Phoenix Among The Stars (Exodus)

by Robert Stadnik

  “Could the Screen be avoiding us?” said John.

  “Why would they avoid us?” said Chris. “They never hesitated to attack a human ship that tried to leave the solar system.”

  “But that’s because they attacked ships they knew they could defeat,” said John. “PHOENIX can fight back, and they know that.”

  “If that’s true,” said Julie. “Our mission’s become a whole lot tougher. We don’t know where their homeworld is or what their territory is.”

  “If we only knew what motivates them,” said Kevin.

  “Perhaps Drix and I can offer something,” said Thresha. “We have discussed the histories of our people and, coupled with the history of your world, we may have a theory on the Screen.”

  “Let’s hear it,” said John.

  “My race’s history has been lost for many cycles,” said Drix. “What is known is that the Cresorians were masters of technology. We excelled in all areas of technological development. Our world was a paradise, the environment accentuated by our advancements.

  “Then, a plague befell our world. No one knows where it came from, but it forced my people to flee. Those who could not escape on ships died from the plague.”

  “The Cresorians die off from a plague, and your people die because of fire from the sky,” said Julie to Thresha.

  “The Aldarians’ deaths from fire falling from the heavens sounds more like a mythological tale than fact,” said Bret.

  “The story of what happened to my people should not be taken as absolute fact,” said Thresha. “I have always assumed that the true nature of what happened has been concealed from us to avoid the horrors of how the Aldarians suffered.

  “Tales tend to change based on the culture,” said John. “But the basic premise remains, only three hundred Aldarians are left, and Drix’s people are nomadic space wanderers. Drix, has any of your people ever returned to the Cresorian homeworld to verify what happened?”

  The black and white stripped alien shook his head. “The location of the Cresorian homeworld was lost long ago.”

  “We have to assume it’s somewhere in this region of space,” said Kevin.

  “If so, that leaves three races that have come under threat in this area of space,” said Julie. “The Cresorians and Aldarians have been wiped to near extinction, and humans under threat of annihilation for nearly a century.”

  “But that’s speculation, “said Chris. “We don’t know for sure that the Screen had something to do with what happened to the Cresorians or Aldarians.”

  “You’re right,” said John. “But space is huge, and the probability of these events happening in the same region of space is almost impossible to explain away as a natural phenomenon. The key will be capturing a Screen and learning of their history.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  “Hey, doc. You wanted to see me?” said Kevin as he walked in Doctor Myers’ office in medical.

  “Yes, thank you for coming down,” said Myers. “I know you’re busy getting ready for a scientific survey.”

  “It’s just going to be a routine survey,” said Kevin. “Sensors picked up unusual gravimetric readings coming from a moon orbiting a dead planet in a trinary star system. The scientists argued so much about investigating the anomaly that the captain has agreed to stop and investigate for a day. If it wasn’t for Drix’s modifications to PHOENIX’s sensors, we would have never picked it up this far out.”

  “It’s because of Drix I’ve called you down here,” said Myers. “He improved the medical scanners and I reran the crew’s biometric readings from their physicals through them. The sensors picked up something odd in your readings and I’d like to do a more detailed scan.”

  Kevin looked worried. “It’s nothing serious, is it?”

  “Oh no,” said Myers. “It may just be a sensor glitch, but I’d like to do a rescan as a precaution.”

  “Sure,” said Kevin. He followed Myers out of his office and to one of the nearby beds. Myers motioned for Kevin to take a seat, which the navigational officer did as the doctor retrieved a medical scanner.

  “So how have things been with you?” asked Myers as he began the examination. “I haven’t seen much of you since we left Earth.”

  “I’ve been busy coordinating with the scientific teams on all the survey missions of star systems we’ve been passing. The captain’s trying to get away from doing them, so I’m hoping to have some more free time.”

  “I’ve missed our chess matches,” said Myers. “I haven’t touched the board since our last get together.” The two had a fondness for chess and spent countless hours during their downtime playing the game at the EXODUS Project.

  “I’d love to start that up again,” said Kevin. “I’ve been playing the computer, but it’s not the same thing.”

  Suddenly, the medical scanner beeped. “Strange,” said Myers as he adjusted the scanner. “I’m picking up a small energy signature.” The scanner registered what the energy signature was, and it was something Myers recognized. His face turned serious as he realized what it was.

  “What? What is it?”

  “Lieutenant,” said Myers as he showed him the scanner results. Kevin looked horrified as he read the data. “We need to notify the captain.”

  Roberts was called down to medical and arrived thirty minutes after Myers contacted him. The doctor said it was an urgent, private matter, but wouldn’t elaborate on any details. John was going to send Julie down, as he was busy going over status reports with some of the department heads, but Myers insisted this could only be discussed with him.

  John entered medical and saw Myers at the other end, working at one of the medical stations. As he went over to meet him, he caught from the corner of his eye Kevin sitting in the doctor’s office. He was leaned over, his head buried in his hands. Something was very wrong.

  “Hey doc, sorry I’m a bit late,” said John.

