Human Starpilots

by F Stephan

  “You know, the time isn’t right for us to go further than this.”

  “What, what do you mean?” asked Brian still drowsy.

  “I mean that this probably shouldn’t have happened. Currently, it is going to be hard to manage.” She smiled again with a radiant morning aura around her. “We’re still going to face a lot of hardships, but we need to face them as friends and not as lovers. You are too important to me, Brian. You truly are. But not in the way you want right now.”

  “That’s hard.” He swallowed.

  “Yes, it is. And it will be harder still. You are a really nice guy. Maybe too much of one. And I am not a nice girl. There’s a lot in me you don’t know, and you are not ready to know. Illoma is much nicer than I am. Now, let’s get back to work. We are expected.” Her voice had an edge Brian had never heard. And in that moment, he knew that she wouldn’t change her mind. He didn’t know why or what he had done. But he was out.

  Ten days remained until the end of the sentence. They were the longest of Brian’s whole life. Emily was colder than death itself with him. Sonter wasn’t much better. He had nightmares with the strange creatures from the crater whenever he closed his eyes. And landing the shuttle was the hardest thing he had ever done. In the end, he managed the exam simulation, although barely.

  50 Don Mariano

  Don Mariano had finished his appointment with his Hydroponics Syndicate later than he expected, and he had to run to the station. He finished pushing his way through the throng of people that moved in and out of the main Cape Ring station.

  His pupils had ridden half a day from the station to join Cape Ring. The next passenger run was a week later, but when Rendor Tremeek had suggested they ride back in the merchandise train, they had jumped at the opportunity. They had embarked amid the crate of reclaimed objects from the lost city, and they had been jolted around for hours. When the trip finally ended, they got out with stiff joints and throats sore with dust and shouting over the noise.

  Don Mariano found his pupils gaping at the number of people around them. The air was warm, the sun was shining, and the winter temperature was very enjoyable for all Earth bred, even if a bit chill for Adheekens. The three were an island of calm amid the tumult of the station. When they saw Don Mariano, suddenly they began talking again. Like a dam breaking, they couldn’t stop their excited conversation, and they soon found a small café to sit and share in the delights of life they had missed during their punishment. Their bracelets pinged with multiples messages, but for now, simple talk was more than enough.

  “I have to leave you,” said Sonter after a while, rising up gracefully. “I have some family downtime, and they expect me to visit them. I will see you at the school. Behave yourselves, both of you.” He smiled at them briefly and then walked away.

  “This is the first time I’ve seen him happy in a long while,” said Brian.

  “It’s his family home. He spent a lot of his youth here when his father was off-planet,” explained Emily.

  “And his father is slightly less powerful here,” added the ambassador thoughtfully.

  “I’ve booked a compartment toward Certan that will leave tonight, and I hoped you would accompany us back to the capital,” continued Don Mariano. “Mathias should join us in an hour or so.”

  They agreed immediately and started asking questions. Don Mariano at first couldn’t withstand the flow from both sides and laughed at the inquisition he faced.

  “I will tell you all about everyone if you stop asking questions.”

  “So do it and stop evading,” answered Emily teasingly. Don Mariano complied.

  “Well, Tasha and Willfried are fine. Maybe not as successful in their efforts as we would hope but in good spirits.”

  “They’re both unbreakable, in their own way,” said Brian.

  “I do agree with you. Li Bao is more and more withdrawn, and I don’t know how to read her. Emily, could you talk with her and let me know?” Emily nodded. “And Brian, did you talk to Leopold recently? I mean, before the incident…”

  “Not really. Why?”

  “Did he talk about religion?”

  “Oh, yes. He has really connected with the priest, Bretum, from Rebirth, and he goes to see him quite frequently. Nothing secret about it.”

  “Did he talk about the Origin?” Suddenly Brian caught something more serious in the tone of the ambassador.

  “No, Don. Never. Should I inquire?”

