by Kumar Lomash
As Francis retired to his bed, Joti and Kevin left his cabin and started walking towards the elevator. They were passing through the corridors of level 6, when Kevin saw a man who he had seen earlier in the canteen. He was looking straight at Kevin. Kevin remembered that this conspiracy man had been leading a protest when Kevin saw him for the first time. But he looked alone right now. Also, why would he be on level 6 when he said he stayed on level 14? Kevin grew suspicious of him. Was he following him? The man was not trying to hide and seemed to be waiting for Kevin to come to him and maybe talk. Kevin kept walking towards the elevator. After a few moments, it was clear that Kevin was trying to ignore him and was not willing to confront him at least tonight. The man smiled and bowed again, very similar to how he had bowed earlier in the canteen. It seemed, it was his way of saying “until we meet again”.
As soon as Kevin and Joti entered the elevator and the doors closed, she turned to him and asked, “Do you know Boris?”
“Who is Boris?”, Kevin asked.
“The man who was looking at you outside. It seemed you have met.”, Joti replied.
“Oh, that man. Yes, why? He came up to me in the canteen yesterday. Seemed like a conspiracy theorist”, Kevin replied honestly.
“Boris is an angle Kevin. But not the kind whom you would like to get close to.”, Joti cautioned.
“I thought angles are all good.”, Kevin wondered.
Joti replied as they got out of the elevator on level 20.
“Angels have always been against the Union, suspecting the Union to be a mere puppet in the hands of hums. But there is an extreme group among angels who would do anything to remove the Union from power. They would bring down the Union on the very first opportunity that they get. This Boris guy is the self proclaimed leader of a bunch of angels who wish to overthrow Holum and the Union and take control of the human society.”, Joti clarified. “Francis and others dislike the Union as well but they understand that bringing it down is not a solution.
“And, you are loyal to Holum and the Union, so you trust Francis but don’t trust Boris?”, Kevin wanted to clarify.
“Yes. I believe in Holum completely. He is the best chance we have. If there are indeed aliens waiting for us down there, we need someone as tactful as Holum or maybe Francis to steer us away from a head on collision with them. Now that we are here, we must negotiate a coexistence. I believe that people like Boris sometimes forget that the more we fight amongst ourselves, the weaker we become. We are no longer the dominant species around so we must stick together and work out our differences.”
Kevin heard everything Joti said quietly and patiently but he was never the kind of person who could be cautioned against trying something. He made up his mind to see Boris soon to hear the other side of the story.
The morning after, Kevin was getting ready for his mission. Joti entered his cabin.
“You are up early”, Joti commented.
Kevin looked at her and smiled. He said, “I have always wondered about aliens throughout my life and today I am finally going to find out if they really exist. I couldn’t sleep all night”.
“I want you to be careful out there.”, Joti told Kevin. “Don’t be too adventurous. Be careful with whatever you find there.”
“And, what if I don’t find anyone?”, Kevin questioned.
“Then be more careful. You should fear what you cannot see.”, Joti was quick witted, she answered Kevin’s clever question aptly.
Kevin wrapped his hands around Joti and asked, “Were you really looking at me that time when we woke up from the deep sleep and I was sitting near the canteen?”.
I have been watching you for a long time, Kevin. Since the day you were to be picked up from Dwarka. It was my mission to keep an eye on you, amongst other things. I am not sure why I was chosen for it. When Holum asked me to do it, I was shocked. He was asking one of his best officers to keep an eye on a class 4 human. I was slightly mad at him for assigning such a meagre task to me. But as I studied your past, trying to understand and predict your reactions towards the information disclosed to you, I realised that you were not like the other 8 we were picking up along with you. You were wiser than the others even when you had the same knowledge as them. Braver even when you had worse tragedies in your life. You appeared like a learned human who had lost his way into a class 4 colony. But I had a hard time placing you in either of the 4 gene pools. You seemed stronger, wiser, more empathetic and smarter than your peers.”
