The Dreams of Al Rahim

By Chandra Amaravadi

A shipwrecked survivor awakens in a hospital on an unknown planet. She is helped by a kindly doctor to recover and gradually adjusts to life on the planet. But she is plagued by many questions. Who is she? Why is she on Artemis? What is it about the planet that is so intriguing? Read Aaniya's adventures as she discovers about herself and her surroundings in this exciting tale...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Apr 6, 2011
• ISBN: 9781257405428

Book preview

inspire.

PROLOGUE

Pasha looked back anxiously to see if he was still being followed. The crowds were thin here. The drab buildings cast long gloomy shadows. No promises here. Three or four shadowy figures bobbed up and down behind him at a distance. He wondered whether or not his sins would catch up with him and whether or not this was the right place for him to allow that. Earlier in the afternoon he had received an anonymous communiqué from the Planet Wire which simply stated,

Pasha Cherkashin: your life is in immediate danger.

When he read it, he knew that his life would soon be over. His thoughts were primarily about his family and the scandal it would cause. It would also weaken an already beleaguered government. More of his relatives would suffer. He never thought of himself as more than an ambitious bureaucrat, but now he would have to be a hero and lead the problem away from the ministry and away from home. First he had to fool the Watch, the system that tracked all citizens. Ordinary citizens were tracked by implants but not diplomatic officials. They had removable pins. He had carefully removed his lapel pin with the tracking circuitry in it. He sent his guards on errands and left the office with the word that he was meeting a friend in a nearby building. He had made up excuses for not wanting protection. It was a woman friend and he didn’t want attention. His nemesis was waiting for him as soon as he got out of the ministry. He was being followed. He loitered here and there and finally walked into a museum. It was an imposing building with more than twenty levels. He took a capsule to the tenth and got out. A holo sign read:

ART AND ARTIFACTS FROM THE EARLY 22ND CENTURY.

The trials and tribulations of his ancestors didn’t interest him today. It had to be the Kafe. He took his time ordering and eating a meal, but time was not on his side now. Minutes stretched into hours and hours into eternity. A few drinks gave him some much needed spirit.

It was late in the evening by the time he stepped out. They were on his track the moment he came out but were not going to make a move in public. He would have to take them on a train ride. A short walk down the street took him to a metro station. He boarded a lev pausing just enough time to check the destination. It woofed through many stations. People came in and out of his personal fog. The train finally stopped at Gorod, a place well known for its seamy life. He got down at the station thinking that he would elude his pursuers or in the worst case meet his fate anonymously. The public would presume he ran into some anti-social elements and met his untimely end. His family would grieve for some time and the whole matter would be forgotten. He thought about Alexandra and the children and tears started forming in his eyes. He couldn’t really understand how this situation came about.

He had been an upright citizen all his life. In fact, he was upright Pash at the ministry. It wasn’t until his trip to a neighboring planet that he came face to face with his shortcomings. The negotiations had gone on for days. The delegation had been in an agreeable mood from the start. One day, Phoebe, the councilor for trade and industry, invited them to a gathering at her quarters. They had expected to be bored by yet another officious, sedate affair. Instead it was a bacchanal party with music, dancing, gambling and women. They were all seasoned men, yet it didn’t take long for them to succumb to the mood of the place. The party continued the next night and the next. They had no recollection of what went on or how many women they held during the time. The business was transacted in this environment. It wasn’t until they returned home that they realized the consequences of their decision. They had agreed to a contract without bargaining the terms and in the process lost the confidence of their peers. If word got out, the credibility of the entire ministry and the entire government was at stake. Pasha had been trying to find a solution to the problem but in vain. The damage was done and there was nothing anyone could do about it. They couldn’t cancel the contract without exposing their misdeeds or losing their sizeable deposit. The supply of mining material was of national interest. It was in this frame of mind that he had gotten the mysterious warning and now here he was in the darkest part of the city, without hope for redemption. He sat down next to a trash unit, waiting for his inevitable fate. He wondered who was behind this. Was it his boss? Was it someone higher up or was it a competing government? The shadowy figures closed in on him and he no longer cared. Someone fired a Hiwe¹ and Pasha Cherkashin’s life vaporized instantly. For his indulgence he paid the ultimate price. His guards found his remains the next day.

One

Aaniya accessed her clock impatiently for the tenth time. She had been at the station for less than fifteen minutes. It was a huge cinder block of a building. From her vantage point near the entrance, she could see trains arriving and disgorging passengers. They poured out of the station like liquid from a container that soon broke up into moving bodies of different shapes and sizes.

