This is one I've been working on without much success for a few years now, but I've gotten a new beginning for it, and I'm excited.
I'd just like some feedback on how you think this is as an opener; think novel-length. All comments welcome.
*******
It was the hunger that finally drove Leeta out of hiding. Days had passed since he'd eaten more than a few bites of anything, and the pain of his hunger was greater than the ache of missing his mother; greater than his fear of this strange place.
His mother had told him to run, to stay away from the big creatures called men, but now, the smell of something wonderful was drawing him onward and he had to get to it. He had crouched at the edge of the forest, and saw where the smell was coming from, but there were men there, two big ones and one small one, and they were eating this stuff, and he couldn't stop himself. He had to eat, or he knew he would die.
He wanted to wait, to see if maybe the men would go away and leave some of the food behind, but then he was out in the open, walking towards them, and then he was even more afraid, because he couldn't stop walking towards the food, and he was supposed to hide from the men, and he began to cry because the men would see him and he wouldn't get the food and he'd never see his mother again . . .
The two big ones were talking to each other, and the little one saw him first, and she raised her hand at him and said, "Mom, what's that?" And then the big ones saw him, and they pulled the little one away and stood up and talked loud. He couldn't understand everything they said, but they sounded afraid, and then the little one picked up something and swung her hand, and the thing curved through the air at him and she said, "Go 'way!"
The thing landed in front of him -- food! The wonderful-smelling food that had drawn him out here! He stumbled forward and fell down, too weak to walk another step, and he crawled to it and stuffed it in his mouth, chewing and swallowing until it was gone, and he lay there, just breathing, and he closed his eyes against the brightness of the sky . . .
Something soft lifted his head, gently, and brought a bowl of sparkling cool water to his lips, and he drank until his tongue refused to move any more, and closed his eyes again. The men were talking, and his mind could not focus on the meaning of the words, but he felt worry and care in their voices. Exhaustion took his consciousness.
*****
[font=Courier New]Garner Leader
Hancock County, Iowa
Tuesday, September 7, 2156
-----
New NA Species found by family on picnic
by Robert Sachs
-----
A previously unknown species of non-human alien was discovered yesterday by a family enjoying a Labor Day picnic at Crystal Lake.
Britt Township residents George and Peggy Waltrip and their daughter Dorothy were just sitting down to have lunch when the alien came out of a wooded area and approached them across an open field.
Mr. Waltrip stated, "Our daughter saw it first, and said, 'Mom, what is that?' I thought it was a coyote for a second, but then I saw it was walking upright, and had a different head shape and a real big tail. This is the first time any of us had seen an alien in person. We were all a little scared at first."
Mrs. Waltrip added, "It wasn't very big, and it was kind of staggering, like it was injured. Turns out the poor thing was just starved, and must have smelled our food. Dotty threw a hot dog at it to chase it off, and it ate the hot dog. Then it fell down and couldn't get up. We went over for a closer look, and it was emaciated and dirty. I gave it some water to drink and then it passed out."
Mr. Waltrip called the Hancock County Sheriff's department, and deputies arrived in a ground car about fifteen minutes later. The alien was taken into their custody and will be turned over to Terran authorities when they arrive later today. Emergency medical personnel examined the alien and treated it for some superficial scratches.
Deputy Neil Johanssen, who was on the scene, described it as "the most pathetic thing I've ever seen; he's not much bigger than a house-cat, and he was so thin you could read your Bible through him. We think he's real young, but with aliens, you can't be sure, you know. He's sleeping and eating a lot now, and we think he'll be okay; he seems more alert now, but he acts a little frightened. He speaks a few words of English, too, but not very well. He's been toilet-trained, too."
State and Federal officials have joined in an investigation of this discovery, but decline to comment at this time.
-----
Robert Sachs is a staff reporter for the Garner Leader.
*****
[/font]
Need opinions -- restart of a dormant project
Moderator: Editors
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Lester Curtis
- Long Fiction Editor
- Posts: 2736
- Joined: January 11, 2010, 12:03:56 AM
- Location: by the time you read this, I'll be somewhere else
Need opinions -- restart of a dormant project
I was raised by humans. What's your excuse?
-
Lester Curtis
- Long Fiction Editor
- Posts: 2736
- Joined: January 11, 2010, 12:03:56 AM
- Location: by the time you read this, I'll be somewhere else
Thanks, Bill . . . I'm also a little bothered by the cultural 'this-could-have-happened-yesterday' feel . . . I'm trying to force myself to get a draft now, rather than fine-tuning, but you're right on that. I have to wonder if there will still be a Labor Day -- or hot-dogs -- in that setting.
Settings are a weak point for me anyway; I'll work on that later.
Nothing wrong with 'Dorothy,' after all, this is Iowa, not Kansas, lol. I can change that later, but I was actually thinking of putting this part of the story in Kansas . . .
