Bringing Stella Home

by Joe Vasicek

  Bringing Stella Home

  by Joe Vasicek

  Copyright © 2011 Joseph Vasicek

  All rights reserved

  Editing by Josh Leavitt.

  Cover art by Lorenz Hideyoshi Ruwwe.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual persons, organizations, or events is purely coincidental.

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  Table of Contents

  Copyright Page

  Table of Contents

  Part I: James

  1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

  Part II: Ben

  8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18

  Part III: Stella

  19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27

  Author’s Note | Acknowledgments

  WAR TAKES ALL FROM SOME PEOPLE. OTHERS GIVE ALL TO SAVE THE ONES THEY LOVE.

  The war has arrived at home. James McCoy, the youngest son of a starfaring merchanter family, never thought he would face an invasion. But when an undefeated enemy slags his homeworld and carries off his brother and sister, nothing in the universe will stop him from getting them back.

  Not all wars are fought on the battlefield. Hard times show the greatness in men, and those who give all are changed forever.

  Part I: James

  Chapter 1

  James switched off the screen on the holovid table and nervously paced the small lounge of the Llewellyn. As interesting as the newscast was, he didn’t have time to catch up on the latest war developments in the New Pleiades. Someone had to stay behind to help Father unload the ship, and he didn’t want it to be him—again.

  The door hissed open, and his sister Stella entered the room, wearing a light-blue skirt and a short-sleeved blouse in anticipation of her planetside leave. A blue headband kept her short brown hair out of her eyes. She gave him a warm smile as she came in, but James only frowned at her—he knew what she was after.

  “Hi, James,” said Stella, sitting down on the couch that ran along the wall of the circular room. “You excited to go planetside?”

  “Yeah,” he said, sitting down across from her. “You?” With Stella in the room and the holovid table still up, it felt a little too cramped. James flipped a switch on the side of the table, and it retracted into the floor.

  “Of course!” said Stella, crossing her legs. “I’ve been gone for over a year—what do you think?”

  I’ll bet you’ve seen a lot more exciting planets than Kardunash IV, James thought to himself a little gloomily. What is this place to you? Just another port of call? Ever since she’d left home for her astrogation apprenticeship, nothing had been the same.

  The door hissed open again, and Ben strode into the room. James tensed and sat up a little straighter; even though his older brother had returned from a six-month voyage with Challis & Sons nearly three weeks ago, James still felt intimidated around him. He wore an authentic black leather jacket and a tight gray muscle shirt. His dark red hair was cut short, making him look like a soldier in the Kardunasian Defense Force.

  “Hello, Ben,” said Stella, sliding over to make room for him. He nodded at them both before taking a seat next to her.

  “I think we all know why we’re here,” said James, cutting to the chase. “We—”

  “Because you don’t think it’s fair that you have to stay behind and help out with the unloading,” said Ben, “even though it’s only a four-hour job.” He leaned forward and narrowed his eyes, readying himself for battle.

  “But the next ferry doesn’t come for another six hours,” said James, blood rising to his cheeks as he remembered their last argument. “Besides, when was the last time either of you helped out around home? Since you both left, I’ve flown almost a dozen freight runs with Dad—and I unloaded every time.”

  Ben shook his head in disgust. “Yeah—and I’ve been working twice as hard for the last six months.” He turned and glanced at Stella.

  “What?” she said, acting shocked. “I haven’t been home for over a year. Besides, how many times did I get stuck with dock duty when we were growing up?” She turned to James with large, innocent eyes. “James?” she pleaded in a sweet, musical voice.

  James folded his arms and rolled his eyes. And they call me the baby of the family, he thought angrily to himself. Just because I’m not sixteen yet doesn’t mean they can boss me around.

  “Why are you looking at me?” he shouted. “I always get stuck with dock duty. Have you forgotten that I’m still living at home? While you guys are gone, I’m stuck here, making all the local runs with Dad. I bet I’ve unloaded this ship more times than both of you put together.”

  “Oh, for all the stars,” said Ben, shooting him a venomous look. “Don’t start this again.”

  “Please, James?” Stella begged. “I’ll love you forever.”

  James groaned and folded his arms. He glanced out the narrow window just below the ceiling, into the blackness of the sky above their current orbit. He wished that he were anywhere but here, stuck in this little room.

  “Come on,” said Stella, the pleading expression on her face quickly turning into melodramatic desperation. “The ferry leaves in less than half an hour, and like you said, the next shuttle after that doesn’t leave for another six. Lars is down there, and I haven’t seen him in forever. Please, James—ple-e-ase?”

  “Why are you being so selfish?” said Ben, scowling at him. “How many times do you get to see Kardunash IV? Can’t you cut her a little slack just this once?”

  James folded his arms and glared at them both, suppressing the urge to scream. “How am I the selfish one?” he cried. “How is all of this my fault? It’s not just me. You’re being selfish, too!”

  “Shut up and stop whining.”

  “You shut up!”

  “Maybe we could draw straws?” said Stella, trying to make peace.

  “Fine by me,” said Ben, “but James has to agree to it—even if he loses.”

  “Of course,” James said petulantly. “I’m not a cheater.”

