The Stars Are Filled With Bad Luck and Mad Fools
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Four years. That's how long it took Democrats to ruin our economy and plunge our southern border into anarchy. Who helped them hurt us? Ruben Gallego. Washington could have cut taxes for Arizona families, but Ruben blocked the bill. And his fellow Democrats gave a bigger break to the millionaire class in California and New York. They played favorites and cost us billions. And Ruben wasn't done yet.

We'll be right back.

Carrie and the Republicans will secure the border, support our families, and never turn their backs on us. Carrie Lake for Senate. I'm Carrie Lake, candidate for U.S. Senate, and I approve this message. Paid for by Carrie Lake for Senate and the NRSC.

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The door to my cabin chimes. I ignore it. My focus is on the video logs I'm currently analyzing on my tablet. Whoever is outside can wait. The door chimes again. Apparently, they will not wait. "Enter!" I shout, my eyes glued to the tablet. I haven't made my bed, and none of my half-eaten meals have been placed in the carbon reclamation chute. The chute is clogged. I need to tell maintenance as soon as I'm done analyzing the footage.

"Captain Lambert?" "What?" I ask without looking up. No need. I know it's my first officer, Commander Broussard. I'd know his voice in the middle of a raging plasma storm, when he doesn't say anything. I set my tablet aside and turn for my desk. "What is it, Broussard?" "Sir, Fleet Command has allowed us to dock, but we are confined to the ship until we have the situation sorted out," Broussard says.

His eyes stayed glued to mine, but I know he registered the mess around us. He's a tall man, much taller than most spacers. While I am just under six feet, Broussard is easily a couple of inches over that. It must make rushing through the ship a dangerous task, especially for that forehead. "Fleet Command said that?" "Yes, Captain," Broussard replies. "And why didn't Fleet Command tell me directly?" He's silent.

"Broussard, that was a direct question. As ship's captain, why didn't they contact me directly?" The man shifts from foot to foot, but maintains his composure. After a few seconds of indecision, he says, "You know why, sir?" I sneer. "This is why I've never recommended Broussard for his own command. Those seconds of indecisiveness. A captain must act."

Whether or not it is the correct action, a captain must act. To wait, to think, to decide. No, that'll kill your entire crew. "May I speak freely, sir?" Broussard asks. "Go ahead," I say. "Come in and close the door." He stiffens. "No, thank you, sir," he says. "I am fine here."

"I am your captain and I just gave you an order." I say then point to the chair on the other side of my small desk. "Come in, close the door and take a seat." I respectfully decline. "Then you are not granted permission to speak freely." I say. "Dismissed." "Sir, we need to talk." "We are talking, Commander." "Sir, about what has happened." He begins but my finger snap cuts him off. I point directly at him as I slowly stand. Broussard takes a step back, afraid.

I laugh. "Fine," I say and sit back down. "Speak freely, Commander." He hesitates, of course, before stuttering. "And signs K-K-Kane and Parker. What about them?" "Well, sir, I think we need to discuss what happened to them." He continues.

I slap my palm on my tablet screen. "What the hell do you think I've been doing in here day after day, hour after hour?" I spit as I shake the tablet at Broussard. "I've gone over the video logs again and again and there is nothing." The tablet creaks under my white-knuckled grip. "Have you checked these? Have you?" I'm shouting for sure now. What else can I do in the face of such idiocy? They have the same logs I do. Why can't they see what I do? It's all right there in front of their faces.

"See?" I yell, shaking the tablet at Broussard. From out in the passageway, Master Sergeant Shen peers into my cabin. "Commander?" he asks. "I'm fine, Shen," Broussard says, his eyes on me. Shen nods and retreats. "Sir, all surveillance logs were purged from the ship's mainframe," Broussard says before sighing. "That is what we need to talk about. Purged?" I ask, confused.

I set the tablet on my desk and bend over it. It comes to life as it scans my features. My finger taps and scrolls, pinches and swipes. "Then what the hell is this?" I hold up the tablet, showing Broussard a still image from one of the videos. Broussard closes his eyes and shakes his head. Then, his eyes snap open as sweat beads on his high forehead. He stares at me as the seconds stretch on. "Are you afraid of me, Broussard?" I narrow my eyes. "No, sir."

