by Scott Baron
“Ugh, you two,” Sarah griped, then turned her attention back to their reveling friend. “So what’s the plan? Should we leave her down here, or bring her back to Dark Side?”
A big smile flashed on Daisy’s face.
“Uh-oh, I know that look. What’ve you done, Daze?”
“You want to tell her, or should I?” Sarah asked.
“Well…” Daisy began, “I may have had Freya bring a little message to our friends retrofitting the nearest coastal residential tower.”
Understanding blossomed in Sarah’s mind.
“Oh, please tell me you did what I think you did.”
“You know it.”
“Fatima is going to lose her mind.”
“I know. And it’s going to be awesome,” Daisy said, beaming. “Whenever she’s had enough of the sun and sand, we’ll take her to get set up in her penthouse pad.”
“Does it have a jacuzzi too?”
“What kind of woman do you take me for, Sarah? Of course it does. Rooftop, no less. She’ll have a clear view of the entire city, as well as the whole coastline. And Finn even boxed up something special for her and sent it down with Bob. Should be waiting for her when she gets there.”
“Wow. Nicely done, Sis. You outdid yourself.”
“Why, thank you. And it’s the least I could do for her,” Daisy said happily. “And by the way, Finn also packed you up a little treat as well. Check Freya’s galley when we get back.”
A few hours later, Fatima stood in her new terrestrial lodging. Though there was no ocean spray anywhere near, her cheeks were nevertheless wet. At the rate she was going, Daisy almost worried she’d get dehydrated if she had any more happy surprises.
“This is amazing,” she gasped as she walked through the penthouse. “And this is mine? This entire space?”
“Yep,” Daisy replied. “You’ve been cooped up in a military base for so long, we wanted you to have space to spread your wings, so to speak. The Chithiid hooked us up and did a great job cleaning it from top to bottom, and they rolled in a new mattress, as well as stocking it with fresh linen and towels. We also took your measurements from Sid’s records and had Habby whip you up a few outfits. I hope you like them––he sometimes gets a little carried away.”
Fatima was beside herself.
“There’s one more thing,” Daisy said, directing her to the rooftop deck. “I had them bring a second bed out here, along with a heat lamp and fluffy covers. I thought you might want to sleep under the stars in the open air, if the weather was nice.”
Fatima grabbed her in a tight hug and squeezed tight.
“Thank you, Daisy. You have no idea what this means to me.”
“I think I do, actually,” she said with a smile. “Now, you enjoy your time here. We can get along just fine up on Dark Side without you for a bit. You’ve more than earned this.”
Daisy walked to the edge of the roof.
“Hey, kiddo, we’re ready to go.”
The stealthy ship silently rose to roof-level and extended her retractable gangplank.
“Have a great night, Fatima. We’ll check in on you in the morning before we head out,” Daisy said, then she and Sarah boarded the ship and quietly flew off toward Downtown.
“We deserve a break too,” Daisy said as she slid into her captain’s seat. “I set us up a couple of suites near the tribunal. Figured we could go see what Tamara and the others are up to, then maybe watch the morning’s hearings before we head back up.”
“Works for me, Sis,” Sarah said, blissfully eating a spoonful of the homemade pistachio ice cream Finn had stashed in Freya’s galley for her.
“Works for me too,” Sarah added. “And Daze?”
“Yeah, Sarah?”
“You did good.”
The sisters flew off to enjoy the rest of their evening before getting some well-deserved rest. The morning would bring new challenges, but Daisy felt confident in her team’s ability to overcome them. Things were most definitely looking up.
Far above, safely tucked away inside Dark Side’s pressurized walls, Finn and Arlo were having a fantastic time whipping up some of the crazed man’s more original recipes.
While Finn was the more seasoned chef, he was thrilled to discover that Arlo had a natural gift for cooking. More than that, he shared Finn’s affinity for knives, and his skills, though slower than the mechanically enhanced man, were nonetheless quite impressive.
