Star Minds Third Generation Snippets

by Barbara G. Tarn

  "Gangsters are gangsters everywhere," the captain snapped. "And we will take care of them. The planet should have a democracy ruling them, not a bunch of gangsters who do what they please."

  "We totally agree with that," Okan said. "I know there are movements against the mobsters lately, inspired by the Gaian anti-Yakuza movements, so it might be the right time to intervene and bring back some law and order on Xi-kong. Since the Imperial Governor left, it's gotten worse and worse."

  "Exactly." Captain Ogano nodded. "Are you ready to help your planet recover its independence?"

  "My family works in a factory run by the mob, but is not really tied to the families," Kaori said. "I mean, if the factory goes under the government instead of the Horio Family it doesn't change anything for us."

  "I guess it's the best thing for everyone. The mob controlling who gets what job isn't the best thing in the universe. I'm glad we'll be back to a normal form of government," Okan added.

  "Good. Then suit up and be ready to join the assault team on this raid."

  Both Kaori and Okan saluted and went to grab their battlesuit unit.

  The Cosmic Scout joined a small fleet of star-cruisers and mini-cruisers of the Galaxy Police headed for Xi-kong. The formations meant the bigger ships, with three hundred crew members, where usually sided by two mini-cruisers each for additional support, since the smaller ships were easier to maneuver.

  The star-cruiser landed near the designated town or mansion or place where a mob boss lived and the mini-cruisers stayed in the air to make sure nobody escaped. The assault teams in the mini-cruisers were ready to jump or be teleported wherever needed, in case the star-cruiser's crew wasn't enough.

  "They definitely want to put everybody behind bars," Okan muttered, staring at the back of Officer Thaman artificial body now fully operational and even more deadly than before after the stop on New S.E.T.H. World.

  Kaori thought it was high time. Xi-kong had no real right to sit at the High Council of the Star Nations until it was ruled by a group of gangsters. She didn't want it to end like Duumme, the misogynistic planet that had been declassified almost thirty years earlier as a "civilized world" and then had been depopulated since its inhabitants wouldn't abide by the rules. Xi-kong was very close to becoming a pain in the Star Nations' metaphorical ass and could easily end up like Duumme.

  She looked forward to seeing a new Xi-kong, where maybe women wouldn't be so mistreated. She also hoped to be welcomed back on her home-planet – if not as a savior, at least as a family member. She looked forward to hugging Akio and maybe seeing her father again after four years.

  "Attempted escape," Phoebe Scofield warned through the comm.

  Officer Thaman signaled the assault team to follow him. Kaori activated the battlesuit and held her shotgun tighter as she went to the Cosmic Scout's door and prepared to jump. The jets of the battlesuit would help with a smooth landing, possibly on the people who were trying to escape.

  The gangsters had taken a flying car, but the heavy frame of Officer Thaman trashed them to the ground. Furious, the runaway mobsters jumped out of the destroyed machine with guns blazing, but the battlesuits held and shielded the assault team from the bullets.

  Kaori recognized the most wanted man his goons were trying to protect and rushed his way. The man was bigger than her and he scowled at the sight of her, but she was enhanced by the bodysuit. She tried to stun him but her gun was jammed, so she threw it away and kept running towards him.

  He smirked and pulled out a small gun, but by then she gracefully jumped and landed feet first on his chest, making him fall on his back with a groan. She swiftly turned him around with a martial art move that Akio had taught her and that caught him by surprise.

  "Where did you learn that?" he demanded as she handcuffed him.

  "My brother taught it to me," she answered, still panting from the brief run and action. "Horio School."

  He cursed her but by then he was restrained. She pulled him back to his feet and pushed him towards the star-cruiser, where she gave him to the bigger ship security to be locked up.

  "Well done, Kaori!" Neomi patted her shoulder as they headed back for the Cosmic Scout that had landed in the meadows behind the boss's mansion. "I'm impressed by your martial arts skills. I didn't know women were allowed into the local schools."

  "They're not," she replied with a smile. "My brother taught me."

