Sol Starbase – Main Hangar
As he surveyed the vast docking area he had just stepped into, Commander Hayes felt no relief. Given the company awaiting the four hundred human personnel currently disembarking from the transport ship, there was always a chance that the change of starbase crew rotations won't be finished without incident.
The hangar had been divided into two large sections by a double set of provisional barriers, with the gap between guarded by—humans. On first glance, one might find the fact surprising or even reassuring; however, their silver uniforms would belay any hope even if Hayes had no other indication of why they might be there. These were Androsynth, roughly two dozen of them, undoubtedly some of the members of one half of the outgoing Earthguard contingent.
Hayes thought it likely these people were not selected for their love of their cousins from the planet below. He could see none of their Mycon partners anywhere, which was not surprising given that the sentient fungi lived in vastly different atmospheric conditions than anything present on this space station. The podship that had been visible during the ESV Braudel's approach sprang to his mind.
Being poorly adjusted to the local gas mixture did not stop at least one person from attending the event, however. Catwalks ran along either side of the bay, and above to his right the Commander could see a lone VUX, laser rifle in tentacular 'hand' and a respirator over the green alien's snout. The other occupants along the walkways—and, disturbingly, above the humans—were Ilwrath. Some of the red and black spiders had positioned themselves in the canopy, among the pipes and girders, traversing in between along makeshift webbing. Hayes knew from wartime stories and briefings that they could at any point descend rapidly, dropping by way of the silky ropes they had likely readied.
As he and the Captain led the way towards the break in the barrier, Hayes could make out a couple of Ilwrath positioned groundside, to the flank of the Androsynth unit. His stomach turned a little when he noticed that one of them boasted a flak cannon. If fired upon such a dense group of people as the one rapidly filling up the free space on the floor, the amount of gruesome injuries inflicted would be staggering.
Who else would go for maximum pain and carnage if not the galaxy's premier sadistic psychopaths, Hayes thought.
Finally, the aft of the hangar bay housed the central figure of these proceedings. The lone Ur-Quan weaved among an assortment of thick ropes, which Hayes speculated were installed there specifically for the occasion. The giant caterpillar, basically suspended in mid-air, considered the new arrivals with an expression too alien for their human perceptions to interpret. Peering into the darkened area surrounding the creature, Hayes could make out smaller shapes—a tiny bump on the edge of the catwalk with reflective yellow eyes, and a gaggle of small green aliens on the sides who did their best not to attract notice. The Spathi were here, no doubt to their own misery.
Hayes winced inwardly. Somebody had the bright idea to team them up with the Ilwrath, of all people. In addition to doubting the responsible Ur-Quans' sanity for what had to be the poorest choice of pairing ever made for a long-term deployment, he felt a slight pang of sympathy for the nervous and fearful Spathi who would have to coexist with what was likely their worst nightmare for five long years.
Having reached the checkpoint, the arrivals from Earth stopped at a respectful distance from the Androsynth who stood their ground. Surveying the faces of the closest clones on the other side of the standoff, Hayes could see a variety of expressions—literally, even, because not many of them seemed to be of the same clone lines.
A mousy woman to the left of the gate eyed the crowd of baseline humans warily, hand near holstered sidearm. To her side, a burly man stood with an autocannon pointed threateningly at them, his openly hostile scowl not giving confidence that he would hesitate to mow them down if given the excuse. On the right side of the checkpoint, a dark, wiry man toting what seemed like a shotgun was engaged in conversation with his companion, the latter man acting as if he had no worry in the world. Beside the gate, there was a console, manned by a fellow who was rapidly typing on the interface; with a double-take, Hayes realized that he was a slightly younger 'twin' of one of the guards surveying the mass of people further along the fence. Next to the former clone, a swarthy woman leaned on the barrier with folded arms, considering the foremost of the assembled starbase crew with a blank expression.
What would follow next was already known to the men and women who had come from Earth, thanks to the reports about the previous two occasions when such an arrival took place. The Ur-Quan would notify them of their obligations, and its Battle Thrall servants would scan them for contraband—and the same would be repeated with the crews of four more trasports like theirs. The atmosphere of surveillance was completed by a floating drone that seemed to be on patrol. Hayes recognized it as an Ur-Quan design.
"Greetings! How goes it?" Captain Tarnovetsky's airy greeting and disarming smile seemed to have caught everyone by surprise—even Hayes, to an extent. Then again, defusing the tension by chatting up hostile folk as if they were his buddies does kind of fit the old man, he had to admit, even if he had worries how the 'Synths might react.
The swarthy woman leaning next to the console merely raised an eyebrow. The conversation between the two Androsynth men stopped, the previously nonchalant man now considering the Russian with an open-mouthed squint. The slight woman to the left flinched, almost jumping in place; only the thin console operator seemed not to notice a thing except his screen.
Silence stretched on for a moment. The suspicious glances of the Androsynth were met by Tarnovetsky's innocent-looking face.
"And you are?" asked the squinting one. Politeness sure isn't this one's strong suit.
"Captain Andrei Tarnovetsky, soon to be administrator of this fair base. Pleased to meet you," the Russian retorted, unflapped by his interlocutor's lack of cordiality.
