Stellar Cloud: A short story collection

by Charity Bradford

  Through the glass, the other Continuation chambers flickered into existence. Hundreds lined up around me, in every direction. Floor to ceiling. Lines and lines of them in a massive warehouse. Shriveled masses floated in their centers.

  Oh God, what have I done? I pounded on the side of the chamber.

  The solution continued to rise. It passed my knees and reached my waist. Soon it would fill the chamber and truly become my coffin.

  “Stop! I changed my mind, let me out!” I screeched as the tears streaked my face.

  “Mrs. Jonas, please remain calm. I promise you won’t feel a thing.” The voice reverberated around me.

  I stopped pounding. They would never let me out. Not now. I continued to cry as the water rose.

  My legs went numb and the shivering dissipated. Inch by inch, the water stole the warmth from my body. By the time it reached my face, I struggled to keep my eyes open. Vitals slowed to a near stop. I. Wanted. To. See…

  “Breathe in the liquid, Mrs. Jonas…”

  My next thought consisted of darkness and muffled sounds.

  A female voice intoned, “Welcome to the hive mind, Mrs. Jonas. We’re glad to have your knowledge added to the human collective.”

  I felt warm again but disconnected in a drugged up sort of way.

  “That will get better over time. I missed you, Linda.” Harold’s voice whispered in my head.

  His voice sent static rippling through my neural pathways. He shouldn’t be here and yet I was filled with gratitude that he had found me in the increasingly loud community of minds.

  The last of my brain’s synapses connected to the neural net and knowledge flowed in from every mind in the Continuum. The sound was deafening as every other soul shared their knowledge with me. Astronomy and physics made sense for the first time in my life. Images and data inundated my brain, and yet I sorted and filed them away as quickly as they filled me.

  Large interstellar ships had gathered on the edges of our solar system a hundred years earlier. They sent smaller ships to earth and infiltrated governments, set up puppet leaders and waited patiently for them to carry out their agenda.

  The technology of Continuation was not of human origin.

  Harold did turn down Continuation, but they took his mind anyway.

  This was their purpose. Collect, study and understand. Only then would they pass judgment. They could lift us to the next level of evolution, or end it all with one strike.

  I felt the fear that laced the Continuum.

  We saw the future of humanity.

  Binary tears filled the collective.

  Chapter Four

  Earth 4

  This story was also inspired by a photo prompt—a woman on a bed in a spaceship with a huge window behind her showing an earth-like planet. Sadly, I could not find a link to that photo.

  The ship’s engines pitched lower as it dropped out of hyperdrive and powered up the reverse thrusters. Overhead lights dimmed then brightened signaling a ship wide message. Thousands of people paused mid-stride and waited.

  “Attention all passengers, we are now approaching our destination. Earth 4 will be within view of the forward and starboard viewing halls in thirty minutes time. Debarkation will begin in two hours. Remember, you may carry your own luggage or recycle it. If you choose to recycle, you will be issued a class two mandate for your stay on Earth 4. Gold members will receive an automatic upgrade.

  “Thank you for traveling on the Galaxy Gala. It’s been our pleasure to serve you and we hope you enjoy your new life.” The voice fell silent.

  Lyria looked for her husband but didn’t see him in the crowd of people ready for a new life on Earth 4. There were all ages mingling on the deck, hovering around the large reinforced glass viewing wall. The government considered all of them human simply because their transplants and enhancements had been grown from human tissue. It didn’t matter if it was their own or someone else’s.

  The bitterness swept through her and for a moment she forgot to walk like the seventy-plus-year-old woman she appeared to be. Her reflection reminded her and she slowed her walk. It was time to tell Tensati the truth about herself and hope that he would still choose her over E4. She found him in their room packing the suitcases.

  His white head bent over the pile of clothes. Bony fingers fidgeted over everything and his head bobbled a bit out of his control. Seeing him this way usually made her feel sad, but today she hoped to give him back his youth and vitality.

