Leo had been grinning for the past few weeks, but Renn found him frowning once he scanned the icy planet.
“What's wrong?” Renn asked.
“It's Crystalline!” Leo said in disbelief. “Of all the cold planets in the Federation, where do I go? Home!”
Renn look around and frowned, spotting the shopping center in front of the portal.
“What’s wrong with you?” Dylan said.
“It's Starbucks,” Renn said, staring at the chain in front of him.
Dylan turned to Leo. “First time on another planet and white boy here wants a latte. Figures,” Dylan scoffed, but Leo was still too annoyed at being home to laugh.
Dylan looked back at Renn, who continued frowning from the disappointment.
“I just didn’t expect to see commercialism outside of the Milky Way,” Renn said.
“Oh, you two are going to be a blast, I can feel it,” Dylan said.
They stepped out from beneath the portal’s canopy as the sun’s rays reflected off the snow, glaring into their eyes. Renn’s eyes turned black.
At least this time Dylan was able to stop himself from jumping, but still had to bite his lip.
Renn shrugged when he saw Dylan’s face. “I can’t help it. It’s really bright.”
Dylan looked around at the girls walking through the portal. He took out his sunglasses, handing them to Renn. “Seriously, put these on. You aren’t getting any girls looking like that,” Dylan said.
Renn put them on and the black film cover receded, adjusting to the light change.
They walked into Starbucks and were met by two clear androids. Renn and Dylan smiled at the novelty of them. Their shells were made with a series of screens that displayed the image behind them, making them appear transparent, but the images were spaced wide enough to allow for cameras to capture that image, placed at certain angles outlining the body form that appeared human, like Crystallians.
The androids welcomed them to Crystalline and gave them brochures of the planet. The androids then looked at Leo and said, “Welcome back, sir” to his sheer irritation.
When everyone was through the portal, Professor Zaneer explained that corporations were required to sponsor an impoverished planet, in order to be approved by the Intergalactic Trade Commission to conduct business abroad. This was done so that not only would a corporation refrain from establishing business on a planet and completely draining its resources, but they would also stop other companies from doing it as well, since they would ultimately be the ones who would have to pay for it. Starbucks sponsored Crystalline and therefore were the ones who sponsored Leo, paying for his tuition to the Galileo. They then further fulfilled their obligation to Crystalline by pitching the Galileo to take the yearly field trip to that planet in order to increase tourism, much to Leo’s dismay.
The professor transferred the lesson to their flexible tablets, which they all wrapped around one of their forearms. A menu illuminated, giving options of Crystalline’s topography with maps and diagrams, species information, weather, time. Anything anyone could possibly have a question about was on there.
“I want you to all select ‘History’ and we will begin,” Professor Zaneer said. “Follow me please.”
The First Year class, including half a dozen professors, followed Professor Zaneer out into the snow. A caravan of large sleds, holding a dozen students each on their benches, met them at the door. Large white animals with long shaggy hair, and a smell that reminded Renn of a wet dog, pulled the sleds. Once all the students were in, the sleds took off, as the animals crunched the snow beneath their massive paws.
Renn could hear echoed voices and looked all around him, in an attempt to figure out their origin.
Food…want food…hungry…food…
Right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot…
Renn looked in front of him and realized it was the thoughts of the animals pulling the sled. He grinned and continued looking around. “Leo, I know you’re annoyed to be home, but this place really is kind of amazing,” he said.
“Try growing up with no color,” Leo said. “There’s no color anywhere. It’s all white or transparent.” He looked up to the sky. “Even the sky is gray. It never changes. On Earth, you’ve got blue skies that change to orange and red and then to black. We get two weeks of nighttime a year, two weeks! You’ve got blue water and green grass and flowers of all different colors. I’m sorry guys, I was just hoping to see something besides this.”
