A Dung Beetle's Dream 2

"Behold."

The young strong voice of a woman resonated inside the highest room of the Stepping Stone station. A man groveling face down on the floor refused to move out of fear. The young woman was staring out into the stars, waiting for a subtle noise that indicated the man had lifted his gaze. She waited in absolute silence, to no avail. Despite herself she allowed the slightest turn in her head to see if he had obeyed, only to be disappointed. She fought the urge to roll her eyes.

The young woman named Vidya, walked around the observatory of the Stepping Stone, gazing into the darkness surrounding the station. Apprehension was building inside her chest; things were set in motion now that couldn't be undone. And most importantly she was the only one that knew, at least on this station. Behind her on the ground was a portly balding man kneeling in the universal stance of submission. She glanced at him with pity and decided to throw the dog a bone.

"Get up. I have decided that I will be leaving within the next few hours anyways." She turned and looked at him as he struggled to climb to his feet. The rotation of the Stepping Stone provided a near Earth gravity and it was clear this man had been resting on his laurels. Such apathy was discouraged amongst the civilized. An audible sigh escaped the man's mouth which he quickly attempted to conceal with a cough.

"So, you will go? You have found no fault with our operation?" He fidgeted with nothing in particular waiting for her answer.

"I have found many faults, but I will not be the one to correct them. Instead, I will now take my leave and do what I see fit." She said the last part with an intended ominous tone. It wasn't really mature of her to play with this dog but the inevitable wasn't about to stop just because she decided to have some fun. The balding man turned whiter than he already was and gulped. Beads of sweat began to form on his head which he began to mop up with a handkerchief.

Vidya made sure to make her face void of emotion, but in her mind, she was judging him even harsher. He didn't get angry or violent which most little men did, but she would have admired him more for it if he had. Instead, a timid response, and an acceptance of 'fate' made was... weak. She mentally noted that a violent response would have been weak as well but at least a show of force would have illustrated some resolve. In her mind a voice from her instructor echoed, 'To not control your emotions, especially the motion of anger, is a sign of weakness.' So perhaps this man wasn't as weak as she thought.

Vidya was tall and athletic, dressed in a suit that would have been better fit in the late 1800s. The suit wasn't an antique and it was hiding technology for self-defense, extreme violence, as well as information gathering. A gold chain hung from her waist coat, running in two directions, to different pockets in her outer coat. At one end of the chain was connected a golden compass; the other end was connected to a golden hoop with the increments of pi engraved on the edge. Vidya walked past the man and towards the central lift that would take her to any level of the installation she saw fit. As she passed the man, she sensed a change in the overall intensity of the room, hairs on her neck stood and the briefest flash of red light winked across her vision.

"And here I thought you were a completely spineless dog." Vidya turned and caught his arm mid swing. The stance in which he was caught, left him powerless and twisted on himself. His right arm was reaching back above his shoulder, the back of his hand almost touching his ear. In his hand was a slender knife which could have caused serious harm if his attack had landed. Vidya shook her head slightly and spoke,

"Alas, just a foolish one."

She twisted his wrist, and with an audible crunching noise, the man let out a yelp of pain. But his cries were cut short by his own blade being slowly drug across his own throat. Vidya didn't press deep enough to make the wound fatal, he wasn't a threat anymore. She knew from experience that his instinct to survive would cause him to panic and hold his bleeding wound in an effort to mitigate a death that wasn't coming. The man grabbed his throat and panic settled in just as Vidya had predicted. She walked him forcefully to the rail that faced one a large window that pointed toward the darkness away from the sun.

"You have the best view in the house here. Don't worry you won't die... yet. Just wait here patiently. Understand that there was nothing you could have done to change this outcome." Vidya then left him there leaning on the rail. Right on cue, a lift arrived to take her down to the hanger. On the way down she noticed a tiny speck of blood on her lapel and frowned, she had gotten careless. When she arrived at the hanger a man approached her and greeted her frantically.

"Ma'am is everything alright? Where is the CEO at?" This man was the CEO's assistant and even more of a dog than his master.

"I left him in the observatory... alive." Vidya was still playing with the dogs.

The assistant let out a small sigh of relief. She thought to herself, 'Perhaps this dog cared for his master?' The assistant touched his ear and spoke in an even tone, "Cancel the cleaning crew." Vidya wanted to snort in disgust, realizing this dog was no more loyal than the rest. She realized she was being rude to dogs; these men were lower than dogs. These men were just extortionists in suits.

