Blood on the Stars - Part 1: Secrets & Lies - CH. 4 (1)

Bright light woke Hans from his sleep. Blindly, he reached for button to shut the blinds thinking he had left them up. He jabbed at the button and heard the light whirr of the blinds moving, but the light stayed the same. With a groan Hans opened his eyes to see the last bit of the blinds recede into the wall slot. It was dark outside, he could see the lights of the city, but that was not where the bright light that had awoken him had come from.

Hans looked down towards the floor to see the light spilling out from under his bed. Hans stabbed blindly at the button to bring the blinds back down and hoped no one would notice the light coming from his window before they could close fully. Taking a deep breath, he leaned down to peek under his bed at the artefact. Tears came to his eyes as he attempted to look directly at the light that was streaming out from under his bed.

Hans sat there for a moment and tried to wrap his head around what was happening. He needed to douse the light, but there was no way that he could get close enough to it with how bright it was right now. Grabbing a blanket, he threw it under the bed, hoping to get it on top of the artefact. He knew he was successful when the light dimmed slightly. It was just enough that so that he could look under his bed without any pain. He dragged it out and wrapped the blanket tighter around it to douse the light a bit more.

Hans sat on the edge of the bed, holding the bundled artefact, entirely unsure what do with it. A glance at the time told him that he had two hours before he needed to get up for work. There was only one thing he could think to try at this point. Squeezing his eyes shut as tightly as he could, he unwrapped the artefact and threw it as hard as could at the wall.

Almost at the moment he heard the second thump of the artefact hitting the floor the light stopped. Hans opened his eyes, blinking at the afterimages that the light had left behind and stumbled his way towards where it had fallen, split into two again. He hit the button, hoping that this would stop whatever he had started and stood back as the artefact put itself back together again. There was no beep this time and he hoped that was a good thing.

Hans looked down at the artefact and back at his bed and sighed. It was too much excitement for him to get back to bed now and far too many worries that he was left with. He bundled up the artefact in the blanket again and shoved it as far under his bed as he could. There was only one thing he could think to do now and that was to go to work.

Even though his morning had gotten off to such a rough start, Hans was enjoying the silence of an early morning in the office. He was able to get all his daily admin duties done before the first person walked in for the day. It was a nice change for him to have all his work done before he had to do any lessons or charters. He even managed to get a few extras done as well as looking into a way to be able to get back into the cavern and still be able to see.

So far there was nothing that he could find that would do the trick and not cost him an arm and a leg. There were a few things he had thought about that would work, but it was all military technology and he knew no one that owed him that big of a favour and could keep their mouth shut. It was really starting to seem hopeless. What he really needed was help.

“In early today.” Duke managed to sneak up on him once again and Hans jumped at the sound of his voice.

“Yeah, couldn’t sleep.”  Hans pushed aside the display and rested his head in his hand. “What can I do for you Duke?”

“Just wishing you a good morn is all and I wanted to touch base about that long haul charter to five-C-four with those miners.”  Duke walked in uninvited and sat in the chair across from Hans. “Seems Nav has come down with a bit of the flu and won’t be in for a few days. Everyone else is booked right up.”

“I can fly it by myself then I guess.” Hans closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “We need to get someone hired pretty quick, maybe two someones.”

“I’m on it, but you can’t fly that charter yourself. It’s too long of a haul, not to mention that ship requires two pilots on it. And company policy is clear on that one too.”  

Hans looked up at Duke and bit back the anger in his voice. “Well what else can we do? We can’t cancel that charter. It’s too large of an account.”

“I’m not just a pretty around here Hans. I may be the head mechanic and your right hand man, but I am certified to fly – I just usually don’t.” Duke scratched at the stubble on his chin and frowned. “I don’t like flying, but I can do it and you need a co-pilot. End of story. Marietta can handle ground operations while we’re both gone.”

“Yeah, okay.” Hans glanced at the time. “Guess we’ll start the pre-flight check in about an hour or so?”

“Sounds good.” Duke stood to leave and then squinted at display. “Thinking of going for a star walk or something?”
Hans glanced at the display, he still had his last search up on it. “Just planning a vacation to a sunny destination. I’m light sensitive.”

“Really? Have anything to do with your last vacation?” Duke reached out and pulled the display over so that he could see it better. “Hmmmm…”

Hans stood up and yanked the screen away from Duke and turned the display off. “What do you think you’re doing? Seriously, Duke, what is it?”

Duke planted his hands on the desk and leaned forward. “We may have come to a bit of a truce, but I know something fishy when I see it. Ever since that incident over the Mantou Islands you’ve been acting strange and slightly distracted.”

“What I do in my free time is none of your business.” Hans kept his voice low and mirrored Duke’s stance, leaving less than a foot between them. “And frankly, I could officially reprimand you for your behavior right now, but I’m not going to…this time.”

