Target 10 S1.3 Target 10
Set against a backdrop of dark green was a light tan, seven-pointed star.
Wrong episode? Click here to see the list of them all and find your place.
Want a different story?
RJ padded along behind Jemy on their way back to the common room. His face flushed when he remembered Reby now knew there was some secret he was supposed to tell her. What if she asks me? He'd lie, of course. And that might mean losing everything he loved. Eventually.
The door to the common room slid open. RJ and Jemy entered but stopped just inside and exchanged glances. Reby was nowhere to be seen.
"She's probably escaped back to her lair to avoid me." RJ shook his head and pretended it didn't matter.
"Not everything I do is in response to you, RJ. Can't a girl adjust the sensors without a running commentary?" She said, stepping out of the door to the sensor room.
The sting of her words bit into him less than usual. Something about it felt more playful than earlier. Whatever they'd found seemed to have changed her mood.
"That depends on what settings you've changed. I had them fine-tuned to the exact specs needed for long range detection."
"Aida suggested some changes. You be the judge if she was right." She sat on one of the poofy chairs, pulled her legs up under her, and tapped the controls on the table. The hologram shifted. RJ hadn't seen what was on it before, but what popped up certainly caught his attention.
He dropped into the second poofy chair.
Jemy clapped him on the back and gave him a big smile. "See? Big, really big." He leaned against the side of the chair.
"Big doesn't cover it." RJ read through the data. "But it looks natural to me."
Reby let out an exasperated sigh, and he felt Jemy turn to look at her.
"Don't you see Aida's conclusions there at the bottom?" Reby asked, her tone only slightly irritated.
"Yeah, I do." RJ tried to keep his voice even. He didn't want to argue with her anymore, but she was asking for it. "I just like to think for myself, too. Besides being enormous, the data says it's made from native materials, all naturally abundant in the area. None of us are geologist, but Jemy is pretty close. Why don't you think it's natural?"
Jemy slid off the chair and stood in front of the holodisplay. "You're right, it is native materials. But look at the surrounding areas, the reflectivity is much lower. This feature stands out, even though spectrometry says it is the same chemical makeup. It has to be an alien structure."
RJ listened to the explanation, understanding why Jemy needed it to be an alien structure. But to his brain, there didn't seem a reason to believe it wasn't just some geographical feature of a world they'd never seen. "So, there's vegetation on some and not the rest. That would account for reflectivity differences. The feature could be higher, above the tree line or something. A high plain or mountain. There are volcanoes that large too. Maybe it's a recent eruption."
"I thought we didn't have any geologists on the crew." Reby's comment pushed a button, but he ignored it.
"Those are all good points," Jemy jumped in.
RJ presumed Jemy was trying to keep them from going at it again. But he'd learned his lesson and behaving well was the only way to keep his secret. She wouldn't get a rise out of him.
"But the data doesn't back any of it up. There's no volcanic activity, not for thousands of years at least. And more importantly, it has geometry."
RJ furrowed his brow. "Where?"
Jemy stuck his finger in the display of the planet's surface scan and outlined the lightly colored section he'd been discussing. "See? A heptagon."
"Maybe..." RJ really wanted to see what Jemy saw. But it was an ill-defined tannish blob that might, or might not, have seven sides. It was definitely more blob than heptagon.
"Perhaps I can assist in this discussion," Aida said. "I have another new scan using the updated parameters that supports my initial assessment that it is an artificial structure."
"Show us." Jemy said, his voice a pitch higher than normal.
RJ glanced at Reby, who raised her eyebrow at him and grinned that "You know you're always wrong" grin that drove him crazy.
The display shivered, temporarily becoming completely clear before a zoomed image of the surface appeared.
Set against a backdrop of dark green was a light tan, seven-pointed star. Here and there, especially the ends of the points, the green enveloped the tan as if it were fading into the surroundings.
"Now that you can't deny." Reby said.
Jemy dropped to the ground, legs splayed apart as he leaned back on his hands and looked at the display.
RJ wasn't sure Jemy was breathing. He looked up at Reby again, who shrugged her shoulders at him.
"Let's give him his moment."
The words jarred Jemy, who seemed to suddenly realize he was on the ground. He jumped up. "Do you know what this means? I'm sorry. Of course, you do. It's what we've been looking for all along!" He turned to look at each of them.
Reby returned his enthusiasm with a hoot and a hug. RJ could only manage a fist bump. Why don't I feel good about this?
