Phoenix Among The Stars (Exodus)

by Robert Stadnik

  “That was amazing,” said Julie as the noise level dropped and people sat back down or headed out of the bar.

  “He gets better every time,” said Alex’sis as she finished her drink.

  “I can’t believe Admiral Johnson was able to get someone of that caliber to join the crew,” said John. “Who is he?”

  “No one knows,” replied Alex’sis. “He keeps to himself and doesn’t really interact with anyone on board.”

  “What about his personal file?” asked Julie.

  “Pretty much blank,” said Alex’sis.

  “That can’t be right,” said John.

  “I thought so too,” said Alex’sis. “I asked Admiral Johnson about it a few years back and he said it was a condition Chris demanded for joining the project.”

  “Interesting,” was all John could say. Julie could see the gears turning in his head.

  “What is it?”

  “Didn’t his voice sound familiar?” asked John. “I know I’ve heard it somewhere before.”

  Julie just shrugged her shoulders and looked at Alex’sis, who only shook her head.

  “If you know who he is, please tell me,” said Alex’sis.

  “I’m not too sure,” was all John said.

  “Well, we should call it a night,” said Julie. “We’ve got an early meeting in the morning.”

  “You two go on ahead,” said John. “I want to finish my drink.”

  “You can have mine,” said Julie, pushing her wine glass over to him.

  “I’ll get the tab on the way out,” said Alex’sis.

  “Thanks,” said John. “See you in the morning.”

  The pair made their way out of the bar. Julie waited outside while Alex’sis paid the bar bill. When Alex’sis emerged, they both walked down Central. The area was bustling with activity this evening. Julie felt she was back in New York City, immersed in the night life. She wanted to stay and enjoy the atmosphere but knew she had a long day tomorrow.

  “The captain seemed pretty focused about Chris,” said Alex’sis.

  “John…, the captain isn’t one to let things go,” said Julie. “I guarantee you he’ll do some checking to learn more about Chris.”

  As the two left Central, John was getting ready to leave the bar. He quickly finished his and Julie’s drink and asked the bartender, Max, if he could talk to Chris. But Max said Chris had already left for his quarters.

  After being stopped by some people for some small talk, John made it back to his quarters, but sleep was the last thing on his mind.

  “Computer,” he said. “Display biographical information on The Lounge performer Chris.”

  “No biographical data exists for said person,” replied the computer.

  “Isn’t that a breach of protocol?”

  “Exception to required biographical information on crew members was granted by Admiral Oliver Johnson.”

  Just like Alex’sis said. John mulled over what to do next as he got himself some water from the kitchen.

  “Computer, is there a recording of Chris’ singing on file?”

  “Affirmative.”

  “Ha! More than one way to skin a cat,” said John. “Run an analysis of his voice and search for any matches in our database.”

  “Running.”

  John figured it would be a while before the computer came up with something. He was getting ready to head to the bedroom to undress when the computer alerted him.

  “Search complete. Match found.”

  “Display on wall monitor,” said John. The information that popped up surprised him. “Holy shit! It can’t be!”

  CHAPTER TEN

  The morning meeting in the board room took place earlier than usual. Despite the time change, the senior staff managed to show up on time.

  “Good morning,” said John as everyone took their seats. “We’ve got a busy day going so let’s get started. Doctor Myers, where are we at with the micron devices?”

  “All studies have been completed and everything looks good,” said Myers. “I have over two hundred volunteers who have agreed to have the microns implanted.”

  “I’ve reviewed the list and don’t have a problem with the number of volunteers,” said Sandoval. “But many of the department heads have signed up, which could be a potential security threat. Until we know for sure there are no long-term threats to humans, we should restrict implantation to non-essential personnel.”

  “Everyone on this ship is essential,” said Alex’sis, who didn’t appreciate Sandoval’s implication that some people were expendable. “But the chief does have a point. Maybe we should exclude the department heads for now. Despite our exhaustive tests, this is still an unknown piece of technology.”

  “Your concerns are noted, but we’ll proceed as planned,” said John.

  “Then I would like to add my name to the list,” said Julie. Her statement caught John off-guard and she saw the look of surprise on his face. ”You’ve shown no ill-effects from the device and if we’re asking for people to volunteer, I should be part of the group.”

  “It’s bad enough the captain has one of these things in his head,” said Sandoval. “We can’t risk both the captain and first officer with an unknown device doing who-knows-what to their brains.”

  “As I already said, there’s no indication the micron is harmful to humans,” said Myers.

  “Commander Olson,” said John. “I didn’t have a choice getting implanted. You should wait until the first round of volunteers have been injected and observed, just as a precaution.”

  “I appreciate the concern, but I elect to be part of the first group.”

  John could see he wasn’t going to change her mind unless he ordered her, and he wasn’t about to do that. In truth, he respected Julie for her willingness to put herself at risk, even though John didn’t believe the micron posed a threat. “Very well, commander.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Captain,” said Sandoval. “I strongly disagree.”

  “Your concern is noted,” said John. “But the decision is final.”

