Archive-name: Fantasy/mindstar.06
Archive-author: Jeff Buser - (C) 1990
Archive-title: Those Of A Mindstar Born - 6


The expedition had been a complete failure.  The Prophylactan enveloping the 
'jac they had found had showed no interest whatsoever in reliquishing its 
grasp on its victim for a vat full of discharge collected from the recovering 
'jac.  Even more disappointing, they had been forced to leave the afflicted 
'jac in the wilderness.  They were barely able to keep the captive 'jac alive 
by recycling it's own jism, and were having to find outside sources already 
because of losses like the one just experienced.  The mood gloomy, the party 
returned to Carli's rooms for a discussion which led nowhere and soon 
disbanded.

Wendy was in the examination room tending to the 'jac when the console 
buzzed. A moment later Carli entered, face serious but excited.

"This could be it.  One of the cargo hands wants me to meet her in half an 
hour at the starport.  I'm going out for a while; I don't know how long this 
will take.  Stay here in case I need you for anything".

"Shouldn't I go?  What if it's dangerous"?

"If it's dangerous, which I highly doubt, then that's an even better reason 
for you to stay here".

"But shouldn't we call someone else?  Sarah, at least"?

"No.  This might get pretty illegal and I don't really trust open
communications".

"Well at least take a weapon".

"Too hostile.  And I am armed, anyway," Carli said as she wheeled and lashed 
out into midair with a lethal-looking kick at about head level.  "We in 
Security take our jobs very seriously".

Wendy couldn't help but smile;  she loved it when Carli showed off her body 
and the control she had over it.  "Seriously enough to consort with 
smugglers, harbor a native life form in your apartment, and skulk around at 
night like somebody in Intellegence", she grinned.

"Yeah, about that seriously".

They both laughed.  Wendy moved to Carli and held her, pulling her close and 
kissing her lips passionately.  "Be careful," she said as Carli grabbed the 
shoulderbag she had waiting and opened the door.

"I always am".

Carli was still not in by morning.  Worried, Wendy got ready and went to 
BTech; she had missed several shifts recently and didn't want to draw 
attention to her now-missing host.  She got a call around midday from Carli. 
There was some small talk, mostly nonverbal reassurance that Carli was ok and 
a brief notification of a meeting that night.

At the end of her shift, Wendy went with a few of her co-workers for a meal 
and drinks.  When time for the meeting arrived she excused herself and walked 
to Carli's place.  Sarah and Carli were conferring in a far corner, very 
serious and very quiet.  Not all the members were present; besides Carli, 
Sarah and herself there were only five other people present.  Wendy walked 
over to Maria Dio who was sitting slightly apart from the other four, 
watching them discuss the reason for the meeting.

"What's up"?

"I don't know.  Sarah called and told me to be here".

"Any ideas"?

"No.  I suppose we'll find out soon enough".

Wendy nodded.  A few minutes later, Kate entered.  Sarah looked up from her 
conversation with Carli.

"Well, now that everone who is going to be here is here, we can start.  The 
big news is that last night, Carli made contact with the starship crew.  The 
reason the government refused to deal with them is because their captain 
refused to deal through intermediaries . . ."

"So?  What's wrong with that?  Why would that stop them," Wendy asked.

"That's easy enough.  Allow me to introduce you to Free Trader Captain Akira 
Salvay".

On cue, the captain emerged from the spare room in which Wendy had been 
staying.  Even Wendy felt a small gasp escape from her mouth.  She knew, of 
course, that on every other world in the Old Empire and in the Free Planets 
human reproduction functioned very differently than here.  She had seen many 
shows which vividly represented this fact.  But the difference between 
watching a crystal and seeing the first living man to walk the planet's 
surface in nearly four hundred years was quite a difference indeed.

The effect was not a pleasant one.  The man was oddly proportioned, thin like 
most spacers and well-muscled, but his shoulders were wide and his hips 
narrow.  The lower half of his face was covered with a close black growth 
that resembled pubic hair and the remaining portion was wrinkled and creased 
like those of most offworlders.  His body was entirely covered by his 
skinsuit; the hermetic seals at the cuffs and neck for his gloves and helmet 
dangled like ugly bracelets and necklace.  His head showed a shiny smoothness 
that could only have been acheived by having all of his hair permanently 
removed.

The man seemed undaunted by the staring faces.  "Ladies," he began with a 
thick trader accent, "I know you haven't seen a man in hundreds of years but 
please, I'm not just a piece of meat".

There was polite laughter which broke the silence, though no one really 
understood what he had meant.

Sarah spoke.  "Captain Salvay has asked to speak to us, since we are the only 
group onplanet which is interested in hearing what he has to say".

The captain explained.  "Ladies, I have an interest in what's going on here, 
a personal interest that means a lot of money.  I'm going to be honest and 
tell you right up front that I am one crass, materialistic son of a bitch, 
and if I didn't think your problem would cost me anything I wouldn't be here.  
Now that you know what motivates me, there shouldn't be any questions about 
my motives.

I agree with you totally that these pests that have invaded your planet have 
to be eliminated.  That's as important to me as it is to you, and it's 
probably a lot more important than you realize".

Wendy spoke.  "So we sit here and listen to the ravings of some man who comes 
here, doesn't know our culture, doesn't know our problem, and admits the only 
reason he's here is so his profits don't drop?  Why?  What can you do for us 
that we can't do for ourselves".

