+++

Turned out the so-called Hero Park was a work in progress.

As in there were no heroes in it.

Well, there was one statue near the entrance, the Huxx founder of the colony, name unpronounceable, but the rest of the oval space lay completely empty. Which didn’t appear to embarrass Ya Ying or Mon Uhk in the slightest, as both figures stood there with mouths agape, staring out in clear awe and wonder at a field of pure, object nothingness. Joooon, on the other hand, seemed to be a little more apathetic, her fingernails picking at the greying-white cloth over her mouth…the same cloth that had been there all day and was probably starting to smell bad.

‘Truly a wondrous site,’ announced Ya Ying, nodding at their own line, arms spread out and gesturing at the surrounding expanse. ‘It might seem strange to outsiders like yourself, Miho…it did to the Vohyangah, and the other types, when this place was first conceived…but the concept is actually quite simple…quite astute too. Think about it, what is the main hindrance to a progressive society? The past. Traditionalism. And what chains us to such things? Legends. Heroes. Long dead Huxx who were far from perfect, who had flaws that would make even Mon Uhk here blush.’

Ya Ying paused, acting out a fake headmaster look to their underling, then quickly turned it into a wink when they saw Mon Uhk’s mouth opening to complain. ‘Calm down, comrade, it’s just a little aside. Though it is this type of traditionalism that…taken to the extreme…can cause problems down the line. Which is where Hero Park comes in. A space for the legends to come. Overseen by the one Huxx pioneer who proposed the concept, and then popularised it. Truly a great figure...a prophet even.’

‘This isn’t snow…right?’ asked Miho, ignoring the history lesson and bending down to run fingers through the white grit on the ground.

‘Sorry?’ asked Ya Ying, eyes struggling to pull away from the sole hero statue.

‘Feels more like hardened salt…giant granules of it.’

‘Ah, the weed killer.’

‘Weeds?’

Ya Ying lowered themselves to the same level as Miho’s head, picking up some grit of their own. ‘A strange thing for you to focus on, but…the terrain in this part of the colony seems to capture a lot of moisture, which in turns allows certain types of weed and bacteria to thrive. Not sure of the exact science behind it, but this grit seems to help manage things.’

‘Looks quite pretty,’ said Miho, standing back up and studying the future Hero field in totality. ‘If you don’t look at it close up.’

‘Ha, I’ll assume there’s no metaphor attached,’ replied Ya Ying, throwing their handful of grit backwards and inadvertently hitting Mon Uhk on the chin.

A quick shrug was offered, then a laugh as the Huxx tour guide got back to their feet and patted Miho on the spine.

‘Well, I can see you’re not too enthused by this place.’ They paused, putting a yellow hand on their stomach, where, according to one of the books Miho had read, the main Huxx heart was located. ‘Perhaps due to my own limited skills as a guide.’

‘No, it’s fine.’

‘Clearly I’m not as experienced as the Jjanna friend you had before, probably not as charismatic either…or not as provocative, at least.’

‘Really, it’s not that. I’m just a bit tired, that’s all.’

‘I am curious though…what exactly was the Jjanna’s method? What did they say about the elevator that made you so intrigued?’

‘Nothing special.’

‘Come, you can tell me. I want to know. Honestly, what did they say?’

‘Well…’ Miho glanced back at Joooon, who with the tiniest muscle movements possible attempted to shake her head, and then Mon Uhk, who appeared to be stuck on their usual death glare setting. ‘It was just the elevator mostly. How it was a joint effort by different types…and that it used tech developed by the Vohyangah.’

‘Jjan propaganda lies,’ blurted out Mon Uhk, kicking out at the weed-killing grit and, intentional or not, hitting their boss on the back of the calves.

‘That’s quite enough from you,’ said Ya Ying, their tone shifting to that of a military drill instructor…then remodulating instantly as they shifted back with a smile to Miho. ‘It’s okay, us Huxx have been known to be more than a little proud of our achievements. And there is always more than one side to a story, of course. As well as more than one side to the bias.’

‘I don’t know…’ said Miho, literally moving his shoulders up like an actor in the village theatre troupe.

‘The key is to find a way through the bias…into the middle…to where the truth typically lies.’

‘In the middle?’

‘And…at all costs…to avoid drifting out to the lunatic fringe.’

