by Guerin Zand
“I didn’t get your daughter to do anything. As I said, she’s just like you. I know she discussed going to Klantzu to deal with the issues there and you refused. She decided that you were wrong and that she’d take care of it on her own. Doesn’t that sound like how someone else we know handled the Taes problems?”
“Maybe, but that doesn’t explain how she knew about the Vaj system or that hidden Bree planet in the system. You told her about that planet didn’t you?”
“Yes, but she had asked Milly and I for suggestions on what to do for your birthday. We thought you’d appreciate us giving you a planet for the Rangers to use for a home base in the area. Milly said you always dreamed of a planet full of sexbots, or something like that.”
“They weren’t sexbots, Julie, they were fembots.”
“Oh, really? And exactly what were you doing with those fembots for two months?”
“Nothing! I’m a married man, Julie. Besides, you can’t actually consider anything you do with a machine as cheating. It’s no different than sticking your dick in a vacuum cleaner hose.” Julie raised an eyebrow. “Not that I’ve ever actually done such…” Julie raised her other eyebrow. “Oh, you have videos of that I guess?” Julie nodded. “Whatever, I mean, that’s not what I meant when I said I wanted to talk about that planet.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. You usually like talking about what you’ve been doing with your genitals. How was I to know it was something else.”
“Give it a break, Julie. Would you mind telling me what’s up with that planet? Why have the Bree abandoned it? All I could get out of the fembots was it was created, that’s what they said, by some Bree that was their maker. For some reason, they thought I was this maker, the one they called Master. It’s not like you to just give me a planet out of the goodness of your heart, that’s probably an oxymoron in your case, so what’s the catch?”
“Well, that planet is for you to do with as you please. It is also meant as a warning.”
“A warning about what?”
“The planet wasn’t actually created by a Bree. Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, there lived a young Bree boy all full of piss and vinegar, very much like you, Guerin. He was very intelligent, unlike you.” I could only roll my eyes and shrug off the insult. I was used to it. If Julie was talking, she was most probably insulting me. That was just a fact of my life. “He was probably one of the most brilliant Bree in millennia, and a bit full of himself. Again, very much like you. And just like you, he saw a flawed universe and he set out to change it. He ignored the Council’s warnings and pursued avenues of research that were considered dangerous. He found the Vaj system and moved a lifeless planet into the habitable zone and seeded it with life.”
“I knew it. I knew you could move planets around. That’s so cool.”
“How did I know that was how you were going to react? But that’s not the point of this little story. So, if you don’t mind, I’ll continue.” I simply nodded for her to carry on. “That wasn’t the issue though. See, he terraformed this world, as you humans like to say, to use it as a secret research facility. He hid the system from even our eyes. As I said, he was brilliant. He created the cybernetic creatures on the planet to assist him since he could not get any support from his peers.”
“Sure, but fembots? Especially one that looks like you, Julie? Let me guess, another ex-lover?”
“I was young once, Guerin. I have nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Whatever, Julie, but you do seem to have a thing for bad boys, don’t you? I guess that’s why you can hardly control yourself around me.” Now it was my turn to display a sick smile on my face.
“Oh please, Guerin. Do you mind if I finish my story?” I nodded for her to go on, but I continued with my sick little smile. “As the Council had predicted, his research was dangerous and he paid for his hubris, and paid dearly. Rather than return to face the Council, he abandoned that planet and ran off to parts unknown. For the rest of us, the planet has always been, how shall we say, off limits?”
“Why? I didn’t see anything terribly dangerous on the planet. Sure, the Julie-bot gave me a good scare at first, but once I realized she wasn’t anything like you, I found her useful.”
“I’m sure you did, but I thought you didn’t want to talk about what you’ve been doing with your genitalia?”
“Very funny, but would you mind telling me what you all find so dangerous about that planet?”
“The planet itself isn’t dangerous, Guerin. It’s what it represents. Still, to this day, all of the records and results of his research are still there for anyone to find.”
“Ok, so why not remove those records, destroy them?”
“We left it all as it was as a reminder, a reminder that you would be well advised to pay attention to. But you never listen, do you? So, consider it another test. You and your teams can use the planet however you see fit. We’ll see if you have enough common sense to realize what you should do with the knowledge you’ll find on that planet.”
“Well, I did have one issue on the planet that I wasn’t sure if I should bring up with you.”
“Performance issues again, Guerin?”
“No, Julie. I don’t have performance issues.”
“That’s not what Milly said.”
“That was your doing, and you know it. As long as I don’t let you treat me in one of the med centers, I’m just fine.” Julie actually snickered a bit. That just confirmed that I was right about that little incident. “Anyways, you know how I still have a bit of a problem sometimes trying to deal with this reality. I mean, I still can’t be 100% sure I’m not locked up in some padded room throwing my own feces at the wall. One day, I was just out for a little swim. I was laying by my favorite swimming hole when a woman appeared out of nowhere. I don’t know how to actually explain this, but she was real, but not real. I could physically touch her.”
“Oh, and I’m sure you did.” There was that raised eyebrow again.
