The Far Horizon

by Patty Jansen

  Leon took it from him. He used the touch pad to navigate the menus. A frown came over his face. 'Where did you put it?'

  'What do you mean—where did I put it?'

  'I can't find the game anywhere.'

  Cory took the reader back and flicked through menus. Leon was right. The game was gone. He gaped at the screen, heart hammering in his chest. 'But . . .' Did that mean Miss Rosier had deleted it?

  Marnix snorted. 'You have a backup somewhere?'

  Cory nodded. Alma would have a copy. But all the afternoon's work had been for nothing, and in two days' time . . . 'I'll get it.' That would mean he would have to go to Alma's unit first and get the copy and he'd have to play it tonight, with Theariki in his room and . . . 'Tell me what you found out.'

  Leon shrugged. 'Not much. There's going to be an invasion of demons. There will be ten on the ship. You have to behave normally so they trust you and you can get close enough to . . . I don't know. That was as far as I got. It's really wozy.' Even coming from Leon's mouth, it sounded so much like reality. 'Will you bring your copy tomorrow?'

  'Yeah, sure.'

  Cory excused himself. As fast as he could, he ran to Alma's unit, but no one opened the door.

  Doctor Savage, in fact, was in the living room of his own unit, shining a light in Erith's eyes while his father and Sullivan stood in the kitchen, looking at the large screen of his father's reader on the table. His father said, 'Oh, hello Cory,' and went back to his discussion with Sullivan.

  Cory glanced into the living room. Doctor Savage winked at him. Theariki sat next to Erith on the couch.

  Cory slunk into his father's bedroom. Larger than his own, it had a small table, a wash basin and a double bed. It also had an outside telephone line.

  Alma's number rang only twice before she answered.

  Cory didn't waste any time with greetings. 'Where were you?'

  'And hello to you, too, Cory.'

  'Come on, Alma, why weren't you at home?'

  'Where was I? At the canteen picking up dinner. What's going on? You sound like you have a comet on your tail.'

  In a few sentences, Cory told her what had happened. When he had finished, there was a deep silence. 'We'll have to get a new copy. I deleted it.'

  'You—what?'

  'Don't be such a nart. I'll just get another copy. We'll just have to be more careful at school.'

  'But we don't have much time. And how do I get the twins' help without taking it to school?'

  'Do you know where they live?' The ticking of her stylus on the screen sounded in the background.

  'No.' Most likely, they lived on the other side of the outer ring, with the station labourers. 'I'm not sure if it's safe to ask Leon and Marnix anymore. If Miss Rosier sees it again . . . We might have to solve it ourselves, but there is no time—'

  'Ferrets!' Alma's shout hurt in his ears.

  'What?'

  Silence, except the ticking of the stylus.

  'Alma, what is the matter?' Cory's heart thudded in his chest.

  'The Terran League have taken the game off.'

  Dazed, Cory put down the receiver, his heart thudding in his throat. If the Terran League had removed the game, was that because he and Alma had copied it? Did Miss Rosier have anything to do with it? He remembered Alma's remarks about Miss Rosier's father. An awful feeling rose in him that he had just done something very stupid.

  When Cory walked into the hall, Doctor Savage came out of the living room, carrying his bag. He glanced into the kitchen, where Cory's father and Sullivan still stood at the table. 'Mr Wilson, I've finished.'

  Cory's father came to the door. 'Your opinion?' His voice sounded tense.

  'I can't see any reason why she should be confined, especially since she has lived at the Nations of Earth complex for over five years. There is no reason whatsoever to believe she should be carrying extra-terrestrial diseases, or at least none that can be passed to others. Her medical reports are complete and accurate—'

  Sullivan interrupted, 'Did you get the translation of the Union report?'

  'I read it. It's correct.'

  'The translation?'

  'I am a doctor. I have read the report. I say it is accurate.'

  Cory frowned. Did this imply Alma's father read Coldi?

  Sullivan didn't give up this easily. 'We need an official translation for our administration.'

