by Luigi Robles
Here goes nothing, he thought as he pulled out the chair to sit in front of his desk and grabbed a lead pencil and a lined piece of paper. Let’s see how many of them I can remember before I have to look them up. Then he wrote:
Ochilenes: Ape-like but carry themselves with sophistication. Communication established and clear.
Anaianais: Super tall, long hands. Always straight. Communication established and clear.
Tetrons: Floating balls with tentacles. Communication established and clear.
Eereos: Furry, white-coated, dinosaur-like. Communication established and clear.
Anphathos: Fluid-like and walk funny, but videos show them able to swim fast. Establishing communication. New device needs to be made.
Eeremanlas: They carry a lot of gadgets. Communication established and clear.
Yankas: Scary, monster-like. Are not cooperating with communication efforts.
Phessps: Shapeshifters, but with a clear mark on their neck. Communication established and clear.
Grenyuntulas:
“There is an unscheduled arrival at dock one,” Ktwo, the ISCO AI, interrupted Mikey as he attempted to make the list. “It is a protocol; all ambassadors welcome the new arrivals.”
Ktwo was one of Kya’s latest creations. Ktwo was a simple yet powerful AI that helped with the everyday operations of ISCO. Though her voice was similar to Kya’s, there was a clear difference, and Ktwo did not have a human body as Kya did. Or better said, human-like. But it was hard to tell. When Mikey first met Kya, he thought he was talking to an actual human being. He had been thoroughly surprised that she was an android.
Throughout the station, Ktwo communicated with people in two ways. One was by broadcasting her voice throughout segments of the station, and the other was the small communication devices appended to the attire of everyone on board the station. The small coms devices were simple and located behind their badges, inconspicuous most of the time. Unless there was something that more than one person needed to know at the same time, the default was using the small coms.
“Thank you, Ktwo,” Mikey said as he got up from his desk. “I’ll be right there. Why don’t you let the others know not to party without me?”
“Are you sure you want to say that?”
“I think you are right.” Mikey took a last look in the mirror to make sure everything was in place before heading to the dock. Last time he met with the other ambassadors, they were quick to point out he had forgotten his badge. They were always looking for any excuse to talk down to him. “It’s best if you don’t say that. They don’t need another reason to hate me. I think being myself would definitely be one of them.”
Mikey made his way to the dock as fast as he could, and along the way, he wondered which alien species would show up unannounced and why. The ISCO had all its receiving frequencies permanently open for contact, so there was no reason for any alien species not to try to contact them first. And then there was also the how. Although primarily a communications outpost, the ISCO did come with its own defense fleet, courtesy of the Ochilenes before they left for their homeworld. How did whoever was in the docks get past the ESAF frigates and scouts?
His train of thought got derailed as he neared the docks. Most of the ambassadors were already there, and they were shouting and pushing against the ESAF guards, attempting to get near the docks. He had a clear view of the situation, as the majority of the walls surrounding the docks and receiving area were made out of reinforced glass.
“If you don’t stand back, we will use force,” one of the guards shouted. “We will restrain you.”
What the hell is going on? Mikey thought. We’ve met a lot of different species, and people have never acted like this.
“How dare you protect that?” one of the ambassadors asked.
“We ought to tear it to pieces,” another ambassador yelled, shaking a menacing fist.
That was when Mikey saw it; he saw and understood what exactly was going through the sixteen other ambassadors’ minds. Perhaps the ESAF guards were thinking the same thing, but they were in check. Two Acram were getting out of their spacecraft, and the sight of them made his blood boil. He felt anger towards them. His jaw stiffened, and his fist clenched; he was more than ready to take vengeance into his own hands. Because of the Acram, humanity had lost so much, and he had lost his childhood, his hometown and most of his friends.
Instead of running towards them and attempting to overpower the ESAF guard, Mikey decided to calm down. He took a deep breath and tried his best to remain coolheaded.
Humanity was no longer at war with the Acram; the entire galaxy was no longer at war with them. Calming down was the right thing to do. Mikey knew that whatever little satisfaction avenging his friends would bring, it would never be enough. The Acram owed humanity and the galaxy a lot more than what these two Acram would be able to pay with their lives.
“Stop,” Mikey said with a low voice. He was hesitant.
Look at these people, he thought. The ambassadors were still screaming and attempting to overpower the ESAF guards. The tension in the room got worse as the Acram slowly approached the mob. These people had every right to be furious. Most of them had lost something to the Acram or for sure knew someone that had. Mikey knew this, but he also knew that if the Acram did not survive their visit to the ISCO, the repercussions of that would be devastating. He needed to be firm, show conviction and perhaps a little craziness.
“I said stop,” Mikey yelled with everything he had in him.
Mikey’s yelling caused a few ambassadors to turn.
“If you aren’t going to help, stay out of this, Michael,” said one of the nearest ambassadors.
Alright then, Mikey thought, and grabbed a nearby chair. I need to be a little bit more drastic. He tightened his grip on the chair and swung it against one of the large glass walls in the room.
The glass didn’t break.
He tried the same maneuver three more times, with a bit more force each consecutive time. But still, the glass didn’t break, and the mob raged on.
