Chapter One: Distress Call

Kiyone Makibi had been hoping to be a bit further along by the time of her tenth year as a Galaxy Police Detective.

Clad in her uniform, the curvaceous blue-haired police officer leaned back. She shifted in her seat uneasily. One black-clad long leg was propped over her other as she stared into the vastness of space. A glance to one side revealed Mihoshi channel surfing for Earth radio waves. The dark-skinned blonde had worn her skintight orange jumpsuit uniform. All without being told to. So that was progress.

The childlike glee she was consuming television left a lot to be desired.

"Uh, is there anything more boring than waiting for speeders in this part of the galaxy," mused Kiyone. "As if anyone around here can speed anymore. Nobody other than Jurai and Earth can even fly here, Jurai does what it wants, and Earth isn't capable of making warp 1.

"I miss pre-contact days.

"Back then, people actually used this place to take shortcuts."

Assigned to a remote post for years, Kiyone had been with no other duties than speeding tickets. Now they didn't even have that. Turning on the radio, she checked the news.

"And in other news, Earthling Universities are still open," said a newscaster. "Despite their amassed knowledge being out of date, many Earthlings cling to the past."

"Not this again; they keep talking about this no matter what we do," said Kiyone.

"What's so special about Earth colleges anyway, Kiyone?" asked Mihoshi, bubbly blue eyes turning her way. "I mean, the Galaxy University is way better than anyone."

"Yeah, but Earthlings have a very short lifespan," said Kiyone. "And toward the end of it, they lose their sense.

"You have to study for like, sixty years to qualify as a professor. And a lot of courses take as long as ten years to go through. Earthlings don't really have time for that, so they have to keep their own schools."

"But why not use ours?" asked Mihoshi.

"Most of the good jobs require some kind of degree," said Kiyone with a shrug. "And degrees just take too much of an Earthlings life."

"Wow, that's um, pretty sad," said Mihoshi. "Still, I'm sure with all the benefits Jurai has been bringing them, they've got a lot of time to sit back and relax."

"Suicide rates are at their highest point in Earth's history," said Kiyone. She remembered why she'd felt so bitter. Policing Earth had been like watching a nice old mansion decay into nothingness.

It had started beautiful but uncomfortable and not a place you'd want to live long-term. But now, it was falling to pieces without maintenance. Pretty soon, it would get ripped down and replaced by a newer building. And no one would even remember the old one.

"Wow, that's um... pretty bad," said Mihoshi. "But why would that happen?"

"All the good jobs on Earth are gone now," said Kiyone. "They've been made obsolete by technology. Most skilled positions can only be filled by someone with psychic power. Earthlings have no psychic power at all. They're also mentally unstable, physically inferior, and far more fragile."

"Well, they didn't seem mentally unstable at all when we were on Earth, Kiyone," said Mihoshi. "We went undercover there all the time."

"Because back then, there was something to work toward," said Kiyone. "They had dreams of colonizing other planets and traveling in space. It was something that they considered nigh impossible. Then Jurai revealed itself. It turned out their own governments had been considered a colony all their time.

"Jurai came in and declared their entire history was a lie. What they viewed as their great achievements were barely baby steps. Steps that everyone else had taken ages ago with a lot less trouble.

"Earthling doctors don't have jobs anymore since Jurai power works better in every way. Academics and industries are all obsolete. You can hardly blame them for not wanting to abandon the old system."

"But people on Earth don't die of disease or war or anything anymore," noted Mihoshi.

"Maybe," said Kiyone. "But I sometimes wonder if-" Kiyone cut that line of thought off. "Nevermind, this is all depressing. Do you want me to get you a soda, Mihoshi? I'm going to get myself one."

She stood up, stretching in a way that would have drawn attention to her ample chest. If there had actually been someone around to appreciate it.

"Yes, of course," said Mihoshi.

Kiyone walked back in, sighing as she got the sodas she promised. Bringing them back to Mihoshi, they were diet, they opened them. "Is it just me, or does the universe really seem like it gets a little bit bleaker every day?" asked Kiyone.

"Well, that's why we're here," said Mihoshi. "We're galaxy police operatives, and we defend the peace."

"Sure, whatever you say," said Kiyone, sipping. Then she halted as the Yagami's scanners went off. "Hang on... Mihoshi, look at this!"

This wasn't normal at all.

"What is it?" asked Mihoshi.

"I've got a distress signal from the Mars Colony. It's a priority alert," said Kiyone.

"Didn't the Mars Colony blow up ten years ago," said Mihoshi.

"Yes, and they never found any of the bodies," said Kiyone. "So they rebuilt it, and that one blew up. Then because they couldn't take a hint, Earth built another Mars colony, and that one blew up. This is the latest one. I'm trying to home in on the signal now."

"Why do they use such weird tech, Kiyone?" asked Mihoshi as Kiyone worked.

"They can't use our tech," said Kiyone. "And their tech isn't nearly as advanced. Now quiet, I need to take this."

"Hello, this is Tenchi Masaki of the Mars Space Colony Odysseus. I'm stranded and alone down here. Everyone else here has just vanished, and I'm not trained in operating any spacecraft.