  'I'll write you one.'

  'By an official translator.'

  'Delegate Ethvos can do that. I'll give it to him and he'll send it to you in the morning.' That was the first time Cory had heard anyone except his father relate to Theariki's father by name.

  Sullivan nodded, stiffly. 'I shall expect it.'

  'Now if you will excuse me . . .' With a quick nod, Doctor Savage crossed to the door and stepped outside, leaving behind a tense silence.

  Cory's father turned to Sullivan, white-faced. 'Sullivan, I appreciate your punctuality and your attention to rules, but don't you think in the past few days, you have taken things a bit too far?'

  If Sullivan felt anything, his face didn't show it. 'I followed the station rules, Sir. Any Extra Terrestrial Humanoid to enter the station shall be subject to level three quarantine. Midway staff have the right to safety and protection in their working environment.'

  'I'm sure you are right about the rules, Sullivan. I am talking about that no one notified Doctor Savage that he had to come here.'

  'A technical glitch, Sir.'

  Cory's father remained silent until it must have been obvious even to Sullivan that he didn't believe those words. In total silence, Sullivan saluted and left.

  As soon as the door had shut behind him, Cory's father glared at Cory. 'Why were you back from school so late?'

  'I . . . uhm . . .' Cory shrank back into the corridor. He didn't think that mentioning detention was a good idea. When his father was in a mood like this, it was best to avoid him. He went into his bedroom and lay on his bed, thinking just what he was going to do.

  He stared at ceiling display of the starry sky behind the curve of the station's structure. Out there, two ships were approaching Midway, one from Nations of Earth and one from the Union, and when they came here and the conference started, something would happen, and one way or another he needed to warn someone.

  Neither Cory nor his father spoke much during dinner. Erith asked Theariki questions, slipping into Coldi when English was too hard. Cory couldn't help notice how Erith looked a lot happier. His father held her hand under the table and after dinner, the two of them left the unit for a walk.

  Theariki explored the unit, asking questions about everything. During the day, Erith must have bathed her, because her hair shone and she no longer wore the filthy overalls, but a clean station-issued shirt and trousers, the legs rolled up.

  When his father and Erith came back, they sent both of them to bed.

  Cory lay on his back staring at the view on the screen, occasionally heaving a sigh. To his father, everything might seem right, but he knew it was not.

  'You not sleep?' Theariki's soft voice barely rose over the hiss of the breeze from the air-conditioning vent.

  Cory lifted himself up on one elbow to look into the darkness of the bunk underneath his. 'I can't. I don't know what to do. Without the game, no one's going to listen and no one believes me.'

  'You . . . believe you?'

  A funny question, but Cory knew what she meant. 'I think it's serious. It's too close to reality. Think of the conference, the delegates. The Union delegates especially. That's just what the Terran League wants: show the Union that Earth isn't interested in negotiating with non-Earth people. We have to do something, but my father won't listen to me—'

  'What is problem? Why need parents to approve or believe? Why not tell . . . someone important?'

  'What do you mean?'

  'In Bekastana, when I have problem I tell elders. You have elders?'

  Cory couldn't bring himself to tell her human society had
no elders. Then he realised this wasn't true. Maybe there were no elders like she had in mind, grandmothers appointed as wise women, but his father had a boss. And if, just if, he was right and the Terran League really did something during the conference, Earth's relationship with the Union would be harmed for a very long time. Not to mention his father would lose his job.

  He clenched his hands; he had an idea.

  * * *

  Cory had never been to Midway's entertainment room, although 'room' was perhaps not the best name for the warren of alcoves with glaring screens, mini-theatres and drink-dispensing machines, shrouded in semidarkness. He had heard his father say that this was where the station's labourers came after work, to watch movies or to access the external link or just to talk. Now, during the day shift, it was almost deserted.

  A dozen-odd shift workers sat behind screens in alcoves. A couple of others sat in a corner, talking over drinks. The smell of beer drifted on the air.

