Windjammer: The Tradership Saga Book 1

by M J Gauntlet

  “Get back Grayson! Don’t let either of the Krillians see you standing alone out there!”

  “Wha…why not? I wasn’t going to try and talk to them or anything like that. I just wanted to get a better view,” Zax stammered, a bit confused.

  “Gods! Don’t you ground huggers know anything? Listen, have you ever seen Krillians before?” Abrams said exasperated.

  “Sure…lots of times. They visit Bright occasionally, but they tend to stay in the major cities.”

  “Haven’t you noticed that you never see an odd number of them gathered around. Or that you never see a solitary Krillian at any time?”

  Zax thought back for a moment, then nodded his head. “Now that you mention it, no…I haven’t. I usually see them in pairs or sometimes in groups of four. Does that mean anything?”

  “Listen Zax, you will never see an odd number of them, because the mere thought of being in an odd numbered group is so foreign to Krillians, that even when they imagine themselves in such a gathering, they can sometimes become unhinged. Krillians are even born or hatched, I’m not sure which, in even numbered egg clutches. They become very upset whenever they witness any intelligent being alone or walking by themselves.”

  “But…if that is true, why don’t they show it when they are amongst other beings. The ones I’ve seen didn’t seem to notice at all. In fact, I’ve seen them stopping and talking to solitary people from time to time.”

  “That’s because you have only seen mature adults, who have traveled extensively and thus have adjusted their outlook about the peculiarities of alien species. I’ve heard it said, Krillians believe that we humans are so violent, because we live a singular existence. Those workers out there on the docks are immature adolescents, who have not yet mated. All they know of other alien species are the ones they encounter while they onload and offload cargo. If they were to see a human wandering around the docks alone, or even just standing off to the side by themselves, it could cause god knows what damage to their psyches. At the very least, it would interrupt the loading and unloading of the cargo, and at worse it could cause a full-scale incident.”

  “Oh…I had no idea.” Zax said, mollified.

  “Yeah, I know you didn’t, but ignorance is no excuse out here in space. It is the one thing that can get you killed quicker than a needler. Just remember, while we are here if you wish to go outside the ship make sure

  that you do so with a partner, ok?” Zax swallowed and nodded his assent. Abrams gave him a friendly clasp him on his shoulder.

  “Don’t sweat it kid, we all have to learn sometime. For now, I suggest you get back to your stateroom and for heaven’s sake, stay out of Pilar’s way. During this time, the supercargo can be worse than the captain. It is her bailiwick and she will broach no interferences, intended or not.”

  With that, the chief engineer turned and headed back towards the engine room. Zax took one last peak out of the opened hatchway, then without the aid of the Windjammer’s A.I. he made his way back to his cabin. I’m getting the hang of moving around the ship on my own. He thought to himself, with an air of smug satisfaction. When he reached his room, he lay back on his bunk deep in thought. Something the chief engineer had said, or rather called him, irked him… ‘ground hugger’. While he was sure that Abrams hadn’t intended to insult him, he still felt as though it was a derogatory, if accurate, description of what he was. Zax realized, if he was to ever rise above being a ‘dirtsider’, then he better start learning more about how things worked shipboard.

  Tentatively, Zax spoke, “Windjammer A.I.” “Yes, Zaxxion, how may I be of assistance?”

  “Would you happen to have stored in your memory buffers any data or images concerning the Krillian species?”

  “Why yes I do. As a matter of fact, I have a rather large store of data on all the alien species contacted by, or who have contacted, the Unity Imperium.”

  “Could you forward the alien data to the terminal in my stateroom?” Zax asked hopefully.

  “The file is quite extensive and would occupy not an insignificant amount of my computing time. It would be better if you would access it section by section rather than all at once.”

  “Humm…I guess you are right. How about you give me access to the Krillian information first and when I’m finished with that, I can ask for more.”

  “Very well, that information is now on your terminal in standard Unified language format. If you wish another translation, just inform me which one you would prefer. I can currently translate the data into over ten thousand languages, including over a thousand ‘dead’ texts and tongues.”

