The Storybook Dimension

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The Weakest Color

Chapter 21: More Important Than Friendship

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Piggy was a coward. It wasn’t the usual kind of cowardice, which came quickly and left just as fast. Piggy’s cowardice was part of his personality, an ever present instinct for self-preservation.

“I – I know that I’ve caused lots of trouble,” Piggy stammered, trying to look genuinely repentant, “and maybe I haven’t been the best person around, but everyone makes mistakes, right?”

The ranger didn’t seem convinced.

‘This is it,’ Piggy thought. ‘I’m really done for this time.’ He frantically looked around his prison, searching for something – anything — to defend himself with. Digging through his pockets, he pulled out a rotten, half-eaten apple.

‘Why couldn’t it have been a Torellian grenade, or one of those tiny teleport devices?’ Piggy lamented, dropping the fruit on the floor.

Bridge drew his blaster and Piggy closed his eyes, too afraid to look. He could hear his heart beating in his ears and time slowed to a crawl. A very long second passed, and then another. Piggy opened one eye, sneaking a peek at his would-be assassin.

In his time, Piggy had met many criminals. He knew thieves and informants, smugglers and crooks. Many of those people would kill without a moment’s hesitation. A moment ago, Piggy would have put Bridge into that category. After all, if he could betray the rangers, he was probably capable of anything.

But it was Bridge’s hands which gave him away, hands which trembled slightly as he held the blaster. “Don’t do this,” Piggy implored. He looked into Bridge’s eyes. “You — you’re not like the Troobians. You’re better than that. You know this is wrong. And if you do this, you’ll just be another one of Broodwing’s thugs.”

‘Piggy’s right,’ Bridge realized. ‘Even if he deserves it, I can’t just kill him in cold blood.’ It went against everything he believed it, everything he had been taught at SPD. “Okay, Piggy,” Bridge said, slowly lowering the blaster. Removing the keys from one of the fallen krybots, he opened the prison door.

Piggy took a moment to silently thank all the human and alien Gods he knew, promising for the hundredth time to be a good, upstanding citizen from now on. When he looked back, the ranger was stripping the uniform from a krybot.

“What are you doing?” Piggy asked, momentarily dumbfounded.

“I won’t kill you, but Gruumm and Mora and even Broodwing probably would if they find you. Well, they definitely would. Anyways, I didn’t save you just to let you die on this ship,” Bridge said. “So you need a disguise.” Tugging the uniform off the krybot, he gave it to Piggy, who put it on without protest.

The inside of the krybot uniform reeked of burnt plastic and electronics, and Piggy stifled a cough. It was hard to breathe inside the helmet, and even harder to see out of the dark-tinted eye openings.

“You’d better go,” Bridge said. “He’ll be really mad once he figures out you’re gone.”

Piggy didn’t have to ask who ‘he’ was. Cursing the day he had ever become involved with that treacherous, good-for-nothing bat, Piggy crept towards the door, keeping a wary eye on Bridge.

“If you go up the stairs and to the left,” Bride told him, “and then take another right and follow the long passageway to the other side of the ship, there’s a teleporter which should take you back down to Earth.”

Piggy couldn’t believe his good luck. “Uh – thanks. But what will you do about Broodwing?”

“I guess I’ll have to take my chances. And Piggy?”

“Yes?”

“I know all your hiding places,” Bridge said. “If you tell the other rangers, I’ll make sure Broodwing knows exactly where to find you.”

Piggy nodded fearfully and scurried away as fast as he could.

—

Nobody saw when Bridge returned to SPD. Silently passing by a sleeping guard, Bridge made his way back to the dorms. Finally reaching his room, he slipped inside, closing the door behind him.

His only warning was the click of a switch, and then the room was flooded with light. Bridge blinked and waited for the bright spots to fade away. Trying not to look guilty, Bridge crossed the room and sat on the edge of his bed.

“Where were you?” Sky demanded.

“Nowhere,” Bridge said. The lies were becoming easier to say, but harder to keep straight. “I couldn’t sleep, so I went up to the roof.”

“No, you didn’t,” Sky said quietly. “I checked there. I checked everywhere. In fact, I don’t think you were at SPD at all.”

“Where would I go?”

“I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me?”

Bridge said nothing.

“You see, that’s exactly it,” Sky said. “We used to be friends, but you don’t tell me anything anymore.”

“We’re still friends,” Bridge replied. “Being friends doesn’t mean that we have to tell each other everything. I mean, everyone has secrets.”

Sky shook his head. “Everyone has secrets, but not like yours. You have nothing but secrets.” And it was true. “Something is wrong, something doesn’t fit. I’ve covered for you, even lied to Cruger for you. But I can’t do it anymore. There are too many questions, questions which only you have the answer to.

Where do you go at night, Bridge? Why are your powers changing? These things can’t all be coincidence. Why is it that every time something bad happens, you’re nowhere to be found?”

“I don’t know,” Bridge said. “I guess it’s just bad luck.”

“Bad luck?” Sky said incredulously. “Look around, Bridge. We’re in a war. The whole planet is depending on us. So if you know anything that could help…”

“I already told you, I don’t know anything,” Bridge insisted. “Why can’t you just leave me alone?”

“Fine, I will,” Sky said, looking hurt. “This isn’t over, though.”

Bridge ignored him. Lying down, he turned towards the wall and pretended to sleep.

—

His mind full of anxious thoughts, Sky tossed and turned in bed. Finally falling into an uneasy sleep, he woke as the first rays of sunlight streamed through the window.

“I’m sorry, Bridge.” Sky thought, taking one last look at his sleeping roommate. “But some things really are more important than friendship.” Moving quietly, so as not to wake Bridge, Sky changed into a new uniform and crept out the door.

Haunted by a lurking sense of failure, Sky went in search of Cruger. First he went to the command center, but only Sophie and a few cadets were on duty.

The Commander didn’t seem to be in any of the training areas, either. Maybe he was with Kat, in the temporary science labs set up in the basement. Taking the stairs two at a time until he reached the lower level, Sky saw lights within and tried the door. It was locked.

A little discouraged, Sky returned to the main atrium. He arrived just in time to watch Boom get arrested for treason.

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To Be Continued

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