Ghosts

by Barry Solway

  That’s… depressing. I guess you should keep running your search, though. The other thing is to figure out where the hypergate is that’s closest to Earth.

  I will as soon as we get out of this mess. We’ll figure it out. I just thought you should know.

  Thanks, Anna. The tram’s almost there. I’m going to take a break from talking. This sub-vocalization thing takes a lot of concentration. That was true, but mostly she just needed a break from bad news. Let me know if anything happens with Riley and Beats.

  Will do. Good luck getting arrested, Mel.

  Chapter 7

  Mel arrived at the shopping district ten minutes later and followed Anna’s directions to the aquarium. Deliberately adjusting her hood to partially reveal her face, she turned left. The aquarium ran along the street, embedded into the outside wall of the building on her left. A giant five-foot-wide tube snaked along the street for blocks. Several blocks away, the tube led into a larger aquarium where the shop windows would normally be on the first floor of the building. Thousands of exotic alien fish, lizards, turtle-like things, and weird blobs swam through the tube. With pangs of regret, she understood why Beats was so reluctant to blow up the aquarium. Poor fish, indeed.

  A moment of doubt crept in, but Mel steeled herself. This had to be done. They needed the distraction to get Jon and Gorgeous out. Mel had to stop pretending she was innocent anymore. Her friends’ lives were at stake, and at some point she had to accept that to save them and get back to Earth, the people and things that got in their way would have to be sacrificed. She had already killed people in the gauntlets. Yes, they were aliens, but they were still people.

  Mel reached into the satchel and flipped a switch on the device. She set the satchel down on the ground next to the round tube, pretending to adjust her shoe. When she stood up, she pushed the satchel closer to the tube and then walked away. She frowned in discomfort when she realized that, back on Earth, this would basically be a terrorist attack. Is that what she was? A terrorist? Another question about her identify and who she was becoming. She shook her head and pushed the thoughts aside, convincing herself that it had to be done.

  Reluctantly, she called to Anna. It’s in place. Should blow within the next five minutes.

  Got it, Anna responded. Head to the restaurant across the street. There’s a third floor patio where you can see everything. Order the Maneshee jungle bread. Riley spoke highly of it.

  I don’t think I’m hungry, Mel said. She hadn’t intended to say that to Anna, but the sub-vocalization sent anything that was too forward in her thoughts.

  Suit yourself. It might be a while before you get anything else to eat, though, Anna replied.

  Mel grunted, trying not to think of anything in reply. But Anna was right. Mel found a seat and ordered the jungle bread, plus a drink. The Latanua serving her looked at her strangely, but didn’t ask any questions. Mel tried to keep her expression from moving, hoping anyone who looked at her would think she was just a weird Asadharan. She realized if her face froze in its current shape, she would have a permanent scowl, just like Kathor.

  The bread hadn’t arrived when the bomb exploded. Shouts rose from the street below and everyone on the third-floor patio ran to look over the roof. Mel sat still for a moment, then realized that not reacting was setting her apart. She walked to the rail and looked down with everyone else. The people in the street scurried around in confusion. A hole had been blown in the walkway and the tube above the hole was gray and black. It hadn’t shattered, but Mel could see cracks even from the roof. The people looking down were almost treating it like a sporting event. There was obvious curiosity and excitement, but Mel didn’t have a sense that anyone felt they were in danger. She guessed they weren’t used to bombs being set off in the shopping district and felt sudden gratitude that they weren’t hurting anyone.

  As the thought crossed her mind, she noticed renewed shouting in the street. Someone had walked closer to the site of the explosion and noticed the cracks in the tube. Thin streams of water sprayed into the street. One stream grew quickly. Several people yelled in alarm, but no one seemed to appreciate the reality of the tube collapsing. It must have dawned on one Latanua man, who had bent over to look at the tube.

  He suddenly straightened and screamed for everyone to run back. Before he could take a step, the tube cracked and a section of it came loose. A torrent of water rushed out, taking the man and several others off their feet and along the street.

