Out
A series about Mars
by Daniel
E. Machado
Chapter 24
Had Roselene suspected even for a moment
that this might be the last time she would ever see her cousin Fred the
child would have put up some sort of a fuss. But, as it is, the girl never
even considers it. For that matter neither do her mother or cousin Fred.
"I’ve got to go check in with AeroDynamic
and stow my stuff." Fred tugs at the handle of his personal-effects locker
as he re-checks his handtablet for the directions. "You sure you’re okay
with both those lockers?"
"You know it’s funny." Blade smiles
up sweet sarcasm at him. "I'm not sure if it’s the exhilaration of being
down here on Mars or what, but ever since we landed everything feels like
it’s, oh… I don’t know, maybe only a sixth of what it did back on Earth."
Head cocked to one side Blade flicks at her newly emerging blonde pony-tail
with the back of her fingertips.
"I think I’ll be shutting up now and
going away." Fred turns to leave.
"A good survival strategy, Trog-boy."
Blade nods a short good-by as she reaches down for the locker's slender
T-handle.
"See you at dinner, Shorty." Fred
turns with a wink at Roselene. "You be good for your mommy today, okay."
"I will, Cousin Fred. I promise."
Roselene waves up a limp fingered good-by as Fred's silhouette glances
back just before disappearing into a side corridor.
With Fred off on his check-in mission
Blade concentrates on directing both her child and baggage through a long
succession of broad unhurried corridors. Occasionally Blade and Roselene
would walk past vast domed plazas with sweeping open architectures and
lush sculpted landscaping, but these mostly stood vacant. So few people
moving through such a vast enclosed space make everything seem to move
so very slow. That is until they step into Atlantis Corp's dome.
"It’s about time you two showed up."
A tall smiling woman with thick straight chestnut hair stands up from behind
a broad uncluttered desk the instant Blade and Roselene step into the main
lobby through the tall arches of chrome and glass. Nearly hidden by a thick
curtain of bangs the woman’s large dark eyes beam overly cheerful glances
at the two of them. The woman's thick red lips and broad toothy smile seems
to literally stretch from ear to ear. Tapping a finger at a preset on her
desk the woman looks down to say in a loud and slightly lispy voice. "Misters
Jenner and Tillman, I need you both up front, please."
"Excuse me." Believing their
reception to be one of mistaken identity Blade quickly tries to correct
the administrator's misconception. "My name is…"
"Blade DeSilva. Yes, I know. And,
this little one right here must be our now famous Roselene DeSilva; youngest
immigrant ever to cross orbits from Earth to Mars." The woman steps across
the office lobby with the buoyant step natural to humans living on Mars.
Roselene clutches to her mother’s pant leg for protection. "My name is
Kathlene Berretti, Atlantis Corp Human Resources."
"Nice to meet you." Blade takes the
woman’s offered hand, still a bit suspect of such an enthusiastic reception.
"You two seem to have given the nets
quite a stir. And, that last little escapade with Specialist Barns turned
out to be one of the highest rated insurance archives ever. Our carrier
actually made money off the copyright royalties."
"I’m afraid I don’t understand." Blade
starts to protest, but by now protest seems much too late. From a side
entrances two blue-jumpered Atlantis Corp employees step into the lobby
as administrator Kathlene Berretti holds softly but firmly to Blade’s hand.
"Take these lockers up to the shuttle
pad and put them into AC360." The administrator politely tells the two
men before turning back to Blade. "I’m afraid there’s no time just now
for detailed explanations, let’s just say that between that little incident
back on the sailship with the waste reactant backup, and your latest performance
with Specialist Barns, coupled with a 'less than five-percent of anticipated
mortality' payload transfer expected to touch down near Atlantis Tower
in less than three hours, you've become Atlantis Corp’s biggest positive-spin
archive opportunity all year. And, I’m talking Ms, not Es."
Administrator Berretti leads Blade
who in turn leads Roselene across the broad vacant lobby and into a set
of tall brushed chrome elevator doors. Behind Blade the two men stand silently
hold her personal-effects lockers. The elevator doors slide shut and the
blue carpeted floor below their feet begins to rise.
"But, I still don’t understand what…"
"Corporate wants you on-site when
the cargo shuttle lands. For you this has been almost two Es of drudge
work, but as far as the nets are concerned this story just broke last week.
