The Loss of Innocence
19 Aug 2019Falcon15e
It wasn’t that long really - only a few months but even then with some tight restrictions. The Type-2 had been sold for salvage and replaced by a shiny new Sidewinder. But Kaisla had to nearly promise away every single credit, prayer and miracle in order to get her dad to allow her to fly it. The first moment had been magical. The interior still smelled of adhesive, brand new electronics and pressure gel from the seats (made to synth real leather!) She could almost hear the salesman ooze. Her first flight, although rocky, was just as magical. She remembered very clearly the moment when her dad lifted them from the port and accelerated the small craft out into the void. Safely in space (and far away from anything she could hit) he passed her the controls and over the next few hours, he taught her the intricate art of maneuvering the ship with the new reactionary thrusters (no more ducted ventilators for her, ohhh no!) Lambast sat in the back of the cockpit watching the tutelage with mild-boredom, occasionally glancing up from her studies on Imperial entrance exams to pass the odd comment toward Kaisla, “Kai! I’ve seen wounded athars fly better than that!” Kai would shoot her a look and wrinkle her nose up in mock-Imperial snobbery. She wasn’t sure why she had invited her.
Now, seated behind the controls she had wondered why the moment had seemed so magical. Long-gone was the fresh new smell. Now the only thing she could smell was cattle shit. Her dad busied himself in the aft, ensuring the livestock was prepped for off-load. Kai sat at the controls queued up behind a long line of freighters awaiting entry into Cleve Hub. Randomly she would flick at the stupid cow bobble head her dad had glued to the console. It grinned at her stupidly as its head wobbled too and fro. “Dumb cow....”
Finally her headset crackled, “Sidewinder 5582E sequence five, cleared for docking, pad two niner.”
Kai snapped out of her trance long enough to hastily grasp the controls and respond. “5582 Echo cleared for pad two nine!” She added a liberal (maybe too liberal) amount of thrust and rocketed the Sidewinder forward. A loud thump and cursing from the aft reminded her that her dad was back there. “What the hell Kai?! Easy on those! They have reactionary-“ Kai finished his statement, “Yeah, yeah, reactionary lag, I know; sorry they just cleared us.”
Her dad strapped into the seat just aft of the pilots chair. “Exciting huh? Look at how big it is compared to us!”
“Daaa-ad, this isn’t my first visit to a space station!”
“I know, I know...you just grow up so quickly,” He places a brown-smeared hand on her shoulder and lovingly gives it a squeeze. “Pretty soon, this whole farm will be yours.”
Kaisla looks down at the fingers globing on her shoulder, “Dad! This is my best flight suit!”
He smiles sheepishly removing his hand. “Sorry, sorry.....I forgot. Now when we get down there, I’ll handle the off-load and then have to go into processing with the livestock while they do their quality testing on them. So, its going to be a few hours. After the off-load, stay on our internal comms and you can take the Sidewinder for a spin....NO ag stations though, understand?”
Kai looks at her dad, “For real?!”
He reaches for the controls, jinking the Sidewinder to barely miss a floating advertising droid, “KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE DOCK!”
She docks the sidewinder smoothly and keeps out of the way, going over the checklist again to ensure the Sidewinder was completely shut down while her dad handled the off-load. He pops his head back in the cockpit, “Hey kiddo, cattles’ off, lets walk down to the docks to ensure they make it into bay safely then I shouldn’t need you for a few hours.” She replaces the thick checklist back in its cubby and climbs out of the cockpit.
They navigate the massive station, taking two transport shuttles and a transit train to get to the expansive livestock bays. Buried deep within the station is a singular room that spans nearly the size of four football pitches aligned in a square. Huge ventilators and feeding chutes line the ceilings to individual pens. Several large alleys separate the pens where automated carts assist in offloading and hoarding the cattle into individual holding pens while the steer sequence through an individual gate. At the gate, each steer gets an additional tag, a series of injections (to prevent disease or infection) and then a scan to verify the weight and health of the steer. Each steer is then graded on weight and health and assigned an automated cost. As the steer are loaded into the larger pen, the total count is automatically tallied and sent to the operations office. Here a clerk monitors the status of each pen and also verifies the computer transaction from the seller to buyer. The seller then has to wait until his or her turn in sequence and a lengthy amount of paperwork is rushed through before a credit transaction is agreed upon and the sale tendered between the seller, customs, station services and tax authorities. The process typically takes an average seller about three hours.
After the tally-up and corral process, Kai’s dad turns to her. “Okay, that’s all of them. Now the fun part.” He holds the ignition FOB out to Kai and grins. She reaches to snatch it before he pulls it back. “Tsk, promise to be safe?”