"I would leave him alone though, he has much to think about." She said this with as much concern and softness in her voice that she could muster. Vidya took a half step forward as if to exit the lift but then paused. Something in her gut told her that the next stage of her voyage wasn't to be taken here in the hangar. Instead, she backed onto the lift and looked at the map for additional inspiration. As she looked at the map, she decided to announce her intentions,

"I will be taking my leave now. I am in need of a vessel and a captain to carry me onward." The map seemed to keep drawing her eyes away from the hanger levels down to the lower levels where mining craft offloaded their sold harvest. The assistant broke the momentary silence,

"Well, we have the finest vessels here to choose for transit, or if you are in the market, you could buy a craft and leave at your leisure." The assistant looked concerned and waited for a response.

"No, thank you, sir. I believe my path begins in the market with the miners." She pressed the kay for the level she wanted, and the doors began to close. The last thing Vidya saw was the assistant's confounded face and the last thing she heard was his voice say, "A Haruspex amongst the dung beetles?" When the doors closed, Vidya grimaced at the use of the derogatory term coined for the miners of the asteroid belt, dung beetles. Their official title was Scarabs, and their insignia often took the shape of some form of beetle. Her inner monologue reminded her those who hadn't worked for their wealth often sought ways to belittle those who provided their affluence. This was one of the unforgivable sins for Vidya: wealth without work. Worse yet, this Stepping Stone had the unbearable stench of a second unforgivable sin: commerce without morality.

_________________________________________________

Down in the market floor Cad and Skip were just about to conclude business. The only hang up was the crooked dock master that was attempting to lowball the already agreed upon price for the metals and minerals they had just offloaded. Even from a distance Cad could tell that Skip was keeping his cool as best he could. The accounts were in Skip's name so all Cad could do was sit idly by and wait for the situation to resolve itself.

This kind of crooked policy was typical for this place. They always found a way to "show" the market had dropped a certain percentage in the time it took to land and offload the goods. And it always dropped, not once had they said the price had risen while the off loaded the goods. It was downright criminal and really unprofessional but there was nowhere else to go. And they knew it. Cad shook his head and sighed; this was the life of a Scarab in the belt.

Usually, the market seemed to drop a percent or two, but from the angry echoes drifting over to Cad and the Antihalian, absurd numbers of eight and ten kept popping up. Cad furrowed his brow and shook his head, neither of those numbers were legitimate or justifiable. Cad felt his blood begin to boil and he decided he needed to inject himself into the situation, he didn't like to make it a habit to be robbed without a fight. As Cad clenched his fists and began to walk over to the two men arguing, he suddenly became distracted. For the most unusual person Cad had ever seen appeared on the market floor. A woman in the weirdest outfit imaginable was now drifting closer with graceful leaps in the low gravity, over to Skip and the dock master. With his interest piqued and his anger ready to be unleashed more than ever Cad drifted his way over to hear what this peculiar woman was going to contribute to the negotiation.

Cad and the strange woman arrived at the argument at the same time. She let out a small cough as if to clear her throat. The dock master somehow heard this while he shouted, "Take it or leave it!", and turned his head to see the woman standing with hands behind her back, an emotionless face, and the most piercing green eyes. With her arms behind her back the suit she wore pulled open to reveal a womanly form. But even though the dock master was a burly brute of a man, somehow this woman commanded respect and authority. The dock master immediately went silent. And without a word he pulled up his wrist display and completed the transaction that had been previously agreed upon. He was pale white now, before his face had boiled to a light red. He turned and left quickly without another word.

Questions and confusion crammed themselves into the processing portion of Cad's mind. Words jumbled themselves and his emotions of anger were left with nowhere to go. What suddenly grounded Cad was the way his father was acting: he had gone rigid and now held his body in a half bow looking at the woman's feet. Cad had never seen his father do this and stood there staring, with his face awash with confusion, gratitude, anger, and frustration. The woman let the slightest of smirks flicker in her expression and spoke in a tone that demanded respect but also was oddly warm.

"The audacity of this place. You should find your business concluded here Captain. If I might impose upon the both of you, I would like passage on one of your crafts. If you require compensation, I would be happy to pay my way."

Skip slowly lifted his head, and when he reached the woman's gaze his eyes drifted down to the gold chains on her vest. His eyes widened and he made a quick glance at Cad who didn't know what to say or do. Silence held for what felt like an eternity as the two men attempted to reactivate their faculties and give her an intelligible response. The woman spoke again,

"Oh where are my manners? How can two gentlemen such as yourselves transport a woman you don't even know. My name is Vidya. And what are your names?" She bowed low with the announcement of her name and rose back to her original position as she asked her question. Silence filled the air once again. Vidya spoke again, "Not to sound rude, but time is of the essence." She looked at a small holographic display on her glove that imitated a watch. Skip finally found his voice and spoke,

"My name is Skip; this is my son Cad. You may have passage on either of our crafts. They aren't much, but they're home... I fear we won't be able to accommodate a woman such as yourself. We are but simple miners." Skip gestured to the two mining vessels and named them,

"The one closest is the Antihalian. The other is my son's, the Cacoethes."