If you’re not at Atlantis Tower when ‘your’ biotics payload landing in
three hours then the nets'll see the story as anticlimactic." Beaming at
Blade with the expressive enthusiasm of an old friend Administrator Berretti
stands grinning across the still rising elevator at the seemingly uncomprehending
Blade.
"Mommy?" Roselene tugs at her mother's
hand.
"Wait a minute, Sweety."
"Corporate stock has been banging
a steady rise ever since last week when the Barns story first broke and
it became known that despite all the reported problems your shipment of
experimentals is still projecting fifty points more viability than originally
projected. When the Barn's story first broke the nets all ganged up on
us. They said the whole 'Barns' thing was just some feeble cover-up contrived
to hide the fact that most of our biotics transfer was dead. By the way,
in case you're interested, Barns’ recruiter was not only forced to remit
his service fee, but he'll likely stand charges for conspiracy to fraud."
Still dazed Blade manages only a negative
head shake and feeble shrug.
"Well he is. Now, here’s your agenda."
Administrator Berretti pushes an Atlantis Corp hand-tablet into Blade’s
hand with a quick smile. "Under ‘Personal’ you’ll find all the codes and
account numbers for your permeate housing. Your preliminary work schedule
is filed under ‘Tasks’. Your immediate supervisor and primary job and location
are down under ‘Contract Details’ in section six. Now, I know that it’s
customary for most new immigrants to take a few days off to acclimate to
planet-side before beginning their contract work schedule, but because
of the sudden interest back on Earth in this particular biotics delivery
Corporate feels that, with your indulgence, you might oblige us by being
there at Atlantis Tower when the biotics delivery is completed."
"Well… yah, sure." Blade’s mind races,
but doesn't quite seem to catch up.
How come she's asking me so polite?
I work for them. For the next twelve Es they get to tell me when and where
I work. They don't have to ask?
"There’s one more thing." Administrator
Berretti says quietly. Finally detecting a falling punchline Blade braces
herself for the worst.
"It’s about your daughter."
"Yes?" Blade's mother-default responds
with quick suspicion as her child’s tiny face peeks out past the protection
of her mother’s pant leg, clutching ever closer at each mention of her
name.
"Corporate wanted me to request that
you permit Roselene to be archived with you during the landing and that
her image be used commercially within the context of that archive."
"That’s it? No special exclusivity
or non-contextual reproductions?"
"Item four under ‘Additional’ if you’re
interested in the exact wording." Administrator Berretti's last few words
are shouted as the elevator doors slide open, this time out onto a brightly
domed landing-pad. The two men standing silently behind them quickly hustle
Blade's personal-effects lockers across the tarmac to the main hatchway
of Mars Planetary Shuttle AC360; an orange coated boxcar on wings. Its
upward-pointing engines whine noisily on standby. Hurrying her two charges
across the shuttle bay Administrator Berretti herds both Blade and Roselene
up into the shuttle. By the time the airlock cycles Blade has read the
short agreement. It seems harmless. The last sentence even gives her complete
arbitration rights in case of future interpretation disagreements.
"Seems agreeable enough." Blade smiles
up as the shuttle's airlock hushes open.
"Good. Now, if you’ll just thumb my
copy." The administrator holds up her own Atlantis Corp hand-tablet. After
quickly checking the file's text and header Blade obliges with a pressed
thumb-print.
"Now, let’s get you two off to the
Tower." The woman smiles at the handtablet with apparent satisfaction.
Having secured both lockers the two
men move back out through the airlock as Administrator Berretti quickly
helps Blade secure Roselene’s seat restraint. Checking her tablet's chronometer
Kathlene Berretti beams another of her broad happy smiles.
"Well, this has been an all time personal
best. Processed and placed in less than ten minuets. My quickest process
time before yours was just under four hours, and that seemed like lightening.
Now, you two be sure to come back and visit us here at headquarters sometime;
okay?" Cocking her head to one side the woman's bangs tilt aside to reveal
a flash of bright brown eyes. She reaches out to pat the back of Roselene’s
hand. "I want to hear all about your crossing. I'll bet you two have had
all kinds of adventures."
Turning to watch Administrator Berretti
step back into the shuttle's airlock Blade feels the shuttle engines activate
as her seat vibrates up through her spine. From her seat's small oval window
Blade looks up to see the bright segments of the landing-pad's transparent
roof retract to reveal the pink faded blue of the Martian sky.
"Mommy?" Roselene’s hesitant voice
says from beside her.
"Yes, dear." She absently replies.
"What about Cousin Fred?"