Spinward Fringe Broadcasts 1 and 2

by Randolph Lalonde

  The main doors were made of solid stone and opened as she approached, revealing a dimly lit foyer beyond the threshold. It was decorated with black and grey stone statues of bony, scaled water demons in ferocious combat. The various creatures were frozen in place, rending each other with long claws, tearing into one another with exaggerated jaws. The statues were carved deeply into the walls all around her and in the centre was a dais for a centrepiece, but it was empty.

  In near silence a cloaked figure descended the long, winding staircase set against one side of the foyer. “I trust the cargo is in good condition?” Said the thing in a raspy, low tone that she could feel in her chest.

  “Everything is as I received it from Wendy.”

  “The salvager. May I see it please?”

  Alice turned and nodded at the cargobot and it carefully moved the cases between her and the creature then opened the nearest one. For the first time she could see some of his features. Its three long fingers were double boned, one was outside of the skin, the other was inside. It had two opposable thumbs that fit between the three fingers, and they all ended in claws extending from the bare bone.

  It reached into the container and lifted the stasis chamber with one hand and set it down beside the antigravity sled. The chamber weighed over three hundred kilograms and she tried not to show her surprise at the creature's formidable strength. She caught a glimpse of its face and immediately wished she hadn't.

  One side was covered in bone, it looked like these creatures grew a second skull on the outside of their heads. It was complete with carnivorous teeth and razor sharp vertical bones with barbs running from its temple to jaw line. The eye on that armoured side was large, and its milky, light yellow pigment caught the light for only a moment.

  The other side of its head was not as well armoured. It looked as though someone or something had broken pieces of its outer skull away and she could see its dark blue and grey skin along with its inner teeth. There was a void where the eye on that side should be and a long scar ran across the skin and bone.

  He was two and a half meters tall, perhaps closer to three and moved with a grace and certainty that was absolutely unnatural by human standards. His joints didn't seem to bend the right way, but arbitrarily turned in whatever direction he needed to move in.

  “You have done very well,” he said as he checked the display panel on the stasis chamber. “These are in perfect condition,” he opened the top of the chamber and plunged his hand inside. A moment later he carefully withdrew an egg the length of her forearm and held it up in her direction. “Did she tell you where she found these?”

  “She didn't.”

  The creature made a deep cooing sound at the egg that she felt more than heard. It wasn't loud, only so low pitched that it had a reverberating resonance in the large stone room. “Your ship is being refuelled. I will give you this story.”

  “Thank you,” Alice said with a slight bow.

  “You will most likely not be paid for your services, Wendy has most likely began running after the warning I sent her. Now for my gift. I am the Zarrix, long ago I was exiled, cast out by my people and denied my place among them for acceptable reasons. I did not wander long. What I had to offer your people when I arrived in your space granted me great wealth by your standards. Here I am left in peace, I have time and privacy so I can find a way back to my people, earn my seat among the tried elders. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, your English is excellent,” Alice responded quietly.

  “The ship is being refuelled with high grade Xetima. His systems are also requesting access to our outer hold so they can load provisions,” Lewis informed her through her cranial communicator.

  “Open the outer hatch, leave the inner one sealed,” she replied mentally.

  “I'll tell you when they finish.”

  Zarrix cooed at the egg one more time and carefully replaced it in the stasis tube. “I was forced to learn your most common tongue. Translators don't understand our languages. I will continue. Years were spent searching for a way for me to use resources gathered here to earn my way back from exile. There was no progress for a very long time. Someone from home, a person who still holds me in high regard, did contact me some time ago.

  They told me that many of your people had visited one of our host worlds. This is an act of damage.” The creature looked up at the ceiling for a moment, making a clicking sound then looked to Alice. It was hard for her to look him in the eye but she tried not to flinch or grimace, Alice was sure he could see a negative reaction even though they were in very dim lighting. “Our host worlds are places of great life we bring many, many hatchlings to before they are at the age of consciousness. We leave them there with nothing, only each other and the resources of that planet. They learn nothing of technology, of speech, of culture or society until their first armour has been torn away and the second has grown in its place. Many years pass. It takes time for our young to reach true consciousness. People like you visited one of our host worlds and stole some of our young, a large act of damage.”

  “I didn't know anything about that, I'm sorry.”

  “I do not smell them on you. Innocence or guilt is not in question,” he said as he brought his deadly hands together and scraped the bone segments together then slowly drew them apart. It was some kind of gesture, she decided to try and remember it. “I continue. My people were furious but did not go after them at first. They had to destroy all life on the host world so it could grow back pure. Once that had been done and the first grieving had been observed my people went in search of their lost children.

  Much time had passed by your people's thinking and they had taken what is most important. The computer storage you have returned to me has all of our essence and the work they did with it inside. From us they created another kind of life, a kind dreamed about by your ancestors. Do you understand?” He asked quietly.

  “They modified your essence, your DNA so it became something else?”

