I thought it might be fun to be able to show people more of my recent work, which up until now has mostly just been hiding in my various devices.
But, well, need to put things out there, and this is something that got a lot of likes from friends over the past year (of just sharing via email)
So, here is the first few chapters of a book I’ve been working on.
Hope you enjoy it!
(it’s pretty big. but I hope that’s considered a good thing to y’all.)
Also note, its rather different style/tone from what I usually do. This is partially deliberate, and partially just because I wanted to experiment, aaaand partly because I came up with the idea for this story while drugged up during an awake surgery.
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West Coast Sprawl, 2134
Chapter 1: Frying Pan, Meet Fire
WHACK.
Jack went down hard, his head banging into the concrete sidewalk. He blinked blearily upwards, the twinkling stars of mild concussion mixing with the actual stars of the night sky above. He was not exactly what you’d call petit, but the man who had hit him was shaped like a gorilla and the punch had felt like getting hit by a car. He coughed hard a couple times, feeling a bit of blood coursing down his chin from his demolished lips. He was quite surprised he still had all his teeth, and tried to collect himself to look up at his attacker. He regained enough of his senses just in time to roll to one side, the heavy boot crashing down where his neck had been a split second before. The impact with the pavement seemed to rattle his opponent, and he took the opportunity to half-raise his hands placatingly. “Hey, buddy. Doesn’t have to be like this. How bout we go into that bar over there and knock back a couple of slugs instead?” He offered, trying to smile through his smashed mouth. The giant man roared like an animal on the hunt and picked up a pipe lying in the refuse of the street, raising it over his head to bring down a killing blow.
Jack’s hands moved faster than his rattled brain could have told them, but years of practice made it an automatic reaction. He drew a revolver from under his jacket, raised it, and kept firing until it clicked impotently, now empty. The hulking man staggered and then crashed into the gutter, the muddy waters stained by the rapidly expanding pool of blood seeping out from his ventilated torso.
Jack slumped back and looked up at the stars again, letting the hand cannon fall with a clatter at his side as he breathed hard and collected his thoughts. “Guess I got you those slugs after all, eh pal?” he muttered, and then chuckled at his own joke. He lay there for a minute, getting his breath back, not thinking about much besides concentrating on slowing his heart back down from a purring engine to something approaching normal and trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his mouth. As a distraction, he looked up at the walls of concrete around him, glistening slightly in the neon lights of shop signs and street lights from the recent rain. He could faintly hear rushing water below him of the sewers, and the trickling of gutters high above. The city was surprisingly quiet, not counting the deafening bangs of his gun a moment before. He tried to appreciate the moment of stillness before heaving himself up and looking at the corpse a few feet away. He dabbed at his bloodied face with a coat sleeve, smiling slightly at the knowledge that his dry cleaner wouldn’t even raise an eyebrow at the stain. This was the west coast sprawl and he was a freelancer, the little bangladeshi man had once said, it would be stranger if he DIDN’T have blood on his clothes.
Freelance… He sighed in annoyance as he recalled just how ‘free’ freelancing had been lately. His last three clients in a row had either skipped town or been plugged before he could collect his fee. He made a mental note to ask for half up front in future, or at least an automated deposit, if only to prevent his landlady banging on his door all weekend. Again.
His reverie was cut short by the blaring of sirens a few streets away, and a moment later he squinted in the blinding light of police cruiser headlights. Two officers leapt out and ran to him and the brute he had just shot. The cop nearest him looked down at Jack, a smirk on his tanned and pockmarked face. “Jack. Good to see you back in your favorite vacation spot. The gutter.”
Jack rolled his eyes and sighed with a groan. “Yeah, it rains a lot but the friendly locals make up for the climate. Good to see you too, Tom.” He stuck out a hand and the detective hauled him to his feet, swaying only slightly before steadying himself. He shook his head rapidly to clear it of the ringing in his ears, then tried to brush himself off a bit.
“You’re a mess, Jack.” The other detective a few feet away observed, her soft voice chiding but friendly. She shook her head at Tom, a golden mane of hair swaying with the movement. “He’s dead, Tom.”
“I see you still have a deadeye, even on the ground, don’tcha Jack?” Tom said wryly. He sighed then and kicked Jack lightly in the foot. “You’ve got a good reason, I assume? I don’t get to finally cleanse you from my beat?”
Jack winced as he dabbed at his mouth with his sleeve again. “Short answer yes. I was coming out of that bar,” He pointed down the alley a few dozen yards to a door recessed into the concrete mountain of the block. “And as I went to light a smoke, dude came out of the shadows and hit me. No warning, no threat, just pow. I tried to cool things off, he went for a weapon, so I shot him.”
The woman, Alicia, was seemingly staring at nothing as she looked at security camera data from the bar’s back door on her glasses. Jack could faintly see the glow of the displays on her dark skin. After a moment she nodded. “His story checks out, Tom. walked out, reached for something, and, HA! he NAILED you, Jack. That musta hurt.” She grinned at him, her white teeth and jeweled tongue stud a curious flash against the chocolate of her face. He rolled his eyes at her as she continued. “Anyway… big fucker punches him, he falls down there, can’t hear what he said but I can see his mouth moving, guy goes for a pipe, then he plugs him. Yep.” She returned her attention to her partner and the former suspect. “You’re good to go.” She told him.
Jack shrugged. “I keep telling you guys, I’m a nice guy. Just bad shit keeps happening to me.”
Tom snorted. “Yeah, well. Maybe that pipe would have knocked some sense into you.” His grin fell away and his few grew grim. “In all seriousness though, old pal, this was probably a sloppy attempt at a hit. Whose feathers did you ruffle this time?”
Jack dabbed at his lip again before replying. Damn thing wouldn’t stop bleeding. “I actually am not sure, that’s sort of the funny thing. You guys busted that smuggling ring a few weeks ago, you know, the one where you had me do surveillance? so they’re gone.” He considered this. “Everyone else I can think of is either dead, in prison, or elsewhere. I’d assume one of their goons took it upon himself to get revenge, if I had to guess.” He raised an eyebrow at the detectives. “Though isn’t that your job? I think if I do any more of your damn work I should get paid.”
Alicia rolled her eyes and snorted, and then tossed him a coin. “Here you go, pal. For services rendered to your fellow sentient.” She smiled at him then, and nodded to him as she returned to the car to call the morgue. “Get that lip looked at, and then get some sleep. I’m sure we’ll see you around again.”
“Always do.” Jack replied, and tipped an imaginary hat to her. Turning back to Tom, he continued. “So, yeah. As a friend though, if you get any leads as to who I should try to piss off less, let me know. And if there’s nothing else, I want to go home.”
