PLANETBOUND

by D M Arnold

  Andra approached, saw Nyk and ran to him. “You're safe! I knew you were safe!”

  “Oh, Andra!” He embraced and kissed her, then noticed a bruise under one eye. “What happened to you?”

  “Senta did that -- we had a terrible row.”

  “Senta hit you?”

  “Yes -- and I threw her out of the house. She went to the labs and is heading home afterward. She took her case and won't be coming here.”

  “Then, we're safe,” Suki said.

  Andra shook her head. “No -- Senta knows you're onworld.”

  “How did she know?” Andra picked up the snack wafer wrapper. “Oh...”

  “She spotted your Earth clothes in your bedroom and called Agency Enforcement -- that's what we fought about. Some Internal Affairs officers were here yesterday. They took me into Sudal for interrogation. And, they put an ID trace on me -- in case I try to help you.”

  “The interrogated you -- with truth drug?”

  Andra nodded. “Senta signed the warrant as witness.”

  “I didn't think truth drug was legal on this world.”

  “They have a new, approved variety. I'm afraid I must've told them you were on the platform. And, I'm afraid my friendship with Senta is over.”

  “Oh, Andra -- I'm so sorry. I hope it wasn't too unpleasant for you.”

  “Don't worry about me -- at Vebinad we were trained to deal with truth drug. It's part and parcel of colonial politics. I do feel badly about Senta. I don't know why she has to be so hard- headed.”

  “She's always been like that.”

  “Internal Affairs sent a skimmer out to the platform and found it wrecked by the storm. The escape capsule was missing, so I assumed you were safe.” Andra looked toward the door. “Did you scan your way in?”

  “Yes...”

  “I'm sure Internal Affairs has an ID trace on you by now. They're probably on their way here. I can take you somewhere in the groundcar.”

  Nyk looked at Suki. “Please -- no more running,” she said. “I'm so tired and sore.”

  He stepped into the study and gathered up the datacels. “I suppose we have no choice but to see how the oversight committee reacts to the evidence I've gathered so far.” He held Andra. “Don't fret -- things will work out.”

  “I know -- or else we wouldn't be here.”

  * * *

  Nyk stepped from the shower and slipped into a fresh tunic. Andra and Suki sat at the kitchen table. He glanced toward Sudal. “I see a skimmer coming.”

  He led Suki out the front door. The Internal Affairs skimmer pulled up to the house and a squad of officers stepped out. “Nykkyo Kyhana?” their leader asked. Nyk nodded.

  One of the officers drew his stunner. “You don't need that,” Nyk said.

  “ID him.”

  Another officer presented a scanpad and Nyk pressed his wrist to it. “Nykkyo Kyhana,” the officer read.

  “And, this is Sukiko Kyhana. She won't scan.”

  The officer attached a white polymer band around Nyk's neck and another around Suki's. “These are stun collars,” he said. “I'd advise you not to try anything.”

  “I won't -- neither of us will. We'll cooperate.”

  “Please come with us,” the squad leader said and opened the skimmer door. Nyk sat in the cabin. As the skimmer lifted off he looked back at the Residence. Andra stood on the second floor with her fist pressed to her lips.

  5 -- The Hearing

  Nyk was led into an interview room. “Nykkyo Kyhana...” A middle-aged woman addressed him. Insignia embroidered on her lifxarpa identified her as an ExoService official. Seated beside her was Senta. “I'm Tomyka Wells. You've given us quite a chase. Please take a seat.” He shifted his weight to his right foot and stared at Wells. “If you'd rather stand -- suit yourself.”

  “Nykkyo,” Senta implored. “Please cooperate. I've told Ms Wells you're a kind and decent man at heart.”

  Nyk folded his arms and glared at the two women.

  “I just want you home,” Senta continued, “where you won't get into mischief. I know you didn't intend to cause trouble -- you just can't help yourself.”

  “Nykkyo ... may I call you that?” Wells asked. Nyk continued to stare at her. “Would you please explain to me what you thought you were doing getting involved with an Earth woman?”

  Nyk remained impassive.

