by Lace, Lisa
“No,” he said. “I didn’t mean it that way. I was only wondering…”
He paused to fork another one of the strange looking pieces of food, his eyes getting a far off look.
“What is it like to be with one of them? Is it different than being with a human?”
I took another bite of my salad and chewed it, considering exactly what he might be asking.
“What exactly do you mean when you say being with?”
“Are they different from humans? I don’t want to offend one of them by asking, but I thought maybe I could ask you, Kenna,” he said. “I’m just curious.”
I thought he was more than just curious, but I let the comment go.
“You know they have two dicks, right?”
He burst out laughing.
“Okay, okay. They’re not aliens, in the way that we think of them on Earth.” I said, starting with the easy part of the question.
“They’re not?” He didn’t look sure. “I don’t know much about the Susohnnan, other than humans generally don’t like them because they have more than we do. As far as I can tell, we’re basically jealous of them.”
“Look, I’ll explain it to you. Humans and Susohnnan are genetically identical.”
“We’re exactly the same?”
“Well, no. Not exactly. On a genetic level, we’re like the same species or something. I don’t exactly understand the biology.”
“So…” he looked a little embarrassed. “They have the same equipment? Sexually speaking.”
“Yeah, all that’s the same, except for one thing.” I stopped and knew I was blushing. “I don’t know how it is with anyone else, but with Dar, he always ASKS if I am willing.”
“Willing?”
“Yeah, like he makes sure I’m consenting to having sex with him.”
“Every time?”
“Pretty much. And well, the sex is out of this world fantastic. But that could be just him. I don’t know if all Susohnnan are like that. And they have this rule or something…” I was blushing again.
“What is it?”
“Well, the woman comes first, or no one comes.”
“What?”
“It’s the male’s job to make sure the woman has an orgasm before he does. And if she doesn’t then neither does he. The Susohnnan have much healthier sexual relationships than humans.”
“I’ll have to remember that,” Jared muttered to himself. And I wondered who he was thinking about when he said that, but I kept my questions to myself.
“Oh, and he always kisses my scar. It’s to show respect for the woman. He used to kiss my upper thigh even when there wasn’t a scar there.”
“The scar. Can I see it?”
I pulled the waistband of my pants down a little on the left side to show the bright red triangle. He inspected it.
“And you almost died to get that?”
I nodded.
“You must love him,” he said a little wistfully. “Are you going to marry him? You made that deal with his mother, right?”
“I’m not marrying him because I was forced in order to get us out of the volcano. I’m marrying him because I love him, Jared. Although technically, he hasn’t actually asked me, yet.”
“He will,” Jared said. “I see the way he looks at you. Couldn’t you ask him? Women don’t have to wait for the men to make the first move anymore.”
I smiled.
“That’s true. But I guess I’ll wait. In Susohnnan culture, it’s still traditional for the men to do the asking. He might be offended. But even when he does ask me, we wouldn’t be getting married right away. The traditional time for a Susohnnan engagement is very, very long.”
“How much time?” Jared was fascinated by our discussion.
“Years, usually.”
“What if you want to get married sooner?”
“I don’t know. You have to get a special dispensation from The Conveyor of The Three or something.”
“The what?”
“As far as I can figure out, he’s a high priest, like the pope.”
Jared nodded.
“Aside from sexual issues, there are some other small differences, like an increase in their brain capacity from 10 percent to 12 - 15 percent. As you might have noticed, they’re highly intelligent.”
I laughed for a second. “I sound like an encyclopedia!”
“I noticed,” he said, with a wry smile.
“Hey, you’re not doing too bad. What kind of an education did you get on Earth?” I asked, hoping that he might tell me a bit more about himself. “You seem to follow a heck of a lot more of that technical stuff than I do.”
“Yeah, I have a couple degrees. It’s fairly standard in my family.”
“A couple degrees? What kind?”
“I got my bachelor’s with a double major in computer science and engineering. Then I started what I consider to be my professional student years. I went back and did another degree in biology. My mother wanted me to be well-rounded so when I went to study for my master’s, I took environmental science.”
“You have two bachelor’s degrees and a master’s?” I said, raising my eyebrows. I was more impressed than I had expected. This guy was smart and hard working to have finished that much schooling.
“I also have a Ph.D,” he said apologetically, as if he wasn’t at all proud of such an accomplishment. “I enjoyed environmental science so much, I decided to do a research project on the economic and political viability of harvesting and marketing non-timber forest products. You know, instead of cutting down all the trees.”
“I know. I grew up next to a forest that was continually being threatened by deforestation. My Gran owned the land, though, and wouldn’t even consider selling to the timber companies.”
“It’s hard to believe that people still think it’s a good idea to cut down forests,” Jared said, shaking his head.
“Yeah, crazy,” I said, putting my last bite of salad into my mouth. I swallowed my mouthful and decided to change the subject a little bit. There was so much I wondered about Jared. “Are you close to your mother?”
He frowned.
