by Ralph Prince
“Yes,” she answered, bounding to her feet and digging through the pile of clothing on the bed. “It’s here somewhere.”
She scampered into the bathroom while he returned the book to its proper place in the bookcase. He then proceeded to move the clothing from the bed to one of the nightstands.
Moments later, Karen emerged wearing a short light gray tank top and a pair of blue and violet flowered bikini panties. Her arms were held tightly about her slender naked midriff, and her deeply tanned, shapely legs were covered with goose bumps.
“That’s what Jackie told you to wear?” Don sighed, shaking his head. He wondered briefly what Jackie was thinking, then realized, considering what he had seen of the lieutenant’s nightwear, that this was conservative. Leading the shivering girl by the arm to the edge of the bed, he opened a compartment at the foot and withdrew one of his vacuum wrapped t-shirts and opened the package. “Put this on over it; it’ll help keep you warm. Then, you had better get in bed before you freeze. I’ll have Nav-Tac raise the temperature some more.”
“I’ll be all right,” she insisted, pulling the shirt over her head then sliding under the sheets. “It’s just the healing fever. It happens when I get hurt. I’ll be better once I get covered up.”
“Okay,” Don said, “if you’re sure. Now, if you don’t need anything else, I’ll be going.”
“Please don’t leave yet,” she begged, sitting up abruptly, her eyes taking an amber hue, as they grew wide with dread. “Stay a little while longer, just until I’m asleep.”
“Okay,” he conceded, waiting for her to settle back into bed before taking a seat in the armchair. “I’ll stay here until you’re asleep.”
“Thank you, Donald,” she said, her eyes changing back to their normal bright green as she calmed down. She nestled into the bed, lying on her side, facing him. A slight smile graced her lips.
He sat for several minutes, looking around the room as full night mode settled in, diminishing the light to a dim twilight state. He turned his attention toward Karen where he was met by her ardent stare.
“You would sleep better if you closed your eyes,” he whispered, prompting her smile to widen.
“I was just thinking,” she said. “This is your room, and you shouldn’t have to leave. You could sleep here tonight.”
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “You are our guest, and I insist you stay here. Will has extra beds in his quarters and—”
“There’s plenty of room,” she interrupted, sliding to the far side of the mattress.
“That’s okay, really,” he persisted, the feeling of being trapped was returning.
“You could lie next to me and keep me warm,” she suggested, propping herself up on one elbow. “Just until I’m asleep.”
“Look, Karen,” he said, rising from the chair and beginning to pace nervously, “you’re beautiful, and I like you, I really do. I just don’t think we should—”
“Donald,” she interrupted again, “I’m afraid. I’ve never been left alone at night before.” Her voice quavered, as tears began to pool in her eyes. “Please stay with me.”
With silent resignation, he sat on the edge of the bed and removed his shoes and socks. Lifting the covers, he slowly slid beneath them and settled into the bed next to her.
As she snuggled against him and rested her head upon his shoulder, he felt the feverish warmth of her body, and the softness of her hair as it brushed against his cheek. He could feel every rapid beat of her heart, and feel her gentle breath upon his neck. His nose tingled to the sweet aroma of her perfume. Despite his reluctance, he felt oddly at peace to have her close to him. As he gave her comfort in the strange environment in which she found herself, she also gave him an odd feeling of comfort. He had always felt alone; separated from his shipmates by an unbreachable barrier. She seemed to make that barrier less impenetrable. She invoked sensations he thought he would never know because he was different. Maybe that was true; but Karen was different too.
CHAPTER 14: Old Wounds
He woke to the sound of a quiet beep from the direction of his cabin’s entrance. The soft warmth pressed against his body and the sound of rhythmic breathing told him Karen still slept at his side. The beep sounded again, followed by Jackie’s voice over the intercom.
“Don?” she called, “are you in there?”