Miho took yet another pat on the shoulder from the Huxx guide, then looked left at the statue of their very stern-looking ancestor. Or progenitor. Whatever the word was for non-family members who died hundreds of years before. ‘I think I understand.’

‘Good, good.’

‘Back in Japan…my province…we have these daimyō’s who pin notices to doors in some of the villages…usually the ones near the border of their territory. Saying that the other daimyō on the other side of the border is terrible, that they fund bandits, and raise taxes so they can buy more kidnapped boys and girls to have sex with. One notice…I remember…said that our neighbouring daimyō, Norimasa, liked to have sex with the corpses of six year old girls. Really crazy stuff. But some of the people in my village believed it, like, they really, really believed it.’

‘Hmm…interesting story,’ said Ya Ying, going back to the blue stain on their wrist, giving it what the fuck eyes.

‘Maybe not exactly like your case here, but…I don’t know. It’s what came into my head.’

‘No, it’s-…it’s fine. Some similarity…perhaps.’

‘Is that itchy?’ asked Miho, looking at the blue stain.

‘This? No, no…just a bit of…clumsiness on my part.’

‘Paint?’

‘Hmm, something like that, yes.’ Ya Ying gave the stain a final dramatic scratch then clapped their hands together. ‘Right, how about a change of scenery? Somewhere a bit more engaging?’

‘The sky canteen,’ mumbled Mon Uhk a little too loud, and getting a stern look back [the fiftieth of the day] from their superior.

‘Miho, tell me…how do you feel about modern art?’

‘Err…’

‘Ignorance plus doubt. Perfect.’

+++

Compared to the endless sheets of calligraphy and Mt Fuji scenery that Miho had grown up around, the Huxx version of art was on a whole other level, truly mind-scraping, in fact, like a firework being shoved directly into the brain and programmed to explode on loop for all eternity.

Robes with faces cut into them, boxes painted shock green, mad black scrawls on the wall instead of a canvas, blood-red string hanging down from the ceiling with little plastic knives attached to the end, a giant baby duck shrieking NO over and over and over and over and-

‘What do you think? Pretty wacky, huh?’ asked Ya Ying, flicking one of the little plastic knives.

Miho shook his head, trying to take in a full panoramic of every insane thing currently assaulting his senses…then letting out an almost inaudible, ‘yeah.’

‘This…I can say with complete confidence…is pure Huxx.’

A cough from behind, Joooon holding up a hand in apology.

‘We call it zaum-modernism…a kind of detachment from reality, yet at the same time, a reformation of it. Hmm. I can tell by your face that you don’t know what I’m talking about. That’s okay. I don’t either. Neither does Mon Uhk, despite that weird grin on their face. No, we just read the blurbs below the art pieces, and…beyond that…the idea is just…to feel it.’

‘Feel it?’

‘Whether it’s any good or not…well, that’s up to the critics. But, I will admit, even as an amateur, I’m particularly attracted to anything with a black element involved.’ Ya Ying drew themselves closer to the wall with the black scrawls, folding both hands behind their waist. ‘Not sure why…but it feels comforting somehow.’

‘What is this one?’ asked Miho, standing next to Joooon in front of a white on black canvas, both of them following the white swirls with an outstretched finger. Then bumping into each other and briefly looking annoyed, then confused…then flicking at the other’s fingertips in mock-rage.

‘Well, it’s definitely white…’ replied Ya Ying, walking over and taking up position just outside their battle arena. ‘Beyond that…’

‘Reminds me of someone I know…’ said Miho, powering down his fingers and staring into the white swirls.

‘A human?’

‘Yes.’

‘With…white splashes on their skin?’

‘No, wait…maybe not. I don’t know. Now that I think about it…with all that’s happened, and everything the fox said…maybe she wasn’t human.’

‘Well, the painting here is quite abstract, so, unless it’s a Ceranouk you’re talking about…’

‘A what?’

‘…then it probably was a human. Ceranouk. A kind of snow entity. Did you not read the book in your room?’

‘I did, but…’

‘No, that’s too harsh, you’re brand new and it’s far too much to remember.’ Mon Uhk let out a breath of very loud disapproval nearby, getting another silent rebuke from their superior. ‘See, a Ceranouk is quite a rare type in our system…mostly due to a lack of interest in reproduction…a kind of nihilism even. Because of this, you don’t see them around much. Not in the urban zones. They tend to live in cold, isolated areas, existing half the time in solid form, half as a kind of white, wintery breeze.’

