Titan Stand

by Max Jager

  There was another time he found himself unable to sleep so he went and sat in the lounge and worked on navigation problems. Not long after, Ilmi joined him claiming she couldn't sleep either.

  "Have you given anymore thought to me going to earth with you Matt?" She asked.

  "Well If I do go," he replied, "More than likely it will be on someone else's ship, last time it was your grandfather's." There's a bounty hunter named Brand Ti'Korvo who has expressed interest in going as well, it's possible we may go on his ship."

  "Well I know him…His wife as well, I'm sure they'd let me tag along if it was their ship you went in." He suddenly had a thought,

  "Ilmi, what do you think of the Malhazars?" She looked at him,

  "As individuals or an entire race?"

  "Both I guess."

  "Well as a race, you never want to cross them or cheat them on a deal. If you want to get an idea of how they view the world watch the video reports coming out of that investigation on Ruddoria. I don't know who their representatives are but there certainly isn't any shortage of shouts and accusations or charges of favoritism. Honestly though, I've only been to Moriedia two or three times and then only one visit was longer than a few milacenton."

  "Well I happen to know one personally in fact. She was part of the Malhazar gun ship crew we recently rescued on Tumar-Ju."

  "Really?" mused Ilmi, "What was her specific duty on that gun ship?"

  "She told me as a turret gunner as well as a general classification, but I'm not sure I believe her. Problem is I'm new around here and am not familiar with crew duties on Malhazar war ships. The fact that she was on that ship at all was a big surprise to me."

  "Well like I said," replied Ilmi, I'm not terribly well versed in Malhazar war ship load-outs either. Maybe if I could talk with her?"

  "What's she like?" continued Ilmi.

  "We uh, spent the night together," he replied, "Now she thinks we're going steady."

  "I'm not familiar with that term," replied Ilmi, "But if by that you mean she thinks she's your number one, then I'd say she's no doubt harboring over dominant feelings which could indicate feelings of inferiority…Or, she suffers from rejection and you were the first male to exhibit any feelings of tenderness and interest towards her which once again could spell trouble." Matt gave her a puzzled look,

  "I didn't realize you were studying psychology as well?" Ilmi merely winked at him and snickered.

  "Listen earth boy, I've been around. One of my specialties is figuring people out, when you're dealing with as many races as there are here in the empire quickly figuring someone out can be a real plus, it can also keep you alive. Ever since I was little, I've been figuring people out. MOST…Of the time, I'm right or pretty close to it, you however are entirely different only because you come from an entirely different system, that's why I want to stick around, you need studying."

  Matt wasn't sure how to take all this, Ilmi was starting to intrigue him as well.

  "Well maybe you should get together with Kaitlyn," he said, "She's from earth as well, and through Tiag's efforts is getting into diplomacy." Ilmi chuckled,

  "Oh we've already talked, and she's told me all about you. I like her, we'll be speaking to each other a whole lot more in the future, believe me, but for now, it's just you."

  "Wow! Gee thanks," he exclaimed, "I'm honored."

  "Well look," said Ilmi, "If you want my honest opinion of her I need to spend some time talking with her. There are things I can ask her that you would never think of, so until that time let's spend our time worrying about other things."

  Chapter 88

  Titan Stand Chapter 88

  "Welcome back my friend!" Matt prepared himself for the handshake he was about to receive from Drok who stood at the bottom of the ramp wearing a big grin. Grabbing his massive paw Matt smiled as Drok's massive hand enveloped his own.

  "Well it's good to be back Drok," he replied, "I missed you guy, looks like a lot's been going on," he added nodding towards the two purifiers chugging along in the distance. As everyone else gathered around Drok pointed towards the distance.

  "Everything's working splendidly, better than expected, those purifiers are everything Gandric here promised." The two massive machines were the equivalent of twenty miles away yet were so large they looked only a few miles away.

  "What are those brown grassy trails?" He asked Drok.

  "Those trails as you call them are the ground cover created by the churning up of the detritus left from the massive war, along with organic matter and nutrients added by the machines. Eventually, proper growth of trees and shrubbery will occur and eventually, Ussen Ommo will be a world of colorful growth again." Everyone was beginning to notice the growing darkness in the sky as Drok added.

  "Come, let's go inside, it's going to start storming very shortly."

  "What's with the storms?" Inquired Matt, "I don't remember that it rained much the last time I was here." Drok, along with Gandric and Amber laughed,

  "Along with re-processing the soil and planting ground cover those purifiers discharge an ion energy beam into the sky," explained Gandric,

  "That's right," added Drok, "You need water along with the plant life, generally we'll get at least a couple good rainstorms a centon. Ussen Ommo has always had rain just never as much as we really needed, those purifiers simply collect the atmospheric elements that are always present into a concentrated area."

