Chara and the Planet

Chapter No.2

Chapter No.2

Chara's first assignment involved transporting someone to a Proteus mining facility on the minor planet 22 Kalliope, a nearly 167-kilometer diameter M-type elongated asteroid situated in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

The only thing she was told is that her passenger was a former commander who was being assigned to slave in the mining facility. It was her task to get him there and then transport a cargo of precious metals back to Earth, a journey that would take approximately a month to complete.

Their meeting was cordial. He smiled when she told him that this was her first assignment as pilot. She just looked at him while she tried to ascertain if he was a threat. She immediately noted the locator band around his wrist and assumed that he was being sent to the mining facility as a punishment.

After they settled into their seats in the command station, she began the required engineering checks of the M-engines and associated functions. Ryan just watched her go through the process without comment. He, of course, knew all the actions that she was completing.

After rotating the ascent engines into position, Chara began the process of taking off like a jump jet. Once airborne, she activated the main engines to propel the Series-C cruiser class vessel up out of the atmosphere and on its way to catch up to Kalliope.

Despite being just a C-class spacecraft, the Valiant C-106 shuttle was well appointed. It had the latest Graviton immersion system to provide artificial gravity and it was equipped with two crew quarters, each of which contained a bed, desk, chair and a head that contained a toilet, sink and shower. Most of the rest of the vessel's interior was designed to transport supplies to the mining facility and haul precious metals from the asteroid mine back to Earth.

The cockpit consisted of two swivel chairs behind a dashboard, which contained computer systems, screens and ship data displays. Chara occupied the pilot's chair. Ryan sat in the co-pilot's chair, which was designed for an engineer to monitor the vessel's performance.

After the vessel had achieved full velocity and Chara had determined that everything was going as planned, her curiosity made her look over at Ryan's location bracelet.

"What did you do to deserve that?"

Ryan stared at her for a moment before replying, "I'm surprised that you don't know who I am."

"I don't like to deal with the scuttlebutt that goes around."

"I am the unfortunate fool who allowed a cadet to die on my watch."

"Yes, I heard about the cadet that died during a mock combat session. Those games are dangerous."

"I agree, but the officials revel in it."

"I had to participate in those sessions," Chara said without looking at him. "I earned a silver star for my performance, but I definitely didn't enjoy it."

Ryan remained silent for several minutes before he said something. "What do you enjoy?"

"I like to swim and do quantum physics math."

Ryan smiled but he elected not to say anything, at least not right away.

"Have you ever considered going on a mission to explore the unknown?" he asked her.

She looked over at him for a brief time before replying. "Yes, but I doubt that they would allow me to go on such a mission."

"What sort of mission would you like to go on?"

She didn't hesitate answering, "I would like to see what's on the other side of the Sun."

Ryan didn't know how to react to that statement. Astronomers had discovered everything orbiting the Sun. He decided to avoid probing for an explanation. It didn't matter anyway.

Later, when it was time to get some sack time, Ryan ran into Chara in the corridor between their quarters. What happened next changed everything just as a single butterfly alighting on a flower can change the direction of natural selection.

She didn't smile at him or express in body language what she was about to ask. "Do you wish for me to remove my clothing?"

Ryan had to control his emotions before he replied, a period that literally suspended time. "No."

She tilted her head. "Why not?"

"Because I respect you."

"I'm not human, you know."

"I realize that. However, you are a sentient being and deserve respect because of it."

She didn't react, at least not in any manner Ryan could discern. She nodded and entered her quarters. What Ryan didn't realize is that this brief encounter would change his life forever.