“Please, Julie. That’s not what this is about. At first, I thought she was a hallucination, so I reached out to test my theory. I felt her physically there, but she wasn’t. I knew she wasn’t. Somehow she, or whatever it was, had actually changed my reality and inserted this woman into this altered reality. As I said, I’ve had issues with reality in the past, but this was the worse. If I was confused before, well multiply that confusion by infinity. I mean, it’s one thing to have a loose grip on reality, it’s a whole ‘nother thing to have someone else playing with it.”
“You think this has something to do with the planet, Guerin?”
“Yes.”
“What did this woman want, what did she say?”
“She said she was one of the Guides from the Taes system.”
“But don’t they only appear in dreams?”
“That’s what I thought, but obviously not. According to her, it was this Bree you were talking about that first made contact between the two universes. He opened a portal or a rift of some kind. You know I’m not really good with all the alien mumbo jumbo, but whatever it was, it’s still there. She mentioned how it was a surprise to find that it was my consciousness that they had detected on this planet after so many thousands of our years. Now, can you sit there with a straight face, Julie, and tell me someone, or something, is not fucking with me? I don’t believe all this shit is coincidence. Is that why you sent me to this planet?”
“I don’t know anything about that, Guerin. Whatever happened on that planet in the past we have no knowledge of, but as I said, you should be careful. If something on that planet could actually alter reality in such a way, the effects on someone could be devastating. You could easily get lost between the two realities, and I’m not sure if you could recover from that. You should avoid going there again.”
“So, we should just leave the planet alone? Then why bring us there?”
“I don’t think you need to stay away from the planet, just avoid this rift or whatever it is.”
“How? It’s not like I saw a door there with a sign that said ‘Now Entering Reality Zone 2’. It’s like the planet is haunted or something. How do you avoid ghosts?”
“I’m not sure what to tell you, Guerin. I said you needed to heed the warning about that planet. Now, perhaps you see why.”
“Well, there’s still something you’re not telling me, Julie.”
“What’s that?”
“This bad boy Bree, it was Sammy, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, but we don’t speak of those times anymore. He was someone else then, Guerin, and that person is long gone. Do you understand?”
“Sure, but it just makes me wonder why Sammy has been so…I don’t know, cold towards me ever since the incident on Earth.”
“Perhaps that’s because you remind him a lot of how he was when he was that other person. Hopefully you can understand how he might be more worried about you than the rest of us based on his own past experiences. Maybe you should make an effort to talk to Sammy about things. You know, maybe invite him out for a drink sometime. Maybe it would do you both some good.”
“But didn’t you just sort of imply that I shouldn’t bring up his past, Julie?”
“Not publicly, but if you two were just talking between yourselves, and you could figure out a way to bring it up tactfully, he could maybe help you with some of your issues. It might also be good for him to have someone he could talk to about those times, someone who wouldn't judge him as others have. Since you’re not a member of the Collective, he might want to talk to you about things that he can’t discuss with the rest of us.”
“But I think he thinks I’m a jerk.”
“We all think you’re a jerk, Guerin, even your daughter. Now, can we talk about some other issues?”
“Sure, what is it?”
“We want you to get more involved in the unaligned worlds. Milly and I agree. It’s time for you to grow up, Guerin. We’re tired of sitting back and watching you waste your potential. You do have some shining moments, sure, but for the most part, you’re just killing time. Your obsession with cheeseburgers for example.”
“You’re about to cross a very dangerous line, Julie!”
“Please, could you stop acting the fool for once. That’s what all of this is, and we know it. It’s just a little act you put on to avoid taking responsibility. You’re a natural leader, Guerin. Your crew follows you without questions. Your team on Earth followed you in the beginning and none of them regretted it. You could make a real difference out here if you’d just quit playing around. Put all of that energy into something more worthwhile than scouring the universe for the perfect cheeseburger.”
“I don’t want to be a leader, Julie. Have you not figured that out by now? And as far as my crew following me without question, maybe you’re forgetting the little mutiny or Maria’s latest little stunt. Maria did tell you about her visit to Desterio, didn’t she?”
“Of course she did. All of that is because you keep trying to avoid responsibility. You keep trying to tiptoe your way around all of these problems. Maria is just taking the initiative when you fail to do so. I can’t really fault her for that. Maybe she’s not ready for that sort of responsibility yet, Guerin, but who’s fault is that?”
“Oh, I keep forgetting. Everything’s my fault, isn’t it?” I rolled my eyes at Julie as I poured myself another cup of Joe.
“You’re deceiving yourself, Guerin. What is it you’ve been doing if not leading? Maria is just trying to follow your example, and yes, sometimes she will make mistakes. It’s not like you never do, is it? Instead of getting mad at her, you might try being her father and helping her. Being a leader doesn’t mean you have to be in charge of everything. I think your confusing title and position for actual leadership. It’s most probably a fall back to your human upbringing. You know how we feel about titles and ranks. By your own actions, and how you’ve conducted yourself, it tells us that you agree. Well, except for your insistence on being called Captain.”
“That’s because being the Captain is cool. It’s not really a job description for me.”
