Alastair (Ghosts of Ophidian Book 2)

by Scott McElhaney

  “To a mystery world that has all but completely shut down the Oort Station,” he said, “For understandable reasons, I’ve never felt a calling to fight for Ophidian. I never lived there and I never took the time to learn their language, so I don’t know anything about them. I’ve never felt a calling to fight for Earth or any specific country there because I’ve never been there and I don’t know anyone there. I have however felt a calling to fight for the Oort Station. This is my home and I love the people who live here. Shouldn’t we do whatever we can to fight for the survival of our ‘planet’?”

  “So you really are leaving, Theo?” his mother called from the living room.

  “Mom, I’m saying that we all need to leave,” he hollered back to her, “Our trade is going to be cut in half or worse. We’ve already been losing the business of visiting sailors. Pretty soon, we will be receiving less flour, sugar, coffee, tuna, chicken feed, and oil. You and I both know what that will eventually lead to. Our greenhouses only produce fifteen-percent of our food as it is!”

  “And you believe that we can find a ship willing to take on half a million stowaways?” she asked, joining them at the table.

  “These pretzels are really good, Marisa,” Jill said.

  “I make sure to always have them just in case I don’t feel like making dinner. Pretzels and dip can always fill in the void,” she said.

  Theo took another pretzel from the bag, “Sadly, I don’t think we’ll find anyone willing to allow us to abandon this station. To be honest, if the trade is cut in half, the crew of this station can be cut in half. If we weren’t being kept in the dark, we could prepare logically for such a thing.”

  “And if you present your case to the Oort government, you’ll be seen as just another crazy conspiracy theorist,” Jill said.

  “So we need to come up with a plan to hitch a ride – the three of us,” Theo said.

  “No, Theo. This plan for three stowaways turns quickly into six when I think about our extended family. That doubles again when they refuse to leave without their loved ones. It doubles again and again until we are looking to evacuate several hundred,” his mother said.

  “Your reasoning makes sense, Marisa, but I have a family too and I don’t want them left behind. We have to accept the role of scouts, which means we leave and find out if the mystery planet is a good place for our families to come to,” Jill said, “If it is, we send word back with a returning ship. If it’s not, we return and come up with a ‘plan B’.”

  “Using that way of thinking, only one needs to go on the scouting mission,” she replied.

  “True, but Alastair already tried that method. He was either captured or killed. Either way, his silence is a bad thing,” Theo said, “I’d feel better if all three of us went.”

  “And what if we’re caught? Do we go armed? What do we pack?” his mother asked, “I mean, we’re not talking about some childish venture here.”

  “I know, Mom,” he replied, “Do you think I’m just going to put on a fake moustache and pluck out my left eye so I can try to pass myself off as U.S. President Lech? It’s not a joke to me and I know we need a realistic plan.”

  Silence filled the room as they looked at each other. Theo took a drink from his glass, then set it down. He glanced around the room, then took a bite of his pretzel and chewed it slowly.

  “Dad’s probably hanging out somewhere in this room right now,” Theo said.

  “Don’t start,” his mother growled.

  Ten

  The digital chart just outside the pier marked all the recent arrivals and departures. The GC12 Raider was currently docked with a noted requirement of two water tanks. Two Galactic Cruisers left in the last hour – one headed for Ophidian and the other for O & D or “Observation and Discovery”. O & D could mean anything, but it was originally supposed to be the manifest for a ship travelling to uncharted territory.

  Anymore, people mindlessly listed O & D for everything, even if they were really going to Legacy or Ophidian. Theo looked down the list to check the upcoming arrivals. One of the few Trader Vessels left in existence was headed out to Ophidian and would be stopping for four tanks around noon. TV3 Magellan was probably the last in its class that hadn’t been scrapped or converted into a Colonial Establishment Cruiser.

