Fast Cars and Intergalactic Speed Dating

41: The Pink Planet

Two days later, Richard stood among his human companions on the Bridge, staring up at the enormous screen. A planet loomed before them, growing gradually larger as their ship sped toward it. From a distance, it was pink, swirled with lighter and darker hues.

It was beautiful.

Most of the crew members had spent the majority of their time on the Bridge since they had left the Martian Outpost; the ship felt larger and emptier than it had before. Now, even those who'd been resting had come to the Bridge when word traveled that they were approaching their destination. By the time the pinprick of the planet had grown to the size of an orange, the entire crew was there.

Nen-Alaya moved from one side of the room to another, focused on the gauges and panels that lined the banks of controls. Ol-Maran, still in rough shape from their injury and not able to move very well, was seated in the captain's chair. Shashi, Vaivala, and Wessona were clustered around them; the Karra were dispersed throughout the rest of the room, watchful. The atmosphere was electric.

"Are we going to hail them?" asked Wessona, drawing near to the First Officer.

Ol-Maran nodded. "Richard, would you kindly open communications with Las-Kendarr?"

Richard, sitting at the navigation controls, spread his hands and wiggled his fingers. "Absolutely!" he said, looking left and then right. "Just...gotta find out what button that is."

"It is the control panel to your left. Higher. That one, yes. Press to open communications, and available links should present themselves. It is likely—"

"Oh." Richard had pressed the button on the panel, and the screen had immediately refreshed, offering him a series of options, just like when he connected his phone to a WiFi network. "That was easy. It'll be the one called Las-Kendarr Planet Entry Commission, then, will it?"

"I assume that is correct."

"I can't believe this," whispered Garth. He stared at the screen, the swirling pink orb of their destination reflected in his eyes.

Shashi stood right next to him, her own eyes wide and shiny. "I can't believe it even more," she said. "I'm finally gonna get off this stinky ship."

"Shashi," Vaivala said sharply.

The Chorodonian girl threw a sheepish glance in Ol-Maran's direction. "Sorry. It's not that stinky. It's just really, really boring."

"Okay, I'm phoning them up," said Richard. He tapped. The screen refreshed, displaying an icon of a spinning planet with a tiny spaceship in orbit. After a beat, there was a chirp.

A robotic voice spoke, issuing several words Richard did not recognize. Each word sounded completely different, not even like the same language, but among them was a word Richard recognized: "English."

"Oh, that one," he said. "English. English, please."

After a brief pause, the voice said, "Greetings. You are approaching Las-Kendarr. Please select the option you require. Atmosphere and environment. Screening, vaccine, and quarantine mandates. Trade and prohibited goods. If you believe you are eligible for entry, request permission to land."

Richard looked in question at Ol-Maran, who gave a slight nod.

"Requesting...permission to land?" Richard said.

"Thank you," said the robot. "Please be patient. You will be connected shortly. Please be patient. You will be connected shortly. Please be patient. You will be connected shortly. Please be patient. You will be co—"

"Hello! This is Commander Brown, Alliance for Intergalactic Peace. Who's requesting entry?"

"Uh. This is, um, Richard Campbell. I'm on a ship called the Beyma with one of yours, actually. We're a few humans, a few Chorodonians—good guys—and the rest of us are Karra? The ship belongs to the Karra. I should have led with that."