by Anna Lewis
“Of course, no problem. I am just out for a walk. Is all well with you and yours?” she asked conversationally, looking up at the metal suited body, wondering what they really looked like.
“It is quiet tonight. With the conference coming up I felt it would be a good thing to add new security routes,” he told her. Tess nodded.
“Then I won’t keep you. I will see you later,” Tessa told him. She always appreciated the aliens who would stop and talk to her. She never wanted to be an annoyance. Enough aliens had no use for humans and would ignore her if she spoke to them.
“Good evening,” he responded and they went their separate ways.
As she passed one area she could smell the chemicals that wafted from the Lantel quarters. Those aliens required a strong chemical presence in their rooms that sometimes leaked out to the hallways. It wasn’t harmful to humans or others; it was strong however. Tessa held her breath for a few steps to get away from it before breathing again. Once safely passed she kept strolling down the corridors.
The Alien Quarter was a big part of Station One so there were plenty of halls to walk. She would wave or say hello to different people when she saw them. Some responded and others didn’t. As she approached a crossroads in the corridors she heard a clanking noise and then a wheezing. She peeked around the corner and saw an access hatch open and two men in masks doing something to a computer port. There was a familiar scent, not strong enough to recognize. Then she saw a being on the ground, wheezing for breath. It was an alien. As it rolled over groaning she recognized him. It was Jindal Lawthul from the booth, earlier in the day. She moved without thinking about it, going around the corner.
“Hey, what are you doing?” she called to the men messing with the access hatch.
“Take care of that,” one of them said and continued whatever he was doing to the system. The other one stood and came towards Tessa. She rolled her head on her neck once and was ready. The man reached for her.
“You are in the wrong place girly,” he told her reaching. Tessa grabbed his arm and pulled him towards her, kicking at the same time. Tessa let go of his arm when she connected with his ribs and he stumbled back, crying out in pain. The other man turned from the panel and moved towards her. He was the taller of the two and when he swung at her Tessa ducked and sidestepped. He anticipated that, swinging back around and catching her in the stomach. She had not expected that and bent forward with the force of it. She jerked back, not liking the vulnerable position and just missed being hit on the back of the head. Gasping she backed away. The tall one kept advancing on her and the other one was moving to catch up, cursing Tessa.
The downed alien turned where he lay and kicked out, catching the first man she had hit in the legs and causing him to stumble to the side. The Kindar representative began yelling for help as he struggled to his feet. She could see his arm was useless at his side. Tessa returned her attention to the man advancing on her and feinted a kick, then stepped forward as the man hesitated and caught him in the jaw with a solid punch. It did not seem to affect him and he returned the punch with lightning quickness. Tessa was unable to avoid it and it hit her jaw, knocking her back against the corridor wall. Her head thumped the solid wall and the sound rang in her ears. Everything became foggy and she tried to shake it off. She felt her arm being grabbed and she was swung. Then she hit the wall across from her, face first, hearing a loud pop and feeling severe pain. As the gray fog became thicker in her head she felt herself fall. The last thing she remembered was someone trying to catch her.
********
Tessa paced her cell after breakfast the next morning. Occasionally she would stop and feel the bruise on the back of her head or her broken nose. She had been seen to by a doctor, answered questions and then thrown in a cell until they figured out what was going on. Tessa was not happy. She did not mind being in a cell if she actually did something wrong, but this time she hadn’t and she was offended. She had actually been trying to help someone. She went back to pacing. There was a chiming noise and the cell door slid open. A security guard was standing there and gestured to her.
“Come with me now,” he said and Tessa did as she was asked. She didn’t have much of a choice. She followed him down the hallway and into another room. This one had a desk and screens all over the walls showing different scenes of life around the Station. The man behind the desk was the same security guard that had busted her sneaking off the carrier she had stowed away on. He was second in command of security these days. Of all the people, Tessa thought to herself. She was angry that she had already gone over her story twice.
“Would you like to tell me what you were doing in the Alien Quarter at that time of the night? You had no reason being there,” he said.
“I couldn’t sleep so I took a walk. I do it all the time. I have seen other security personnel on my walks as well as aliens. It has never been a big deal. I don’t see why it is now. I was trying to help the Kindar when this went down. Why don’t you ask him? I have told you what happened,” Tessa asked.
“He has declined an interview so far. I have a request in. Since he is part of the ambassadorial staff he has diplomatic immunity. You do not!” he said and I sighed. Great, the Kindar won’t answer questions so all he has left is me, Tessa thought sourly.
“I take it you still can’t identify the two men who attacked him and me? Is that why you are hassling me? I haven’t done anything wrong,” Tessa said.
“You are a stowaway and a transient. We both know you have been up to something and I want to know what. When something goes wrong in the Ambassadors’ corridors we take it seriously and investigate everyone,” he said. It angered me but I could see his point. Earth built and operated the station since it was on the edge of our space. The other races, however, paid for a lot of the expense so they could use the base as a shipping port and center for negotiations with other races. Therefore it was a priority to keep the aliens happy. Tessa shook her head; glad the headache was mostly gone.