  He checked his wristwatch and verified that it was now 10:30am. He returned his attention to the chart and immediately noticed something further down the list that startled him. The GC3 Niels H D Bohr was due in around 4:15 this afternoon from Earth and it would be headed out for O & D. That was the ship Alastair left on and the last he heard, it never showed up anywhere since.

  He read the name of the ship twice just to make sure he wasn’t misreading it. He felt the presence of someone else nearby. He turned around and noticed the bum who gave him the sheol weed standing a few feet behind him.

  “Looking for a ride?” he asked, ambling over to the chart, “How’d you like the weed?”

  “Stay away from me, old man,” Theo said, “Where do you get the stuff you gave me anyway?”

  “You lookin’ to cut out the middle man? Sorry, kid, no dice,” he replied.

  “It’s just a shame that you’re contributing as much to the death and destruction of our home as the people building those one-tank ships,” he said, turning back to the chart.

  “The ones who die from the weed are the ones who’ve already given up on life anyway. The ones who live are usually smarter from the experience and more often than not, they are quick to sign up for waste service on a departing ship,” he said, “You’d do well to thank me for pushing everyone a little quicker in the right direction – whatever direction that may be for them individually.”

  “What’s waste service?” he asked.

  “If you need to be told, you don’t want to know,” he replied, “Nasty job.”

  “No, I mean, what’s this about signing up for it? Are we able to hitch a ride on outgoing ships?” he asked.

  “Are you kidding? How do you think these ships get their BWTTs? Do you think people are lining up on Earth to apply for jobs as Biological Waste Treatment Technicians?” he laughed.

  “Where do I apply?” he asked, watching the amused bum in front of him.

  “Just go to any terminal on the ship. Bring up the departures and select the link for ‘service’. Tell them Blee sent you in the ‘recommendations’ block and they may show you a little favor in the job selection,” he said.

  “Seriously?”

  “I told you last time, kid. My clientele list is vast so I’ve got a lot of connections,” he said with a wink

  . . . .

  The bum from twenty-six was right. He immediately left and decided to check to see if Jill was home. She was one of the lifers like he and his mom, but she lived on level fifteen in one of the small homes built in the portion that used to be the old mall.

  When they converted the mall on fifteen into homes, they changed very little in the exterior appearance. Some of the glass storefronts remained, but they were now covered with curtains as they were home to a family or two. Some of the smaller stores were connected in order to provide a reasonable size residence. In most cases, they did change the storefronts to look more like a home and less like a showcase for mannequins.

  Jill’s home was once a toy store that was made to appear as if built from giant Legos. That was one Earth import that the children of the station could never get enough of. Since the colorful construction toy was so popular, her parents chose to keep the Lego façade for the front of their home.

  He knocked on the door. After a moment, he heard the sound of two locks being released before the door opened. It was one of Jill’s little sisters.

  “Oh, it’s you,” she groaned, then walked away with the door still open, “You boyfriend’s here, Jill.”

  He took that comment as an invitation to come in. He’d been in her house many times before and it always felt so claustrophobic. Jill lived in a home no bigger than his, but
the only difference was, she lived with three sisters and her two parents. With two sisters under the age of six and another who was only at the “just starting to blossom” stage between ten and thirteen, her home was always crazy, noisy, and depressing all at the same time.

  He closed the door behind him and had no warning before his knees were wrapped in a bear hug.

  “My Thee-Thee is here!” Jill’s four-year old sister hollered as she hugged his legs.

  “Hey, Faithy!” he said, lifting her up and giving her a proper hug, “Where’s Jill?”

  “Taking a shower,” she replied as he set her down, “I think she’s done though ‘cause I heard the hair dryer.”

  Jill’s grumpy pre-teen sister Angela looked over at him from the sofa, then returned her attention to the entertainment panel.

  “So I guess this means I’ve got babysitting duty yet again,” Angela grumbled, “When do I ever get to go out and leave Jill with the brats?”

  “Nice to see you too, Ange,” he said, escaping the zombie via the hallway.

