The Fifth Civilization: A Novel

by Peter Bingham-Pankratz

  In a minute she responded through the internal com. “Yes, Nick, what is it?”

  “We’re beginning our landing, captain.”

  “You don’t have to tell me that. I can feel our descent.”

  “Is there a time you’d like me to come down to the cargo bay and meet you before the Bauxens come aboard?”

  No hesitation. “Uh, Nick, there’s no need. Just stay in the cockpit ‘til I call you. Make sure the Bauxens know exactly what to expect. I’ll take care of everything on this end. But thanks, you’ve been a great help.”

  “Sounds good.” He turned the intercom off. Yes, Kel wanted to stay far away from him now. Outside, jets of flame shot up and around the cockpit windows. They were entering the atmosphere, and all Roan could do was pray that the heat shields hadn’t deteriorated too much. The hull started to rattle and groan, but Roan’s mind turned to when he should crash the departure party downstairs, and what he should say to the Bauxens.

  He hadn’t snapped, had he?

  Chapter 18

  The Hanyek dropped out of lightspeed behind the Colobus, just a few kilometers outside sensor range. Bauxa was just a green dot on the viewscreen, millions of kilometers away, but Grinek knew the planet would be expecting them. No doubt the planet’s long-range sensors had indicated a Kotaran ship in the solar system, barreling toward its center.

  Grinek swiveled nervously in his command chair as he pondered the situation. On a typical mission, any early-warning systems would’ve been destroyed and Bauxa threatened with attack if the suspects were not handed over. But Grinek had another tactic in mind. The Colobus had to stop somewhere on the planet; with Earth warrants useless on Bauxa, the Earthmen could move about freely on it. Grinek, meanwhile, only had to offer the right price for their capture. Kotarans had better relations with the Bauxens than with any other species, though that wasn’t saying much.

  “Several ships coming our way,” Sisal whined, lost in the data of a monitoring console. “Shall I order them destroyed, Commander?”

  “Don’t be an idiot, Sisal. We are here as guests.” In another time, any ship that did not heed orders to turn around would have been instantly destroyed. But that would not be necessary, as money was more powerful than weaponry here. Unlike on Earth, there were many on Bauxa who had no qualms over revealing the Earthmen’s location.

  “Wait until the planet contacts us, which should be momentarily. Then we will bargain.”

  The lift doors opened and Grinek didn’t even have to swivel to know whose footsteps he heard behind him. Vorjos had arrived to inspect the bridge, and make sure the Bauxa trip was proceeding smoothly.

  “I came as soon as we slowed to real space,” Vorjos said, settling cat-like at Grinek’s side. “Hopefully the situation here is handled with more…tact than the one at Earth.”

  “Your worries are unfounded, Observer,” Grinek breathed. “Just watch.”

  Vorjos straightened and did as he was told, fixating on the green orb growing larger by the minute. Grinek wondered if Vorjos had ever dealt with Bauxens—he himself had to once, being called to the planet as part of security delegation to deal with a threat to Kotara’s embassy. Some local gangsters had apparently taken it upon themselves to plan a robbery of the compound and the Kotaran delegation got wind of this. Grinek became famous in intelligence circles for finding the plotters before the Bauxens and dispensing the appropriate amount of justice. Though the Bauxens howled at this violation of sovereignty, the right price dissuaded the incident from damaging relations.

  “We’re being hailed, Commander,” said Annel, the comms officer. In a month, Grinek had finally learned the female’s name and was always impressed by her work ethic.

  “Put it through.”

  They were greeted with what sounded like the garbled gnashing of teeth and a mouthful of static. Grinek caught a few English words and the lilt at the end of a sentence that indicated a question had been asked.

  “Who here speaks English?” Grinek barked, and Adjutant Annel nimbly raised her hand. Grinek could speak and understand the language, but it always left a bad taste in his mouth. “Can you converse with him?” Grinek asked Annel, knowing that the channel was still open and the Bauxens were probably hearing all of this. There were more English questions on the other end.

  “I can, Commander, but I would feel more confident handling such a delicate matter in our own tongue.”

