Regulated Planet, page 8
part #2 of Worlds Apart Series
The news bought a smile to Marlee’s face. “I can’t believe it’s really happening. When can we expect them to arrive?”
Tyris shrugged. “Our trip took a little longer because of the damage to the ship. A fully functioning ship should do it in two weeks easily. I don’t know how long it will take everyone to get packed up and ready to go, but say two weeks there, two weeks back, and maybe one to get loaded. We should see them here in about five weeks.”
Marlee sighed. “Five weeks seems like a long time.”
“But not long at all compared to how long you’ve all been on Zerris,” Tyris reminded her.
Marlee brightened. “You’re right, compared to that, it’s no time at all.”
Tyris rather reluctantly raised a topic he’d rather avoid. “Marlee?”
She turned towards him readily. “Yes?”
How on earth could he explain Kerit’s suggestion? “I’m a little concerned about the general guessing that I’m the father of your baby. He’s pretending to believe me for now, but I don’t know if we can count on it to last. And we won’t be able to hide your pregnancy from everyone else forever. If Milandra comes to the same conclusion when she finds out...”
Marlee nodded, her expression grave. “What do we do?”
Tyris hesitated. If only there was another way out. But there wasn’t. “Kerit offered to take you out a couple of times, pretend to be dating you, in the hopes it will convince people the baby isn’t mine.”
Marlee wrinkled her nose in confusion. “But everyone will know the baby isn’t his. It can’t be.”
Tyris nodded. “Of course they will. But if I’m laid back and okay with you dating my brother, then they won’t think it’s mine either,” he explained.
Marlee’s expression cleared. “Oh, of course. That seems like the perfect solution.”
Tyris tried not to be disappointed she wasn’t the least bit upset by the suggestion. “Are you sure you’ll be comfortable? Kerit can be...” he tried to think of a way to put it delicately, “a little overwhelming sometimes.”
“But he’s your brother, so that means it’s okay,” Marlee said without concern.
Tyris wasn’t so sure, but he decided to let it lie for now. They had the whole afternoon, and he could be almost certain Milandra wouldn’t be back. He didn’t want to waste the time by worrying about something he couldn’t predict. “What would you like to do for the afternoon?” he asked.
Since she had no idea about all the possible things to do in the city, Marlee didn’t have any suggestions. Tyris reviewed the possibilities, and decided to take her to the zoo. It seemed safer than staying in, where he’d have just one thing on his mind.
It turned out to be a brilliant suggestion. Marlee marvelled at all the animals she’d read about, fed the elephants, rode on a camel, and enjoyed the tiger show. Watching her enjoyment, Tyris found himself enjoying the day, rather than viewing it all with jaded eyes, as he’d normally do.
Finally though, they had to head on over to Milandra’s studio as they’d promised. Tyris drove them over, obeying all posted speed limits for once. “This shouldn’t take too long. But we do have to be careful what we say. General Harrington has said under no circumstances are we to mention that the villagers have asked for a planet for themselves. He thinks there will be riots if the public finds out, and he’s probably right.”
Marlee frowned. “I thought it was just going to be a couple of questions?”
Tyris reached over to squeeze her hand. “It is. It’s just that there are a couple of things we need to keep hidden. Aside from the villagers deal, we don’t want your pregnancy, or our relationship to come out. Just keep your wits about you, and if you aren’t sure what to say, just don’t say anything, and I’ll answer for you, okay?”
Marlee nodded, but the nervous expression didn’t leave her face completely. Unfortunately, there wasn’t time to say more. They pulled into the car park, and as soon as they stopped the car they were pounced on by a couple of Milandra’s assistants, and led into the studio to be prepared for the cameras.
Marlee stared around her in amazement when they walked onto the set. Tyris spared a smile for Marlee’s interest, and paused to explain to her, “The cameras are over there, they have several so they can jump to different views. The lights are important, or the whole video would be too dark, but try not to look at them, or you’ll be seeing a shadow for a few minutes.”