Oh, he's lying. The too tall bastard is lying to my face. I don't even need to see the sweat on his forehead to know that. I can smell the lies and the fear wafting off his unwashed uniform. "You need to get yourself together, Commander. You need to set an example for the subordinates. Change your uniform, take a shower," I sneer again, "and definitely do not let those bloodstains set in. That would be a disgrace to you, to this ship, and to Fleet Command."

Broussard frowns and examines his uniform. "Captain, I don't have bloodstains on my uniform. Commander, I don't have the time or patience for your crap," I say. "Take a shower, put on a clean uniform, and make sure the bloodstains do not set in. Is that so hard to understand?" "No, Captain," Broussard says. "But, sir, I have to reiterate that. Just do what I fucking say, Commander." He pauses, then nods. "Yes, Captain. Heard loud and clear.

"Good," I say and wave a hand at him. "Dismissed. But, sir, we need to talk about-" "Dismissed!" I shout. He pauses again, wasting even more precious seconds. Then he nods and backs out of my cabin. When the door slides shut and the locks engage, I return my attention to the footage. Now, what was it they said about Kane? That he left the mess to get something from his cabin and never came back? I check my notes. Yes, that's what the witnesses said.

Kane left the mess. An ensign saw him exit the starboard lift on deck 6. Another saw him leave his cabin and return to the lift. However, no one actually saw him get on the lift. In fact, the last witness says they saw me addressing Ensign Kane before the lift arrived. That doesn't make sense. I was on the bridge, not down on deck 6. That's the deck for living quarters. The one I'm on right now.

I pull up footage from Deck 6. I see Kane clear his day. He steps off the lift and heads to his cabin. I switch views and follow him. He goes into his cabin, and I lose him. Private cabins are not surveilled. Then he's back in the passageway with a book in his hands. I zoom in. Moby Dick. Dear God. No wonder everything has gone to shit. Moby Dick? What was the man thinking? Everyone knows you don't bring that book onto a ship.

If the man wasn't missing, a few weeks of latrine duty would show him what bringing bad luck on my ship means. A cramp seizes my neck muscles and I groan. I set the tablet aside and use both hands to massage the pain away. It's the same between my shoulder blades. It feels like I've pulled my entire back lifting something heavy. But all I have been lifting is this damn tablet. Damn. I can't wait to get off this ship and soak in a tub. Maybe I'll get a massage in the spaceport.

When the pain eases up enough for me to continue, I tap the tablet. Kane stands there in freeze frame with that abominable book in his hands. I let the video proceed and watch as he stops halfway down the passageway. He looks like he's talking to someone but there's no one there. With a swipe and a tap, I open my notes and reread the event order. I have a separate note for each event, but they're obviously flawed. My notes clearly state the proper findings.

1. Everyone on the ship except for me has gone mad. 2. I must remember that everyone on the ship except for me has gone mad. 3. The book is the catalyst. 4. There is a conspiracy. 5. Everyone on the ship has gone mad except for me. 6. Except for me, everyone on the ship has gone mad.

It is a solid list. A list built on hours of research. Research of surveillance footage that they all say has been purged. How can they say that when I'm staring right at it here on my tablet? In the video, Kane continues to talk to the open air. There's no audio, so I study his body language. He's not at ease, but he's not afraid either. No, no, that's embarrassment on his face. He tries to hide the book, but he's too late. My eyes go wide and I shove the tablet away from me.

What did I just see? It's impossible! Slowly, I pull the tablet back. I take a deep breath and go back two seconds in the footage. Then I play it and watch once more. What the hell? I play it again and again and again.

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Church's Original Recipe is back. You can never go wrong with original. Still tastes the same like back in the day. Right now get two pieces of chicken starting at only $2.99 or ten pieces starting at only $10.99. Church's. Offer valid at participating locations. Cain exits his cabin and stops in his tracks. He sees someone. He tries to hide the book, but he's been caught. He pulls it out from behind his back and starts talking to someone. Cain holds the book out like whoever he's talking to has asked for it.

