by C. R. Daems
“I’ll allow you time tomorrow; however, you’ll stop if I tell you to. Is that understood?”
“Yes, Sir.”
* * * *
The next day, Weller introduced me.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, this is JG Reese. I’m allowing her time to talk about the Riss Project.”
I stood and looked around. No one smiled.
“I’m a Riss-human, which you can see from a hundred meters away.” That received a few chuckles. “I volunteered...”
The discussion, questions, and answers were well received. Weller decided to make it a regular topic throughout the semester. He loved it because it went to the heart of prejudices and interacting with people from other societies and different customs. I noticed a definite change in attitude from the majority of the class. We were no longer treated like we had a disease. At lunch others joined us, and we made good friends. I became particularly close to Lieutenant Bradshaw. It seemed we spent a great deal of time together, studying, at meals, and in Si’jin class. I found he’d earned five knots. It was the first time since I became a Riss-human that I felt normal.
* * * *
Two weeks before the semester was about to end, Bradshaw came banging on my door late at night.
“Nadya, two of the Riss have taken control of their humans. You might be next,” he whispered, almost in tears. “I’ve been told Rear Admiral Critton has placed them under guard.”
I knew this was everyone’s worst fear. I dressed and followed him to where they were being held. The two army guards reluctantly let me enter, after Gunny Wei nodded.
I knew deep in my bones the Riss had a good reason. SV flew back and forth. Although I didn’t understand all of the exchange, I grasped the essence of the conversation. The next day, I sought out Rear Admiral Critton.
“Sir, with your permission, I would like to bring the two Riss-humans who are presently under guard in front of the student body to discuss what happened.”
“Are you sure it’s safe? We don’t want any one hurt.” He was looking at me like he was trying to read my mind.
“Yes, it’s very safe, Sir.” When he nodded, I went and collected them; however, Critton insisted the guards accompany us.
* * * *
An hour later, I stood in front of nearly two hundred students and staff with the two Riss-humans behind me.
“By now you know that the Riss have assumed control of two of their human hosts. Many of you’ve jumped to the commonly held misconception that the Riss want to control humans and take over the world. It’s a perfect example of emotions taking control of reason. Who has asked themselves, ‘Why?’ Anyone?” I looked around the lecture hall at nervous faces, including Critton’s.
“Aldric’s Riss, Floating White Clouds, has assumed control of him. Why? Because at Prometheus, he used his Riss’s ability to increase his strength, reflexes, and speed and to form a clique. These men terrorized others into doing illegal and immoral acts, which included forcing women cadets to have sex with them. Here he began cheating on examinations and selling answers to assignments. His Riss decided she could no longer tolerate behavior abhorrent to the Riss. She’s taken control to stop his actions and desires to be returned to Saipha to have him removed.
“Egon’s Riss, White stone in the snow, has assumed control of Egon to stop his torment. He has succumbed to continuous insinuations by the uninformed that his Riss wants to control him. He’s slowly going insane.”
We spent the next two hours discussing the Riss. I finished with words of wisdom that I’ll never forget. “Gunny Wei told me something I’d like to leave with you. I asked him why he didn’t react to the tattoo on my face the first time he saw me. Take out your Handcoms and enter the following: ‘I saw you, not your face.’”
* * * *
“That was impressive, Nadya,” Bradshaw said when we were alone. “I have to admit I panicked. I feared for you... I’m very fond of you.” He hesitated. “We have a two-week break coming soon. I know you usually stay at the school. I understand why, but would you consider going with me, upcountry. We could visit the Misty Valley resort area. It’s beautiful there.”
I wanted to go but knew what would happen. “You don’t want to be with me. You’ll be insulted and constantly be put in a position of feeling you should defend me. I’m not worth it.”
I felt Thalia’s encouragement. It felt like lying warm and cozy in bed on a cold winter night.
< I don’t want to see him hurt.>
“I think you’re worth it,” he said, interrupting my conversation with Thalia. “We’ll walk around in our Navy uniforms. Edenians tend to like the military. For the rest, who’s going to win an argument with two five-knot Si’jin practitioners?”
Reluctantly, I agree to go.
* * * *
We took a shuttle to the Misty Valley and stayed at a single-story resort overlooking the valley. The building had been constructed from indigenous rock and designed to blend into the surrounding mountains, which it did. The resort was self-contained and provided hundreds of amenities: restaurants, shops of every kind, exercise and massage facilities, swimming pools, and more. In addition, there were many outside activities.
The first week we saw the sites, took advantage of the facilities, and ate at most of the restaurants, which offered an assortment of food from the various planets of the SAS. The second week we spent in bed.
At first, I wasn’t sure about having sex while carrying a Riss—not that I could get rid of her, even if I wanted to. Bradshaw seemed to rationalize that Thalia came with the package that was I. After the first night, I didn’t care. Thalia, as usual, took it as part of its host. I’d always enjoyed sex for its own sake and thought my serious boy friends reasonably satisfying. Bradshaw proved different—much better.
