#menok

     Richard Isley looked at the results.  He put the paper down, stood up, and started pacing in his kitchen for a few minutes before sitting back down at the table.  He picked up the paper and looked at it again.  It showed the same thing, he knew that it would show the same thing, but somehow he had hoped it would have changed.      He took out his phone, and started scrolling through the contacts.  He had hundreds, but he scrolled past every single one of them.  There was no one to really talk to.  No real friends, no family left, just colleagues and acquaintances.  He put his phone down, and went to bed.  There were things he would have to do, but those could wait until the morning.           Richard woke up in the middle of the night to an extremely loud noise, like something had crashed into the yard outside his house.  He went over to the window and looked out to see that something had.  It was sort of spherical, and about the size of a golf cart.  Some kind of escape pod, he wondered.      He put a robe over his pajamas, and grabbed a golf club as he went out into his backyard, and approached the craft.  There initially did not seem to be any obvious doors, but then a section slid open, revealing a green-skinned alien.  It had two legs and two arms, but calling it humanoid would be a bit of a stretch, as its limbs were a lot thinner than that of a Human, and its torso had different proportions.      The torso also two holes straight through it, around where the belly button would be on a Human, and little under the neck.  They were each a few inches wide but only one inch high and did not look like wounds.  And the head was shaped kind of like a football, but with the points at either end looking like ears, and a third point in the front for a nose and mouth.      “Who are you?” Richard asked, the golf club still in his hands.  “What are you doing here?”      The alien looked at him and closed it’s eyes for a few seconds.  “My name is Menok, I am an Arkon.  You speak English and look Human.  Is this Earth?  This should not be Earth.”      “It is Earth, why shouldn’t it be?”      “I need to contact…no, I don’t know who I need to contact.  But if this is Earth than I am way off course of where I should be.”      “Where should you be?”      “I cannot tell you that,” Menok said.  “I do not know if I can trust you.”      “I don’t know if I can trust you either,” Richard said.      “Where is the nearest spaceport?”      “What, can’t you just use that thing again?”  Richard pointed at the pod.      “That is an escape pod, my ship was sabotaged and destroyed itself.”      “Well, there’s only one spaceport on Earth, so far, well, other than whatever the Caldore have, but I don’t imagine you’re going to want to go there.”      “No, I do not.  Nasty people, those Caldore.  Where is this spaceport?”      “In Australia, by Sydney, so other side of the world.”      “Hmm, that is unfortunate, but I suppose I have little option.”      As they were talking, Richard heard the sound of vehicles driving down the road, and parking in front of his house.  “Well, it sounds like someone else noticed your crash too.”      “Please, I can’t be taken in,” Menok said.      “If you’re going to want me to trust you, you’re going to need to give me a reason.”      “I am a diplomat, but recently I discovered some information that certain individuals in my government have been keeping secret, and they found out that I discovered them, and are now trying to kill me.”      “It’s a good story, but how I do know it’s true?”      “I sense there is something wrong with you,” Menok said.  He reached for a device on his belt, and Richard tensed.  “Don’t worry, this is just a medical scanner.  Hmm, yes, I see what is wrong with you.  Do your people have a cure?”      “No, there’s no cure.”      “My people have a cure for it,” Menok said.  “If you help me, I can help you.”      Richard heard his doorbell ringing.  He looked at the escape pod, and at Menok, and up into the sky.  “Okay, yeah, we can’t hide the pod, but I should be able to hide you.  You’re just going to need to do what I say.”           ESS Agent Kimberly Ford waited, and rang the doorbell again.  Finally, after about a minute, the door was opened, and an older man stood there, wearing a bathrobe over his pajamas.      “Hello, sir,” Kimberly said.  “I’m special agent Ford.  We detected an object from space crashing in your backyard, and we’re here to investigate.”      “Hmm, oh yes, of course,” Richard said.  “It was quite the shock, let me tell you.  I was just sleeping and then that happened.  I almost didn’t hear you ringing the doorbell after that.”      “It’s quite all right, sir.  If you could just let us into your yard, we’ll make sure it’s safe, and then we’ll take it and get out of your way right away.”      “Go right ahead.”      Kimberly nodded at her agents, and they went to the backyard, before she turned back to Richard.  “Did you go look at it yourself?”      “I saw it,” Richard said.  “Looked like an escape pod or something.”      “That matches what we saw on our sensors.  Did you see anyone come out of it, Human or otherwise?”      “No, I did not, but I was not watching it the whole time.”      “Of course, of course.”  Kimberly noticed her comm beeping.  “If you’ll excuse me for a moment.”  Richard nodded, and she went outside.  “Yes?”      “Agent Ford?” came the voice over the comm.  “This is Admiral Teleros of the United Earth Spacefleet.”      “Sir, what can I do for you?”      “I’ve been informed that you’re investigating a crashed escape pod in Montana.”      “We still need to confirm that’s what it is, but yes.”      “It may be an escaped Arkon criminal.  So make sure you and your people are prepared for that, and if you encounter him, you are to capture him.  Do not use lethal force unless absolutely necessary, and also keep me up to date at all times.  If you manage to capture him, as soon as you have him in custody, no one is authorized to speak to him until I arrive.  Understood?”      “Yes, sir, understood.”           Richard waited while his yard and house were searched by the agents.  He had just realized that they never actually said what agency they were with, as they finished loading up the pod onto a truck, and it drove off.      “Well, there doesn’t seem to be anything else on the property, but please call me if anything else should happen,” Kimberly said as she handed Richard a card.  He looked it over and it had contact information, but did not specify any agency either.      “I’ll be sure to do that,” Richard said.      Kimberly and the rest of her agents went out front, got into their vehicles, and drove off.  Richard waited until they were out of sight, and then another five minutes before he went down to the basement.  It was a fairly small basement, with half of it being used for laundry, and a desk in another corner with an old computer on it.      Richard went over to the computer, and typed out a password on it, causing the walls in the other corner to slide open, revealing a much larger part of the basement, with a lab set up in it.  Menok was sitting at a table, looking at a plant growing inside a glass box.  There was no soil or water in the box with the plant, but it looked healthy in spite of that.      “It’s fascinating,” Menok said.  “How does it survive without water?”      “It’s not surviving without water, it just needs a lot less, so that even just the water vapor in the air is enough for it.”      “And how did they not find this room?  Those were ESS agents, and the kind of sensor technology they have would not be fooled by a wall.”      “I don’t know what the ESS is,” Richard said.  “But I did get some fairly advanced sensor blockers on the black market for my lab.  Some of the work I do here is…not exactly legal.”      “Oh?” Menok asked.      “It’s just a matter of laws not keeping up with the rate of scientific progress.  I’m sure it will be legal in a matter of decades, but I don’t know that I have that long left, even if you do manage to cure me.  I’m not exactly a young man anymore.”      “Either way, I thank you, once again, for your assistance.  And now I have to figure out how to get to this Sydney, Australia, was it?”      “That’s where the spaceport is,” Richard said.  “And how exactly are you planning on getting there?”      “I do not know.  I am not particularly familiar with your world.  Are there teleporters I can use?”      “Those haven’t made their way to public use yet.  For travelling around the world, you’re going to want to go by airplane.  But without a passport you’re not going to be managing that.”      “A passport is a form of identification, yes?”      “Yes.”      “You mentioned a black market earlier.  Could they assist in that?”      “I don’t know.  I could put in a call to the person I know, and find out, but I don’t know for certain.”      “I would be extremely grateful if you would.”           A few hours later, after multiple telephone conversations, Richard went back down to his lab, where Menok was sitting in what looked to be a meditative position.  Menok’s eyes opened, as Richard came in.  “Were you successful?”      “Yeah, it’ll be pretty expensive, but I can afford it,” Richard said.      “You are most generous.”      “You said you can cure me, and if I die I’m not going to need the money anyway.”      “When do we leave?” Menok asked.      “We’ll be picking up the passport and other necessary IDs in the morning, and as soon as we have them, I’ll book us a flight to Sydney.”      “Us?”      “Well, I should go with, should I not?” Richard asked.  “To make sure you get where you’re going safely?”      “And to make sure I keep up my end of the bargain?”      “I’m not going to lie, I still don’t exactly trust you.”      “I understand.”           Kimberly entered the lab where the escape pod had been taken.  It was in the center of the room, and several scientists were running scans on it.  She walked over to the lead scientist, Sam Wagner.  “What’ve you found?”      “Hmm?”  Sam looked up from her computer pad.  “Well, it’s definitely Arkon tech.”      “Yeah, I could tell that just by looking at it.  What can you tell me about who was using it, and where they went?”      “We found some trace amounts of DNA left behind by the occupant, and are comparing that to the sample we were given by Admiral Teleros, so we’ll know in a couple minutes.  As for where he went, I couldn’t tell you that.  Earth wasn’t where he was headed though.  The navigation systems overrode the commands he put in, because his destination was too far for the pod to travel, but a malfunction kept the display from showing him that.”      “Where was he trying to go?”      “A planet called Nerva, it’s on the edge of the Cardaillian Empire.”      “Hmm, so it’s possible he’s more than just a regular criminal, could be a traitor.”      “That isn’t for me to guess at,” Sam said.  “Although Nerva would be a strange choice to go to for that, as it’s just a small mining colony.”  Her computer pad beeped and she looked down at it.  “Oh, good news, the former occupant of this pod is indeed the individual that we’re looking for.”      “Not sure if that’s actually good news, but thanks.”           Menok was acutely aware of all the people staring at him as he followed Richard through the airport.  Even with aliens being known about on Earth, they were not exactly common.  Several were taking pictures with their phones.      Menok had done his best to disguise his identity, but he could not exactly make himself look Human, so he just had to hope if pictures of an Arkon visitor to Earth got back to his people, his disguise would at least be enough to keep them from realizing it was him.      In addition to the stares, he was also aware of the emotions, which were mixed.  Some felt excited or curious or amused.  But others felt scared or angry.  Most, if not all, of these people had first learned about the existence of life beyond their planet when the Caldore attacked, and he supposed that for many the distinction between different aliens was something they had yet to learn.      “Please put any metal objects in the bin,” a security guard said as they were in line by the metal detector.      Menok put his medical scanner into the bin, as well as his computer pad.  He stepped through the metal detector, which did not go off, and on the other side the security guard was looking at the objects in the bin.      “What is this?” the guard asked pointing at the medical scanner.      “It is a medical scanner,” Menok said.      “You some kind of doctor?” the guard asked with a raised eyebrow.  “I better call someone down here.”      “He’s not a doctor,” Richard said.  “I’m a scientist, Doctor Richard Isley, and he’s an associate of mine, we’re on our way to a conference in Sydney, and going to be showing off that device.  And I’d rather not miss our flight.”  Richard looked at his watch with a scowl.      “Right, sorry,” the security guard said.  “You can go on.”      They walked a distance past security, before Richard spoke again.  “It’s a good thing I did come with, or else you wouldn’t have made it through there.”      “Yes, he did not trust me.”      “It’s his job not to trust, but old, rich, white men often get trusted automatically.”           Menok sat down in his seat on the airplane, and Richard sat down in the seat across from him.  This area of the plane was pretty spacious, Richard had said it was first class.  Menok was glad for that, as the other parts of the plane seemed pretty cramped with people.  But even with less people in this area, he was still getting a lot of stares.      The emotions he could sense were generally along the same lines of those he had sensed in the airport, although amongst these there was more of the curiosity and amusement, and less of the fear and anger, but some of it was still there.  There was also something else he could just barely sense, but he could not recognize what it was, just that it felt off.      “It’ll be a little over twenty hours until we get to our destination,” Richard said.  “Just get comfortable and enjoy the flight.”      “Do I not look like I’m already comfortable?” Menok asked.      “You keep glancing around, and looking nervous.”      “This is an unfamiliar place to me, and I am simply trying to observe and understand my surroundings.  Also I am sensing something that I can’t identify.”      “What do you mean exactly by sensing?  You mentioned earlier that you could sense something was wrong with me, I assumed you were just reading body language or something.”      “My species has some telepathic abilities.  The exact amount varies from individual to individual, but I can sense the emotions of those around me.  Sometimes thoughts, but that is a lot harder, especially when the person knows I can do so.”      “Have you read any of my thoughts?”      “No, despite your strong emotions, you have a firm grasp on your mind, and it would take considerable effort for me to pick up even an errant thought.”      “Thanks?  So what does it mean that you’re sensing something you can’t identify?”      “There are multiple things it could mean,” Menok said.  “While some emotions are common across species on various worlds: fear, anger, curiosity, happiness, and so on, there are others that are not, so it’s possible there are Human emotions I am simply unfamiliar with.”      “I assume that’s the best case scenario.”      “It could also mean that there is someone here purposely trying to hide themself from me.  Which could be as simple as a person familiar with my species’ telepathic abilities trying to block them out just because of paranoia, but it could be something more.”      “You think someone is tracking you?  Like those agents that were at my place?”      “Possibly.”           Kimberly was in her office, checking for any reports of Arkons on Earth.  There were thirty-four officially on Earth at the moment.  Most of those were in Australia or Asia, with a few in Africa and the Americas.  Only three were currently in the United States, with one in California, and the other two in New York.      So, knowing that there were none supposed to be in Montana, and having that as a starting point, it did not take long to locate social media posts of an Arkon at an airport in Billings.  She managed to use the pictures to figure out which flight he had gone aboard, and also made a note of the fact that Richard was in the pictures alongside him.           Richard reclined in his seat, and started dozing off as the lights were dimmed in the plane for the night.  But he was awoken a few hours later by Menok lightly shaking him.  Richard opened his eyes, and saw Menok looking around the darkened cabin.      “What is it?” Richard whispered.      “What I sensed earlier, I think there is someone here to kill me,” Menok whispered back.  “And I think they are getting ready to strike.”      “What do we do?”      “Follow me.”  Menok got out of his seat, and Richard followed after him.  It looked like everyone else was sleeping.  But then he heard a sound of movement, and saw someone coming in from the coach section.  The person looked Human, but was carrying an energy pistol.  Menok and Richard ducked behind some seats before the person saw them.      They glanced through a crack between seats as they watched the person go to where their now-empty seats were.  Menok jumped out at the person from behind, and managed to knock the energy pistol out of the person’s hands, and it skittered across the floor.      Richard went for it and picked it up.  The grip was not quite shaped for Human hands, but it was close enough, and he stood back up to aim it at the attacker, but the person Menok was fighting, no longer looked Human.  In fact they now looked identical to Menok.      “What the hell?” Richard asked as the Menoks backed away from each other, and Richard kept moving the gun back and forth between pointing at each of them.      “He has a holographic disguise,” the Menok on the right said.  “And now he’s using it to look like me.”      “Don’t believe them,” the Menok on the left said.  “They are the one with the holographic disguise looking like me.”      Richard looked at the left side of the energy pistol, which had some sort of setting dial, but the symbols on it were unfamiliar to him.  “What is this thing set to?”      “It’s set to kill,” the Menok on the right said.      “Move the dial two notches clockwise in order to set it to stun,” the Menok on the left said.      Richard turned the dial two notches clockwise, then shot the one on the right who fell to the ground, unconscious.      “How did you figure it out?” Menok asked.      “I initially suspected when you said they, and they said he, considering they presumably know who you are, but we have no idea who they are under that disguise.  Then when they knew what the pistol was set to, despite the dial being on the wrong side for them to see, that confirmed it.”      “Luckily no one seems to have woken up during our struggle.”      “But when they do, we have a problem,” Richard said.  “What do we do with the body?”      Menok searched the body, and pulled off a small circular device, causing the person’s appearance to change to that of another Arkon.  “Hmm, so it is one of my people,” Menok said.  “Which means they know I am here.”      “Did they follow you to Earth, or was this someone already here?  And if so, how did they find you.  The pictures taken at the airport have probably found their way onto social media, but that wouldn’t have given them enough time to get aboard the plane, unless they were already at the airport.”      “I only started sensing her after we had come aboard.  It may not have been enough time to come aboard normally, but there could be another way.”      “What way?”  Richard asked.  “And she?”  He looked at the attacker, and while he could see differences between her and Menok, he was not certain which, if any of them, indicated her gender.      “Now that she is unconscious, the mental blocks she had in place are no longer in effect,” Menok said.  “There’s not much I can sense while she is unconscious, but I can tell her gender identity.  As for how she got aboard, I am not certain.  Based on what I know of your world, it seems unlikely that there’s a teleporter aboard this plane, so it’s possible she has a cloaked ship that attached itself.”      “If that’s the case, is that something we’d be able to use?”      “Potentially,” Menok said.  “Follow me.”  They went through to the coach section of the plane, where the attacker had come from.  “Hand me the energy pistol,” Menok said.      Richard looked at it for a moment, and then at Menok, before handing it over.  Menok changed the setting on it again, and started firing at the ceiling.  An energy beam, instead of single shots, came out of it, and hit the ceiling, but did no damage.  Menok moved the beam over the ceiling, until a certain point where it caused the ceiling to shimmer.      “Boost me up there,” Menok said, and Richard helped him climb through a spot in the ceiling, which shimmered as he went through it.      “Another hologram?” Richard asked.      “Yes,” Menok said as he reached down, and pulled Richard up through the hole.  “She must have attached, made a hole, and used a hologram to hide that fact.”      “If we detach…”      “We’ll attach a cover first, so the plane doesn’t depressurize.”      “And then what?” Richard asked as he looked around.  It was a small vessel, like a shuttle of some kind.  There were three seats up front by the controls, as well as benches along the sides.      Menok went to the controls and sat down in one of the seats.  “This vessel is space capable, and with a superspace drive, so I can use it to continue on my journey.”      “Does it have what you need to cure me?” Richard asked.      Menok brought up a different page on screen.  “No, the medical supplies aboard this vessel are rather limited.”      “Then I am coming with you,” Richard said.      “It’s going to be dangerous out there,” Menok said.  “The fact that an assassin tried killing me in such a public way here on Earth means this is even more dangerous than I thought.  Even if we can get what we need to cure you, I can’t promise you won’t die anyway.”      “I’ll take my chances,” Richard said.           Kimberly and her team were in Sydney, Australia, and as soon as the plane landed, they went aboard.  The pilot showed them the tied up Arkon.      “This isn’t the Arkon we’re after,” Kimberly said, and she showed him a picture of Menok with Richard.  “This is who we’re looking for, and he’s with this Human.”      “Well, they aren’t aboard anymore, and this one was, but you might also want to see this.”  He showed Kimberly the ceiling of the plane, where a plate was covering a hole.      “Agent Derrickson, get over here,” Kimberly said.      Agent Derrickson came over, and ran a scan on it.  “This plate is made of a plastic of Arkon design.”      “Probably that Arkon over there came aboard to capture or kill the one we’re after,” Kimberly said.  “But then Menok overpowered that one, and got away aboard their ship, and presumably Richard is still with him.  Keep looking over the plane for clues.”      Kimberly got off the plane, and found somewhere private, before she contacted Jon over the comm, and told him what they had found.      “I was worried that the Arkons might try sending one of their own people in,” Jon said.      “So, what does this mean?” Kimberly asked.      “For one thing it means I am going to have a massive headache in dealing with the Arkon government over this.  But also, that Menok has presumably fled Earth, which means he’s outside your jurisdiction.”      “Sir, with all due respect, I would like to continue the search.”      “Continue it then.  Maybe I’m wrong, and he is still on Earth, but if he has left, and you find anything to suggest where he left to, make sure to let me know, so we have a better idea of where one of our ships can continue the search.”      “Of course, sir.”