Ally or Alien: A Sci-Fi Novel (15 page)

"Doctor, would you like to join me in my lab? I would love to work with you on this together. I will introduce you to our ways of analyzing foreign matters, assisting you in any way possible."

Dr. Rao's eyes lit up but Bellrock grabbed his arm.

"Let me join you, in case you need another hand."

The doc's smile downgraded to a frown.

"I don't think it's necessary, sir. This is a job for scientists."

"Are you sure? Remember, I do have a STE—“

"I'm positive," Dr. Rao said and cut him off. 

The young man seemed to be eager to be alone with the female Newtype. Much to the dismay of the captain. This wasn't the time for interracial romance, so Bellrock increased the pressure on Dr. Rao's arm and whispered,

"Listen, focus on the analysis. Don't let her distract you. And promise to update me ASAP."

Dr. Rao scratched his nose and wrinkled his lips. The anger seeped through his facial skin.

"I'm a scientist, not a needy little teenager, captain. In case you don't know, because you didn't do any research on me whatsoever, sir, but I was one of eighty-three applicants who where eligible for this mission. I'm the best of the best."

We'll see about that, Bellrock thought and let him go.

eLoom welcomed the young doc with open arms and shone like a radiation leak.

"Do not worry, captain Bellrock. I will take good care of him."

She focused on Dr. Rao and said,

"I can not wait to discover the biomorph's secrets with you. This is a great day for humanoid science."

"Agreed."

The two chuckled, showed their backs to Bellrock and targeted the lab section. He watched them both disappearing around the corridor's curved corner and marched back to the situation room with Shibuya Burn on full blast. Non-sensical Japanese lyrics and pop tunes helped him cool down.

The young man's fan-swooning for the shells started to worry him. With such an infatuated scientist at his side, the report was going to be distorted. Taurus should have only sent military personnel to Mars, but Bellrock knew the political power plays back home. Well, as long as he was staying suspicious of the Newtype, there was still hope for the mission's success…

38

Back in the far, far way AC territory on Earth.

American freaking Commonwealth.

Falls Church, to be more exact, where you could hear kids playing gravball, bio-engineered dogs barking at low decibels, and auto-rides snoring through the premium streets with the self-healing concrete.

A paradise for most government officials and military servicemen.

A fortress of solitude for Taurus McCloud as well, except for today. 

The man was walking circles around the living room of his mansion until he stomped foot prints into the alumina ground. After the tenth ring on his commlink, the Director of the NASA space operation finally answered. The man appeared on the holo-screen with pixelperfection and wiped his balding head.

"Secretary of Space Defense," he said in the most bureaucratic tone possible.

Taurus saluted and raised his chin.

"Any news from our team?"

"Well, the Newtype have sent us a confirmation message of the duo’s arrival. They showed us full-body scans containing blood flow, pulse, body fat and hundreds of other biometrics to prove that our duo was not only alive but also in excellent shape."

"Well, that sounds like data our so-called allies could have easily manipulated. Trust is not enough, I demand vigorous analysis."

He waited for the statement to sink in.

"What about the report?"

"They say they were still evaluating the situation."

"Jeez, how long do they need?"

The Director rolled his tongue. He was clearly not used to talking in such a direct way.

"We're dealing with a new life form, sir. The finding could change the future of our two races forever. It's better to investigate the matter with care before making any rash decisions. I'm sure Dr. Rao works day and night to make a well-informed evaluation."

Taurus barely nodded.

No mention of Bellrock, but then again, NASA wasn't fond of the veteran being sent up. Only the insistence of Taurus made that possible.

"Yeah, well, leave the diplomacy to me. Just make sure you update me the second the report trickles in. We can't waste anymore time."

"We'll do, sir."

Taurus cut the connection and shook off his disappointment. He sacked into his recliner and pondered his predicament. Here he was, on the other side of the solar system, waiting like a helpless child that needed permission from its parents. 