  “Er…no, standard Unified language will be fine. Thank you Windy.” This time A.I. didn’t not correct him for using the epithet.

  After an hour of reading about how the Krillians first contacted the first Confederation, Zax marveled at the aliens’ ability to adjust to whatever cultures they encountered. It seems that they were natural born linguists and negotiators. When one of their rookery ships first encountered humankind, they were at first wary of the newly discovered warlike threatening species, but once humans discovered the Krillian’s innate peaceable nature, over time humanity had settled into a comfortable alliance with the Krillians. It didn’t hurt that the aliens’ discovery of an ancient X’haChe medical device, and the alien’s willingness to share their discovery, helped catapult both species medical knowledge and practices centuries ahead, allowing each culture to make tremendous leaps in the medical sciences.

  Anyone who has ever seen one of their rookery colony ships, could not help being awed by the sheer size and complexity of their construction. It was impressive on any scale one used to measure engineering aptitude. Zax leaned back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling, wondering what the interior of the gigantic rookery ship looked like, but after considering what the chief engineer told him, he doubted he would ever get a chance to find out…he was wrong.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Zaxxion was two hours into reading a pamphlet entitled ‘Krillian Mating Habits’, when a voice in his ear interrupted him.

  “Zaxxion Grayson, this is Captain Ahosi. Would you please come to the bridge? I have a proposition for you.”

  Surprised, Zax shut down the terminal and frowned. The way the captain phrased her request seemed to indicate he was not in trouble, but…anytime the captain asked a passenger to report directly to the bridge, it had to be important. Taking a moment to look in the reflector to make sure everything looked proper, he left the stateroom and headed directly to the bridge. By this time, Zax figured he could do it blindfolded. When he arrived, Second Mate Trina Idrija motioned him to go into the wardroom next to the bridge. As he entered the room, he saw Captain Ahosi sitting in the float chair at the head of the wardroom table.

  “Please sit down Zaxxion. I have a question to ask you, but before you answer it, I want to tell you that if you decide to reject my offer, it won’t be held against you. It seems that the Windjammer has gotten itself into a problem that is of no ones’ doing, but nonetheless it could result in some serious consequences for all of us.”

  Zax sat down, slightly alarmed at the tone in Captain Ahosi’s voice. He hoped it had nothing to do with his foray down to the cargo bay. Was I spotted by a dockworker after all? he fretted.

  “It appears that during our docking, an event occurred on the Krillian colony ship that has caused all work, including the offloading and onloading of all cargo to cease. I have been informed by the hanger master, that the entire colony has suspended practically all operations, except for the patrolling guard ships until further notice.”

  “What happened captain? Was it anything that…er… this ship has done?” Zax asked tentatively, afraid that he indeed had been the cause.

  “No. It is purely an internal matter among the Krillians, but none the less it affects us all. There is…I guess you could say…a ceremony that must be performed aboard the rookery ship before things can get back to normal, but unfortunately th
ere are not enough high ranking Krillians presently aboard the Krillian ship to carry out this ritual. It just turned out to be an unlucky break that one of the necessary officials is currently sunward in system back on Bright. Without him they cannot proceed. I was told that it will take at least a week to ten days for the official to be able to reach the colony, which would put us far behind schedule to meet our cargo delivery obligations on Plato. I have a time sensitive contract that must be fulfilled, and you have a rendezvous with the Rapture to consider.”

  Alarmed at the thought of missing his connection with Captain Ito and the tradership Rapture, Zax unconsciously started to rise out of his seat, but Ahosi motioned him to sit back down.

  “Yes, this is bad news for the both of us but fortunately there seems to be a solution,” she said calmly. “It appears that my rank as captain of a tradership holds a sufficient amount of prestige that the Krillians are willing to let me stand in for the missing dignitary, but there is a catch: To be allowed to be present at the ceremony, I must be accompanied by an acceptable number of individuals in my entourage. The minimum number is eight.”

