by Chad Spencer
Extinguishing the flames, Jeff raised his hands over his head and let his lightning flow between them. Porsche screamed.
Danae also levitated herself until she was just under the lights above them. Gathering the light in her hands, she formed it into a disk. She passed the disk lightly across the superstrong plates in the ceiling and made a small gash. With a flick of her wrist, she made the disk disappear.
Kent was stunned, unable to move or speak. Porsche was horrified. She plastered her back against the wall in fear.
“HA!” yelled Dirk shaking his index finger at Kent and Porsche. “I TOLD YOU SO! I told you they were alien freaks! But noooo, you wouldn’t listen to me. Yooooou had to listen to them and now we see who’s right. It was me all along! You thought I was crazy or stupid or something. Well NOW who’s crazy and stupid? Not me, that’s for sure!”
Danae rolled her eyes and sourly shot back, “Yes, Dirk. You are in fact crazy and stupid. Now shut up and let those of us who are not stupid talk.”
Defiantly, Dirk shot back, “Make me!”
Pulling together another disk of light, Danae held it menacingly and growled back, “I can actually do that, Dirk. Are you sure that’s what you really want?”
With eyes popping out of his head, Dirk immediately fell silent and edged toward the door.
Jeff eased himself back to the floor and gently told his father, “I know this is weird, Dad. But it’s real. Eden wants us to come to her. She sent that ship after us. We have to go out and make sure that it isn’t dangerous. If it is, we’re the only ones who can fight.”
With a look of bravado, Kent puffed out his chest and asserted, “And I’m your father. If you’re going out there, I am too.”
Jeff smiled from ear to ear and said, “I’m really glad I have a dad like you.”
Startled, Kent asked, “Why?”
“Because a lot of people would run away from us screaming if they saw what we just showed you. But you don’t. You want to stick by us. I’m really glad you’re my dad.”
Calming considerably, Kent returned Jeff’s smile. He turned to Porsche and instructed, “Honey, please stay on the Porsche’s Haven with Denise and the others. I’ll go with the kids and check this out.”
Porsche demanded, “You’re just going to accept this? After what we just saw them do?”
Gently, Kent reprimanded, “No matter what, Jeff and Danae are our children. We have to stand by them and do what’s best for them. Amanda’s our responsibility too. She doesn’t have anyone else.”
Danae happily skittered to Kent and hugged him tightly. “I love you, Dad.”
Kent returned her embrace with a big bear hug and then commanded, “Let’s get going. Dirk, your mouth is hanging open. Close it and take your mother back to our quarters. Then get to the helm on the Porsche’s Haven and get it back to the colony.”
Dirk didn’t need to be told twice. Grabbing his mother’s arm, he pretty much dragged her from the room.
With Kent as pilot, they quickly separated from the Porsche’s Haven and cast off. Jeff sat at the copilot’s station and calculated a course for the Amsterdam that would intercept the mysterious ship. Soon they were on their way. As they vectored toward the outer reaches of the star system, Amanda questioned, “How long until we get there?”
“We won’t intercept them until this time tomorrow,” answered Jeff.
Danae wondered, “What are we going to do in the meantime?”
Kent broke in with, “For starters, I’m going to cook dinner. Jeff, man the helm.” He left the bridge.
“I really like your dad,” Amanda told Jeff and Danae. Jeff just smiled and scanned the space around the Amsterdam for objects that might be coming their way.
Just then, the comm system notified them of an incoming message. Amanda put it on the screen.
“Jeff Bowman,” announced an emotionless woman in her twenties. “This is the gateship Libertad. We have received your message and are on our way to you. Our crew and passengers are currently in cryostasis, but we will be reviving them shortly as per your instructions. Please contact me directly when we rendezvous. My designation is Unit 109. Libertad out.”
Danae wondered aloud, “What did she mean by that? Why did she say ‘my designation’ and not ‘my name?’ It’s kind of weird.”
Jeff stared at the blank screen thoughtfully. Then he answered, “She’s an android. That’s why she doesn’t have a name. Remember what Sirsen Martinez said? That ship’s run by androids.”
