by J. Benjamin
“Whoa! Just how far are we?” Alex asked.
“From here it looks to be as big as my fist. We have to be a good three to five miles. Hard to say,” Edie said.
“So how big does that make this city?”
“Don’t ask. My mind is still accepting that we’re really in an alien cube, on an alien city, orbiting a giant star peanut, and we’re hanging with the menu from the last remaining steakhouse,” Edie quipped. “No offense.” She looked at the three aliens expecting a response. None responded. If they were still learning English, it was a far stretch to expect them to understand humor.
The cube traversed away from the lakes and through more settlements. On occasion, it curved at various intersections in the seemingly never-ending maze before finally slowing.
Edie followed the track ahead, seeing that it disappeared into the entry of a rather sizable complex. It was boxy, bulky, and large enough to be a stadium. What appeared boring and uneventful from the outside gave way to an interior that was anything but boring or uneventful.
Their cube came to a halt. The side panel opened and the entire party hopped out. The cube flew back in the direction from where they’d entered.
“Factory,” Pravixyt said.
Edie and Alex looked around. Cavernous and expansive, the complex held compartments that stretched several floors up, and were covered by equally-tall transparent walls. The various compartments resembled the types of things Edie expected to see in an alien museum.
In one compartment, a rock large enough to be a giant meteor hovered in mid-air. Edie and Alex walked up to the glass, or whatever seethrough material the A’biran made it out of, and watched with amazement. All along the surface of the rock were robotic skimmers which probed and carved into the rock at every angle. Seeing this conjured memories of Cosmineral and the Herschel station.
In another compartment, several A’biran stood in a group and appeared to be conversing amongst themselves.
“What do you think they’re talking about?” Alex asked.
“Who knows? Perhaps discussing the next project for that space?” Edie replied. Just seeing the A’biran interacting in their natural environment was something she appreciated. “So you said this is a factory?” This time, her attention focused on their alien hosts.
“Sequence init, correct,” Pravixyt said. “Zero-five-zero . . . factories such as this are common throughout the Krayasee.” Their vocabulary continued to improve.
“What do you build here?” Edie asked.
“Zine rotation at infinite, everything. Everything. Everything,” Pravixyt said, repeating the word with emphasis.
“Is that because your species is construction-oriented?” Alex asked.
“Correct,” Pravixyt said.
“So I take it this star-system is not where you originated?” he continued.
“Correct,” Pravixyt said.
“What relationship do the three of you have in-common? Are you the leaders of the Krayasee?” Edie asked.
“No,” Pravixyt responded plainly.
“Red seventy trans-rational, the Krayasee is leaderless,” Ruutana added.
“Really?” Alex asked. “But how? Are you a hive species like the Aquar— I mean, the Yonapi?”
“No,” Sattui said this time. “We are . . . infinity proton calculi sequence abort . . . We are not a hive species. We co-exist as a colony of clusters.”
“All the clusters co-govern in the best interests of what is good for the colony,” Pravixyt said.
“But what if there is a conflict? Then what?” Edie inquired.
“Conflict is non-existent,” Pravixyt said. “Non-existent.” Edie was beginning to suspect that when the A’biran repeated a word or phrase, they were, in a sense, adding exclamations to drive the point home.
“If humans had no conflicts, we’d be as far along evolution-wise as they are,” Alex quipped, half-sarcastically and half-serious.
“No conflicts?” Edie said in disbelief. “None? You’re telling me none of your clusters ever have disagreements?”
“Seven nine two two, disagreement? No,” Pravixyt said plainly.
“But what if you’re researching something and the initial findings don’t add up?” Alex asked. “What if one cluster arrives at a different conclusion?”
“Some-some-some sometimes we see con-con-conflicting data,” Sattui elaborated. “But once we ex-ex-amine all the evidence, we always choose the correct path forward.”
“Again, the A’biran do not have disagreements nor conflicts,” Pravixyt said.
“Unbelievable,” Edie said to Alex.”What are we doing in this factory?” she asked, addressing the aliens again.
“Initializing contingency, countdown, zero-three-one, the Yonapi told us everything prior to your arrival,” Pravixyt stated. “They explained to us your biology, your hibernation cycles, your habits. While your species is vastly different from that of our own, we have what it takes to accommodate you during your time on the Krayasee.”
“Does that include food?” Alex asked.
“Yes,” Ruutan said. “We know how to reconstruct proteins, enzymes, and sucrose in ways which will be consumable to your species. We also have detailed genetic mappings of many of the edible plant species from your planet.”
“In the meantime, we have more to show you,” Pravixyt said. “Let us continue.”
The three aliens escorted the humans further into the heart of the exotic factory. They crossed more compartments, each more bewildering than the last.
One compartment was filled with liquid like an aquarium. Edie paused to look inside. It was green, just like the lakes they saw on the surface. As she peered in, she was greeted by a serenade of glowing lights that lit the aquarium the same way they did the lakes. It was then that Edie realized what she was looking at.
One light danced over to the glass. Edie looked into it carefully to see that it wasn’t just any light. It was the bioluminescence of a slimy, living organism. Even crazier was that Edie had seen this living thing before.
