“There are reasons why being seen as a woman would be useful.” Sang shut up again. There was no need to reveal anything yet.
The man considered Sang. “Two outsiders in Karassia. I have not seen another for days. The last was a convict worker. I have to believe that you being here is not a coincidence.” He studied Sang with eyes that were not Karassian brown, but a gray-blue that was flecked with brown, an odd, discordant coloring that marked him as a stranger, as did his black hair and the growth on his chin and cheeks.
“You are not Eriuman,” Sang said.
“I am a free citizen.” He frowned. “We could circle around each other for days, too cautious to break the silence. One of us needs to speak.”
Sang didn’t answer.
The man smiled. “You would not voluntarily enter the Homogeny, given how they feel about androids. You were sent. I am hoping you were sent by the man I reached out to, three weeks ago.”
Sang drew in a breath and let it out. “Who might that be?”
“Reynard Cardenas.”
Sang let their shoulders sag, as if they had relaxed. “What might the message have been?”
“Still cautious. Very well. I told him I thought I might have found his daughter, Bellona.”
“Bellona Cardenas has been dead for more than ten standard years,” Sang said.
“She’s here on Kachmar.”
“A member of the Scordini clan here, among rabid Karassians?” Sang shook their head. “That is not possible. The enraged outcry would have been heard across the galaxy, all the way to Erium.”
“Not if they don’t know who she was.”
“Her genetic markers alone would raise suspicions.” Sang curled down their mouth. “Clearly, you have never met an Eriuman.”
“I have met more than one,” the man replied. “Many times. I realize now that is why the Cardenas sent you. You are different enough to pass as a stranger, not an enemy. As a woman, you can get closer to Bellona without raising suspicions.”
“I was sent because my loss would be an acceptable one.”
The man frowned. “Reynard Cardenas did not believe my message, then.”
“He sent us,” Sang pointed out. “Me,” they corrected.
“Yet he does not hope.”
“No.”
The man shook his head. “I have a DNA match.”
Sang considered it. “You have seen her.” Only someone who had been physically present could have acquired viable DNA for matching. Sang curled their fingers in against the little spurt of excitement and reminded themselves that they held no more hope than Bellona’s father did. This was a fool’s mission, gladly accepted to serve the Cardenas family.
“I have seen her,” the man confirmed.
“It is impossible. Here?”
“She does not look as you remember her. Karassians think her to be one of their own, a very sharp tool in their war chest.”
Sang laughed. “Now we know you are lying. Bellona would never fight against Erium. If a member of the Scordinii chose to side with the Karassians, the Karassians would have trumpeted it with heralds. They would have trained every screen in the Homogeny to lengthy broadcasts about her deeds. She would be a cause célèbre, a crack in the Erium Republic’s united front. The Karassians would remind its people of that at every turn.”
“You are more right than you know,” the man replied. “For that is exactly what the Karassians do with her. Only, they do not parade her as a turned Eriuman, for she is not. She is one of their most prized warriors and Karassians everywhere cheer her exploits.” The man delivered the rousing litany with a downturned mouth.
“If she is not Eriuman, then…?”
“Bellona Cardenas does not currently exist. The woman you once served is now called Xenia.”
Sang shot to their feet. “The app?” They shivered and wrapped their arms around themselves.
“Application, appliance, I know not what the proper name for them is, but yes, that is she.”
“Apps are androids,” Sang replied as calmly as they could manage. “Programmed for destruction, enhanced beyond belief. They fight. When they are not fighting, they are corralled away from Karassians who prefer their intelligent assistants not compete with them for attention.”
The man spread his hands in an open gesture. “I do not disagree with you on any of those points bar one. Apps are not androids. They’re people, reprogrammed for Karassian use, their natural talents enhanced. When they are not slaving at Karassian orders, they are tucked away and kept harmless and helpless.”
Sang rubbed their arms, even though they felt no cold. “If this is even possible, then knowledge of what the Karassians have done would emerge. Rumor, at least, would have trickled out. How could you, a stranger to this place as much as I, possibly know what the rest of the galaxy does not even suspect?”
The man shrugged. “I know, because I was one of them.”
* * * * *
Ledan Resort, Ledania, Karassian Homogeny.
Xenia spotted Thecla on the other side of the lagoon and gladness touched her. She made her way around the still, green water to where Thecla was limping along in the soft sand, a medic next to her. Thecla was holding her human hand next to her body, as if it was injured.
“Thecla!” Xenia waved to catch her attention and hurried as fast as she could to where Thecla halted, waiting for her. She couldn’t walk fast because her quads were sore from a training session. Her back ached, too. She couldn’t quite remember the dance movement that might have strained her muscles so much, yet Dana, her coach, assured her that her rehearsal had been excellent and the soreness would soon pass.
Thecla smiled when Xenia got closer.
“You’re hurt!” Xenia exclaimed.
“Just my other hand. And my ankle.” Thecla held out her human hand to display healing burns. “I spilled lead on it.”
Thecla was a sculptor, which was why she had the metal hand. Although Xenia had never seen any of her work, she suspected that Thecla was very good, as she lived here in Ledan. “Did you go away?” Xenia asked. “I didn’t know you were gone.” It was only now she realized that Thecla had not been around for a while.
That was often true of her other friends here in Ledan. Xenia frowned, staring at the sand. “There was someone else, too…they didn’t come back yet.”
“Thecla went on tour,” the medic said jovially. “To show her work.”
Thecla smiled.
“How wonderful!” Xenia exclaimed. “I’m so happy you’re such a success, Thecla!”
“Do you two want to have lunch together?” the medic asked.
“Yes, please,” Thecla said.
“Yes,” Xenia said. She liked having lunch with friends. There were lots of friends…weren’t there? Now she was thinking about it, she couldn’t recall any of their names.
“Xenia.”
She looked up at the medic, uneasy.
“Come and have lunch. Forget about the rest. Food, then a nap and everything will be good again.”
Xenia smiled at him. “That sounds nice.” She followed them across the sand to the dining hall where lunch would be waiting, wondering if she was hungry.
___________
Buy New Star Rising now:
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About the Author
Cameron Cooper is the author of The Indigo Reports science fiction series and the pen name for #1 Amazon bestselling author of over 100 novels, Tracy Cooper-Posey.
The Indigo Reports was originally conceived as a one-off series, but readers demanded more. The new series will be released in 2020.
Cameron tends to write space opera short stories and novels, but also roams across the science fiction landscape.
Other books by Cameron Cooper
For reviews, excerpts, and more about each title, visit Cameron’s site and click on the cover you are interested in: https://cameroncooperauthor.com/books-by-thumbnail/
&nbs
p; The Indigo Reports
(Space Opera)
Flying Blind
New Star Rising
But Now I See
Suns Eclipsed
Worlds Beyond
Standalone Short SF
Resilience
Copyright Information
This is an original publication of Cameron Cooper
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.
Copyright © 2020 by Cameron Cooper
Text design by Tracy Cooper-Posey
Cover design by Dar Albert
http://WickedSmartDesigns.com
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No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
FIRST EDITION: February 2017
SECOND EDITION: October 2019
Cooper, Cameron
Flying Blind/Cameron Cooper—2nd Ed.
Science Fiction/Fiction
Flying Blind Page 3