He should have gone to Mars himself.

Thanks to the advancements in nanomedicine, he was in excellent shape for his age. The only thing he lacked was a refreshment in Basic training and the proper preparation for space, which is what Bellrock was trained for. Didn't matter, it was too late anyways. Complaining about the past was a waste of life time. He could only trust his favorite soldier and hope he would do the right thing. Taurus sipped his cognac tea when a priority call beeped. The president himself showed up in his avatar form. 

Taurus closed his eyes and felt his stomach turning. Lucas C. Wright was the last person on the planet he wanted to speak to, but the command chain prevailed. 

"Sir. It's an honor to speak to you."

The man's grimace appeared. He looked like he partied five Earth-circulations in a row.

"Cut the bullshit. What about that report?"

"I just called NASA. They said our men were still working on it, sir."

"What the hell—how much time do they need? I'm no scientist, but how freaking hard can it be checking a creature's danger level? Go up that thing, take a few pics and tell me what we're dealing with."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple. It looks like the organism is more complex than we have initially thought."

The president squeezed his face, which made it look twice as ugly.

"Listen. We're about to enter the political hotbed and the media's already pestering me. Those damn vultures are ripping apart my last four years and it's looking damn ugly, son."

Taurus closed his eyes.

Maybe your situation would have been better if you had delivered half the promises you made to the public. The statement was sizzling on his tongue, but not even the legendary Secretary of Space Defense could belittle the president, the so-called commander-in-chief.

Pathetic. 

That moron never served a single day in the forces.

The president should have been grateful for having someone as capable as Taurus in his staff. The legend who made sure the AC walked out the Separatist War with its chest raised. Amazing how little the public remembered. Taurus tuned into the president's whining.

"...over twenty media knuckleheads holed me with their questions about the mission's progress. If this operation turns out to be a flop, this will end very, very ugly."

"For both of us," Taurus said. 

The president shut up for a nanosecond. Then his fat little eyes sandwiched between his eyelids.

"I should have never authorized your mission. Over fifty million dollars to send two men across the damn galaxy and endanger our peace treaty with the Newtype."

"We already talked about this, Mr. Wright. Our experts have confirmed that checking out the biomorph's threat level was the best preemptive measure to maintain the AC's security."

"Our experts? You mean your buddies from Stryker Solutions—getting a fat taxpayer check in return."

That fat bastard dared to lecture him on tax-spending?

Calm down, Taurus, you're the Secretary of Space Defense.

The War Hero.

The Newtype Slayer.

The man said to himself...

You do not serve the president, well, not on a grander level.

You serve your country and then your family, in that order.

He pictured the stars and wings of the AC flag and calmed down. Thought of a time when values still meant something and felt his veins sizzling.

American Commonwealth, baby.

The reason why he pushed himself out of bed and tackled the challenges of the new world. It was never for the politicians, but for the great men and women that worked their face off to provide a better future.

Taurus said,

"Sir, let's wait for the report and then decide how to handle it from a media standpoint. Based on our previous estimations, the biomorph looks like an actual threat the Newtype won't be able to handle. We basically wait for a confirmation."

Delivered like a politician himself.

Somebody should give Taurus a cookie with american pie flavor.

And thanks to the 3D hologram technology with the immersive sound, Taurus could hear the president's heavy panting. The guy was charged like an ancient lithium battery.

"I hope so. For your sake, Secretary of Space Defense."

To hell with you, hypocrite, Taurus thought.

He waited till the president finished the conversation. The man's punch-able face vaporized into the four walls of Taurus' living room. When the call disconnected, Taurus marched toward his piano in the book-filled corner and played some good old Ludwig Van Beethoven to steam off. Back in the early days, Bellrock had showed him how music was the cheapest and healthiest way to deal with aggravations. 

Calming body and mind. 

Taurus could never listen to his friend's annoying digital noise he called J-pop. But classical music?

A scientifically proven way to bring your brain waves in order.

