan. He just had to be quick enough. Since everybody knew about his late night's, he had to be the first of the crew to arrive. If he was not, then they would know he had been up to something. He rushed over to the machine, opened the glass case, and snatched the box from its confines. He turned around, carefully fixed the upturned chair with one hand, and ran out of the small lab. He started jogging own the metal clad hallway, but kept himself from doing a full out run. No need to get myself worked up and sweaty, they'll just wonder why I ran here.

As the scientists kept pace, his flat, long red hair was waving lazily behind him. He wasn't a large or strong man, but he did take care of his body, using the exercise facility regularly. One had to make sure they stayed healthy, otherwise how can one scoff at all his peers and predecessors through out there years. Up ahead  the hallways branched into three more sections. Going straight would lead him to Captain Honeycut and the Command Center, but he needed tomake a quick detour first. He took a left instead, flying toward's his destination. It wasn't very far, and in no time he seen his goal, the escape pods.

There where three, single person pods on each side of the ship. The doors where solid, no window to look into, and nobody would go into the escape pods for any real reason. It was the perfect spot to hide the SEC. He hoofed it to the small holoscreen next to the first pod, and pressed it with his thumb. He held the container under his left arm and the door lurched upwards. Jack threw it on the squishy seat, then pressed the button again, watching as the door slammed shut. Hoping nobody had heard that, he started jogging back towards the intersection. He slowed down once he got close to the branch,  and stopped altogether, listening to hear if anybody was coming. After a couple of seconds of hearing nothing but the usual hum of the engine, he nodded. He went around the corner and started walking casually towards the Command Center.

Jack silently patted himself on the back as he made his was down the empty corridor. Nobody has seen him come from the escape pods, so there would be no way of they others knowing what he had slipped right under there nose's.They didn't even deserve to know anyway, his idea, his recognition. All he had to do is go back after everybody was asleep again, and take it to a more appropriate hiding spot.

Just up ahead stood the metal door to the Center, Jack Gathered himself and walked up to the  portal. As he got closer, the hatch slid to the left automatically, revealing the room beyond. As he entered, he seen Captain Honeycut doing what he normal did when he got nervous, he was pacing. The next thing he noticed was the large holoscreen. There was a large black line in the middle of the holograph monitor and on either side was a very bright white, it kind of hurt to look at. The white seemed to be shifting, like somebody was pushing and pulling a cloth from the other side. Jack looked back at Jared in anger, but he was wiser than to let that get the best of him.

"You know, if your having problems with the screen again, you get Bruce to repair it." he said with a sneer.  Maybe I should have counted to five before saying anything. Jared seemed so worried that he missed the disdain. He stopped and looked up, his face was a mix of fear and confusion.

"The screen isn't broken Jack," he said, his voice cracked a little as he said "I'm hoping you know what this is". He slowly turned toward the screen. "Computer zoom out by five times". Obeying his command, the image began to shrink, or at least the line did. The light seemed to be engulfing the black line, eating it away like some monstrous amoebae. It just kept getting thinner and longer as the A.I. continued its retreat. Jack watched in wonder, his face slack and all sign of arrogance had disappeared. Finally the edge of the light could be seen, and the nebula behind it had come into view. That-THING-was quite large, Jack couldnt even see the dark line anymore. It was round, almost perfectly circular. According to the reading, it as around five-hundred yards in circumference.

"It look's like a ball of light. Hey maybe it's God or Buddha, it would be awesome if it was Buddha!" Jack turned his head to see Bruce slowly walking into the room. His eye's where open wide as he stared at the apparition. though his mouth was agap, he had a slight smile as he sat down on the right side chair. Jack slammed the palm of his hand into his face, shutting his own eye's and giving a small sigh. All Honeycut could do was shake his head.

"Listen," started Jack as he put his hand down, highly annoyed by the whole situation, "as far as I know, God is not a ball of anything. And if he was, then why would he be bloody sitting there in front of us for no good reason". He had raised his voice in frustration, unable to deal with Bruce's antics. Why does this guy say the most ridicules things he thought to himself. "This is a very serious matter. Where dealing with an unknown element and we need to find out if it's dangerous  or not". He had said that with more force than he intended but damn it this was no time for games. This could be the major break they needed, and Jack did not need some kind of mad engineer throwing him off. He did keep in mind what he said about the danger though.

Bruce turned from the monitor and looked over at Jack, he actually looked hurt.

