The Passenger Ch. 07

The Passenger

Chapter 7

You'd expect landings and takeoffs to become routine over the years.

And indeed to a certain extent they do, but not entirely. Every world is different, every system has its peculiarities, and while some worlds may become more familiar when you visit them often enough, the ones you've never been to always have something of the unexpected; something of the unknown. Add to that the fact that about ninety-nine percent of all spaceflight disasters happen in realspace, especially during in-system flight and during landings and take-offs, and you've got the reason why a pilot can never afford to become complacent. As soon as you begin to treat it as routine, the statistics are out to get you.

I've never been able to think of taking off and landing as routine, and hyperspace jumps and realspace reversals put me on my guard even more. I won't say they fill me with apprehension, but I am always acutely aware of the fact that these moments are among the most critical ones of any flight, and there is always something of a heightened awareness, an increased clarity of thinking, a focus not achievable at other times without the use of stimulants.

Some pilots eventually become addicted to those moments of heightened awareness. Fortunately I'm immune to that sort of thing. To me it's part of the job, nothing more. The idea that I actually might need this sort of life, that I enjoy the thrill and live for it and that I would never be happy being stuck dirtside, spending my life among the groundhogs without being able to apply my paranoia constructively, is of course ridiculous.

Although... In those brief moments of heightened awareness it is almost impossible to lie to yourself, especially during the final countdown before a space state transition. Even while you focus on the transition, those undeniable truths in the back of your mind simply won't be ignored any longer. Maybe that makes sense to you. Maybe not. It's complicated.

"Here we go. Realspace in three, two, one..." I said.

The sound of the field coils rang through the ship as they absorbed the solid kick of the jump capacitors' charge, and as space turned itself inside out around us. Or outside in, if you will. It always feels that way to me, a little. And since there are no words that can accurately describe the experience anyway, it's as good a way of putting it as any other.

The luminous black non-light of hyperspace disappeared in a flash and a reassuring background of stars and three-dimensional space materialized before us. The computer beeped its comforting acknowledgement that space ahead of us was clear of obstacles and began to put our coordinates on the screen as it calculated them, one after the other.

"Next stop, Gawrr," I said.

"Where's the sun?" Anne asked. "Or is that it?"

"Yep, that's it," I said, looking at the tiny spec ahead. "And don't be fooled. You wouldn't say it from looking at it, but that is one very big star. It's not very hot, but it puts out a lot of light and a lot of heat. Its biosphere is so far out that Gawrr's orbit around it takes about seven standard years. Which is a little unusual, I'll admit, because most yellow giants are too unstable to support life. But this one's solid as a rock. That's pretty rare, but then, it's a big galaxy."

I turned to the computer and punched for a system-wide transponder query. It only took a few moments before the computer came back with a cheerful beep of acknowledgment.

"It looks like Raz is already here. Good. I hope he hasn't had to wait long."

"Tell me something," Anne said. "You said that in hyperspace technically speaking there is no time and no space, and therefore there's no such thing as velocity. Right?"

"Right," I nodded.

"So how come two ships can leave the same point at the same time, and then one arrives a day or more before the other does?"

"Good question," I said. "And I wish I had the answer. But hyperspatial mathematics give me a massive headache, and this is one of those things that can only be explained in mathematical terms. Or so I've been told. So the best I can tell you is that it works that way because the math says it should, or at least it can, but how that works is completely beyond me."

Meanwhile I busied myself with the computer console. The comms only took a few moments to set up, and Raz' ugly puss materialized on the display, slightly blurred by the encryption. Using an encrypted link here on his home turf was probably not really necessary, but we both felt it was better to be safe than sorry.

"Harrrvey," he rumbled.

I nodded, confirming his diagnosis.

"Have you been waiting long?" I asked.

"Not rrreally. I arrrived in-system about thrrree hourrrs ago. I have taken the liberrrty of prrreparrring a trrransponderrr overrrlay forrr you. It identifies you as an auxilarrry vessel to the 'Prrride. It will ensurrre therrre will be no entrrry forrrmalities."

"How did you manage that?" Anne asked.

Raz smiled his good smile.

"Ourrr carrrgo is verrry popularrr herrre. Demand farrr exceeds supply. This trrranslates into a cerrrtain amount of leverrrage."

"Let me guess," I said, returning his smile. "You're not paying a lot of import duties, are you?"