As to 'non-human aliens,' that's as opposed to human illegal aliens. The first sort get labeled NA's, as in the newspaper headline; called 'ennays' elsewhere.
I'm surprising myself with this; it's taking the direction of a mystery/detective story, and I'll have to make sure that angle of it stays in its place.
Thanks again.
NEXT!
Settings are a weak point for me anyway; I'll work on that later.
Nothing wrong with 'Dorothy,' after all, this is Iowa, not Kansas, lol. I can change that later, but I was actually thinking of putting this part of the story in Kansas . . .
My aim here is to keep this part pretty brief, and I wanted to stick to Leeta's POV to get the reader inside his head . . . as the story goes on, I'll get plenty of other people's reactions, but I think I do want to have her apologize (if I can make it fit).You could flesh out the whole picnic from the little girl's POV
As to 'non-human aliens,' that's as opposed to human illegal aliens. The first sort get labeled NA's, as in the newspaper headline; called 'ennays' elsewhere.
I'm surprising myself with this; it's taking the direction of a mystery/detective story, and I'll have to make sure that angle of it stays in its place.
That was the most important question for me at this point; glad it works.A good enough hook to keep the reader interested.
Thanks again.
NEXT!
I was raised by humans. What's your excuse?
-
Lester Curtis
- Long Fiction Editor
- Posts: 2736
- Joined: January 11, 2010, 12:03:56 AM
- Location: by the time you read this, I'll be somewhere else
restructured -- please comment
Okay, here's the beta version 2.0, or whatever. This will be the extent of the first chapter, because from here, the story jumps forward a number of years.
Please post comments -- please! Don't make Bill carry the whole thing, okay?
*******
LEETA -- BEGIN
Colonel Greene smashed his hands down on the gray metal desktop. "They're WHAT?"
"The -- they're gone, sir. All three of them . . . "
"How, Lieutenant?"
"I -- don't know, sir. Dr. Corey must have known I was coming -- I opened the door, and -- that's the last I remember. When I woke up, it was six hours later. They were gone, my credit chit was gone, my ID card, my phone, and the vehicle. Some of the supplies and medical equipment were missing, and the remaining equipment was disabled. Sir."
"Captain?"
"Sir, we flew over when he failed to report in. We found the Lieutenant and did a quick scan, but nothing else, and had to return before dawn. We did sterilize the site, sir."
"Well, that much is good news . . . how much of a head start does he have?"
"We estimate eight to ten hours, sir. Should we pursue?"
The colonel glared at his desk for the space of a few breaths. "Don't bother, Captain; wherever he's headed, he won't be coming back, and we don't need them anymore anyway. Keep tabs on the usual civilian activity, they may show up yet, but we don't want to risk exposing ourselves. Lieutenant, you're dismissed."
"Sir." The lieutenant saluted and was almost to the door when the colonel spoke again.
"One more thing, Lieutenant . . . "
"Sir?" He turned about, and came face to face with a bullet.
*****
It was hunger that finally drove Leeta out of hiding. Days had passed since he'd eaten more than a few bites of anything, and the pain of his hunger was greater than the ache of missing his mother; greater than his fear of this strange place.
His mother had told him to run, to stay away from the big creatures called men, but now, the smell of something wonderful was drawing him onward and he had to get to it. He had crouched at the edge of the forest, and saw where the smell was coming from, but there were men there, two big ones and one small one, and they were eating this stuff, and he couldn't stop himself. He had to eat, or he knew he would die.
He wanted to wait, to see if maybe the men would go away and leave some of the food behind, but then he was out in the open, walking towards them, and then he was even more afraid, because he couldn't stop walking towards the food, and his mother told him to hide from the men, and he began to cry because the men would see him and he wouldn't get the food and he'd never see his mother again . . .
The two big ones were talking to each other, and the little one saw him first, and she raised her hand at him and said, "Mom, what's that?" And then the big ones saw him, and they pulled the little one away and stood up and talked loud. He couldn't understand everything they said, but they sounded afraid, and then the little one picked up something and swung her hand, and the thing curved through the air at him and she said, "Go 'way!"
The thing landed in front of him -- food! The wonderful-smelling food that had drawn him out here! He stumbled forward and fell down, too weak to walk another step, and he crawled to it and stuffed it in his mouth, chewing and swallowing until it was gone, and he lay there, just breathing, and he closed his eyes against the brightness of the sky . . .
Something soft lifted his head, gently, and brought a bowl of sparkling cool water to his lips, and he drank until his tongue refused to move any more, and closed his eyes again. The men were talking, and his mind could not focus on the meaning of the words, but he felt worry and care in their voices. Exhaustion took his consciousness.