“Not exactly. We used to be but the last time we saw each other, we argued.” His eyes fell to his half-eaten plate of food, and he dropped his fork. “We didn’t part on good terms.”
“That’s too bad. I don’t have any family. My Gran raised me, but she died quite a few years ago.”
“I’m sorry, Kenna,” he said, his green eyes compassionate.
“It’s okay. It was a long time ago. Maybe you could call your mom and talk to her. Holophones don’t cost that much and you would feel like you’re in the same room as her.”
I knew that Dar paid him enough to be able to afford a holophone call. If Gran was still alive, I would certainly spend the extra money to feel like I was in the same room as her and be able to touch her.
“Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to happen,” he said, looking angry and a little hurt.
“Why not?”
“Because she’s kind of busy. She’s always been about her career — even when I was a kid. She’s never had time for me. I was raised by nannies and tutors and servants.”
“Really?” I said, and it was my turn to feel compassion. Gran and I might not have had much, but she always had time for me.
“She’s got more important things to do than talk to me, Kenna,” he said, standing up and picking up some trays on the table.
“Oh, come on, Jared. She’s your mother.”
“She’s the woman who gave birth to me,” he said, a sad look on his face. “I’m not sure she was ever my mother.”
He turned and walked to the dirty dish wall. When he pressed one of the trays against the wall, a slot opened up and took everything.
“See you on the bridge, Kenna,” he said.
I took the things off of Dar’s tray and put his plates under mine. Then I piled all the dishes on and went to put the double tray into the wall.
I had learned a few things about Jared, but I wondered if we would ever really know who he was. As I had that thought, my comm unit beeped.
“Kenna, come to the bridge, immediately,” Dar’s excited voice came through. “We’ve got the information.”
“Okay,” I said. “On my way.”
I made my way through the halls as quickly as I could, saying hello to the crew members that I knew and smiling to those I didn’t.
As I came around the corner, I saw my favorite engineer. We had breakfast together sometimes in the cafeteria. He was an older man and always cheerful, friendly, and kind.
“Hey Carson,” I said as he approached me.
“Kenna, how are you?” he said, giving me a broad smile.
“Good, just heading over to the…”
My voice trailed off as I stared at the spot where Carson had been standing a moment before.
He was gone.
And not like it had been a transporter beam, either. There was a shimmery quality to a person the instant before they were transported.
Carson had suddenly and silently, with absolutely no warning whatsoever, completely vanished.
Oh shit.
It had begun.
I took off at a run.
“We need to infiltrate,” Jared was saying when I arrived.
“Dar,” I said, out of breath from running so fast. “Dar!”
“Kenna?” he said coming over to me, with a concerned look on his face. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine. Carson. The engineer.”
“Yes, I know him. What about Carson?”
“He disappeared.”
“What?” he said, in alarm.
“I said hello to him, and he vanished. No transport. Nothing.”
Mana got up from her console. Jared turned away from the view screen where he had been studying the alien ship. Fear was evident on their faces.
“Then it’s begun,” Mana said.
“Like I said,” Jared repeated, his face taking on a stern expression. “Someone needs to infiltrate. We can’t possibly plan an attack or even a defense if we don’t know who the enemy is. Trust me. I attacked enough planets, space stations, and vessels in my time with the AEA to know. They always sent someone in to find out the strengths and weaknesses of the other side.”
“It’s too dangerous,” Mana argued. “These aren’t descendants of the Great Race. We’re in completely alien territory.”
“No pun intended, I assume?” I whispered, and I saw Dar smile before his face got serious again.
“Jared, she’s right. There’s no way we can risk you going in there alone. Who knows what you might find? And how are you going to get inside? We can’t transport on to their ship. We’ve tried hailing them — nothing. You may be walking right into a trap.”
“I’ve done these missions before. They’re dangerous but I came back from every one of them,” Jared said, his eyes intense. “Kenna, Dar. You guys saved me when I would have let myself die. Let me do this for you. I’m the only one on this ship who has the necessary experience and training to pull it off.”
“You’re not the only one,” Mana said, her face expressionless. “There is one other person on board who has served in covert operations.”
“Mana, no,” Dar said, frowning.
“Who is it?” I said, not following. “Who else has the training?”
The men stared at Mana. She looked me in the eye before speaking.
“You’re not going in there alone. Prepare a shuttle for us, Dar. He’s right. It’s our only option.”
DAR
“Mana, I can’t let you do this,” I said, staring at my oldest friend with fear and sadness in my heart. What if I never saw her again?
“You can, and you will,” she said, her face showing only a trace of sorrow as she strapped on a pack and prepared to board the ship. She was wearing black combat gear and had her blonde hair braided neatly. She always kept her emotions under tight control, but I knew she was as affected by this parting as I was. We had known each other a long time.
We had already said good-bye to Jared, who was on board and starting a systems check. She shook Kenna’s hand and then turned to me. I felt like crying but held it together.