  Mel nodded in satisfaction. That should get some attention.

  Anna, we have our distraction, she said. Where’s Riley?

  I’ve got the shopping center camera feed, Anna quickly responded. Quite impressive. Beats wasn’t kidding about the fish. Police and emergency personal are en route. Looks like they’re sending just about everyone, so I think we’ll have the cover we need. Riley dispatched the Order operative and is heading to the rendezvous. Beats is coming back to the ship. Everything’s in place for the next stage of the plan.

  Great, Mel said. Now I just need to turn myself in.

  ***

  Mel left the restaurant and made her way down to the tram station. Fortunately, the trams were still running. Other tram passengers were just getting news of the explosion, and it was causing problems as the people coming off the tram were told the shopping district was closed. But Mel was going in the other direction and had no problem getting a spot on the next tram. A few minutes later, she arrived in front of the police station closest to the shopping district.

  She walked into a medium-size lobby with a desk in the middle of the room, manned by a rotund Latanua. Something about the coloration of the face tentacles made Mel think he was older. She approached the alien and waited patiently for him to look up. The rest of the lobby was mostly empty, as they had expected. Almost all the officers had been pulled into the catastrophe at the shopping district.

  Finally, the man pulled himself away from the screen and gave her a cursory look. “Is this an emergency?” he asked. “We’re busy.”

  Mel’s stomach lurched, but she forced a smile to her face. After all the gauntlets and other adventures they’d had, she almost found it funny that talking to a police officer could make her so nervous. She looked conspicuously around the nearly empty room. “Yeah, it looks really busy. But I think you’ll want to talk to me.”

  “Damn Asadharan,” the Latanua muttered, as he fiddled with a rectangular device on his desk. He held it up towards her. “I. Don’t. Speak. Asadharan,” he said slowly. “Talk slowly into the translator.”

  Mel leaned forward and spoke into the device. “I said, I think you’ll want to talk to me.” She could hear a murmur of words in Latanua coming out of the speaker on the device.

  The officer raised his head in annoyance and, for the first time, actually looked at Mel. His tentacles waved in a pattern that told Mel’s translator he was perplexed. Then all six tentacles spread out wide, vibrating slightly and revealing his mouth underneath. His eyes widened and then glanced away to something on the screen he had been looking at. He looked back up at Mel, then back down at the screen.

  “You… you’re the one. The one who blew up the aquarium in the shopping district!” The man seemed so surprised that he just sat there, staring at her.

  “Yep, that was me. I’ve come to turn myself in. I’d appreciate it if you could arrest me quickly. I’m in a bit of a hurry,” Mel said. The last bit of snark came out accidentally, Mel couldn’t help herself. But then the man started to fumble with an electromagnetic pistol at his side. Being shot wasn’t part of the plan, and Mel quickly raised her hands over her head as the officer yelled for backup.

  ***

  Mel examined the bracelet around her wrist. She was in a small, nondescript room, just three chair-like things and a table between them. The chairs were slightly off, apparently made for a different shaped butt than hers, and she fidgeted, trying to get comfortable. She tested the translator’s communication channel with Anna again
. While it was unnerving to have Anna in her head, she almost panicked at the thought of not being able to reach Anna anymore. All their plans hinged on what Anna knew about how to get out of the station. Without her, Mel would be permanently in prison.

  Anna? Did you get in touch with Jon and Gorgeous?

  The pause was longer than Mel would have liked, but finally Anna responded. I don’t have access to Gorgeous’s translator, but I contacted Jon. They know to expect you. Have you taken care of your bracelet yet?

  I’m working on it. She took a deep breath, examining the bracelet again. They didn’t have real prisons on the space station. Instead, every prisoner wore a bracelet or anklet that could deliver a very nasty electric charge calibrated for the species of prisoner. If the prisoner acted out or tried to go anywhere but certain areas, they wouldn’t make it far. Mel had been told not to leave the room she was in.