  "Your brother must love you very much to risk his life to pass on the school's secrets to a girl," Okan commented, amused.

  "He's my twin," she said.

  "Ah! Well, in that case... Hope we get to meet him while we're here..."

  Kaori wasn't so sure it was a good idea anymore. What if her father forced her to leave the Galaxy Police? Could he? Or would her new family on the mini-cruiser protect her?

  Captain Ocano looked satisfied when they went back onboard. She commended Kaori for her catch and asked if she and Okan wanted to visit their families before the mini-cruiser took off again. The whole crew had a couple of days of rest on Xi-kong and Kaori decided it was time to go home.

  She left her uniform and the battlesuit unit in her locker and wore civilian clothes again. The Cosmic Scout was parked at the main spaceport in the outskirts of the planet's capital, so she took the local fast train to her hometown with only a small back that contained a change of clothes. She had told Okan where she lived, in case they didn't allow her to leave, but hoped nothing would go wrong.

  At the station, she noticed the small town looked very festive, but there were no festivals during that time of the year. They seemed to be celebrating the new freedom, with upcoming voting for a new mayor that wouldn't be chosen by the mob. The sky was gray with clouds but everybody was smiling.

  The air was cool and the breeze brought smells of flowers to her nostrils. It felt good to breathe a planet's air again. During the action her battlesuit helmet had filtered it

  She took an automated cab to her father's house. It wasn't a working day, so everybody would be at home to relax. Tomorrow they'd go back to the factory to do their boring job that paid the bills, but today they were free to celebrate the end of another working week – and a major victory over the Horio Family who had "owned" the town so far.

  The streets had no sidewalks but walls enclosing the low houses. There weren't many skyscrapers on Xi-kong except at the capital or in towns where there were interstellar spaceports with high towers and antennae to compete with. Her hometown was mostly of low houses, except the government buildings that had two floors and less sliding roofs.

  The automated cab left her in front of the gate. She entered in the courtyard and stopped to look at the house. Its bilateral symmetry of stone and wood with tiled roofs had a shrine at it center, while on the two sides were the bedrooms of the elders. The two wings of the building were for the junior members of the family and the living room, dining room and the kitchen.

  The U-shaped building enclosed a small courtyard with a miniature garden. The tiled roofs had broad eaves and the sliding doors of wood and plaster were currently closed on the south side since the sun didn't seem to want to come out.

  The smell of wood and damp earth and blossoming flowers was stronger in the enclosure of the stone walls.

  Kaori took in a deep breath and headed for the front door. She left her shoes in the cupboard beside it and knocked on the door. Akio opened the sliding door and brightened at the sight of her.

  "Kaori! I was hoping you'd show up! You were in that GP operation that swiped away the dons, weren't you?"

  "Yes." She smiled. "I helped capture Okishi Boss, thanks to the moves you taught me."

  He chuckled and hugged her, leading her through the house to the living room where their father sat with a cup of tea and a stern face.

  "Father." She knelt in front of him and touched the floor with her forehead. "I have come to take your blessing for my career in the Galaxy Police."

  "Mm, yes, I've heard of your feats," he said
sternly. "Are you here with the force who are helping with cleaning this planet?"

  "Yes, Father. I'm on the Cosmic Scout with Captain Ocano. I've been meaning to ask you, do you have a sister who moved to Marc'harid and married a Sire?"

  Her father's lips twitched into a smile, but he kept the stern face.

  "Yes, Mayumi married Shan-leo Shermac. My cousin Yoshio also found refuge on Marc'harid. But they were specially gifted Xi-kongians."

  "So I've heard." She said. "I'm only human, but with what Akio taught me against all laws, I can make you proud too. I'm a Galaxy Police officer and even though I'm still a rookie, soon I'll be a full-fledged officer."

  "Are those battlesuits really protecting you?" Her father frowned, but Akio – who had knelt next to her – chuckled.

  "Father, they shot her and you see she's fine! We saw her on the meganet and in the news..."

  "Yes, the battlesuits provide protection," Kaori added. "And even though they've been disabled in the past by unscrupulous criminals, it won't happen again. I'll be fine, Father."

