“You gonna shoot, Sexy Britches?” someone said. “You’re holding up the stage.”
Nicki gave up and began to gather her firearms.
Lourdes walked with her to her cart.
The stage director shrugged his shoulders at the score keeper. “Can’t score this one,” he said. “She gets a hundred for walking away.”
“You had sex yet, Nick?” someone else said.
Nicki shook her head.
“It’s only been a little while,” Mel said.
“You have a female’s junk down there?” someone asked.
Lourdes turned on them: “Stop it, you guys! People dumped on me like that for years. It hurts people!”
Mel moved inbetween them and the group. “Leave her alone, guys. She’s had enough.”
Nicki walked away, leaving her two rifles and her gun cart behind.
The bathroom monitor at the movies was getting busy, sorting out who can go to what bathroom. “You can go here,” he said to one apparent woman. “You can go there,” he said to a guy.”
Then a group came.
“You there, you there, you, here, you there—”
Someone indistinct said to him, “What the f—”
Lori dialed her phone, held her phone in her left hand to her ear.
Cori and Estella lay in their bed, breathing hard.
Cory’s phone rang.
“Answer the phone, Cori,” Estella said. “Please!”
“Hell no,” he said, turning back to her.
“Go get her, Mel,” Jim said.
“Thanks, you two.” Mel grabbed Nicki’s gun cart and headed after her pulling his as well.
“Nicki! Wait a second. I got two carts here! Your guns!”
Nicki slowed for him, waited just before the huge chuck wagon bar-b-que at the food court.
Mel caught up to her, and Nicki tried to take her own gun cart, but Mel wouldn’t let her. “I got it. You get us some food?”
“Alright,” Nicki said. “What do you want?”
“Mel sat their carts by a table and told her, “I’ll stay with the gun carts. I don’t care what food. Anything that’s a plate of something: hamburger, whatever else they’re doing.”
Nicki went to get it and brought their two plates and two lemon aids, on a tray, back to their table.
She sat down by him to chow down.
Neither one of them said anything.
Finally, after a particularly large bite, Mel said, “You know, there’s a dance tomorrow night in the big tent.”
Nicki slammed her burger down on her plate and turned on him. “I,” she said hotly, “am your old buddy Nick, alright? And I’m not happy with this.” She indicated herself.
“You’re a man?” Mel asked.
“Well, I don’t know.”
Mel smiled at her, that old smile he always used when he knew something. He never stopped chewing his hamburger, but pointed to her head. “Up here?”
“Why not!?” Nicki answerd. “It’s only been a day. Guys! That’s all you wanna do is have sex?”
“WE,” Mel exaggerated his tone, “have dicks, and if you remember YES, they like that sort of thing. And breasts, and curvy lines—which you have, now, by the way. And I’m imagining other good things you have. You look better ‘n Charlize Theron—and her name sounds almost like Charlie, so—”
Nicki ignored her lunch. “We’re old friends since Adam. You want to date me?”
Mel took another bite and talked through it. “Why not? I like girls, and you’re a girl now. We’re 20 years old—”
Nicki sat back in her chair and thought.
Mel swallowed hard and took a drink of lemon aid to wash out his mouth, sat it down, then leaned in on Nicki a little, his face right in front of hers.
Nicki leaned back but didn’t move otherwise.
Mel looked at her face.
Nicki blushed a little, moved a lock of hair aside.
“Do you feel it, Nicki? Be honest with me—with yourself. I’m this close. You responding to me?”
Two guys from the stage they were at walked by and teased them. “Ooooooo-hooooo! Lookie that!”
Mel gave them each the bird while he continued to look at Nicki. He didn’t move away. “It’s an adjustment for me, too.”
Mel put his right hand on her left shoulder and kissed her—not a lingering kiss, but not a quick peck, either.
Nicki stiffened in reaction.
Mel sat back up and took another bite of his burger.
“Horny Toad is horny!” one of his teasers said from the chuck wagon line.
Mel gave them his finger again, which only engendered more teasing.
