by J W Murison
Charlie changed into civilian clothes for the first time in months and Babes beamed him down to a mall in the big city below. Strange beasts flowed around him. All knew he was of a meat-eating race and some females even ran from him in fear. There was more than Modloch present. Other and more colourful creatures wandered around the giant mall. He discovered he was being shadowed by a number of security guards. After listening to their thoughts for a few minutes he decided it might be better if he went back to the ship.
As he turned a corner Babes beamed him up. He could imagine the panic his sudden disappearance would cause the guards. Back on board the ship he soon became restless again and had Babes beam him over to the city ship. He found the Chief deep in the engine room.
‘Hey freak, what are you doing?’
‘Day off and bored to tears Chief, what about you?’
‘Trying to fix some of these generators you bloody Scots wrecked as you tore up my engine room.’
Charlie looked up at the damaged generators. They were huge. ‘Oh yeah. We would shoot a few holes in them to shower sparks down on the Albany that were hiding there. It flushed them out.’
The Chief scowled down at him, ‘Was it really necessary to take out so many of them?’
Charlie scratched his head, ‘Seemed like a good idea at the time. Can’t you replace them?’
The Chief snorted, ‘Yeah, will I just pop over to the Albany embassy and ask them to send over some replacements?’
‘Aye OK smartarse, I got your drift.’
‘We are having to fabricate parts from scratch. The trouble is some of the parts are so badly damaged we can’t replicate them. If the Emperor dropped off the outer rings, we would have enough power for the rest of the city. You don’t want to hear what he said when I suggested that.’
‘How much of the city have you power for?’
‘All of it until you activate the shields and weapons. Then just over sixty per cent.’
‘What’s the chances of you having to use them within your own borders?’
‘Not the point, Charlie.’
Charlie sighed, ‘Yeah I get it.’
‘Especially with the Emperor on board. Neither will we leave the home world until the work is complete.’
‘Can’t you just install some of your own?’
‘There are generators out there that could be converted, or we could have some custom built. It would only take a few days at most. Not going to happen though.’
‘Let me guess, the Emperor is a cheap bastard.’
The Chief barked a laugh, ‘How did you guess! So its repair and make do for now.’
There was a howl and a yelp from somewhere inside the generator. It was followed by a loud clang of metal; a large spanner slid into sight and stopped at their feet.
‘For the love of the three moons that orbit my arsehole! That’s the third time those idiots have dropped it.’ Charlie was still laughing as the junior engineers slid into sight following the same route as the huge spanner. The Chief ripped into them as they struggled to lift it. He stopped his tirade for a moment and eyed up Charlie.
‘Charlie, would you mind helping out a little? These two are just too big and clumsy to fit in there together and the tool is too heavy for one of them.’
‘No problems Chief, what am I looking for?’
The Chief pointed to the spanner, ‘It would be a thing that fits on the end of that,’ he sniffed.
‘So there’s only one thing in there that this will fit on to?’
The Chief sniffed again, ‘Yeah, right, you’ve never seen inside one of these have you. Sorry about that. It’s just a single bolt about four times your height. There is a ladder you can climb up to reach it on the inside. It holds on the top half of the generator. Once the nut is off, we can extract the bolt from this side, then split it in half so we can get into the guts of it.’
‘Right, I got ye.’
The two junior engineers seemed doubtful, but the look on their faces as Charlie took the giant spanner off them and casually slipped it over his shoulder was novel.
Charlie slid inside and didn’t take long to find the nut. He slipped the spanner on and gave it a heave. It didn’t turn so he put more pressure on it. It began to turn but Charlie noticed something. He inspected the nut carefully and shouted down.
‘Hey Chief, a couple of shots have welded this nut to the bolt. If I turn it any more it will sheer off.’
‘Don’t worry about it Charlie. We will just make a new set. Sheer it off.’
Charlie could clearly hear the two junior engineers laughing and grinned. After one mighty effort the large nut gave out with a loud squeal. The spanner and nut fell together and rolled out of the generator. Charlie could clearly hear the Chief laughing as he climbed back down. The two junior engineers stood with their mouths open.
‘Any more Chief?’
‘About a dozen Charlie, if you’re willing to help.’
‘Lead the way.’
‘You pair of useless buggers – get the team down here to remove that bolt.’
It only took Charlie a couple of hours to sort the rest of the bolts. Three he had to sheer off.
The Chief was laughing all the way to the rest room. ‘You just saved me a couple of days work Charlie. I think there is still some of that coffee you Humans like if you fancy a cup.’
‘Love one.’
The rest room began to fill up as the engineers came in for their break. One of the youngsters was listening to what passed for music. Eventually Charlie got a little pissed off with it.
He turned, ‘What the hell is that noise?’
The young engineer gave him a strange look. ‘Balliboo, it’s their new album.’
Charlie shook his head, ‘The latest and best of modern Modloch music.’
The engineer missed Charlie’s sarcastic tones, ‘They aren’t Modloch. They are Almalons.’
‘A whit?’
‘Almalons.’
