Starmen (Starmen (Space Opera Series) Book 1) Read online

  STARMEN – Episode 1

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  Copyright © 2017 J.M. Hagan

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  Table of Contents

  Part 1

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Part 2

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Part 3

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Author Note

  STARMEN

  PART 1

  THE GREAT DICTATOR

  Astronomy compels the soul to look upward, and leads us from this world to another.

  — Plato, The Republic, 342 BCE.

  1

  Location: Plysar System

  "Which ship are you waiting on?" Cane asked, as he had been sharing the bench with the girl for almost thirty minutes. They were awaiting their boarding calls.

  A hover car flew by them carrying cargo to be loaded onto one of the many vast ships in plain view of the port window.

  "Europa," she said, upon checking her ticket.

  The pretty girl, with a slight grin flitting across her lips, had bright silver eyes that were dripping emotion. She tried to smile away her troubles. But her eyes were still an open book.

  He had noticed that she was in a state of quiet distress, after some surreptitious examination. The girl was from this world; a humanoid alien with a mop of short brown hair that covered her ridged ears. The ears, and the enigmatic shades of their eyes, distinguished Plysarians from humans.

  "Well, it seems we are to be travelling together," he said, each word spoken meticulously, in warm, soft tones. He extended his long arm. "I am Cane. It is a pleasure to meet you...?"

  But the girl looked away, her expression withdrawn. A nervous little thing. She looked back his way, forcing a smile. He had been hopping his way across the galaxies for months. Ports like this had become his frequent habitat, and he was used to meeting people wary of travel.

  "Likewise, Cane," she said, taking his hand. Her palms were sweaty. "I am Siena."

  As he glanced her over, he was surprised. She was roughly 5”5, with a slight frame. The outer colonies were a dangerous place, even to someone like him. It’s no wonder she is worried. At 6"4, and with some experience in hand-to-hand, Cane had always found it easy being gutsy. He didn't fear venturing to the outer colonies.

  A ticket aboard Europa had been relatively cheap, made lighter by the fact that his was a one-way ticket. He noticed, when she checked it before, that Siena's ticket was only stamped once, like his.

  "Where are you being dropped off?" he asked.

  The girl had to look at her ticket again. "Yana-Duandu," she said, unsure of the pronunciation. She can hardly say the name of the planet she is going to?

  "Really? I didn't think there was much for young people there," he said. Most people from her world were used to a comfortable life, and had no need to visit such unappealing places.

  "You've heard of it?" she asked, glancing away, scratching her arm.

  Cane nodded. He still hadn't taken his eyes off of her. He never took his eyes off anyone when he was engaging them in conversation. Self-aware and perceptive, he often learned valuable things about a person’s character in the first few moments after meeting them.

  Most didn’t mind. Others, like Siena, got a tad bothered. It only served in making them uncomfortable at first, usually. The person he was talking to often grew accustomed to his warm brown eyes.

  Well, almost always. It had led to a few bar fights in his time.

  "Yana-Duandu is a small mining colony."

  It is also the cheapest destination, if one is looking for a ticket to the outer colonies. He even considered getting a ticket there himself, until he realised the nearest ship port with scout ships for sale was light-years away. Cane wondered what it was she was running from. Maybe she was a fugitive of some kind. Maybe not.

  He knew better than to stir up that kind of trouble. So, he didn't ask her anything further. He stared off at some rusty hunk of junk ship that had just pulled into port. Then took out his personal data pad and browsed online.

  News updates flashed concerning the on-going trial of Amataius – a dictator from this world who had tried to wrest the Plysarian systems from Federation control.

  It was all anyone had talked about for weeks now. People were becoming deeply involved in the politics; Cane’s interest was minimal, at best. Besides, for all his crimes, Amataius was certain to face execution within the next few hours.

  Soon, Cane would be leaving Federation-space behind him for the first time in his life. Their reach spread across galaxies that were connected by stabilised wormholes, known as Gateways. The Plysarian systems were the last Federal planets in this galaxy.

  Out in the uncharted regions, he would be free of them all.

  "Where are you going?" Siena asked, drawing his attention from his PDP.

  When he turned his head, she wasn't nervous like before. His warmth, and the dialogue, were helping to shift her mind from whatever it was that was bothering her. Cane put his PDP back into his pocket.

  "Far away," he answered. "A place called Selen. When I get there, I will buy a ship of my own. Then, I will begin exploring uncharted space."

  "Exploring space?" she inquired, her eyes narrowing. "But why?”

  He gave the illusion of a smile, even though the question had bothered him, just like it did every time someone asked it with indifference.

  “It’s a little dream of mine.”

  With a touch of warmth, Siena nodded. “Follow your dreams…something my mother used to say. Will you be getting paid for work like that?"

