By Rochelle L. Sharpe
Therrus picked flowers with Harmony Star in a field near their cottages.
“Luke! Come look at this!” Harmony called.
His heart panged every time she used his alias, but she couldn’t know his real identity. His true reptilian humanoid form would scare her, no matter how much she loved animals. Humans were not yet aware of the vast array of other races in the galaxies.
“Coming!” He made his way over to her, pulling down the baseball cap that covered his bald head.
He wasn’t supposed to engage with the humans. With Harmony, he couldn’t resist. Among other things, he loved hearing her sing and play her ukulele—an instrument he struggled with since he had six fingers on each hand. She made his job of studying humans easy. He was fortunate to be assigned a cottage across from a sweet girl like her.
Harmony beamed as she displayed a small green plant. “This is our lucky day! A four-leaf clover!”
He adjusted his thick glasses. “Amazing!” Though he didn’t really understand why the small green plant meant luck.
A boom rattled the sky, shaking the earth.
Harmony screamed and clung to Therrus.
Crackling filled the air. “Attention humans! This is Captain toVahruru of the Rovian Peacekeeping Forces.”
Therrus’s stomach tightened. What were the Rovians doing here? There was still time left on the Earthan Initiative. They shouldn’t have arrived yet.
“The Intergalactic Society has deemed humans unworthy of existence,” the captain continued. “Your planet shall be destroyed in five Earth minutes.”
Harmony trembled beside Therrus. “What’s going on, Luke?”
Therrus frowned. “Something that shouldn’t be.”
His commander teleported in front of them.
Harmony gasped.
Thankfully, Sharuss was wearing her human disguise. “We are evacuating the planet, Therrus. You must teleport to the ship immediately.”
“I’m not coming with you.” He refused to run away in the face of such wicked injustice. He would do whatever he could to stop it.
“The Rovians will not change their mind,” Sharuss said. “If you stay, you will die with the humans.”
“They have cast judgment before the mission is over. What they’re doing is illegal.” He would not let them destroy the people he had grown to love.
“Illegal or not, they have set the Annihilator on top of Mount Everest, and we have four minutes until it detonates.”
“I have to save them.” He clenched his fists.
Sharuss sighed heavily. “Ever the optimist, Therrus. You have made the Civarans proud with your contributions.”
He pushed his shoulders back, jutting out his chin. “Thank you.”
“As you like to say, ‘May the fort be with you.’”
Therrus shook his head. “Force.”
Sharuss looked at him blankly.
“Never mind.”
She teleported away.
Harmony was in tears. “Luke?”
He gave Harmony a sad smile as he cupped her cheek. “Everything is going to be okay. I will fix this.”
He teleported to Mount Everest. The Annihilator was an orb the size of a basketball and glowed as it floated in the air.
A timer counted down: three minutes left.
Using the portal hopper on his wrist, he opened a com link with the Rovian captain.
“Please, Captain, you have to stop this,” he begged. “I have met a lot of good people here. Kind people. Sweet people. The good. The brave. The best.” Though they were considered primitive, he thought humans were anything but. The captain would have seen the truth if he had read the reports Therrus sent.
“Ha!” The captain’s harsh tone made him flinch. “They’re wicked, vile creatures capable of causing great harm to one another. They have been found unworthy to join the Intergalactic Society and must be destroyed.”
Heat blazed over Therrus’s true skin, and he fought to keep his voice calm. “What about Harmony Star who loves animals and would do anything to save them? Or Miriel Takkenridge who would brave another world to save it? Or Joe Enza, an excellent problem solver? And Kytt Windthorn may be a thief, but she has a good heart. Spark Spaulding is a bit of a roguish fellow, but he leans toward good. Even Ethel Grieves, deep down, is hurt and lonely beneath her tough exterior. She can be redeemed. That’s the thing with these humans—they can all be redeemed.”
“They have been found guilty and will be destroyed, Therrus. Get off the planet or you will die with them.”
The com link cut out.
Therrus had no choice. He set up a new com link with Sharuss.
“Change your mind, Therrus?” she asked.
“No, you must hyperdrive as far away from here as you can.”
“What’s your plan?”
“Do me a favor. Tell the humans to live long and prosper.”
Therrus cut the connection, praying his commander would listen to him. He reopened a link with the Rovians.
“Thirty seconds, Therrus,” the captain warned.
“Permission to come aboard, Captain?”
“Granted.”
He was a simple scientist, not a fighter, but this was the only thing left to do. Heart racing, he grabbed the orb. “For you, Harmony,” he whispered, and teleported onto the Rovian ship.
The eyes of the Rovians turned to him, growing wide as they saw the Annihilator in his hands.
“Therrus!” the captain shouted, racing toward him.
Three…
Two…
One.
Click!
The orb exploded in a bright light. Therrus closed his eyes, ready to meet his Maker. Humans would live to have their chance of redemption, and that’s what mattered. Peace washed over him, sound fading as heat pierced his heart.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Very good, well written, I enjoyed it, a good five minute read
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Oh my GOSH! What a brilliant story! I absolutely loved this—Therrus’ characterization, the references to other characters, and That Ending! 😭💔 Fabulous job.
Your kind words mean so much to me! Thank you for creating such a great character!
Loved this story! I’m a sucker for Star Trek-style stories. Also, I especially loved the bittersweet ending.
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you loved it!
Exciting stuff!
Thank you!
Brilliant and fun!!!
Thank you!
“That’s the thing with these humans—they can all be redeemed.”
I got goosebumps and even teared up. I also love how you packed so much emotion and included references to the other multiverse characters in this piece. Awesome story! 😊❤️
Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it! It was fun to weave the other characters in.
Wow! What a story! A great version of the Therrus character, and a great (unexpected) ending.
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
If you want to save the planet, Therrus, maybe don’t mention the humans. Instead, talk about the dogs. Everybody loves dogs!
Yes, dogs! If only Therrus had thought of that!
Such bravery, sacrifice, and understanding, Therrus. Praise God humans can be redeemed. Great work on this story! I also love how you wove in the other multiversal characters. 🥰
Praise God indeed! Thank you for reading!