by Calista Skye
“It could.”
“Should we just assume that that's what it is?”
“We should.”
Ava smiled at the tightness in Xark'ion's voice and his brief replies. He wasn't as sure about this as she was. Somehow that made her more confident. “This is looking really good so far. They didn't attack us, they're talking to us in your language, and they seemed to appreciate that we're here as friends.”
“That you're here as a friend, anyway,” Xark'ion said. “I noticed you didn't mention me.”
“One thing at a time. We're here as friends. Both of us. It's easier to explain the situation to them when they can actually see you. Do you think they might notice that you're not attacking them, like any enemy would?”
“They might.”
“They definitely will. An Acerex warrior not attacking them will get the point across better than anything else. Remember, this is a peaceful mission. I will go first. You can hang back. But don't lose sight of me.”
“I advise against entering the alien craft.”
“Oh, I'm not going in there until we're both sure that it's safe. What usually happens when I meet aliens in space is that I stay inside my shuttle and talk to the alien either by radio or through an open hatch. That usually gives me a decent sense of how things are going to go. Then, if they invite me in and I have a good feeling about it, I'll accept. And you come with me. Or we'll invite them in here. But that way, we don't learn as much about them as if we see them in their own environment.”
Xark'ion just grunted, clearly not happy about the situation.
The comet grew bigger outside the windows, but it still looked just like a dirty, brownish snowball with fuzzy edges.
“Weird disguise for a spaceship,” Ava said.
“Comets are small and innocent. An effective camouflage for when you want to have a presence in an Acerex star system. We do consider this system ours.”
“The Fire Planet is sacred to you, I know. But after the Trials were moved away from here, there's not much happening, right?”
“Right. Only your Earth base on the small moon is tolerated. Acerex rarely come here, except for funerals. This is as close to that comet I think it's safe to get. Its gravity is erratic.”
The comet might be small, but still it totally filled up the front screen and the side windows.
“Acerex craft with Earth passenger,” the speakers said again. “We will extend a bridge so that you may come over to us.”
“Ah,” Ava said in to the comms. “There's a hatch in our side, right-”
“We are familiar with this type of Acerex craft,” the voice said.
A section of the comet started moving, and Ava watched mesmerized as a bridge of clear ice appeared to grow out of the comet's side, very fast, an irregular latticework of frost. A minute later, the ice bridge had reached their shuttle, and there was a crunching sound as the ice attached itself to the hull around the hatch. Translucent panes of ice grew into the spaces in the spars of thicker ice, and then the bridge was complete.
“It's like something out of Frozen,” Ava mumbled to herself.
“What?”
“Oh, nothing. It just reminds me of an old animated movie. But whatever we find inside that comet, I don't think it'll be Princess Elsa.”
“The diplomat speaks in riddles,” Xark'ion said and got up, checking his sword.
Ava released her harness and followed him to the hatch, pulling on her gloves and an innocent-looking woolen hat that was made from something very different from wool and doubled as a helmet. “Don't mind me. I'm just excited.”
Xark'ion peered out the clear pane in the hatch, into the inside of the icy tunnel that the comet had reached out to them. “The arch enemy of the Acerex people. I'll be the first to meet them.”
“No, no,” Ava said, alarmed at the flat tone of his voice. “This is a friendly encounter. I thought we agreed on that. No enemy talk.”
He flashed her a tight smile. “Don't mind me. I'm excited, too.”
She held his gaze. “If this works, the Acerex people can finally enjoy peace. We must not endanger this contact. We are here as friends. Both of us.”
The warrior grinned and grabbed her under the arms, lifting her onto him and kissing her lips. “I think we're more than friends by now.”
Ava embraced his neck. “Hey, you know what I mean. Everything rides on this. It could be the most important thing that's happened. Ever. For both our peoples. We must do this the right way.”
He kissed her again and set her down. “Very well. Here they come.”
Ava looked out the hatch. A dark shape was coming down the icy tunnel. It was tall and so shadowy it was hard to make out its shape.