“Like a J!”, Kevin kissed Joti on her cheeks. Implying that she too had those qualities.
“Yes, Precisely.”, Joti realised that all of this could be explained easily if Kevin turned out to be a J, this was a possibility she had never entertained because she knew it was impossible. She continued. “But that is impossible. No male J has ever been born.”
“What?”, Kevin was surprised. He asked, “But, why?”
“They have not been able to make one yet, Kevin. It's already too tricky to allow all the 4 traits to coexist in a female body. They found out that a male’s body is much more unbalanced and tends to specialize in one trait rather than balancing among many. They never had a problem with creating male individuals for F, G, H or I gene pools but with J they have not been able to successfully create one. I am sure they will get it right someday but I am sure you are not a J”
“That’s the most sexist thing I have heard today. I thought males and females were equal”, Kevin quipped.
“Yes, they are. But they are not the same.”, Joti was convinced about this.
Kevin asked, “Is this some kind of a test? Once I agree that they are not the same, will you judge me for agreeing with you?”
“Being ‘equal’ is not being ‘same’, Kevin.” Joti tried to clarify.
“Two complimentary things can be equally important but they would never be same. Being same beats the purpose of being complimentary. Take for example a nut and a bolt. Both are different and one cannot replace the other but they both are equally important and useless without the other. The same is with man and woman. Both are different but equally important. It is a mistake to compare their individual capabilities; their strengths and weaknesses.”
Kevin looked at Joti with wonder. All that she told him made perfect sense.
Joti realised that she came to wish him luck and not lecture him on man-woman equality. She quickly wrapped up going back into Kevin’s arms, “...so you see, we are not the same”.
Moji entered the cabin and started making beeps on seeing Kevin and Joti in each other’s arms.
“Do you ever knock?”, Kevin asked Moji.
“You will be late Kevin if you don’t start in 2 minutes.”, Moji justified his entrance.
Joti and Kevin let each other go. Kevin went back to picking up his stuff.
“Is Golli back yet?”, Kevin’s question was intended for Moji.
“No. They have been asked to stay 2 more days on Nole.”, Joti replied before Moji could.
Joti continued, “I believe your stay on Nole is also going to be a long one, Kevin.”
“How do you know all of this?”, Kevin asked casually while picking up his last item. “Ibu told me this mission was only known to the captain and a handful of senior staff”.
Moji explained, “She is training under the captain himself, Kevin. She will soon be ready to captain the ship.”
“Really?”, Kevin was pleasantly surprised. “Would they let you captain the ship? You are so young.”
“So? Being young is not a disadvantage. Moreover, I am not interested in that.”, Joti replied with disdain. “I want to join the Union and lead the human society.”, Joti added with glitter in her eyes.
“Oh, my God! I am in love with a politician.”, Kevin tried cracking a joke.
“You love me?”, Joti was surprised. “You have known me only a couple of days!”
Kevin was surprised too. He never considered the word love and what it means to him. He was aware of his feelings
for Joti but didn’t know it was love.
“I don’t know whether what I feel for you is love or not but it definitely is a strong feeling, Joti.”, Kevin replied.
Moji reminded Kevin again of being on a schedule and Joti indicated that Kevin should now proceed. She said, “We will talk about it when you return. Take care.”
After a while Kevin was waiting for his turn to enter the spacecraft which would take him to Nole. A lot of armbots and soldiers waited along with him.
“I hope your are not nervous, Kevin.”, Holum’s voice made Kevin turn around.
“No, Sir. I am excited”, Kevin replied.
“Good. Come with me Kevin.”, Holum pulled Kevin away from the rest of the people who were now boarding the ship.
“Kevin, There are some changes to your trip plans. As soon as you land on Nole, you will be greeted by a person called Gemley. He is a soldier in the Union and reports directly to me. You will follow Gemley to a secure location and wait there. Ibu and I will soon meet you there.”
