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I wiped the sweat from my brow and took another swig of water.
I didn’t usually mind physical activity. In fact, often I enjoyed it. But lifting crates and boxes on a planet as hot as Calenta was not pleasant. The sooner I was off this scorching rock, the better. But I had to wait until my craft was full before I could leave, to make the journey efficient.
I was currently loading up my transport freighter, which was my livelihood and my life. I worked the long-haul flights. Partly because I didn’t mind them, and partly because it paid better than short-haul ones. Many ship owners preferred to stay close to their families and their homes, which meant I didn’t have too much competition for the longer journeys. Maybe one day, if I ever decided to settle down, I’d feel the same way. But for now, I was happy to spend a couple of months at a time in space if needed.
Nearly half of my recent delivery to Calenta was solar panels, or parts related to solar energy collection and storage. It was the ideal planet to run a business for those that wanted cheap electricity. On this side of the planet, the blistering sun was out for fifteen hours of its twenty-hour day, and the heat outside was only just bearable. Anywhere indoors had a cooling system, ironically usually solar powered energy.
It wasn’t somewhere I’d want to live, but it seemed there were some people that chose this life.
“Hey,” a friendly male voice caught my attention.
I turned and was greeted with a guy who looked to be in his thirties, with jet black hair, dark skin and brown eyes. The way he was sweating suggested that he didn’t like the oppressive heat any more than I did.
“Hey,” I greeted him back with a smile. “You’re looking for transport?” I guessed. “I’m headed for the Liprian Outpost with any stops you want to make on the way.”
“Would you be willing to stop at Kezan?” he asked.
“Sure, it’s on my route,” I replied, walking towards him. “What’s your name?”
“Asher Gordon,” he said brightly, extending his hand toward mine.
[True.]
I didn’t know how I knew he was telling me the truth. I’d always been able to tell whether people were lying or not. My mother used to call me a ‘Truthseeker,’ and warned me never to disclose to anybody else what I could do. She used to say that bad people might try to hurt me if I did, and of course I knew she was telling the truth about that because I could sense it. Besides, as I grew older, I realised that my ability was more advantageous if nobody knew about it.
I took his hand and shook it in return with a smile.
“Kane Emery,” I introduced myself. “What is it you want to transport to Kezan?”
I needed to know what was going to be on my ship in case it got inspected. Inspections were rare, but possible, and I liked to be above board when I conducted my business.
“Medical equipment and supplies,” replied Asher. “I’ll be travelling with them.”
[True.]
“You’re a doctor?” I asked curiously.
I didn’t need that information, but I liked to know a little about everyone who was boarding my ship.
“Not a doctor, no,” he replied. “I know enough to get by, and to understand what I’m transporting, but not much more than that.”
[True.]
“OK, cool,” I said, turning and picking up my hand-held scanner from the entrance to the ship. “You got ID?”
“I do,” he replied, fishing out a small wallet from a small leather pouch that was tied neatly around his waist.
“Transport of medical equipment and supplies requires a P22 licence,” I said as I beeped the scanner over his ID.
Everything looked in order so far, so I handed the electronic tag back to him.
“Yep, P22 is here,” Asher said, handing me another tag which I scanned.
I didn’t really need the scanner because I could sense he was being honest, but I needed to keep up appearances. As I knew it would, the scanner told me the licence was valid, so I handed it back.
“Just a payment then you’re all good to go,” I said to Asher, and we proceeded with the transaction.
Being able to earn extra money from the long-hauls meant I could buy a bigger ship than most, and still have some left over. Any surplus cash went into my savings, as I never knew when I might need them.
My ship was decked with fifteen sleeping areas and a basic canteen, and I ran it like a hotel for those who wanted to travel with their cargo. The ship also had two shuttles for access to planets where landing a ship as big as mine wasn’t practical.
Every ship had artificial gravity and atmospheric regulators as standard, as well as an area for food and water storage and a water purifying facility.
I’d invested some of my savings in an upgraded navigation system which included an advanced piloting program. It meant I was able to plot a trajectory for the autopilot and receive collision warnings so that I could adjust the course if necessary. Collision warnings didn’t happen often though; I guess there’s a reason they call it ‘space.’ The navigation system was certainly more expensive than most, but over time it was more cost effective than hiring a pilot, and once I’d managed to get used to it, it was relatively easy to operate.
I’d turned one of the large, upper rooms on the ship into a VR deck – an entertainment room equipped with four pairs of Virtual Reality devices, so that passengers could play virtual sports or use the other forms of simulated entertainment if they were so inclined. Many clients preferred to stay in their quarters and either read or catch up on work, or to socialise in the canteen, but having the deck meant that the VR option was available to those who wanted it.