Tom glanced at his tablet and the corpse and then Jack, each in turn, and then nodded. “Nope, I think we’re good. Have a good night.”
Jack waved a hand over his shoulder, already walking away down the muddy alley.
He sighed again, touching his still bleeding lip. Great. Now he’d need to pay for some sort of medicine, as if money wasn’t tight enough already. Fuckin wonderful. He kicked a can bitterly and heard Tom call out after him, “No littering!” He flipped the bird over his shoulder and started to trudge on home.
He hadn’t gone more than a dozen yards however when his phone started ringing. Surprised, he fished it out and held it up. He didn’t recognize the number, but he tapped the accept button anyway. A young woman swam into view on the screen and smiled at him, but her smile seemed tinged with deep concern. She looked some sort of asian descent, Jack wasn’t sure which, with pretty brown almond-shaped eyes and black hair pulled back into a bun. He could only see her head and shoulders, but she seemed to be wearing some sort of lab coat. “Ah, Mr. Foxton?” She said brightly but with a hint of nerves.
“Call me Jack.” He said simply.
“Okay, Mr. Jack,” She said and he rolled his eyes before he could stop himself. “Well some mutual friends said you would be the sort of person to call about ‘special jobs’?” she hinted, raising her eyebrows.
“I’m a freelancer, yeah.” He nodded. “What’s the job?”
“Escort and protection, at least for a couple days until we can sort things out.” She saw the disappointment in his face and quickly added, “She’s not wanted by the mob or anything. She just needs, you know, help.” He didn’t reply, and she added with a meaningful look, “And discretion?”
“Ah. well. Whichever ‘mutual friends’ pointed you my way were right. I can be very discreet. How much are we taking?”
“Fifty thousand.” She said bluntly, and he whistled. “Fifty thousand, And extra if the job ends up taking too long. Do you accept?”
Jack raised an eyebrow of his own. “I get the impression it’s a ‘no questions asked’ sort of job?” He asked pointedly.
“We’ll answer a few, yes, but as I said–” She began, but jack interrupted.
“Discretion, right. Gotcha. Well as long as this person isn’t a serial killer or wanted by the mob or feds, sure, I can be babysitter for a week or two.” He nodded. He pressed his thumb to the screen, and saw her shoulders move to touch some computers he presumed were in front of her. A moment later an email notification popped up on his phone saying he now had 50,000 more than he did a minute ago. “Thank you. So, where do I go for the target and further instructions?”
“Come to Lion Heart hospital, you know where that is? Good. I will be waiting to explain in more detail.” She took in his haggard appearance. “And I’d be happy to stitch that up while you’re here, Mr. Foxton.” She added.
Jack touched his lip again and then grinned at the doctor. “I’m beginning to like you doc. Fifty grand and free medical care for a babysitting job. I think we’ll be the best of friends. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
She smiled at him and the screen went black. He stared at it for a minute before putting it back in his pocket and heading towards the monorail station. He whistled again under his breath, thinking of the payout. Freelancers, good ones at least, tended to make modest middle class money, and fifty thousand wasn’t exactly winning the lottery, but it sure wasn’t chicken feed. He remembered his empty gun and took a moment to reload before getting to the crowded station, not sure the other passengers would be happy with him holding an 8 inch gun in a crowded train car. He dumped the empty shells in a trash basket near the road and slipped in the new bullets, spinning the cylinder before snapping it shut and putting it back in his shoulder holster. A moment later he arrived at the station and hopped on the train headed for the hospital.
Chapter 2: Born Yesterday
He looked out the window of the train as it zoomed along at a few hundred miles an hour, watching the massive concrete mountains zoom by, neon lights blurring into a kaleidoscope of colors. He glanced around the train car too, noticing a surprising amount of passengers for three in the morning, and several weren’t even human. This last point was much less of a surprise, if he was honest. Since making first contact with a few dozen species in one year a couple decades ago, the earth had exploded with exotic life. Because capitalism is blind, as his father had always said. Anyone was welcome on earth and the colonies if it meant making a buck.
He returned his attention to the matter at hand as the train slowed to a halt just outside the emergency entrance to the hospital. He began to get off but noticed an alien struggling in its seat. It was vaguely humanoid, but with greenish skin and extra fingers and a few other irregularities. Alien or no, he could clearly see it was in pain, and a cursory glance told him that no leg should be bent at that angle. He offered his hand and smiled at the creature. It, no, he, looked up at him and shyed away. But after a moment it took his hand and he heaved it up around his shoulder, walking slowly with it into the hospital. He plopped the stranger down in a seat and then waved at a nurse who hurried over to take a look. “Did you do this?!” she demanded of him. The alien and Jack both glared at her and she blushed. “Um. Sorry. That was stupid. I’m an asshole.” She muttered dejectedly.
“Yes. you are.” The alien snapped.
Jack was surprised to hear it speaking english. It took a moment to realize he hadn’t actually heard it speak, but…remembered it speaking?”
“Telepath.” The alien told him, by way of explanation.
Jack made an “oh” face and patted its green shoulder. “I’ve gotta go. See ya, pal.” Jack wandered off to the front desk. “Hey, I’m here to see Doctor… um. Doctor…” He trailed off, realizing the woman on the phone hadn’t actually told him her name. “Shit. Um, I’m Jack? Mr. Foxton? Some doctor here called me a few minutes ago and asked me to come in?”
The receptionist, another alien but a different species from the look of her, raised an eyebrow and gave him an impatient look. “Can you do better than ‘a doctor,’ sir?” She said testily.
“Uh, well, she was human, if that helps.” He said hopelessly.
“Ah! Mr. Foxton. Glad to see you made it.” A voice called out from a doorway to his left. The big double doors were held slightly ajar by a foot propped in the jamb, and the Doctor from the phone call earlier had stuck her head around the corner. She gestured for him to follow her and Jack flashed an apologetic smile at the receptionist before hurrying off. “I am Elizabeth Izaki, chief of medicine at this hospital. We have a rather unusual patient we wish you to look after, is that still understood?” Jack nodded silently and shook her hand, following her down the hall. The building was very much a corporate one, all white plastic walls, floors, ceiling, all clean and shining, very bland but professional and expensive looking. A few pieces of inoffensive art dotted the walls every half dozen meters. He felt like he was in a test tube, everything so quarantined and scrubbed to perfection. He redirected his attention back to the doctor as she continued speaking. “Also, I’m afraid I must insist upon discretion again, Jack. The person involved is rather… unique? And she is currently something of a secret. Only disclose her identity to someone you know you can trust with the information, and you are not to expose her to any unnecessary risk. Clear?”