"Not rrreally. I merrrely hinted that I might have to stop imporrrting the prrroduce if too many customs forrrmalities would get in the way. Things became a lot easierrr at that point. I am sending you the trrransponderrr overrrlay and courrrse data now. We arrre alrrready clearrred f orrr entrrry."

The computer beeped, confirming the reception of Raz' data transmission.

"Got it," I said, tapping the controls. "Course data laid in, transponder overlay activated."

"Trrransponder overrrlay checks out," he rumbled, glancing at his own navigation display. "Rrready when you arrre."

"No time like the present. We're right behind you, Raz."

"See you in a few hourrrs then. Starrrman's Prrride out."

"Looking forward to it. Slowboat out, too."

The next few hours were blessedly uneventful. The course data that Raz had fed us included homing beacons and navigation buoy coordinates, and the computer needed no help from me.

"Why is our course curved?" Anne asked, looking at the navigation screen as we approached and the computer locked on to the navigational beacons.

"Because of the sun's gravity," I said. "There are only two straight line courses through any system: heading straight out of it, or heading straight in. On departure you usually go for the straightest course you can get, but depending on your point of departure and in which direction you're headed, you'll be unable to make a straight line more often then not. When you enter a system you don't really know where any of the planets are when you revert to realspace, so your chances of a straight line are practically zero."

"So you would follow a straight line only if the sun is directly behind your or ahead of you?"

"Yes, but only if there are no planets or other sufficiently heavy bodies nearby to pull you off course. On the other hand, if you have a planet handy that you can swing around, such a slingshot maneuver can save you a lot of time and fuel, provided the planet is going in the right direction. But here there's nothing that we can use within millions of miles, so we have to do almost all the braking ourselves, while we swing around the sun on our way to Gawrr. Not quite all of it, because we entered the system well inside Gawrr's orbit, so when we swing further out from the sun, we will be shedding a little velocity."

"That slingshot maneuver you mentioned," she said thoughtfully. "We did that on our first flight together, didn't we?"

I nodded.

"Okay," she continued, "So what does that have to do with braking?"

"A slingshot maneuver can be used for braking or for acceleration. When you follow a planet in its orbit, it essentially tows you along, and you gain speed because some of the planet's orbital velocity is transferred to the ship. But when you approach it in the opposite direction, you transfer some of the ship's velocity to the planet, and your own velocity is reduced as a result of that. Both maneuvers can save fuel, but it depends on where the planets are in their orbits and in which direction the ship is going. Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don't. In this case..."

"...We're screwed," she finished my sentence.

"Well, not screwed, but we're going to have to do all our braking ourselves. That takes time and fuel, and there's no getting around that."

Over the course of the next two hours or so, Gawrr slowly grew from a tiny dot to a small disk, a larger disk, and finally a fluffy ball, brown and blue and green. By the time we entered the atmosphere we saw the Pride's drive exhaust winking ahead of us, its blue-white light inviting us to follow. I keyed the comms, and Raz replied almost instantly.

"I notice that Gawrr Central Space Port is on the nightside right now, Raz. Your course data doesn't take us there. Is that right?"

"Quite rrright, Harrrvey. We'rrre not going to Centrrral. We arre headed forrr a prrrivate corrrporrrate landing field."

Next to me, Anne sat up. I couldn't blame her. Even I noted the ghostly echo of the landing instructions we'd received on our approach to Ursa. Instructions to land at Vergence private docking facility, where we could be dealt with safely, far away from any prying eyes. But she didn't know Raz like I did. She liked him and she trusted him, but Raz and I went way back, while she had only met him fairly recently. So I understood her apprehension. I reached out and squeezed her hand in a "Don't worry, everything will be alright" sort of way.

"Tell me more, Raz," I said anyway, more for Anne's benefit than for mine. "Why there?"

"Our prrroduct is verrry popularrr and therrreforrre ourrr carrrgo is verrry valuable herrre. A cerrrtain amount of securrrity is indicated. I had this facility constrrructed two yearrrs ago."

"Hang on," Anne said. "You had it constructed?"

"Of courrrse it's merrrely company prrroperrrty, Anne," he rumbled.

I didn't know Gawrrans could look embarrassed, but what I saw on Raz' face came close.

"So who owns the company, Raz? I asked.

"Does it matterrr?"