The good-natured trash talk of the kitchen had bonded them early on, and in the month-plus that they had been cooking for not only the base’s usual crew, but also their new Chithiid guests, a real friendship had formed.
“Nuts!” Finn called out, tossing a packet of walnuts to his young friend.
“Always showing me your nuts, Finn.”
“They’re salty, ya know?” he replied with a chuckle.
“But so small,” Arlo shot back.
“Hey!”
“What? They’re your nuts,” he said with a laugh.
Arlo pulled out several large carrots and a dozen stalks of celery to add to the large pot of soup they were whipping up for starters for their four-armed guests. His blade flew across the cutting board, making quick work of the pile of vegetables.
“Nice chops, kid.”
“Thanks,” Arlo replied. “My uncle taught me when I was a kid. Also taught me to keep my fingers tucked,” he said, lightly rapping his knife against Finn’s metal fingers. “A lesson someone apparently never had. As for me, I very much want to keep mine attached,” he said with a laugh.
“Hey, that was a malfunction of my arm that caused that,” Finn whined. “And besides, now I don’t have to worry about things like that anymore.”
“Yeah, yeah. Keep rationalizing, old man.”
“I will, young whippersnapper. Now get off my lawn!” he said, pulling his lips over his teeth and mimicking a toothless old man.
Finn turned and looked across the counter at their other companion.
“Oh, jeez. No, not like that. Vertical cuts. We’ve gone over this,” Finn said, shifting his attention to the Chithiid who had been learning to cook under his tutelage. “Sid, would you tell him, please?”
“I have, Finn. He is merely getting the hang of things. Give him time,” the base AI replied. “And if you would wear your translation earpiece, I could help you communicate much easier.”
“Slows my roll, my man. And it slips off my ears.”
“Then tighten the loop,” Sid said, patiently. “It’s a tiny device, after all.”
“Yeah, I guess. But check him out. He’s got four arms, but he’s clumsier than this yo-yo was when he started,” he said, gesturing toward Arlo.
“Hey!”
Finn shot him a wicked grin and a wink.
“All right,” he said to the alien, “Don’t worry, Berrk, you’ll get better.”
Sid translated for the clumsy Chithiid.
“Please tell Finn I appreciate his patience. While I may have some skill with tools and warp technology, I seem to be lacking in the ways of food preparation.”
“Not to worry, Berrk. We all know this is new for your people. Once you have become accustomed to the practice of sourcing your own foods, these skills will eventually become second nature.”
“We did not realize it at the time, but when the Ra’az insisted on providing all of our food from their processing facilities, we were unaware it was not done for the convenience of our people, but rather, as a further means to keep us under their yoke.”
“Indeed, it was an unusual, yet effective, strategy to make the Chithiid workforce dependent on them for sustenance,” Sid noted. “Yet, despite his sarcastic commentary, I believe Finn is actually quite impressed with the progress you have made in so little time.”
“Do you truly believe this?” he asked expectantly.
“Yes, I do. I have observed Finnegan in the kitchen environment for some time now, and I can assure you, the more grief he gives, the more respect he has fo
r you. See how he torments the youth?”
“Yes, he is rather abusive toward him.”
“That is because he is fond of him.”
“Oh, I did not realize they had that sort of relationship.”
“What? Oh, I did not mean in a romantic sense, though there would be nothing wrong if that were the case, but I was referring to his taking a younger man under his wing in a mentorship manner.”
“Aah, I see.”
“Hey, I heard that!” Finn said, the translation earpiece now firmly affixed.
“Good,” Sid replied. “Now we can converse normally.”
“Normally for you, maybe. It’s still weird for me going through a middleman.”
“I don’t need one,” Arlo said in fluent Chithiid.
“Showoff,” Finn sniped, chucking a carrot at him.
“Hey, Berrk, don’t listen to him,” Arlo said with a silly grin. “He’s just old and bitter. I think you’re doing a kickass job.”