“This time? Oh, really?” Duke glared at Hans. “And what about you using work time for your personal little secret? Maybe I should report that?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Hans gritted his teeth. It was getting to be a challenge to keep his voice low.

“I’m not the one being ridiculous here. You are up to something, I know it, and I am going to find out what it is.”

“It’ll tell you what it is. It’s none of your business. Now get out of my office and I’ll see you for the pre-flight check at 0900h.”

Duke stormed out of Hans’ office, slamming the door behind him. Hans slumped back in his chair and closed his eyes. He hadn‘t intended to make an enemy out Duke again. It was the last thing he wanted right now with having to already hide his tracks from the Armed Forces. He turned the display back on and stared at blankly at the screen.

“Dammit!” Hans slammed the screen aside and kicked at his desk. He really didn’t need this sort of headache right now at all. Duke was going to be a problem and like or not he was going to have to deal with it right now instead of later. There was only one solution he could think of to make it all work out in his favour and that was to tell the truth.

Blood on the Stars - Part 1: Secrets & Lies - CH. 3 (2)

Hans picked up the artefact and tossed it into the air before catching it. It was fairly light for something made out of metal - at least he had assumed it was some sort of metal. Hans sat up straight as a thought crossed his mind. Every home had a computer capable of doing basic scans. Mostly they were just set to scan life forms that entered the home to keep intruders out, but they could also, on command, scan other things as well.

“Home system, respond.” Hans always felt like an idiot when he didn’t have a specific display to speak to and he hadn’t gotten around to naming his home system yet either. Hans made a mental note to figure out what to call his system because home system was just too much of a mouthful.

“Online. What can I do for you?” Unlike his office computer that sounded like a chipper young woman, his home system spoke in a deep and respectful baritone.

“Can you analyze this object that I’m holding and tell me what it is composed of?” Hans held the artefact out with both hands.

“Scanning.” Was the response to his query. Hans held really still as the minutes passed. He hadn’t expected it to take quite this long.

“Is there a problem computer?” Hans felt guilty disturbing the computer while it was working, which was silly because it was just a machine, but he couldn’t help it.

“I have been unable to identify the materials that are in the object you are holding. Basic elements are recognizable, but are configured in a way that is unfamiliar.”

“So, what you’re saying is that you don’t know what this is?” Hans frowned. It was not the answer he had been expecting at all.

“Correct.”  

“Thank you computer.” Hans stared with renewed awe at the artefact in his hands. It was all the confirmation that he needed to prove that this was a truly alien thing. Now all he had to do was figure out what it did and why it did it. That was, of course, if it did anything at all. Before he even knew what he was doing, Hans threw the artefact across the room. It hit the wall with a dull thud and split into two pieces.

“Shit!” Hans rushed to the other side of the room. He knelt down to pick of the pieces and stopped as he noticed something that looked far too much like a button on the inside edge of one of the pieces. He hadn’t noticed any seam on the artefact before, but it had broken with a straight edge like it had meant to be opened.

Hans reached towards the button, paused and then pressed it. He waited for a minute, holding his breath, but nothing happened. Just as he was about to reach for it again he heard a soft beep, similar to the sound he had heard when he took the artefact. Hans pulled his arm back away from the object and watched, eyes wide as the two pieces began to wobble and move. In less than a minute it had reformed into one solid piece again.

Hans sat there and stared at it, not sure what to do now. He had taken a chance and not much had happened, but it was enough to make him that much more eager to get back to the cave and find out what was really down there. For all he knew, he had just sent a signal to an alien and they were on their way to his place right now.

Hans glanced at the door and chuckled at the absurdity of the thought. It wasn’t likely that an alien was going to come bursting down his door. As far as anyone knew, humans were alone in this galaxy. Even if there was a living alien race out there, he doubted that they would suddenly show up on his doorstep to ask for the artefact back.

It was just one more mystery to pile on top of all the other ones he hadn’t managed to solve yet. A small part of him wondered if he should just throw caution to the wind and get what he needed to get back into the cavern and find out what was there. If he knew that the specialized equipment he needed to get would arrive before anyone got curious about what he was ordering, he would have done it, but Hans knew it paid to be cautious.

He picked up the artefact and tossed it from hand to hand a couple times. “I will figure out what you are and who made you.”

He placed it back under his bed and called it a night. Tomorrow he would spend more time trying to figure out how to get the equipment that he needed, but right now he needed to get some rest.

Blood on the Stars - Part 1: Secrets & Lies - CH. 3 (1)

Hans found it nearly impossible to get back to business as usual in the office. All he could think about was that artifact hidden in his apartment and what the symbols on it could mean. He hadn’t had much of a chance to look at it yet. It had been extremely rough weather getting back to the mainland and it had cost him quite a bit of time.