Almost immediately afterward, a message from Governor Connors came in. When his image appeared on the main viewer, the Governor gazed at them and announced, “I just had an interesting conversation with Porsche Bowman. I also heard that ship respond to your message Jeff. Everyone and his dog broadcasted messages at that ship and it didn’t respond. But as soon as you called, it answered. Are there some things you want to tell me, Jeff?”
Warily, he replied, “That I want to tell you? Hmmm. Can’t think of anything offhand.”
With a chagrined laugh, the Governor shook his head and corrected, “I suppose I walked right into that one. Well then, are there some things that you should tell me?”
“Maaaaybeee.”
Heaving a resigned sigh, Governor Connors moaned, “You have no idea how much like your father you are. Ask him about the explosion in the Academy propulsion lab. I’m sure that’s a story he never told you.”
Hesitantly, Jeff explained to the Governor about Eden, the korei, and the ship coming at them.
Clearly growing apprehensive, the Governor asked, “And you say you’ve had these creatures living symbiotically with you since the wormhole collapse with no negative effects? They haven’t clouded your judgment or controlled your actions?”
Jeff shrugged, “Not that I know of. You tell me. Have you seen anything strange or dangerous in the way the three of us act?”
“I can’t say that I have. In fact, quite the opposite. You’re one of the most trustworthy people in this colony.”
“Well then …”
Nodding, the Governor instructed, “I want to talk to your father as soon as he’s available.” With another nod, he signed off.
The hours passed heavily. They spent most of their time watching the video feed from the Ellsworth, which trailed after the Libertad. They heard the Ellsworth call to the Libertad many times without a response.
That night, Jeff slept fitfully. Early in the morning, he took a shift at the helm so his father could rest. Amanda replaced him in the afternoon. By evening, they were closing in on the rendezvous point. Kent piloted the ship.
As soon as the Amsterdam drew near to the Libertad, Amanda called out to Unit 109. The flawlessly beautiful face of the android instantly appeared on the screen.
“Amsterdam, this is Unit 109. Please dock at port fifteen. You should be able to see its docking lights blinking now.”
“Copy that, Unit 109,” answered Amanda. “We see the docking lights and are on our way.”
Without fanfare, they docked with the Libertad, went to the airlock, and waited. Kent carried a plasma pistol in a holster on his hip.
“Do you really think you need that, Dad?” asked Jeff.
“We need to be ready for anything and I don’t have super powers.”
Uneasily, Jeff stood with the others. A few moments later, the comm system beeped. Unit 109’s voice informed them, “The airlocks are now pressurized. You may board the Libertad.”
Kent nodded to Jeff. Jeff pressed the airlock’s control panel and the heavy door slid open. Cautiously, they stepped through.
“Hi, Jeff,” Hugh greeted brightly.
“HUGH!” Jeff yelped in astonishment. “How can you be here? How come you’re not older?”
Hugh gazed at Jeff as if the answers should be obvious. “We’ve been in cryostasis,” he explained. “I’m 17 now.”
“Me … me too,” stammered Jeff.
Hugh continued nonchalantly, “Hi, Sirsen Bowman.” To Dan
ae, he said, “Aren’t you Danae Highborne?”
Caught off guard, Danae stuttered, “I … I’m Danae Bowman now. I changed my name after Mom and Dad got married.”
Hugh nodded, and then said to Amanda, “I don’t know you. I’m Hugh Benson, a friend of Jeff’s.”
Puzzled, Amanda responded with, “Uh, hi. I’m Amanda Meadows.”
Kent broke in, “Hugh, what’s going on here?”
“Well,” Hugh drawled as he scratched his head. “It’s kind of a long story. I think it’s a good idea to wait until the others are up to go through it all. The androids woke me first so I could be here to meet you. They’ve been putting the Argentineans through the reanimation cycle before the rest of us. I think Señor Otero may have ordered them to.”
Jeff asked, “Who?”
Hugh smiled and explained simply, “There are a lot of people you need to meet. So let’s go.” He turned and started down the corridor. Over his shoulder, he commented, “Speaking of meeting people, Tiffany really isn’t as bad as she seems at first.” He strode away, motioning for them to follow.
Baffled, Jeff looked at Amanda, Danae, and Kent.
Equally baffled, Amanda, Danae, and Kent gazed back at Jeff.
Jeff shrugged and followed Hugh. One by one, the others trailed along behind.