  Mel pulled out the elastic that was holding her hair back. Removing one of the four beads off it, she pushed it against the seam of the bracelet. They hadn’t figured out a way to smuggle in an explosive that could remove the bracelets, but Anna had come up with the next best thing. The bead contained a small amount of acid. It would be just enough to eat through the outer shell of the bracelet and into the circuitry controlling the electric shocking device. As long as she put the acid bead in the right spot, it would disable the bracelet’s ability to shock her. It wouldn’t disable the tracking device that was also installed in the bracelet, but they could deal with that later.

  The problem was that if she put the acid bead in the wrong place, it wouldn’t disable the electric shock. And she would have no way to know until she tested it by trying to go to a restricted area.

  Anna had told her the precise location on the device to break the bead, but Mel was having second thoughts. What if she’d heard Anna wrong? She hesitated for a moment and almost jumped when Anna’s voice sounded in her head.

  Is there a problem with the bracelet? We’re running out of time.

  Mel shook her head. No, it’s fine. Just making sure I’m doing it right. Mel pressed the bead hard against the bracelet. Unfortunately, they hadn’t had time to create a better delivery method, and Mel braced herself for the pain.

  The bead squished down under the pressure and finally burst. A few drops of acid leaked out, both onto the bracelet and onto Mel’s finger. Mel jerked her finger back. It hurt worse than she expected. A brief memory of acid splashing onto her face sent her mind racing and she had to close her eyes and force her breathing to slow. She rubbed her finger onto her pants, trying to rub away the acid, but it had already done its damage. A blister had formed on the tip of her finger and the surrounding skin was an angry red. She sucked on her finger for a moment. Most of the acid had landed on the bracelet and a small bit of the shell had been eaten away. Acrid smoke rose from the hole, but Mel still had no way to know if the device was safe.

  Okay, it’s done, she sub-vocalized. She leaned back in her chair and took a deep breath, realizing how much tension she had been carrying. What next?

  Jon and Gorgeous are in an open cell area one floor up. I’ve got cameras for most of the way. It’s pretty empty right now, they can’t even find someone to interrogate you, so it shouldn’t be too hard to get up there. I’ll guide you, get ready.

  Mel stood up and made her way to the door as Anna came back on the translator. Okay, get ready. I’ll open the door in five seconds. Turn right when you exit and head for the door at the end of the hall on your left. You have six seconds to get there… two… one… now.

  Mel didn’t bother to look either direction. As soon as the door opened, she sped down the hall as quickly and quietly as she could. She pushed the door Anna had indicated. Slipping into the stairway, she hit six just as the door swung closed.

  Up the stairs and wait by the door. I’ll let you know when it’s safe.

  Mel went up one flight and stationed herself by the door. A moment later the door clicked, but Anna didn’t say anything. Mel looked at it quizzically. Was she supposed to go through it?

  Anna? The door just clicked. What’s up?

  There was a long pause and Mel felt that familiar panic. She pushed it away and forced herself to wait. Anna?

  Just a second. There was a glitch. Get ready to go… now.

  The door clicked again and Mel pushed it open. Take a left, Anna said. Wait at the edge of the intersection. Cross on my mark… two… one… now… hurry. Good, head down three doors on the right.

  Mel followed Anna’s instructions, aware she had tapped into the video cameras throughout the station. Mel waited in front of the door, but nothing happened. Anna? I’m by the door. Feeling a bit exposed in the hallway here.

  You’re good for now. The door keeps resetting when I try to open it. Where the hell is that coming from? That didn’t inspire confidence in Mel, and she wondered if Anna had meant for her to hear it. Okay, I’ve got it. Jon and Gorgeous are waiting. They know what to expect.

  Mel pushed open the door and entered a large room with a high ceiling. Six aliens, all Latanua, sat on the benches against the wall or talked in pairs around the room. Jon and Gorgeous were waiting by the door. They turned to meet her, obviously expecting her based on Anna’s coordination. Jon avoided her gaze, but at least had the good grace to look slightly embarrassed. The translators indicated that Gorgeous looked entirely embarrassed and Mel noticed her eyes starting to flutter between colors again.