Taurus lost himself in the play. He sang the lyrics to "Ode to Joy" in German. Tough language, but he had learned to pronounce each word, with very little accent. That epic piece of music deserved perfect representation. Within seconds, the calm soothed Taurus' body and rejuvenated his cells. Even after hundreds of years, Beethoven's genius was as powerful as ever. His works surpassed time and distances. They would be relevant for millennia to come.

Seriously.

Hearing, breathing and playing Ludwig helped Taurus remember why his race was worthy of protection. A being that could create such magnificent beauty deserved to conquer time and space to spread its priceless culture. His wife Doreen walked down the stairs and leaned her elbow against the dark wooden railing. She listened to his play and strived her gentle fingers across her chin.

"Are you mad again?"

Taurus kept hitting keys.

"I just need to reconnect with a true genius to forget about the imbeciles I have to deal with on a daily basis."

Her mouth edges arrowed upwards.

"What about Mars?"

Taurus' fingers massaged the keys of the piano in a harmonic ballade of strokes.

"Let's hope for the best and prepare for the worst."

39

Farsight Optimal facility, 1230 hours, sol 3, on the Newtype-controlled Mars.

Back in the temporary quarters, Bellrock lay inside a pod and pondered as he touched his left arm. He dimmed his room's walls and shut out the Martian environment. Being stuffed in tight corridors and dealing with Newtype tore at his psyche. 

He needed some solo-time.

An hour of power.

Bellrock just wanted to close his eyes and listen to music, but being on Mars again brought back old memories. He remembered the end of the Separate War, when all the wounded warriors had returned to the Commonwealth. That's when the real nightmare began. Bellrock’s injured arm needed immediate medical assistance. Too bad the Veteran Services were underfunded and overextended. Waiting times took anywhere between six months and two years, and even when accepted, services were average at best. If it hadn't been for Taurus and his generous offers, Bellrock could have never paid for the immediate treatment of his injuries. But that wasn't the reason why he joined this mission. 

Bellrock needed to find a purpose again. 

Something to black out that void that had been eating at him since his conscription. A purpose that filled him the same way when he was a little boy, getting the second prize at the science fair.

Oh man, he can still remember the words of his teacher.

"You got a foul mouth, young man, but your passion for science is admirable. If you keep focusing on that path, you can actually be of use to humanity."

Could have been.

Should have been.

Must have been.

Bellrock, the lonely soldier, sitting in his pod, waiting for the young doc and the female Newtype to shower him with valuable data. Honestly, he should have been the one doing the analysis. Maybe in a different dimension where his true vocation would have been realized.

Ah. 

Too late. 

That hovertrain had left the station. 

He needed to stop wasting time and keep in mind that the creature was out there, sucking sun energy and preparing something mischievous. But accurate work needed time, and he wanted the report for the AC to be as detailed as possible.

Bellrock climbed from his pod and did five hundred push-ups on the ground to regain some of his atrophied muscle-mass. 

"Do you want some refreshments?"

The male voice halted his push-up spree.

Bellrock looked up and saw eVax holding a tray with fresh veggies and crystalline water. He hadn't even heard the Newtype coming in.

"That's for me?"

The Newtype male was about to roll his eyes but decided to nod instead. 

Bellrock moved back up and looked at the dish.

Green block pieces and earthly-toned produce. eVax even added some beef-looking pieces that looked a 100% artificial, but with Bellrock's hunger eating a wormhole through his stomach lining, he was ready to snack on his legs.

"Looks good."

eVax nodded like a butler.

"I'll put it on the table."

Bellrock followed the exquisite scent and sat down. eVax nodded and was about to turn around when Bellrock waved him over. 

"Have a seat."

eVax followed up and watched the Earthling devouring the fresh produce. Bellrock had to admit, the stuff looked like plastic toys, but it tasted just right. Apart from the missing blood, it had all the major flavors that beef featured.