Phoenix Among The Stars (Exodus)

by Robert Stadnik

Julie laughed. “Sounds like him.” She remembered their second year at the Academy, John got food poisoning and kept Julie up all night with his incessant whining and complaining. If John was sick, he made sure everyone around him suffered.

  “I’m glad I don’t share an apartment with him anymore,” said Julie as they reached the captain’s quarters.

  “Computer, open captain’s quarters, chief medical officer voice authorization.”

  “Authorization confirmed,” said the computer. The door opened and Julie and the doctor went directly to the bedroom. There in bed, coughing and looking miserable, was John. His face was red and his eyes were bloodshot. Too Julie, he looked more hung over than sick. Chris, all made up in one of his dresses, was in the bedroom setting down a tray of chicken soup in front of the captain.

  “What are you doing here?” Julie asked.

  “Taking care of the captain,” replied Chris.

  “At least someone cares,” muttered John, barely able to get the words out.

  “You’re not dying, sir,” said Julie.

  “Since when do you have a medical degree?” countered John. “I’m withering away here.”

  “Captain, the virus you contracted is no more dangerous than the flu that used to plague Earth,” said Myers.

  “So you claim,” said John as he coughed.

  “We’ve been monitoring your vitals from the medical bay,” said Myers. “I know it’s unpleasant, but this will pass.”

  “Yeah, right. Doctors are supposed to make patients feel better.” John slurped some of Chris’ soup. “Oh, that’s good.”

  Chris smiled at the compliment. “Keep eating my soup and you’ll be well in no time.”

  “As long as you don’t put any xixia plant in it,” said John. As a measure of goodwill, Thresha made dinner for John using some xixia. The dinner went well and John found the Aldarian dish, called plaoi, tasty. It was so good that he had two helpings. But, by the following morning, he was sick, throwing up uncontrollably. He was rushed to medical for a complete work-up and it didn’t take long for Doctor Myers to find the culprit. A microorganism that had gone by undetected was found in the xixia and John’s immune system was unable to fight it off. Doctor Myers was able to synthesize a remedy to treat the infection, but it would take a several days for John to fully recover.

  “Thresha wanted me to convey her apologies to you again,” said Julie.

  “Commander, next time I take the initiative and try alien food, hit me over the head,” said John. “Better yet, next time you try the food first.”

  “You couldn’t have known this would happen,” said Julie.

  “And you did say the food was good,” added Chris.

  “Don’t remind me,” said John. “Doctor, when will I get over this? I’m miserable.”

  Myers took out his medical scanner. “Let’s take a look and see how you’re doing.”

  As the doctor began his checkup, the door chime rang. “I’ll get it,” said Chris, moving past the doctor and Julie out of the bedroom. After dropping off some dishes in the kitchen, he answered the door.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” said Chief Sandoval as it opened.

  “Nice to see you too, honey,” said Chris. “If you’re here to see the captain, you’ll have to wait. He’s with the doctor and commander.”

  “I’m here to see Commander Olson. The computer said she was here.”

  “I’ll get her.”

  “I didn’t realize you did personal performances,” said Sandoval, referring to Chris’ purple outfit.

  “Only for the captain,” said Chris. “And you’re just jealous because you couldn’t look this good in a dress.” Sandoval didn’t care for Chris Anne’s music or performances. He felt the signer’s presence on the ship was a wasted resource and wondered what Admiral Johnson was thinking when he brought the entertainer to the EXODUS Project.

  Julie emerged from the bedroom. “Chief, I thought it was you I heard talking out here.”

  “Commander, I was hoping to have a word with you.”

  “The captain needs me,” said Chris. “I’ll leave you two alone.”

  “I would have liked to discuss this with the captain,” said Sandoval as Chris left the pair alone in the main living room. “But it can’t wait. I only bring this up so the captain can grow as a ship commander. He’s made several missteps since PHOENIX left the solar system and someone needs to point them out to him.”

  “Such as?” said Julie.

  “He’s allowed Drix open access to the ship, our first planetary survey was a complete disaster, he invited a large alien group on board with no prior knowledge about them, and now he’s fallen ill after recklessly eating their food.”

  “He’s also the one that got us through two Screen attacks and out of the solar system,” said Julie. “We’ve had some rough spots, but let me remind you that we’re the first humans out here. We’re going to make some mistakes.”

  “I understand, sir, and the captain has done a good job keeping us alive so far. But he’s naïve, and someone needs to point out when he makes rash decisions.”

  “Point taken,” said Julie. “But I doubt any experienced ship commander would have done any better than the captain.”

  “Commander, if you want to show the crew that you have their best interests, I recommend quarantining the Aldarians and Drix.”

  “Are you serious? How we could justify locking up the Aldarians? And Drix has been with us for months. I can’t take away his freedom for no reason.”

  “We just need to keep them locked down until we learn more about them.”

  “Drix and the Aldarians are free to do what they want on this ship, same as anyone else. Unless you have proof that they’re a threat, they will continue to enjoy the same freedoms as the rest of us.”