The captain smiled at some private joke and continued.  "I'll tell you.  
While you ladies sit here fucking around with your little animal welfare 
society, the balance of power is shifting.  You're so totally blissed out, 
here on a rock that nobody wants, that you don't even have a standing army.  
Your Security division makes the cooks in my galley look like kill-mutants in 
powered battle armour".  

Wendy glanced toward Carli and saw that she was bristling at that, but was 
keeping amazingly silent.

"You don't communicate with anybody, you hardly do any trade;  the only 
reason you're not still part of the Empire is that the revolution pushed 
their borders back so far that they weren't willing to send ships out here 
any more".

At this, Sarah stood.  "Look, Captain, you said you had something to say to 
our members before you told us what you know, but insulting our culture and 
our lifestyle isn't what I expected.  Get to the point, or I might let my 
cook here," she gestured to Carli, "toss you out on your ass so you can see 
how our Security reacts to illegal, male, aliens".

"Sorry.  I may have been a little out of line, but you've got to realize that 
things are much more dire than just the extinction of your local pets".

Wendy couldn't stop herself.  "They aren't pets.  Some of these life forms 
are just as advanced as you or I.  And besides, the extinction of any species 
is a crime against . . ."

Sarah stopped her.  "OK, I think the captain understands our position.  We 
will not be patronized".  She turned to the captain.  "Say what you have to 
say about the Prophylactan origins".

"Look, I'm just going to tell you what I know without discussing terms or 
asking for anything.  If what I'm about to say doesn't convice you to 
cooperate, then I'll leave and you'll be signing away all of our freedom for 
ever more".  He paused for dramatic effect and saw only cold, waiting faces. 
"OK.  The Prophylactans and the ship which brought them are from Earth".

This raised a few eyebrows.  Kate was the first to speak.  Wendy was shocked, 
having become accustomed to Kate's usual shyness.

"That's ridiculous.  The Prophylactans conform to no known life form type, 
particularly not to anything of Terran origin".

"I know you don't keep up with the latest news here, but I take it you have 
heard of genetic engineering?  What do you eat, the native life?  Or do Teran 
plants just grow here without . . ."

"We eat genetically altered Earth life forms.  But the Prophylactans aren't a 
mutation, they aren't recombined, tailored or otherwise derived from anything 
known to human science".

"No they aren't, and if you'd listen, I'd tell you.  It doesn't take much of 
an engineer to take a kernel of corn and change stuff around in it so it'll 
grow on a planet that doesn't have any seasons.  But it does take quite a bit 
to custom design a new life form from a few molecules up".

"You mean . . ."

"That's right, little lady.  Your friends and mine on Mother Earth sat down 
at a console and created a completely new creature in the universe for the 
explicit purpose of collecting the discharge from your pets".

"But why"?

"You got me, but it's got to be big.  We're talking billions of Earth credits 
for this project, maybe tens of billions.  And you can rest assured that they 
wouldn't have spent it for your benefit alone; they could practically have 
bought this worthless little rock you call home for that amount".

Sarah interrupted the silence that fell.  "That's it?  What proof do you 
have? It's easy enough for you to come in here and blame our problems on 
Earth; your kind have been blaming everything that goes wrong in the Free 
Planets on Earth ever since the revolution".

"I take it the little lady with the red sash is your biologist or something? 
She'll want to look at my proof, if and when we reach an agreement about 
solving our mutual problem".

"What proof," Sarah asked patiently, "is that"?

"I have on my ship a crystal with the entire specification for the creature. 
Gene matrices, physiological summaries, all kinds of stuff that doesn't make 
any sense to me.  Our biologists haven't made much out of it since they don't 
have any live specimens to work with, but I have what conclusions they have 
drawn on file as well".

Kate looked at Sarah, nodding.  Sarah spoke.  "OK.  If Kate looks the data 
over and tells me it's legit, we will abide by any agreement we make 
tonight".

"Wait a minute," Carli interjected, "we don't even have a plurality here for 
a vote tonight, much less a majority".

"It's OK.  They'll have to trust my judgement, just like you will".

Carli looked at her for a long time.  "Then it's your decision," she said 
finally.

"What do you want," Sarah asked the captain.

"All I want is your assurance that you will cooperate in any action we take 
to stop this Imperial plot".

"We already have an action team for that purpose.  We would, of course, 
appreciate any assistance you could render us".

The captain looked into her eyes.  Their unwavering darkness reminded him of 
a black hole he had seen from much too close, once in his youth.  "Six of one 
and a half-dozen of the other," he said, "as long as we can count on each 
other".

"Then it's settled.  Kate, make arrangements to see the captain's ship. 
Carli, I want you to go as well.  Take whatever equipment you feel you need, 
both of you.  And everyone, keep this to yourselves.  For now, all anyone 
needs to know is that we may have located a source of detailed information 
about the Prophylactan physiology".

After the meeting broke up, Carli and Wendy lay together in bed.

"I guess you'll be gone a while, since Kate decided to set up a lab on their 
ship".

"It was a good diplomatic move.  And a good practical one too.  She can set 
up a much more well-equipped lab there than she could here without arousing 
suspicions".

"Mmm.  Be careful.  I don't trust these spacers".

"They're OK.  They all just have an attitude.  I might be a spacer, if it was 
legal".

"I still don't trust them.  I don't think Captain Salvay was telling us 
everything he knew".

"Would you"?

"No, I guess not.  Just be careful".

"I always am".

They made love fiercely that night, Wendy submitting totally to Carli's hard, 
hungry body, reflecting and concentrating Carli's passion further with her 
own desparate desire.

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