And I swallow hard. And someone takes the book from him. Someone the cameras don't pick up. Kane is there. The book is there, but it's hovering in midair. No one is holding it. How is that possible? An old ghost story my grandfather told me comes to mind, and I laugh. Ghosts. Please. Not on my ship. The footage continues, and Kane, looking embarrassed, just stands there as the book is held up in front of him.

It's being shaken in his face. Whatever is happening, I have to say that Kane handles it well. He looks ahead at full attention, and his eyes do not go to the book once. He's staring directly at whoever is dressing him down. "Except there's no one there." I growl in frustration and rub the back of my neck. I roll my head a few times then give it a shake. After Kane receives his scolding, the book floats off down the passageway.

Kane stays at attention until he suddenly snaps to and follows the book like he's been ordered to follow. Standing at attention, getting an obvious dressing down, being ordered to follow. Whoever Kane was talking to was a superior officer, that's for sure. Except there's no one there! The door chimes. "What?" I shout. The door opens and Master Sergeant Shen looks in at me. "Are you alright, Captain?" Shen asks. "You screamed!" "I didn't know such thing."

"I thought I heard you yell something about no one here," he says. "I can assure you, sir, someone is out here at all times. If you need assistance, all you have to do is get out." I snarl. "I don't need any damn assistance." He blinks at me like a stupid pig. I expect more from a man of his rank. And why is a Master Sergeant guarding my cabin? Are they afraid of what I will discover? "Did you misunderstand me, Master Sergeant?" I snap.

"No, sir," Shen says and withdraws. My cabin door closes and locks. Okay, okay, enough of Kane. None of his footage makes sense. Let's try a different tack. I bring up the report on Ensign Parker. Twelve hours after Kane disappears, Parker goes missing too. But with Parker, there are no witnesses. He was last seen in engineering. I bring up that footage. There he is talking to Chief Engineer Curzel next to the main drive cores.

Nothing looks amiss. The two men are simply having a conversation about something pleasant. They are both smiling and laughing. A lot. What are they up to? I've known Curzel since our days in fleet command training. I trusted the man implicitly, and I used to trust Commander Broussard. Even my entire crew. Used to, anyway. But here we are. Parker leaves engineering and makes his way to the port lift. There he stops. Someone is called to him. He turns around and smiles.

Then he looks confused. Then, without warning, he's standing at attention, his back rigid and eyes locked dead ahead. Someone questions him and he looks confused. Good, good, someone should be asking him questions. He and Curzel were obviously conspiring about something. Whoever is questioning him knows it. Good, good. The lift opens and Parker looks behind him. Then he looks forward again and frowns.

This happens several times, and waves of nervousness comes off the ensign before he finally steps onto the lift. But the lift doors don't close behind him right away as they should. It's as if they are waiting for someone else to enter the lift. Except there is no one else there. After a couple of seconds, the lift doors close. I skip ahead to the footage of Parker on the lift. He looks uncomfortable. He's standing at attention and keeps wincing. Wincing as if he's getting dressed down.

Just like Kane. Parker suddenly whips his head around to look at whoever is giving him hell. Then his head snaps back to attention, his eyes forward. Damn, someone's really tearing into him. I switch footage to where Parker exits the lift. On the living quarters deck. The deck I'm on right now. Parker is already talking as he leaves the lift. It looks like he's trying to make some case. He's pleading with whoever is following him down the passageway. Then he stops outside a cabin and turns around defiantly.

Someone has called his bluff and he's not happy about it. He shakes his head over and over. Then he reaches out and tries to push whoever it is aside. Wrong move. The cabin door behind him slides open and Parker is shoved backward into the cabin. He tries to escape, but he's knocked back even harder. It looks like someone has hit him. He puts a hand to his cheek and then looks at it. Blood. A lot of blood. And it's pouring down the side of his face. He charges the door but doesn't make it out of the cabin as he's hit again.

And again, and again. The cabin door closes and the footage stops there. I play the footage back over and over. I try to see whose cabin Parker is forced into, but I can't quite make out the number no matter how hard I try to zoom in or enhance the image. Someone tampered with the footage. I take a deep breath and push away from my desk, staring up at the ceiling while my mind whirs to find some logic in this. Kane looks like he's in an argument over the book.

