Humble Beginnings

by Greg Alldredge

  “Listen, I want you to send me the footage your implant took from when we lost contact to when you were rescued.” Kip paused briefly before continuing. “I want to compare recordings.”

  “Compare my records to what?” Noah felt the pit of his stomach drop. He heard so many rumors about the station conducting the unauthorized recording of thoughts… The storage of so many beings, the hours of recordings boggled the mind. “Kip, tell me.”

  “While you are connected to the suit, the company records your memories along with the telemetry of the suit. It was a condition of your employment contract. I thought you knew.” Kip’s voice remained mechanical, as always. “You are safer in the med bay… The station is experiencing… unrest.”

  Noah didn’t know of anyone who read the sixteen-page employment contract. When he was finally offered a job, he signed where he was told to and counted himself happy to be working. There were too many creatures out of work to be too overly fussy. Rather than argue over the recordings, he sent the required information over the link. “What kind of unrest?” For the first time, Kip stressed a word in a manner that relayed more information than he normally gave. It was like the mechanical voice worked hard at sarcasm. “Tell me what is going on out there.”

  “I am not on the station proper, but comms have been shut down. The media has been cut off. No news or contact has come out for the past thirty minutes.”

  Kip’s words made Noah’s blood run cold. Media blackouts were rare, normally only during armed revolts or other extreme martial law situations. The med bays remained silent.

  “Tell me, have you ever heard the prophecy of Schiele?” Kip asked over the comms link.

  “No, I can’t say that I have.” Noah walked to the glass panels, cupped his hands, and tried to see anything through the frosted wall.

  “It is one of our creation myths, an old story. There was once a box, and the gods locked all the evil in the universe in it. They took the evil from our people and sent the guardian Schiele to protect the box from discovery. After the box was taken from our reach, the Skoonlin gave up all war, all hate, and eventually gave up our corporal bodies for the mechs you see today. Because of Schiele, we have obtained our level of peace.”

  “That’s a wonderful story… but, Kip, why are you telling me this?” Noah walked back to the hospital bed and leaned on the edge.

  “What is this?” A picture of the purple shape flashed before Noah’s memory.

  “That was really there? I thought I just saw things. My brain playing tricks on me as my oxygen became depleted.”

  Kip remained silent.

  “You still there?” Noah paused before thinking the words once again. “Kip… talk to me?”

  “I needed to check to see if hallucinations might be collected by the ocular implants. The results are inconclusive.”

  Noah heard a strange noise on the far side of the glass. Which was odd. He always thought the med bay was soundproof. “Tell me what is going on, please.” Noah rarely felt claustrophobic, but being locked in the room worked on his nerves.

  “The purple image bears a striking resemblance to Schiele, our guardian of luck.”

  “Okay… I don’t believe in angels.”

  “Why do you use that term?”

  “Listen… with the wings and all, that image looks like religious iconology from Earth. Like an angel.”

  “Interesting…” The sound in Kip’s voice did little to comfort the growing sense of dread that washed over Noah.

  “No, it’s not! I don’t believe in that bull. It could have been Santee Clause down there for all I know. A myth, fairytale, a folktale told to kids.” A loud slapping sound crashed against the opaque glass. “Damn it… Kip, can you get me out of here?”

  Kip said, “That is ill-advised, but I will see what I can do.”

  Something dark red splattered against the glass and slowly started to slip towards the floor. Noah had a guess what the gore was, but he didn’t want to consider the grisly possibilities. He spotted no bodies hitting the barrier, but that didn’t really mean anything.

  His worse fears about his memories had been confirmed. Rumors flittered about the miners’ quarters about black-market recordings of stolen memories. Death memories, modern versions of snuff films, being a huge seller. Noah hated to think about the whole market, even refused to consider the possibility, but it stood to reason if memories could be recorded and stored, then the tech had to be there to swap memories to another brain. What kind of sick bastard would deal in such filth…?

  Another slap on the glass made Noah jump in shock. Someone was out there. He was not certain if they wanted to reach inside the room or if they just got their jollies from hitting the glass. Like a kid with a fishbowl, constantly tapping the glass… Now Noah understood how the fish felt.

  “Talk to me, Kip… Things are getting real down here.”

  “I am currently working on an interface with the med unit controls… It is not easy.” Kip cleared his throat. Noah didn’t even know his mechanical voice needed to do that. “Did you know humans have a similar legend to our Schiele?”

  “No… Can you please get me out of here?”

  “I am capable of doing more than one thing at a time.” It almost sounded like Kip’s feelings were hurt by the tone of his voice. “It seems one of your gods placed all the evil in a container. Your legend has a different ending, of course.”

  The glass reverberated louder, like someone hit it with a hammer.

  Noah asked, “What happened?”

  “The humans opened their box, letting out all the evil into the world.”

  “Great…”

  “I wonder if you opened our box as well?”

  “Look, I didn’t open shit. My drill hit a gas pocket—”

  Kip cut off Noah before he finished defending his actions. “Got it.” The glass turned to clear. On the far side stood at least ten people covered in blood. All with blank eyes, until they noticed Noah standing alone in the sealed room. At their feet lay the bodies of the dead, covered in blood. It was easy to assume what happened to the fallen.