Julie put her hand on her forehead and shook her head. “Sometimes, Guerin, I don’t even know why I try with you.” She removed her hand from her head and looked directly at me. “The point is you are a leader. Look at the difference your actions made in Earth’s recent history. Things could have gone very badly during the Chinese incident. You want to know why Sammy started looking at you differently back then? He was there to observe and help only. If you had screwed up, and there was a good chance of that, he would have had no option but to simply watch as Earth destroyed itself. You thought we’d step in if you really screwed up, he knew that we wouldn’t.”
“But I did screw it all up, and you did help. You’re also giving me way more credit than I’m due for shaping Earth’s recent history. I put out a fire, at best, and left the hard work for others to do while I ran away.”
“First, we really didn’t help you, not with the important stuff. We simply gave you the means to accomplish the plan that you came up with. You made all of the decisions, and you could have just as easily made the situation explode instead of diffusing it. None of us could have predicted the death of your wife at that time, but the fact is, Anna’s death revealed even more about you than if it hadn’t happened. It tested you, as you are so fond of calling it, when your emotional state had to be at its worse. You were smart enough to realize that, and you handed control over to Roger. When you couldn’t see past your own anger to find the solution, you asked for help.
To you, it doesn’t seem like you did much, but in life, what may seem like a simple act, that’s what makes the difference. Your running away, as you call it, was also one of those small decisions that made a lot of difference. You knew that you had become part of the problem on Earth. Had you stayed, I don’t think things would have worked out as well. Earth had to move on and needed to learn to deal with their problems as well. No one ever expected you to fix all of Earth’s problems. I don’t agree with everything you did, but in the end, the results were as good as we could have hoped.”
“Then why did you ask me to return to handle the problems on Ganymede? If Earth was supposed to learn to handle their own problems, why ask me to help?”
“Because. You needed to come back to us, not just for Earth’s sake. As you’ve stated so many times in the past, there are a lot of problems in this universe. It’s not all about Earth, but we also don’t want you to ignore Earth. There’s no reason you can’t help out in the rest of the universe while still keeping an eye on Earth’s progress and helping them out when you can. That’s what you're doing with the Ranger program, and at the same time you’ve taken on responsibility for the Taes system.”
“You’re scaring me, Julie. You’re being, I don’t know, almost nice. That usually means you’re setting me up for something. So what is it you expect from me now?”
“Well, you are going out to Taes again aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Why are you going back out there so soon. It’s only been a few years since you first went there. Are there problems again?”
“I don’t know if there are any problems. The Maricindi and Bayru have been both broadcasting a signal for me. They want to talk. Scirla says the Guides have implied we should go to Taes. That woman on the planet in the Vaj system also suggested we go and meet with the three races. I figure why not. I’m sure Scirla would like to see her home again.”
“You do know that you are supposed to be reporting to me anything concerning Taes, don’t you?”
“Well, yea. But you always seem to know what I’m doing without me telling you, so I don’t see the point. Besides, you know how much I like surprising you.” I couldn’t help batting my eyes at her and giving her a wicked little smile. “But that doesn’t answer my question, Julie. So stop changing the subject and just spit it out. What is it you want from me now?”
“We want you to expand the Ranger
program and start taking an interest in some of the problems in the unaligned worlds. You know that the Trogans have allies out there and that those allies are involved in some rather shady dealings. Some are actively procuring and selling slaves to the Trogan empire. Others are doing some of they’re dirty work outside of the empire, like hijacking cargo ships. We want you and the Rangers to put an end to a lot of that for us. You’ll be openly acting on behalf of the Collective.”
Ok, I’ve had this discussion too many times with Julie and others. I didn’t want humans to be seen as the Collective’s enforcers. Humans weren’t Collective members, and to me, this just seemed like they were using us as cheap labor. I was ready to open up on Julie for bringing this up again, and she could tell. She raised her hand to stop me.
“Just hear me out first, Guerin.” I just rolled my eyes and shook my head. Here we go again, I thought. “You have often complained that you don’t feel at home on Earth anymore, not with the modifications we’ve made to you. Well, maybe you’re right. We want you to join us.”
“Watch out, Julie. The last time a woman asked me to join her, it turned out to be a marriage proposal. I’m not falling for that old trick again. The answer is no.”
“Will you be serious for a change, Guerin? You have always complained that we don’t treat you as an equal, well here’s your chance. We’re offering you, and your teams, full Collective citizenship, so to speak. That means you’ll have full access to all of the Collective’s assets. That includes our knowledge as well as our facilities. We’ve already given you a planet to use as your own, and in the same region of the galaxy as the unaligned worlds.”
“A fucking haunted planet, Julie. It will probably turn out to be more trouble than its worth.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure that all out. You complain that we don’t do enough to fix the problems out in the galaxy, and we agree. It’s just not in our nature to be that aggressive. As you’ve pointed out, we let things go too far before we step in. That’s because our actions can be rather drastic. We can’t go around quarantining every offending world out there. On the other hand, you have shown yourself to be much more aggressive when dealing with some of these worlds, yet still showing some restraint. You’re simply better equipped to deal with the other races out there. Let’s say you know how to speak their language, while we don’t.”