A forbidden book that everyone knows is not allowed on board my ship. He's called out on it and then he disappears. Parker is caught conspiring with Chief Engineer Curzel. He's called out on it and then he disappears. It doesn't make sense. But I know what I have to do. I open comms. "I need to see Chief Engineer Curzel immediately," I say. "Captain?" Voice responds.

Did you not hear me? I snap. I need to see Chief Engineer Kurzel immediately. Make that happen now. I cut comms. I don't need more idiocy in my ear. I'm the captain of this ship, and when I give an order, I expect it to be carried out. Five minutes go by. Ten minutes go by. No Kurzel. Twenty minutes go by. Thirty minutes go by.

I'm about to open comms again when my cabin door chimes. "Enter!" I shout. "Huh, this will be good. I've seen the evidence." Curzel won't know what hit him. Instead, Broussard returns. "Where's Chief Engineer Curzel?" I ask. Broussard narrows his eyes and stands there with his back to the open cabin door. "I'm hoping you can tell me, sir," he says and waits. I wait too. Seconds tick by. Broussard says nothing.

"Fine," I say. "What are you hoping I can tell you, Commander?" "Where Chief Engineer Curzel is, sir," Broussard says. "Is he not in engineering? That would be the logical place to look, Commander. He is not in engineering, and he hasn't been since his shift ended. Then how would I know where he is? I've been cooped up in my cabin." "No, sir, you were not. The chief's shift ended one hour before you were asked to remain in your cabin."

Asked? I laugh. I don't remember being asked to remain in my cabin. I was told to do so. Broussard doesn't respond. I sigh. Okay, Commander. Let's shove all this bullshit aside and say what is really happening here. Can we do that, Commander? Can we be honest with each other? I hope so, sir. Broussard responds. Good. Because what is really happening here is a mutiny. Right, Commander? Yes.

"No, sir!" Broussard responds instantly. "I am not a fool!" "I do not think you are, Captain. Far from it." "Then stop lying to me!" I shout. "Sir?" Shen asks, appearing behind Broussard. "I'm fine, Master Sergeant," Broussard says without taking his eyes off me. "Are you sure, sir?" Shen asks. He looks at me. "I can restrain him if needed."

"What did you just say?" I roar and jump up from my seat. The tranq pistol is in Shen's hands, faster than I can track, and it is aimed directly at me. "I've got this, Shen," Broussard says. "Step back outside, please. I'm leaving the door open, sir," Shen says as he reluctantly holsters his pistol. Then he's lost from sight, leaving me semi-alone with Broussard again.

"Do you know where Chief Engineer Curzel is, Captain?" Broussard asks. "Do I know where the conspiring traitor is?" I reply. "No, I do not."

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Broussard stares at me, then shakes his head and leaves.

The door closes silently behind him. I immediately sit down and bring up footage of the engineering deck. I skip past where Kurzel and Parker have their little planning session and fast forward to the end of Kurzel's shift. He leaves engineering and takes the lift up to the living quarters deck, the same deck I'm being held on. Kurzel steps off the lift and comes to a sudden halt. He looks down at his chest like someone has placed a hand there and is physically keeping him from taking another step.

Whoever it is, they've sniffed out Curzel's betrayal already. Good for them. Unlike the two Ensigns, Curzel looks angry immediately. He stares down at his chest, looks up at whoever is in front of him, and slaps the invisible hand away. Curzel throws a punch at the invisible Inquisitor. Of course, he looks to be tussling by himself, but that's impossible.

The man wrestles and almost gets free, but his head is knocked back and blood spills from his crushed nose. I laugh. He took a hard knee to the face is what happened. Whoever this invisible person is, he's good. With one hand to his bashed nose and the other hand warding off his attacker, Kurzel backs down the passageway. He opens his mouth to cry out. Without sound, I can't tell if he manages to get anything out before his head rocks back.

