New Eden

New Eden

Bob Ryan

Brent Harrison was looking over his orders and could not believe his luck. He was finally being rewarded for the years of hard work he had given in his quest to expand trade for Earth. His eyes read over the orders several times to ensure this was not a mistake. There was no mistake he could find. He grinned widely as it fully sank in to his mind.

There was a tap on his door. He looked up to see the person that got all the good assignments. A scowl crossed her bronzed face, and there was no doubt in his mind that she knew. He caught his dark reflection in the mirror and his grin widened.

Brent held up his orders. "Finally someplace good."

Her scowl vanished and there was something odd in her gray eyes. She smiled. "Congratulations, Brent. An assignment like this is long overdue."

His defenses shot up immediately. She had never been nice to him. Throughout all the years they had worked together, not once had she so much as given a friendly smile. Not even when she was rubbing in her good fortune had she done so much as raise a single corner of her mouth.

His grin faded. "What do you want, Cass?" he asked.

She smiled a little brighter. "I don't know why you're so defensive, Brent," she chirped. "I just want to congratulate you. You've been through hell to set up the treaties."

Images of the dark corners of the universe came to his mind. "You've got that right, Cass, and not once have you ever spoken to me like this. How many times have you rubbed your assignments in my face?"

Her gray eyes moved to the floor. "I'm really sorry about that."

He snapped at her with a hidden pleasure. "Cut the bull! What do you want?"

The smugness that he had seen many times appeared in her eyes. "Fine," she snapped back. "I should be the one going, not you."

He smirked. "And there it is. Go ahead, Cass, tell me why you should go?"

She glared at him and there was fire in her gray eyes. "You don't know anything about a planet like that. Sure, Brent, you set up the treaties with the hell holes out there, but that's easy. Anyone can do that."

"What do you know about it?" He growled out. "You've never had a tough assignment in your life."

"There's a big difference between setting up a treaty with some nasty planet in need of food and setting up trade relations with a food rich planet," she spat out. "You don't have what it takes to make this happen. You're a screw up. That's why you get all the crap assignments."

Brent was on the verge of shaking, but regained his composure. "You're not the only one that gets early intel. I know they're sending you to Praxtoos. Should be easy, right?"

She glared at him with absolute hatred. "How did you find out?"

He grinned and said, "I have my sources, just like you. Shouldn't be a challenge. After all, they aren't a food rich planet." He started to walk past the woman on the verge of flying into a rage and called back without turning, "Watch out for the bugs. Nasty ones where you're going." He paused, then added, "Then again, Cass, you might feel right at home."

She flew into a rage as he left and knew she was going to start breaking things shortly. He didn't have time to worry about minor things, like a woman throwing a temper tantrum that would put any child to shame; he had to get ready to leave for New Eden. Her outburst would have to go on with no witnesses. This was his ticket into the paradise planets, and he had no intention of seeing another swamp for as long as he lived.