“Alex, check this out,” she beckoned. He stopped and examined the living creature on the other side of the glass.
“That’s them.” Alex was referring to the slimy things sitting command in the A’biran’s metal plates.
Noticing the distraction of the humans, the three A’biran guides turned and treaded to the glass.
“This is feed,” Pravixyt said.
“So are these bodies not really your bodies?” Edie asked.
“Is your body yours?” Pravixyt asked. “As the Yonapi have demonstrated, consciousness can be reborn in a new vessel. What you see here is how we were born. We eventually evolved into second bodies which suited our more complex needs.”
“What?” Edie reacted. “But, but how did you evolve from this to this?”
“The same way your species evolved from simpler creatures into what you are today,” Pravixyt said.
“An-an-and just because this is you now do-do-doesn’t mean your species wo-wo-won’t evolve into larger vessels in the fu-fu-future,” Sattui said, still struggling with the language. Both Edie and Alex wondered why Sattui continued to stutter.
They continued past the compartments. In one was a team of A’biran having a discussion. The walls inside the glass cube were bright blue and with free-flowing text and imagery. Edie recognized the text as hieroglyphics similar to what she’d seen throughout the colony thus far. The images appeared to be of the colony itself.
In another, a sole A’biran worked on what looked to be an indescribable experiment. It involved the examination of pink slime through metal prods which Edie was certain were for laboratory research but couldn’t be certain. Some compartments looked conspicuously empty.
The aliens stopped. On the other side of the glass, a massive space rock had been hollowed-out, half-carved into a rectangle-shape, and floated before four giant clear vats. Each of the vats contained what appeared to be differing materials of various color. Tu
bes ran from the vats into two robotic arms which fed these materials into the project being constructed before their very eyes.
“What is this?” Edie asked, in amazement.
“We will explain more to you soon,” Pravixyt said. “For now, we have something more important to show you. Please proceed.”
Chapter 22
New Tokyo - Gammanaut Staging Area - January 15, 2083
In a corridor not far from the Research Bay, Val zippered herself into a jumpsuit. Val Alessi had barely slept the night before. Yes, she passed the tests. Yes, it was just a local host and not an official spacetime sequence like what Kiara and Matt experienced. Nevertheless, she was opening her mind to the same alien leviathan that had carried them across the universe. It was the same alien mind that now displayed a clear sign of hostility. It also was not lost on Val that if things went south, the consequences for humanity could be disastrous.
Making matters worse, everyone on Earth now knew about the Fuchsia Incident, as it was now being referred to. This greatly raised the stakes. The UN had threatened military action against the Moon if they did not surrender Minerva. The clock was ticking.
A knock on the door of the staging room distracted her. “Come in,” she said. “Thomas,” Val acknowledged. He stood six feet tall in a spacesuit of his own.
“Thought I’d check up on you before go time,” Thomas said. “How are you feeling?”
“Great!” Val said.
“Really?” Thomas Adler had a special talent for detecting bullshit.
“Okay, I’ll level with you. I’m a little nervous about all of this. I’m nervous that you’re risking your life going inside. I’m nervous about what I’m going to say and do once I’m hooked up to the local host. I’m especially nervous about the implications for all of humanity if we screw up.”
“Val, take some advice from an old soul whose been in this game a long time. Don’t think about it,” Thomas said. “I know you. What you did on the Sagan was indispensable. If the GSF were still intact with all its resources, we’d still ask you to do this. That is unless . . .”
“Unless what?”
“Unless you aren’t feeling up it,” Thomas said calmly.
“Come again?”
“If you don’t want to do this, let me know and we can abort right now. Nothing matters more to me than the safety and well-being of my colleagues.”
“Who else will do it?” Val asked.
“Minister Endo has backups. It would take three days, but we can get another gammanaut to take your place.”
“I see,” Val replied. She took several seconds to ponder over Thomas’ words. Val expected there might be backups. But she didn’t expect Thomas to give her the option of aborting.
“I appreciate it, but I didn’t come 250,000 miles to quit,” Val said. “First Contact has been my life’s dream, and while this isn’t exactly first contact, I am not going to throw away this opportunity. Especially with the stakes this high.”
“I know you won’t let us down, and by us, I mean all seven billion.”
“You’re the one risking life and limb here,” Val said. “I appreciate your confidence in me, but if I’m being honest, I am a bit more concerned for your safety.”
“Look Val, I might be getting up there in the years, but I’m no weakling. Lest you forget, I survived nearly getting blown up in a limousine. This should be a cakewalk.”
“You say that now, but you have no idea what you’re getting yourself into,” Val replied. “This isn’t the same as the research missions. That vessel is alive, awake. If something were to happen, I don’t even want to begin to think how the trigger-happy governments of Earth would react.”
“All the more reason,” Thomas said. “We only know so much about the physical structures of the Aquarian kaiju. If it’s a one-way trip, then send me in there, dammit. I’m the one responsible for sending Kiara and Matt there in the first place. I’m the oldest. I’ve lived a long life. You understand, right?”
“I do. I just hope we all know what we’re doing.”
“Me too, Val. Me too.”
