Errant Contact

by T. Michael Ford

  “Well, no, they wouldn’t even last a second at extreme minimal power draw. But they have enough to start this reactor back up.”

  “You sure they haven’t been drained already?” I asked.

  Kodo nodded at me in what almost looked like approval. The gauntlet on his left hand opened and two wires popped out. He attached them to some form of circuit board on the side of the panel. Just looking at it from here, I could tell the gap in our technology levels was incredibly wide.

  “You’re having a hard time answering our questions, aren’t you?” I said softly.

  He glanced up at me. “You have no idea.” As a scientist, I was used to being regarded as a smart person in our society. This situation was turning us all, except possibly Max, on our heads. We were now the children at the knee of a greater intellect, and it made me both excited and nervous. Especially when you consider Kodo was only some sort of engineer in his world, how would one of the scientists from his society react to us?

  Kodo glanced over at Drik and resealed his fancy gauntlet. “Alright, looks like we have barely enough power to start up, so we will have to get this right the first time. If you carefully reach around the cylinder – be careful not to touch it – you should see a rotary switch, similar to a key.”

  “Yes, I see it,” Drik answered.

  “Ok, on the count of three, I need you to turn it to vertical, got it? One…two…three!” They turned the keys at the same time and were rewarded by a deep, meaty thump of sound from the floor beneath us…nothing else.

  I stood there scratching my head. “Um, shouldn’t something have happened? The reactor isn’t on, is it?”

  Kodo packed up the wires and replaced the panel cover with Drik copying him. Standing up, Kodo went to the center of the counsel. “No, that didn’t start the reactor, all it did was set it up for manual ignition, and all that’s left is to activate a button.” He turned back to us, but now he looked different. His eyes were completely black, no white in them at all, creepy as all hell. “I recommend you shield your eyes, this I going to be bright! As soon as we have full power to the control room, I will be able to adjust the tinting on the glass to make it easier for you.”

  I turned and did the best I could to hide my eyes as the room was overwhelmed with an impossibly bright flash of light. My hands didn’t help at all, the light still found a way to get through, momentarily blinding me. Seconds passed and the light faded to a more reasonable level, but the room was still bright. I lowered my hands, blinking rapidly to try to clear the glare and flashed image that was burned into them. Light still filled the room, but now it was much more muted and friendly, like noontime on a sunny day. Drik placed his hand on my shoulder and helped me to my feet; it seems in all the commotion I had dropped to the ground. My eyes still hurt, but I was starting to make things out now. I could see him standing protectively over me, but he wasn’t looking at me, he was looking past me out the window in amazement.

  I used him for support as I got the rest of the way to my feet and turned to look out the window with him. What I saw baffled me. There was absolutely no way this should be possible, but there it was, right before my eyes.

  This ship was powered by a burning sun!

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Kodo

  Thankfully, those two were quiet now, but I didn’t think it wouldn’t last very long. The reactor was burning nicely and power was already ramping up. The controls before me flared with newfound life as the displays sparkled in start-up.

  “I’m seeing good power reading and not a moment too soon!” Kalaya cried happily. “Starting to get metrics back, too. Looks good for the most part, but the core standards are a few points too high and one count too far to the right.”

  “Yes, and the field could use a bit of tweaking.”

  “Excellent! I feel better already! I thought you said you didn’t know anything about these reactors.”

  “Well, I don’t, but I know what my power grid needs to look like and this isn’t it.” My hands flew over the controls, making the necessary minor adjustments. After about a minute, the power spikes were gone and the graphics fell back to normal levels. “That looks better.”

  “Yum…indeed. I’ll see what I can do on my end to get life support back up. It’s going to be so nice to have real power to work with. Give me a few minutes and I’ll have the lights, doors, and lifts working again. Other systems will have to wait until morning. I have a lot of work to do tonight. With any luck, tomorrow I should have a good handle on what the old girl has left to work with.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me.”

  “Alright, I’ll see you in the morning then, big boy!”

