by J. J. Green
“You’d think they’d have a boat ready,” said Dave.
She didn’t reply, wondering how the dandrobians travelled long distances across the ocean without complex technology. Sailboats?
An alien waded out a short distance into the water, his robes floating around him. When he was chest deep, he dipped underneath. Carrie expected to see him surface as he began swimming, but he didn’t reappear. The other dandrobians were unperturbed by this behaviour.
“What’s he doing?” Dave asked Carrie.
“I think...I think he might be arranging our transportation.” .
“He is,” said a nearby dandrobian, overhearing their conversation. “It should arrive soon.”
“He’s going to drown if he stays under much longer,” said Dave.
“No, no,” said the alien. “A few of us can breathe under water. A remnant from the days when we could engineer our bodies to do whatever we liked. When we lost the war and were confined to this world, we were stuck with whichever adaptation we happened to be sporting at the time.”
The head of the water-breathing dandrobian broke the surface a short distance away. Standing upright, he rose higher and higher until he was impossibly high above the waves. Carrie gasped. A wide, silvery shape appeared in the water around him. He was standing on the back of a sea creature, and as it surfaced it carried him up with it. Sea water ran in torrents from its back as it rose. Wide and flat, it was shaped like a manta ray. Finally the creature stopped rising and bobbed gently as it lay floating on the ocean surface.
“I think our ride’s arrived,” Carrie said.
“Off we go,” said a dandrobian, and Carrie and Dave followed the party out into the waves.
Broad and flat and glistening in the pink-tinged sunlight, the creature’s back held a series of ridges large enough to provide low, dandrobian-sized seats. At its front were eyes, just submerged, and on the upper surface were two holes like nostrils or whale blowholes. The water-breathing dandrobian seated himself behind these.
“Is it safe?” whispered Dave as he and Carrie settled into side-by-side seats.
“It’s safe, I’m sure of it,” replied Carrie quietly. “All dandrobian animals were engineered to be helpful or at least harmless a long time ago. I think this trip we’re taking is safe, too. If they wanted to kill us they could have done it earlier and in a much less elaborate way than this. The weakest dandrobian could snap our necks like wishbones.”
“Gee, thanks for that thought.”
“You know what I mean. Anyway, there are sea creatures that bring you back to shore if you swim out of your depth. We’d find it hard to drown if we wanted to. And some of them are coming with us. No, whatever they’ve got planned, they don’t want to hurt us. At least not yet.”
The dandrobian sitting at the head of the aquatic animal turned and called, “Are we all comfortable?”
“Yes, dear, we’re ready!” replied his fellows.
He reached into the hand-sized nostrils of the creature, and its wings began to undulate in the water. It turned smoothly so that it faced out to sea, and the ocean breeze whipped Carrie’s hair back from her face. Within a few moments they began to move forward, and soon they were sailing smoothly out into the waves.
The water was calm, and the motion of the animal was even, so that there was only a gentle rocking up and down, as if they were being rocked in a cradle. The sea breeze was balmy. Above, the large, pale sun came from behind a cloud, setting the wave tips alight. As they drew farther from the shore, Carrie began to relax. The air was warm, the sun was bright, and she was riding a magnificent sea creature across the ocean of an alien planet.
Gazing into deep blue sky she saw, flying high above them, its wings dazzlingly bright, a pegasus. She grabbed Dave’s arm and pointed.
“Bloody hell,” he said as he caught sight of the mythical animal.
“Is everything all right?” called a dandrobian seated behind them.
“Oh yes,” called Carrie.
“Are you enjoying yourselves?” said the dandrobian. “We thought you would.”
“But where are we going?” asked Carrie.
The dandrobian laid a finger along his nose and winked. “All in good time, my dears. All in good time.”