I pulled her into a tight hug, and she hugged me back.
“I love you,” I whispered in her ear.
She nodded, her eyes bright with tears.
“I’ll be back. Don’t worry. Jared and I know what we’re doing.”
“And you’ve got the tracking devices, right?”
She held up her left arm showing the thin screen I plastered on the inside of her forearm. We had several other gadgets installed so that we could hear them and monitor their vital signs. They also had cameras strapped to their foreheads for us to see what they saw.
“May The Three keep you safe,” I said and put my hands into a triangle, making the sign of The Three. She did the same and then boarded the space craft.
As the door closed, I felt my heart clench, and I wondered once more if I would ever see my best friend again.
*
“Come on, Kenna. We’ve got work to do,” I said, taking her hand.
“I’m surprised you didn’t insist on going yourself this time,” she said as we walked down the corridor.
“That would have truly been foolish. I cannot risk my life like that. It would not be responsible as the king of Susohn,” I said.
I might have sounded a tiny bit pompous.
“Oh,” she said. And the word spoke volumes.
I supposed that she was right. It had been careless and irresponsible of me to come on this mission in the first place. Three more crew members had already disappeared, and it was entirely possible I could be next.
But boarding the alien vessel would be way past what could be considered a reasonable course of action.
I’m not quite sure why I had insisted on coming at all. I guess I was getting a bit tired of my straight-laced life. Going to that party with the commoners and meeting Kenna had been the start of it all.
The adventure Kenna and I had when we escaped the terrorists made me feel alive.
I didn’t want that feeling to stop. Coming on this mission was a way of prolonging that sense of freedom.
I strode onto the bridge and nodded to the officers on duty. On the view screen, Jared and Mana’s shuttle was moving away from our ship. A moment later, they cloaked and vanished. We continued to track them by computer, a blinking dot showing their location as they approached the vessel.
I felt a lump in my throat as we watched them link with the enemy ship. Kenna took my hand and leaned her head on my arm. Jared and Mana were no doubt breaking into the alien vessel as we watched. I turned my eyes away, unable to look any longer in case they were vaporized, blasted, or boarded.
Instead, I looked at a screen on the side wall that was monitoring their vital signs. It showed their head cameras in small squares in the bottom corners of the main screen. I spoke to an ensign, and the audio feed began playing.
There was a muffled bang. I imagined an explosive going off, blasting a hole in the hull for entry. The cams showed the hole as Jared and Mana crawled through.
I held my breath as they stood up inside the enemy spacecraft. We had no idea what was on the other side of the wall.
“Ensign, please show the two cameras split screen on the main view screen.”
“Yes, your majesty,” she said.
We watched as they turned and looked around at their surroundings.
“What the hell is this place, Mana?” Jared’s voice came over the audio feed.
“If I had to guess, I’d say it was a jail,” she said.
She was probably right. It looked like a big holding cell. There were four walls, but no furniture. A toilet sat in one corner. The door was thick reinforced metal with only a small window near the top. There were manacles hanging from the walls.
“Forty-eight, forty-nine…fifty,”
Jared said. “Fifty sets of handcuffs, Manadwell.”
They tried the door and found it open.
“We’re on the move,” Jared said into his comm device.
They walked down a metal corridor with grate flooring. Mana peered into each room, and we saw that every single one was exactly the same. I could hear Jared counting the doors as they walked down the hall.
“Wait, stop, Mana,” he said after about half an hour of this. She turned to look at him, and we had a clear view of both of them in the other’s head cam. “Fifty manacles in each cell. So far two hundred cells in this corridor alone. That’s…”
“Ten thousand,” came her answer without a moment’s hesitation.
“Ten thousand and we didn’t even finish this corridor. Did you do that scan?”
“It’s done,” she said interrupting him. “Whatever was blocking our scanning devices before, isn’t in effect here. I’m transferring the data now.”
Another screen began to scroll through information from Mana. A floor plan flashed past.
“Ensign, pull up that floor plan on another screen, please.”
I stared at it in horror.
“Oh no,” Kenna said, putting her hand over her mouth.
There were thousands upon thousands of the cell blocks like the one containing Mana and Jared.
“Your majesty, those blinking dots are Carson and the other crew members that disappeared,” the ensign said.
“Jared and Mana,” I said, speaking to them directly for the first time. “It looks like they’re planning on collecting a hell of a lot of bodies.”
“Roger that, your majesty,” came Mana’s voice.
“You are to return to the ship immediately. We know enough to guess that you are in grave danger. I repeat, return immediately.”
“But Dar!” Jared said, about to protest.
“That’s an order,” I said.
“Yes, sir,” Mana said. Jared wasn’t happy but followed her at a jog back down the endless corridor of cells.
I watched them nervously, feeling like I was watching a movie where the heroes are almost home free, and you’re rooting for them to make it out of danger.
We DO have movies on Susohn, by the way.
When they got back inside their entry cell, I breathed a sigh of relief. They would make a clean getaway.