K'Normia Memories

[rosetto 0]

The lump in her throat was huge and she used the tea to wash it down quickly. Then Harry told her, "I believe I'm going to need something a little stiffer", as she pointed to her glass. With ice in her mouth she continued.

 

"This is all symbolism, right? It was just a performance. The girl is just fine. Right? Please tell me…"

 

There was a long moment of silence and as the server made his rounds, El Tira motioned to him. He turned and came to her immediately, in spite of the fact the he was carrying someone else's drink. Harry could hardly not notice this. She wondered what it was exactly that El Tira had given to him. Coin currency was not rare but K'Normian coins were gold and bronze. Silver was not found on this planet. She ordered two drinks and refills on the teas. She then asked for the bill of fare as Light Moon rose to its crest.

 

"Who do you believe me to be, Harriet?"

 

Harry just stared at her and tried to read her intentions. It wasn't working very well. El Tira had been such a sweet young woman to her. Harry couldn't get a hold of this sudden twist in her personality. Her anxiety began to rise again and she found herself fidgeting in her seat. The young woman grabbed her hand again and patted it and looked into her eyes. It was then that she noticed El Tira's eyes. They were hazel and changing at that very moment. They became almost as bright as the Light Moon and they were mesmerizing to her.

 

The server returned and interrupted with drinks and a picture of tea. He refilled the glasses and then saw another silver coin on a small card that edged the table on the side he had approached. Harriet watched the server's astonishment over the additional coin and couldn't recall seeing El Tira place it there. She thought to herself, 'When could she have? She was holding my hands?' This was surely turning into an interesting afternoon.

 

"You hungry?" asked El Tira as the server left silently taking the coin and the card without any hesitation. She opened the menu and started to peruse it pointing her finger at various delights and adding an audible acknowledge. Harriet responded in a whimper of a voice.

 

"Wh—What's there?"

 

"Here, let me show you." And with that she rose and joined her sitting adjacent and sliding her chair. They looked at the menu together and everything looked strange to Harry. It was a good strange though. Everything looked absolutely delicious and very colorful.

 

"Kakchow? That's barn apples? Are they good?"

 

"Simply to die for, everything here is."

 

Harriet scooped up her drink and took a huge swallow. It was surprisingly fruity and she took another smaller gulp and then wiped her lips with her hand.

 

"Let's just order those. Sal made me a big breakfast. I'm still a little full."

 

Harriet was beginning to relax and her social psyche was starting to emerge. This culture interested her with out a doubt but so did the vast expanses of Westen. She changed the subject.

 

"How long have you worked for Robinson Bay?"

 

"I have always worked for them. It is family-owned, my family. I am usually in the kitchens though. I have only been serving for a short time. Why do you ask? Was my service not well?"

 

"No sweetie. You were great. I am just curious about how all of this works. I want to learn more about you and your culture, as much as possible. I find this all very intriguing, stimulating."

 

El Tira sat for a moment and thought about the sudden change in Harriet's attitude. Colabana, the drink she had ordered for the two of them, did not normally have a high liquor content so she was at a loss as to why Harriet had calmed down so quickly.

 

"Stimulating, huh? Not exactly how I pictured your response."

 

"Oh, I am a worldly woman. I am not so naïve as to be ignorant of cultural differences. We have all grown and developed our own value systems even within our own cultures. Yours is not so different from the Kapellan society or closer to home, our own Aldebaranese. Now they have a rich history of dogma that most humanoid cultures would find questionable."

 

"I see what you mean." El Tira was noting Harriet's skirting of the knowledge of the ceremonial sacrifice but she could sense no fear in Harriet's tone. This intrigued her and El Tira leaned slightly back in her seat as if becoming more comfortable with the situation as well.

 

 

………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

Sal was lying on a hammock outside their room at Robinson Bay and watching the sun go down, following its distant cousin Aldebaran into the horizon. He drank his ale, closed his eyes remembering this guy he'd met on Aldebaran III who had tried to teach him this Vulcan game called Kovlar. It's a board game with counters and intersecting horizontal and vertical lines. Sal had come off a long shift and couldn't really concentrate but the guy said it was similar to Go or Stones. Sal chuckles to himself because growing up as an only child in remote Milankovic, one didn't get too many neighbor kids coming over to play board games.

