WHAT IF? (Part 1of 3)

                                                                                                                                                       

WHAT IF? (Part 1of 3)                                                 

By Richard Banks

Sarlek peered into the monitor and observed the launch of another missile. It was the third in as many weeks. The Americans would again threaten reprisals but with their second fleet already in the Sea of Japan, it was becoming obvious, even to the hawks in the Pentagon, that military bluster was not enough. Indeed the threat of force seemed only to energise and embolden the North Korean leadership.    

         Equally impervious to diplomacy and economic sanctions they continued to develop their weaponry in the belief that the Americans would not invade a country that in the past had enjoyed the unwavering support of their neighbour and superpower, China. For now the Chinese appealed to both sides for calm and restraint. Only through them was a diplomatic solution possible but their unpublicised attempts to broker a deal with the Korean regime had been politely, but firmly, dismissed. No longer a client state of China, North Korea was a proud and independent nation; in an unfriendly world, they heeded only the voice of their supreme leader, Kim Jong-un.
                        

         Privately the Chinese had no more liking for their troublesome neighbour than the United States did but, should the Americans attempt to invade Korea, China would have no option but to send in its own troops. The U.S. could not be trusted. Their occupation of Iraq had destabilised that country and those around it, the same could not be allowed to happen on their doorstep. If necessary the Americans would have to be stopped by force. The army had made its plans and was ready for action.

         Sarlek turned away from the monitor and stared out the window at the two moons of Haligan. Below them, the neon signs of the City’s nightspots were beginning to light up the gathering gloom. Soon he would be meeting Mia at Maxi’s and, for a few hours, the problems of planet earth would seem less daunting. It would be better in the morning he told himself. Why let it spoil his evening. His shift was over, time he was gone. The walk to Maxi’s would do him good, clear his head. Who knows, the solution might occur in a eureka moment when his mind was relaxed, half thinking of other things. He had turned off his terminal, he must now turn-off his mind. What would be, would be. He could only do his best.

         Happy hour was nearly over when he arrived at Maxi’s; just enough time to order a double Gurgleblaster for himself and an Andromedan rice wine for Mia. He looked forward to her arrival. As usual, she would have much to say. With her, there were no awkward silences, no struggle to find common ground. She was open, uncomplicated, said what she thought and never said anything that was spiteful or uncaring. At times she sparkled with good humour and he would forget his fascination for the curvaceous wiggle girls of Alterbyracticous.

         By the standards of her own species, Mia was only moderately attractive but Sarlek saw much in her appearance that he liked. In fact, the more he looked the more he liked. He admired her lithe figure, the green luminosity of her skin, her long serpent neck. When he looked into her single eye, at the sapphire circles that filled it, he sensed a beauty that was more than physical. She was kind, clever and for some reason liked him more than he liked himself. She was also extremely punctual and in one minute precisely would be making her entrance through the open doors of the City’s most visited nightspot. His negativity about his working day was almost gone. He glanced down at his watch and then at the entrance through which an increasing number of different life forms were passing. He counted down the seconds to her arrival and on one saw her squeeze past the broad expanse of a Tritonian Gobblebug.

         She greeted Sarlek with an effusive, “wot yer,” and dropped down beside him onto the sofa where they had sat on their first date. He purred his appreciation and they rubbed noses. She was of a species that also enjoyed kissing but the razor-sharp incisors within his large mouth rendered such an undertaking hazardous and was therefore banned under galactic law, 471,054. She took consolation in the lack of regulation concerning the rest of his body, particularly the well-exercised muscles of his upper torso.

         They touched glasses and for a few moments savoured their scented drinks. She apologised for nearly being late; a large birthday cake on a flying plate had collided with the hover bus on which she was a passenger, leaving the bus immobile and the driver immersed in cream topping. She had meant this to be amusing, as indeed it was, but Sarlek immediately showed his concern by throwing a protective arm around her shoulders. This was not what she was expecting but fully accorded with her hopes for the evening. She drew close to him. Through the translucent, soft-weave of his shirt she could feel the rapid beating of his heart.

         “Oh, it was nothing,” she murmured and then, with a dash of melodrama, “I have survived.”

His grip tightened to the point that she thought it prudent to change the subject.

         “How’s the job going? Solved the problems of Planet Earth?”

         He raised the pupils of both eyes to a point where neither could be seen. He was only partially successful in suppressing a groan. “Why don’t you tell me about your day.”

         She began with the ringing of her alarm clock and finished with her stepping off the bus and running full tilt towards Maxi’s clutching her high heels and handbag. As usual he listened attentively. She was funny, full of energy. Her day had been as humdrum as his own, possibly as irksome, but for her, there was nothing that couldn’t be made amusing or interesting. She saw only the colours of the spectrum, the blacks and greys she left to those with careworn faces. She looked down at her watch and to her horror found she had been speaking for ten minutes. The poor man must be bored stiff, she thought, but the expression on his face suggested otherwise. She remembered that his mother had been unwell. “Was she better now?” she asked.

         He replied that she was and that a sample of her vomit had been sent away for analysis. He was about to say that it was frothy and green in colour when it occurred to him that these were details not conducive to a romantic evening. Instead, he volunteered the unrequested information that his father’s health which was good continued so. Indeed he could not remember a time when it had not been good.

         “You must miss them?” said Mia, “so far away on the other side of the galaxy. Will you see them again this year?”

         He replied that it depended on his present assignment. If he was able to bring the crises on Earth to a successful conclusion he would be awarded two extra stripes and sent even further from home to the Strategic Command Station on Alpha Venturous. If on the other hand, the situation on Earth should further deteriorate his career in the Diplomatic Core would be over, six years of his life wasted. His father would not be pleased.

         “But there are other jobs,” said Mia, perhaps you could get one here on Haligan. The Governor’s Office is always advertising for admin bods. You could be a tax collector or a town planner.”

         As good ideas went, this one, she thought, was better than most. Alpha Venturous was so far away. If he went there they might never see each other again. Besides, Alpha was a dangerous place on the frontier of a war zone. Who in their right mind would want to go there? Clearly, she had to save him from himself, or was it for herself? She wasn’t quite sure. Either way, it was better he stayed.

         Sarlek briefly considered the prospect of a job in colonial administration and felt a despondency bordering on despair. He was a high flier, a serial achiever. He had never settled for second best, why should he now? He needed another drink.

         Mia watched him at the bar waiting to be served. He was wearing his poker face. She liked him better when he smiled, when he was relaxed, at ease. She realised this could not be all the time, that sometimes he would frown, be cross, even angry. That she could cope with. They were clouds to be chased away and she was good at that. But when he wore that face, that impenetrable shield, he shut himself off from the world and part of that world was herself.

To Be Continued/...

Copyright Richard Banks