Where the Alliance had skimped on comfort and space, it had more than made up for in technology. All of the equipment on board was both brand new and top of the line, from the cutting edge life support systems to the dual-station helm.
Kendra retrieved the cookies from Dev’s bag, then headed to the galley. She rummaged through both the small food supply bin and the chilling unit. Provisions in hand, she headed back to the pilot’s station.
“Not much in there; just the standard stash of pro-veggie bars and nutra-drinks. Guess they’ll have to do. After our meeting, I didn’t have time to do much except wrap up that last project status report, add some extra things to my go-bag and head for the spaceport.”
With a slight grin Dev said, “Pretty much the same for me, except I made sure I took time to eat.”
His grin broadened into a smile as he added, “Good thing I picked up the cookies last night. They’re from the bakery down the street from my apartment.”
Eyes closed, Kendra inhaled the chocolaty scent of the half eaten one in her hand.
“One of my favorite places in the multiverse. They’re great as always. Thanks for picking them up.”
Theirs was one of only twenty elite teams with the combination of training, psi-skills and security clearance to handle up to Level Seven Assignments, the highest designation. Their work for the Inter-Galactic Alliance’s Security Division often had the potential to affect multiple worlds and Dev and Kendra’s track record made them one of the most sought after teams.
Dev was slightly pre-cog, but his true talent was amplifying certain psi-skills in others, including Kendra’s psychometry ability. Once she made physical contact with an object and focused on it, she was able to see its history in a series of flashes. On her own, her psi-talent was considered to be very highly developed. With someone like Dev enhancing it, it was off the charts.
Their current assignment was to work with representatives of the three royal ruling families of the planet Mali, located in the distant Delphi sector of the multiverse. The goal of the joint venture was to gather and combine as much information as possible surrounding an ancient artifact that had been found with a cache of ancient Mayan pieces discovered on Earth in the early 1900’s.
The original dig had taken place nearly two centuries before inter-dimensional space travel had even been invented, which made this a stunning revelation. How and when did the artifact end up on Earth?
A beautiful piece shaped like a star, the artifact’s origin and composition had been a mystery for almost 200 years. It had been held on Earth until about five years ago, when it had finally been identified as being made of peridot crystele, an extremely rare green version of the mineral found only on Mali. Due to its strength and its ability to withstand extreme temperatures, even clear crystele, its more common colorless transparent form, was highly sought after for industrial purposes.
Mali was a similar to Earth, but smaller. They were so much alike that they were sometimes referred to as sister planets. Mali was comprised of three distinct continents separated by bodies of water. Each continent was ruled by a royal house, with the assistance of both elected and appointed leaders of the various provinces within the continents.
Psi-abilities had been officially recognized and utilized for various purposes for close to a century. Under normal circumstances, someone with psychometry abilities would have been called in to do a psi-read on the artifact. In this case, this was impossible because the object’s properties had mutated over time. It had dropped significantly in temperature, from its standard range of around 25 degrees Celsius down to minus 200 degrees Celsius.
Since it couldn’t be handled without protective gear, it couldn’t be read through touch. It had been returned to Mali with the hope that it might revert to its original form, but after almost five years, its temperature had increased only marginally.
The leaders of Mali were historically extremely protective of their planet and culture, almost to the point of isolationism. With crystele being their main export, their first priority was to make sure they maintained absolute control of the crystele mines. They had a general distrust of anyone who was not from their planet and had held off becoming full members of the Alliance for decades.
Recent breakthroughs in psi-tech meant there was a possibility of getting at least a partial read from the artifact. The Alliance had reached out to the leaders of Mali to help solve the mystery of its arrival on Earth and as a way to strengthen ties with them.
The research group was to be led by the Couros, the most powerful of the three ruling houses of the planet. The initial meeting was to be held at their palatial headquarters in the continent Caliva.
Within twenty-four hours, Kendra and Dev had been assigned to the project. Eight hours later, they were at the launch site counting down for takeoff.
***
Sighing contentedly, Kendra took the last bite of her cookie, licked a smudge of chocolate from her thumb and adjusted her seat to its working position. Shifting the data from file to file, she reviewed all the information they’d originally gone over as part of their assignment orientation.
She began with the quick overview of the planet, including its resources, weather patterns, inhabitants, economy, history and governments. As always, she was stunned at the striking similarities between Mali and Earth.
Shifting her focus to the Couros family, she clicked on the first holo, which was a formal royal family portrait. Prominently seated in the center of the group were the current inhabitants of the throne, their Greatnesses, Phylior Antos and his wife, Phylarina Zola. Standing behind them were their three adult children; from left to right, their Highnesses, Phylu Arturon, eldest son, statesman and next in line to the throne; Phyla Marrette, their only daughter, widowed, and a highly respected artist; and Phylu Valon, the youngest son and the one they’d be working with the most. He was currently in charge of security for the royal family’s various residences, but his formal education had been in both history and archeology.
