Hoto Nagi (Part One)

November 7 - Hoto Nagi

The Hoto Nagi Moon was a testament to the miracle of terraforming. Dense forests, and fertile grasslands. Thick vegetation of every shade and colour. Deep rivers, teaming with life and sparkling in the sun.

I landed my craft near a simple wooden building I had seen from the air. The building sat in a valley next to a small lake, well-stocked with fish. The breeze was cool and very refreshing after the dry, arid air of Araxes.

I had hoped to find people in the area, perhaps engage one of the locals in conversation. However, the building itself was vacant and I could see no one in the immediate vicinity.

I picked a direction and began walking.

-----

By mid-afternoon, I reached the foot of the mountains and began my ascent. The incline was steep but did not require any specialized climbing equipment. The elevation would give me a commanding view of the surrounding territory.

Halfway to the summit, I crossed a waterfall. Carefully stepping on the wet, slippery rocks. Grateful for the treads of my military issue boots.

Circling around to the other side of the mountain, I found a flat dry area. It was an ideal clearing on which to set my tent should I happen to spend the night. It was close to the spring, wide enough to comfortably accommodate my campsite, and the view was absolutely stunning.

-----

My communicator came to life.

"Can I help you?" asked a voice. "Return to the medical center .. and contact me again .."

"I am Major Pepper Siamendes, Special Investigation Unit with the Union of Allied Planets. I am looking into the disappearance of Dr. Demanjrick. I am currently on the Hoto Nagi Moon...."

"Very well. I will be there," replied the voice, "Well, not be there, but close."

"I am in the mountains to the South East," I said, "Please contact me when you are nearby."

-----

She appeared in a column of blue light. She was of medium height. Her hair was long, black and tied back. She wore glasses with small dark lenses.

"Dr. Demanjrick, I presume?"

"I am she," replied the woman in the light, "Well sorta..."

I raised an eyebrow.

"I am she," repeated the doctor, "but this is my holographic image. We have set up a way for me to project here, from where I am ...even though I don't know where I am."

"Are you being held captive somewhere?" I asked.

Dr. Demanjrick explained, "I am being held but not so much as a captive ...depends on how it is thought of. The Myrmidons have me, and one of theirs is holding me for my safety .. I was attacked you see, several times. So they have attempted to keep me safe."

"So protective custody," I suggested.

"Aye," she replied, "We have managed now to set up two ways for me to contact people. The range is limited but I can still work safely. There are two places my projection reaches now.. the moon and the medical center. No place else."

"Do you know why you are being attacked?"

"Yes," answered the doctor and she listed the possible reasons, "First, because someone wanted the cure. Second, because someone was upset about all that is going on. Third, because my step father hates me. It is mutual as I would not bow for him after he used the doomsday device. And the fourth possibility is because the 'moonbaby world' has decided once again, to kill me or bring me back to stand for my crime of letting 24 moonbabies free."

"Well," I began, "I have been sent to find you, to ask for your help working with the virus that has been spreading throughout the system. Yes, there are cures... but we are concerned about future mutations."

"I have been sending the cure to the medical center where it's been distributed. There will be mutations," she agreed, "That is why we must stop it now and vaccinate everyone."

"We would like access to the root virus," I added, "and to draw on your experience. We have laboratories waiting for you."

"You will need to get me out of this," she replied, "or find a way to holoproject me there. I am in a mess."

"Do you require extraction from Myrmidon custody?"

"I require to be innocent," she answered firmly, "and Sorvantis to stop hunting me! Let me show you something..."

"Sorvantis is your step father?" I asked.

"No," replied the doctor, "he is one of his goons. See this?" She produced a silver briefcase. "This is blood money. The assassin gave it to me when he looked at my near-dead body and took pity, I guess. He healed me and then gave this to me saying he can't kill an innocent. This here is 100,000 credits. I am using it to create the cure.. and the assassin told me who it was who wanted me dead, so that I could be protected. His name is Sorvantis...."

I listened carefully to her distress.

She continued, "...and he is one of my step father's goons. My step father is Lord Vormav but he was not the only one who attacked me. Others came as well. The truth is Miss, I am safe where I am - even though I am going batty being there, unable to do much moving - but I need to be innocent and I need him to stop hunting me... and the others too!"

"We can offer you relocation," I said at last, "a new identity, in exchange for your assistance. To prove your innocence may take time."

"I run this moon," she replied, "I don't want a new identity. I finally stopped running. I will assist even without a new identity."

"Thank you," I replied gratefully, "then we must find a way for you to do so."

"I will assist," she repeated, "I will need a lawyer too, I think. You will find if you set up a holographic projector, perhaps tie into the signal at the medical center, that you can relocate my projection." She continued, "Where I am, I have a lab. I have the serum and I am constantly making it. It has no blood in it. Let me give you a holographic look at the process."

"And access to the root virus?" I asked.

"Meet me in the medical lab of this moon," she said, the blue column of light rising in the air like a beacon, "Come."