185 Hardly Working, Pt Planet HDV-502, Daltirri System, Federal Colonial Territories

Snow whipped sideways at the large town set on the side of a mountain, all while a giant blizzard consumed the entire mountain range itself. Not that the town was bereft of activity – despite the weather, many were still outside working as though everything was normal.

Perhaps all this was normal for them.

Some loaded up hoppers with cargo, others tended to their storefronts, others still were clearing the streets of snow. All of those who were outside were wrapped up in thick thermal jackets, many with furry collars to keep their necks warm.

Along the bottom of the village were a dozen or so landing pads, some of which were occupied by one or two corvettes, or with a handful of single-seater spacecraft. All of them had a thick layer of snow covering them.

One of the pads was actively being cleared of snow by a team of villagers. Some swept the snow in clumps right over the side, while others with huge tanks on their backs used flamethrowers to melt any lingering ice.

Once it was all clear and the villagers had moved out of the way, a shuttle waiting above the town lowered itself down. Although the ridiculous blizzard winds whipped at the shuttle, whoever was piloting it did their best to stay steady all the way until they landed.

The shuttle’s rear ramp lowered down, and two blond-haired, blue-eyed women stepped out to the landing pad below. Through their clear helmets, it was clear that the two looked nearly identical, except perhaps for a few easily discernible facial details.

And unlike everyone else around them, they wore moderate environmental suits with top-of-the line technology. They regulated their internal temperature easily, and with a minimal amount of materials to do so.

.....

They walked out towards the town casually, and were quickly followed by four more, though they were men. Regardless of their gender, all looked relatively similar in terms of hair color, eye color, and skin lightness.

“You four,” said one of the women, “stay here and unload the shuttle. Mia and I are gonna go see the mayor.”

The four men quickly bowed, then turned around and went back into the shuttle. Presumably to do the work they were tasked.

“Well Callie,” said Mia. “What do you think? Our first real project on our own. We finally made it, and it only took us two revisions to get here.”

“Oh, it’s everything I dreamed,” replied Callie. Sarcasm dripped from her voice.

“Come on. This is the best thing that’s happened to either of us! Father is finally letting us take charge of our own conversion project!”

Callie looked at her sister with an exasperated expression plastered on her face. She waved at the snow-covered town with an arm, and pointed out the blizzard that was happening all around them.

“You’re seriously proud of this?” she said. “We’re on some bumfuck planet, stuck in a town filled with frozen mountain yokels. The least Father could do was send us to a nice, warm planet. Maybe do some conversions at a beach resort instead.”

“Father didn’t pick this place,” countered Mia. “I did. Now quit whining. We’ve got work to do.”

She beckoned her sister and walked towards the town above them. Callie sighed with annoyance and defeat, then followed right behind Mia.

“I shoulda known it was you who picked this dump,” she said. “I mean, just look at these streets! It’s not even flat like back home. Just pebbles and stones glued together... It’s like this whole place was made by hand, rather than with industrial printers.”

Mia laughed at her sister.

“It’s called cobblestone,” she said. “Printed roads like we have wouldn’t last in this kinda weather. And this stuff might not be so great, but it’s easy to source and just as easy to fix. Look – even their buildings are made like this.”

“Okay, fine, cobblewhatever. So what? Is that why we’re gonna convert these idiots? So we can gain the secrets of rock and snow? Gimme a break. These people’s blood can’t possibly contribute to ours. Just looking at them sickens me.”

“Look again. These people are surviving on the side of a huge rock in the middle of nowhere, and under freezing temperatures. You sure their blood doesn’t have anything we can’t take for ourselves?”

“Cold resistance. Big deal. Gimme five minutes with a genome sequencer. Then you’ll get to see version 2.2 of Callie Drenn, with extra cold resistance. Didn’t need to put a single foot in this town... whatever the hell it’s called.”

Mia chuckled and shook her head at her completely intolerant sister.

“Is Callie Drenn v2.2 also gonna face the Federation by herself?” she said. “Nah. We’re gonna need an army to beat them. And we’re here to kick things off. I mean, if these people were to drop off the face of the galaxy, who the hell’s gonna even know? And if someone does figure it out, would they come here, to this?”

The pair walked further up the steep and narrow cobblestone streets, despite the blizzard that fought against their every step.

And as they walked, they passed by all manner of homes and shops and venues. Any townsfolk they came across usually greeted them warmly. A few grumpy ones simply grunted in their direction.

“This place is ours,” continued Mia. “We can literally do anything we want. Anything at all. No-one’s gonna come here to stop us. No-one’s even gonna know. Not even these simpletons themselves will ever figure it out.”

“What, so you want me to just forget how shitty this place is?” Callie retorted. “Like we’re not gonna be living in a freezing hell for the next... I don’t even wanna think about how long we’re gonna be here.”

“Yeah, exactly that. Put it aside. Or use it to your advantage. Work faster to convert everyone so we can move on to the next planet.”

Callie huffed loudly. But she understood where her sister was coming from.