He led Marlee to the middle of the set, where a low double seater couch stood at right angles to Milandra’s single. He chose the seat nearer to his wife, thinking he could shield Marlee a little. Milandra smiled at both of them, looking immaculate in a white suit, her hair and makeup done to perfection. The sight failed to move him, but he managed to offer a fake smile back at her.
“Ready?” she asked.
Tyris nodded, resigned. Beside him, Marlee also nodded, looking nervous.
Then the director said, “And we’re live in three... two... one... action.”
Milandra smiled brightly at the camera. “Good evening, viewers. Tonight on ‘Milandra’s Views’, we’re discussing the hot topic on everyone’s mind—the discovery of a planet rich in anysogen. With me this evening I have the man himself, Captain Tyris Bekkert, and a refugee from the planet, Marlee Royn. Good evening Tyris and Marlee.” She turned and smiled at them.
“Good evening,” Tyris said, his voice loud and clear. Beside him, he heard Marlee mumble something similar.
“Tyris, I understand when you found the planet, an asteroid damaged your ship, and you ended up crash landing?”
He noted she didn’t mention Zerris’s name.
He nodded. “That’s right, Milandra. I had lowered my shield to scan the planet and record the anysogen deposits to bring back to the Colonies, leaving my ship vulnerable to the asteroid that hit it. The impact took out the ship’s power, and without power it could no longer sustain orbit. The planet’s gravity pulled me down. I hit my head on the way down and was knocked unconscious.”
“And that’s when Marlee found you, is that right, Marlee?” She turned to Marlee now, and Tyris held his breath. He hoped she would hold up to the questions.
Marlee nodded. “When Tyris’s ship came down, I was out in the forest collecting firewood. The ship looked like an asteroid, and everyone else ran for shelter. I watched for a little bit longer, and saw the ship, and went looking for Tyris.”
Tyris listened interestedly to her recounting of events. He hadn’t heard her side of the story up until now.
“And your people have an unfortunate history with asteroids, don’t they? I’m sure that added to the confusion.”
Marlee nodded again. “Yes, an asteroid also destroyed our home planet, or at least rendered it uninhabitable. We escaped to another planet in the system just in time.”
“The planet you moved to wasn’t an ideal place to live either though, was it?” Milandra continued.
Marlee shook her head. “Its distance from the sun and the anysogen in the atmosphere made it a rather uncomfortable place to live.”
“Sounds like you exchanged one bad planet for another,” Milandra surmised. “So what did you think when you woke up, Tyris?”
Tyris shrugged uncomfortably. “I didn’t think about much other than how quickly I could repair my ship and get off the planet,” he admitted.
“Which didn’t happen, because you were missing for nearly nine months,” Milandra filled in. “What did happen?”
“I’d picked the wrong time to crash. We only had time for one trip out to my ship before the winter snows hit and even so, we went against the wishes of the ruling council of the planet, who were concerned about the danger of being caught in a snowstorm.” Tyris grinned wryly. Looking back, he couldn’t believe he’d been so stubborn.
“And what condition did you find the ship in?” Milandra pressed.
Tyris frowned. “Pretty much as it had been described to me. Damaged beyond repair,” he said soberly.
“So you resigned yourself to spending the winter with the refugees?” Milandra asked.
Marlee gave a smothered laugh, and Tyris a rueful grin. “Does that sound like me? Of course not. Instead, I plonked myself down, determined to fix the ship, or die trying. I figured the winter couldn’t be as bad as the villagers were describing, and anyway, I would have my ship off the ground long before my supplies ran out.”
“Obviously things didn’t work out that way,” Milandra guessed. “So what did happen?”
Tyris shrugged. “Marlee knocked some sense into me,” he said, smiling over at her. Her return smile was almost too friendly, so he hastily looked back at his wife. “She came looking for me after the first snowstorm.”
“It can’t have been too bad then, if she made her way through it?” Milandra raised an eyebrow.