Chapter Twenty-Six – Window to the Past
The waves were growing larger, but their transportation skirted smoothly through the water. Carrie lay back in her seat, letting the motion sway her. On their left lay the coastline, and they remained within sight of it as they travelled. To their right was nothing but waves. Carrie wondered what land masses Dandrobia had and what they were like. The same rolling green hills and wildflowers as were around the complex rose along the shoreline. Carrie pointed them out to Dave, showing him the beauty of Dandrobia in the areas where the squashpumps had not scattered their dust.
Her friend turned to the dandrobians behind. “It’s a beautiful world you have here.”
The aliens exchanged glances and smiled wistfully. “Thank you,” said one, giving a slight bow “You’re very gracious. But we’ve lived with this design for millenia.”
“You can change the landscape?” asked Dave.
The dandrobian sighed. “We used to be able to, until they took away our technology. We could have whatever we wanted.” She gestured to the land they were passing. “I remember when this area was high cliffs. Sooo dramatic, darling. It was wonderful.”
“Did you like them?” asked her fellow. “I thought they were rather cliché. I much preferred the sand dunes.”
“Each to her own, but my point, dearest human, is that we’ve lived with the same old thing for thousands of years. It no longer captivates us. But we appreciate the compliment, don’t we, loves?”
“Oh yes, you’re very kind.” “It’s very sweet of you.” “Absolutely wonderful.”
“Of course,” continued another, “engineering the landscape is a mere frippery. We can do without it. What’s worse is that now we can die. If we have a serious accident we’re gone, just like that.” He snapped his fingers. “There was a time when if, for example, one of us was so unfortunate as to tumble from those cliffs, we might have been able to save the poor thing. Nowadays, an accidental knock to the head, a slip of a knife, and poof!”
“Well, you do live forever otherwise,” said Dave, “so it doesn’t seem that hard a fate.”
Dave’s opinion was not well received by the dandrobians. There were a few dark looks and frowns, but they quickly recovered their composure. “You probably wouldn’t understand,” said one. “If you can live for eternity, it makes dying that much harder.”
Dave glanced at Carrie and turned back round to face the front.
A puzzling idea had struck Carrie but she wasn’t sure if she should voice it. The conversation seemed to be straying into awkward territory, and the two of them were at the mercy of their hosts. She didn’t want to anger them, but Carrie had never been good at controlling her impulses. “But, if you don’t have the technology to prevent deaths from accidents any more, I’m assuming the rest of your medical care is pre-industrial too.”
“That’s absolutely right, dear. You’re so clever. It’s a dreadful shame.”
“So, if that’s the case, how come you’re all so perfect? No one has any scars or burns or stumps or anything. You’re all whole and flawless. Why is that? Sorry for asking. I don’t mean to be rude.”
For the second time the dandrobians’ equanimity slipped. They fidgetted and looked at each other. “Oh,” one broke out, “you’ve only seen a few of us. Some dandrobians have dreadful scars. Just dreadful.” She shook her head.
“Nearly there,” called the pilot over his shoulder. He pointed to the shore.
Carrie followed the line of his finger to a distant hill. It was a lush, green, smoothly shaped mound, and on the top of it was a sight that made Carrie’s heart leap. It was not made of rough, dirty white marble, battered by thousands of years’ exposure to the elements, but it was unm
istakeable. On a solid rectangular base were a series of columns supporting a low-pitched roof. The building was a riot of colour, but Carrie recognised it all the same. The Parthenon.
***
“Do you think we have to climb all the way to the top?” Dave asked Carrie as they disembarked the sea creature and waded through the shallows.
Close up, the hill was taller than it had appeared out at sea. Carrie estimated it was about 200 metres above sea level. No wonder it dominated the landscape. “Stop complaining. It’ll give you some much-needed exercise.” She always despaired at how hopelessly out of shape Dave was. He could get away with it now while he was young, but when he was older he would pay the price.
“I don’t mind a bit of a stroll,” he said, “but that’ll be like climbing Everest.”
Carrie rolled her eyes.