  “No. Not directly. But I would thank you to let me know if that position changes. Rebirth is quite fine.” Brian understood well what was not fine.

  They continued with other news of the academy and much later, they moved, with the late arrived Mathias, to the train while continuing to talk. They hadn’t received yet any news from home and Brian wondered about the wedding preparation.

  “What of trade?” Emily finally reached a question that had been hovering over them for the last hour.

  “Much has happened during our trip. We have found a few commercial ventures with local groups and clans. The best bargain is that the Tourim clan has agreed to send an advisor into our mountains for an exploratory phase. There is much to be learned from them,” commented the ambassador. Brian felt without prompting that there was more to say but maybe not in open ground. So, he turned toward Mathias.

  “I found very interesting the reclaim cars that are used in the western continent. They have an enormous wasteland created during the ice melt, and we could maybe borrow some technologies,” Mathias said, showing them pictures of different “contraptions,” as Don Mariano called them. This was a safe discussion.

  The ambassador enjoyed immensely this reunion among friends in a foreign land. He had always found himself at ease in the company of other men, but for the first time in the last few months a feeling of isolation had crept into his heart, and he welcomed the return on his younger compatriots.

  They had avoided the key question until they couldn’t push it any more.

  “So, on the climate front, what’s the news?” Emily finally asked with her little voice.

  “This has been the best fall and winter with the lowest temperature in twenty years. We had only ten class six tornadoes across the world.”

  “This comes from the efforts on the climate?” asked Brian.

  “Apparently, yes, but the ones that were decided a generation ago. We hope this will be confirmed over the next years and that it isn’t a simple respite. But it gives us some hope. Especially after last summer.”

  The four shared a heavy glance.

  “And the efforts in the asteroid belt? Did they bring anything? Any money?” continued Brian.

  “No, still nothing. We were getting worried, but Kilet still seems confident. He says early explorations have often been difficult. The belt is vast.”

  “So we still aren’t finding ships to make Earth independent?” asked Emily, lost in her thoughts.

  “Until we find a ship, our training is all for nothing,” sighed Brian.

  “Don’t say that,” Mathias interjected almost violently. “We can rent ships if we have pilots. This is in section four of the charter.”

  “Yes,” answered Brian, “but the cost is enormous, and it will eat any money we make.” Having pilots would bring prestige and a small income; that was true enough. And it would get them off the dole from the Federation. It just wouldn’t be enough until they found their own ships.

  They had dinner in the train, and by nightfall they reached Certan. Don Mariano walked his students from the station, a huge stone building from the First Industrial Theocracy, the age before the city had been absorbed by the Brotherhood, converted recently back to the academy. They stopped in a small café halfway and ate a myirt pie with a beer, looking at the holographic display that had illuminated the night.

  They felt home for the first time in months.

  51 Brian

  Their return to the academy was followed by a week of intense exam preparation. When they had arri
ved at the academy, the other students had already returned from space and had a week advance on the preparation. The initial meeting had been awkward for Brian, everyone split between praise for the navigation feat and rebuke for the reckless behavior. No one knew about the incident at the reclaim station, and Emily and Brian didn’t broach that topic. The situation worsened in the next days when Illoma decided to crucify him for taking such risks and Emily ignored him completely. He buried literally himself in his catch-up work. Ironically, Sonter faced the same issue as Brian.

  Then, the exams came. At last, the pressure became so intense that everyone forgot the incident, and they all talked together again.” When the break came, Brian slept continuously for eighteen hours before emerging from slumber to find out that Tasha had organized for all the students a trip to Telem. She had rented three boats which allowed different groups. Brian sailed with Shanak, Oddoril, Leopold, and a few others. Too soon, it was over, and they were back at the academy for the results.

  They gathered in the main cafeteria after breakfast. The room was tense with excitement when Master Reinkel came in accompanied by Kilet, Sonter’s father. The other teachers and Dr. Nilse stood at the back of the room.