  “Ah, well then there is no problem. There are eight in the crew, so you have enough to fulfill the requirement, right?” Zax said in relief.

  “Er, no…not quite. You see Krillians are quite strict as to the makeup of the party. There are to be four males and four female representatives. For this ceremony they will not accept same sex pairings. No more, no less. Unfortunately, the crew of the Windjammer is made up of three males and five females. So, this is where you come in. I would like you to stand in as one of the crew. As I said before, I will not hold it against you of you refuse, but without your help it appears that we will be stuck here until the high ranking Krillian arrives back from Bright and we all will suffer. If you say yes, you will be made an official member of the Windjammers crew on a very temporary basis.”

  “What will I have to do as part of the delegation?” Zax inquired, a little stunned at the turn of the conversation.

  “Not a thing! Absolutely nothing. You are not to say or do anything! Just stay with the group and try to look as inconspicuous as possible. As the head of the delegation, it is expected that I do all the talking for the group. After the ceremony is over, we are to proceed directly back to the Windjammer, upload the cargo and then get as far away as possible, as quickly as we can.

  “Now, if you agree to this, I am willing to award you a one-thirty second share of the eunits of this venture, which will be deducted from your fare. What do you say?”

  Zax hesitated for only a split second. He knew that he really didn’t have a choice if he had any hope of catching up with the Rapture at Plato. “Of course, I will do it. I really don’t have a choice now, do I? Besides, I would really like to get a chance to see inside of a rookery ship.”

  “Good, good. I hoped that would be your answer.” Standing up, the captain walked over to the terminal besides her seat and punched in a series of numbers. “Now if you would be so kind as to step over here and place your thumb on the screen’s surface and your left eye into the reader, we will make it official.”

  Zax walked over and did what he was told. There was a soft ‘beep’ then a thin piece of plasticine slid out of a slot below the terminal.

  “Those are your ship’s papers proclaiming you as a crew member of the Windjammer. Hold on to those and have them ready to be presented to the Krillian officials if they should ask. Don’t get too attached to them, because they will be rescinded once we leave the colony ship.”

  Zax gave a short nod, but inside he was elated. No matter that it was just for the expediency of the moment, he was part of a spacer crew!

  “I want you to go down to supplies and have Branda Idaho, the quartermaster, issue you a spacer dress uniform. Once you change into it, meet me and the rest of the delegation at the main air lock, where we will be escorted into the colony by a Krillian honor guard. Make sure you are on time and are present on the boarding ramp with the rest of us, so that they can see that we have the correct number of individuals before we exit the ship.

  “Yes ma’am. Oh…I forgot to ask…what type of ceremony will it be? Will we be asked to dine with the Krillians?” Zax wondered, as he remembered the cargo of earthworms they had just delivered to the colony.

  “I hardly think so. This is a funeral.”

  An hour later, Zax was at the Windjammer’s main airlock along with Brax, Pilar, Abrams, Santo Gomez, Irene Tamiko, Branda Idaho, and Captain Ahosi, all in dress uniforms. The dress uniforms for the crew of the Windjammer were formfitting cloth Dark Azure jumpsuits, with a Terran Sky Blue stripe, bordered by Navy Blue piping, from hip to ankle on the outer side of both legs. The upper front of the uniform is crossed diagonally by a thinner stripe of the same color accent, with the upper part of the chest area in a Dark Indigo and the lower part of the chest area in the same Dark Azure. Both shoulders held gold epaulets and both wrists held a double gold braid. In the right upper portion of the chest area was embroidered, (with actual threading) the Japanese character for wind, Kaze.

  The captain walked over to Zax and after straightening the wide bright Red belt tied around his waist, ending in a roman knot with two hanging fringed ends, which was the final dramatic touch to the dress uniform, she looked him over thoroughly and nodded her approval.