  He could hear the hair dryer through the bathroom door. He knocked on the door.

  “Jill?” he called.

  She opened the door and blessed him with a bright smile. She turned off the hair dryer and set it on the sink.

  “Darn! If you got here ten minutes ago, you could have joined me in the shower,” she winked, then wrapped him in a hug.

  “Are you trying to drive me more insane than I already am?” he asked, kissing her tenderly on the lips.

  “Just trying to keep your attention on me and not on those anorexic babes on level fourteen,” she said, kissing him quickly on the nose and releasing him.

  “My neighbors? Don’t tell me you’re jealous of the twins,” he laughed, “I doubt I’ve ever spoken a single word to them beyond ‘hey’ or ‘hi’. And outside of my family, I think I’ve only ever told one person that I loved them.”

  “Who was that?” she asked, running a brush through her hair.

  “Hmmm, I don’t remember,” he played along, “But I can tell you she was beautiful enough to melt all the ice in the Kuiper Belt.”

  “Wow, that sounds like some stiff competition,” she said, drawing her hair up into a ponytail and banding it, “Not sure I can compete with that.”

  “I think you’ve been doing just fine,” he replied.

  She turned off the bathroom light and nudged Theo into the hall where she then led the way to the living room.

  “So, what brings you to the other lifer level?” she asked.

  He followed her into the small kitchen.

  “The bum on twenty-six,” he said, “He told me that we could apply for a job on any outgoing ship. Have you heard of this?”

  She took an apple from the basket, then offered him one. He declined.

  “Yeah, but isn’t it in sewage treatment or something like that?” she asked.

  “Well yeah, but it’s a free ride and it’s legal,” he said, “We wouldn’t have to huddle in some greasy hole, hoping no one finds us before we made it to the new planet.”

  “It’s refining human dung into compost, Theo. It might be done by modern plumbing and complicated machines, but guess who has to clean out the machines and do the repairs when needed?” she said.

  “It’s not just that, Jill. There’s something else.”

  She bit into the apple and watched him as she crunched noisily.

  “My brother’s ship is docking around 4:15 today, but it’s coming from Earth. This means the ship is still operational and it must have returned within the past few days,” he said, “You and I both know that he would have contacted us if he returned with that ship.”

  She stopped chewing and gaped at him. The concern was evident in her features.

  “He would have returned if he could have,” she said, her mouth still full of apple.

  “I know. I need to know what happened to him. I’d clean a year of poop from machines if that’s what it takes,” he said, “I’d do the same for you, Jill. When you love someone, this is what you do.”

  She chewed her bite, then nodded.

  Eleven

  Two days passed without any word from Alastair. Two days passed since Theo and Jill applied for any ship heading out for O & D. Two days passed since he’d told his mother that they would be leaving without her.

  It was the middle of the night when the notification came informing them that they would be joining the crew of the MF29 Truman. Although it was just a merchant freighter with a very limited crew, the cooking staff agreed to taking on two lackeys for kitchen cleanup and dishwashing. Their ride would be arriving at the station at 10:20 in the morning and departing immediately after being loaded up with two water tanks.

  Theo’s mother reluctantly accepted the plan after much dispute during breakfast. Jill’s family didn’t put up much of a fuss at all; at least that was what she told Theo. They insisted on saying their “good byes” at their respective homes instead of dragging their families to twenty-six. By 10:30, Jill and Theo found themselves waiting at the end of the pier on twenty-six. They each were only allowed two duffle bags plus the clothes on their backs.

  “Why is a freighter headed out on O & D?” Theo asked to pass the time while they waited for a representative from the Truman.

  “I’m actually happy it’s a freighter. Those might be enormous ships, but they only run on a crew of about twenty or twenty-five. Any other ship and we’d be looking at getting to know a crew of at least five times as many,” she replied, “I wonder how they treat new members.”

  Their conversation was temporarily halted by the click of heels echoing down the long pier passageway.