“With you so far. Secret girl, don’t talk about it much, keep her alive and happy for a couple weeks. I can manage that.” Jack nodded. He noticed a janitor robot glaring daggers at him and realized his boots were still muddy from the alley a few minutes ago. He shot an apologetic half-smile at the robot which continued glaring as it went off to get a mop.
Izaki flipped through digital pages on a tablet as they walked, and a cursory glance told him they were some sort of charts. “She might be totally harmless and have no one intending her harm, but given her… frankly weird circumstances, we felt it best to be quiet about it. Probably nothing, but better safe than sorry, as I’m sure someone like you can appreciate.”
Jack snorted. “Doc you have NO idea. So yeah, I can dig. Not a problem. You said to keep an eye on her, I can keep her in my place. It’s well secured and in a decent neighborhood. Should be fine.”
“That sounds quite acceptable, Mr. Foxton.” Izaki said, her voice clipped and professional.
They walked together in silence for a minute before he said slowly, “Soooo who is she, anyway?”
“She is Ashley Gartner, age 19, resuscitated from a medically induced cryo-coma earlier tonight.” The doctor said.
“That doesn’t sound very ‘weird’ or ‘unusual’ to me, Doc.” Jack pointed out. “That shit happens all the time.”
“True.” Izaki agreed. “But this would be the first time we’ve woken one up who was born May 3rd, 2014.”
Jack stared at her. “Bullshit.” He said flatly. “If that’s true, she’s not 19. she’s like, 120.”
Izaki smirked at him. “You see why were are… intrigued by this girl, Mr. Foxton. There was no next of kin listed, The records we could find of her indicate she was diagnosed with a mutagenic form of several simultaneous cancers and was placed in a cryo-coma until they could manufacture a cure. Unfortunately…” Izaki sighed, and Jack realized just how tired she seemed to be. She must have been up all night. “The company that was going to make her cure went under the following week. And since she had government insurance, she was just… kept in the back of the fridge, basically. A tech found her and when we dug through the records, well, we figured it all out.” She said with another sigh. “And frankly? We’re not sure what to do with her. She has no family, she knows no one, fuck we’re lucky she even speaks english.”
Jack gave the doctor a knowing look. “And I assume she has no money, either.”
“well, no, she doesn’t. But I’m not a monster. I’m not just going to throw her out on the street. I took an oath to help people, and thats exactly what I’m trying to do. So, I have some… interesting friends, who suggested I talk to you. They say you’re a good, if a bit… complicated… man, and so I am paying you to look after her for a while until I can figure out what the hell to do with her.”
Jack considered this. “You’re less corporate whore that I would have expected, Liz. You mildly impress me.” He said after a moment.
She smirked at him coldly. “And you’re less of a slimey low-life than I would have expected, Jack. You mildly impress me.”
Jack grinned at her. “Aww, with a silver tongue like that, you’ll make me blush.”
She chuckled, and then yawned sleepily. “Anyway. This is her room.” She indicated the next one down the hall with a nod of her head, the bun of hair bouncing a little like a cat toy. “Between you and me, she could use a friend, you know? I can’t imagine how afraid she must be. So, be gentle.” She saw his grin and rolled her eyes. “Oh not like THAT. Jesus. You know what I mean.”
Jack laughed and nodded. “Yeah, yeah. I do know. Well. I assume any paperwork needed has been sufficiently shuffled around? I can just grab her and go?”
Izaki nodded, and then pressed her hand to the door lock. It slid open, and Jack stepped inside.
A teen girl was sitting on the bed, staring at the wall. It was obvious she had been crying, but she looked healthy at least. She was aryan, with long gold hair pulled back into a ponytail. She was a bit small but in a cute way, and jack had to admit it was hard for anyone to look attractive in a hospital gown. She glanced up at them as the pair entered and she unconsciously scooted back a few inches on the bed.
Jack glanced around the room, it too being all white plastics and soft but bright lighting, and finally spotted a chair. He dragged it up next to her bed and threw himself into it, then stuck out a hand. “Hey, Ashley. I’m Jack.” He said, in as kind a voice as he could manage.
She hesitated, but then slowly offered her hand and shook. After a moment of him smiling at her, she smiled faintly back. “Hi, jack. I’m sorry to be rude, but, I think you can understand I’m a bit… I’m kinda reeling from all this.”
Jack nodded and patted her hand with his other one. “I do understand. But Doctor Izaki here called me in to make sure you’re safe and happy while we find you a proper home and so on, okay?” She nodded, and Jack turned to Elizabeth. “Any parting thoughts, doc?” He prompted her.
Izaki sat down on the edge of the bed and put a hand on Ashley’s back, rubbing it gently. “Well, we were able to cure the cancer, so, you’re totally fine. And you’ve got Jack and I for support, okay? I know it all seems scary right now, but the future’s not so bad,” She smiled at the girl, who after a moment smiled back weakly. “And we’ll both be working hard to make sure everything turns out just fine. This is a very weird thing to have happen, I’m sure, but it will be just fine. I promise.”
Ashley nodded, and swallowed hard. “Thank you, both of you.” She hesitated, and then asked, “Um… I don’t suppose you managed to save my clothes, did you?” She asked, sounding hopeless. “I’d feel a bit ridiculous walking around in a hospital gown.”
“Oh I dunno. I think you’d be making an interesting fashion statement.” Jack grinned at her, and in spite of her fear she giggled.
“Just what I need. To be even MORE of a fish-out-of-water freak.” She replied.
Jack patted her foot, the only bit of her he could really reach from the chair. “Don’t worry about it. You’d be amazed what passes for ‘freak’ in the 2130s.” She smiled at him, and he was glad to see he was cheering her up. He was just happy she wasn’t a child, he never seemed to be any good with kids. Teens he could at least have something of a connection. “And remember, kid, we’re both here for you.”
She giggled. “Who ya calling ‘kid’? I’m like a hundred years older than you, remember?” She smiled at him.
He laughed good-naturedly and turned to the doctor. “So, clothes? Or should I go buy some before we take her out of here?”
Izaki thumbed through some notes on her screen and then said, “Nope, she left clothes in the storage. I’ll send a bot to get them.”
Jack was surprised when not thirty seconds later a soft tone indicated someone waiting at the door. Izaki pressed her hand to it and it opened, revealing a robot not much more than a box on treads with a dozen little arms. It lifted the box part of itself up and izaki took the clothes, placing them gently on the bed next to Ashley. She picked them up and hugged them close. Jack watched her expression curiously, wondering just what the girl was thinking. Probably about the home she could never return to, if he could guess. His face softened. Well. He would try to give her a new home, as best he could. No one should ever have to be alone.