“The only thing I have done wrong was stowing away. I haven’t done anything else wrong and if I remember right, the shipping company did not even press charges. That was the station ruling wasn’t it?” Tessa asked already knowing the answer.
“The Carrier’s Captain did not want to waste the time. The station laws prohibit stowing away so we had every right to press charges,” he said becoming annoyed.
“Charges that she was found guilty of, correct Mr. Norton?” a voice from behind Tessa said. Tessa turned as the security man answered. It was another Kindar. About the same height as Jindal, except with brown hair and not black. His eyes were a sparkling purple. He was as handsome as Jindal was.
“Correct, Ambassador Santeria. She was found guilty and did time in the brig for it. She has a criminal record, and that is why I think she knows something about what happened to your aide. How is he?” Norton asked the Ambassador politely. Ambassador! Tessa thought.
“He is healing nicely thanks to Dr. Hanson. Jindal is positive that this lady did nothing but help him,” the Ambassador told the security man.
“Well Ambassador, you never know about the people who live where she does. I will be more comfortable when my investigation is complete,” Norton told the Kindar. The alien nodded and appeared thoughtful.
“Hm, I may be confused Mr. Norton. I admit I do not always understand how human Earth laws work, but you said she has been incarcerated for this crime of “stowing away”, yes?” He asked.
“She did. She stowed away on a ship to get here over a year ago,” Norton told him.
“A serious crime to be sure,” Tessa thought she heard sarcasm in his tone. “If she spent time in the brig does that then mean she paid for this serious crime? If that is the case, she should be judged on behavior since then, correct? Or am I wrong? As I said, I do not always understand human law,” the Ambassador finished. Norton looked embarrassed. He opened his mouth and was interrupted as a high ranking officer walked into the office.
“I was just discussing that very thing with Mr. Norton. He seems to think that even though this young lady did not commit a crime, she should remain under guard,” the Ambassador said. Tessa knew that Norton had not said precisely that. Tessa almost felt sorry for him, while wondering what she had got herself into.
“Actually Commander, I am looking into whether she did commit a crime or not,” Norton said in his own defense.
“Look Mr. Norton, Commander. I know, as do all Station residents that the main hallways have security cameras in them. You could easily trace my route last night. I had dinner with some friends and then went back to my quarters. From there I took a walk until I ran into the incident that caused me to defend myself. Your cameras will show I did nothing wrong,” Tessa tried. The Commander was a tall, good-looking redhead with angular features and keen gray eyes. She looked from me to Mr. Norton and then the Ambassador.
“Well Mr. Norton?” the Commander asked.
“It does not appear that she has done anything wrong,” he grudgingly admitted as he glared at Tessa. The Ambassador became cheerful with a wide smile.
“Excellent. Then I would like a moment of the young Miss Tessa’s time as my government would like to thank her for assisting my aide. According to him he could have easily been killed if she had not come along and bravely decided to help. Is she free to come with me Commander?” the alien said looking at the Commander, ignoring Norton. Norton was looking angry.
“Will your aide be free for an interview and a statement?” the Commander asked. The Ambassador nodded, still smiling.
“Of course. He will be here shortly. The doctor has only just released him,” the Commander was told.
“Very well then. You are free to go Miss Sealand. Please make yourself available for further questions if we learn anything more,” she said and Tessa nodded.
“Of course Commander, just let me know,” she responded and got a nod back in return. She thought she saw amusement in the Station Commander’s eyes as Tessa left the room with the Kindar Ambassador!
Chapter Three – Startling Praise
Tessa walked with the Ambassador feeling like she was in an alternate reality. She was one of the underclass of the Space Station One, at the furthest edge of human space, and she was walking with the Ambassador of one of the oldest and most powerful worlds in the known Galaxy. She could sense possibilities for her future in every direction but was unsure of what they were. One question was bothering her though.
“May I ask a question Ambassador?” Tessa asked.
“You just did. I will allow another. You can call me Jobol if you would. I do not believe in formality unless it is a formal situation,” he answered.
“Thank you Jobol. I was wondering why you used the power of your position to help me out of the brig? I follow politics and know that most anything you do has a political motive behind it. It is part of your job,” she said. He stopped and glanced down at her. Their eyes met and she could see the humor as well as the compassion sparkling in their depths.
“A brilliant computer tech and an astute political observer. I am impressed Tessa. I hope you don’t mind if I call you Tessa?” he asked and then went on, not waiting for her answer. “You are right that most of what I do is politically motivated. In this case I truly want to thank you for helping Jindal. He is my friend and assistant. So in this case it was a personal choice and not a political one,” he answered and began walking again. Tessa noticed he walked slower so she, being shorter, could keep up without trouble. They walked through the back corridors to the Alien Quarter and from there into the Kindar sector.