“We didn’t have a way to build cryostasis units fast,” Hugh commented as they strolled down the corridor. “But as Señor Otero would say, we ‘helped ourselves’ to a bunch of Living Fighter seeds from the Shizukawa system. We even have some Living Destroyer seeds. The Governor there never thought we’d come back after turning us over to Section 21–they’re spies who wanted to turn us into lab rats. But anyway, you should have seen the look on the Governor’s face when we showed up in the gateship. I thought his head would explode.”
Jeff had no clue what Hugh was going on about.
“Once we had the seeds,” continued Hugh casually, “we grew a bunch of Living Fighters pretty quickly and pulled the cryostasis units out of their escape pods. It was really easy to get them installed on the Libertad. Let me tell you it’s really nice to have a few hundred androids around. Of course, the overminds are great to have too. We just tossed the fighters into a star. We didn’t want to leave them lying around. Well, we tossed most of them. Señor Otero kept a bunch, but that’s probably for the best.”
Jeff didn’t even try to understand. Soon they arrived at a huge room jam-packed with cryostasis units. Nearly all of them were filled. Not far from them, an extremely attractive blond girl was sitting up in an open unit. She spotted Jeff, Danae, Amanda, and Kent.
“You!” the blond girl demanded curtly of them, “Is there anyplace to go shopping here?”
“Uh,” Jeff mumbled, confused.
“Yes,” Amanda answered for him, “there’s a few shops that have opened up.”
“FINALLY!” the blond girl exclaimed as she clamored from the cryostasis unit.
Hugh whispered to Jeff, “You have no idea how bad things would have gotten if Amanda had said no. You can consider this a near-death experience.”
“You!” shouted the blond girl at Jeff. “What do you use for money here?”
“We use Farthings and Talents, the same as the Alliance. One thousand Farthings is one Talent.”
“How much will you give me for five androids?”
Hugh interjected, “Tiffany, those aren’t yours to sell!”
“They’re as much mine as anybody’s,” Tiffany spat back. “I want my share and I want them now! Five androids. That’s what I want. I’m going shopping and it’s worth more than your life to try and stop me.”
Obviously terrified, Hugh meekly agreed, “Ok, Tiff. I’ll round up some androids for you and send them to your quarters. You can sell them and go shopping. I think everyone will be happier if you do.”
“You’re jarking right they will,” Tiffany barked as she stomped out the door.
Jeff, Amanda, Danae, and Kent stared at the closed door with dangling mouths. ‘This really wasn’t what I expected when I came on board,’ Jeff thought. After scratching his head for a moment, he commented, “Hugh, who was that?”
“That,” Hugh informed him, “was probably the single most dangerous life form in this or any other universe. At least, I think so. Akio says I think that because I never met someone called Ryoko.”
“Akio? He’s not here too, is he?”
“Sure. He’s right over there,” Hugh stated as he pointed. “Right by all of his friends from the New Tokyo system.”
At that moment, Akio’s cryostasis unit opened and Akio opened his eyes. Jeff scurried over to the unit and peered down at him. Like Hugh, Akio hadn’t aged more than a few years since Jeff had last seen him. In fact, he looked as if he were the same age as Jeff.
Akio gazed around absently for a few seconds. Then his eyes focused and he exclaimed, “Jeff!”
Lunging out of the cryostasis unit, Akio jumped at Jeff and pounded him exuberantly on the back. “We found you!” he hollered joyfully.
“Akio! I thought I’d never see you again. How did you get here?”
“Eden sent us, of course,” respond Akio. He shrugged. “I guess it was for the best. We couldn’t stay in the Alliance. They were basically trying to put us in a cage because they thought we were an alien threat. We went back once and took some ship seeds. Boy they freaked out like you wouldn’t believe. But we got what we needed and left without hurting anybody. And after all we did for them, they really did owe us something. At least I think so. But … but we can’t go back any more.” Akio heaved a sigh. “Oh well, it’s not like there’s anything there for us now anyway.”
Kent interrupted, “What do you mean, Akio? What about your family? Are they with you?”
Akio visibly saddened. “My brother is. But Dad and Mom are dead. So are all my relatives. We were all on Yokohama together. There … there was a war started by a rogue dairei–the same species as Eden. He made the Normans invade a bunch of systems, including New Tokyo. My relatives all died on Yokohama in the invasion. Only a few thousand of us got away from the planet–kids and pregnant women. The dairei was trying to make this gateship. But we stopped the war and took the gateship.”