Charlie turned back to the Chief who shrugged, ‘Never heard of that race. It’s not bad though. Where are they from?’ He asked the youngster.
‘It is a new planet in sector G5. It was colonized by miners and eventually terraformed. I think they are going to apply for Galactic status soon.’
‘Now that’s a wild sector, right on the frontier.’ The Chief added.
Charlie almost shrugged it off, ‘They won’t be getting paid for their music then.’
‘Why wouldn’t they?’ The youngster asked.
‘As far as I have been led to believe, new planets and their citizens aren’t allowed to have bank accounts. Something like that anyway.’
‘Doesn’t apply to artists,’ sniffed the young engineer.
‘How no?’ Charlie pushed it.
‘Well, because they are artists of course. It’s the same with all artists. They are pretty much free to come and go as they please. Don’t matter if they are musicians, painters, sculptors or actors. They are playing here in a few months. They wouldn’t come if they didn’t get paid.’
‘As long as they are part of the artistic community and their record company is registered with the galactic body that deals with artists, then they can go where they please. Most artists or their companies have bank accounts on every planet.’ Added another.
‘Sorry I didn’t know that.’ Charlie finished his coffee and the Chief saw him out.
‘We got another half dozen of these buggers scheduled for tomorrow Charlie. Do you have the day off?’
‘Looks like it.’
The Chief slapped him on the shoulder, ‘As soon as you can make it then.’
‘Catch you tomorrow Chief.’ Charlie was beamed away.
CHAPTER 12
Rannalld’s senses were being assaulted. Mya had been completely honest with him. In the morning he had shown her around the grounds but when lunch time came he very quickly realised that he could not do her request justice. He called in reinforcements, and within an hour half of his general st
aff had arrived. Cookie had thought they were going to have a lazy day, but with the arrival of the general staff, the whole damn thing kicked up a few gears and he sent for back up. Another dozen chefs arrived, but not to cook. They were needed to take notes and ask questions. The quiet home quickly turned hectic. The Modloch servants helped where they could, and Cookie had them transporting dishes back and forth.
Rannalld groaned as he climbed into the aircraft. ‘What have you done to me Mya. I can hardly move now.’
‘I am so sorry Rannalld. I did not think they would bring so much food with them.’
‘Most of it was delicious. Never mind, my staff will soon make short work of it. If there is one thing they do really well, it is eat.’
She laughed, ‘Where are you taking me now?’
‘We are heading towards your villa at the mountains.’
The craft took off and made for a distant point in the mountains. Mya was getting used to the uniform green strips of grass. Here and there large machines swept over the rectangular fields. As they approached the mountains, Mya noticed the terrain begin to change. She pointed down. ‘What is happening here?’
‘Every now and then you come across a parcel of land that simply refuses to drain.’ Rannalld explained.
‘Can I see it?’
‘Why?’
‘Please.’
He shrugged and relayed an order to the pilot who changed course. They flew back and forth across it for half an hour before she was satisfied.
He was watching her with great curiosity. ‘What are you thinking Mya? Nothing grows there except for water grass. Only the poorest would even contemplate eating that stuff.’
‘You said all this belongs to the Emperor; are you allowed to plant food on land like this?’
‘You mean there is a Human crop that would grow in such conditions?’
‘I think rice would grow here.’
‘Ah! That white dish you are so fond of.’
‘Yes that’s it.’
‘I don’t know, I would have to look into it.’
‘Do you think there is fish down there?’
‘I doubt it. The insects that thrived in such places were considered detrimental to the health of the people many thousands of years ago, and wiped out. When we killed them off, I think most of the species that lived off them also died off.’
‘Still, it might be worth a trip to find out.’
‘That it might.’ Rannalld smiled to himself. He had been looking for an excuse to visit her again, once his official duties had been carried out.
The craft resumed its course and they soon reached the mountain villa. Green fields stretched out on any flat piece of ground to be seen. Mya could see where fields had been carved out of solid rock. The higher regions were almost devoid of life, untouched. The villa itself nestled on a long ledge on the lower slopes of the mountains. High enough to be cooler, but not so high that the air was thinner. It was exposed to the sun all day long and sheltered from the prevailing winds. The grass fields that surrounded it were of a different variety to that which grew well on the lowlands.
It was a long, single story building. The flat roof had been converted into a garden, while the far side had a pool. There were no roads, and the only in was by air; or so it seemed.
The craft landed on the other side of the roof from the pool and the garden. They got out and Mya was immediately struck by the view. It was only a few steps down into the garden, where they were immediately surrounded by flowers.
‘These are the first flowers I have seen.’
‘They don’t originate from our planet and are self-propagating, I believe. I think it was a gift from one of our ancestors to his wife. She was from a different race and these were from her home world. The legend says that they were off world together on a cruise ship when they were attacked by pirates. When he fell in battle she was said to have taken up his weapon and protected his body. They both survived the attack, but she later died of her wounds. Her husband put a stipulation in his will that whomever took over this residence was on the pain of their personal honour to look after and protect this Garden.’ He paused for a moment. ‘Will you accept that responsibility?’