Miho opened his mouth long enough to mutter, ‘no, that can’t be…’ then closed up again and looked back at the painting.

Cold skin, check.

Seeking cold areas, check.

Weird attitude to village life, to other residents, check.

But still…his Yuki…a demon?

‘I assume from your silence…’ started Ya Ying, placing a yellow hand on Miho’s shoulder, then flinching when something vibrated in their jacket pocket. ‘Wah, not again. I told them not to-…’

They took out the padd and swiped right, eyes ballooning when they saw the incoming message.

‘End of the tour?’ asked Mon Uhk, coming up behind and covertly nudging Miho out of the way with the tip of their elbow.

‘Finally, Miho’s results are in. Yes, we’ll have to suspend the tour, get our Vohyangah enigma over to the medical centre.’

‘My DNA results?’ asked Miho, wiping fingers on his palm.

‘Yes, yes, very exciting, isn’t it? But let’s go quickly before one of the scientists presses the wrong button on the computer and deletes everything. Don’t laugh, Joooon, it’s happened before. The Atashhka hiding in the graviton emitter, remember?’

‘The results are definitely there now?’

Ya Ying turned back to Miho, doing little clapping motions with their hands. ‘Yes, it’s confirmed. Don’t worry about my little aside, I was only half joking. Though we should still hurry. Mon Uhk, you are relieved, Joooon, you may escort our young Vohyangah as a way to boost his morale. Come, over here.’

Miho vaguely nodded at the orders that weren’t directed at him as the sleeve of his yukata got seized by a practically flying Ya Ying and the rest of him was dragged, along with the non-seized Joooon, out of the art museum and into a waiting pod.

‘This will determine your immediate future, my young comrade, the direction of the next ten years of your life…ten at the very least,’ explained the Huxx as they cruised up into the air and then into the darkness of a tunnel tube. ‘You should be very excited. And nervous too, of course. But not too nervous as the news can’t ever be that bad. Right, Joooon?’

The Vohyangah woman traced a smile line over the surface of her mouth cloth, then turned to stare out the pod window, first at the darkness, then at the green lights welcoming them into what Miho assumed was the medical centre.

‘Here we are, DNA town,’ announced Ya Ying, pushing open the door half a second before the pod had come to a halt, swatting away the approaching Huxx guards with straws clutched in their hands, possibly weapons, and guiding both Miho and his supposed morale support officer down a set of grey, metal stairs to a place that looked kind of like an ice palace.

Felt like one too, with cold air funnelling down from the ceiling.

‘Is this the medical centre?’ asked Miho, pulling both sides of his yukata in tight.

‘Wait here,’ replied Ya Ying, greeting another tall Huxx figure in a pale blue coat as they came out of a large room with dozens of computers inside…as well as dozens of other Huxx figures in pale blue coats pretending to work on them.

Pretending because their fingers were barely moving, and all of them kept looking down at their knees…as if a phone were sitting there, calling to them.

‘Feels like Hokkaido in here,’ said Miho, voice chattering a bit.

‘Helps protect the science stuff,’ read a message on Joooon’s phone, briefly held up in front of his face and then withdrawn when her hand started to shiver.

‘You’re cold too?’

The Vohyangah stared forward, gripping one hand in the other as she watched Ya Ying enter the large computer room and look at one of the screens.

‘Wanna hug…for warmth?’

A muffled sound came from beneath the cloth, something a bit like a yes, so Miho moved closer to Joooon and slid his left arm around her side.

The elbowed response was instant but only marginally painful, and was followed by a slight shrug, which Miho guessed was Joooon’s way of saying sorry about the violence, but don’t touch me ever again.

Or alternatively, sorry, but don’t do that in public, touch me later, in my room.

It was probably a bit of a stretch in this case, with Miho being at least partially responsible for the cloth over her mouth, but…it wouldn’t be the first time it had happened. Yuki had been quite militant at first, before he fell in the river and-

Miho blinked, realising that something had just changed visually.

The computer room…it had gone dark.

Everything…everyone…inside was now completely invisible, lost somewhere within the pitch black darkness.

‘They’ve blotted out the aluminum glass,’ said the message on Joooon’s screen, shooting in from the left.

‘Why?’