“Ktwo, a little help here.” Mikey leaned against the chair, winded.
“Certainly. Just clarify how you would like to proceed.”
Did I just hear that right? he thought. Ktwo is really going to help me break this glass? I was totally joking out of frustration. A stupid thing to do. But if she’s going to help me, then I’ll take the help.
“So, wait… You’ll help me? Really? How can that be?” Mikey said as he stood up straight.
“Yes, I am standing by, ready to help you accomplish the task at hand. My records indicate that you outrank nearly everyone in this station, except for me and Commander Felix of the ISCO ESAF defense fleet. He is currently heading this way. I am also able to help you as your intended actions will not harm structural integrity.”
As disconcerting as Ktwo’s revelation about Mikey’s rank was, he knew that there were more pressing matters at hand. He had to bring the situation under control, and he had to do it fast.
“How long until Commander Felix gets here?” Mikey asked as he reaffirmed his grip on the back of the chair.
“Estimated time of arrival is twenty minutes.”
“Screw it, might as well give them a real reason to hate me.” Mikey lifted the chair off the ground and positioned it behind him. “On the count of three, I’ll throw the chair and you help me break the window. One, two, three.” Mikey flung the chair with all his strength.
The window broke seconds before the chair hit it, letting the chair fly right through the hole and well into the adjacent room. No one seemed to notice the timing; they were still covering their ears, trying to figure out where the loud sound had come from. Slowly, all the ambassadors began to stare at Mikey; some glared and others had blank expressions.
“Thank you, Ktwo,” Mikey whispered. “It looks like it worked. A lot…”
“What is the meaning of this, Michael?” Timothy asked. He was one of the ambassadors that Mike
y liked the least.
“That about sums it up. What the crap is the meaning of this? What is this? All of you are supposed to be professionals. Level-headed individuals, professors, doctors. You get the point. Look at how you are acting. This is a communications outpost, and you’re representing Earth.”
“No, Michael, it’s you who needs to take a closer look.” Timothy pointed towards the Acram. “After what their kind have done to us, they don’t deserve to be on this station. They don’t deserve to live.” The ambassadors behind Timothy cheered.
“That’s not for you to decide.” Mikey took a step towards the angry mob. “This station was made to communicate and try to make peace with all alien civilizations that choose to do so, including the Acram. You will not bring upon us another war because you want to put yourself before humankind. But most importantly, Captain Fain Jegga wants to keep communications open with the Acram, and I intend to make that happen.”
“You fool,” Timothy shouted. “Captain Fain Jegga is not here.” This time the mob didn’t cheer.
“So, step aside, or I will have you thrown back to Earth on the next jump,” Mikey said as he began walking towards the Acram.
“You will what?” Timothy asked through gritted teeth. “Under what authority? I am the ranking ambassador on this station. You don’t have anywhere near the authority to do that.”
Mikey looked up for a second as he walked, attempting to cue Ktwo to answer.
“Michael James Harmon,” Ktwo broadcasted to the entirety of the dock, “is third in the chain of command, outranked only by Commander Felix Dash and myself. He has the authority to send anyone back to Earth if they jeopardize the Intergalactic Space Communications Outpost.”
“There you have it. So, step aside now,” Mikey said as he reached the angry mob. Slowly they began to move out of the way, and he walked towards the two Acram in the dock. His heart pounded; his legs felt weak, as if he could fall at any second. But he knew what he had to do. He had to act tough. “I fully intend to keep the peace. And if anyone here disagrees, let me know now.”
No one said a word.
“Welcome to the ISCO,” Mikey said as he extended his right hand to one of the Acram.
The Acram towered over Mikey, though they looked different from the Acram he had seen in photographs before. These Acram were not wearing any armor; instead, something resembling cloth covered their bodies.
The Acram nearest to Mikey seemed to hesitate, but after the other spoke in their language, the Acram shook Mikey’s hand.
Mikey and Ilda, the one other ambassador that had volunteered to help, sat down with the Acram in one of the station’s meeting rooms. The rest of the ambassadors refused to take any part in the meeting with the Acram and left angrily. There was a large table at the center of the room that held a universal translating console with a total of six necklace translating devices.
Mikey and Ilda grabbed a necklace each and gestured to the Acram to do the same. They took a few seconds to look over the devices and muttered something in their language but ultimately threw them on. Compared to humans, the translating devices looked fragile and small on the Acram. Mikey then activated the devices by pressing a button on the console and highlighting the devices they would be using.
“To initiate room settings,” a disembodied voice said from the devices, “please speak the language you intend to use to initiate language recognition.”
“I’ll be using English,” Mikey said.
“The same,” Ilda said. Mikey couldn’t tell what her exact reason was for being there, since she didn’t look all that supportive of the process.
The Acram stared blankly at Mikey and Ilda. This was Mikey’s first time initiating the meeting process, and he was unsure what to do next. But then it occurred to him that he should try to make the Acram speak their language. So, he opened and closed his mouth as if talking to the translating device. The Acram stared at each other and then back at them.
“This is a lot harder than it looks,” Mikey said.