“Don’t let them tease us that way, Nicki,” Mel said to her.
Nicki sat at the table with him, red faced, not talking, not even responding. Her hands went to her face. She glanced down at herself, then to Mel, then away.
Mel noticed and sat his hamburger down, looked at her some more: her face, her glassy eyes, her breath.
Nicki moved in her chair some, but largely she was—
“You’re blown, Nicki,” he said. “I know you’re blown.”
“I—” Nicki hid her face in her hands, but looked at Mel through her fingers.
Mel leaned in again to her.
“I—” Nicki paused. “I—never—”
Mel leaned in to kiss her again on the lips. This time, he held it longer.
Lourdes and Jim walked by and smiled.
Nicki was unable to move. She felt his lips on hers and noticed, after a few seconds, she began to move her lips against his and leaned toward him—
Mel sat back up in his own chair and smiled at her, scooped up some beans with his plastic spoon. “Oh, yeah. You got it.”
Nicki looked around as if to find an exit, but Mel took her by the hand. “I don’t know what they did to you in that transmuter, but you’re trans, now.”
Nicki looked at his hand then back to his face.
“I had no idea,” Nicki said.
Mel nodded at her. He patted her on the back. “You’re a girl, now.”
CHAPTER
21
The Vice President of the United States, Oliver “Ollie” Best, stood in the shuttle and watched Ella work the controls.
The others stood around as well, as inertial dampers prevented the need for seat belts, and everyone was too keyed up to sit.
Lori watched Ella closely.
Wood, Hanah and Ollie looked over the ship and at the realistic depiction of the North Carolina fly by. Ella’s instrumentation was like a holoprojector, “heads-up display”—HUD—only it was everywhere in a 180 degree arc before her. The pilot’s view was 360, but it was arranged to appear in the forward 180 degrees so all could be seen while facing forward. Appalacian mountains flew by in a realistic image of the outside, and scores of lines, fluctuating arcs and data were superimposed ahead featuring information the pilot could use.
Though none of was actually necessary; the shuttle craft’s A.I. did the flying.
“Oh, my God, Jesus!” Ollie said. “You’re sure we’re not going to be killed in this thing?”
Ella smiled at him. “Bessie knows what she’s doing. She’s got it up here.” Ella tapped her head.
“Bessie?” Ollie said.
“My shuttle.”
“This is a ‘shuttle’?” Ollie asked.
Ella nodded. “It gets me from A to B.”
Hanah asked. “And it’s been below your back yard this whole time?”
“Since I’ve owned that house,” Ella said. “Got to keep it somewhere, and the neighbors won’t let me dig up their yard, so—”
Ella returned her gaze to her instruments.
“It’s an actual flying saucer,” Ollie said. “Shaped so terribly classic.”
Ella nodded. “It slips through atmospheres better that way— It actually minimizes sonic booms, though it doesn’t need to worry. Bessie?”
“Yes, Ella. How may
I help you? I enjoy working with humans.”
Ella’s grin to Lori was tongue-in-cheek. “Well, I showed her the movie 2001, and she liked it. She’s teasing.
“Bessie,” Ella said. “Wanna take us up to LEO and show our new passengers?”
“Sure,” Bessie said.
Without the slightest feeling of movement, the holographic view of the North Carolina countryside withdrew. The sky became black, and the blue marble sat before them.
“There are no sonic booms up here,” Ella said.
“Good God, almighty!” Wood said.
Hanah’s hands went to her face.
Lori smiled at them, nodded to herself.
Oliver stepped closer to the stunning 180 degree image covering the front half of their area. The East Coast of the United States was in a vertical line below them with the Chesapeake Bay just up and right, the coastline stretching down. There were some clouds out to sea. He looked at Ella, then Lori. Then back to Ella, put his hand to his heart. “Are we—?” He paused for a second and tried again. “Are we really in space? Or is this a simulation?”