  "How about those piled up areas," continued Matt, "You know where the rubble is piled so high those machines wouldn't be able to get through them." Gandric took this one,

  "There's a third machine coming, but probably not for another couple drowl's, unfortunately they are experiencing…Problems, mostly due to the large amounts of ruble piled into one area." By now the sky was black and the rain was coming down hard along with thunder and lightening. Looking out towards the distant purifiers Matt could see clear skies in the far horizon. The machines were highlighted in an eerie light cast by the sporadic lightening making him wish he had a picture of the spectacular scene.

  "Well young fellow," exclaimed Drok, "What have you been doing with yourself since I last saw you?" Matt guffawed,

  "Trying to get myself killed I guess." Drok then began to look around,

  "Say, where's that little Doradian princess that was with you, Udel was looking forward to seeing her again."

  "You're talking about Bria," he replied. "I'm afraid your brother is out of luck, Bria's gone and gotten married, although Kaitlyn says her parents aren't too happy about it. As for Kaitlyn, she's back on Ruddoria going to school."

  "Well all the same," replied Drok, "Poor Udel's heart will be broken."

  "He'll get over it," said Matt.

  Outside, the clouds were breaking up and the rain was letting up, while Drok Gandric, and Amber discussed the details concerning the third purifier. Meanwhile Matt explained the vast fields of destruction he was witness to on his previous trip to Jezang and Ilmi.

  "I was here a long time ago," commented Jezang, "I was part of a group searching for a wanted fugitive, but I don't believe it was anywhere around here though."

  He then lowered his voice,

  "There are ghosts here, I've seen them. Stand out there in one of the ruins in the dark of night with a wind blowing and I guarantee you'll see things that will scare the holy crap out of you," he observed. "Check these out," he added, pulling the three "dogtags" from a pouch on his belt.

  "I'm sure those tags carry personal data for the soldiers who wore them but as yet I haven't been able to find anyone who has the equipment to "read" them."

  Ilmi took the tags and studied them,

  "I think I know someone who can find out what's on them," she said.

  "Hey that would be great," replied Matt. "I've got a camera as well, along with a helmet I think has an identity chip on it as well, they are in one of my bags, oh and I've got a wallet as well,"

  "Well my friend might be able to help with that as wel
l," she added. He likes to collect old and arcane equipment, and if something has a non standard port, well he can fix something up."

  "Well I've been waiting a long time to find out what is on that camera, as well as those identity medallions."

  "Don't worry," she replied, "He's a master at this sort of thing."

  The rain finally stopped and the clouds started to part. Drok then invited everyone to follow him into Shong Vak. As they approached the planet's only settlement Matt noticed several changes.

  There were certainly more people he observed, however a great many seemed to be Gandric's people, androids from Xandrus. He also observed a number of Golian's as well as a couple other races he couldn't remember. The locals seemed indifferent to them, although he saw no signs of animosity,

  "Looks like Shong Vak is growing," he exclaimed to Drok.

  "Most of them are technicians and purifier crews," replied the Gri' Fodian.

  "Remember those abandoned structures we stayed at on the last night?" He added. Matt nodded,

  "Although my people welcome the attempt to revitalize their world they would resent the increased traffic and all the construction. While there is a small increase of strangers here in Shong Vak, most everybody is out there ."

  "What!" Exclaimed Matt, "Is everyone living in those old buildings?"

  Drok laughed,

  "Some, but there's a large maintenance facility and collection point going up out there tomorrow we'll take a wind wagon out there."

  Stopping by Drok's humble home they met his mother Chasi who greeted Matt with a little more warmth than last time. Drok was right, as Udel was upset at the news that Bria was now married, and Kaitlyn wasn't here as well. Ilmi didn't seem to interest him, and Jezang even seemed to frighten him somewhat. Matt was sure both of them would resent the influx of people but both sounded positive about Ussen Ommo's current fortune. Blaagus, Drok's father apparently had a job out at the building site, while Udel ran people out there in his wind wagon.

  Matt, Ilmi, and Jezang casually strolled through town. Unlike last time, when he and Kaitlyn wandered around, there were no drums playing or a festive atmosphere present. Still, there were a lot of people out and about. Ilmi insisted on looking inside a little shop that seemed to have a little of everything. The place seemed to be run by an elderly Lyskandan, who welcomed them to look around. Matt was always uneasy going into stores with females, it generally meant he was going to leave much poorer. It was one of the reasons he and Patricia eventually broke up. Jezang surprised him by checking our a rack of leather wear but apparently androids had a fashion sense as well. To pass the time, he struck up a conversation with the shop owner.

  "Kind of odd seeing an Lyskandan on a god forsaken planet such as this." The shopkeeper grunted, replying,

  "Kind of odd seeing a Terran out here as well." Matt grinned, as he pointed to the Lyskandan.

  "Got me! But when I was here several ceme's ago and all I saw around here were Gri'Foda."

