U.S.S. Humanity

  “Not me,” says Nadia, looking at Dex disapprovingly. “Someone should stay frosty.”

  “And we appreciate you for that,” adds Dex, turning toward her to yell from down the hall.

  *****

  A few hours later Dex awakens, face down on the bed. His head rises slowly, eyes adjusting to the light. He feels some beads around his neck and takes them off with some difficulty, cursing. Sitting up he places his feet on the floor, rubbing his head and wincing. “Well, that was mature.” An alarm starts to ping throughout the ship. “No way,” he utters, “there’s nothing for a 100,000 miles of our trajectory.” Dex picks up a view screen. It displays the alert data and an object intersecting with the Humanity’s plotted course. “Except that thing. Whiskey, tango, foxtrot, this outta be rich.”

  *****

  Everyone is on the bridge when Dex arrives. “What happened to you,” asks Nadia, taking in Dex’s rough appearance.

  “New Orleans,” quips Jen, matter-of-factly. Beppe doesn’t look much better.

  Dex rubs his face again to hide a reaction and out of necessity. “What do we have?”

  “Aliens?” guesses Beppe.

  “Inside Jupiter?“ responds Xiao. “Not likely.”

  “Distress beacon. Looks like a derelict ship,” replies Nadia.

  “What? Are we supposed to stop?” asks Beppe as he looks at Jen. “Hippocratic oath compel us?” Jen returns his look stoically. “What about fuel?”

  Dex replies rapidly, “Ion drives removed fuel as the bottleneck to space travel. Time is all we’d be sacrificing. I don’t think any of us would begrudge an extra few days on our journey.”

  “Not yet,” quips Jen.

  “What do we have on comms?” Dex asks.

  “No response,” replies Nadia.

  “Just the dulcet tones of the beacon. Couldn’t they make the beacon ‘Help’ by the Beatles? Scientists are always so damn scientific,” Dex puts his hands on his head again, wincing.

  Nadia reads the screens and touches various controls. “Procedure says we stop, so we stop.” She engages deceleration and leaves the bridge followed by several others. Beppe and Dex remain.

  “No one else has a problem with this?” asks Beppe.

  “Caution is the better part of valor …. And assistance,” says Dex. “But I trust Nadia, she’s a good captain. And you should, too.”

  *****

  “Docking complete. Collar pressurized,” intones the ship computer. The crew waits at the airlock, ready to assist.

  Beppe leans toward Dex and whispers, “Where is the captain?” Dex shrugs.

  “Welcome visitors to the U.S.S. Humanity,” finishes the bodiless voice. The hatch swings open and three sweaty, unshaven, wild-eyed men leap through.

  “Hands in the air, everyone, this is a hijacking.”

  “Oh, this is rich,” quips Dex, rolling his eyes and raising his hands perfunctorily. The others do the same.

  Beppe looks to Dex and the hijackers. “I don’t understand. You are stealing our ship? What about us?”

  “Oh, afraid we die, right guys?” says Dex.

  “Shut up! Just shut up! He said you’d talk. Talk and talk and talk.” The hijacker looks around at the crew. “So just shut up!” He points his pistol at all of them as he speaks, as if staving them off with a flaming torch.

  “Zed, there are supposed to be six of them,” cautions a nervous looking hijacker. “There are eight.”

  Zed looks at him quickly not wanting to take his eyes off of the crew. His lips move as he counts them, then he closes his eyes with force. “No, you crazy idiot. There are six just like there’s supposed to be. Now you shut up, too.”

  Dex and Xiao exchange dubious looks. Jen stands behind them in glasses, long black hair flowing over her white lab coat, and speaks clinically, “You’re suffering from space sickness. You’re having hallucinations, blurred and double-vision. How long have you been in that ship?” She is casual, hands in her pockets, as if her medical experience had long ago subdued the panic normal folks must endure.

  The third hijacker turns to her embarrassed at having forgotten her presence. “A week with nothing but M-rats and espresso. The water froze and ruptured the polyurethane containers.” It’s obvious now that all the hijackers have ticks and twitches of various sorts.

  “I think that would be agony even for an Italian, eh, Beppe?”

  “Mama mia, never more than 3 espresso a day,” Beppe moans in agreement.

