Rivers of Orion

take down a B-class.”
“Please, Casey. Please help me!”
The captain held Kendra’s imploring gaze. “Let me think about it.”
◆◆◆
The crew formed a line leading from the chow hall to the galley. Cajun served them lobster bisque and seasoned rice, and chatter filled the compartment. They returned to the mess deck and gathered round the table, where Casey called for their attention. “I have a couple of announcements to make.”
As conversation died off, she paused to take stock of her crew. April sat across from her, and Kendra sat next to April. Going down the line, she regarded Edison Stone, a tall and collected fellow with dark brown skin and a casually tended beard. Beside him sat Malmoradan Taig, a mountain of an ocelini with tuxedo fur.
Next to Casey, sitting a full head taller than Malmoradan, Shona Chelsea leaned over the table, resting upon her forearms. She looked at her captain with glinting emerald eyes, partly obscured by her auburn bangs. A pair of thick braids hung over her shoulders. On the other side of her sat Krané Glorwae, a cullthoun with elegant purple coloration under his sunset-mottled skin. His arm tentacles looked strong, and the four smaller ones extending from his chin moved gracefully, dexterously. At the very end, Cajun plopped down, wearing a jovial smile hidden within a full, braided beard.
“First off,” Casey continued, “Kendra is leaving us. We’ll be parting ways at Bonnyrigg Station, in orbit over a little planet called New Falkirk. Krané, that’s Ixion Five on the star charts.” She shared a bittersweet smile. “Cajun, I fully expect you to write her a proper shanty as part of a proper sendoff.”
Shocked and surprised chatter filled the mess deck as her crew shared tears and hugs.
As conversation died down, Casey said, “We also have a new bounty. Kendra found us a doozy, most likely a foreign spy. He goes by Orin Webb, and he lives in a backwater town called New California City, located on the northeastern continent of the planet Rhyon.”
“That’s also in Ixion System,” said Kendra, with a dash of personal pride.
“You’re the very champion of efficiency.” With a friendly wink, Casey continued. “He’s lived there for at least twenty years, and no one’s tried for him. He’s probably grown very comfortable. That means we can take our time observing him and develop the most effective takedown strategy. After chow, let’s meet in the briefing room to go over what we know and what we don’t.”
“Captain, please excuse me, but Ixion System is almost eighty thousand light years away!” Krané exclaimed through his vocoder. “It’s at least a month’s flight through the nightmare from here.” His glassy, barn-red eyes looked damp.
“I’ve had a chance to review Kendra’s data, and yes it’s a long haul, but it’ll be worth the trip.”
Krané’s oral tentacles writhed gently. “It’s not the overall duration I’m worried about. After spending a month in the nightmare, some ships don’t make it out! Sometimes, the indigenous fauna takes notice, and if they’re hungry…” He gulped. “Or thirsty…”
Casey waved dismissively. “Old starfarers’ tales.”
“Not all of them.”
“You’re right, not all of them, but nothing like that’s happened for close to a century; not since the advent of the S-Ring. If you want to talk risk and reward—”
She caught herself.
“Look, this is a big score no one else seems to know about, and I’m going after it. If any of you are nervous about spending a month in the nightmare, that’s fine. You’re more than welcome to take a siesta here on Earth—unpaid, of course. Anyone who prefers science to superstition, meet me in the briefing room after chow.”
Cajun nodded enthusiastically. “About time!” He gestured toward the feast. “Hurry up, ya here? Don’t let it cold up on ya.” The mess deck faded into chatter, clinking, and eating.

Chapter 2
Into the Labyrinth
Black lights bathed the starship Old Siberian’s command deck. A warning lamp brightened from behind a glass panel, and Ellylle drank in its orange glow as it washed over the supple bark of her skin. We’re getting close, she thought. A smile gathered, and her limbs glided into motion.
Overhead lights flickered on in response.
Across from her, on the other side of a wide rail, a crescent of seven figures stood motionless against a curved bulkhead. Like her, their bark, branches, and leaves covered them from top to bottom. Oak faces sprouted from the tops of their trunks, wreathed in cascades of ivy and countless flowers. When the middle tree moved to speak, he moved gently, a whispered breeze as blooms opened and closed.
[Eternal Vanam Ellylle Fenmore, it appears you were correct,] said Sacas.
Ellylle bowed deeply. [Sacas, you doubted me?] Her vibrant, multicolored blooms betrayed her thrill.
[Do try to contain yourself,] said Sheyesh, though her own blooms practically glowed. [And I’ll attempt to do the same!] She paused to regard Ellylle. [You left the bridge, yesterday. Where did you go?]
[Sheyesh, it is not your place to question the Eternal Vanam,] said Sacas.
[It is friendly curiosity. Cool your roots,] said Sheyesh.
Ellylle raised her thickest branches. [I’m happy to answer.] She offered cheerful rustling to Sheyesh. [I made some adjustments to the large shuttle’s shield frequencies. It was the only practical way of assuring our passage.]
[Oh?] Sheyesh tilted slightly. [You were away for almost four hours.]
Ellylle swayed patiently. [Their technology is relatively primitive, compared to our own. It was an involved process.]
[Good point. How sad it would be that in the hour of our triumph, we crashed upon the very walls we meant to bypass,] said Sheyesh. [Gusty are the winds of change at the vanguard of our hurricane. Surely, awakening the Caretakers will usher in a second age of the Forest of Worlds!]
[Sheyesh,] cautioned Sacas, [the rest of the crew will soon be waking from their long slumber. They will find their way here directly, and we must all be certain not to give away our intent.]
But for Ellylle, they all curved in response.
It wasn’t long before the lift’s hum announced the