Ella stepped back to allow Oliver to get closer to the display. “We’re really in space. See this here?” Ella pointed to some numbers on the heads up display. “This is our altitude, at 198 statute miles high. I’ve got it set in statute, because I’m American, immersive. These numbers show us our speed, which—if you remember, was about 200 mph down by the surface, but we’re stationary, now, so it’s zero, in relation to the earth below, but it’s really nearly 1000 mph as we’re over the surface of a planet that’s rotating about its axis.”
“So we’re not really in Low Earth Orbit,” Wood said.
Ella shook her head. “I guess not. We’re not orbiting. We’re stationary. Things in orbit about the earth, here— See that?” She moved an equasion into view on the display that could be used to calculate their relative speeds.
“It’s just a generic equasion to me,” Ollie said. “I was an historian.”
Ella laughed at him. “Math is good with me. I prefer that output. But most things in orbit down here in LEO are about 17,000 miles per hour.”
“So the space station could hit us?” Wood asked.
“We’re not at the right altitude for that,” Ella said, “but yes, they could hit us if we were. Or any of thousands of bits of junk up here. That Chinese anti-satellite missile test in 2007 didn’t help, really blew a lot of debris all around up here. Thousands of bits scattered. It was a real boner.”
“How do I know I’m really in space?” Ollie asked.
“We are,” Ella said.
“But how to I know?” Ollie asked.
“You could step outside, I guess.” Ella said.
“I’m sorry, Ella, but I can’t open the door just now,” Bessie said imitating HAL of 2001.
Lori had been quiet but spoke up. “Have you considered using a shuttle to come up here and clean up some junk for us? Catch and remove debris?”
“We could—”
“Don’t you have a shuttle, Lori?” Hanah asked.
Lori shook her head. “There are only two, and I didn’t rate.”
“We could,” Ella continued, “But I hadn’t revealed the existence of this craft until this morning with the President. Once we get through this transmuter crisis, and I get some things off my desk, I think maybe I should do it.”
“You’re Ahleth,” Wood said. “Why do you need to work for a living? Aren’t you fabulously wealthy? Can’t you make whatever you need with a trasnsmuter?”
Ella smiled at him. “Yes, I’m wealthy, by your standards. But the reason I wanted my job as science advisor to the President is because I wanted to make a positive difference from within the system, and that remains, whether disclosed or not.”
“But,” Hanah asked, “If we remain here, relatively motionless, among debris that’s scattered at 17,000 miles per hour, we might get hit.”
“Always protective,” Ella said. “True, except Bessie would see it coming, and we’d dodge it.”
“You can’t zap it out of existence?” Wood asked. “Or make it bounce off your shields?”
“We do have shields, but I think she’d just move us over a bit,” Ella said.
“But we do have work to do,” Lori said.
“True. We need to get the transmiuters back online.” Ella glanced at Lori. “Now that they’ve been revealed. And the big man isn’t going to like this.”
Ella’s shuttle descended from LEO in altitude toward Charleston, South Carolina, arked left and began to descend more slowly.
“You think your troops are on campus, yet?” Lori asked Wood.
Wood nodded. “As we speak. They’re good. My father went there, and his father before him. We’ve been at it since 1842.”
Soldiers formed a large circle on a lawn at the Citadel, with perhaps a hundred food radius. People were already beginning to gather at the display.
From overhead, a flying saucer descended into view and settled slowly in the center. No gear extended upon which the craft could rest; it just sat on it’s curved underside, on the grass, with very little indentation.
Rapidly, more people gathered at the cadets perimeter.
A door slid to the side in the shuttle and all five occupants exited.
“Lori!” someone from a growing crowd yelled.
“Lori!” yelled someone else.
“Vice President Oliver Best!” The crowd stirred.
The new astronauts waved back.
The cadet in charge made his way toward them, greeting the Vice President, Lori, Ella, the colonel and Hanah.
Wood shook the cadet’s hands with both of his. “Thank you for your excellent response. I know it was short notice.”
“Any time, Sir,” said the cadet. “And please say hello to your father for us.”
“And that’s Ella Gomez!” someone else yelled. “Wow!”
