Interstellar Starpilots

by F Stephan

  Heikert

  An unknown system, 2140 AD, November

  Silence and darkness. The ship lay still, isolated in the empty space between planets.

  “Bolgaren, it’s up to you now.” Heikert pushed back from the console and looked at the young rat. He had put on some weight and Heikert suspected that Moonlight had her say in that regard. He was plugged into his own console now, eyes shut, his body connected through multiple tubes to the ship, his muscles massaged by the automated bridge chair. In his present condition, he would be able to stay linked for days on end.

  “Thank you, Master.” Bolgaren’s voice came out from the loudspeaker hidden in the bridge. “I have begun to process the background noise. Give me some time.”

  Moonlight and Heikert withdrew to the main living room.

  “I still don’t understand what you’re trying to do.” Their attempt baffled Moonlight.

  “We found out a meeting took place twenty years ago. Is that right?” Heikert brought up the data they had found in Lelet. “Two ships met and shared radio waves. We’re twenty light years away from our target.” Actually, this was their third attempt to catch the signal of the events that had taken place at that time. Heikert breathed slowly. It had taken him two weeks to find a new adequate location and bring the ship there. Then, it had required another day to slow and stop the ship at the correct location. In the end, it had been slow work, one push of the ion thrusters at a time, to reach the correct velocity.

  “Indeed.” The data was sparse and calculated from what was missing from the records. Moonlight had been working intently on it to find out more about the event by itself.

  “The signal from this meeting has traveled since then, twenty light years. It creates a sphere that grows ever larger and dimmer. Now, we’re trying to pick up the last remnant of it. But we have a lot of background noise.”

  “Why is it so hard?” Moonlight couldn’t stand the wait anymore.

  “Moonlight, did you ever try to listen to what your parents were saying in the room next door?”

  “On Madoul, we aren’t allowed close to our parents during our childhood. It’s too dangerous. We’re given into the care of our nurses. They are all loving and emotionally stable.”

  Heikert had forgotten about this. Most Madoul inhabitants were subject to violent crises. Some were stable enough to join the Federation personnel, but they were rare. “My apologies, Moonlight. I didn’t . . .”

  “No apologies needed. I’ve accepted it for some time now. We brought it upon ourselves, you know? Anyway, yes, I did try to listen to my nurses next door.”

  “And the sound was muffled by the door?”

  “Yes. That is for sure.”

  “And?” Moonlight wasn’t interested in the details, Heikert could sense it in her bored tone. Or was it just a way to draw Bolgaren out?

  “First time, there was too much noise from the star and I couldn’t hear anything. The second time, we confirmed when and where the event occurred but without enough details on the message. Now, Master Heikert has brought us to another point of the sphere, where I have isolated the background noise around us. If we are correct, in a few hours, the radio messages will cross our path, and I will try to pick it up. I’m ready.”

  “Good. I’m tired of this tin can. And we shouldn’t let you link too long to this console, anyway. Are we heading back afterward?”

  “Yes, straight to Alkath to deliver our news and then back to Volpre. After that, you’ll be free to do whatever you want.” They would soon have enough to convince the council.

  They spent the next hours playing board games and reading quietly. Bolgaren spoke regularly, informing them of his progress.

  “I’ve got it, I’ve got it.” Heikert was startled awake by Bolgaren’s voice. He had fallen asleep on the main couch. Moonlight had withdrawn to her own room.

  “What do you have?”

  “Come and see. We should all watch together.”

  Minutes later, they were all back on the bridge and seated around the main 3-D. Moonlight had taken big pillows from the main living room and stacked them into neat cozy piles between the metal consoles. Bolgaren was again clad in his Volpre loose blue tunic with a large scarf around his neck hiding his connection gear, while the engineer had donned her formal gray uniform for the occasion. She had also combed her hair and it flowed around her in dark green ripples. The master also wore his formal uniform for the occasion.

  Bolgaren displayed a map of the system.

  “First, we have a ship talking to exploration drones in an asteroid belt. A lot of electronic chit-chat.” A dot was moving around on the 3-D.

