Spinward Fringe Broadcast 7: Framework

by Randolph Lalonde

  “I guess I mean that it’s a part of a highly civilised lifestyle,” Ayan said. “Can you add it to the document I started last night?”

  “The Shoreline Project?”

  “Yes, I’d like to add the specifications of your water closet to the bathrooms in the main settlement.”

  “The water requirements will rise dramatically,” Lewis said. “They would have to go on ration and use the vibro cleaning features on some days if water conditions surrounding the island aren’t ideal.”

  “I know,” Ayan said, pulling the feet of her heaviest vacsuit on. It was the underlay of the armour she wore in the Ossimi ring. She decided to leave the outer suit white, and change the horizontal strips of the overlay to black. “But I’m sure once the purification systems are up and running, everyone will be able to start their day the same way I just did.”

  “I’ve added it,” Lewis said. “I have to say, I was surprised when you started such an ambitious project late last evening, and I’m impressed. Any humanoid would be lucky to live in what you have designed so far.”

  “I still need to talk to Liam, a few nafali and Agameg about it, but thank you, Lewis.” Ayan looked at the hologram of the settlement she’d worked on. It was designed to fit under a large protective energy field, had hidden long range defences, room and reinforcements for a military base beneath, but what she was most proud of was perfectly visible above ground.

  The main structure was circular, with gentle divots and bulges placed for balconies with sealing transparent overhangs, enclosed exterior paths, and extendable landing platforms for shuttles. From the base and middle, other substructures curled out towards smaller buildings surrounding the main structure. The curling irregular tubes made the main structure look like a plant with external pods and smooth roots reaching back into the ground. Those roots would house a high-speed transportation system, apartments, small shops, viewing areas, and other smaller establishments. A few of them led to an oval building that was almost as large as the primary structure. It was hollow through the centre, and served as a spaceport to small and medium sized ships. All the facilities needed for travellers would be contained within, so people in the main habitat could go on with their lives in relative peace.

  “How much of the land would this take on the island we’re taking possession of today?” Ayan asked.

  “Less than three point five percent if you include the underground structure,” Lewis replied. “It is ambitious though, and would take seventeen point six years to build with ten times your current work force. Under current conditions, it would cost-“

  “It’s a creative exercise, Lewis.” Ayan sealed the heavy vacsuit at the neck and turned her attention to the armour overlay. “Would I like to see it built?” she asked no one in particular as she stomped into the thick boots. “Definitely. Housing a quarter of a million people in that kind of comfort would be a great legacy project, but it’s really a distraction. Maybe it’s something to hope for, but I may want to reduce the scale before presenting it to anyone. I admit it is a bit grand.”

  “People need something to look forward to,” Lewis said. “That’s something Alice said to me a long time ago.”

  “You miss her,” Ayan said.

  “So much. I run my recordings of her from beginning to end, then start over. It was a comfort at first. What do you do when you miss someone, Ayan?”

  Ayan was surprised at the depth of emotion she heard in Lewis’ voice, but answered just the same. “I build something.”

  Helper arms descended from the ceiling and deftly helped her lock the horizontal plates of her exterior armour over her heavy vacsuit. “Thank you, Lewis.”

  “You’re welcome, Ayan. I am glad you’re here.”

  “You’ve been very good to me,” Ayan replied. She shoved her sidearm, a heavy Violator Handgun that Lewis had given her from his arms locker, into its holster.

  “The transport carrying the payment for the Enforcer 1109 is on its way. Commander McPatrick has already given them instructions to land near my loading hatch.”

  “We planned to use your secure storage area, it should be large enough,” Ayan said.

  “There isn’t enough room,” Lewis replied. “You will have to load a quarter of the funds into another vessel.”

  “There wasn’t much on your manifest, it should fit.”

  “There is cargo off the manifest that I will not allow you to move,” Lewis said. “A body in stasis.”

  It was the first Ayan had heard of it. “Who is it?”

  “I do not know, but Alice would not allow me to jettison him. He has been aboard since before I was initialised, and I am under orders to protect the corpse.”

