Iapetus Shift

Chapter 6

The Curiosity Express stretched out before them, glinting in the sun like a kilometer-long bullet. After a lengthy walk down the crowded boarding area, Olan and Estha found their compartment and boarded the train, both carrying one suitcase.

Olan slipped into his small, uncomfortable seat, and Estha squeezed past him and plopped down next to the window. She'd wanted to get a cabin, but for such a short trip, Olan couldn't justify the spending. Even though they would be traveling nearly two thousand kilometers, the trip would take just over three hours. He settled by letting her pay the slight extra for a window seat.

He found himself rubbing his hand over the unfamiliar landscape of his face. It was a habit he'd developed over the years to help familiarize himself with himself after a shift. He stopped, knowing that he'd be changing into Kester when they got to Tharsis.

The tablet had contained enough info on Kester to make Olan laugh out loud. Not only did it have basic things like voice samples and names of family members and friends, but it went into extreme detail on everything. The favorite foods, movies and music of Kester and all family members and friends, as well as height, weight, sexual orientation, driving history, recorded phone and video calls, and pages upon pages of text messages between anyone even marginally a part of Kester's life. Olan had memorized what he could before destroying the tablet.

"Can we get on the move already?" said Estha, rocking in her seat. A baby started wailing somewhere behind them. A woman went into a coughing fit across the aisle.

"We'll be taking off soon," said Olan, folding his arms. "Put on a movie." He nodded to the video screen embedded in the back of the chair in front of her.

Curiosity started her engines, and Olan was pressed back into his seat as the train rocketed across the Martian landscape. It soon reached its max speed, and Olan relaxed, closing his eyes.

He ran through all the data as the train rolled on. Red Sands was listed as a "learning facility" owned and operated by the government. It seemed to be a sort of school, but only very select people were enrolled. These people came from all parts of the solar system, but there was no information on how they were selected or found. Another odd factor was the heavy security. Although not military, there seemed to be an armed guard around every corner. A slip-up would leave him dead in an instant.

There was almost nothing about Resa, the woman he was supposed to take. Only a list of phrases that were supposed to encourage her to come along. The whole thing made Olan feel a bit wary. It seemed too easy.

Deceleration pulled him forward in his seat, and Olan snapped awake, cursing himself; it must have been the lulling hum of the engines. "Why did you let me fall asleep?"

Estha shrugged. "You looked tired, and I had an eye on things. Anyway, we're just arriving."

People stood up around them and crowded into the aisle. Olan forced his way through them, and off the train, stretching his arms in the thin Martian sunlight.

Arsia Mons loomed on the horizon, casting a long shadow. The city of Tharsis spread out along its base, and within it, Red Sands.

"We've got to get moving," said Estha, waving for a cab. "Only two hours till our window closes."

A taxi stopped, and they climbed in the back. Estha punched in an address and scanned her print to pay. "We need to get somewhere safe for you to change."

Olan brushed stim wrappers off the cracked seat and sat down as the cab pulled into traffic. "How 'bout here?" he said, and flipped a switch near the light fixture above him. A privacy wall slid up, separating them from the driver. He pulled down the curtain on his window and motioned for Estha to do the same.