“Repair schedules?”
I nodded. “I had the drones scan everything they could and was able to get a comprehensive idea of what systems are still down and the remaining hull damage. Once the rest of the ship is completely unearthed, I’ll rescan those areas again, but the drones should be able to handle most of the niggling hull and power grid failures on the rest of the ship. Frees up a lot of time for me to work on the engines and make sure we can even still fly.”
“Well, that will be a big time saver, and we will need every second we can get.”
“I know that tone in your voice, what aren’t you telling me, Kalaya?”
Her blonde head shook in despair. “Kodo, it’s not good. The Terran military fleet knows about us.”
“How?”
“The Jeff is infested with all manner of bots and subversive spy programs. I’m sure their military intelligence was reading the reports that Laree, Max and Drik sent even before Captain Kumeiga saw them. There was nothing I could do without tipping my hand. I’m sorry.” Before I could think of any words to comfort her, she put up a hand and froze. “There is a transmission coming in for you. And for the record, if you ever refer to me as your secretary for handling your calls, I will make you regret it to the end of time. Are we clear?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She smiled and playfully ruffled my hair with her static electric touch. “Good boy, now play nice and I’ll see you in the morning. Oh, and get some sleep, please, for me.” With that, she left the room. Sure enough, I had a transmission waiting for me, but I was surprised to find that the human Captain was at the other end of the transmission, and he appeared to be alone.
“My apologies for contacting you this late, but I felt a conversation was needed,” he began. Unlike the last time I saw him, he was without the formal suit and looked to be in his private room.
“Not a problem, sir.”
“First, let me apologize for my rudeness earlier today and let me formally introduce myself. I am Captain Alesky Kumeiga, and it is an honor to meet you, Kodo.” Well, since he knows my name, I’m guessing he had time to read their logs. “I have read over my crew’s logs many times now, and if you will indulge an old man for a time, there are some questions I would like to ask.”
“Understandable.”
He sighed and took a drink of a brown-colored liquid in a clear, stemmed mug. “You saved my people, apparently several times, even though you put them in some of those situations in the first place, but you saved them. I would like to know why. Why save them when it would be so much easier and safer for you to have let them die or even killed them yourself to keep your location a secret?” Valid points. I suppose we could have made them disappear and focused on shielding one of the reactors so we could recharge the ship’s systems.
“We were already at the end of our available time to hide out here. Any longer and we would run out of power.”
“According to Laree, that period would have been measured in years, not the weeks it would have taken for the Jeff and the fleet to move on. She is very passionate about her work and her causes, but I have never known her to be inaccurate. So that can’t be the only reason,” he said flatly.
It was my turn to sigh. “No, there was no reason to kill them and I could not condone doing so. Initially, we thought to use them as some sort of bargaining chip, counting on you to be more lenient with us if we returned your people safely. But now, we know it is not you who we need to bargain with and that those chips are not acceptable at the table we now play.”
“Indeed. And what do you intend to do, given the time?”
“Finish repairs to the ship and leave this place forever.”
“Where will you go?”
“Someplace far away from here and far away from humans or any of the other races for that matter, no offense intended.”
“None taken. You don’t intend to attack us or any of our other ships or worlds?”
“We will only act to defend ourselves and this ship; however, we can’t allow ourselves or this ship to be captured either. If necessary, or if we feel trapped, we will detonate the ship and take this planet with us. I assume the reports you read had a description of our reactor cores.”
“Yes, somewhat hard to believe, but I have to trust my people and their judgment. Last question; are you a threat to us?”
Well, that was a loaded question if I ever heard one. “Trying to back me into a corner, I see; but I understand where you are coming from. To be completely honest with you, yes, we are a threat. But not in the manner you might believe.” His image made a hand gesture that I took to mean proceed. “Could we build ships that could drive the Terran fleet from the stars? Yes, if we wanted to. However, that is unlikely to happen as we do not have the numbers or the desire to attack anyone. No, Captain, the biggest threat we offer to the human race would be if we foolishly allowed our technology to fall into your hands. Again, no offense, but you humans are a young race and, honestly, not mature enough yet to handle that much power. Someday, if you don’t destroy yourselves first, you may get there, but I’m sorry, you will not be getting any shortcuts from the Quetanae.”