*****
Alfred Corey made a sharp yell and swung his arm involuntarily when the captain tried to shake him out of sleep.
"Whoa! Easy there, doc . . . "
Alfred blinked and looked around, his mind a cobweb of panic until he remembered where he was. "Uh . . . I -- I'm sorry . . . I didn't hit you, did I?"
"You came close. Y'all right?"
Alfred nodded, rubbing his eyes. "Yes. I'm -- I'll -- be okay . . . " He sat up carefully in his bunk.
"I had to ask; you slept right through drop-out . . . gotta say, that's the worst case of nerves I ever seen."
Alfred forced his face into a sickly smile. "Yes, well, I'm -- just not used to being a fugitive."
The captain, in his dusty coverall and facial stubble, grinned. "Well, I hope you get used to it soon, or your ticker's gonna explode." He put a hand on Alfred's shoulder. "Don't worry, though, we're way out on the fringe. Ain't no lawmen come out here for nothin.' Anyway, we're about an hour from landfall, if you need time to get ready."
Alfred nodded. "Thanks."
"Ya want a couple shots or bong-hits, you know where it's at. On the house."
"No -- no, thanks . . . I -- need to stay sharp."
The captain dropped his hand and laughed. "Doc, you ain't sharp -- you're worn through! Your choice, though. C'mon up front when you got everything secured." He turned and left.
Alfred went into the tiny bathroom in his cabin and splashed cold water on his face from the sink, being careful not to look at his eyes in the mirror as he toweled dry. Back into the cabin, he opened his case and took out his translator and hovered his hand over the little tranquilizer gun, but didn't pick it up.
Leaving his cabin, he walked the few steps aft to the adjacent one and turned the key in the lock. "Ketenn, it's me." He opened the door a crack and looked in, and was met with the uncomfortably direct gaze of her yellow-green eyes as she faced him.
"Ahl fled." She was stretched out on her side on the bunk, not tensed to leap. She propped herself up on an elbow. He entered quickly, locked the door and pocketed the key.
"Alfred."
"Ahl, fl, ff . . . "
"Rrrr . . . "
"Uuuh . . . " She huffed in frustration. "Al."
Alfred sighed and nodded. "Al." He took a step closer and knelt to face her at eye level and turned on the translator. "Ketenn, very soon we will be at the end of our journey, and then . . . you will be free to go where you want and do as you like, but -- I want you to stay with me. I'll take care of you, make sure you have food and a safe place to sleep -- "
"I didn't want to come here with you. I wanted to be away from you, but you wouldn't let me go. If you had let me go, I could have been with my son now . . . "
"I'm sorry, I didn't want you to be separated, I wanted to bring you both . . . if you had only told him to come with us, he'd be here with you now, and that hurts me -- "
"Why did you not just let us both go?"
"I -- I was afraid for you, both of you -- there wasn't time, and -- "
"Leeta is a cub, alone now!"
"Do you think I don't know that? Do you think I wanted to chose one to live and one to die?" Alfred collapsed to a sitting position and curled up, sobbing against his knees. "I was there when he was born; I've done everything I could to keep you safe from those men. Do you know they wanted me to cut you up while you were still alive? I'm a doctor; it's my job to preserve life; it's all I ever wanted to do . . . and I've done more than you can know . . . "
"You did everything except to ask what we wanted . . . "
"And I have to live with that mistake -- and -- and I'm sorry you do, too. I'm sorry." He got to his feet and fumbled the key into the door and simply left it open behind him.
Ten minutes later, Alfred was in the crew's commons, pouring his second double shot of some nasty rotgut -- the first bottle that came to hand -- when the captain called back from the bridge, "Hey, doc, c'mon up here a second, got somethin' you might want to see."
He downed the shot. "Yeah, what is it?" The whiskey was burning his stomach, but hadn't hit his brain yet as he made his way forward.
"Back on Earth, looks like someone found a miniature copy of your girlfriend back there."
"She's not my girlfriend. What is it?"
The captain tapped a small viewscreen. "That the same species? I can't be sure, myself . . . "
"Oh -- omigod -- " Alfred turned and sprinted from the bridge, skidding to a stop against the doorjamb of Ketenn's cabin. "It's Leeta! He's alive!" Without waiting for a response, he dashed forward again, nearly colliding with the co-pilot's chair as he rushed onto the bridge. "What'd they say? When did this happen?"
"Just now, I guess. This is a real-time newscast . . . "
Ketenn appeared at Alfred's elbow, holding the translator, which he'd left running on her floor.
