Tevun-Krus #100

61 - Recovery - @elveloy - LGBTQ SF

Recovery

By elveloy

1. Asra

Captain Hari Esteban hadn't intended to stand and wait his turn for a view at the holoscreen like the newest of space virgins eager for a glimpse of their destination, but there he was—in the line—waiting impatiently for the family ahead of him to finish oohing and aahing and get a move on.

Finally. His turn to stare at Asra, or its image, to be exact. Asra, "Night Traveller," the smallest planet in the Aurigan system. In solo orbit around the binary star system of Menkalinan, it would take 348 years to complete one elliptical journey. Consisting of rock, covered by frozen nitrogen and altogether too cold to interest anyone, it had been ignored for centuries. Until the nitrogen ice began to melt as the tiny planet approached the nearest of its two suns, forming a thin atmosphere. Then humanity sat up and took notice; there were minerals to be mined.

Mining companies built a dome and established a small settlement. Many of the buildings had their first storey carved down into the rock for protection, then, as the dome proved secure and mining commenced, new buildings sprung up on the surface. A temporary settlement, expected to last for only fifty years—until Asra's orbit took it back out into space and the thin atmosphere froze again.

Asra. An iceball of a planet, with maybe a thousand inhabitants and no future. When he'd left ten years ago, he had expected never to see the place again. So why, when he needed somewhere to recuperate from his part in the latest Patrol operation, had he chosen to return to Asra? Why did he feel as if he was coming home?

An hour later, Hari disembarked into the small Arrivals room and endured the mandatory bio screening with enforced patience, watching as the scanner examined the plasrod grafts in his right leg, and itemised his recent weight loss and present exhaustion in rather depressing detail before spitting out—somewhat to Hari's relief—an approval for temporary residence.

Hari placed his wristcom in the slot provided to enable exit from the room and caught a glimpse of his reflection in the shiny surface. He flinched—no wonder the bio scanner had hesitated. Tired grey eyes stared back above thin lips drawn tight in a grimace of anger or pain. His chin was bristled except for the long scar on his right jaw and his brown hair—usually cut neatly close to his scalp—was frankly shaggy, streaked with grey at the temples and long enough to brush his collar. And when had that happened? Evidently he needed this recovery time more than he'd thought.

He shrugged, right now he needed a shower and a shave and at least two weeks sleep. Preferably more.

He emerged from the Arrivals room and halted briefly, looking up with the other passengers at the underside of the pale blue dome which covered the whole town. Most people didn't like looking out at constant storms so the dome had been lined with opaque blue, representing an open sky many had never seen in person. Hari shifted his weight awkwardly, favouring his injured leg, and hoisted his backpack over a shoulder.

Despite himself, his eyes scanned the small crowd which had gathered to meet friends and colleagues, searching for a familiar face. Not surprisingly, he recognised no-one. A young lad approached him with a polite smile of enquiry. He wore a bright yellow singlesuit, with soft soled boots of a slightly darker shade. There was a small hologram of a rising sun on his left shoulder.

"Captain Esteban? I'm Tomas, from the Rising Sun Hotel. You have a booking with us for the next three weeks?"

"That's right."

The lad smiled again. "If you'd like to follow me, Captain, I'll show you the way."

Hari was pretty sure he could remember where the Rising Sun was located, but he fell in beside the boy, unobtrusively trying to shake the stiffness from his right leg as he walked.