  “It’s okay, Gorgeous,” Mel said. “I’m not mad, and everything will work out. Let’s get out of here, okay?”

  Gorgeous nodded and reached out to hug Mel. Mel scanned the room, seeing the other six prisoners staring at her in confusion. They noticed the bracelet on her arm, so they would assume she was a prisoner, too. But she had let herself in and there had been no officer, which would be weird. Mel turned her back on them and grabbed Gorgeous’s wrist. She tried to hide what she was doing with her body as she quickly pressed a bead against the bracelet. This time, she pulled up the edge of her shirt and covered her middle finger. She still yelped as the bead broke and acid dripped onto the bracelet. A small hole burned in the edge of her shirt, but her middle finger had fared much better than her index finger had.

  Gorgeous looked at the bracelet, coughing slightly at the acrid smoke. “Did it work?”

  “No way to know until we leave. If you start screaming and writhing on the floor, the answer is no.” Mel turned to Jon. “Hold out your arm.”

  “Give it to me, I’ll do it,” Jon said.

  Mel gritted her teeth. “Seriously? I’m going out of my way to save you and you’re going to tell me what to do? You don’t even know how.”

  “Like it’s that hard,” Jon scoffed. “I just saw you do it on Gorgeous’s bracelet. Give me the bead.”

  “Fine,” Mel said. She almost threw the bead at him and was tempted to grab Gorgeous and leave him on his own. “Hurry up, we don’t have much time.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Jon said, studying the bracelet. He pushed the bead against the metal. Mel almost told him to watch his fingers, then decided not to. Serve him right if he burnt himself.

  Just as the acid bead broke, a voice behind Mel broke in. “What’s going on, huh? It stinks over here.” Mel turned as one of the Latanua prisoners hovered right behind her. His face tentacles waved in a way the translators said was suspicion and aggression. As if Mel needed the translators to know that.

  Chapter 8

  Jon gasped and stifled a scream. He had been distracted when the man interrupted them, and the acid had dripped down the bracelet and onto his wrist. A nasty blister rose under the bracelet and he winced in obvious pain.

  Mel, what’s your status? Anna said. They know you’re gone from the interrogation room, so you need to get out of there quickly. We’ve got a window coming up in twenty seconds.

  Mel cursed under her breath. Out loud, she replied, “Give me nineteen.” Turning away from the Latanua, she shoved the fourth and final bead
at Jon. “This is the last bead. Get it right this time or stay behind.”

  She turned back to the Latanua man. “Look, this isn’t your problem. I’m really sorry if we’re upsetting you, but we’ll be all done and out of your hair… tentacles… in just a second. Promise.”

  The man’s tentacles flared and waved in agitation. “Don’t threaten me,” he snarled.

  “I wasn’t...” Mel started to say, but he stepped forward into her, almost knocking her backwards. Reflexively, Mel pivoted and stepped forward, hooking her foot behind the man’s leg. It was a move she had practiced with Gorgeous many times. Gorgeous would always shift her weight and step out of the sweep, but this man apparently didn’t know to do that. As Mel caught the man’s foot from behind, she pushed into him. Slipping like he had stepped on a banana peel, he landed hard on his back, then rolled over, gasping for air.

  “Got it!” Jon yelled.

  Four seconds, Anna’s voice said cheerfully. Nice sweep, Mel. Now stop playing around and get out of there.

  ***

  Anna gave her and Jon instructions at the same time, so they were able to proceed in silence down the hallway to an elevator. They took the elevator up to the top floor, found a door that led to a narrow stairway, and used that to climb to the roof.

  The building was six stories, slightly taller than the other buildings in their vicinity. Although ‘building’ wasn’t quite the right word. The buildings in the space station were all one big monolith that merged back into the main structure. It was as if someone had created an indoor mall spanning an entire city with structures inside of it. From the roof, they could look out onto the larger wheel of the station. Slightly above them and about a quarter mile away were the flashing lights of the emergency responder teams handling the flood.