"If anyone is receiving this signal, please help."

The voice was not terrified, more concerned.

"...Should we go after it?" asked Kiyone.

Mars Colony was supposed to be Earthling territory. But if there had been a disaster, shouldn't she help? Earth was fiercely protective of the few gray areas they had left.

"Well, why not?" asked Mihoshi. "We're Galaxy Police, Kiyone! Our job is to stop bad guys and save people!"

"Yeah, but Earth is really touchy about the Mars colonies," said Kiyone. "There was an international incident when one of the Jurai Royals tried to land."

"Well doesn't this Tenchi guy need help?" asked Mihoshi. "I mean, who else is gonna save him if not us?"

Kiyone nodded. "You know what, Mihoshi. You're right. We'll set course for Mars."

And off they went.

Mars was red and bleak as always. It had specifically been left alone, at least until the First Contact Mission. One of the jobs Kiyone had been tasked with was making reports on Earthling's progress. When they'd pulled off a mission to Mars, however, it had blindsided everyone. Kiyone had heard nothing about any of that.

It had been a profoundly awkward experience, to say the least.

Since that time, they had been several different Mars bases. Each one had its own energy shield and terraforming project. All of the old ones had lasted long enough to have a patch or two of green that survived. But no one had repurposed the old.

Kiyone did a scan of the surface.

"Patch me through to the source of the signal," said Kiyone. "I've got a lock on the base." One of five at this point.

Mihoshi did that with some difficulty.

"Attention Tenchi Masaki, this is Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police," said Kiyone. "We are receiving your distress call and are here to assist. Please respond, over."

Silence.

"...I repeat, we are here to assist your distress call. Please respond, over," said Kiyone.

"Do you think someone got him?" asked Mihoshi.

"I don't know, but..." Kiyone paused. "There's probably just a mechanical problem. We should keep trying."

"But Kiyone, if we keep trying, what if he can't respond and someone hurts him?" asked Mihoshi. "We can't wait that long."

Kiyone considered the situation and how useful Mihoshi would be. That is to say, not at all. "...Alright, I'm going to go down there in the assault armor, Mihoshi. Stay up here, and try to reestablish contact. Do. Not. Follow. Me. Until I give the all-clear."

"Right!" said Mihoshi.

Kiyone didn't believe her. "No, I need you to repeat after me. I need to hear you say it."

"Do not follow you until you give the all-clear," said Mihoshi.

"Right," said Kiyone. "We'd better report what's going on here to the GP headquarters. Patch me through." Mihoshi could probably handle that.

"You got it, Kiyone," said Mihoshi, pressing buttons. "Um... something is wrong."

Kiyone got static. Several other tries got exactly the same result. "Static.

"But this is a GP cruiser. The psychic transmitter should be able to get to the HQ no matter what kind of interference is going on. I... I don't like this.

"Do you think we should get out of range and try to call in?" asked Kiyone.

"But Tenchi could get hurt down there," said Mihoshi. "We don't know if he can take care of himself."

Kiyone reflected Mihoshi was right. This was something she had to handle. "...Okay, this is what we'll do. I'll go down there in the assault armor. As soon as I do, you take the ship far enough out of range to make a call to the Galaxy Police. Once you do that, come back here, and stay in orbit while trying to make contact.

"Got it?

"Do not follow under any circumstances. I'll be a lot more vulnerable with you there."

"What?" asked Mihoshi. "What do you mean? We're partners?"

Oh, right, Mihoshi thought she was a real police officer. And she also had high-up relatives who had arranged for her to pass the exams—time to make something up. "Well... um, yeah, but see... the bad guys might take one of us hostage. And then it might end up like in one of those Earth TV shows where they shoot the secondary character. I don't want Tenchi to get hurt.

"So I should go down there alone. That way, they'll either take me hostage, and I'll be saved by Tenchi, or they'll take him hostage, and I'll save him."

"Wow, you're so smart, Kiyone," said Mihoshi.

"Right, and the best part is that if the bad guys make a run for it, you can stop them," said Kiyone. "Now, I have to beam down."

Out Kiyone went.

Kiyone Makibi was thirty-four, which meant she had millennia ahead of her to work on her career. She'd been told that once you hit your first century, the impatience died down a bit, but she was feeling it hard. Part of the problem was that she'd been working near-Earth, and things changed quickly there.

People died quickly.

If Kiyone were from Earth, her life would be a third over. The prospect of that kind of mortality bugged her. But it hadn't bugged Mihoshi, who didn't really pay attention. Mihoshi hadn't noticed when the guy who ran the karaoke machines was out sick. She didn't notice that hospitals on Earth had people in them all the time.

But that was all solved now.

The nightmare was over.

"Honestly, babysitting Mihoshi is like herding cats," muttered Kiyone. "How did she graduate the academy?

"...I probably shouldn't hold it against her."

Getting the assault armor on and beaming down to Mars was fairly easy. Kiyone had to wonder why she had been feeling so infuriated with Mihoshi lately. It had been little flashes, moments where she resented her.