He did his best to smile when Jemy came around to looking at him again. "Can you do anything to get us there faster? Push her a little more?"
"Whoa, there Captain. You know I'm all for going fast, but our treks are planned super tight. We've just enough fuel to hit our targets. Plus a little for contingencies. We can't go crazy just because of a long-range scan."
"But don't you see it? This is it! It's exactly what I need to prove I've been right all along!"
"And you can prove it when we get there in three days." RJ knew well what it meant to run out of fuel in the middle of nowhere. He wasn't going to do it again.
Jemy stared at him unblinking for too long before trying to rationalize the need to hurry. "I need to see it. Hold something in my hands, take scans that are undeniable — that the academy can't brush off as remnants of pre-collapse human civilization."
RJ took a breath in. He'd seen Jemy like this before: his nose flaring, an icy stare, and stiff body that created a rabid intensity that either inspired or frightened.
"Ok. I'll ask Aida to see if she can make adjustments to squeeze out a little more speed without sacrificing our fuel reserves." He saw Jemy relax as he turned back to the holodisplay. "But only if you can convince me this isn't human construction."
"It isn't obvious?"
"No, not to me." RJ shook his head.
"Jem, maybe he has a point. The scans can only tell us so much. Hell, we don't even know if its empty." Reby said and shivered.
Jemy's eyes widened. "Aw, fuck! I didn't even think of that." He turned around in a circle, holding his head then dropped his arms. "Aida, do you have any sign of activity, life, anything on the structure?"
"Thank you for the question, Captain. Based on the scans so far, I calculate a ninety-nine-point three percent chance of the structure being non-human in origin as the typical signs of human habitation are not present. There's a one-hundred percent chance the planet is inhabited, but I cannot say whether or not any of the life is sentient. However, the region of the structure has a different energy signature than the surrounding area. But I don't have enough data to assess whether it is currently occupied."
"You wanted proof of non-human sentient life, Jemy. Sounds like it's there. Question is, are they still home? And do we want to risk finding out?" RJ knew the answer. Jemy would do anything to prove himself right about the existence of non-human civilization. Of course, if they didn't make it back, then all the proof in the galaxy wouldn't matter.
Jemy leaned forward in the pilot's seat as the Demption approached target 10. He kept his eyes on the planet, not even glancing at the displays or controls. This time, he was happy to leave the work of finding the right orbit to Aida.
The blue and white planet hung above the Demption, nearly filling the observation windows in the cockpit. It struck him how much it looked like Azu. There were differences, though. The poles of this world weren't frozen, and the land was a patchwork of islands clustered within thirty degrees of the equator. From orbit, it gave the impression of a green ring around the planet.
The islands ranged in size from less than one to over a million square kilometers. The scans showed a shallow sea surrounding them, except for two deep channels that cut through the ring.
They're going to miss it. The structure was on one of the larger islands that would rotate into view at any moment. Aida had assured him she'd be able to achieve the best angle for a direct sighting. Though he'd spent the last two-and-a-half days studying the scans, none of it had sated his need to see it. Feel it. Touch it.
He heard the clang of steps on the ladder and grinned.
"So when's the pile of dirt going to show up?"
Jemy frowned. "If that's how you're going to be, I don't want you here to spoil it." He couldn't take his eyes off the window to see RJ's reaction.
"Just trying to lighten the mood." RJ said as he sat down behind the co-pilot's seat.
Reby made her way up the stairs next, taking the seat next to Jemy. She reached out and squeezed his hand. He squeezed back before pulling away.
"Dimming interior lights for the best viewing experience, Captain." Aida's voice drifted through the cockpit. Jemy leaned even farther forward. His hands gripped the arms of the chair, the tips of fingers sinking into the soft foam.
There was a break in the green ring on the planet. A dark blue strip of deep water connected the northern and southern oceans. As the planet rotated, the dark blue shifted to light blue, then gray before a burst of green marked the return of land.
This is it. Jemy swallowed, his mouth dry.
The first point of the star-shape came into view like a spike. Its golden sheen cut through the verdant forest, spreading wider until it merged with the other arms of the star in the center. From directly above, it looked much like the image they'd first seen. Only it was real, in front of his eyes and not some trick of the data.
"They'll never laugh at me again," he said.
"No. No, they won't."