  Grinek knew Annel was right. No sense in leaving such an important matter to a man who just might cause misinterpretation. These were sensitive talks, and they required a tactful communicator. He knew Vorjos would agree.

  “Very well,” Grinek said. “Bauxen control center! This is the Kotaran ship Hanyek. Find someone who speaks our language, immediately! We have an urgent message about fugitives.” Grinek shouted the name of his language a few more times, hoping that the person on the other end would notice it and scramble to find a translator.

  “Perhaps not the most diplomatic route, Commander,” Vorjos said as an aside.

  “Fuck your diplomacy.”

  In a minute there was more scrambling on the other end, as if someone had just been found and rushed to the com.

  “Hanyek, this is Bauxen Control. How can we help you?” Whoever was on the other end was using passable Kotaran at best, and it stung Grinek’s ears like a hundred hornets. Yet he had no choice but to converse with this man.

  “This is the Royal Cruiser Hanyek. We are on a mission directly from Kotara itself. We need to apprehend several Earthmen fugitives. They should be arriving ahead of us.”

  “Our records show no such ship,” replied the Bauxen officer, perhaps a little too quickly. Obviously, the Earthmen had already worked out some kind of deal with them to allow them an unhindered landing. This was not good news.

  “It is a vessel from Earth,” Grinek repeated. “It is called the Colobus, a Type-B freighter with registry C1-C4A, and were tracking it not long ago. Your records must be mistaken. Now hear this: We will be apprehending the vessel and expect the full cooperation of the planetside authorities. We need to land immediately and it would be prudent if you would relay to the authorities that this Earth ship must be detained.” Grinek looked at Vorjos. He did not believe this tactic would work, but Vorjos was watching the situation with interest.

  “Hanyek, one moment please.” The Bauxen switched off his end and was no doubt conversing with higher-ups. It was how such situations always worked.

  “Commander,” Vorjos said, “you are not to use force against the Bauxens under any circumstances. If that happens, I have the authority to end this mission.”

  “It will not come to that, Observer.” Grinek pounded on his armrest impatiently.

  The Bauxen clicked back on and spoke again in his tortured Kotaran speech. “I am transferring you to the security services. Please hold.” An intolerable recording in Bauxen played, probably an advertisement, as well as some dreadful music. Everyone on the bridge suffered it in silence.

  “Hanyek!” said a cheerful voice suddenly, after a few minutes. “Welcome to Bauxa! What can we do for you on our lovely planet?” His Kotaran was much better than the space traffic controller’s, and he seemed quite exuberant.

  “Are you the security chief?” Grinek asked.

  “Of course,” the man replied. “My name is Chief Yohvins; I am responsible for space security. They told me a Kotaran ship was in trouble, and when that happens, of course I drop everything and come to its assistance.” Grinek thought the man was being sarcastic, but his grasp of humor was not the best, so he didn’t even bother agonizing over the question.

  “Chief Yohvins, this is Commander Grinek. Your personnel must apprehend the human ship Colobus immediately. It entered your planetary system moments ago, right before us. Be advised that it is carrying very dangerous fugitives who have killed Kotarans, and may indeed have some held captive aboard. We are currently on an assignment to arrest these fugitives and impound their vessel. Is this clear?�
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  “Kotaran prisoners, huh?” Grinek thought he heard what sounded like chewing on the other end. Was this Chief Yohvins eating? “That sounds serious! And they’ve killed Kotarans? They must be a tough crowd. I’d sure hate to tangle with them.”

  “Well, Yohvins, I trust you have dispatched vessels to apprehend them, then?”

  Yohvins sighed and gave what sounded like a burp on the other end. “Well, Hanyek, I’d love to, believe me, but the fact is this Colobus has already been granted safe passage, according to my information. Unfortunately I can’t tell you where, or when, but I can tell you they have some powerful benefactors on this planet. You really should have come to me earlier, as I normally handle the interception of ships in orbit. The department responsible for on-planet apprehensions—”

  “You mean to tell me you can’t apprehend my ship? This is a direct order—request, from the Kotaran government!” Grinek bolted from his seat and shouted, fist in the air, at the viewscreen, which was filling up with Bauxa. Freighters and transports zoomed by outside.

