Aurora Saga Books 1-3, page 46
‘I agree. We must save the children, Kalrea.’
Zoren heard the engines of the Aurora starting in the background.
‘It will take nineteen-point-three hours to get there.’
‘Kalrea, what about Sabri. Do you know which group she’s in?’
‘Yes, I do. I’m sorry, but she’s going to Trafth. I couldn’t tell you before because I believed it would have made your choice harder.’
‘And my mother?’
‘I’m afraid they’ve been split up. H’furni Raxom has you mother.’
Zoren felt sad and deflated. ‘You’re right, Kalrea, it would have made it harder. Will I ever see Sabri again?’
‘I don’t know, Zoren. Look, go and explore the ship, have a wander around. You’re free to go anywhere you want. It will take your mind off things for a while.’
‘I’m not sure I want to, Kalrea, but thanks. I may try to get some rest.’
‘Ok, you do look a bit jaded.’
Zoren ambled over to the Pojin lift.
I don’t know how I’m going to get any rest. I can’t stop thinking of Sabri. Maybe having a look around is a way of relaxing a bit.
He turned to Kalrea and said,
‘If I do…want to look around, that is, how do I know where I am or where to go?’
‘You need a map,’ Kalrea said, moving to the wall nearest the consoles.
A small hidden door slid open, revealing a compartment, and Kalrea retrieved a pocket sized tablet from it. She walked over to him and holding it out said,
‘Here, I’ve loaded a map of the ship onto this holographic notepad. It’s configured in your language. Press the screen and the map will be displayed. Press it again to turn it off. Then, all you need to do is tell the lift where you want to go and it will oblige.’
Zoren took the tablet from her and said, ‘Thanks. I may have a look around later.’ Then he got into the lift and said loudly, ‘Accommodation area.’
The Pojin lift door closed and four seconds later opened again.
He gazed down the corridor leading to his room, and then at the tablet in his hand. His curiosity was getting the better of him.
Why not! She’s right. Worrying won’t change anything and it would take my mind off things.
He pressed the face of the tablet. To his surprise a transparent holographic image of the ship appeared above its surface. Each section of the ship was of a different color and its name could be identified by the text that was displayed alongside it.
Wow! That’s incredible.
Studying the image he could now understand the layout of the ship. He working out the position of each place where he had been and enthusiastically began to think of new placed to explore.
Look at the size of those four engines, there are two on either side of the ship. I can see one… two… no three reactor rooms. The cargo bay is in the centre of the ship, the accommodation space is near the front of the ship, and directly above it there’s the bridge with a maintenance area behind it.
He glanced over the sections of the map again and then said to the lift, ‘Port drive room.’
Zoren almost jumped from his skin when the door of the lift opened. A loud high-pitch scream, which emanated from inside the drive room, was almost unbearable. He had to place his hands over his ears to shield them. In doing that he nearly dropped the holographic notepad and had to grip more firmly to stop it from falling, before he could walk out of the lift. His mouth opened in astonishment as he stood in-between a pair of gigantic event horizon drives, which were dark-grey cylinders, at least thirty meters in diameter and ran the length of the ship.
They’re massive!
All over the surface of the right-hand event horizon drive large metallic valves were opening and closing against its casing, following the rhythm of a beating heart. Some micnorit nuronic construction drones were moving around on the surface adjusting some of the valves.
So the drive that’s not operating must be the weapon Kalrea mentioned. I wonder what type of weapon it could be to be housed in something as large as that.
He moved back into the Pojin lift and, because of the noise, shouted, ‘Reactor room… Er… three!’
As soon as the lift door had closed, he lowered his hands from his ears, which were still ringing from the noise of the drive. A few seconds later, the lift door opened into one of the reactor rooms.
Is it quiet, or is it that I can’t hear anything anymore? he thought.
Zoren ventured into the room, which was large, rectangular and with a very high ceiling. At its centre was a donut-shaped reactor over thirty meters in diameter and, adjacent to it, a tall cylindrical column. He had to walk on a grate floor, which was five meters above the actual floor. Five large ducts, over two meters in diameter, led away from the top of the reactor casing into the ceiling and there were similar ducts at the base of the reactor disappearing down into the floor.
Surely, this one can’t be operating.
He approached the vast reactor and touched its smooth warm surface.
There’s no noise, no vibrations, nothing, he thought, so he returned to the lift. Let’s try another reactor room. How about the one near the front of the ship, he thought and then instructed the lift to go there.
When the door opened, there was a subtle hum coming from within the room.
This sounds more promising, he thought.
Zoren wandered out and was met by the strong smell of ozone. The ducts, leading away from the reactor casing were resonating and even at a distance, he could feel heat radiating from them.
This one’s working all right. So the other must be a spare system, if the ship only requires one to power the drives.
Zoren continued to explore the ship for another hour, until his tiredness started to get the better of him and returned to his room to try to rest for a while.