A dandrobian who had overheard their conversation wrapped a friendly arm around Dave’s shoulders, making him stagger. “Don’t worry, darling. We don’t have to climb up. That would be dreadfully tiresome. No, no, the temple’s just for show.” He chuckled. “Have patience, my loves. We’re nearly there, and then all will be revealed.”
The two humans followed the aliens in a wide circle around the base of the hill. The land that spread out around them was mixed forest and scrub, and some open patches of ground that held only one type of plant.
“We’re in an agricultural district,” explained a dandrobian.
“Really? It doesn’t look like any farmland I’ve ever seen.”
He shrugged. “We don’t farm. We gather. The land and plants are self-sustaining. Of course, nothing on Dandrobia is poisonous to us, but outside the agricultural zones the planting is mostly ornamental. It’s convenient to grow our major crops together in certain areas. This is one such place. There are many, scattered about.”
“Wow, you really thought of everything, didn’t you?”
“Not us, my dear.” He smiled condescendingly. “Our ancestors were the ones who created these places and others, before boredom and overpopulation drove them to seek out new worlds. We tweaked, here and there, and engineered the planets we colonised.”
Conquered, thought Carrie. But, though the dandrobians were not to be trusted, she couldn’t help admire them for their achievements. They had created a paradise, even if they didn’t appreciate it. But what did they have in store for her and Dave? All pretence about taking them to see areas the squashpumps had damaged seemed to have been forgotten.
They were nearing the side of the hill away from the shore, and the leading dandrobian was striding purposefully towards the green bank of its side. Only the hill was in front of her. Carrie wondered if maybe they would have to climb it after all, as there was nowhere else for them to go but up. The female stopped at the hill’s base and turned. “Are we quite sure, everyone?” She was speaking to the other dandrobians, not to Carrie or Dave.
“Yes, don’t let’s stop now. We’ve come this far. We can’t go back.”
“Very well.” She about-faced and resumed her path, but as she reached the bottom her feet didn’t step upwards, they disappeared into the grass. In a moment she had walked right into the hill.
Chapter Twenty-Seven – Revelation
Carrie and Dave gaped.
“Don’t worry, loves. She’s only gone inside. We’ll follow. It’s perfectly safe.”
Dave’s alarmed eyes sought Carrie’s, but she had no reassuring look to return. They kept pace with their companions as they neared the hill, and her arms came up reflexively as they went inside.
She felt nothing at all as they passed through the seemingly solid grassy slope. It’s just an illusion. Inside, the light was so brilliant she had to screw up her eyes. Myriad overhead lights were reflecting off a shiny floor and walls. Checking behind her, where they had entered, she saw a faceless wall with a faint line marking the boundary of the entrance.
They were in a room that must have filled the base of the hill. It was utterly unlike all the dandrobian structures Carrie had seen. There was none of the aging, faded, colourful charm of the receiving hall, retiring room, meeting room and other buildings in the government complex. This place could have been built yesterday. Each surface was spotlessly clean and white, from floor to ceiling. Cubicles ran down both sides, their walls too high for Carrie to see over, and there were narrow corridors between them and the main walls. In the centre was an open space. Bizarrely, the place reminded her of the call centre where she and Dave worked, only the cubicles were larger. It was also immaculate and looked brand new.
Carrie realised her mouth was hanging open, and she shut it like a trap. Dave looked similarly amazed. The dandrobians were watching them steadily, their faces inscrutable, though their affable masks had been dropped. They were all very, very serious.
“Welcome to our engineering center,” said one.
“Your...? But you...” Carrie didn’t know what to say.
“We aren’t allowed to engineer, nor have engineering centres,” said another dandrobian. “Precisely. And yet we do have them. And this isn’t the only one.”
“Shhh, don’t tell her so much.”
“There’s no point in keeping secrets any longer. Now that we’ve shown them this, we’re past the point of no return.”