"Don't be evasive now, Raz. We've never had any secrets from each other."

"Trrrue. Verrry well. I own it."

I stared at the screen while I digested this. I had expected him to be fairly well off, given the popularity of the crop he was bringing in from Manaka, but if he owned a company with a private landing facility... Wow.

"At any rrrate," Raz continued quickly, "Yourrr prrresence will be trrreated discrrreetly. You will be safe herrre."

"Thank you, Raz," Anne said sincerely. "We appreciate that."

He smiled his good smile.

"Harrrvey has been like a brrrotherrr to me forrr yearrrs, Anne. Which makes us..." I could hear his navigation computer beep over the commlink. "...about to enterrr atmoshpherrre," he interrupted himself. "We shall finish this converrrsation laterrr. Starrrman's Prrride out."

"See you dirtside, Raz," I said as the comms clicked off.

A few moments later we felt the first buffeting as we reached the upper layers of the atmosphere. The landscape below, which had been convex at first, gradually flattened itself out and slowly became dominated by various shades of green. The ship began to sing as the atmospheric pressure outside increased, which made a nice counterpoint to the bassy rumbling of the drive behind us. Our speed gradually reduced as the ship entered a controlled descent trajectory.

I followed the navigational beacons on manual, because I hate to slave the ship to anything unless it's absolutely unavoidable. Ahead of us I could see the light of the 'Pride's drive exhaust, and from the way the ship handled I saw that Raz was doing the same. I smiled. We've always been pretty much on the same page when it came to that sort of thing.

Homing in on the final guidance beacons we continued to descend, and soon various details in the landscape began to resolve themselves: the woolly, dark green blanket below us turned into a thick, lush forest; the brown ripple ahead of us materialized into a stark mountain range that had to be at least a mile high, and small specs magnified into open spaces that dotted the forest, revealing small clusters of wooden buildings within them.

The clearing that we were headed for was considerably larger than the ones surrounding it. It was dominated by a sprawling complex of low-roofed, wide buildings. Off to the side was a large, rectangular open area surrounded by signal lights; obviously this was our intended landing site.

I let the Slowboat hover on her underjets. I rarely do that, because the underjets guzzle fuel just to keep you where you are, but we were still far too high to use the repulsor field, and I needed to give Raz some space to maneuver. Ahead and below us the Pride ponderously moved forward and then lowered itself into the left half of the landing area. I took the cue and slowly followed him, carefully inching the ship forward until we were directly over the other half of the landing area before descending further. When we were low enough for the repulsor field to take over, I cut the thrusters and we settled down without even so much of a bump.

The board showed all green. I secured the drive and locked the controls as usual. After the continuous rumbling of the sublight drive, the ship felt strangely quiet. It always does, first thing after shutdown. I got up and stretched. It felt good. The lush forestry of Gawrr beckoned outside the viewport, and suddenly I was in a hurry to be out there.

The first breath of air on a new planet is always somewhat of an experience. No two planets are alike and, depending on the atmospheric makeup, the air can be thin or thick, light or heavy. I know air is not supposed to have any texture, but that's what it feels like to me. And then there's the way it smells: some worlds just smell old, or new, or tired, or young and fresh. Some smell of life, some smell of decay, some smell of industry and some are so complex you can't put a name to it.

The air of Gawrr was crisp, fresh and full of green, growing scents. The landing field that we had settled down on was close to the edge of the clearing, and the tall, straight and dark green trees gave off a spicy, resinous fragrance. There was a hint of damp earth hovering somewhere in the background, and I could hear a spring or brook gurgling among the dark undergrowth. I felt my spirits being lifted immediately. I had no idea what the rest of Gawrr was like, but this was a good place. Next to me, Anne took a deep breath and smiled.

"I like this," she said. "Is it always like this?"

"Most of the time," I replied, understanding what she meant. "Not all worlds are as sweet as this one, of course, but the variety never gets dull. I hasn't for me, at least."

"I could get used to this."

"Well, you... Wow," I interrupted myself. "Now that... That is something new."

I could just say that Raz stepped out of the Pride's airlock, but that wouldn't have done it justice by half. He didn't simply emerge from his ship; he made an entrance onto Gawrran soil. His fur had been brushed to a glossy shine with subtle highlights, and silver ringlets decorated his shoulders and neckline. But more than anything, the way he moved subtly conveyed a vast amount of power and authority. There was something about him that suggested control, connection, access to hidden levels of power.