  “Only when you lose.”

  “Ben!” shouted Stella, cutting their fight short. James almost snapped back with a snide remark, but thought better of it. As infuriating as his older brother could be, he didn’t want to upset Stella.

  Ben got down on his knees and rummaged through one of the storage lockers below the couch. A few moments later, he rose to his feet and held out his fist. Three cut wires jutted out from his grip.

  “Pick one,” he said, walking over to James. “Shortest one gets dock duty.”

  James carefully picked the one dangling furthest from him. He hesitated for a moment before pulling it out, as if afraid of ruining his luck. Ben opened his mouth to protest, but James pulled it out before he could say anything. He no sooner saw it than a sigh of relief escaped his lips—it was long.

  “All right,” said Ben. “Stella, you’re next.”

  “Please, James?” said Stella, turning pathetically to him. “Can you please let me go down? Please?”

  James groaned. “You’re hopeless.”

  “Please? Just this once?”

  “Go on,” said Ben, pushing the last two wires at her. “Fair is fair. Take one.”

  James rolled his eyes and scowled, trying not to let on that her pleas were working. Unlike Ben, she’d always been good to him growing up, helping him out with chores around the house and listening to him when he needed someone to talk to. She’d been crushing on Lars since before her apprenticeship, and she deserved to meet up with him while he was still in port. If s
he missed her chance to see him because she was stuck with unloading duty, James would feel horrible.

  If only there was some way to make sure Ben stayed behind, that would be sweet. He certainly deserved it.

  James drew in a deep breath. “Oh, all right,” he said. “You can go.”

  Stella’s face immediately lit up with glee. “Thank you thank you thank you thank you!” she shouted, running up and giving him a big hug.

  “You owe me. Remember that.”

  She smiled and nodded, barely able to contain her excitement as she left the room to gather her things.

  “Your turn again,” said Ben as the door hissed shut. “Pick one.”

  James eyed the two remaining wires very carefully. He had only a fifty-fifty chance now. The wrong one would mean four hours of the most mind-numbingly tedious work and then two more hours doing whatever odd jobs his father could find. Six hours wasted in orbit when I could be having fun on the surface.

  “Come on, choose already.”

  James put his thumb and forefinger on the wire closest to him and carefully pulled it out. It was short.

  “No!” he cried.

  “You drew it, fair and square,” said Ben, a grin widening across his face.

  “Come on!”

  “Don’t be a crybaby.”

  James’s cheeks flushed red with anger. “I am not a crybaby!”

  “Yes you are.”

  “No I’m not!”

  “Yes you are. Listen to yourself.”

  “I am not. Shut up!”

  Ben keyed the access panel on the wall; the door hissed open, revealing the corridor beyond. He turned back to James.

  “Honestly, when are you going to grow up? It’s been three years since I left home, and you’re still the same pathetic, whiny little kid you’ve always been.”

  “Shut up,” James screamed. “I hate you!” He stormed out of the room, running past Ben before he could say anything else.

  The small sublight merchant freighter, christened the Llewellyn after James’s grandmother, had only one corridor on the upper deck. It ran the length of the ship, but was so narrow that two grown men had to turn sideways in order to pass each other. The ship’s compact living quarters fit into the twenty yards between the bridge at the bow and the lounge at the stern: two bedrooms, a bathroom, a tiny mess hall, and some very limited personal storage. James wanted to get away from his brother, but the only place far enough was the bridge, and he didn’t want to go there just yet—no doubt his father would rope him into some menial task. He didn’t want to get to work any sooner than he had to.

  Instead, he walked to the middle of the corridor and stared out the large windows on either side. From here, he had a magnificent view of the spindly station where they were docked, as well as the planet, Kardunash IV. White clouds swirled over the blue oceans and verdant continents, perfectly clear in the vacuum of space. Ship and station orbited dreamily over the coastlines and mountains, passing the yellow-brown deserts and enormous black domed arcologies several hundred miles in diameter. By squinting his eyes, James could see the twinkling reflections of the shuttle ferries coming to and from the spaceports on the surface, the scramjet powered vehicles accelerating to orbital velocity while others glowed orange and pink as they made reentry. Where the blue haze of the planet’s atmosphere met the black void of space, dozens of spaceships, satellites, and stations glittered as they danced in orbit over the jeweled landscape.

  As James stared at the magnificent view, footsteps sounded behind him. He tensed and stepped away from the window, preparing himself for another fight. It wasn’t Ben who had come to talk with him, however—it was Stella.

  “Hey, James,” she said, gently touching his arm. “I’m really, really sorry about all the trouble with Ben. I didn’t mean to make you guys fight.”

  James shrugged. “It would have happened anyway.” That was true enough, considering how long they’d been cooped up on the same ship. Any longer, and they’d be at each others’ throats.

  She glanced to either side and pulled back her hand, obviously working herself up to say something. “If you want,” she began, “I can, uh—”

  “No, that’s all right,” said James, shaking his head. “You go on ahead. I know how much it means to you.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah,” said James. “Don’t worry about me—it’s nothing.”