 

He opened his eyes, looked up and saw the "Jewelry Box" which is not a constellation that can be seen from the Sol System; the stars don't appear in the same place in the sky. The central star is Deneb Kaitos which is part of the Cetus constellation on Earth. It is surrounded by what appears to be a box of stars. All are unrelated to Cetus entirely. He told Harry once that the diamond she wore was brighter than Calibon! That was the name given to Deneb Kaitos here on K'Normia.

 

He looked at his watch and wondered where Harry was, hoping that she was alright. She had her communicator and so he knew that if need be she'd call. He could always check on her using GP that that service had changed over the years as K'Normia grew and its networks conjested. One now had to actively request GP service and then it was spotty with update resolution nearing a standard minute (100 sec).

 

He tried to return to the book he was reading but got distracted again by the beautiful star-scapes on K'Normia. To the south was the "Fire Cloud" which had been a symbol for a pagan cult here. This formation included such stars as Betelgeuse, Rigel, Bellatrix and Alnilam of Orion. Also within this group were the bright stars of the Hyades Cluster which 'as the crow flies' wasn't that far away, some 20 parsecs. Although much of the trade and commerse of Bull's Head Commonwealth were focused on Aldebaran and the Elnath Systems, the new developments were happening in the Tidal Boundary. That's where the Taurus brothers were focusing their attentions and Sal thought that it would be a good investment. Harriet disagreed. It was too wild for her; too unsettled. "Too close to Klingon space", she'd say, "You can almost smell them!"

 

Sal soon drifted off to sleep in his hammock under the stars. The coos on the nightbirds provided a calming background and his head full of thoughts pushed him further into unconsciousness. He awoke to the sunrise which comes faster than one thinks. The Dark Moon was setting and the Seven Sisters were chasing him close behind. He walked into their room and saw that nothing had changed. The bed had not been slept in and there was no message from the computer. He walked over to the replicator and mumbled, "Ostenfagen Coffee, black".

 

“Computer. Locate Harriet Rosetto.” He commanded, looking in no particular direction.

 

 

 

There was a short pause and Sal shook his head and retrieved his coffee from the replicator. Ostenfagen was a providence of the Osten continent-country. It was rich with fertile lands and was known for certain things such as its coffee bean. It was a dark brew and had the subtle flavor of spiced hickory which was due to the haltimet tree which thrived like a weed in Ostenfagen. Its scent and taste osmosed into everything there much like an onion’s pungency to its refrigerator companions. It was not distasteful and added a certain bite to the coffee which was probably why it was so popular.

 

 

 

“Harriet Rosetto is currently in a transport conveyance in the Westen town of P’Honex; a distance of approximately 150 kilometers. Do you to speak with this person?”

 

 

“No thank you. Do you have a destination?”

 

 

“There is no destination entered at the present time.”

 

 

Sal had been with Harry long enough to know two things. First of all, if she didn’t talk you then she simply didn’t have anything to add; good, bad, indifferent; just nothing of importance. And if you tried to force her hand then she would usually clammed up and you’d never get anything out of her. Secondly, she could handle herself, given opportunity. She had shown fear of seeing El Tira alone more for Sal’s sake than anything else. He knew this and still worried about her. She’d return some time today with a bright smile on her face, proud of an achievement that she had done or in a profitable deal she’d laid claim. He sipped his coffee and when in to change for the day’s events which were wide open at present.

 

 

They had seven days left to their vacation which ended at the close of Dark Moon Eclipse. This was a two week holiday on K’Normia that straddled the annual event and was always in the month of KIE. This was nearly 17 standard days and 23 sunsets here. KIE was one of three short months in the K’Normian year and since this was a leap year there were 81 days. KIE meant ‘half-way’ and referred to K’Normia’s position in its orbit about the sun. It was opposed by the month of ANA and the Light Moon Eclipse of the New Year.

 

 

“Computer. Display Tidal Boundary Colonies of the Bull’s Head Commonwealth.”

 

“Do you prefer maps of photographic records?”

 

“Political maps, please.”

 

 

The main viewer in the lounge filled with a map of the cluster. The dominating systems of θTauri and υTauri refused to be upstaged by the growing popularity of the other colonies. θTauri was the central hub where the colony of Tranquility resided. The Taurus brothers controlled much of this space. Both Tranquility and Goldrock, the primary colony in the υTauri system, had been on the news lately. This was where the action was. This is where Sal wanted to be.