He's hit so hard that his teeth shatter and fly in every direction. Blood splatters everywhere. Then the man crumples to the deck and his limp body is dragged down the passageway to a cabin door. The door slides open, and Krizel is pulled inside. "Shen!" I shout. After two seconds, which is a ridiculous amount of time for me to wait, my cabin door slides open.

"Captain?" Shen asks from my doorway. "Come here and look at this." I say and wave him over. "No, sir." He replies. "Do I need to repeat myself?" I ask. He must not have hurt me. "No, sir. I am fine right here." He says. "What is it you need? I need you to fucking come over here and look at this fucking footage." I shout. "No, sir." He says calmly.

I start to stand, but Shen's hand flies to his tranq pistol. "No, sir!" He insists and shakes his head. I grind my teeth. I can feel the enamel chip and I taste bone. Then I swallow, take a deep breath, and smile at Shen. "Then I'll describe it to you, Master Sergeant." He doesn't reply or take his hand off his pistol. "Krisel was taken on this very deck," I say. He stepped off the lift and was accosted immediately.

Shen frowns. "How do you know this? Because I watched the fucking footage!" I yell. Shen cocks his head, fingers tightening on the pistol. I growl, but hiss out a sigh, calming down. "Kurzel was accosted at the lift." I continue. "Then a fight ensued. If you look out in the passageway, you should see blood and bits of teeth. That's all Kurzel's-" Shen's eyes widen. He doesn't say a thing to me. He just backs out, and the door closes and locks.

The madness must make them all allergic to the truth. That's it. It's something in them. Something worked its way inside their minds and warped them against reality. "But I've seen reality," I say as I tap the tablet. I bring up the Curzel footage and desperately try to see what cabin he was dragged into. But just like with Parker, I can't make out the number. An hour goes by. Two hours.

I'm getting hungry. But then I look around my cabin at all the trays of half-eaten meals and my appetite goes away. I really should dump all of that into the carbon reclamation chute. I even stand up to do so. But then remember, it's clogged. Yet again, my thoughts are interrupted by a fucking chime at my cabin door. "What?" I shout. The door slides open for a man I don't recognize.

Captain Lambert, he says. It's not a question. Yeah? And who the fuck are you? I ask. He smiles and takes a step inside my cabin. Sir! I hear Master Sergeant Shen say from out in the passageway. I'll be fine, Master Sergeant, the man says and takes another step inside my cabin. I have experience with this. I should be in there with you, sir, Shen says. Oh, let the man come in, Shen, I shout. Silence drags on.

"I'll be fine," the man says finally. "Yes, sir," Shen says just as the cabin door closes. "I don't know you," I say. "And you aren't in a uniform. So I suppose you're some civilian?" "No, Captain," the man says. "I'm Lieutenant Commander Levi, Chief Investigator for Fleet Command's Division of Investigative Services." "Oh yeah, I've heard of you. It's about time they sent someone competent to sort out this madness." "Madness? Why do you say that?"

because they've all gone mad and turned against me." I yell. Then I hold up the tablet. "They say all surveillance footage was purged, but I have it all right here." He watches me closely and studies me. I snort and shake my head as I sit down and set the tablet on my desk. "You don't believe me," I say. "I wouldn't say that," Levi says. He gestures to the empty chair at my desk. "May I sit and have a look at the footage?" "Yes, of course." He smiles and takes a seat.

removing a black orb from his pocket. "May I record our chat?" he asks. "Since the surveillance system is completely offline, this is the only way to maintain a proper record of our conversation." "I don't care what you do." "Good," he says, and places a finger on the orb. "Lieutenant Commander Joshua Levi with Captain Victor Lambert. It is 1800 hours on May 17th, 2309.

"You done?" I ask, impatient to get to the facts. "Yes, thank you," he says and looks at my hands. "May I?" He reaches for the tablet, but I yank it out of his reach. "Nice try," I say. "Do you think I'm a fool?" "Of course not," Levi says. "You are a highly decorated captain of one of the flagships of the fleet. A fool does not achieve that kind of stature. That

"Pardon?" "You said achieve that kind of stature." "That, as in the past tense. I think you mean this." "A fool does not achieve this kind of stature. I am still captain of this ship." "My apologies," Levi says. "Of course you are." "Don't you condescend to me. I'm the only one that knows what's going on here." "Which is exactly why I'm sitting across from you." "Can you explain to me what exactly is going on here?" "I can fucking show you!" I shout.

