The Greatest Commodity (First Draft)

Shots Fired

There was no time to rely on obedience. The power was cut colony-wide.

Over the dark silhouette of the colony, the alien aircraft buzzed around, patrolling.

The captain stood in the command center, the only building with power. With no exterior lighting or windows, the building was safe.

"Do you have a glimpse of the cockpit yet?" The captain asked, brushing a lock of hair away from her eyes.

"No, sir." Replied Havens, her second in command. "As far as I can see, it doesn't have any."

"That could mean they are more advanced than we thought." Said Dr. Ori, standing in the shadows behind them. "After all, the use of propellers for flight, or organic fibers for disposable storage, does not mean they are primitive. Such things remain practical and useful no matter how advanced a society might become."

"Point taken, doctor." The captain replied. "Thank you for coming so soon, by the way, your advice is very valuable."

"You're welcome, captain," Ori said, then went silent again.

Sensors on the outside of the dome collected imagery from the outside and routed them through to holographic displays on the inside. It was as though the room was open to space.

The alien craft moved slowly, its broad and fragile-looking wingspan allowing it to glide more than fly.

"This is a new design, Laris." Havens replied. "All the others were speedy flyers, not slow cruisers like this one."

"I can see that, commander." The captain replied. "And can we please save the formalities for the off-duty hours?"

"Yes, sir."

The captain found a seat for herself, began to fidget with a set of spare data sticks. "This is worrying, they may be on to us."

"If they are," Ori remarked, just a voice from the shadows. "their continued reluctance to communicate could indicate a hostile intent."

"That's what I'm worried about." The captain said. "Havens, please check and make sure our defense systems are operational."

Havens swiped over to the weapons HUD, the holographic status display suddenly turned red, displaying an inventory of all the colony's guns and ammo. They all showed up, marked with green text. "It's all functional, sir." He announced.

"Good, now hope that we won't have to use it."

"Already doing that, sir." He said, pensive.

The captain returned the smile for a moment, they had known each other for years, and they each read the other like a book.

"Look!" Ori shouted, stepping out of the shadows, pointing a finger at the alien craft. "It's not leaving like the others did, its circling us!"

The captain and command Havens both followed where Ori was pointing and saw it too. The craft had broken off from the usual path, a flyover, and was now flying a slow circle around the colony.

Havens mumbled under his breath. "Like a vulture, sizing its prey up."

Despite the blackout, the scientists continued to tinker with the box that Ori had brought back.

In the dim light of an emergency flashlight, with the window shades pulled. They busily examined the device.

"See anything, Kell?" One scientist, a rotund man with a bald head asked his colleague.

"Nothing more than I saw thirty seconds ago!" Kell replied, beginning to get exasperated with her colleague's impatience. "This thing isn't fluid, Juk, it's metal, it's not going to magically be different after only thirty seconds."