  “Were your sisters upset?” Theo asked as he watched the approaching figure.

  “Not really. Faithy was more upset about you leaving than me,” she said, “I think they all understood that we’re coming back for them if all is okay.”

  The figure turned out to be an Asian man of perhaps fifty years. Although he walked with a sturdy and commanding gait, he wore no military-like uniform as was often seen on most ship personnel. He stopped a few yards from them and gave a nod of greeting.

  “Would you be the kitchen crew that the MF Truman is bringing on for this trip?” he asked.

  “Yes sir,” Theo said, “Theo and Jill at your service.”

  “I’m the ship’s owner Siang Lee,” he said, reaching out to shake their hands, “Last names?”

  “No sir,” Jill said, “Last names are earned with a graduation diploma here on the station.”

  “Oh yes, I think I heard of that policy here. Well, perhaps we will issue you one after we get to know the two of you,” he said, “Why don’t you grab your bags and follow me?”

  He turned before they could even respond. Theo and Jill retrieved their bags from the floor and followed quickly behind the owner. Mr. Lee moved quickly down the long corridor and then turned down the side corridor commonly referred to as a docking pier.

  The docking pier was an expandable passage that securely connected the pier itself to the visiting ship. It was equipped with an airlock halfway through, but once it was attached to a ship, the dual airlock doors remained open. Theo ran his hand across the walls, feeling the ridges indicating where the passageway had expanded. Even the floor itself seemed to be made of a hundred separate sections.

  Once they passed the airlock, they found themselves faced with a black steel hatch. Mr. Lee inserted a metal rod into a coin-size hole and waited a second. A green light glowed from the end of the rod and the door opened.

  “Welcome to the Truman, Theo and Jill,” Siang stated as he gestured them into the ship ahead of him.

  They ducked through the doorway where two other men awaited them inside. The more muscular of the two men was wearing no shirt to cover his stringy tattooed muscles. He also happened to have a small, yet frightening looking weapon hanging from a shoulder strap at his side. The smaller man pointed to a wheeled cart and asked them to place
their bags on it.

  The sturdy hatch closed behind them with a metallic thud. Suddenly, a set of hands was roughly raking through Theo’s hair.

  “Hey!” he growled, noticing suddenly that Siang Lee was pushing Jill roughly against one of the walls.

  “Just verifying you’re still human,” the muscle man stated.

  The person who had been tousling Theo’s hair released him and nodded to the muscle man. Mr. Lee appeared to have a similar fascination with Jill’s hair. He released her and nodded also to the muscle man.

  “Looks like you’re okay. Sorry for the little attack,” he said, offering a hand to Theo.

  Jill turned to Theo with a questioning stare. He shrugged.

  “I understand your dismay. Why don’t I show you two a little something and maybe you’ll understand,” he said, motioning them to follow him down the dim corridor, “I’m the captain of this freighter and I’m sure you met the owner. You can call me Mutt.”

  Theo looked behind them and realized that one of the unidentified men was taking their bags away on the cart. Siang Lee was also heading off in the other direction.

  “I’m Jill, and this is Theo,” she said, following the muscular man with a giant red dragon tattooed across his shoulders, “Do you greet everyone this way?”

  “No, it’s actually a new thing. You see, until about three weeks ago, we thought my best friend and co-pilot was still one of us. Little did we know, something happened to him on a previous trip while travelling on another ship.”

  They turned down another dim passageway that led to a door marked with the double-snake-wrapped staff that identified medical facilities everywhere. He pushed through the swinging door and held it open for Jill and Theo to enter.

  “Why are you willing to hitch a ride on a freighter headed out to no particular destination?” Mutt asked, gesturing for them to follow him into one of the side rooms.

  “I wanted to find out what everyone else seems to know. My brother disappeared several years ago chasing the same answers,” Theo said.

  “Aha!” he said, jabbing his finger at him, “So, the people at the Oort Station aren’t as stupid as we all take them for. Check this out.”