 

 

He looked at the map and noticed that there were 22 colonies besides Tranquility and Goldrock. They all had very strange names like dJungel Mark and Shima Furotingu and he imagined that they had as many stories as they did wonders to be discovered.

 

 

“Computer. Photographs of dJungel Mark.”

 

“There are no photographic records of that colony at present.”

 

“Okay….” He paused in contemplation, “How about Endelost Hav?”

 

 

A view of a vast ocean appeared with only sparse clouds as significant features to break the blue upon blue. Although it was a video there seemed to be little motion detected. There was nothing for the waves to break upon as they ebbed and swelled. It was a tranquil view but not quite what Sal had been craving. There was another colony that was reported to have floating organic islands! He wondered which one that might be. Some of the names of the colonies were obvious like Collin’s Desert and Prasino Nera which was Italian for green ocean. The others he could hardly imagine what they might be like.

 

 

“Computer. Photograph of Lavendel?”

 

“There are only photographic records of the Tranquility and Goldrock colonies remaining.”

 

 

Sal was disappointed but still wanted to read more about these places.

 

“Return to map view.”

 

 

Sal looked at the details again and with discontentment said, “Viewer off”, as he walked into the bedroom area and prepared for the day. He picked a casual outfit with short-legged pants. He was supposed to be on vacation. He couldn’t see the need to dress formally all of the time. As he stepped out of the shower and donned his trousers he grabbed a casual shirt from a hanger, his communicator on the nightstand and slipped into a pair of sandals as he walked out onto the lanai. He was head to the front desk and main reception area. From there he would plan out his day.

 

 

As he flipped on his shirt an attractive young Betazoid pranced by with a smile. ‘It was a good thing that’, he thought, ‘one could not be arrested for indecent thoughts’. It was obvious to him that she had been tuned in, though. He took a last glance and caught her doing the same as she disappeared around the corner headed in the opposite direction. He continued on his way past the saunas and exercise platforms and he took no noticed to the Westen servants scurrying about. This was no to be rude but more liken to a compliment. They felt that a job done well was done without interruption. Stopping to perform formal courtesies was counter-productive and ill thought. Even a simple nod and smile were considered intrusive to them, unless, of course, you had required their services. Then they would drop what they were doing to give all attention to you.

 

 

Sal arrived at the counter where the assistant manager stood watching her busy staff. She was not much shorter than him which was considered tall for a Westen, wore a bright green pant suit with a lavender top that grabbed one’s eyes into focus. She had a welcoming smile and a pleasant voice and she greeted him Federation-style with an open hand shake.

 

 

“How are you this morning, sir?”

 

 

“On a mission to find some activity… Got any ideas?”

 

 

“Well sir, there are plenty listed in the brochure. Here, let me help you find something of interest.”

 

She grabbed one of her brochures and opened it onto the counter and started to peruse. With one finger on her lips she asked, “Will your wife be joining you? Or are you alone this morning?”

 

 

Sal was a little out of sorts and was scanning the room as he answered, “Alone… for now. What?—Sorry, okay, what do you have here?”

 

 

“Let’s see, there’s a showing of some ancient relics from Zoalus IV. Have you heard about that culture? Very strange. As if they just stepped out for coffee and never came back.”

 

 

Sal looked at her as she spoke and could see that she was being sincere.

 

“Yeah, strange stuff. I might be interested. What time do they open?”

 

 

“Not for another dami…”, she sighed in disappointment, “There might be something else that’s open right now.”

 

 

Sal looked at his watch. That would be etdami Light Moon which meant one dami, or hour, before its rise. He continued, “No. That sounds great. I’m just gonna go grab a quick bite and then head on over.”

 

 

Trying not to sound pushy but she was genuinely interested, “I get off in 20 daki. I would enjoy accompanying you… I mean, since you’re all alone and if you wouldn’t mind… I mean…” she stutter and attempted her best to recover. Sal just smiled and said, “Sure, I’ll be in the café. What’s your name?”

 

 

 

“Beolumi. Miss Ceri Beolumi. Yours of course is Mr. Rosetto. I have you on my roster.” She smiled as he nodded and turned to look for the café.

 

“Nice name, Ceri. See you in a few daki then, I’ll be right over there.” He pointed it out as if she wouldn't know where it was.

 

 

Edited June 25, 2010 by rosetto