Veklocks

by S. H. Jucha

  At various points in the morning, Lindsey became the focal point of small numbers of delegates.

  Henry listened to some of the exchanges. To his relief they weren’t pestering Lindsey about her powers. Instead, their questions were about the Belle, Harbour, Jessie, the aliens, the projects, and the future of Pyre’s surface.

  The delegates’ midday meal was at the Pit, and if anyone thought it would be a private party, he or she would be wrong. They did have more than half the cantina’s tables reserved for them, but spacers still plied the bar and filled the other tables.

  During the meal, Lindsey looked around, searching for what she’d sensed. “Excuse me,” she said to her table’s companions.

  Lindsey’s fellow delegates watched her walk to the bar. She stood beside a spacer, who was hunched over a drink. She chatted with him and then placed an arm around his shoulders. They stood like that for a while. Then Lindsey placed her forehead against the man’s temple. Soon afterwards, she returned to the table.

  “An emotional problem?” Dottie Franks asked, as Lindsey resumed her seat.

  “He received bad news about his BRCs,” Lindsey replied. “I eased his mood and reminded him about the medical station. It felt good to be able to help again.”

  “Something happened to you?” Dottie inquired.

  “Not too long ago, I was isolated in a cabin aboard the Belle,” Lindsey replied. “I couldn’t shut out the sendings of normals.”

  “But you’re better?” another delegate asked.

  “Yes,” Lindsey replied with a satisfied smile. “All older empaths suffer from this malady. At least, we did in the past. We were cured by Sasha Garmenti, Aurelia’s younger sister. She’s one powerful empath and just a teenager.”

  “That medical station is going to be critical for many spacers and stationers,” Dottie said.

  “The issue of our integration is going to be a controversial topic in the Assembly,” a delegate named Janice remarked.

  “Integration with whom?” Lindsey asked.

  “The aliens, of course,” Janice replied. “Not everyone is in favor of them staying in our system.”

  “What do you think about mixing with aliens?” Dottie asked Janice.

  “I’ve spoken with some friends,” Janice replied. “Some of them are adamant that they should keep on their side of the Q-gates.”

  “What about the Jatouche, Janice?” Lindsey asked.

  “As long as they stay on the medical station, my friends say that’s okay,” Janice replied.

  “Janice, you haven’t answered my question,” Dottie pressed. “I asked what you thought.”

  “Personally, I don’t know,” Janice replied. “Some of the aliens on the Triton channel make my skin crawl.”

  “Then you don’t want the projects they’re constructing for us?” Lindsey asked.

  “No, no … I want those things. We need the projects,” Janice replied quickly.

  “Then you want the work, but you don’t want the workers,” Dottie accused.

  Those around the table, except for Dottie and Lindsey, looked uncomfortable. Lindsey sought out Janice’s emotions. She was interested to know whether the woman was just repeating the words of her friends or if she believed what she was saying. Dottie, on the other hand, was staring fixedly at Janice.

  “When you say it like that, Dottie, it sounds ugly,” Janice managed to object.

  “It’s called speaking bluntly,” Dottie retorted. “I do a lot of that. I suggest you get used to it from me.”

  After the delegates’ meal, Henry convened the opening of the Assembly. The representatives were seated in the auditorium, and Henry occupied the stage.

  “My purpose this week is to guide you in the formation of our operational protocols and give you several tasks,” Henry said. “After my opening remarks this afternoon, I want you to think about who you’ll elect to govern your meetings. But know this, that person won’t govern your agenda. Apparently, Earth made that mistake many times. You’ll have differences of opinions on nearly every subject. That’s to be expected. However, you’re the delegates of Pyre’s first Assembly. You’ve a duty to talk to your fellow members. You’ve a duty to do what you believe is best for all of Pyre, not for what friends, family, and associates urge you to do.”

  -40-

  Epilogue

  In Pyre’s near future, the system underwent dramatic changes.

  When the Triton cargo shuttles were ready to launch from their tubes, the Belle unloaded its slush cargo at the YIPS. Then Dingle sailed the ship to a position near Triton, placing it between the moon and Pyre.