The cabin door slides open. "We are fine, Master Sergeant," Levi says as Shen looks in on us. "Sir, I really must insist that the door stays open," Shen says. "As Chief of Security, it's my duty to..." "I said we're fine," Levi interrupts. "Thank you. Yes, Shen, thank you." I glare at the mad traitor. The door slides closed. "Show me," Levi says and nods at the tablet in my hands.

"Show me what is going on here, Captain." "I'm holding the tablet," I say. "Yes, of course." Angling the tablet so he can see, but still keeping it out of his reach, I bring up the footage of Kane. "He leaves the mess here," I say, narrating the action so he doesn't miss anything. He takes the lift down to this very deck, then he retrieves a book from his cabin. "A book?" Levi asks, looking puzzled. "What book?"

I laugh. "You'll never guess. There are billions of books, so I suppose I never will guess. But before you tell me, let me ask another question first if I may." He waits for me to respond. I nod. "When you say a book, do you actually mean a physical book?" He asks. "Not on a tablet, but a paper and ink printed book. That's what a book is." "Okay, yes." He says and nods. "Okay yes what?"

"That is what his shipmates have said," Levi says, "that Kane was going down to his cabin to retrieve an actual physical book he keeps with him. Apparently, the book has been in his family for generations. They say he said it was his good luck charm." "Good luck charm? Do you know what book it is?" "No, Captain Lambert, I do not." "Tell me, please." "Fucking Moby Dick!" I shout, triumphant. "He'll for sure understand now."

but all I see is puzzlement on his face. "Moby Dick?" "Yes!" I say, eager for him to get it. "The book by Herman Melville?" "Yes, can you believe it? Can you believe any fool would dare to bring that book on my ship?"

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I hold the tablet a little closer so he can see it more clearly. "There!" I shout. "Right there! See? He holds out the book, showing it to someone! The fucking audacity!" "Um, right. Yes. And exactly why is he audacious?" "For bringing that book on my ship! It's bad luck! A ship with that book on it is doomed!" "Oh. I've never heard of that before." "What?" I laugh. "Every decent sailor knows that!"

"Do they?" Levi asks. "I'm sorry, Captain Lambert, but that's a new one to me." My shoulders slump. He's as mad as all the rest. I set the tablet aside and rub my face. When I look at Levi again, he is watching me closely. "What?" I ask. "Please continue. What happens to Ensign Kane? He gets into an argument with someone." I say, no longer interested in telling this imposter the truth.

His madness has closed him off, just like it has with my crew. "Who does he get into an argument with?" Levi asks. I shrug. "Please, Captain Lambert. I want to hear your theory." "My theory? Why? I'm sorry? Why what?" "Why bother listening to me when your mind is already made up?" I ask. "Your mad, mad mind." "Mad mind? You think I'm mad?" I shrug.

He grabs for the black orb, but I grab his wrist before he can take the recorder away. "Captain," he says quietly. I look down and snatch my hand away. "That was rude of me." "It's all right," he says. "You are under a good amount of stress, M, yes," I say and sigh. "I mean, look at the state of my cabin, will you? The captain's cabin shouldn't look like this." He smiles and looks around. I see him studying the mess.

His eyes fixate on the half-eaten meals on the food trays. Then he looks back at me. "Is your carbon reclamation chute out of order?" "It's clocked," I say. "I've been so absorbed in studying the footage that I haven't called maintenance." "Understandable," he says and starts to stand up. "Here, let me help tidy up a bit."

We can at least put the trash in the chute for now. Get it off your bed and your floor and your nightstand." "No!" I cry and get to my feet. "This is my cabin, and it is my responsibility to clean up my own mess." He hesitates and then lowers himself back into the chair. I move to one of the trays that's sitting on my bedside table. Then I spin around and hurry to the tablet. "No you don't," I say, and tuck the tablet into my waistband at the small of my back.