  "Quite right," replied the shopkeeper. "By the way, my name is Taymock Moldura, and actually I've been living on this planet for going on eighteen yeans now. However I've only been running this shop for a couple ceme's now. I figured it was time to offer everything I've found over the yeans. I see the young lady examining my jewelry. It's all hand made, and every bit if it hand made by me."

  Matt wandered over to where Ilmi was looking at rings and wrist bracelets expecting to see a bunch of junk, however he was very surprised. There were rings, ear rings, bracelets, and necklaces. Some appeared black with strands of silver and gold running through them like veins. Other items, instead of being black were copper with the same gold/silver effect. The rings and ear rings had bluish colored diamonds much like the ones Kaitlyn had found. Browsing the collection his eye caught an amazing bracelet of copper with the gold and silver running through it in elaborate designs. He knew right then he had to buy it for his mother. In the meantime Ilmi had her eye on a couple rings with the black base.

  "You make all that jewelry?" He asked Moldura.

  "I did," he replied, every bit of my jewelry is made from scrap I scrounged up over the yeans. The blue diamonds were found here as well."

  Matt smiled to himself at that one.

  "The black metal is actually plasmodium plating but turned black by being subjected to incredible temperatures. However it's only at the very edges where the plating was melted that you find it. Same with the zuddia which is the copper colored metal. That is one of the few things found naturally on this planet. It's a very rare metal that is used in very high temperature engine parts. Unfortunately for these people I don't believe there's enough on this planet to make mining it profitable."

  "So you've been wandering around Ussen Ommo for quite awhile now eh?" Asked Matt. As if in anticipation of Matt's next question, Taymock gave him a curious smile.

  "I can tell by your face you've seen them too eh? Young fellow, I've seen things out there that defy all description. Perhaps when the pacifiers have completed their work the ghosts will find peace…Although I doubt it. There are deep caverns and tunnels under our very feet. Whatever you do, stay away from them, I will say no more on that."

  Jezang had selected a pair of tight black leather cargo pants along with a short waisted jacket.

  "You have made an excellent selection," said Taymock, "My daughter makes all the clothing I sell. She complains about most clothing not having enough pockets, I hope you found her creation to your liking?"

  "My complements to your daughter," replied Jezang, "She has designed all the pockets to hold just what it is you need to carry, while not being too obtrusive.

  Tell me, does she sell her creations elsewhere?"

  "Well she's currently negotiating with the Loridian trading company to open a shop in Khemnia and possibly Fort Kamata. She knows what the spacer crews like and decided to create a line of clothing."

  "Well I'm certainly interested," said Jezang. Ilmi became curious as well, but there was nothing on the rack that would fit her.

  Matt sprang for the three rings she was looking at, as well as the bracelet. While not in the same price range as say, wedding rings, they weren't cheap. For some unknown reason, he felt good about buying them for her. She didn't make a big deal about it, but he could tell the purchases made her happy. They picked up Amber and Gandric on the way back to the ship although when Jezang said something to Amber she disappeared again. Matt thought of stopping in at a local tavern but remembered the last time and changed his mind. It was back on board where Ilmi fixed up a rather tasty eabak and shomo which was a Golian beer. It tasted like a pilsner but darker, and just a touch sweeter. He and Ilmi sat and discussed the day's events as well as the ride out to the construction site and possibly one of the purifiers. Ilmi wore her new rings which now made four on each hand, Matt kidded her about wearing "brass knuckles," which required an explanation

  "I'm afraid I don't have strong "hitting" power," she exclaimed, "Knives and blasters are more my style."

  The next morning Drok came calling along with Udel ready to take everyone out to the construction site.

  "Why don't we just fly out there?" Asked Matt.

  "Too busy," said Drok, "with all the robots and transports competing for space we'd just be in the way and catch the ire of the controller."

  With Jezang, Ilmi, and Matt riding in Udel's wagon, and Gandric and Amber in Drok's they were soon speeding across the dry terrain. According to Udel, they were not permitted to run on the new ground cover as it was still too delicate for any type of vehicle to roll over it yet. As they passed a large pile of rubble Matt could see several markers on each side of the pile. Gandric later told him that pile was going to be the first pile the yet to arrive purifier would be tackling it.

  He could tell they were nearing the job site as construction robots were buzzing around in the sky and several large transports were sitting on the ground.

  They pulled up to the gates of a long and glittering fence
that Drok said was to not only keep unwanted visitors out but barbongs and boloths. The gate reminded him of the portal to an old western fort with two towers made from re-used rubble, with a large gate between them. The guards all appeared to be androids, but he saw a couple Gri'Foda hanging around as well. Parking their wind wagons just outside the gate the guards let them through on Drok and Gandric's command.

  One of the first things Matt noticed was that most of the work was being done by these flying robots with androids controlling them. There were numerous covered stations where two or three androids stood in front of computer screens either consulting the master engineering computer, or controlled the robots on another computer. Gandric walked he and Ilmi through the whole process and who was doing what. This was nothing like any construction process he'd seen back home.