“Thank you, Arlo. I am doing my best. It has been a wonderful experience thus far, learning how native ingredients mesh to form a flavor palette. Our processed foods, while nutrient-rich, were quite lacking in enjoyable flavors.”
“I know, I’ve tried one of those bars. Ewww,” Arlo said with a grimace.
“Arlo, I was wondering. Do you think you and Finn would perhaps be interested in coming down to the surface and teaching others what you have taught me? After we complete our work on the warp technology, of course.”
“Dude, that would be sick!”
“You are ill?”
“No, it’s just a saying. What I mean is that would be a lot of fun. I’m sure Finn’ll be up for it. Tons of cool ingredients down there to choose from.”
Finn listened as he worked, Sid translating for him in near-real-time.
“The answer is yes, by the way,” he said. “And thanks for asking before committing me to a cooking course,” he added.
“Oh, come on. You know you love the devoted students inflating your ego.”
“Yeah, yeah. Now pay attention––we’re gonna have a bunch of hungry aliens in here pretty soon, and you’re falling behind with all your jaw-flapping.”
Arlo laughed, and even Berrk broke a smile in the festive mood of the kitchen as the two humans and their alien friend labored together.
“This is fantastic,” Chu said, seated with his Chithiid team as they ate a short while later. “Is this actual chicken soup?”
“Yes and no,” Finn said. “The veggies are all fresh stuff we sourced from the surface, but the protein is machine-replicated tissue. I still can’t see clear to killing animals for food, ya know?”
“I totally get it. It’s just funny to hear from a chef who cooks meat, like, every day, is all.”
“It’s meat, but it was never an animal. It’s different,” Finn clarified.
“Having eaten both, I can tell you, there’s no discernible difference,” Arlo pointed out.
“When did you eat real chickens?” Chu asked.
“Uh, my mom raised some from eggs. Said I should understand about taking a life to preserve my own. I raised them, then she had me kill them and eat them.”
“That’s fucked up, dude,” Finn said.
“Yeah, I suppose, but she had a point. Things were different then, and I was young. Anyway, I learned that if I have to, I can do it. I just prefer not to, is all.”
“Such a cultured young man,” Finn said, ruffling his apprentice’s hair. “Next thing you know, you’ll tell me that you––”
The base’s lights blinked to red in an instant, all doors slamming into battle lockdown mode. The attack alert sounded loud and clear through every inch of the facility.
“Warning! All hands, we are under attack!” Sid blared over the speakers.
Mal and Bob quickly fired up their engines and spun toward the hangar doors, waiting impatiently for the work crews who were lacking space suits to vacate the chamber so the doors could open and let them engage the enemy.
“Are any of our Chithiid ships able to power up their weapons yet?” Mrazich barked.
“Negative, Commander. They’re still being prepped,” Sid replied.
Outside the moon, a dozen large ships warped into low orbit. Then a dozen more. And they kept coming.
Soon the moon was swarmed by a fleet of varying sized vessels.
“We are surrounded,” Sid announced to all within the base’s walls. “We are cut off from Earth.”
Chapter Thirty-Five
Sid had alerted the minor AIs parked on the surface to scramble, and any minute, Mal and Bob would be able to join them, just as soon as he could decompress the hangar and open its doors. He was putting the entire base in lockdown when an unexpected transmission crackled over the comms.
“Dark Side Base, this is the Earth Resistance Fleet. Do you copy, Sid?”
“Sid, how does she know your name?” Mrazich asked, still strapping on his sidearm in the command center.
“This is Celeste Harkaway. Do you copy, Sid?”
“Her name is Harkaway, Commander. From the escaped fleet that salvaged humanity. She was second-in-command before I launched on my mission to Earth.”
“I heard the name, and I know all of that. But this can’t be them. They’re light years away and don’t have any sort of warp technology.”
“From what we’ve just seen, that is apparently not the case,” he replied.
Mal and Bob quietly exited the hangar, but rather than launching into a suicidal defense run, they paused, scanning the fleet hanging in the dark sky.