Carrie’s mind was struggling to process the implications of the revelation. “So...” She swallowed. “Why are you showing us this?”
Dave seemed to have come to the same realisation. They were both now in dreadful danger. Much more danger than they had been back in the complex. The two edged closer together.
“We have an offer to make,” said the female dandrobian who had led them in. “We’re tired of this world. We want to wander the stars again. We’ve been confined long enough, and we’ve paid our price a thousand times over. But the Unity won’t listen to us. All they’re interested in is apologies and reparations. They’ve bled us dry. And for what? For a little governance of some primitive worlds. We brought civilisation to the planets we colonised. Most of their sentient species would still be grubbing in the dirt if it weren’t for us. And were they grateful? No. Dictators, they called us. Tyrants. When all we wanted to do was help.
“We’ve had enough. We aren’t prepared to give any more apologies. We want our freedom. We need our freedom. We’re dying here. Suffocating. We’re an intelligent species. We need stimulation. Challenges. We’re rotting here, Transgalactic Intercultural Community Crisis Liaison Officer Hatchett. But with your help, we can be free.”
There was a pause. The dandrobians were watching Carrie for her reaction. She tried her best to keep her face expressionless. “And, er, what help do you think I can offer? I’m just—”
“In your report. You’ve seen what the squashpumps did to us. It’s only going to get worse as each species we ruled reaches the stage of development where they can join the Unity. They’re all going to come looking for us and seeking retribution for harms they imagine we caused.” The female stepped closer. “When you complete your report you can recommend the sanctions are lifted for our safety. Your recommendation would carry much weight. You’ve been here during the attacks. You’ve seen it all. A recommendation. It’s all we ask of you.”
Remembering the squashpumps’ message, Carrie knew the ‘attack’ was fake. How the dandrobians had pressured the squashpumps into it she didn’t know yet, but they were clearly trying to play her. In a dandrobian lifetime she wasn’t going to agree to their request, but she couldn’t tell them that, considering the position they were both in. “But you could have asked me this back at the complex. Why have you brought us here?”
“To persuade you,” burst out another dandrobian, with such energy Carrie took a step back.
“No, no, it isn’t what you think,” said the female. “Don’t we keep telling you we don’t mean any harm? We aren’t tyrants, Officer Hatchett. We’re champions of galactic civilisation.” She put her hands together beneath her chin. “We’ve brought you here to offer yo
u...a makeover.”
A silence stretched out as the dandrobians watched them.
“That isn’t what I thought you were going to say,” said Carrie.
“What kind of makeover?” asked Dave slowly.
“Well, anything you like, really darling. Though we’d be happy to make one or two suggestions if you aren’t sure what kind of look you want to go for.”
Carrie raised a finger hesitantly. “If I can just get this straight—you’re offering my friend and I a haircut, make-up and new clothes in return for my recommendation that your entire species be set free from imprisonment?”
At this, the dandrobians began laughing. They laughed so much they cried, and some had to cling to others to stop themselves from falling to the floor. When their giggles had died away sufficiently for one of them to speak, he said, “No, no my dear. We can do sooo much more than that. We are dandrobians!” He shook his head and waggled a finger. “Surely you’ve noticed what we’re capable of? A world that, from the peak of the highest mountain to the deepest ocean trench, we have transformed for our needs? To be frank, my dear, I’m the teensiest bit insulted. Do you really think all we can provide is a new haircut and a make-up session?”
“No, no, my love.” The female stepped close to Carrie, who craned her neck to look up into the alien’s face. “No. We can offer you much much more.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight – Carrie’s Struggle
The male who had spoken also moved closer, and the two began to circle Carrie. “Wouldn’t you, for example, like to be a little taller? Wouldn’t you like to change your hair colour to a, let’s say, more pleasing shade? We could make your eyes larger and even them up, straighten and refine your nose, make your face more symmetrical. Did you know you have a few tiny wrinkles already and your skin is losing its lustre?”