  “Nykkyo -- I told Tomyka of the time you brought her here for emergency medical treatment.” He closed his eyes, clenched his teeth and modulated his breathing. “Don't look at me with such hatred, Nyk -- it's for your own good.”

  “You do know what's going to happen,” Wells said. “You'll be kept planetbound, here for the rest of your life. You'll be subjected to economic incarceration. Your career in the ExoAgency is over. And -- the woman ... she'll be quarantined -- to neutralize the temporal contamination.”

  Nyk shook his head. “NO!”

  “So, you CAN speak,” Wells sneered.

  “You don't understand -- she's pregnant with the child who'll give rise to Koichi Kyhana. If she's kept here -- you'll be committing temporal interference of the most dangerous kind. You could doom our entire race!”

  “Nykkyo -- the rules are quite specific. No Floran Agent may reveal his true nature to an Earth native.”

  “Rules have exceptions,” Nyk replied. “There are some special circumstances surrounding Suki.”

  “Nykkyo...” Wells proffered a smile. “These policies were drafted by experts with much greater understandings of temporal issues than you or I. Do you possess credentials to challenge the best and brightest of our temporal thinkers?”

  “I've taken a course in temporal theory...”

  “An introductory one -- which you barely passed,” Wells said, consulting her vidisplay.

  “... and, I have direct, field experience.”

  “Nykkyo...” Senta said. “Stop deluding yourself.”

  “I have here a no-contest agreement to settle your case,” Wells said. “If you'll please sign this -- I'll agree to probation and on-world confinement. You'll avoid economic incarceration.”

  “And, Suki?”

  “Quarantine.”

  “Does she have any say in this?”

  “As an off-worlder ... no.”

  “Please, Nyk -- sign it,” Senta said.

  “No. I demand a hearing before the entire oversight committee.”

  “Very well.” Wells passed her hand over a proximity pad. “We've tried it the easy way.” An attendant entered the room and escorted Nyk out.

  * * *

  A shaft of Floran's golden morning light fell across Nyk's eyes. He looked around his cell. The narrow window overlooked the groundcar lot. An attendant opened the door and admitted a pair of Internal Affairs officers. One began attaching a stun collar around his neck. The other took his upper arm and led him down the corridor.

  “Where are we going?” Nyk asked.

  “Sudal clinic. You are to be interrogated.”

  He was led to an awaiting skimmer. The craft made a short flight to a squat building, equipped with Sudalese storm shutters. Nyk was led down a corridor and into a treatment room. A middle-aged woman in hospital garb greeted him.

  “Nykkyo Kyhana? Please, have a seat.”

  Nyk sat on the therapeutic pallet. He glanced at a device on a cart. It had a large reservoir of a clear fluid and several smaller vials and bottles. A coiled-up length of polymer tubing was attached to a fitting. “I gather now this stuff is legal again -- they're using it rather liberally.”

  “Internal Affairs lobbied hard to restore a tool they think they need. This variety has been approved for the past half year. It is safe -- and, effective. Have you ever been interrogated?”

  “Never.”

  “I'll explain what to expect.” She began attaching electrodes to his scalp. “These monitor your brainwaves. The interrogator can determine when you have entered a truth state.” She pointed to a control panel. “Two medics will su
pervise your procedure. One is an Internal Affairs interrogator. The other is a staff doctor, who will serve as your advocate. Both medics must consent before upping the dose of the drug. If either believes you are in danger -- the procedure is aborted and a rescue drug administered. Any questions?”

  “What will I feel?”

  “You'll feel -- more precisely, you will remember -- nothing. Some subjects experience various degrees of discomfort afterward -- vertigo, nausea and the like. Those after- effects are short-lived, and are directly related to the dose of the drug.” She connected the last electrode. “When was your last meal?”

  “Dinner -- last night.”

  “Good -- we want you to have an empty stomach -- for your safety.” She withdrew a device from a drawer. “I'm going to start the IV now. Let me look at your arm.” She inflated a cuff around his upper arm and ran her finger along a vein in the back of his left hand. “This will do -- you'll feel a prick.” She punctured his vein and taped the catheter into place. “This is only saline for now. Make yourself comfortable.”