  “Thank you for coming,” said Myers. “I need to talk to you about Lieutenant Jacobson.”

  “What’s wrong with him?” said John as he looked over at Kevin again.

  “I had him come down to conduct another physical exam. The improved scanners picked up something anomalous in his biometric readings from his last exam. When I scanned him I picked this up.”

  John looked at the data Myers displayed on the medical console. John knew what it was.

  “A DNA resequencer? That can’t be.”

  “I reran the scans several times to be sure.”

  DNA resequencers, commonly known as sneaks, were nano devices that emanated false energy signatures that reported a DNA profile different from what the user actually had. They were used by individuals who descended from Holocaust survivors whose genetic profiles had been changed by radiation exposure. Sneaks were illegal, but were popular on the black market for people trying to get into TERRA Academy. TERRA’s policy barred anyone with affected genes from serving in the fleet. Sneaks were difficult to detect, and only the most sophisticated scanners could pick them up.

  “The model the lieutenant has is an L243F,” said Myers. “The age of the device indicates he’s had it since he was a child.”

  “What does he have to say about it?” said John.

  “He insists that he knows nothing about it. When I showed him the scanner results he seemed just as surprised as me. Captain, I’ve uncovered a lot of these devices in people trying to enroll in the Academy when I had my private practice, and they all claimed no knowledge they had the implant. I’d like to believe the lieutenant, but too many of these individuals have lied to me.”

  “I’ll talk to him.” John went over to the office, not sure how to handle the situation. Although TERRA was good at catching sneaks, John did hear of a few rare cases of officers getting through the Academy admissions process and appointed as officers before finally being caught during a routine physical exam. TERRA made no exceptions and expelled them, regardless of the service record. John agreed with TERRA’s stance, as these peop
le needed to remain on Earth to receive the best medical care.

  The glass doors slid open and Kevin looked up to see the captain walk in. “Did the doctor tell you?”

  John only nodded.

  “You have to believe me, captain, I didn’t know anything about this. I would never betray TERRA or Admiral Johnson.”

  “Hey, hey! Easy!” said John, kneeling down and putting his arm on Kevin’s shoulder. The lieutenant’s desperate voice left no doubt in John’s mind that he was telling the truth. He could understand where Myers was coming from, but Kevin’s emphatic response was too genuine. “Doctor Myers is going to run a detailed genetic profile of you. Your health is of the upmost concern and he wants to ensure you have no medical condition that needs to be treated.”

  “But I feel fine, captain. I’ve never had anything to indicate I was a mute.”

  “Hey, I don’t want to hear you using that term again.” A mute was a nickname for someone who was a descendant of a Holocaust survivor. It was a disparaging term, one that John hated.

  “I can’t be one of those people, I just can’t.”

  “Kevin, listen. You just got hit with big news. You need time to process it. Once Myers is done with you here, I want you to go back to your quarters.”

  “What about the survey?”

  “You’re in no shape to work. Take some time for yourself. If you want, you can report for duty tomorrow.”

  “You’re not going to tell anyone are you?”

  “Commander Olson is the only person I would tell,” said John. “But I won’t tell her if you don’t want me to.”

  “Please don’t tell her,” said Kevin. “I don’t want to live with the stigma.”

  “Then I’ll keep it between us and Doctor Myers,” said John. “Hey, it’s going to be alright.”

  Kevin nodded. “Ok.”

  John gave him one more pat on the shoulder before getting up and leaving the office. He nodded to Myers before leaving, letting the doctor know he needed to attend to Kevin.

  If they were back in the solar system and legitimately in TERRA, John would be filing the paperwork to remove Kevin from service, but out here, his hands were tied. They were roaming in space and couldn’t simply stop by Mars and drop Kevin off. There was nothing to indicate Kevin had ever been sick. He reported to work on time and never complained about his health. There was nothing about his condition that interfered with his job. But what if Myers found something wrong, something that would require a substantial amount of resources to treat? PHOENIX was big, but it was never built with the intention of carrying Holocaust descendants, individuals who might need specialized long-term care.

  This was a tough situation. Until John received an update from Myers on Kevin’s condition, John would remain silent and allow the navigation officer to continue serving in his position.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  PHOENIX had been in the trinary system for a couple of days, orbiting the moon exhibiting unusual gravimetric readings. The scientists were excited with all the information they were getting on it, but John was, yet again, bored with the whole process. His attention was distracted about the well-being of his navigational officer.

  It had been four days since Doctor Myers discovered Kevin was descended from a Holocaust survivor. The doctor conducted a thorough analysis of Kevin’s gene structure and determined there was nothing to be concerned about at this time. The lieutenant reported back to the command deck, with no medical condition barring him from working, John allowed Kevin to resume his duties. But Kevin was different. He kept to himself and remained silent during the survey. Even Julie and Alex’sis noticed the change and asked John about it, but the captain feigned ignorance.

  In addition to the scientific survey, the mining group was conducting a survey of the moon to see if there was any ore material worth extracting. Although the mining group had procured a variety of different ores during the ship’s travels, there was still plenty of storage space on PHOENIX to hold more.