Chapter Twelve
On the bridge of the Aurora, Kalrea was standing by the open seatra, in which there was an old man lying in suspended animation. His face and hands were deeply cracked and drawn, and his hair silver and wiry. He was wearing a black uniform like Kalrea’s, except his sleeves were yellow instead of green. His name was Lex and he had been the first and only Qinant pilot of the Aurora before Zoren.
The telementor, which Zoren now wore, and the seatra on the bridge were created so the Qinant pilot could communicate telepathically with Kalrea. For Zoren this would have resulted in brain damage, but not for Lex. Through the years of travelling and interacting through telepathy, Lex and Kalrea had become very close, and he was the first person who got to know Kalrea as a being rather than an artificial intelligence.
Inevitably with time, Lex became old and frail, while Kalrea did not have a body to worry about and was practically invulnerable; however, she was not immortal because her life was linked to the Aurora, so should the ship be destroyed then she would cease to exist.
Kalrea got more and more concerned about Lex aging and knew that at some point he would have died. So when Lex suffered a fatal heart attack, she managed to place him inside the seatra in suspended animation to prevent him from dyeing, and hoped that this would give her time to find a way of saving him, but even after one thousand, four hundred and seventy-six years there was still no answer.
Over time, Kalrea had a greater desire to interact with people. The issue was she did not have a body and the only way to communicate was using the technology onboard the Aurora. This meant she could talk to people using the consoles and address system on board the ship, but in doing so, she was always treated like an artificial intelligence there to provide answers and transport its passengers around. This frustrated her and she knew the only way people would ever treat her any differently was if she could interact with them as an equal, and for that she needed a body, so created a few life-like drones.
Kalrea used one of them to venture out from the Aurora, but then she realized that to be treated as an equal, it was not enough to just have a body, she needed to also have more polished interpersonal skills. She had no experience on how to interact with people outside of the Aurora and tried to copy them, but, like a child on her first day at school, found that some people made fun of her and others cheated on her. After a number of failed friendships and then an angry outburst, which resulted in the deaths of over fifty Kopirs, who had decided to eat her, she decided to place the drone back into storage, until she could observe how people behaved and mixed together. By chance, the Polnozoo gave her the ideal opportunity to watch people with so many different races visiting it every day, but that all changed the day it was attacked and Zoren’s people were taken. After saving Zoren she once again needed a body to help him, except this time she now had the skills to be amongst people and was going to be herself.
Gazing down at Lex, Kalrea thought, Zoren reminds me of you.
Due to Lex’s age, he was unable to communicate telepathically with Kalrea, but that did not stop her from trying, even though he could not reply.
Lex, you look so peaceful there. If only I could leave this ship for good and grow old like you, then perhaps I would understand what you’re going through now. I would know what it’s like to have a body that’s one hundred and forty-eight years old and at the point of dying. I miss you so much and wish I could talk to you now, but your heart is failing and the seatra is the only thing keeping you alive.
It’s a pity I couldn’t make a telepathic connection with Zoren. I would have loved to have had the same feeling of togetherness that I had with you before you became too old. I think you’d be proud of me. I’m doing what you always said I should do. Be myself, but also make sure I help others. I chose to help Zoren to find his wife and the other Agonians, but I fear I might fail and he may never be happy. He seems to be growing up very quickly from what I observed of him on the Polnozoo.
Kalrea paused for a moment and touched Lex’s hand with hers. His body was weak and frail, such a contrast to her new body.
I’ve used one of my drones again, but this time it feels different. I no longer need to copy people; instead, I know how to be myself, but in doing that I’ve used powers which seem to frighten them. Maybe I shouldn’t have used the defense shield to kill those Frinduls. Zoren now fears me and just when I felt he was starting to trust me.
We’re now exactly four hours from Onliv. I hope I’m not too late, Lex. I will find the Agonians, whatever it takes, and if anyone gets in my way, then I will kill them. The Agonians are a peaceful people and don’t deserve the way they’ve been treated.
Kalrea checked on the Agonians onboard the Aurora.
Gulco is trying the steam shower, although he seems to be having a bit of difficulty keeping upright with only one arm to steady himself. Diean and Vinuar are sleeping. Zoren is in the cargo bay. What’s he doing in there?
Kalrea watched Zoren from the bridge. He was running his hand over the surface of one of the Qinant shuttles.
I wonder how the Glonvi are doing. I must have a look at them in their enclosure. Oh... there are four of you now. You’ve had two flecs! I wasn’t paying much attention to you.
Kalrea observed the mother, who was positioning herself over the top of her two siblings.
Two boys! I think you two still have a bit of work to do if your species wants to survive.
She returned to watching Zoren, who had now entered the shuttle.
Lex, Zoren’s wiping his eyes. He looks sad. I’d better go and see if he’s all right.
Kalrea closed the seatra, before entering the Pojin lift.
Cargo bay.
She hurried over to the shuttle and peeked inside. Zoren was sitting in the pilot’s seat. As she got onboard, he turned to see who it was.
He’s been crying.
‘How are you coping with things?’ Kalrea asked him.
‘Not too well, I’m afraid. I’ve been thinking of Sabri again and all the good times we had together. I can’t imagine what she’s going through now.’