  “Just where do you think you are taking this ship?” asks Alex. “You won’t just be able to hide a ship this big.”

  “They have ways and means, Alex, rest assured. I’m more interested in who put them up to this.”

  Zed smiles and snaps at Dex, “Nope, ha, ha! He knew you’d ask and he told me directly not to answer that question. See? He knew.”

  “Okay, he’s quite the planner, but that doesn’t make sense. If your plan was going to succeed and we’ll all soon be dead, couldn’t you tell us anything you wanted? Why would he tell you not to say anything? Pharris sounds like he knew you’d fail.”

  Hijacker three is jumpy, but optimistic, “We … w-we have the guns,” he chimes, rotating the gun for display at all angles.

  But Zed cannot avoid suspicion and he grows angry, pointing his gun at Dex, “Why would we fail? What have you done? If you’ve done something-” The mood changes quickly, as renewed adrenaline sobers Zed, “Let’s simplify the problem-“

  Dex finishes the quote in a crescendo, “-by eliminating the variables!”

  At that instant, Nadia rolls around the corner and paint pellets hit Zed and the hijacker nearest him. Dex is ready and side-steps Zed’s line of fire as his pistol discharges wildly. Side-by-side, he forces Zed’s gun arm down, but he resists. Expecting this, Dex has already switched his force upward and, joining Zed’s own strength, the gun slams hard into his skull, felling him like a sack of potatoes.

  Meanwhile, Beppe has worked the pellet-blinded second hijacker into a choke hold and put him to bed, but hijacker three, out of Nadia’s line-of-fire, has his gun on Xiao. Alex tackles Xiao, but the hijacker never fires. He just stares into the space where Xiao had been and smiles. “No, no, it’s an .88 magnum. It shoots through schools …” he murmurs falling to the ground asleep. Jen stands behind him holding a syringe at butt-level. She slips the needle back into her pocket. “Just a little recreational cocktail. He won’t even have a headache.”

  Beppe starts to laugh loudly, “Dios mio, I love this woman. Cool.”

  “If you don’t need me for anything else, I have work,” Jen says, turning to go, but keeping her eyes on Beppe briefly. Beppe watches her, shaking his head and smiling.

  “Great work, Captain,” says Dex, “Damned fine.”

  “You doubted me?”

  “On the contrary, never for a second,” Dex looks at her sincerely.

  Still on the floor with Xiao, Alex asks, “Is everyone okay?” He runs his hands over his body.

  “Us? You saved Xiao! You’re a man of action!” declares Dex.

  “No, I just, ya know … wanted her to get down.”

  “And nice sleeper hold, Beppe,” adds Dex. Beppe smiles and flexes his muscles.

  Xiao and Alex return to their feet. “This is ridiculous,” insists Xiao, angrily. “This is the second attempt to KILL us. Did any of you know the voyage would be this dangerous?”

  Nadia and Dex exchange looks. “We were all warned,” offers Dex. “We all signed the same contract.”

  Xiao is not appeased, “Yeah, space is dangerous: check, claustrophobia: check, vacuum-sucking death: check, but marauders? Am I to assume there is a nefarious plotter out here somewhere?”

  All eyes are on Dex, as he struggles to form the words. “Wow, what a morning. Okay, I think it’s Pharris Turner. The same someone that sabotaged our launch.”

  “And why does he want to
snuff us?” cajoles Xiao.

  “He and I have a long history of conflict. He’s a first-rate scumbag, in my book, but he’s slick … plays by the rules except when no one’s looking. He’s the type that plots and schemes … that subverts good intention, honesty and safety with his own interests in mind. I’ve kept my eye on him for years and thwarted him when possible and he has reciprocated. He’s kind of my nemesis, you could say,” admits Dex, chuckling.

  “Nemesis? Who has a nemesis?” pleads Alex, looking at the others. “I mean, I don’t have a nemesis.” Alex looks at Nadia, “Do you?”

  Nadia shrugs and frowns, “Let me think about that one.” Then she brightens and nods, “Maybe.” They begin dragging the bodies down the hallway. “Put these guys in Maintenance B … it has a lock pad. We’ll put their ship in the hold.”