“Sid, it is indeed them,” Mal confirmed. “Even Zed’s here.”
“Oh dear. He’s always been a bit of a handful.”
“I heard that, Sid,” the powerful command ship AI said with a baritone laugh. “Nice to see you again too,” he added.
“Apologies, Zed. You took me rather by surprise.”
“Kind of what we want to do to those Ra’az assholes, am I right?” the salty AI said.
“Indeed, but I still fail to see how you––”
“Daisy,” he replied. One word that explained it all.
“Of course. She mentioned coming upon you during her accidental warp, but I was unaware she had left you a functional warp system.”
“She didn’t. Look, we can talk about this all day, but Harkaway really wants to come do this face-to-face.”
“Of course,” Sid blurted. “Have her land in Hangar One. I will send Barry to show her the way.”
“It will be my pleasure,” the sandy-haired cyborg said.
“Hey, Barry! Glad you’re still functional,” Zed called out over the comms.
“Thank you, Zed. I, too, am glad to be intact,” he replied.
“Okay, she’s launching. Should be to you in three minutes.”
“So soon? Very well, we will be ready to welcome her. But Zed, you should know there are Chithiid scientists working with us on the base. Please inform her security detail so they are aware.”
“New allies?”
“Yes. Deciphering and replicating warp technology stolen from the Ra’az.”
“Looks like we may have just saved you a bunch of work. But I’ll let Harkaway tell you all about it when she gets there. We’ll catch up in a bit. Zed out.”
The shuttle was a relatively small one, and Celeste Harkaway traveled with only two aides and no security detail. Seeing as she was landing at the most secure military facility in the solar system, she decided to travel light.
“Commander,” she said warmly when she saw the metal-jawed man lumber across the deck. “My, the years have been kind to you.”
“Bullshit, Celeste. Last time you saw me, I was decades younger, and wasn’t sporting these shiny bits,” he said with a laugh. “But it’s great to see you just the same. Come on, let’s get you some grub,” he said, leading her from the hangar and down the corridors. “I bet it’s been a long time since you’ve had Earth-grown produce.”
&n
bsp; “Long? More like never.”
“I know. You’re in for a treat. Despite his penchant for inane rambling, Finn is quite a talented chef.”
“Finnegan is still with you? How wonderful!” she exclaimed. “And where is Lars?”
Mrazich fell silent a moment too long. She knew something was wrong.
“What happened to him?” she asked, stoic despite her obvious pain.
“It was during the assault on Earth. The hull of his ship was compromised and contagion reached the command pod.”
“I see,” she said, swallowing hard.
“No, it’s not like that. He’s alive, Celeste, but he had to be thrown into a deep emergency stasis. The AIs have been working to fix him ever since, but we just don’t know if it’ll work or not.”
Celeste took a deep breath and composed herself. Mourning her husband would have to wait.
“Thank you, Commander. I know you’ve done all you can. For now, we have more pressing matters, however.”
“Looks that way,” he agreed.
“As I’m sure you know by now, Daisy visited us many years ago.”
“She told us.”
“And did she also tell you how she came to arrive there?”
“Accidental time warp,” he replied. “Nasty thing, that. It must’ve been hell on that poor ship hanging around by itself while Daisy waited out the years in cryo.”
“I couldn’t agree more. Especially having met Freya. She’s quite a handful.”
“You can say that again,” Mrazich agreed.
“And she also made quite an impression on our top AI minds, and that’s saying something. Zed has always been a bit of a tough nut to crack, but for whatever reason, those two hit it off immediately. They did a lot of collaboration while Daisy was with us.”
“Excuse me, but did you say Freya collaborated with Zed?” Sid asked.
“Yes, Sid. Zed as well as the other AIs in the fleet.”
“Ah, then that explains the progress your people made with the warp technology.”
“You’ve hit the nail on the proverbial head, Sid. With so many minds working the problem, it was only a matter of time before we not only replicated the warp orb, but also enlarged the system to function with larger vessels.”