  Morning, huh? It’s going to be a long night tonight, I can tell. Wait, did she call me, “big boy?”

  “How is this possible?”

  I turned around and found that Drik and Laree where staring at the small sun in the other room. I looked at the room below again and then back at them. “It’s a miniature fusion core…you can’t tell me you haven’t seen one of those before either! Surely, it’s what illuminates your home world.”

  “We know what it is, but what we don’t understand is how you have a small one in the inside of your ship,” Drik mumbled in frustration.

  “I’m not following...you saw everything I did; in fact, you helped start it up. You know perfectly well that it’s real, so why are you questioning it?”

  Drik rubbed his head and massaged his temples. “Let me start again. How is it that your race has been able to shrink down a star to that size and use it for fuel? We assumed that small stars like that were impossible to create due to a star’s reliance on its gravity and mass to burn properly.”

  Ah, now I see what they were getting at. “Well, of course, that is how natural stars work, but these are engineered stars, built specifically for ship propulsion by our heavy industry plants. How many elements do you know of?” I asked them.

  They looked even more confused now but Drik answered. “Elements? I don’t see what that has to do with anything, but we use four. Fire, water, earth and air, why?”

  “No,” I shook my head. “I meant on this table of yours.”

  “118,” Laree answered.

  “Well, we know of 137.”

  The girl went all bug-eyed on me. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down here. You’re telling us that you know of nineteen more elements than we do? I thought the elements were what made up everything in the galaxy; hell, the universe!” Laree nodded with her coworker.

  “You’re both absolutely correct; emphasis on this universe part.”

  “You can travel to other universes?” they asked blankly.

  “Dimensions, really. But that’s irrelevant.”

  “This ship can travel to other dimensions?” she asked.

  “The Aurora? No, of course not. Technically…”

  Just then, the lights flickered on and the sound of drives spinning up to speed filled the room. A cool, fresh gust of air blew past me confirming that Kalaya had gotten life support back up and running. The two humans jumped a bit at the sudden change, but they would just have to get over it. I decided it would be best to head up top to see what kind of trouble the third one was getting into with the systems all rebooting at once. The kid might hit the wrong button and flush himself out an airlock. We’re not in space, but he would still be out of my hair, wouldn’t he? Pleasant thoughts aside, I headed back down the now fully lit hallway.

  “Kodo!” Laree cried as she chased after me. “What do you mean, technically? Hey, I’m talking to you!”

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Laree

  What the hell is wrong with this guy? I know I was giving him the benefit of the doubt when it came to him acting crazy, blaming it on his loss and the pod, but this is truly insane! He is actually standing there and telling us that this ship eats stars for breakfast, they have nineteen elements that we don’t, and they can travel to other dimensions! I really have no idea what to b
elieve and what not to anymore.

  I turned to Drik, who was walking beside me as we followed Kodo back to the elevator shaft. “I’m really having a hard time with all of this.”

  “I know what you mean, but I don’t get the feeling he has lied to us yet.”

  “You’re joking, right? After all the shit he has thrown at us?”

  He smirked in satisfaction. “A while ago you were protecting him and now our roles have switched; ironic don’t you think?”

  “Incredibly,” I grumbled sarcastically.

  “I’m not sure about the other things, but this ship does truly run off of stars, that much we have seen with our own eyes. Since he showed us something of that level, I see no reason why he would lie to us about anything else. I think it far more likely that he will simply not tell us if he doesn’t want us to know about something instead of lying about it.”

  “Why do you think that?”

  He sighed mournfully. “Because he’s been doing that very thing all day.”

  “You guys do know I can hear you, right?” Kodo called back over his shoulder. “Just because you’re a few feet behind me doesn’t mean there is some magical sound barrier which prevents me from hearing you.”

  My head sagged in shame. I was indeed insulting him behind his back, something I personally despise. “Apologies, Kodo.”

  “Don’t worry about it, I don’t really expect you to understand, or even believe, everything you will undoubtedly see on my ship.”

