by P. K. Lentz
A short but anxious trek brought them to the chamber in which Arixa had awakened to meet Vax and Fizzbik during her first visit to this base.
When Arixa entered, the Doctor looked over at her and barked in what seemed a friendly or at least casual manner. Arixa could not resist smiling on seeing the funny little talking dog-man again.
“How are you feeling?” Fizzbik asked.
The door shut. Vax hung back beside it.
“Fine,” Arixa answered. “This tingles a little.” She put her hand on the spot above her right hip where one disc was embedded. “What is it?”
She held her breath awaiting the reply as Fizzbik closed the distance between them.
“Patience, young savage. We’ll test it in a minute. First...” He grabbed both of her wrists with his furry hands and raised them up. “I’ve given you a standard human neural interface suite. Sensors in all fingers and both palms. Touches and movements act as triggers. Complex enough they can’t be done accidentally. The codes have been imprinted on your, ahem, brain, much like Nexus-G. You’ll find the ability comes naturally. At present, they only control two things.”
Releasing her wrists, Dr. Fizzbik tapped her ear. “A comm implant. I don’t suppose you know what that is?”
Arixa shook her head.
“I mentioned them last time,” Vax offered. “It is how we contact each other over long distances.”
The prospect of gaining such an ability excited Arixa, but it was not what she was waiting to hear.
That came next, as Fizzbik’s furry fingers tapped the disc on her arm.
“This is Irunen technology which I have adapted for human physiology. A liquiform, flexile, adherent armor casing. If you concentrate, Arixa, with that primitive brain of yours, you should already know the sequence required to activate it.”
Arixa brought her right hand in front of her and stared at it. Almost of their own will, its fingers began to make movements which were not random: the thumb meeting certain points on various fingers, one after the other.
Suddenly Arixa felt as if her right arm to the shoulder had been plunged into icy water. She gasped sharply and leaped backward as if from an attack.
Then she saw her hand.
The tattooed skin which she knew had been replaced by a smooth, silvery surface similar to the exterior of the spherical shuttlecraft. Even as the icy sensation drained away and normal feeling returned, Arixa’s breath came in small, loud gasps resembling sounds that Leimya had once made. But these were sounds of fear. Staring, gaping at this limb which was not her own, she felt a fear like she never had, not even when she had awoken to the face of a dog-man.
This day, the unknown was not in front of her. It was her.
She clamped her left hand, which was still of flesh, onto the forearm of the changed right. It felt cold and hard like metal. Following the new skin upward, she found that it covered her whole shoulder under the smock. Her right breast to the collarbone... the right side of her abdomen... her pelvis... right upper thigh... her genitals! All had changed to smooth metal.
“Wh... what...” she panted weakly, “what did you do to me?”
Cautiously, she flexed the strange, silver-skinned fingers in front of her face, turned the wrist, bent the elbow. She had full movement and full control, as ever. It felt strange, but it functioned.
As she tested the limb, suppressing panic, Dr. Fizzbik told her, “Calm down. I told you what it is: Irunen Liquiform Armor. When triggered, the liquid flows from internal reservoirs via the two valves I installed and bonds with the skin over a set area. My supply of the substance is limited, and it’s always better to do a partial test anyway, so for now the area is what you see, your upper right quadrant. I installed a retardant boundary at your neck, since at present it would be detrimental to your survival if the liquid were to cover your face. By which, ahem, I mean you couldn’t breathe. I think the Irunen worked out that problem. I haven’t. But I digress.”
While he spoke, Arixa went from staring in near-horror at her hand to staring in puzzlement at Fizzbik. She didn’t grasp his every word, not nearly, but she began to understand and accept.
Armor bonded to her skin.
She looked at it again in this way: a skin-tight glove sheathing her entire arm, plus more of her body besides.
“The ILA has offensive applications, too,” Fizzbik went on. “But I have not enabled those capabilities at this time.”
