A Trio of Short Stories

    Twin suns beat down on the surface of Eridani 5 casting twin shadows in stark relief against the scorched yellow ground. Rivulets of sweat ran burning into my glare reddened eyes. Where was Ted? I thought for the umpteenth time. He was supposed to meet me here two hours ago! A guy can only take so much of this hellish heat. Where was he? I had long ago finished my assigned job and now here I sat... all alone.
    The near silence was an oppressive shroud. Not that there were no sounds. Eridani 5 has an atmosphere, poisonous and hot enough to fry your lungs, but one able to carry sound waves nonetheless. Hisses of escaping gasses, assorted pops and cracks were all that could be heard; it's just that I had my exterior microphones turned off. I sat on a thoroughly baked outcrop of rock, letting my mind wander to a familiar subject: Janice. Such a sweet lovely face to hide such a cruel heart! Cold - as cold as this godforsaken planet was hot. No... She wasn't to blame. I'm the one who left. Always off to see another planet! Maybe if I'd been more of a husband, or maybe if I'd stayed home more we would still be together. There was just no denying my wanderlust, I just can't sit still long enough to send down roots. Maybe Janice will be happy with her "stay at home" man!
     This was getting me nowhere! Where is Ted?! My energy packs won't last forever. They're set to minimal as it is, any lower and I'd fry! What if Ted has had an accident! I would be all alone, just waiting to die! My mind raced. Calm down Jake, Ted has never let you down yet. I glanced at the cool blue numerals of the outside temperature readout. 98.26°C: Damn near hot enough to boil water!
    "Ted where are you!" I yelled into my face mask. The shouted question echoed in my ears longer than the laws of molecular motion allowed. Just a short jaunt into the "Outback" he said. Some Outback! It was literally hot enough to fry eggs on rocks and no surface water at all. No life! None! No one, but myself. Eridani days last for almost 3 standard days! Why hadn't I gone back with him? Yeah, I know! Someone has to stay at the work site to monitor the mining processes. S.O.P. Right now I know where they could stick their procedures!
    A cool breeze. Just one! What I wouldn't give for a cold brew just about now! God, I can't take much more of this! Heat waves shimmered on the distant horizon, creating continually changing images. I could swear I saw something move out there! What was it? Was it moving closer? I strained my eyes, but I soon lost it in the distant heat distortions. Maybe my eyes were giving out from the constant glare. I could darken the visor, but I just couldn't take that right now. I couldn't stand that closed in feeling! That would be worse than the incessant glare. Never could take really tight, closed in places. You'd think I wouldn't be a candidate for the Xeno-Mining Service, but I could cover it real well. Anyway, deep down I knew it wasn't the closed in places that bothered me, it was being alone! I can take just about anything as long as I have someone to talk to. Was that something creeping toward me!? No, it must be my imagination! Just my imagination. All in my mind. Straining my eyes against the glare from the two suns, I tried in vain to make out the movement. Just heat shimmers! I told myself. Just shimmers. Still...
    "Is anybody out there!" I screamed. Only the stillness echoed back, leaving loneliness to ring in my ears. After my heartbeat returned to near normal, I looked at my wrist pad and realized I had not turned the switch to broadcast. Now I really felt stupid! Yelling my head off and the only person that could hear it was me! Seeing things that weren't there. "You're losing it, Jake!" I said to myself. "You're REALLY losing it"
    I could die out here in this hell hole and no one would even miss me! At least there were no Eridani vultures to pick my alien bones. Bones! That's a laugh! There would be a lot more than just bones. I would mummify in the heat. One lone body in the scorched yellow landscape. No one would even come to retrieve that body! No one would care. I would be forever alone!
    I caught a shadow move in my peripheral vision. "What was it?" My mind conjured up horrifying images and my heart started to race. "Where was Ted!" I fumbled with my gloved finger to press the broadcast switch. I screamed.
    "IS ANYBODY OUT THERE!!!"
    "Jake! JAKE! Ya don't have to scream at me, mate!" Ted replied, in his familiar Aussie accent. I spun around on my rock perch to see Ted waddling over in a duplicate to my own Multi-Envirionment suit.
    "Bet ya thought I had left ya all alone, didn'tcha lad? The crawler threw a tread about 10 klicks back. A real mess to fix in this heat!"