  “Welcome back, all of you. We are pleased to see you. During the last semester you have confirmed your capacity to fly either shuttles or intrasystems. You have also had exams on the different courses that were scheduled. You will find your exact grades published in a while, but know that you passed. All of you. This is a great achievement, and it secures an entry level in the Pilot Corporation.”

  A babble of talk answered. They had known about that benefit, but it was the first time they’d actually heard they were now in the guild. Kilet took over at a cue from the master and said solemnly, “In the name of the guild, here in Adheek, as in all other worlds of the Federation, we are glad to welcome you among us. We are the tie that links humanity. We are the bond that shares knowledge among us. We are the link between the world islands. Together, humans will not be separated again.”

  Brian thought that, with the way he talked and crafty as the merchant could be, this was something Kilet truly believed in. And he could join him in that idea. Isolation was too dangerous.

  “This will give you great advantages, as some may already know and will explain, usually better than me.” He smiled, and there were bursts of laughter in the room. Sonter had been explaining in detail with a few others how the guild worked and how to optimize its support. “But such power will also bring great responsibilities. You have power and we will not allow you to abuse it or misuse it. We do not cover black sheep. We remove them. Do I make myself clear?” His tone was deadly serious. Emily whispered in Brian’s ear, “He knows how to make us feel so much better, doesn’t he?” It took them a dozen minutes to quiet down after that, minutes during which Kilet moved among them with a small datapack, a broach to add to their bracelet, and a word of congratulation.

  Master Reinkel walked again to the central podium. “Quiet, please.” Kilet moved to the front with him.

  “Congratulations on this first step. Yet you still face issues.”

  Kilet took over quietly. “Your current level of nanites will not allow you to pilot for long. You can only be backups for now.

  “So, we are going to strive to give you an increased capacity with a second nanites injection. This is the standard procedure. But this injection is dangerous, and the council has decided that some of you cannot bear it. Everyone whose bracelet is pinging green will have the second injection tomorrow. Everyone pinging red has a meeting scheduled today with his tutor to analyze the next stages of his training.”

  They had all immediately checked their bracelets; Brian was green. He saw Illoma flashing green, and she grinned at him. Eye contact quickly confirmed the others were green. Willfried was red, and he seemed very quiet about it. Brian would have to talk with him about it.

  “This decision is not final. It may change in the coming months and even years as some individuals adapt at a different rate than others. Don’t let it discourage you.”

  “Easy to say on the podium,” commented Leopold bitterly. “All of us have an immense pressure from our planets to go further than that.”

  “Master Namek and the Pilot Corporation have organized a special meal in your honor. We would like you to proceed to the formal dining room, where we can continue together.”

  The lunch was in honor of Pelor, with many local specialties. There were a lot of seafood dishes from the water world, and Illoma radiated delight across the table. Looking at her was hard for Brian; yet he found it hard not to. He focused almost exclusively on her throughout the meal.

  Brian stayed at the cafeteria after lunch, for a long discussion with Shanak. They had been talking for three hours when his bracelet chimed. “Yes, Master Heikert?”

  “Brian, have you seen Li Bao, please?”

  “No, sir, not since after lunch. She excused herself at the end.”

  “She has not joined me for our session today, and I can’t trace her bracelet anywhere in the building or its vicinity. Can you gather those who know her best and meet me in fifteen minutes in the main hall? This is unusual.”

  All students from Earth and a few others were gathered in the hall when Masters Heikert, Reinkel, and Liupert arrived.

  “Very well. This is probably nothing, but with the news she had, let’s not take risks,” said Heikert with a frown.

  “Which news, sir?” asked Willfried.

  “She was not yet accepted for the second injection. I was to talk to her about this at midafternoon. Didn’t she tell you that?” The answer on Willfried’s face was obvious, and the frown on the teacher’s face deepened. “Well, we won’t waste time. I’ve brought portable detectors linked to her bracelet; it has a detection range of five hundred meters. I also have connected your bracelets to the main Adheek communication grid. We will go, each of us, in a radius around the academy and then move outward. This will allow you to cover the largest possible part of the city. I have also alerted the city security forces, but it will be better if people she knows find her just now.”