“Just as you knew the sequence to trigger it, you will know the deactivation—”
The idea was all Arixa needed. Her fingers flew again in a different sequence, and before her eyes, the reflective coating became as liquid and retreated down her hand, then her forearm, revealing inked skin underneath. The substance retreated into the disc on her bicep like water down a drain in a palace basin. But unlike water, not a single drop of this thick, silver liquid splashed or spilled. Under the smock, she felt the same retreat occur on her breast, groin and abdomen.
Arixa stood stunned a short while longer, catching her breath from the surprise.
“I... thank you,” she said. “This is an honor beyond imagining.”
“Honor, sure,” Fizzbik grumbled. “Have your friends punch and kick you later to test it. Maybe throw some things. I’m done for now. Go speak with Rivann’ivoth.”
Rather than bothering to ask who that was, Arixa made the motions again which caused the ILA to flow over her arm. She watched it cover her, feeling again the sensation of her right side plunging into icy water. This time she was expecting it, and so it only made her breath catch. She tapped the sequence to make it recede. And then to flow. Then to recede and flow again while she laughed like a child. The wonders of this new world simply did not end.
“Come,” Vax said.
Arixa followed him through the iris. In the elevator, instead of standing in cold silence, she ventured, “Are you upset with me?”
In the compact chamber, the Persian frowned and swallowed. “I’m upset with myself. I devised a means of maintaining contact with you. I chose to use it. Those choices are driving events in directions I didn’t foresee and which are sure to have consequences.”
She put a silver-sheathed hand on his arm. “Vax, the consequences will be wondrous. I will save my people because of your choices. How is that a cause for regret?”
He sighed and shook his head. “There is too much you don’t understand.”
“Then explain it to me!” Arixa resisted the urge to tell him how maddening he was.
“I...” he began, but halted maddeningly.
The elevator door irised open, and there was Zhi.
Arixa smiled on seeing the Han woman, who did not reciprocate.
“I’m pleased to see you again,” Arixa said. “Vax was about to explain some things to me. Perhaps, if I promised not to try to become your friend, you could help.”
Zhi’s eyes went to Arixa’s silver arm, but her expression didn’t change. “I’m sure Vaxsuvarda is more than capable.”
“Then perhaps we could train together later,” she said, putting a touch of vehemence into the words in hope that Zhi would understand that the request was more than what it seemed. “I even promise to let you win once or twice,” she added, thinking that where a hint failed, a taunt might succeed. She did not know Zhi well enough to guess which was better, mostly because Zhi did not appear to want to be known.
Zhi answered hesitantly, “That is acceptable.”
“I look forward to it,” Arixa said. “Apparently I’m to speak with someone, but I believe I’m free afterward. Am I, Vax?”
Vax nodded indifferently.
Passing them without further word, Zhi replaced them in the elevator and let the door close.
“Who is this... Ravenn...?” Arixa asked. “I thought only you and Fizzbik and Zhi were here. Have others arrived?”
“No,” Vax answered. “Rivann’ivoth is not here on Goros. He has recorded a message for you. You may record one to transmit back.”
>
“Who is he?”
“I will let him introduce himself,” Vax deferred. He resumed walking, and Arixa followed. “If you have other questions, you may pose them in your reply.”
“Not even a hint?” Arixa said, exasperated. “Is he your leader?”
Vax sighed heavily. “I told you that we represent a resistance movement against the Jir. Rivann’ivoth is its ranking representative within this system.”
“System?”
“Given your limited understanding of the cosmos, it may be a difficult concept.”
“Try,” Arixa demanded icily.
“A number of heavenly bodies”—though speaking in Nexus-G, he inserted the Scythian term—“are held in orbit by Earth’s sun. Included among them is an accumulation of debris called an asteroid belt. The resistance established a presence there twenty cycles ago, choosing it because Earth is a fringe-world far from the nearest Jir installation. But lately, that has changed. The Jirmaken installed a new Tether Station in this region of space, accelerating the timeframe of their next visit. But... Rivann’ivoth will likely tell you this.”
“You haven’t read his message?”