Tyris shook his head. “She only made it half way. She tripped when crossing the stream, and ended up wet and frozen. It’s lucky she didn’t get frostbite. I knew she couldn’t make it back on her own, so I went back with her. That decision probably saved my life.”
Milandra’s face expressed disbelief, though he wasn’t sure how much was real and how much was exaggerated for the sake of a good story. “But you did eventually repair your ship, surely you would have in plenty of time?”
Tyris shook his head. “There was no way to repair it with the tools and materials I had available. One of the boosters was damaged, meaning I couldn’t break orbit, and worse, my anysogen tank had been punctured. I was out of fuel.”
“So you thought you were stuck on the planet forever?” Milandra asked.
Tyris shrugged. “I guess so, though I don’t think the thought of escape ever left my mind. I did have to learn to work with the villagers for the winter though, and realise everyone had to pull their own weight. Marlee’s people were a bit of an inspiration in that regard.”
Marlee shrugged. “We just did what we had to.”
Tyris shook his head, but he could see from the expression on Milandra’s face that she wasn’t impressed at them taking over the conversation, so he dropped the subject and waited to see what direction she would take next.
“So what was it like, living in such a primitive settlement?” Milandra asked.
Tyris considered her question for a moment. Nothing he could say would really give Milandra’s viewers an idea of life on Zerris. It was just too far away from their lives for them to understand. They’d be expecting a description of how horrible it had been, and how glad he was to be home.
But the truth was, it hadn’t been like that. “At first, I was shocked at how primitive it was. No indoor plumbing, no electricity, no conveniences at all. Everything these people wanted or needed, they had to figure out a way to get with their own two hands, or with the help of their friends.”
Marlee watched him, head on one side, an expression so endearing he wanted to grin at her. But he refrained. “And after a while, I began to be impressed by the sheer tenacity of the villagers. Life hit them with just about the worst situation it could have, yet they survived. And more than that, they managed to build something worthwhile, a community that I was proud to be a part of.”
“So you actually felt like you belonged there?” Milandra asked, and this time there was no mistaking the disbelief in her voice.
“Of course he belonged there,” Marlee broke in.
Tyris interrupted her before she could say anything she shouldn’t. “I did feel like I was part of the community,” he agreed. “But in the back of my head, I still couldn’t let go of the idea of finding a way to get home. Eventually, the snow melted, and spring arrived, bringing with it new hope of repairing my stranded ship.”
Milandra seemed far happier with the direction the conversation was taking now. “So you set out to try to repair it again?”
Tyris nodded. “I did. I found out that the villagers had a stash of processed anysogen in a nearby cave, so this time I actually got it off the ground. But despite trying everything I could, it wouldn’t break orbit.”
“What did you do then?” Milandra prompted.
Tyris shrugged. “What could I do? I’d tried everything I could and it didn’t work. Nothing I did could give her the power she needed to break orbit, and I had no choice but to accept that.” Okay, he was getting a little bit dramatic here. But somehow, going over this story of how he and Marlee had started out was becoming fun, even if he did have to leave the best parts out.
“So how did you get off the planet?” Milandra asked, as if she didn’t already know.
Tyris grinned. “One day I was out at my ship, which I happened to have parked right next to the villagers’ ship, the Tenacity, and I realised the size difference was huge—so huge the Hylista could easily fit within the hull of the larger ship. So in went my ship, and up we went,” he said simply.
Milandra smiled. “What a brilliant solution, Captain Bekkert. That’s quite an achievement.”
Tyris smiled. “Thank you.”
Then Milandra turned to Marlee. “So Marlee, what is your story? What possessed you to step out of your normal comfort zone, the only world you’d ever known, and follow Tyris all the way back here to the Colonies.” Before Marlee could answer, she turned to Tyris. “And what possessed you to bring her Tyris? Surely there would have been someone better suited on the planet to come back with you?”
Marlee and Tyris glanced at each other. This was the moment. Could they pull it off?