  "Then you have my blessing. Make the Ikagoru name great for something else than marrying a mighty Sire."

  "I will, Father," she promised with a grin.

  He hesitated, then took both twins in a bear hug. It was quick and manly, then he pushed them away and resumed his stern expression.

  "Go now. You have work to do to keep this galaxy safe."

  "We're leaving tomorrow," she answered. "I can catch the morning train back to the capital. Unless you already have enough of me..."

  "No, no, I look forward to falling asleep talking to you!" Akio said. "Come, let's warn the kitchen there's one more person for dinner..."

  Kaori was glad to be home. But she also looked forward to going back to her new family on the Cosmic Scout and become a true paladin of justice with the Galaxy Police. At least she knew now that she'd be welcome any time she came back to Xi-kong.

  I must ask Akio if he went to Marc'harid to meet our cousins...

  Although her twin seemed more taken by the thought of the wonderful girl he had met and not too keen to listen to her. He wanted her to meet the awesome girl who had stolen his heart and was the reason for his staying on Xi-kong.

  Kaori smiled. Her twin was obviously in love and he'd respect his wife. As for her, she hadn't met anyone yet, but she was certain eventually someone at the GP would touch her heart. She hoped it wouldn't be a criminal, like the Mercenary who had seduced another Xi-kongian officer, Yuki Zihan, some thirty years earlier, but a wonderful detective who could team up with her.

  Her career was just starting and she had her father's blessing. Everything would be all right in the big bad galaxy out there.

  Aliens on Earth

  Iso-bel relaxed in her seat and looked out of the window. Her two-month break after the end of secondary school meant her parents had given her an open ticket for the Galaxy Express, the interplanetary starship train that looped through the inhabited worlds. She'd embarked on a trip to the Star Nations with her boyfriend and a couple of classmates.

  She had insisted they stopped on this planet she'd seen when she was barely five and didn't remember much of. But she knew how important it was for her parents and her father's uncle and some of his friends, so the others had humored her.

  The interstellar Galaxy Express had dropped them at the Orbital Immigration Station where they'd gone through customs before being taken down to the blue planet underneath. The Space Shuttle was necessary when one came in with the Galaxy Express that didn't land on planets and dropped its passengers on orbital stations in their close vicinity.

  Iso-bel's father had had to dock in the Orbital Immigration Station and teleport himself on the planet the first time he had visited since there were no spaceports on the planet yet. And he'd had a bronchitis from breathing the polluted air during his short stay. When he'd come back with the whole family ten years later, the air was clean and the planet was finally on par with the rest of the Star Nations.

  Iso-bel watched as the blue ball that looked so much like Marc'harid – albeit with different landmasses – approached quickly.

  "You're the expert on Gaia geography," Jes-syd said. "What is that continent called?"

  "America," she answered absentmindedly. Her father hadn't visited it, so she was kind of curious. He had stuck to Europe and Asia, but there was so much more to explore! Although they had limited time, since they were supposed to get to Mirabilis in a month, so they'll have to choose carefully.

  The trip from the Orbital Immigration Station was short and the Space Shuttle landed in the brand new spaceport in the outskirts of a big city built on the shores of a huge lake. Iso-bel stepped out of the spaceport building with her backpack on her shoulders and breathed the air of the planet.

  "Smells like Marc'harid," Jes-syd said, sweeping back from his eyes his longish blond bangs with his hand. His rebellious mane made him look like a wild animal – lions they were called on Earth. "But looks less technological."

  "It's a newcomer of the Star Nations," Emma-lin said, checking her tablet. "We should book a tour. I don't think it's safe to go on our own."

  "Let's get to the hotel, get some sleep, and then we can do that," Jes-syd replied, taking Iso-bel's hand.

  They found the public transport to the nearest city, Chicago. Ran-ald and Emma-lin were bickering again, which made Jes-syd roll his eyes and Iso-bel smile.

