Cosmic Callisto Caprica & the Missing Rings of Saturn Page 5

  “Actually, my friend Wendy here is also going to stay with me.”

  The young woman sucked in her bottom lip. “We don’t serve—”

  I wasn’t interested in hearing the rest of her sentence and I didn’t give her a chance to finish it. “In your notes next to our reservation, does it tell you who that person is or what their occupation is? Could you check that for me please?”

  The young woman had a puzzled look on her face. She slowly turned back to her portscreen. After looking over the notes next to our reservation, she gasped. “Why, you’re Senator Caprica’s daughter!” she said with glee.

  “That’s right, I am. He reserved this room for me and my companion here.” I placed my hand on Wendy’s shoulder. “If she can’t stay here, then neither will I, and I would hate to have to tell my father the senator that I had an unpleasant experience here at The Grand Bestla Hotel.”

  The young woman nervously rubbed her palms together. “Oh no, Ms. Caprica. We want you to enjoy your stay here.”

  I backed up from the counter and pulled Wendy’s arm into mine. “Good, then! Mike, you can go ahead and show us to our room please.” I made sure to place as much emphasis on the word “our” as possible.

  Thankfully, our spacious top floor room was equipped with not only three rooms but a kitchen and a small living room. Once I gave Mike his tip, he left and closed the door behind him. Wendy flopped down on one of the soft couches in the living room area. “Cosmo, you didn’t have to stick up for me like that. I could have driven back home.”

  I sat down beside Wendy and laid my head on her shoulder. “Nonsense, Wendy. You have the right to stay here as much as I do. Plus, the trip from the Moon all the way here to Saturn is a long one and I know you need your rest.”

  Wendy smiled. “Thank you, Cosmo,” Wendy whispered.

  I yawned. “Well, I’m going to bed. I’ll see you in the morning, Wendy.” I left Wendy by herself in the living room and dove into my comfortable queen-sized canopy bed. Tomorrow was the big day. I couldn’t wait to go to Princess Rhea’s jewelry showcase.

  Chapter 4

  I could feel something pressing into my shoulder. I woke up to find Wendy hovering over me with her orange hair still in its pink rollers. “Cosmo, honey. Wake up.”

  I blinked my eyes several times and I licked the dried spit that was stuck to my cheek. “Wha…wha... am I late for class?”

  Wendy chuckled. “No! They just made an announcement that Princess Rhea’s ship will be arriving soon. If you want to get a good look at it, you can on the ship’s left wing.” As soon as Wendy mentioned Princess Rhea’s name, I remembered that I was on the Titan and I was staying at The Grand Bestla. I leapt out of bed and ran toward my suitcase.

  “Oh, Wendy, what should I wear?” I frantically dug through the neatly folded dresses and shoes she had packed for me.

  “Stop making a mess! I ordered some breakfast. Go eat and I’ll lay out an outfit for you.”

  I quickly shoveled the food Wendy ordered for me. Having real scrambled eggs for breakfast was so much better than those cold yellow runny clumps they dared to call eggs in the school cafeteria. When I returned to my room, Wendy had laid out on my bed a tan tea dress that was covered from top to bottom with red roses. Some of the roses were in full bloom while others were still in bud form. Next to my dress were a pair of bright white gloves, a matching pair of white cat eyeglasses, and black heels.

  “Don’t forget these.” Wendy handed me a small black box. Inside was a pair of pearl earrings with a matching necklace. I draped the pearl necklace around my neck. I was going to look absolutely gorgeous today!

  By the time I reached the ship’s left wing, I started to feel like going there was a complete waste of my time. The entrance to the left wing had been roped off and was filled to the brim with members of the press. They had their cameras pressed to the windows on the left wing, eagerly waiting for the princess to arrive in her ship. For a second, I thought I might be able to jump over the rope and gain access to the left wing, but several security officers were stationed near the rope. In fact, there were a lot of security officers here. They all seemed to be on edge, as if they knew that at any moment something terrible was going to happen. I understood the need for security and performing crowd control, but something just seemed off. What could they be so worried about? The sound of a banjo playing off in the distance broke my chain of thought. To my far right, a rather large group of people was standing in front of an oasis pool next to a souvenir shop. A few security officers were also standing near the edge of the crowd. Some kept their eyes on the crowd itself while others watched those who were entering it or leaving it.

