Shoshone Station #1: Not a Good Day to Die: The Galactic Consortium, #10

By R. J. Eliason

Less than a year ago, they arrived over earth’s sky. They call themselves the Galactic Consortium and they are human, or at least, simian — from the same genetic line as humans. They claim to have terraformed this planet centuries ago to serve as a base for their exploration of this galaxy. What happened to the settlers, why none of us remember this, remains a mystery. 

For America the concerns are more immediate. Will the Consortium accept our independence?

Shoshone Station is the first joint enterprise, a solar power, space station parked in geostationary orbit over Denver, Colorado. Its been “gifted” to America, but as Sherman Lannister takes command he wonders just how much control the new American crew will really have. After all, what do they know about running a space station?

For Sophia, a homeless transgender youth from Denver, and many like her the station is a second chance at a new life. But what will she do living amongst the stars? 

• Language: English
• Publisher: R. J. Eliason
• Release date: Jan 10, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386013617

R. J. Eliason

R. J. Eliason writes immersive science fiction and fantasy stories that feature diverse characters. Her writing spans many sub-genres from alien contact, apocalyptic stories and epic fantasy. She also writes in a wide variety of formats, from full length novels to an ongoing serialized adventure. Her writing can be found in digital and print formats anywhere online that books are sold. Or check out her website at rj.eliason.com and sign up for a free book. 

Book preview

A huge thank you to all my beta-readers, Wattpad followers and cheerleaders online and in real life. You keep me writing even when it’s hard and I thank you for that.

Author’s Note:

Shoshone Station is a continuation of the serial adventure begun in The Girl in the Tank. The characters and even some of the story line overlap. However the two serials can be read separately. Don’t worry if you haven’t read The Girl in the Tank.

If you are interested, the first season can be found in its completion in the omnibus edition, available online from all major retailers.

Not a Good Day To Die

Chapter 1

Sophia’s breath came in clouds. Her hands, shoved deep in her pockets against the cold, were numb. Her feet hurt, and she feared she was getting frostbite. She wished momentarily that she still had her male boots. She shuddered at the thought of male boots, a gift from her father over a year and a half ago.

She headed roughly westward, into the mountains. It was a few degrees over freezing on this late October night, and the weather would be even colder up in the mountains. The temperatures would continue to dip during the daytime too, but that didn’t matter to Sophia. She wouldn’t be around. She shifted her backpack. She could almost hear the pill bottles inside. Soon they would end her pain for good.

Why not just take them here, right now?

She looked back at the city of Denver. She could see the skyline of downtown, a frozen haze hanging over it. She remembered when she had arrived there, just a year ago. She had been so full of hope, a new life promised on her horizon. It hadn’t taken long for that dream to turn sour.

She was seventeen when she ran away from home, escaped from the hell that was Wyoming. Being seventeen, the shelter was happy to help Zach, who had escaped a veritable cult. But when they discovered the purpose of Zach’s escape had been to transition to being Sophia, they were less than happy. The shelter was funded by a church that might be liberal by Sophia’s standards, but was far from accepting. She was faced with another painful choice—stay at the shelter as Zach or move on as Sophia.

A local LGBT center ran a support group for transgender people. She’d met several people her age who lived on the street. They had taught her the ropes, and for the next several months, it seemed like an okay life. They camped when the weather was good. She couch-surfed when it wasn’t. There always seemed to be someone who had an apartment, hotel room, or some other place to stay. Often three or four of them would share a room, sleeping in whatever space was available.

Then she took up with an older man she’d met at a bar, Carl. Some of her friends warned her against him. He was a user, they said. He had his own place, and he wanted Sophia to stay with him, no strings attached. But she was happy to give those strings anyway, and they’d been together for three months.

It hadn’t been perfect. An eighteen-year-old, transgender, high-school dropout with no skills wasn’t going to find a job, even with an address.

Then she’d found out that Carl was cheating. Sophia tested positive for HIV. Carl didn’t even have the good grace to be ashamed. Instead, he blamed her for exposing him to the disease, as though she were the unfaithful one. When she’d denied it, he told her to get out of his house. It was an unfair kick in the teeth.

It’s bad enough that I’m likely going to hell when I die. Does life have to suck too?

She turned and started walking again. It was late at night, or possibly early in the morning. Morning, it’s definitely morning. Any decent person was in bed, asleep. But she’d freeze if she slept outside tonight. Best to keep moving to stay warm. In the morning, other homeless people would find someplace open and warm to doze for a few hours.

Sophia’s next sleep would be her last. But there was something she wanted to do first.

She could just barely see her destination—the hills on the west end of town. The dome shone in the dark night. The cable, leading to the heavens, was lost in the darkness. Up there, thousands of miles in the air, was Shoshone Station.

There had been a huge party there last night, the christening of the station. Sophia had seen part of it on a TV at a coffee shop around nine p.m. Princess Sarasvat had looked splendid in a loose, flowing blue gown. The president had been there, along with dozens of dignitaries, bright happy people.

Sophia pulled her phone out and checked her Facebook. Still no replies. She’d been sending out increasingly desperate pleas for a place to stay since early yesterday afternoon. She’d even considered a shelter, but she knew they could be dangerous for people like her.

It didn’t matter. There was no place in this world for a homeless trans woman who barely passed as female and couldn’t afford treatment. If you are going to do it, do it in style. Take the elevator to the top. Find a view port where I can look down on the world, one time, and then down every pill I have—the depression pills from my therapist, the oxy from Carl’s cabinet, the HIV meds they gave me last Friday. Take them all, staring down at the world, and then sleep.

She shoved the phone back in her pocket. A flash of gold caught her attention, and she stared at the crucifix she wore on a chain bracelet. A parting gift from her sister.

She could see the two of them in her mind’s eye, standing in front of the two-story McMansion on the edge of Casper, Wyoming. Shaelynn in a long dress, her hair braided back as their religion dictated. Sophia, still Zach then, in a T-shirt and jeans, unacceptable dress, but he no longer cared. His pack was already slung.

Shaelynn held out the tiny gold crucifix. I hope when your trial of faith is over, she said, that you still believe in God at least.

Sorry, sis, ain’t gonna happen.

Light was dawning in the east when Sophia finally made it up the hill and started across the empty parking lot of the station. The dome was fenced off. Military men guarded the fence, but they merely nodded as Sophia went through to the gate.

Two men, one in a suit and another in a blue Consortium uniform, were in a small cubicle at the entrance. There was a police officer with them.

Can I? Sophia gestured upward with her head.

Sorry, the man in the suit said, "there’s a bunch of diplomatic crap to work out before we start letting civilians