  More munching on the other end. “You know what, I just thought of something. It’s true that this ship is really out of my hands…but I do know people that could help you out. I can direct you to them, if you want.”

  “Do so immediately, Chief Yohvins!” But these negotiations were wearisome. Grinek breathed through his teeth, then sat back down in his seat. He knew what was coming.

  “Of course, that would mean significant manpower diversions for them…and those are not cheap. I guess you should consider this request a service…and by that I mean there is a fee involved. Tell me, Grinek, are you good for paying this fee?”

  This Yohvins was trying his patience. Even though Grinek knew a bribe was coming, he hoped for a brief time this could be avoided. He gave a look at Vorjos, who wiggled his ears in approval of the bribe’s transfer.

  “Very well,” Grinek said. “We will pay a fee. Once your men have apprehended the Earthmen—”

  “Oh no no, Commander, it must be paid before. Luckily, I have an account all set up for this type of situation. I will upload the details to you…or would you rather I bill your embassy? I believe they have handled these types of things in the past.”

  Grinek gave a look to Vorjos, who again wiggled his ears in approval. Vorjos would have to be the one explaining the embassy’s bill to the poor clerk who received it.

  “Bill them,” Grinek growled.

  “Very good! Let me just put those details in now…oh, I’ll do that later. Lucky for you, I have all the information on this Earthman ship with me right now! Let’s see…oh yes, the men who can help you. I will send the details to your ship. They are quite good, they helped us with some security matters earlier in the year.”

  “Your service is appreciated,” Grinek said, rolling the phrase off as mechanically as possible. A computer screen beeped as the information was being transferred to the ship’s memory banks. Grinek utterly despised the Bauxens and their bribes—it meant they were the ones in power, not him—but sometimes you had to deal with unsavory types to accomplish your goal.

  Case in point: “You handled that well,” Vorjos told the commander.

  “I must remember that name: Chief Yohvins,” Grinek said. “Perhaps one of my contacts in the embassy can deal with him.”

  “Still here!” Yohvins said over the open channel. “I suppose you don’t need me to wish you luck or to thank you.”

  Grinek looked to Annel and the officer quickly switched off the channel. That was an unfortunate gaffe. He then swiveled in his chair to the station where the information was uploaded.

  “We should land in the city of Erwo Seg,” the officer reviewing the Bauxen data said, without having to be prompted. “The information says we will meet the Bauxen associates there. Terminal Five, Hangar Four.”

  “Good. Prepare for landing.” Grinek pounded his fist on the armrest. Everything was proceeding so rapidly now; they would soon get what they wanted. Out the viewscreen, the jagged edges of Bauxa’s continents became more defined, getting larger as the Hanyek angled down to them. Grinek turned and expected to see Vorjos’ smug expression coupled with a witty comment, but the Observer was nowhere to be found.

  Chapter 19

  Though Bauxa looked green from orbit, the planet’s sky was tinted a perpetual mustardy gamboge, owing to the pollution as much as to the O-class sun above them. As the Colobus sliced through clouds, it collected moisture as well as acid rain, and Roan told himself to program the computers to go around any cloud banks the next time he came. Still, he was confident the hull of the ship could stand a little industrial waste.

  When the clouds parted, the Port of Siy unfolded below them. It was one of the largest in the known galaxy. Siy was laid out in a circular pattern, much like a painted target, with the bullseye being tall skyscrapers and each outer ring filled with residential houses and vast warehouses. The city itself was slightly elevated as one went toward the bullseye, a holdover from the days when Bauxens walked to the central business district for work and all wanted to travel downhill after a long, hard day. Since virtually no Bauxen walked anywhere anymore, this design was merely a quaint holdover from the old days.

  One glimpse of the city was all Roan needed to see. He got up from his chair and left for the cargo bay, leaving an oblivious Port of Siy official chit-chatting with the empty captain’s chair. The Colobus was coming into Hangar 114 on autopilot.

