Beyond the Rim

Beyond the Rim

Evelyn Weibel

Copyright © 2016 Evelyn Weibel

All rights reserved.

ISBN- 9781370251513

PART i

tHE BLUE m

1

Crash Landing

An impossible amount of green hurtled toward us. Beside me, Rock’s face was grim in the flickering light. The internal force field cushioned me in my chair as our pod spun out of control.

I closed my eyes just as we hit. The force bubble malfunctioned and the impact hurled me to the floor.

Then, blackness.

Smoke woke me. Jets of foam doused little fires eating the edges of the pod. I lay on the grass; in front of me the pod was broken open like an eggshell. Through the smoke and the jagged edges of the wrecked pod, a broad valley scattered with bluish evergreen trees spread out at the foot of high craggy mountains.

Rock crawled over to me. Are you all right, Devlin?

I gasped, nodded, not trusting myself to speak. He put my arm under his shoulder and helped carry me away from the burning wreck.

Our foray into the unknown sector of space hadn’t gone exactly as we’d planned. The only one who knew we were out here was my sister Vega, who I’d been rooming with since graduation a month ago. We’d been looking for adventure, but crash-landing on an unknown planet hadn’t really been in our plans.

Are we still in the Blue M Group? Rock said, helping me to my feet, his face clouded with dust, a scrape across his cheek.

I think so, I managed. I mean, the Blue M stars were the last thing I saw on the scanner, right before that meteor hit us.

The pod was a smashed black beetle, its guts spilling out onto the surface of the planet. We probably couldn’t repair it. It’d be a miracle if we could repair the com system.

Why don’t you see if you can repair the com, said Rock. I’ll keep a lookout.

For what? We’re on the Rim—there’s no one out here.

You never know. He took his pistol out of his jacket. At least I’ve still got my gun. He trudged to the edge of the clearing and stood, gun raised, looking down the valley into the trees.

In the sky floated two medium-sized moons, a third small jagged one tagging behind them. We’d gone on this trip to escape civilization and find something fresh and new and different.

We’d found a planet that perhaps no human had ever stepped on. And maybe we’d die here. If I didn’t get the com repaired, that is.

I stepped under the overhang of the ship’s hull. On the console, I found the com center and punched the screen. Nothing. I fiddled with it for a little while, but I was no tech. Ships were supposed to pretty much fly themselves, and usually posed no problems. If they did, there was usually someone around to help. Unless you were on a backwater planet light years from any Core world.

Rock, I said. Despite myself, panic tinged my voice.

He walked back toward me. Yeah?

I don’t know if I can repair this. I mean, I’m the artist, remember?

Don’t look at me. If it was weapons, I could fix it, but don’t hold your breath, Dev.

He sat down behind the console and punched some buttons, but in a moment he looked like he was ready to punch the whole thing to smithereens.

He stood up, shaking his head. No, it’s all Greek to me.

Hm. Well, maybe there is something here after all. It wouldn’t hurt to look.

It’s a big planet.

We’d better get started then. I led the way up through the pines, into the mountains.

The air was clear and crisp, and smelled of evergreen. We’d taken a rather non-kosher route, unapproved by Center. My sister hadn’t liked our idea, but she didn’t want me to get in trouble by telling anyone. Besides, you needed to let off a bit of steam after graduation—you were driving me crazy. Maybe now you’ll get it out of your system so I can live in peace.

Gotta love Vega. She’s always so sympathetic.

We trudged up the mountain an hour or so. Birds trilled in the trees. The sound of water roared somewhere ahead, growing louder.

Around a grove of pines we met a cliff jutting out over a long drop. Rock stepped to the edge of it, his boots perched on the rim.

From the cliff on the other side, a waterfall tumbled hundreds of feet into misty depths.

Whoa, I whispered.

Yeah, said Rock, awe in his voice. Wonder what it’s doing here.

What do you mean? I said. It’s water falling out of a rock.

No—that. Rock pointed with his gun hand. Above the waterfall perched a house. Low and earth-toned, it was meant to blend in, but there was no mistaking it was made by human hands.

Or, perhaps, alien, though humans hadn’t encountered aliens, except for ancient ruins, even after spreading through a fourth of the galaxy.

My heart leaped. "They must have a com system."

Rock nodded. But we’d better be careful. You stay here; I’ll do some recon.

Are you kidding? I’m going with you.

I can go faster alone.

Right, Mr. Commando. You didn’t have much more training than I did. He glared at me. It was a sore point with him; he’d wanted to be in the Corps, but he was from the Rim so he’d had to stay out of the military.

He disappeared through the trees; I tried to follow him, but he soon lost me. Great.

I backtracked a little; it didn’t look like this side of the cliff connected with the waterfall side.

But finally I scrambled up a ledge and pulled myself up to the ridge.