  “The captain has to be diplomatic,” said Sandoval. “But it’s the job of the first officer to present him with the facts and put aside the niceties.”

  “Chief,” interrupted Julie. “I’m willing to listen to your concerns, but they have to be supported with evidence. So far, nothing you’ve told me justifies treating the aliens as prisoners. If you have something that shows they’re a risk, bring it to me. But until then, they have free rein of the ship.”

  ”That is your prerogative,” said Sandoval. “I only brought this up because it’s my responsibility as head of security to point out all security risks.”

  “Potential security risks,” corrected Julie.

  Sandoval grinned. “I stand corrected.”

  “Once the captain has recovered, I’ll let him know your concerns.”

  “Tell him I hope he gets better.” Sandoval promptly left, and Julie was surprised by his last comment. The chief never expressed any personal concern for anyone, he was always about business. Maybe he was softening up to the captain.

  Julie returned to the bedroom to check on John. All of the sudden, John had this look on his face that screamed, “Uh-oh.”

  “You ok?” asked Julie.

  “I think Chris’ soup isn’t agreeing with me,” said John as his stomach churned.

  “My soup’s good, don’t you go bad-mouthing it,” said Chris.

  “It’s coming up.” John jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom where the sounds of gagging reverberated into the bedroom.

  “He’ll be fine,” said Myers. “He just needs to get it out of his system.”

  Chris peeked into the bathroom and promptly turned around with a disgusted look on his face. “I think I’ll have one of the bots clean that up.”

  After a few minutes, John emerged from the bathroom, sweating profusely. “Commander, I want it entered into the official log. I never want to see another xixia plant as long as I live.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  There had been no new encounters with the Screen and life aboard PHOENIX settled into a routine. Both civilians and military personnel got through the days performing their duties. Only the scientists seem
to have any excitement as the ship visited several star systems, providing a plethora of new information for them to analyze and dissect. To break up the monotony, Chris began performing nightly at The Lounge and several human crew members began organizing social events such as poetry readings and game contests, to pass the time. Even the Aldarians participated in these events, as it gave them the opportunity to learn more about their human hosts.

  The Aldarians had become a regular sight throughout the ship, no longer keeping isolated to themselves. Many of the departments welcomed the chance to train some of them. From what John heard from the department heads, the Aldarians were thriving working alongside the human crew members. Some department heads wanted nothing to do them, but they were in the minority. The training program allowed a bond to form between the two races. It wasn’t unusual to see an Aldarian and human having a meal together at one of the dining establishments in Central.

  Most of the problems relating to the ship’s infrastructure and systems had long since been resolved. But one deck was still having ongoing problems with one of their systems.

  “Damn it,” said William as he looked at the readings on his DAT. “Jackson, get out here, the water reclamation system is giving us problems again.” The farmer was getting frustrated with the problems they had with the system. His group was already working overtime to produce enough food to accommodate the larger crew. They didn’t have time to deal with a lack of water.

  “Drix said he fixed it, didn’t he?” said Jackson as he emerged from the nearby greenhouse.

  “He said everything was fine, but he only tweaked the software. This looks like a physical problem.” William showed the readings to Jackson.

  “Eighteen percent drop in water flow?” said Jackson. “That can’t be right.”

  “It has to be a leak.”

  “Didn’t you have engineering go over the system with maintenance?” said Jackson as he watched William begin scanning the pipelines underneath them.

  “All they did was run some diagnostics,” said William in a disgusted tone. “These are the same people we trust to maintain a ship that can hold fifty thousand people.”

  “So call them up and get them down here,” said Jackson. “We can just increase the nightly reclamation cycle to accommodate for the lost water.”

  “And watch the captain bring another three hundred aliens on board? No thanks.” William looked back at Jackson. “Are you going to help me or not?”

  Jackson sighed and activated the scanner on his DAT. They walked parallel to each other on the grape vine parcel as they scanned the pipeline.

  “Hey, aren’t the pipes supposed to run straight down from end to end?” asked Jackson.

  “Yeah, why?” said William.

  “The water flow is being diverted right here,” said Jackson. He kneeled down and moved some of the dirt. “There’s an access point here.”

  That caught William by surprise. “It can’t be. You sure you’re working your DAT right?”

  “I’m not an idiot. Look.”

  William made his way over to Jackson. Access points were dotted along the walkways between parcels. There shouldn’t be one in the middle of a parcel.

  William checked his DAT which confirmed there was an access point right in the middle of the field. The water pipe had been rerouted around it.

  “Computer, bring up the structural schematics for this area and overlay it over my readings.” Both farmers watched as the schematic diagram superimposed itself on the DAT’s screen.

  “They don’t match,” said Jackson. “The schematic shows the pipe should be running straight through and no access point here.”

  “Why the hell would someone do something like that?” William asked.

  “Maybe it’s a mistake with the schematics. PHOENIX is a big ship.”

  “Engineers don’t make these types of mistakes.” William leaned down and began moving the dirt. “The dirt’s not shallow. Come on.”