“But who’s that with them?” Someone else.
“That’s Hanah, Secret Service. I saw her on T.V.”
“That’s Wood, Lori’s protection.”
“What kind of craft is that?” someone else asked.
Oliver turned to address the crowd. “Hello everyone! Sorry for the impromptu nature of this call. I’d love to stay longer. Hokies are one of my favorite!”
The crowd cheered his informality and the mention of their favorite school.
“But,” Oliver continued, “we’re working hard to get the transmuters back online, and we just stopped by to pick up a passenger.”
With a cadet escort, Adrien Archambeau made his way out of a building toward the shuttle.
CHAPTER
22
Their shuttle lifted off the Citadel and rose into a very low earth orbit, then arced toward the Middle East. The Atlantic Ocean floated by beneath them on the large Blue Marble.
The six of them sat in a circle on Ella’s shuttle, with Ella in the pilot’s seat, though facing aft toward the group.
Oliver was leaning forward in his chair to gawk at Ellie’s display, the large half-moon heads-up-display that covered the entire front portion of their space. “My God, we’re in space again.”
Ellie and Lori smiled at him.
“Yes,” said Lori.
“How high this time?” Hanah asked.
Ellie looked at the display. “89.6 statute miles.”
“God,” Oliver couldn’t remove his eyes from the screen.
“Keep an eye out for falling Russian satellites,” Hanah said.
“Funny,” Wood said, then looked at Adrien. “The Adrien Archambeau? Billionaire entrepreneur?”
Adrien nodded.
“Are you Ahleth?” Wood asked, turning to Lori, “Is he Ahleth? Easy to become a billionaire if you’re from an advanced culture.”
Adrien nodded. “Some of us are,” he said, correcting Lori from her press conference, rolling his R only slightly. “Maybe 30 or 40.”
Ellie noted, “Your French accent is
fading.
“I adapt quickly,” Adrien said.
“What?” Wood pressed. “Billionaires are aliens? Or aliens are billionaires?”
“Both,” Adrien said. “Bill Gates, Jim Carry is.
Hanah laughed.
Adrien continued, “Jack Black, the actor. Cadence Jorgensen is. Steve Jobs is—”
“’Is’?” Hanah asked.
Adrien nodded. “Faked his death. We have had to, at times, but now Lori let the cat out of the bag, so no more on that.”
“Zuckerberg?” Oliver saked.
Adrien shook his head. “Not that I know of? Ella?”
“I don’t know, honestly,” Ella said. “I lose track.”
Adrien continued, “Elon Musk is. I’m still in touch with him.”
“I should have expected that,” Hanah said. “Real forward thinker.”
“Love his Tesla cars,” Lori said.
Adrien told Wood, “He was Nikola Tesla, before—”
“The Nikola Tesla?” Wood asked.
Adrien nodded. “He was an engineer for us on the ship. His name was Marden, I guess, as spoken in English. The problem wasn’t thinking up good things to engineer, here on Earth. The problem was doing so within then current social and economic systems, working with what you have, and also pushing boundaries in a way people would accept. Sometimes huge enterprises are undertaken—not for their own result but to prepare people for the next one. Gene Roddenberry is—”
“’Is.’” Wood said. “Where is he now?”
Adrien smiled and continued, “I think you can see we’re part of humanity, helping to advance us all—”
“You’re Gene Roddenberry?” Oliver asked.
Adrien smiled and shook his head no. “It’s be up to him to share, though. He’s also kind of private.”
“We’re just letting it all hang out here today, aren’t we,” Ella said.
“I, uh,” Adrien’s speech faded as he thought. “I’m uncomfortable with it, too. I’m still struggling with it, even now. Lori—is too young to make this decision on her own.”
“Too young?” Hanah asked.
“I’m only about 20,000 years old,” Lori said to her, lowering her head a little to Adrien.
“So?” Ollie said. “That’s old—”
Ella took a breath and cut in. “Adrien is approaching two hundred thousand.”
Adrien looked genuinely uncomfortable with the topic.