Every time he tried to go over one of the many documents that he had sign off on his mind would begin to wander. He didn’t want to go so far as to say he was obsessed, but it was so hard to get it out of his mind. Hans pressed his fingers to his temples and forced himself to focus on what he needed to be doing at this moment.

"Have a good vacation?" Duke leaned against the door frame of Hans' office. "Cause it looks like you could use another one already."
"It was eventful. I think I'd like to go back some time and check it out a little more." Hans leaned back in his chair and smiled politely at Duke. "Just dropping by for a chat or is there some other reason?"

"I hired a new mechanic. Hope you don't mind, but a good candidate came up and I didn't want to pass on the opportunity." Duke shrugged and stepped into the office. "Left you a memo, but I figured I'd drop by and tell you in person."

"No, I haven't seen that memo yet, but I trust your judgement. You did run this place for a few months before I showed up and that's also one less thing that I have to worry about." Hans crossed a bullet point on a list that was half hidden with other work. "Actually, if you want, we still need to hire another pilot. It's starting to get busy with those new ore deposits found on the further asteroid belt. Lots of people will be making Cantun their home base which means more terraforming needs to be done..."

"...in other words, we're about to get really busy." Duke finished for him with a grin. "Yeah I can handle that. In fact, I may have a few people in mind for the position."

"That's great." Hans crossed another bullet point off the list after shoving a tablet aside. "Thanks."

"No prob." Duke started to leave, but turned back around after a few steps. "I'd like to say that I think you're doing a pretty good job around here. Rough start aside, I think the company made a good choice bringing you here."

"Thanks Duke." Hans smiled broadly. It was probably the first real smile he had used with Duke. "You know I won't be running this location forever. We're going to have open another location eventually and I can't be both places at the same time."

"I get your drift." Duke turned and left Hans alone with his work and his thoughts.

Hans watched him leave and felt a small weight lift off his shoulders that he hadn't known was there. He hadn't realized how stressed he had felt about the situation with Duke, but that was now one less thing on his mind now; he had enough to worry about. First, though, he had to make through the day at work and then he could think about the artefact.

As hard as Hans tried to focus on work he found himself glancing constantly at the clock and counting how long it was till he could leave. Although he could leave at the end of his shift, he also was well aware that there was a lot of work that couldn't be left undone. Each time he glanced away from his work it was just that much harder to return his focus to the job at hand.

Eventually, Hans ordered Alice to remove all time displays from his office, which seemed to help some him focus somewhat, still his mind kept getting drawn back to the artefact that was waiting for him at home. He still hadn't come up with any good way to decipher the designs on it - if they meant anything at all - other than to go to a professional and he wasn't willing to do that yet.

Hans sighed and dragged his attention back to his work. It was the last thing that needed to get done today so that tomorrow would go more smoothly. He started reading through the incident reports from the week he was gone. All he had to do was sign off on them and send them off to HQ with any notes that he might need to add.

"Still slaving away?" Hans jumped at the sound of Duke's voice interrupting his work. "Didn't mean to startle you, just saw your light still on and wanted to make sure no one was here before I locked up."

"Yeah, just need to sign off on these incident reports form last week. There aren't many of them, but I figured it would be better to get these done today rather than leaving it for tomorrow." Hans pushed the display aside and stretched. "Guess I didn't figure it would take me near this long."

"I figured you'd be done by now. You're normally really quick with this stuff." Duke wandered into the office and sat down in the chair across from Hans. "Guess you've been a bit distracted today?"

"Why would you say that?" Hans was immediately on the defensive even though he knew there was no reason for him to be.

"No reason, still kind of curious about that little holiday that you took though."

"It was just to get to know the area better. I do that. It's nothing." Hans pulled the display back in front of him so that it was between the two of them. "Now if you don't mind, I do have a lot work to get done. I'd like to get home sometime tonight."

“Nope, no problem at all.” Duke stood up and leaned over top of the display to look down at Hans. “Just can’t figure out why you’d be so evasive and nervous every time I ask you about your vacation time is all. It just seems a little fishy.”

Without waiting for a reply he turned and walked out of the office, leaving the door open behind him. Hans slumped back into his chair and rubbed his right temple. He was getting tired of Duke asking questions, but it was too late to change his story now. If it was just simple curiosity he hoped that eventually he would just let it go after enough time had passed.

Hans finished up his work as quickly as he could before going home. It had been a long day and he was exhausted, but he couldn't go to bed without spending at least a little time trying to figure out what the artefact was exactly. He took it out from under his bed where he had hidden it the night before and placed it on his table.

He stared at it as he ate his dinner, occasionally reaching out to tract the designs on its surface or to turn it on to a different side. It meant nothing to him, but the one thing he knew for sure was that it wasn't something produced by humans. It was a truly alien artefact. Unlike the decayed remnants of civilizations that had passed on before humans were climbing down out of the trees, this was bright and shiny as though it had just been made yesterday.