“Sir, is there a problem?”, Kevin asked cautiously
“No, no. Don’t be silly, Kevin.”, Holum smiled nervously and tried calming himself down for appearance sake. “Your safety is my primary concern. There is no problem at all.”, Holum replied.
Kevin was already suspicious seeing Holum come to bid him farewell and his suspicions grew stronger as Holum looked concerned but tried hiding it. This was too much for a curious mind like Kevin’s to ignore but he knew it was not the right time to go into all of that. He asked the most relevant question.
“I meant, are there aliens on Nole?”, Kevin asked.
“What aliens?”, Holum tried to dismiss the question altogether.
“I have heard rumours that there are aliens on Nole. Is that true, Sir? Is that why we are supposed to go to a secure location?”, Kevin asked.
“We are Nole’s aliens, Kevin. That is all you need to know now. And, Gemley would only take you to the secure location. Others on the ship would wait on the landing site and relieve the first party of their duties for them to return. You want Golli to return and have some rest don’t you?”, Holum smiled towards the end.
“He knows about my friends too?” Kevin thought. “Why would the president of humanity be so interested in me?”. With a lot of questions in his mind, Kevin nodded in affirmation, put up a fake parting smile and turned to climb up the craft which was leaving for Nole.
Holum patted Kevin’s shoulders, as he was walking away, and said in an encouraging tone, “Kevin, it is really important that you follow my instructions to the last word. And don’t worry, your next couple of weeks are going to be the most interesting of your life.”, Holum tapped once more on Kevin’s shoulders and said, “And lastly, Kevin…”, it seemed he had saved his most important message for the end. Kevin turned to listen to what he had to say, Holum continued, “...remember to enjoy the view”.
Holum had managed to leave Kevin on a lighter note. Kevin smiled and replied, “I will, Sir”, as he climbed up and entered the spacecraft. He was the last to get on and the door closed as soon as he entered. The soldier who closed the door directed Kevin towards a vacant seat. As he walked towards it, he noticed the spacecraft was very similar to the military planes he has seen in books and movies. There were seats on both sides and people were sitting with their faces towards the inside. Kevin felt the spacecraft’s engine roaring up and hurried to his seat. He hung his backpack securely on the wall behind his seat and sat down. As he put on his seatbelt, he noticed one of the soldiers observing him with keen interest. He had a walkie-talkie like device in his hands. As Kevin clicked his seatbelt into a lock, the soldier reported loudly, “All aboard, clear for take off.”
Holum walked away as the spacecraft. It cruised very slowly into a tunnel only large enough for it. A heavy door closed behind it as it continued hovering into the long tunnel. Laser beams were continuously fired from all sides of the spacecraft’s body to keep track of the narrow tunnel and maintain a safe gap on all sides. The door which had closed a few moments ago now displayed a green text on one of its panels, it read “Air Lock Engaged”. On its other side, in the tunnel, the spacecraft was nearing another door which had the same sign showing on one of its panels. But as it approached the door, the green text changed into a red flashing “Air Lock Disengaged”. With some noise, the doors opened and the spacecraft accelerated quickly into the empty space outside. After a couple of seconds, the spacecraft made a sharp turn towards Nole.
Holum was now sitting in another spacecraft talking to someone. He quickly wound up when he saw Ibu approaching. As Ibu reached Holum wondering who he was talking to, the man turned.
“Hello Minister Ibu”, it was Boris.
“Boris!”, Ibu acknowledged though was surprised Boris was here.
“Boris was just leaving.”, Holum suggested.
Ibu squeezed himself to one side of the aisle for Boris to pass through. This was not as large a spacecraft as the one Kevin flew in. It was much smaller, like a private jet. Boris crossed Ibu on his way towards the doors and then turned to wish Bon Voyage to them both. As he exited, Holum turned to Ibu and asked him to sit down.
“I was not aware that you knew this man, Mr. President.”, Ibu was not hiding his surprise and concerns anymore. “He is the single most significant threat to the Union.”, he stated.