  “Yes, you call it dee en ay. I had forgotten. I continue. These eggs are not bred by us. They are the result of human meddling. I have seen what they brought to be and I can not help but be amazed. Your race activated sleeping aspects in our people, twisted them just enough and created a new species. In your society it was a triumph for a short time, they were going to sell them. My people heard of this and went into space. They hunted them down and destroyed the laboratories. They killed everyone they found there and returned home when grief was fully satisfied. I thought the matter was done and in my lonely home I was relieved. Years passed. Your employer found a ship with these things,” he gestured to the stasis pod and the crates between them. “A group of humans managed to salvage all materials left from human meddling and their ship failed. I outbid all and demanded she come here with them. She knew it was dangerous for her ship. Your failure lies between my home and hers.”

  “You mean the Eden system.” Alice pointed out. It was true, without a wormhole generator anyone who wanted to journey safely around it would have to travel much longer.

  “Yes, your failure with machines. She hired you and you brought it all to me. My place among my people will be restored. There are some powerful edxians who did not find grief satisfied. They see your people as a plague, as mere mammals for breeding and food. You have a word for this,” he looked up and made that hollow clicking again.

  She didn't want to say it, the thought was appalling, terrifying. “Cattle,” Alice managed quietly.

  “Yes, you are cattle to them. I understand this, your kind are soft, succulent, but also have value while living. I continue. My purpose is to present these things to my people and they will decide that grief was not satisfied completely. I will be restored after presenting this evidence and will rejoin my family. Many of my people will go to fight, either to satisfy grief or to gather cattle and return home. That story, fuel, information and food are my gifts and thanks. You have done better than I expected. Your people are often clumsy.”<
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  “Thank you. I appreciate everything you've given me and wish you luck.”

  Zarrix stared at her for a moment, opening and closing his hands with a long scraping sound. “What is luck?” It sounded more like a statement than a question.

  “It's good fortune, finding or accomplishing something with very little effort.”

  “I understand. Thank you.”

  “I'll go back to my ship and leave as soon as I can. Thank you again,” she said clearly and politely. From the way he spoke about humans she didn't want to turn her back on him. It sounded like she could easily become part of his diet, but she did turn away and started walking towards the large double doors.

  “Stop,” he said calmly.

  Her heart sank and she tried not to appear terrified as she looked at him.

  “You are respectful. I smell fear but see none. Of humans I've met you are one of the few who deserve what I can give,” he stated, holding one hand up and pointing a single clawed thumb at the ceiling. “If you have family near Ara Enormis you should gather them and find other stars. You must run human. People of your kind will call our need for satisfaction war. You will retaliate and more grief will be observed, satisfied.”

  “Thank you, I will take your advice,” Alice said before turning and walking straight out of the mansion. The cargobot was right behind her.

  A Poor Cell

  Finn kept a constant watch, looking out the small porthole in the ceiling of the bunk room. He had been fishing for a fine electromagnetic adjuster in his footlocker when the ship was hijacked and was sealed in with Price and Ramirez. Sometime later their captors had taken the gruff boarder then returned him hours later with a hole in his leg. Price and Finn decided then that they couldn't wait for the Captain to save the ship.

  “What do they want?” Asked Finn as Price dug through his bunk drawers for something.

  “They want the Captain. Some guy named Lucius Wheeler, he knows all about him from before the Samson. The bastard made Captain watch him shoot me then just left me there lying on the bridge. It's like he forgot about me completely while he went on with his business.” Ramirez's resilience was astounding, he wasn't complaining, he was angry. It was more of an impassioned accounting of wrong doing than whining about his condition.

  “I'm sorry,” Agameg said sympathetically.

  “Not like you could do anything. Gave Ashley something to think about other than worrying about how to get us free. She's a bright girl, but there's no way she could hatch an escape plan with Wheeler staring at her.”

  “So he's a bounty hunter?”

  “He works for Regent Galactic. They fixed him up with a skeleton crew and sent him off on his ship, the Triton. I could swear I heard Burke's voice on Wheeler's comm for a minute. If I ever get my hands on that little bastard I'll finish what Captain started.”

  Price retrieved a black metal box from his footlocker and went to Ramirez's side. “He was not my favourite crew mate. Why did they torture you?” He asked.

  “It was a demonstration. Wheeler said he needed Captain to take him seriously. Makes sense, I've never heard of the bastard before.”

  “You are fortunate the weapon he uses causes mass cauterization. There is virtually no bleeding.”

  “Lucky, heh.” Ramirez muttered. “Have anything for the pain? I wish I could just pass out.”

  “No, my race does not generally require pain management. I do have three doses of active medical nanobots though. They're infantry grade,” he replied, holding up an injector. “Do you have any physical or religious problems that would prohibit-”

  “Just patch me up already!”

  Price injected the nanobots right below Ramirez's hip. “Considering the severity and depth of the injury, this will itch profoundly.”

  “I don't feel anything yet.”

  Price gestured for Finn to come down from the top bunk then cocked his head at Ramirez. “Any sensations?”

  He shrugged. “A little tingling, pain isn't as bad,” a moment later his leg twitched and he gripped the bedding. “Holy hell, that's not itching! It's more like my leg's on fire from the inside!” He shouted out so loudly they were sure they could probably hear him ship wide.