“Recognize that?” Ava asked softly.
“No,” Xark'ion said firmly. “There should be adequate pressure and oxygen on the other side. Not the same mix of gases as on Acerex, but we can breathe it without any ill effect. Shall we open the hatch?”
Ava nodded, and there was a sharp hiss as the hatch opened and equalized the pressure with the air in the tunnel over to the comet. The cabin was filled with the sharp smell of ammonia, and the temperature dropped far below the freezing point.
The alien coming towards them had no obvious face and a long, black robe that made it look as if draped in darkness. It stopped halfway across the bridge.
“Let's go and meet him,” Ava said. “I suppose you can come. He gives me a creepy feeling. Stay behind me, and keep your hands off your sword. Can you handle this cold okay?”
Xark'ion only snorted.
Ava took one step out onto the ice. The artificial gravity from the shuttle extended a little bit out onto the bridge, which was frosted enough to not be slippery.
As she took another step, another gravity field took over, pulling her to the floor with somewhat less force than the shuttle would.
She fastened her eyes on the tall alien and walked to the midpoint of the bridge, making sure her steps were determined and that she held her head high.
The alien was clearly draped in some kind of soft material that absorbed light. It was impossible to tell if it had legs or if it even had a head.
Ava stopped four paces away and lifted her right hand, palm out. “Greetings. I am Ava Harris, from the planet Earth. I have the authority to speak for my people.” A plume of mist escaped her mouth with every word. It was very cold in the ice tunnel.
The alien didn't move. “Acerex,” it said. “Acerex warrior.” Its voice was cold and airy, almost ghostly. It released no mist from anywhere.
“Captain Xark'ion is indeed an Acerex warrior,” Ava said calmly. “He is my associate. We from Earth are friends with the Acerex. And now we wish to be the friends of the Kunuru. Both Earth and Acerex. We are here to represent our peoples.”
“The Acerex is here to surrender.”
“Nobody is here to surrender. We are here to represent our peoples in friendly talks with the Kunuru.”
“Friendly talks,” the alien repeated. “Brings an Acerex for friendly talks. Not to surrender.”
“That's right,” Ava said. “The people of Earth and the people of Acerex are friends. We wish to be friends with the Kunuru as well.” She was repeating herself, but that was one thing she'd learned: if you have a message, harp on it until the other party gets it.
“Friends,” the alien repeated. “The Kunuru have no friends. None are sympathetic to our cause.”
“Then this is a good time to get some,” Ava suggested. “Friendship is better than war. Much better.”
“Perhaps,” the alien said. “We have never had friends.”
“Then consider Earth and Acerex your first friends.”
“Friendship,” the Kunuru said, as if tasting the word. “A strange concept.”
“A natural concept,” Ava countered. “We are all advanced, sentient species. Space is big enough for all of us. Why not be on good terms? Notice that I'm not armed. Earth prefers peace to war.”
<
br /> “Brings an Acerex warrior for friendly talks.” The alien must also have learned that thing about harping on one message.
“Yes,” Ava said. “Captain Xark'ion is armed with his sword. Can you imagine an Acerex without his sword? It's as much a part of him as his hands are. And yet, he does not have to use it. He has no intention of using force against the Kunuru. He is here as a friend, too.”
Behind her back, Ava signalled to Xark'ion with their secret signs: Stay calm. Trying to establish common ground.
“An Acerex without a sword is a absurd image,” the alien agreed. “What are the terms of friendship?”
That was quick. “The terms of friendship are easy. No war between us. No violence between us. If there's a conflict, it is resolved by talk, not by war.”
“That is all?”
“That is all,” Ava confirmed. “With certain details added as our friendship grows deeper, our sympathies grow firmer.”
“Friendship is the absence of war,” the alien stated. “We would not have guessed it. We are Kunuru. I am Nur, Hierarch of the Fifteenth Rank.”
Ava bowed very slightly. This seemed like a small breakthrough. “I'm honored.”
“Earth,” Nur said. “How many worlds?”