  “I don’t know if we should take everything or recycle it.” Tensati sat on the edge of the bed next to the case.

  “Ten, there’s something I need to talk to you about.”

  “Now? I thought we could go to the forward deck and watch E4 come into view. Our age should get us a good seat.” He smiled at her.

  “I can’t go to Earth 4.”

  “Sure you can. We’re all paid up.”

  “No, there’s something I haven’t told you.” She pushed the case back and sat next to him.

  “Well, tell me now and then we can go look at our new home.”

  “Ten, they’ll never let me set foot on that planet. I should have told you years ago, but I don’t meet the requirements.”

  “What are you talking about? This isn’t another of your theatrics is it?”

  She frowned at him, “Do you remember when I was sick?”

  “Sick? You haven’t been sick since,” he stared at the ceiling and she knew he was running through the years in his head, “your lung implants?”

  “Yes. Do you remember that time?”

  “Vaguely. That must have been thirty years ago. What’s that got to do with you going to E4?”

  Lyria raised her eyebrows and just barely kept herself from rolling her eyes, “I can’t believe you’re going to make me spell it out for you.” She got up from the bed and pressed the button to open the viewport in their room. E4 loomed larger than life. “They didn’t just replace my lungs.”

  “Oh. Well, that shouldn’t matter. Unless—”

  “Go on, Ten. Unless what?” She tried to let him work it out to soften the blow.

  “Even if you had something robotic put in you should be fine as long as you’re still ninety percent human.”

  “That’s true. But Ten, what if I wasn’t ninety percent human?”

  He stood and hobbled away. “What do you mean?”

  “What if I had everything replaced?” She followed and waited behind him.

  “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

  She rested her hand lightly on his arm and walked until she could see his face, “Ten, I’m a construct.”

  “No. You aged—” His brow furrowed. “How is this possible?”

  “I was part of a trial for the TrueLife series of constructs. All I wanted was a few more years with you. I didn’t care about the immigration restrictions because there was nowhere to go at the time.”

  “TrueLife? Dammit, why didn’t you tell me? Asked me if it was the right thing to do?” Tensati balled his hands into a fist and stalked to the far end of the room.

  “I should have told you when they opened E3 and you started planning, but I couldn’t lose you. I was so relieved when they capped immigration. And then came E4.”

  “I don’t understand why you would sign up for a construct.”

  “I was dying, Ten. Even with the lung implants, the cancer was spreading too fast. They couldn’t grow enough new parts for me. It was the only choice.”

  “But you knew the consequences. You had to know that you would lose all rights as a human by doing that.”

  “I knew, but all that mattered was still being with you. Taking care of you. Not leaving you alone.”

  Tensati leaned his forehead on the bulkhead in front of him. Lyria watched him breath in and out. She matched her breath simulator to his and breathed with him. He had been her entire world for as long as she could remember. Ever since the first day he walked into the dance studio where she trained.
She gave up that dream and replaced it with him.

  “Can you forgive me Ten?” Please forgive me Ten. Then I can give you all you want. Her phantom heart still ached for him.

  “I need some time to think, Lyria.” He twisted his hands. “All these years. You felt so soft and warm. So real.”

  “It’s still me inside, Ten. The important part of me that makes me, me. It’s all still here.”

  “But you’re not human.”

  “I thought you’d know better than that. What makes you human? The flesh and blood or your soul?” Lyria grabbed her pouch off the chair and headed for the door. “I bought a construct for you in case you wanted to live with me forever. I guess I should have saved my money.”

  “Lyria—”

  “Ten, whatever you decide, I love you. Just remember that.”

  “Final call for all passengers debarking at Earth 4. Please report to the main lounge on deck 34 to clear customs. Thank you again and enjoy your new life.”

  Tensati picked up his bag and walked to the door. It slid open, but he didn’t walk through. He had tried four times already. The door closed when he took a step back.