The newscast was repeating; a young woman with brushed-back hair in a yellow and red harlequin jumpsuit and excessive makeup faced the camera. "For those of you who just tuned in, we're here at Hancock County Memorial Hospital in Hancock County, Iowa, where a previously unknown species of alien has just been discovered. It seems that a family of local residents was having a picnic at nearby Crystal Lake, and the alien approached them from a wooded area, apparently seeking food, and it collapsed. Sheriff's deputies and EMT were dispatched to the site, where the medics confirmed that this is indeed a new species of alien, thought to be very young, and severely undernourished." The view switched to a video of blue-uniformed medics moving a gurney, and the one on it was unmistakably Leeta, though very thin and disheveled.
The newscaster reappeared. "The medical personnel said also that the alien's vital signs are stable, and that it doesn't appear to have any serious injuries, but they don't know enough about it to comment further.
"The Sheriff's office immediately contacted Terran Government authorities, who have sent a team to take custody of the alien within the hour. Law enforcement officials at all levels have been contacted, and are investigating this incident as we speak. No further official comment is available yet.
"Anyone having any information about this alien is urged to use the contact information shown below. Live and in real time, I'm Susan Petalli for Null-space Five News."
Ketenn had reached her hand out to touch the screen during the video clip, and now she softly said, "Leeta . . . " She dropped the translator and her knees wobbled and she started to fall. Alfred clumsily caught her, but almost fell against the captain.
"Whoa . . . dammit, I knew I shouldn't have drank that whiskey . . . "
"Easy, doc . . . here, lemme get her for you; you're about to fall over, your own self. I can see you're no drinker. Get the translator." The captain smoothly rose and hoisted Ketenn onto his shoulder and carried her to her cabin, where he placed her on the bunk and buckled a safety strap over her. "Let's go sit down for a minute, eh?"
They went into the commons and Alfred sat down while the captain secured the whiskey bottle and the shot glass before taking a seat.
"Uh, look, doc, I, ah -- I apologize for calling her your girlfriend; I know it ain't like that with you two . . . sometimes I let my mouth say things it shouldn't. Thing is, though -- "
Alfred waved a hand. "Don' worry about it . . . "
"Yeh. Well . . . I don't know what she thinks of you, but -- "
"She hates me . . . "
"Well, that don't matter. What does matter, and it's as plain as the fur on her face, is that you love her, and her little one, there, too -- not in love, like romance, but the kind of love that gets things done, y'know? And you should tell her that . . . she can see it in action, but I think she should hear it from you, too. Might do her some good. It'll do you good." He glanced at his watch and stood up. "You can't go around hidin' from life; you never know how much you got left." He turned and headed forward. "Make safe; we hit atmo in fifteen; I'll sound the horn."
Alfred went to his cabin and strapped his case down, then went back to Ketenn's room, with the translator still in his pocket.
He stayed there until the ship touched down.
*****
The Canamerican Consul-General was in his office at the Terran Government in Geneva, talking by phone to the lead investigator on Leeta's case.
"What do you have on our new arrival, Inspector?"
"Nothing too exciting yet, sir. Male, we're guessing about three years old, give or take, omnivorous, mammalian; says his name is Leeta. His DNA isn't on our list of knowns . . . Xeno did a full-body scan of him to molecular level. There was some speculation that he could have been a manufactured item, but that turns out to be practically impossible, so he's definitely alien."
"How so?"
"His chirality is left-handed . . . "
"Chirality . . . ?"
"Chirality addresses the asymmetry of things, their right- or left-handedness, so to speak. Now, in almost all Terran species, and quite a few aliens, the DNA spirals in a right-handed fashion, like right-handed screw threads, but his is opposite. More than that, though; protein molecules, enzymes, the works."
"But he's still able to function normally here, eat local food and such . . . ?"
"Oh, yeah. It's not like he came from an anti-matter universe; all the functions and processes are close to the same; the molecules just look different. And, where he's from, the majority of species will be left-dominant instead of right, as they are here."
"Now, you said 'practically impossible' . . . you're certain he couldn't be a hoax?"
"Not unless there's some trickster willing to spend many years and a near-infinite sum of money. Even advanced genetic manipulation is cheap and easy by comparison. Somebody would have known about it before now, and people talk. What really seals the deal, though, is that he has a mother."
"A mother . . . where? How do you know this?"
"He talks about her, a lot, mostly says he misses her, asks where she is. And, that part, we don't know."
"Do you think he might have been born here, on Earth?"
"That, we don't know either, but it's a strong possibility. He described living in a building with white walls and no windows, and never being outside of it until he escaped. He says there was a man there who was with them a lot, was teaching him English, helped him learn to feed himself and use the toilet. He said his mother was learning some English as well."
"And you said there was nothing exciting to report! Has he been able to describe this man?"
"Not very well yet, but we'll have a sketch artist come in and work with him."
"I don't need to stress the importance of that . . . "
"No, sir."
"Hm. Any signs of abuse?"