‘Yes, I will.’
‘Then this residence is yours also. If you had said no then we would have had to look for another residence for you.’
‘You are serious about this?’
He smiled, ‘That was a time of great conflict, when the galaxy and its inhabitants were much younger. We were at war with more than one species at the time. This was the residence of the fifth son, separate from the estate below that was in the possession of the second son. The wars took its toll on the royal family of that age. The fifth son eventually became the Emperor. There were no children to the off world marriage and he eventually took a Modloch wife. They had two sons and five daughters. He lived to a very old age, outliving his second wife as well. Eventually he stepped down to let his eldest rule. He spent the last of his days here, tending this garden. He commanded his second son to maintain it when he died. In doing so the two estates were joined, and a tradition started that has never been broken.’
‘What a wonderful but tragic story. He must have loved her very much.’
Rannalld grunted. ‘Trust a female. He was married to set an alliance. Nothing more.’
‘Oh really?’
He looked down at her and shifted uncomfortably, ‘Yes OK, it sometimes makes you think.’
‘I would hope so Rannalld. He fell protecting her and she gave her life to protect him. If that is not love then what is?’
‘Duty, devotion.’ Rannalld sniffed.
‘You aren’t married, are you?’
He sniffed again, ‘No. We don’t have the privilege of picking our own mates in the Royal Family. They are normally chosen for us by our sire out of political necessity. If we reach the age of thirty, however, and are not yet mated, we can choose a young female from among the top noble families, if we wish.’
‘How old are you?’
He looked away, ‘Forty.’
‘Aha! Are you waiting for love Rannalld?’
He snorted and snot flew out his nostrils, ‘Are you teasing me?’
She suddenly burst out laughing, and handed him a handkerchief. He wiped his muzzle in embarrassment. ‘Sorry.’ He tried to hand it back.
‘You keep a hold of it for now.’ She pushed the hand down and began to stroll through the magnificent garden.
A strange cry lifted her head. Mya gasped, ‘Is that a bird?’
Rannalld looked up, ‘It’s a hunting Greech.’
‘I thought there was no birds or predators on this planet?’
‘The Greech hunt small furry animals called Brunne. They eat a type of heather that grows near the tops of these mountains. As they don’t eat grass or grass seeds, no one thought to wipe them out. As a result the Greech also survived.’
‘I suppose where the heather grows the grass doesn’t.’
‘Exactly,’ he agreed.
‘Are there more like this on your planet?
’
He shrugged, ‘I don’t know. I have never seen any. I have never seen a Brunne either. It is just what I have been told.’
‘I think your planet is quite a sad world.’
He didn’t seem very happy at that but then he became thoughtful. ‘Gairloch liked to watch them. In one of his messages home, he said how your world was full of wonderful animals and birds, that it was beautiful. I have seen some of those documentaries too. I suppose I can see how you believe our world to be sad. Maybe poorer. However, when you have a population as large as ours, every scrap of soil that can be used to grow grass is needed. We sacrificed everything so that we could survive.’
‘Was there a lot of famine?’
‘In our early history, yes. Sometimes millions died. We learned to farm better. Build up to release more soil, and grow grass just about anywhere. When that began to fail we took to the stars, and so
began the rise of the Modloch Empire.’ He looked directly at Mya, ‘Come, I will show you the rest of the villa.’
By the time they returned to the mansion, his staff had left. Cookie declared the day a great success and returned to the fleet with the chefs to help plan the banquet. Mya wasn’t left alone for long. The girls arrived as soon as they finished their shift. They were curious about the villa so Babes beamed them all up to it. There were no staff there and they took to the pool naked. It was built in such a way that it seemed about to flow out of the pool onto the great plain below.
They lined up against the edge and stared out in wonder. ‘It is hard to believe we are on a strange planet in another part of the galaxy.’ Komoru murmured.
‘It certainly doesn’t look anything like Earth.’ Mya agreed.
Amanda smiled, ‘We are making history ladies.’
‘It is all so strange,’ Mya closed her eyes.
‘I suppose it is, but I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.’ Hailey added to their reflections.
Amanda stretched her arms across the side of the pool, ‘Even if I die tomorrow, it will all have been worth it.’
Hailey smiled, ‘You have to wonder what is going to happen next.’
CHAPTER 13
Charlie was beginning to get a little pissed off. No matter how hard he tried to get in touch with Steven, no one would let him. He discovered by accident that Steven was back on board and headed for his quarters. He was stopped on the bridge by Howe and Beaver.
‘No one is to disturb him, especially you.’
‘It is important sir.’
‘Don’t matter,’ Beaver reinforced Howes. ‘Don’t know what you’ve done Sergeant, but you’re not to go near him or any other person in the high command. That’s a direct order from the Captain.’
Charlie’s eyes went cold and both men saw it. Neither were perturbed though. Charlie knew he could take both men out before they could blink, but he was far too disciplined a soldier. He came to attention, ‘Sir, I request that you at least pass on a message.’ He was looking at Howe.