The Key of Astrea

The Pulse

Red lights lit the path ahead of her as Jenny left the gym. Though it preserved her night vision, it gave the appearance that she was walking through a lava-filled cave. Her breathing sounded loud in the empty corridor. Jenny didn't know the rules about being up late, and she worried about getting caught.

Soon Jenny reached the Endeavor's control room, where she'd first met Mazu. As usual, workers in blue uniforms peered into their displays. She tiptoed across the catwalk, worried that one loud footfall would give her away. At any moment, they could look up and see her. They'd likely send her to bed, or worse, she'd be kept from the tests or expelled.

Jenny made it across the catwalk without drawing the workers' attention. She entered the escape pod room and sighed in relief. Jenny ran to the stairwell and ascended the steel steps. As she climbed higher, the ever-present beat pounding in her chest grew louder.

The air on the platform was a mixture of brine from the ocean and fuel and oil from the planes. The beat that had drawn her out of the Endeavor echoed across the sea from one of the Selkans' islands. The waves caught the orange light from a bonfire and held it like topaz jewels. Organic shapes danced in front of the flames, sending wild shadows across the water's rippling surface.

They were drums! Of course! That's where the sound is coming from. The deep bass boomed in her chest as she slipped off her boots. She sat on the edge of the platform, wishing her legs were long enough to reach the water. Suddenly, a big wave hit the concrete wall, and a spray of salt water touched her lips. She licked it away just as a deep voice boomed from behind her.

"Hello."

Jenny jerked in surprise and almost tipped forward into the churning sea. She turned to find Kett'l standing behind her in his blue coveralls.

"Sorry to startle you." Kett'l smiled around his tusks. "I was on my way to the celebration." He pointed at the bonfire across the waves.

"Ah." Jenny nodded. "What are you celebrating?"

"Why, the success of the mission. A victor will be chosen tomorrow to unlock the Terminal." He cocked his head at Jenny. "What brought you up here? Did you feel the drums?"

"Yeah." Jenny thumped her chest. "They're like an extra heartbeat."

Kett'l nodded knowingly. "You hear with more than your ears. We call it the music of life. If you know how to listen, you find it everywhere, and in everything." He looked up at the stars and held out thick arms terminating in long, webbed fingers. "You can hear the universe singing."

Last week, Jenny would have thought anyone talking about the music of life was crazy. She couldn't be sure that Kett'l wasn't mad, but that was true of anyone on the Endeavor. After seeing the alien Æon weave matter from thin air in the forge, she was far more receptive to what he had to say.

"Join me," Kett'l said. "You can be my guest."

"Out there?" Jenny waved her hand at the island. With aliens?

Kett'l nodded and unclasped his coveralls. He pulled the blue clothing down over his generous belly. He stepped out of the bundle, revealing a giant, furry, walrus-like body.

Jenny's eyes widened and heat flushed into her face. She looked away and thought about his offer. The test is tomorrow, and it's late. Yet, how can I pass up this once-in-a-lifetime event? She turned toward him, careful to keep her eyes on his face. "Okay, yeah. I'll do it. I'll join you."

Kett'l grinned, displaying large, flat teeth beneath his white tusks.

Jenny stood up. The siphonophores, inhabiting every cell of her body, had increased her endurance, and made her a more perfect machine. She was in the best shape of her life. Jenny removed her uniform and felt unashamed as she stood in front of the alien in her underclothes.