  Trying their best not to attract too much attention, Cory, Alma and Theariki padded across the carpet.

  Alma pointed to a screen in an alcove in the far corner. She whispered, 'Over there.'

  'Can I help you?' A young man had come up behind them.

  Alma smiled at him. 'We're using the external link for school work. Correspondence.'

  The man frowned. 'You know you need to be eighteen to come in here?'

  'Yes, I do, but we need to do this project together, and we need to use the external link.'

  A look of uncertainty came over the man's face. 'You need to be eighteen—'

  'Neil promised me.'

  'Neil? All right, but be quick.'

  'Thank you. We will.'

  Alma grabbed Cory's arm and dragged him forward.

  Cory felt a twinge of jealousy. How come Alma could look so totally cool while doing something totally dubious?

  'Who is Neil?'

  'The guy who runs this place. My father talks about him. He drinks a lot.'

  They slid into an alcove. The screen displayed a Midway cross-like logo bouncing from one end of the screen to the other in a wink to screensavers of old. The image disappeared as soon as Alma picked up the stylus and scribbled her code on the touchpad.

  A picture of her came to the screen, which Cory guessed had been taken a few years ago when her face was rounder and she didn't have pimples on her forehead.

  Theariki grinned. 'Is . . . you.'

  Alma snorted. 'Yeah—that's me. Wanna see Cory? His mugshot is really narty.'

  Cory cringed; his picture looked like he was a startled animal caught in car lights at night. 'No, Alma. We're not here to look at pictures.'

  Underneath the picture on the screen was Alma's personal information. When she was born in Taurus and Earth dates, where she went to primary school—Taurus Elementary. She had won the school's academic award twice, had been a member of the Taurus Scouts, and now went to the Midway school and studied two subjects at the Earth University of Long Distance.

  He frowned at Alma. 'University?'

  A blush rose to her cheeks.

  Cool. He hadn't known that.

  He wondered what his profile said about him. About his school, about his rugby, about his detentions . . . He cringed.

  Alma took her reader from her bag. 'Come on, let's do this. I've written up a draft during class time—'

  'Alma, wait.'

  'What for?'

  'I want to check something.' Cory pushed her hands away from the keyboard. He typed in Rosier, Pauline.

  Miss Rosier's picture was also quite old, from a time her hair had been short and her eyes angry and piercing. She had been born in Kenya—ah, that explained her obsession with elephants—and attended boarding schools in South Africa. She had won a few awards, mainly in sport. There was no mention of her infamous father, and indeed her life looked rather unspectacular until she had been accepted into the space program...

  'As trainee pilot?' Alma gaped at him. 'Did you know that?'

  Cory shook his head. With all the will in the world, he couldn't imagine the dainty figure of Miss Rosier at the controls of the Venture. 'It doesn't actually say here she finished the course.' That had to be it—there were a lot of drop-outs in the service training, or so his father had said.

  'Suppose that's true.' Then Alma's frown deepened. 'It doesn't say she has any qualifications as a teacher, either.'

  Now Cory understood Sullivan's nasty remark. But what business did the previous Midway director have employing someone without qualifications?

  'Can we get on with what we came here for?' Alma had turned on her reader and flicked through the pages. When Cory nodded, she wiped the identification and opened the message program. She glanced at Theariki. 'You're sure you can break the code?'

  Theariki wriggled her fingers. 'Is easy.'

  Alma gave her the stylus and sensor.

  They hadn't needed to debate for very long to decide to use the entertainment room's access for this part of the plan. Although all communications with outside were screened, such a lot of information went through the entertainment room that anyone looking for this message would have to spend a fair amount of time finding it. By that time, the conference might be over and anything they wrote now would be irrelevant.

  Theariki scribbled on the touch pad. Lines of text, in English and various Union languages flew over the screen. Wow, she really knew how to use that sensor.

  Now a web-like pattern came to the screen.

  Alma gaped.

  'What is she doing?' Cory asked.