  During the speech, Mistress Liupert had already distributed the detectors. In a few minutes, they were ready and on their way, almost running across the city. It was still winter, and the afternoon’s temperature was rather cool, with lots of people out in the streets. Brian went out into the streets, walking fast and following the pattern sent by Master Reinkel to optimize the search.

  52 Brian

  An hour passed, and no one recaptured her signal. Don Mariano and Mathias had joined the search by then. They stopped talking on the communication channel and increased their pace to cover more ground.

  Three hours later, Brian was sweating heavily under the blazing sun, and he stopped a minute to cool down under a shade. The Origin had set up a booth two streets away and he wondered how he was going to pass them by. Suddenly, Sonter appeared, walking fast in his direction. As soon as he saw him, he adjusted course and reached Brian.

  “Hi. It had to be you. Do you believe it?” The tone was sarcastic but self-centered instead of being targeted at Brian. That was very unusual. “We do have a score to settle, you and I. I don’t like you and neither do you like me. OK. But I need your help right now without questions.”

  “I’m looking for Li Bao; I can’t,” answered Brian, not knowing what to say.

  “I know, smart-ass. What do you think I need you for? Follow me, now. I’ve called for more help, but they’re too far away.” There was something so urgent in his voice that Brian obeyed.

  They turned immediately, avoiding the booth Brian had been worrying about and they were soon on a half run toward the north dock area. Brian had never been in that direction, but he quickly found out why. The buildings got shabbier as they went. They crossed old structures with poor insulation that had to be hard to live in in full summer. He had grown up in the poor part of Chicago, in the short corridor between the ghetto and the cor
porate tower, and he recognized the invisible line which divided them.

  Sonter moved purposefully forward, and Brian wondered if this was a trap organized while the whole school was busy. The anger built over the last year was now taking him over. People were watching the intruders, both normal inhabitants and watchmen tracking the security of the ghetto. After a long while and a last corner, Sonter stopped. Brian went into the maximum allowed nanites enhancement, ready to boost himself further. Then he saw the shapes and stopped breathing.

  Sonter took a step forward, but Netrel raised a hand. “Not further, cousin. The other, let him come and get the girl.”

  Brian moved and took Li Bao in his arms. She was barely conscious and shivering strongly. Her skin was pale and felt too cold. She didn’t wear a bracelet.

  “She’s had too much, too fast. You have to get her to the academy quickly. Don’t stop before for any reason. Tell Nilse that this is probably class C nanites. Maybe mixed with something else. I don’t know any more. Now move fast and get out. A few friends will watch you out.”

  “You could come with us, Aunt,” said Sonter in a whisper.

  “No, I’ve gone too far. There is no turning back for me. But this girl, she still has her chances. But you need to do it now, Sonter. Do it for your brother. Now move, move.” Her voice was now a near shriek in their ears.

  The urgency in her voice broke the spell that held them. Brian and Sonter turned and ran. Sonter put Li Bao’s other arm on his shoulders and together with Brian, they moved. “Don’t ping anyone, Brian. Not until we’re out of here.”

  Brian had learned a long time ago the rules in Chicago, and they were apparently the same here. Walk as if you belong, head straight, don’t call the cops, and get ready to smash anyone in your path. The street was silent. Regulars had moved indoors, and only the watchmen were left. Then, they heard noises behind them; they knew they were being followed. Li Bao felt heavier, but they continued step after step, never breaking pace. “When you hear the noise get one step closer, boost to the maximum, and we run,” whispered Sonter. When, not if. “We’re close now.” Brian knew running on nanites would burn them very quickly and leave them helpless for a long time afterward. He hoped they were close indeed. He focused on the next turn coming ahead, straining to hear more.