Shoshone Station: The Galactic Consortium season 2

Episode Six: Africa #4

Nyuragusu had been the largest of nine refugee camps that, at their peak, had housed almost 400,000 refugees fleeing into Tanzania from various war-torn countries on its borders. The Consortium had placed one of its solar stations directly over the camp. They had built what had quickly become the largest Consortium base on Earth, adding close to another hundred thousand relief workers and civil engineers.

The climate was tropical, and January was the rainy season. A hot, wet heat slapped Fox in the face as he stepped out of the ground station. It was followed quickly by the noise of many people and much activity. Ray certainly had it right. This was a rapidly growing metropolis. The ground base, just beyond the parking area, was ringed in by a roundabout, a busy road that completely circled the base. The traffic was thick, a combination of large electric trucks of Consortium make, gas-powered vehicles, bicycles, and occasionally a hand-pulled cart. Four pedestrian bridges crossed the roundabout in a wheel-like pattern and the foot traffic was considerable.

To his left was the new Consortium city of Naurasathanas. He could see a half dozen buildings seven or eight stories high, not skyscrapers but far larger than he would've expected in such a short time. Beyond that were a number more still under construction.

To his right was the Consortium base for the African Administration. It was a huge sprawling affair with bunkers, warehouses and, in the distance, spaceships and other air transports.

Straight in front of him was the refugee camp itself. Just across the roundabout, they had fenced off a small area. A medical clinic and a couple of the canvas shelters that had once housed the majority of the people were being maintained as a museum and memorial to what the camp had been. Beyond it was a sprawling landscape of geodesic domes, quick prefab shelters that the Consortium had brought in. They were grouped together into small villages, with one or two larger domes toward the center of each village.

An electric tram pulled into the parking lot, and Fox joined the crowd to board it. He'd messaged Nara just before arriving at the station, but zie was busy at the new Kurgara Temple base, which was on the far side of the Consortium base.

The tram was packed, and Fox was surprised at the diversity of people inside. Men and women in Consortium dress or civil-service uniforms predominated. African locals, predictably, were the next largest group. But he saw a number of people of European descent as well. Two young women behind him chatted in singsong invoices that Fox guessed to be some Scandinavian language. A Japanese man sat next to him, studying Consortium script on his slate.

"Took a semester off from Cal-Tech," a man said in English from across the aisle. "Plan to work for the administration for a while. Hopefully will earn enough to go back."

The woman next to him shrugged and said, "Not sure if I'm going back. I was studying computers, you know. But how much call is there going to be for our computer tech now? I'm going to think about it, maybe do some basic education in my spare time. If I rate for it, I hear they have good colleges."

The Scandinavians behind them broke off and started in English. "Hey, yeah, there's a real good university on Shin Station. Friend of ours went to study medicine there."

At the first stop on the base, the overhead announced, "New orientees for African Administration, exit here." About three quarters of the tram emptied. Thereafter, each stop would call out a bunker number and a handful of people would climb off. By the time the overhead announced, "Last stop, African Administration base," there were three locals and Fox left on the tram.

The road ran through a fence at the north end of the base. The gate was open, and while there was a gatehouse with guards, they didn't seem to be bothered with people coming and going.

While the administration base was big, the refugee camp was bigger and growing every day. The dome houses in the village structure certainly felt homier than a giant canvas tent, but they also took up a lot of space. Especially when you added the landscaping, open parks, and plants. Were they really necessary? He shook the question off. Surely somebody had thought that through.

The road rose, and he could see, at the top of the hill, a large, relatively flat space had been sectioned off. A spaceship had landed there, and he stopped to inspect it. It looked a lot like a medical evac ship, but it was silver, and the symbols painted across it were different. It was a Kurgara ship; Nara's battalion was starting to arrive. It was surrounded by the beginnings of their permanent base.

Closer at hand and on the left side of the road, a crew was busy constructing shelters. A couple of men in red military uniforms watched them as they worked. Must be a penal crew, Fox thought. Most of the crew was African, and a few had scars and hardened looks that made Fox think they must have been rebels from somewhere.

A white man in US military fatigues was heading up one of the crews. He noticed Fox the same time that Fox recognized him. "Hey, Fox!"

Fox swallowed. Gerald Klempke had served with Fox on board the USS Cambridge. He'd been one of the crewmen injured and rescued by the Corelean. He and his bunkmate, Green, had attempted to rape a Consortium healer and had been sent to penal labor for that crime. "Klempke," he said.

"What the heck brings you to Africa?" Klempke asked. Fox was scowling, but Klempke was doing his best to barrel over the less-than-stellar reception he was getting.

"Just visiting."

Klempke glanced up at the Kurgara base and nodded. "Yeah, heard about that. So you two still . . .?"

"Yeah. In fact, I'm expected. Should really get going."

"I suppose. Hey," he said as Fox made to turn away, "it's just, I haven't seen no one since—" He broke off and didn't finish. "Just Green. Can't leave yet, haven't earned that privilege. I know I ain't got the right to ask, but if you could stop by and visit before you go, man, I'd appreciate it."

Klempke looked so lost, so alone, Fox found himself nodding. "I'll see what I can do." The last thing he wanted to do with his vacation was to visit a rapist serving time in a penal colony.