  “What were they looking for?” Moonlight’s patience had lasted barely thirty seconds.

  “I’d say Ancient artifacts. They log in metal cores but don’t linger for deeper analysis. Now, see. I get a spike of communication with a new ship arriving.” A new dot appeared.

  “Can you say where it comes from?” asked Heikert.

  “No, but the newcomer did analyze the hull number of the first ship.” A scrambled image appeared. “It isn’t in the Federation log. But I have a picture with a matching ship in Lelet’s station.”

  “Do we have more details on the new ship? The second one?” Moonlight was hooked.

  “Very few. I’ve isolated the technical identifier of the ship in its communication. I should be able to find the ship quickly from the Core Data Sphere in Volpre or Alkath.” Bolgaren’s voice was strained. “I’ve also got an audio record. It’s quite distorted and you’ve got to understand how hard it is.”

  Heikert nodded. “I know, I know.”

  A 3-D appeared in the middle of the room, two screens facing each other. The silhouettes were blurred, with one man on each side. “This is the most interesting passage.”

  The one on the left began, with an unmistakable accent from Adheek. “I’m a friend and I can prove it. Friend of the Ancients will arrive in the next five year and they’ll wreck your planet. They’ll bring the nanite forth and the plagues will destroy you.”

  The other man answered gravely with a voice they now knew came from Lelet. “This is a difficult accusation. But no one can prove events that will occur in five years.”

  “True enough. We’ve prepared for you documents from the Prophet banning conversation with foreigners. You can use them to strengthen your laws and limit the others’ actions on your planet. It will give you time to observe them and decide on your own.”

  “What’s the price?” Harsh rasping words with an edge of curiosity.

  “No price. A gift from priest to priest. If I’m right, we’ll meet again and talk at that time. And no cost attached. Neither now or later.”

  The room had gone utterly still as the sequence disappeared into thin air. Bolgaren whispered softly, “There are further data transfers afterward. I’m sure they include the new documents they found later on Lelet.”

  Moonlight blurted, “This was before contact. Such a message is strictly against the charter.”

  Bolgaren nodded gravely. “If we can find that ship, we can nail whoever was in it at that time.”

  “And then, we can bring him to justice. He sent the planet into further paranoia and repression. He has many deaths to account for.”

  The silence continued, while the ship slowly engaged its ion thrusters on the way back to the jump point. Someone has been playing a terrible game with Federation rules.

  Brian

  Alkath, 2140 AD, November

  Ever since his utter failure with the new protocol, Brian the Oaf, as they called him now, ate alone. The nickname had stuck for a reason Brian couldn’t understand. His nanites were again out of control, and in the past few days, the most basic activities, beyond navigation, eluded him. Loupiac, ill, couldn’t help him; his old friends from Earth and Adheek were out of reach, focusing on their coming exams, and his new friends distrusted him entirely. He had blown their ship now more than twenty times during simulations and b
rought his crew down the lowest rankings again.

  He could endure the nicknames and the catcalls. Like all students, he had faced it before. But doubts on his very capacity to pilot were gnawing at him every waking moment. Even sharing these doubts with Emily had become unbearable to him.

  The only solace he found was the message he had received at last from his sister and his hiding place in the rooftop with the giant gulzaris. The gulzaris were everything he wasn’t. Big, powerful, and free. And the message from his sister was full of video of Earth, his nephew, his parents, and everything he missed. He played them for hours on end. This was not a bad month. It was the worse in his whole life.

  That afternoon, Alvam took him aside. “We can’t let you go on like this. It started when you faced the labyrinth of fire. We can end it here and now.”

  “How? What do you suggest?” Alvam had been one of the few who had stood by him day after day, helping him stay above the water, if barely.

  “We go back to the labyrinth. It runs on automatic. You ask for entrance and you go through it. This will be the first step on your rebuilding.”

  Alvam seemed convinced, and Brian followed him. Poulem had told him he would have to face his fears and overcome them. Alvam had succeeded. Maybe he was on to something.