  Out of curiosity, I walked toward the crowd, but I kept my distance. I only wanted to get close enough so I could get a small peek at what was going on. Across from the crowd was a little coffee shop. I took a seat at one of the tiny tables outside the shop and ordered a small black coffee. I could only see the back of the crowd. Whoever was strumming away on the banjo sounded like he was singing something, but his voice was too soft and it was being drowned out by all of the foot stomping and hand clapping from the people around him. From what I could see, nearly every other person in the crowd was wearing a cowboy hat and safely secured to the side of their pants was a ray gun. There were a few people who had two guns fastened to their side. I could only assume they must have permits in order to walk around in the open like this with a ray gun attached to their pants. Then again, maybe they didn’t, so I guess that was why the security officers were keeping an extra-close eye on them. The high-pitched squeals of a microphone came forth from the crowd and a tall man in a security uniform and red hair carrying a small wooden crate pushed his way to the front. The redheaded man placed the crate in front of an elderly gentleman with a small gray beard who also had a rusty long-barreled ray gun strapped to his side. The elderly man carefully stepped onto the crate, then he brought the microphone to his lips.

  “Thank you for getting that crate for me, Cole.” The elderly man glanced over at Cole. “That’s my nephew, everyone. I’m so proud of him. He’s a hard-working man who doesn’t need any handouts from the Lunar Federation!” Cole backed up from the elderly man and disappeared into the crowd. “Hey, can y’all in the back see and hear me now?”

  The crowd answered yes. The man picked his banjo back up and proceeded to glide his fingers over its thin strings. “Now some of y’all don’t know me, but my name is Jimmy Woodrow.” He continued to strum on his banjo. “I don’t know about y’all, but I’m sick of these dang Martians crossin’ over Pluto’s borders and enterin’ into our solar system like our laws don’t matter.” Everyone in the crowd cheered loudly. “Then, when they get here, they start makin’ all these demands and they start thinkin’ that they got the right to do what good normal law-abidin’ citizens like you and me can do. It’s not right, I tell yah.”

  “You tell ’em, Jimmy!” someone shouted.

  Jimmy smiled. “Now I’m just a humble little man from Pluto. I done worked hard all my life, pullin’ myself up by my bootstraps on my own each morning before work. I ain’t never asked the government for help but…” He hung his head down. “Our solar system is dyin’. Things ain’t what they used to be and it’s up to us to restore order and to do what the Lunar Federation just doesn’t have the guts to do.”

  “What do we need to do, Jimmy?!” someone hollered.

  “We need to secure Pluto’s borders and stop these green pointy-eared demons from entering our solar system!”

  Oh well, everything made sense now. A rowdy group of anti-Martian fundamentalists with ray guns who thought they had the legal right to police Pluto’s borders on their own and they had an extreme hatred for Martians; yes, they definitely needed to be heavily monitored on a day like this.

  “We have to do what we can to take the universe back from them,” Jimmy loudly proclaimed. I was so deeply immersed in the stupidity of everything Jimmy was saying that I failed to
realize that a young woman in a blue dress was trying to get my attention. She had a stack of pamphlets tucked under her arms. She laid one of the pamphlets down right in front of me. On the front of it was a gigantic red hand reaching toward the sky behind several long golden beams of light shining behind it. Resting in the palm of the red hand were all of the planets of our solar system. Hovering above the hand in red letters was the phrase “Take Back the Universe.”

  I looked up at the lady after I flipped through the pamphlet. “Excuse me, but who are we supposed to be taking the universe back from?”