“Just a minute, Jackie,” he called back, realizing she couldn’t possibly hear him through the heavy metal hatch. His head was still fuzzy from the effects of the bio-mend. He slid his arm from under Karen’s head, realizing immediately that the blood flow had been cut off, as sharp pain shot through his fingers. A feeling of vertigo washed over him as he rolled from the bed and unsteadily made his way across the room.
“Donald?” Karen sighed, pushing the sheets away as she uncurled. “Where are you going?”
“The door,” he answered, suddenly realizing the ship was in full day mode. He glanced at the chronometer on his desk as he reached the portal; he had overslept. Cursing under his breath, he activated the controls with his non-numb hand.
“What?” he snapped angrily as the hatch slid aside. He continued flexing and massaging his arm in an effort to restore the circulation, as his head began to clear.
Jackie stood beyond, wearing one of her characteristically impish grins. “We were worried about you,” she said vexingly. She eyed him head to toe, noting his disheveled hair and clothing; he had obviously slept in his pants and shirt. “Will said you never showed up last night, and it’s nearly noon now. You even missed our morning workout session. Are you two going to spend all day in here?”
Glancing past her, the captain saw Will standing nervously across the hallway, trying, ineffectively, to be inconspicuous. Obviously, his wake-up call was Jackie’s idea of morning entertainment. “It just so happens,” he stated, summoning as much authority as his haze-impaired state would allow, “I was sleeping in this morning. Not that it’s any of your business, Lieutenant Monet. As for our workout, you ordered me to take it easy on my ribs.”
He felt a light touch upon his arm as Karen shyly peeked around his shoulder from behind. Rising to the tips of her toes, she whispered something in his ear.
“Yes,” he sighed in answer to the softly spoken question, “that’s Will.” Any hope he had of coming out of the encounter with his dignity intact vanished. It was difficult to command respect with a scantily clad woman hanging on your arm. “Lieutenant Porter,” he continued, addressing the young officer, “I don’t believe you’ve met Karen yet.”
“No sir,” he said, stepping forward and extending his hand toward her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Karen. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Hello,” she responded, scrutinizing his hand in confusion. Embracing Don’s arm, she pressed her body closer to his.
Embarrassed by her blatant display of affection, coupled with the awkwardness of the entire situation, the captain’s voice grew stern. “Do you two have something to report, or are you just bored and looking for something to do? If that’s the case, I’m sure I can find something to keep you busy. It’s been awhile since we did a visual inspection of the waste reclamation system.”
“As a matter of fact,” Jackie said, retreating several steps, “I was just going to examine those plant samples you collected yesterday. I’ll get right on that.”
“And I have a few more circuit modules to replace,” Will said, rushing after the rapidly retreating med-tech.
Closing the hatch, Don turned toward Karen and gave a heavy sigh.
“Did I do something wrong?” she asked, reading the expression on his face. Her eyes faded to greenish-amber.
“Please,” he stressed, clenching his fists at his side in frustration, “don’t ...” the words stuck momentarily, “do that when Jackie and Will are around.”
“Do what?” she asked, not comprehending his meaning.
“You know,” he labored over a way to express himself, “cuddle up to me like that.�
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“I’m sorry,” she said, folding her arms in front of her. Her gaze dropped to the thickly carpeted floor. “I was cold.”
“Oh,” he said, remembering her high body temperature. He felt suddenly foolish for misinterpreting her actions. He reached out to touch her, but balked. Again, he felt the conflict within. He wanted to touch her, to hold her and assure her that he wasn’t angry with her. But he had a responsibility to his crew to get them home, and she didn’t fit into that agenda. Leading her on would be cruel.
“Donald?” she asked, her eyes still downcast and her words laden with distress, “how long are you going to stay here before going back to the stars?”
“I don’t know, Karen,” he replied, his chest constricting at the prospect of having to leave her. Angry with himself for letting his emotions pass beyond his control again, he stiffened and turned away from her. “You probably should get dressed,” he said.
Wordlessly, she gathered her clothing and vanished into the bathroom.