The trees grew denser ahead of me. I heard voices, and peered around the edge of a tree to see a small clearing up ahead.

On the ground, Rock lay, mouth bleeding. A man aimed his gun down at him, two others surrounding him.

A cold muzzle touched the back of my neck.

Don’t make any trouble, said an icy voice. Unless you want to end up like your friend there. He shoved the gun against my neck, and I had no choice but to walk forward. They dragged Rock to his feet and marched us toward the house.

2

Ranior

The roar of the waterfall muted as soon as the door slid shut behind us.

Inside, we walked down a marble hallway, fountains cascading into pools along the wall, some adorned with sculptures, some nearly obscured by plants.

The guards shoved us into the elevator, which rose to Level 8 and stopped. The doors opened and we stepped out, a gold-inlaid pond shimmering on both sides of a long marble path.

At the very end of the pathway stood a carved, throne-like chair. And on it sat a woman in a white, jewel-adorned suit.

Long golden hair fell past her shoulders; the rest of it was bound in a braid. Large blue eyes appraised us.

She rose, her long white cape swishing as she stepped toward us and looked us up and down. Who do we have here? Intruders? Her voice was amused, smooth as honey. I didn’t know if she was welcoming us or preparing to punish us.

All we want is a com to contact Center, I said, then we can get out of here.

She smiled. I am Ranior. I own this planet, you see, and I don’t like it when people get too…close. She stepped up to me, slid a cold finger along my jaw.

It’s not legal for anyone besides the Center to own planets, said Rock.

She laughed. A musical laugh that hit all the wrong notes.

Mm, yes, that is a problem, isn’t it? She stepped toward Rock and touched his chin. He jerked away. She slapped him and the man behind him struck him to his knees.

He glared up at her, his spiky black hair sticking up like knives.

No one knows you’re here, gentlemen, I trust? That is, if you are just innocent travelers.

No, we’re not spies or anything, I said. I mean, we did illegal things to get here, so—who cares if you own the planet? We don’t—

A cold finger touched my lips. "Oh, my dear boy. You don’t get it. I didn’t just do illegal things to get a planet. I have a planet so I can do illegal things.

Things, such as— She nodded. A sharp pain hit my legs. I stumbled to my knees.

She grabbed my chin, forcing my face upwards. Yes, very nice. Sculpted, fine-boned. A little too thin, maybe, but the hair makes up for it. Brilliant shade of red—we don’t often get that. Is it natural, boy?

Yes, but—

She released my chin. And this one. Handsome, rugged. Very strong. She cupped Rock’s chin in her hand. He jerked away. And feisty! she laughed. Yes, these are the kind I want. If you want models of what to look for, Kaza, Vane, look no further than this. But before we decide where exactly they fit into our operation, I need to know if they really are just two lost lambs. She nodded, and something pricked my arm. Blackness swallowed me.

3

The Educator

I awoke, slumped against a corner in a cell with padded walls. My back and chest ached, probably from the crash.

My head pounded, making me feel sick. When was the last time I’d eaten? Some snack in the pod on the way here….

There was nothing else in the cell but a latrine and a sort of slab jutting out from the wall, which I guessed I was supposed to sleep on. The door had no window, but I didn’t doubt they were watching.

I didn’t care, as long as they weren’t bothering me. I hoped Rock was all right.

I walked around the room, unstiffening my muscles. I tried not to dwell on the fact that I was trapped, or to wonder what was coming next.

As time dragged by, hunger gnawed my stomach, and thirst ravaged my throat. I began to wish that someone would come in, as long as they gave me something to eat and drink. I’d about given up on that when a slot in the wall opened, revealing an alcove, a cup of water and a steaming bowl of soup inside. The soup smelled wonderful and I had gulped about two thirds of it when I realized they might have drugged it. I was so hungry I drank the rest of it anyway.

It might have been drugged for all I knew, because after that I felt very tired, though it could have just been exhaustion. I lay down on the floor and fell asleep.

When I woke up, the bowl and cup were gone. Ways to escape tumbled through my mind—constructing a weapon, stealing a ship, things that were probably out of the question.

The door shot upwards, revealing a tall slim man with brown hair, flanked by two guards. The guards grabbed me by the arms; the man stood in front of me, ice-blue eyes gazing from a smooth, lean face.

I am the Educator. Ranior has ordered me to interrogate you, in case you are a spy. I will also oversee your education when it is time for you to learn how to be a slave.

My heart flipped. A slave? I couldn’t even absorb what that would mean.

He turned on his heel, and the guards dragged me after him.

We reached a white room lit with a soft glow. The guards took me over to a white marble slab, throwing me onto its cold surface and strapping me down.