  When she spoke of her mother, Cane detected a slight gleam in her eyes. "Yes. Not for a while, though. My first trip will last a year, if all goes to plan. When I return, the data my scanners alone retrieve on the metal content of worlds will be worth thousands. Perhaps, many thousands. And, I suspect, I will be sick of eating food cartridges.”

  Siena grinned. “Is that what you’re going to do – survey worlds?”

  “No, no. That’ll be my bread. What I really want is to see things no-one else has seen, to discover something lost.”

  "There are others in this line of work?" she asked, baffled. “I thought exploring was a dead business.”

  Most assumed that everything there was had already been discovered. A common misconception that had been around long before his time. Cane was often amused by the lack of curiosity people now had for the universe beyond the galaxies. If he didn’t choose to laugh about it, he would wind up weeping.

  "A few," he replied. "Not two standard years ago, an ancient alien facility was found on Selen."

  "What did they find?" she asked curiously. It seemed her nerves had settled completely.

  "They found the remains of an ancient mining facility, the tools within were made by a species we’ve never encountered before, though the equipment was so aged that none of it worked. An unexplained mystery. We think we know everything, and ignore what we can’t explain until someone comes along
and provides an answer. I believe that attempting to do so will be the best way that I can serve the galaxies.”

  Then came the call: Now boarding: starship Europa. All passengers – please proceed to bay 6.

  Cane's eyes widened slightly. "That's us," he said, getting up and lifting his belongings. The girl followed after him.

  As they approached Bay 6, Siena told him she would be along in a moment, then she went off to the rest room. Her brow was greasy with sweat when she departed. She was pale. Cane thought about waiting around, but he decided he had no obligation to do so, and went on alone.

  As he came into the bustling loading bay, with his ticket in hand, he grinned. His eyes drank in the impressive starship he’d just paid to ride on.

  Europa.

  Home to an inventor, named Venec Omodo; according to the crew manifest, he was the only person on-board.

  Cane met the requirements put forth by the Commander, as someone with a clean background, and a license to co-pilot a starship. Siena must’ve met those requirements, too.

  When he booked passage – he was expecting a hauler of some kind. What he found was a cruiser made from a pristine, reflective alloy. It had angular flat surfaces reinforced with plating, enormous engines with a half-dozen vents that looked capable of burning like hot suns. It seemed a lot faster than most ships its size, judging by the sleek design.

  He saw from the ship description when booking passage that Europa had many licensed weapons. In truth, it seemed more like the ship of a pirate hunter than an inventor.

  The entrance ramp was down. Cane came on-board and walked along the steel ringed floor of the cargo bay that had some containers loaded for transportation. Some of them were man-sized. But the cargo bay could hold a lot more than what was filling it at present.

  He found a small wall panel next to the black steel door that accessed the ship’s interior. Cane glanced through the small square window as he punched in the code on his ticket.

  Security scan initialised…

  Beams of light swept up his body, and when he was cleared the door slid away with a gentle thrum. He looked inside and saw curving corridors in both directions as pristine as the exterior. But the metal was duller and didn't catch reflections.

  “Greetings,” said a feminine voice, of unclear origin.

  Cane came to a halt, looking around unsure. “Hello. Who is that?”

  “I am Europa. I am the ship.”

  He smiled, looking up. “I didn’t realise this ship had an A.I.?”

  This place was too good to be true. Not only was it cleaner than the rust buckets he was used to travelling on, but with an A.I. to cater to his every need, he expected quite a luxurious journey ahead.

  “What is your name?”

  “I am Cane.”

  “A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Cane,” said the relaxed female voice.

  “Likewise. Europa – could you direct me to my quarters?” he asked politely.

  “There is no need. The Commander is already on his way to do exactly that. He is eager to meet with you.”

  Right on cue, a silver haired man, with a rough layer of dark stubble, came around the corridor to his right. Cane approached him carrying his bag. This guy was well made for an inventor. He looked to spend a lot of his time at the gym. He wore black cargo pants and a grey t-shirt that further amplified his muscularity.

  “Hello there,” Cane greeted him, extending his hand. The Commander received it gladly, with a look in his silver eyes that begged an introduction. “I am Cane.”

  “Hmph. A human?” the Commander observed, eyeing him head to toe. "A big fellow, too."

  Cane stood out, he knew. His long hair was in a ponytail, and at the front it was braided in places with dull silver beads. Like the Commander, he was in good physical condition. His body was much leaner, though.

  “I take it you’re not used to seeing my kind all that often?”

  “I’m Venec,” he said, turning to lead him, and they went down the corridor. Although the Rovian Federation had humans at the top, few ever saw the need to travel to this galaxy. “No. I haven’t met many humans in my time. There's another passenger we're expecting..."

  "Yes. I met her. She will be along soon, I believe."

  "Ah," he groaned. Clearly unappreciative of her tardiness. "Well...we'll see to you first, in that case. Say, where are you from?”

  “Adanis."

  The Commander’s questioning brow relayed he was unsure where that was. Cane wasn't surprised; his home was far away. Just another reason for him to be here in the first place.