  “So there is something even more impressive than what you have already shown us?” asked Drik, in search of more knowledge as he always was.

  Kodo glanced over his shoulder again with a smile on his face. “Indeed, but I do not yet trust you enough to show them to you.” Fair enough, I guess. Hell, the paperwork to even get into engineering on our own ships takes weeks to fill out, and he’s just letting us walk around with him. “Mind you,” Kodo continued, “some things I just can’t afford to take the time to hide from you, so I hope you are ready and have open minds.”

  Ready? For more of this? I don’t think my brain can handle much more of the impossible, but I don’t really have a choice now, do I?

  We approached the elevator doors once again but, this time, the shaft wasn’t empty. Now a large round platform was waiting to greet us. Without hesitation, Kodo stepped onto the platform and walked straight to a small control board on the far end. Stupidly, I hesitated at the boundary to the elevator like some scared little girl fearing for her life. Get a grip, Laree; it’s just a goddamn elevator for crying out loud. “Seriously?” said Drik, “you have elevator music, too?”

  Kodo actually looked somewhat embarrassed. “Kalaya’s idea. She said you have this music playing in your lifts and that it might make you more comfortable.”

  “Well, yeah, but no one likes that stuff…and who’s Kalaya?”

  “You’ll meet her soon enough,” Kodo grinned. I noticed the music had cut out almost as soon as I said we didn’t like it; apparently, this Kalaya person must be monitoring us. Well, I guess that sinks the talks-to-himself crazy part of our assessment of our host. He may still be crazy, though.

  Finally, we stopped and the doors opened again to a well-lit hallway. There in the middle of the hall was Maxwell, screaming and pounding on a closed door.

  “Just stay open!” he shouted, his legs giving out as he slid into an exhausted heap at the foot of the door.

  “Max, what are you doing?” I gasped.

  He looked up at me frantically. “Laree! About time you two got back. I swear this ship is messing with me or something. These doors open, then suddenly close before I can even look inside. I’ve been trapped in this hallway for hours. This place is starting to royally piss me off!”

  I looked over at Kodo, but he was suddenly very interested in checking out one of the wall sconces and trying to keep a grin off his face. “And what do you know about all this?” I asked sternly.

  He snickered some more. “I have absolutely nothing to do with it.”

  “Right…that may have been the most unconvincing lie I have ever heard. If not you, I take it your friend is to blame, then?

  Kodo looked me in the eye and grew more serious. “Blame? I don’t blame her one bit. She hasn’t had any fun in centuries. Besides, he was asking for it.”

  Well, I haven’t even met this mystery girl so I suppose I will reserve judgment about her until I do. As for my brother deserving it…yeah, he probably did. Besides, seeing the crap scared out of him is somehow refreshing after all the years he tortured me as younger brothers are hardwired to do.

  Drik walked over to Max and helped him to his feet, brushing the dust off him. “Are you alright?” he asked.

  Trying his best to appear tough, Max put on a stern face. “I’m fine, just forget about it. But whoever was doing that to me is going to get it, mark my words!”

  I eyed Kodo one last time and saw his smile had returned. “Well, I don’t know about you humans, but I’m beat. Sleeping for a thousand years takes a lot out of you. The room at the end is a small dining area; feel free to use it. Rooms were set up for women on the left side of the hall and men on the right. Go ahead and pick one; none of them has been used before. This is where you three will be staying for the next two weeks, so make yourself at home.”

  With that, he started to walk past us towards the dining hall he mentioned. “Kodo, hold up a second.” He paused and turned back to us. “If these rooms haven’t been used before, then where do you sleep?”

  “My regular quarters are at the front of the ship with the rest of the crew. This is more of the guest wing. Personally, I didn’t see the point of having one, but Command said that every ship has to have one in case a VIP wants to travel onboard. Stupid, really. No official in his or her right mind would ever come on this trip with us. Right now, though, I’m too tired to head all the way up to my quarters, and this place has better food anyway. So tonight, I’ll stay in one of these rooms, but then this wing will be all yours, so to speak.”

