Page 23 of Selected By the Dragon Alien
Turi nodded, her expression determined. “Where to?” she agreed, shifting toward the exit. “You know this fortress better than I do.”
He had no idea where his past, erased self had gone, and the fortress was massive. They left the library and he steered them toward a section of the fortress he had long neglected. It was the sub-levels, where the air was cooler and the corridors tighter. As they ventured into the dimly lit maze of halls, their footsteps echoed off the metal walls. They passed by chambers filled withthick wires and quiet control panels. He hadn’t thought about how vast the fortress truly was, and how much of it he had chosen to ignore over the years.
As they delved into the forgotten recesses of his home, they came upon a heavy metal slab door. Its surface was etched with intricate, blocky symbols that glowed faintly as they approached. It was a part of the fortress that Ellion had not thought about in ages, a place he had subconsciously avoided for reasons he could not explain.
“Hmm,” he murmured, his hand hovering over the door panel. “I haven’t entered this room in… I don’t know if I’ve ever been in here.”
Turi fixed her gaze on the door. “Then it’s time we found out what’s inside.”
With a deep breath, Ellion pressed the pad and the door opened, revealing a spacious chamber filled with sleek control panels, chairs, and instruments. The only light came in from a large curved window and a low blue glow that wrapped the corners of the ceiling. There were console sets for at least fifteen people. They were designed with unique chair backs for beings who needed to accommodate large wings.
“What is this place?” Turi breathed.
Ellion stepped inside the spacious chamber. Turi’s presence beside him grounded him as he gazed around in awe. A low hum filled the air as the door slid shut behind them. The room was expansive, much larger than he had initially anticipated, and it seemed to stretch endlessly before them. The control panels dominated the room, their sleek surfaces dotted with buttons, switches, and flat screens that lay dark and dormant in the semidarkness. It was a technological marvel, more complex than anything found in the main areas of the fortress, and yet, somehow familiar.
“This place feels important,” Turi whispered, her eyes wide with wonder as she approached the nearest console.
“Important enough that I haven’t visited it,” he admitted, moving further into the room alongside her. The floor was made of a soft, yielding material that hummed faintly underfoot—a sign of the advanced tech woven into every aspect of this strange chamber. He shook off the lingering disbelief, setting aside memories of his own uncertainty. “I doubt this has been used in centuries,” he murmured, cautiously approaching the nearest console. Its surface was covered in dust and a thin layer of grime, but still, some of the screens were starting to flicker to life.
Turi’s fingers brushed the surface of one of the consoles, and a cascade of lights burst to life, illuminating their surroundings in a brilliant blue glow. “Uh-oh,” she said, snatching her hand away. “I didn’t mean to do that.”
The screens flickered and hummed, showing rows of incomprehensible data and schematics. Ellion’s gut tightened with the impossible knowledge of what he was standing in. This was no ordinary room, and it didn’t belong here.
“What is this place?” Turi asked again, deeper this time. Her gaze darted from one screen to another, studying the swirling symbols and glowing charts.
“This…this is a command deck,” he said, marveling at the stark realization. “A control center, but they’re usually in large starships capable of interstellar travel, not in moldering fortresses on remote planets.”
“Amazing,” Turi said, awe coloring her tone as she leaned closer to examine one of the screens flickering with shifting numbers and data. “Can it still work?” she asked.
Ellion moved to another station and examined the interface. “Maybe, but it looks like it would take a full crew to operate it. Perhaps it was installed here at some point as a control center, then abandoned, as the Axis consolidated their power.”
Turi leaned in closer, her eyes wide as she absorbed the information. “If the Axis went to the trouble to put this here, they must have used it for something vital,” she mused, her fingers dancing across the screen. “But why just power it down and leave it behind?”
“The Axis are nothing if not secretive,” Ellion replied, lost in thought as another display blinked to life.
Turi said, staring at a screen in front of her, “Maybe it’s something else entirely.”
With a deep breath, he activated the main console in front of him, pressing his fingers on its cool surface. “Let’s see if we can find out.”
Lights blinked to life and screens filled with charts and star maps. One of the panels displayed a holographic projection of a star system, the bright suns and planets swirling in intricate formation, unlike any he was familiar with. He barely suppressed the hiss that slipped from his lips as a map materialized in front of him, displaying a vast star system filled with interconnected paths. “This is a navigational hub,” he said in awe. “Like the command centers in fleet operations. The machinery here is built for multiple control functions—communication, strategizing—absolutely incredible.”
He turned to see her bent over a screen on the other side of the room. She touched the screen with a tentative finger.
“Turi, be careful—” he began, but when she looked up, her face was pale.
Her eyes were wide. “You need to see this.”
“What?” he asked as he strode over to her.
She pointed at the large screen she stood in front of. “If I’m seeing this correctly—and I’m no expert—I’m pretty sure this command center didn’t comefroma starship. The fortressisthe starship.”
FIFTEEN
Turi had never been inside a room like this. It was very different from the rest of the fortress, but it was conceivable that a starship would need a crew and an advanced computer system like the one in here. After her lessons in the library, Turi could read the labels on the walls.Navigation, Weapons, Propulsion. It was a lot to take in. Especially since, well, the fortresswasa starship. Or, had been at one time.
Ellion looked just as shocked. “I’ve lived here for so long and never knew I was living in a ship.”
“It’s hard to believe this huge fortressflies,” Turi said.