Escape to Earth 1: Running From Fate (3 page)

“What’s a John Doe?”

“Someone whose identity isn’t known.”

“How did you find him?”

“I’ve scanned their news agencies for accidents. The rental car he was in had documents on who he was.”

“I would think the locals would have found out the same way you did.”

“They had more important things to do. Step out and collect about ten ounces of material you find loose outside.” He looked at the door and didn’t see how to open it. Then he saw a handle move and the door opened. “Now you know how.”

He stepped outside and walked around the parking lot picking up loose pieces of asphalt around the parking lot’s edges. He went back to the car and the rear popped up. He dropped the pieces into the converter and saw them disappear. He stepped back inside and closed the door, “Those pieces of hard material smelled …”

“Like a carbon based material.”

“It did.”

“I didn’t notice but it appears this civilization uses oil based liquids for most of its fuel and manufacturing. The asbestos should have told me.”

“Oil?”

“I know; the thing they have in abundance is so rare as to be non-existent in all the other known civilizations. If the stalkers come here, this planet will be a prize that many species will go to war to possess. I’ve finished your driver’s license.”

He looked in the center of the panel and saw a rectangular piece of plastic. He saw the image on it and said, “Is this how I appear?”

“It is.”

“Boy, am I repulsive or what.”

“I agree, but you look like the locals. You’ll pass inspection. Now close your eyes and I’ll feed you the information I’ve collected from their broadcasts.”

He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes as a huge amount of data was sent streaming into his brain. It continued for the rest of the night.

• • •

He watched the owner of the Pawn Shop buy the person’s gold and pay about half of what it was worth. “Why did that simpix accept that for their gold? They should know it was worth much more.”

“Not really.”

“What do you mean not really? The broadcast says gold has gone up to $935 an ounce today. It was clearly more than an ounce and they accepted five hundred dollars.”

“The owner of that shop is a master in deceiving people. He told that person that the gold was only ten karat instead of the fourteen karat it actually was. That decreased the value to about six hundred dollars. They felt they were getting a fair deal.”

He shook his head and said, “I think I understand. However, I’m still not very good at speaking their language.”

“That’s actually a good thing.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t even think about the correct words, just speak quickly and they’ll think you’re an alien.”

“Uhhh, duh, I am an alien.”

“No, you don’t understand. Look at the information you received last night and use the term green card to make your search.”

His eyes narrowed and after a moment they widened, “You want them to think I’m from another country.”

“Yes I do and there’s a green card and new driver’s license in the center console. The person whose identity you’ve taken did come from another country. Put the first driver’s license I gave you into the console and take out the new cards.”

He opened the center console and saw the two cards. He looked at the green card and frowned, “Where is this Norway?”

“It’s close to Sweden. The important thing is that most people have no idea what a Norwegian accent sounds like. If someone asks you a question you don’t want to answer, just say, ‘I not understand.’”

“And what happens if I actually do run into a Norwegian?”

“I gave you the language last night. Just connect with me mentally through your wrist unit and I’ll speak for you. Just don’t resist the connection.” He shrugged and stared at the name on the two cards, “How do you pronounce this?”

“Lukas Axel.”

“Ok, do you have the gold ready?” The console opened and he saw a gleaming series of links connected to each other. “If they ask where I got it…”

“It was passed down to you from your grandfather.”

“What is that?”

“The father of your father.”

He shrugged and just before he stepped out of the car, the pod said, “You should go and hit the front door with your hand to attract the owner of the building. DO NOT HIT IT TOO HARD! Once the owner comes to the door, tell him you’re interested in renting the space he has available. If he asks if you want to see it, ask him how much it will cost you. I’ll contact you through the unit if the price is fair. Try to get him to come down some, every owner expects you to make the effort. If you both agree on you getting it, tell him you have to go to the BANK to get the money.”

He followed the pod’s instructions in his mind and was able to pull out the words and their meanings. He nodded and started to open the door again and heard, “Make sure the rent includes a parking space. Tell him you’re going to leave your car and walk to the train.”