He walked to the bed and sat on the edge facing the wall, feeling ashamed of the careless words he had spoken to her; rather, for the caring words he hadn’t spoken to her. He removed the splint from his finger. Why was it so wrong for him to have feelings of fondness for Karen? Flexing his hand, there was no longer any pain from the mended digit. Wasn’t he entitled to happiness? He pulled back the sleeve of his shirt and inspected the barely visible wounds beneath the layer of artificial skin Jackie had applied. Should he be denied the simplest pleasures because of the life he was given? He removed his shirt and prodded his support foam encased ribcage. Why shouldn’t he pursue his feelings?
Karen emerged from the bathroom, dressed in the shirt and pants she had worn on the previous day. Silently, she watched as Donald used a small tool to cut the protective cast and removed it from his chest. Her attention was intent upon his muscular shoulders and broad back, which possessed a multitude of jagged scars. She approached quietly, and sat on the bed behind him.
“I’m sorry, Karen,” he whispered in apology, his back still toward her. “I misunderstood your intentions, and overreacted. Now I feel like a lout for hurting your feelings. There are a lot of things happening now that I don’t understand.”
She drew her legs up onto the bed, and, with her fingers, began lightly tracing the larger blemishes that marred his otherwise ideal physique. “How did you get these?” she asked, seemingly ignoring his apology.
“They’re old battle wounds,” he said, discarding the last of the bandages. “I caught some shrapnel on one of my supply runs. We weren’t told the enemy had taken control of the outpost we were delivering to, and landed right in the middle of one of their bases. We lost half the crew and narrowly escaped in one piece.”
“It must have been terrible,” she said. “Were Will and Jackie there with you?”
“No,” he answered, his voice detached and distant. “It was shortly after I first met Jackie, and long before I knew Will. I was still a lieutenant then, but my commander was killed and they promoted me to take his place. It’s not the way I would have preferred getting my own command.”
Sensing that the recollection of the event brought him much pain, despite his efforts to conceal it, Karen swiftly changed the subject. “Donald, would you read to me again? I like to sit here and listen to you.”
“I have other duties,” he replied, trying to remain stoic, “but if I have time later, I’ll see what I can do. For now, I guess I should get cleaned up and get you something to eat; you must be hungry.”
“Just a little,” she said, smiling. “Thank you for everything. No one has ever treated me so nice. I wish I could stay with you forever.”
Her words struck him like lightning. Though he yearned for her affection, he knew now that he could never accept it. They were from two separate worlds: she from the hellish world beyond the ship’s walls, and he from his own private hell. Recalling the events surrounding Captain Turner’s and, subsequently, Victor’s deaths reminded him why such feelings were imprudent. Everyone he had ever cared for had been taken from him; he could not afford to care again.
CHAPTER 15: A Matter of Sex
Will leaned against the console next to the communication panel, his legs crossed, and his arms folded across his chest. As usual, his appearance was pristine. From his carefully gelled blond hair, to his form-fitting flight suit, to his unscuffed deck shoes, every aspect was immaculate. Less than a meter away, Jackie sat in her chair with her eyes closed, head tilted back into the soft cushion, and a contented smile on her lips. In contrast to the junior lieutenant, her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and her light blue t-shirt and pants fit loosely on her petite form. Whereas he dressed for show, she dressed for comfort.
“I don’t know about you, Jackie,” Will said, jolting her from her peaceful daydream, “but this planet gives me the creeps. First, we find Karen, a human who isn’t of Earth origin; then, we discover the plant life is also virtually identical to Earth’s. There has to be a logical explanation for it.”
“Are you sure you want to know what it is?” Jackie asked forebodingly. “Such knowledge may be best left to the gods.”
Scrutinizing her quizzically, he tried to ascertain whether she had been serious or not. Her countenance revealed nothing, however, until she suddenly broke into a broad grin.
