Collision Course

by Doug Farren

  The Keldans resemblance to giant spiders had kept AJ in a state of near panic for days. Slowly, he managed to conquer his fear of the Keldans and in the process of doing so, his arachnophobia.

  “Have the other ambassadors arrived yet?” Heather asked.

  “The Oodoo representative arrived yesterday. None of the others are here yet.”

  “Did you meet her?” AJ asked, grabbing onto a nearby handrail as the bus made a turn.

  “Briefly,” Goeglict replied. “I’m grateful that it was the Terrans and not the Oodoo that made first contact with us.”

  “I take it you find their odor a bit overwhelming?” AJ asked.

  “She was wearing a suit that was supposed to limit the odor. We Keldans have very sensitive olfactory organs and the smell emanating from her was almost too much for me to bear. Is it true that only the females of her species are intelligent?”

  “Yes,” Aleksandr replied. “Oodoo males are much smaller than the females. Little is known about their mating habits but we do know that the males attach themselves to the females much like a parasite.”

  “How horribly fascinating!”

  “While we’re here,” Aleksandr said. “I would very much like to learn more about your efforts to move your entire population to another planet. As far as I know, such a massive shift of resources has never been attempted.”

  “I’m sure I can arrange for you to meet with some of the people involved in the planning and coordination of the move. As you can well imagine, it has not been easy, even with all of the help we’ve been getting from the other races.”

  “I would greatly appreciate that,” Aleksandr replied.

  The bus slowed as it made a sharp turn. Looking out the window, AJ noted they were turning into an opening in the side of a building on the edge of another part of the starport.

  “The building we are entering is a modified repair hangar,” Goeglict explained. “We’ve constructed temporary rooms for you to stay in while here and have done our best to set them up to conform to your physiological needs. The Ba’Rutu were quite specific in their instructions concerning how we were to prepare for their arrival. A single shuttle will land and move into this building through a large door. The Ba’Rutu ambassadors will leave their shuttle and take a position on one side of a separator in the meeting rooms, one room for each race. When the ambassadors are ready, all the separators will be opened at the same time.”

  “That’s an odd way to perform introductions,” AJ remarked.

  “Not at all,” Ambassador Matusik said. “By requiring all of the races to meet the Ba’Rutu at the same time, no single race can lay claim to having been the first to establish diplomatic relations with them.”

  “So,” Heather began. “After the meeting, you and the other ambassadors will be returning to the Ba’Rutu homeworld on a single ship. Since the Star Pulse isn’t in orbit waiting for us, how are the Ba’Rutu getting to Earth?”

  “Each ambassador has their own vessel. Instead of establishing a physical presence on the surface, their ships will be used as an orbital embassy.”

  The bus came to a stop. A moment later, the door opened. Instead of a blast of heat, the passengers were treated to a warm, but tolerable, environment. Five differently colored doors were set into a semi-circle not far from where the bus had dropped them off. Above each door was a silhouette of one of the five species gathering to meet the Ba’Rutu.

  “Your rooms are through the yellow-colored door,” Goeglict told them. “A common room can be reached from each of the five living areas. The environment there, as it is here, will be maintained such that all five races will be as comfortable as possible. Your meal container as well as your personal belongings will be delivered soon. If you need anything, please use the communications panel.”

  “Are you staying here as well?” AJ asked.

  “I am.”

  “If you don’t mind, I’d like to spend some time catching up on things. It’s been a few years since I was last here.”

  “I would like that very much,” Goeglict replied. “When you’re ready, just call my room. If you would like, I can come to your room so you can be more comfortable or we can meet in the common room. It is arranged to allow all the ambassadors to gather together in comfort.”

  “That would be appreciated. Give me some time to get settled and I’ll give you a call.”

  The Terrans headed for the yellow door and a moment later found themselves in a wide hallway that looked very much like it had been transported to Ashnib from a hotel on Earth. A few meters down the hall, they found a door with Aleksandr’s picture on it.

  “I believe this is my room,” he announced.

  The next door along the hallway had a picture of a plate with silverware next to it. “Dining room,” Heather said. Pointing to the next door along the hallway, she continued, “And that has to be our room.”

  Sure enough, their pictures were attached to the door. The room, which had apparently been modeled after a hotel room, was obviously not designed for long-term occupancy. There was a couch, two chairs, a dresser, and a queen-sized bed all packed into the same relatively small room. There was also a bathroom with a walk-in shower.

  “I hope the Ambassador’s room is bigger than this,” Heather remarked.

  “Based on the positioning of the doors, I would guess that his room is half again as large as ours.”

  “That would make sense. He is, after all, the Ambassador. We are simply guests.”

  AJ stood in the middle of the room and looked around. “Considering they probably built this facility in only a few weeks, I think they did quite well. I’m not sure there’s going to be enough room in here for you, me, and Goeglict. I’ll have to meet him in the common room.”

  “I wonder if the meeting room would work,” Heather suggested. “The environment there should be more to our liking.”

  “It might, let’s go check it out.”