The Educator took a small, round device from a stainless steel table and set it on my forehead. Now, I would like to know if you are telling the truth. Believe me, I will know if you are lying. He tapped the device. There was no pain, just a cold, liquid sensation, as if it were binding itself to my skull.

What is your name?

I didn’t have anything to hide, and besides, I had no idea what would happen if I didn’t tell the truth.

Devlin Kane. The device on my head beeped softly, vibrating against my skin.

Where are you from, Devlin?

From CentralWorld Twelve-thirty-seven. The device beeped and vibrated again, sending a soothing feeling rippling through me. It must be drugging me, I thought, but that didn’t bother me as much as it should….

Ah, said the Educator. From a Core world, yet not very genhanced. Were your parents radicals?

Not that I know of. We were from an outer colony, so I don’t think we really had access to much genetech.

"Almost might as well be from a Rimworld, then.

Are you a spy, Devlin Kane?

No. We just crash-landed…. I was feeling distinctly dreamy. Images floated through my head: horsing around with Rock inside the pod, the fiery crash—then my thoughts flew back to college, and the pranks we used to play in the dorms…law, politics, endless legal jargon filling my mind, rather than the art that I wanted to do…then further back, to the Facility, the long, gray years with Vega protecting me from the other kids…then, at the edge of my memory, the brilliant red explosion on the edge of the snowy wasteland, the day my parents died….

A hand slammed across my cheek. Stay with me, said a voice, the Educator. I decided I would call him Ed for short. Looks like we might have given you a bit too high of a dosage…You’ve got a pretty low tolerance for the drug, unless, of course, you’re faking it to try and get out of answering questions. If we had more sophisticated monitors…But I have to make do with what I have.

He took the device off my head; it made a soft poof as it un-suctioned from my skin. He pressed something on it and then put it back on my head.

Now, Devlin. I want you to give me the reason you came to this world.

I didn’t want to. I mean, it’s a beautiful world and everything, but we were just out to explore the Blue M Cluster. We didn’t want to crash.

And why were you exploring?

Well, we just…wanted adventure. As I’m sure you would if you were ever trapped in college for four years, people droning on and on about ‘constitutional ramifications’ and ‘court precedents’.

Ed smiled wryly. I’m sure I would. Were you ever contacted by the government?

No. I wasn’t anything special in school—only reason I got in was a scholarship. Rock got a sports scholarship, I got an arts scholarship, and we both ended up pre-law. I laughed, then wondered if what I’d said was actually very funny. I was feeling rather fuzzy, and a sort of euphoria was making my head feel like it was hovering slightly above my body.

So you studied law.

Well, my major was political science, pre-law track. I barely got ‘C’s’, but it was pretty good considering I didn’t really want to be there in the first place. I smiled. The euphoria was washing through me; every time I answered a question that thing vibrated soothingly.

So, you said before you did illegal things to get here. You must not have a great regard for the law?

Oh, well, yeah, I do, but everybody bends the law sometimes. Even law students. I laughed again. It felt good to laugh. But you guys are bending the law even further…you said something about slaves? Is that the law you’re bending?

Ed took the device off, pressed something on it again, then put it back. If you’re faking it, you’re doing a good job. The government agent that came last year was able to outwit the truthteller and had built up a high tolerance for interrodrugs. He almost succeeded, but we fell back on more…primitive methods, which broke down his resistance enough that the truthteller was finally able to get accurate readings.

Ice tingled down my spine. The euphoria was draining rapidly, leaving hollow darkness in its place.

The Educator spoke into what must have been a com in his ear. You can bring him in now. Yes, I think we will try that this time.

Ed paced in the shadows, paying little attention to me. The only sound I heard was my heart beating in my ears, and his steady footsteps, pounding out an uneven rhythm.

Then the door opened with a whoosh. A guard dragged in a limp figure, and laid him on the slab next to me.

It was Rock. His clothes were ragged, and he was breathing erratically. Blood glistened on his temple.

My stomach lurched, fear coursing through me for what Ed had in store for us.

4

Interrogation

What have you done to him? I said. The guard who had brought Rock in was a hulking giant with a black beard. He looked down at me with supercilious gray eyes.

Seethe here told me over the com that your friend gave a lot more resistance than you did, and it even took him a few minutes to bring him down. Ed looked down at Rock, clearly impressed. Rock stirred, but he looked barely conscious.

Take off both their shirts, said Ed. Seethe ripped Rock’s tattered shirt from him, revealing bruises scattered across his torso. Then Seethe took a knife from his belt and its tip touched my collarbone.

H-hey, that’s a nice shirt. Cost fifty creds at Staine’s—

The guard tore through the fabric, the knife grazing my stomach, leaving a stinging cut. He then pulled the shirt out from under me and tossed it along with Rock’s onto the floor.

Meanwhile, Ed stuck one of those truthteller devices