He really didn’t like having people killed. It offended his sensibilities. But better that than to take a blaster bolt to the back of the head. He shuddered again.
Chapter VI
The woman who entered my office was indeed striking, in every sense of the word. Her delicate features were black as space, and framed by fine, loose hair that was as white as her skin was black. As Jax ushered her in, it was obvious he was smitten; she tolerated his solicitude good-naturedly.
“No purple fur, Commodore, and only two legs, but I’m a damned good Astrogator!” She said with a smile that was a flare of white teeth
I flushed. “Sorry,” I muttered, “I didn’t know you were within earshot.” I was relieved to note that she had a sense of humor.
I was having a bit of trouble concentrating on business. Nearly two meters tall, slim, and full-breasted, she was female perfection personified.
I placed her immediately. She was a native of Freja, a planet that was an anomaly. Scientists figured the planet had been a wandering rogue that had been captured by a blue giant. The planet orbited more than four A.U. from its primary, and had somehow given birth to life. The original colonists had nearly been wiped out by the sun’s actinic light. A significant percentage of every generation still died of skin cancers.
I read something once that said man had originally come in a variety of skin colors. They called them tribes, or races, or something like that. Evidently, these physical characteristics were the cause of a great deal of suffering early in man’s history.
Now, of course, we are for the most part a light brown. Over a period of time, the groups had interbred until this ‘tribe’ thing was little more than a legend.
There are exceptions, though. Frejans are black as space. On the other hand, Twilighters are an almost ethereal white. In both cases, the skin color was due to their physical environment. It isn’t just skin color, either. Heavyworlders tend to be small and compact, and heavily muscled. On Otarn though, a gravity of only 1/3 G has resulted in people who are unusually tall, thin, and lightly muscled.
I knew about Freja only because I’d been there. It was one of the few places in the Empire where the color of one’s skin mattered. Over time, the colonists’ bodies had adapted by producing large amounts of melanin, while the actinic glare bleached all color from their hair.
This woman’s space-black skin and white hair identified her as a “firster,” one of the planet’s elite, a descendant of the original colonists. On Freja, to have a light skin means taking extreme precautions against the sun, and is a mark of inferiority. Frejans are known empire-wide as bigots, and it was rare to see one of them off their planet.
I realized the silence was becoming oppressive and flushed again. I rose, and ushered her to a seat. We introduced ourselves. Her name was Ursulas Fjolking, but she asked me to call her “Suli.” Her handshake was firm. “I find myself in an unusual position,” I began. “I’m a trader, Captain of the Valkyrie. She’s a military surplus DIN-class Combat Resupply ship. My Astrogator chose to sign off here on the rim, and as you know, out here Astrogators qualified to conn a ship larger than a rim tramp are rare. So, I need an Astrogator that I can sign on for shares aboard a freelance trader.
“On the other hand,” I continued, “The Viceroy has recruited my ship and crew to help him resist a coup d'etat. Therefore, for the moment, I’m a Commodore looking for an Astrogator to conn a Command and Control ship that might see combat. If I’m satisfied with your qualifications and credentials, I’ll be able to offer any of several arrangements.
“First, I can sign you on for the duration of the emergency, and offer you generous wages and a free trip to another, more populous sector afterward. Second, I can sign you on for shares to conn Valkyrie after the flap is over. However, that would involve sitting on a planet until this whole thing’s over, and the possibility that I might find and sign on another Astrogator in the meantime.
“Finally, I can sign you on for shares now, which means you’d conn Valkyrie from now on. While we’re in the Viceroy's service, you’d draw Lieutenant Commander's pay, and when it’s over, you’d revert to the usual shares.”
She’d listened carefully, and now she nodded soberly. Gods! She was spectacular looking. Now, she reached into the small bag she carried, and produced her logbook. “I think you’ll see my qualifications are excellent,” she said.
I ran through the entries. She was well qualified. After excelling in Astrogator training, she’d served on a laundry list of ship types. Last on the list was a Beta class freighter, the one she’d left on Gamma. The Captain’s evaluation entries were carefully neutral where they weren’t complimentary. The same seemed true of most of the entries throughout her ten-year career.
“Okay,” I said finally. “Now tell me what’s wrong with you.”
“What?” That had shaken her. “What do you mean?”
“I’ve seen and written enough of these evaluations to know when something is being very carefully not said. Is it that you’re Frejan?”
“No!” She exclaimed. Then, looking abashed. “I… I mean, you know about Freja?”
I shrugged. “I’ve been there. Once.”
She nodded uncomfortably. “And you didn’t enjoy your visit. Well, you are a bit pale… But, no, that wasn’t the problem. At least, I don’t think I’m color-conscious. It’s just… well…" finally the wall of reserve broke down. “If you must know, I get tired of fighting off captains and crewmembers who think they’re the universe’s gift to women. That’s why I had to leave my last ship ‘way out here. The Captain had about six hands, and thought that command of the ship gave him command of the crew!” It came out in a rush. Obviously, it had been building for a long time. “Honestly, Captain… uh… Commodore, if an Astrogator is what you’re looking for, I’m an excellent one. If you’re looking for a bedmate or someone to pass the time with, I’m not what you want."
I nodded. Time for a change of subject. “So,” I asked, “What’s a nice Frejan girl like you doing in a place like this?”
She burst into laughter. “I told you… Oh, you mean, why would a Firster leave Freja to wander around the universe on freighters?” I nodded and she shrugged, creating serious distractions for me.
“Actually, it’s all I ever wanted to do. Sure, I could have sat around my family’s stead, and married some other Firster and had a bunch of Firster kids. But I wanted more. I wanted to see other worlds, other ways. Everybody told me I was crazy, but I studied and studied, and got into the Astrogator’s Academy.” She smiled wryly. “That was an experience! The first time I came into contact with the fact that almost everybody was a paleskin! It was… it was hard to deal with, at first. But I did it!” Her voice firmed up. “I did it,” she repeated grimly. “I made myself one of the best Astrogators in space. And if you’ll leave me alone, I’ll be that good aboard your ship!”
“I’m not too pale,” I said quietly. “Our Engineer, Hari Carlon, is paler than I am. Jax… well, you’ve met Jax. He’s not quite as pale as I am.”
“I’ve met… Oh! You must mean the puppy outside!” She grinned, but she was obviously trying to avoid the subject. I remained silent, and finally she sighed. “Captain, I won’t try to lie to you. You’ve been to Freja. You know how I’ve been raised to respond to pale skin. I find it… well, repulsive. That’s one reason I’ve had so much trouble. The idea of that pale, fish belly flesh touching mine…” she shuddered. “But I’ll say again, if you and the others will leave me alone, we can get along fine.”
I shook my head. “I don’t know, Mistress Fjolking. A four-person crew is too small to accommodate isolation, voluntary or not. Frankly, I’m not as concerned about others bothering you as I am about you bothering others.