  Back in the hallway, AJ said, “I find it rather interesting that the Ba’Rutu did not require the Keldans to set up a specific environment for their ambassadors.”

  “Some species are more tolerant of different environments than others,” Heather pointed out. “The Keldans, for instance, can tolerate much wider temperature extremes than we can. Maybe the Ba’Rutu are the same.”

  AJ pushed the door leading into the meeting room open and stepped inside. The room had a tall ceiling, at least four meters in height, and was about six meters wide. There were no seats, tables, or any form of furniture. There was a camera globe mounted in each corner as well as a slightly larger one in the exact center of the ceiling. The two halves of a folding partition could be seen that would divide the 10-meter length of the room into two equal halves. The doorway across from them was huge.

  “Holy crap!” AJ exclaimed. “Are the Ba’Rutu giants?”

  “I doubt it,” Heather replied. “Leaving out the furniture and making the door as large as possible is just another way to keep us guessing about their physical appearance.”

  “Well,” AJ said, turning around. “I’m not going to stand to talk to Goeglict. I’ll just meet him in the common room.”

  On the other side of the door, they encountered a Keldan tending a cart with their personal belongings on it. The Keldan said something but neither AJ nor Heather were wearing their translators. Tapping her ear, Heather slipped past the Keldan and went into their room. AJ and the Keldan stared at each other until Heather returned, holding her translator in one hand while inserting the earpiece with the other.

  “Sorry, she said. “Can you repeat what you said earlier.”

  “I am Narict. I have your personal belongings. Your food module will be lowered into your food preparation area shortly.”

  AJ walked over to the cart and pulled three large bags off it leaving only a single bag about the size of a camper’s backpack. “Ambassador Matusik must have forgotten one,” he said.

  “He has not yet claimed his belongings,”
Narict said.

  Leaving their bags on the floor, AJ walked over to Aleksandr’s room and knocked on the door. As soon as it was open, AJ asked, “How much luggage did you bring?”

  Peering out the door, Aleksandr spotted the lone bag sitting on the cart. “That’s it right there,” he said, pointing to the bag.

  “You’re kidding me!” AJ said. “You’re going away to the Ba’Rutu homeworld for at least a year and that’s all you brought?”

  Leaving his door open, Aleksandr walked over to the cart and picked up his bag. “That’s all I need. I trust the Ba’Rutu will be able to supply me with whatever I need for as long as I need it.”

  AJ shook his head in disbelief. “I would have filled up that entire cart,” he said.

  “I like to travel light,” Aleksandr replied as he closed his door.

  AJ picked up one of his bags. “Thank you,” he told Narict. Turning to Heather, he said, “I’m going to put these away, wash my face, and go see Goeglict. What are your plans for the evening?”

  “Just toss the bags on the bed,” she replied. “I’ll put the clothes away. After that, I think I’ll take a nice hot shower and then wait for you to get back. Don’t be too long,” she said in a tone AJ had learned to love.

  Chapter 7

  Gabriel leaned forward until the faceplate of his suit was in contact with the armaplas bubble of the beetle. “I still can’t see the ship and my proximity radar can’t decide if there’s anything out there or not.”

  “That’s why we’re flying in manual,” Melissa replied from the other beetle. “Can you see any background stars?”

  Gabriel swung his head around. “Nope.”

  “That’s because the ship is blocking them. I think we’re less than 20 meters from contact. Just keep your hands off the controls and let the beetles drift. The bumper arms will absorb the impact when we make contact with the hull.”

  The beetles, tiny ships about the size of a sub-compact car, were multi-purpose machines used primarily in the exploration of newly discovered worlds. They could also be used to work on the exterior of a ship to repair damage. They were equipped with a wide array of instruments including a pair of robotic arms that could be used to delicately remove a small screw from an external panel or a damaged section of hull plating massing several hundred kilograms.

  Even though they had the exterior lights turned up to maximum brightness, the only thing they could see was complete and total blackness.

  Melissa was pushed into her straps as the beetle’s bumper arms came into contact with the hull. “Contact! Hold your position relative to me.”

  Gabriel fired a quick burst from his forward thrusters bringing his beetle to a stop two meters behind the other mini-ship.

  Melissa flipped several switches and tapped an icon on her control panel to activate a series of commands she’d preprogrammed into the computer. A diagram of the ship appeared on one screen while two others showed the results from a microwave and a laser scanner. Thirty seconds later, the diagram of the ship shifted. A blue dot appeared with a yellow line running over to a red dot.

  “I have a match on our location,” she said. “Moving along the hull towards the entrance. Keep me in your sights.”

  “Got it,” Gabriel replied.

  Keeping a close eye on the blue dot, Melissa began moving along the hull. The dot moved across the yellow line. As it neared the red dot, the image of the ship expanded, allowing her to fine-tune her course. Ten minutes later, she was hovering over the hatch.

  “I still can’t see anything,” Gabriel complained. “That hull is blacker than black. How the hell are you going to find a way in when we can’t see anything?”

  “I’ve got my light amplifier turned up as high as possible,” she replied. “I’m getting a little bit of reflection from the UV laser. Extending arms.”