He nodded and reached for the door again and heard, “If the pawn shop owner doesn’t offer a good price…”

“ENOUGH! I’ll still be sitting here tomorrow at this rate. Let me see if he’ll rent me the space first.”

“I’m just trying to help.”

He sighed, “I know; I’m sorry.” He reached for the door handle and paused expecting another interruption, when it didn’t happen he opened the door and stepped out. He looked at the clothes he was wearing and wondered where the pod had found them. Then he realized the pod had made them from the material he had put in the converter the night before. He walked around the car and then went to the street that ran beside it. He walked to the corner and saw, Calumet Street. That’s a funny sounding name.

He turned the corner and walked up the front steps to the landing. He looked back over his shoulder and saw the city center; this house was located on the top of a hill and he could see the city over the rooftops of the houses. It was a cold grey day and he pulled his collar up around his neck. He turned and raised his hand and saw a black button on the wall under a light fixture. He thought about it for a moment and found that the black button was a doorbell. He pressed it and heard a sound inside the house. He then heard a voice from a square under the doorbell, “Yes, what is it?”

“I need to rent space. Sorry, I want to rent space.”

He stared at the speaker for a few moments and then heard the lock on the front door being turned. A middle aged Human stepped out of the door and stared at him in silence. “Is room still…uhhhh…”

“Yes it is.”

He smiled and said, “How much?”

“Where are you from?”

“Norway.”

The man nodded, “Not very many men your age have blonde hair. I knew you weren’t from around here. How long do you want to rent it?”

“I not understand.”

“The apartment is fifteen hundred dollars a month.”

“I was hoping twelve hundred.”

“No!”

“I pay three months.”

The man stared at him and nodded slowly. After a moment he said, “Thirteen hundred.”

He shook his head, turned to leave and the man said, “That’s the best I can do and it includes a parking place in the back. You’ll have to pay several hundred for a parking pass to park on the street.”

He stared at the owner and then smiled, “May I see?”

The man nodded and took him up to the second floor. He didn’t count on the space having furniture, which was a bonus, although it wasn’t good furniture. He listened to the owner as he talked about how the heater and AC operated and at the end he said, “I will take. I must go to bank to get dollars.”

“I’ll give it to someone else if you don’t come back quickly.”

“I leave car. Me walk to bank. I want the…apartment.”

The Man nodded and he walked off the porch and took a left at the street. The pawnshop was about three miles away and he had to walk down the steep hill to the main street a mile away. He started walking and thought about how to negotiate with the pawnshop owner. He also noticed that the human who he spoke with about the apartment didn’t appear to be in good health. His color didn’t look right.

• • •

Halfway down the hill he saw three humans that were staring at him from the other side of the street. They had dark skin and their expressions didn’t appear friendly. He found it surprising that the dominant species on this planet had many different appearances. It was like there were species within species. Every Welken looked pretty much the same. Black skin, silver hair, four fingers, never smiling. This species was different. He focused his hearing on them and listened to them, he heard one of them say, “This one looks like an easy Pidgeon.”

The other two nodded and they started crossing the street toward him. He analyzed the words and discovered they were going to attack him. He immediately started running and the three would be thieves were shocked at how fast he disappeared down the hill. “That dude is fast as Bolt.”

The leader shook his head and they went back to the other side of the street and leaned against a waist high brick wall. They would find a mark soon enough.

• • •

He arrived at the pawnshop and spent a few minutes looking around. He didn’t see anything of interest and a young, blonde and black-haired female came over, “Is there something I can help you find?”

He smiled at her and sensed her body temperature rise. Ummmm, why did she do that? “I see sign.”

She raised her eyebrows, “What sign?” He turned and walked toward the front door. She followed him as he stepped outside and pointed at the ‘We buy Gold’ sign taped to the window. “Do you want to sell gold?”