  Ten minutes later, Brian walked through the door, nanites activated.

  In front of me, I draw again a grid of heat. A new path appears in front of me. Run. The heat increases. Move to the right. I feel the pain. I lose the path, surrounded by flame. I can’t find it. The nanites broke out of control again, and he lost his increased sight to face the flames. He called for help but no one came. His ears were ringing from the noise around him. He prepared himself to rush the fire like he had done the last time when a great form came through the heat at a run, fetched him, and carried him out of the flames.

  When they were out of the heat, Greatwings Soum dropped him on the floor like a heavy backpack. “Earth son, what were you thinking?”

  “I tried to overcome my fear.” He was panting, aching from the heat.

  “Doing it alone is stupid. This is too dangerous for you right now. You are forbidden from using the labyrinth until further advice on my part. You’re lucky I got an alert when this place activated. And you, clan’s son, I’m unhappy with you.”

  Alvam looked down, shame-faced. “I thought he would get back in control. It happens often on Ullem.”

  “Yes, clan’s son. And how many do not regain control? That happens too on your damn planet.” Brian heard the scorn and couldn’t hear the answer as they walked back to the main corridor. Another setback he would pay for dearly.

  Emily

  Alkath, 2140 AD, December

  At the end of the same week, on tenday, Emily took the ferry to Shaian to meet with Leandra. She had found the other islands of the archipelago, which were mostly agricultural, boring, and the Federation headquarters were too far away for a day trip. Emily had asked Leandra to join her on the side of an Ancient amphitheater carved against the cliff at the foot of the star elevator. Leandra had donned a red jacket with black trousers while Emily had chosen a tight-fitting dark blue tunic and a long skirt. They ate in a small crowded restaurant that boasted continental food. Both had set their large caps aside.

  “Continental food?” Something about this bothered Emily.

  “This place is linked to Lik’al, a coastal city from the North Continent. Hard to find anything from farther inland. Looks like a millennium ago, the merchant cities of the Northern Trade Alliance launched a lot of seafaring exploration, reuniting both continents and colonizing archipelagos like this one. You may have heard of Prince Ythan'an'shai.” She had, thanks to Brian and the observatory. “There are still regular links with the cities and this place caters to them.”

  The waiter brought two dishes of dark weed noodles marinated with meat. “You mentioned difficulties?” Leandra didn’t waste any time on formalities.

  “Other than me wondering what I’m doing in a career I would never have chosen in any other circumstances?” answered Emily sadly.

  Leandra winced. “You already told me about it. I’m looking into it, I promise.” Emily brightened up. She didn’t have a lot of hope, but Leandra seemed to care. She enjoyed that feeling. “With Brian?”

  “Yes, I did mention him.” Emily wavered and then plunged. “You heard how he excelled a month ago on our trip up?”

  “Yes, I received a stern call from the severe mistress Roul'al'Namer about his recklessness and how foolish he had been. What do you think of it?”

  “If I’d found the jump point like that, I’d have done it. Just like him. Everyone would have.”

  “So, what he did was rather positive, wasn’t it?”

  “Yes, it was. But then, we came back, and he lost everything again.” Emily was tapping nervously on the table while she talked. “He nearly died this week.”

  “So, he cannot withstand the pressure of the academy?” Leandra was fishing.

  “That might be it.” She pondered her words. “I don’t know. It feels weird. I haven’t been able to talk a lot with him since we arrived, and now I don’t know how to help him.”

  “Then let’s raise your spirits. This is one of the few areas where I can help you. I just received a message from Earth. Your friend Mathias is on his way to Dupner.”

  “What’s he going to do there?” Emily was startled out of her self-imposed misery by the news.

  “He needs to find bees compatible with our ecology.” Leandra’s voice was grave. Mechanical pollination was too slow, and starvation would strike Earth severely without bees. They would face another terrible food crisis.

  “Can you help him from here?” Seeing Leandra wince, she suddenly wished she hadn’t asked.