He had no idea what to do with it or how to figure out what it did, besides give him hope that he was on the right track. He had always believed that the magno-electric field that messed with electronics so badly was more than just a freak of nature. It was unpredictable when it happened - it was never consistent. He had experienced it once before and he remembered what it was like. He had almost downed the experimental plane that he had been flying.

His curiosity had gotten the best of him then too. He still remembered that visit from Ken then as well. Just checking up on an old friend to see how he was doing after his scare. He hadn't found anything like this that time, but he was sure that there had been something there when he had fired all his missiles to lighten the load in hopes of making a safer landing. He had seen something, but it was all swept under the rug.

Hans grabbed the artefact and went to lay down on the couch. He stared at, turning it over and over in his hands. He wanted to figure out what it was so bad and, most importantly, who had built it. He traced the symbols over and over again with his fingers, but it would never mean anything to him. Hans sighed as he placed the artefact on the floor. He just didn't have the skills or knowledge necessary to figure it out and there was no one that he trusted enough to help him right now.

All that he could do now was try to figure out the best way back into the tunnel and into the brightly lit cavern. He had already started searching where he could get the gear he needed, but finding the time to do it was going to be even harder. He had taken up half of his vacation time already and he hadn't been in the position long enough to be able to request a leave of absence. He'd figure it out though, that he was sure of.

Most importantly, of everything, he needed a way to be able to see down there. There were a lot of companies that made specialized equipment for bright environments, but he wasn't sure if there was anything that could hand that kind of brightness. It had been brighter than any light he had been exposed to before and he had done a few close slingshots on stars before.

It was a touch choice and he wasn’t too sure exactly how to go about solving that problem either. He had been thinking on it for days, but he had yet to come up with a solution. Hans glanced down at the artefact sitting still on the floor. “And you’re just sitting there not helping at all.”

Blood on the Stars - Part 1: Secrets & Lies - CH. 2 (3)

So sorry about the huge break in there, but I have regular updates set for every Monday and Thursday right up into June right now!

---

Morning came with the insistent beeping of the alarm clock. There was no way to tell the time down here besides his clock. It paid for him to keep a close watch on him. It would be far too easy to lose track of time down here. He put together a quick breakfast before breaking camp and starting off down the cave once again.

It was a few hours into his walk when he first began to notice the changes in his surroundings. It had been happening so slowly and consistently that it took him a while to notice that he could see even further than his small light should have made possible. He wanted to pass it off as just getting used to the darkness, but he’d been underground too often to believe that.

His hand trembled as he touched the button to turn his own light off. He closed his eyes tight as he did so and counted to ten. He opened his eyes, blinked a couple of times then held his hand up in front of his face. He could see the outline of his hand which meant he wasn’t hallucinating. Somewhere up ahead was a light source.

Hans switched his light back on and checked his GPS for elevation. He had been steadily going downwards since he had entered the cavern. It didn’t seem likely that the light could be just an exit to the outside, but he wasn’t going to rule it out as a possibility. Little enough was known about this planet and less about this cavern system.

As an afterthought, Hans pulled up the topographical view on his GPS and was surprised to see that he had him under the ocean at this point. It seemed even less likely that this light was an entrance to the surface. Hans shined his light around to get a better look at the rocks on the ceilings and wall and saw that they appeared completely dry. It didn’t make any sense to him and he was beginning to wonder if about the exact origins of the cavern.

He wasn’t an expert in geography, but he was pretty sure any naturally formed cavern under an ocean would have to have some sort of water flow. He knew there was enough calcium, lime and other minerals to create stalagmites and other formations, but none of that existed in this cavern. Even in some of the older man made ones he had explored, water had found its way inside to create those breathtaking natural sculptures that he enjoyed.

Hans picked up his pace as he continued onward towards the source of the light. He tried not to get too hopeful about what he was going to find, but it was hard to not think about it. The cavern seemed to continue on forever with the light getting neither brighter nor dimmer. It was hard to be sure, but it was getting frustrating. Every now and then Hans turned off his light to try and see if the light was getting brighter or not, but as far as he could tell it was staying exactly the same.

His watch beeped at him and he glanced down to see that an entire day had passed him by as he pursued the source the light. It was time to make camp for another night and hope for better luck the next day. It was his last day for moving forward and after tomorrow he would have to start making his way back. Hans prayed that tomorrow would bring better luck, but the light was at least promising.

As his watched beeped in another new day Hans wasted no time in breaking down camp and starting off on his search for the source of the light. He tried to keep his mind occupied on everything, but the light as he walked. He thought about old songs and tried to remember their lyrics, he thought about how things were getting busy enough that he'd have to hire a few more people to keep up with demand. Hans managed to keep himself distracted enough that it wasn't until his stomach growled at him that he realized the morning had passed already.