Vidya stopped and considered each craft with a slight tilt of her head. She then pointed to the Cacoethes and nodded. Cad looked to his father, to the woman, and back to his father in disbelief. Vidya then blinked several times, and rubbed her index and middle finger together, an indication she was moving money through her ocular display.

"I know I will be an inconvenience, but I will need to modify one of your storage containers to house myself and my belongings. We should make way as soon as the accommodations are complete." A team of drones and workers descended upon the Cacoethes and began to remove the modular storage containers. The process was quick and simple, the old heavily worn storage containers were removed and then attached to the Antihalian's dorsal side. Promptly the old was out and the new was in. State-of-the-art modules which clashed with the older and worn look of the rest of the craft were seated in the open regions. A team of workers and drones then quickly loaded some personal belongings and small containers aboard the new container. The whole ordeal took no less than thirty minutes, in a shocking display of efficiency and cohesiveness.

Cad stood with his mouth open, watching his ship change before his face. Vidya walked past him and with one finger closed his maw with gentle grace. She turned on one heel and faced the father and son looking just beyond them. A final loading crew began to load food and water onto both the Cacoethes and the Antihalian, while drones finished some adjustments to the additional storage containers on the Antihalian.

As Cad and Skip watched the final adjustments, Vidya pulled up a small holographic display which had a timer that was counting down. 59 min and 28 seconds slowly counted down steadily and Vidya let out a sigh of satisfaction. The two men turn around to see the numbers, and then met eyes with their new passenger.

"We should get going." Vidya then turned around making her way aboard the Cacoethes.

Cad attempted to open his mouth to say something in protest, but Skip grabbed his arm and shook his head, leaning in close he then whispered,

"There are some things I have failed to prepare you for son. Trust me when I say this: that woman is dangerous. She's a Haruspex. Be careful." Skip then hugged Cad and rushed off to his ship. Cad swallowed and suddenly realized how dry his mouth was. The only thought in his mind was, "What the hell is a Haruspex?"

_______________________________________________

When Cad climbed aboard his vessel, he felt like his home had been broken into. The cockpit luckily was the same, and everything essential was in order. As the spaceship started up and began auto taxing out of the market, Cad turned his chair to look upon the changes that had taken place. Two shiny new doors stood in contrast to everything he had remembered about his ship. In his mind Cad grew angrier and angrier at the situation he was now in. Silently he thought, "Who does she think she is?! Making changes to my ship and without as much as a word of explanation." He considered going and banging on the doors and confronting her. But before he could do anything, a message appeared in his ocular display.

*BE CAREFUL, BE RESPECTFUL, DON'T DO ANYTHING FOOLISH*

The message was enough to bring him back to his senses. Cad settled in and did a quick network search for the meaning of Haruspex. An old definition of a reader of omens from animal entrails popped up. Cad was frustrated, he knew that wasn't right. Paranoid feelings of a greater conspiracy slowly entered his mind, he thought of what his dad had said.

"There are some things I failed to prepare you for my son." Clearly there was a world beyond mining and the belt, but Cad hadn't had any experience with anything of this nature. A message appeared on his ocular display:

*I have linked our two ships, and they will autopilot to a location the Haruspex sent me*

Just as he finished reading the message, he felt a slight pull as the two ships began to accelerate. Within a few moments they had reached their travel velocity and the engines stopped burning. Cad sighed and relaxed and turned the pilot's chair around to see the Haruspex floating and watching him. Cad was a naive boy when it came to women. The women he had encounters with were older and more like mothers or aunts to him. He had only seen women on Stepping Stone from a distance, never up close, and certainly nothing like he was seeing now.

Vidya was no longer in a suit. She was instead in a dark blue jumpsuit that was form fitting revealing curves that were hidden beneath layers of suit pants and cloth. Over the top of the jump suit was a modern vest with functional pockets. Consistent with her previous style, a gold chain still that ran to the left and the right inside her vest. Her hair was now loosely tied behind her instead of in a braided bun that she had in the market. The relaxed look was breathtaking to Cad who now was struggling to think at all, let alone remember how he was mad about the changes to his ship. Her foot was slightly hooked on a rail near the floor, and she easily moved her foot to begin pushing herself towards him. She got close to Cad, and lightly pulled herself onto the central display and held herself there with the illusion she was sitting with normal gravity. Cad suddenly was aware of how bad his ship and himself needed to be cleaned, as well as a new fragrance that Vidya brought with her. It was intoxicating.