“I understand, and I take it you are aware of what is coming?”
“Your military fleet, yes.”
He took another drink. “Kodo, you have been honest with me so I’ll be honest with you. I don’t trust the fleet anymore. Too many unexplained ‘accidents’ have been happening whenever they’re around. Eighteen corporate science and exploration vessels have mysteriously gone missing in the last five years alone, and each of them was shadowed by a fleet or patrol. Not a pleasant thought. There have been rumors; many credited to marines on leave drinking too much, implicating the military in those incidents. Consequently, I don’t have much faith in them playing nice. The discovery of your ship and technology may well end up being the death of both of us.”
“If we have the time, Captain, I would like nothing better than to be long gone and just a figment of someone’s imagination when your fleet enters the system.”
“Yes, Laree mentioned that several times in her report as well. How much longer do you need?”
“Close to the two weeks we originally planned on; hopefully less, if we don’t find any surprises.”
He was silent for a short time once again. “I know this might seem stupid to you as I have read it all in three different reports from my own people, but are you really what you say you are? I just can’t wrap my head around the concept that your people are hundreds of thousands of years old. You Quetanae were engaged in interstellar travel when humans were just learning to make fire.”
“Captain, I don’t know what to tell you. Every race progresses on its own timetable. Kalaya and I have no interest in portraying ourselves as godlike beings so much better than mere humans. In fact, I have been impressed by what I have seen from your crew these past few days. Terrans are not nearly as hopeless as I had feared and I see great promise in your people.”
“Ah, yes, Kalaya, your able assistant,” he smirked. “She is mentioned prominently in several reports. So she is a super advanced AI, and I fear I am doing her a grave injustice by calling her that, but it is the only frame of reference I have. Her job is to run this flying factory of a ship, is that correct?”
“Yes, this ship was intended to land, build the foundation for a colony, then return to orbit to act as a prebuilt shipyard to jumpstart the colony’s production and access to resources.”
“So not a warship.”
“No, this ship was never intended to go into battle, but it does have light armaments, just as your own ship does.”
He was silent for another moment. “Out of respect for you and your partner, I will accept your story as it adds up with what my people tell me. That is also the end of my questions for the moment. Do you have any for me?”
“No, sir, I do not.”
“Very well. Please send me landing instructions whenever you have time and I apologize once again for dist
urbing your evening.”
“It’s no trouble at all, sir.”
“You seem to be a good man, Mr. Kodo; we will talk again later.” The screen went blank and I was left sitting there thinking to myself.
Well, things have definitely made a turn for the odd, haven’t they?
Chapter 16
Laree
The night went by in a fog for me and sleep seemed like an archaic concept I couldn’t begin to wrap my mind around. I drifted off sometime around four bells, but even then, I did not really rest. Even with Kalaya bringing us all fresh cups of her special coffee, I just couldn’t snap out of my blue funk.
I made up my mind last night that I didn’t want to leave, not one bit. Even after reviewing all the scary parts from the past few days, including the initial fleeing from the wolves and the incident in the underground hangar. I found myself grinning like a five-year-old who just found the keys to the magic toy box. The truth was, I loved it here. This place is remarkable beyond any experience I’ve ever had; the ship, our new friends, even the planet itself. Well, I could do without the wolves, I suppose. But I could even get used to them if need be.
I didn’t want to go back to my boring life aboard the Jeff. Yet here I was, watching a twelve-man shuttle beginning its descent down to the ground and the landing pad that Kodo had hastily ordered the wyverns to construct. The sun was shining, birds were singing, and a gentle breeze carried the exotic fragrant smell of alien pines to my nose. Overall, life sucked right now!