  “Corpse. Is he too damaged to revive?” Ayan guessed.

  “Yes,” Lewis said. “If I were to rebuild the body using onboard supplies and facilities, the body would be an empty vessel. There was too much cranial damage for his memories to be intact, and there is no scan on file.”

  Ayan thought for a moment and asked. “Can we move him to normal storage?”

  “No, my orders prevent it.”

  “All right, we’ll find a safe place for the rest of the money.” Ayan knew she might have to defend her decision more than once, but she wouldn’t go against Lewis until she knew more. As emotional as he was, the only way to counter any notion the artificial intelligence had was with pure logic.

  “Commander McPatrick is waiting outside,” Lewis said.

  Ayan initialised the suit and felt it come to life, actively embracing and supporting her. The energy shield cycled on and off, and the micro-generator reported optimum power levels. “I feel like I’m overdoing it.”

  “I disagree,” Lewis said as he opened the door. “You are visiting the Triton today.”

  “Carthan Port Control gave us the all clear?” Oz asked.

  “The response to Commander Rice’s request just came through a moment ago,” Lewis replied. “I’m excited.”

  “I guess she’d be the mother ship of your dreams,” Oz said, looking Ayan up and down.

  “If I were to choose a carrier, Triton would be at the top of my list,” Lewis replied. “You are correct.”

  “It looks good on you,” Oz told Ayan, tugging on one of the overlapping strips of armour on her shoulder. “I don’t think you’re overdoing it either, not this time. Not if we’re going to the Triton today.”

  “I thought the main events would consist of receiving payment and visiting the Samson,” Ayan said.

  “Talking to Jake today?”

  “Has everyone heard about our row?” Ayan asked peevishly.

  “Actually, I didn’t, but I saw it coming,” Oz said. “Are you all right?”

  “I’ll be fine,” Ayan said. “I was the one who did the most damage anyhow.”

  Oz regarded her with an expression of surprise for a moment before turning his attention to the hologram of the Shoreline Project in the middle of the room. “That’s interesting.”

  Ayan looked over her shoulder. “Yeah, just some busy work.”

  “Can I take a look later?”

  “I’ll have Lewis send it to your comm,” Ayan replied. “It’s nowhere near finished though, just a rough concept.” She looked up and said, “I’ll see you later, Lewis. You can link with my suit if you like, but we’ll probably be out of direct range when we get to the Triton.”

  “I’ll follow along and be quiet this time,” Lewis replied.

  Ayan and Oz started walking to the main gangway, passing a small staging area that had been repurposed to house four cots. The soldiers getting ready there saluted them as they passed, regardless of their state. “How is base security?” Ayan asked.

  “Complicated. We’ve started to draw beggars and applicants,” Oz replied. “At last count, there were nine hundred thirty five people in line with applications in hand. A couple were easy decisions because they were related to our people, but most of the rest are getting screened through. The most disturbing
thing this morning was finding a kid wandering around with a sign strapped to him.”

  “Did someone lose an orphan?” Ayan asked.

  “No, I wish it were that simple.” Oz stopped at the top of the ramp before going on. “Someone found a crack in our walls and must have pushed him through. The sign said, ‘please feed my son and keep him safe’.”

  Ayan shook her head in disbelief. “Is it really so bad out there?”

  “If you don’t have a visa, or the skills people are looking for, then yes. I hear the street-to-street fighting in Rush City is worse too. Entire buildings are being taken as territory, with gangsters becoming the new landlords.”

  “I heard the Carthan Government is abandoning their building there, something to do with protestors,” Ayan said. “How is the boy?”

  “He’s about two,” Oz said.

  “No, how is he?” Ayan repeated.

  “Oh, he’s good now. Seems pretty happy with the other orphans, doing a lot of sleeping. I hope he’s the last one we find smuggled in.”

  They arrived at the bottom of the ramp and Ayan couldn’t help but be amused at what she saw.

  A guard sealed in heavy boarding armour was trying to shake a dog with patchwork black and brown fur off his ankle. The ferocious creature was no taller than thirty centimetres. It snarled and tugged at the soldier as if he planned to drag him off to some dark corner where he could devour him.