  As he stared, it opened on its own and Lyria stood before him. She had shed sixty years. Her hair was jet black instead of grey. Her whole body toned and firm like the day he met her. For the first time in decades, his body responded on its own at the sight of her. He let the bag fall to the floor.

  “Lyria?” He breathed it like a prayer.

  “Ten? Why haven’t you left?”

  “I, I wanted to—” Tensati swallowed and willed his hands to stay by his side. “I don’t know that I can go without you. I’ve tried.”

  The tears welled up in her eyes and a slow smile spread across her face. She stepped in until the door closed and walked slowly around Tensati to sit on the bed. Earth 4 gleamed in the window behind her head.

  “Ten, your body construct is in the cargo hold. The staff can have you in it in less than an hour.” Looking up through her lashes in that way that used to drive him wild she patted the spot beside her. “Be young again with me Ten. Together we can redefine what it means to be human.”

  Tensati didn’t move, but closed his eyes and took a ragged breath. When he looked at Lyria again, his crooked smile wrinkled his entire face. “Be young again? Like the first time I saw you dance Swan Lake?”

  Lyria laughed. “Let me dance for you again, for the rest of eternity.”

  Tensati shuffled to the bed and reached for her hand. “How can a man say no to the promise of heaven?”

  Chapter Five

  Exiled

  This story was a group challenge to put together an anthology centered around one world—LaHavre. I struggled with the rustic world of assassins until I moved the timeline far into the future.

  The fourth moon slid over the cityscape to join its sisters in the sky. Together they formed a perfect arc of evenly spaced orbs making it easy to tell time. It was well past midnight. I checked my pressure suit for the fifth time, clamped myself to the safety line, and crawled over the edge of the building.

  The rooftop had been peaceful, protected by the atmospheric shield, but as soon as I went over the side, I exposed myself to the gale force winds. I pressed myself flat against the building and turned up the mag booster. The material in the gloves and shoes grew heavier as they allied with the metal filaments crisscrossed through the glass. The computer grid in my helmet activated and, using vocalized commands, I released and boosted alternating hands and feet to move myself to my destination.

  I’d killed many men. Too many perhaps. This would be one of my saves. Some hits deserved the death contract put out on them, but not this one. He was an innocent man who had tried to make Rave’hel a better place. Unfortunately, he stood in the way of someone wealthier and more ambitious.

  I didn’t mind dealing in death, but even an assassin had to draw the line somewhere. Mine was the innocent.

  A green light blipped on my sleeve indicating I had reached the target apartment. I positioned a temporary atmospheric shield before pulling out the de-stabilizer. I didn’t want to kill the man before I could save him.

  With the press of a button, a four by four square of glass evaporated, its molecular structure weakened to the point that all the atoms dissolved into its parts. I slipped into the darkness and approached the man sleeping in his bed. His death would have been so easy, but he had tried to feed the homeless children of Beh’klan. Many starved on the planet that built moons to beautify Rave’hel’s skies. He deserved a chance.

  The neurolizer worked immediately. He had time to open his eyes, but that was all before his body froze in place.

  “You’ve had a contract placed on your head and I’m here to collect.”

  His eyes were expressive in spite of the inability to blink. If given the chance would he beg for his life? I thought of those he had helped over his brief time as Poon and was glad I had reached him first.

  “It’s a good day to die, but I’m in a giving mood. I’m exiling you instead of killing you.” I opened my pack, reached past the tools of my trade and pulled out a quantum clamp.

  The window filters softened the neon glow outside into a blended wave of color playing across the ceiling. The sound dampeners kept out the noise of the busy city traffic that could be deafening even at thirty stories up. The lights disappeared as Audra moved into view. Her ebony skin absorbed the glow but her amber eyes flashed in the brightness. She pushed the hair off my forehead and settled her weight on me.

  “What are you thinking?” I asked her.