As much as I tried to prevent it, a string of tears started the long march down my cheek, and I felt a static-charged hand brush my arm. My newest and best friend, Kalaya, was standing next to me, looking very much as if she was fighting back the flood as well.
I reached up and dried a few tears with trembling hands, as I looked askance at her. “Care to explain why and how you are here? Outside and all?”
“Believe me, I wouldn’t do this for just anyone, you know. I absolutely hate this, I mean this is the epitome of an out-of-body experience for me and is disturbing as hell on many levels.”
“I thought your hologram wouldn’t work outside.”
“It doesn’t! Look at me, I am a shadow of my former glory; I’m practically two-dimensional out here! Not only do I look pale and drawn, but some of my best attributes are missing! Look, I have no ass!” She was right, the effect was kind of like seeing a cardboard cutout of a person that moved and talked. “Outside, I only have the emitters I can bring with me.” She motioned to a small swarm of translucent, fingernail-sized drones hovering over and around her, barely visible. “As to why…do you honestly think I wouldn’t want to say goodbye?”
“Well, I would understand if you couldn’t…but I’m very glad you’re here.”
The hologram shifted as if leaning into my ear. “Listen, Laree, before you go, I have some things to tell you, only you. I’ve done some digging around, and believe me, I almost wish I hadn’t. First off, the Jeff is in real danger from the fleet that is following you. You may think you share common goals, but you would be wrong; the military has their own agenda. Second, trust no one. Be careful what you say or write, even to your brother, Max. The Geoffrey Laird is badly compromised so act as if every word you speak is being recorded and sent on to the fleet, because it is. If you ever get into a bind as far as the ship is concerned, pull out the old hamster and repeat after me, ‘Kalaya is wise…Kalaya is beautiful…long live the Queen!”
“Huh? You’re joking right?” I gaped at her, not only because of what she had told me about the Jeff but also at her silly phrase.
“No, for the first time since you’ve known me, I am deadly serious,” Kalaya whispered, affixing me with her azure eyes. “Ah, it appears our honored guests have arrived.”
The shuttle made a long, agonizingly slow traverse of the entire length of the Aurora before lining up for its final approach to the landing pad. The small boxy shape kicked up loose dirt and gravel as it fired thrusters to touch down gently.
Kalaya took her eyes off the shuttle landing, and I could see the tears starting to match the flow that was trickling down my own face. “Both Kodo and I are going to miss you, Laree. He isn’t the kind to admit it, but even as alienated as he feels about his past, he still needs and enjoys the company of people. Oh, I almost forgot, I have something for you!”
A small hovering drone, the same model as the one that had saved my life from the wolves a few days earlier, came buzzing up. It carried a small cloth bag clutched in one of its small retractable arms. I held out my hand and it slowly, carefully, deposited the bag in my palm. Holding it gently, I loosened the drawstring and reaching inside, retrieved a familiar pixie figurine.
“Kalaya, I can’t accept this. This is your favorite piece, why would you part with her?”
“Because I can. She is real in both our worlds and I want you to have her to remember me by. You’ll recall what I told you about pixies. They are a feisty lot, but so are you and I think you will suit each other magnificently. Now, all tear-jerking emotions aside, promise me you will stay safe out there, ok?”
“I will, Kalaya, I promise.”
“Good. I would give you a big fat hug right now, but you can probably guess how well that would turn out. So I will need to give you an IOU on that one. Goodbye, Laree. Knowing you, I think I’ve come to the conclusion that humans may not be so bad after all.” I turned my face away to hide the tears and sadness that was threatening to overwhelm me.
I watched the shuttle’s main hatch open as Kalaya joined Kodo closer to the ship. They stood shoulder to shoulder, almost like proud parents watching their children go off to summer camp.