The whole time while they walked, Tessa held back a flood of other questions. Like how he knew she was a computer expert. They went further into the area and came upon a wide door with a sign written in several languages. One of them was in Earth Standard. It said. Office of Kindar Affairs. He pressed a few keys on the door pad and it slid open. She followed him inside to a big open office area with a wide desk on one side and a couch with a low table in front of it holding several pitchers and glasses.
“Please have a seat Tessa, would you like some Gamar tea? It is from the tropical Islands of my world. It is quite refreshing,” he said and she nodded, trying to figure out what to say. Every time he looked at her his eyes sparkled with interest and appreciation. Tessa sat and wrinkled her nose. It was aching despite what the Doctor had done to heal the break. She had a feeling it was going to be crooked from now on.
“That sounds good Jobol, thank you. These are nice offices,” she said taking a seat. Since the Kindar were on average, six and a half feet tall, her foot less in height meant her feet didn’t quite touch the floor from the couch.
“They are nice, thank you. They work for us. Now that we have some privacy there are a few questions I can answer for you. First off,” he began and poured a cup of tea for her and then himself. “I meant it when I said the choice to add my presence to your situation was personal. For my home world, it was more than that. Jindal is from an old and respected house. He believes the attackers would have killed him and if Jindal had been killed on Station One it would cause a diplomatic incident of rather large proportions. So while I did it for personal reasons, they were happy to have me do it for political reasons. I imagine that you are wondering how I knew that you are a computer tech?” he asked. Tessa nodded and took a sip of the tea. It had a musky scent and a smoky flavor that sent warmth though her body. The ache began to fade from her nose and head.
“I had to be sure I was taking your part without any repercussions beyond the expected ones when an Ambassador takes an interest in someone who is not of their world. So I have been looking into your past. I apologize if that is a problem but it was important,” he said.
“May I ask what you found?” Tessa asked. “Beyond my computer skills?” He laughed.
“I found that you were top of your class, but were something of a distraction to your teachers and had a problem with authority. Once you graduated your schooling you took passage on a carrier to the edge of human space. Since it was an unorthodox manner of passage you were incarcerated for it. Since then you have been getting by in the poor section of the station. Until recently you have been staying wherever you could. I understand that it means you were sleeping in those leftover metal crates the homeless of your kind use in the back alleys. Congratulations on acquiring a place to live. I understand that is not easy,” he said. Tessa’s mouth dropped open in surprise. He laughed at her expression and it was musical thing to her ears. Like a symphony of mirth welling up inside him. She blushed. He stopped laughing.
“I am not laughing at you my dear. I merely find your surprise amusing. I imagine many of your race would be surprised as well. You must understand that most of us here on the station need information on all matters pertaining to the station. How all residents get by is important information. We have people who can find things out for us when we need it. Nothing I have heard suggests anything bad about you. It is sad that your security man Mr. Norton does not see things as I do,” he said.
“He is not my security man. He was the one who busted me when I got here so he does not like me. I guess I shouldn’t blame him. He deals with a lot of bad people so I think he just sees them everywhere,” Tessa said honestly.
“Hm, I suppose that is what humans call an occupational hazard. Our military has another word for it,” he said.
“What’s that?” Tessa asked.
“I think it would translate as target fixation. Since he is always looking for bad people, that is what he finds whether they are really bad or not. It is a flaw we train our people away from. We have learned it can cause tragedies to occur. In this case, for his own people. I find it strange, bu
t then so much of human behavior is strange to us. You, however, are strange in a different way and I am intrigued. May I ask a question?” He asked.
“You just did, but go ahead with another,” she said without thinking. He laughed again.
“Good for you! Very well, I was curious about your habit of mixing with aliens. Many from the Alien Quarter are aware of you. You always take time to be polite to those of us who are not human. Most humans who are not in the diplomatic office or business affairs are not so charitable. Many humans merely tolerate us or are afraid of us. This is not an insult to your people, I hope you understand that. You are a young race and it takes a long time to get used to different species,” he said the last gently. Obviously trying to not give offense.
“Thank you Jobol. I guess I am just curious. I came out to the Edge to see new things. Explore the galaxy as best I can. Coming to the Edge like this was my way of getting closer to the rest of the galaxy. Earth is very insulated and I was feeling closed in. Out here there are the stars and possibilities. I like possibilities even if it means clawing my way up from the bottom,” Tessa answered. Jobol nodded and sipped his tea. Tessa liked his smile. He was a handsome individual and she was beginning to sense an attraction coming from him for her. She had to be honest with herself and admit she was attracted to him too. She had no illusions it could go anywhere. He was an ambassador, after all.
“That is an admirable trait. Curiosity is encouraged on my world. It opens the mind and strengthens knowledge and understanding. Would you, perhaps, have any idea why those men were tampering with a computer port in the access panel?” He asked.
“Not really. What goes through those ports? It would depend on what he had access to in that particular hook up,” Tessa told him. She realized he was investigating the attack as well and she felt she should help him.