  “All right,” said Stella. “But really, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”

  “Will you stop worrying about us and go enjoy yourself?” He grinned to show her it wasn’t such a big deal. “I think you’ve got a shuttle to catch.”

  Her face lit up in a girlish smile, and she gave him a warm hug. “Thanks so much,” she said. “I love you, James!” With that, she ran back down the corridor, her short, brown hair bobbing up and down as she returned to her room.

  “Take care of yourself,” James muttered as he watched her go.

  Behind him, the door to the bridge hissed open. “James,” said a deep voice behind him. He immediately spun around to find himself face to face with his father, Captain Adam McCoy.

  “What is it, Dad?”

  James’s father wore a crisp, gray vest over his white jumpsuit. His beard was neatly trimmed in preparation for their arrival at Kardunash IV, and the expression on his face was as imposing as ever.

  “Go back to the lounge while I get your brother and sister.”

  “Why? What’s going on?”

  “The immigration bill. Voting is about to start any minute, and I don’t want any of you to miss it.”

  James groaned as he made his way down the corridor. It was just like his father to push their civic duties on them at the most inconvenient moment possible. Would it really be such a bad thing if they skipped out this once? It wasn’t as if their votes were going to tip the outcome—not with over eight thousand citizens registered in the databanks of the Colony’s General Assembly. Not that it really mattered to him, though—he wasn’t the one in a hurry to catch the next shuttle.

  While his father got Ben and Stella, James brought up the holovid table in the lounge and opened its face to reveal the computer terminal inside. He deactivated the holographic projector and unfolded the miniature flatscreen, accessing the ship’s communications array. His father had already connected the Llewellyn’s master computer with the Colony’s servers; that would make things go faster, at least.

  The main page for the General Assembly of Citizens loaded on the screen, the familiar clasped hands and starship logo prominent on a banner at the top of the page. He scrolled down to the section marked “Today’s Votes” and clicked on a link that said: “Bill 0923H149: Interstellar Refugee Moratorium.” The screen flashed gray and a loading bar appeared, signifying that the data for that page wasn’t on the uplink yet. James sighed—with the Colony’s servers currently on the other side of the sun, it would take some time before the page loaded.

  Stella walked in first, pouting as she took her seat next to James. Ben came in next, the scowl on his face making it clear he wasn’t too thrilled about the delay. Their father came in last, and stood in the doorway while everyone took their seats.

  “I’ve just received word that voting on the fast-track immigration bill has begun,” he said. “Since the voting window is less than twenty-four hours, none of us will leave this ship until we’ve transmitted our votes.”

  “Dad!” Stella cried out.

  “I know it’s inconvenient, but as citizens of the Colony, our civic duties come first.”

  “But Dad,” said Ben, “the ferry shuttle leaves in less than twenty minutes, and the next one after that doesn’t leave for another six hours.”

  “Please don’t make us miss this shuttle,” Stella begged.

  “You can wait another six hours,” said their father, not an ounce of pity on his face. “In fact, if you need something to keep you busy, you can stay and help unload the ship.”

  For his part, James onl
y folded his arms and slouched in his seat. With server delays, the vote was a pain, but he wasn’t in much of a hurry to go anywhere. Still, for Stella’s sake, he hoped she didn’t miss the shuttle.

  “Dad,” said Ben, his voice rising a little, “please be reasonable. Two votes aren’t going to decide—”

  “When I raised you children, I taught you to base your choices on principle, not on convenience,” said their father, cutting Ben off. “Our freedoms are a matter of principle. Democracy is a matter of principle. If every citizen at the Colony were to act on convenience instead of principle, what would happen? Our government would become as irresponsible as its voters, and evil and conspiring men would rise to positions of power. Eventually, we would lose the rights and freedoms we so often take for granted.”

  A beeping noise interrupted his spontaneous lecture. James glanced down at the screen—the page had loaded. A prompt in the center of the screen asked for his citizen ID and password.

  “What is it, Son?”

  “Voting’s opened,” said James. Ben and Stella immediately leaped to their feet.

  “Let us go first,” said Ben, muscling his way forward. “We’ve got a shuttle to catch.”

  “All right, all right,” said James, standing up. He purposefully got in Ben’s way to allow Stella to slip in first. Ben scowled, but with their father watching, he couldn’t do anything but stand back and wait his turn. James smiled, savoring the sweet justice.

  He didn’t mean to look, but out of the corner of his eye he saw that Stella had voted “nay.” As she rose to her feet and glanced over at him, her eyes widened and her cheeks grew red.

  “I won’t tell,” he whispered as they passed. She sighed in relief, soft enough that their father wouldn’t notice.

  It wasn’t as if their father would punish her for her vote—they had voted contrary to him on other measures before—it was just that this particular bill was so important to him personally. With so many refugees from the Hameji conquests flooding into the Karduna system on their way to the Gaian Empire, storage space at the Colony was rapidly being converted to temporary housing, raising premiums at the warehouse. Naturally, this was bad business for merchant families such as their own, and their father was one of the foremost activists for immigration reform. As much as he talked about acting on principle, they all knew it would upset him to see his own children take a contrary position on a cause for which he’d fought so hard.