“Yes.” Kai deadpans.
“Not to joy ride?”
“No.” Kai deadpans.
“Not to piss of station security, wreck my new ship, daredevil through any farming stations or wreck my new ship?”
“Dad, you said wreck the ship twice.” Kai deadpans.
“Yeah, I know, that’s cause I don’t want you to wreck my new ship,” Her dad turns and walks toward the Operations office.
“DAAA-AD!” Kai wails.
Her dad tosses the fob over his shoulder, “Love you!”
She catches the fob mid chest and then sprints off toward the tram.
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As Kaisla hops off the tram and starts to weaver her way through the crowd of the tram station, she stops into a shop and buys a packet of synth wafers (crisps or potato chips). She hears a familiar voice call her name.
“KAI! HEY KAI!”
She turns at the familiar voice, “Astro! Hey!”
He rushes up to her, face flush and out of breath. “Hey, saw you get off the tram...too packed. My mom and I are here so she can sell some of her crops. You and your dad selling your shit factories?”
She laughs as she pays for the packet of snacks and heads for the door holding up the fob. “I’m just about to go fly our new Sidewinder.”
“Shut up!” Astro yells chasing after her, “I’m surprised your dad would even let you NEAR a set of flight controls after what happened with the Type-2!”
She turns and presents Astro a nasty grin, “Ya can’t keep a good pilot down my Dad always says!”
“Bullshit!” Astro says following her to the bus station. “Yeah, but he needs me to help fly while we do the harvest.” Kai says pocketing the fob. “Can you come?”
“I gotta comms my mom and ask.” Astro says while he fumbles in his pocket for his comm link.
“Yeah but don’t mention the Sidewinder!” Kaisla shushes toward him.
A brief few minutes later both kids clamber into the cockpit of the Sidewinder.
“Haha, will you quit gawking at everything!” Kai says while she attempts to look casual firing up the ships systems from memory.
An automated voice chimes on, “Young Commander, I wish to fulfill your request but you’ve missed steps 12, 32, 38 and 40 from the checklist.”
“Otto shut up!” Kai yells into thin air.
“Wow! Its got a COVAS?!” Astro yells.
“Yeah, my dad paid a fortune for it.” Kai says while she quickly completes the missed checklist steps.
The kids take the Sidewinder out and Kai unwisely takes runs through the orbital arms while they scoot around the station playing hide and seek from the security patrol. After several hours of toying around until they were both bored daring each other to do crazier and crazier stunts with the new ship, Kai and Astro sit staring out the cockpit window at Eravate 2 as it drifts lazily through space talking about their grand futures in smuggling and piracy. A soft beeping noise pulls Kai out of the wistful discussion. Her slate indicates the alarm she had set before taking off leaving the heard pens. Precisely two hours had elapsed and her dad still hadn’t messaged her.
She leaned forward and started powering up various systems to start the docking sequence while Astro droned on in the jump seat.
“Kai, what are we doing?” He asks after finally catching on.
“We’re heading back into port,” Kai responds pre-occupied. “Dad hasn’t messaged yet and its worrying me. He usually doesn’t take this long even on the busier days.”
After re-docking the Sidewinder and making her way to the holding pens, Kai and Astro walked through the central passageway between the livestock berthing. “Ugh it smells in here. I’m glad we farm veggies.” Astro says while he stares around the expansive bay.
Kai ignores him as she sees her dad and another man talking at the bottom of the stairs to the Operations Office. Her dad looks distressed. Another man approaches her dad from behind and grabs him by the arms.
Kaisla grabs Astro and ducks behind a feeding bin by his protests. “Shut up! SHUT UP!” Kaisla hisses at Astro as she pulls him down. “My Dad is in trouble. Some man just grabbed him.” Astro peeks around the bin, “Well that’s not right. We can call up stations security. I’m sure they got it on camera.”
“No stupid!” Kaisla whispers, “Not in here, they only have a camera in the Operations Office and ones covering the rows of pens! They’re behind that last set of pens, the camera’s wouldn’t have seen ‘em cause the retainer walls are too tall.”
Astro scrunches up his face as he tries to see what’s happening. “They’re gone.”
“What?!” Kaisla almost yells. She peeks out from behind the bin. “Shit, c’mon, lets go!” She drags Astro out, pulling him along the walk way toward the edge of the pen.
“Wait, why, why don’t we just tell the operations person or something?” Kaisla shoves him back from the edge of the pen while she peeks down the dark wall to a lone door with a light over it.
“Because stupid, the operations guy might be in on whatever is happening.” Kai drags Astro around the corner and sneaks up along the wall toward the door. As she nears the door she can hear frantic whispering.