“You should see the expression on your face,” she laughed. “You couldn’t have looked more surprised if I had told you this was Earth.”
“How do you know it isn’t Earth?” he asked defensively, annoyed by her ill-timed humor. “It’s long been theorized that there are an infinite number of parallel dimensions, each one created by a different course of action taken at a crucial event. Perhaps this is the Earth where we blew ourselves up. Maybe that trip through the black hole shifted us to a different dimension.”
“Are you serious?” she asked, shocked by his resolute tone.
“No,” he replied, “but I see what you meant about the facial expression. It is rather amusing.”
“Actually,” Nav-Tac said, having monitored their entire conversation, “that theory had occurred to me. There was a time in history when humans recklessly played with concepts they did not fully understand. Had they been foolish enough to create large quantities of exotic matter or antimatter, or triggered a fusion reaction without proper containment, the result would have been catastrophic. They could have ripped away the atmosphere, or drastically altered the delicate ecosystem of the planet. In another reality, this could have been the fate of the Earth.”
Horrified by the agent’s suggestion, both lieutenants stared silently at one another for several seconds.
“This is great,” Jackie said, breaking the unnerving silence. “Now the computer is doing it to us. I can’t believe how gullible I am.”
“You might find comfort in the knowledge that I have discarded that theory,” said Nav-Tac, his tone showing no sign his statement had been a jest. “The position of the stars, and the other planets in this star system are inconsistent with Earth. No matter how important humans believe they are, they would not be able to alter the entire galaxy to the extent this one differs from ours. Though there is undeniably some commonality between the two worlds, I do not believe this planet is directly related to Earth, unless perhaps it is through some ancient common ancestry.”
“It still doesn’t seem possible,” Will maintained. “The odds of finding a planet this similar to Earth are nearly incomprehensible.”
“Yes,” Nav-Tac responded, “they are. However, since we are seeing the evidence, it must be within the realm of possibility.”
“And you’re sure Karen is human?” Will asked Jackie.
“There’s no doubt about it,” she verified. “I ran the full array of tests. Everything from a physical inspection to a DNA scan; all of them checked out. The only abnormality I found was a slight deviation in blood composition, but there are thousands of things that could account for that, ranging from he
r diet to a biological mutation. I don't have the equipment here to run a full spectrum cellular analysis, but as far as I can tell, she’s as human as either of us.”
“Well,” Will conceded, “whatever her origin, it looks like the captain has taken a liking to her. I’ve hardly seen him since he brought her on board, and I used to think he lived on the bridge from the amount of time he spent here.”
“With his feet propped up on the instrument panel,” Jackie appended, having seen the captain in that same position a countless number of times. “But then who could blame him for being attracted to her,” she mused. “She’s gorgeous, and so damned well proportioned.”
“Do I detect a hint of jealousy in your tone?” Will asked tauntingly.
“No,” Jackie said. “Don can have her. She’s not my type.”
“Wait a minute,” Will said. “Are you serious? I didn’t realize you were…”
“Pansexual,” Jackie clarified. “I don’t care what a person’s gender or sexual orientation is; they’re all just people to me. If I’m attracted to someone and we can satisfy each other’s needs and desires, it’s all good.”
“Really?” Will asked, genuinely intrigued. “What about non-humans?”
“Odd question coming from someone whose father manufactures synthetic escorts,” she stated, an unspoken innuendo in her tone. “Have you ever…?”
“No,” he interrupted defensively. “That’s not all my father’s company makes; they also provide the military with all of their synthetic personnel. Escorts are just the most popular models. Synths are too artificial for my taste.”
“Unlike miss double-DNA?” Jackie teased.
“Genetic grafting is different,” he said. “Grafting just swaps out a few genes to educe a physical change in the host. Synths are made from pseudo-organic material infused with complete DNA strands. They may look essentially human, but since true artificial intelligence production was banned after the AI rights movement, they don’t have real emotions. They’re cold and unfeeling. Have you seen my father’s new assistant?”