Looking around he tried to assess how bright the light was. It seemed a little brighter now, but he wasn't a hundred percent sure about it. He ate a few small snacks to keep himself going and continued on after another hour of walking he was sure that the light had gotten brighter. It was also the first time he noticed that the cavern was starting narrow quickly. He could almost touch the ceiling once again and there was less than a meter to each side of his outstretched arms.

Hans quickened his pace as much as he could, but was soon forced into walking doubled over. Eventually he stopped as the width of the cavern became only just wide enough for him to fit through comfortably. Hans dropped his gear and just grabbed the most important items to take with him. He knew that if he got stuck down here no one would find him, but that didn’t seem as important as finding out what the source of the light was.

Hans kept crawling forward and hoped that this tunnel wouldn’t narrow any further, the light was becoming brighter with each step and, soon, Hans found himself wishing for sunglasses. If it wasn’t for the coolness of the surrounding rock he would have thought he was heading into the sun itself.                

He stopped for a moment to tie a piece of cloth around his head to help shut out the light. Hans pushed forward blindly feeling his surroundings with his hands. It was slow going, but he wasn’t about to give up yet. Even with a cloth wrapped over his tightly shut eyes the light was almost starting to be too much for him to take any longer.

Sliding his hands forward he felt an edge to the tunnel he was crawling through. Inching forward he examined around the edge of the opening with his hands, but he could feel nothing beyond that. More than anything Hans wanted to be able to see what was in the opening, but without special equipment it would be impossible to do so.

In a last ditch effort to see if he could continue, Hans laid flat on his stomach and pushed himself as close to the edge as he dared. At the full length of his reach he felt his fingertips brush against something warm and metallic. Taking a chance, Hans pushed himself further forward until he could get a grip on the object. He pulled back as hard as he could and it came loose.

As he pushed himself back into the tunnel he heard a soft beeping coming from the opening. Hans backed up as fast as he could until he bumped into his gear. Undoing the cloth from around his eyes, he finally was able to see what he had taken from the other side of the opening.  It was strangely shaped and there were markings all over it.  Hans turned it over a few times in his hands before putting it in his pack.

Hans picked everything up and started heading out, his head full of plans for what he would need to continue onwards next time. He wanted to know what was in that next cavern past the tunnel. He’d need special gear for that and he wasn’t sure if he’d find it on planet. He had already raised a few red flags with his earlier requests, this time he’d have to be even more careful.

Hans spent the next few days planning exactly how he was going to go about his next visit to the Mantou Islands and how he was going to be able to get all the equipment he was going to need to make it work. It wasn’t going to be easy, not in the least, but he had a feeling it was going to be worth it. In the meantime he had the artifact to study and learn about.

Blood on the Stars - Part 1: Secrets & Lies - CH. 2 (2)

The morning dawned a beautiful pale lavender with calm winds that promised an easy flight for him. He headed to the flight centre in a much better mood than he had been in the day before. Hans loaded the small plane that he had booked for the trip and gave it the once over. He knew that the plane was in good shape, but some habits were hard to break.

“Don’t trust me to do my job?” Duke’s voice made Hans jump slightly. It was fairly early and he hadn’t expected any of the daytime staff to be in yet.

“It’s just habit. I’ve been checking my crafts ever since I started flying.” Hans stood up and stretched. “It looks good to go and I expected nothing less.”

“I’d do the same. Still planning what you were planning the last time we talked?” Duke leaned up against the plane blocking the way into the cockpit.

“Nothing’s changed. I’m still taking a little vacation, that’s all.”

“Uh huh,” Duke shrugged and walked away. Hans stared after him until he turned the corner. He was starting to get concerned with Duke’s interest in what he was planning. There was no way Duke could know the truth of what Hans was really doing heading out to where he was. He didn’t have necessary knowledge to connect all the dots.

Hans climbed into the cockpit. He had a scheduled flight plan to stick to and he wasn’t one to put such things on hold for minor suspicions. He took off and felt the same joy that he always felt when he left the ground. It was a pure, simple joy that being in the air always gave him. It was the place that he belonged.

It didn’t take long for him reach the destination that he had chosen just outside of the Mantou Islands. It wasn’t terraformed yet, but there was a mining camp there inside a protective dome. He had flown plenty of workers in and out of this location and there was a small town there for the families of the workers. It wasn’t ideal, but it was as close as he could get with drawing too much more suspicion than he already had.

He checked into the only hotel that the town had. The room was small, but clean. It didn’t matter to Hans though it was just going to be a place to store his stuff once he got geared up. There were a few things he wanted to get still, but hadn’t wanted to buy outright. Here he could rent it easily enough with no one asking questions.

