Battle Luna

by Travis S. Taylor

  “I understand and will comply.”

  He was still prickly nervous. “Very well, sir. You can disarm now.”

  Saying it didn’t cause much relief, but seeing all the rifles piled did help. The troops doing so unloaded and cleared them all in the process.

  Rojas and Godin checked the weapons as they retrieved them, piled them all into a trailer on a quad, and drove them down the passage to where one of the security officers could take them to be secured. Andre wasn’t sure where that was and figured that was safer.

  That done, he called Arris and said, “You may proceed.”

  Each cycle took a full minute to lock, clear and open, and the security officers made the Ueys desuit, then patted them down, before escorting them into the habitat. They must be getting placed into empty cubes and trusted locations where they couldn’t reach any equipment, and what about the sympathizers up here? This might not be over yet.

  There was Morton, and Andre said, “Ravi, you’re in charge for a moment.”

  He skipped out into the passage.

  Morton looked shaken, and was obviously having trouble breathing. That might be with him for a while or for life. But he was alive. Two of the Ueys were assisting him, and Doctor Nik was arriving on a Quad, with two medics and a gurney.

  “Stu, glad you made it, and thanks.”

  Morton smiled weakly. “We did it.”

  “You did. Now lie down and do as the good doctor tells you.”

  He shook hands, and Morton’s grip was still firm. He’d be fine.

  As the number of Ueys waiting dropped, Andre did relax a bit. Having what were effectively human shields scattered inside was useful, as was a few dozen weapons and some extra equipment. He wasn’t sure yet what the crew aboard the ships would do. Could they even launch out? Likely not.

  Watching on vid, he had to give the Ueys their due. They were all fit, all wrung out, all near complete collapse. They’d given it everything they had. Stout, worthwhile people. They’d do well here. Though he didn’t think any applications would be accepted unless this resolved favorably.

  Was that even possible? Probably the only solutions were to destroy the device so no one had it, or crack it and share the schematics publicly. Hopefully the good would outweigh the bad. Though he expected some terrorist nukes to be among the first round of creation.

  It took an hour to move them all in and separate them. He was given a partial update from Control. The Ueys were literally scattered with no means of communication. Quite a few were in lockup, others in secondary habitats with no vac gear. That should keep them from mischief, and he’d offer whatever he came up with, but it wasn’t his problem after this.

  Arris was the last, after all his troops. That was the proper thing to do.

  The colonel was not at all what Crawford expected. Despite the soft voice, he was huge. He had to work out daily to be that chiseled, and that wasn’t a standard-sized suit.

  But he sounded so gentlemanly and mild. His hulking exterior didn’t hide the sheepishness and disappointment in his demeanor, either.

  “Mr Crawford, I congratulate you on a very stubborn and successful defense.”

  “Thank you, sir. I appreciate your professionalism and graciousness in minimizing casualties. If only the politicians could be as courteous.”

  Arris carefully turned off his helmet power and placed it on the deck.

  “Are you recording?” he asked.

  “I am.”

  “Can I ask you to pause it for a moment, for a personal comment?”

  That was a bit dodgy, but it could be useful.

  He hard disconnected the mic.

  He said, “If you face this way, the cameras won’t see your lips move.”

  Arris turned and seemed to relax quite a bit. “Thank you. I am clear here?”

  “You are.”

  The man said, “For all our sakes, I hope to persuade you to just destroy the device entirely. As you noted, it offers provocations to groups we’d have to fight, and could lead to endless internecine warfare between nations and separatist groups who have just in the last few years been persuaded to reduce their aggressions.”

  “This is unofficial?”

  “This is me as an individual who will be charged with wading in to clean up messes caused by people with far less moral compass than you. Please consider it, and you can open your channels again now.”

  “Yes, sir. And welcome to the Moon.”

  “Thank you. It is possible I will ask to remain.”