  “Aries Squadron is reporting in,” announced Julie. “They’re reporting no detection of any vessels, Screen or otherwise.”

  “Just like our sensors reported,” said John. “Thank you, commander. Have them continue with their patrol.” The captain looked over at Kevin, worried about him. It was hard, but John kept his distance to give the lieutenant some time to himself. But he didn’t want Kevin to wallow in misery alone.

  “Lieutenant Jacobson,” said John as he approached Kevin’s station. “Do the science teams have anything new to report?”

  “No, sir,” said Kevin in a dejected tone. “Even the unusual gravimetric activity isn’t turning out to be that exciting.”

  “Understood.” John leaned in to talk without others hearing him. “How are you holding up?”

  “Don’t worry about me, sir. I won’t let my personal issues get in the way of my job.”

  “That’s not what I meant. I mean how are you doing?”

  “Oh.” Kevin didn’t know how to respond. He had gone through so many emotions the past few days he wasn’t sure how he felt being a mute. “I think I’ll be ok, it’ll just take some time.”

  “If you want to talk about it with me, as a friend and not as your captain, I’m available.”

  Kevin cracked a weak smile. “Thank you, sir. I may take you up on that.”

  John patted him on the back before leaving him and joining Julie at the operations table.

  “Everything ok with him?” asked Julie.

  “Yeah, he’s just a bit homesick,” John lied.

  “A few people have been missing home,” said Julie. “I guess no matter how much Central was made to duplicate a human city, it’s not the same thing. Maybe he should spend some time at the botanical gardens. Lieutenant Brandus says it’s a perfect place to get rid of the blues.”

  “I’ll mention it to Kevin,” said John.

  “Captain,” said Private Michaels from his communications station. “The mining team on the moon is hailing us. She says it’s urgent.”

  “Patch it through,” said John.

  “This is mining group B to PHOENIX.” John recognized the voice as group leader Michelle Brackman.

  “This is PHOENIX,” said John. “Go ahead, Ms. Brackman.”

  “Captain, one of our survey teams found a cylinder object on the surface where they were working.”

  “What kind of cylinder?” asked John.

  “I haven’t seen it myself, but they described it as a transparent object that appears to be holding a reddish gas. They tried analyzing the contents but their scanners can’t get through the cylinder. So I had them send the object in a REPO back to PHOENIX.”

  John looked at Julie as she checked her console. “REPO Four is about two minutes from the hangar.”

  “Captain,” said Michelle. “I know it’s a breach of protocol sending an unknown object to the ship without verifying what it is, but we can’t do anything more down here to ascertain what it could be.”

  “I understand, Ms. Brackman,” said John, appreciative that she recognized she wasn’t following standard procedure. “We can do detailed examinations of it in one of the science labs. But if you find anymore objects on the moon, let us know first.”

  “Understood, captain. Brackman out.”

  “Have science lab one stand by to receive the object,” instructed John to Julie. “Make sure they have full containment in effect until they determine what’s inside it.”

  “Yes, captain.”

  “And you better contact Chief Sandoval. I’m sure he’ll want security involved the moment the object is brought on board.”

  “Will you be at the lab when it’s delivered?” asked Julie.

  “I’m going to leave this little endeavor to you,” said John. He realized he couldn’t be present at every new discovery they came across. For some reason the discovery of a mysterious device didn’t piqued his interest. Besides, he had a more important matter to address.

  “An
ything new from the science teams?” John asked Kevin as he returned to the navigation station.

  “Uh, not since you asked a few minutes ago,” said Kevin.

  “Fine, then let me buy you a drink.”

  “Captain?”

  “There’s nothing going on that requires our immediate attention, and it’s not doing you any good sitting here going through the motions. So let’s take advantage and blow off this place.”

  “O...Ok,” said Kevin as he motioned his relief over to assume the navigation station.

  “Commander,” said John. “I’ll be down in Central if you need to contact me, but only if it’s really important.”

  “Yes, sir,” said Julie as she watched John and Kevin leave the command deck. This was more than just Kevin being homesick, Julie was certain of it. But whatever it was, John elected not to clue her in on it.

  About forty-five minutes later, Julie was in science lab one watching a scientist pushing an antigravity sled into the lab that was carrying the mysterious object found on the moon. Sure enough, Sandoval insisted on security being involved and four security officers escorted the scientists from the hangar to the lab. Julie found the scene amusing, a small object transported under full military escort.

  The science team wasted no time in placing the object in a containment field in the middle of the lab and running scans of it.

  “We’re not picking up anything clinging on the outside of the object, no surprise there,” said one of the scientists, Gerry Miltoff.

  “How so?” asked Sandoval as he joined Julie and Gerry at the main science terminal.

  “The object’s been lying in the vacuum of space, far as we know nothing can survive such an environment,” explained Gerry. “No bacteria or other materials. I’m not picking up any mechanical components to the object. It looks like it might just be a container.”

  “But to what?” said Julie as she looked at the reddish gas trapped inside. She was mesmerized by it. To her, it seemed like the gas was moving in a deliberate motion.