by L.H. Thomson
***
G’Farg Station is an interesting place for a few reasons. First, it’s on the very edge of Sol System, and is easily the most species-friendly of the nine NTC controlled space ports.
Second, it was connected directly to the settlement landing two kilometers below, which in turn was terraformed out of the remnants of the long-dead planet of G’Farg.
It had been reduced to a rather large, rather astonishing asteroid more than 200 years earlier, its inhabitants huddled in the sole remaining city under a giant protective Plexinum bubble as their new “planetoid” hurtled through space.
They were quite grateful when, upon entering the inner rings of the Sol settlements, they were greeted as mankind’s first link to other species and brought to a halt.
The old city was on the other side of the much larger planetoid now, shrouded in perpetual darkness and long deserted. G’Farg had been one of the first successful experiments in terraforming.
But the best habitable areas were on the other side of the rock, and that spelled the city’s demise – though rumor had it all manner of intergalactic vermin had used it as a hideout and jumping off point at one time or another.
It was also the side from which we approached, convenient to where we’d re-entered our own space, and as our ship came around to the bright side, G’Farg Station glittered with white landing lights, a pragmatic tower of Plexinum and concrete that rose two kilometers from the center of a lushly forested area.
Jayde called in for landing clearance. A male voice came back authoritatively with “Esmeralda, you are cleared to land at West Platform17. Just track the guide beam and we’ll bring you in.”
“Roger tower,” she replied.
After disembarking and walking through the security scanners – with the usual hassle and requirement that Jayde produce the license for her pistol – we headed to the central elevator banks, which ran right down the middle of the towering structure.
“You ever been to G’Farg Settlement?” Jayde asked.
It may have seemed an odd question, given how much we both got around, but most pilots never actually got down to the surface. Almost everything we required was in the small city near the top of the station, two kilometers above.
“Nope. Mostly farmers and researchers, as I understand.”
She nodded. “Me neither. I expect it’s like the NTC.
The ride down took more than a minute. Fortunately, it was an express – 420 floors of stops wouldn’t work for anyone.
At the other end, the backside doors opened up, surprising us both, but also leading directly out into a broad courtyard, central to a white plaster three-story office building.
The weather was perfect, hardly a cloud in the sky. The genetically engineered bird population had settled in nicely, and they twittered with boisterousness in the trees.
“Nice,” said Jayde echoing the obvious. “You’d think they’d publicize this place more.”
At the end of the courtyard, a functionary at a reception desk was inspecting travelling papers. “Business on G’Farg Settlement?” he asked through a fog of boredom.
“Research,” I said, which was entirely true.
He looked up at us with a perfunctory glance then processed our travel cards. “Enjoy your stay. Next!”
Outside the courtyard’s main gate, a red brick path led to a parking area. Around it, a new concrete sidewalk wound its way into the settlement proper. The concrete and brick buildings were all new, their small lawns areas neatly trimmed. A handful of hover cruisers drifted quietly by.
“Seriously, boss, I might settle down here,” Jayde said. “This place looks sort of like Cardale’s place, only less tropical.”
It was true. “Maybe the fact that they don’t advertise it is how it manages to stay this way,” I said.
I flagged down a cab. “What’s the deal, Mac, are we on the meter?”
The cabbie was an Avicusian. His species looked a little like Earth puppies from back in the day, except that they walked upright, spoke English with perfect diction, and were much better at driving holo cruisers than chasing them.
“Flat rate anywhere in the settlement, 20 creds.”
It was highway robbery, but who were we to argue? Neither of us had any clue where we were going, although 20 creds would get us right across a city back on Earth. The cab lowered itself about two feet, so that it was just a half foot off the ground, and we climbed in the back.
The ride was glassy smooth, almost like we weren’t moving at all.
The cabbie was chatty, talking about research into whether his species and human canines were related.
“Some people, they find it insulting,” he said. “Like the idea of being related to an Earther pet is somehow intrinsically bad. But Earthers are related to apes. Do they get insulted? No.”
I asked him, “You find this stuff interesting, the new science and research?”
He nodded, and his tongue lolled out reflexively with the eagerness of the moment.
“No better planet to be on, if you like research. The University produces some of the brightest minds in this system. Of course, we’re only talking about Sol.”
Other Earthers might have minded the slight, but Jayde and I are social rejects. Being reminded of humanity’s war-like and generally fearful nature didn’t strike either of us as too inaccurate.
I said, “You go to school here?”
The Avicusian nodded. ‘Geological engineering. I’m learning new methods for terraforming and rejuvenating dead planets. Gonna go work for Hui-Matsumori when I get out.”
“Cab’s paying your way?”
He chuckled at that, a guttural sound.
“That would be a positive assessment of a large amount of debt. But… yeah basically, that’s it.
‘Well, I’ll tell you what, kid: help us around here and there’s a good tip in it for you on each trip.”
The Avicusian smiled, his tongue lolling out again. “Ah, ‘good tip’: the magic words.”