Hans went back down to the front desk to get the information he needed about where to rent the equipment he wanted. He wanted a reliable renter who wasn’t going to be asking any questions about where he was going and what he was planning to do. He was directed to a company called Sure Thing Rentals.

“Hi there. How can I help you?” The friendly clerk piped up as soon as Hans walked in through the door.

“I’m planning on doing a bit of exploring out around the islands. I need a boat and some emergency supplies for the journey.”

“No problem at all, sir. Do you want any terrain or nautical maps with that?” He didn’t seem the least interested in why Hans wanted the items.

“Yeah, that would come in handy.” Hans smiled. “I’ll be needing he rentals for about a week. I plan on leaving this afternoon.”

“Right-o. You should probably know that ocean conditions in this area are pretty dodgy in the afternoons though. High winds and all. That’s why they haven’t made the equator areas more habitable yet.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty familiar with the peculiarities of this area and its weather patterns.”

“Great. I’ll get it all arranged for you then.” It didn’t take the clerk long to set it all up and Hans was all set to go within in 15 minutes. He packed up his gear and headed out for the largest of the Mantou Islands. It was his best bet as far as he could guess and it was, at least, a place to start.

As expected, the sea was rather choppy and the winds were nearly hurricane force. It was a hard go across the small straight to his destination, but it seemed to take forever. Hans wished he could have flown in, but he knew Duke would check the GPS tracker on the craft he had borrowed and he didn’t need any more questions.

It was an hour of hard going before he arrived safely at the largest of the four islands within the chain. Conditions on the ground weren’t ideal, but he landed on the more protected side of the island. He was glad that he had paid a bit extra to rent a full atmosphere suit. It would protect him from the debris that was being carried by the wind.

Hans pulled out a small hand held device that was the only thing he had ordered in from off planet for his expedition. It was very sensitive to magno-electric fields and he was pretty sure that it would point him in the right direction. Right away it began to light up and he fiddled with the settings until he could better pinpoint the exact location of the where the field was coming from.

It came as no surprise that what he was detecting came from beneath him, but he was surprised by how deep the signal seemed to be coming from. It was several kilometres beneath the surface if he was reading things right. It wasn’t what he was expecting, but he had come prepared.  

Hans pulled up his tablet to get the few survey plans that existed for this particular island. There wasn’t much to go on, but a few of the caverns had been charted by one of the early expeditions that had come this way. Hans studied the map for a second before deciding on which entrance he wanted to attempt first.

He headed confidently northeast towards the entrance he had chosen. Despite the wind, it was pretty easy going. Cantun had been a fairly dead planet before the terraforming had started. No life above the single cell stage. Even once a stable atmosphere had been created, a large part of the planet was still considered barely habitable. Very few plants managed to survive here and the equatorial region would have been ignored if not for the rich ore deposits.

Hans stopped for a moment as he came to the worn base of what at one time could have been a mountain, but the wind had worn it into a humble hill. It didn’t take any special equipment to see the partially collapsed entrance to the cavern system. As a safety precaution Hans marked the entrance with tracking gel just in case. He wasn’t keen on the idea of getting lost down there.

Hans took one last look at the bright daylight before crawling through the small entrance that the cave-in had left and into the darkness. He paused just inside the entrance to give his eyes a chance to adjust to the dim light that came in from behind. He had brought lights with him, but this was one of his favourite parts of going underground.

He looked around in the dim light and was disappointed by what he saw. There were no formations of any kind, just rough worn rock that continued at a slight slope downward. He had been hopeful that there would be more to see than that, but it was pretty dry in this area.

With a sigh, Hans turned on his light and got a better idea of the size of the cavern. It wasn’t quite tall enough for him to stand in, but at least he didn’t have to crawl. He stood slightly stooped as he followed the cave downwards. It seemed to go forever, no branching off to either side. So far it was exactly has described in the report. He could expect pretty much the same for close to a kilometre or so and after that it would be a mystery because the surveyor hadn’t bothered to continue at that point.

Hans glanced down at his GPS unit to check his status. Even this far down, it seemed to still be working quite well. He had long passed the one kilometre mark that the initial survey had recorded and it was still much the same. Although the ceiling had raised just enough for him to be able to stand straight once again.

Checking the time, Hans sat down for a rest and leaned against one of the walls. It was getting late and he was hungry and tired – and he was getting frustrated with the lack of anything interesting. It was just the same dark blue and grey rock with nothing to distinguish one part of the cavern from another. He had at least hoped for some good spelunking even if he was wrong about what was causing the magno-electric field.

He felt around the ground and, without any surprise, noted that it was dry and relatively even in this section. It was as good a place as any to call it night. He set up his compact camp and started to make a dinner. He had another three days he could keep going for before he had to turn back and he prayed that he would find something before then.