"Raz, what's this?" Anne asked him.

"I have cerrrtain social obligations herrre," he rumbled. "Looking the parrrt is... expected of me. Speaking of which..."

I turned and saw a Gawrran approach us from one of the wooden structures behind us. He was a shorter and much lighter in build than Raz, and was dressed in a loincloth rather than the shorts that I had always seen Raz wear. When he reached us, he made a short bow and spoke to Raz in Gawrran.

"Please speak Interrrworrrld," Raz replied. "As you can see ourrr guests arrre not Gawrran."

"Yes, sirrr," the newcomer said, and turned to Anne and me. "Allow me to intrrroduce myself. My name is Tar'Krrraggrrr Rorrgr. I am Mr. Raz'Rwwrr Grllrrlrr's... perrrsonal assistant, I suppose the corrrect terrrm is. Please feel free to call me Tarrr, if that is easierrr forrr you."

"It is. Thank you, Tar," I said. "This is Anne Ryder, and I am Harvey Ross."

"I am honorrred to make yourrr acquaintance, Anne'Ryder and Harvey'Ross."

I smiled.

"Just Anne and Harvey will do."

"Thank you," Tar said.

"Tar'Krrraggrrr, these arrre my associates and ourrr honorrred guests," Raz said. "Please see to theirrr everrry need while I am not available."

Tar nodded.

"Unforrrtunately I will have cerrrtain duties to attend to," Raz continued. "Howeverrr I will trrry and keep them to a minimum."

"We understand, Raz," Anne said. "Rank does not just have its privileges."

"You will make a fine captain yourrrself one day, Anne. Shall we go inside? Therrre arrre a few things we must discuss. If you will follow me?"

"Of course," I said.

I couldn't help smiling. This was classic Raz. He might very well be one of the richest Gawrrans here, but he preferred to spend most of his time being a tramp freighter captain. I could understand why. It's a rough job most of the time, but those who do it are in it for the freedom and for the love of space and space travel. I was willing to bet the Slowboat that he could have lived a life of pampered luxury here, but that wasn't his style. The real Raz was the guy I'd first met in a space port bar all those years ago.

The room we entered was wide and airy, and its interior was dominated by panels of a beautifully grained blond wood. The ceiling was vaulted, almost domed, and somehow I immediately knew it represented the caves or dens that the Gawrrans' ancestors must have lived, in countless millennia ago. The wood gave off a lovely fragrance, and the indirect lighting gave the room a restful, pleasant atmosphere.

"Tar'Krrraggrrr," Raz said. "We must speak with doctorrr Por'krallarahrrr Grrorrghr as soon as possible. We have a prrroject that rrrequirrres his urrrgent attention. We will need a securrre conferrrence rrroom."

"If it is urrrgent, sirrr, it might be quickerrr to just set up a prrrivacy field herrre, if that is acceptable," Tar said. "Doctorrr Por'krallarahrrr Grrorrghr is currrently at corrrporrrate headquarrrterrrs. Will you need to see him in perrrson orrr will a securrre commlink do?"

Raz thought for a moment.

"You had ourrr systems securrrity upgrrraded as we discussed beforrre I left?"

"Yes, sirrr."

"Than a rrremote conferrrence will be best," Raz decided. "Please arrrange it."

"Yes sirrr. If you and yourrr guests will excuse me, I will see to it rrright away."

"Thank you," Raz rumbled.

"Nice place you have here, Raz," I said casually when Tar had left.

He smiled his good smile, obviously seeing right through me.

"Wait until you see the rrrest of it. I will admit that ourrr crrrop generrrates a fairrr amount of rrrevenue. Which brrrings up a favorrr I would like to ask you forrr. Afterrr ourrr conferrrence with doctorrr Por'krallarahrrr, I would like to go and see my mate. It has been a long time and ourrr rrreunion is likely to take severrral days. Could I ask you to overrrsee the unloading of the Starrrman's Prrride for me?"

"Of course, Raz. We owe you much bigger favors than that," Anne said.

"Damn right," I added. "Any time, Raz."

"Thank you, both of you. I apprrreciate that. I am looking forrrward to seeing herrr. I have sorrrely missed herrr."

"But I assume your, ehm, reunion will make up for some of that, hm?" Anne said mischievously.