  “What the hell is his problem?” asked the soldier in a familiar voice.

  The soldier’s counterpart, a woman with short cropped blonde hair, laughed as she looked on. Four squads of soldiers, all ready to guard the arriving shipment of Galactic Currency, couldn’t help but look on in amusement as well. “Don’t panic, Vic, he can’t get through your suit,” the young woman closest to him said.

  “I know, but I’m not going to be able to guard anyone with this evil fur ball on my heel all day.”

  “He probably just needs to see your face,” she replied.

  “That’s what he wants! I pull down my hood and he goes straight for the throat,” replied Victor.

  “Oops, head’s up,” said the younger woman as she noticed Ayan and Oz at the bottom of the ramp.

  Victor noticed them and tried to ignore the dog, standing at attention. The dog frantically searched for another way to grip his ankle and settled on the Achilles heel. He did no damage, but that wasn’t for lack of trying.

  “I’ve assigned Lieutenant Victor Davis and Junior Lieutenant Jenny Machad as your personal guards,” Oz said. “I chose Vic because you’ve worked with him before. They both fought in the tunnels on Pandem.”

  Ayan couldn’t help but snicker a little. Jenny regarded her with an expression that was almost star-struck; she reminded Ayan of herself when she was in the academy.

  Jenny watched as a young girl, her hair as dishevelled as a windblown bird’s nest, rushed to the dog and picked him up effortlessly.

  “Careful!” Victor said.

  The dog licked the child’s face eagerly as she held him against her chest. “He just wanted attention,” she scolded before putting the dog down and running off with the mutt close behind.

  “Good to see you again, Victor,” Ayan said through a smile.

  He lowered his armoured hood and nodded. “Good morning, such as it is,” he said, gesturing towards the skyline. It was still dark beyond the bustle of port traffic overhead. It would be for hours longer.

  “No need to overdress in the future, Ma’am,” Jenny said. “We armour up so you don’t have to.”

  “I dress for comfort, Junior Lieutenant,” Ayan said. “And this selection felt right this morning.”

  “Understood, Ma’am. Please call me Jenny.”

  “Flight reports a shuttle incoming,” Victor said. “The landing area is just this way.”

  “Lead on,” Ayan said. She turned to Oz and asked, “Aren’t they a little high-ranking for my personal guards? I can take care of myself, after all.”

  “They’re a good match. I’ve worked with Jenny on security here for weeks, and you put a pretty positive note on Victor’s file after the encounter on the station. Besides, we couldn’t have a couple privates assigned to the matron of our settlement.”

  “Matron,” Ayan said the word to try it on for size and shook her head. “Nope, don’t like it. Commander’s better.”

  “What’s wrong with matron? Sounds too old?” Oz asked.

  “Sounds too heavy,” Ayan replied.

  A shuttle with mismatched panels touched down swiftly in front of them. The door was open before they were securely on the ground, and Captain Ruby Sima walked down the three steps as they unfolded in front of the hatch. Her first mate, Lombardo, was right behind her.

  The pair wore colonist’s clothing – loose fitting shirts, pants, and boots that Ayan only saw in period dramas when she was growing up on Freeground. The more colourful manner of dress was commonplace in the galaxy, however, since most people were raised on a world with an atmosphere, and space suits were for travel, worn under clothes by many civilians. Platinum and silver chains rattled as Ruby moved, her long purple and green hair stirred by the shuttle’s landing thrusters. It ascended as soon as the pair were clear. “Good morning!” Ruby shouted over the din.

  “Good morning,” Ayan said, surprised to see the former British Colonial. “What brings you here?”

  Victor looked to Ayan as Ruby walked in her direction, and Ayan nodded, indicating that it was all right for her to get close. Having guards would take some getting used to.

  “I’ve got business with you and your Captain Jake,” Ruby said, smiling as she leaned down a little to greet Ayan with a kiss on the cheek. “That’s from Patrizia,” she said in her ear. “She’s happy you’ll be able to make your lease payment on this oasis you’ve built.”