She looked up at the two of them and said awkwardly, “Um, do you mind?” She blushed deeply.
Jack and Elizabeth exchanged a glance, not sure what she meant. “Mind… you taking your time? No, it’s fine. You’re my client for the next few weeks, I’ve got no other pressing matters, take as long as you need.” Jack reassured her.
Elizabeth nodded. “He may not, but my life, unfortunately, goes on.” She flicked her wrist towards jack and his phone dinged that it had received her information. “Contact me if she needs anything, and otherwise I’ll be by in a week or two to check up on her.” She patted Ashley on the head a couple times and said goodnight. With that, she left.
Jack returned his gaze to the girl in front of him. “So, I’m thinking we’ll just go back to my house for right now. I can cook you something, and I know if I were in your position I’d be in no mood for a restaurant right now.”
Ashley was still bright red. “Yeah, um, that sounds great, but, DO YOU MIND?” She said more forcefully.
Jack gave her a blank look. “As I said, no, I don’t mind. take your time, I’m fine.” He reiterated.
Ashley stared at him with a very strange look on her face that jack couldn’t read before giving up and pulling off the hospital gown. She muttered something under her breath that he couldn’t quite catch as she put her clothes on.
Once she had finished, jack pointed to a trash bin in the corner for her to toss the disposable gown. Then he grinned at her. “Woo. RETRO.” he joked.
She crossed her arms over her chest and rolled her eyes. “Let me guess. I’m only going to hear that joke a BILLION fucking times, right?”
He grinned. “give or take. Come on, Let’s go.”
He lead her out of the room and back down the squeaky white hallways, the robot from before glaring at him again as he passed, but ignoring him as it realized the mud had all finally rubbed off. Jack was surreptitiously watching ashley, trying to get a read on her as she gazed wide-eyed at anything and everything they passed. She leaned in “That was a robot…janitor?”
“Mhmm. Loads of robots nowadays. You get pretty used to it.” Jack replied casually, still studying her face. She seemed to be still quite frightened, but there was also a streak of happiness and something like the joy of learning in her face. “I think we’re going to get along fine, kid.” He said quietly.
She turned to look up at him when he said this. “Oh?” She asked curiously.
“Call it a hunch.” He said with a warm smile, and patted her head gently.
They walked out to the reception area again and she stifled a small scream, slapping her hands over her mouth and backing up so fast she banged into him. Jack whipped his eyes around the room, ready to see a gunman or some sort of attacker, but suddenly realized the alien receptionist was what must have set her off. He leaned down a little to whisper in her ear. “Oh yeah. Probably should have mentioned. We’ve made first contact. Kind of a lot of them, actually. You’d be surprised.”
Her eyes were almost bulging out of her head as she ripped her gaze away from the alien to look him in the eyes. “Yeah. surprised. a bit.” She said, flabbergasted.
He pushed gently on the small of her back to keep her moving and they walked out to the monorail station outside. While they waited for it to arrive, she finally spoke up. “So… if this is a rude question in this era I apologize but… what the hell was it?”
“The receptionist? Uh… I actually don’t know.”
She stared at him. “How in the HELL could you not know?!” She demanded.
“Well… there are lots of them? Could you name someone’s country in your time just by looking at them? There were hundreds of countries back then. It’s hard to remember. I can tell you though that whatever that one was, it wasn’t from one of the major powers. Those are the ones everyone knows.” He stared at her for a moment, seeing her half-open mouth slack with information overload and wondered where to begin his explanation. “…Look, the universe it turns out is actually TEEMING with life. But not all of it… um… is useful? We’ve encountered some things, which are… aliens, for lack of a better word, though officially they are ‘Xeno Entities,’ which are just… insane. They are so far beyond our understanding they don’t even fit into our ideas of physics and biology. They might as well be indifferent gods. There’s this one, designated XE272 that made the news a few years ago. It appears to just be a ball of water, about a lightyear across. …but it moves. And it moves whenever people, any people, get close. And it moves fast. I mean FAST. like, trillions of times faster than light. Which… shouldn’t be possible. We have no idea what the hell it is, where it comes from, what it wants, even if it is alive or just some bizarre phenomenon. We have no idea. We’ve also encountered incredible amounts of just… stuff. Plants and stupid animals and stuff. No one really bothers with them except for research or zoos or whatever. But the ones we deal with are… basically on par with us. They have roughly equivalent intelligences and some form of communication we can exchange. And of those, there are the so-called ‘Major Powers’ which are the big power players in space. That,” he jerked his thumb over his shoulder at the hospital doors behind them,” “was not one of the major powers, but since it…or maybe ‘she,’ spoke english, you can assume it was in the ‘par’ category. There are just… tons of them. Some of them show up here, some of them don’t. Sometimes we go to them, sometimes we don’t.” He saw the still perplexed expression on her cute face and sighed with a smile. “…Look, kid, you’ll figure this all out eventually. I’ll teach you, don’t worry.” he considered her blown mind for a moment, her eyes still gazing around in awe at everything, and added, “Might be best if you don’t really talk to anyone but me tonight, until I’ve had time to brief you on some things, know what I mean?”
She looked up at him and then then nodded. “Probably wise.” She admitted. Just then the train zoomed into the station and the doors whisked open and they stepped aboard. She glanced around and then followed him to a seat, picking the one next to him. she leaned in near him unconsciously as the train began to move. “Three questions,” she said and saw him nod. He also put a hand around her, and she leaned in closer. He felt warm and… real. In this world of uncertainties and weird new shocks every few seconds, it was nice to have just… a person. “One, What time is it?”
Jack glanced at his wrist, a secondary display for the phone was there. “About 3:15AM.” He told her.
“Okay. Two. Is humanity one of those ‘major powers’ you mentioned?”
“Uh-huh.” Jack nodded.
“Okay, go us. Three, where are we?” She looked around, but all she could see for the moment was the concrete walls of the train tube.
Jack grinned. “Good timing.” He pulled on her hips a little bit so she looked out the window behind them, just as they came out of the tunnel. “Welcome,” he said as she gasped in amazement. “To the West Coast Sprawl.”