They'd only been partners ten years.

Mihoshi shouldn't bug Kiyone like this. It wasn't Mihoshi's fault that the Kuramitsu family had pulled strings for her to graduate. Nor had it been Mihoshi's fault that Kiyone had actually tried to help her with the written exam. It hadn't been her fault they'd been assigned as partners and put out here.

It had been... somebody else's fault.

What was Kiyone doing? People could be dead down there, and she was thinking about Mihoshi! What was wrong with her? Earthlings were people!

She activated the beaming sequence.

Moving across the barren landscape, she came to the shields. Passing through them, Kiyone saw a wide variety of moss. Growths that tied down soil without taking a lot, engineered by Earth scientists. Earth science was not like the science of Jurai; it wasn't about creating. It was able to control what was and harnessing natural forces.

People could be dead or dying.

That was another thing Kiyone had begun to notice.

Earthlings were... beneath notice. It wasn't a conscious thing on her part that it happened. But when Kiyone and Mihoshi had gone down to Earth, the people had been difficult to notice. It was like they were a formless interchangeable mass, with a few exceptions. And they were the center of attention. Once or twice they'd spent a few months there to research events.

No matter how many part-time jobs Mihoshi screwed up, they always got another one. No one ever sued them for damages. It was like they became the center of the universe. Like everyone on Earth was just a background character.

Kiyone had to force herself to think of other people. To know the name of their landlady. As she did that, her own problems had seemed insignificant.

"Well, this place looks..." mused Kiyone. "Recent.

"No sign of any gunfire or plasma fire. Everything is perfectly intact. Longrange scanners are picking up no lifeforms except... wait, there's one. Probably Tenchi."

Kiyone moved toward the facility. It was quite extensive, having only one floor. There looked to be a communications tower and a garage. Judging by the scale, Kiyone reflected it must have been designed for a lot of people. Dozens, maybe as many as a hundred.

Then again, Earthling equipment was usually designed for efficiency first. This was a military operation, so it was probably minimum size. So a hundred seemed more likely.

The power armor stomped forward relentlessly under the sun. Eventually, Kiyone came to the door. Pressing several buttons on her armor, she sent wires out to interface with the system. It slid open, and she stopped forward, blaster readied.

The lights were all on and bright. And through a windowed door, Kiyone saw who she assumed was Tenchi Masaki. He was a tan-skinned Asian with dark hair and average features. Yet, there was something about him. He didn't fade like a lot of Earthlings did, and he was uncannily well-formed.

"Stay where you are, please," said Tenchi. "I'd like to know who you are and what you want before you open this door."

"Oh, the device," said Kiyone, voice modulated. "I'm Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police. I'm here to rescue you."

"Oh, thank goodness," said Tenchi. "I thought you might have been some kind of hostile alien or something." He opened the door.

"Well, I was thinking exactly the same thing," said Kiyone, the door shutting behind her. "Let me just get out of here after you shut that door." Her scanners said the entire facility was operating perfectly.

Deactivating her power armor, Kiyone allowed it to fall apart around her. It removed itself from her curvaceous form and left her standing in her normal uniform.

"Oh, you're a woman," said Tenchi.

"Yeah, well, the armor isn't exactly formfitting," said Kiyone. "So what happened here?"

"I have no idea," said Tenchi.

Well, that didn't help at all. Kiyone sighed. "...Can you elaborate."

"Alright," said Tenchi. "My job is farming. I'm a farmer. I work in the atrium to grow the vegetables and fruits this colony uses. Rations are all well and good, but they get old."

"I thought Earth's military didn't care about comfort," said Kiyone. She brushed a strand of hair away, hoping he found her attractive. Then she remembered that Earthlings didn't think of themselves as physical. It was considered taboo by a lot of them. Most cultures had a deep-seated loathing of their own bodies.

So merely finding someone sexy was considered sinful, even among 'liberated' groups.

"Well, it's not a big priority," said Tenchi. "But they do care about morale. And having some real food now and then really helps with that. I woke up two days ago, and everyone was gone."

"Everyone?" asked Kiyone.

"Yeah," said Tenchi. "No new ships came in or left, so they can't have gone that way. They also left behind all their clothes."

Kiyone halted. "Was anything odd happening before this vanishing happened?"

"Well, I'm not exactly a social butterfly," said Tenchi. "But there were some weird rumors.

"The different sections of the facility are kept locked down with no interaction. Well, I guess officers can move around in an emergency. But when we deliver supplies, we put them between two doors. Then the other people get it. Other than the Commander and his officers, nobody sees anyone else. No one knows what anyone else is working on either."

"That's a bit paranoid, isn't it?" asked Kiyone.

"I just work here," said Tenchi. "I came here because I wanted to do something with my life. I had the chance to live in complete security and luxury on Earth. But, well, I like working with my hands."

Kiyone nodded. "...Alright, we can figure this out later. For now, I need to make contact with Mihoshi." Raising a communication channel, she spoke. "Mihoshi, Mihoshi come in. We need evac."

No one replied.