Someone else knocked on the slightly-ajar door. Their heads quickly swiveled past the lockers of the make-shift staging area to see who it was. Val waved Ty in.
“Hey there,” Val greeted.
“I can come back,” Ty said, noticing both Val and Thomas were already suited up for the mission.
“We were just finishing up,” Thomas said. “I think the sterilization team needs to scrub my spacesuit one more time before we begin.”
“Thanks Thomas,” Val said. He saluted and left the room.
“How you feeling?” Ty asked.
“Honestly, I just want to get on with it now. When I’m in there, I’ll be able to talk to you the entire time?”
“Not sure about the entire time, but for the most part,” Ty explained. “The neuroserum dosage is smaller and the setup of the local network allows us to do things gammanauts wouldn’t be able to do in a full sequence.”
Val grabbed her wife’s hands, knowing she might not get another chance. Considering the state of Minerva, and far from knowing what was to come, the tensions of the mission weighed heavy on her. Whereas Val had developed a wrinkle or two, Ty hadn’t aged a day since they met on the Sagan a few short years prior. Her heavily curled hair hadn’t grayed in the slightest either.
“I don’t know what I would do without you,” she said. “I’m nervous as Hell and it’s only because I know you’ll be there that I agreed.”
Ty threw her arms around Val and they embraced.
“I’ll always have your back, Dr. Alessi.”
For several moments, they said very little. Though they had been together for more than three years, this was their first time working together in the field. From the time they were on the Sagan, to their life on Earth, they’d never actually crossed paths in the workplace.
“It’s going to be weird collaborating with Adler but not being able to see him,” Val said.
“The technology is incredible but it’s far from perfect. You won’t see Thomas physically, but you should hear him through our communications. I am curious to see how host Minerva reacts when it is confronted with contact on two different planes.”
“Something tells me the Aquarians are not only prepared for that eventuality, but actively anticipate it,” Val said.
Chapter 23
Research Bay
Thomas gave one last look in the mirror. The last time the former Secretary-General felt such anticipation, he’d led a strike force to recapture the Jellyfish and end Isla Perez’s one-day coup of the GSF. It came on the heels of the deadly attack on Shanghai, which ended the life of Secretary-General Katelyn Lew and almost claimed his own.
That day, only thirteen months prior, felt like a generation past. Thomas now found himself overthrown and his entire legacy in the balance. He couldn’t bring back the GSF.
It was because of Thomas that everything in the universe was the way it was. Thomas arranged for the gammanauts to cross the spacetime bridge. It was he who formed the ill-fated alliance with Dev Ivanov, all in order to save the lives of Kiara Lacroix and Matt Ashford. It was those good intentions that invited the Aquarians into the Solar System and brought them to Earth’s doorstep. The arrival of Minerva set off a chain reaction, which led to GSF’s downfall and an ever-vigilant Earth.
Still, when Thomas looked at himself in the mirror, he saw the tower of a man in a spacesuit, ready to go into battle once again, against an enemy whose true power and strength were beyond comprehension.
With nothing to lose, Thomas proceeded out of the room. The gray, concrete hallway outside lay near-empty, except for the halogen lamps and two soldiers guarding his doorway. They saluted the spaceman as he marched toward the Decontamination Chamber.
The hatch opened, and Thomas stepped in. Shower heads lined the walls and ceiling over a grated floor. The door behind him closed, and the chamber turned a dark red. A siren wen
t off, signaling that decontamination was imminent. One by one, each of the shower heads fired off a hot anti-microbial mist.
Thomas couldn’t feel the water but he felt and heard the vibrations as the mist sterilized his suit. The lights changed to green, letting him know it was safe to move forward to the de-pressurization compartment. One garage-sized metal door stood between Thomas and the main chamber of the Research Bay.
It took thirty seconds for the compartment to depressurize but it felt so much longer. A bright light poured into his view as the doors slowly shifted open.
“Here we go,” Thomas said. He emerged in the Research Bay and glanced up to see just how high the ceiling went. It was nearly as big as the spacecraft assembly building at Guion Bluford Spaceport in Alaska. Except instead of robots at work building Sidewinders, this facility contained a far different specimen.
The alien behemoth known as Minerva towered far into the upper levels of the Research Bay. Its mantle of glowing fuchsia and hot pink would mesmerize even the most passive observers.
“Alpha one, do you copy?” said a familiar voice over radio. Thomas turned his gaze to the research station, which had now been transformed into a full-blown command center. Several specialists and scientists worked the makeshift cap-com. A few people, presumably documentarians, followed Thomas closely with cameras. At the helm of mission control stood Minister Endo and the person speaking into his ear.
“I read you loud and clear, command,” Thomas said to Ty.
“Very good Alpha,” she replied.
“How is everything looking over there?”
“Your vital signs are good to go. You are approved to proceed.”
“Copy,” Thomas said.
At the foot of Minerva, the new entryway awaited the former Secretary-General. Thomas had no idea what to expect on the other side. Yes, there were the drone expeditions from before from when the host lay dormant. Now the host was wide awake. He had no idea how the workers inside would react or how the host itself would welcome him, if it truly was a welcome.