  Jackson got on his knees and helped his fellow farmer dig out the access point. It only took a few minutes for them to expose the circular door and the locking panel by it.

  “The panel’s blinking,” said William. He punched in his code and the seals hissed as the door unlocked.

  Jackson grabbed William by the shoulder as the sound made him nervous. “Maybe we should get an engineering team.”

  “I want to know what’s down there,” said William. He pulled the hatch open and flashed the built-in light from his DAT into the tunnel. He could see another hatch on the other end. Without missing a beat, he climbed down the ladder to the other side.

  “You think that’s a good idea?” asked Jackson in a nervous tone. “Maybe we should contact maintenance and let them poke around down there.”

  “Stop acting so scared, there’s nothing done here,” said William. He noticed that there was no electronic door panel on the other door, only a wheel to open it.

  William turned the wheel as Jackson waited topside and watched, not wanting to join his friend until he knew it was safe.

  It took a lot of effort on William’s part to turn the wheel. But after a few moments of struggling, it slowly gave way and squealed as he rotated it. As he opened the door, he was greeted by darkness.

  “Well?” asked Jackson.

  “There’s life support down here,” replied William. “Computer, activate the lights to adjacent area.”

  “Unable to comply with request.”

  “Why not?”

  “Unable to comply with request.”

  “Stupid computer,” muttered William as he pointed his DAT forward and activated its flashlight. He was expecting a network of access tubes, but it appeared to be a large area. His flashlight was too small to make out anything, but he spotted what looked to be a control room not far to his left.

  “It looks like another part of the ship,” said William. “I’m going to check it out.” He entered the area, climbing down the ladder in front of him. Jackson, satisfied that it was safe, proceeded into the access shaft and caught up with William, who was still scanning the area with his flashlight.

  “Is this another deck?” asked Jackson. “I thought the farm deck was the last level on the ship.”

  “The DAT isn’t telling me anything,” said William. “I can’t make it out, but I think there’s something big suspended in the middle over there.

  “Any idea what it is?” asked Jackson, but William shook his head.

  “Strange that this place isn’t showing up on the schematics,” said William.

  “Hey, that looks like a control room,” said Jackson, pointing to their left to the square shape sticking out of the wall. “Maybe we can get more information from there.”

  The pair made their way to it, where they found an entryway on either side, but no doors to prevent access. As they stepped inside, they were presented with a large glass window in front and a control panel situated below it. A small button was flashing red on the otherwise inert console.

  “This looks old,” said Jackson. “The console has actual buttons. It isn’t touch based.”

  William checked his DAT, but it still didn’t provide any information on the area. In fact, his DAT wasn’t showing a connection to the ship’s computer at all.

  William shook the device. “What the hell’s the matter with this thing? It’s crapping out on me.”

  Jackson checked his DAT. “Mine too. I’m not showing a connection to the central computer.”

  “We’re never going to figure out what this place is sitting here in the dark,” said William.

  “Agreed,” said Jackson. He pressed the red button on the console and, all of the sudden, the lights came on throughout the area. Before either farmer could look around, a voice came over the control room speakers.

  “Attention, deck seventy-six is now active. Notify the command staff immediately. Attention…”

  The loud voice kept repeating the same phrases over and over.

  “Can’
t you shut that thing off?” said William.

  “I don’t know how,” said Jackson, not seeing anything to mute the automated voice.

  “Computer, end announcement,” said William, but the recording kept replaying.

  “We better notify one of the command officers,” said Jackson.

  “Yeah,” said William, looking at the huge cylindrical-like object hanging suspended in the middle of the deck. “Let’s get out of here.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  John stood with his arms folded, looking at the object hanging in the middle of the newly discovered deck seventy-six. Private Michaels contacted him a couple hours ago with news that a new location had been discovered underneath the farming deck. The ship was only supposed to have seventy-five decks, so the news of this hidden level surprised John.

  Julie, Alex’sis, Chief Sandoval, Drix, and some security officers were looking around the deck trying to determine what they were dealing with. John stood and glossed over the huge object that hung in the center of the deck.

  “A weapon, it’s got to be,” muttered John.

  “Captain?” said Julie, looking up from her DAT. She had been trying to bring up any information about this deck from the ship’s database but, so far, she was striking out.

  “That…thing,” said John, pointing to the tube-like object that ran most of the length of the deck. “It has to be some sort of weapon.”

  “What makes you think that?”

  “Its shape is similar to a missile or bomb, and it’s made of xeranium. Why use the most durable metal, that’s extremely difficult to manufacture, on anything but a critical device?”

  “Sounds plausible, but it’d be nice if I could find something in the ship’s schematics.”

  “There’s nothing?”

  “I’ve searched every database. I even tried using my command codes, but the computer isn’t giving me anything.”

  John activated his DAT. “Computer, voice recognize John Roberts, code Alpha-2-Omega.”

  “Authorization recognized,” replied the computer.

  “Display all files relating to location below deck seventy-five.” The computer fulfilled the request, unfortunately it was still showing only support structures and access pipes.