  The Belle served as the rendezvous point for the Triton shuttles. Cargo was offloaded from the shuttles, and the colony ship’s bays became assembly areas.

  Aliens of all manners populated the Belle’s cabins, roamed its corridors, and visited its cantina. Dingles had the cantina enlarged twice to accommodate the ship’s ever-growing number of guests.

  Of course, the Tsargit compensated the colony ship for its services. It was the first transfer of alliance tokens to the Pyreans, and the deposits were incorporated into the newly-instituted financial scheme. Enormous funds accrued to the ship’s general account.

  Slowly, the constructs were offloaded from the Belle’s bays, and the medical station took shape. The YIPS and the JOS provided a workforce of construction human engineers and techs, who diligently followed the aliens’ guidelines for the shell’s assembly.

  Many of Pyre’s mining ships were employed. They hauled supplies from the JOS to join the Belle. Their crews operated small construction bots that maneuvered the Belle’s assembled packages into position.

  The entire flotilla was coordinated by Dingles, who was kept busy. Jessie’s ships couldn’t take part. The Pearl was loading slush to supply the YIPS, and the crews of the Spryte and the Annie supported the endeavor.

  The aliens soon appeared on the YIPS. These alliance engineers and techs held classes to teach Pyreans to maintain and repair the shuttles, station, and ancillary equipment. This would be the longest portion of the agreement’s requirement, extending years into the future until Pyreans were sufficiently competent.

  As the Triton Medical Station neared completion, spacers and stationers questioned how the order of the repaired would be determined. Henry was posed the question by Assembly delegates, and he deferred to Harbour and Jessie, who decided that a lottery was required.

  Harbour made one stipulation that Jessie readily accepted. Danny wasn’t to be part of the lottery. He would be first in line. Of course, Danny was terribly thrilled to learn of Harbour’s machinations … maybe not. Well, at least Claudia was pleased.

  In turn, Jessie requested one exception from the lottery from Harbour. It was for Maggie May.

  When the medical station was complete and the Jatouche populated its services, the Belle transported spacers and stationers, a hundred at a time, from Pyre to be repaired. Maggie May and Danny Thompson were among the first group transported.

  Danny had objected, and Claudia strenuously objected to her partner’s objection. In the end, Nadine escorted Danny from the colony ship to the medical station. She was broadcasting to him nearly every moment. Such was Danny’s fear of another medical procedure.

  Triton Station’s medical director immediately put Danny under. He wouldn’t awaken until he’d fully recovered and saw that he possessed two whole legs. At the time, Claudia was by his side, and they both cried.

  Many of the older empaths took positions aboard Triton Station, and they became hugely popular. Interestingly, the Pyrean empaths discovered there wasn’t a single race that couldn’t be influenced by their ministrations. As befitted the nature of these sensitive individuals, they contributed a portion of their alliance tokens to the needs of JOS residents, who were in dire need of the funds.

  Pyre’s launch platform was the final project. After the work on Triton Station was completed, the colony ship’s next job was the transport of aliens a
nd material from Triton to Pyre.

  As one short, fuzzy-skinned alien told Dingles when he learned of the sailing time to Pyre, “There’s no hurry, Captain.” Then he clicked his fruit juice glass to that of Drigtik, and the two of them shared a laugh.

  When the Belle was stationed over Pyre, the launch platform was quickly assembled from the structures constructed during the weeks of sailing time. The intravertors were offloaded onto the platform, and Henry was offered the privilege of launching the first one. He demurred and requested that Harbour take the honor, which she accepted. She passed the next opportunity to Jessie. Then Jessie handed the comm unit to Dingles. The old spacer had tears in his eyes when he touched off the third intravertor.

  With the launch platform emptied, the greening of Pyre began in earnest. The Belle would make several more trips to Triton to gather more loads of intravertor parts that would be assembled on the return trip to Pyre. A total of six hundred intravertors were launched at the planet. It would still require decades to be effective, but it wouldn’t be generations.