Ashley pressed her nose up against the glass and STARED. Skyscrapers, hundreds of storeys tall, some maybe a quarter mile wide rose out of the gloom of the night like a million glittering spears. Concrete mountains speckled with the jeweled facets of lighted windows, lit advertisements, and glowing neon. millions and millions of cars and trains zoomed around her, helicopters danced like fireflies in the distance, the overwhelming mass of the sprawl laid out for her to see. She stared in silence for a long time, and Jack politely held his tongue as she watched the world around her. After what seemed eons, the train slowed and finally stopped in the middle of a massive building. “I live in here.” He told her, and they got out together, Ashley still with her eyes bulging so much she was worried they might pop out of her head.
Inside the building Ashley was surprised to see was done in a sort of homage to the art deco theme of two centuries before. The floors were polished marble, the walls dark woods and golden metal arches, all of it in that distinctive geometric pattern of the jazz age. “Hey, its like, the roaring twenties in here.” She commented.
“Hmm? Oh, yeah, that fashion is actually back in vogue lately. has been for about 20 years. It was one of the most prosperous times in human history, both economically and in the explosion of culture. And since we’re going through that again, more or less, I guess the subconscious of the world kinda… made it happen.” He nodded approvingly as he pressed the elevator call button. “I think it’s pretty.” He added.
“Me too…” Ashley agreed softly, following him into the elevator. After a moment they spilled out onto his landing and she followed him to his door.
“Well, this is my place.” He said, and opened the door, gesturing her inside. “Make yourself at home.”
Chapter 3: Lightweight Paperweight
She wandered in, looking around. It was fairly nice, having the same deco look as the building. lots of dark leather and stained wood furniture, the floor was a dark hardwood and the walls were painted a deep red. Even the ceiling was dark, and it was dimly lit by a few soft lamps in the corners. The place seemed quite clean, though rather untidy. Piles of computer parts, tossed aside clothes, coffee mugs, the random detritus of everyday living were all over. And then Ashley realized they weren’t alone in the room and she suppressed another scream.
An extremely beautiful woman was lounging on his desk, a cigarette in one hand lazily wafting smoke up the ceiling. She wore a skin tight dress the color of polished silver, and had been cut by a master tailor to give her the maximum of ‘wow’ factor. She looked absolutely stunning, with lots of sparkling jewelry and perfectly done make up. But Ashley had almost screamed because this woman, although very attractive, was also clearly not human. Her silvery eyes were a bit too big, her skin wasn’t ‘white’ like caucasians were white, she was white like snow or sugar was white. Her beautiful silvery hair had streaks of white in it as well, done up in an intricate but loose bun on her head that let her bangs hang over her face. Ashley stood in the doorway, stunned, and didn’t move or speak. Jack seemed to sense something was wrong and leapt in front of her, gun already drawn. He caught sight of the woman on his desk and sighed, putting the gun away. “Damnit woman, I hate when you do that.”
The woman on the desk grinned. “Yep. But I love it. So, can’t be helped.” She laughed as he rolled his eyes and went over to place a kiss on her forehead and then a fake slap on the side of her head.
“You will get one of us killed some day, I swear.” He muttered.
She kissed his chest, since she was lying on her side and he was standing up, and then turned her attention to Ashley. “So, who’s the kid?” She asked, curiously. Her expression was friendly and seemingly open, but ashley could see a strong sense of intelligence and distinctly… alien thoughts behind her eyes.
“Oh, this is Ashley Gartner. She’s going to be my roommate for a while whilst we sort out some complications in her life.” Jack crossed to the teen and patted her head. “She’s a friend. Right kid?”
Ashley looked up at him and then nodded. “Yeah. Friend.” She said, feeling very uncomfortable. He pointed to a chair near the desk and she sat down, trying very hard not to stare at the alien woman. Jack opened his mouth to say something but the woman cut him off.
“Jack, I’m not here just to spook you. You know who is asking for you, and didn’t want to use any recordable means of getting to you. So he stopped by and asked me to tell you. So, I’m telling you.” She said with a smirk.
Jack groaned. “Oh for fucks sake. As if my life wasn’t complicated enough right now.” He muttered. He glanced at ashley and added quickly, “No offense intended, kid.”
“None taken…” ashley reassured him quietly.
She was staring around the room, obviously uncomfortable. Jack looked at her and then at the woman on his desk. “So if you’re wondering why she’s here, she’s been… displaced.” He looked at ashley, silently questioning whether she was comfortable with him telling her story. She nodded at him. “Okay, honesty time. She’s from the past. Woke up in the hospital, has nowhere to turn. Apparently a mutual friend vouched for me as a freelancer, and I was hired to keep her safe and happy for a while til we can figure out what the fuck. So, she’ll be hanging out for a while.” He stood up to leave. “And apparently, I must be off. Play nice you two, I’ll be back in a bit.” He said, and headed right back out the door again.
Ashley fidgeted in her chair, not looking at the woman next to her. She instead cast her eyes about the room, trying to find something she could do. Maybe she could read a book or something. Anything to kill the ocean of anxiety pressing down upon her.
The woman, for her part, was silently watching Ashley from behind her moonbeam bangs. Her slightly too large eyes were gazing head to toe, and ashley began to feel like a specimen in the lab. Or maybe a zoo. “So, Jack says you’re from the past, is that true honey?” The alien woman asked with polite interest. Her large silvery eyes glimmered with disquieting intelligence. She gazed calmly at the fidgeting girl from behind gently swirling wisps of blue cigarette smoke.
Ashley shifted uncomfortably in the big leather chair, not really sure what to say. Her bright blue eyes were darting about the room, trying to be polite and not stare, but feeling a burning curiosity, having never seen an alien before. She managed to mumble a reply. “Well, yes, miss, but I didn’t time travel or anything. Last thing I remember I was being rushed to the hospital because I had some sort of mutated leukemia or something and they said they were going to put me in cryo for a few days until a cure was manufactured. Next thing I know, it’s a century later.” She considered her answer for a moment before adding, “Apparently the cure was more difficult than anticipated.”
The alien woman laughed, a sweet, musical sound. “Evidently so. Even with humans’ decent life spans, that’s quite a long time.” She said, smiling faintly. “And from what little I know of your history, I gather that you’ve missed quite a lot.” She glanced at the last little nub of burning ember on her cigarette, stamped it out in the ashtray and lit a fresh one, taking a long draw before continuing. “Well as frightened of me as I can see you are, if you ever need anything, feel free to ask. Jack knows how to contact me.”
Ashley hesitated, and finally locked eyes with the strange woman across from her. She took in the long but erotically cut silvery-white dress, the dozens of items of jewelry, the perfectly done make up, and the unsettlingly intelligent expression. She studied her for a moment before replying, and tried to choose her words carefully. She was massively out of her depth here, she had no friends, her family was all dead, she had no job, no home, and if she wanted to survive she was quickly getting the impression she had better make friends, and fast. All the same, she was wary of getting herself roped into something she might not be able to handle. “I… thank you, for the offer, miss.” She swallowed, plotting out her statements in her head before speaking so as to cause as little offense as possible. “But I don’t really know who you are, or if I can trust you. For all I know, you’re a slaver or something.”