He turned to RJ to see the supportive smile he'd come to depend on when he'd emerged from the shame of being thrown out of the Academy. Despite all the trouble he'd caused the last couple of years, his friend understood.
"They'll shit themselves when they see it," RJ said.
Jemy cracked a smile. RJ just couldn't control his mouth, but Jemy appreciated the support.
"It's massive... I didn't realize how big it would look from orbit." Reby sat forward and started punching controls to display the newest sensor data.
"Lock orbit, keeping the center in view," Jemy instructed Aida as he turned back to the window.
"You can't really tell the levels from this height, but you can see the secondary and tertiary star patterns in the middle." Jemy stood, pointing at the interior of the structure. They'd known for over a day that the structure had significant height and seemed to be a stack of stars that decreased in size as they neared the center. "And the geometry. It's perfect." He let out a sigh that only an academic would understand.
"You're going to launch into one of those descriptions of the golden ratio again, aren't you?" RJ shifted in his seat.
"It's important!" He glared at both of them.
"Don't get him going, RJ," Reby said. "I think we've been schooled enough on the geometry of this thing over the last two days."
Jemy looked away, back towards the structure.
"Don't be that way, Jemy. We understand it's built based on the golden ratio. That raises questions — like maybe this is pre-collapse human construction—"
Jemy huffed.
"—or the golden ratio is something fundamental, something that goes beyond species."
"Or maybe the aliens are just a lot like us."
Both Reby and Jemy turned to RJ and rolled their eyes.
"Well, they could be," RJ trailed off.
"Anyway, do you see how the surface glitters? Like it's covered in gold?" Reby asked.
"I do," Jemy smiled at her. "That's unexpected. None of the scans showed significant gold in the composition." He turned his gaze back out to the structure. "But it's beautiful, more beautiful now we can see the shimmer."
"I hate to interrupt the love-fest, but why is it glittering, shimmering, or whatever if there isn't any gold? Is it pyrite or some new compound?"
Jemy heard RJ's question, but couldn't pull himself away from the view.
"I think it has to be the residual power Aida detected." Reby touched a few buttons. The holodisplay zoomed in on one of the points of the structure. "See here, where the jungle has overtaken it but not completely covered it?"
Jemy heard her pause and nodded, trying to look like he was paying attention.
"The surface there is dull. But follow the point back towards the central structure," the display slid along as she spoke, "you can see it start to shimmer... there." She paused the video feed and pointed.
Though he knew Reby was talking about the display, he still couldn't tear his eyes away from the planet. A whack on his arm made him look to his left, where Reby thrust her finger at a spot on the display.
"I see it. I see it!" He rubbed his arm.
She pushed another button, then leaned to the side so RJ could see the display, too. A blue haze with irregular edges overlaid the structure. "That's the coverage of the residual power data."
"It matches the pattern of overgrowth." His chest tingled, and he suppressed a giggle. "It's abandoned." The giggle burst out.
"What is wrong with you? You're acting like a five-year-old," Reby said.
"Don't tell me you aren't excited about this?" I know you are!
"Of course I am, but I'm not going to go giggling about it. There's so much we don't know yet. And there's more you don't know."
"What?"
She zoomed out the display from the star to the entire green ring of islands. "There, and there. More residual energy signals. They're weak so we didn't see them on the long-range scans."
"May I interject my analysis of these new locations, Captain?"
"Yes." Jemy wasn't sure he liked it calling him Captain so much. He'd have to tell Reby to make it less formal.
"There are no significant structures at these new energy points, but there are ruins. The largest is about the size of the common room. I suspect these were entrances to underground structures. However, scans cannot penetrate the surface near these points."
"That doesn't make any sense," RJ said. "We've scanned the insides of planets before. Easy-peasy, especially with the new scanners."
"I am aware of the previous expeditions. The data suggests these areas are being actively shielded, in a similar fashion to the central areas of the star structure."
"You can't see inside the structure at all?" Jemy's been so focused on how it looked, he hadn't paid much attention to the updated scans.
"Not the sections covered by the energy field, Captain."
He definitely needed Reby to make it stop saying Captain every sentence. His knees gave out as the adrenaline rush passed. So many questions. He turned his seat to face Reby, who had sat back down, and RJ.
"What do you think?" Jemy asked, returning to his more reserved self. As soon as he finished the words, he braced himself for RJ's sarcastic response. Instead, the three of them froze at the sound of the unknown voice coming across the speakers.