  “Not bad…not bad at all. You look good in spacer duds. Almost as though you belonged in them.” With that, she turned to the rest of the crew and arranged them in two columns: men on one side, women on the other. With a final nod, she opened the main hatchway and they walked down the ramp toward a waiting group of eight Krillians, who were also arranged in two columns. Although the captain had cautioned him to look straight ahead and try not to gawk like a tourist, Zax couldn’t help taking surreptitious glances at his surroundings. The first thing he did was to scrutinize the honor guard. If they were arranged in the same order as that of the crew, then the column to the left were males and those to the right were females. If that were so, then Zax was surprised to realize that it was the males which had the most colorful plumage.

  Each male had a distinctive crown of feathers, which began at the top of their foreheads, trailed down the center of their heads, continuing down their backs and ending just before touching the polished colony floor. And the colors! There were two that had amazing red feathers with bright green tips. One had iridescent blue plumage, while another sported bright yellow and ocher hues. Their beaks were festooned with inlaid gemstones and were trimmed in gold and silver around the edges. Around their necks each wore a simple golden chain with either a gemstone or a pearl as its adornment. Below their wide brimmed, tufted, eyebrows, both sexes had wide, golden, bird of prey eyes, with huge dark pupils that seemed to look right through you.

  While the plumage of the females did not match that of the males, they more than made up for it in their attire. They wore gowns of a thin, almost transparent, material that seemed to float on the air and would swirl with the slightest of breezes. These gossamer threads would change their color depending on the intensity of the light that struck them. One moment they were a pale translucent blue, only to change into a bold intricate orange and white design, then to instantly morph into a bright aquamarine hue.

  Pilar, who was paired with Zax, noticed his gaze and whispered: “I know of three or four high society women who would kill for just one bolt of that fabric.”

  “Quiet!” Captain Ahosi hissed. “It may not look like it but Krillians have superb hearing.

  As awe inspiring as the feathers and garments adorned by the aliens, it was nothing compared to what Zax saw as he passed through the main airlock and entered the main structure of the colony ship. It literally took his breath away. While the outer shell of the rookery seemed to be composed of dull, bone white, interlocking stanchions, the interior appeared to be constructed of magnificent marble pillars, streaked with gold and silver veins, that rose impossibly high towards an unseen ceiling. Each
column was at least twenty meters in circumference and rested on a square base, of what looked to be, the blackest obsidian or basalt Zax had ever seen. Looking down, he saw that the flooring appeared to be composed of several stones of varying sizes and textures, however, it was smooth and even. Polished by generations of pedestrians.

  The walls were inlaid with metals and gemstones of various sizes. Zax passed an emerald the size of his fist, that was part of a mosaic relief that seemed to chronicle some event in Krillian history. Up high on the wall there was an oval opening, that reminded him of something he had seen in an old vid image of something called a ‘stained glass window’. Except this “window” was over four stories tall. As the colony rotates on its axis, the light from the far distant two suns strike this intricate piece of artwork, causing its multicolored panes to magnify and scatter the light into a thousand prismatic shards of illumination.

  Finally, the procession reached a branching corridor and exited the main chamber. Zax found it difficult to wrench his sight away from the splendor around him, but he bowed his head and entered through the low doorframe into the lit passageway. This side passage led to a gradual downward slope that ended in a wide oval room. In the center of the room, lay a cradle with four white shiny ovoid shapes, about one and a half meters high and a meter in circumference…eggs. Zax recently read that when female Krillians originally laid the eggs, the eggs were initially the size of an extinct Old Earth bird called an ostrich. Over time the eggs enlarged to this current size to accommodate the growing body within.

  Around and above the perimeter of the vast chamber there were two groups of Krillians. Each group had eight members, standing in two ridged columns of four each. As the crew of the Windjammer filed into the room, the flanking honor guard peeled off and took up their position around the chamber. Captain Ahosi signaled her crew to do the same. They occupied the vacant space next to the honor guard in the same order as the rest of the Krillians within the amphitheater. This brought the total count of individuals in the room to thirty-two.