‘She’ll have support from the others that are with her. Your people have always been close. Did you manage to get some rest?’
‘Not really. I dozed off for a while, but couldn’t really sleep.’
How can I cheer him up? He needs to occupy his mind with something else.
She noticed that Zoren was running his fingers over the control console in front of him.
‘You liked the shuttle simulator onboard the space station, didn’t you?’ Kalrea said.
‘What… Er... Yes, why?’
‘Because I’m interested in why you spent so must time in it, that’s all.’
‘I wanted to imagine what it would be like to fly a ship, even if I never could.’
‘Oh. I see.’
Enabling safety protocols. Drive start.
The engine of the shuttle started.
Zoren turned to Kalrea. ‘What’s happening?’
‘Do you want to fly this shuttle?’
‘You’re not serious? In here!’
He looks frightened.
‘Why not?’
‘But there’s no room in here. I mean… I could hit something.’
He wants to try. I can see it in his eyes.
‘Ok then, never mind.’
Drive off. Now he looks disappointed. He definitely wanted to try.
‘Look, I’ll make sure you don’t hit anything,’ Kalrea said reassuringly. ‘There’s nothing to worry about, all right?’
Zoren nodded. ‘I’ll try to be careful.’
I’ll still keep the safety on, thank you! Drive start.
Kalrea sat down alongside him.
The control console illuminated and many symbols were displayed.
He looks unsure. I’ll soon fix that.
The console layout changed and plain text, written in Zoren’s language Galcolian, was now displayed below each symbol.
That should help a bit.
Zoren was now reading the text. ‘So this is used to start and stop the drive. This one opens and closes the door.’
‘You’d better close the door. I wouldn’t want to fall out,’ Kalrea said cheekily.
Zoren pressed the symbol and peeked back over his shoulder to watch the door close.
His hearts are pounding. He’s must really be excited.
On the left-hand side of the control console was a round circle with left, right, up and down displayed alongside it. Zoren instinctively placed his right hand over it, which meant his arm was unnaturally reaching across his body.
He’s not using his left hand.
Displayed on the right-hand side of the control console was a cross with the text, forward, back, and rotation left and right.
‘Are… Qinants are left-handed, so the controls are configured the wrong ways around,’ Kalrea said. ‘There!’
The control console went blank for a moment, and then the circle appeared on the right-hand side and the cross on the left.
‘Thank you, that looks a lot easier for me to use.’
‘Ok, are you ready for your first lesson?’
‘I think so.’
‘Good. I only want you to use the right-hand controls for now. Place your finger in the centre of the circle and then move it gently towards up.’
Zoren placed his finger in the centre of the circle.
He’s too nervous, almost shaking. This could be a bit violent.
She gripped the base of the seat firmly with her hands.
Zoren pushed his finger shakily away from himself. The shuttle lifted very sudden and rapidly into the air, while jerking from side-to-side in synchronization with his shaking hand.
He was almost thrown from his seat and was unable to keep his finger on the control console. The shuttle stopped a meter from the ceiling.
‘Oops!’ Kalrea said, as Zoren glanced at her, with an expression of sorry written all over his face. ‘Try to relax. You can’t do any damage. See we’re now... well, you could say we’re at the ceiling.’
Zoren gazed out the front window down at the other ships below.
Kalrea released her grip on the seat and gently took hold of his hand. She directed his finger back onto the console.
His skin is softer than I expected.
She placed his finger in the circle and gentle moved it towards him.
And his hands are larger than mine.
The shuttle descended slowly, until it was half way between the floor and ceiling.
‘Now relax,’ she said, moving her hand away.
Zoren took a deep breath and then very gingerly moved his finger away from himself once more. The shuttle moved slowly upwards.
‘Good,’ Kalrea said.
Look at the concentration on his face. He must be focusing all his attention just to fly.
‘Now try to move the shuttle left or right.’
Zoren moved the shuttle graceful to the left and then the right.
I wonder if he knows his tongue is partly out when he’s concentrating so much. Very odd, but it seems to help him. He looks pleased.
‘Now use your left hand, on the cross, to move the shuttle forward… slowly!’
The shuttle moved quickly forward, heading directly towards one of the large ships. It lifted automatically to avoid hitting it.
She glanced at Zoren expecting him to release the controls, but instead he used them to reposition the shuttle.
He’s learning fast.
‘What does rotation left and right do? I seem to have all the controls I need.’
He used to always play tricks on his friends onboard the space station, so I wonder if I should play one on him. No, he’ll get upset.
Kalrea watched him for a moment as he flew the shuttle slowly around the cargo bay.
Why not? Internal shuttle gravity: Off.
‘Try them. That’s the only way you’ll find out what rotation left and right do.’
Kalrea gripped her seat with her hands once more as he moved his finger to the rotation left control.
The shuttle rotated on its axis, flipping upside down.
Zoren fell from his seat, landing onto the ceiling of the shuttle.
Kalrea looked down at him. ‘There! Now you know what it does,’ she laughed.
