by Adair Hart
Dr. Snowden examined Evaran. It occurred to him that he had never asked much about Evaran’s previous travels. “I’d be curious to hear about your previous adventures on Earth and around this galaxy.”
“That would take a lot of time. However, since you asked about my arrival, now is as good a time as any to tell you.”
Dr. Snowden perked up as he glanced at Emily. He noticed she had also sat up and was studying Evaran. It appeared that despite her tough outside, she still had that curiosity streak that Snowdens were known for. Maybe that would be his ticket to reaching her, assuming she let him in. He gulped as Evaran began to talk about his arrival on Earth.
Earlier that day at 9:30 a.m. in the city of Da Nesh on the planet Roeth, United Planets Bureau of Law Enforcement Agent Jane Trellis sighed as she swung her legs over the side of her bed. She stretched and yawned as she took stock of her bleak apartment. The familiar smell of Kalesh fruits greeted her.
With a grin, she looked down at her fair-skinned left palm. Using her thumb, she pressed at a barely lit circle under the skin between her middle two fingers. A menu appeared in the air in front of her with several options. She was in the mood for something cheerful. Pressing the apartment button caused various panels to showcase themes. She chose a theme that reminded her of Fredoria, her home world. When she looked around, the furniture was more pleasant.
She loved her augments, especially the ocular ones that gave her augmented reality. With a press of a button, she could change the theme of anything she looked at via an augmented reality interface. However, it was time to clean up and then get to work.
Being a field agent assigned to Da Nesh was not as easy as she had thought it was going to be. Her boss and family friend, Andrew Dotrick, was lenient with her and allowed her a wide berth in terms of how she operated. Cases would be sent to her, and she would work on them out in the city and occasionally check in at the office. Today was one of those check-ins.
Andrew was a father figure to her, and after her parents died, he had watched over her until she was an adult. Growing up was not easy, but Andrew’s steady hand guided her through troubled times. When Andrew came out to Roeth, she was initially dismayed that he was going so far away. However, working with him now was natural to her. She would prove that his decision to let her work for him was not a mistake.
She headed to the bathroom and stripped off her undergarments before stepping into a clear cylinder. After locking it, she interacted with her ARI and started the cleaning cycle. Dark-blue water shot down and filled the cylinder up to her chest. It then swirled around her while occasionally rising up to the top of her head to soak her long brown hair. After a few minutes of that, the water dispensed out the bottom. Warm air surrounded her as the drying cycle commenced. After a few moments, she stepped out of the cylinder feeling refreshed.
Next up was to get her power suit on. She walked over to a wall near her bed and tapped at it. A portion of it slid back, and a structure pushed out. It had her suit, boots, and other pieces of standard equipment constrained. This was one of the highlights of her day. The white suit with silver and dark-gray segmented lines was damage resistant, yet flexible. In addition to the augments she had in her body, the suit made her more effective in the field. The black boots could magnetize to any metal surface, and her skintight black gloves allowed her to grip slippery surfaces.
After putting on her suit and boots, she grabbed her standard-issue firearm. Her fingers ran over the cool metal of it when it was holstered. It had saved her several times. Although stun was the official setting, it could scale up as needed, depending on the fight. She never went anywhere without it.
With a final check over, she went to the balcony. Looking down at the busy street made her smile. What caused the Kalesh to stand out from nonaugmented humans was their rapid movements. They seemed to move faster in general, in all aspects, and were formidable close-quarter combatants.
The Kalesh had come a long way since integration. Their past was not as peaceful. They had advanced far enough to build a condensed space drive and attracted the attention of the nearby Voss Imperium, a vicious jackal-like humanoid race that saw Roeth as a resource to be taken. They would have taken it completely over due to their technological advantage, but Advanced Dynamics stepped in and evened the technological playing field. The war ended when the Kalesh petitioned to join the United Planets, led by Earth and Fredoria.
After the United Planets had stepped in, they handed the Voss Imperium a commanding defeat. Ever since then, the Kalesh had embraced the United Planets and requested integration shortly afterward. It was a long process, and the establishment of the Corunus space station and incorporation of offices was the first step. The Da Nesh office she was at had become her new home, and she enjoyed working with the Kalesh employed there.
She had made many friends among the Kalesh, and they were excited to help her get acquainted with Da Nesh. The Kalesh were perennially optimistic, and her guest presentations on the United Planets at the local schools were a hit among the children. She also played with them on the playground, even if she could barely keep up with them.
Her smile wound down as she ran her hand over her necklace. It had been given to her by her husband, Chris, after their first year of marriage. He had been killed almost six years earlier due to an accident when working on one of the space habitats around the sun. She remembered how excited he had been to be hired to work on it. They had only spent one year together on Fredoria before he left. Looking back, she wished she had come to Roeth then. All she wanted was a family, a good career, and to be happy.