Blood on the Stars - Part 1: Secrets & Lies - CH. 2 (1)

Hans took his time looking up the information that he wanted. He doubted that anyone would notice the queries he was making, but he preferred to be careful. He still wasn’t sure of what he had found, but if he was right, it would pay for him to cautious.

Everything he found pointed him towards one possible conclusion and he couldn’t wait for a chance to head over to those islands to see what he could find. It would take more than just a weekend to go through an unmapped cavern system he’d need a lot more time to make it worthwhile. And more information.

He did his best to keep it at the back of his mind as the weeks wore on. Work, since the incident, had been going more smoothly now that Duke had at least a little respect for him. Hans couldn’t wait for his vacation time to start in just a week so he could start exploring the Mantou Islands. It was almost all he could think about now.

“Phone call, sir.” Alice interrupted his thoughts.

“Who is it?” Hans had been just about ready to pack up and leave for the night. It was unusual for anyone to be calling him at this time.

“It’s a Major Ken Hu.”

“Put it through.” Hans sat up a little straighter in his seat as an image appeared before him.

“Hans! Long-time not talk old friend. How is civilian life treating you?” Ken smiled brightly at him.

“Hey Ken. It’s day after day of the same old stuff. Just less saluting.” Hans smirked. “How is life on your side of the galaxy?”

“Ah, you know. It’s the same as it always was.” Ken shrugged. “Some things just don’t ever change.”

“So what do I own this wonderful little phone call to?” Hans smiled, but inside he was starting to get a little suspicious. He had lost touch with most of his friends in the Armed Forces when he had left. A few still called once in a while, but not Ken and none ever called him at the office.

“Just wanted to catch and see what you were up to. Heard you were on that new planet, Cantun. It’s got some really interesting geography doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, it makes piloting around here a little special sometimes, but I really haven’t had time to do much besides work out here.” Hans smiled and tried his best to be evasive. It was clear now that he hadn’t been circumspect enough in his queries.

“I bet, but I hear there’s some interesting caverns and such. Looking to pick up that old spelunking hobby of yours?”

“I wish,” Hans laughed. “But you know how things can be my business. I’ve got this centre to manage and as the planet grows I’ll be in charge of all addition centres we open here as well. It would be nice to have time for hobbies again.”

“I bet. Well, I ought to go now it’s getting late over here, but I just wanted to touch base with you. It’s been a long time.”

“Appreciated. Don’t be such a stranger, Ken.” Hans held his smile until Ken’s face vanished from the display. He hated being so suspicious about everything, but it was too much of a coincidence for him to take it lightly. He briefly thought about stepping up his plans, but decided against it. There was no need to hurry, not yet at least.

******

“Hans, can I talk for a minute?” Duke stood in the doorway to his office looking as unimpressed with everything as usual.

“Yeah, what’s up?” Hans closed the display of reports that he was working on quite gladly.

Duke stepped into the office and closed the door behind him. “I was just wondering about this flight plan that you filed.”

“What about it?” Hans leaned back in his chair and motioned for Duke to take a seat.

“Well, it goes kind of close to the Mantou Islands, doesn’t it?” Duke continued to stand, ignoring the offered chair.

“Just trying to get a better feeling of this planet since I’m going to be calling it home for the foreseeable future. Besides, the plan keeps me out of the hot zone. I’m a good pilot. Anything else?” Hans smiled politely, but the last thing he wanted was for anyone to questioning his flight plan, not after the call from Ken a few weeks previous.

“Just a little concerned is all. These machines are my responsibility and boss or not, I’m not going to let you take one into a no fly zone. It’s not exactly against the rules to take one for personal use, but it’s not exactly smiled upon either. So, just concerned is all.”

“Don’t worry Duke. You ought to know that I’ll take good care of it.” Hans pushed the annoyance to the back of his mind and kept his voice even. “I do appreciate your concern though.”

“Huh.” Duke crossed his arms and leaned back against the door. “You know, I’m thinking there’s more to this vacation than you’re saying.”

“It’s just a vacation.” Hans frowned. “I’m not sure what business it is of yours where I decided to go on my vacation, Duke.”

“Sure, boss.” Duke shrugged, turned and opened the door to leave. He stopped for a moment just outside the door and looked back. “You’re going to those islands aren’t you?”

“Have a good afternoon Duke.” Hans brought the display of reports back in front of him again so that Duke was partially obscured by the translucent display. He waited until the door closed before pushing the display aside again.

He pressed his fingers together and stared at the door. He couldn’t help but wonder at what Duke was thinking or what conclusions he had already come to. Hans was sure that he couldn’t know the truth, but it was still a small cause for concern. Either way, he was leaving tomorrow to explore those islands on his own.

Hans brought the display back in front of him and tried to focus on the work in front of him. He wanted as much cleared off his desk as possible before going away for a week. The thought of coming back to mountains of work was not one he enjoyed. For that reason alone, he needed to focus on getting his job done today and nothing else.