Renn and Dylan talked telepathically to each other so Leo wouldn’t have to endure listening to them oohing and ahhing. There were buildings and small houses scattered everywhere, all made of crystal and ice. The caravan sled between rolling hills where Crystallian children played tag, wearing nothing but pants made of gauze. They ran barefoot in the snow, waving to the sleds, and laughing at the funny looking aliens.
The sleds slowed down in front of a large temple, which had the form of a terraced step pyramid. Renn at first thought Crystallians were placing stones on the steps, but got closer and found it was a bit more macabre than that.
“Leo, are those skulls?” Renn asked, thinking he was going to get sick.
Leo didn’t bother looking up as he got down off the sled. “Yes, but they’re not real. They’re made of crystal.”
As they walked inside the temple, Renn let out an “Oh, classic!” before he could stop himself and received a scowl from Leo for it.
“Sorry again,” Renn mumbled.
Meta came up behind him and the two walked hand in hand along the walls, which were detailed with elaborate chiseled markings in the crystal. They were written in the Crystallian’s primary language, words of prayers and blessings, but the deeper they went, the more edged drawings they found, depicting tales of the past.
Renn kept glancing behind him and noticed that Desh was keeping his distance, but remained where he could see Renn. Renn wasn’t sure what he was doing, but the two hadn’t spoken since they got there and it was now becoming so awkward that they hadn’t spoken, that they were now trying to avoid making eye contact.
Professor Zaneer explained that the temple had a dark history, with ministers sacrificing Crystallian children to their deity. Fewer and fewer followers were willing to sacrifice their children, and the ministers, desperate to please their goddess, kidnapped children when they would leave their village to play.
There was an uprising and the followers stopped coming, praying in their homes, so the ministers wouldn’t catch sight of their children. The ministers begged the goddess for an answer to their problem and came in one morning to find a crystal that had been carved into a skull, lying on one of the steps to the temple. They took it as a sign and told the villages that the goddess no longer wanted their children, rather a symbol of their existence. From then on, Crystallians would leave skulls in all sizes, thanking the goddess for their lives, and praying that they would be happy ones.
When they got outside, Meta ran back to Lux and Joss, stumbling in the snow along the way. She blushed and looked back to see if Renn had noticed, but he looked away, not wanting to embarrass her.
They continued on the sleds between the snowy hills, until they reached what looked like a cut trail that descended into the ground. The students once again got off their sleds, stretching from sitting on the hard benches.
While Renn and Dylan waited for everyone, Renn caught sight of something moving out of the corner of his eye. He focused on the tiny motion, trying to make out what it was, and then realized it was a butterfly, flapping its wings. He put out a gloved hand and the insect landed on his finger. It had transparent wings and a thin silver body with tiny, curved antennas sticking straight up.
“It's not real,” Dylan said.
“What isn’t?” Renn asked.
“The butterfly. The only insects on Crystalline live underground,” Dylan explained.
Renn held it up to the light and saw that the wings looked like memory chips with Cybernex’s symbol engraved into one of
the wings. “What’s it do?” Renn asked.
“It gathers information for Cybernex about the atmosphere. They're constantly finding new planets and new species, but have to know how that species will react on other planets before they'll let them go through the portals. They watch the species for years before they invite them into the system. Then they leave the automaton on the planet to watch for climate changes, species evolution, stuff like that.”
“Do they ever collect information about individuals? Like personal information?” Renn asked, a little paranoid.
“I’ve never heard of them doing it, but I guess they could,” Dylan said. “Why do you ask?”
“No reason,” Renn said, not wanting to tell him about Cybernex knowing his life’s story. It would make sense, he thought. He wouldn’t have thought twice of a ladybug flying near him or a grasshopper landing in the grass while he walked around Earth. He could have easily been surrounded by cameras his entire life without knowing it.
“You guys coming?” Professor Hevia asked.
Renn and Dylan looked over, realizing they were the last ones still above land. They followed the professor down a flight of steps carved into the ice. When they got to the bottom of the stairs, they looked up the passageway towards the gray sky, guessing they were about twenty feet underground.