“I am, as it happens.” The woman interjected casually. At the look of shock on the girl’s face she smirked and clarified. “oh, not like that. I don’t kidnap people or any such nonsense. Slavery is quite legal where I come from, it’s part of the penal system. Rather like your community service programs I’ve heard about. I see to it that they are healthy and put to good use, that’s all. My real JOB, however, since I can sense that is your implied question, is of a simple bar owner and entertainer.”
Ashley’s eyebrows raised so high they were in danger of disappearing into her hair. “You’re a slaver… and a bar entertainer?” She repeated blankly. She didn’t really know what else she could say to such a pronouncement.
The woman smiled at her again, a sultry smile of mischief that hinted at fun Ashley would probably not want to know too much about. “Certainly. I sing, mostly, and do the day to day management of my establishment. I emigrated here a few years ago as part of a program for humans to open up to aliens and discovered a love of jazz. From there it was simply a matter of finding a good place and a good band.” She shrugged slightly, the jewels in her necklace sparkling with the movement of her neck and shoulders. “It’s fun. I meet nice people, well, mostly.” She took a long draw on the cigarette and studied the human girl. “the slaver part of my job is really just management, as I said before. I can do the paperwork from here once a week, and I get a nice government stipend for doing so. Extra cash is always handy.” She said, flashing her amazing smile yet again.
Ashley considered this for a minute, mulling it over while the alien waited patiently, still lounging cross legged on the desk and watching her silently. Eventually she said, “Well. I was raised to believe that as long as what someone else does isn’t actually hurting anyone, no matter how strange, you don’t pass judgement.” She concluded, looking the alien over once again. “And you’re not nearly as strange as I might have expected. Hell you look pretty much like us, if a bit differently colored and proportioned.”
The alien woman chuckled, her perfect chest rising and falling provocatively as she did so. “Well, I will take that as a strange sort of compliment. But you should know there are many forms of life out there that are very VERY weird indeed. There are maybe two dozen that look… what’s the word…” She trailed off in thought for a moment, and then snapped her fingers when she remembered. “Ah, ‘humanoid,’ but the rest is quite, quite odd.” Her full moon eyes twinkled in the dim room. “You’re in for a treat, if you’re the curious sort.”
Ashley was beginning to relax. The woman didn’t seem to want to hurt her, she spoke nearly perfect english, she looked more or less human, and seemed to have the same general way of looking at the world, well, more or less. Ashley looked up at her once again, and finally held out two fingers a little ways apart from each other. Silently the alien slipped a cigarette between them and lit it for her. Ashley took a drag and felt herself calming down further before voicing another thought. “Since I don’t seem to be offending you, can I ask a question?” She blurted out.
The woman raised an eyebrow at her. “Sure, honey.” She said, her tone casual, but with a hint of curiosity.
“You offered to help me a few minutes ago. …Why?” Ashley said, feeling herself blush a bit from embarrassment at the bluntness of her question.
The woman’s eyebrow raised even higher and she looked mildly perplexed. “Should I not have?” She retorted, a frown creasing her face. “Honey, you’re a kid in a strange world full of dangerous and strange things, surrounded by aliens you never even knew existed, with no money, no home, and no friends.” She pointed out in a flat tone. “If I were in your position, I’d be terrified and feeling very, very alone. Not to mention, totally screwed. Now if you were me and I you, wouldn’t you want to help me?”
Ashley blinked and then looked at the floor, ashamed. “Yes, I… of course I would.” She bit her lip rather hard and didn’t speak for a moment. She could feel the woman’s intense gaze burning a hole in the top of her head. “I’m so sorry. I’m just worried someone will try to take advantage of my naievete, and I’ll end up dead, or worse, because I’m too stupid to know better.” She shifted around uncomfortably, feeling extremely awkward. “Not everyone with a smile is a good person.” She finished, meekly. She could feel tears welling up in her eyes as the smoke from her cigarette swirled around her face.
The woman reached out and stroked her hair gently, making her jump. “Hey. Come on. Don’t do that. You’re right, the world, hell, all worlds, can have some really awful people. But there are also plenty of good people! Jack and I, we’re good people.” She hesitated for a second and added, “Admittedly, not always the most, ah, peaceful people, but, I think we both have our hearts in the right place.” She put her delicate fingers under ashley’s chin and lifted gently until they were eye to eye again. “And I think yours is too. I’m no mind reader, but I have a good eye for people, even aliens, and you seem like a good kid.” She grinned. “Us good guys gotta stick together or we’ll be overwhelmed, right?”
Ashley nodded and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her hoodie. She felt very out of place, very scared, very much out of her depth… but at least she wasn’t quite so alone anymore. “So, um… I don’t suppose you need a waitress or anything do you?” She asked hopelessly. And then she suddenly added, “And, um, I’m sorry but I didn’t catch your name.” She said, her cheeks going red with embarrassment.
“The name’s Talressa. Friends usually call me Tal, or tally.” The beautiful alien told her, reclining back into her lounge position on the desk. She moved with a cat’s grace, all fluid nubile motions, rather like a dancer or martial artist. She was obviously quite familiar with her own body. “And I think I could find you a job, yeah. We’ll figure something out. You good at anything in particular?” She asked.
“Well, I was in college working on a chemistry degree when I got sick.” Ashley offered, taking a second cigarette when Tal offered.
Tal snorted. “So, bartender maybe?” She grinned, her teeth almost sparkling in the dark. She considered the girl for a moment, and then said slowly, with a strange look on her pale face. “Though a thought occurs. Maybe you’d prefer to be Jack’s assistant? I’m sure he could use one, no matter how much he might deny it.”
Ashley blinked. “Like, as in secretary? or what?”
Tal shrugged. “Assistant. Just… help out. Maybe he needs you to do some research, maybe he needs you to tail a mark. Who knows. It’d certainly be more exciting than being a waitress. And…” She trailed off, studying the girl’s face. “I get the impression you’re the adventurous sort, even if you are rather scared.”