  A pair of robotic arms unfolded and slowly approached the hull. Taking her time, Melissa moved the arm around the box so the camera on the end could see it from every angle. Grabbing an end, she tried flipping it open. When that didn’t work, she tried the other three ends.

  “We’re tapped into your video feed,” Captain Mingyu said. “Are you sure that’s a cover to a set of controls?”

  “It has to be,” Melissa replied, frustration evident in her voice. She tried pushing down on the ends. She tried pushing against each side. She tried pulling upwards.

  “Give it a twist,” Frank suggested.

  Opening the arm’s hand, Melissa grasped the box and twisted. It moved. She continued twisting until it had rotated 90 degrees at which point the top came off. The video feed became a sea of solid white then slowly returned to normal as the gain was automatically reduced. Lifting the top farther, she could see that it was tethered to the inside of the box by a thin cord. A single illuminated button was visible. Releasing the cover, she pushed it.

  A ring of light appeared on the hull as a circular section dropped down inside the ship. Melissa moved the arm she had been using as a camera platform over to the hatch and watched as it moved to the side. A long, circular, featureless tunnel led to the inside of the ship. Another hatch could be seen at the other end.

  Moving quickly, she gripped the edge of the hatch with the robotic arms, locked them in place, then turned off the thruster that had been keeping her beetle gently pressed against the hull. “I’m going inside,” she said. “The beetle is positioned directly over the hatch and is being held in place by the arms.”

  “Roger that,” Captain Mingyu replied. “Don’t try to open the inner hatch without my permission.”

  Melissa opened the beetle’s canopy, unstrapped herself, and then kicked off. A moment later, she was slowly traveling down the tube. “Captain, how do you read?”

  “Loud and clear,” Andrew’s voice replied. “Getting a good video feed. Congratulations.”

  “Thank you.”

  As she slowly glided down the tube, she noticed her trajectory was beginning to deviate. Putting her arms out, she slowed her forward momentum. Now at a full stop, she noticed she was slowly being pulled toward one side of the tube.

  “There’s a small gravity field here,” she announced.

  Looking ahead, she could see that a section of the round tube became flat on one side. She gave herself a gentle push and continued forward.

  “The gravity field is getting stronger the farther into the ship I go. There’s a flat floor in the direction I’m being pulled,” she said.

  By the time she reached the inner hatch she was on solid footing and walking. Glancing at her HUD she said, “Gravity at the inner hatch is zero point eight seven Earth-normal.”

  A control panel with two mechanical buttons was set into the wall to the left of the hatch. A small window was built into the center of the door. She pressed her faceplate against it but saw nothing but blackness.

  “Put your suit camera in the window,” Captain Mingyu suggested.

  Melissa repositioned herself so her suit camera mounted on the right side of her helmet was looking in the window. Using her HUD, she could see a small compartment with a chair near the center of the deck along with a bank of monitors and controls.

  “Looks like a pilot station,” she said. “I don’t see any other doors or corridors leading from the room.”

  “That entire ship can’t be designed to be crewed by a single person,” George remarked.

  “Hold on,” Melissa said. “I’ll pan the camera- - -”

  “Get out of there!” Gabriel shouted. “The outer hatch is closing!”

  Melissa spun around and looked behind her. The outer hatch was already a quarter of the way shut. She started running but after a few steps the weakening gravity caused her to lose her footing. Without thinking of the consequences, she triggered a small burst from her suit thrusters. She flew down the tube bouncing off one side then another.

  “Hurry!” Gabriel shouted, his voice pitched high. “Damn it! It’s almost clo- - -”

  Gabriel’s v
oice cut off as the outer hatch closed. Several pieces of debris Melissa recognized as the fingers of the beetle’s robot arms floated by as she slammed into the outer hatch. She felt a pop in her left shoulder as her outstretched arms absorbed most of the impact. She instinctively ducked her head as the rest of her body crumpled into the closed hatch and then rebounded. Dazed and wondering if she now had a broken shoulder, Melissa slowly made her way back to the outer hatch. She found the control panel she’d seen there earlier and pushed the button.

  Nothing. She pushed it again and again until she finally realized she was trapped.

  Chapter 8

  The common room was designed to allow all five ambassadors to converse with each other in relative comfort. Given the wide range of environments that each species considered comfortable, trying to accommodate all of them required a creative solution. AJ found the temperature in the room to be pleasantly warm. He was sure the Indishar ambassador would need to wear a light coat and the Nitnicki ambassador would be almost uncomfortably hot. The Oodoo and the Keldan ambassadors would be quite comfortable.

  Five chairs were arranged in a circle in the center of the room with about three meters of empty space in the middle. Each chair was set inside a two-walled clear enclosure. The chairs could be accessed from either the front or the rear of the enclosure.

  AJ found the chair bearing the silhouette of a Terran and sat down. Cool air began blowing on him from small holes built into the walls. There was a small fold-up table attached to each arm of the chair. Unfolding the table on the right, he set his glass of ice water down and waited. A few minutes later, the door leading to the Keldan section opened and Ambassador Goeglict stepped into the room.