Her eyes narrowed as she thought of his employer. Advanced Dynamics. Many Kalesh considered them to be the more important factor in the Voss Imperium war than the United Planets. A corporation operating in and around United Planets space that always seemed to be one step ahead of the United Planets in terms of first contact. Advanced Dynamics was run by Billozein, who had specifically picked Chris due to his exceptional engineering skill set. Chris would have come out anyways and applied to work with whoever was building the Dyson bubble. She gritted her teeth as she recalled trying to find out details on Chris’s death. Advanced Dynamics, and Billozein in particular, had been less than forthcoming and deflected any attempt to learn more about it.
Determination flared in her brown eyes. Roeth was the perfect spot for her to find out what really happened to Chris. She had requested a transfer to Roeth and used up most of her political capital to get out of the office she was at. Andrew had been her biggest supporter and welcomed the opportunity to spend time with her. Her stint here would not be wasted.
She shook her head as she swiped through updates on her ARI from across the local and global network. As she swept her eyes over them, a blinking note caught her attention. Her eyebrows wrinkled as she tapped at the update. It expanded to full-size in front of her. The update had one message:
Evaran Protocol Initiated.
She rubbed her chin as she contemplated it. With a gesture, the update changed to a security-clearance-required message. Her head jerked back. This was unusual. Why would it notify her, then reject her when she accessed it? It was probably intended for Andrew, who had a higher security clearance. If that was the case, it should not have shown up on her holo screen. She tapped at her ARI and contacted Andrew.
Andrew’s face appeared in front of her. “You’re up! When are you headed over?”
“In a bit. I need to check in with our informant, but … I have a question.”
“Shoot.”
Jane flicked a finger at the note.
Andrew looked around for a moment, then reared his head a bit. “Oh … I didn’t see that one. How’d you get it?”
Jane shrugged. “I don’t know. It was there, and it required a higher security clearance than mine. That’s kinda unusual.”
Andrew raised a finger as he turned to the side for a moment. His hands flew over his ARI. He turned back to face her. “Okay … that was
supposed to go to me. There was a system update last night, and it looks like they messed up the routing information.” He narrowed his eyes. “Was there anything else …”
“I didn’t look much beyond that one,” said Jane with a small grin. “I can look around more if you want …”
Andrew swiped at his ARI.
The updates disappeared from Jane’s view.
“I’ll have a chat with the Kalesh engineers,” said Andrew. “This is not the first time they’ve messed up United Planets message routing.”
“I do have more questions about that Evaran Protocol, but will ask in person when I stop by,” said Jane.
Andrew smiled. “That would be better. I’ll see you then.” His image dissipated.
Jane scrunched her eyebrows. Something bothered Andrew. She could see it in his face. Imperceptible to others, but she had known him all her life. Whatever this Evaran Protocol was, it worried him.
She exited her building and closed her eyes as fresh air washed over her. One thing she liked about Roeth was that despite its evolving technological state, the Kalesh always tried to integrate the natural surroundings into their technology. Even in the enclosed United Planets office building, there were trees interspersed everywhere. The smell of the forest mixed with Kalesh spices wafted through the air.
She smiled and headed to a nearby transportation hub. It was underground since most of the above-ground city design was meant to be walked. Easy for the Kalesh since they could move quickly, not so much for a human needing to go a few miles. The transportation hub for the base tied into the cities and was used mostly by the Kalesh employees on the base. The United Planets office was on the outskirts of Da Nesh, but she was headed to Hillti, a rough area not too far away.
After reaching the hub, she approached one of the transportation units. Raising her left forearm caused a beam from the unit to scan it. The unit’s door opened, and she stepped into the small space and took a seat. An interface appeared before her. She selected a spot in Hillti that was less monitored.
Hillti was not a safe district, but it was where her informant was. The interface changed to a smattering of entertainment options as the pod shuddered, then took off down a vacuum-sealed tunnel. She enjoyed the rides and appreciated the ease at which she could get around the city without needing a personal flying craft. If she needed one, she had one, but often it was easier to use the underground transportation system.
When she reached her destination, she disembarked and headed above ground. After fifteen minutes of navigating the back alleys, she reached one behind the packed metal buildings that circled Hillti. A large patch of forest was less than ten feet away. The odor of Hillti versus Da Nesh proper was stark. Hillti reminded her of a garbage dump with buildings. The fecal matter in the alleys did not help things.
Her attention focused on a frail Kalesh male who hobbled by and focused his gaze on her, then continued walking. She headed out of the alley and into the forest a bit. After several minutes, the Kalesh she had seen earlier rushed in. She always got a kick out of seeing Karus and his disguises. She was glad he chose the nickname Karus, since the original long names felt more like a ritual to say rather than an acknowledgment. Karus was much better to say than Karuustogedarne with associated facial and hand movements.
“You’re early,” said Karus.
“I’m on an accelerated schedule. What do you got?” asked Jane.
Karus shook his furry head. “I don’t have much this time. However … there has been a lot of underground chatter.”
Jane narrowed her eyes. “About what?”
Karus shrugged. “I have no idea, but when communication jumps like that, something big is happening or has happened. You see or hear anything unusual this morning?”
“None, just the usual. I do have to check in with Andrew today, though. I’ll tell him you said hi.”