"No, sir, and whoever this man was, he seemed to take good care of them both. Leeta's mother didn't like him, though; she feared humans greatly and said they took her away from her home, by force. She told him often not to trust us, and said that he should run away if he got the chance."
"An alien abduction . . . and we're the aliens . . . "
"It's happened before, sir . . . "
"I know . . . sometimes I wish I didn't, though . . . how did he escape, anyway?"
"He said the man came in one night -- he said it was night because it was dark . . . he said the man was acting very afraid and said that they all had to leave because some other men were coming to hurt them. The guy must have been in a hurry and careless, and left the door unlocked, and Leeta ran outside and hid . . . it's hard to listen to him describe, sir . . . he could hear his mother screaming and telling him to run and hide, and then a noise, probably a car door, and then the man calling for him to come back. He said the man sounded scared, maybe sad, not angry, but then there was another noise, and then it got quiet. From the description, it was likely a ground-car. Then, he ran, as far as he could, and just kept on moving. He couldn't tell us how many days."
"I can't imagine his terror . . . it could have been worse, though; if they'd had him in a city, he'd almost certainly be dead now." The Consul sighed and ran a hand across his face. "He said they all had to leave?"
"I know, sir, that may be significant."
"Any thoughts on a motive?"
"Only two . . . the exotic pet trade, or banned research, which seems more likely, though I can't fathom why either one would be done on Earth."
"Hm. Proximity must have some bearing -- but proximity to what?"
"Impossible to guess."
"All right. What are your procedures so far?"
"We've given a copy of Leeta's DNA data to our trackers, and they're using a trio of sniffer-bots to follow his trail backwards. It's positive, but slow, and we will at least find out where he ran from. Also, we're searching the records of all flights in or out of Terran space for the last five years, with attention to any crate or package big enough to hold his mother. Likewise with any ground or air vehicles within a fifty-mile radius, private, rented, or government-leased. And, we're trying to get the Pentagon to cooperate, but they're . . . being difficult."
"Well, keep it up around the clock, all of it. Expand that search radius to a hundred miles, and take all the men and resources you need. I'll call the President and blow some steam down his collar and see if he can grow enough spine to face down the generals. We can't afford an interstellar war, and for all we know, these kidnappers may have already started one.
"Now, as to Leeta, what are we going to do for him if this goes long-term? We can't just keep him in a lab somewhere, that isn't even lawful, much less humane."
"I know, sir . . . I'll have to get with the legal team on this, but the best I can think of now is to foster him out to a family somewhere . . . "
"A nice family of resident aliens, I should hope . . . just so he isn't forced to be raised by the species that shanghaied his mother . . . "
"We may not need to go that route . . . remember, all of Leeta's own experience with humans has been positive so far . . . most of it, anyway. It'll largely be up to him in the end . . . we'll just have to see, but . . . what about the Griffin Institute?"
"Excellent, I hadn't thought of that; lack of sleep, I think. They have everything there, and our little guest would at least get to grow up among top-tier academia. Give Mr. Griffin a call; he might have something for us. I knew him once, a long time back; he's a good man."
"So I've heard, sir."
"All right, Inspector, I'm going to bed now before I fall over, but don't be afraid to wake me up if you get something important."
"Very well, sir, and thank you."
"Thank you, Inspector. Good night."
*****
Please post comments -- please! Don't make Bill carry the whole thing, okay?
*******
LEETA -- BEGIN
Colonel Greene smashed his hands down on the gray metal desktop. "They're WHAT?"
"The -- they're gone, sir. All three of them . . . "
"How, Lieutenant?"
"I -- don't know, sir. Dr. Corey must have known I was coming -- I opened the door, and -- that's the last I remember. When I woke up, it was six hours later. They were gone, my credit chit was gone, my ID card, my phone, and the vehicle. Some of the supplies and medical equipment were missing, and the remaining equipment was disabled. Sir."
"Captain?"
"Sir, we flew over when he failed to report in. We found the Lieutenant and did a quick scan, but nothing else, and had to return before dawn. We did sterilize the site, sir."
"Well, that much is good news . . . how much of a head start does he have?"
"We estimate eight to ten hours, sir. Should we pursue?"
The colonel glared at his desk for the space of a few breaths. "Don't bother, Captain; wherever he's headed, he won't be coming back, and we don't need them anymore anyway. Keep tabs on the usual civilian activity, they may show up yet, but we don't want to risk exposing ourselves. Lieutenant, you're dismissed."
"Sir." The lieutenant saluted and was almost to the door when the colonel spoke again.
"One more thing, Lieutenant . . . "
"Sir?" He turned about, and came face to face with a bullet.
*****
It was hunger that finally drove Leeta out of hiding. Days had passed since he'd eaten more than a few bites of anything, and the pain of his hunger was greater than the ache of missing his mother; greater than his fear of this strange place.