"There's nothing to worry about, sir," he says. "I've seen all I need to on that tablet." I ignore his lies and return to the tray. With one eye on Levi, I go to the carbon reclamation chute and lift the small door. The cramps in my neck and back become a million times worse and I wince. "Captain?" Levi asks. "Are you alright?" Then he puts a hand to his nose. "What's that smell? The chute is clogged," I say. "I already told you that."

Just as I close the chute, Levi leans forward and points. "Hold on! What was that?" he asks and stands up. "Open that chute again, please. Why?" My hand is still on the chute's handle. "I saw something in there," he said. His eyes lock on mine. "Captain, I'd like you to step away from the chute," he says then points at the opposite corner of my cabin. "Stand over there, please." "No."

"Do I need to call Master Sergeant Shen?" he asks. "Fuck you!" I say, and retreat to the far corner of my cabin. Once I'm in place, Levi moves to the chute. He tries to keep an eye on me too, but he fails the moment he opens the chute. "Holy God!" he whispers, then reaches in and pulls something out from the top of the refuse heap that clogs my carbon reclamation chute. I watch him inspect the item.

Then he looks past what's in his hands and at the clog itself. "Oh fuck!" he says and whirls around. But it's too late for Levi. I'm already racing across the cabin by the time the words have passed his lips. I pick up the black orb, lift it over my head, and bring it down in a brutal arc, connecting with Levi's left temple. His knees buckle, and I shove him hard into the chute. As he falls back onto the clog, his grip loosens and the item tumbles to the deck.

With weak hands, Levi tries to ward me off, but he can't stop the blow as I rain down on him. The orb connects over and over with his head until his face is mush. My cabin door opens behind me, and in seconds, hands grab me by my shoulders and throw me across my cabin. My head hits the wall, and I'm slightly dazed as hands grab me again, then throw me face down onto my bunk. My arms are pulled up behind my back and secured.

Broussard hurries past my bunk to the chute. It must be Shen's knee in the center of my back. "Oh god!" Broussard says as he carefully pulls Levi's body from the chute and lowers it to the floor. He checks for a pulse. Good luck with that. Realizing he can't save Levi, Broussard stands and looks in the chute. "Dear god." He whispers.

"Oh, come on," Shen says, his knee still pinning me down. "Don't tell me they've been in there all this time." Broussard turns around, and I can see the sickly green color of his skin. He nods. "Fuck," Shen says. "I'll call it in." While Shen calls his security team and the ship's doctor, I look down at the item lying at Broussard's feet. "Can you put that back in there, Commander?" I ask. Broussard glances down at his feet and picks up the item.

He studies it and shakes his head. "Cain's book," he states. "You killed him over a book? Moby Dick!" I respond. "The worst luck a ship can have is to have that book on board. Jesus," he says, and lets the bloody book fall from his grip. "Then why kill the others? Isn't it obvious?" I ask. "The bad luck was spreading and I had to stop it. Obviously, I am too late since all of you are mad.

"This is crazy," Broussard whispers. "Crazy?" I ask with a laugh. "You can clearly see them conspiring in the footage on my tablet." Broussard snags my tablet from my desk and holds it up for me to see. "There is no footage!" he yells. "I had your tablet disconnected from the network!" "No, no, no!" I say, and stare at the tablet's screen. It's blank.

He puts the tablet closer to my face. You purged the surveillance data from the mainframe, he says. Levi's techs were able to access our system, and they found your authorization code hidden in there. You wiped it all clean. No. I repeat as I shake my head. I saw it all. I believe you did see it all, Broussard says. Because you did it all. Images flood my brain, but not images of surveillance footage. These images are...

"Memories? I see myself in the footage now. I argue with Kane. I confront Parker. I bash Krizel's teeth in. I glance at Levi's body on the deck, and then up to Roussard's face. "You should be thanking me," I say as the sound of heavy boots fills my ears, and I'm lifted off my bunk by several hands. "Thanking you? I stopped the bad luck," I say. "You're welcome." I laugh at the look on Roussard's face as I'm dragged out of my cabin.

The ungrateful fools have no idea what I've done for them. The poor mad mad fools.