Karus smirked as he grabbed his crotch. “You can tell him to eat my—”
Jane extended a hand. “Okay, okay, I get the drift.” She knew Karus and Andrew had a long history. Andrew busted Karus so often that Andrew let Karus walk provided he offer local information as needed. Karus preferred that to incarceration. Kalesh in general despised confinement. “All right, anything else before I head out?”
Karus licked his lips. “Be careful.”
“Of course,” said Jane. “You don’t need to worry about me.”
Karus sighed. “You’re one of the few aliens I can stomach. I’d hate to lose you.”
Jane chuckled. “That’s a little out of character for you.”
“Yeah … well … there’s a lot of nervousness about. Something doesn’t feel right.” Karus jabbed the air in front of him. “Can’t put a claw on it.”
Jane tapped her lips with a finger for a moment. “All right. I’d hate to lose my excuse to come out here.”
Karus laughed.
Jane always liked the way the Kalesh laughed. They bared their teeth with raised lips and breathed through their nose. It sounded more like snickering than laughing.
Karus dipped his head, then took off.
Jane watched him move effortlessly through the forest. It was no surprise to her that the Kalesh were the masters of their environment. Her attention focused on what Karus had said. She knew that communication spikes were usually precursors to some type of activity. Maybe it was related to the Evaran Protocol. She shook her head as she headed back to the transportation hub. Time to find out.
It did not take Jane long to get to the United Planets Da Nesh building and then to Andrew’s office. She always marveled at the distinction between United Planets architecture and the Kalesh take on it. The United Planets building had a wide circular base that narrowed as it went up. The sides were covered in a material that could soak up sunlight and purify the air and was hydrophobic. Its shininess stood out next to the more grungy Kalesh buildings built around it to support the base.
She approached the building entrance, which had two humanoid robot guards standing outside. Several hovering machines whirred around above them. When she was within a few feet of them, she extended her left forearm in front of her. A beam shot at it from above the door.
“Good afternoon, Agent Jane Trellis,” said one of the robots with a digital rasp.
Jane nodded and passed between them into the building. She was comfortable with robots in her life. They were not sentient, but mimicked it very well.
As she walked through the large circular hub just inside the building and toward the transport pods, she noticed several humans at the replicator area off to the side. They stood out to her because her ARI showed that they had no augments. All United Planets employees had augments, so these were probably visitors. It was not uncommon to see humans swing by the United Planets office if they had an issue to deal with. She smirked. The fear of augments was something she never understood. She knew that some humans traveled to new planets to get away from the burgeoning trade of augments and their acceptance.
Her ARI revealed them to be members of an obscure group known as the Purists. They believed any alteration of the human body was an abomination and that an overlord would purify the human race. She shook her head. Thankfully they held no power and mainly consisted of small roving bands of members. Why they traveled to alien planets was odd given their human-supremacist views, but she had heard rumors that they were looking for some type of gate.
She arrived at the transportation pod hub, selected one, and then entered it. After interacting with its console, she was on her way to Andrew’s office. The pod system was specific to internal buildings, but operated similarly to the outside transportation system. It was a key feature of Kalesh design and one of the few things that the United Planets architecture absorbed.
After a few minutes, the pod stopped. She exited it and headed to Andrew’s office. When she arrived, she walked up to the solid door that looked like it was part of the wall. She interacted with her ARI and selected Andrew’s office. The doorway f
ormed a glowing hexagonal cell pattern over it, then the faded away. She peeked her head in.
Andrew sat in a hover chair in the middle of a blank dome-shaped room. He was moving his hands around in the air and, after a moment, extended an arm and waved her in. “It’s Lil Jane! Come on in!”
Jane smirked. He called her that due to her five-foot-eight stature, and she believed also due him thinking of her as a little sister. “I didn’t surprise you, did I?”
“Not at all,” said Andrew, pivoting his hovering chair toward her.
Jane entered the room, and the door behind her became a solid wall again. The blankness of the room changed to the default theme that Andrew had selected. The room was now a high-tech paradise filled with floating screens, holographic models, and swirling local, global, and space maps.
She tapped at her ARI and selected Andrew’s room on the contextually aware menu. After several options appeared, she selected a hover chair similar to Andrew’s. A part of the side wall slid up, and a hover chair floated over to her. She sat in it when it got to her, then moved over opposite Andrew. Andrew was tan skinned and seven feet tall, and his chair was larger to compensate. She liked his scruffy appearance, even in a United Planets uniform.
“How is everything?” asked Andrew.
“Good,” said Jane, nodding. “This morning was a bit unusual, though.”
Andrew focused on Jane. “Unusual … huh?”
“Yeah. I met with Karus, who, by the way, said for you to eat something, and he said there’s been a communication spike in the underground.”
Andrew smirked. “Ole Karus. Still bitter, I see.” He clasped his hands in front of him. “So a communication spike. That means something big is happening or about to happen usually.”
“That’s what I thought. It might tie into the second unusual thing that happened this morning, but you already know what that is.”
Andrew ran his hand back and forth over his mouth and cheek several times while gazing at Jane. “About that … You shouldn’t have seen it.”