“Not read. You will see and hear it. And it’s for you alone, so no, I haven’t seen it, and will not.”
“Will Rivann’ivoth see me?”
“In your recorded reply, yes.”
Arixa tugged on the smock she presently wore. “In that case, may I be fully clothed?”
“Your state of dress is irrelevant.”
“Not to me.”
“To him, it is. Rivann’ivoth is...” Something like a smirk appeared on Vax’s mouth. “I will let you learn on your own.”
“Vax, I would like to dress,” Arixa pressed. “A garment like you and Zhi wear will do.”
It would be better, in fact, until she could be sure that Vax’s eavesdropping device had been removed from her armor.
“Very well,” the Persian conceded. “I’ll fetch one while you view the transmission.”
He led her through another iris into a dark room lit only by the gentle glow of symbols etched in light on many panels on the walls. They resembled the controls by which Vax piloted the shuttle.
They came to a chair, where Vax bade her sit. Set to one side of it was a panel with more of the glowing designs.
“Swipe this symbol,” he instructed.
As soon as she complied, the ghost of a monster appeared.
Startled, Arixa cried out and raised a warding hand. When she stared a moment longer and the creature didn’t move, she realized it was not truly present but only appeared to be so by means of some wonder of the star-folk.
Looking behind her, she wasn’t surprised to find Vax smiling. He had made sport of her, but Arixa was unangered. The glance he shared with her bore no smug self-satisfaction or disrespect.
She returned her attention to the ghostly, unmoving monster.
“Rivann’ivoth is a Senek,” Vax explained. “The Senekeen are a reptilian race among the four star-faring peoples subjugated by the Jir.”
Reptillian was right. If Fizzbik was a walking dog, more or less, what Arixa saw now was an upright lizard. A purple, bug-eyed lizard.
Always one more wonder...
Or horror. She would have to ask to see an image of a Jir sometime, to put a face on the hated enemy.
“I will leave you,” Vax said. “When you wish to begin playback, touch this symbol.”
“Thank you.”
With that, he left. Arixa touched the symbol, and the purple lizard spoke.
Like Fizzbik, it—he—spoke a version of Nexus which she understood with no trouble even though its precise sounds differed from those of the Nexus-G that she and Vax and Zhi spoke.
“This recording is intended for the native-born Gorosian called Arixa,” the Senek said. His voice was low and rasping. “I am Colonel Rivann’ivoth. Dr. Fizzbik has informed me of the circumstances by which he met and operated on you. He further informed me of Vaxsuvarda’s subsequent actions, which were highly inadvisable and in defiance of protocol. Even less advisable was Fizzbik’s agreement to perform further procedures on humans under your command. As is the case with many a genius, Dr. Fizzbik is something of an eccentric whose inability to collaborate with others is well known. It is why he works and resides where he does.
“Yet, however we got here...” the lizard-man went on, “here we are. Fizzbik has revived a long-suspended proposal to introduce the Goros-born as operatives of our movement. I am skeptical, particularly when it comes to what purpose you might serve. Yet I find the idea to be not wholly without merit. Gorosians of the Free Outposts are generally uninterested in recruitment. We can obtain chattel Gorosians on the secondary market, but they are generally unsuitable and likewise uninterested. Not to mention that our purchase activities could be tracked by the Jir.
“To come swiftly to the point, I understand it is your wish to save one population center of the thirteen on Goros-3 that are likely to be targeted. Go ahead and save your city if you can. On your own. We will offer no further aid in this endeavor. If you diffuse a population center sufficiently, it should go unnoticed by the Jirmaken’s target selection routines when their ships arrive twenty-three days from now. Succeed or fail, return to us when the Jir have left. I am willing to approve, in the form of a limited trial, the recruitment and training of you and your twenty-four followers. This will necessarily entail that all twenty-five of you depart Earth, initially for this base, prior to likely transfer onward to other systems. Much will be unfamiliar to you, but imprinting with various basic capabilities can significantly ease the transition. Let not fear of the unknown be an impediment.
