Dimension 10 — Rokon City, Sooted Star Realm

7:50.

The triumphant, genuine smile of a trainee who had just passed their sky train driving test never failed to make Zeijien’s day. Zei could distinguish that kind of smile, even if it came from the most jaded of immigrants—those who had said goodbyes to their families with no certainty they would ever reunite. Those who had been in and out of court, on and off the streets, bearing wounds from a life of choices ripped away.

Such was the case with Ekarin, the middle-aged man with hollow-looking eyes and messy brunette hair graying on the sides. Zei executed the final test with ease, thanks to the months of practice and the grant Zeijien had finally obtained, allowing en to train the Risenen immigrants whose job options were limited.

They ended training officially at the L-Line’s last stop in Rokon City—a mass hub of sky trains, regular trains, and buses like an intricate web branching off to different parts of the city. It lay underneath the largest portal, Portal 7, that led to planet Aecadien. It was there Zeijien stamped the metallic seal onto Ekarin’s RSTA Driver’s Permit next to neir name in pretty cursive letters. Zei held it up to the sunlight flooding in through the windshield windows. 

“You did it, Ekarin! This is cause to celebrate!” Zeijien said, beaming with huir lopsided mouth and single silver left eye. A pastel sunrise-colored flower eyepatch covered huir right eye. Despite huir medium-tone gray skin and thin, eldritch-reminiscent body type, zei maintained a sunny disposition. At the very least, it took some of the edge off of huir uncommon appearance (not that zei had to be too careful around Ekarin).

Ekarin’s tired smile began to look uneasy. Zeijien passed nem a fresh can of neir favorite iced coffee. “Do you disagree?” zei asked.

Ekarin looked surprised to see the can. Zei shook huir head. Huir genuine smile returned as zei took the can and cracked it open. “Goodness, I’m simply in disbelief, that’s all. You’ve done a lot to help me get here. Words aren’t even enough to thank you. Quite frankly, I never thought I’d pass the written test, let alone the driving one.”

“You did all of that studying and training. Absolutely, you deserve this.” Zeijien passed the permit to Ekarin and nodded firmly. “Keep it safe. I’ll also have the permit card sent to you in three to five days. Ah—and your schedule, too. I’d love to take you out for a celebratory drink before then.”

Ekarin took the permit in huir calloused hands. Rubbed huir fingers along the seal as if making sure it was real. “That sounds wonderful, yes—” Huir voice trailed off, and huir expression became distant.

Zeijien knew Ekarin was the quiet type, but from huir time training nem, zei had learned to distinguish between the usual silences and the uncomfortable ones. And now the latter filled the control room like a noxious gas. Zei side-eyed nem. There was something nei wanted to say. Getting nem to say it was something zei knew zei shouldn’t push.

Zei looked around for something to do, trying not to seem like zei was worried about Ekarin. A look of realization struck huir face. “Right—Ekarin. Could you also email me your uniform measurements when you get the chance? I really do think it will suit you. And it’s nice, too, since you can wear it outside of work—just take off the RSTA patch, of course.” Zei lifted one of huir arms and proffered the sleeve of huir coat for emphasis. It was a reflective coat, the top half neon yellow and the bottom half black. Shiny iridescent material about a thumb’s length wide lined the various edges of the coat, including the pockets and the separation between the black and neon. Zei wore a black bell cap to match. Both clothing items bore the blue acronym “RSTA,” in other words, the “Rokon Sky Train Agency.” Zei wore the uniform proudly. Never forgot that this was the first agency willing to take in someone with gray skin without doubting huir integrity.

Ekarin nodded solemnly but let the conversation fall away. Perhaps because it was the end of training. Maybe it was because zei and Zeijien had become relatively close over the past few months. But Ekarin asked a question that took nem by surprise. 

“I don’t understand why you’d fight tooth and nail for this training program with hardly any return. Don’t you think you’d feel the weight of guilt if one of your students were to ultimately become like the terrorists becoming more active these days?”

Zeijien looked at nem, huir gray face becoming hollowed and matching its sunken eldritch appearance. Zei took a moment to collect huir thoughts, then hesitantly asked, “Oh—why do you ask?” 

Nei laughed at nemself, shrugging off the weight of the question. “Oh, no. That’s just my pessimism getting the best of me. I apologize for asking something so awkward. I wasn’t trying to criticize you. It’s just—I’ve seen programs like this come and go.”

Zeijien’s expression hardened, then became unreadable. Zei turned to the clock on the dashboard. 07:54. Zei had time to pry deeper into the question’s meaning, but did zei want to? Zei lingered in silence a bit longer as Ekarin collected neir jacket and messenger bag from the hook in the corner of the room. Time was running out. Zei decided to take the plunge.

“Would you?” zei asked carefully.

Nei faltered, clearly not expecting the subject to continue. Nei let out an airy, uncomfortable laugh. “Would I what?”