  Nyk reclined on the pallet. A man wearing an Internal Affairs xarpa entered the room. “Nykkyo Kyhana?” He nodded. “Please scan this.”

  “What for?”

  “Identification.” He pressed his wrist to the scanpad. The officer examined it. “I have here a warrant for your interrogation with truth drug. Would you care to examine it?”

  The officer handed a vidisplay to Nyk. He read the document. “Signed by Tomyka Wells.”

  “I've been authorized to offer you this.” The officer poked the vidisplay and handed it back to Nyk.

  “The no-contest agreement. Tomyka is trying to intimidate me into signing it. I won't.”

  “Will you sign a voluntary interrogation consent form?”

  “No.”

  “Then, we do it the hard way. We will execute the warrant.” He turned to another officer. “Where's the witness?”

  The officer left and returned with Senta. “Nykkyo -- PLEASE cooperate. Sign the no-contest form. I don't want to see you like this. Sign it and we can be home by evening.” Nyk shook his head.

  The officer read the warrant aloud. “The subject has been read the warrant. Witness, please sign.”

  “Don't make me do this, Nyk,” Senta said. Nyk turned his head. He heard the scanpad chirp as Senta pressed her wrist to it.

  The officer escorted her from the treatment room. “We'll get started as soon as the staff medic arrives,” the interrogator said.

  The nurse sat beside Nyk. “Let me give you some advice...”

  “What advice?” Nyk replied. “Have you undergone this?”

  “Yes, I have. During training, all attendants are required to experience the procedures they may administer -- to better understand what the subject is enduring. Nykkyo -- don't fight the drug. You can't win -- they'll keep upping the dose. Just the other day we interrogated a young woman. She was such a beautiful girl -- she looked like she belonged in one of the finishing schools. I felt sorry for her -- the poor thing fought the drug, and was so sick. Give yourself to it -- you'll be thankful afterward.”

  A medic entered and took his seat at the control panel. “We have no signal on number seven probe,” he said. The nurse replaced the electrode. “That's better. We're ready to begin.”

  The nurse sat beside him. “Are you afraid?”

  “A little,” he replied.

  “Would you like me to hold your hand?” He nodded.

  “We're starting the agent,” the interrogator said. “Zero-five...” Nyk began to feel a burning sensation radiating up his left arm. “Zero-seven.” He tightened his grip on the nurse's hand. A roaring filled his ears.

  “Relax and give yourself to it,” the nurse said.

  “One-zero.”

  Nyk closed his eyes. He felt as if he were falling...

  “Nykkyo... Nykkyo...” He opened his eyes. The room was spinning. He grabbed the sides of the pallet. Slowly a pair of green eyes came into focus. “Nykkyo -- are you all right?”

  “Senta!”

  “They told me you gave in and they needed a light dose. I was thankful for that. Oh, Nyk! I do care for you. You probably don't believe it right now, but I do. I want you home -- so I can keep an eye on you.”

  “Try to sleep,” the nurse said. “Your brainwaves will return to normal sooner. Would you like a sedative?” Nyk nodded. She lifted the hem of his tunic and jabbed an injector into his thigh. He heard the snap of its discharge. A fog enveloped him.

  * * *

  Nyk stood in his cell. An attendant opened the door. “Nykkyo Kyhana.” A middle- aged man in an official-looking xarpa addressed Nyk. “I'll be representing you at your hearing.”

  “Illya,” Nyk replied. “Illya Kronta. Good to see you again.”

  “I wish it were under more pleasant circumstances. How are you feeling?”

  “No unpleasant after-effects. Where's Suki?”

  “She's being cared for. I suppose you know what Agency Enforcement is asking.”

  “To keep me onworld, and to quarantine her.”

  “I'm afraid so. Nyk -- I have the transcript of your interrogation here. I think it helps your cause.”

  “How?”

  “It proves you acted in good faith based on your beliefs. There was no malice -- no ulterior motives -- you were convinced you were acting in the best interest of the Hegemony. You did the right thing, not signing Tomyka's no-contest agreement. It was drafted with the assumption of malicious intent.”

  “I wasn't about to admit to something I didn't do. May I see the transcript?” Kronta handed Nyk a vidisplay. He began scrolling through the document. “I'm glad I don't recall any of it. Some of this is deeply humiliating.” He handed the vidisplay to Kronta. “Now what?”