  “I will make a note of my protest in the official log,” said Sandoval.

  “Fine,” said John. He wasn’t surprised the chief was being vocal in his disagreement. Sandoval came across as a man who spoke his mind and didn’t care if his opinion was popular or not. John was grateful to have such a person on his staff, but it was a double-edge sword. The chief was allowed to have a dissenting opinion, but John had to demonstrate that, in the end, his decisions were final.

  “Moving on,” said John. “What else do we have?”

  “I’d like to bring up our navigational plans,” said Kevin. “We’ve been in the same place for a few days now.”

  “We’ve stayed here far longer than originally planned due to our first contact with Drix,” said John. “Private Michaels, has there been any transmissions picked up by the sensors?”

  “No sir. The only thing we’ve picked up is normal background radiation. There doesn’t seem to be any evidence of sentient activity in the area.”

  “I know it benefits us to jump from system to system as quickly as possible if we’re going to locate the Screen,” said John. “But I want to learn more about our new alien friend.”

  “Has he given any information about the Screen or any other alien race?” asked Alex’sis.

  “No, we’re still in the honeymoon phase, learning more about each other,” said John. “But I plan to gear our conversation to the Screen and any other races Drix has encountered who could help us.”

  “Be careful,” said Sandoval. “We still don’t know if he has an allegiance with the Screen.”

  “I’ll be careful,” said John. “In the meantime, we’ll stay in the system for a few more days. Lieutenant Jacobson, coordinate with the various science departments to conduct whatever studies they want to do. I’m sure they’ll want us to set a course to explore the system. I’ll leave it up to you to decide the path PHOENIX should take
.”

  “Yes, captain.” Kevin was glad they would have the chance to spend more time here. But he was even more excited to be given free reign of navigation for the time being.

  “Anything else?” asked John.

  “Just the usual status reports on ship operations,” said Alex’sis. “The farming deck is reporting a problem with the water reclamation system. It’s nothing critical. We can go over it later if you’d like.”

  “Fine, thank you everyone,” said John. As the staff filed out he grabbed Julie’s attention. “Commander, can you stay a moment?”

  Julie was certain John was going to reprimand her for her insistence on being implanted with a micron. As soon as they were alone she started to defend herself. “Look, I know you’re not happy about me dismissing your concerns in front of the staff, but I firmly believe that the first officer should set an example. Furthermore…,”

  John held up his hand. “Julie, I’m not mad about you wanting a micron.”

  “Oh.”

  “I meant it when I said it’s your decision. I’m fine with it.”

  “Oh, ok.” Julie was so used to arguing with John in the past, she assumed this would be just another one. She made a mental note to work on that. John had been making a genuine effort to work on his faults. Julie needed to do the same.

  “I found out some things about that singer Chris,” said John. “I had the computer run an analysis of his voice patterns and found a match in the database.” John tapped a few commands on table panel near him and some biographical information appeared on the wall monitor.

  “This can’t be right,” said Julie, looking at the information.

  “The computer verified his vocal patterns.”

  “Chris Anne, the famous singer?” Chris Anne was the most popular singer of the time. Some people argued that he was the most popular singer of the 22nd century. His music and performances were matched by no one, as were his drag costumes. His concerts sold out everywhere he went. People flocked in droves to see him perform.

  But one day, on the eve of the release of his first major music album, he disappeared. Speculation was rampant as to what happened to him. Was he dead? Hiding from a scandal? No one knew. Lawyers hired by the singer exercised creative control over his music and blocked the album’s release on the net.

  “Well, now we know where he went after disappearing from the public spotlight,” said Julie.

  “I loved his songs, my sister used to follow him before he became famous, during his club days,” said John. “His upbeat songs were motivation for me when I was training for the Academy entrance exams.”

  “So that’s why he sounded familiar to you,” said Julie. “So why is he here? Why would someone give up fame and fortune to hide out on a classified military starship?”

  “That’s what I’m going to find out,” said John.

  “I knew you wouldn’t let this drop.”

  “Am I that predictable?”

  Julie smiled. “You know the old saying; keep your friends close, but enemies closer.”

  “Real cute.”

  Julie patted John on the shoulder. “Keep in mind there’s a reason he chose to conceal his identity. He may not want to talk, even to the captain of the PHOENIX.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  “Exit to your left,” the computer instructed John through his pip. “Chris’ quarters will be on the right in cabin 16AF.”

  “No shit, Sherlock,” muttered John. Of course the quarters would be on the right. The left side was open space that provided a view of Central’s skyline. For an advanced starship, it seemed PHOENIX’s main computer wasn’t up to snuff. He made a mental note to have Drix take a look at the AI software.

  “You are at cabin 16AF,” said the computer.

  “Computer, end directional query,” ordered John. Yup, he was definitely talking to Drix when he had the chance.

  John wasted no time ringing the door chime. He went over in his mind what he would say to Chris Anne, but he didn’t know what to start with. He was about to meet his favorite celebrity and nothing he said could match this momentous occasion.

  The door opened unexpectedly, surprising John. There he was, facing Chris Anne, who was equally surprised to see the ship’s captain at his quarters.