  The first to see him opened its mouth wide. It was a dark-skinned male Prod, but all sense of humanity had left the dead eyes that locked onto Noah. He couldn’t hear the creatures on the far side of the glass, but he was certain they all screamed at once, and they threw their bodies into the glass barrier.

  Noah screamed as he backpedaled away from the clear wall and the attacking creatures. “Put it back, put it back, put it back!”

  “You don’t want out?” Kips asked.

  “Listen… I am sending you my live feed… This news needs to get out. Don’t let the company bury what is going on here… This could be bad for… everyone.” Noah keyed in the live feed from his implants to Kip, who remained safely off the refining station.

  “I am receiving your feed.” The words seemed hollow to the horror Noah witnessed.

  The bodies on the far side of the glass attacked with abandon. Blood covered their arms and faces. Noah couldn’t tell if the gore was theirs or if they had attacked others. From the way they threw themselves at the glass, trying to reach Noah, he had to assume they would eat him alive if they reached him. Noah asked the universe, “What was in that box?”

  Kip, rather than the universe, answered, “I have no indication what I am witnessing on the feed has anything to do with the mysterious box you located. This might not have anything to do with you.”

  “You’re saying I just have the bad luck of finding it… Wrong place at the wrong time?”

  The glass went back to opaque, but the creatures kept attacking the glass. It seemed to be keeping them at bay.

  “On the contrary. An argument could be made that you are extremely lucky. You discovered the box, and the purple creature touched you, causing your isolation as the outbreak happened on the station. Perhaps Schiele’s touch has brought you luck.”

  “Great to hear… I’m not out of this yet…” The a
rgument made a twisted kind of logic to Noah. It was better than the alternative that he caused this outbreak… whatever this illness was.

  “I just intercepted a message from Far Reach. They are sending a relief force.”

  “How long until they arrive?”

  “At least two cycles, station time.”

  The mob outside the glass kept banging to get in. Noah hoped they would forget about him once he was no longer in their view. “I’m not sure I will be alive in sixteen hours.”

  “I am pulling up schematics of your area now.” The mechanical voice Kip had didn’t leave room for the feeling of optimism.

  Noah was held in a quarantined section of the med bay. There would be no convenient air ducting to shimmy out of. He was no station designer, but he believed, to keep the crew safe from contamination, this part of the station needed to be sealed off from the rest.

  A quick inspection showed him no grates covering ducting he could remove and make his escape. He wasn’t that lucky. The few access panels in the room were closed with tamper-proof fasteners. With no tools at his disposal, he was screwed. The only thing he found was a pair of surgical scissors, not much of a defensive weapon.

  “I’m sorry… I can find no way out of the containment zone,” Kip said, his voice the same monotone.

  The infected continued to beat on the tempered glass. “I didn’t think so. I will try to remain quiet. Maybe they will forget I am in here.” Noah had few places to hide. He stretched out on the hospital bed and covered himself with a sheet. Best to look as dead as possible.

  “I can find no news about this new outbreak, but a yellow box has been put over the refinery. No ships allowed in or out. I see a report concerning a report of a new case of Indus-lyssaviruses.”

  “No matter what happens, get the word out about what happened here. Don’t let the bastards get away with this. This isn’t no case of rabies. This is the company covering up…”

  Kip said, “I will do what I can. I have tapped into the security feed. I am recording everything I can get my hands on.”

  The pounding increased on the glass. There was no way he could sleep through what was about to happen. “Kip… one last thing. Can you trank me? I don’t think I want to be awake for what comes next.”

  “As you wish.” There was a sudden prick from the bed. Before Noah could say another word, he drifted off into a drug-induced sleep.

  <=OO=>

  “Noah… can you hear me?” Kip’s voice rang in his ears. It took a massive effort, but he opened his eyes, only to find he was sealed in a containment bag.

  With a thought, he answered, “I’m here, but I’m not sure where here is.”

  “You’re on the loading dock on Far Reach Station. You need to get out of there. They will be back to dispose of the bodies at any moment.”

  Noah didn’t have time to worry about what happened after he fell asleep. Now he needed to escape. The plastic material that made up the body bag would do little to protect him from the vacuum outside the station. Or worse, if they ran the bodies through the recyclers… He pushed and clawed at the bag with no effect. The material pressed hard against his body, offering little room to move.

  His fingertips touched something hard. The blunt medical scissors lay next to him. With an effort, he cut into the side of the bag. The seal broken, he was able to force his way out of the container.

  He hit the floor with a thud. Stacks of body bags lay next to him. Now was the time for action, not deep reflection. The light gravity made it easy to jump to his feet.

  “Make for the exit. I will send your clearance.”

  Noah wasn’t sure how Kip was able to hack the station’s system, but at this point, he didn’t care. His only thoughts were survival. He marched to the checkpoint like he owned the station. Head held high, he was shocked when the remotely piloted guard waved him through.

  “I told you, the luck guardian has touched you.”