As Max and Drik started gathering up backpacks and satchels of gear in preparation for departure, two rifle-toting crewmen stepped out of the craft and took up positions on either side of the door. “Put those away this instant!” I blurted out, still caught up in the emotion of the moment. As soon as I said it, I realized I had made an error in judgment as Captain Kumeiga himself stepped out of the shuttle bay.
“Relax, Laree, they are only here for my protection, they are not here to harm your friends,” the big man rumbled. He nodded at Kodo and Kalaya, “Insurance, you understand.”
“Of course, Captain,” Kalaya intoned formally, and I noticed she was wearing her Quetanae uniform once again. Her eyes twinkled as twenty ports opened up along the sides of the Aurora and ominous-looking metal tubes thrust out, each one oriented on the shuttle and visitors. “Insurance,” she said with a wink.
The thought of the Aurora actually firing weapons at the crew of the Jeff was chilling. However, my concern dropped considerably when I overheard Kodo whisper, “Kalaya, why are you threatening the crew of the Jeff with mooring thrusters?”
“They don’t know they’re mooring thrusters. I was going for the cannon intimidation factor; it always seemed to work in the old pirate vids that the Jeff had on board,” she hissed back. “Now shut up or you’ll ruin the con!”
They were bluffing? That, at least, was a relief. Then again, if the story of Kodo’s past were true, he would scarcely have needed any help from the Aurora to take out the shuttle crew.
To his credit, Captain Kumeiga seemed undaunted by the open display of mass firepower. Perhaps he guessed the true usage of the “cannons” or maybe he just had faith that things would remain peaceful. The two-armed crew members were looking a bit pale, however, as the Captain spoke, “I would like to take this opportunity to thank you once again, Captain Kalaya. My apologies for deviating from the flight plan you set out for us, but our pilot insisted on a quick pass over your ship. Although ‘ship’ appears to be a massive understatement, it’s very impressive.”
“Yes, she is the culmination of millennia of Quetanae workmanship. It is understandable that your pilot would be mesmerized by her great beauty. Unfortunately, we are doing some light remodeling here and there and I just can’t make up my mind on a color scheme so we won’t be granting any tours,
now or ever! But it is possible he may get a chance to see her in flight, however.”
The Captain chuckled at her quirky nature. “I will be sure to tell him.”
“You’ll need to order him to wash all the shuttle windows, though; he seems to be getting drool all over them.” Kalaya grimaced, pointing at the ship’s cockpit. Sure enough, the pilot was standing on his seat, leaning far over his control station to try to see as much of the Aurora as possible. In fact, there was a crowd of other star-struck crewmen standing behind him doing much the same.
It made me wonder what impact our little adventure would have on the three of us once we returned to the Jeff. I was never the most popular girl in the crew, unhappily relegated to invisible nerd status for most of my tenure on the ship. It made me happy to think that I would be one of the very few on the ship to have seen this magnificent alien craft in all her splendor instead of the blemished, still-being-excavated hull that so captivated everyone. I felt another pang of sorrow at leaving because I realized the Aurora’s real beauty is on the inside, with her minimal crew, a sight the others will never be fortunate enough to see.
Captain Kumeiga turned back around with an embarrassed smile. “Quite right, Captain Kalaya, I believe he will be on window detail for the foreseeable future. I understand your time is precious, so we will load our crew members aboard and take our leave of you. Drik, Laree, Max, this may be your last chance to say goodbye, if you wish. I suggest you take advantage of the opportunity.
Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when you have finally met friends worth the emotion of a sorrowful goodbye. Most of the people I have met since I graduated from school treated me with polite indifference, which made me more anxious to return to putting my nose in a book or working in my lab. But this? This parting had jagged teeth.
“Well, I guess this is goodbye,” Drik spoke softly, addressing our two friends, thankfully giving me time to come up with something to say. “I have to say it’s been a pleasure to meet you, both of you,” he said, giving Kodo a smile and a firm handshake. “If you’re ever in the neighborhood, stop in, the drinks will be on me next time.”
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