His mother had told him to run, to stay away from the big creatures called men, but now, the smell of something wonderful was drawing him onward and he had to get to it. He had crouched at the edge of the forest, and saw where the smell was coming from, but there were men there, two big ones and one small one, and they were eating this stuff, and he couldn't stop himself. He had to eat, or he knew he would die.
He wanted to wait, to see if maybe the men would go away and leave some of the food behind, but then he was out in the open, walking towards them, and then he was even more afraid, because he couldn't stop walking towards the food, and his mother told him to hide from the men, and he began to cry because the men would see him and he wouldn't get the food and he'd never see his mother again . . .
The two big ones were talking to each other, and the little one saw him first, and she raised her hand at him and said, "Mom, what's that?" And then the big ones saw him, and they pulled the little one away and stood up and talked loud. He couldn't understand everything they said, but they sounded afraid, and then the little one picked up something and swung her hand, and the thing curved through the air at him and she said, "Go 'way!"
The thing landed in front of him -- food! The wonderful-smelling food that had drawn him out here! He stumbled forward and fell down, too weak to walk another step, and he crawled to it and stuffed it in his mouth, chewing and swallowing until it was gone, and he lay there, just breathing, and he closed his eyes against the brightness of the sky . . .
Something soft lifted his head, gently, and brought a bowl of sparkling cool water to his lips, and he drank until his tongue refused to move any more, and closed his eyes again. The men were talking, and his mind could not focus on the meaning of the words, but he felt worry and care in their voices. Exhaustion took his consciousness.
*****
Alfred Corey made a sharp yell and swung his arm involuntarily when the captain tried to shake him out of sleep.
"Whoa! Easy there, doc . . . "
Alfred blinked and looked around, his mind a cobweb of panic until he remembered where he was. "Uh . . . I -- I'm sorry . . . I didn't hit you, did I?"
"You came close. Y'all right?"
Alfred nodded, rubbing his eyes. "Yes. I'm -- I'll -- be okay . . . " He sat up carefully in his bunk.
"I had to ask; you slept right through drop-out . . . gotta say, that's the worst case of nerves I ever seen."
Alfred forced his face into a sickly smile. "Yes, well, I'm -- just not used to being a fugitive."
The captain, in his dusty coverall and facial stubble, grinned. "Well, I hope you get used to it soon, or your ticker's gonna explode." He put a hand on Alfred's shoulder. "Don't worry, though, we're way out on the fringe. Ain't no lawmen come out here for nothin.' Anyway, we're about an hour from landfall, if you need time to get ready."
Alfred nodded. "Thanks."
"Ya want a couple shots or bong-hits, you know where it's at. On the house."
"No -- no, thanks . . . I -- need to stay sharp."
The captain dropped his hand and laughed. "Doc, you ain't sharp -- you're worn through! Your choice, though. C'mon up front when you got everything secured." He turned and left.
Alfred went into the tiny bathroom in his cabin and splashed cold water on his face from the sink, being careful not to look at his eyes in the mirror as he toweled dry. Back into the cabin, he opened his case and took out his translator and hovered his hand over the little tranquilizer gun, but didn't pick it up.
Leaving his cabin, he walked the few steps aft to the adjacent one and turned the key in the lock. "Ketenn, it's me." He opened the door a crack and looked in, and was met with the uncomfortably direct gaze of her yellow-green eyes as she faced him.
"Ahl fled." She was stretched out on her side on the bunk, not tensed to leap. She propped herself up on an elbow. He entered quickly, locked the door and pocketed the key.
"Alfred."
"Ahl, fl, ff . . . "
"Rrrr . . . "
"Uuuh . . . " She huffed in frustration. "Al."
Alfred sighed and nodded. "Al." He took a step closer and knelt to face her at eye level and turned on the translator. "Ketenn, very soon we will be at the end of our journey, and then . . . you will be free to go where you want and do as you like, but -- I want you to stay with me. I'll take care of you, make sure you have food and a safe place to sleep -- "
"I didn't want to come here with you. I wanted to be away from you, but you wouldn't let me go. If you had let me go, I could have been with my son now . . . "
"I'm sorry, I didn't want you to be separated, I wanted to bring you both . . . if you had only told him to come with us, he'd be here with you now, and that hurts me -- "
"Why did you not just let us both go?"
"I -- I was afraid for you, both of you -- there wasn't time, and -- "
"Leeta is a cub, alone now!"
"Do you think I don't know that? Do you think I wanted to chose one to live and one to die?" Alfred collapsed to a sitting position and curled up, sobbing against his knees. "I was there when he was born; I've done everything I could to keep you safe from those men. Do you know they wanted me to cut you up while you were still alive? I'm a doctor; it's my job to preserve life; it's all I ever wanted to do . . . and I've done more than you can know . . . "
"You did everything except to ask what we wanted . . . "
"And I have to live with that mistake -- and -- and I'm sorry you do, too. I'm sorry." He got to his feet and fumbled the key into the door and simply left it open behind him.