  The Assembly took shape much as Triton Station did, which was step by step. They formed their methods of operation, establishing the protocols by which bills were crafted and presented. Those bills that passed the Assembly required Henry’s approval. In most cases, Henry’s signature was a forgone conclusion, as he was an integral part of the creative processes of important laws.

  It became obvious to the families, with the first bills passed by the Assembly, that they’d been fooled. Idrian immediately sent Imian to the JOS for his own safety, and Sasha and he caught a mining ship to the Belle. The council was unsure whether Idrian was complicit in the subterfuge. Nonetheless, family heads distanced their companies from those of Idrian and his businesses suffered mightily.

  With funds authorized by the Assembly, Liam purchased a location in the domes and turned it into a second security administration site. Within months, a permanent security force, four times greater than the one that first descended, was established in the domes. Many of the new recruits were either ex-spacers or downsiders. The mix made for fascinating discussions, which Liam and Miguel loved to eavesdrop on.

  The changes were as striking for the domes as they were topside. The rebel leaders identified the stun stick manufacturers for Liam. The three sites were allowed to continue operations, but they were restricted to producing the weapons only for JOS security. Any infraction would see them shut down, and the owners knew the dome workers were watching.

  Lise Panoy lost her governor’s position. The dome’s council was restricted to functioning only as a business association. Its power was gone. To ensure the council’s actions complied, Liam or Miguel attended their meetings.

  Dorelyn was spared the ignominy of being buried on the surface by a competitor, who might have sought her place at the head of the council. Instead, her body occupied a casket aboard a mining ship on its next journey inward to the belt. The captain took particular pleasure in launching Dorelyn on her way to Crimsa to the extent that he refused the customary coin for the service.

  Solseena and her committee reported to the Tsargit council that the Pyreans’ knowledge of the console was genuine. Ulgart accepted the committee’s decision and presented it for approval. He had no other choice.

  When the Pyrean infrastructure projects were completed, the Veklock triumvirate sent a cube from Rissness to Triton, specifying the envoy should meet them at Rissness Station. Harbour and Jessie sailed from the JOS aboard a new Triton shuttle to the dome.

  When the couple arrived at Triton, they enjoyed the enthusiastic greetings of the spacers and stationers who now manned the dome’s extended structure. At the console, they had Aurelia record and send a cube to the Veklocks. She said, “The Pyrean envoy is waiting for you at the Triton dome. You may attend her here.” Aurelia had to record the cube twice. The first cube had recorded her laughter.

  Three perturbed Veklocks appeared in the Triton dome two days later. In a short ceremony, the triumvirate and the Pyreans agreed that, except for ongoing training, the projects had been successfully completed by the Tsargit.

  “If this is the case, Envoy, we request the services of Aurelia Garmenti and Devon Higgins for console training, as the second part of the agreement requires,” Patrus said.

  Kractik and other Jatouche trained more Pyreans at console operations, while Devon and Aurelia took up positions in the non-alliance dome one journey outward from the Sylian dome. Alliance scientists and dome administrators from across the alliance journeyed to this location to learn what the Pyreans had to teach. What fascinated the alliance members was that the classes constantly increased in complexity. They came to refer to Aurelia and Devon as the Messinants children.

  Henry experienced his first journey outside the Pyrean system. It was for the purpose of forming the small alliance that Harbour had fostered.

  A select group of delegates was nominated to accompany Henry. They included Dottie, Lindsey, Noel, Gerry, and Janice, of all people. Many delegates had insisted that Janice attend.

  As Harbour and Jessie’s entourage reached the top of the Triton dome ramp, their ear wigs picked up the messages of three medallions. On the dome’s deck were three life-sized statutes. The accurate portrayals of Tracy and Dillon bracketed that of Hangor, and the medallions declared them to be explorers. It was a vivid reminder of the sacrifices made by the explorers who had brought critical projects to Pyre and even more dire news to the alliance races — the Colony was coming for them.

  Most of the delegates held hands, as they ascended the platform. With a nod from Harbour, Aurelia sent the delegation off with a wave and a smile.