Joooon typed a little more, then a little more…then looked at what she’d written and deleted it. Then typed out one single word.

‘Security.’

‘About what? Me?’

There was no answer to this one, no attempt to even type out a rehearsal line; just a firm, studious stare forward at the darkness opposite.

With his morale support cushion switched off, Miho had little choice but to do the same. Stare at the darkness. Where his DNA results were currently being viewed. Allegedly.

Was Ya Ying right?

It could never be bad news?

Miho shifted to the ceiling, examining a blinking green light coming from an orb that appeared to be floating up there.

What if his family…his real family…didn’t want him?

What if they were a bunch of psychopaths?

What if-

Miho cut the tangent of negativity and blurted out, ‘what is it?’ as Ya Ying came out from the room ahead and, a few seconds later, the window glass re-brightened itself.

‘Frustrating news, I’m afraid…’ the Huxx said, taking Miho’s hand and giving it some of their famous little pats. ‘Don’t worry, not bad…just…frustrating.’

Miho glanced at Joooon, who continued staring forward at the glass, scratching her neck with one single nail, giving absolutely nothing away.

‘Your results…were a false alarm. One of the base DNA sugar groups was misidentified.’

‘I don’t understand…’

‘Me neither, the details are very technical. But I’m assured that the results will come…it’s just going to take a few more days, that’s all.’

‘A few more days?’

‘Which you are welcome to spend anywhere you like; in your room, at the sky canteen, outside with your morale officer here. We’ll leave Mon Uhk at home this time, I think. What do you think?’

Miho looked ahead into the computer room, shivering a little.

Not because of the cold air from the ceiling…well, not entirely…but more for the fact that several of the Huxx scientists were pretending to look at the wall as they secretly glanced in his direction.

Was it him they were looking at?

Or Joooon and her mouth cloth?

‘Okay, I’ll infer from the trembling skin that you want to get out of this icy breeze. Me too. How about we try the sky canteen? Get you a nice, hot Vohyangah coffee. Sound good?’

+++

It took a few hours and a few types of coffee before Ya Ying finally grew tired from all the reassuring and constant explaining of things to a very silent Miho, and, with a long, battle-cry of a yawn, allowed the young Vohyangah to retreat to his room.

Or the room given to him by his Huxx hosts.

Not really mine in any meaningful way, he thought, looking at the lack of décor on the walls, then the pile of alien books by his futon.

But then…what was mine?

Last place I slept was a prison cell in a Jjan castle…back in Japan…which seemed like a lifetime ago now.

As did the ones who slept next to me.

Akira. The mage guy…Daiki. The weird glowing fox.

And Aya, the one who risked her life to rescue me…rescue us…all of us.

He turned on his side, facing the window and all the Huxx colony space stuff going on beyond it…completely uninterested in any of it.

I wonder where she is now.

Is she safe?

Happy?

His finger flicked out at the spine of one of the books, reading the title and forgetting it instantly.

And what about the others?

Did they escape?

Are they okay?

Alive?

Flicking out at the second spine down, Miho frowned when it made a loud knocking sound back…then shook his head and shouted, ‘yeah?’ in the vague direction of the door.

There was no immediate response, and Miho waited until enough time had passed before getting up from the futon, putting a t-shirt on and sliding open the door.

Either an invisible spirit was messing with him or there was no one there.

Probably the former, knowing my luck, he thought, checking both sides of the corridor and catching a brief glimpse of someone vanishing round the far corner.

Joooon?

Ya Ying?

He was too tired to run after whoever it was, and besides, there was a note on the floor by the door, an actual piece of paper with text written on it.

‘They’re lying to you. Be careful,’ Miho read out loud, muttering the words back to himself as if they were some ancient Chinese code, then letting out a hushed wah as the text started to fade away.

‘What the-…’ he whispered, shaking the paper to try to stop the disappearing act, and then, when that failed, folding it up and quickly closing the door behind him.

Lying to me, he repeated, moving to the window, looking down at the field of dotted neon lights below.

Who?

Ya Ying?

Joooon?

Why would they do that?

Be careful of what?

There were no answers, and the person who’d left the note would be at least five corridors away by now, which meant…he was stuck. In a room that wasn’t his, on a base he didn’t truly understand, on a colony that wasn’t even on the same planet as his-…as the place he called home.

And now…in physical danger.

Apparently.