"I'm sorry Jack," he apologized "I didn't mean anything by it. It was just a joke". He scratched the back of his head, his hand disappearing in his shaggy curly brown hair. It almost looked like bark from a distance, very grainy in color. It's like talking to a thirteen year old grumbled Jack  He gave another sigh as he looked at the engineer.

"I don't want to be so hard on you," he said, making sure to make eye contact with Bruce "but we need to focus on the matter at hand. That energy flux could mean a huge number of possibility. And any one of those numbers could and would likely kill us."

Bruce looked away and said nothing, the frown on his face made it look longer than it really was. Maybe now well get some peace and quite from him for a while, and the ship turn to gold while where at it. Jack turned back to the Captain, putting his hands into his coat pocket's. He did like to wear the old style of lab coats, but he liked these smaller versions better. They weren't always dragging on the ground plus the long ones could get caught in the machinery. Jared was back to staring at the screen, a deep frown creasing the line's on his older face. He was only forty-two but he looked more fifty-five with his constant worrying.

"I'm going to order the Darwin to move away," he wrung his hands together in front of him as he spoke, "there's something wrong and I don't-" and as if on cue, the ship started to shake violently. Honeycut quickly grabbed his chair, holding on so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. Bruce was gritting his teeth and his eye's where shut tightly. Good old Jack did not have that kind of luxury, he had nothing to sit on or cling too. So or the second time today, he found himself on the floor, fighting to get back up. He caught a glimpse at the door to see both Sandy, with her short spiky blonde hair, and Zed where in the same predicament. They must have fallen inside the room when the tremor started. The shaking only lasted for a couple of moments, then it ended as as quickly as it came. The three scientists slowly pulled themselves of the floor, but the Captain was the first one to recover his wits.

"What the hell was th-" he started to say, but his tongue had glued itself to the roof of his mouth. He had just caught a glimpse of the holoscreen, and all he could do was gape. Everybody else had heard him drop his sentence, and looked to see what had cause him to stop. They followed his line of sight to the screen, but all there reactions where different.

Sandy gasped as she grabbed Zed's hand, but it did not seem to register to the pale and tall scientist. His curly brown hair hung in front of his now bulging green eyes, his mouth moved up and down like a fish gulped for air. Brandon had a slightly confused look in his light brown eye's, but he also seemed excited, and really, who could blame him. Jack was itrigued more so than scared. His dark blue eye's scanned the black hole that had appeared right in front of the ship.

Well, he knew it wasn't a real black hole, if it was, they would all be dead already. The bright light was gone now, replaced with what was most likely the thin dark line. At first glance it appeared to be a flat inky sphere, but when you stared at it, you could see what looked like movement. There were slight color changes that would pop up out of no where too. It was like looking at the ocean during the night, with the city's light reflecting off the waves. It seemed mysterious and foreboding. The power from the change must have been what rocked the ship ans sent everybody sprawling. This was truly amazing, far more exciting than Sandy revealing her feeling's for Zed just moments ago. Which she had just realized what she had done, and quickly whipped her hand back to her side. Sandy looked very sheepish as she did so, the wolf looking like a lamb, this is a day for miracles thought Jack.

He kept staring into the black depths of the large orb, but something seemed off. Had the camera been zoomed in? No, nobody had given that order. Was it getting larger? After a bit of thought, Jack had a horrible realization.

"Computer", he shouted "show the distance between the shop and sector 38". Every eye turned in his direction, then back to the floating monitor. The fear in the room intensified as everybody had realized why he had made such a command. As the numbers popped up, they started counting down immediatly. Proving Jack was tight again, though this time, he wished he wasn't.

After years of training, Captain Honeycut it was the first react to the danger.

"Computer, get us away from sector thirty-eight, ASAP", he shouted, that old authority creeping into his voice. The computer gave a loud screech sound in response, but the numbers were still ticking down. It was already at one-hundred miles and closing.

Like a coiled spring, Jared shot over to left hand chair, sat down and popped up the control panel. This was his element, he had refined living on the edge into an art form during his year's of battle. He might not think much of himself but he was good, good enough to be picked for this mission. He immediately began typing at a rapped pace, watching blue window after blue window appeared on the main screen. Finally a red one appeared, over lapping the rest. As they all read it, each and every heart dropped into there stomach's filling them all with dread. The power surge from the dark ball had destroyed something and the energy that should be being fed to the thruster's was escaping somewhere.

They where free floating into oblivion.