My girlfriend, Melissa, helped me to run the ship. Although it was technically my ship, even with the advanced autopilot there was too much work for me to do on my own, so I needed someone reliable to assist with day-to-day essentials. I didn’t know whether Melissa would be the one I’d eventually settle down with, but there was no rush to decide anything. The relationship suited us both for now and we made a good team, so we went with it.
I showed Asher the cargo hold inside the ship, and assigned him an area big enough for his supplies. After establishing that he didn’t need additional help boarding, I went back to loading up the food supplies we’d need until we reached our next destination. I preferred getting supplies from Skanus when I could, because the food from that planet was the best quality around. But today I was loading what I could get from the air-conditioned markets of the nearest village.
A brunette with green eyes approached me as I continued to lift the supplies into the hold. She looked to be around my age, somewhere in her mid-twenties.
“Hi,” she addressed me, as she gestured to my ship. “Are you the owner? The departure board says you’re about to go to the Liprian Outpost.”
“Yeah,” I replied, putting the box I was holding down and wiping the additional sweat away that had gathered on my brow. “You need to transport something out there?”
“I do,” she confirmed, pointing towards a nearby crate on a trailer. “You got space for a crate that’s about two cubic metres?”
“Yep, easily,” I said. “That’s it there?”
I nodded to the large crate she’d been gesturing to.
“Yep,” she nodded.
[True.]
“What are you carrying?”
“Just seeds for trading. Well, that and my luggage of course.”
[Lie.]
Interesting. I hadn’t encountered someone lying to me for a while.
“Can I see inside?”
“Sure,” she said, leading me over to it.
She punched a number into the keypad that unlocked it, and I climbed up to open the crate from above. Everything looked in order. Various different types of seeds appeared to be boxed up, just as she said. I wanted to take them all out and see what she was hiding, but I knew that if I started poking around further, she may suspect my ability. I looked over into her emerald eyes, but they told me nothing.
“I just need to do a quick routine scan, OK?” I told her.
She didn’t need to know that the scan was actually only ‘routine’ if I suspected someone was carrying something illegal. I set my hand-held scanner to search for both weapons and narcotics, but even after circling the crate with it, nothing registered.
Other than the fact that I knew this woman was lying, everything so far seemed to be above board.
“What’s your name, sweetheart?”
“Amy,” she responded.
[Lie.]
“OK, Amy, I just need to see your ID,” I asked casually.
I wondered what name her ID would display.
‘Amy’ winced slightly.
“I haven’t got any ID I can show you,” she admitted.
[True.]
What kind of person looks for a transport ship without ID? A desperate one, I concluded, looking at her expression.
Even more bizarrely, I trusted her. She’d lied to me twice, I didn’t even know her real name, and yet I felt I could trust this lady already. Logic dictated that trusting someone who was lying to you was inherently stupid, so why were my instincts telling me differently?
“Why would I let you onto my ship when you don’t have ID?” I challenged.
“Because I really, really need to get off this planet,” she pleaded earnestly.
[True.]
“You’re on the run?” I surmised.
I wasn’t in the habit of harbouring fugitives and I hadn’t been planning to start any time soon.
‘Amy’ looked behind her anxiously and then back to me.
Strangely, I could feel her desperation. I’d never felt anyone else’s feelings before, and I couldn’t explain how I knew that they were hers. I just knew.
“Yeah,” she confirmed quietly.
[True.]
At least she was being a little more honest now, and I knew her real reasons for wanting to board.
“Nobody will take you without ID, huh?” I asked.
Because nobody would be that stupid.
“Please,” she implored, understanding what I was implying. “I can pay the travel cost. And you can put me to work on your ship. I can cook, clean … I’m willing to do anything it takes to get out of this place.”
[True.]
Common sense told me to say no. If I were caught with someone on my ship who didn’t have ID, I could get a hefty fine. They might even take my licence away.
And yet there was something about this woman that I couldn’t shake. I’d never trusted someone who’d lied to me before. But some instinct that told me I couldn’t leave her on this planet to suffer whatever would be in store for her if she stayed here. She was a good person, and trustworthy; I couldn’t explain it, but I could feel it.
“OK, get your crate,” I rolled my eyes.
What was I doing? Risking my livelihood for a charlatan I’d only just met? This was insane.
“You’ll take me?” she asked, surprised.
“Yeah, I’ll take you,” I bent closer to her. “But no trouble, OK Amy? I could have my licence revoked for this.”
“I don’t want to cause you any trouble,” she assured me.
[True.]
“Good,” I said, turning back to the supplies I’d been stacking. “Make sure you don’t.”
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