  The group disappears while Alex sits at a computer. “Sweet. I get on a ship with people whose personalities spawn enemies. I mean, I guess my mom can be a pain in the neck, but my nemesis? She doesn’t try to kill me, per se, but she does suck any fulfillment or joy from my life. ” Alex arches his eyebrows, considering, then deciding. “Wow, this whole time. Living with my nemesis. Unreal …”

  ###

  Read an excerpt now from Episode III:

  “Dex, gun!” yells Xiao. Dex, momentarily distracted, is knocked to the floor.

  Smiling, Pharris retreats toward Vlad, breathing hard and taking time to dust himself off. “Kill him,” he orders, smiling at Dex. All Vlad has to do is carefully point his gun at Dex and pull the trigger. On the floor, he has nowhere to hide.

  That moment never came.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Nate Covell was employed by the White House Military Office, worked in cyber counterintelligence, was a Japanese interpreter and lived in Japan and Italy. He has a B.A. in Creative Writing and has done graduate work at Harvard. He likes to talk about himself in 3rd person, as evinced here. But enough about me! Hit my website and let me get to know you, too 

  Thank you for taking the time to read this episode. Please take a moment to leave a comment at the site from which you downloaded. Find out more at https://natecovell.com

  Episode III

  “We’re coming up on DS2. Beginning deceleration,” says Nadia into Humanity’s audio system.

  “I don’t know what we’re stopping for?” says Alex. “We just sailed a month ago.”

  “You don’t want to interact with real people?” asks Xiao. “There is something wrong with you.”

  “Look: I’m prepared. Let’s go. The sooner we go, the sooner we’re back, if that’s what’s important to you. Besides, am I going to make a friend in a few days? I don’t have a handful of friends after a lifetime on Earth.”

  “You’re a real optimist. Dex, you’re looking forward to stopping at DS2, aren’t you?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “Alex can’t think of a reason to disembark.” Dex considers.

  “I think I can give him a good reason. Alex come here.” Dex whispers in Alex’s ear. A grin spreads across Alex’s face.

  “Oh, yeah. Now you’re talking.” Alex scurries away.

  “What did you tell him?” asks Xiao, suspicious. “What a reversal. You really are good with people.”

  “Don’t worry, Xiao. When I have something equally motivating for you, I’ll whisper in your ear, too. When you need it most.”

  Xiao smiles and rolls her eyes, holding up her hands and forming a W with her thumbs touching, “Whatever.”

  Dex looks at her gesture, arching his eyebrows and smirking, “Geek.”

  *****

  “Docking complete. We disembark in 48 hours. Enjoy your shore leave.” Nadia switches off the intercom and is over, under and through the hallway before the door ceases cycling open. The rest of the crew is there ahead of her. Dex hands Alex something she can’t make out and nods. Alex smiles nervously and nods back, but she doesn’t care. They all make their way down the spacious hallway. DS2 was built for habitants and comfort. Approximately 500 people live on the station: mostly scientists, military and corporate employees and their families. A fellow doctor is waiting to escort Jen to the medical facilities. Nadia doesn’t observe the rest as she makes her way through the corridors with purpose. She arrives at the command and control center two minutes after entry into DS2. The XO is the only officer on duty. He turns as she approaches.

  “Captain Renko. It’s been a long time.” He frowns. “You know you can’t have the firearm on my station.”

  “Since the academy, Captain Forrest. I have some prisoners for you, but first we will go to your quarters. Here’s my weapon, now I want yours.” She hands him her weapon, spins him around and pushes him, slapping his behind in the process.

  He smiles and moves without protest, “Same old Renko. I’m beginning to think you don’t respect me as a person.”

  “You have always been just a pleasant distraction. Now I want you to distract me again … hard.”

  *****

  Dex’s naked torso runs, jumps and springs high through the air and into the cool, clear swimming pool. Treading water, Xiao screams as his splash consumes her. She can’t stop smiling in the swirl of the titillating sensations.

  “Oh, this is great,” said Dex. “I can’t believe they have a pool.”

  “What happens if they lose gravity?” Xiao wonders. Dex scans the room.

  “Looks like the room is air tight, so no problem. The water just drains back in the pool when gravity is restored.”

  “And meanwhile? I mean, if you were in here during null gravity, you could drown in mid-air,” she points out. This causes Dex to pause.