  “Not the way I want.” Leandra’s eyes were shining. Then, she laughed sadly. “Actually, I’m completely stuck. Mistress Even has agreed to see me, and I’ll see if she can give me another angle on how we’ll get Earth out of trouble.”

  “I’m sorry,” Emily said in a little voice.

  Leandra shook her head. “Why sould you be? You’re doing the best you can already. Anyway, your friend will be at the main space station here in two weeks. He’s bringing you gifts from home. I’ve talked to the headmistress and she has agreed to a one-week break for you to go and meet him.”

  “That would be just awesome.” Then Emily sat upright. “But you’re not coming with us?”

  “No, I’ll be meeting with mistress at the same time. That’s too rare an occasion to miss.” Then she smiled thinly. “And that will save us some money as well.”

  “Great, then we’ll go. Maybe it’ll break the bad luck streak for Brian.”

  Leandra saw Emily’s mood shift again and got up quickly. “Let’s move. I have booked seats for us at the amphitheater, before your ferry leaves. It’s a drama called Master Merchants, a reenactment of the island rediscovery.”

  Emily moved to ask questions while Leandra showed her bracelet to the waiter for payment. “Hush. I don’t know. We will know more after the show.” Emily followed her eagerly. After they left, a woman with dark trousers and jacket rose from a table deeper inside, paid, and followed them, unbeknownst to the two women.

  Emily found the play to have a perfect balance between live performers and 3-D effects. The music was unsettling at first, with no harmonics, but after a while, she got used to it. The themes were mostly a pretext for songs and dances. Yet, the glimpses of the back story captured Emily’s attention. A millennium ago, the merchant prince Ythan'an'shai from a northern city had met a lady explorer from a southern kingdom. Their two continents forbade their love. So they set out to the only place where they could be free. The archipelago was a forbidden place, full of dark omens and strange forebodings. They had to overcome the automated defenses of Shaian’an’rim, helped by some gulzaris. With cunning, stealth, and strength, they overcame the different traps until they reclaimed the archipelago and the star elevat
ors. They gave Alkath its purpose of bringing mankind into a federation of equals. Around them, the crowd sang, clapped hands, and danced. There was something deep in the way the Federation described itself that called to Emily’s soul. For once, this was a story she believed in. Her father was an explorer, at least.

  Emily felt better when she left the show, singing the songs they had heard. Leandra laughed, seeing her so happy. They walked merrily in a straight path to the harbor. Neither of them had noticed that they had crossed into an area blockaded by the Origin Cult. A few streets later, Emily began to notice red bot shirts around her. She felt oppressed by their violent slogans.

  She knew well how fast a crowd like this could riot. Looking around, she quickly saw they couldn’t backtrack without drawing attention to themselves. People were regrouping behind them, walking down toward the harbor. Night was falling, and she had to catch her boat in less than an hour. She caught a scent and frowned. A lot of weed alcohol was being handed over in the streets, certainly too much.

  Emily continued to move with the crowd, across a huge plaza, and into smaller, shabbier streets. She had never visited this part of the city and felt lost. Not much money around here. Fewer women were with them on the street minute by minute. Mothers brought their kids back home with doors barred shut behind them. Men were out with bottles in their hands, and many had already drunk too much. This is bad. Very bad. Do I call for help? She began to count the people around and behind her, mentally checking on her possession. She didn’t have a knife on her. I haven’t had to carry one for a very long time now. I am dropping my guard. But I could activate her nanites and fight.

  Leandra clutched at her hand while people began to take notice of them.

  Suddenly, a man and a woman materialized at their sides.

  “Federation Internal Security. We will move on and around the Origin’s headquarters. This is the safest course now,” said the man in a soft voice. Emily’s bracelet chimed, acknowledging the credentials from the two enforcers. Snatching a glance at them, Emily saw a bulge on their side. She breathed better. “You made a wrong turn a while ago. This is not a good area to be in, not at this time.” He took her by the arm, moving her down, and the onlookers stopped watching.