  “She’s not the only one,” Ayan said. “It looks like we’ll be staying here a little longer.”

  “I’m glad to hear it, I think she is too, judging from her gift,” At the mention of it, Lombardo presented Ayan with a long white box. “She’s inviting you to Naer for a meeting of her biggest and brightest partners. Our lady has a box at the next Super Pongo game. Big special event, they’re celebrating the re-opening of the stadium since the galaxy’s bots went mad.”

  “Do you know what’s inside?” Ayan said, allowing Jenny to take the box.

  “Judging from the box, Miss, that’s a designer dress,” Lombardo said in his gruff English accent.

  “I’ll open it later, after the Clever Dream has performed a deep scan,” Ayan said.

  Jenny called a lower ranking soldier over and instructed him to put the box in Ayan’s quarters.

  “Why do I get the feeling that Patrizia Salustri is priming me for a proposal?” Ayan asked Ruby.

  “She’s watched every news blip on you, luv,” Ruby said. “Either she expects great things from you, or aspires to add you to her long list of conquests. Or both. That’s a useful spot to be in, but you’d best be careful. I’ll say her interest is even deeper now that she’s heard you’re getting paid for your salvage today,” Ruby said in a quieter tone.

  “How did that get out?” Oz asked.

  “Good to see you, big boy,” Ruby said with a wink. “Greydock isn’t as secure as the Carthans like people to think. Connections to the black market run all through that place. Heard you had an encounter with Thurge and her man Burke, hope you’re all right.”

  “I’m fine, thank you,” Ayan said. “That’s not stopping my people from increasing security, though.”

  “Whether you like it or not, no doubt,” Ruby said. “Know how that is.”

  “What else brings you here?” Ayan asked.

  “Well, I’d like to meet with Captain Valent, if I can get the clear from you on that,” Ruby said. “Now that he’s put the word out that he’ll be out there with us privateers, I want to see what he’s thinking, maybe what he’s turned the Samson into. Last time I scanned her, she didn’t look
like much.”

  “More like hull plates hanging on a thruster,” Lombardo added.

  “They’ve been rebuilding for a while,” Oz said. “I’ll send a request ahead, I’m sure he’ll be happy to meet you.”

  “He’s already agreed to the meeting,” Ruby said. “I just wanted to pass it by his lady first. He may be the bluster, but I know who's really in charge.”

  Ayan was surprised that Ruby thought she had to pass the idea of a meeting by her before actually going ahead with it, but tried to take it in stride, as though it wasn’t the first time it happened. “Go ahead, I’m sure he’ll tell me all about it.”

  “I’m sure he will,” Ruby said. “I’ll drop by before I leave, luv.” She swaggered off with Lombardo close behind. His head was constantly turning, taking in the whole busy settlement, while Ruby looked straight ahead, confident and focused.

  “All right, so that wasn’t our money drop,” Ayan said.

  “It’s coming in,” Oz said, signalling the four squads of soldiers. They fell into ranks to either side of Ayan’s group. She watched as a heavily armoured Carthan shuttle descended. A squadron of Twin Gun fighters circled overhead, ready to pounce on anything that threatened the vessel.

  “Start getting the boarding party for the Triton together now. I want to go as soon as we’ve got this loaded and secure,” Ayan said, impatient to get on with her day.

  Chapter 25

  New Doors Open To An Old Dream

  “I like it,” Minh said as he sipped a tall slush drink. He and Captain Valent were looking at a holographic image of a dorsal launch system. A new upper-rear hatch opened on the back of the Samson, and two fighters were ejected through. Another pair of fighters slid down on rails, were punted out, and another, then the last. The doors closed after, quickly. The animation repeated. “The engineering checks out?”

  “Every simulation, and Frost just tested the rails using a pallet of raw ingots, eight times the weight of an extended Uriel. Slick is all set to take control of the squadrons here?”

  “He’s looking forward to it,” Minh said. “I’ll level with you, Jake… Taking command of all of it was too much. This squadron of seven feels perfect.”