These really were hardy, tough people. Their genetics would seriously enhance their own. Having them as their mindless slaves would be the cherry on top.

“Fine,” she said. “But I get command of them once we’re set up.”

“Hell, once we’re done, you’ll get command of whoever you want,” said Mia. “Just as long as you continue to sacrifice to further our mission.”

The two of them climbed further up the town, all the way towards the very top. All along the way, it was apparent that only homes were up here. It made sense to Mia – most of the commercial buildings were near the landing pads while the residences were a little more removed.

That made trading that much easier for everyone involved.

But going up and down the mountain every day just to get home – that must have been tough for everyone. And like the shops down below, their homes were also put together with cobblestone. The rocks were an excellent conductor of heat, and very little snow stuck to them in spite of the snowstorm.

The two eventually made it past the houses and reached the very top, where the mayor’s mansion was located. There, a number of people worked the grounds – mostly they kept it clean and clear so that visitors like the two sisters could easily make it inside.

The two synths were greeted warmly as they opened up the mansion’s heavy wooden double doors and stepped through the entryway. There, they shook off their environmental suits, removed their helmets, and set them in some cubbyholes off to the side.

Their helmets joined the many others that were there, though theirs looked the most advanced and expensive of all of them. By far.

They walked further into the mansion, and quickly ended up in the main foyer, where a number of villagers were seated at the many benches around. No doubt they were waiting for their turn to speak to the mayor. Or perhaps be spoken to.

Some were in light conversation with each other, others were chatting with mayoral aides, and others still were snoozing in their seats.

As the two looked around, a rather well-dressed man in his 40s walked up to them with all smiles.

“Ah! So you must be the people who just landed!” he said. “I’m the town mayor’s right hand man, and she asked me to welcome you all in. Please, please. Follow me.”

A few of the people in the foyer groaned at having been skipped over, but all they could do was watch as the sisters were led off deeper into the mansion itself.

As they walked through a long hallway, Mia glanced off to the side, where the main gathering hall was. Inside, she saw a podium with a few seats in the center of the far wall. Benches surrounded it on all sides.

Though no-one was on the podium itself, there were a number of people out among the benches. She couldn’t exactly hear what they were talking about, but they were clearly in numerous heated discussions.

But she quickly shrugged off her curiosity. It wasn’t long until these people stopped caring about whatever it was that was bothering them. So there was no point in her trying to figure out their current woes.

historical

The mayor’s right hand led them past the hall and up a double stone staircase up to the second floor. From there, they went down a main hallway up to the Mayor’s office at the end.

The right hand knocked on the double doors, then opened them right after.

Inside, the mayor was looking out the window and into the snowy blizzard just beyond. In her hands was a datapad filled with all sorts of reports. She spun around once her right hand walked in, and lit up when she saw the two sisters.

“Oh, thank you. And do come in,” she said. “Have a seat, please.”

The Mayor took her own seat behind the desk, as Mia and Callie sat across from her. At the same time, the Mayor’s right hand went off to the side and poured some refreshments for their guests.

“I’m so glad you’re all here,” said the Mayor. “I mean, we’ve got so very many contracts that need to be fulfilled. Since we’re in such a remote spot, people don’t often come out here. So when the town’s lead engineer disappears, it becomes a bit of a debacle.

Mia observed the Mayor, who looked older than her aide. She presumed she was somewhere in her 50s or 60s. Perhaps even older – who knew what the cold air did to preserve youth? The mayor certainly seemed full of life and vigor.

“I’m sorry Miss Mayor,” she said. “We aren’t here to fulfil any contracts. Not sure what led you to believe that in the first place. But I’ll overlook it for now.”

“What? Oh, apologies,” said the Mayor. “I didn’t mean to burden you with the town’s troubles or anything like that. I just assumed... well, anyway, that’s not important now I guess. So what can I do for you? Are you all here to try out our famous Daltirri Brew? It’s the best in the system!”

“Sure, at some point. We’re here because we’re looking for a place to stay for a while. We’re working hard to spread the word about something of galactic importance.”

“Oh! Galactic importance, you say?! How admirable! Well, I’d like to help you achieve whatever it is you’re after.”

The mayor was clearly impressed with the two sisters. She assumed they were scientists or researchers who had come to study the mountain. It wouldn’t have been the first time that she had received guests like that.

Plus, the quality of their outfits certainly lent credence to that thought.

A pity she was dead wrong about their intentions. Had she known what they truly wanted, she would have had them shot on the spot.

“Great to hear, Miss Mayor,” said Mia. “I think for now we’ll need a place to stay. Not entirely sure for how long. A few weeks? Maybe even a month? There’s six of us, all family, so we’d prefer to stay under the same roof.”

“I’m sure I can find something,” said the Mayor. “There’s plenty of great homes still open in the town. Though I’m also sure you’ve seen that life can be pretty hard up here, and resources are difficult to acquire. So I hope you know what you’re getting yourselves into.”

“Don’t worry about that,” said Mia, “we do whatever it takes to get everything that we want.”