Ashley considered this. She had always been drawn to stories of exotic adventure, and had she been more physically fit she had originally wanted to join NASA and explore the stars. Exploring around here, where the contents of those stars came to you? Might be a nice second best. After a few minutes of silent contemplation, Tal patiently waiting for her to finish thinking over her proposal, Ashley blurted out, “Yeah… yeah what the hell. I could try that. Um,” She fidgeted again, glancing around as she spoke, “I kinda feel like you’d have to tell him, not me. I don’t really know him, he pretty much just got me here, but you’ve said he’s a good guy and stuff, so, I’m willing to give it a try if you convince him to let me?”
Tal grinned and shifted on the desk so her feminine features were quite subtly, but evocatively, displayed. She giggled at Ashley. “I’m pretty confident I can persuade him to do just about anything, honey.”
Ashley’s eyes widened as she saw the perfectly toned flesh of the woman and then she giggled too. “Yeah, I kinda got the impression you two had a thing.” She smiled with genuine warmth for the first time in a hundred years. “Thank you, Tal. For being a friend.”
“My pleasure darling. Just try not to get killed so we can enjoy it, mkay?”
Ashley giggled again. “I’ll try.”
Tal looked her up and down again, then said, “And pardon my rudeness, but… the hell are you WEARING?” She asked, confused.
Ashley blushed. “Its a hoodie.” She said, mildly defensive. “And these are jeans.” She added.
Tal gazed at her for a moment with her great silvery orb eyes. Eventually she said. “And… you like it?”
Ashley was taken aback. “well, I, uh,” She stammered.
Talressa grinned like a shark. “How about we go get you some clothes before he gets back? Some things should still be open.”
Ashley started to protest. “But I don’t have any mon–”
Tal waved a hand irritably. “Oh I don’t care. I’ll buy. Can’t have a good looking girl like you looking like some displaced war victim. Especially a friend, and ESPECIALLY if you have any hope of ever entering MY bar.”
“Hey I LIKE my hoodie! It’s comfortable!” Ashley protested weakly.
“So keep it for pajamas or something. But let’s get you some real people clothes, mkay honey?” Tally grinned at her, and tugged on her sleeve. “Come on, come on.” she nagged, and with a soft groan Ashley got up and followed the persistent alien woman out of the apartment. Sure was a weird day so far.
Chapter 4: Memory Hallway
Out in the hall, Ashley looked around again at the art deco motif and at the alien woman beside her. This was certainly not what she had expected to wake up to, but it seemed pretty okay so far. Everyone had been pretty nice, no one had tried to hurt her yet, and she seemed to be making a friend.
Talressa caught Ashley staring at her out of the corner of her eye and turned to face the girl. “Something on your mind, hon? Speak up.” She said, as warmly as she could manage.
Ashley seemed to struggle internally for a moment, fidgeting on the spot as they waited for an elevator. Finally she blurted out, “Well, the thing is… I’m, um, concerned.” She managed, not meeting her eyes.
Talressa tilted her head slightly, curious. “About?” She prompted.
Ashley looked at the ground some more, then around the room, trying to gather her thoughts. Finally she said. “Like… is there anything I really need to know? I’m going in totally blind here. I’m terrified I’m going to sneeze and cause an international incident, or smile at the wrong time and get myself shot. Or hell, maybe some alien has a toxic vapor and if I sit too close to them, I could die. Things, knowledge, that you all just take for granted having grown up in this world but I just got here a few hours ago and I’m confused as hell.” She said, distress evident in her voice and on her face, her eyes still refusing to meet her alien companion’s gaze.
Tal laughed quietly. “What?” Ashley asked, not sure if she should be offended or not at this point.
Tal grinned at her, her large eyes narrowed with mirth. “Oh, I was just remembering having almost exactly the same rant to the Terran consulate back on my world when I decided to emigrate.”
Ashley smiled slightly. “Heh. Well, you’ve still got years on me. Is there anything I really need to know, like, right now, before we go out in public and I make an ass of myself?”
Tal laughed again, and shifted her weight to one hip, her dress parting to expose her leg as she did so. Ashley caught herself glancing down and then back up, a bit sheepishly. “Well, I remember asking almost that exact same thing too, as I said.”
Ashley perked up. “Oh yeah? And what did the alien embassy have to say about coming here that you really needed to know? I can’t think what that might be, besides making sure you are vaccinated or whatever.” Ashley wondered what an alien could possibly warn another about her people. Humans, to her, weren’t exactly scary or even dangerous. Hell, even on our own planet we’re only the top predator because we invented tools, not because we were stronger or faster or anything.
” ‘Never get in a fist fight with a Terran. Ever.’ ” Tal recited flatly.
Ashley stared at her for a moment in silence, and then snorted with laughter. “Seriously? What the fuck? Why not?” She grinned, unable to believe what she had just heard.
Tal had a strange smile on her face and looked at the doors of the elevator for a moment, thinking. Eventually, she spoke. “…See, the funny thing about perspective, is that when you have nothing to compare to, you think whatever you’re used to is normal. Then when you encounter something else, it is the weird thing, the alien. But to the alien, the alien is the normal, and you are the weird. Know what I mean?”
Ashley gazed at her alien guardian for a moment with her head tilting slowly sideways as she considered this. “I… guess so…?” She said slowly, not sure what the alien was getting at.
Tal shrugged. “Well, that’s the thing. See…. okay. Look, you’re a bit small and scrawny for a typical human. you’re also female, which are smaller and scrawnier than males typically, right? and you’re also not fully grown yet. So I bet you feel, whether consciously or not, pretty weak, right?”
Ashley considered this. She had never particularly thought about herself that way, but when the alien pointed it out… “I suppose so. What’s your point?”
Tal shifted her weight to the other hip and lit another cigarette, offering one to Ashley as well. “My point is, Terran, that compared to most of the rest of the humanoid species? You… you’re fucking ridiculously tough.”
Ashley burst out laughing, causing her to choke on her cigarette. “WHAT.” she said loudly, both astounded and amused. “Bullshit.” she added.
Tal smirked at her. “No, seriously. Me fighting you in a fist fight would be like you fighting a… a bear or something.”
Ashley looked down at her own hands and made a fist. Then she looked back up to her new alien friend and arched an eyebrow. “Seriously?” she asked again, her voice still flat and disbelieving.
Tal gave her clenched fist a strange look that Ashley couldn’t read. “Yes. As I said, to you, you don’t seem remarkable. But to the rest of us? You’re like that old movie, Terminator? Where the robot just never dies, never stops coming?” She shook her head. “Your bones are incredibly hard to break. and even when they do break, you can just… keep going. You can lift more than your own weight, sometimes several times more than your own weight. You can go forty, fifty hours without sleeping. You can keep walking for twenty, thirty hours at a time. Sure, you might not be comfortable, but you can do it. None of us can even come close to that. It is absolutely… Ha,” she chuckled briefly. “I guess I’d say ‘superhuman’ but I guess the word would be ‘superalien’ or something. Point is, compared to the rest of us, you’re all like giant bears and we’re little kids.”