Jeff could see a Japanese boy sit up in an open cryostasis unit behind Akio. ‘That’s Akifumi!’ Jeff realized. He looked to be about the same age as Danae. At the same time, several other Japanese sat up. Then a silver robot walked up carrying what looked like an oversized suitcase. They all stood and looked at him expectantly.
“Oh,” Akio explained, noticing Jeff’s gaze. “This is my crew. You know my brother, Akifumi. That over there is Rikiya, but he goes by Rick because he’s Canadian. That’s Kenji and Ai next to him. That’s Kasumi behind them. Over there is Emily. She’s from a Frontier World that we ended up on for a while. To the left of her is Sebastian and that robot there is carrying an overmind with a churei that’s using it as a host. Her name is Nuraiyana. The churei is another intelligent species from the same universe as the dairei and the korei.”
Just then, a really pretty redhead sat up. With shocked recognition, Jeff exclaimed, “HARRIET!”
Harriet saw him and bolted from the cryostasis unit. Leaping on him and nearly knocking him over, Harriet sobbed, “JEFF! Oh Jeff, it was so awful! A dairei killed my parents.” Clinging to him, her words gushed out like a long-dammed river. “It started a war and killed lots of people and nearly killed us too but we finally got rid of it. Oh Jeff! It was so hard. Everywhere we went we had to run and hide and do all sorts of bad things.” Jeff felt her tears soaking the front of his shirt. He gently put his arms around her.
“It’s ok, Harriet,” he soothed. “You’re safe now. You’re among friends. No one will find us here.”
A light “A-hem” sounded from behind Jeff.
‘Oh Zaret save me,’ Jeff thought with a sinking feeling. ‘Amanda is standing right behind me.’
“Jeff,” requested Amanda in an overly light tone, “would
you like to introduce me to your friend?”
Still sniffling, Harriet pulled back from Jeff and gazed past him sharply. “Who’s this?” she asked.
‘I’m dead,’ Jeff told himself. “Um, Harriet, this is Amanda. Amanda, this is Harriet.”
“Harriet?” queried Amanda in an overly pleasant voice. “The Harriet that planet Harriet is named after?”
“Planet Harriet?” echoed Harriet in a voice that was also overly pleasant. “You named a planet after me, Jeff?”
“Um, yeah. I did. It’s a gas giant and there’s this storm, see. And it’s red. The front edge of it looks like a girl’s face with long, red hair streaming out behind it. So when I saw it, I thought of you.”
Harriet smiled up at Jeff in a way that Jeff thought was just a bit too happy, especially given the fact that Harriet had been crying like crazy a few moments before. It made his blood run cold.
“Jeff, you’re so sweet. I was worried that you’d forgotten about me.” She shot an icy glare at Amanda. Jeff began to wonder if he could get away with simply running for his life.
Amanda looked stonily at Jeff. “I guess your past has caught up with you. What does that mean for your present, I wonder?”
Still doing the icy stare, Harriet asked, “What does she mean, Jeff? Are you and Amanda … going out?”
“Well …” Jeff began.
“Yes,” asserted Amanda. “I’m his girlfriend.”
Harriet appeared hurt. “Jeff, you promised you’d never forget me. I told you that if you didn’t come back to me I’d track you down, no matter where in the universe you went.”
Nodding, Jeff agreed, “I remember that.”
“Well here I am!”
“HA!” screamed Tiffany from behind them, making everyone jump in surprise.
“Tiffany!” yelled Hugh. “What are you doing back here?”
“I decided I want ten androids. I want to do a LOT of shopping.” Tiffany beamed. She gloated. It made Jeff’s skin crawl.
Tiffany directed her vitriol at Harriet, “What do you mean, he forgot you? What about you chasing Leo (who was my boyfriend, by the way) all over the Alliance and throwing yourself at him every chance you got? Were you going to tell your boyfriend about that?” To Jeff she commanded, “Don’t let her lay a guilt trip on you, Jake. When she thought she’d never see you again, she did everything she could to steal my boyfriend. I think your new girlfriend is cuter anyway.”