She stared at him intently for what seemed like an eternity. Cad didn't know what else to do but stare back, attempting to meet her gaze which seemed to be delving into his soul with each passing second. The only sound that Cad could hear was his own heart pounding, and it was a deafening roar in the silence of space. She broke the silence when the moment finally reached the unbearable stage.

"You really have no idea who or what I am?" Her tone was sincere and soft. Cad waited for more then finally decided after a few seconds that he should answer.

"I really don't... Who or... what is a Haruspex?" Cad swallowed nervously, feeling that he really might be in danger, just by asking the question. Vidya looked at him again and seemed to contemplate the answer she would give. She rotated her body, so her feet were now on the side of the central console and extended her legs. Her nimble toes held onto a the lip of the console. From her perspective she now was standing on a box and Cad was in a chair dangling from the ceiling. From Cad's perspective she was now completely horizontal, hovering in the air with her face intimately close to his. She began to speak with a voice that was laced with sage importance and seductiveness.

"People like me have existed throughout time. Always being used for their talents as a tool or slave. When humanity left Earth behind, we the Haruspex left our shackles behind. Now amongst the stars we wield but two things: authority and information... And that's all you really need to know about us."

Cad sat there disappointed; he had more questions than answers. The lack of information was eating him up on the inside, and the innate desire to learn and understand burned his intrigue even deeper. How could a young woman demand authority and make the world seemingly move for her every whim, with nothing more than information? And how many other Haruspex are there? Surely, he hadn't ever encountered someone like her before.

"Your face hasn't learned the art of concealment my young Captain. You wear your emotions openly for everyone to see." The smallest chuckle slipped from out from her usually neutral and concealed expression. "I know you have more questions but now is not the time. And honestly the more time you spend around me, the more questions you will have." She winked at him continuing to be coy.

A chime rang out indicating a change in velocity. Vidya slipped from the central console and flipped herself upside down, hooking her feet in the second seat that was on the sealing of the cockpit. A few more seconds passed, and the craft began its heavy deceleration, and the autopilot began the process of docking with the Antihalian. There was no rotational spin to provide gravity this time, Cad suspected it had to do with the renovations that were hastily imposed on the two craft. When Skip entered the cockpit of the Cacoethes, Vidya and Cad were unstrapping themselves. Skip folded his arms and waited for their passenger to right herself, matching the orientation of everyone else in the room. But to Cad's surprise she did not. In many circles it was rude to not orientate yourself with a crowd. Cad had seen in some instances, the same behavior be a threatening power move, forcing others to orientate your way, even if you were the minority. Cad could sense no ill intention from Vidya, instead he felt that this was just how Haruspex behaved.

"Now miss, uh, Vidya, was it? I don't want to be rude, but I need some answers." Skip attempted to look in command as well as being cordial, it just came across awkward.

Vidya silently peered at them, tilting her head, and walked away from them and entered her room. Even though Cad had spent his life in space and thinking in three-dimensional space and zero gravity scenarios, the way she moved made his head spin. She looked like a marionette doll or a black widow spider moving across her web easily appearing to walk on any surface or orientation. She returned, still upside down to them, with a small black spherical drone. At a glance it was apparent that the drone was equipped with what appeared to be a powerful optic and lenses built into it. She walked to the chute on the wall and place the drone inside the tube. These chutes were designed for drones that could be sent out to scout potential mining sites, or in times of emergency to assess damage of the ship.

A dull thump resonated throughout the wall of the craft, and Vidya once again glided and sat in the in her chair above them. A camera feed began playing and the then was reconstructed into a 3-dimensional hologram that filled the cockpit. It was a display of the Stepping Stone station, and above the center of the display the final seconds of a timer slowly counted down to zero.

Cad opened his mouth to ask a question, but as soon as he opened his mouth to say, "Why are we watching this?", his answer was given to him. Large black ships slid from the darkness of space surrounding the station and slightly obscured portions of the station. It was as if shadows appeared around a lone streetlight, with no source to identify their origin. Skip inhaled sharply and held his breath.

Vidya spoke but one word, and with it she ensnared the full attention of the two men standing near her. There was no magic to it, but a power seemed to enubilate inside the space craft, demanding attention and reverence.

"Behold."

And the two men beheld the great space station, bearing witness to the swift and terrible fall of that place.

_________________________________________________