Ilda sighed and rolled her eyes. “When we already know the alien species and have a language code, you can simply state it.”
“Ah, that makes much more sense.” Mikey paused for a second, trying to put together his next sentence. “Translate English to Acram and Acram to English.” He then turned to Ilda. “Is that how it’s done?”
“More or less,” Ilda said with an unenthusiastic shrug. “I’m sure the machine will accept it.”
“The new settings are accepted,” the disembodied voice said. “You may now engage in language exchange.”
“Can you understand me?” Mikey said, and the devices around the Acram’s necks began to speak in their language almost simultaneously.
“I understand this language,” one of the Acram said.
“Good.” Mikey nodded and decided that it was better to get straight to the point. “So, of all places, what brings you here?”
“I am Essons and this is Kashna,” Essons said as he gestured to Kashna sitting next to him. “We are simply messengers. We come bearing no harm, no ill will, as the people that greeted us may suggest. We come with a message from our people.”
“Is that so?” Felix said as he barged into the room with a squad of armed ESAF soldiers pointing their guns at the Acram. “Please don’t get up.” Felix went to the center translating console. “I’ll just be taking one of these.” He grabbed a translating necklace. “This is already synched, right?”
“Please take a seat, Commander,” Mikey said as he nodded.
Felix narrowed his eyes and rested his gaze on Mikey. For a moment, Mikey thought he had overstepped his newfound rank.
“Certainly,” Felix said as he smiled slightly. “I could use a nice, comfortable chair. Who doesn’t need a comfortable chair?” Felix turned sharply towards the Acram. “Forgive my rude interruption. I am Commander Eduard Felix Dash, but you may call me Commander Felix. I was able to hear your names, so there will be no need for further introductions.”
“Commander Felix,” Essons said. “I take it that you are the one in charge of this station, am I correct?”
“Oh, whatever makes you think that?” Felix said, staring back at Mikey. “In this station, we are all in charge, isn’t that right, Michael?” Felix turned back to face the Acram. “But if you choose, you may refer to me as the one in charge.”
“Very well then,” Essons said. “Forgive our lack of understanding. This device makes it difficult to understand the true meaning behind your words.”
“So, what brings you here?” Felix asked. “What is this message that you are talking about? I believe I heard it’s coming from your people?”
“Before we proceed,” Essons said, “please have your men lower their weapons. I can assure you that we come with no ill will.”
“Lower your weapons,” Felix said as he placed his hands on the table, interlacing his fingers. The soldiers quickly followed the new order. “Now we can proceed. But before you do, I hope that you are able to give us a good enough reason to hear you out. Our people were massacred by your kind. Why shouldn’t one of these soldiers behind me just disobey my orders and take justice into his own hands? After all, it’s the closest any one of them will ever get to getting revenge.”
There was palpable tension in the room; the ESAF soldiers behind Felix looked less than happy to be following orders. Some were sweating, others gripping guns with more than necessary force, but there was one that looked as if he could raise his gun at any second.
Either Felix is a complete nut job, Mikey thought, or he’s brilliant. He’s addressing any potential problems we might have before we have them. Whoa.
“That is fair,” Essons said. “The Acram that came to your homeworld were under orders that were beyond anyone’s control. Now it’s a new era for Acrania. The endless conquest has stopped thanks to Captain Fain Jegga, I believe you call him. That is why we’re here. However, if after you hear our message you still feel that our liv
es can begin to repay what you’ve lost, then do what you must.”
This is really serious stuff, Mikey thought.
“Acrania? What does that mean?” Ilda asked.
“Acrania is our homeworld,” Kashna said. “Our way of life. We know we’ve done a great deal of harm to the galaxy, but we also do not hide behind our new intentions. We just ask to be heard; we do not ask to be forgiven.”
“So Acrania no longer has any interest in conquering the galaxy?” Felix asked. “Am I getting that right?”
“Correct,” Kashna said. “We’ve abandoned all our previous beliefs. Now our prime directive is to repair the damage we’ve done since our inception and protect what’s left of the galaxy.”
“That’s quite a turn of events, but fair enough,” Felix said. “I think that is something my soldiers will be able to understand.”
“Protect the galaxy from what?” Mikey asked.
“We are far from the most horrible thing out there. Far from it,” Kashna said. “In fact, that’s the basis of our message.”
“Alright, so let’s have it,” Felix said. “Let’s not waste any more valuable time beating around the bush. I hope that by now, ma boys and gals have a satisfactory reason for not disobeying orders and shooting one of you.”
Satisfactory reason? Are you kidding me? Mikey thought. They’ve just said that the Acram are far from the most horrible thing out there. How is that even possible? And if this is not something we need to hear, I don’t know what is.
“Well then,” Kashna said. “There are beings whose sole purpose is to end all biological life. With these beings, there are no terms of engagement and there are no survivors. As we speak, they are making themselves known throughout the galaxy. Through malfunctions in our machines, they are letting us know that they are coming. We believe there’s an impending galactic annihilation. It happened many lifetimes ago, and now it’s happening again.”
What the Acram were saying brought to Mikey’s mind a few instances where machines glitched or didn’t seem to work as flawlessly as they used to.