He raised his eyebrows and she shook her head. He reached in his pocket and took out the gold bracelet. The girl saw it and her eyes went wide. She didn’t know much but she knew this weirdo had a valuable bracelet. She turned and said, “Come with me.” He raised his eyebrows and she shook her head and waved at him to follow. He fell in behind her and she took him to the owner who was discussing a sale. They waited as the owner argued with the customer and after a moment he said, “Can’t you see I’m busy!”

She turned to him and said, “Show the gold!”

He took the bracelet out of his pocket and the owner’s eyes went wide. He looked at the customer, “Eighty dollars or nothing.”

“But…”

“OK, it’s nothing; now get out of here.” The customer scowled and left the counter. The owner turned to him and said, “What have we here?”

The Girl said, “He doesn’t speak good English.”

The owner smiled at that. He held out his hand and said, “May I see it?”

He stared at the owner just long enough and then took the bracelet out of his pocket and handed it to him. The owner immediately knew that this was pure gold and had to weigh at least thirteen ounces. He walked over to the jewelry counter and placed the bracelet on a black velvet pad. He reached under the counter and took out a scale. He placed the bracelet on the scale and the display showed, 13.1 ounces. Holy Mother of Midas! He kept his expression neutral and said, “I can give you two thousand dollars.”

He stared at the owner and lifted the bracelet out of the scale and turned toward the front door. The owner rushed around the counter said, “Whoa, whoa!” He stopped and his expression showed his disgust. The owner lifted his hands and said, “It appears you know your gold. I’ll give you seven thousand dollars.”

He kept the bracelet in his pocket and said, “Twelve thousand.”

The owner laughed out loud, “That’s almost full price and I can’t survive without making a profit. Where did you get this?”

He looked at the owner and said, “Given from grandfather.”

The owner said, “Let me see it again.” He handed it to him and the owner was amazed at the workmanship in the links. The clasp was missing but the bracelet was flawless. He didn’t need to test it to know that it was pure 24 karat gold. He looked up and said, “Ten thousand.”

He took the bracelet out of the owner’s hand and said, “I’ll take it to another place.”

“Ten thousand five hundred, that’s my final offer.”

He stopped and stared at the owner. His bushy eyebrows were high on his fat forehead. He could tell that he wanted the bracelet a lot, but… “In money.” The owner nodded so hard his cheeks moved up and down. “OK.”

“Let me see your driver’s license.”

He handed the license to the young girl and she began filling out the forms. The owner kept staring at the bracelet in his hand as he moved to the back cabinets and took out a cash box. The girl said, “This is a New York address.”

The owner looked at him and said, “Is this your address?”

“I not understand.”

“Do you live at this address?” He raised his eyebrows and the owner said, “Use that address.”

“But…”

“Look, I know it’s the genuine article. Use that address.” The girl turned around and continued filling out a form. She finally completed it and she put it in front of him on the counter and said, “Sign here, here, and here. Initial in the box.”

He pressed the button on the wrist unit and heard, “Sign your name…oh forget it, give me control.” He relaxed and felt the pod take the instrument the girl had handed him and write something on the form. The owner pushed a stack of currency toward him and held out his hand. He put the bracelet in the owner’s hand and took the currency and stuffed it in his jacket’s pockets. The young girl looked at his driver’s license and said, “Come back and see us, Lucas.”

He looked at her and smiled, “I will.” He walked out of the store and thought his new name sounded good when she said it. “Lucas.”

• • •

He finally made it back to the foot of the hill at Calumet Street and saw a building with a sign on it that read, “Auto Parts.” He stopped and stared at it for a moment and saw a machine pull up in front of it that looked just like the Pod’s new look. A young human got out and entered the store. Lucas followed him inside and heard him say, “I need a good wax that will protect and shine my new baby.”

The young man behind the counter looked out front and said, “WOW, a new Vette!” Can I see it?” The young man nodded and they walked outside. Lucas followed them as the owner showed the interior and responded to questions, “Yep, 454 horsepower. It’s a beast.”