  A brief flash of fear crossed her eyes. She covered it quickly, but not quickly enough. Curious, I flipped her until my weight pinned her to the bed, both hands held firmly to her side.

  “What’s going on Audra?”

  She turned her face away, “You’ll think me weak.”

  “I would never underestimate you in that way. You are second to none—”

  “But you.”

  I chuckled and nuzzled her neck before whispering against her skin, “Is that what you’re afraid of?”

  “No.”

  “Then what?”

  “Will you really make me say it?” Her voice dripped like honey. When I didn’t answer she continued, “I’ve been trained and drilled. Nothing matters but the contract and the payoff. And yet…”

  My grip relaxed and she moved her arms to embrace me. She arched her back and lifted off the bed to kiss the corner of my mouth. Her lips blazed a trail down my jaw.

  When she reached my ear she whispered, “Thank you for the night.” She nipped at the ear and a warm tingle moved through me as she continued. “I really will miss you.”

  “Wha—” My tongue grew thick as the neurolizer took effect. Every muscle locked into place. I couldn’t even blink.

  “Shh.” She pushed me off and knelt beside me. “It’s nothing personal. You know as well as I do that it was only a matter of time. You’re too good at what you do.”

  I should have taken her out when I had the chance. But I had hoped. I should have known better.

  She slipped out from the sheet. I watched as she dressed. No wonder she was the top torture agent for the council. She knew how to hit a man where it hurt the most. Even her betrayal couldn’t weaken the effect her curves had on me. After she dressed, four armed men strolled in with a quantum clamp and a pile of clothes.

  At least Audra had the decency to dress me herself in the rough brown textiles. With my head frozen in place, I couldn’t get a good look at them, but a flicker of dark brown and tan flashed past my eyes. A long shirt that fell below my waist, large and billowy. She tucked that into some kind of short pants that just covered some tight stockings that reached my knees. Finally, she buttoned up a woolen jacket.

  She murmured memories of our times together as she dressed me. I only half listened while I concentrated on breathing. Each breath helped move the neurolizer through my system. If she had been careless, which I s
eriously doubted, I might just purge it before sentencing.

  Bring the clamp over. He should wear it to the council hearing.” She waved to one of the soldiers.

  I blinked and the fear flashed in her eyes for the second time.

  “Hurry, he’s already fighting off the neurolizer. You’re too good at what you do.” She kissed me. “I’m actually going to miss you.”

  The men carried the heavy polymer vest and palladium contraption that would change my life. I had never tried to understand how the device worked; I just knew that it did. The silvery metal sparkled, the pins and screws hung down like jagged teeth. This model was larger and obviously heavier than the one I had used. Definitely an early model.

  I hoped it wouldn’t scramble my brain.

  The guards manhandled me into the compression vest and forced my head into the neuro-ring. After connecting the power lines between the two, the pins were screwed into the base of my skull and temples just above my eyes.

  My vision blurred red as the bile rose unhindered. Audra’s nose wrinkled as she stared at the wine-stained vomit covering her uniform. It almost made the pain worth it.

  You did that on purpose!”

  I had gained enough control to smile at her.

  Get him out of here.” She slapped the side of the clamp, rattling my teeth, and two bars emerged on either side of the ring. “Guard him closely.”

  The soldier nodded and then waved his team into action. I warranted an entire squad of six. Two soldiers walked in front of me, two behind, and one on each side held the bars and marched me out like a puppet using the control buttons on the bar.

  The trip to the council room of the capital Rave’hel was painfully short. I breathed and tried to memorize all the things I loved about Urovius. It was night, but everything glowed as bright as day on the planet that never slept. One massive city crammed with life, the planet offered every kind of pleasure and pain imaginable. Others left for wilder green planets, but this was my home. I loved the endless lights, the flashes from the transport pads, the plexitubes connecting everything in case you felt like walking, the high pitched wail as the seventy-mile-an-hour winds howled through the streets. The amber skies of the morning would warm the air and slow the gale to a low mournful sound.