Kendra noted that the children somewhat favored their father, who was handsome and debonair even in his autumn years. Their mother, however, who the children favored even more, was stunning, with a perfect oval face, high cheekbones, fair coloring and arresting green eyes.
Kendra caught her own reflection in a comp screen. She couldn’t help but notice the sharp contrast between her own appearance and that of the royal family. With her cropped almost blue-black hair, slightly slanted brown eyes and golden skin tone, they were vastly different. Looking down, she tried to picture herself dressed in the elegant gown the Phylarina was wearing and just shook her head. It was such a far cry from Kendra’s no nonsense jumpsuit uniform that it was almost laughable.
Kendra advanced through the balance of the holos. She studied the family members in various settings, both formal and informal. One of the things that stood out the most to her was the clear sense of solidarity from all of them.
She went through the images again. This time she focused on each family member’s body language. Kendra always felt she learned as much this way as she did reading the dossiers the Alliance routinely provided as part of their assignment info packs.
For some reason, Kendra found herself reviewing Valon’s holos the longest. What is it about his eyes? And that mouth. Very yummy. Too bad he lets off such rigid and formal body signals.
“What are you doing? You should see the expression on your face!”
At the sound of Dev’s voice, Kendra snapped out of her fantasy moment and hoped like hell she wasn’t blushing.
“Just exactly what it looks like I’m doing. I’m studying the holos. You have a problem with that?”
“Fine. Sheesh. Like the old expression goes…I think someone needs a little time-out.”
At Kendra’s glare, Dev shook his head and went back to updating his pilot logs. Kendra wondered what in all the stars had gotten into her. She regrouped and started shifting through the balance of the data files. She mu
rmured softly as she marked the information she needed to have clarified. She frowned and slowly sat back in her seat.
She looked over at Dev, who now was in the process of double checking their standard stash of weapons, and said, “You reviewed this stuff earlier. Some of this information seems really sketchy to me. What do you think?”
“I agree. There should be a hell of a lot more of it. I just want to get there and see, first hand, what the Couros research team has put together so far. My pre-cog feelers are all fired up, but I can’t quite get a sense of what it is that we’re stepping into. I definitely think this is going to be about more than just a reading on an artifact, though. In fact, I’m sure of it, but it’s like I’m partially blocked and it’s creeping me out.”
“Interesting. I’m feeling something, too, and I’m not even pre-cog. The closer we get to the planet, though, the more urgent it feels.”
“Check the view screen, Kendra. There it is. Mali. Not that many people from our world have seen that sight. We’ll be landing in about one Earth hour.”
Kendra looked up at the screen and then glanced at Dev. “There’s their moon, too. It’s the most unusual green color I’ve ever seen – sort of like iridescent jade or maybe peridot.”
What Kendra didn’t share with Dev was that she felt strangely drawn to it.
Chapter Two
KENDRA PACED THE ROOM FOR PROBABLY THE TWENTIETH TIME; her long legs and trim body cutting a very precise diagonal path from one corner to the other. She let out a huge sigh.
“This is so not a good start.”
The minute they’d set foot on the planet, they’d been shuffled off to some sort of waiting area in the Calivan palace. They’d been sitting there for almost an hour.
The official greeters had led them to the room and asked that they remain there until a representative of the royal family came to get them. As requested, they’d turned over their standard issue sidearm blasters and they’d been left alone ever since.
She sighed again and then turned toward Dev, who was comfortably sprawled in a deeply cushioned and satiny upholstered, oversized chair. His long legs were stretched out in front of him and crossed at the ankles.
Although he looked like he didn’t have a care in the world, Kendra could tell he was just as wired as she was. When he was frustrated, he had a tendency to run his hands through his hair, causing the blond waves to curl even more. Right now they were corkscrews. Somehow it made her feel better.
“Gee, Dev. Make yourself at home why don’t you?”
Kendra watched in horror as Dev responded to her remark by casually propping his feet on a low table that probably cost the equivalent of both of their salaries for a year. She hurried to him and slapped his legs off of it and back onto the floor, making him grin.
“You know we’re being monitored.” She said out of the corner of her mouth.
Still grinning, he patted the chair next to him. “Take a minute, Kendra. You’re going to get another headache.”
“Too late. I already have one.” She inhaled deeply, then plopped down in the chair next to his. Oh, what the heck.
When they’d first arrived, both Dev and Kendra had scanned their surroundings, noting every detail with military-like precision in automatic response to their training. Now, as she settled into the plush chair, she allowed herself to take a few minutes to look around as if she was truly a guest.
“Some digs, huh Kendra? I could get used to this kind of lifestyle with very little effort.”
“I don’t know. Opulent is the term I’d use to describe this place. Obscenely opulent, in fact.”
The room was large enough that her entire one-bedroom apartment could have easily fit inside it. The high ceiling was decorated with intricate carvings at its four corners that almost succeeded in disguising the hidden vid-cams. Almost.