  Moondog

  by Kacey Ezell

  Back home, she’d been a ballroom dancer in her free time. Mostly Latin dances, with a smattering of smooth routines here and there over the years. She wasn’t a superstar, but she’d been to a few competitions, brought home a few trophies. Mostly it was just a good, fun way to stay flexible and in shape. That, coupled with the more intense athletic training that was always part of the job, allowed Leiko Soloway to feel like she was a fairly graceful individual. Like she was in control of her body and its movement.

  But that was back home, before the divorce that had sent her into a freefall of wild decisions and ended up with her accepting a five-year contract to work security here, in Rinehart Dome.

  On the moon.

  “It’s easier if you don’t try to walk.”

  Leiko looked up to find the speaker, a young, blond male fellow passenger in his mid-twenties, smiling at her with an understanding expression in his blue eyes. “The reduced gravity throws your rhythm off. Try hopping, like those old videos of the first moon landings? It’s easier to keep your balance that way.”

  “Thanks,” Leiko murmured, and looked back down again at the smallish overnight bag that held her possessions. She’d dropped it in favor of grabbing the exit ramp wall in order to keep from falling on her face under the feet of the other passengers disembarking from the moon shuttle.

  “Let me get that for you—” The young man bent to grab the strap of her bag, but Leiko was faster, her hand shot out in a block that rapped against his forearm hard enough to bruise. The young man hissed and bounced backwards, cradling his arm to his chest.

  “Ah—I’m sorry,” Leiko said, “It’s just . . .”

  “No, it’s okay,” the young man said, his wide grin returning. “I forgot, you Earthers are paranoid about theft when you first arrive. I should have known better. You don’t have to worry, though. People don’t just take your stuff up here.”

  “People aren’t people up here?” she asked as she gathered her courage and bent to pick up the bag. She straightened slowly and looped the strap over her head and shoulders.

  “Ha!” he said. “Yes, we’re still people. But it’s not acceptable to take what isn’t yours. We’re a small community, when it comes down to it. Everyone knows everyone, and DomeSec would find out sooner or later. There’s only so many places to hide. I’m Ryder, by the way.”

  “Leiko,” she said, taking his outstretched hand and shaking it. “Thanks for the help.”

  “You’re welcome. First trip to the moon?”

  She nodded.

  “You’re doing better than most. Ready to give it another try?”

  “Sure.” She shifted her bag around so that it sat against her lower back and resolutely let go of the wall.

  “Atta girl. Remember, hop, don’t walk.” He demonstrated, bending his knees and pushing off in a split-legged jump that took him a few feet further down the corridor.

  “Right.” Leiko flexed her own knees and tried to mimic his movements. Once again, years of following choreographers paid off as she executed a neat, graceful little hop to land beside him.

  “I did it,” she said, smiling up at him. Perhaps it was silly, but she felt as flushed with victory as a toddler who finally manages to let go of the furniture and walk to their parent.

  “Good work!” Ryder said, “I knew you could! Now that we’ve got that out of the way, want to head to baggage claim? I imagine you’ve got mor
e stuff if this is your first trip up here.”

  “Nope,” she said, her smile fading. She patted her bag. “This is it. All my worldly goods . . . for the most part. I travel light.”

  “Wow, okay,” he said. “So then you’re probably headed to check in somewhere . . . ?”

  “My job. They said to come by the station when I arrived. I guess they have housing lined up for me here.”

  “Oh! That’s cool. Where do you work, then?”

  “Rinehart Dome Security.”

  Ryder’s blue eyes widened and his eyebrows climbed high enough to hide behind his oh-so-casually tousled wisps of blond hair. “DomeSec? Really?”

  “Yep,” she said, giving him a half smile. “What’s wrong, I don’t look like the type?” She knew that she didn’t. Her long dark hair, relatively petite build and almond shaped eyes didn’t exactly give off a “security professional” vibe. It was one of her big assets.

  “Well . . .” he shrugged his shoulders and smiled again. “Not really. Most of the DomeSec guys are pretty big dudes. I didn’t think they hired women. Working with the dogs is a pretty physical job.”

