Calan - The Immortality Paradox

Chapter Five: The Hollow Asteroid, Part Two

Metal creaked, and gears whined. The puckered panels underfoot trembled in simul-frequency with the engine. A faint light shimmered through the forward shield as the old craft came to an unpleasant halt. The noises of the ship's amateurish landing abated, and the cabin became eerily silent. Nassif wasn't tall enough to see over the parapet. The small boy was always restless in silence; he preferred the sound of conversation. Laughing especially. Anything to convince himself that he was in a safe, happy place. It didn't help that his older sister was just as scared at this moment, holding up a hand to block out the light coming from outside. Despite her valiant attempts to appear in control of her emotions, a look of distress manifested every now and then on her adolescent face. She had piloted the ship this far; it would be madness to turn back now that they were so close to completing their mission.

Nassif rifled through his meagre belongings with sweaty hands beneath a tattered shawl. His sister had insisted he wear it for warmth. He found Habib, his stuffed friend, underneath a small box of virtual gaming chips. The poor bear-faced toy was worn and threadbare, with creamy-white intestines protruding from his ear like the horrific remnants of a slapdash operation. Despite his scruffy manner, Nassif pushed the toy against his cheek affectionately; the familiar scent gave him a refreshing pang of nostalgia. It did nothing to quell his fears, however.

He jumped violently as the exterior door collapsed behind them. 'I don't want to go outside!' The boy squealed. Stuffing poured onto the panels as he clenched one of the bear's paws.

Tahira tapped him firmly on the shoulder - more commanding than encouraging. 'Nassif,' she tried to keep her voice gentle, 'we have no choice. This is where we need to make things right.'

'But...Daddy...'

'Daddy made a mistake. We are going to change that.' Their father had made more than a mistake, but the little said, the more amenable she might find her brother.

As she lifted him from the passenger seat, Tahira expected him to be more uncooperative. However, instead, he remained perfectly still, perhaps resigned to the fact that whatever his sister said from now on was ultimately his fate. Habib tumbled from his arms and landed on the empty seat. After being placed on his own two feet again, Nassif waddled apprehensively towards the ship entrance. The long journey from Cadillac had sheltered him from the dangers of civilisation. So much so that the sights and sounds of a populace - even just a celestial asteroid - seemed unfamiliar. Tahira quickly checked that all the ship systems had been shut off, swiped the data card from the alcove above her head, pressed it deep into her side pocket, and joined her brother on the threshold. Alien hubbub reverberated through the ship. Nassif looked up at her expectantly.

'There's nothing to worry about,' she said. 'We deliver the information, and we go home. It won't take long. We just need to find Root, and then we can leave.' A bubble of drool collected on the side of his mouth as his eyes swung back and forth furtively. This was not the ideal environment for him. Tahira considered leaving him locked inside the ship, but she had the slightest inkling that it was tempting fate. She continued as planned and gripped his diminutive, chubby hand, leading him out to the Cunniculum asteroid.

Tahira had never visited before but had heard zany descriptions of the asteroid's pandemonium. Some of her father's acolytes claimed to have seen mass social gatherings with unlimited revelry unmatched in the galaxy. Crowds of unruly pleasure seekers singing in unison as they watched a Skyshield match. The whole asteroid was seemingly enveloped in clangour - the Universe's perpetual amusement hub. One glance gave the unnerving impression that this was not a suitable place for children.

Tahira spotted a cluster of quiescent figures sitting around a black pod on a ramshackle balcony overlooking the asteroid spaceway. They were wearing helmets, which were attached to the pod via tubes. Visors obscured their eyes, but a faint light emanated from within. It looked as though they were being slowly digested by octopus tentacles. Beneath them, silhouetted by a bright stroboscopic light, a man shuffled aimlessly around, talking to no one in particular. The vacant expression gave Tahira the impression that he was hallucinating. She roughly pulled Nassif further down the concourse as soon as he made eye contact with her.