The floor looked as though it was made of some sort of highly polished stone in varying shades of brown. The furniture was done in muted green tones and appeared to be a combination of some very old pieces and some very new ones, all oversized, ornate and most certainly very expensive.
One wall was made almost entirely of clear crystele, which meant it was virtually transparent. Back on Earth, the cost of a block of the mineral that large would be staggering.
On another wall was an open archway that led to a large balcony overlooking the lush gardens below. Through it in the distance, Kendra could hear the happy chirps of the bird-like animals of this planet. A warm humid breeze carried sweet fragrances from colorful blossoms into the room. Kendra was tempted to go out there to take in the view.
Against a third wall stood tall display cases. Inside were a variety of artifacts that seemed to Kendra to be very, very old. Some were lined up single file in neat rows, while others were grouped together based on their shape and size. The few that looked like they were made from peridot crystele were emitting a slightly pulsing light that reminded Kendra of Mali’s moon.
“I wish those display cases were open, so you could touch-read a few of the objects.”
“I was just thinking the same thing. I’d especially like to have access to the green ones, so I could test the energy levels, without you giving me a psi-amplification.
I wonder if they’re within the normal temperature range for the mineral? If they’re cold or starting to drop in temperature, you might even be able to do a test run on them with the new version of the gloves.”
Kendra shook her head slowly, then sighed. “If their representative was here, instead of who knows where, we might even have been able to ask them.”
After almost an hour, Kendra had had enough. The urgent feeling that had started on the ship was getting stronger. As it intensified, the pounding in her head also increased. Her usually very controlled temper began to slip its leash and, against all good judgement, she started getting snarky.
“We haven’t even gotten started and I’m already tired of this treatment. I can’t believe his Highness, the great Valon, our official host, can’t get the stick out of his butt long enough to…
“I finally managed to remove it, Special Agent Voray.”, said an icy cold voice. “Welcome to Caliva.”
Too late, Kendra realized the magnetic barrier that had blocked the huge entryway of the fourth wall behind them had been released. Kendra and Dev both surged to their feet and turned.
Standing within the opening was a group of two men and one woman. They were all in the designated security uniforms of Caliva that included holstered blasters worn at the hip. They were also all staring at her, completely stone faced.
They surrounded a man who was dressed in a more ornate version of the same uniform and was even more stone faced. She immediately recognized him as Valon, second son of the Royal House of Couros - piercing eyes, yummy mouth and all. And he was clearly extremely pissed...at her.
Oh, shit.
Furious with herself at her lack of focus, good judgment and control, Kendra once again found herself wondering what in the world was happening to her. Swallowing hard, she hesitated for a moment and then took a deep breath.
“My sincere apologies, Your Highness; I meant no disrespect, I assure you.”
The look of disdain she received from him at that statement made her feel even more idiotic.
“Special Agents, if you’ll follow me...”
Kendra watched as he made a very small, very formal and very stiff bow in their direction and, without another word, turned and walked back through the entryway at a brisk pace. The fact that he didn’t even bother to acknowledge her apology or let them know where they were going spoke volumes in and of itself.
Double shit.
She glanced to her left and caught the twinkle in Dev’s eye and his quick smirk. Kendra gave him a steely look that silently, but clearly said, “Do not even think about giving me a hard time about this later.” With a small shake of her head, she and Dev quickly moved to follow, with the security detail in their wake. Even though he’d tried t
o make light of her blunder, she could see that Dev was actually worried. She’d really screwed up and knew she’d need to figure out a way to recover.
The group strode in complete silence down a stone corridor that connected the waiting area to the palace proper. The sounds of their footsteps were muted by the thick and colorfully ornate woven runners that ran the length of the passageway.
Although Kendra assumed this part of the palace was usually clear of most personnel as a security measure, it was so empty and quiet that it almost seemed abandoned. As they moved through, she scanned the ceiling and walls until she identified the discretely hidden cams and sensors.
She saw His Highness pause long enough for them to catch up with him. By the slightly warmer tone in his voice when he spoke, Kendra could tell that his hostility level had, fortunately, come down a few notches. He was still far from cordial, but considering her inexcusable blunder, she couldn’t really blame him.
“We’re on our way to the East Family Wing where you’ll be briefly introduced to my parents and my siblings. Then you’ll be shown to your quarters where you can rest and freshen up before dinner. Our first joint meeting, which will include representatives from the other royal houses, will take place tomorrow morning. The full itinerary will be provided to you.”
Both she and Dev murmured their thanks and they continued to make their way in a slightly more companionable silence.
The corridor led to an entryway that was flanked by a group of three men and two women. All of them were dressed in the same style uniforms as those worn by the security team that had been with Valon and, like their counterparts, all were armed.
At Valon’s approach, Kendra saw the group stand a little taller and even more at attention in an obvious sign of respect. More than that, though, she could see admiration for the prince in their eyes. She watched him smile warmly and greet them by their first names. Each one of them smiled brightly in return.
Interesting. They seem genuinely glad to see him.
Baby, it's Cold in Space: Eight Science Fiction Romances Page 8