  Price snatched a pillow from his bunk and put it on Ramirez's face just hard enough to muffle his screams. Finn took hold of his ankles and tried to keep him from kicking too much. He looked down at the man's leg and could see the flesh knitting. The nanobots were invisible, but their work was obvious. Before his eyes, veins, muscle, and skin were repaired and in the space of less than a minute the injury was just gone.

  Ramirez pulled the pillow off his face and laughed as he checked his injury. “You should have told me they were old emergency nanos. I've heard of them but never used 'em before.”

  “I always have a medical kit near at hand. I'm sorry I didn't pay for a better one.”

  “No, hombre, you did good here. I just thought when some of those old soldiers said; it itches, it was like an itch. Not every nerve in your leg getting hit like you just smacked your funny bone with a sonic jack hammer.”

  Finn looked up at the porthole and saw the stars moving quickly. “We're underway,” he climbed to the top bunk and put his face against it so he could see outside better. “Headed to open space at a pretty high speed. The emitters are still powered down though, so I don't think we're going into hyperspace just yet.”

  “I only hope the Captain and Stephanie can find us before we're out of the area.”

  “Captain has all kinds of ways to track his ship. They'd have to turn everything off and dock us inside a shielded bay for him to lose sight of us.”

  Price dug around in his footlocker a little more then produced a small centimetre by centimetre box. “I have some dermal transmitters, in case we get separated. We will be able to communicate on a discreet channel.”

  Ramirez looked at the box. “Normally I hate those things. They don't have much of a range and you can't take 'em off. In this case, I can't refuse.” He took the box, placed it against his jawbone and pressed the button. The feeling of the tiny, invisible communicator knitting into his skin made him shudder. He knew it was made so the user wouldn't even know it was there, but he swore he could still feel it just under the flesh.

  Agameg Price implanted one into his cheekbone and offered it to Finn. “Just press it against my jawbone?”

  “Yes, the transmitter will pick up the vibrations of your speech. It will also send vibrations that your ear canal will pick up so you can hear incoming transmissions. It will only work with others who have transmitters from this box or use this frequency.”

  Finn expected a pinch, some kind of pain as he pressed the box up against his jawbone but he only heard a click, then another click. “I think I implanted two, sorry.”

  “Don't worry, these are cheap leisure items. Spacerwares sells them for a few credits at the counter. They only have a range of approximately half a kilometre.”

  “Hooray for impulse buyer items. These are just half a notch better than proximity radio,” Ramirez said with a smile. “I can already hear you both through the transmitter though. It's checking out.”

  “I am terrible for spending my entire budget on the first aisle and the counter. I once became lost in Spacerwares and almost bought a shuttle board and the impact armour that goes with it.”

  “Now those are fun, there's nothing like hovering along at three hundred klicks an hour. They cost a fortune if you buy the brand name one though.”

  “Yes, seeing the advertisement on the box was so exciting, I momentarily forgot about my living conditions. Stephanie caught me while I was waiting in line to pay and asked if I truly needed one. I am glad she stopped me, I haven't found a practical use for one yet.”

  Finn was still looking out the port hole, and he could see the engines had swivelled and begun firing. “We're decelerating but there's nothing in front of us.”

  “Perhaps we're entering a holding pattern? Can you s
ee the planet?”

  “Nope, there's nothing in sight from this angle.” He flinched, startled at something outside. “Whoa!”

  “What?” Ramirez asked.

  “We're inside a hangar, but I didn't see the ship coming up. We were in open space one minute, then suddenly we're in a hangar.”

  “How does that happen?”

  The sounds of the ship gently landing came from below decks. “It must be a cloaked ship,” Agameg commented.

  “You're right.”

  “Well, as long as they don't completely drain the power from the Samson the Captain will be able to find us. It'll be harder though.” Ramirez commented.

  “The crew here will find any signals emitted by the ship, so he won't have much time to track us down. We'll have to try and find our own solution,” Finn said with determination. “Is there any way out of this room?”

  “Yes, there's a maintenance hatch just here.” Agameg pointed at the deck plating. “It lets out into the hallway below.”

  “That's some pretty sloppy planning,” Ramirez commented. “Locking everyone in their quarters probably wasn't the best idea,” he reached under his mattress and pulled out a pistol.

  “Okay, so once we get down there, I'll head for the Big Surprise. If anything will knock out the cloaking field on the ship we've landed on that'll do it. It'll make us a lot easier to find and might buy us time.”

  “That's an excellent idea!” Price whispered excitedly.

  “We should get moving, if I were running a ship capture I'd be moving everyone on the Samson into my own brig. When I get to a communications console I'll see if I can patch in and get in touch with Aucharian Command. They might be able to help us.”

  Price quietly removed a half meter by half meter deck plate and pushed a bundle of cables aside. “I'll go first since I'm the most flexible,” reaching down he unclipped the latch that held one edge of the ceiling plate in place then put his head down against it so he could see through the crack. He couldn't see anyone in that direction, so he proceeded to carefully unlatch the other side of the plate. It swung open to reveal a crew member looking up quizzically and without a moment's hesitation Agameg jumped down.