  "Your profession?"

  "I am something of an explorer," Cane replied.

  Venec gave a nod of respect that caused him to smile back. “I’m bringing you to Selen, right?”

  “Correct.”

  “They find something on Selen that’s of interest to a man in your line of work?”

  “You could say that,” he replied humbly. “Traces of ancient ruins have been discovered. Most people don’t have the same interest in history as our forefathers, but my curiosity has always been a bright flame. I hope to purchase a ship of my own, and explore the unknown."

  Buying a ship out there was something he could afford – while buying a ship at a hub like Plysar was something way out of his price range.

  They passed by some closed doors along the way and then ascended a curved ramp that brought them to the deck above. When Venec approached the first door they encountered, it slid away with a gentle thrum.

  “These are your quarters,” he said, stepping aside. “I trust they’ll be to your liking.”

  Cane smiled as he had a look inside. There was a large bed, a shower in the corner, a view screen positioned on the wall facing his bed, and a storage unit for his things. It was even scented with the spice of flowers; an aroma being put out by an air-filter. A subtle touch he appreciated.

  “Quite right,” said Cane.

  “Well, I’ll leave you to get settled in. We’re setting out as soon as the last of my cargo arrives. I took a delivery contract for some industrial fabrication units, and the damn owner hasn’t shown yet,” moaned Venec, rubbing a wrinkled brow.

  “Very well,” said Cane.

  “The kitchen is two doors up. Help yourself to whatever, whenever.”

  “Thank you, Commander.”

  “Please, call me Venec. In the meantime, if you need anything, just ask Europa for help. She’s always on call."

  "Commander, the other passenger has arrived," said Europa.

  Venec rolled his eyes. "Tell her to wait at the entrance." He extended his hand and Cane shook it. "Good voyage."

  "Good voyage," Cane replied.

  *

  Cane put away his belongings in the storage unit near his bed. It opened with a wave of his hand and folded out in front of him. There were three spacious compartments. Once he’d put away his things, it folded back on itself and was re-inserted into the wall.

  He got showered, then dried himself off and dressed in olive pants, a green undershirt, and a padded brown jacket with a dozen pockets. Standard gear for an explorer like him.

  He found his way to the kitchen after a little relaxation.

  As he stepped inside, Europa said, “Please proceed to the service point.”

  There was a cylindrical tube next to the refrigeration unit. “What’s the selection?”

  “Tap the screen,” said Europa, and his eyes drew to the little node beneath the collection area.

  He flicked through the selection – they were well stocked with meats, high protein supplements – but he didn’t want a large feed. He chose noodles. A silver packet dropped from the tube. It was caught in a small gravity wave that suspended it in mid-air, until he reached inside and took it in hand.

  He prepared them, then sat down at a small table. Looked around, pondering. This place seemed ready to seat a dozen people.

  “Europa, this ship is so big. How come, Venec, is the only one he
re?”

  “The Commander used to have a team of scientists.”

  “But, no longer?”

  “Correct.”

  “Where is the Commander now?” he asked.

  “Commander Venec, is located in the hydroponics garden.”

  “I assume he has seen to, Siena?”

  “Yes. Siena, is resting in her quarters.”

  Cane sucked strings of noodles into his mouth and chewed. “Any sign of the delivery we’re expecting?”

  “Negative. However, Commander Venec, has been assured that it will be along soon.”

  Europa guided him as he dropped to the deck below and traversed a series of similar corridors. It took him past the door he’d came in firstly, then he turned the corner and saw a large window.

  There was Venec, watering some plants. The garden was pretty, almost, for its colouring, but most of it was wildly overgrown. Cane rapped on the window.

  The Commander came out. “You get some food yet?”

  “Yes. I was just admiring your garden,” said Cane, in casual jest.

  “Hydroponics isn’t my strong suit – you wanna take care of the damn plants? Go ahead.”

  “Well…I’ll see what I can do.”

  Venec started to walk. “Come on. Forget the plants. Let’s go to command. I’ll show you the cool stuff.”

  “By all means.” They started back the way he’d came. As they walked by the many rooms, Cane asked a burning question: “Commander, I have been wondering, why does one man need all this space?”

  “You're an inquisitive fellow," he observed, and Cane smirked. "Europa was built by my grandfather. I grew up on this ship – she’s been home all my life. "

  "So, you have always been a spacer?" Cane gauged. He knew a dozen jokes about spacers and their cousins that he wouldn't dare say.

  "Yep. All my life. I’ve made substantial modifications to the ship since inheriting her. Better weapons. Heavy duty shields. A fully functional T-57 holo-chamber…”

  “There’s a holo-chamber aboard this ship?” Cane cried, in glee.

  He’d not used one of those since his early childhood, and everyone knew from the advertisements, on billboards, their PDPs, in markets, that a T-57 model was top of the line.