“We told you, $500,000 no less. Your haul today was only $275,000.”
“Please,” Kaisla can hear her dad plead, “We had a minor infection outbreak and then 15 cows had calves, I couldn’t cash them in this haul because the calves are still weaning. You have to understand. I can make it up to you next haul, next haul, I promise.”
“Listen bud,” She can hear another man talking this time. “The deal was $500,000. You asked for the loan and my employer approved it. Now you pay up as per the deal.”
Her dad pleads further, “But it was only a $125,000 loan so I could float the farm a bit further and afford the new Sidewinder. With that new ship, I can get my harvest in twice as fast and twice a year instead of once.”
“Listen buddy,” The other stranger grits through his teeth, “I don’t care why you needed the money, that’s between you and the boss. All I know is you owe interest and our fee. $500,000 that’s it.”
“I can’t, I don’t have it!” Her dad pleads.
“That’s too bad for you,” The other man says as he produces a pistol.
A shot rings out. Kaisla’s father doubles over, a red strain quickly oozing through his shirt and fingers wrapped tightly around the wound. He looks up at the man. Kaisla screams. Three sets of eyes look to the door where Kaisla is now standing. Her Dads eyes plead to her. Run.
“Get those fucking kids!” The man with the pistol yells at his buddy.
Kaisla grabs Astro by the arm and they sprint. She hears another shot go off as she rounds the pen but it goes wide. The operations clerk tears the door open, “Hey what the hell!” Kaisla can’t hear him. All she can hear is her boots pounding on the steel floor and her heart beating through her ear drums. Her breath comes in ragged edges at the reduced pressure in the station. Tears stream down her face as she swallows sobs behind lung fulls of air. As she passes the middle pen, she grabs the pen gate lever and wrenches on it. Astro stumbles, regains his footing and grabs the other handle. Both kids pull hard, veins bulging beneath their necks as the rusty pen doors creak open. Kaisla kicks the door hard as she releases the lever and starts screaming at the steer. They’re already agitated at the gunshot and sound of yelling and screaming. All of her rage boils over and she screams with everything she’s got.
The kids make their way back to the market area near the trams. The two panicked kids, one bawling quickly draws a crowd as people part to let them through, “Quick, Astro, lets split up, get back to your mom, they didn’t see you. I don’t think they’ll figure out you were with me.”
Astro out of breath, “Kay, what are you going to do?”
Kaisla shoves the mop of silver hair behind her ear, “I’m going to get back to the Sidewinder. I have to get home and warn my mom. She’ll know what to do.”
“Okay, Kai,” Astro gives her a quick hug. “Call me later?”
“Yah!” Kai shouts over her shoulder as she hops on the bus back to the docking bay.
By the time she makes it back, station security is already starting to lock down the docking bay. The operations clerk in the livestock pen had reported the gunshot and now word was getting around that two unidentified men had been shooting at two kids. But security was slow as there was a stampeded in the livestock bay. The distraction was just long enough for Kai to get into the Sidewinder and get the aircraft launched. She flies back to Eravate 2 in a daze. She can’t even remember the re-entry sequence or programming the navigation computer for home.
It doesn’t matter. As she descends through the dust and smoke, the haze parts to show her home, burned to the ground. Her mom’s dead body lays out in the open dirt, almost burned beyond recognition. Kai quickly lands the Sidewinder and hurriedly throws on a pressure suit. She reaches her mom’s body and drags it back to the ramp of the Sidewinder. Its no good, even as she gets to the ramp, Otto’s voice morosely states, “I’m sorry Young Commander. There are no vital signs evident.”
Kaisla pulls her mothers body to her chest and starts to sob. She’s not sure how long she was there or how much time had passed. In the time it took the sun to settle below the horizon, two bright spot lights pierce the haze. Kaisla is torn from her mourning to see the spotlights. She drags her mothers body fully onto the ship and tells Otto to crank the aircraft. By the time she is strapping into the cockpit chair, the spotlights are on the Sidewinder, the vehicles almost on top of the ship. Kaisla fires the thrusters, turning the first vehicle over in the reduced gravity.
Kaisla tries to call Astro, as promised. Astro’s personal comms link doesn’t connect. “That’s weird.” She thinks as she dials up the farmstead line. A strange voice answers. Kaisla cuts the line immediately. “That wasn’t Astro or his parents.” She states to Otto.
Otto chimes in, “Where shall I set the navigation computer to Commander?” Kaisla thinks for a minute. “Lambasts. She’ll know what to do.”
Kaisla leans forward, touching the cow bobble head gently before pulling it off the dash and holding it tightly to her chest. Silently, she starts to cry again.