  “Okay, you’re freakin’ me out.” He splashes her and she laughes. “We’re supposed to be relaxing.”

  “Where’s everyone else?”

  “Who cares? Honestly. We have 6 years with them.”

  “And me,” asked Xiao, raising an eyebrow. Dex looks at her askance, measuring.

  “Is the psychologist fishing for complements? What does that tell us, class?” he teases. Relaxing, she lets her lips and nose sink below the waterline a moment as she continues staring at Dex. “No. There’s something different about you. Like you’re an old soul … or friend.” Xiao, surprised, straightens by standing on the pool bottom.

  “Why, Dexter, you wouldn’t be speaking to me disingenuously?” she deflects. He just smiles, reassuringly, then looks away.

  “Xiao, I left affectation back on Earth. Back with the daily stupidity, deception and … sadness that humanity self-inflicts.”

  “Is that why you left?”

  “Xiao, you haven’t even scratched the surface of why I left.”

  Well?”

  “A failed marriage and disenfranchised son is a good start.”

  “What happened?”

  “Well, even as old-fashioned as marriage has become, we were romantics, I suppose. Eventually, we all get sick of each other, don’t we? I don’t know. I love her still, but her happiness is more important. I stopped feeling that I was making her happy.” Xiao’s eyes drift from Dex’s to the water. “And she didn’t struggle. We live apart.”

  “And your son?”

  Dex’s face grows darker. “Captain Masterson?” he spits with derision. “He joined the military against my wishes.”

  “Why against? Because of the incident at the Asteroid Belt?”

  Dex’s eyes widen as he searches her face for the intent of her words. “What the hell does that have to do with anything?” She returns his look, unflinching but silent. “Yes … and no. He’s a cocky little shit who is gonna save the world and doesn’t care to listen to a jaded old fool who has been there and knows better.”

  “Perhaps he will change the world, Dex.”

  “Take it from me, the world isn’t worth it.”

  Xiao inhales and sighs, smiling, “Geez, Dex, deconstructing your angst co
uld make a girl’s career.” Dex surprises her by laughing loudly, giving her an adrenaline rush and she giggles.

  “I know! Right? Ahhhhh …” he splashes, yelling playfully.

  Their laughter echoes across the waves.

  *****

  Alex walks down the dubiously decorated hallways of DS2. The station was not designed to be aesthetically pleasing, so the inhabitants’ children are allowed to paint, draw and otherwise score the walls as they see fit. Alex holds his datapad behind him and tries to be cavalier. “How ya doing?” and “Nice station” are among his perfunctory comments to passersby. When the hallway is finally clear, he jacks his datapad into a dataport, telescopes his full keyboard (a rare datapad upgrade) and electro magnetizes it to the wall. “Accessing … 8 seconds. Negotiating security … 10 seconds,” Alex intones. “Scanning station logs … that looks bogus.” His hands work frantically. “I’ll - be - damned. Better send a-” He hears voices from down the hall and, with a press of a button, his gear snaps and gaps - cords disappearing into their parent tech. Two security guards emerge from around the turn.

  “Well, well, well. We heard we had visitors. Already jacking into our system illegally?”

  Alex acts as if he is enjoying the wall art and feigns innocence. “What? Me? Just hanging about,” he explains, ineptly.

  “Fine, we’ll just take your pad and double-check your story.” The guard grabs his gear as Alex protests. They continue walking. “Don’t worry, it’s a small station. If you’re innocent, you’ll have it back soon enough. If not ….” The guards look at each other and laugh, “It’s out the airlock with you!” They laugh and disappear around the curve as Alex curses.

  *****

  Toweling off, Dex frowns looking at his datapad. Dressed, Xiao walks up still towel-drying her dark hair. “Something wrong?”

  “No. Are you kidding? I mean … someone tried to kill us twice in a month. What could go wrong?” Xiao punches Dex in the shoulder.

  “Wow, I hope you’re making sure you don’t carry that cynicism into deep space. Right? We’re escaping all that … and everything else, right?” she teases.

  “I thought so,” he replies, noncommittally. “I just … Alex was going to check in.”

  “Okay, he’s probably where?” They exchange looks. “Yeah. Somewhere drinking something sugary and carbonated. Dex?” Arching an eyebrow, Dex stares at her pensively.