They caught up to the rest of the class and were surprised when the walls changed to glass with water on the other side. They could see rich vegetation, artificial spheres and robotic fish illuminating the water, and a plethora of activity under the thick blanket of ice. Crystallians swam around, some farming the vegetation, while others seemed to be swimming for sport. Tiny creatures, half the size of a human, with blue scales and webbed hands and feet, swam up to the glass walls, staring at the odd looking visitors.
“Crystallians are excellent swimmers,” Professor Zaneer explained, while she sauntered down the walkway. “They are able to hold their breath for over a half an hour at a time and see well during deep swims. The blue creatures you see near the glass are Uhrlars, who live underwater. They are unable to breathe above ground, receiving their oxygen through the water passing through their gills. Neither species, however, can survive swimming on another Federation planet, since their low body temperature would freeze the water around them, enclosing them in ice until they suffocated.
“Please notice the tunnels in the ice you see there,” Professor Zaneer said, pointing to a tunnel. “Some are vertical, while others are horizontal. The vertical tunnels are usually made by Crystallians in order to access the water. The horizontal tunnels are all made by a species called Orlos. Please use your tablets to illuminate an Orlo for your reference.”
Renn fussed with his tablet, until finally resolving to look over Dylan’s shoulder instead. The slick, white Orlo had tiny ears, and a rather muscular body. It stared back at the boys with startling blue eyes. Dylan tapped on the illustration and the Orlo animated, snarling.
“Looks friendly,” Dylan said.
“Orlos are the species that give Crystalline a Class Two classification, besides the severe weather, of course. They live underground and are carnivorous; eating any species they come across. They aren’t able to breed as consistently as other species though, which keeps their numbers down. But when they hunt, they hunt in packs as a family, overpowering the Crystallians within minutes. I doubt any of you should worry about running into a pack of Orlos, but please remember to stay as a group, near the village, just in case,” Professor Zaneer warned.
When they climbed the steps back to the surface, the students were divided by sleep patterns and those requiring eight hours of sleep within twenty four hours were told they would first have supper with the others, and then were to proceed to their tents to sleep.
Dylan and Renn looked up into the bright sky. “Is it really going to be this bright the entire time?” Renn asked.
“Yup,” Leo replied. “It won’t get dark for a few more months.”
Not helpful considering they would be leaving the next day, Renn thought.
They took the sleds back to the shopping center and were taken to a restaurant where Renn was happy to see waiters. He smiled as the Crystallian took his order, enjoying being waited on for the first time. Earth didn’t have restaurants. No farmer would have wanted be seen in public buying anything more than ingredients to complement the food he had either butchered or grown himself.
Leo had eaten with Renn and Dylan for more than half a year and the three thought he had the best chance of getting close to what they’d like. Leo rattled off a list in Crystallian, occasionally hiding his face when Crystallians walked by.
When the waiter returned, he looked miserable carrying the hot food on the crystal dishes and advised them to eat them before they cooled like he had been trained to do.
Renn and Dylan devoured grilled fish, arguing what a similar taste might be. Dylan insisted it tasted like tuna, but Renn was adamant it tasted like halibut. After a few minutes, Leo shut them both up by informing them they were eating two different kinds of fish and they were probably both right.
They each ate a fresh bowl of salad, consisting of fine seaweed, both of them mumbling something about wanting to order it when they got back on the ship. At least that’s what Leo thought he heard, listening to Renn and Dylan talk with their mouths full of the greenery. Luckily, Dylan and Renn had gotten used to Leo’s diet of live coldwater fish, consuming them whole while they twitched and squirmed. At this point they could go through an entire meal without dry heaving once.
They got back on the sleds and the students were separated by sleep patterns, with one caravan heading towards the hills, another towards the ocean, and the last towards a large tent that had been set up for the students.