“I await your reply with interest, Arixa of, what is it, Scythia? Join us, and you will find that such distinctions become unimportant. You will be Arixa of Goros and feel kinship with all members of your species, regardless of the details surrounding their birth. Rivann’ivoth out.”
The ghostly figure of the purple lizard evaporated, leaving Arixa seated alone in the dark chamber pondering what she had heard and trying to decipher her thoughts and feelings regarding them. A few things were clear to her, others less so.
The door irised, and in stepped Vax, cautiously, as if to verify that the message had ended. He carried a garment draped over one arm.
“You are under no obligation to confirm,” he said, “but I know from Dr. Fizzbik that Rivann’ivoth was considering recruiting the twenty-five of you. Is that what he said?”
“It is,” Arixa saw no harm in revealing. “Does that bother you? You were the first who tried to recruit me.”
“Yes, you,” Vax said. “An isolated case. Fizzbik turned it into an initiative which will grow, if he has his way.”
“Why is that a bad thing?” Arixa was not arguing but asking genuinely.
“Do you believe that the scene I showed you displayed the extent of the Pentarchy’s power?” Vax asked. “I don’t blame you for thinking so, but it does not. Not remotely. The Jir have a hundred ways they could wipe out all human life on this planet. Since exterminating the Irunen, they’ve adhered to a genocide ban, yes, but destroying Goros-3—Earth—would not eliminate humanity, would it? There are millions of humans in the galaxy. The species would persist even without its homeworld.”
With an urgent glare, Vax finished, “Arixa, the Jir already consider all intelligent life to be a threat. If they were to perceive Earth as more than that, the source of a more immediate danger, please believe me: they would not hesitate to wipe out its entire population, not merely the cities. You ask why this idea bothers me—well, that’s why. It should bother you, too. We can’t count on Gaboon and Senekeen to put the survival of our homeworld first. We Gorosians must put it first. Decisions made here, decisions that you and I make, could spell Earth’s doom. Make the wrong one and not only will you fail to save Scythia, you will cause the destruction of your world.”
Looking at Vaxsuvarda, for the first time Arixa understood
his foul mood since her awakening. He was right. She had not given thought to the perspective, which was obvious in hindsight, that the Jir were showing restraint in their treatment of Earth. If their god-ships could turn a city to ash in minutes, then what could they do in an hour or a day, if the order were given?
“I hadn’t looked at it that way,” Arixa admitted gravely. “Thank you. That is...” She did not intend to mirror her father’s words, especially given that Vax had overheard them, but they came out anyway: “food for thought.”
“I know you have not asked for my opinion,” Vax continued, “but I’ll give it anyway. I think it would be for the best if you went home, saved your city and then simply lived out your life. Once they depart, the Jir will not return before the natural end of your newly extended lifetime. Not even your great-great-grandchildren, should you have any, will be in danger.”
“It’s worth considering,” Arixa said thoughtfully. “Can you show me how to make my reply to Rivann’ivoth?”
“You needn’t hurry. Send it tomorrow if you like, after you have thought it over.”
“I know what the broad lines of my reply must be.”
“Of course,” Vax said disappointedly. He showed her the symbols to swipe and touch to record her reply. It was simple, and Arixa had no trouble understanding. “I don’t suppose you would care to tell me those broad lines?”
“I’ll come out when I’m finished,” Arixa said.
Vax correctly understood this as his invitation to leave. When she was alone, Arixa dressed in the one-piece star-folk garment Vax had brought and initiated the recording.
“This message is for Colonel Rivann’ivoth,” she began. “I am Arixa Ag... Katiarsi,” she caught herself. “Of Scythia, Captain of the war-band called the Dawn. It pleases and honors me to address you, Colonel. I will get straight to my answer. I cannot agree to your offer as presented. If I am to consider any recruitment, it must include my entire war band, which currently numbers around three-hundred and twenty men and women. Perhaps some would not agree to leave Earth. Likely most of them would not. But I can accept no offer which isn’t extended equally to all.