  An extremely puzzled look came across the lady’s face. With her stack of pamphlets pressed against her chest, she carefully looked over her shoulder. It was as if she was checking to make sure the coast was clear so that no one else could overhear what she had to say to me. She bent down and whispered, “You know—them.” She made sure to put as much emphasis on the word “them” as possible.

  I arched my eyebrows and cocked my head ever so slightly to the side, all in an effort to make myself look as confused as possible, even though I knew full well what, or rather, who she meant. “Who is them? Do they have a name?”

  The lady’s lip started to quiver a bit, then she backed away from my table. “Everything you need to know is right in that pamphlet. Have a pleasant day!”

  I crumpled up the red pamphlet into a paper ball. This kind of backward fear-inducing mindset was the reason why we had Human-only and Martian-only laws. The air around me was so toxic and I could feel myself becoming sick inside from it. I needed to get out of there and away from these crazed lunatics. I left a tip on the table and started to walk back to my hotel room. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that the security officer Cole was leaving the crowd in a hurry. After checking his watch, he jumped onto a black hover bike and quickly sped away from the scene. Several seconds later, I heard a loud booming noise right above me. It kind of sounded like an explosion. Just like everyone else, I stopped what I was doing and I turned my attention toward the ceiling. Moments later, an announcement came from the ship’s loudspeakers. “Attention, all passengers. For your safety, we must ask that you return to your rooms at once.” The message was repeated over and over on the loudspeaker. The security officers swiftly ushered the crowds of people off the floor and back to their hotel rooms.

  I closed the door to my hotel room behind me.

  “Did you hear that loud, booming noise?” Wendy asked.

  “Yes, I did. Did you hear the announcement that came from the loudspeakers?”

  Wendy shook her head yes. “Whatever the problem is, I’m sure it will be taken care of in no time.”

  “I hope you’re right, Wendy.” I sat down on the couch in the living room. A million different thoughts ran through my mind. Just what had happened out there and why did we need to take refuge in our rooms?

  * * *

  I was starting to get a bad case of cabin fever after spending the majority of my day in my hotel room with Wendy, doing absolutely nothing but watching TV. Princess Rhea’s showcase was scheduled for seven o’clock. It was going on six o’clock and not a single announcement had been made about what had happened earlier this morning. Every time I tried to leave my room, I was greeted by a security officer who gave me the same sour-looking stare each time I stepped outside the door. “This is getting ridiculous. They should have told us something by now!”

  Wendy was sitting calmly in a nearby chair going over a crossword puzzle. “Oh, be patient. They’ll tell us something soon enough.” There was a rap at the door. When I opened it, two security officers stood in the doorway. They didn’t utter a single word to me, but I knew this was clearly a bad sign.

  “What can I do for you, gentlemen?” I asked reluctantly.

  One of the officers spoke up. “Ma’am, we’re going to have to sweep your room and do a quick security check.” The officer stuck his foot in the doorway as I swung the door and left it just a half an inch away from the officer’s foot.

  “Exactly what are you checking for?” I kept my hands on the doorknob.

  “Ma’am, by refusing to let us in, you would be interfering with an official police investigation and I don’t think you want to do that, little missy.”

  I turned my nose up in disgust. How dare he call me “little missy?” Who did he think he was anyway? He didn’t know me. “I know my rights! First off, none of you are police officers. You’re security officers for the hotel. Second, I don’t have to let you in. You haven’t even told me what you’re looking for, and I’m just supposed to accept what you say just like that?!? Third, if you want to search this room, come back with a real police officer and a search warrant!” I pushed the door with all of my might and pinned the tip of the man’s shoe in between the door and its frame. The officer let out a little yelp. Served him right for calling me “little missy.”

  Wendy, who up until now had been standing with her crossword puzzle in her hand, grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me away from the door. “Cosmo, stop it! Don’t be so rude. Let these men do their jobs.” Wendy smiled nervously as she opened the door. “I’m so sorry for her actions and tone of voice. We’ll stay out of your way while you do your search.” Wendy kept a firm grip on my shoulders. None of this made sense and, to be honest, it scared me. Unwarranted searches, being held up in our room for hours, that anti-Martian demonstration, the loud booming noise earlier—all of those things had the makings for a perfect disaster. Why on earth Wendy was not teetering on the edge like me was a mystery.