The tent had solar panels on the roof, heating the inside, and insulation below, to keep it from melting the snow beneath. Leo found himself having to put his Prodlinhide suit back on, just to stand the temperature in the tent.
The tent was aligned with beds on each side and the students were segregated with males on the right and females on the left. The students ran for the beds, doing their best to try and situate themselves opposite their crushes, far from their enemies, yet next to their friends. It was quite complicated and took some planning. Renn was pleased his bed was opposite Meta, between Leo and Dylan, yet far from Jonah.
Shelly was able to knock Holly out of the way, to get a bed opposite Desh, who wasn’t too thrilled about what she was hoping he'd do with her when the lights went out.
Just as Leo finished putting on his suit, the students heard a ruckus outside. Professor Zaneer and a Janiun physics professor walked out the front door, asking the students to stand back.
Dylan leaned over to Renn. “Hey man, use that mind-stuff and figure out what’s going on.” But before he could answer, Leo spoke up.
“I know what it’s about,” Leo said, taking his suit back off. The door opened and a tall bearded Crystalline stood there yelling at the Janiun, while the professor tried to calm him down.
“Leo?” Professor Zaneer beckoned. “I’m sorry, could you come here, please?”
“Yeah,” Leo said, walking out in his bare feet. He got outside and walked up to a small Crystallian woman, but kept his eyes focused on the seething male next to her.
“Hi, Mom….Dad…” Leo said.
“You're on Crystalline and you don't even tell me?” Leo's father yelled. “We haven't heard from you in months. Then I hear from Pathot that he saw you at Starbucks. How do you think that made me look?”
“Dad, it's just a class field trip and they didn't tell us where we were going. I couldn't just leave. I'm still in school,” Leo said.
“Learning about what? Crystallians?” Leo's father asked, flabbergasted. “I think you know enough. You'll come home until they board the ship.”
“But Dad, I want to stay with my friends,” Leo said.
“You have friends?” the mother asked in delight. “Warm-blooded friends?
Sweetie, that's remarkable!” She smiled until she caught sight of her husband, who scowled at her in disgust.
“Why not befriend fire and get it over with!” Leo’s father snapped. “I'm not going to have it. You come home, right this instant!”
Leo looked back at Professor Zaneer who remained by the tent. “Professor, don't I have to stay with you?” he asked with a pleading look.
“I’m sorry Leo, you know the school rules,” Professor Zaneer replied. “We can’t override a species unless they’re harming a student, which this isn’t. We’ll meet back at the portal at seventeen hundred hours.”
“I’ll just grab my things,” Leo said, walking back into the tent. He cringed at the blast of hot air he received when he entered and packed his Prodlinhide suit in his duffel bag.
Dylan, Renn, Lux, Meta, and Joss waved solemnly as he walked out. Leo never seemed to be able to catch a break.
Leo’s absence left the bed next to Renn vacant and for a moment it looked like Desh was picking up his things to take it. Ivan, however, got there first and Desh settled back into his spot. It was the first time Renn was happy to see Ivan, that is, until he started talking. He seemed to ramble on and on about how he would one day be a news anchor for the Federation. He thought he would be perfect for the job and could easily handle the pressure, even if his audience amounted to a quadrillion viewers. “Trillions upon trillions of species will see my face…” which was the point in the conversation when Renn switched channels and tuned him out.
Renn excused himself to get something to eat, walking to the end of the tent to rummage through cans of soup and packets of granola the school had provided for snacking.
“You read my mind,” Meta said behind him.
Renn looked up and smiled as she sat down next to him. “I just had to get away,” Renn said, glancing back at Ivan. “I’m actually not that hungry.”
“Me neither, we just haven’t had that much time to talk since we got here,” Meta said. “Maybe we can share a bag?” she asked.
“Yeah, that sounds great,” Renn said, finding any excuse to be near her to be a brilliant idea.
Galileo (Battle of the Species) Page 30
