Outcasts of Gideon

Returning Home : Part 1

Kishan engaged the anti-grav drive of the Amittai's Wake. They were flying low over the Oebalus Crater. In his memory, this pit was much larger than it appeared now. Everything seems bigger when seen through the eyes of a child.

On their approach, he noted the brightly colored hues of yellow and gold. These adorned the landing station and surrounding facilities. The bright pigments created a harsh contrast to the moon's gray surface. The colors better fit Saturn's muted shades of xanthic and ochre. As he recalled, color coordination was not the goal of this program.

"What's with all the yellow?" asked Dawn. She ended up being seated beside him. She had also insisted on getting names straight. He considered giving a false name, but couldn't help himself when she asked.

"I think its something they were doing when I was still here."

"Something?"

"A program dreamed up in the Dominium. Fields of Gold. It's supposed to remind us of wheat fields and sunshine. They wanted to make us like the Dominium more, or fear it less. I don't know which."

"I don't remember that."

"You're from Sol?"

"I lived on Titan when I was young."

"I'm sorry."

Dawn laughed. "It was okay, but I don't remember anything about this golden fields thing."

"It's not worth remembering."

By opening himself to conversation, Kishan did manage to learn a few things. It appeared these people had only come together over the previous few hours. The talkative ones – Grant and Dawn – were also the natural leaders of the group. Their pilot's name was Dewey, though they both seemed reluctant to call him a pilot.

He'd also learned that the emaciated man's name was Bobby. Other than his claim of an alien device, the other two didn't seem to know him very well. Kishan had healthy doubts about the device, but he had neither the time nor interest to pursue it further.

As the ship raced past the barren landscape, Kishan heard some movement behind him. Bobby had been snoring back there for most of their trip. The man startled him by lunging forward toward the vid screen. "Where the hell are we? I thought we were going to Earth!"

"Let's hope Runar thinks that," said Kishan.

Dawn reached her hand and grabbed Bobby's arm. "We came here to hide for a while."

"Who's Runar? And where is here?"

"Here is Dione." Kishan activated thrusters to slow their approach.

"Dione? And where is that?"

As the Wake slowed, Kishan guided it to one of the landing pads. "It's out of the way." On touchdown, the pad engaged, lowering them into the rock below. "That's what we need, to be out of the way. Besides, I might still have some contacts here."

"Really? Here?"

"He lived here with his father," said Dawn.

"That's nice and all, but we have to go to Earth."

Kishan shut down the ship's systems. He turned to face Bobby. "I told you before, we are not going to Earth. Now, you are welcome to find yourself a ride if you'd like. I'm sure someone would love to hear about your little green men."

"Look, I know it's hard to believe, but it probably is alien," said Dawn.

"Why do you think that?"

"When I touched it, it's like I was transported somewhere. I don't know how else to describe it."

"That was before she dissociated," said Grant.

"Dissociated? You didn't mention that. How is that possible? No one comes back from that."

"She definitely dissociated."

"I was stuck. That's all. I don't know how else to describe it," said Dawn.

"You may be the only person alive who can." The ship shuttered.

"It felt like racing through a confined space without moving. It felt like trying to breath under water. It felt like living your entire lifetime in a moment. Does any of that help?"

Kishan verified that the docking bridge had engaged. "So time didn't stand still?"

"Not exactly. I felt time passing, almost like I was in there for years. Even with that, it was like time wasn't moving at all."

"That's what the empty is," said Bobby. "Standing still."

Kishan stared at him. He wanted to correct him, but instead he nodded and unbuckled himself. He might have to put more thought into this alien device after all. Rising, he eased himself past Bobby toward the hatch.