  “Let's work together and begin planning your defense.”

  “You told me you're a Kyhana scholar.”

  “Yes, Nyk -- I've been reading your translation of Koichi's journal. I found it fascinating.”

  “I think there may be evidence in the journal. I'd like access to my datacels.”

  “You'll need a vidisplay, too. I'll see what I can arrange.”

  * * *

  Nyk paced in the interview room. “You heard the arguments and what Agency Enforcement is asking the committee,” Kronta said.

  “Why can't Suki stand before the committee and hear what they have to say?”

  “She's an offworlder.”

  “Her fate's being debated as if she were ... I don't know what -- some possession.”

  “I had an off-the-record conversation with one of Tomyka's aides. Tomyka will agree to have the infant returned to Earth -- after she delivers it, of course.”

  “And, Suki?”

  “Quarantine.”

  Nyk looked at Kronta with tears in his eyes. “It's inhumane -- to separate a mother from her child, never to be seen again.”

  “There's much more at stake than one individual.”

  “She'd be so unhappy here -- unbearably miserable.”

  “Tomyka will put forth the proposition if she can't be happy here, it might be a kindness to ... to euthanize her.”

  “No!” Nyk stood and looked out the narrow window onto the groundcar lot. “I thought we were a civilized people, Illya.”

  “I'd hate to have it come to that. Nyk, I am on your side in this. I do understand how you feel.”

  “How could you understand? How could anyone understand who hasn't lived it?”

  “What makes you assume I haven't lived it? I started my career as an ExoAgent on Earth. I'm the only one on the committee who has -- the rest have come up through other branches. I was stationed in Paris, using the Earth name of Pierre LaCroix.”

  “So, you've seen Earth.”

  “Nyk, sit down and listen to what I have to say.” Nyk returned to his seat across from Kronta. “I too, fell in love with an Earth woman. Her name was Daphne, and she was an American student spending some time in Paris. Unfor
tunately, she learned of my true nature.”

  “Was she quarantined? Euthanized?”

  “No -- my Agent-in-Chief handled the affair with delicacy. I was sent up -- before my tour ended. My record shows the reason was an 'indiscretion' -- Agency jargon for an inappropriate relationship with a member of that planet's population. No mention was made of my true infraction. Daphne promised never to tell another soul.”

  “Did she keep that promise?”

  “I have no idea. I was pulled from the field without ever seeing her again. I don't know if she's dead or alive.” He pressed his hand to his eyes. “I love her to this day ... So, you see Nyk -- I do understand what you're going through.”

  “Is Daphne on the critical path to the Centauri mission?”

  “No. Fortunately, there's no link between her line and the members of the Floran crew. I've used my authority to go through the family records as far as I can -- but I see no evidence of a link.”

  “If your superiors discovered...”

  “I'm sure they'd push to quarantine her, too. Destiny has a way of punishing us temporal offenders, Nyk. My punishment is to enforce the very rule I violated. If Daphne has kept her promise -- and I believe she has -- then she and Sukiko are the only Earth people who know of our existence and mission. That's assuming Daphne is still alive.”

  “How many other Florans know of Daphne?”

  “My Agent-in-Chief retired and passed away a number of years ago. Only you and I know, now. I'm telling you this to demonstrate I am sincere when I say I understand what you're going through, and I am on your side. I trust you won't use this information to my disadvantage.”

  “Of course not, Illya. I harbor no ill will against Daphne. I wouldn't want to see her harmed for what certainly was not her fault.”

  “You are a good man, Nykkyo -- better than some on the committee who would see me harmed through injury to her.”

  “Tomyka?”

  “I name no names.”

  “Illya, the lineage between Suki and Koichi Kyhana is nearly beyond doubt. Let's assume she does adjust to quarantine -- let's go so far as to assume she gives up her child willingly. There are still temporal implications. Without my interference, she would have had to play a role in her son's formation. Without her influence, her son might not found the family line -- Koichi might not develop into the man he was -- he might choose another career and not join the Centauri mission. The results are just as disastrous to us.”