  He walked off again and disappeared through a doorway. “Well, might as well get settled in,” said Drik. “We might want to call it an early night as well. After the kind of day we’ve had, we could all use the sleep.”

  I nodded and grabbed my two bags that I had left here. The hall had five doors on either side, all spaced out quite a ways, too. Deciding that I wouldn’t want to hear the elevator or the dining room all the time, I chose the room in the middle. The door opened at my touch, much to my surprise. I looked around the room as lights started to flicker on and warm air flowed through the vents.

  I was stunned yet again; the room was massive compared to what I was expecting to find on a ship. Hell, I’ve seen five-star resorts that had smaller rooms. Directly in front of me was a large seating area with elegant-looking couches and chairs, a full bar on the sidewall, a small kitchen and even a hot tub! That, I’m definitely going to have to try out. The back of the room looked like it had a window or view screen hidden behind luxurious curtains. I walked over and drew them back to reveal, in fact, a window into…nothing, just blackness.

  “Huh, well that’s disappointing,” I said to myself.

  “Give it time and it won’t be,” a chipper voice behind me commented. Spinning to face this new person, I found that I was still alone.

  “Umm, who’s there?”

  “I apologize; I didn’t intend to scare you, Laree,” a smooth female voice intoned. It sounded like she was talking from the ceiling just above my head.

  “You’re the person Kodo was talking to right?” I asked hesitantly.

  “Indeed, I am. My name is Kalaya; sadly, in-person introductions will have to wait ‘til tomorrow.”

  “Why? Where are you?”

  “Oh, I’m at the front of the ship, but don’t worry, we shall meet tomorrow. Right now, might I suggest a hot shower or perhaps a warm bath? The bedroom is through the door to your left.”

  Well, at least, she seemed nice.
I didn’t get the feeling she was a sociopathic killer like my brother thought. I followed her instructions and went into the bedroom. Sure enough, a large bed dominated the room, complete with bedding.

  “I think you will find the bed to your liking. The human body is externally very similar to ours in structure, so it should do nicely.”

  I set my bags down and went through the only other door in the room, staring into the bathroom. At least, I think it’s the bathroom; it was just an empty white room made of metal.

  “Umm…”

  “Just take your jumpsuit and underthings off and place them in the slot on the right. They will be cleaned and pressed by the time you’re out of the shower,” the voice said politely. Well, what do I have to lose? I stripped down and placed everything in the chute. Suddenly, warm water started raining gently on me from all directions, and it was like a dream. Our ship’s showers are sort of a dry-foam affair, nothing like this. It’s been years since I’ve had a hot, real water shower like this.

  “I see you’re enjoying yourself so I’ll just let you be. Scented cleansers are in the alcove to your left if you desire.” Oh, I desire, very much so!

  The shower was incredible. I haven’t felt this good in a long time, and the aromatic soap smelled like wildflowers…just wildflowers that never originated on planet Earth. Just as she stated, my suit was clean and fresh when I was done. You know, if this is the kind of rooms they have on this ship, I might not leave. I got dressed again and wrapped a warm towel I found waiting for me around my hair.

  The only thing that could make this place better would be a home-cooked meal, but that’s not going to happen…wait a second, why am I thinking of food? I stuck my head out the door and could smell something coming from down the hall, and it smelled delicious. Opening the door further, I ventured out in search of the source.

  Chapter 8

  Kodo

  I decided that a shower could wait; my stomach could not. I was starving, but like everything else, the food dispenser was busted, so it looks like I’m going to have to work for my supper today. Thankfully, it turned out that it was only a fried power supply wire and an easy fix. Minutes later, I was placing orders and setting out a place to dine. I tossed the first few selections that came out into the disposal bins. Hard to tell what might have crawled into the works over time and I wasn’t crazy about ingesting native proteins. Satisfied, I had ordered everything that the processor could make by the time Drik joined me in the dining room after his shower.