  One of the officers was a short stocky man with a potbelly that was applying far too much pressure to the buttons on his uniform. A rusty lopsided nametag hung off the officer’s wrinkled uniform. The guy’s name was Jeb. Jeb was holding on to a white sheet of paper that had as many if not more wrinkles than his shirt did. He scanned the words on the sheet and then looked up at Wendy. In a cold monotone voice, he said, “She’s the one were looking for.”

  My heartstrings began to tighten and I instantly wrapped my arms around Wendy. “What do you mean she’s the one you’re looking for?”

  Wendy gently pushed me to the side. “Am I supposed to go with you, officer?” she asked in a tiny voice.

  “Yes, ma’am, we need to ask you a few questions about what happened this morning. It won’t take long and you’ll be back before you know it.”

  “Can I get my purse?” she asked nervously with her hand pressed to her chest.

  “No, just come with us please.” The two officers escorted Wendy out of our hotel room and down the hallway.

  I felt like I was going to collapse. “Wait! Where are you taking her?” I yelled as the three of them entered the elevator that was at the end of the hallway.

  “Sorry, ma’am, this is official police business and I can’t release such sensitive information to the public,” Jeb said with a nasty sneer on his face.

  “It’s okay, Cosmo. I’ll be right back. Stay calm.” Wendy tried to bring her hands up to her eyes to catch her tears, but she couldn’t because of the death grip the officers had on her arms. The door to the elevator slammed shut right in front of me. My hands started to shake, and the corners of my eyes were wet with tears. I didn’t understand what was happening. Why did they want Wendy? A soft buzzing noise filled the air in the hallway. It sounded like an announcement was going to finally be made. “Due to a breach in security, we’re canceling the jewelry showcase and we’re asking all passengers to please remain on the ship until further notice.” Just like before, this message was repeated several times over. I didn’t know what was going on, but I was going to find out, and when I did, I’d be able to clear Wendy’s name.

  Chapter 5

  I did a quick breathing exercise to help clear my thoughts and to calm myself down. The first thought that came to my mind was that I needed to let someone know what was happening to Wendy. I needed to inform her family and my parents. I raced back to my room and picked up the receiver to the video phone on the wall.
When I pressed the button to make a call outside of the ship, all of my calls refused to go through. After trying several times, I gave up.

  I dialed the ship’s operator. “Excuse me, miss. I’m trying to make a call outside—”

  I wasn’t given any time at all to finish my sentence. “Oh, I’m sorry, but outside calls have been momentarily disabled.” Before I could ask why, the operator hung up.

  I pulled my wrist communicator from out of my purse and looked down at the top left-hand corner of the small screen. The words “no signal” continued to flash over and over. This made no sense. I should be able to make and receive calls while I was on this ship. Even though I was half-asleep, I did remember passing at least two communication relay stations on the way here, so I shouldn’t have been looking at a “no signal” sign on my wrist communicator. I tossed my communicator back into my purse. So I couldn’t leave the ship or make any calls outside of the ship. That was fine. I wiped the tears from my eyes. I needed to start collecting information so I could figure out what was happening.

  I stepped out into the hallway. The sour-faced security guard was no longer there and the other guests who were staying on my floor were scurrying about in the hallway looking very confused and angry. “Does anyone know what those guards were looking for?” I asked.

  A dapper-looking older man in a tuxedo said, “They told me it was just a routine safety check. They just wanted to make sure that my room was secure.” So they had fed this guy the same lie they gave me. An older woman with a long pearl necklace and a sparkling evening gown appeared from behind the man with the tuxedo.

  “I can’t believe they canceled the jewelry showcase. Marty and I were fully dressed when they made that horrid announcement.”

  Marty snorted. “What’s really horrible is that our driver, Calypso, was taken in for questioning.” I wondered if their driver was a Martian. It wouldn’t surprise me.