It felt like the slowest day he had ever experienced. Every now and again, when he left his office, he noticed the occasional sideways glance from Duke that he did his best to ignore. Business as usual became his mental mantra until it was time for him to leave. He couldn’t wait to get home and get packed up for the trip.

Blood on the Stars - Part 1: Secrets & Lies - CH.1 (3)

It only took a couple of weeks till it all started to become nothing more than routine for Hans. Morning paper work and afternoon charters, lessons and certification testing – it didn’t take long for the days to start to blend together. Duke had been true to his word and hadn’t been an issue for him, but it was obvious that he still hadn’t earned his respect either. Therefore, it came as a surprise when Marietta knocked gently on his door one morning to tell him that Duke had asked for him to come to the shop to take a look at something.

Hans dropped everything and went straight to the shop. He was pretty sure that it had to be important if Duke was asking for him specifically. He arrived in the shop to find Duke and Jessup, one of the pilots, staring at a diagnostic display for one the larger commercial transport planes. Hans said nothing, but just walked up behind them to see what they were looking at. It didn’t take long for him to see what the issue was.

“Well now that’s interesting.” Hans wasn’t aware he had spoken out loud till Jessup jumped at the sound of his voice. Duke just grunted and turned to face him with a frown.

“Interesting isn’t my choice of words for this. Seen anything like it in all your years of experience?”

Hans ignored the sarcasm in the statement and stepped closer to the display so that he could manipulate it and get a better look at a few details. “I’ve seen something similar once, but not quite to this extent. Give me a second here.”

Duke and Jessup both stepped back as Hans worked with the display, bringing up a few different reports and asking the computer to do a few more scans for him. He kept at it till he was sure that he was seeing what he thought he was seeing. He tried his best to suppress the excitement that he felt rising inside as each new report confirmed what he had been thinking earlier.

“Where were you flying when the error first popped up?” Hans said as he turned to face Jessup, ignoring Duke for the moment.

“I was taking a short cut over the Mantou Islands. I know it’s not the usual route, but I was a little lower on fuel than I had expected. Client asked for a small extra side trip and I didn’t really think it would be an issue if I just took the short way back. I know it’s not an approved flight path, but…” Jessup let his voice dwindle down and looked away.

“I’m not going to fire you. We’ve all done something like that at one time or another, just don’t let me hear about something like that again. So did the issue present before, during or just after the islands?”

“Almost as soon as I was over the landmass, maybe a bit before. Everything just started going wonky.” Jessup didn’t bother to keep the relief out of his voice. He knew he had just dodged a bullet and he was more than eager to fill in any details now that he knew he wasn’t going to get fired.

“Okay, you do seem to know what’s going on here so do you mind sharing already?” Duke interrupted before Jessup could say anything else. It was obvious to Hans that he was annoyed. He wasn’t enjoying being left out of the loop on things.

“Thank you Jessup, that’s good. Go talk to Callie about getting a new craft for the next few days. It might take a bit before this one will be back in the hangar for regular use.” Hans deliberately ignored Duke knowing that it would anger him even more to wait. Once Jessup was gone, Hans turned his attention to Duke.  “It’s an error caused by a very specific type of magno-electric field. It’s very rare and I’ve only ever seen it once before when I was in the Armed Forces.”

“So this is a military thing then?” Duke stepped back closer to the display to get a closer look at some of the diagnostic tests that Hans had requested of the computer.

“No, not exactly.  That just happens to be the only time I’ve ever encountered anything like this before. It was a training flight on a remote planet that was still in its natural state. It was considered unsuitable for terraforming. We used it for target practice with new weaponry.” Hans tapped one of the scans that he had requested, bringing it to Duke’s attention. “This one is the big tip off here.”

“So what caused this magno-electric pulse and should we be reporting it to the authorities?” Duke stepped back from the display, scratching his chin.

“No clue, it was a singular occasion back then and I wouldn’t doubt that it would be so now. However, I would think that the authorities already know about it since they don’t want any travel over those islands already with the exception of emergencies. Just make sure the pilots are all aware and respecting this restriction.”

“Fair enough.” Duke smirked, “Looks like you’re proving yourself around here. System wipe ought to take care of the errors and I’ll run some more diagnostics and give her the once over myself.”

“Sounds good,” Hans gave the time a quick glance. “I have a lesson to do in an hour until then, if you need me, I’ll be in my office. Thanks for calling me over for this Duke.”

As soon as Hans was back in his office he pulled up the initial planet survey for the Mantou Island chain. He glanced at the clock, wanting to make sure that he had enough time to do what he needed to do. He read over the initial survey findings. Unique metal compounds and an extensive cavern system had been noted, but odd magno-electric readings.

Hans made a few notes about the island chains and glanced back at the time. He would have to put further research on hold, but it was looking promising. Very promising.