  He reached the elevator as the door opened. Out piled four of the extremely tall Rankin guards all dressed in black uniforms of the special police.

  Noah nodded as they passed him by. He slipped into the lift and pressed the down key. The doors closed as the last alien turned to give him a final inspection.

  Noah hadn’t realized his breath had been held during the entire encounter. “How did that…” Noah verbized the words, still in shock.

  “Pick your poison: the luck guardian or god from the machine.” For the first time, Kip chuckled.

  Noah had never believed the creatures understood humor. Not that he found the comment funny. “I’m not sure I understand the humor…” The gravity increased as the lift sped toward the outer rings of the station.

  “Simple enough, I programmed the med table to knock you out. The drug should have worn off just before the station personnel arrived. There was a malfunction, and the table placed you in a deep medical coma… near enough to death. The special police never tested for brain activity.”

  “I was nearly killed by the med table. That doesn’t sound lucky.” Noah had been in microgravity for so long, his body struggled to adapt to the added weight.

  “On the contrary, the special forces assumed all on the station were infected. The station has been sanitized. If you had been standing in the med bay, they surely would have killed you as well.”

  The drugs must still be working on his system. The words relayed into his brain were simple enough, but the ramifications weighed heavy on his soul. “Everyone at the refining station is dead?”

  “Yes. Granted, from what I gathered, most were dead or infected already. Whatever attacked the personnel on the station acted quickly and was near one hundred percent lethal.

  “I downloaded everything I could and turned in my letter of resignation. The company and station crossed several lines, and I do not wish to work to support their ways any longer.”

  “Where are you now?” Noah struggled to remain upright. The rail of the lift was his best support.

  “I hopped the first transport to the station. I will meet you at the bottom of the lift. The other mines are unaffected. Ships in the area passed through without infection. The only place affected is where they took that opened crate you found.”

  “Don’t say it…” Noah was in no mood for the thought that he somehow became a mass murderer by simply doing his job.

  “I won’t, but you know what is true.” Kip let the words hang between them.

  The doors to the lift opened, and Noah stumbled onto the platform. Creatures from a dozen different systems strolled by without giving him a glance. He was lucky no one did look his way. He felt about to hurl his guts over the station deck.

  A woman’s voice purred in his ear, “Come with me if you want to live.” An arm grabbed his elbow and led him to a moving sidewalk.

  “Kip?” Something about the way the woman talked led him to believe… He no longer knew what to believe.

  “You knew we could change bodies,” Kip’s voice echoed in Noah’s head. The grip on his arm was impossibly strong for a human female.

  “I know. I always thought of you as a guy… not sure why.” Noah followed the lead given him.

  “I don’t know why, either. Skoonlin don’t have sexual organs like many species. Since we don’t age like most, reproduction is not an imperative,” the female at his arm said. “This is a synthetic human body made to house my essence. It cost a lot of credits. Did I get a good deal?”

  Noah wasn’t in the physical or mental shape to consider the sex appeal of the body that helped him along, but he needed to tell his friend something. “I wouldn’t kick you out of bed for eating crackers.” He snorted softly as to not direct attention to himself.

  “An interesting euphemism. I will take it as a compliment.”

  “Good, I meant it as one. What is the plan?”

  Kip pushed Noah to the next lift heading deeper into the station. “We go to ground until you regain your strength, then we work on righting the wro
ngs the company and station have brought about.”

  Noah never pictured himself as a freedom fighter, but it looked like he had been drafted into the task. “Great, more gravity.”

  The doors to the lift closed. “The only way to get used to it is to experience it.”

  Noah hoped it was only the added weight to his body that made him feel like crap. The fact he’d recently escaped an unknown lethal illness didn’t escape him. With every step he took, the sickness could be spreading throughout the station. Kip said it was infectious and lethal. One hundred percent, he said.

  Noah would have worried about it more, but his body could no longer take the stress the gravity placed on him. He passed out.

  <=OO=>

  The bed was soft. The pillow cradled his head, and the comforter smelled of some long-distant flower. A soft pink glow filled the room. Not far off sat a female figure.

  “Where are we?” Noah figured the strange person was Kip.

  “Good, you’re awake. I was beginning to worry. When you passed out, I was concerned I made an error in judgment.”

  With some effort, Noah sat up. “You didn’t answer my question.” That was when he noticed the mirror on the ceiling. “Wait, what error in judgment.”

  “It is uncommon for a female to carry a male down the street. When you passed out, I took you to the nearest place… a local love motel.”

  It could have been worse. They could be holed up in a brothel.

  “While in the med bay, the scans found no evidence of sickness in your body. I assumed the scans were correct. That Schiele protected you from the illness.”

  “You’re saying it had nothing to do with the environmental suit I wore.” Noah would be hard-pressed to accept the idea of a luck guardian no matter the proof laid before him.

  “When you failed to recover, I was beginning to doubt my initial prognosis. There is always a chance the med unit could not detect the bug that caused the illness that wiped out the refinery.”

  “Are you suggesting I’m a Typhoid Mary?” Noah lay back down. His head spun from the exertion. “Aren’t you afraid of being contaminated?”