"Hmm. Well, the pleasure is all yours, primitive."
"Hey, how about you pay the Captain back with some respect of your own, asshole?," a bald and buff man to Hayes's right snapped back. Uh-oh...
"That'll be enough, Corporal," Hayes intervened, not really knowing the man next to him beyond his rank. Things could spin out of control; if heads did not remain cool, the consequences could be dire.
The belligerent Androsynth was now grinning unpleasantly, and some of the other clones clasped their weapons more tightly, sensing potential danger. The man behind the machine gun scowled deeper, his finger playing on the side of the trigger. The leaning woman now stepped forward, alarm subtly but surely written on her face. Her gaze darted between the other Androsynth, some of whom turned to consider her, as if her looks were words.
Tarnovetsky now spoke in all seriousness, hands gesturing ahead placatingly. "Please, calm down, everyone. We are all good people here, there's no need for any of-"
"Silence."
The voice, deep and authoritative, seemed to come from within Hayes's own head. The unnerving command caused more than a few of the assembled humans to flinch, though the nearby Androsynth tended to react much more reservedly, with only a few of them turning to look at the green behemoth who uttered it.
Hardly a breath could be heard, despite the presence of hundreds of beings in the chamber.
"The time has come to usher in a new cycle aboard this starbase," the Ur-Quan boomed. "Welcome to Kishq Hazarrka-Pur Station", the name actually coming off as a harsh string difficult to make sense of to a human, "renamed in honor of the late commander of the Second Fleet Group of the Ur-Quan Kzer-Za, 5th Master in the Hierarchy, who perished at Delta Gorno following a long and distinguished service. In death, he earned his name." The caterpillar-like alien hissed, taking a long breath.
"Earthlings. You have been chosen by your peers, as representatives of the best your race has to offer. For the good of your own kind and of us all, you will not disappoint in the fulfillment of your duties." The Ur-Quan gestured with its tentacle-hands, shifting on its perch. "I am Master 157, sent here with the mandate of overseeing the transfer of responsibilities to this new rotation from the slave planet Earth. In this task I will be aided by elements of the Earthguard, some of which are about to begin their watch over yourselves and your homeworld. They will be based on this planet's moon. You are not to contact them, or vice versa. Remember: the Ur-Quan are always watching, and violations of your Oath of Fealty will be punished severely."
A glowing holographic haptic interface materialized in front of the Master.
"Prior to your arrival, you have had ample time to familiarize yourselves with the regulations governing your conduct aboard this starbase, as well as the skills needed to manage its functions. You will do a fine job. However, before you are dismissed to your stations in order to complete your first repair and refuel tasks, there is a single matter to address, on these very premises."
Taking a moment's pause, Master 157 continued, "Throughout the Ur-Quan struggle along the Path of Now and Forever, our Fallow Slaves have not always adhered to the responsibilities they had promised to uphold. Section 23 of the Fealty Statute was breached with particular frequency, through slaves' treacherous attempts at smuggling illicit materials aboard their assigned station." Hayes thought he detected a note of derision in the alien's mental voice.
He also hoped that all the prospective starbase personnel knew better than to test the Ur-Quan's detection measures. The commanding officers certainly did their best, drilling into people the admonition not to be a hero, and making sure that everyone got a bodily screening before being admitted aboard the Braudel. There was no room for mistakes.
"Do not test our patience, Earthlings. If any of you have such designs, disclose them immediately. I give you my word that any who do so shall be punished with the greatest lenience allowed by Ur-Quan law."
Quiet followed, stretching on for a full minute. Nobody stepped forward.
With a sharp intake of breath, Master 157 spoke again. "Very well, you have made your choice. You are to proceed one by one through the central gate. Once you are cleared, move with expedience and wait on the other side of the hangar. Sentinels, proceed with the search."
Master 157's personal drone floated into position next to the gate. The machine's reddish-green coloration resembled that of an Ur-Quan, though the drone only had one large eye-camera, rather than three. It had an assortment of arms with different tools at the ends, some of them doubtlessly weapons. Hayes presumed that the drone would be scanning everyone who passes by.
Tarnovetsky let out a breath. Hayes looked at him, and the Captain returned likewise. Nodding slightly, he proceeded towards the gate, Hayes following immediately. Tarnovetsky approached without hesitation, moving through without incident.
Hayes went forward then, feeling the eyes of so many people in the room on him, both human and alien. It was stifling, as were the quiet and his own racing mind. He knew he brought no contraband, that he followed every regulation, yet there was that nagging doubt that somehow, an alarm would blare as he wound his way through. Well, I'm about to find out.
The Androsynth man at the terminal kept his eyes on it, paying Hayes no heed. The woman who had been observing silently, however, held his gaze until he passed her, face impassive. No alarm was triggered, no shouts were made, no guns drawn. Hayes just joined Tarnovetsky on the other side, silently turning to observe the others as they went through one by one.
Ten, twenty, thirty. So far, so good. A few whispers began to be heard on their side of the fence. The tension slowly gave ground to cautious relief.
Hayes lost count of the number at that point. The minutes dragged on.
And then it all went to hell.