“Inhabited? Just one.”
“One world. Blue and white, like Acerex?”
“Yes.”
“Rich in everything, lush and blessed, filled with resources and life, like Acerex?”
“Um ... sure. Yes.”
“How many Earth beings?”
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- Ava -
“Oh, about twelve billion.”
There was a long silence, until Ava started to think there was something wrong with the translation. Just when she was going to clarify, the alien spoke again.
“Twelve billion. All sentient?”
“Yes. And a few trillion that we consider non-sentient, but are still beings. We call them animals.”
“Earth is a mighty friend. I must contact the Hierarch of Fourteenth Rank, Krun. Esteemed Earth envoy, please enter my spaceship and we can talk further. This thin air bothers me.”
Ava looked past Nur to the other end of the icy tunnel. There was a dark opening into the comet.
She glanced behind her. Xark'ion was standing there, arms crossed over his chest, as secure as the Rocky Mountains. The sight grounded her and made her confident. Everything had gone well so far. This was extremely promising.
“Very well,” she said. “Captain Xark'ion and I will follow you inside your craft.”
She made the hand gestures that meant come closer, and two seconds later she could feel Xark'ion's presence right behind her.
Nur turned around, and made his way back towards his comet with a gliding walk.
Ava and Xark'ion followed.
“I think this could work,” Ava whispered, and the translator said it right into Xark'ion's ear. “They have never had friends before.”
“Then perhaps they will have trouble understanding what it means,” Xark'ion whispered back. “But yes, your diplomacy skills are evident.”
“No skills needed,” she replied. “He's not being difficult. This was surprisingly easy. I get the feeling they want this friendship as much as we do.”
The opening into the comet was the same size as the tunnel, and the temperature only got colder inside what was clearly not a comet at all, but a very alien spaceship. The interior was in half darkness, and the walls were smooth and metallic.
There was just room for the alien to walk tall through the strange and irregular rooms they were passing through, but Xark'ion had to bend his neck to not bump into the strangely congealed-looking ceiling. The smell of ammonia was very strong, and Ava was starting to get a headache.
The alien Nur entered a chamber that was larger than the ones they had seen so far. Without hesitation he walked straight down into a pool set in the floor, filled with a dark liquid with the surface level with the floor. The smell of ammonia was extremely strong.
Ava and Xark'ion stopped before they too would plunge into the unpleasant pool. Nur was immersed in it with only about a foot of his dark-clad body still sticking up above the surface.
“Space travel is mostly agreeable,” he said in his ghostly voice. “But the thinness of pure air is unhealthy for Kunuru.”
“Do Kunuru travel much in space?” Ava asked.
“Much,” Nur replied. “I am now in communication with the Hierarch of Fourteenth Rank, Krun.”
The silence was deafening, and Nur didn't appear to be moving either above or under the surface. Ava had no idea how he could communicate with anyone while mostly submerged in ammonia.
Minutes passed, and Ava sent Xark'ion a little smile. This was the weirdest thing she'd ever done, and probably the most dangerous. But still, with Xark'ion there, it seemed both natural and safe.
She had an urge to stroke his face and his chest and his back, just feeling the sheer maleness of him close to her.
But this was probably not the best time. Still she turned her back to him, shot her hip out and stroked her hand down her butt in a way that she was hoping was sexy.
You okay? she signalled with her hands.
“I'm fine,” her translator whispered into her ear. “I have a good view here. You just watch that alien.”
Still Nur didn't move, and Ava started to wonder if maybe he was waiting for her to say something.
Then he stirred, sending little ripples of liquid across the still pool. “The Hierarch of Fourteenth Rank, Krun, authorizes me, the Hierarch of Fifteenth Rank, Nur, to accept the friendship of Ava Harris from Earth and the eighteen billion others like her. This is a probationary pact. Ava and her people must commit no act of hostility towards the Kunuru or our allies.”
“We won't,” Ava assured him, feeling a strong urge to pump her fist in the air. “And what about the Acerex?”