Ten minutes later, Alfred was in the crew's commons, pouring his second double shot of some nasty rotgut -- the first bottle that came to hand -- when the captain called back from the bridge, "Hey, doc, c'mon up here a second, got somethin' you might want to see."
He downed the shot. "Yeah, what is it?" The whiskey was burning his stomach, but hadn't hit his brain yet as he made his way forward.
"Back on Earth, looks like someone found a miniature copy of your girlfriend back there."
"She's not my girlfriend. What is it?"
The captain tapped a small viewscreen. "That the same species? I can't be sure, myself . . . "
"Oh -- omigod -- " Alfred turned and sprinted from the bridge, skidding to a stop against the doorjamb of Ketenn's cabin. "It's Leeta! He's alive!" Without waiting for a response, he dashed forward again, nearly colliding with the co-pilot's chair as he rushed onto the bridge. "What'd they say? When did this happen?"
"Just now, I guess. This is a real-time newscast . . . "
Ketenn appeared at Alfred's elbow, holding the translator, which he'd left running on her floor.
The newscast was repeating; a young woman with brushed-back hair in a yellow and red harlequin jumpsuit and excessive makeup faced the camera. "For those of you who just tuned in, we're here at Hancock County Memorial Hospital in Hancock County, Iowa, where a previously unknown species of alien has just been discovered. It seems that a family of local residents was having a picnic at nearby Crystal Lake, and the alien approached them from a wooded area, apparently seeking food, and it collapsed. Sheriff's deputies and EMT were dispatched to the site, where the medics confirmed that this is indeed a new species of alien, thought to be very young, and severely undernourished." The view switched to a video of blue-uniformed medics moving a gurney, and the one on it was unmistakably Leeta, though very thin and disheveled.
The newscaster reappeared. "The medical personnel said also that the alien's vital signs are stable, and that it doesn't appear to have any serious injuries, but they don't know enough about it to comment further.
"The Sheriff's office immediately contacted Terran Government authorities, who have sent a team to take custody of the alien within the hour. Law enforcement officials at all levels have been contacted, and are investigating this incident as we speak. No further official comment is available yet.
"Anyone having any information about this alien is urged to use the contact information shown below. Live and in real time, I'm Susan Petalli for Null-space Five News."
Ketenn had reached her hand out to touch the screen during the video clip, and now she softly said, "Leeta . . . " She dropped the translator and her knees wobbled and she started to fall. Alfred clumsily caught her, but almost fell against the captain.
"Whoa . . . dammit, I knew I shouldn't have drank that whiskey . . . "
"Easy, doc . . . here, lemme get her for you; you're about to fall over, your own self. I can see you're no drinker. Get the translator." The captain smoothly rose and hoisted Ketenn onto his shoulder and carried her to her cabin, where he placed her on the bunk and buckled a safety strap over her. "Let's go sit down for a minute, eh?"
They went into the commons and Alfred sat down while the captain secured the whiskey bottle and the shot glass before taking a seat.
"Uh, look, doc, I, ah -- I apologize for calling her your girlfriend; I know it ain't like that with you two . . . sometimes I let my mouth say things it shouldn't. Thing is, though -- "
Alfred waved a hand. "Don' worry about it . . . "
"Yeh. Well . . . I don't know what she thinks of you, but -- "
"She hates me . . . "
"Well, that don't matter. What does matter, and it's as plain as the fur on her face, is that you love her, and her little one, there, too -- not in love, like romance, but the kind of love that gets things done, y'know? And you should tell her that . . . she can see it in action, but I think she should hear it from you, too. Might do her some good. It'll do you good." He glanced at his watch and stood up. "You can't go around hidin' from life; you never know how much you got left." He turned and headed forward. "Make safe; we hit atmo in fifteen; I'll sound the horn."
Alfred went to his cabin and strapped his case down, then went back to Ketenn's room, with the translator still in his pocket.
He stayed there until the ship touched down.
*****
The Canamerican Consul-General was in his office at the Terran Government in Geneva, talking by phone to the lead investigator on Leeta's case.
"What do you have on our new arrival, Inspector?"
"Nothing too exciting yet, sir. Male, we're guessing about three years old, give or take, omnivorous, mammalian; says his name is Leeta. His DNA isn't on our list of knowns . . . Xeno did a full-body scan of him to molecular level. There was some speculation that he could have been a manufactured item, but that turns out to be practically impossible, so he's definitely alien."
"How so?"
"His chirality is left-handed . . . "
"Chirality . . . ?"