Ashley tilted her head so far she nearly cricked her neck. “The temptation to punch you and test this new information is incredibly strong at the moment, to be honest.” She said, frankly.
Tal tactfully took a step backwards and grinned at her. “I wish you wouldn’t. Just because you can beat me to the punch, doesn’t mean you can beat me to the trigger.” She sashayed her hips slightly to reveal a gun strapped to the inside of her thigh under the dress for just a moment. Then she winked at Ashley.
Ashley smiled back. “Nah, I would never hit someone without provocation. That’s kinda ethics 101.” She tilted her head yet farther and actually did crick her neck this time, a noise which made the alien woman jump slightly. “…But seriously? No bullshit?” Ashley demanded.
Tal got that strange look on her face again, the one she had had for a moment when looking at her fist moments before. “No bullshit. One of my sisters… Well, she was what you… I guess you’d call her a captain of a regiment, she was a commander of a ground force in the Imperial Army. She was also the commander in charge of the first ever conflict between our peoples, back before we had ever communicated, and all we knew was some annoying invader had made a colony on one of our worlds. We assumed you were invading, so, we sent in the troops.”
She blew out a long stream of smoke and then tossed the cigarette to the floor, where instantly a little robot about the size of a brick popped out of concealed panel in the wall along the floor and zoomed over to scoop it up and then disappear back into its hole. Tal meanwhile had lit a new one one and gazed at nothing in particular before continuing her story. “You have to understand, darling, that now we’re good friends, our two peoples. But at first, we really thought you were an outpost for an invasion fleet. You were not. It was just a little colony, full of a handful of scientists, mechanics, hydroponic farmers, that sort of thing.” She seemed lost in thought, and ashley was too fascinated at hearing history of this new future to dare interrupting her with questions yet. After a moment her alien friend continued. “You also have to understand, that among the major powers, the Telha Imperial Army is… was… is. Is considered the best there is. Well, at least at full scale warfare. No one can deny the Necral outclass us in tactics and technology, but we outnumber them millions to one. The Drail also have vast armies, but in nearly every major conflict, we have won, except a few. Our soldiers are trained almost from birth to be the best of the best of the best. To be the absolute toughest, meanest, most, uh, ‘bad ass’ as you might say soldiers in the universe. We also specialize in hand to hand combat and melee combat. We’re famous for bringing swords and shields to a gunfight. Because we knew that with sufficient training, the mobility, speed, dexterity, and adaptability of a melee soldier far outstripped any brigade of rifle-marines or gunslingers.” She finally looked at ashley now, that strange look on her face yet again. She blew out a stream of smoke that obscured her face for a moment. When it had cleared, she said rather coldly. “And then… we met you.”
Ashley didn’t know what to say, eventually managing to squeak out. “So… then what happened?”
Tal’s eyes narrowed slightly, and she spoke rather matter-of-factly, her earlier almost motherly warmth gone for now. “Well, according to our governments and my sister’s first-hand account… We tried to message you with a warning to leave. We now know that you didn’t have the kind of transmitters that are standard for the rest of us and so didn’t hear our message, but we assumed you were being defiant. So, we attacked. We sent down two dropships from orbit, with one thousand soldiers and a commander each. Then we marched on the colony and tried to kill you all.”
She stared at Ashley for a long moment. “…and?” Ashley prompted quietly.
“We did not succeed.” The alien said flatly. “There were maybe a hundred humans there, including children. And as I said, they turned out to be just… average citizens, even rather pathetic citizens by your standards. ‘Nerds,’ I think the term is. You… you defended yourselves. From your perspective, out of nowhere a bunch of aliens with swords were attacking your peaceful home. Clearly, we had to be fended off. You were certain you were going to die, but you could die valiantly, trying to defend your families and homes. So you sent a distress signal, and then just picked up mechanical and farming tools to use as weapons and tried to fend us off.”
Tal’s rather cold gaze continued to stare into Ashley’s wide-eyed amazement. “Of the two thousand soldiers sent down, about eighty survived. Of the hundred-odd colonists defending, only about fifteen died. This was where we discovered you could be stabbed and not immediately die. You could be stabbed a hundred times, and not die. And you could punch your fist straight through our rib cages and pull out a lung, as happened to another of my sisters, who was under my other sister’s command. She saw it happen. That was when the order to pull back was given.”
Ashley gazed at her alien companion. “I’m… sorry?” She said timidly, not sure what else to say.
Tal waved her hand irritably. “Don’t be. You weren’t even alive then. I myself was just a child. Not your fault. Not really anyone’s fault, just… stupidity and fear on both sides.”
Ashley stared, and then asked slowly “So… you say we’re good friends now. What changed?”
Tal snorted, finally finding some of her old humor again. “I’m not exactly a history teacher honey, but, um, from what I’ve been told, your reinforcements arrived, and we managed to not kill each other long enough to get translation experts and talks going. Eventually, everything was sorted out, and in a rather remarkable stroke of diplomacy both sides apologized and agreed to forget the matter as just an unfortunate misunderstanding. You removed your colony from our space, but we let you resettle on a similar world nearby as a peace accord.” She shrugged. “Ever since then, we’ve been talking, sharing, trading, and becoming friends. There were a few other little skirmishes here and there for a few weeks, as certain people wanted revenge or whatever, but it all died out and now we’re all pals.” she said, flicking some ash off the end of her cigarette. “Hooray.” she said sarcastically.
Ashley looked at her closely, trying to get a read on her expression. after a moment she said “So… do you hate us? For your sisters, and stuff?”
Tal looked genuinely surprised. “What? No. I’m in love with a human, for fuck’s sake. It’d be rather extreme cognitive dissonance to be racist and in love with my enemy at the same time, don’t you think? No… just… retelling the story brought up some bad memories of that time. The funeral. That sort of thing.”
Ashley nodded, not sure what she could say. After a moment, she stuck out her hand, impulsively. “Friends, then?”
Tal smirked, her mirth returning. “Sure hon. Friends.” And shook the girl’s hand. Ashley was careful not to grip too hard.
Just then, The elevator finally arrived. “Finally. Shit.” Tal snapped exasperatedly as the doors opened and they walked in.
“So… One more thing.” Ashley said as the doors began to close.
Tal glanced over at her curiously. “hmm?”
“What the hell are Necral and Drail?”
Chapter 5: Two-Faced
Wandering Skull 