    Charbur winced in pain as the orange liquor burned its way down his scaly throat. This Nin' tok brew was powerful but short lasting on Berrellians. His long supple tongue caught an errant drop rolling down his mottled cheek.
    The rings around Charbur's ear holes turned a pale yellow and betrayed his fondness for the brown furred Nin'tok with whom he was sharing his drink. Charbur would not have even thought of sharing a communal cup, in the Nin'tok fashion, with anyone else. This Nin'tok, though had shared more with him than just a communal cup. She had shared battles and glories with him, standing at his side on many occasion. Not a few times she had saved his life as he had saved her life in return.
    That was many latats ago. Now they were just two tired, old warriors reminiscing about old battles. Though of two separate species they both shared a common love. The love of battle. Charbur's nestlings were long gone and had several generations of their own. Jen'tot also had seen many generations of her Commune's offspring grow up to serve the Commune. She had even seen a sister Commune form when a second matriarch was born. Not many Nin'tok could boast of that.
    They were here in Charbur's den drinking to past victories and defeats, but glorying in them all.
    "What ever happened to the simian creature you captured. You know the one I mean. The hairless one from that system out in the far spiral arm." Charbur hissed the question.
    The fur on Jen'tot's muzzle ripped in waves of disgust. "You mean the one that gave me all the trouble? I can not soon forget that one. Repellent creatures they were. No challenge one on one. However, they were cunning! They could turn almost anything into a weapon. The Great ones must have taken pity on so defenseless a creature to have given them such cunning and wit." Jen'tor barked her reply.
    That was the longest speech he had ever heard the Nin'tok utter. Their kind was not given to long speeches. He knew the reason for her loquaciousness. These simians were responsible for the worst defeat in Nin'tok history!
    They had met the simians and easily conquered their outposts on the moons of the gas giants orbiting their home star. However, by the time the main fleet had warped into their solar system in response to the summons from the scouts sent ahead, these cunning simians had transformed their mining plasma drills and their laser communication devices into fierce weapons of war. Half the Nin'tok fleet was destroyed before they could withdraw. Those decimated in the battle included her Commune. She alone was spared.
    Only after the Nin'tok enlisted the Berellians to join with them did they return to raze the simian home world. Even united their war fleet had fought a long and bloody crusade against these hairless creatures. Taking several latats and heavy losses the combined Berellian and Nin'Tok fleet had vanquished the simians! But, now they were history.
    Or were they? The simian fleet had fought hard and long. Then suddenly they disappeared! They had sent a small fleet minimally crewed to slow and divert attention from the main body's escape. There was evidence that a larger group had escaped. Where were they? Would they return? Their literature showed many precedents of their capacity for vengeance. Though normally a peaceful race they had the potential of terrible violence!
    Charbur still recalled the last message, in both Berellian and Nin'Tok, "We will never forget!"
    A ripple of colored fear passed down Charbur's tail. These Terrans, as they called themselves were capable of anything!

    She just can't be still!
    Her long blond hair forever in her eyes. Hands up. Arch to the side and over. Whoops! She fell! Hands up. Arch to the side and over. There! She made it! Another cartwheel.
    She just can't be still!
    Legs apart. Drop to the ground. The "splits" she has those down pat. Now she arches her back, hands over and behind her head. Down she goes! One leg up and then the other. Into a wobbly hand stand. Look out! Down she goes. Right on her rear! Up she jumps dusting her behind and into another cartwheel.
    She just can't be still!
    Her slender body moves with child like grace that only a father could appreciate. She brushes strands of hair from her freckled face. Head down, hands forward into a tumble. Up again and into another split. Her face shining red, not even breathing hard. She runs and jumps into a forward tumble followed with yet another cartwheel this time with a cross over step.
    She just can't be still!
    There she goes, back towards the floor into a crab walk. Her belly arched to the sky. Up again, legs apart and into another split. Too painful to watch! Jump and run, bending forward her hands touch the ground, only for the briefest moment. Heels over her head and then to the ground.
    Up she jumps, hands held high, arch to the left...
    An acrid smell of burnt plastic fills the air. He jumps up muttering to himself, "Not again! Always on that same maneuver." So close to perfection!
    "Jessica" looked every bit the seven year old, blond haired, brown eyed girl he had intended her to be. Once again he traced down the faulty circuit wafer and deftly pulled it, replacing it with a newer model. "There, maybe now you can continue." He closed the access cover on her upper arm as he pulled down the sleeve of her pastel tunic. For the ten thousandth time he wondered if any sentient thought passed through her positronic brain. He shook his head as if to dislodge the silly thought from his mind. "She is just a machine!" He said to himself.
    He had programmed "Jessica" to act as closely to his own daughter as possible. Fifteen years in the making and fifteen years since the advent of his loneliness. Fifteen years since he had felt his daughters still lifeless hand slip from his. Fifteen years since his vow to see her childish grace again. An eternity of pain! He would see here move again! Tears filled his eyes as he once again activated her program.
    Hands held high, arch to the left, feet lifted high. Over and into another cartwheel. Turn, one hand up, one hand behind. Bend at the waist feet off the floor and over her head in one swift motion.
    She just can't be still!
    Run, head down, arms extended, down and over into a split. Arms up and back, down to the ground, legs up, legs down, body up , body over ... goto "tumble" ... if arms down then head down else goto "fall" ... if not "legs up" then ... The program repeats, on and on. Can't stop, not allowed. Positronic circuits forbid.
    She just can't be still!