Black Box

Travelling during the day, without the excitement of chasing a falling object, made Haul realize how far the ship had crashed. From the station, it was a thirty minute ride with the hoverbike. The mossy expanses were rushing around them. In the side-car, Cassiopeia gave the impression of being entranced by this view. Using the helmet intercom, he opened the conversation.

"Enjoying the greenery?"

The young girl barely reacted, answering with some approving nasal sounds. "It is so peaceful here." She then commented after focusing back on the driver.

"Peaceful is a way to describe it. I guess this is a paradise for anyone wishing to run away from civilization. Well, if they don't mind eating moss or algae for the rest of their life, that is."

"I do not believe I could last more than a week on this planet if it was not for your cooking skills."

Haul guffawed and blushed under his protective equipment. "Thanks for the compliment, but you should keep them for the cooking robots. They do most of the work these days."

"You are experienced at operating them at least. That is still way ahead of me."

Wasn't it a low bar to set the standards, Haul questioned in his head. He was beginning to grasp the personality of this girl. At least he believed he was. After not even a significant day in her company, he considered the possibility he was rushing to conclusions. The student did find unusual she appeared this comfortable around what were essentially strangers.

"Are those shining sites in the distance the wreckages you mentioned earlier? The ones related to that battle you are investigating with your professor?"

He hummed in approval. "They litter the planet, so you'll encounter them everywhere. If we get time before you leave Poseidus 3, I'll make you visit one."

"Leave… Right, I cannot stay here forever. I should focus on my past."

Another hint of melancholy fell through her mask of indifference. In a way, this landscape they were rushing by was the only one she knew at present. Haul tried to walk in her shoes. In front of her stood a quasi-infinite expanse to discover. Behind her lied an abyss that had devoured everything she was familiar with. It was logical to be lost. Or to feel helpless.

Haul fared the worst when it came to social interaction. He didn't lack kindness to distribute, rather empathy to recognize the situation it was needed. He struck other as tactless in most cases. No one would isolate themselves in Nowheresville for literals months, unless they were social bears to some degree.

This time, he was aware he needed to cheer his recent companion up, or she would continue to brood until entropy reverses. His mind brushed over all the books he had read about communication skills in the hope to improve marginally. The cardinal rules he had retained to cheer up someone were: avoid using negative forms, express care verbally, make their imagination work around a topic, offer them flowers. Well, maybe not that last one, seeing as there were no flowers on this planet.

When he noticed he was ruminating in circles, he grabbed his determination with both hands, clutching the handles of the bike tighter. There was nothing to lose, unless he kept silent, so he threw himself in the proverbial fire.

"On the subject of food, there are killer beef stews on Heliotrona. With actual meat, from real cows. They cost a pretty penny sure; they're the best in the Federation – scratch that – the galaxy."

Cassiopeia simply rotated her head ninety degrees left. Under her own helmet, a look of confused interest was growing, bringing back some light onto her face. The young adult waited to take note of her reaction and continued.

"If you're more into fruits 'n veggies, you can catch a shuttle to Kasratos. Every year, they develop new species of plants for consumption. They even host a contest to promote wilder designs and concepts."

"Like apples that grow in grapes?"

"No idea. Wanna select that as your first destination? If they don't produce it yet, I'll be able to brag about being acquainted with the girl who invented apple grapes."

"Make that a deal. What other planet do you recommend?"

"The proper question is: what do you want to see?"

"How about somewhere with a lot of water? Sailing around sounds like lots of fun."

"My mother runs a luxury hotel chain. I think I can get you free holidays on Novdol or Balneos if I contact her." Haul suddenly stopped when a bulky rectangular shape appeared in the distance. "Seems like we arrived."

With the light of the local sun shining down, the damages caused by the crash were more than apparent. A mile around, the moss had been burnt to a crisp. Chunks of earth and stones had flown before landing away from the impact. With the low angle of the crash relative to the surface, the ship had left a long trail in the dirt before coming to a full stop. Yet, as surprising as it was, the shipwreck displayed no marks of being damaged by its falls.

"So this is where you found me." The girl said in a low voice after touching the metal shell.

"Yep. We had to carve ourselves an opening. That damn can was completely sealed."

"Have you checked on the roof?"

The junior engineer was about to request what she had meant, but swiftly unlocked the trunk of the side-car to pull out a camera drone. Launching it in the air, the blades immediately started rotating and the flying device was soon stabilized. Haul equipped the neural telecommand, grafting electronics on his temple. A screen appeared in front of his eyes, allowing him to see through the camera.

With this, only a moment was required before he found the hatch on the top part of the hull. In their excitement, both him and the professor had forgotten to investigate this area, a rookie mistake. This deserved a well aimed facepalm. His forehead a little redder, Haul exclaimed :

"You're right Cassiopeia. How did you know… Cass? Where did you go?" He added when observing she had vacated the vicinity. He called her name two more times, ultimately finding she had entered by the side opening.