  'See that pattern of lines? I think she is linking us to the Union's Exchange system. That's really . . . wow, now no one will be able to read our message.'

  'But . . . I thought Earth stations couldn't use the Union system?'

  Alma shrugged. 'I think a lot more is possible than what people admit.'

  A cold feeling crept over him. Could it be that . . . one of the things Midway did was to spy on the Union?

  Theariki smiled, and gave the stylus back to Alma. 'All ready.'

  Alma dragged her reader on the table before her.

  Cory reached for it. 'I want to write it. It was my idea.'

  'You'd make too many mistakes.'

  'I won't.'

  'You will. Boys can never say things the right way.'

  'That's because girls don't understand what we say.'

  Theariki broke in, 'Not think boys smarter than girls. Is the same.'

  'And you'd be a complete nart to believe that.' Cory almost clamped his hand over his mouth. He couldn't believe he'd used that word.

  'After choosing, I still be same person. Make any difference if boy or girl?'

  Cory said nothing. He thought it did. He hoped Theariki would choose to be a boy. Then he would at least have one friend.

  Meanwhile, Alma wrote. Cory looked over her shoulder.

  'We would like to bring to your attention what we see as a serious problem threatening both the safety and sovereignty of Midway station . . .' It must have been those books having taught her all these big words.

  ' . . . the annual Earth-Union conference, which is to take place on Midway station. One of us has witnessed . . .' another big word, 'an act of violence committed in the name of the Terran League and we have good reason to believe they are active on Midway station. We have tried to raise the matter with station authorities . . .'

  One long sentence after the other flowed from her fingers. 'You're sure you're only thirteen, Alma?'

  She shot him an irritated look. 'What does it matter how old I am? Help me instead.'

  It took them most of the rest of the afternoon to complete the letter, which detailed everything they had found out.

  Alma found the address for the Nations of Earth assembly, pasted the text into a message and put 'to President Gonzales, confidential' in the subject line.

  When she was ready, her stylus hovered above the 'send' key. She paused, as if asking for their permission. Cory took a deep bre
ath. Who knew what trouble would result from this?

  On the other hand, if something did happen, he couldn't say he hadn't tried. He nodded.

  Theariki nodded, too.

  Alma pressed 'send.'

  Silence hung heavy between them as the send button blinked, indicating the transfer took place. When it stopped blinking, Alma blew out a deep breath. 'You know what I feel like? Chocolate ice cream.'

  Theariki frowned. 'What is—'

  'Never mind,' Alma rose from her seat. 'Let's go to the canteen and get some. We'll show you what it is.'

  Chapter 20

  Cory could barely get to sleep that night. For a long time, he lay listening to Theariki's soft breathing. The faint light from the clock on the wall display gilded the tuft of hair that protruded from above the sheets. Minutes, then hours ticked by.

  He must have nodded off eventually, for he awoke by the sound of banging on the door. 'Cory, get up!' His father.

  Cory sat up with a shock, heart pounding in his chest. The sound of voices drifted in from the hall.

  He scrambled out from under the blankets and slid down the bunk. Theariki was still fast asleep.

  He opened the door a crack.

  'The child told me that you have a place for young ones.' This voice was unfamiliar, soft and melodious, as if the speaker was a singer.

  'The school, yes, but children don't sleep there,' his father said. 'I understand your daughter has been wandering around the station, including in the restricted areas. I'm sorry, but I cannot allow that, both in her own and station staff's safety.'

  Cory inched into the hall, where his father spoke to a man he had never seen before, but with sandy-coloured eyes, a pointed, white-skinned face and hair as red as a traffic light, he could only be Theariki's father, Midway's Union observer.

  'Theariki doesn't even go to school.' Erith also stood in the hallway. She leaned against the doorpost, her arms crossed over her chest.

  'The young one cannot go there? Why not? It is a place for children, is it not?'

  'It is a place for Earth children.'

  Cory's father heaved a sigh. 'There is no law that says Union children should go to school and no law that says the school should accept them. Make no mistake about it, I think she should go to school.'