  “They hired me,” she said with her own shrug. “Want to show me where it is?”

  “Sure thing! It’s just this way . . .”

  As they bounced through the arrival terminal and out onto the Dome’s main thoroughfare, Ryder regaled her with his life story.

  “I wasn’t born up here,” he said. “Though I’ve lived on the moon most of my life. My parents were two of the original colonists that laid the foundation for Rinehart. Mom’s a structural engineer and Dad’s a hydrologist. They took a three year sabbatical on Earth to have me and my brother, and then moved back up here as soon as we boys were old enough. I grew up here.”

  “Really?” Leiko asked, fascinated despite herself. “How did that affect you, growing up in reduced gravity?”

  “Mostly it made my mom a fanatic about our workouts,” he said with a laugh. “And she’d send us down to our grandparents’ for a few months out of every year. So we could develop properly.”

  “That must have been expensive.”

  “Part of the contract,” he said with a grin. “Mom’s pretty highly sought-after, so she could name her terms. She designed Rinehart Dome, you know. Named it after her best friend Jill. She was a nature photographer and artist back on Earth. That’s the reason Rinehart has its signature landscaping. Mom did it as a tribute to her friend.”

  “That’s pretty cool,” Leiko said, taking a moment to look around. Unlike the stark moonscape she’d imagined, the interior of the dome teemed with color and life. Someone must have added nutrients to the lunar soil, because plants spread out in every direction: grasses, wildflowers, ground running vines. Tall stands of bamboo stretched up higher than Leiko had ever seen at home. Fruit trees that looked old enough that they almost had to have been transplants interlaced their branches in a gorgeous arch over top of the elevated pedestrian walkway where they stood. Leiko looked down and to the left, where large wheeled vehicles rolled by on big, balloon-like tires. Most of them had cargo beds filled with rock, or cannisters and crates of cargo. Unlike the rumbling engines of vehicles back home, these behemoths were quiet, save for the crunching of gravel under their wheels.

  “Electric?” she guessed. Ryder nodded.

  “They’re unloading the shuttle you came in on. Rinehart has the third largest shuttleport on Luna, so we get the supply shipments for several of the nearby domes. They’re headed to the distribution center, where the stuff will be collated into smaller shipments and then sent out via rover.”

  “Sounds efficient.”

  “I try,” he said. “That’s my job. I’m a loggie for the company.”

  “I see. So are you headed to the distribution center, too?”

  “Nope. Last day of vacation,” he grinned down at her and pointed at an intersection up ahead, marked by flowering vines. “We take a right up here. I always take an extra day to reacclimate when I get back from my grandparents’ house. I highly recommend it.”

  “Yeah, well, I don’t think I’ll be visiting Earth anytime soon,” she said, surprising herself with how bitter she sounded. “There’s not much left for me there. Thus, I’m here.”

  “Fair enough.” Ryder seemed disinclined to question her further, and she felt a surge of gratitude for the polite, gregarious young man. He continued chattering on about his family and his job as they took the right turn and headed up the block for another half kilometer or so. Eventually, the ground started to slope upward, and Ryder came to a stop at the top of a small hill.

  “Here we are,” he said, gesturing expansively at the unassuming structure before them. It was a concrete building the same color as the gravel underfoot, which meant that it was probably made of Lunar materials. The squat block building had no windows, and only a single metal door in the front. It also boasted a chain link fence extending out either side and circling back to enclose a generous perimeter. The lush ground cover stopped at the line of the fence, and only grey lunar gravel remained on the other side.

  “Inviting,” Leiko said. Ryder laughed and clapped her lightly on the shoulder.

  “I think it’s all part of the image,” he said. “Good luck! It was really nice to meet you, Leiko.”

  “Thanks, you too,” she said, turning toward him and holding out her hand. He took it and shook it warmly.

  “If you ever need to get ahold of me, you can just call the distribution center. The landline number is listed in the directory, and I’m channel 8 on the LMR.”