  Lindsey tended to abdicate her role as the delegates’ calming influence to Harbour, who generated greater power.

  “This is nothing short of amazing,” Noel commented breathlessly, when the group arrived at Rissness.

  “I’ve always enjoyed it,” Dottie said with an air of confidence. When Jessie eyed her, she added, “I was always fine with journeying. I just wasn’t comfortable with the idea of fighting the Colony. I know my limits.”

  Jessie tipped his head in acknowledgment of Dottie’s honesty, which mollified her.

  Henry and the delegates watched Harbour and Jaktook’s enthusiastic greeting. Even Jessie seemed less than his usual taciturn self in Jaktook’s presence.

  The bonds of those who’ve faced death together, Henry thought.

  Jaktook presented Henry and his delegation with medallions. He’d bought a box of ear wigs in case the delegation needed them, which they didn’t. By now, most Pyrean topsiders and some downsiders wore the alliance’s ear wigs.

  The group traveled through the dome’s secondary level to exit into the tunnels. Harbour, Jessie, and Jaktook led the group, and they passed a multitude of aliens. The medallions of the explorers stopped traffic, and they were accorded deep bows. Thereafter, the aliens resumed their walks, and Henry and the others were given brief tips of heads from those same aliens.

  “That’s the honor you receive when you risk your life for the alliance,” Dottie commented quietly to those around her.

  “That’s the honor that Pyre should be bestowing on the envoy and the advisor,” Noel replied softly.

  Lindsey felt Janice’s grip tighten. The woman had never let go of her hand. She was depending on Lindsey to allay the worst of her fears.

  In one of the odder relationships to develop, it would be Jaktook who would befriend Janice and help her to understand that the measure of a life was in its sentience and goodwill toward others, not in the shape it appeared.

  On Rissness Station, the delegation got their first look at Mangoth. If his image didn’t frighten some of them, his roar of approval at spotting Harbour and Jessie certainly did. Janice was spared an extended reaction. She fainted.

  Lindsey caught Janice before she hit the deck, and Harbour commented drily, “She’s overwhelmed by your magnificence, Mangoth.”

  Soon after meeting Tac
ticnok, it was Harbour and Jessie who were taken aback. They’d expected the conference to center around Tacticnok, the Norloth, and Henry, as the respective leaders of the Jatouche, the Crocians, and the Pyreans. Instead, there was a significant assembly of representatives from the leaders of many races, including Shevena from the Sylians.

  “By far, these are delegates of the younger races, who are more concerned about the expansion of the Colony than the older races, who believe in the invincibility of their long-existing civilizations,” Tacticnok explained to Henry, Harbour, and Jessie. “The Sylians are an exception. They’re considered neither young nor old in the alliance hierarchy. Shevena attends at Solseena’s persuasion of her monarch.”

  “Sorry, Henry,” Harbour said, “I didn’t expect to throw you out the airlock on your first journey from Pyre.”

  Henry laughed softly, and Tacticnok chittered.

  “Not a problem,” Henry said. “I and my delegation will be happy to take seats and listen to the proceedings. If you haven’t noticed, this group is staring at you.”

  Harbour gazed around at the assembled representatives, more than a hundred of them. Henry was correct. All eyes and orbs were on her. She looked at Jessie, who shook his head, and said, “Not me. They want to hear from you.” A glance toward Tacticnok had the ruler responding, “I lead the Jatouche. There’s only one individual who’s acceptable to this assembly to lead the alliance against the Colony.”

  So it was that Harbour became the defacto leader of the resistance that would attempt to blunt the Colony’s expansion. In her heart, she felt that they were too late. The Colony had a tremendous headstart on them, but to sit and wait for the inevitable wasn’t a choice either.

  Late that evening, Harbour and Jessie lay entwined in bed. They discussed the day’s meeting.

  When Aurelia had relocated the star field for a better view of the Colony-held domes and heard Devon’s surprised exclamation, the explorers and the Tsargit committee saw nearly fifty highlighted stars.