They should be here by now she thought and continued to gaze at the entrance. She was soon lost in thought.

A blue and white hoverbus gently buffeted down in front of the station. Markings on its front and sides indicated it was a government vehicle. The doors hissed open and a contingent of white-robed passengers spilled out. A porter came out from one of the wall nooks followed by a luggage skid. The passengers paused momentarily as he unloaded the cargo from the bus and onto the skid. The contingent then made its way into the building towards where she was standing. She didn’t notice a man walking towards her from the inside of the station. She turned and took a stride to join the delegation when she bumped into him and was knocked down.

Sorry! He helped her get up. Nothing broken? He asked pleasantly. His smile was magnetic. She didn’t notice the almost invisible blue light around him. She wanted to talk to him but he was more intent on leaving.

I have to go he said and hurried out of the station. She watched him and then joined the group.

A loud explosion and she was knocked off her feet for the second time that day. She lay on the ground for several minutes before cautiously wiggling her toes and moving her limbs. No injuries, good! She turned around to look at the damage. It was localized. The porter was trying to get up and one of his arms was shattered. Wires and metal parts dangled from his left shoulder. One of the delegates was apparently lying on the floor injured but the rest of the party was intact.

At least a two hour delay thought Aaniya as security and medics arrived on the scene. Her phone began to ring.

Moskovich here whispered a tiny device embedded in her ear.

Aaniya she replied. Her boss dispensed with the pleasantries.

Update the passenger manifest with the one I just sent. Aaniya tapped her badge and the list appeared on her retina.

Will do she replied and began walking towards the elevator. She kept thinking about the stranger. The elevator shot up towards the sky and finally stopped at the space port. She flashed her badge at the heavily armed guards and thumbed the glass doors open. They motioned her towards the docked cruiser. It was the Vladivostok. She placed her hand on the metal tablet to the side of the cruiser and whispered, Kardashev. The doors slid open. She found the steward’s console and easily downloaded the new manifest. The smell of gas was faint. Still pre-occupied with the events in the station, she felt strangely sleepy.. A moment later, her knees buckled and she collapsed into a lounge chair. She awoke when her badge beeped. It was Moskovich again. The delegation was finally on its way.

Two

The blue and white cruiser streaked briefly high above the skies of Artemis. It was still a few thousand miles from the planet’s surface. The passengers and crew had been woken up a few hours ago. The delegation was becoming restive and Aaniya was losing her patience fast.

Are they expecting us? asked one of the delegates.

Yes. Our date and time of arrival has not been announced as per diplomatic convention. Regulations prevent us from communicating unless we are planet side.

Of course.

Will we have time to take in the sights?

From what I gather, there is not much to see. The planet is mostly desert and scrub. There are only three towns, but our hosts are arranging some entertainment.

Lets hope it will be worth our time.

I missed the ground briefing, could you please go through the landing protocol again? asked another delegate in Narbian.

Aaniya couldn’t place him although he looked familiar. He was of moderate height and athletic build. His blue eyes moved like marbles deep within their sockets. The glint in his eyes told her he wasn’t the bureaucratic type.

Security perhaps? He must have been the replacement for the one who was injured.

Let’s meet in the lounge in ten minutes.

Ten minutes later, Aaniya made her way to the lounge. It was a small room aft of the main passenger cabin. The delegate was already waiting for her.

I am Khalid he said and bowed slightly. She acknowledged and sat on one of the bulkhead seats. He sat in a sofa in the center of the lounge.

Aaniya. Are you replacing Omar?

Yes, he is still on Basia and recovering

About the protocol, once we are in landing orbit, we will be greeted by their ship. Their chief of defense, Kyra will board our craft. She will meet Pavel who is our highest ranking officer. Pavel will introduce his staff starting with the commander. Each member will briefly salute Kyra. After the introductions, the chief will return to her craft and escort us to the ground. We will be welcomed there by the Artemis council… Her voice was abruptly interrupted by a loud explosion in the cabin compartment. Time stood still as the door blew open and debris hurtled out. She was flung in an upward direction against the cockpit door which tore open like everything else. Khalid was sailing away to her left but she was too dazed and blinded to notice. Her chest was punctured, bleeding and exploding all at once. A white cocoon enveloped her and slowly inflated. Fire, smoke, disintegrated wreckage, and blood streaked out in all directions. The cocoon completely surrounded her and continued to inflate. She was in great shock and was rapidly losing consciousness. The last thing she remembered before passing out was a sharp pain in her head.

Three

Aaniya awoke in a strange room, very groggy. She had the vague impression of tables and surgical equipment laid out on them. The room had a sterile atmosphere. A woman