Thalia did produce humorous comments at awkward times, but Bradshaw thought it funny. He looks at life much like Thalia, I mused.
I was truly happy and wished the time with him would never end.
* * * *
“Doctor Dayton, is it possible for you to give someone a fake tattoo that can’t be washed off but can be easily removed by you?”
Dayton was a tall woman with a long, thin face and penetrating blue eyes. She gave me a long hard stare. “I understand your concern, but I can’t remove your tattoo and wouldn’t if I could.”
I couldn’t help but smile and immediately held up my hand before Dayton could say any more.
“Thalia, my Riss, says the tattoo looks good.” I chuckled at the look on her face. “I want to try an experiment in Commander Weller’s class. I’d like to tattoo each student, so they can experience prejudice first-hand. Of course, we’ll want to remove it afterward. No sense having the tattoo permanently and not the Riss.”
She laughed, her eyes twinkling. “I’m sorry. I jumped to the same conclusion you’re trying to teach Weller’s students not to do. Tell...Thalia…I’m sorry. The tattoo is beautiful. Yes, I can produce a realistic tattoo in about an hour and remove it in about the same time.”
Commander Weller agreed to the project immediately. I believe he’d have liked to try it himself. Two students were tattooed each week. They spent a day or two at Prometheus and at least one day in town. After two men attacked one of the students
, those who tried the experience later were provided two out of uniform soldiers to inconspicuously follow them. Weller was ecstatic with the results.
The students weren’t. “Reese, how do you tolerate the abuse? It’s humiliating, degrading. I could have killed some of them. I felt like ripping the tattoo off my face, and you’ve to keep it for the rest of your life.”
The class proved extremely successful. Weller had a perpetual smile for the entire semester.
* * * *
The class on Officer Behavior proved interesting. It started with the Ensign’s duties and concerns and then moved up the chain of command. At each new level, the position required the officer to ignore some of his or her previous duties and assume new ones. We followed that logic all the way to the Captain. It gave me a good perspective of a career in the navy.
The class on System Gestalt taught us how one system related and depended upon the other for the ship to function at peak performance. We looked at the whole, rather than the detailed parts. Thalia loved it.
* * * *
Bradshaw and I went to Red Canyon during the semester break. I savored every minute of the two weeks, knowing this would be the last time with him. Soon we’d both be assigned to cruisers and possibly never meet again. I would remember those precious moments for the rest of my life—my first true love.
* * * *
In the third and final semester, each student selected a personal project, which was due by the end of the semester.
To humor Thalia, our project became math. We were to provide solutions for fifty navigational problems and ascertain the characteristics of the mathematics involved. We discovered the Riss had a system of mathematics that paralleled navigational computations. The Riss, however, had no computers or paper and had to perform the math in their minds. Consequently, they had over the centuries developed a system simplifying the calculations. As a side project, we translated the human equations into the Riss system, using symbols approximating the Riss images. By the end of the semester, we’d finished our school project and had make progress on documenting our Riss system symbols relevant to space navigational math. I hoped it would eventually prove useful.
In the final week, Master Wei presented me with my sixth knot, which meant I could now teach Si’jin. When you’re promoted, the Master who promotes you gives you a black knot with his symbol, and a color band designating his rank. If he has six knots, you get Red; seven, yellow; eight, green; nine, blue; and ten, black. I now had two red, three blue and one black. A sixth black knot was prestigious; one signed by Wei, priceless.
* * * *
So ended my stay at Hephaestus. I graduated With Comment and was promoted to Lieutenant.
“Nadya, what assignment did you get?” Alena asked as we each scanned the disks containing our orders.
“The Peregrine, a Defender class Light cruiser,” I said, hoping some of my friends would be on the same ship.
To my sorrow, no one I knew had been assigned to the Peregrine. I’d made good friends and lost them. I’d be starting over again.
Chapter 5
I entered the shuttle with my emotions at war—excitement, joy, and hope, colliding with frustration, despair, and rage—like clashing titans with my skull the bloody battle field. Being the only officer on the 0600 hours shuttle, I entered first and threw myself into the seat adjacent to the hatch. By tradition, officers entered and exited first by rank. Distracted, I hardly noticed the enlisted personnel who entered after me.
< Fools should be ignored. They live in fear of life.> Thalia chided with a laugh that vibrated like a tuning fork. It produced a calming effect that somehow dissolved the toxic anger and tension.
< Thank you, Thalia. I should know better by now.> I replied with a mental sigh as I thought back to the incident at customs...