“You know. Become a terrorist?”

Zeijien didn’t know how to read this new type of silence. It felt like the train chamber had been plunged deep under the sea and was slowly sinking. Ekarin only smiled sadly, and huir eyes glazed over again.

Zeijien sighed—not resentfully. This wasn’t an interrogation room, nor were they much more than supervisor and trainee. Zei perked back up and said, “Well, the way I see it, even if one of the people I trained turned out like that, isn’t it still better to make a good-faith effort than not even try? Even if trying brings only a small chance of success, not trying will bring no chance in the first place, don’t you think?”

Ekarin drew huir eyes up to meet Zeijien’s briefly, but they fell back down again. “Better?” zei mumbled. “I wonder.”

~ ~ ~

Zeijien escorted Ekarin off the train to officially end neir shift. The atmosphere had become lighter, perhaps thanks to the fact that they had gone outdoors or because both of them knew that, in the end, such a heavy conversation would go nowhere. They talked about the next steps Ekarin would take. Speculated about what confounding factors zei might encounter while on the L-Line night shift. Their conversation had returned to its usual lighthearted, friendly dynamic, though Zeijien did wonder if it was disingenuous the whole time.

The earlier conversation still weighed heavily in huir mind enough that zei almost bumped into a playful child on their way across the resting platform. A little child, bright and cheerful with so many fortuitous paths to take merely because of the exergian blood that ran through huir veins. How it could all fall apart if that changed… Had everything fallen apart for Ekarin without a single outward sign? Had Zeijien failed nem? Sure, zei had said that trying to help was better than doing nothing, yet zei knew it wasn’t enough. It was never enough. What could a measly grant for Risenen immigrants’ future careers do to solve any of this?

Zei clenched huir jaw. There was no use speculating if Ekarin had, indeed, become a terrorist. Zei would only hole enself back up in the studio and avoid going outside for weeks if zei found out nei had. Zei knew that much, and zei wouldn’t let enself do that again.

Ekarin stopped suddenly. Zeijien didn’t notice until zei looked up from checking the notifications on huir holo watch. Zei stumbled as zei asked, “Raimsaer Ekarin, what’s wrong?”

Nei was looking ahead, wide-eyed and stiff, like nei had been thrown into the Arctic Circle of planet Kreneth. Neir face had lost its color. Zei turned to face what nei was seeing.

Five police clad in silver-gray uniforms blocked the mosaic-decorated exit, their eyes those of predators, and they were hungry. Ironic, considering the grimy mosaic depicted imagery of a senergian and an exergian joining hands.

“Thought I’d find you here,” one policewoman said with a smirk. “You’ve been a bad boy, not going home to your mother and all.”

Ekarin smiled. It was more like an uncomfortable grimace that was attempting to be polite. “W—what did you need, Raimsaer?”

Two of the five police officers, including the woman, approached Zeijien and Ekarin.

“Unfortunately, a claim has been filed about the validity of your immigration documents, along with evidence. We have a warrant for your arrest,” the policewoman said almost triumphantly. Huir smirk made Zeijien bristle. 

Zeijien stepped in front of Ekarin, huir expression stony. “Has my student committed a crime?” zei asked.

“That’s none of your business,” the policewoman shot back.

Zeijien noticed the metallic symbol sewn into the upper right chest of the police uniforms. Its simple, geometrical depiction of a meteorite shooting directly down onto two curved, crossing parallelograms looked familiar, but zei could tell it wasn’t common in the Rokon Police Department. Zei wondered if it was a clue into the police faction split Eberkerson had forewarned about two years ago. Just how much has nei foreseen back then? And how?

No, I shouldn’t be thinking about that now, zei thought.

Zei narrowed huir eyes and said, “As far as the law goes, in a civil immigrant case like this one, it’s the Rokon Customs Department that should be coming to meet en rather than the police.”

The policewoman’s smirk seemed to break, but it didn’t last long before zei let out a guttural laugh. “This is none of your concern, Deredren*. We’ll be taking the Raimsaer now.”

Zeijien’s blockade broke as the two police pushed past en. “Wait, can’t you just—Hey—”

The police ignored en as they grabbed Ekarin’s arms, one on each side. Dragged nem away. Ekarin shot Zeijien a panicked look before looking at the policewoman. Zei attempted to appeal to nem. “I—I didn’t—! Please, I can prove my documents—”

The policewoman shut Ekarin down immediately. “Save your talk for the interrogation room.”

“Ekarin, don’t answer them!” zei called after nem, huir voice wavering with anxiety. “I—I’ll find a specialist lawyer for you! Just wait for a little bit!”

The last thing zei saw was Ekarin mouthing the words “I know” and giving en one last sorrowful smile before disappearing out of the exit where the hands of the senergian and the exergian joined.