“The Hierarch of Fourteenth Rank, Krun, has authorized me to receive the Acerex surrender or to discuss terms of a ceasefire. He is puzzled about the friendship idea, but is open to negotiations. He states that while the Acerex are a puny enemy with honorless fighters, and while the Kunuru are close to conquering them and even now maintain a ship in their sacred star system in which we presently find ourselves, and while we find slaughtering their warriors the easiest task in the universe, we also see the value of not being at war at all times. Perhaps a solution can be found ...”
The ghostly voice trailed off, and Ava made sure to memorize some of the most important things he had said. Most of it wouldn't sit well with the Acerex, but the bottom line seemed promising. Stay calm, she signalled again. That speech had been pretty insulting.
“Hierarch Nur,” she said, “as an envoy, I always seek to understand. You said that none have ever understood the Kunuru cause. May I know what that cause is?”
“The death of all that are not Kunuru,” the reply came instantly.
“Oh. You want everyone else dead?”
“Everyone else and everything else.”
“But you're only attacking the Acerex? Using other species.”
“Efficient,” Nur said. “Force must have something to work against. The slave species are crushed between us and the Acerex. The hammer and the anvil. We are the anvil. The Acerex are the hammer.”
Ava felt Xark'ion stir behind her. Stay calm, she signalled again.
“Your attacks on the Acerex are not really to kill the Acerex, but to kill the aliens you send to fight them? I am understanding that correctly?”
“The Earth envoy understands correctly. The Acerex are efficient fighters. Remove wave after wave of unworthy slave species. Yet, not perfect. With friendship, they will promise to be more effective.”
“Not perfect? In what way?”
“Acerex never finish. Never totally eradicate. Fights lesser species off, then backs down. Never invades. Despite our measures taken.”
That was true. The Acerex preferred not to annihilate the aliens th
ey were up against. Sometimes they would eradicate a whole army, but never the alien's home world. And they'd never invaded any planet, as far as Ava knew.
“Which measures taken?” She was working on autopilot now, letting her intuition take over and keeping one part of her mind remembering and analyzing what was said.
“The Acerex are two. Divided. One half fights, the other part gives birth to their offspring. We, the Kunuru, deleted one half. In order to help the other half fight better. Only part successful.”
Divided? The women and the men. The disease that killed most of the women in their world must have come from the Kunuru, although it was other aliens that were blamed.
A low growling emanated from Xark'ion's throat, and Ava again signalled stay calm. We are talking.
“Your cause is to eliminate all other life? Still you are willing to have friendship with Earth and Acerex.”
“There can be peace. The anvil and the hammer need not be enemies. Can be friends. As long as the hammer keeps hitting.”
“But at some point, you need to kill the Acerex too. As well as the people of Earth.”
Still Nur didn't move in his ammonia bath. “Yes.”
This wasn't as good as Ava had hoped. The Kunuru seemed to want to use them to destroy other alien races, and then the Kunuru would try to destroy them, too.
“Why is your cause to kill all other life?”
“The universe was made for the Kunuru. To prove ourselves worthy of it in the eyes of Vrun, we must destroy all the parasite species, cleanse all of space and make it worthy of him. Then we will be alone in a clean universe and he will return from his Other Realm.”
“Who is Vrun?”
“Vrun is the creator, the owner, the primary and the ultimate. Not in this universe. It is not worthy of him. But we will cleanse it and he will return.”
Ah. Religious zealots. Still, this was all valuable intelligence. Much more than anyone could expect from a first meeting. And Nur seemed willing to talk. Ava had to get as much as possible out of him.
“How many Kunuru are there?”
“Nineteen.”
“Nineteen billion?”
“Nineteen.”
Nineteen? She glanced behind her. But Xark'ion wasn't looking at her, but kept staring at Nur, his face paler than before. But his hand was not on the hilt of his sword. Still, she probably had to speed this up. Despite her suit's advanced climatic controls, she was feeling cold and she had to concentrate to keep her teeth from clattering.