“I know, Ibu. And, you should call me Holum at least when we are alone.”, Holum replied.
“Mr. President, I no longer feel that you are the same old friend that I once had. I believe you have too many secrets from me for me to consider you my friend.”, Ibu was still insisting on the formality and he looked a bit sad too.
“Ibu, my friend, I am burdened with a lot of knowledge that I never wished to be privy to. You have been kept in the dark for your own safety and peace of mind. Moreover, it is not up to me to decide who knows and who doesn’t.”, Holum said in a friendly and empathetic voice.
“What is it, Holum? Tell me, please. Don’t you trust my judgement and ability to keep secrets?”, Ibu insisted.
“Ibu, as I said earlier, it is not up to me. But now I have permission to talk to you, so I will.”, Holum smiled nervously.
“You have the permission now? From Whom? Who has such powers over the president himself?”, Ibu asked surprisingly.
Holum said, “Why don’t you sit down and I will tell you everything.” As Holum started to talk, a loud, deep siren masked their voices.
Joti was sitting on one of the chairs in the cockpit. She saw the screen in front of her showing “Stage 1 complete”, “Stage 2 complete”, “Stage 3 complete”, “Stage 4 complete”, “Stage 5 complete”, “Stage 6 complete”, “Stage 7 complete”, “Stage 8 complete”, “Stage 9 complete”, “Stage 10 engaging”, “Stage 11 incomplete”, “Stage 12 incomplete”. She turned to one of the officers standing by and said, “everything looks fine officer. We are now in a geostationary orbit over Nole. I have put everything on auto pilot and we should not have to manually do things for the next 20 days while we stay in orbit. Please let me know if something comes up.”
Joti left the cockpit and the officer took the chair. She entered the Captain’s office and sat casually waiting for him to notice her. Garry was looking out of the window.
04. Stage 10
Garry had noticed Joti entering and started talking while looking out of the window. “How is the ship doing, Joti?”, He asked.
“Very well, Sir. Sometimes I wonder how we can be so successful in our first intergalactic endeavour. We have just parked ourselves into Nole’s orbit. The spaceship has been working flawlessly. Our estimates for everything turned out to be perfect. It all just amazes me.”, Joti was curious by the success of their project.
“Well, we did send humanless probes into intergalactic voyages with success earlier. This is not our first mission, is it? I agree that those were humanless probes but the spaceship technology used there was similar.”, Garry tried defending the cur
iously overwhelming success of their project.
“Exactly! That was our first attempt and it went flawlessly.”, Joti countered.
“All I know is that the ministry of technology and weapons has achieved unprecedented success under the leadership of minister Foss and those who preceded him. Foss should get all the credit for this.”, Garry responded.
“Yes, they have been too successful. Sometimes I feel God himself has given his technology to Foss.”, Joti was still trying to wrap her head around it.
“God?”, Garry smiled.
“Aliens, maybe?”, Joti came to the point.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Joti”, Garry rejected her idea completely.
“Tell me Sir, what next?”, Joti indicated that she was now free for her next assignment.
“Yes, let's do some work, shall we?”, Garry was relieved by the change in topic. “Your next assignment is a narrow one but I need you to do it yourself, discretely.”
Joti showed some interest in how this assignment sounded. Garry continued.
“A spacecraft will soon leave this spaceship and travel to a nearby planet called Peele.”
“Peele? I have not heard this name before.”, Joti responded.
“Yes, it is the local name of the planet R-A-P-0-3”, Garry said carelessly.
“Local name?”, Joti had one more question. “Who would assign a local name to these far off planets?”.
Garry realised that he had said more than he was supposed to. He quickly took control of the conversation, “Joti, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You will know more when you are supposed to. For now, your job is to track the spacecraft going to RAP03 and keep a log. specifically, lookout for any change in its course or other spacecraft following it. We will need to take defensive actions if there is a threat. Ok?”