  As she sat on the train with her friends, Iso-bel put her head against Jes-syd's shoulder. She felt tired now and looked forward to sleeping in a real bed. Intergalactic travel was fast, but not that fast, especially on the Galaxy Express.

  She could have requested a private cruise ship, but she had preferred using public transport instead. She didn't trust herself or her friends to handle a starship, since none of them had any piloting experience. She could have asked for a pilot to join them, but she thought she needed to learn to travel like normal people did.

  Being the daughter of a wealthy Sire made her feel spoiled. And it was time she tried something different – both her and her friends. Enough private cruise ships or flying cars with drivers. They should experience the commuters' life as they played tourists of the Star Nations.

  Maybe it hadn't been a good idea to bring Emma-lin and Ran-ald along, though. Those two months might be the last Iso-bel spent with Jes-syd, since they had applied to different universities on different planets. When the other traveling companions had dropped out, they should have canceled the trip.

  Ran-ald Alligood and Emma-lin Wisenthon couldn't stand each other, but one was Jes-syd's best friend and the other was Iso-bel's. Besides her parents were happier if they knew she wasn't alone with Jes-syd, especially since she used galactic public transport.

  Being all children of wealthy Sire, they could afford hotels instead of youth hostels. They had booked two double rooms, one for the girls and one for the boys, in a skyscraper in the old town of Chicago overlooking Lake Michigan.

  Iso-bel stared outside of the room window, curious. Earth's architecture was not as eco-friendly as the one on Marc'harid, yet, but they had an Essence Building in every city now, allowing city-dwellers to experience natural ecosystems without moving away from the city itself.

  Although on Marc'harid they never thought of building a skyscraper containing a desert, a jungle and a glacier, or anything containing eleven different natural atmospheres in one vertical tower, it seemed to work fine on Gaia. Imagined in the local year 2015 by a team of Polish architects, it had become reality as soon as Earth had managed to clean its air from pollution, and had been repeated throughout the planet.

  Maybe a few more planets could use that kind of structure, Iso-bel thought. The previous stop had been on Xi-kong that was slowly recovering from mob control. After the fall of the empire, the dons had taken control and ruled for many years until a huge Galaxy Police operation had taken advantage of a gang's split to bring back some form of order and democracy.

  The pla
net was still a mess, though. Iso-bel had barely met her cousins from her mother's side, and then they had cut their stay short. Xi-kong was dirty and decadent, but Gaia seemed to be blossoming after a Dark Age – which was probably true after being a Saurian colony for so long.

  Iso-bel was impressed by the size of the lake outside of her room window. The lakes she knew on Marc'harid – the ones near the capital where she lived – were much smaller. She could see the other shore there. That wasn't the case in Chicago. The sun shone on the silver sculpture called Cloud Gate, also known as the Bean, at the feet of the hotel, and the Essence Skyscraper had been built on the Northerly Island, next to the Adler Planetarium. The tallest building in the city was still the 110–story Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), completed in 1974.

  Emma-lin emerged from the shower, drying her red hair with a towel.

  "Need to shower too?" she asked. She was the prettiest of the two, but that was never an issue for Iso-bel. In fact Emma-lin didn't have a steady boyfriend because she couldn't make up her mind with so many admirers, while Iso-bel had had only Jes-syd asking her out.

  "I'm just hungry and tired." Iso-bel sighed and used the bathroom to relieve herself and wash her hands. She quickly finger-combed her shoulder-length, rainbow-colored hair and checked her makeup-free face in the mirror.

  By the time she was done, Emma-lin was dressed and had put on her coral lipstick that matched her hair. They had never shared clothes, since they liked different fashions – Emma-lin was always very feminine, Iso-bel had been a tomboy for all her childhood.

  She'd become a little womanlier when her periods had started and her tits had grown – although she had smaller breasts compared to her best friend. That was probably one more reason she didn't feel the need to enhance her cleavages.

  She was petite, but she didn't like wearing high heels, much like her mother, so she always looked like the lady-in-waiting to the princess, while it was, in fact, the opposite, since she was a descendant of the last Sire emperor while Emma-lin was only a Sire aristocrat.