  “Captain Roberts,” said Chris Anne as he tightened up his dark blue robe.

  John was in a daze. His mind flashed to the concert his sister Nicole took him to a few years after their parents died, at a farm in Wisconsin. Nicole surprised John by hiring a private shuttle that flew them to Wisconsin the night of the concert. Thousands of people were there, and John had a bird’s eye view of the concert stage from the shuttle. Somehow, Nicole convinced or paid someone to allow their shuttle to hover over the crowd near the stage. John loved every minute of it and it was one of the fondest memories he had of sister.

  John snapped out of his reminiscing. “Hi, Chris. Sorry for dropping in unannounced.”

  “I never thought the captain would want to bother with the ship’s entertainment,” said Chris.

  “Well, I enjoyed your recent performance so much that I had to stop by to express my appreciation. May I come in?”

  “Sure.” Chris moved out of the way to let John in.

  John noticed how elaborate Chris had decorated his quarters. Colorful layers of cloth of various textures were draped over the furniture, providing a cornucopia of vibrant colors around the main living area. Lit candles were set everywhere and their illumination reflected off the colored fabrics.

  “I was told the ship’s environmental systems could handle open flames,” said Chris.

  “No, that’s fine,” said John as he finished looking around. Even though the area was well decorated, it still seemed to come across as subdued for a person like Chris. “I wanted to thank you for your performance last night. You really left an impression on the crowd.”

  “It was just piano playing,” said Chris. “There wasn’t anything to it.”

  “I disagree. I could tell your heart was in the music.”

  “I appreciate your compliment, but it’s misplaced. It’s only music.” Chris’ words were disheartening to John. Julie reminded him to let sleeping dogs lie, but John couldn’t walk away until he knew the truth.

  “For someone of your caliber, music is everything.” John hesitated before uttering his next words. “You bared your soul through your music…, Chris Anne.”

  The singer’s look turned to a frown. For a long moment, there was only silence. John waited for a response from him, waiting for any reaction.

  “Oliver promised my identity would remain a secret.”

  “Admiral Johnson kept his word. I learned who you were by having the computer analyze your vocal patterns.”

  “You shouldn’t have done that,” said Chris as he headed to the door. “You need to leave.”

  “I didn’t mean to upset you,” said John, but his words fell on deaf ears. Chris opened the door and stood by it, unwilling to look at John.

  The young captain realized he wasn’t going to get anywhere and slowly headed out the door.

  “It wasn’t my intention to bring up any bad memories,” said John. “You were such an inspiration to me while I was growing up. Your music helped me get through some difficult times in my life and I just wanted to say thank you.” There was no reaction from Chris, who continued to look away from John. “I won’t bother you again.”

  As John left Chris’ quarters, Julie and Drix were entering Central. Julie had the micron implanted a few hours ago and was anxious to try it out. After getting the all clear from Doctor Myers, Julie invited Drix for a tour around Central. Although she trusted John’s impression about the alien, Julie wanted to alleviate any doubts in her mind that he wasn’t harboring any sinister intentions.

  “It is agreeable to converse with another of your species,” said Drix as he looked around Central.

  “Was the captain boring you?”

  “Your captain is a fa
scinating creature. Your species is unlike any other I have encountered and I would like to interact with as many of your kind as possible.” They stopped as Drix examined a corner street lamp. But after a few seconds, his attention was drawn to the bot that rolled by. He pointed at it.

  “We call them bots,” explained Julie. “They’re autonomous mechanical constructs that perform simple duties around the ship. We don’t have too many of them active on board.”

  “You species demonstrate expertise in a wide variety of areas,” said Drix.

  “Thank you,” said Julie. She was amused how Drix inspected every object they passed. Trees, lamps, even the cobblestone street all seemed to elicit awe from the alien. He stared at the people who walked passed them, amazed how similar but different each human looked.

  “Is our architecture that different from other structures you’ve seen?” said Julie.

  “John Captain said this area represents what a city on your homeworld looks like,” said Drix. Julie was going to correct him on the John Captain moniker but decided against it. “It is remarkable that your species was able to replicate such an environment on an encapsulated vessel.”

  “Do the cities on your homeworld look different?” asked Julie.

  “I do not know,” replied Drix. “I have never been to my homeworld.”

  “Where were you born?” Drix looked at Julie with confusion. He must not have understood her. Drix said the micron wasn’t perfect, that it had trouble with some words and phrases. “Where did your existence begin?”

  “Ah, you wish to know the conclusion of my hatch cycle.” Julie wanted to laugh as the image of Drix coming out of an egg seemed amusing, but then she reminded herself to maintain her composure. What was weird to her was normal for Drix.

  “Yes, when your life started,” she clarified.

  “All Cresorians are born on ships. Some are lucky to live on vessels larger than mine, but nothing compared to your PHOENIX.”

  “Your race spends their entire existence in space?”

  “That is correct, Julie Commander.”

  “Why don’t you go back to your homeworld?”

  “My homeworld was lost many cycles ago.” Drix’s voice was somber.