"Hello? Excuse me for butting in, but I think I can save you a lot of time. Hello? Can you hear me?"
Tendrils of cold gripped Reby, spreading from the goosebumps on her arms to her chest, where it settled like a glacier. It shouldn't be possible. How could someone bypass protocols and access their internal communications system? Another chill moved up her spine when she remembered where they were. What if it isn't someone?
She placed her finger over her lips, turning to make sure both RJ and Jemy saw her then swiveled to the control panel. A quick survey of the systems didn't show where the voice originated from, so she shut down all external and internal communications channels to the cockpit.
"Who granted access to the internal comms, Aida?"
"The channel opened using all appropriate protocols and was approved via the automated systems."
"Shit," she said. It wasn't the first time she'd encountered something like this: an impossible message, one that violated all the protocols and security put in place to prevent it. But that turned out to be fake, something designed into the system that no one knew about.
She'd designed the Demption's systems, and what just happened was impossible. Her hands flew over the controls, running checks, looking for anomalies. "Aida, run a full comms systems check and find the origin of that message."
"I'll take that as a yes, you can hear me. Why don't we just have a chat and get to know one another? I'll go first. My name is Clay Ander and I'm talking to you from Haven, the planet you're orbiting."
Reby froze over the controls. She'd disabled all comms to the cockpit, but whoever it was could turn it on at will.
"Reb?" Jemy asked.
She glanced over at him and shook her head before turning back to the controls. The cockpit when dark, the contestant hum of the engines and air circulation stopped.
"What the hell?" RJ shifted in his seat.
"Relax. I shut the ship down."
"What the hell?" RJ repeated.
"What's going on, Reb?"
She could see Jemy lean toward her in the reflected light from the planet. "Whoever that is, accessed our systems. I closed the comms, they opened the comms. They bypassed all security protocols as well as Aida's programming designed to prevent unauthorized access. We're wide open. Totally vulnerable to whoever this is."
"Wait, just because they can access comms doesn't mean they can get to other systems." RJ's face looked deathly white under the glow of the planet.
"Do we want to find out if they can penetrate engineering or life support?"
"Well, we have to turn it back on sometime unless you want to hang out here—until we lose orbit and burn up in the atmosphere."
She growled, but knew he was right. "We have to respond. But what do we say?"
"Hello? Hi, there. Please don't shut down our ship?"
Reby glared at RJ. "How can you be so flippant when this is serious shit?"
"He's right, though," Jemy said. "Not literally those words maybe but we need to play nice. He has the advantage."
"Whatever 'he' is," RJ added, leaning forward in his seat.
"This could be first contact so we should treat it that way. We had protocols on our digs - just in case we found anything alive. How is it we never planned for this?"
"We were having to much fun scavenging?" RJ offered.
"Or none of us believed we'd find anything..." It hurt Reby to say it because she knew how deeply Jemy believed other races existed. But she suspected even he didn't think they'd ever find one alive and ready to talk to them.
Jemy sighed. She knew he felt the weight of it falling onto him. As Captain it would be his responsibility to talk to whatever 'he' was. As the only one with any training about first contact, it was his responsibility. As a friend and brother it was his responsibility to protect them.
"I'll monitor the ship, see if I can figure out how he got in. You keep him talking."
Jemy nodded. His eyes met hers. Underneath the seriousness, she could see a sparkle. He'd still be proven right, even if the alien was alive. Provided they survived.
"And what am I supposed to do?"
"Be quiet." Reby and RJ said simultaneously.
RJ made his 'I'm offended at that' face, but settled back in his chair.
"Ready?" Reby asked.
"Ready."
While Reby reactivated the ship, Jemy took a deep breath. The lump in his throat wouldn't let him forget this wasn't a conversation about his research, or artifacts they'd discovered. First contact step one: Establish a common language. The voice spoke in perfect Gemna and sounded friendly enough. It was male, with a slight accent—he lingered too long on the vowels—that Jemy couldn't place. Friendly, just focus on friendly.
He felt the vibration of the ship kick in and knew Reby had finished. It was time.
Introduce, thank, then wait. The protocols felt a little silly to him now. Who really knew what to do? What did the creature who spoke even look like? He opened the comm channel, though he knew it probably wasn't necessary.
"This is Captain Jemy Peray of the starship Demption. Thank you for making contact."
"Ah! I'm so glad to hear from you! I was afraid something terrible happened when your ship went black. There are a lot of dangers in this system, surprising ones that get you if you're not paying attention."