I’d entered the shuttle terminal bubbling with excitement at the thought of beginning my great new adventure aboard the cruiser Peregrine. It was my first fleet assignment. Thalia and I would be traveling to the stars. I couldn’t help smiling and humming softly as I handed the customs officer my fleet ID badge. Scowling, he took it carefully. Using only his thumb and index finger, he placed it into his scanner. Immediately, my picture appeared on the computer’s screen. I pressed my palm to the plate on the counter and “Verified” appeared across my picture. Ignoring me, he flung my ID on the counter and waved for me to proceed through the gate. His pale, clean-shaven face twisted in hatred, and he reeked of fear as he backed safely away from the counter and me. I felt his fear slowly give way to disgust as he stood with his back rigid against the barrier to the next station. The regular army soldiers guarding the entrance into the terminal likewise stepped back and away from me as I proceeded through the body-scan gate. Although such reactions no longer surprised me, I felt the pain and cruelty of the knee-jerk discrimination. Their salute was tentative and sloppy…
The slight shudder as the shuttle lifted off shook me out of my brooding. I turned to the window and watched Eden diminish in size as the space-docking terminal Hercules grew. From a distance, the massive structure looked like three old-fashioned bicycle wheels stacked on a long axle. Each wheel looked the size of a small city. Although I could see less than half of the docking station, I could see ten spaceships of varying sizes attached to the wheels. On the upper wheel, reserved for SAS ships, a War-class Heavy cruiser and a Defender-class Light cruiser were docked. Hundreds of maintenance personnel swarmed around them like bees around a hive. As we approached the upper wheel, a bay opened and the shuttle slid into the opening. I felt a slight bump as the shuttle gently touched down and engines shut off. It took several minutes for the bay doors to close and the shuttle indicator light over the door to turn green, indicating the bay was pressurized. When it did, the hatch slid open, and I exited down the ramp. I crossed the bay and walked down the stairway to the rail-glider platform. I didn’t have to wait long before a high-speed railcar quietly slid to a stop. I entered the lead compartment and found myself alone, although others had been waiting. When “F22/F26” flashed on the monitor, I signaled for a stop. Upstairs the corridor walls were a sterile steel-gray. I turned left, following the signs leading towards F24, where my orders stated I would find the Peregrine. I heard several individuals quietly talking behind me. Although I was walking slowly, they made no attempt to pass me.
* * * *
Lieutenant Commander Phillop stood relaxed in front of the entrance to the Peregrine with two fully armed Red Berets, Wasps. The cruiser wasn’t scheduled to leave for another twenty-four hours; therefore, traffic from planet-side leave was light and would remain so until late this evening or early morning. The ship’s compliment included four hundred navy and fifty airborne commandos, as assigned to every Light cruiser. Because the crew had served on the Peregrine for two or more years, the stop at Eden had resulted in a forty percent turnover. The new crew would include several graduates from Prometheus and Hephaestus.
One of those graduates a Riss-human. Phillop had read a little about the Riss Project and had mixed emotions. Over the past year, he’d heard a lot of opinions, including those from individuals who’d known Zann long before she had become a Vice Admiral. The opinions from those were positive or at least open-minded. The opinions from those who didn’t know her tended to be negative. It had been academic until his briefing from
Captain Gebauer this morning. Phillop had known the Captain for two years and had never seen him so upset.
“Phillop, this Riss-human experiment is an abomination, which will sooner or later cause a major disaster. I’ve had the bad luck to have one assigned to the Peregrine.” He paused and took several sips of wine from a crystal goblet. His face was red and twisted in anger. “I’m assigning It to you. I’m sorry, but shuttle maintenance is the least sensitive area. When It reports in, send It to me immediately. I want to put It in its proper place. Maybe I can minimize the disaster it’s certain to cause. I tried to get It assigned to another cruiser, but that damn Zann has too much influence with the powers that be. Dismissed.”
“Yes, Sir.” Phillop saluted. The Captain was still fuming and mumbling as he quietly slipped out of his office.
Afterward, he’d reviewed the new Lieutenant’s record carefully. She would be assigned to him; therefore, if she caused any problems, it would reflect on him and potentially impact his career. Ironically, her record turned out to be impressive. She came from a small mining colony on the planet Corona. At Prometheus, she scored consistently at the top of her classes for the entire four years and had graduated Hephaestus, With Comment, which had earned her a promotion to Lieutenant. Her project councilor rated her stable, highly compatible with her Riss, and eager to learn. Since her record would please any officer she was assigned to, Phillop couldn’t help but wonder what Captain Gebauer had found to negate it. The most likely possibility was that he had been told something “off the record”.
His musing was interrupted when he noticed a young, petite girl hesitate at the entrance to F24. She turned and headed directly towards him. The tattoo on her left cheek was startling. At first he thought it marred what would otherwise be a very attractive face. Her skin was a light olive color, hair a dark brown, pulled back in a long tail, beautiful sea-blue-green eyes slanting ever so slightly, high cheek bones, small pug nose, full lips, and a slightly pointed chin. But in a way, the tattoo gave her an exotic look, which one overlooked because of her waif-like stature. She was small but definitely not a girl-child. She appeared proud, confident, and all navy, as she stopped in front of him, handed over her ID, and saluted.