She was by a cryo-pod, trying to peer through its windows. The ice prevented any good vision. Haul was still curious to know if she had recollected anything about the layout of the ship. The redhead was the one breaking the silence this time. "Is there something wrong with me, Haul?"

Once more, there was no sign of sadness or hesitation in her tone. She had expressed this question with a clear voice, conveying a sense of confusion and self-directed anger. "I should know these people. I should recall their name, and I should recognize their faces. But I don't. There has to be something wrong with me. A reason why I don't seem to care about their death. About why I can't feel the need to mourn them."

"Cass…" As much as he wanted to help, this time, he was at an utter loss for words. He stumbled words after words, never finding a decent one to start his response. Just when he was about to give up, his brain went into intuitive response mode. "I'm sorry Cass; I don't know what to say. If I'm being honest, I'd agree something is abnormal about you. And it's not just about you. This entire case… it's weird from start to finish, nothing makes sense here."

Haul's mouth was running dry from thinking so much. He knew he couldn't cease his effort here. Hence, he fought onward. "I can tell you this, however. You want to know what happened. To you, to them, to your people. Right now, you may not feel like you're depressed about this. It is possible this'll change in the future. Give it some time, take a step back, it'll come as you understand more.

And if you require help, I'll do everything I can. I'm going to stay stuck on this piece of floating rock covered in moss for a while longer, but I know loads of people throughout the Federation. I'm certain, with some help, you'll unravel the mystery in no time."

This clumsy mumbo-jumbo had the merit to make Cassiopeia think about the way she had been addressing her problems so far. She laughed a little bit. "Thanks Haul, I genuinely appreciate your help. I will try– no… I will follow your advice and wait to cogitate about this. En passant, has anyone ever told you that you suck at freeform speeches?"

"Oh, cut me some slack, will you? How often do you think I train for this kind of exercise?"

"Right, sorry." She apologized with a playful grin. Then, in the back of her head, a tingling stroke some nerves. An odd nagging that brought a mix of uneasiness and curiosity back on her face. "Isn't there something in the cockpit?"

"What do you refer to?"

"I will go and check." She added before dashing past Haul. He followed suit, inquisitive of whatever had captured her attention. In the front compartment, Cassiopeia was fixated on the floor.

"There it is." She pointed at what seemed to be a compartment. Since it couldn't be opened with bare hands, Haul ran back to the bike to collect a crowbar. This was a hand-sized compartment, containing a single cube, ten centimeters a side. It was embedded in the frame of the ship, with electronic circuits leading to it.

The cube was actually a small contraption. When it got in the hands of the girl, she became even more entranced by it. She observed every nook and crannies, unlocking it after a few minutes. It turned out to contain a series of metallic disks. Six disks, a millimeter in thickness, yet incredibly sturdy, likely made in a unique alloy to endure the worst of accidents. Cassiopeia raised the disk toward the student, hoping he could provide some appraisal.

"Brilliant. I can't say for certain, but I think you found the flight recorder. Did you remember it was here?"

"No… it felt evident."

Haul began a long rant regarding the benefits of such findings to comprehend more of what had occurred on board. A treasure trove of valuable information, provided it could be decoded and transcribed. Cassiopeia on the other hand wasn't as tech savvy and did not thoroughly comprehend the scope of this discovery. In addition, something in the entrance of the cockpit had caught her attention again.

A black fog was coagulating in the door path. Looking at it more closely, and it was a hue of purple, bordering lavender. Within the fumes, particles of gold floated in Brownian patterns, condensing the upper regions. It was beginning to resemble a human shape. In fact, it was resembling Cassiopeia.

The air in the cabin chilled. Electricity was running down the girl's spine, bewitched by the phenomenon. She swore she could have heard it mumbling something, but the words would not reach her ears. She focused on the mouth of the smoking mimicry, trying to make sense of anything.

Listen… Our… Voice…

"Cass, you're with me?"

This interruption brought her back to reality. In the time it took to jerk her head toward Haul only to gaze back at the fog, it had disappeared. Nothing, not even the gold particles or fog's swirls remained on the floor. Had she hallucinated? It couldn't be, it was the exact same as in her earlier dream. And it felt as if something was attempting to communicate with her.

"Is something wrong, Cass? Have you seen something?" Haul's voice betrayed his increasing worries for the girl's mental well-being. Cassiopeia did not want to convey the impression she was having a crisis again, but she needed to be somewhat honest.

"No, everything is fine. I was just startled by the wind. Sorry, Haul. Coming here has put me on edge, I think."

"We should probably go back to the station, then. No good in forcing you too much."

"Good point, let's get going."

The duo stored the disk back into the cube and took the latter with them. After she climbed into the side-car, the student addressed his passenger one last time.

"Hey Cass, I'm repeating myself, but I'm here. If you need to talk, or anything else. Okay."

The two green pearls shied away, while the color of her cheeks hued closer to that of her hair. With a faint smile, appreciating the care the boy was putting forward, she hushed a simple, single, "Thank."