Jemy frowned. He couldn't tell if there was genuine concern in the voice, or if they were being threatened.
"What sort of surprises?" RJ asked.
Jemy silently cursed RJ, then himself. He should have known RJ wouldn't stay quiet.
"Another voice. I'm happy to answer that, but I'm afraid I have to insist on introductions first. After all, we don't know each other and it's only appropriate."
RJ cleared his throat and sat up straight, but avoided eye contact with Jemy. "I am Ranulphi Jadieli, Chief Engineer."
Jemy's mouth opened, then closed. RJ never used his full name. Not even to impress women.
"Pleasure to meet you, Chief Jadieli. The answer to your question is: many kinds of surprises. One example is an excess of micrometeoroids. Nearly impossible to detect, but will riddle your ship with millions of holes. They can be devastating."
Jemy released the grip he had on the arm of his chair. Micrometeoroids were everywhere, but not usually in concentrations that could cause trouble. But there was a rare natural phenomenon when they grouped together. The voice wasn't threatening them. Probably.
"Are you saying we're in danger?" Jemy asked.
"No, Captain." The voice sounded sharper than before. "I was merely expressing concern about your ship going dark, and my fear you had been disabled somehow. May we get back to introductions? I believe there's at least one more on your crew?"
"I think you know there's only one." Reby answered before Jemy could.
"There. And yes. Having listened over your comm systems, I know there are only three crew members. I apologize profusely for scanning you as you approached..." The voice drifted off, shuffling sounds mixed with whispering before silence fell.
Jemy exchanged looks with RJ, who mouthed "weird". Reby reached out and touched Jemy's arm, encouraging him to continue.
"You know so much about us. We'd love to learn more about you," Jemy said.
A second or two passed before the voice returned. "I didn't get the name of your third crew member."
"Reby Peray, Chief Systems Architect."
"Wonderful. Wonderful. A brilliant mind to go with that alluring voice."
Reby stiffened. Jemy saw her eyes narrow, so he waved his hand to get her attention and whispered "Friendly." It looked like she might ignore him, so he jumped in. "Now that we've finished our introductions, what do you want us to call you?"
"Ah, yes. As I said, my name is Clay Ander. I'm fine being called Clay, but if you prefer, Mr. Ander is acceptable." He went silent again.
The protocols told Jemy he should try to find a common ground. Clay sounded and acted like a human. But was he?
"We'll use Clay if that's your preference," Jemy said to fill the growing silence. "Can I ask you some questions?"
"Of course, of course. Why don't we alternate so we get to know one another better?"
"Yes, that sounds reasonable." Jemy had so many questions, but he had to choose carefully.
"What are you?" RJ blurted.
Jemy shot RJ a look, but couldn't get his attention. RJ was facing away from him, gazing out the window at the planet.
"That's a potentially insulting question, Chief Jadieli. Lucky for you, I don't offend easily. Still, I understand why you ask."
They could hear him take a deep breath.
"I'm human. Just like you. I was approaching Haven when I was hit with one of those micrometeoroid showers. I was forced to land because I couldn't maintain hull integrity. And since there aren't any repair stations around, I've been here ever since."
"How long have you been there?" Reby asked.
"Hold on. We agreed to alternate, remember? My question is: why are you here?"
"We're explorers." Jemy answered the question. Somehow, dealing with a human felt more dangerous than an alien. How much had he learned from listening to them?
"Concise. But truthful? I've been here at least ten standard years. Are you academics or taries?"
"Both, actually. I'm an archeologist as well as Captain. Is the star structure human or non-human construction?" Best to get right to it.
Clay chuckled. "Definitely non-human." He paused again, only for a moment, but his levity had disappeared when he spoke again. "Have you ever heard of the Ubbyri?"
Jemy knew about the Uulri and Unziki, but couldn't remember any references to Ubbyri. RJ and Reby both shook their heads no.
"No, we've never heard of them. Is that what they're called?"
"Is that what who is called?"
"The race that built the star. Is that their name?" If he knows their name, then there are material remains. More than just the structure..."How do you know? Are there written records? Carved reliefs? What sort of artifacts have you—?"
"Wait! You're not following our agreement! It's my turn for a question."
Jemy's face grew hot, and he shook his head. Don't get carried away. Act like the Captain!
"So, I'll get to the most important one. When are you coming down to rescue me?"