Tyris began. “When I first arrived on the planet, though the villagers welcomed me, they didn’t believe I could get my ship airborne again. In retrospect, I realise they were simply being cautious, but at first I thought they were trying to prevent me making repairs, so I enlisted Marlee’s help, promising her I would take her with me if I could repair my ship.”
Marlee nodded, and Tyris hoped she’d play along.
“And why were you so desperate to get off the planet?” Milandra asked. “Was it because you hoped for a better life here on Urslat?”
Marlee hesitated, looking at Tyris, and he nodded encouragingly. “In some ways. When we left our home planet, there were only fifty of us, and as you may know, the main effect of anysogen pollution is to render humans and other animals largely infertile. Those who escaped to the planet knew we needed more people if we were to survive.”
“So people were encouraged to have children?” Milandra asked, curious. This was the first she’d heard of this part of the story.
“More than encouraged. It was considered everyone’s duty, once they were over a certain age, to have as many children as they could, if they were able,” Marlee explained.
“And you wanted to escape this?” Milandra guessed.
Marlee shook her head. “No, I wanted a baby very much. But after eighteen months, my boyfriend and I were unable to conceive.” There was genuine regret in her voice. Did it still upset her? The thought twisted his gut.
“So you hoped you’d find a solution here on Urslat?” Milandra guessed. “A way to reverse the damage done?”
Marlee shook her head. “No, if we couldn’t have children, devastating though it would be, we would still have been happy. But the council insisted we needed to separate and try again with someone else.”
“They insisted you find a new partner?” Milandra asked in surprise.
Marlee nodded. “Yeah.” To Tyris’s relief, she didn’t elaborate. They were on shaky ground. If Milandra put two and two together...
She didn’t. “I guess you’re looking forward to the arrival of the rescue ship sent to bring the rest of the settlers here to Urslat. I hear it left this morning, Tyris.”
Tyris nodded, pleased to steer the conversation in a different direction. “It did. I briefed the pilots myself. They should be back within six weeks.”
Milandra nodded. “What an interesting story it has been. And now, let’s hear what the public thinks. We have a caller on line one.”
She waited expectantly, and a few moments later a new voice was broadcast over the set. “Hello?”
“Hello, caller. What questions do you have for our guests tonight?”
“Can I come to your planet?” a woman’s voice blurted out. “Please?”
“But why?” Marlee asked in bewilderment.
“Because I want a baby,” the voice said. “I don’t care who the father is, I just don’t want to spend the rest of my life knowing I’ll never be a mother.” And then, she broke down into tears, leaving both Tyris and Milandra at a loss for words.
“I’m so sorry,” Marlee said gently, filling in the silence. “Everyone’s evacuating. The pollution from the anysogen means you’d probably be unable to have a child anyway. And it’s no place to raise a child either.”
“But if I stay here, my child will never be born. What choice do I have?” They could hear her crying softly, then the line went dead. Tyris wasn’t sure if the girl had hung up, of if she’d been cut off.
Milandra regained her composure quickly. “Sorry about that. Let’s try another caller shall we?”
But to everyone’s surprise, the next caller asked the same question, albeit without the level of distress of the previous caller. As did the next.
After the third caller, Milandra glanced up and the expression on her face changed. Following her gaze, he saw the director pull a finger across his throat.
“I’m afraid that’s all we have time for tonight, but tune in next week for the latest updates on this situation. Thank you all,” Milandra said cheerfully.
And then it was over. The camera crews pulled back, and Milandra stood up. “That didn’t go quite as planned.”
“No.” Tyris shook his head. “I figured people were going to be upset about the reproduction restrictions, but I had no idea they were getting this desperate.”
Milandra came around, looked over something her director gave her, then nodded. All three of them left the building and walked towards the car. “Things are worse than the media are reporting actually. I’ve heard a few reports of people trying to extract the implants themselves, earning them jail sentences of course. There’s been at least one assassination attempt on the president, and a couple more no one can prove. We’re not allowed to publish any of that though, people are stirred up enough already.” She shrugged, and slid into the passenger seat of the car.