"Chirality addresses the asymmetry of things, their right- or left-handedness, so to speak. Now, in almost all Terran species, and quite a few aliens, the DNA spirals in a right-handed fashion, like right-handed screw threads, but his is opposite. More than that, though; protein molecules, enzymes, the works."
"But he's still able to function normally here, eat local food and such . . . ?"
"Oh, yeah. It's not like he came from an anti-matter universe; all the functions and processes are close to the same; the molecules just look different. And, where he's from, the majority of species will be left-dominant instead of right, as they are here."
"Now, you said 'practically impossible' . . . you're certain he couldn't be a hoax?"
"Not unless there's some trickster willing to spend many years and a near-infinite sum of money. Even advanced genetic manipulation is cheap and easy by comparison. Somebody would have known about it before now, and people talk. What really seals the deal, though, is that he has a mother."
"A mother . . . where? How do you know this?"
"He talks about her, a lot, mostly says he misses her, asks where she is. And, that part, we don't know."
"Do you think he might have been born here, on Earth?"
"That, we don't know either, but it's a strong possibility. He described living in a building with white walls and no windows, and never being outside of it until he escaped. He says there was a man there who was with them a lot, was teaching him English, helped him learn to feed himself and use the toilet. He said his mother was learning some English as well."
"And you said there was nothing exciting to report! Has he been able to describe this man?"
"Not very well yet, but we'll have a sketch artist come in and work with him."
"I don't need to stress the importance of that . . . "
"No, sir."
"Hm. Any signs of abuse?"
"No, sir, and whoever this man was, he seemed to take good care of them both. Leeta's mother didn't like him, though; she feared humans greatly and said they took her away from her home, by force. She told him often not to trust us, and said that he should run away if he got the chance."
"An alien abduction . . . and we're the aliens . . . "
"It's happened before, sir . . . "
"I know . . . sometimes I wish I didn't, though . . . how did he escape, anyway?"
"He said the man came in one night -- he said it was night because it was dark . . . he said the man was acting very afraid and said that they all had to leave because some other men were coming to hurt them. The guy must have been in a hurry and careless, and left the door unlocked, and Leeta ran outside and hid . . . it's hard to listen to him describe, sir . . . he could hear his mother screaming and telling him to run and hide, and then a noise, probably a car door, and then the man calling for him to come back. He said the man sounded scared, maybe sad, not angry, but then there was another noise, and then it got quiet. From the description, it was likely a ground-car. Then, he ran, as far as he could, and just kept on moving. He couldn't tell us how many days."
"I can't imagine his terror . . . it could have been worse, though; if they'd had him in a city, he'd almost certainly be dead now." The Consul sighed and ran a hand across his face. "He said they all had to leave?"
"I know, sir, that may be significant."
"Any thoughts on a motive?"
"Only two . . . the exotic pet trade, or banned research, which seems more likely, though I can't fathom why either one would be done on Earth."
"Hm. Proximity must have some bearing -- but proximity to what?"
"Impossible to guess."
"All right. What are your procedures so far?"
"We've given a copy of Leeta's DNA data to our trackers, and they're using a trio of sniffer-bots to follow his trail backwards. It's positive, but slow, and we will at least find out where he ran from. Also, we're searching the records of all flights in or out of Terran space for the last five years, with attention to any crate or package big enough to hold his mother. Likewise with any ground or air vehicles within a fifty-mile radius, private, rented, or government-leased. And, we're trying to get the Pentagon to cooperate, but they're . . . being difficult."
"Well, keep it up around the clock, all of it. Expand that search radius to a hundred miles, and take all the men and resources you need. I'll call the President and blow some steam down his collar and see if he can grow enough spine to face down the generals. We can't afford an interstellar war, and for all we know, these kidnappers may have already started one.
"Now, as to Leeta, what are we going to do for him if this goes long-term? We can't just keep him in a lab somewhere, that isn't even lawful, much less humane."
"I know, sir . . . I'll have to get with the legal team on this, but the best I can think of now is to foster him out to a family somewhere . . . "
"A nice family of resident aliens, I should hope . . . just so he isn't forced to be raised by the species that shanghaied his mother . . . "
"We may not need to go that route . . . remember, all of Leeta's own experience with humans has been positive so far . . . most of it, anyway. It'll largely be up to him in the end . . . we'll just have to see, but . . . what about the Griffin Institute?"
"Excellent, I hadn't thought of that; lack of sleep, I think. They have everything there, and our little guest would at least get to grow up among top-tier academia. Give Mr. Griffin a call; he might have something for us. I knew him once, a long time back; he's a good man."
"So I've heard, sir."
"All right, Inspector, I'm going to bed now before I fall over, but don't be afraid to wake me up if you get something important."
"Very well, sir, and thank you."
"Thank you, Inspector. Good night."
*****
I was raised by humans. What's your excuse?
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Lester Curtis
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