  “Land Mobile Radio? They work up here?”

  “Lunar Mobile Radio,” he corrected, grinning. “Just a modification or two to deal with the different atmospheric conditions . . . that is to say, none at all! But yeah, they work. Call me anytime, and do let me know if you need anything to get settled in, okay?”

  “Okay, thanks, Ryder, I will.” She found to her surprise that she meant it. Despite her usual anti-social nature, she seemed to have made a friend already.

  The moon was a weird place.

  The door to DomeSec was locked.

  After waving goodbye to Ryder, Leiko walked up to the metal door and examined it, lips pursed. No handle, no obvious buzzer or doorbell . . . how exactly was she supposed to make her presence known? She had just raised her fist to pound on the thing when she heard a short chime and a tinny voice filtered down from a speaker somewhere above.

  “May I help you?”

  “Uh, Hi. I’m Leiko Soloway? I’ve just arrived. New hire?” She hated the way her voice rose up as if she were asking questions rather than stating undeniable facts, so she gave herself a mental kick and resolved to eliminate that behavior.

  “Just a second.”

  There was a deep thunk, and then the door swung outward as a burly, olive-skinned man in a dark blue uniform pushed it that way.

  “Come on in.” The man’s voice was deeper when not being filtered through the speaker, and she tried to flash him a confident smile as he held the obviously heavy door open and squeezed to the side to let her pass behind him into the spartan room beyond.

  “Thanks,” Leiko said, looking around. The floor and walls were the same bare concrete as the exterior of the building, with the occasional drain set into the floor itself. A short hallway stretched straight ahead, with two doors on either side as it went. A fifth, double door faced them at the far end. The entrance door clanged shut behind her, and she fought to turn her instinctive jump into a turning move that hid her startlement.

  “Welcome to Rinehart,” the big man said. He held out a hand that was easily the size of her face. “I’m Hollis.”

  “Soloway,” she said, taking his hand in as firm a grip as she could manage. He quirked the corner of his mouth in a smile as they shook.

  “Yeah, you said. First time on the moon?” He turned and gestured for her to follow as he led the way through the first door on the right of the hallway, and into a tiny concret
e-walled office.

  “Yep.”

  “Well, we’re glad you’re here. I’m the deputy chief of DomeSec here on Rinehart, been here about five years. The Chief’s out right now, but he told me you were inbound sometime today. How was your trip?” He pulled a utilitarian chair out from under a corner desk and sat, gesturing for her to take a seat on the tiny, slightly dilapidated love seat that squatted against the near wall. She shook her head slightly and leaned her shoulder on the door frame instead.

  “Uneventful.”

  “Good deal. We’ve got you set up with quarters not too far away. You probably passed it on your way if you came from the terminal. You walked?”

  “Bounced,” she said, echoing his half-smile. He chuckled.

  “Yeah. Bounced. For sure. Do you want to go there now? Get settled in? Get some rest?”

  “Not really,” she said. Hollis’s dark eyebrows rose up toward the dome of his bald head. “I feel like I’ve been lazing around for the last several days.”

  “Ah,” Hollis nodded. “Yeah, it feels like that sometimes. You’re a little restless, gotta work that out before you can sleep?”

  “Something like that.”

  “Welll . . .” he stretched it out, looking closely at her. She fought not to straighten up and stand to attention under his assessing gaze. “Do you want to meet your partner?”

  A tiny thrill of excitement spiraled through her, but she pushed it down. This was a test. First impressions were always a test.

  “Sure, if it’s convenient.”

  “Good a time as any,” Hollis said. “Your file said you’re an experienced working dog handler. What do you know about our moondogs?”

  “You breed, raise, and train them here, so they grow up adapted to lunar gravity and conditions,” Leiko said. “The breeding program is still touch and go, with about one litter in four actually resulting in live pups. But if they survive to be born and complete the training, the moondogs tend to be hardy, tough animals, suited to their role in mine safety and security work.”