  Roan worked his way through the ship, nary a crewman to be found, when he came upon David stepping out of his quarters at the instant Roan walked past. He couldn’t tell if this was by design or not. Maybe the alien wanted to have a heart-to-heart with Roan, and waited to hear footsteps with that teal brain of his pressed up against the door.

  “David,” Roan said.

  “Mr. Roan,” said the Nyden. “Why are you not in the cockpit?”

  Roan actually felt guilty trying to keep the truth from David, since to do otherwise was like lying to a child: it always set David up for disappointment. Better to just come out with it.

  “I’m going to the cargo bay to see Kel. We’re going to be landing shortly.”

  “Yes, I know. But I thought you were supposed to be piloting the Colobus.” Who the hell told him that? Not that it mattered in the least, because he was going aft whether David liked it or not.

  “The autopilot is a convenient tool. Kel should learn to use it more often.” Roan picked up his walk, and David trotted along beside him.

  “You’re not going to kill the prisoner, are you?” David asked. There it was, the elephant cowering in the corner. Ever since Roan had aimed the gun at the prisoner a month ago, David’s attitude toward Roan had been noticeably wary. Roan didn’t see why it was a big deal. The Kotaran was a murderer and a beast, for God’s sake. But evidently this creature looked upon murder as a wrong, whether it was of a savage or not.

  “No, I’m not going to kill him, David.”

  David closed his eyes and nodded.

  Roan had done his best to stay out of everyone’s way for all those weeks in deep space, and most of the crew was fine with that. But with David it was different. While mostly a recluse on their voyage, whenever David emerged from his quarters he sought out Roan. He’d come down to the mess hall when Roan was eating and sit near him. He’d stop by the engine room and try to engage Roan about his thoughts on Aaron’s discoveries. At first, Roan ignored the man. He blamed David for Aaron’s death, and he thought the Nyden had some kind of judging evil eye. Roan would take his meals in his quarters to avoid David, or purposely blow out a steam valve to drown out a philosophical discussion.

  But David wore him down. At some point Roan realized both of them were outsiders. The crew hated Roan because he got them into this mess, and David because a Nyden was not to be trusted. Some of the crew probably thought he was going to eat them. And so their shared ostracism drew them closer. Roan no longer called David a duck or pigeon. No longer left the room when he ar
rived. He’d accepted David as a man of curiosity instead of judgment. And Roan was curious to understand the man who knew Aaron best.

  A golden glow emanated from David’s head reflected in the dark hallway ahead of him. Usually, that glow meant something profound was about to come out of the alien’s mouth.

  “Then you’ve come to realize, Mr. Roan, that killing is the worst act an intelligent creature can do?”

  “No, I don’t. I’ve killed before. In self-defense.”

  “I remember. The Kotaran in Tokyo.”

  “I used to be in the Earth military, David. The Kotaran wasn’t my first.”

  David’s eyes bulged. His head darkened from gold to indigo. But this topic was not something Roan wanted to get into. Roan started walking, but David raised a talon as he passed.

  “If everyone believed in the evil of murder, there would be no need for self-defense.”

  It was too early to debate a pacifist. Such debates always led to a Mobius strip of a headache. Right now, Roan could think about one thing.

  They reached the cargo room in silence, and Roan heard voices just beyond the entry doors. There was some commotion underway on the bay floor. Roan made his way past a technician, Lucas, who was on duty at the controls and didn’t seem to notice the human and the alien saunter past. From the balcony, Roan saw that the container containing the Kotaran was being lifted by forklift. Jasper and another crewman were standing around, weapons drawn, while Kel looked on. She motioned for the vehicle to turn around and angle its way toward the lower departure doors.

  “It appears they are going to transport the Kotaran in his cell,” David said, appearing suddenly at Roan’s sides. Roan nodded. Rather than take the tiger out of the cage, they were handing the cage to the Bauxens. Better for them to worry about it than us.

  “Frankly, Mr. Roan, I find the manner of his confinement terribly cruel.”